566 SNOW GOOSE.
great regret of my family, as I had anticipated the pleasure of presont.-
ing it!3iarè;to my honoured and riolili trierid the»EAKi.*rf Derby,
There can i f e little douht that this species 1,roods in its grey plu
mage; when it ir géhcrally known hy the name of Blue;\vjmr<«M«iOse;
as is, thé ease with the ,yo*g of Gtm Ametmma, formerly considered
11 distinct-sifecfe. and named Grm OanuJmsis.
A n a s HVI.KRB.JKKA. <,«,.!. Syst . Nat. veil. i. p. sot . Lath. bui . Oru. vol. n?p. 837.
» Q W S sós ì ; Amas i n m;rb:>h»:.i, ftib, Ami r. Ormik. vol. « u . p. 76, pi. 68, % . 3,
M'Ho, ira.! p. 89, pl. 69, % . 5, YmmjV. ' '
Amura BTSiBBomíaiSfi® , Bbnapaac, Synopsi s of ISIriis o í Uni ted; 'States, ,p. 376.-
i i v i ' K U B O R K i i s , S n o » «oiwe, »áiííii,, and Simáis, Parala Bor. Amor.
O o o s k , Xu'ta!/, Manual , voi. ¡,. 344.
Adult Mató"" Plate CCCLXXXI Fig. 1. '
B i ! about the length df th.- head, iiiuch higher than brtìad at the
base", somewhat CBhïçaï, compressed, rounded at the tip. 'Pjijicr jiuüidibll
with tHe dorisi linfe slop'iiig, 'th'é ridge broad and flattened at
tmy'Uasó, narrowed towards the unguis, which is roundish and very
-convex, theVdfes ht-ihr witli compressed, liàril tiüith-lik'« lamella, their
Outline ascending and slightly alched ; lovver íhandilíte ascending, nearly
straight, the angle long .-mi! of moderate length, the dor-sál liti» boyotid
it convex, t l ie%t e erect, and bSet'vvith lamella' similar tii tliosi- of
the upper, but mòro numerous, t.li(: unguis oboviite arid H ta-J" convex.
Nasal groove obfe&g, parallel to the ridge, filled by the soft ra<<mbnuie
of tag bill ; nostrils inedia!, liilcrul, longitudinal, narrow-elliptical, cifiim,
pfóviOusl "
H ® of moderfllTlfp, oblong, compressed. S'eek râthërloig and
slender. 1 li'odv full, slightly depressed. ' F i l l rather short, strojfgi
placed about the centre of the bódy; lég¡5 bari; a littles above tin- joint ;
társus rather short, strong, a little compressed, 'covered all ruuud with
hexagonal, reticulated scales', nhicli 'afe smaller behind ; hind toe very
small, with a narrow membrane ; thin! toé Uffigtòl, fourth coYisidcrably
shorter, but longer than the second; all the tocs reîiculaté'd above
t , u* base, but with narrow transverse scutclla towards the: end ; the
three anterior connected by a reticulata! membrane, the outer having
a thick margin, the inner with thè margin extended into a tivo-loh&dweb.
Claws small, arched, rather compressed, obtuse, that of the
middle toe bent obliquely outwards, and depressed, with a curved edge.
SNOW GOiOSEi 567>
jpmniage eXpse,, iullj compact iibose, blended; beneath, as well as on
the; head and neck, on, the tatter of which it is disposed in longitudinali
baads;,,>gèp.arated by n^nsow gjoo^es ;> thè» feathers of the lateral parts,
small and narrow, of the back ovato oblong, and abruptly rounded, of
the lower parts curved and oblong. Wings rather long, broad; primaries
strong, incurved, broad,, towards the end tapering, the second longest,
bu^ only «¡.quarter .«¡f an àjfih longe® than, the first, which scarcely exeeadsthe
third; the lirst ami second sinuate on the inner web, the, sen
%Q?td and third,on. thg outer. ge,cjg(dwi®S, long, wry broad, rounded*
tilts iuncr curved outwards, 'fail very short, rounded, of sixteen broad
rounded leathers. ; ,
Bill carmini'red, the unguis. of both mandibles white, their edges
black. Iris light, brows, , Feet dull lake, claws browuisli black. The
general (ijluur._of the plumage ig gi^e .white ; the fore part of the head
tinged with yollnwLsh-i'i'd; the primaries brownish-grey, towards the end
blackish-tfipwn, their shafts white unless toward the end.
; Length to end of tati to end of claws 33^, to end of
wings 311» to carpus U ;. .extent of wings 62 .; wing from flexure ;
tail 6J ; bill sjloçg the ridge ,• id'Mig the edge of lower mandiible 3J ;
bare part of tibia J ; tarsus 3f : hind toe,|, its claw ^ ; middle tèe 3,
its claw ,V . VV'ejghl ®| ¡h.
Young Female, in first winter. Plate (.'CCI,X XXI . Fig, 2.
The colours of the young bird, in its first plumage, are unknown ;
but in its second plumage, in autumn and winter, it presents the appearand
exhibited in the plate. The bill is pale flesh-colour, its edges
black, and the unguis bluish-white ; the feet flesh-colour, the claws
dusky. The head and upper paxt of the neck are white, tinged above
with grey, the, lower part of .the n.ock all round, the fore part of the
batìk, the scapulars, the fore part of the breast,, and the sides, blackishgrey
; paler beneath. The hind part of the back and the upper tajlcovorts,
arc ash-grey ; as are the wing-coverts ; but the secondary
coverts are: gjeyish-black in the middle ; and all the quills are of that
colour, the secondaries margined with greyish-white ; thè tail-feathers
dusky-grey,, broadly margined with greyish-white. The dark colour
of the fore part, of the breast gradually fades into greyish-white, which
is thè colour of the other inferior parts, excepting the axillar feathers,
and some of the, lower wing-coverts,, which are white.