338 A•, RecenllyDescrt'bed North Amerfcan Bfrds. kOct.[-Auk REPUBLICATION OF DESCRIPTIONS OF NEW SPECIES AND SUBSPECIES OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. BY j. A. ALLEN. REQUESTS have been received from various members of the A. O. U., who have not full access to the current literature of ornithology,for the republicationin ' The Auk' of the descrip- tions of all new speciesand subspeciesof North American birds describedin other publications than this journal. In response to such requeststhe Council of the A. O. U. has authorized such republication,of whichthe first instalmenthere follo•vs,begin- ning with thoseincluded in the ' Ninth Supplement' to the Check- List (see Auk, XVI, Jan., x899, pp. 97-x33), and including those since published to date. In this republicationthe original diagnosesor descriptionsare given in full, and such additionalremarks as are essentialto a proper presentationof the case, in the exact words of the author, unlessotherwise indicated by the omissionof marks of quotation. Later instalmentsof similar scopeand characterwill be given at the close of each year. Phaeton americanus Granl. YELLOW-BILLED TROPIC BIRD. Phaglon amerlcanus GR^•a ', Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, No. XLIX, Dec., i897, p. xxiv; Ibis, April, x898, 288. "Adult male and female.--Similar to P. dqavirostris Brandt, but dif- fering constantlyin the following points:--the black on the outer web of the first primary extending to within half an inch of the extremity, on the secondand fourth quills reaching ahnost to the tip, while the third had the outer web entirely black. Bill entirely yellow, except above the nasal opening. "Range.--East and southeast coasts of North America, from Ber- muda to the West Indies." Vol.XVI'] a ALLEN,Recently Described North Am-erlca•; Birds. 339 Rallus crepitans waynet BREWSTER. WAYNE'S CLAPPER RAIL. Rallus crejhltanswaynel BREWSTER,N. Engl. Zo51. Club, I, 5o, June 9, I899. "Subs•ec,fic characters.-- Similar to R. cre•ilans, but the general coloring much darker, the under parts with more ashy, the under tail coverts with fewer markings. "Type, c• adult, no. 4220, collectionof W. Brewster,St. Mary's, Camden County, Georgia, March •8, •878, W. Brewster. "Crown, nape, wings and tail, plain and rather pale seal brown; wing coverts, tertials, scapulars, upper tail coverts and feathers of the back and rump, rich seal bro•vn, narrowly bordered with ashy; throat, abdo- men and a short stripe running from the base of the upper mandible to above the eye, brownish •vhite, the middle of the throat almost clear white; under tail coverts white with traces of dusky bars on a few of the feathers; flanks and crissum ashy bro•vn with transverse bars of white. Remainder of under parts, with sides of head and neck, ashy, tinged •vith pale cinnamon on the breast. Axillars bro•vn •vith narrow transverse bars of white. "Wing, 5.40; tarsus, 2.I5; arc of culmen from feathers, 2.48 [in.]. "From l?allus cre•ilans, the form just described may be most readily distinguished by the sharper contrast between the light and dark colors of the back, the centers of the dorsal feathers being rich seal brown and their edges bright ashy, •vhereas in cre•itans the brown is pale and somewhat olivaceous, and the ashy comparatively dull. Most of my specimensalso have much more ashy beneath than is fonnd in any of the examples of cre•ilans whicb ! trove seen, but this difference is not con- stant. In the tendency to an excessof ashy on the under parts, and to a scarcity or ahnost total absenceof dark markings on the under tail cov- erts, waynei agreesclosely with scottif. It is so evidently a connecting link bet•veen the latter and crepilans that it may well be doubted whether scogt•¾should continue to stand as a full species'." WySelocalily, St. Mary's, Camden County, Georgia. Ran•ye, South Atlantic coast, from Virginia southward. Railus levipes Ban•s, Railus levt•SesBA•S, Proc. N. Eng. Zo51. Club, I, 45, June 5, I899- "Characters.--Much smaller than either R. obsolelusor R. beldin•i; bill much more slender; tarsus and foot smaller than in either. In color it differs from R. obsoletus in being much darker above--more olive and less grayish, brown; in having breast and sides of neck deep cinnamon-rufous instead of grayish cinnamon, this color extending 34 ¸ ALLEN,Recently Described ]Vorth American Birds. LOct.[-Auk well up on sides of neck and meeting the color of upper parts sharply; ground color of flanks, etc., darker--less grayish; a gray patch behind eye; superciliary streak •v•ite instead of rusty. From R. beldingi it differs, in color, in having the back feathers much less decidedly streaked; breast, etc., less pinkish or sahnon-colored; flanks, etc., browner--without dusky bars bordering the white ones, the white bars wider; superciliary while instead of rusty. "Color.--Above, olive brown, broadly striped with blackish brown; breast, etc., deep cinnamon-rufous, extending over sides of neck and meeting color of upper parts sharply; flanks, etc., olive, broadly banded with white; centre of belly and throat whitish; superciliary streak white; a gray patch on side of head behind eye. " Measurements.-- Type, • adult: wing, •52; tail, 58.2; tarsus, 49; culmen, 58 mm. Topotype, • ad., No. 47,847, Coll. of Wm. Brewster: wing, I4I; tail, 56.6; tarsus,45; cuhnen,54.2 ram." Type locality, Newport Landing, Los Angeles Co., California. Canachites canadensis labradorius Banffs. LABRADOR SPRUCE GROUSE. ChanachitescanadensisYabradorius BANGS, Proc. N. EngI. Zo61.Club, I, z899,47, June 5, z899. "Subspecificcharacters.- Size of true C. canadensœsor a little larger; adult male, summer plumage, similar to true C. canadensis,except that the white markings on under parts and on border of throat are rather heavier, and gray markings of back and rump more pronounced and purer gray--less reddish olive gray; adult female, summer plumage, quite different in color from true C. canadensœs,upper parts much more purely black and gray, with much less buffy or ochraceous; under parts :nuch whiter, with less buffy or ochraceous." Type locality, Rigoulette, Hamilton Inlet, Labrador. Haliaeetus leucocephalus alascanua C. hr. Townsend. NORTHERN BALr> EAGLE. t]alt•tus leucoce•halus alascanus C. }t. TO•VNSEND, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, XI, •45, June 9, x897. "Subs2•ectfccharacters.-- Differing from hr. leucoce2•halusin size, being considerably larger. "hrabitat. -- Alaska. , "Type.--• (U.S. Nat. Mus. No. •5•567). Unalaska, Aleutiau Islands. "DimensiOnsof Ty2•e.--Wing, 23.75; tail, •.5o; tarsus,4; cuhnen, 2.6o; depth of bill, •.5o; hind claw, •.5o [inches]. Vol.x899XVI-I J ALLE•', 19ecenlly Described Norlh American Birds. 34 I "In forty specimens examined from localities between Florida and Alaska there is a regular increase in size northward. Eagles from northern States are larger than those from Florida and Louisiana. In addition to the other differences in size, the bill of the Alaskan bird is wider, while the edging to the feathers, especially on the wing coverts, is both lighter and broader. The egg of the northern bird is distinctly larger, the average of sixteen specimens being 73.5 X 57.5 ram., while that of forty-five Florida specimensis 69 X 53.5 mm." On the rangesof the northern and southernforms of the Bald Eagle see Auk, XVI, p. lO9, and on the inadmissibility of ar•r. leucocephalus ,vashingrloni• see ibid., p. •3•' Bubo virginianus pallescens Slone. •VESTERN HORNED OWL. 23ubovirg•inianus 5•allescensS•rO•TE, Am. Nat. XXXI, March, 1897, 237. "....I would propose for the Horned Owl of the interior United States (the'subarclt'cusof authors, nec Hoy) the name 5•allescens,desig- nating as the type No. 152219,Coil. U.S. Nat. Mus., •, Watson Ranch, 18 mi. S. W. of San Antonio, Texas. "Bubo vireffinianus5•allescens is smaller and paler than true virg•inia- nus (the wing measuring 13.75 in.) with much less rufous admixture. The barring on ttie belly is much finer and the feet almost pure white. "While not differing so much in size from 23. v. •act)qcusas indicated in my former paper (Auk, xS96, p. x56), its coloration is quite distinct. The latter race is darker .than 5•allescensxvith more black admixture above, heavier Lars on the belly and with the feet more mottled with rufous and brown." Syrnium nebulosum helveolum 23angus. TEXAS BARRED O•,VL, Syrnium nebulosumhelveolum BA•S, Proc. N. Engl. Zo/31.Club, I, 3 I, March 31, 1899. "Subss•ec•fc characters.- Size of true S. nebulosum; toes naked as in S. n. alleni; colors very pallid throughout; ground color of back, wings and tail, pale yellowish brown or cinnamon, lightest on wings and tail and shading on head toward sepia; all the light bars and spots on pri- maries, tertials and scapulars,large and conspicuousand white; the light bars on tail wider and paler than in true S. nebulosum; colors below all paler; dark striping and barring more clnnamomeous, less dusky, and ground color paler, more whitish; feathers of tibia and tarsus, buff to whitish, showing very little, or none whatever, of the dusky markings present in both S. nebulosumand S. n. alleni. 34.2 ALLEN,Recently Described •rorgh American •?ira's. LOct.•Auk " Size. -- Type, • adult: wing, 33;; tail, 2xx mm. Topotype, ff adult: wing, 347; tail, 2I 4 mm." Type locality, Corpus Christi, Texas. Sturnella magna hoopesi Stone. RIO GRANDE MEADOWLARK. Sturnella magna •oo•esi STONE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. x897, x49. "A careful comparison of a large series of specimens shows that the Meadowlark of the Rio Grande Valley is as light or lighter than the lightest neglecla, averaging very similar to this form in the coloration of the upper surface but agreeing with magna in the distribution of the yellow below.