DESCRIPTION AND TECHNICAL OBSERVATIONS.
Genus Culicivora. Swainson, Zoological Journal, III., p. 359. (1827.)
Small, bill rather long, compressed towards the tip, wider at base, upper mandible somewhat curved, base with about five pairs of rather long, weak bristles; wing, moderate or rather short, first quill very short, fourth and fifth, longest and nearly equal; tail, long, with the feathers graduated, outer shortest; legs, long, slender; toes, rather short. Colors usually cinereous and black. A genus exclusively American and containing several species.
Culicivora Mexicana. Bonap. Cons. Av., p. 316. (1850.)
Form. Small and slender; bill, moderate, rather long; wings, moderate; tail, long, several of the central feathers equal, others shorter and graduated, outer feathers shortest; legs and feet, long and slender.
Dimensions. Total length (of skin) about 4¼ inches; wing, 12¾; tail, 2¼; inches.
Colors. Male.—Head, above, glossy black; upper parts of the body and wings, grayish-cinereous or lead-colored; lower parts very pale ashy-white, deeper on the sides and flanks; quills, brownish-black, edged externally with ashy-white; tail, black, the two outer feathers tipped with white, having their outer webs of that color, the next two also edged on their outer webs with white and tipped with the same, readily seen on the inferior surface of the tail; bill and legs, dark. Female, with the head above uniform with the other parts—not black—otherwise, like the male.
Hab. Texas, Mexico. Spec. in Mus. Acad., Philada., and Nat. Mus., Washington city.
Obs. This species very much resembles the South American Culicivora leucogastra, De Wied, (which is C. atricapilla, Swainson,) but is smaller. We have never seen specimens of the present species with the under parts of such a clear white as is usual in the larger bird just mentioned, though it may assume it in its perfectly mature plumage. The South American bird measures in total length about five inches.
The Prince of Canino’s description of Culicivora mexicana as cited above, we regard as applicable to the female of the present species. All the species of this genus more or less resemble each other, and now require careful revision, having the appearance to us of being rather confused than otherwise, and but imperfectly described.