1. Caprimulgus bifasciatus. Gould.
Caprimulgus bifasciatus, Gould, in Proceedings of the Zoological Society, February 1837, p. 22.
C. capite nigro fusco et fulvescente ornatus; caudâ albo bifasciatâ, fasciâ terminali latâ: primâ angustâ; primariis nigrescentibus fasciâ angustâ albâ ad medium: alis spuriis maculâ, albâ notatis; gutture lunulâ albâ; secundariis tectricibusque alarum maculâ fulvescente ad apicem; crisso pallidè rufescente; rostro pedibusque fuscis.
Long. tot. unc., 9¾; alæ, 6⅓; caudæ, 5; tarsi ¾.
Front and back of head gray, mottled with black and with little fulvous. The latter colour more abundant, and in larger markings in the interscapular region, and on the wing-coverts. The black markings give a somewhat streaked appearance to the back of head and interscapulars. On the back of throat the fulvous tint is so much pronounced, that a collar is formed which is continued under a white one round the breast. Wings: primaries brownish black; four external ones, with a large white mark, forming a band, at about one-third of their length from their extremities: these white marks are edged with fulvous, and the part on the outer web of the first primary, is wholly so coloured. The other primaries are marked with reddish brown, as are the secondaries and tertiaries, the marks becoming more numerous and smaller, and the colours more mottled, nearer the back. Tail: upper tail-coverts and two central feathers of tail marked like those on the back; the black, however, forming narrow interrupted transverse bars. The pair next to these central ones have near their extremities a large white mark, but only on the inner shaft. In the three succeeding pairs, the white spot extends on both sides of the shaft, and in each pair increases somewhat in size; so that in the external pair, the white spot is merely bordered with a very narrow, faint margin, of brown and fulvous. At about half their length, all the feathers, with the exception of the central pair, have a smaller white mark, but only on the inner side of the shaft. This mark is transverse, in the form of a band, and the white blends into fulvous on the edges of the webs. Outer web of these same external feathers, are transversely barred with black and fulvous. Under surface.—Chin, breast, belly, and lining of wings, dirty fulvous, with numerous narrow, irregular, transverse bars of brown. Throat with white collar, beneath which the fulvous tint is predominant, forming a kind of under collar, which is continued round the whole neck. Under tail-coverts fulvous,—tail itself appears almost black, with a great terminal white band, and a narrower one at about half its length.
Wings, an inch and a quarter shorter than the tail. Second primary, scarcely perceptibly longer than the third; the first about an eighth of an inch shorter than the second, and 8 ths longer than the fourth. Feathers on wing, with the outer webs, slightly excised.
| In. | |
|---|---|
| Total length | 9¾ |
| Wing folded | 6½ |
| Tail | 5 |
| Tarsi | ⁸⁄₁₀ |
| From tip of beak to rictus | 1 |
| Of middle toe without the claw | ⁷⁄₁₀ |
Habitat, Valparaiso Chile, (August).
This species frequents the mountains of central Chile. When bivouacking one night on the Bell of Quillota, at an elevation of 6000 feet above the sea, I heard a gentle, plaintive cry, which I was told was made by this bird. It is regarded with superstitious dread by many of the lower orders.
Mr. Gould observes, that “this species has a strong resemblance, at the first glance, with the Caprimulgus Europæus, but may be readily distinguished by its shorter wing, more lengthened tarsi, by a conspicuous white band across the base of the tail, and by all these feathers, except the two middle ones, having another white band near the tip.” Mr. Gould then adds, as “I am quite undecided to which of the sub-genera this and the following species should belong, I leave them for the present in the restricted genus, Caprimulgus, although I certainly perceive in it many points of affinity to the group which inhabits the United States of North America.”