Description of a new Melospiza from California

Vol.

XXIV,

pp. 251-252 December 23, 1911

PROCEEDINGS

OFTHE

BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

DESCRIPTION OF A NEW MELOSPIZA FROM

CALIFORNIA.

BY HARRY

C.

OBERHOLSER.

A

^scries of

song sparrows from

eastern California, ⁱⁿ the Biological

Survey

Collection,

United

States

National Museum, appear

^to represent

an undescribed

race.

Since

severalofthese

specimens were obtained

l>y

Dr. A. K.

_{Fisher, in}

Owen

_Valley,

California,

during

^the

Death

_Valley

_Expedition

of

1891,*

^this

new form may appropriately

^be

named

Melospiza melodia

fisherella subsp. nov.

('liar*.subsp.

—

SimilartoMelospiza melodiaheermanniBaird,but_larger;

upper ^surface paler, ^less rufescent; streaks on lower _parts less blackish

(

more

brownish).

Type.

—

Adult male. No. _203,507, U. S. Nat. Mus., Biological Survey Collection;

Honey

^{Lake, near} Millford, California,

June

18, 190t>; A. S.

Bunnell.

Description of type.

— _Upper

surface

somewhat

rufescent hair brown;

the

crown

with broad lateral stripes ofburnt umber,

and

_throughoutwith streaks of clove brown; ^the back and _scapulars broadly streaked with black

and

burnt

umber;

^the

rump ^and

upper tail-coverts

somewhat

streakedwithdark

brown

; tailsepia, edgedexternally with

wood brown

and dull russet; wing-quillsgrayish sepia,margined exteriorly with

wood brown and

dull russet; superior win_^-coverts mostly burnt umber, margined

more

or less with pale hair brown, ^the

median and

_greater

series and the tertials with terminal shaft markings ^of black or clove brown; superciliary stripe, auriculars,

and

sides of neck ash gray, the

lirst mentioned _palerthan the others; postocular

and

malar_stripesburnt umber; ^{entire lower} surface, including ^inferior wing-coverts, ^dull white, the ^sides, thinks, and crissum washed with brownish _{or buffy;}

breast, jugulum, sides, Hanks, and crissum streaked with burnt

umber

and clove brown.

*Recordedby Dr.Fisher(NorthAmerican Fauna No.7,1S93, p.100)as Melospiza fasciata^In<rmanni.

49—Proc.Biol. Sue.Wash., Vol.XXIV, 1911, (251)

252

Oberholsei

— A New

Melospiza from California.

Measurements of type.

— _Wing,

_66; tail 66; exposed culmen, 12.2;

tarsus,22.7

mm.

Geographicaldistribution.

—

Eastern California, southto

Owen

_Valley;

western

Nevada; and

^{centralsouthern}Oregon.

This

new

racediffersfrom_Melospizamelodia_fallaxBaird(

=

_Melospiza

melodia

montana Henshaw)

^{in its} darker upper parts,

more

blackish

brown

streaksofunder_surface,heavierbill,

and

shorter wing.