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Show 124 SUBGENUS HIEEASPIZIAS, KAUP? Hieraspiza KAUP, Class. Sang. u. Yog. 1844,116. Type, Faico Unas LiNK. f " Jeraspiza KAUP, 1851" ( Me Gray). Teraspita KAUP, Proc. Zool. Soc Lond. 1867,171. Same type f CHARACTERS.- Four outer primaries with inner webs emarginated; third or fourth quill longest. End of inner toe reaching to or beyond middle of second joint of middle toe. In the last paper cited above, Kaup includes in his genus a Teraspiza1* a single American species, Faico tinus Linn., and two Old World species, Faico virgatus Tenim. and Accipiter rhodogaster Gurney ( ex Schlegel). The first of these is probably the type, or, at least, was considered typical, since it was the one selected lor illustration of the generic characters. This is the only species of those named at present before us, so we cannot state positively whether the other two are sufficiently similar in the details of form to be properly included in the same subgenus. This is also the case with Aceipiter collaris Sclater; for, although we have examined a specimen in the museum of the Philadelphia Academy, we are not prepared to say that it is strictly congeneric with A. tinus, although according to our recollection it is* extremely similar ia the details o£ form and in relative proportions. Eegarding these specie*, | Mr. Gurney ( Ibis, 1875, pp. 470- 472) speaks as follows:-" A. collaris is remarkable in the robust character of its tarsi and feet, ami is perhaps not properly referable to any of the subgeneric forms into which the genus Aceipiter, as used by Mr. Sharpe, may be considered to be divisible, being, iu fact, very much sui generis Xotwitb-standing the great resemblance in the character of the coloration which I exists between A. collaris and A. tinus in their first dress, and, to a certain extent, in their adult plumage also, I am disposed to assign A. tinu to a group distinct from A. collaris; and iu this group I wonld also include three small African hawks, A. hartlauM, A. minullus% and A. erytJiropu*. The late Dr. Kaup associated A. tinus and A. minullm in a distinct subgenus, first under the title Hieraspiza and subsequently under that of Teraspiza, with A. virgatusL& nd A. rhodogaster ; but I am| disposed to consider that the two latter species belong rather to tbe group of which A. nisus is the type, though they are in some respects aberrant members of it." Pending the decision of this question, we include the N. collaris provisionally in the subgenus Hieraspizias, alon#| with IT. tinus. The two American species agree in the following- COMMON CHARACTERS.- Above plain plumbeous ( adult), sepia- brown or rusty- rufous ( young), the pileum abruptly darker. Tail plumbeous, crossed with four to five bands of blackish, about equal in width to tbe interspaces ( adult) or brown or bright ruftus with six to seven narrow bands of dusky ( young). Beneath white, with very regular bars of plumbeood ( adult), or ochraceous, with similar bars of brown or rusty ( young). They may be distinguished by the following diagnoses:- 1. H. TINUS.- Wing, 5.20- 6.50; tail, 3.90- 5.50; culmen, 0.45- 0.55 tarsus, 1.40- 1.90; middle toe, 1.00- 1.35. No whitish or ochraceoosj nuchal collar. Hah.- Brazil to Guatemala. 2. H. COLLARIS.- Wing, 6.75- 7.00; tail, 5.00- 5.50; culmen, 0.55; tarsus, 1.75- 2.00; middle toe, 1.28. A nuchal collar of white or ochraceous the feathers dusky- tipped. IZa&.- New Granada.. |