306 PEACOCK. Chap. VIII. 



informs me, are white when they leave the egg, and they differ 

 from the young of the white variety only in having a peculiar 

 pinkish tinge on their wings. These japanned birds, though 

 appearing suddenly in flocks of the common kind, propagate 

 their kind quite truly. Although they do not resemble 

 the hybrids which have been raised between P. cristatus and 

 muticus, nevertheless they are in some respects intermediate in 

 character between these two species ; and this fact favours, 

 as Mr. Sclater believes, the view that they form a distinct 

 and natural species. 33 



On the other hand, Sir K. Heron states 34 that this breed 

 suddenly appeared within his memory in Lord Brownlow's 

 large stock of pied, white, and common peacocks. The same 

 thing occurred in Sir J. Trevelyan's flock composed entirely 

 of the common kind, and in Mr. Thornton's stock of common 

 and pied peacocks. It is remarkable that in these two latter 

 instances the black- shouldered kind, though a smaller and 

 weaker bird, increased, " to the extinction of the previously 

 existing breed." I have also received through Mr. Sclater a 

 statement from Mr. Hudson Gurney that he reared many 

 years ago a pair of black-shouldered peacocks from the 

 common kind ; and another ornithologist, Prof. A. Newton, 

 states that, five or six years ago, a female bird, in all respects 

 similar to the female of the black-shouldered kind, was 

 produced from a stock of common peacocks in his possession, 

 which during more than twenty years had not been crossed 

 with birds of any other strain. Mr. Jenner Weir informs 

 me that a peacock at Blackheath whilst young was white, 

 but as it became older gradually assumed the characters of the 

 black-shouldered variety ; both its parents were common 

 peacocks. Lastly, Mr. Canning has given a case of a female 

 of this same variety appearing in Ireland in a flock of the 

 ordinary kind. 35 Here, then, we have seven well authenticated 



33 Mr. Sclater on the black-shoul- feels very doubtful on this head, 



dered peacock of Latham, ' Proc. 34 ' Proc. Zoolog. Soc.,' April 14th, 



Zoolog. Soc.,' April 24th, 1860. Mr. 1835. 



Swinhoe at one time believed (< Ibis,' 35 The Field, May 6th, 1871. I 



July, 1868) that this kind of pea- am much indebted to Mr. Canning 



fowl was found wild in Cochin China, for information with respect to his 



hut he has since informed me that he birds. 



