■n.y^ 



TH,E mtiJ>S OJP PREY OF THE PUNJAB^ 



26,1 



No. 1197,, 

 No. 1198: 



. .:.,-•. Family VULTURID^. 

 ' ', Ty^e B. 



' I ■■.;■'! ■■ Genxm Neopkion, ; ' 



Neophrpn ginginianvs, The Smaller White Scavenger Vulture. 

 ]!\/eop/iron peiciiopierus, The Large White Scavenger Vultur^ 

 or The Egyptian Vulture. 



Charcfcterutica, Nostril a narrow horizontal slit ; bill slender, and 



lengthened. 



(^olowation^ , The fully adult plumage is almost white through- 



' out, except for the primaries and the w inglet which 



' are black ; the former ate grey outside and brown 



inside towards the base ; secondaries whity brown 



^ or grey on the outer web outside, blackish brown 



' ' elsewhere; tertiaries pale brown thntughout. A 



brownish or greyish tinge oh the scapulars and 



wing coverts and sometimes elsewhere, is a sign of 



maturity. The neck hackles are often stained 



rusty. (Blanford.) 



" Young birds are at first blackish brown, the 

 scattered down on the head and throat black, then 

 pale tips appear on some of the neck hackles and 

 breast-feathers and on the smaller wing-coverts, 

 1 giving a speckled appearance ; the backj^breaet, and 

 greater wing-coverts are mottled with whitish 

 blotches. The change to the adult plumage' is 

 gradual." (Blanford.) 

 No. 1197. Bill in adults horny yellow, in young birds dark; 



cere and sides of head and throat yellow; Tegs 



' dirty yellow; claws pale horny. In young birds 



the naked parts of head and throat grey; legs and 



feet cinereous. 



No. 1198. Bill dusky, never yellow ; cere is reddish yellow, 



. darker than the cheeks, and the claws blackish 



horny. 



No. 1197. Length about 24"; tail 9-5; wing 18-25; tarsus ij-l; 



mid-toe without claw 2 5. 

 No. 1198; '' Length about 26" ; tail 10" ; wing 19" ; tarsus 3-3 ; 



' mid-toe without claw 2 6. (Blanford.) 



Habit9, «:(c.\ With regard to the two species here given I have 



quoted from the Fauna of British India almost word 



';"■■' r:" ( ' for word, and by placing the numbers in front of 



^ the description of the beak, legs, etc., have shown 



at a glance how very small the difference between 



the two species is. The latter is generally the 



I more robust bird of the two, and the very small 



,J difference in actual measurement of the mid-toe 



without claw, does not convey what this really 



means in the foot of the two birds, that of A'. 



:; V. • , perenopterus being comparatively a good . deal 



"' ' larger than the difference in the decimals of an 



- . r inch represents. . ,., 



A common feature, of every town and village }n India, the Scavenger 



Vviltnre U, next %o. the Kite, the most familiar bird in the country. 



