16-2 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HLST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV. 



line of connection between horsfieldi and various other sub-species. 

 Nowhere is this line sufficiently defined or wide enough to justify 

 curieri being retained as a good sub-species. 



Secondly, the discoveries of Robinson, Guildenstolpe, Herbert, 

 Kloss, and others have shewn that the range of true lineatus has to 

 be very greatly extended, though still further material is required 

 before we can say definitely what is the range of lineatus and what 

 of sharpei. It would appear, however, that Silver Pheasants of some 

 kind very nearly related to, if not the same as, Gennceus lineatus 

 lineatus, are to be found as far South as 12'*, and also East well 

 into many portions of South and West Siam. At what particular 

 point lineatus merges into sharpei has still to be worked out with 

 exactness, and to do this will require a much greater mass of 

 material than is now available. 



I retain ripponi for tfie present, though with a good deal of 

 hesitation, and if more specimens for examination are obtained 

 from the Trans Salween and Mekong River areas this sub-species 

 may also have to be suppressed. 



The Genus Gennceus contains the pheasants popularly known as 

 Kalij and Silver Pheasants, and are certainly the most closely 

 allied of all our Indian Pheasants to the Jungle-Fowl. They are 

 heavily built, powerful birds with comparatively short rounded 

 wings ; tails compressed, of sixteen feathers, either of great or 

 moderate length, and 's\ith the central feathers longest ; their legs 

 are short and fairly long, and are armed in the males with powerful 

 spurs, one on each leg, and only abnormally two. 



The head is crested in both sexes, and the sides of the head are 

 bare and highly coloured. 



Key to Species : Males. 



A. Crest white light brown albocristatus. 



B. Crest black. 



a. Upper plumage black, feathers 



with pale edges, and rump 



barred with white, breast 



laro-elv whitish leucomelanus. 



ft. Upper plumage wholly black, 



breast largely whitish melanonotus . 



f. Upper plumage black ; rump 



boldh' barred with white ; 



breast black Jiorsfieldi. 



d. Upper plumage gre^^, formed 



by narrow vermiculations and 



bars of black and white lineatus. 



e. Upper plumage almost white with 



sparse, narrow bars of black... nycthemerus. 



