LÖNNBERG, A COLLECTION OF BIRDS FROM TIANSHi^N. 9 



is of importance because it shows in which direction the de- 

 velopment has gone. The feathers on the crown, for instance 

 are only green at their ends and have a concealed central 

 hght spöt. The man ti e of the semiadult is less coppery red 

 but more green than in the adult. The glossy margins to 

 the feathers are as a rule less broad. The rump has in the 

 young a stronger green gloss than in one of the adult. The 

 transverse black bars of the central tailfeathers are much 

 broader than in the adult being as broad as in turcestanicus 

 and at the tip even still broader. The breast and chest have 

 also, as in turcestanicus, a decided purplish gloss although 

 the same parts in other lights have green gloss. These two 

 last mentioned characteristics indicate that turcestanicus is 

 the original form from which mongolicus has deve- 

 loped. 



27. Tetraogallus himalayensis Gray. 



(Pi. 1) 



A young chick in down collected ^jb 1902 on Chantengri. 

 Total length of the skin 125 mm. The ground colour of the 

 upper parts is greyish or dirty white, but many or perhaps 

 most feathers have black tips and a subapical buffish spöt. 

 Through this arrangement the chick becomes transversally but 

 irregularly mottled with black and buffish. This results in the 

 black being dominant. On the head again the black spöts have 

 a tendency to be arranged longitudinally and are partly con- 

 fluent to stripes. From behind the nostril on either side a 

 stripe extends över the head to the nape. A row of black 

 spöts is seen above the whitish eyebrow. A black stripe 

 extends from the eye to the ear, another stripe (or row of 

 spöts) goes from the bill below the eye to the ear and still 

 another from the gape along the cheeks curving upwards to 

 a place somewhat behind the ear^. Throat white un- 

 spotted. Breast whitish mixed with buff; belly white. The 

 small feathers of the wing are black, richly mottled with buf- 

 fish white and with rather broad white tips. The stiU smaller 

 rudimentary feathers of the tail are light buff with white 

 tips and a few small mottlings of black. Bill black, claws 

 påle above, dark on the sides. 



^ Corresponding stripes are found in the chick of the Ptarmigan al- 

 though it otherwise is not similar to that of Tetraogalltts. 



