438 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XII. 



ibid, p. 245 ; id. " Birds of British Burma," II, p. 298 ; Barnes, 

 " Birds of Bombay," p. 407 ; Hume, " Sir. Featli.," XI, p. 345 ; Salva- 

 dori, Cat. *• Birds of British Museum," XXV I [, p. 270; Blanford 

 " Avifauna— Birds of India," IV, p. 447. 



Description : Adidl Male. — Whole head brown, varying from a rather 

 pale dingy to a rich dark umber, glossed on the upper parts with 

 purple or copper, more especiall}^ on the sides of the sinciput and nape ; 

 chin and throat sometimes rather paler than the upper parts ; nape 

 almost black, grading on the one hand into the rich brown of the 

 head and on the other into the grey oi' the hind-neck ; the grey of 

 the hind neck, formed by the most minute stipplings of brown and 

 pale grey gradually changing into the more pronounced stipplings and 

 bars of the upper plumage, which retain the same colours ; a white 

 band on either side of the nape joining the white of the neck ; rump 

 like the back ; upper tail coverts black, edged grey ; neck and breast 

 white ; abdomen the same but more or loss stippled with grey on the 

 lower parts ; flanks and sides like back. Longer scapulars velvety 

 black edged with silver grey ; shorter scapulars like the back but often 

 with dark centres ; wing coverts brownish-grey, the greater tipped 

 with rufous chestnut ; secondaries forming the s[)eculum bronze green, 

 tipped white, sub tipped black, the feather next the speculum black, on 

 the outer web narrowly tipped white and with a line of the same next 

 the quill, inner web bro\^■nish-g•rey ; remaining inner secondaries grey 

 on the outer web, black edged with grey on the inner webs. The 

 central rectrices black, the other rectrices grey-brown ; lower tail 

 coverts black except the ulterior ones, which are white ; the flanks next 

 the tail coverts are white, more or less tinged buff and with vermicula- 

 tions fainter than those on the rest of the flanks. 



Length about 26" depending on length of tail feathers, which vary 

 from 4*5" to full length ; central rectrices 9" long ; wing 10*5" to 1V5", 

 tarsus 1*5" to 1'75" ; bill from gape and from front about 2*25". 



" Length of male 22" to 29" : tail 5" to 8-5" ; wing 11, tarsus 1*6" ; 

 bill from gape 2'25"" (Blanford). 



" The drake moults all feathers except the primaries, secondaries wing- 

 coverts and six pairs of outer rectrices at the end of June, and assumes 

 plumage very like that of the female, the usual male plumage being 

 resumed by a complete moult in October" (Blanford). 



