NO. 1288. ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLAND BIRDS— RICHMOND. 305 



including- long occipital feathers, black, the long-er feathers with nar- 

 row tips of Isabella color; ear-coverts, cheeks, and malar region clear 

 smoke gray;' throat buffy white, with an indistinct median stripe of 

 smoke gra}^; breast buffy wood brown, becoming much paler on the 

 abdomen, sides, thighs, and under tail-coverts; lesser and middle wing- 

 coverts dark drab, prominently edged with white; axillaries and under 

 wing-coverts like the abdomen, the outer portion of the under wing- 

 coverts pale buffy white. Primaries ])lack at the ends, some of the 

 inner ones with narrow white tips; base of the wings (from below) 

 white, the feathers with two dusky bars (onl}^ one bar on the outer- 

 most primaries). Tail light drab, with a broad black subterminal 

 band, and a second narrower one near the middle, less distinct on the 

 two inner pairs of feathers. Wing, 257 mm.; tail, 165; tarsus, Yo; 

 culmen, 33. '' Length, 431.5. Iris yellow; cere, base of bill, and naked 

 skin on side of head, yellow. Bill, tip black, middle bluish.'' This is 

 a ver}^ distinct species, and one of the smallest of the genus. It is 

 easily recognized by its unspotted underparts, gray patch on side of 

 head, and very small size. Ten of the eleven specimens sent by Dr. 

 Abbott are adult, and show the characters given in the above descrip- 

 tion. Some of them are a little darker below than the type, and in 

 several the throat is more or less gniy. In one female, doubtless a 

 very old bird, the underparts are consideral)ly darker than in the 

 type, and the lower breast and sides are faintly spotted with buff"; the 

 lower sides and thighs are also narrowly barred with buffy wood 

 brown. 



The immature bird differs from the adults in having buffy tips to 

 the feathers of the back, wing-coverts, top of head, and to the upper 

 tail-coverts; the wing feathers are tipped with white, the tail is less 

 prominently barred, and has three narrow bars instead of two. In 

 this specimen the iris was "brownish gra}"; feet, dirty yellow; cere 

 and orbital skin, 3^ellow, with a greenish tinge." 



The males measure (in the flesh) 419 to 431.5 mm.; Iavo females 

 are 457 mm. The stomachs of those shot contained the remains of 

 lizards, rats, a small bird, and a pigeon {Chalcophaps indlca). 



This species is named in honoi- of Mr. C. Boden Kloss, who accom- 

 panied Dr. Abbott on his Nicobar and Andaman trip, and prepared 

 many of the specimens of the present (jollection. S. Mossi was found 

 only on Great Nicobar, where it was common and quite tame. 



SPILORNIS MINIMUS Hume. 

 Spilornis iiilitiimis Hume, Htniy Feathers, I, 1S7:^, p. 46-1 (Kamorta, Xicobars). 

 "One wounded but lost upon Trinkut, a pair shot on Kamorta, and 

 half a dozen shot on Katchal, where they were common. On Little 

 Nicobar we failed to secure any, although we saw several." 



^Ridgway, pi. ii. No. 12. 

 Proc. N. M. vol. XXV— 02 20 



