BIRDS OF NORTH AND MIDDLE AMERICA 233 



the head, which, however, is ornamented in males of at least two species 

 by a hawthorn crest, and the plumage is brilliant almost beyond comparison. 

 "It is difficult by means of a written description to give any idea of the 

 magnificent appearance of these brilliant birds to anyone who has not 

 seen them. Their metallic hues of fiery red, green, purple, and gold 

 vie in beauty and in their iridescent quality with the brightest of those 

 seen among the hummingbirds, and if one could imagine one of these 

 small flying gems increased to the size of a fowl, something of the ap- 

 pearance of these monauls might be conveyed to the mind." 



These birds inhabit the Himalayan Mountains, always near the snow- 

 line, and in summer ascend to elevations of 14,000 to 16,000 feet above 

 sea level. Being thus inured to great cold, it is probable that these 

 splei:did birds would thrive and increase if liberated on our higher western 

 mountains. 



(c) PoLYPLECTRONEAE (the pcacock-pheasants) . This group includes 

 a single genus (Polyplectron) comprising six or seven species, inhabit- 

 ing India, Burma, Cochin China, the Malay Peninsula, etc. They are 

 rather small size and are characterized by the presence of two or more 

 spurs on each leg and a broad, fan-shaped tail ornamented by large eye- 

 like spots of metalHc green, blue, or purple, the upper tail coverts and 

 wing coverts having similar markings. Some of the species are crested. 



(d) Pavoneae (the peacocks). This group also includes a single 

 genus (Pavo), but with only two, possibly three, species. The common 

 peacock (P. cristatus), being domesticated, is too well known to require 

 description. It is a native of India and Ceylon. The Javan peacock 

 {P. muticiis) is similar in size and form and, to a certain degree, in 

 coloration, but has the neck and underparts green instead of blue and 

 the crest quite different, the feathers composing it being fully webbed. 

 It inhabits Burma, Ceylon, and some of the Malay countries as well 

 as Java. 



(e) Argusianae (the argus pheasants). This group contains two 

 remarkable genera, one of only two or three species, the other monotypic. 

 The well-known argus pheasant (Argusianits argus), the adult male 

 of which is 6 feet long (including the greatly elongated middle rectrices), 

 is distinguished by the enormous development, both in length and breadth, 

 of the secondary remiges, which are ornamented by exquisitely shaded 

 eyelike spots or ocelli, while the middle rectrices are also enormously 

 developed. The colors are not brilliant, consisting wholly of various hues 

 and tones of brown and gray, with minor markings of black, but the 

 exquisite shadings and pencilings, especially those on the secondaries, 

 produce an effect that is the envy of every artist. This remarkable bird 

 is a native of the Malay Peninsula, and Sumatra, while the closely 

 related A. giayl inhabits Borneo. A third species, whose native country 

 is as yet a mystery, is known only from a single primary quill feather. 



