THE BIRDS OF NORTHERN THAILAND 61 



before me, two immature females have the "index" 66 and 63 mm., the 

 "wing-tip" 83 and 85 mm., the wing length 399 and 390 mm. ; an imma- 

 ture male, the "index" 67 mm., the "wing-tip" 62 mm., the wing length 

 345 mm. Of my three examples in molt, of which the measurements 

 are necessarily somewhat inexact, the two adult males have the "index" 

 66 and 65 mm., the "wing-tip" 70 and 85 mm., the wing length 382 

 and 381 mm. ; the subadult female, the "index" 62 mm., the "wing-tip" 

 77 mm., the wing length 390 mm. 



MILVUS MIGRANS LINEATUS (J. E. Gray) 



Black-eared Kite 



Haliaetus lineatus J. E. Gray, in Hardwicke, Illustrations of Indian zoology, vol. 



1, pt. 8, 1830-1832 [= 1831], pi. 18 (China). 

 Afilvus migrans lineatus, Deignan, Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. Hist. Suppl., 1931, p. 166 



(Chiang Mai.) 

 Milvus lineatus, Deignan, Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. Hist. Suppl., 1936, p. 75 (Chiang 



Mai). 



This kite is a well-known winter visitor, which occurs chiefly along 

 the larger rivers ; at Chiang Mai it was common from October 20 (1931 ) 

 to March 21 (1929). My specimens were collected at Chiang Mai, 

 November 16, 1931, and at Doi Mae Kong Ka, October 23, 1936. 



The black-eared kite is a familiar sight at Chiang Mai, over the river 

 and above the city streets. It seems to spend most of its waking hours 

 in the air, where it is able to soar for long periods with only slight 

 movements of the wings and turning of the forked tail to one side or 

 the other. 



One of my specimens, a female, had the irides bright brown ; the orbi- 

 tal skin plumbeous-blue ; the bill black, plumbeous-blue at the base ; the 

 cere pale yellow ; the feet and toes grayish yellow ; the claws black. 



The stomach of this bird contained small lizards, but much of its 

 food must consist of offal gathered from the surface of the water. 



This is a large, long-winged hawk, with a distinctly forked tail, 

 the central tail feathers being from an inch to an inch and a half 

 shorter than the outermost. Adults are generally very dark brown, 

 with a large, noticeable white patch near the middle of the under- 

 wing. Immature birds have the plumage dark brown with whitish 

 streaks on the head, upper back, and underparts, whitish spots on 

 the shoulders, whitish tips to the feathers of the lower back and 

 tail, and the underwing marked as in the adult. The ear coverts are 

 not really black but are blackish brown, rather darker than the 

 neighboring areas. 



