262 BULLETIN 186, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



white area near the base; a broad black streak from the base of the 

 bill, through the eye, down the side of the neck; the throat white 

 (sometimes streaked with blackish), bordered on either side by a broad 

 black mustachial streak ; the remaining underparts shining pale blue 

 (often suffused with pale yellow on the breast, with vinaceous-pink 

 on the belly) , closely marked with bold black spots and bars (less so 

 on the center of the abdomen and the vent, which tend to be immacu- 

 late white). The adult female differs from the male chiefly in having 

 the upperparts dull brownish, suffused with pale blue, changing grad- 

 ually to pure blue on the rump, upper tail coverts, and tail. 



PITTA SORDIDA CUCULLATA Hartlaub 



Indo-Chinese Green-breasted Pitta 

 Pitta cucullata Habtlaub, Rev. Zool., vol. 6, 1843, p. 65 (Malacca). 



This gorgeous bird is known from northern Thailand by a single 

 adult male, collected by my men in an extensive bamboo-brake on Phu 

 Het (Nan Province), June 11, 1936. 



It has the forehead and crown to the nape chestnut-brown ; the lores, 

 chin, throat, sides of head, and a collar across the nape black; the 

 mantle shining bottle green ; the upper tail coverts shining turquoise 

 blue ; the rectrices black, narrowly tipped with blue ; the closed wing 

 paler bottle green but with a large, conspicuous turquoise-blue area 

 on the shoulder and the primaries black, crossed by a broad white 

 subapical band ; an irregular area at the center of the upper abdomen 

 black ; the center of the lower abdomen, the region of the vent, and the 

 under tail coverts scnrlet-crimson; the under wing coverts and axil- 

 laries black; the remaining underparts shining light green, more or 

 less strongly washed with blue. 



PITTA BRACHYURA MOLUCCENSIS (P. L. S. Miiller) 



Indo-Chinese Buff-breasted Pitta 



Turdus Moluccensis P. L. S. Mulleb, Natursystems Supplements- und Register- 

 band, 1776, p. 144 ("in den moluccischen Inseln," ex d'Aubenton, pi. 257, 

 error ; type locality corrected to Tenasserim, by Stuart Baker, Journ. Bombay 

 Nat. Hist. Soc, vol. 28, 1921, p. 92). 



Pitta cyanoptera, Gyldenstolpe, Journ. Nat. Hist. Soc. Siam, 1915, p. 172 (listed) ; 

 Kungl. Svenska Vet.-Akad. Handl., 1916, p. 85 (Ban Mae Na, Pha Hing) ; 

 Ibis, 1920, p. 580 ("Northern Siam"). 



Eisenhofer sent to Stockholm a male of this species, taken at Huai 

 Pu, May 24, 1912, and an unsexed, undated example from Khun Tan ; 

 Gyldenstolpe collected one male at Pha Hing, May 9, and a second at 

 Ban Mae Na, June 24, 1914. It was not recorded again from our prov- 

 inces until, in 1936, I traced an unfamiliar song to this bird, with 

 the result that, between April 27 and July 14, 1 was able to collect no 

 less than ten specimens. At least during the season of song, it ap- 



