242 ORNITHOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS. 



white band on the rump ; (3) by a more greenish gloss on the wings; 

 (4) by much shorter tarsi, and, on the whole, much weaker and smaller 

 feet J and (5) by the absence of white on the feathers of the throat. 



It seems to me that the Chinese bird is a rather well defined form, 

 the distinguisbiug marks of which are very well pointed out in Gould's 

 original description, the greater extent of the blue gloss on the wing 

 and the remarkable stoutness of the feet being especially characteristic 

 features. It has, besides, a rather long bill. These characters hold good 

 even in the young birds, which diU'er from the young P. Jcamtschatica in 

 having the rump uniform black, while in the latter it has a broad whitish 

 band. 



From leuconotos our new bird differs in having a decidedly longer and 

 stouter bill, the white on wing and rump still more developed, and the 

 feathers on the throat entirely black. With the European form it 

 agrees in having the throat feathers entirely black,* but differs in the 

 greater amount of white on wing and rump, the larger size, and the 

 longer and stouter bill. In contradistinction to the young eastern bird, 

 the young ones of the European form have the uropygium dark. In 

 Northern and Eastern Europe (Northern Norway and Eussia), there 

 occurs a race which has more white on the primaries and on the rump 

 than in the common central European bird, being otherwise undistiu- 

 guishable. This race should stand as Pica pica boreaUs, while the 

 Spanish race with black rump, which has already been described by 

 Brehm from that country, is entitled to the name Pica pica melanotos 

 (Bum., 1858). 



Whether the different forms of Magpies mentioned intergrade, and to 

 what degree, I am, at present, unprepared to state. It must not be for- 

 gotten, however, that if we accept the theory of hybridization as an ex- 

 planation of the intergradation in similar cases, the same theory will be 

 very applicable to the present group of birds. In fact, I see very little 

 difference between the case of Magpies, and e.^.,that of the Grey Shrikes. 

 In the mean time it does not seem proper to call the present bird Pica 

 pica camtschatica until the intergradation is proved. 



* It is said that sometimes a European bird may be found having those feathers more 

 or less white at the base. This would indicate that the common European form has 

 sprung from an original stock having this feature. Such an individual, showing char- 

 acters lost a long time ago by the species as a species, is liable to come up even among 

 the best differentiated species, but, of course, they do not prove any intergradation 

 with another allied form, which has still preserved the original feature. 



