270 ORNITHOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS. 



Ch. gutturaliSj with which they probably are even identical. I have be- 

 fore me two skins collected by Swinhoe at Amoy, China, in April, I86I5 

 which agree pretty well with the description given by Taczanowski, and 

 on the other hand only differ slightly from Japanese specimens in hav- 

 ing the pectoral black band perhaps a little more developed, the chest- 

 nut color only forming a patch on the middle of it, not interrupting it. 

 The upper surface has, besides, a faint greenish tinge, only seen in 

 young specimens of the Japanese form (c/. Taczanowski: "Der rost- 

 liche Fleck auf dem schwarzen Brustbande," and "der schmale griino 

 Schiller der oberen Theile des Korpers"). The measurements are given 



below. 



Birds from Dauria and Baical, or specimens of Jerdon's tytleri (Birds 

 of India, III, p. 870, 1864) never came under my inspection, and the 

 descriptions are extremely meager. The probability is, however, that 

 they are identical with the Kamtschatkan bird. It is difacult to make 

 out from the scanty information if they differ from the latter, but it 

 seems as if they, like the Egyptian savignii, have the spots on the rec- 

 trices rufous-colored, and a more conspicuous black breast-band. Pal- 

 las describes a variety from Eastern Siberia as having " arcus dilatatus 

 juguli chalybeato-ater, includens aream testaceam ovalem,''^ and " macula 

 omnium rectricum, prceter 2 medias, interioris vexilli rhomhea, magna, fer- 

 rugineo alha:^ This is most probably the Daurian and Baicalian bird, as 

 Taczanowski, in speaking of the lighter colored form {gutturalis, see 

 above), says that the latter has "not even a trace of rusty color on the 

 pure white spots of the rectrices," wherefrom we may infer that the speci- 

 mens of the dark form had such a tinge on those feathers. He also 

 adds that in the 'light colored form, " the rusty patch on the black 

 breast-band is as large as in the Siberian swallows from the above-men- 

 tioned localities" (Dauria and Baical). Furthermore, Mr. Blyth, when 

 speaking of tytleri (Ibis, 1866, p. 336), compares it with Ch. cahirica 

 (—savignii), giving as the distinctive character that it " has much less of 

 the black gorget," not mentioning any difference in the color of the 

 spots on the rectrices. The gorget is therefore smaller, but it is evi- 

 dently there, and this can hardly be said of the Kamtschatkan birds, in 

 which it is barely indicated. * 



• Mr. R. Bowdle Sharpe, after the above was written, has examined the types of H. 

 aaturata, pronouncing them to he tytleri. The reason why I now accept this view as 

 correct is that the National Museum has lately received from Captain Blakiston's col- 

 lection a specimen obtained at Petropaulski which has the white spots on the tail 

 decidedly tinged with rufous. See also further on under " Conclusions." 



