2. CHiBiA. 235 



scarcely visible ; spangles on breast 



minute atrocamlea, p. 238. 



carhonaria, p. 238. 

 assimi'lis, p. 2.39. 

 amboineiisis, p. 239. 

 d". Neck-hackles metallic purple ; breast- 

 spangles very large. 

 a*. Eye red. 



rt'. Throat unspotted pectoralk, p. 240. 



¥. Throat spotted Icemosticta^ p. 241. 



b*. Eye white leucops, p. 241. 



h'. Tail over 7 inches long. 



c". Larger ; shade of body purple megalomis, p. 242. 



d". Smaller; shade of body green densa, p. 241. 



It is by no means certain that the numerous species included here 

 should be really separated from Dicrurus. I follow Lord Tweeddale 

 in affixing D. halicassius as the type of the latter genus ; and Chibia 

 bimaensis closely approaches it. The tendency to a turned-up outer 

 tail-feather, so pronounced in C. liottentotta , is exhibited to a greater 

 or less degree in all the species here united to that genus ; but then 

 Dicrurus annectens, most suitably named, also shows a tendency to 

 have the outer taU-feathers recurved. At the same time, if Chibia 

 hoUentotta is to be kept separate from Dicrurus (and I do not see 

 how they can be united), then aU the Moluccan birds can hardly be 

 kept out of the genus Chibia, for they all possess the same style of 

 plumage, viz. a velvety black back, with strongly contrasting metallic 

 wings and tail. The long silky hairs, which show so prominently in 

 C. hoUentotta, are also slightly developed in C.pectoralis (see fig. 

 p. 240). In the above table of specific characters I endeavour to 

 show that between C. afroccpmlea, C. carbonaria, C. assimilis, and 

 O. amboinemis no tangible differences can be drawn; they are 

 nothing but races of one form, differing chiefly in size. 



1. Chibia hottentotta. 



Le Choucaa du Cap de Bonne Espi^rance, Briss. Orn. i. p. ,33, nl ii. 

 fig. 2. f ,i' 



Corvus hottentottus, Linn. S. N. i. p. 155 {ex Briss.). 



Criniger splendens, Tickell, J. A. S. B. ii. p. 574. 



Edolius crishna, Gould, P. Z. S. 1836, p. 5; Bluth, J. A. S B xi 



pp. 169, 799. 

 Chil)ia casia, Hodgs. Lid. Reo. i. p. 324. 

 Chibia hottentotta, Strickl. Ann. N. H. xiii. p. 36; Gray, Gen. B. i. 



p. 287 ; Blgth, J. A. S. B. xv. p. 294 ; id. Cat. B. Mm. A. S. B. 



p. 200 ; Bp. Con-ip. i. p. 350 ; Jerd. B. Lid. i. p. 439 ; Grau, 



Hand-l. B. i. p. 287; Hume, .Sir. F. 1874, p. 474, 1875, p. 101 



Blyth Sr Wald. B. Burm. p. 128. 

 Edolius barbatus, Gray, Zool. Misc. p. 

 Cometes crishna, Hodys. in Gray's Zool. Misc. p. 84. 

 Trichometopus hottentottus, Cai. Mus. Hein. Th. i. p. 112. 



Adult. Blue- black, volyet-like and with more or less of a metallic 

 gloss on the back and lower parts ; lores and frontal plumes velvety 



b2 



