72 



Subsp. /3. Scops leucospilus. (Plate VI.) 



Ephialtos leucospilus, Gray, P. Z. S. 18U0, p. 344 ; Wall. Ibis, 18G8, 



p. 25. 

 Scops inagicus (pt.), SclU. Mm. P.-B. Oti, p. 22 ; id. Pevtw Accijntr, 



p. 11. 

 Scops leucospila, Gray, Hand-l. B. i. p. 46. 



Adult female (type of species). General colour above rather rufous 

 brown, the feathers blackish in the centre, with distinct lateral lines 

 of the same, the interspaces being rather lighter and more fulvous, 

 so that a generally baricd appearance is produced on the upper sur- 

 face ; besides these bars all the feathers are obscurely vermiculated 

 with dusky brown, the central black markings to the feathers of the 

 crown rather broader, many of them with nothing but a few lateral 

 bars or spots of sandy bull', the latter rather larger on the sides of 

 the crown ; scapulars coloured like the back, the external ones white 

 on the outer web, with a broad black bar at the tip ; wing-coverts 

 rather darker and more blackish than the back, the bases and centres 

 to tlie feathers being blackish, spotted sparingly or barred with sandy 

 buff, the greater series apjicaring more uniform than the other coverts 

 by reason of the extreme minuteness of the vermiculations, the 

 centres of these feathers streaked with black, some of the outermost 

 largely spotted or half-barred with white ; primary coverts dusky 

 brown, with two indistinctly mottled bars of sandy buff ; quills dull 

 brown, barred on the inner web with sandy buff, the corresponding 

 bars very distinct on the outer webs, especially near the base, the 

 tips of all being rather obsciired and the bars merged in the sandy 

 vermiculations, the primaries externally notched >vith white, giving 

 a distinctly chequered appearance to the outer aspect of the wing ; 

 upper tail-coverts rather more rufous than the back, the cross- 

 barring less distinct ; tail dull brown, crossed with about ten bands 

 of sandy buff, these bands very distinct near the base of the feathers, 

 but merging tonards the tips, which are entirely sandy brown, 

 vermiculated with blackish spot^ and lines, the outermost rectrix 

 externally notched with white ; lores white, becoming dusky brown, 

 the shaft-lines produced into blackish bristles ; feathers in front of 

 and just over the fore part of the eye pure white, narrowly tijiped 

 with black, forming a distinct eye-patch, though scarcely an eye- 

 brow ; feathers round the eye reddish brown, the ear-coverts dull 

 white, obscurely barred with blackish ; behind the latter a ruff of 

 white feathers, broadly barred with black at the tip, and narrowly 

 barred with brown near the base, the throat-feathers more thickly 

 lined but not so broadly tipped ; chin white ; chest sandy rufous, 

 broadly streaked with black down the centre of the feathers, many 

 of which are also barred and freckled with white, the white increasing 

 on the breast and abdomen, the brown vermiculations decreasing in 

 proportion, so that these parts are much lighter than the chest ; 

 under tail- coverts white, barred with sandy buff and streaked down 

 the shaft with black ; leg-feathers fulvous, rufcscent on the tibia, 

 all of them distinctly streaked with black ; under wing-coverts yel- 



