4. SCOPS. 93 



The amount of f'catliering on the lower joint of the tarsus varies 

 slightly with individuals ; hut specimens of S. lempiji never seem to 

 have the plumes descending so far down on the outer toe as in 8. 

 lettia ; and in this respect it very closely approaches S. nudahanciis. 

 Indeed, as stated below, thej'^ are but races one of the other. Mr. 

 Hume has sent over for my inspection two very- interesting spe- 

 cimens, one from Thayetmyo and another from Calcutta, which 

 form an intermediate race between the Malaccan and South-Indian 

 birds. They differ in their very pale coloration and fulvescent tone 

 of plumage, and in the excessively delicate character of the vermi- 

 culations. A good idea of those differences will be seen on an ex- 

 amination of the plates in Mr. Hume's forthcoming work on the 

 birds of the Indian empire. 



It may be noted that although closely resembling Scops mahdxi- 

 ricus, the present species nevertheless presents some differential 

 characters, especially in the absence of mesial black streaks, either. 

 on the upper or under surface, the black markings being more in 

 the form of spots and bars. 



Subsp. a. Seops umbratilis. 



Ephialtes lettia, SwinJi. Ibis, 1870, p. 88. 

 Epliialtes umbratilis, Swinh. Ibis, 1870, p. 342. 

 Lempijiua umbratilis, Sivinh. P. Z. S. 1871, p. 344. 



Adult male (type of species). Above dull sandy brown, the 

 feathers mesially black, and mottled with coarse blackish vermicu- 

 lations, relieved here and there with a broader bar of sandy buff ; 

 head rather blacker than the back, varied only with a few lateral 

 spots and notches of rufous sandy ; forehead buffy white, the feathers 

 narrowly margined with black at the tips, extending backwards so 

 as to form a very distinct eyebrow ; the sides of the crown ful- 

 vescent, with narrow cross lines and vermiculations of blackish, 

 forming an indistinct band on the sides of the head, continuous with 

 the ear-tirfts, the inner webs of which are ochraceous, narrowly 

 barred with black ; on the occiput and nape a few fulvous feathers 

 scarcely forming bands ; on the hind neck a very distinct collar of 

 ochi'aceous buff, some of the feathers varied with dark brown cross 

 bars, and resembling the sides of the neck, which are ochraceous, 

 mottled with lirowu ; the scapulars externally clear ochraceous, 

 tipped with dark brown, the inner web also mottled with ochra- 

 ceous ; upper wing-coverts dark brown, more obscure than the back, 

 and vermiculated with rufous sandy, the greater series mottled with 

 ochraceous on the outer webs ; primarj' coverts dark brown, ob- 

 scurely vermiculated with rufous sandy colour near tlie tips, and 

 indistinctly barred across with the same ; quills dark chocolate- 

 brown on the inner webs, -with faint indications of pale ashy brown 

 bars, the outer web barred with sandy brown, obscured ^\-ith ver- 

 miculations of dark brown, disappearing on the primaries, which 

 are extcrnallj- barred with clear sandy colour, none of these, how- 

 ever, inclining to whitish ; upper tail-coverts coloured like the back, 



