100 ISUBONID.B. 



a. Ad. sk. Malacca. Purchased. 



b. Ad. St. Malacca. 



13. Scops balli. 



Epliialtes spiloceplialus, Ball, -Syr. F. i. p. 53. 

 Lphialtes balli, Hume, <. c. p. 407. 



Adult (type of species). General colour above rufous chocolate, 

 with a few hue, nearly obsolete vermiculatious of black, the whole 

 upper surface with more or less concealed spots of rufous buif, very 

 miuute on the crown, but much more distinct on the back, where 

 they form almost bars, all the e'ght spots having a blackish margin ; 

 scapular feathers externally barred with white, the interspaces very 

 pale, and inclining to ochraceous ; wing-coverts coloured like the 

 back, the bases dark brown, the tips chocolate rufous, with rather 

 more distinct vermiculatious of black, the spots very plain, and 

 forming notches on the outer web of some of the greater series ; 

 primary coverts exactly like the other, brown at base, rufescent at 

 tips, but without the light spots ; quills dark brown, nearly uniform 

 on the inner web, and chocolate-rufous at the tips of the primaries 

 and on the outer webs of the secondaries, which are minutely notched 

 with fulvous, the primaries very distinctly chequered with white on 

 the oiiter webs, the innermost secondaries spotted with rufous buff, 

 resembling the scapulars ; tail dark brown near the base, crossed 

 with about six bars of dull rufous, these becoming obsolete towards 

 the tips of the feathers, which are rufous chocolate, very finely ver- 

 miculated with black, the outer feather externally notched with 

 fulvous, and all the feathers of the wings and tail barred with ful- 

 vous on the inner web, especially towards the base ; forehead and 

 feathers over the fore part of the eye creamy white, narrowly tipped 

 with brown ; loral plumes rufous, the shafts ending in black hair- 

 like bristles, barred obscurely with black ; ear-coverts rufous choco- 

 late, barred and tipped with black ; cheeks fulvous, all the feathers 

 tipped, and some of them barred across, with dull black ; general 

 colour of under surface rufous sandy, obscured with grey, and finely 

 vermiculated with blackish cross lines, the bases of the feathers, 

 especially those of the flanks, strongly rufescent, broadly barred with 

 fulvous, inclining to white near the tips of most of the feathers ; and 

 before this whitish tip, appears generally a slight indication of a 

 diamond-shaped spot of black, evidently the remains of a streak ; 

 all the above markings, though distinct on the abdomen and flanks, 

 are less plainly characterized on the chest, which is consequently 

 more dusky ; leg-feathers orange-tawny, narrowly barred with dark 

 brown ; under wing-coverts fulvous, slightly marked with brown 

 and spotted with sandy buff near the edge of the wing, which is 

 whitish, the lower scries dark brown, fulvescent at base, resembling 

 the inner lining of the quills, which are dark brown, notched on the 

 outer web and barred on the inner with fulvous. Total length 

 7'5 inches, wing 5*45, tail 3-2, tarsus 1"15. {Mas. Ind. Gale.) 

 Ohs. Another specimen, very kindly lent me by Mr. Hume, differs 



