15. ASIO. 



233 



Adult (type of species). Above brown, with a slight purplish 

 gloss, the feathers of the head rather distinctly margined with dull 

 rufous, those of the hind neck with fulvous, producing a distinctly 

 ocellated appearance ; the back and scapulars irregularly mottled 

 with fulvous and brown venniculations, producing an irregularly 

 barred appearance on the inner scapulars and lower back ; wing- 

 coverts dark brown, the inner ones with irregular bars of rufous 

 buff, the greater series with faint bars of lighter brown, and with a 

 large oceUum of buffy white at the tips, forming an ill-defined band, 

 the same oceUi being smaller and less developed on some of the outer 

 scapulars ; primary- coverts dark brown, ^^ith faint bars of lighter 

 brown ; quills dark brown, tipped with ashy fulvous, externally 

 chequered with square fulvous spots, those on the secondaries smaller 

 and somewhat shaded with brown ; lower surface of qiiills brown, 

 barred with light fulvous, the bars not conterminous and much 

 more distinct on the secondaries f upper tail-coverts brown, barred 

 with fulvous ; tail brown, tipped with ashy bro^vn, and crossed with 

 five bands of fulvous mottled with brown, the basal one very in- 

 distinct; ear-tufts 1-8 inch long, dark brown largely margined with 

 fulvous ; loral plumes buffy white ; feathers round the eye black ; 

 ear-coverts deep fulvous, with black hair-like shaft-lines ; facial 

 ruif dark brown, the feathers margined and tipped with bright buff ; 

 under sm-face of body bright buff, inclining to orange, some of the 

 feathers whitish buff on their margins, their centres dark brown, 

 giving a streaked appearance, these streaks nearly absent on the 

 thighs and less developed on the under tail-coverts ; under wing- 

 coverts deep orange-buff, marked longitudinally with brown, espe- 

 cially near the margin of the wings, which have a buffy white patch 

 along the outer edge, the lower coverts dark brown, buff-coloured 

 at base. Total length IT'S inches, culmen 1-6, wing 10-8, taU 6-5, 

 tarsus 1-9. 



Hah. 3Iadagascar. 



Foot o^ Auto inadafiascariensis. 



II. Ad. St. 

 h. Ad. sk. 



Madagascar. 

 Madagascar. 



Sir A. Smith [CI. Tvpe of species 

 Mr. A. Crossley [C.]. " 



