80 MEROPID^. 



coverts and inner secondaries also green, the latter, as well as the 

 upper tail-coverts, slightly washed with hlue ; all the rest of the 

 quills fawn-buff, tipped with black and margined with green : tail- 

 feathers green, the elongated portion of the centre ones dusky 

 blackish, all the rest inclining to fawn-bufF on the inner web ; head 

 like the back, slightly washed with emerald-green, and showing a 

 narrow eyebrow of the latter colour ; lores and a broad band 

 through the eye and along the ear-coverts black ; sides of face and 

 cheeks yellowish green, washed with blue below the black ear-stripe 

 and at the base of the cheeks ; under surface of body yellowish 

 green, washed with emerald-green on the breast and abdomen ; on 

 the fore neck a transverse band of black, washed with blue ; on 

 each side of the vent a patch of silky-white feathers ; under wing- 

 coverts and quill-lining fawn-buff : " bill black, becoming brown 

 at the gape; eyelids smoky brown; feet pinkish grey; claws horn- 

 colour ; iris bright red " {E. W. Oatcs). Total length 9'4 inches, 

 culmen 1, wing 3'6, tail 2-7, longest tail-feathers 4-8, tarsus 0"4. 



Adult female. Similar to the male in colour, but with the blue 

 on the sides of the face a little less pronounced. Total length 

 10 inches, culmen 1-2, wing 8-75, tail 2-7, centre-feathers 5-8, 

 tarsus 0-35. 



This species appears to be subject to considerable variations, none 

 of which, however, are of specific importance. The specimens from 

 the Eastern Himalayas and from the Burmese countries are con- 

 stantly more tawny on the head and back than those from more 

 western countries, and scarcely any sign of this tawny colour is seen 

 in African examples. The blue on the throat is most pronounced 

 in specimens from N.W. India ; but I believe that a good deal of 

 this colour is due to the season of the year, as it is always more 

 pronounced in the breeding-season. 



Hah. Egypt and North-eastern Africa, extending to Senegambia, 

 and eastwards through Persia and Baluchistan over the whole of the 

 Indian Peninsula arid Ceylon, eastwards through the Burmese 

 countries to Cochin China. 



a, b. Ad. sk. Egypt. Sir S. Baker [P.]. 



c-f. S ad.; (J. ? Egypt, Feb., March (G".^. 6'.). Shelley Coll. 



ad. sk. 

 h, i. Ad. sk. Tani, Soudan. Capt. Willougliby 



Verner [P.]. 

 k. Ad. sk. Nubia. Sharpe Coll. 



/. cJ ad. sk. Atfeh, Annesley Bay, Feb. W. T. Blanford, Esq. 



[C.]. 

 m, n. (S juv. ; o. 2 Zoulla, Abyssinia, June ( W. Sharpe Coll. 



juv. sk. Jesse). 



p. 5 juv. sk. Kelamet, Lebka R., Bogos W. T. Blanford, Esq. 



Land, July. [C.]. 



q. 2 ad. sk. Khist, N.E. of Bushire. Sir 0. St. John [C.]. 



r. (S ad. sk. Bampur, Baluchistan, April. W. T. Blanford, Esq. 



[C.]. 

 s. 2 ad. sk. Gwadar, April. W. T. Blanford, Esq. 



[C.]. 



