2. PTEROCLrEUS. 13 



bell}'. Tarsi and under tail-coverts whitish buff. Centre pair of 

 tail-feathers like the scapulars and produced into long black fila- 

 ments, rest of the tail-feathers dark brown tipped with buff. Total 

 length i;3 inches, wing 7"1, tail 5-3, tarsus O'O. 



Aihdt female. Differs ft-om the male in having a broad blackish- 

 brown bar down the middle of each feather of the top of the head, 

 neck, upper back, and chest, on the two latter the extremity of this 

 bar is swollen, giving these parts a spotted appearance. The back, 

 rump, and upper tail-coverts are vinaceous or yellowish buff, thickly 

 barred with black. Scapulars, lesser and median wing-coverts the 

 same, but with yellowish-buff ends tipped with brown. Upper breast 

 whitish or yellowish bxiff ; belly and flanks blackish brown, closely 

 barred with rufous buff. Tail-feathers like those of the back, the 

 centre pair being produced into moderately long black filaments, 

 while the remainder are tipped with yellowish white. Total length 

 10 inches, wing 7, tail 3-(), tarsus 0-8. 



An immature female differs from the adult in having the outer 

 primaries and the inner secondaries tipped with buff, the former 

 vermiculated with black, the upper breast spotted with blackish 

 brown, and the centre pair of tail-feathers not produced into fila- 

 ments. 



In a much younger example the extremities of the primaries, 

 outer secondaries, scapulars, and many of the median wing-coverts 

 arc rufous biift', vermiculated with black and edged externally with 

 a narrow black and buff margin. 



In a still ijounger specimen, partially in the down, the feathers of 

 the back and wing-coverts are rufous buff, vermiculated with black 

 and margined by a narrow black and buff edging. 



Some specimens from N.E. Africa (P. ellioii, Bogdanow) appear 

 somewhat richer in colouring than the majority of Indian birds : but 

 this is partly caused by orange ])igment with which the feathers are 

 stained, and also partly due to their being all freshly moulted. 



Hah. W., N., and E. Africa and S.W. Asia ; ranging in the west 

 to Senegal, in the east over the greater part of India, in the north 

 to Palestine and Central Asia, and in the south to the I'angani Iliver, 

 E. Africa. 



a. 2 ad. St. India. Purchased. 



l>. $ ad. sk. Siml. Ilmiif Coll. 



c. cj ad. sk. Mi'liur, X. Siiid, Jan. Iliinie Coll. 



(A. O. If.). 



f7. J ad. sk. Cutch. JlumeCoU. 



e-i- 6 2 ^^- et Mhow, March, June, Dec. Col. Swinhoe [P.]. 



juv. sk. 



/.-. 'd ad. .'k. Deesa, April (E. A. Butler). Hume Coll. 



/. $ ad. sk. Kakalow. 15 miles from Jhod- Hume Coll. 



]mi', .Ian. 



»j(. $ ad. sk. Bundolkund, Jan. Hume Coll. 



n-a. c? $ ad.sk. Sambhur, Dec. (7?..V. ^(/rtw). Hunu' Coll. 



^ c? ad. sk. \A\i\\\\i\ivA (]]'. Griffith). India Museum [P.]. 



K-V- 6 2 nd. sk. Hi^>ar, Sept., Oct. (C. H. T. Hume Coll. 



Marshall). 



