278 Allen's naturalist's library. 



crown, nape, and hind-neck, as well as the sides of the face 

 and throat, chestnut, slightly mottled with green behind the eye 

 and on the occiput ; the lower throat and fore-neck, as well as 

 the sides of the neck and of the chest, pale vinous, shaded with 

 grey ; remainder of under surface of body from the fore-neck 

 downwards pure white ; the under tail-coverts black ; the sides 

 of the body ashy-grey, finely vermiculated with darker grey ; 

 under wing-coverts ashy-grey ; axillaries white, freckled with 

 grey ; bill bluish lead-colour, black at the tip ; feet and toes 

 dark brown; iris hazel. Total length, 18 inches; culmen, 

 1-45; wing, 10-4; tail, 4-1 ; tarsus, 1-55. 



Adult Female. — Differs from the male, the back being ashy- 

 brown, narrowly barred with rufous on the hind-neck and 

 mantle ; the dorsal feathers brown-edged with ashy-grey, these 

 edgings becoming whiter on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; 

 the scapulars with more rufous margins; wing-coverts ashy-grey, 

 margined with white, more broadly on the greater series ; the 

 bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and primaries as in the male ; 

 the secondaries dusky-brown, externally black and tipped with 

 white, but not showing a distinct speculum like the male; 

 inner secondaries velvety-black, edged with white on the outer 

 web, and separated from the black speculum by a line of white, 

 caused by the white outer web of a single inner secondary ; 

 tail ashy-brown, narrowly fringed with white ; crown of head 

 blackish, with small white bars, producing a thickly mottled 

 appearance ; lores, sides of face, and sides of throat fulvous, 

 dotted and spotted with blackish, throat slightly more rufous ; 

 remainder of the under surface pure white; the under tail- 

 coverts centred and barred with brown ; the sides of the chest 

 and of the body mottled with rufous. Total length, 16 inches ; 

 wing, 9-6. 



Young Bh'ds. — Are at first like the old female, and the males 

 evidently take some time, probably two or three years, before 

 they acquire their perfect livery. The younger birds with the 

 speculum developed have often only half the wing-coverts 

 white, and, judging by a specimen in the British Museum, 

 killed in June at Kiukiang by Mr. Styan, I should say that, 

 until the second summer, the male retains a wing exactly like 

 that of the old female. After the breeding-season, Mr. De 



