158 Mr. Blyth's Commentary 



marks that F. vulgaris is common in cultivated localities on the 

 lesser ranges^ never in the valley of Kashmir or Ladakh. " The 

 bird of the hills differs in size from that found in the plains of 

 India, and its plumage is more brilliant. I have not compared 

 the two. Many sportsmen consider them distinct ; I think the 

 differences are merely locaP' (P. Z. S. 1859, p. 186). For the 

 western range of this species, past and present, see Lord Lilford's 

 paper in '^ The Ibis' for 1862 (p. 352). F. yemensis, Nicholson 

 (figured in P. Z. S. 1851, Aves, pi. 40), is obviously a Caccabis. 



819. Francolinus pictus. 



Among the generic characters assigned by Dr. Jerdon we read 

 (vol. iii. p. 558), " tarsi of the male with strong but blunt 

 spurs." F. pictus, however, is spurless. The spurs consist of 

 blunt knobs in F. vulgaris; and in F. p/iay7-ii (J. A. S. B. xiii. 

 p. 1001, xxiv. p. 480) they are considerably more developed — 

 more so than I have ever seen in F. sinensis (which is naturalized 

 in the Mauritius), though not more so than in Vieillot's figure 

 (Gal. des Ois. pi. 213). The last two resemble each other in 

 plumage ; but F. phayrii is smaller, with the bill and legs con- 

 spicuously less robust. To this bird must be referred the Sia- 

 mese F. pictus noixcQdi by Schomburgk (Ibis, 1864, p. 263). 



821, Ammoperdix bonhami (Gray) ; 0. des Murs, Icon. 

 Orn. pi. 29, 6 . 



822. Ortygornis ponticeriana. 



Dr. Adams states that this species is abundant on the low hills 

 of the lesser ranges bordering the Punjab, but not near the val- 

 ley of Kashmir or northward (P. Z. S. 1859, p. 186). It is 

 common in the low northern half of Ceylon. A specimen in the 

 Derby Museum at Liverpool has the entire throat feiTuginous, 

 this colour filling up the space which is usually indicated by a 

 peripheral line. The species is thus figured by Temminck (PI. 

 Col. 213). 



825. Arboricola rufogularis was met with by Colonel 

 Tickell in the mountainous interior of the Tenasserim provinces 

 (J. A. S. B. xxiv. p. 276), together with a very distinct new species, 

 A. brunneipectus. Subsequently he obtained a third species in 

 the same tract of country, which he named A. chloropus. The 



