on Dr. Jerdon's 'Birds of India.' 355 



166. Chkysocolaptes sultaneus. 



Two races liave been confounded under this name. The first 

 is Picus sultaneus (as originally described by Mr. Hodgson), of 

 larger size, rare, and (so far as known) peculiar to Nipal ; Mr. 

 Gould has a specimen (type of P. strenuus, Gould), the only 

 one which T have seen ; the closed wing (as figured by Malherbe) 

 measures 7*5 in. The other species, P. delesserti of Malherbe, 

 is more or less difi'used throughout India, Asam, the Indo- 

 Chinese countries, and Malayan Peninsula. I have compared 

 specimens from Asam, Siam, and Southern India which were 

 identical in race, the length of wing not exceeding 6'25 in. in 

 males, and 6 in. in females. This race is the Picus strenuus 

 from Asam (P. Z. S. 1839, p. 165), and I have seen it assigned 

 to P. stridus from the Malayau Peninsula ; but the latter (from 

 Java) is again smaller, with a yellow cap in the female sex as in 

 the following species. 



167. Chkysocolaptes FESTivus (Bodd.) ; Picus goensis,Gm. ; 

 P. humeralis, Wagler. 



Some females have the yellow crest tipped with crimson. 

 The Ceylon species, C. stricklandi (Layard) {Indopicus carlotta, 

 Malherbe, vide Ibis, 1863, p. 267), is distinguished from the 

 very similar C. hcematribon of the Philippines by its whitish bill 

 and blackish auricular plumes. Chrysocolaptes stricklandi and 

 Brachypternus cey tonus (Forster) {Picus ery thronotus, YieiWot) , hear 

 a remarkable resemblance in colouring, though not in structure ; 

 but all the species of the former division have the rump crimson, 

 and those of the latter black, B. ceylonus not constituting an 

 exception. Even Dr. Jerdon figured the Chrysocolaptes for the 

 Brachypternus in his * Illustrations of Indian Ornithology ' ! 



168. MUELLEBIPICUS PULVERULENTUS. 



Type o( Lichtensteinipicus (!), Bonap. {Alphone7pes, C3})a.ms)j 

 and the species referred to P. gutturalis, Valenciennes. The 

 young bird, perhaps the male only, is remarkable for having the 

 frontal region crimson-tipped. In the European Picus major, 

 and probably certain allied species, the young of both sexes have 

 the crown tipped with crimson ; while the adults have a black 

 crown, adorned in the male only by a crimson occipital crescent. 



