458 Mr. J. H. Gurney on Gypoictinia melanosternon. 



and as, in this stage, it diifers conspicuously from its adult 

 dress. 



In the nestling now before me the feathers on the crown 

 of the head are blackish brown, edged with rich rufous - 

 brown ; this rufous tint, unmixed with the darker brown, ex- 

 tends over the sides of the head behind the eye and above 

 the ear-coverts, over the back of the neck, and, with the ex- 

 ception of some narrow dark shaft-marks, over the sides of 

 the neck also ; the lores are blackish brown, and the ear- 

 coverts are of a similar hue, but slightly intermingled with 

 rufous ; the interscapular feathers and those of the back and 

 upper tail-coverts are blackish brown, conspicuously edged 

 with rufous ; the scapulars are similar, but with the rufous 

 edgings broader ; the wing-coverts are blackish brown, nar- 

 rowly edged with rufous, except the upper secondary coverts, 

 which are almost entirely rufous, but with dark shaft-marks, 

 most of which are, however^ quite narrow ; the secondary 

 and tertial wing-feathers resemble the greater wing-coverts, 

 but with narrow whitish tips ; those of the bastard wing are 

 black, tinged with grey towards the base, and slightly tipped 

 with fulvous white ; the primaries are similarly coloured, but 

 without the grey tinge ; the rectrices are greyish brown, with 

 narrow fulvous edgings towards the tips of the feathers, but 

 the extreme tips of the tail-feathers are white ; the entire 

 under surface (other than that of the remiges and rectrices) 

 is a rich rufous-brown, darkest about the upper breast, with 

 strongly marked dark shaft-marks everywhere except upon 

 the under wing-coverts and the tibia (where these marks are 

 very sparse), the under tail-coverts (where they are very 

 faint), and the abdomen (where they are absent). 



Mr. Bennett states that the irides are light brown in the 

 young bird, and reddish or hazel-brown in the adult, also that 

 the legs and feet are white in both, but in the adult bird are 

 tinged with pinkish. 



The Norwich Museum possesses three eggs of this species, 

 which are white, mottled with reddish brown ; and four speci- 

 mens of the bird, viz. one adult male, two adult females, and 

 tlie nestling above described. 



