372 Mr. J. II. Gumey's Notes on 



buteo cryptogenys of Hodgson really identical with his A. stro- 

 phiatus, and consequently with Blyth's A. hemiptilopus? 



Mr. Hodgson appears to have been very decided in his 

 opinion that A. cryptogenys is a good and distinct species, as 

 may be seen by a reference to the paper in which he described 

 and figured it in the 8th volume of the ' Calcutta Journal of 

 Natural History ;' but unfortunately the type specimen of A. 

 cryptogenys does not (so far as I know) now exist, and in its 

 absence it is not easy to decide with certainty whether it 

 really was or was not distinct from A. strophiatiis, or, to 

 use the more correct name, from A. hemiptilopus. 



T am indebted to Mr. W. E. Brooks, who has paid con- 

 siderable attention to this question, for his expression of his 

 opinion that Mr, Hodgson's view of the distinctness of A. 

 cryptogenys was correct ; but, on the other hand, Mr. Hume, 

 in the article in 'Stray Feathers^ for 1873, to which I have 

 already alluded, treats A. cryptogenys as identical with A. 

 hemiptilopus (though apparently not admitting the identity 

 of the latter with A. strophiatiis) ; and I may add that the late 

 Dr. Jerdon also greatly doubted the distinctness of A. cryp- 

 togenys, as may be seen by his remarks in ' The Ibis ' for 

 1871, p. 340. 



Without attempting to decide this doubtful question, I may 

 nevertheless offer an observation on one point connected with 

 it, viz. that the circumstance of the nares being nearly hidden 

 by thickset soft plumuli iu A. cryptogenys (as mentioned by 

 Mr. Hodgson in his description of this Buzzard) is certainly 

 not a specific peculiarity, inasmuch as the nostrils are simi- 

 larly covered in the type specimen of A. strophiatus, as they 

 also are in the example from Shanghai in the Norwich 

 Museum. 



In conclusion, it may, perhaps, be worth while to add the 

 principal dimensions of the last-named specimen, which was 

 marked by the collector as a male : these are — wing from 

 carpal joint 17'8 inches, tarsus 3"1, middle toe s. u. TG; the 

 culmen is imperfect. 



Proceeding to the consideration of the Rough-legged Buz- 

 zard o( Ei'ropc [A. htgopvs), I may remark that Mr. Sliarpe's 



