282 Mr. W. E. Brooks on the Milvus govinda of Sykes. 



iug in the same places as the Boobies. The young specimens 

 brought home show no points of special interest^ the series 

 being perfectly gradual ; and they do not pass through the 

 extraordinary changes of plumage our English Gannets do. 



Petrel [Procellaria melanogastra ?) . 



One egg. 



Found lying in a crevice on the rocks during the ascent 

 of Boatswain-bird Island. This egg being very hard-set^ Mr. 

 Unwin very kindly injected it with arsenic; and it is now in 

 spirit. On showing it to Mr. Salvin he confirmed my sup- 

 position that it was the egg of one of the Swallow -Petrels 

 [Procellaria or Oceanites) ; but no Petrel has been recorded 

 from the island, which is not^ however, to be wondered at, 

 considering their crepuscular habits. 



XXII. — Note on the Milvus govinda of Sykes. 

 By W. Edwin Brooks. 



In the Zoological Society's ' Proceedings ' for 1832, Col. 

 Sykes described his Milvus govinda as follows : — 

 " Milv. capite, nucha, corporeque subtus rufescenti-brunneis, 

 plumis in medio fusco lineatis; dorso, alis, caudaque 

 satis furcatA, saturate brunneis, illarum pteromatibus pal- 

 lidioribus, hac fusco obsolete fasciata. Longitudo cor- 

 poris 26 unc, caudge II.''— P. Z. S. part ii, (1832), 

 pp. 80, 81. 

 The above is the original description of this Kite; and no 

 Indian Kite but M. melanotis ever reaches the size indicated 

 by Sykes. There are only two of Sykes's Kites in tlie Indian 

 Museum at Kensington ; and they are said to be his types. 

 I have examined them ; and the larger of the two is, beyond 

 all doubt, M. melanotis, T. & S., in immature plumage, with an 

 occasional red feather appearing here and there. The lesser 

 bird of the two is of an entirely different species, and is what 

 I call Milvus affinis of Gould. 



Sykes's total length of 26 inches, and the tail 1 1 inches, could 

 never have belonged to the lesser bird. We see that Sykes 

 obtained both birds ; but his description carries more weight 



