54 



is said by some to inhabit the plains of Tibet generally ; while, ac- 

 cording to otliers, it is confined to those plains vvhich are within 

 sight of mountains, especially of the Hemachal mountains. It 

 cannot bear even the moderate heats of the valley of Nėpal ; an in- 

 dividual belonging to the Lama of Digurchee, having died at the 

 commencement of the hot season, when the raaximum of tempera- 

 ture was only 80°, a temperature seldom reached for two hours a 

 day or for two days of that month, March. 



The Chiru is extremely addicted to the use of salt in the summer 

 months, when vast herds are often secn at some of the rock-salt- 

 beds wliich so much abound in Tibet. They are said to advance 

 under the conduct of a leader, and to post sentinels aroiind the 

 beds before they attempt to feed. 



To complete this abstract of Mr. Hodgson's account of the Chiru, 

 it may be added, that at the follovving meeting of the Committee 

 there was exhibited a drawing of its liead and homs, vvhich had 

 been subsequently transmitted by that gentleman ; together with a 

 duplicate of his paper, to which he had added that he had recently 

 seen a very old malė, in vvhich the dark parts had becoiue grizzled 

 and almost white. 



Mr, Vigors recalled the attention of the Committee to the sub- 

 ject of the Himalayan Birds ; confining his observations this evening 

 to some species of the family of Merulidce or Thrushes. Among 

 these was a new species closely allied to the common European 

 Blackbird, exhibiting the yellovv bill and general black plumage of 

 that bird, but differing from it in the varied markinga of the vving. 

 It was characterized as foUovvs. 



TuRDUs PCECiLOPTERus. Mas. Turd. corpore nigro, ahdomine 

 imo subcinerascaiti-Jusco ; remigutn viediarum pugoniis externis 

 pteromatibusųue cmeraceo-gr išeis, his apice albis ; rostro pedi- 

 busguejlavis. 

 Foem.? Corpore supr h brunnescenti-griseo, subtiis pallidiori ; ptero- 

 inatibus remignmque mediarum pogoniis eiternis ui in mari nota- 

 tis, sed colore subriifescenti tinctis. 

 Statura ferė Turdi Merulce, Linn. 



A species of Ginčius vvas exhibited, differing from the European 

 in the uniform colouring of the plumage. Mr. Vigors expressed 

 his opinion that it was the šame species as that discovered in the 

 Crimea by Palias, and described by M. Temminck in his ' Manuel' 

 as having " tout le plumage, sans exception, d'une seule nuance 

 brune, couleur de chocolat." 



The follovving may be given as its specific character. 



CiNCLUS Pallasii, Temm. Cincl. unicolor, iutense brunncus ; 



rostro pedibusquej'uscis. 

 Statura Cincli aguatici, Bechst. 



Mr. Vigors referring to the bird vvhich had been described by the 

 Prince of Musignano among the species from the Rocky Moun- " 

 tains, added to his Synopsisof North American Birds in the 'Annals 

 of the Lyceum of New York,' [p. 439, sp. 91- bis], and which vvas 



