128 SCOLOPACID/S. 



156. Rhynchsea capensis, Z?««., ^j/. Nat. i,p 246. Rhynchsea 



Bengalensis, Jerd., B. Ind. ii. p. 677 ; Hutjie, Nesls and Eggs Ind. B. 

 p. 586; Salvad., Ucc. Born. p. 335; Blyth, B. Bum. p. 157 ; Butler, Sir. 

 F. iv. p. 15 ; V. p. 223 ; Dav. et Oust. Oi's. Chine, p. 480; Wardlaw-Ramsay, 

 Ibis, 1877, p. 469; Hume and Dav., Str. F. vi. p. 4S9; Cripps, Sir. F.v'ii. 

 p. 302; Hume, Str. F. viii. p. 1 12; Legge, B. Cej> Ion p. Soo ; Bingham, 

 Str. F.ix. p. 197; Hume and Marsh., Game Birds iii. p. 381, pi.; Oates, Str. 

 /^. X. p. 239; Murray, Vert. ZooL, Sind, p. 242; Oates, B. Br. Burnt, n. 

 p, 386; Murray, Avif. Brit. Ind. ii. p. 609, No. 1287. — The Painted 

 Snipe. 



Crown of the head with a broad mesial longitudinal line, bordered by dark 

 brown, nearly black feathers, which form a line from the sides of the upper 

 mandible to the nape, where it is broader than in front ; a yellowish buff 

 circle round the eye, and a line behind it ; chin and throat whitish, the 

 feathers with some faint dusky spots ; neck in front and breast olive brown, 

 the feathers with white spots and bars ; the feathers on the lower part of the 

 sides and middle of the breast nearly dark brown, forming a dark pectoral 

 band, another similar band below this with a white interspace, but not meeting 

 on the breast ; hind neck olivaceous, finely marked with dark transverse 

 strise ; mantle and scapulars dark brown, with dark margined bufTy yellow 

 and white bars ; wing coverts and tertiaries pale olive, with black margined 

 transverse bands or bars of rufous buff, broader and more conspicuous on the 

 tertiaries ; outer web of the first primary grey brown, the rest paler, and all 

 ^ith 5 — 6 buff or rufous buff ocelli ; the interspaces between the basal three 

 ocelli deep black, and between the terminal ones greyish brown ; inner webs 

 of primaries with white bars and dark wavy lines and marblings ; secondaries 

 ashy grey, ocellated with buff on their outer webs, the interspaces basally 

 black, and terminally with dark brown wavy lines ; their inner webs, like the 

 primaries, with white bars and wavy lines, and the tips margined with white, 

 the patterns showing through paler on the under side of the wing ; tail ashy 

 grey, with buff ocelli on both webs, and tipped with buff ; abdomen, vent and 

 under tail coverts white. The female has the lores, sides of the face, 

 upper breast and back of neck chestnut, the feathers edged whitish on 

 the upper breast ; back, scapulars and wing coverts, also the tertiaries, 

 dark olive with narrow, close, black strige, the outermost tertials white, other- 

 wise as in the male. Bill reddish brown ; irides deep brown ; legs and feet 

 greenish. 



Length.—^ to 10 inches ; wing 4*9 to 5*2 ; tail I'S to r8 ; bill at front i*8 

 to 2 inches. 



jjah. — Sind, Kutch, Kattiawar, Rajputana, Central India, Punjab, N.-W. 

 Provinces, British Burmah and Ceylon. Breeds in Sind during May and June, 

 and in nearly all localities where it occurs. 



