(31) ALSOCOMUS ELPHINSTONII (Sykes). 
THE NILGIRI WOOD-PIGEON. 
Ptilinopus elphinstonii Sykes, P.Z.S. 1832, p. 149; Jerdon, Madr. J.L.S., 
XII p. 11. 
Columba elphinstonii Blyth, J.A.S.B., XIV p. 866; Jerdon, Ill. I. Orn., 
pl. 48; Salvadori, Cat. B.M., XXI p. 304; Sharpe, Hand-List, I p. 71; 
Oates, Cat. Eggs B.M., I p. 91. 
Carpophaga elphinstonii Gray, Gen. B., II p. 469. 
Palumbus elphinstonii Blyth, Cat. B.M.A.8.B., p. 233; Gould, B. Asia, VI 
pl. 57; Jerdon, B.I., IIT p. 465 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, IIT p. 498 ; Fair- 
bank, Str. Feath., IV p. 262; Bourdillon, ib., IV p. 404; Fairbank, ib., 
V p. 408; Ball, ib., p. 418; Hume, ib., VIIT p. 109; id., Cat. no. 786 ; 
Vidal, Str. Feath., LX p. 74; Butler, ib., p. 419; Davison, ib., X p. 407; 
Macgregor, ib., p. 440; Terry, ib., p. 479; Barnes, B. Bom., p. 288; 
Oates, in Hume’s Nests and Eggs, 2nd ed., II p. 347; Davidson, 
J.B.N.H.S., XII p. 62. 
Alsocomus elphinstonii Blanf., Av. Brit. L, IV p. 36; Betham, J.B.N.HS., 
XIV p. 620. 
Vernacular Names. None recorded. 
Description.—Adult male. Head above, nape, and sides of neck dove- 
grey, faintly glossed with iridescent emerald-green ; fore-head, sides of head, 
and lores the same, but paler and tinged with pink; hind-neck with a large 
patch of black feathers tipped white and with tiny metallic edging below 
these tips, the lowermost feathers of this black-and-white patch glossed with 
green; back brick-red brown, gradually getting more brown and less red 
towards the rump ; the upper-back, and base of hind-neck brilliantly glossed 
with metallic copper-purple, showing green in places in some lights; the 
purple gloss extends down the back in a lesser degree, but not on to the 
scapulars. Rump, upper tail-coverts and tail blackish-brown, the feathers 
of the rump obsoletely edged with metallic green. Wings dark brown, in 
very fine specimens the whole of the visible portions of the smaller wing- 
coverts are the same colour as the back and the other wing-coverts, except 
the greater primary-coverts, are edged with the same. In some specimens 
also the scapulars and innermost secondaries are powdered with this colour, 
giving them a general reddish hue. 
Chin and centre of throat whitish, neck below and breast ashy-grey 
or grey tinted with vinous, and with all the feathers edged with metallic 
emerald-green, pale and sometimes scarcely visible; on the abdomen the 
grey becomes paler and more ashy or vinous, and on the flanks, axillaries 
and under aspect of the wing a good deal darker; under tail-coverts 
brownish-ashy. 
Colours of soft parts. ‘‘Corneous part of bill and claws horny-white ; 
