ii 
159 
than the crown, and very broadly and ill-definedly tipped with- 
a slightly paler shade of brown, which owing to the over-lap- 
ping of the feathers, is for the most part, the only colour seen. 
The longest of the scapulars, a deep umber brown; in some 
lights, almost black. Upper tail coverts white, with a slight 
tinge of rufous, or fulvous. Tail feathers, blackish brown, 
obscurely mottled in places, with a lighter brown, and narrow- 
ly tipped with dingy white ; their shafts white at the base, 
brownish for the terminal half. The coverts under the winglet 
a mixture of white, pale brown, and rufous white ; the winglet 
itself, blackish brown, narrowly tipped with rufous white, and 
tinged on the edge of exterior web with brown. The primaries 
and greater coverts, very dark brown, tipped with fulvous white; 
the first seven primaries nearly black, all but the first emargi- 
nate, and strongly tinged on the outer web above the emargi- 
nation, with grey, or grayish brown ; the first six conspicuously 
notched on the inner webs, and mottled with greyish above the 
notches ; the last three primaries are mottled brown and gray, 
the outer webs being almost entirely gray ; the first narrowly, 
the second less narrowly, and the third broadly tipped with 
rufous white. The secondaries dark brown, all conspicuously, 
and broadly tipped with rufous white, and obscurely barred 
with a darker brown. ‘The tertials similar, but their general 
hue is lighter. ‘The whole of the greater coverts of the seconda- 
ries, as well as of the last three primaries dark brown, conspi- 
cuously and broadly tipped with rufous wlrite, and as is often the 
case with the secondaries themselves, and the primaries greater 
coverts, with a sort of greyish patch on the brown above the 
tipping. The tips of the median coverts, of the primaries, and 
some few of the first secondaries, pale rufous white. The entire 
under surface of the body, throat, neck, ear coverts, axillaries 
and lesser lower wing coverts, uniform pale brown, much the 
same colour as the upper parts; but many of the feathers espe- 
cially of the breast, and abdomen, very faintly margined with 
a slightly darker tint; vent feathers, and lower tail coverts, 
fulvous white. Greater lower*wing coverts, white with a faint 
rufous tinge. The wings when closed, reach as far as the end 
of the exterior tail feathers, which are 12th shorter than the 
centre ones. 
4th. <A fairly typical specimen of the third, or barless dark 
brown stage. Female. Shot, January 17th. 
Description. Legs, feet rather dingy wax yellow; claws, 
black ; feet, with convex reticulated scales; mid toe of left foot, 
with three large transverse scute, all above being reticulated ; 
mid toe of right foot, with five transverse scute ; inner toe of left 
