532 Letters, Announcements, ^c. 



cimens. In his " Ornithological Observations in the Sutlej 

 Valley'' {cf. Ibis, 1869, pp. 212, 213), he remarks that A. pis- 

 poleita " will stand as a distinct species ; it was procured by 

 me near Korzog in Rupshu, but appears to be much rarer than 

 A. roytal ; it most probably also migrates in winter to the lower 

 hills and to the plains of North India." He then goes on to 

 say that in general colouring it is very like A. rcnjtal, "except 

 that the ear-coverts are more whitish, and the feathers on the 

 head and nape very narrowly streaked with dusky-brown, while 

 they are more distinctly streaked in the former species ; in size 

 it is decidedly larger, the bill being in proportion rather long and 

 slender, horny above, pale yellow below at the base, the upper 

 mandible at the tip a little less curved ; legs fleshy brown ; 

 length of wing 3" 75 inches ; tail 2*5 inches." 



Now this, in my opinion, is certainly not A. pispoletta. The 

 colouring, at any rate in the cold season, when my birds were 

 killed, has a fawn-coloured tinge, utterly different from any thing 

 that A. raytal ever has; and so far from the bill being in pro- 

 portion rather " long and slender," the most characteristic feature 

 of this species is its very short, small conical bill ; moreover the 

 wings in my specimens vary from 3*9 to 4*1 in. 



On the whole, I can scarcely doubt that Dr. Stoliczka was in 

 error, especially since Ilerr Von Pelzeln omits all notice of 

 A. pispoletta in his review of Dr. Stoliczka's Collection (Ibis, 

 1868, p. 319) ; and if so, these specimens of mine are the first 

 that have been obtained in this part of the world. It is just 

 possible, however, that I myself am in error, as I have no copy 

 of Pallas's ' Zoographia ' by me to refer to : but my Larks are, 

 I think, clearly those described in Gerbe's edition of Degland's 

 * Ornithologie Europeenne ' (ed. 1867, i. p. 343), the details 

 given in which are founded on a paper by M. Vian (Rev. Zool. 

 1861, i. p. 346). Yours, &c., 



Allan Hume. 



Simla, July 7, 1870. 

 Sir, — When last staying with me, my friend Dr. Jerdon 

 showed me what he considered to be a new Cypselus, of the C. 

 ~f bntassiensis type, which he named C. tectonim. This species 



