198 Mr. E. C. Stuart Baker on [Ibis, 



Burma, humei from the north-west Himalayas, and ivilliam- 

 soni from Siam. 



Mr. Kloss divides all forms of Micropterims from India, 

 Burma, Malay, and Siam into two groups : (1) brachyurus 

 group, with the shafts of the wing-quills more or less 

 blackened ; and (2) phaioceps group, in which the shafts 

 are perfectly unsullied red. 



I have examined roughly some 400 specimens of this 

 Woodpecker, and my examination shows that this division 

 into two groups is not very good, as it breaks down when a 

 large number of skins are considered. On the whole, how- 

 ever, we do find that the brachyurus group has more black 

 on the wing-sliafts tlian has the phaioceps. The following 

 figures show this : — 



Dark Red 

 brachyurus (rom : .j^.f^g, ^^^^.^^ 



Klang 12 



Tenasserim 42 18 



Malacca 26 



S. Mala}', various places . . 13 2 



Sumatra 8 1 



Singapore 2 103 and 27 respectively, 



phaioceps fj'om : 



N.W. India 8 



Nepal and Sikkim 12 23 



Bengal and Behar 7 Black, varying in extent. 



A-ssain and Cachar 9 22 



N'. and Central Burma .... 9 9 



S. Burma 19 10 



S. Sliau States 2 1 58 and 73 respectively. 



This suffices to show that we cannot rely on this feature 

 to distinguish between tiie two groups, neither is it necessary 

 to do so, as the cliaiacter usually accepted, that of the 

 mirkiiig on the chin, is a good one, dift'erentiatiug plainly 

 between brachyurus, phaioceps, and yularis. In the first, 

 brachyurus, and the second, phaioceps , the feathers of the 

 chin and upper throat have dark longitudinal centres with 

 pale edges, the general appearance being streaky : gularis, 

 on the other hand, has tiiese feathers dark with narrow 



