220 Mr. W. T. Blanford on 'Stray Feathers.' 



lose, in both sexes, the black of the head, which is replaced 

 in the male by a dark, in the female by a lighter grey." I 

 cannot speak positively as to M. per sonata ; but in M . alba of 

 India I have always seen a black or blackish crown to the 

 head of the male throughout the winter. Perhaps, after all, 

 my " blackish " and Mr. Hume's " dark grey " are the same 

 thing. It is, however, confined to the crown, and is suffi- 

 ciently well marked to be conspicuous at some distance. 



The fifth paper in ' Stray Feathers ' is devoted to Flamin- 

 goes. Mr. Hume shows that the African Phoenicopterus minor 

 occurs in India, and that P. rubidus, Feilden (Ibis, 1868, 

 p. 496), is the female in breeding-plumage, the brilliancy of 

 the latter varying with the time of year, whilst the difference 

 in the form of the bill, shown in Mr. Gray's figures, Ibis, 

 1869, p. 440, pis. xiii., xv., is sexual. In the same way the 

 head figured in pi. xiii. No. 2, by Mr. Gray, and said to be 

 that of a very old Indian example of P. antiquorum, is stated 

 by Mr. Hume to represent the form of bill peculiar to the 

 female of that species. 



A note on " a new (?) Polyplectron " describes some tail-fea- 

 thers obtained from the Lushai country, and differing from 

 those pertaining to either the Assamese and Bhotan species, 

 usually known as P. chinquis, Temm., or the Malayan P. bical- 

 caratum, L. : Mr. Hume considers it probable that the Lushai 

 bird is the true P. chinquis of the ' Planches Coloriees,' pi. 539, 

 and that the Assam species must stand as P. tibetanum (L.) ; 

 bnt in case the Lushai bird should be new, he proposes to call 

 it " intermedins "*. The necessity for a new name is as little 

 apparent here as in the case of the Black -backed Wagtail in 

 breeding-plumage ; but Mr. Hume's fear of being anticipated 

 by some other ornithologist, as in the unfortunate instance 

 which decided him upon becoming his own editor, evidently 

 induces him to give names on the chance of their being per- 

 petuated. The practice is common enough, it is true ; but it 

 is, I think, not followed by the best naturalists. 



* I am indebted to Mr. Elliot for calling my attention to the fact that 

 P. chinquis, Temm., i. e. P. thibetamim, L., has already been divided into 

 three species by Mr. G. R. Gray (Vow/. Elliot, Phasianidae, vol. i.)- 



