THE SPICE FINCH. 223 



shaft-lines ; the lower back crossed by wavy dark brown bars ; croup 

 and upper tail-coverts straw-coloured with a golden lustre; tail feathers 

 dark brown, yellowish externally ; flight feathers dark brown, reddish 

 externally ; head dark chestnut red, with faintly-marked shaft-lines, 

 sides of neck a little paler ; remainder of under-surface white, the 

 feathers barred and edged towards the sides of the body with chestnut, 

 and at the sides with blackish ; thighs greyish-brown with dark bars ; 

 under tail-coverts whitish buff; under wing-coverts buff slightly barred; 

 the edge of the wing mottled with white ; flights below dusky, with 

 the outer webs somewhat yellowish. Length 4? inches. Beak bluish- 

 black, the lower mandible a little paler ; legs leaden-grey ; iris brown. 



Of this species I received ten examples in 1892, brought home 

 from Bombay by the Captain of a trading-ship. I already had a pair 

 in my bird-room, I, therefore, turned in four others, and let the 

 remaining six fly in niy cold aviary. I find that they are absolutely 

 indifferent to temperature.* 



As there has been much confusion between the typical species 

 and its races, f I give the following distinctive characters on Dr. 

 Sharpe's axithority : 



Munia subundulata, GoDWlN-AuSTiN. 



Differs from M. pnnctulata " in the more olive-yellow shade of the 

 rump, upper tail-coverts and tail, and the generally more ashy black 

 of the flank-barring, which, moreover, is not so strongly pronounced 

 as in M. punctulata. On the rump the feathers have not the second 

 subterminal dusky bar which is seen in the latter species." 



"Hah. From Cachar to Manipur, Burmah, and Tenasserim, east- 

 ward to Cochin China." 



This race is probably often imported, but is not distinguished 

 from the commoner Bar-breasted Finch of India, or is confounded with 

 M. nisoria. 



Munia topela, 



Called by importers the " Topela Finch " : it differs, according to 

 Dr. Sharpe, as follows : 



" A shade of ashy-olive over the rump, and with the upper tail- 

 coverts and tail shaded with pale straw- yellow ; the chestnut-throat 



* One or two of these Mr. Abrahams identified with the Bar-breasted Finch. A.G.B. 



t This confusion has arisen from the fact that such well-known scientists as Blyth, Jerdon 

 and Gates, have confounded the races with the type M. punctulata. A.G.B. 



\ Specimens of which were given to me in 1894, by Mr. Abrahams. A.G.B. 



