392 COMMON KING FISHER. 



China, a species closely allied, but smaller, and 

 more delicately proportioned in all its parts. 



The mandible is blackish brown, but the 

 interior of the gape, the base of the maxilla, and 

 the feet, are bright reddish orange ; the head and 

 nape, shoulder covers, scapulars, and wings, are 

 of a deep olive green, the feathers of the head 

 and nape bordered with clear verditer blue ; the 

 centre of the back, rump, and tail covers are bril- 

 liant verditer blue, appearing conspicuously in 

 flight ; (the feathers on this part are in great 

 request by the dressers of Limerick or Irish flies ;) 

 the quills are brownish black, edged with olive 

 green ; the tail underneath appears of the same 

 colour, on the upper parts approaching to ultra- 

 marine blue. From the base of the maxilla runs 

 a streak of dull verditer blue, joining with the 

 colour of the back, and separating the auricular 

 feathers and a patch of white on the sides of the 

 neck, from the colour of the under parts ; the 

 chin and throat are yellowish white, and the 

 whole under parts with the auricular feathers are 

 clear orange brown, becoming paler on the vent 

 and tail covers. In the female the colours gene- 

 rally are less vivid, and the white patch on the 

 sides of the neck is more subdued. 



