BUTASTUR. 49 



faintly streaked with white; breast like the neck, but with faint traces of obscure 

 rufescent bars, all the feathers darker shafted ; sides and abdomen the same ; 

 libial plumes, vent, lower tail coverts and the whole lower surface of the 

 wing, except the primaries beyond the notches on the inner web, pure white ; 

 auxiliaries white, with close-set transverse bars of brown and rufous. Quills, 

 primary greater coverts, and winglet a rich chestnut red, tipped more or less 

 broadly with brown, darkest on the primaries ; the outer webs of the second to 

 the 5th primaries from above the emarginations pure white, the red portions 

 of the inner webs with a few widely distant narrow dark brown transverse 

 bars, the outer webs with traces of similar bars. The first four primaries 

 conspicuously notched on their inner webs ; the 3rd, 4th, and 5th somewhat 

 emarginate on their outer webs. Rump and upper tail coverts a rich more 

 or less rufous brown, each feather darker shafted ; tail bright chestnut, 

 tipped white or rufous white and with a moderately broad transverse sub- 

 terminal black band on both webs ; the central and outer feathers exhibit 

 two or three narrow transverse dark brown bars and a few black spots, traces 

 apparently of these, the one about an inch and the other about two inches 

 above the band just described, and the third just below the tips of the 

 coverts ; mantle a more or less rufous brown, some of the coverts faintly 

 margined paler, and all the feathers darker shafted ; lesser and median coverts 

 browner and less rufous and more or less fringed with albescent. Longest 

 scapulars brownish at the tips, bright chestnut above, and with traces of grey 

 brown bars ; primaries and secondaries narrowly margined towards the tips 

 with dull white. Edge of the wing w^hite ; lower surface of the tail white, 

 tinged purplish (S. F. iii. 31). The adult female (type of species) is described 

 by Sharpe (Caf. Ace. B. M.). I have not seen a specimen, nor is one record- 

 ed in Stray Feathers as having been obtained by any one of Mr. Hume's 

 numerous correspondents. The shaft stripes of the male is everywhere indi- 

 cated in the female, but the coloration is paler. Tail rufous instead of bright 

 chestnut, margined and tipped with ashy grey and crossed with six blackish, 

 bars, the subterminal one a little 'broader. 



Length. Male 14 to 14*5 ; expanse 35 to 37*5 ; tail 5-8 to 6-5 ; wing 107 

 to 1 1*5; tarsus 2-3 to 2*6; bill T2 to 1-4. Female larger. Bill pale orange 

 yellow, the tip black. Cere, orbits, and feet yellow. Irides pale yellow. 



Hal. British Burmah and Siam to Celebes; occurring in Java (Sharpe), the 

 Continent of India (Tern.). Dr. Armstrong has had it in the vicinity of 

 Elephant Point, in the Rangoon district of the Irrawady Delta, where he says it 

 is by no means common and frequents the extensive paddy fields, coursing 

 along with a graceful swooping flight from one field to another. Messrs. Hume 

 and Davison say that it is confined to the northern and central portions of 

 the province of Tennaserim, and rare in the northernmost districts. Tonghoo 

 (Lloyd and Ramsay), Kankaryit, llongthraw, R. Thyetmoo, and Amherst are 

 also given as localities. 

 7 



