VI* 



the throat with similarly coloured spots at the tips ; forehead and a broad 

 supcrcilium running- up the inside webs of the aigrette feathers, and a curved 

 band at the back of the head, extending from the point of one aigrette to the 

 point of the other, a silvery grey or greyish white, the feathers with dark brown 

 shafts and numerous minute transverse pencillings of that colour, and some of 

 them with terminal spots ; centre of forehead, top of head, a triangular space 

 surrounded by this grey band, a rich dark brown, purest on the centre of the 

 forehead, with small' twin spots or imperfect transverse bars and mottlings, to a 

 greater or less extent, of pale buff ; the outside webs of the aigrettes are similar, 

 as are the feathers of the band outside and contiguous to the curved grey band, 

 which latter seems continuous with the dark line of the outer webs of the ai- 

 grette, while the former seems to start immediately above the centre of 

 the eye; below the dark band at the base of the neck, is another band 

 of very similarly marked feathers, but whereas the dark brown predomina- 

 tes in the former, the buff much predominates in the latter. The back, rump, 

 upper tail coverts, scapulars, wing coverts, except the greater ones of the 

 primaries, a mixture of pale brownish grey and pale buffy, with dark brown 

 central streaks, and numerous transverse wavy brown pencillings and mot- 

 tlings* In the outside line of the scapulars the buff is very pure, and in some 

 positions conspicuous, and while the rump, upper tail and lesser wing coverts 

 are dingier and greyer, the centre of the upper back and the median and 

 secondary wing coverts show more of a pale buff ; the primary greater coverts 

 are very dark brown with broad transverse buffy mottled bars ; the quills are 

 darkish brown, with numerous broad transverse greyish more or less dingy 

 white bars, much more conspicuous on the outer webs ; with the exception of 

 a few bars on the upper portion of the outer web of the earlier primaries, 

 which are unmottled and slightly tinged with creamy, all the rest of these bars 

 are closely mottled and pencilled with brown ; the second, third and fourth 

 primaries are just perceptibly emarginate on the outer webs, and the first to 

 the fourth are conspicuously notched on the inner webs ; the sides of the neck 

 behind the dark line, the breast, sides, abdomen and thigh coverts, a sort of 

 creamy grey, very soft and silky, the feathers with narrow rich brown central 

 streaks and numerous minute irregular, wavy, transverse pencillings ; greater 

 portion of wing lining, vent feathers and lower tailcoverts, silky greyish white, 

 the latter, some of them, with dark central streaks towards the tips; tarsal 

 feathers silky greyish white, with a faint buffy tinge towards the joint, and with 

 several narrow, somewhat irregular transverse brown bars ; tail feathers greyish 

 brown with imperfect transverse mottled bars of very pale dingy buff, and with 

 the interspaces, too, more or less mottled with the same colour. Toes and 

 claws pale greyish brown. Soles creamy white ; pads and papillae much deve- 

 loped and soft ; irides brownish yellow or dark brown ; bill dark brown ; cere 

 dusky grey. 



Length 7-88 to 9 inches; wing 5 -6 to 675 j tail 2-5 to 3- 37; tarsus ro6to rig. 



