298 



Ephialtes bakhamuna, Holdsworth, P. Z. S. 1872, p. 417; Hume, 



Scops indicus, Gutter, S. F. vii, p. 175 ; Hume, ibid. pp. 201, 359 

 Scops bakkamcena, Reid, S. F. x, p. 16; Blanf. Ibis, 1894, p. 527. 

 The Large Scops Owl, Jerdon; Tharkavi choghad, H. ; Lattya kusyal, 

 Nepal ; Pedda chitta guba, Tel. 



Coloration. Lores sullied white, the longest black-tipped, rest of 

 facial disk light brown or rufescent, generally banded darker; 

 forehead, broad supercilia, and inner webs of the long aigrettes 

 white or buff, speckled and barred with black ; ruff white or butt, 

 with dark brown edges ; crown and upper parts generally closely 

 vermiculated and speckled with black on a buff ground, many 

 feathers with black shaft-stripes more or less dentate and irregular, 

 or even broken up, generally broadest on the crown and nape ; a 

 pale buff nuchal collar, formed by buff feathers with dark edges ; 

 large buff spots tipped with black on the outer scapulars, forming 



Fig. 76. Head of S. bakkamcena, f. 



a distinct buff scapular band ; quills brown, with paler mottled 

 bands and tips, the bands as usual forming white or buff spots on 

 the outer webs of the primaries, but becoming faint and indistinct 

 on their inner webs, better marked on the secondaries, and running 

 into buff indentations on the inner borders, as also on the 

 primaries near the base ; tail brown, with pale cross-bands, all the 

 feathers more or less mottled, especially the middle pair and the 

 outer webs and tips of the others ; chin white or buff, throat 

 (part of the ruff-feathers) buff with shafts, tips, and sometimes 

 bars dark brown ; rest of lower surface white or buff, somewhat 

 irregularly black- shafted, and much stippled with fine wavy cross- 

 bars more or less broken up ; legs, vent, and under tail-coverts 

 nearly or quite uniform white or buff. 



Some birds are more rufous than others. Young birds are very 

 indistinctly coloured, the prevalent markings being close, irregular, 

 dusky cross-bars. 



Bill horny (yellowish or greenish), darker above ; irides varying 



