ARGUSIANUS. 71 



Genus ARGUSIANUS, Rafinesque, 1815. 



The true Argus Pheasants are large birds distinguished by the 

 enormous development of the secondary quills, which are of great 

 breadth, nearly twice as long as the primaries in males, and 

 decidedly longer than the primaries in females, and by the long 

 median tail-feathers of the males, more than twice the length of 

 the next pair. There are 12 feathers in the tail, which is 

 graduated ; the tarsus is long, without any spur ; and the sides 

 of the face, the chin, throat, and fore parts of the neck are naked. 

 The plumage is spotted with black, brown, buff, and white, 

 forming singularly beautiful patterns. 



Two species are known one from South Tenasserim, the Malay 

 Peninsula, and Sumatra, the other from Borneo ; a third is in- 

 dicated by some feathers of unknown origin. An allied form, 

 liheinardtius ocellatus, is found in Tonquin. 



1326. Argusianus argus. The Argus Pheasant. (Fig. 12, p. 64.) 



Phasianus argus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i, p. 272 (176fi). 



Argus giganteus, Tcmnt. Pit/, et Gall. ii. p. 410 (1813), iii, p. 678; 



Blylli, Cat. p. 242; Hume, S. F. ii, p. 481, iii, p. 324; Hume $ 



Dav. S. F. vi, p. 427 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game B. i, p. 99, pi. ; 



Hume, Cat. no. 803 ter; Sclater, P. Z. S. 1879, p. 115, pi. vii 



(chick), viii, tig. 1 (egg). 

 Argus pavoninus, Gray in Hardw. III. Ind. Zool. i, pi. 36 $> (1830- 



32). 



Argusianus giganteus, Blyth, Birds Bnrm. p. 148. 

 Argusianus argus, Oates, B. B. ii, p. 313; Ogiluie Grant, Cat. B. M. 



xxii, p. 363. 



Qou, Borong quou, Kwang, Malay ; Kyek-ioah, Siamese (Bankasoon). 



Coloration. Male. Middle of crown and shorb hairy occipital 

 crest black; back of neck speckled grey; upper back, scapulars, 

 and wing-coverts black with buff spots and streaks ; lower back 

 and rump clear buff with scattered black spots ; quills buff or 

 grey, varying in tint, and variously spotted and banded ; a band of 

 rufous, minutely speckled with white, along the basal portion 

 of the inner web of each primary near the shaft, and a row of 

 peculiar ocelli, shaded like a ball in a socket *, along the shaft on 

 the outer web of each secondary ; inner edges of most secondaries 

 unspotted white ; large middle tail- feathers blackish, shading into 

 slaty grey on the inner web and into chestnut on 'he onto;-, tipped 

 with dirty white and speckled throughout with small black- 

 bordered white spots; other rectrices the same, but blackish 

 nearly throughout and much spotted ; lower parts rufous brown, 

 with narrow undulating bars of black, rufous, and buff. 



Female. Crown and cresb-feathers buff with black edges, the 



* Darwin ('Descent of Man,' ii, pp. 141-151) has shown that there is 

 on the secondaries of this Pheasant a complete gradation trom simple spots to 

 these wonderful ocelli. 



