GALLOPERDIX. 107 



Choti janyli Murghi, IT. Central Prov., Belganm, c. ; Chakotri, 

 Kokatri, Mahr. (Syhadri Range) ; Kastoor, Mahr. (Deccan) 5 tiarrava 

 Koli, Tarn. ; Yerra-Kodi, Jitta-Kudi, Tel. 



Coloration. Male. Crown dark brown, paler and greyer on the 

 forehead and sides of head and all round the neck ; chin whitish ; 

 feathers of the upper back and sometimes of the whole back and 

 rump light chestnut with grey edges, but generally all the upper 

 parts except the upper back are closely vermiculated with black 

 and rufous buff, varying occasionally to pale buff and even whitish 

 in parts; middle tail-feathers and outer margins of the next two 



Fig. 21. Head of G. spadicea, 



or three pairs and of the secondary quills the same ; quills dark 

 brown ; tail-feathers blackish brown ; breast and upper abdomen 

 like the upper back ; lower abdomen and thighs brown ; under 

 tail-coverts rufous brown, vermiculated like the lower back. 

 There is frequently a patch of feathers in the middle of the 

 breast with greyish-brown centres. 



The female differs in having the feathers of the upper parts 

 black, edged and rather irregularly barred with buff, the buff some- 

 times predominating; the feathers of the fore neck are black with 

 buff tips: the rest of the lower parts as in the male, but with 

 broken and irregular black tips on the breast. 



The race from Abu and the neighbourhood is much paler, there 

 is less vermiculation on the upper parts of the male, and the female 

 has no distinct black bars on the feathers of the back, wing-coverts, 

 &c. ; these are all rufous or even greyish buff, with black vermicu- 

 lation and broken intramarginal streaks to the feathers. Skins of 

 females from Matheran and Mahableshwar, in the Hume Collection, 

 though richly rufous, not pale and greyish like Abu specimens, 

 have the same markings, whilst Belgaum and Goa skins are like 

 those from the Nilgiris. It is evident that the Bombay Presidency 

 bird is a well-marked and peculiar race, and might be called 

 G. spadicea var. cav.rina. 



Bill dusky red at base, horny towards the tips ; iris dull yellow 

 to brown ; orbits and legs red, varying in tint. 



Length of male about 14-5; tail 6; wing 6-5; tarsus 1*75 ; 

 bill from gape 1. Females are rather less. 



Distribution. Here and there throughout the peninsula of India 

 south of the great Indo-Gangetic alluvial plain, almost wherever 



