112 PHASIANID^. 



the frontal tuft, black ; upper parts, except wings, deep green, 

 changing to steel-blue ; smaller wing-coverts rufous brown, the 

 greater coverts and quills dark brown, mottled with rufous on the 

 outer webs ; tail black ; lower parts black with a dark bluish or 

 green gloss. 



In the female the crest is rudimentary and slaty grey like the 

 whole of the head and neck ; the body above and below grass-green, 

 paler and tinged with grey on the abdomen ; scapulars and smaller 

 wing-coverts chestnut ; median and greater coverts paler rufous 

 with blackish cross-bars ; quills and tail as in the male. 



Bill black, the basal portion scarlef in the male ; hides slaty grey 

 in males, deep brown in females ; facial skin, eyelids, legs and feet 

 bright reel, scarlet in males (Davison). 



Length of a male about 11; tail 2-5; wing 5*5; tarsus 1'7 ; 

 bill from gape -9. Females are a little smaller. 



Distribution. The Malay Peninsula, extending north into the 

 southern parts of Tenasserim near the Pakchan river, also into 

 ISiam, Sumatra, Java, and Borneo. 



Habits, fyc. A forest bird found in small parties of six or eight 

 or more, males and females, and living on berries, seeds, tender 

 shoots, leaves, and insects. The note is a s;>ft, low, mellow whistle. 

 The eggs do not appear to have been described. 



Genus EXCALFACTOEIA, Bonap., 1856. 



This genus is scarcely separable from Coturniv, which the female 

 closely resembles. The sexes, however, differ much in their 

 lower plumage, and the cock is a much handsomer bird than the 

 true Quails. The wing is slightly more rounded than in Coturnix, 

 the 1st primary being, as a rule, rather shorter than the second, 

 and there are only 8 short tail-feathers entirely hidden by the 

 upper coverts. 



This genus inhabits the Oriental region, Australia and Africa. 

 Of the three recorded species one is found in India. 



1354. Excalfactoria chinensis. The Blue-breasted Quail. 

 Tetrao chinensis, Linn. Syst. Nat. i, p. 277 (1766). 

 Coturnix chinensis, Blyth, Cat. p. 255 ; Lee/ye, Birds Ceylon. 



p. 755. 

 Excalfactoria chinensis, Bonap. C. It. xlii, p. 881 ; Jerdon, B. 1. iii, 



p. 591 ; Godw.-Aust. J. A.S. B. xxxix, pt. 2, p. 273 ; xlv, pt. 2, 



p. 84 ; Blyth, Birds Burm. p. 151 ; Hume, S. F. vii, p. 226 ; iff. 



Cat. no. 831 ; Gates, S. F. viii, p. 167 ; Hume 8f Marsh. Game B. 



ii, p. 161 ; Laird # Bidie, S. F. ix, p. 208 ; Hume fy Inglis, ibid. 



p. 258 ; Sutler, ibid. p. 423 ; Reid, S. F. x, p. 63 ; Wen'den, ibid. 



p. 165 ; Davison, ibid. p. 412 ; Oates, B. B. ii, p. 334 ; Hume, S. F. 



xi, p. 310 ; Oates in Hume's N. $ E. 2nd ed. iii, p. 448 ; Oyilnie 



Grant, Cat. B. M. xxii, p, 250. 

 Excalfactoria sinensis, Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi, p. 447 ; Binyham, S. F. 



ix, p. 196. 



Khair-butai, Kaneli, Nepal ; Gobal-lutai, Oudh ; Ngon, Burma ; Pan- 

 dura-watuwa, Wenella-wutuwa, Cing. 



