168 Mr. H. Seebohm on Hirundo rufula. 



those of H. rufula, but are decidedly finer than in the much 

 larger H. alpestris, and more decidedly so than those of any 

 form of H. striolata. The rich dark chestnut of the rump, 

 which, even in birds of the year, scarcely shows a trace of shaft- 

 lines, is another good character. This species is a resident in 

 North-west India. 



H* alpestris (of which H. intermedia of Hume is a synonym) 

 breeds in South Siberia and winters in Assam. The rump 

 shows only traces of striations; and the striations of the 

 underparts, though much more marked than those of the three 

 forms we have already discussed, are scarcely so much so as in 

 those we shall have to mention afterwards. H. alpestris may 

 be divided into two subspecies, not, as in the first species, an 

 eastern and a western form, but a northern and a southern 

 race. The latter may be called H. alpestris /3. nipalensis, and 

 is a colony which has established itself in the Himalayas, 

 wintering in the plains of India and Burma. This local race 

 differs in no respect from its Siberian ally except in size. 

 The Siberian birds vary in length of wing from 5'2 to 4'9 

 inches, and the Himalayan birds from 4'8 to 4*5 inches. 



The remaining form may be allowed to be specifically 

 distinct from the previous two on the ground that the rump 

 is always more striated and the striations of the under- 

 parts are more pronounced. This species is called H. striolata, 

 and comprehends three local races, which are said to differ 

 only in size. The typical form is a resident in Java, and 

 measures 5 '5 inches in length of wing. H. striolata /3. substri- 

 olata, is supposed to be a resident in Formosa, occasionally 

 straying in winter to Assam, and measures 5 to 4' 8 inches 

 in length of wing ; whilst H. striolata y. japonica breeds in 

 Japan and South China, and measures 4'6 to 4'4 inches in 

 length of wing. H. arctivitta may be the young of H. ja- 

 ponica, or an eastern colony of H. nipalensis. It breeds at 

 Pekin. All the examples of this form in the Swinhoe collec- 

 tions are autumn birds, and differ from H. japonica in being 

 very slightly less streaked on the underparts, and in having the 

 . chestnut band on the rump less than three quarters of an 

 inch deep, instead of more than an inch. Only one of these 



