﻿species 
  of 
  the 
  Family 
  Pittiche. 
  489 
  

  

  pale 
  straw-colour 
  behind^' 
  (H. 
  0. 
  Forbes, 
  Ibis, 
  1882, 
  p. 
  Go). 
  

   Again, 
  Mr. 
  Sclater's 
  statement 
  that 
  the 
  feet 
  o{ 
  Pitta 
  granatina 
  

   are 
  " 
  brown,'^ 
  and 
  IMr. 
  Wallace's 
  assertion 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  " 
  black," 
  

   must 
  surely 
  be 
  disregarded 
  in 
  favour 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Everett's 
  record 
  

   (Ibis, 
  1877, 
  p. 
  10) 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  "leaden 
  blue," 
  inasmuch 
  as 
  

   those 
  of 
  its 
  ally. 
  Pitta 
  ussheri, 
  are 
  light 
  bluish 
  grey. 
  In 
  the 
  

   ' 
  Birds 
  of 
  Asia' 
  Mr. 
  Gould 
  has 
  coloured 
  the 
  legs 
  of 
  the 
  Pittas 
  

   according 
  to 
  fancy 
  — 
  those 
  of 
  Evcichla 
  boschi 
  being 
  shown 
  

   as 
  light 
  brown, 
  and 
  those 
  of 
  E. 
  baudi 
  as 
  pink, 
  while 
  the 
  legs 
  

   of 
  several 
  other 
  species 
  are 
  also 
  wrongly 
  coloured. 
  

  

  The 
  eggs 
  of 
  the 
  Pittas, 
  are 
  either 
  white, 
  or 
  white 
  sliglitly 
  

   spotted 
  with 
  dark 
  purple, 
  not 
  unlike 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Orioles. 
  

  

  The 
  young 
  have 
  a 
  plumage 
  peculiar 
  to 
  immaturity 
  and 
  

   very 
  ditferent 
  from 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  adult 
  bird. 
  The 
  nestling 
  

   plumage, 
  generally 
  speaking, 
  is 
  brown, 
  resembling 
  that 
  of 
  

   the 
  adult 
  in 
  Htjdrornis 
  and 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  female 
  of 
  Gigantipitta, 
  

   which 
  forms 
  are 
  probably 
  more 
  like 
  the 
  ancestral 
  typical 
  PittcB 
  

   than 
  any 
  other 
  members 
  of 
  the 
  genus. 
  This 
  opinion 
  I 
  find 
  

   is 
  contrary 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Wallace, 
  who, 
  writing 
  on 
  the 
  two 
  

   genera 
  above 
  mentioned, 
  says, 
  '' 
  these 
  species 
  depart 
  most 
  

   from 
  the 
  typical 
  characters 
  of 
  the 
  genus." 
  In 
  point 
  of 
  date 
  

   the 
  buff-breasted 
  group, 
  of 
  which 
  P. 
  cyanopdera 
  may 
  be 
  

   regarded 
  as 
  the 
  type, 
  is 
  certainly 
  older 
  than 
  the 
  green-breasted 
  

   section, 
  of 
  which 
  P. 
  cucullata 
  is 
  typical. 
  The 
  nestlings 
  of 
  

   the 
  buff-breasted 
  section 
  are 
  somewhat 
  like 
  the 
  adults, 
  while 
  

   those 
  of 
  the 
  green-breasted 
  division 
  are 
  certainly 
  more 
  like 
  

   those 
  of 
  the 
  first-mentioned 
  group 
  than 
  their 
  own 
  parents. 
  

   The 
  young 
  of 
  Pitta 
  maxima 
  gives 
  us 
  an 
  interesting 
  illustra- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  this 
  fact, 
  having 
  bufi" 
  on 
  the 
  breast. 
  The 
  ornamental 
  

   shoulder-patch 
  and 
  rump-band 
  are 
  generally 
  either 
  absent 
  

   or 
  very 
  dull 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  plumage 
  ; 
  but 
  some 
  species 
  seem 
  to 
  

   be 
  gradually 
  abandoning 
  such 
  ornamentation 
  (such 
  as 
  P. 
  

   maxima 
  and 
  perhaps 
  P. 
  novce-guinea), 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  young 
  of 
  

   the 
  first-mentioned 
  species 
  has 
  a 
  clearer 
  rump-band 
  than 
  the 
  

   adult; 
  but 
  1 
  have 
  not 
  seen 
  nestlings 
  of 
  P. 
  nova-guinece. 
  

   The 
  ancestral 
  plumage 
  retained 
  by 
  the 
  nestling 
  sometimes 
  

   reappears 
  in 
  the 
  fully 
  adult 
  ; 
  for 
  example, 
  I 
  have 
  a 
  perfectly 
  

   mature 
  specimen 
  of 
  Pitta 
  muelleri 
  which 
  has 
  the 
  white 
  throat 
  

  

  