448 MR. R. SWINHOE ON CHINESE ZOOLOGY. [June 9, 
A. bactriana (Blyth) of Thibet, by its short tarse covered with long 
down, and by its well-clothed toes. I propose to distinguish it as the 
ATHENE PLUMIPES, Sp. nov. 
Throat white, the white extending in crescent-form up each cheek 
in rear of ear-coverts (the lower white neck-ring of 4. noctua is 
wanting); lores, round eye, and middle of belly also pure white ; 
upper parts light reddish brown, with drops of reddish white on the 
head, and marked and spotted much as in A. noctua ; underparts, 
leg-, and feet-feathers cream-colour, on the breast and flanks broadly 
streaked with reddish brown, like 4. glaur (A. noetua being spotted 
with white on a dark ground and wanting the white on the centre of 
the belly) ; bill yellow tinged with green ; irides light yellow; claws 
blackish brown. 
Length about 8°5 mches; wing 6-2, of similar-proportioned quills 
to those of 4. noctua ; tail 3°6, of twelve equal feathers; tarse to 
base of hind toe *85, densely clothed with down-like feathers, °65 
long; feet covered with shorter hair-like feathers, just showing 
scales at end of toes ; soles bare and yellow. 
Towards evening, as we drew near to Shato, very large flights of 
Erythropus amurensis (Radd.) and Falco cenchris (Naun.) appeared 
in the skies overhead, flying high to and fro and round like Swallows 
about the temples in the western hills; they were also to be seen 
at this season in large numbers preparatory to their migration. 
They must, however, wind away south-westwards, as they_do not 
appear on the southern coast of China. 
In the Nankow Pass we saw Eagles again, a small number of Uro- 
cissa sinensis (L.), and a single Hophona personata (T.&S8.), One 
of my comrades shot the last, and had a piece of his finger nearly 
bitten out by the formidable mandibles of the bird. I noticed that 
the Crows here pursue and torment the Eagles just as fearlessly as 
they do the Kites in Southern China. 
On the 30th of September we reached Peking just before the shut- 
ting of the gates. 
In the last visit I paid to the museum I found a native with a live 
Nutcracker for sale. I engaged this man to collect for me, and 
through him got some very good things. He had worked for Pére 
David. It was a pity that I had not got hold of him before, as now 
my time was getting short. He brought me three Nutcrackers, all 
females, of the European Nucifraga caryocatactes (Pall.), called by 
the Chinese the Tsung hwa’rh, or “ Onion-flower.” Inrides dark, 
liver-brown, the same colour as the crown of their heads; bill, legs, 
and claws blackish brown. 
Hawfinch, Coccothraustes vulgaris, 2: iris light yellowish brown 
tinged with grey. Zosterops erythopleura, mihi: the female has 
less red on the flank than the male; bill light bluish grey, marked 
with black on upper mandible; legs deeper bluish grey. 
Accipitor palumbarius, 3. Baill brownish black, bluish grey at 
base; cere king’s yellow marked with blackish brown, rictus king’s yel- 
low ; inside of mouth light purplish blue marked with black ; eyelids 
