486 GLEANINGS FROM THE CALCUTTA MARKET. 



decidedly darker, with the pale margins obsolete or nearly so, 

 while in the median coverts these are more conspicuous and 

 white or nearly so ; the winglet and primary greater coverts 

 very dark brown ; the coverts, more especially the hinder ones, 

 tipped white ; the rest of the greater coverts a lighter brown, 

 often greyer, tipped, margined, and more or less imperfectly 

 barred towards the tips with pure white, most conspicuously so 

 on the inner webs ; the earliest primaries deep brown, grow- 

 ing less deep as they recede towards the secondaries, which are 

 a rather light, in some birds decidedly grey, brown ; all the 

 quills with much white and white mottling on the inner webs, 

 the amount of which increases as the feathers recede from the 

 outside of the wing; all but the first five or six primaries 

 more or less conspicuously margined, often in a mottled fashion, 

 on the outer web, and at the tips also, with white ; the secon- 

 daries more strongly so, and these aud the later primaries, with 

 more or less of a mottled white shaft streak. 



The rump and upper tail-coverts white, conspicuously barred 

 with black, the terminal bar more or less following the curve 

 of the feather ; the tail feathers white, with regular, rather 

 broad, transverse blackish brown and black bars ; the central 

 feathers always, the next one or two pairs often, and sometimes 

 nearly the whole tail, with an ashy brown shade over the whole 

 terminal portions of the feather alike over white and black, 

 both of which it obscures and dulls. 



As already mentioned this species has been met with in North- 

 ern Asia, and China and Japan ; in the two latter during the 

 cold season ; in the former during the summer. Those obtained 

 in the summer in breeding plumage had the whole heads, necks 

 and breasts rufous, and were tinged with this colour above ; in 

 fact were in a dress that bore much the same relation to their 

 winter plumage that the summer plumages of Tringa subar- 

 guata or Limosa agocephala does to their winter garbs. 



Although this species has been met with elsewhere, as already 

 noticed, it appears to be quite as rare in those countries as in 

 India, and I am inclined to suspect that it is an old and vanish- 

 ing species. 



875. — Limosa eegocephala, Lin. 



A good many are brought into the market, especially about 

 the commencement and close of the cold season. During the 

 coldest portion, 15th December to 15th February, you do not 

 see half a dozen. 



876. — Terelcia cinerea, Gilld. 



Once only have I seen this species in the market, and then 

 an entire flock, fully fifty, had been netted. 



