BIRDS OF TENASSERIM. 153 



dense evergreen forests, but I have seen and shot it in com- 

 paratively thin tree jungle. 



It is common in the evergreen forests of the extreme south, 

 and it even extends north of Tnvoy, for I shot one specimen 

 close to the Henza Basin, but so far north it is very rare. — 

 W. D.] 



I am disposed to agree with Count Salvadori that M. humei, 

 Marshall (Ibis, 1870, p. 536), is a stage of the young of M. mys- 

 tacophanos, but Captain Marshall, who has examined our series, 

 and Mr. Davison, who has shot an enormous number of mys- 

 tacophanos in all stages of plumage, are still inclined to consider 

 humei distinct. Undoubtedly, Salvadori figures a specimen of 

 humei, but then his bird is from Borneo, whence humei was 

 said to come, and Captain Marshall's contention is that, though 

 very closely resembling one stage of mystacophanos, and occurring 

 with it in Borneo, it is distinct and probably peculiar to Borneo. 



We have an enormous series of this bird in every stage of 

 plumage, collected by ourselves in various parts of Southern 

 Tenasserim and the Malay Peninsula, where it is very common, 

 and it is certain that we have obtained no specimen which agrees 

 perfectly with the specimens figured by Captain Marshall. 



One thing is clear, viz., that, as a rule, immature mystacophanos 

 never shows much of the red breast patches, until a considerable 

 portion of the chin and throat are also red. Occasionally, these 

 patches may be found represented by single specks, whilst the 

 chin and throat are still yellow, but in no single instance is 

 there a conspicuous red breast patch, until a considerable amount 

 of red has been developed on chin and throat, whereas in the 

 type of humei the red patches are strongly developed, and there 

 is not the smallest tinge of red on the throat. 



To my mind, however, this does not go for much ; true, we 

 have some 20 young specimens approximating to the humei 

 stage, but all distinguished as above, but the changes of plumage 

 in this species are so irregular and variable that I do not think 

 any conclusions can be safely based even upon this number of 

 specimens. 



The youngest specimens we have, birds killed in June and 

 probably just out of the nest, are a nearly uniform green, save 

 only that the cheeks below the eyes, and an ill-defined baud 

 across the forehead from eye to eye, have a bluish tinge, and 

 that there is a small reddish orange spot at the base of the bill 

 in front of the eyes. From this stage the normal change clearly 

 is for the throat to grow yellow, for the forehead just above the 

 bill to grow dusky, mingled with orange, and for a few red fea- 

 thers to break out in the centre of the crown. Then the red 

 of the crown extends ; the cheeks become more decidedly blue ; 

 the throat more decidedly golden ; in the midst of this golden 



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