The Waytails of India. 29 



There remain first the coloration of the back^ second the 

 amount of white on the wing. Undoubtedl}^, taken as a body^ the 

 backs in Alba are a darker^ and those of Biiklmnensis , a paler 

 grey ; and again taken as a body the coverts^ secondaries, and 

 tertiaries in Diilchuuensis are much more conspicuously and 

 broadly margined with white than in Alba.'^ But, per contra, 

 I have first a typical Alba absolutely identical in every respect 

 with the European specimens. This is from Bhawulpoor, and 

 is the only unmistakable Alba which I have yet seen in India ; 

 secondly, I have several Buhhunensis with the characteristic 

 whiter wing, the backs of which are as dark as in any Alba 

 vera ; and thirdly, others with the light backs characteristic of 

 Dtikkunensis ; but with no more white on the wing than in 

 Alba. Under these circumstances it must, I think, remain an 

 open question whether we ought to consider Duklmnensis a dis- 

 tinct species or merely a local race. I myself retain the name 

 for convenience, but greatly doubt the value of the distinction, 

 and having- explained wherein the typical Alba differs from the 

 typical Dnklmnensi^, shall say nothing further of Alba, but 

 confine myself to VitkJmnensis and Personata. 



All my -black-back wagtails have been exclusively procured 

 in the Himalayas, from Cashmere to_ Sikhim. DukJmnensis and 

 Personata on the other hand are widely distributed throughout 

 •the plains of India. My specimens ai DiikJiunensis are from various 

 localities in Sindh, Jodhpoor, Bhawulpoor, Dehra Ghazi Khan,- 

 Lahore, Sirsa, Ferozepore, Rohttick, Goorgaon, Simla, Saharun-- 

 poor, Etawah, Jhansie, Saugor, Chumparun, Sarun, and Dacca. 

 Personata I have from Murdan, Cashmere, Lahore, Goorgaon, 

 Simla, Kotegurh, Saharunpoor, Kumaon, and Etawah; and I 

 have seen specimens of both I believe from almost every locality 

 in the Punjab, the North-West Provinces, Oudh, and the Cen- 

 tral Provinces, and of Dukhmensis from at least a dozen loca- 

 lities in Bengal. 



In full breeding plumage, these two species are very readily 

 distinguishable. Pukhunensis then has the whole front of the 

 head, lores, orbital region, cheeks, ear-coverts, and a stripe down 

 the side of the neck pure white. The posterior half of the crown, 

 occiput, and nape, the chin, throat, and breast pure black. In 

 Personata, on the other hand, tlie white is confined to a broad 

 frontal band extending as far as the front of the eye, and stretch- 

 ing as a narrow supercilium backwards over the eye and part 

 of the ear-coverts. Again in Personata, the whole visible por- 

 tions of the wing coverts of the closed wing are pure white, 

 whereas in Pukhunensis they are brown, broadly edged, it is true, 

 with white, but not sufficiently so to enable the edgings to 



