'Novelties — Ninox Ohscums. 11 



the quills are mavg-ined on the exterior web with rufons or 

 rufous grey. The whole lower surfaee including the wing lining, 

 is a very pale yellowish huff, much paler than in Lovglcaudatus, 

 more uniform than in Iriorrinfas verv, and purer than in Rufes- 

 cens ; the inner margins of the quills are the palest possible 

 salmon color. The tibial plumes are pale fulvous. 



I long' confounded this species with I). Sylvatica. The dimen- 

 sions and part of the description would agree well enough, but 

 no one could possibly call the bird olive brown, nor is it possible 

 to believe that when Jerdon speaks of a bird with a narrow sub- 

 terminal dark band to the tail, the feather tipped with white, 

 he refers to a bird in which there is no such dark band, and of 

 which the major portion of the lateral tail feathers are pure white. 

 I have this species only from Saugor, Mount Aboo, and Haipoor. 

 The young of this species and of Riifescens nobis are so similar, 

 that I was at one time inclined to believe that the two were 

 only different phases of the same species; but the adults appear 

 perfectly distinct and even the young are separable, by the some- 

 what larger size of the bill in this species and the color of the 

 lower mandible which in the young Riifescens is horny white, 

 in the young of this species almost entirely black. 



W^wn B\$amx% Sp. Nov. 



Of a nearly uniform, darldsh, sometvhat rufous, slightly chocolate brown. 

 Abdomen, loith afeio imperfect yellowish white transverse bars. Wing, 

 about 8'5 inches. 



This species which appears, although quite distinct, to ap- 

 proach in general tint more nearly to the Bornean bird than any 

 other Ninox yet described, has been found in the Nicobars near 

 Camorta. 1 have as yet only seen a single specimen. Its 

 crepuscular habits appear to be similar to those of its congeners. 

 Nothing is known of its nidification. 



Dimensions. — (From the dry skin.) Length, 13 inches; wing 

 8-5 inches; tail, about 5 inches; tarsus, 0-9 inch ; bill from gape, 

 1*65 inches (sex not recorded.) 



Description. — Lores and forehead, yellowish white. The tips 

 of the bristles immediately in front of and below the eye, black, 

 so as to produce the effect of an ill-defined narrow black semi- 

 circle running round the front of the eye. The whole of the 

 upper surface, a rich, somewhat rufous, slightly chocolate-tinted 

 brown, darkest on the head and nape, and even then not very 



