178 Coiitribtttions to the Ornithology of India, Sfc. 



yellow ; tbe upper tail coverts bright orang-e scarlet ; the wing 

 spot is a pale yellow just tiug-ed with orange; the lateral tail 

 feathers are white^ tinged with orange yellow on the inner web ; 

 the chin and throat slaty grey^ a patch of orange on the breast 

 and a yellowish tinge on the sides. The females are a still paler 

 grey, the upper tail coverts pale orange, the whole lower surface 

 pure white ; the wing patch and the lateral tail feathers white, 

 with the faintest possible yellowish tinge. 



Mr. Gould figures this species in Birds of Asia IX., pi., 5 and 

 in this he represents the red of the male very much like that of 

 brevirosti'is, I mean brevirostris toestward of the Ganges, for the 

 Darjeeling birds are much more deeply, and brilliantly colored. 

 Mr. Gould himself remarks '^ most of my specimens from the 

 northern parts of India are lighter in color than those from 

 Madras and Ceylon, the coloring of their upper surface being 

 a light grey, while a corresponding paleness occurs in the scarlet 

 of the under surface; in size and relative admeasurements, 

 however, I find little or no difference ; I am inclined therefore 

 to consider them as mere varieties. 



A specimen in the collection of Dr. John Murray, Civil 

 Surgeon at Agra, differs in having all the colors of a much 

 lighter hue ; the mark on the wing yellow, stained with scarlet ; 

 and the under-surface yellow, washed with scarlet on the breast.'* 



I myself have never seen a specimen of this species anything 

 like so brightly colored as Mr. Gould figures it, but I have 

 unfortunately only one Southern Indian, and that although 

 doubtless darker than Upper Indian birds, still in no way ap- 

 proaches Mr. Gould's figure. As far as I can make out, in the first 

 place, the bird varies in intensity of color very markedly accord- 

 ing to locality, the deepest colored being from the Peninsular 

 of India, then Lower and Eastern Bengal and Eastern portion 

 of Central Provinces somewhat paler ; rest of Central Provinces, 

 North- West Provinces, and Punjab, paler still, and the Sindh 

 birds much the palest of all. Besides this variation according 

 to locality, these birds, to the best of my belief unlike the other 

 Indian Pericrocoti, assume a markedly brighter plumage in the 

 breeding season. 



278.— Buchanga albirictus, Eodgs. 



The Sindh specimens are typical, fine birds nearly 13 inches 

 long, and expanse close upon 19 inches. 



292.— Leucocirca aureola, Vieilht. 



Rare in Sindh as a whole, but common along the banks of 

 the InduS; and in the neighbourhood of many of the canals. 



