NOTES ON TURDUS DISSIMILIS^ BlytL 439 



In 1871, Hume described a Thrush from India in the Ibis 

 (p. 411), as GeocicJila tricolor^ which appears to me to be a 

 somewhat unusuallj dark example of the fully adult male of 

 T. dissimilis, Blyth. I have in my collection similar unusually 

 dark examples (an approach towards melanism) of 2\ fuscatusy 

 Pall., and T. iliacus, Linn. 



In 1873, Swinhoe described in the Ann. and Ma^. Nat, 

 Hist. (p. 374,) an alleo^ed new species of Thrush from Cheefoo 

 in North China, as Tiirdus camphelli. This skin is now in my 

 collection, and is, in my opinion, the usual plumage of the fully 

 adult male of the species under consideration. 



In 1874, Swinhoe added yet another name to the list of 

 synonyms with which this poor bird is burdened. Forgetting 

 that he had already described it in the Annals, he re-described 

 the same skin in the Ibis (p. 444), as Turdus chrysopleurus. 



I have been thus diffuse in detailing the history of the syno- 

 nymy of this bird, in the hopes that when the ghosts of T. unico- 

 lor, Gould apud Blyth, T. pelios, Bonap., T. cardis, Temm. apud 

 Jerdon, T. /wrtulorum, Sclater, GeocicJila tricolor, Hume, T. 

 camphelli, Swinhoe, and T. ehrysopleurus, Swinhoe, are effectual- 

 ly laid it may henceforth be known only as Turdus dissimi- 

 lis, Blyth. 



The species may always be recognised by the deep rich un- 

 spotted Indian red, or brilliant rusty chestnut of its axillaries, 

 wing-lining and flanks. The female and immature male bear 

 a superficial resemblance to the female of T. cardis, Temm., but 

 in the latter the flanks are always spotted, which is never the 

 case in ^. dissimilis. From T. chry solans, Temm., T. obscurus, 

 Gm., and T. pallidus, Gm., the grey axillaries and under wing- 

 coverts of these species in all plumages is a character which 

 will at a glance distinguish T. dissimilis, Blyth, with its rich 

 rusty chestnut axillaries and under wing-coverts in all plum- 

 ages. 



This species has hitherto only been found in North India, 

 Assam, South-East Siberia, China, and Japan. 



The fully adult male is figured in the Ibis for 1874, Plate 

 XIV, and the female or immature male in the Ibis for 1872, 

 Plate VII. 



[On a future occasion I shall have to discuss this paper more 

 in detail. At the present it will suffice to say that GeocicJila 

 tricolor is utterly distinct from dissimilis, and that, whatever 

 GeocicJila dissimilis, apud Seebohm, may be,6r. dissimilis, Blyth, 

 according to his six types in the Calcutta Museum, seems to me 

 at present to be identical with G. unicolor, Tickell. — Ed., S. F.] 



56 



