BIRDS OF UPPER PEGU. 177 



" Like the rest of its tribe it is difficult to flush, and runs with 

 great rapidity, jumping adroitly over obstacles, and diving' into 

 impenetrable thickets for security. Early in the mornings these 

 birds come out on the pathway, scratching about amongst the 

 elephant's dung, and turning over the dead leaves, for insects. 

 They do not appear to have any crow or call, though during the 

 pairing season this may not be the case. The Karens did not 

 even know the bird; but this is no proof of its rarity, for 

 these people pay no attention to the living products of their 

 forests. 



" The sexes are precisely similar in plumage and size ; the flesh, 

 rather dry and tasteless/' 



Mr. Blyth remarked : " The present species differs from 

 P. Charltoni in having the interscapularies unmottled olive brown, 

 crossed with numerous black rays on each feather. The super- 

 cilium is more delicately pencilled, and the ear coverts are not 

 ferruginous, but white, with black spots like the throat ; and below 

 the throat there is a broad ferruginous band also with round 

 black spots. Breast similar to the back, olive brown, with numer- 

 ous blackish cross-rays, below which the under parts are ferrugi- 

 nous, paling at the vent and interior of thighs. The flanks have 

 no well-defined broad black bands, as in P. Charltoni, but are 

 prettily mottled with dusky in a manner difficult to describe ; 

 and the same remark applies to the wing coverts. Tail, freckled 

 and marked with zig-zag dusky bands/'' 



The portion of the lores next the eye, and a stripe over the 

 eye and ear coverts, and backwards to the nape where the two 

 stripes almost meet, white, becoming fulvescent towards the nape, 

 each feather more or less margined with black. The point of 

 the lores, forehead, between the two stripes above mentioned, 

 crown and occiput, a rich, dark, olive brown. Chin, throat, cheeks, 

 ear-coverts, white; each feather, with a small, terminal, black 

 spot, more or less wanting in some specimens on the chin and 

 the centre of the throat ; extreme tips of the ear coverts, tinged 

 ruf escent. A broad, pale, ferruginous collar round the upper neck, 

 not quite meeting behind • each feather, with a black spot at the 

 point ; and one or two of the lower ones, in some specimens, on 

 the side of the neck, with more or less of a buffy shaft stripe 

 at the tip. Lower neck all round, rich olive brown, not quite so 

 dark as the crown, almost or entirely unspotted and unbarred ; 

 upper breast, entire back, and scapulars, and upper tail coverts, 

 a richer and somewhat more rufous olive brown, the feathers 

 irregularly fringed with black or dark brown and with two or 

 three narrow, irregular, wavy, freckled bars of the same color, 

 and the interspaces more or less clouded and freckled. On the 

 rump and upper tail coverts the ground color, so much as is visible 

 of it, is perhaps buffy rather than rufescent olive, and the feathers 



