LUTEOVENTRIS, Hodgson, & DUMETICOLA AFFINIS, Flodgsoil. 287 



the two former species; lores white; a greyish supercilium ; 

 cheeks grey, mottled with dusky ; chiu and throat white, 

 shaded off into smoky grey on the breast; the lower part of 

 throat, sides of neck, and upper breast, clouded with black, 

 and rather round spots ; flanks olive brown ; centre of abdomen 

 pure white ; vent light olive brown ; lower tail-coverts the 

 same, broadly edged with white; tail olive brown above, 

 obsoletely rayed ; lower surface of tail greyish brown ; wings 

 similar to back, but rather more rufous. 



No. 6 is of similar colour above, but has the chin and throat 

 dull brownish white ; breast brownish grey ; centre of abdomen 

 white; flanks pale olive; there are a few dusky spots on the 

 upper breast ; No. 7 is the same. 



No. 8 is a very small bird, and appears to be a nestling of the 

 year. The upper colour is the same ; chin and throat fulvous ; 

 breast and abdomen brownish white, strongly mottled with 

 large pale brown spots. 



It is probable that Nos. 7 and 8 may be females. The ten- 

 dency to a jet black shining bill in this species is worthy of 

 notice, and shews its distiuctness from the two first described. 

 Mr. Hodgson's drawing of D. affinis represents the bird with- 

 out spots on the throat, and it is then in the plumage described 

 by Blyth as D. brunneipectus, which I think is the female 

 plumage of affinis. Indeed, Hodgson's drawing is stated by 

 himself to be that of a female. It represents a pair of birds, 

 one of them being in outline only, and uucoloured. The egg 

 is of a uniform red colour, like that of Horornis. In this res- 

 pect the egg differs much from that of Locustella, which has 

 the ground colour white, spotted with reddish. Dumeticola 

 may be described briefly as Locustella, with uniform upper 

 plumage, instead of being striated ; and with a first primary- 

 much larger than Locustella, also with the wing much more 

 rounded. 



I have seen two or three spotless examples of D. affinis* 



The close affinity of Dumeticola for Locustella is best known 

 from the song of the former ; that of D. major being exactly- 

 like the song of L. Rayi, but delivered more slowly. 



* So Lave I, but why fix on these as the types of Blyth's species when there is a 

 a lond Jide distinct species answering on the whole quite as well to Blyth's (unfortu- 

 nately all too) brief description ? — Ed. 



