A SECOND LIST OF THE BIRDS OF TENASSERIM. 



325 



831 gtiat. — Caloperdix oculea, Tern. Banhasoon ; very rare. 

 903 bis. — Podica personata, Gray. Margui ; rare. 

 916. — Leptoptilus javanicus, Horsf. 

 920. — Melanopelargus episcopus, JBodd. 

 922. — Ardea sumatrana, Raffl,. 



Let me now take the earliest opportunity of noting promi- 

 nently that having this season obtained a series of males I believe 

 that, different as the birds appear, Orthotonus nitidus, nobis, 

 (Stray Feathers, Vol. II., p. 507) are the females of 0. flavovi- 

 ridis, Moore, and that my species should, therefoi'e, probably be 

 cancelled. It is very curious that all the birds we got last 

 year in the northern half of the province were females, entirely 

 wanting any trace of black or grey on the throat or breast, 

 while all that we obtained this year at the extreme south were 

 males answering to Moore's description. 



I ought, I think, with reference to what I said at p. 181 

 antea, to draw special attention to the fact that all the Irenas 

 obtained in the extreme south of the Tenasserim province are 

 in some respects intermediate between the Indian form and the 

 Malayan one, viz. puella, Latham (indica, Hay,) and cyanea, 

 Begbie (= malayensis, Moore). These two species or races 

 differ, as is well known, in the length of the upper and under 

 tail-coverts ; taking average specimens (they all vary a great 

 deal) from (1), Kullar at the foot of the Nilghiris ; (2), Mergui 

 Southern Tenasserim ; (3), Singapore. The following differences 

 in the proportions of the upper and lower tail-coverts are 

 observable : — 



In the matter of color also there is a difference. The Kullar 

 birds are a deeper and purpler blue, the Singapore birds are 

 paler and brighter blue, while the Southern Tenasserim birds are 

 intermediate in color between the two. 



It may be useful to notice that the Crows obtained at the 

 extreme south of the Tenasserim provinces have larger bills and 

 are larger birds than any that I have ever obtained from any 

 part of continental India; as regards the bills, these are of 



2 s 



