OF NORTH-EASTERN CACHAR. 



13 



Less than 31 



Tarsus. 



J 305 

 13( 



•09 



31 to 312 



Above 32 



(31 



131 



f3-205 

 | 3 26 

 j 3-28 

 I 33 

 | 33 

 ^3-35 



If we turn now to the state of plumage, which I believe to 

 be characteristic of the female, the following are the dimensions 

 of all the specimens in my museum : — 



Wing. Locality. 



14-1 Cachar. 



14-0 Thayet Myo. 



137 Dacca. 



13-8 Thayet Myo. 



140 Eaipore. 



14 - 45 Cachar. 



14*5 Sumbulpore 



14*8 Bootan Doars. 



15 - 1 Dacca. 



14-3 Gondah. 



It will be seen that whereas in the black and white plumage 

 66 per cent, had the tarsi 3 or less, not one single one of what I 

 suppose to be the females, have the tarsi as small as this. 



Again whereas only one single specimen in black and 

 white plumage has the tarsus over 3*12 no less than 60 percent, 

 of the supposed females have the tarsi over 3'2 and 30 per cent, 

 have it 33 and upwards. 



It seems to me perfectly clear from these figures that the 

 females do not normally assume the black and white garb. 



I will now describe what I consider to be the perfect adult 

 female, and to make the description as short as possible, I will 

 compare it with the adult male. 



The tail is silver grey like the male, but larger, and bears five 

 or six well marked brown transverse bars ; on the upper tail- 

 coverts the grey markings of the male are replaced by pale 

 brown. The whole of the black of the head, back, scapulars, 

 and wings of the male is replaced by a deep, slightly sooty, clove 

 brown ; the feathers of the head being some of them narrowly 

 margined with rufescent ; the white patch along the ulna is in 

 the female a less pure white, and each feather is centred with 

 clove brown ; the grey of the greater coverts, later primaries and 

 secondaries is browner and less pure, and each feather has a 

 conspicuous sub-terminal transverse blackish brown bar and one 

 or more similar bars higher up • the tibial plumes and lower tail- 

 coverts are as in the male ; the chin, throat, sides of the neck 

 and breast, are clove or chocolate brown, streaked with white, 

 or yellowish white, or about the ear-coverts pale fulvous. The 

 abdomen, sides, flanks, axillaries, are white or nearly so, streaked, 

 and in the case of the latter obsoletely barred, with chocolate 

 or clove brown • the whole lower surface of the tail and of 

 the quills is conspicuously barred with brown or blackish 

 brown. 



