HIEROCOCCYX NISICOLOR. 99 



''gamboge yellow," " bright yellow," " lemon yellow," u yellow." 



But uow is nisicolor, though different from varius, the same as 

 hyperythrus, Gould, P. Z. S., 1856, 96 ? 



J think not. In the first place, Gould gives the wing as 

 8, which is altogether too large for our Indian species, and as is 

 also the wing of the young bird from Macao, referred to by 

 Blyth (doubtless the same species if Mr. Gould's bird came 

 from Shanghai.)* In the second place, Mr. Gould figures and 

 describes the tail as with 2 cross bands besides the broad sub- 

 terminal one, whereas nisicolor {adult, and Mr. Gould's bird 

 is clearly adult) has four such bands, the one next the broad sub- 

 terminal one often very narrow, and the first more or less 

 hidden by the upper tail-coverts. 



Then again the breast and upper abdomen are never uni- 

 form rufous in nisicolor ; they are always more or less streaked 

 with albescent, and ashy, and in what I take to bo the oldest 

 birds the sides of the neck and breast are very much streaked 

 with slatey dusky. Again the lores, ear-coverts, moustache and 

 chin spot are never black as in hyperythrus, but slatey-dusky, 

 paler than the crown. 



But is nisicolor by chance identical with pectoralis of 

 Cabanis, admittedly from the Philippines ? 



The wing of a male is given at 7*15 ; so that so far as size 

 goes this would suit our bird well, but then in our bird the 

 throat is never white, but always streaked or striated, the 

 breast is never uniform rufous vinaceous, the markings on 

 the lower surface of the quills are not vinaceous white, and 

 the tail in pectoralis appears to have altogether only four 

 bands. 



In the absence of specimens, though fully convinced of the dis- 

 tinctness of nisicolor from both hyperythrus and pectoralis, 

 I cannot offer any definite opinion as to whether these two 

 latter are distinct! or identical, but if Cabanis' specimen was 

 fully grown, and correctly sexed, I should think it by far 

 most probable that were distinct 



As regards Mr. Blyth's contention that ScopoH's name should 

 be applied to these two or one species, Cabanis has, I think, 

 satisfactorily shown (Mus. Hem, IV. I. 29, n) that this name 

 and radiatus, 6m. (S. N. I., 420) both founded on Sonnerat's 



* Some doubt has been thrown on this, because Mr. Gould says bis bird is in 

 the British Museum, and Mr. Swinhoe says the only bird of the kind there is 

 labelled Manilla. 



f I see that Cabanis unintentionally exaggerates the difference in size between 

 his own pectoralis (of which he gives the wing, in French inches and lines at 6" &"), 

 and Gould, hyperythrus, of which he gives the wing at 7" 6", which exactly equals 

 8-2 instead of 8'0, which is the dimension given by Gould. The correct equivalent 

 in French inches and lines is more nearly 7" 31'". 



