NOTES. 129 



Mr. Sharpe, discussing the variations in the common kestrel, 

 remarks (Cat. I., 426) :— " Mr. Blyth seems to have seen a 

 " similar (intensified) race from Burmah, as a kestrel is men- 

 tioned on his authority by Mr. G. R. Grey (Hand-1. B. I. 23) 

 under the name of tinnunculus atratus, but I have not yet 

 succeeded in unearthing- Mr. Blyth's own reference/' 



I fancy atratus in the H. list is a misprint for saturatus, 

 Bly., the references for which are Blyth, J. A. S. B. XXVIII., 

 277, 1859 ; Ibis, 1866, 238 ; Hums, Rough Notes, 100. 



There is, I think, no possible doubt, that three quite distinct 

 species of Poliocetus occur within our limits. 



P. icthy^tus, Horsf. largest ; length, up to 32 inches j 

 expanse, up to 72, with in the adult the basal two-thirds of the tail 

 pure white. Inhabits Celebes, Java, Borneo, Sumatra, Malay 

 Peninsular, Coasts of Tenasserim, Pegu, Arracan, Chittagong, 

 Lower Bengal, the Peninsular of India and Ceylon, Nepal and 

 Sikhim Terai, Bhotan Doars, Sylhet, Cachar, but not, I believe, 

 extending westwards of the Nepal Terai, along the bases of 

 the Himalayahs. 



Note. — Specimens from Ceylon and the Peninsular of India 

 seem to run smaller than those from Java and the other Islands 

 noticed. A fine Ceylon female only measured 26*5 in length. 



P. plumbeus, * Hodgs. medium size. Length 22 to 25 (max.) ; 

 expanse, 55 to 60; wing, 16'5 to 18'75 ; entire upper surface of 



* Hodgson never, I believe, described this species ; he only mentioned it, J. A. S. B. 

 VI., May 1837, p. 367. Blyth again mentioned the name. op. cit, XI, 100, 1842, but 

 only to identify it doubtingly, with blagrus. But I fully characterized the species, by 

 Hodgson's name, Nests and Eggs, Pt. I. 43, 1870, and no one having intermediately re- 

 cognized its distinctness it will stand under Hodgson's name. 



Mr. Sharpe remarks, Cat. I., 453 " after a careful examination of Mr. Hodgson's 

 plates I have not been able to distinguish his plumbeus.... Although the uniform tail he 

 figures more resembles P. humilis (which is now known to extend to Assam, and may 

 therefore well occur in Nepal) there is not a specimen in Mr. Hodgson's collection 

 and as all his other birds of these species are in the museum, and as he also figured 

 a true P. ichthycetus ; on the same plate I consider H. plumbeus to be probably an. 

 unfinished picture of the large species." 



But amongst Mr. Hodgson's original drawings are three beautifully finished figures of 

 plumbeus, one devouring a Boohoo fish, which also is highly finished. Two of these figures 

 show the upper surface of the tail perfectly plain and unmottled with white ; the 

 third shows the lower surface, with the basal portion, mottled with white. (See also 

 S. F., III., 386.) 



On the back of one of the plates he gives the dimensions of 7 different specimens : — 



F. ? . mas. fcein. foem. 



Length 110* 111-0 2 0* 111* 111*, 2-0* 111 f 



Tail 9-i 9i 11-i 9i ? 10-O 10'i 



Expanse. 48-0 4 8^ 411*, 4-8-*, 4-9-*, 4-11-0 410*, 



Showing clearly what the species he figured was even if the tail did not show this. 



In a note he says " Horsfield's ichthycetus this bird, save that his is larger." 



There is no figure of ichthycetus amongst the drawings I have, but on the face of 

 one of them is a note, "756 is Horsfields or I. typicus. Home, Oct. 38," showing 

 that he recognized the two species and had sent home a drawing of the true ichthycetus 

 of Horsfield. 



R 



