Vol. xxix.] 60 



IMr. Ogilvie-Graxt said that lie liad examined Dr. Ham- 

 mond Smith's bird, but lie could not see any reason for 

 supposing that it was a hybrid between Pheasant and Blaek 

 Grouse. He thought it much more probable that it was a 

 cross between a cock Pheasant and a Domestic Fowl. This 

 seemed to be indicated by the coarseness of the head and bill, 

 also by the shape of the feet, the toes being like those of a 

 Pheasant or Fowl, partially webbed at the base and without 

 any trace of pectination along the sides. It differed con- 

 siderably from two male hybrids between Blackcock and 

 Pheasant in the Natural History Museum in having a much 

 larger head and bill. 



The bird, a very remarkable-looking specimen, was handed 

 round, and was the subject of various comments. 



Mr. W. R. Ogilvie-Grant exhibited a very remarkable 

 example of an immature Blackcock [Lyrurus tetrix, L.) 

 in partial female plumage. The specimen had been killed 

 at Constable Burton, Yorkshire, on the 24th of December, 

 1911, by Colonel H. Wade-Dalton, who had kindly presented 

 it to the Natural History JMuseum. The bird was obviously 

 immature, as was proved by a number of feathers on the 

 back and scapulars which were reddish-buff, barred and 

 blotched subterminally with black. This curious specimen, 

 when attaining its first autumn-plumage, had at one period 

 of its moult produced feathers which either resembled those 

 of the female or were of a hen-like character ; for instance, 

 the four innermost secondaries (tertiaries) had the outer 

 webs light rufous mottled with black, exactly like those of 

 the female, while the remaining outer secondaries and 

 scapulars, on cither side of them, were black, finely vermicu- 

 lated with rufous, such as are normally to be found in the 

 Blackcock in its 'first plumage. The most extraordinary 

 feature of the bird was the tail, the feathers of which, though 

 fully-grown, were no longer than those of the adult female 

 and quite similarly shaped. The middle pair of tail-feathers 

 were black, slightly vermiculated with rufous towards the 

 margins of the webs and narrowly edged with white ; the 



