GALLINACEOUS BIRDS. 



25* 



of the back are yellowish grey, with round dark brown patches ; those on the under side striped and 

 marked with reddish brown, black, and light yellow. The outer web of the secondary quills is 

 entirely greyish red, thickly dotted with spots of shaded brown, whilst the inner web is marked with 

 delicate white dots at its base. The long feathers of the upper wing-covers are of a beautiful dark 

 reddish brown, marked with pale greyish red, dark brown, and yellowish white streaks of tracery, and 

 enlivened by large lustrous round spots or eyes. These eyes are situated on the outer web, and are 

 more perceptible upon the feathers of the second order than on the shoulder. The longest tail- 

 feathers are black, the shafts grey on the inner and reddish brown on the outer side ; both sides of 

 the web are decorated with a white spot, surrounded by a black edge ; the exterior tail-feathers are 

 similarly coloured, and have their numerous spots placed in rows. Rosenberg tells us that the head 

 and bare parts of the throat are light greyish blue, and the feet red. This fine bird is from five and a 

 half to six feet long ; of this measurement four feet are included in the tail. The length of the real 

 wing is seventeen inches : that of its longest feather twenty-eight inches and a half. The hen is much 

 smaller and more quiet in appearance. The feathers on her head are striped black and yellow ; those 

 on the upper breast and nape are of a fine reddish brown, marked with black ; those on the other 

 parts of the back striped brownish yellow and black ; the under side is light brown, with undulating 

 black and yellow lines ; the primary quills are brown marbled ■ndth black ; and the featliers on the 

 upper and lower covers dark reddish brown, marked in a similar manner with a lighter shade. 



The Argus Pheasant is said to be found in the woods of Sumatra, and is called by the natives 

 Coo-ow, or Kuaow. It does not bear long confinement, and seems to have an antipathy to the light, 

 remaining inanimate during the day. When kept in a dark place, however, it appears to be perfecdy 

 at ease, and sometimes utters the note or call from which it takes its name. This cry is rather 

 plaintive, and not harsh like that of the Peacock. The flavour of its flesh resembles that of the 

 Common Pheasant. 



The PEACOCK PHEASANTS {Polypledron) constitute a group forming the connecting link 

 between the Argus Pheasants and the Peacocks. They have small, slender bodies ; short, decidedly 

 rounded wings, in which the fifth and sixth quills are the longest, and the feathers of the upper covers 

 much prolonged ; the tail is long, composed of twelve feathers, broad at its extremity and sHghtly 

 graduated ; the feathers on the upper covers closely resemble those beneath them in form, colour, and 

 markings. The long, thin tarsus is armed with from two to six spurs, the toes are short, and the claws 

 small ; the moderate-sized beak is thin, straight, compressed at its sides, slightly cur\'ed towards the 

 tip, and covered with feathers at its base. The plumage of the male is enlivened by numerous 

 eyes upon the tail, and occasionally on the mantle and wingco\-ers. 



THE CHINQUIS, OR ASSAM PEACOCK PHEASANT. 

 The Chinquis, or Assam Peacock Pheasant {Polypkdron chinguis), the most beautiful of the 

 four species of the above group with which we are acquainted, has the head of a greyish brown, 

 delicately dotted and lined with black ; the lower neck, breast, and centre of the belly are brown, 

 striped with brownish black, and spotted with light yellow ; the mantle-feathers are greyish yellow, 

 marked with small greyish black lines ; each feather being decorated with an ocellus having a green 

 centre and glossy purple border ; the feathers of the back, rump, and large tail-covers are pale 

 brown, spotted and marked \\ith brownish yellow, and ha\'e a similar green and purple spot, 

 surrounded by a black rim. The eye is bright yellow and the foot black. This species is twenty-two 

 inches long, but of these ten inches are included in the tail. The hen is distinguished by less showy 

 plumage, the sliglit excrescences that replace the spurs upon her foot, and the shortness of her tail. 



