210 A MONOGRAPH OF THE PHEASANTS 



the mantle this stripe is strongly glossed with green. Remainder of the upper plumage, 

 beginning rather abruptly behind the mantle feathers, pale reddish or buffy brown, 

 finely mottled and vermiculated with black, with a conspicuous, narrow, yellowish-white 

 line down the shaft. Flight feathers brownish-black, the primaries very narrowly edged 

 with buff. The visible portion of the secondaries (four-fifths of the outer web) vermi- 

 culated with pale reddish-brown. Tertiaries evenly vermiculated, with distinct metallic 

 green sheen on the darker portions. Tail-feathers with rufous brown mottling, confined 

 to the edges of the feathers, and considerable green gloss. Comb sometimes a minute 

 fleshy knob ; again a low, inconspicuous notched ridge. Wattles absent, and ear-lappets 

 greatly reduced. Face and upper neck chestnut. Lower neck and breast light red, 

 shading posteriorly, and on the sides, into pale buffy-brown, each feather with a pale 

 shaft. The feathers have more or less dark mottling, especially those of the sides, 

 where it takes the form of irregular, concentric bands. The breast and mid-belly is 

 usually monochrome. Under tail-coverts blackish-brown, with slight brownish 

 mottling. 



The bill of the hen is usually paler than that of the cock ; but otherwise the colours 

 of the horny and fleshy parts are the same in both sexes. 



Weight, I lb. 2 ozs. to i lb. lo ozs. 



Length, 420 to 460 mm.; culmen from nostril, 15; wing, 185; tail, 153; 

 tarsus, 60; middle toe and claw, 50. Spurs absent. 



Chick in Down — Head fawn-coloured or yellowish buff; a wide maroon or 

 chocolate coronal patch, pointed in front and narrowly bordered with black. A dark 

 brown line extends through the eye, and back over the ear-coverts. The dark crown is 

 continued down the neck and over the back, but is split on the sides of the lower back 

 and rump by two wide creamy-buff lines, these also outlined in black. Under-parts 

 creamy white, the breast sometimes deep buffy. Bill, yellow ; legs and feet, yellowish 

 green. 



HYBRIDS 



Gallus pseMdhermaphroditus of Blyth was based upon an abnormal domestic 

 specimen, said to be a male. The bird had the comb, wattles, spurs and tail of a cock, 

 with a hen-coloured body plumage. 



'* Gallus strammeicollis, type Sharpe. Sulu Islands." Thus is labelled the type 

 in the British Museum. It is a very large hybrid or domestic variety, with a small 

 rose comb ; bare face, chin, throat and lower neck ; hackles, mantle, neck, lower back 

 and rump, straw colour with narrow green shaft-stripe. Feet and legs, very thick and 

 heavy. The spurs are abortive. Culmen from comb, 18 mm.; wing, 230; tail, 410; 

 tarsus, 96 ; middle toe and claw, 70. 



SYNONYMY 



Phasianus gallus Linn. S. N., XII. 1766, p. 270; Raffl. Trans. Linn. Soc, XIII. 1822, p. 319 [Sumatra]. 

 Grande Caille de la Chine Sonn. Voy. Ind. Orient., II. 1782, p. 171. 



Hackled Partridge Latham, Gen. Syn., II. 1783, p. 766, pi. 66; id. Gen. Hist., VIII. 1823, p. 307, pi. 129. 

 Tetrao ferrugineus Gmelin, S. N., I. 1788, pt. II., p. 761. 



