BORNEAN PEACOCK PHEASANT 89 



general grizzled appearance. The elongated, disintegrated and recurved ruff or frill of 

 the neck is like that of malaccensis, except that it is slightly longer and the iridescent 

 border is much wider, and bluish with weak violet reflections. The proximal three- 

 quarters of the feathers are white, banded, and, more basally, spotted with black. 



The ocelli of the mantle and wing-coverts are somewhat smaller than in malaccensis 

 and the buff ground colour rather darker. As in the other species, the ocelli die out at 

 about the 7th secondary, in a single outer ocellus, forming the transition to the next 

 outer feather which shows no trace whatever. 



The feathers of the back, rump, tail -coverts and rectrices are remarkably broad and 

 truncate at the extremities, with a black terminal band and series of good-sized black 

 spots filling the webs. An interesting character is the iridescent green which is 

 present in most of these spots, sometimes in three or four on the same feather, forming 

 diminutive, incipient ocelli. This character is usually located in the one or two pairs of 

 spots nearest the place where the large ocellus would normally occur, but it is found as a 

 gloss over most of the visible dark markings. 



The same is true of all save the longest tail-coverts, on only one of which in a single 

 individual have I found ocelli developed. The longest coverts show two ocelli, slightly 

 more separated than in malaccensis. Below these, a single row of eight to twelve large, 

 round, black spots extends across the feather, beyond which is a broad, terminal, black 

 band. The central rectrices are similar, except that the ocelli are not so near the tip of 

 the feathers, and the black band is sub-terminal, with a row of spots between it and the 

 tip. As we pass from the second pair of rectrices outward, the inner ocellus begins to 

 undergo degeneration, the green iridescence disappearing first, and the oval shape then 

 changing into a broad band extending across the inner web. This is its condition on 

 the outer tail-feathers. 



The black lower cheek and ear-covert mark of malaccensis has increased superiorly, 

 sending a long, narrow arm up to and around the almost bare facial area to above the 

 eye. The chin and throat are pure white, this colour reaching well around on the side 

 neck. Ventrally, it extends at a narrow line down the centre of the breast and belly. 



The feathers of the side neck and fore breast are rather elongated and far overlap 

 the first part of the wing. They are jet black, with the visible portion, in the form of a 

 broad rounded margin, brilliant metallic green. In fact, they are inchoate ocelli with no 

 boundary except the margin of the next overlapping feather. Basally, each feather shows 

 a small mottled area along the shaft. Posteriorly, beneath the wings and along the sides 

 this zone dies out in buff mottled feathers like those of the upper plumage, these giving 

 place in turn to the lower breast and belly plumage, which is dead black with faint and 

 sparse buff vermiculation, increasing as we pass laterally under the wings. 



The under tail-coverts are truncate, with a narrow black fringe, then a solid buff bar. 

 Above this is a large area of plain black, with, still more basally, a V-shaped mark near 

 the shaft and other mottlings of pale buff. 



In a male, shot on the 23rd of November, and not fully adult, the tail is just 

 sprouting, and shows the characteristic Argusine sequence of moult. The central and 

 the two outer pairs of rectrices are far behind the intervening ones, which grade distinctly 

 from the 3rd from the outer pair. 



In most characters the bird is very close to the first described adult male, but the 



VOL. IV N 



