94 A MONOGRAPH OF THE PHEASANTS 



into grey, across which extends a conspicuous line of solid white. Only the central 

 rectrices show two perfect ocelli, that on the inner web degenerating as we pass 

 outward over the twelve pairs of feathers. On the sixth from the central pair the 

 gloss has vanished, leaving only an elliptical, clouded, black spot. On the outer 

 pair there is merely a small circular area where the buff spotting is duller than else- 

 where. The character of the terminal bands persists strongly throughout. The under 

 tail-coverts are brownish black, with a subterminal band of jet black. The terminal 

 band, and the dotting on the outer web are buff. 



The lores, rather thin feathering of the face, chin, throat, sides of the neck and 

 entire ventral and side plumage are black, with a brownish cast as we proceed backward 

 on the abdomen. A triangular patch of feathers covering the hinder part of the cheeks 

 and the ear-coverts is silvery white. There may be no more white markings on the 

 head, or a few scattered white feathers may occur above the eyes and on the sides of the 

 nape. This character, which is wholly independent of age or season, is found in varying 

 degrees of development up to an extreme of broad white superciliary lines which extend 

 backward and coalesce in a broad band on the hinder neck. 



Bill black, paler toward tip ; feet and legs blackish brown ; facial skin reddish, 

 sometimes quite crimson near the eye ; irides hazel. Length, 550 mm. ; bill from 

 nostril, 13; wing, 190; tail, 225; tarsus, 63; middle toe and claw, 54 mm. Spurs 

 invariably two on each leg, of medium build, and very sharp, 12 to 14 mm. in length. 



Adult Female. — Top of the head and nape blackish brown, an elongated, rather 

 coarse crest curving back from the crown. Neck feathers short, smoky-brown and 

 recurved. Upper plumage pale rufous brown, finely vermiculated and mottled with 

 black, faintly on the mantle, more strongly on the coverts and back. An ill-defined 

 submarginal band of rufous buff on the mantle and coverts. On the greater coverts and 

 inner secondaries there are strong hints of ocelli, in the shape of round black spots, 

 rather poorly set off from the surrounding web. Primaries and their coverts dark brown. 

 Many of the coverts, back, rump and shorter tail-coverts have conspicuous white shafts. 

 The rump is decidedly more rufous than the anterior plumage. The tail and coverts 

 show a fine mottling and vermiculation of rufous buff and black in about equal amounts, 

 which is almost lacking, however, on the concealed inner webs of the rectrices. 

 Occasional females in very full plumage, show a decrease of the buff, giving a black 

 feather, irregularly dotted with buff. But this is exceptional. Greater upper tail-coverts 

 are much elongated, and in full-plumaged females, each feather shows a pair of incipient 

 ocelli, a large, dark elliptical spot in the centre of each web. A nucleus of green gloss 

 is occasionally visible. 



The twenty-two tail feathers show the ocelli much more fully developed, a large 

 green centre framed in a very wide black circle, which shades off into the surrounding 

 vermiculation. As in the male the pair of eye-spots are perfect only in the central pair 

 of rectrices, the inner one losing its gloss on the second or third pairs and being wholly 

 absent from the outer pair. 



The scantily-feathered face, chin and throat are white. In most females there is a 

 very distinct development of the white superciliary and nuchal bands, corresponding to 

 those of some of the males. The under parts are reddish brown, faintly mottled with 



