44 A CATALOGUE OF THE BIKDS 



owing to the abrasion of the margin of the feathers. Preshly 

 moulted individuals are always, above and below, of a soiled rosy 

 hue, the basal portion of the feathers being of a clear rose colour, 

 and their margins widely fringed with Isabella or snuff-brown 

 colour; the marginal portions are, to a great extent, of an obscure 

 rosy tint ; and it is not till this brown portion gets worn off that 

 the rosy colour is revealed in all its beauty. This is also the 

 case with the black of the head, crest, throat, neck, and upper 

 parts of the breast ; all the feathers of these parts, when fresh, 

 being margined with warm grey, become of a glossy black after 

 the margins have been removed. 



The change thus produced in the colour not having been taken 

 fully into account, has led to the belief that this beautiful bird 

 has two or three distinct changes of plumage; while it really 

 attains its mature plumage on the first moult. At least, fine 

 fresh specimens in my possession, which agree well with Degiand 

 and Gerbe's description of the young after the first moult, could 

 in a very short time, with the aid of a pair of scissors, be made 

 to assume the rosy tint and fine glossy black of the breeding 

 birds. 



The adult male, after the moult, represented by the upper 

 figure (Plate IV.), has the feathers of the head, crest, neck, and 

 upper parts of the breast purplish black, strongly edged with 

 greyish white, giving to these parts a hoary tint ; the coverts of 

 the wings, quills, and tail-feathers are black, reflecting greenish 

 blue, and are narrowly margined with grey ; the back, rump, and 

 scapulars are of a delicate rose colour, with each feather broadly 

 tipped with Isabella brown, obscuring to a great extent the rose 

 colour of the basal portion, and giving to these parts a soiled 

 appearance ; the breast, flanks, and belly are of a delicate rose 

 coloiu', considerably obscured, in like manner, by the colour of 

 the margins of the feathers, which, being of a much paler brown, 

 particularly towards the centre of the breast, the rosy hue has 

 more a faded than a soiled appearance ; the thighs have their 

 feathers black, edged with grey. 



The adult female, after the moult, resembles the male in every 

 particular, but the tints are less vivid, and the crest is smaller 



