BAZA CEYLONENSIS. 95 



of quills, white, barred on the breast and flanks with rufescent brown bands equal to the white interspaces, 

 narower and further apart on the tibial plumes, and almost absent on the under tail-coverts ; inner sides of \e"s 

 buff-white : lesser under coverts crossed with narrow rufous markings, major series with a few transverse brownish 

 patches ; lower surface of light portions of tail greyish white. 



Presumed female. Has the upper surface generally somewhat paler ; but the crown is darker, the blackish central stripes 

 being broader than in the above example ; crest consisting of four long feathers 2 inches long ; the primaries and 

 secondaries, which are just acquired after moult, very deeply tipped with white ; the chest differs in its less uni- 

 form hue, having the feathers with broad rufous centres and widely margined with buff- whitish ; the under surface is 

 similarly barred, under tail-coverts and wing-lining the same. 



Young. The example referred to below as presented by Mr. S. Bligh to the Norwich Museum is a young bird. The 

 posterior tooth is not developed, and the anterior less deep than in the adult. 



Its length (from the skin) is 17 - inches ; wing 12-25; tail 8-0 ; tarsus 1*15. 



Above glossy dark brown, the feathers of the back, scapulars, and wing-coverts edged with whitish ; centres of the head- 

 and hindneck -feathers brown, with broad margins of fulvous white ; crest black, deeply tipped with white, and 

 1-8 inch in length ; primaries and secondaries smoky brown, with blackish bars and white inner edges to the basal 

 portions of the former, similar to the adult ; median and greater secondary wing-coverts deeply tipped with white, 

 adjacent to which the brown hue changes into rufous, giving the wing-coverts a rufescent appearance ; tail smoky 

 brown, banded with five brown bars narrower than in the adult ; under surface white ; a very fine chin-stripe of 

 brown, formed by dark shaft-lines on one or two feathers ; chest marked with well-defined brown stripes ; breast 

 and flanks widely barred with broad pale sienna-brown bars. 



Another immature example, in the British Museum, from the collection of Messrs. Whyte and Co., and which is a 

 female, is very similar to the above, but may perhaps be a little older : wing 12:1, tail 7*8, culmen from cere l'Ol'. 

 The posterior tooth slightly developed, but not so prominent as the anterior. 



Iris yellow ; feet and tarsi yellowish ; head and hind neck fulvous tawny, with dark central stripes increasing in 

 width at the lower part of the neck ; the crest black, deeply tipped with white, and 2-0 inches in length ; the bask 

 and wings are deep brown with a purplish lustre, the feathers margined with rufous brown ; greater wing-coverts 

 barred with pale brown ; the barring of the quills is the same, and the inner part of the lighter interspaces on the 

 inner web white ; tail as above, the tip whitish, and the subterminal dark bar equal iu width to the adjacent 

 interspace ; lores blackish brown ; cheeks and ear-coverts with tawny-brown stria? ; throat and under surface buff- 

 white; the chin with a pale brown mesial stripe, widening and darkening on the throat; chest marked with broad 

 "drops" of rufous-chestnut, changing on the breast, flanks, abdomen, and shorter under tail-coverts into bars of 

 the same ; longer under tail-coverts unmarked ; thighs crossed with bar-like spots of rufous. 



A third immature specimen has been sent home to the Norwich Museum by Messrs. Whyte and Co., since this article- 

 was written. Mr. Gurney writes me that it measured, as he was informed, 18-5 inches in the flesh, and weighed 

 1 lb. The wing, according to his system of measuring, is 12-5 inches (which would be equal, after my plan, to 

 12-2 or 12-3), tail 8-5, tarsus 1-5, crest 2-3. 



It is older than the specimen presented by Mr. Bligh, " having much less of the white margins to the feathers on the 

 upper surface, and the throat and breast being decidedly more fulvous ; the tail has 4 bars instead of 5." This 

 latter feature testifies to its age ; and I think its plumage may be taken as representing an intermediate stage 

 between the young and the old bird. 



06s. I do not consider this a very good species. It comes very close to B. magnirostris from the Philippines ; but as 

 this latter has such a remote habitat, I have allowed the slight differences that exist to weigh in favour of keeping 

 the Ceylonese bird distinct for the present. The adult type of B. magnirostris is a smaller bird than B. ceylonemis : 

 it has the wing 11-1 inches, tail 7"2, tarsus 1*3. The crestis not deeply tipped with white as in the latter, but has 

 the terminal portion of the webs laterally edged with it only ; the secondaries and primaries are not deeply tipped 

 with white ; and the tail-bands are narrower and five in number ; the cheeks are much paler, and the chin-stripe 

 inconspicuous and of a light iron-grey colour uniform with the cheeks ; the chest is very similar, but the breast- and 

 flank-bands are more rufous than in my bird. This latter characteristic, however, is not to be depended upon. 

 B. ceylonensis likewise has a considerable general resemblance to the example in the British Museum, which 

 Mr. Sharpe considers now to be B. jerdoni ; but this has the head very dark indeed, and is rufous on the cheeks 

 and sides of the head. Mr. Hume's species, B. incognita (Str. Feath. 1875, pp. 314-316), from Sikhim and Tenas- 

 serim appears to be more closely allied to this species than to the Ceylonese bird, being considerably larger (wing. 

 <J 13-12, 2 13-75) than the latter ; and the specimens described seem, moreover, to be immature. 



If identical with any other member of the genus, one would naturally seek to join my bird to B. sumatrensis, which has 

 a comparatively adjacent habitat, to it. I have, however, compared this, in company with Messrs. Sharpe and 

 Gurney, with two of the immature examples of the Ceylonese form ; and these gentlemen concur with me that the 



