522 Account of the Bearded Vulture [Oct. 



buried in the earth — while on the other hand, the species, -which I 

 have here endeavoured to describe, inhabiting wide and flat plains, 

 are under no necessity of placing' a farther barrier between them- 

 selves and the wind, than that which is afforded by the earth in 

 which they lie torpid, in as much as meeting with no obstruction, 

 the scorching blast sweeps rapidly over the hardened surface, with- 

 out penetrating sufficiently deep, or at least with sufficient power to 

 cause any injury or inconvenience to the animals buried some 6 or 8 

 inches deep, and protected by the branches of the dwarf shrubs be- 

 neath which they are found. 



Of these shells, I shall take an early opportunity of forwarding speci- 

 mens. 



IX. — Account of the Bearded Vulture of the Himalaya. By the same. 



I know not if this magnificent bird has yet been recognised bv or- 

 nithologists as an inhabitant of the lofty mountain ranges of Thi- 

 bet, and I have therefore little hesitation in recording the fact. 

 A specimen sadly torn and mutilated by insects was a short time 

 since pointed out to me as a Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysdetos), from 

 the hills, and having often before seen those nobie birds both 



living and in museums, I paid no attention to it at the time. 



On an after occasion, when the specimen was thrown awav as useless 

 I happened accidentally to cast my eyes on it, and saw at a glance 

 that it was not a Golden Eagle. A suspicion of the truth at the 

 same time crossing my mind, from the circumstance of the black 

 beard, which in this bird is so conspicuous, being still a very pi*o- 

 minent feature, notwithstanding the ruinous state of the specimen, 

 accordingly I took the skin home with me to examine at my leisure, 

 and the following description is the result : 



Gypbatus Barbatus ? 



Length from the tip of the beak to the end of the tail 3 ft. 11 in. 

 Beak, from the tip to the gape, 4 in. ; breadth from tip to tip of the 

 expanded wings, 9 ft. 6 in. From the base of the upper mandi- 

 ble arises a black stripe of short hairs or bristles, passing over each 

 eye, and turning round the back of the head, where it joins the stripe 

 f.-om the opposite side ; the crown of the head, which is much flat- 

 tened, is covered with small whitish feathers ; but across these, run- 

 ning longitudinally from the base of the upper mandible to the black 

 which passes round the back of the head, is a black stripe of nar- 

 row feathers. The chin, throat, back, sides, and forepart of the neck ; 

 the breast, belly, vent, thighs, and under tail coverts, deep ferrugin- 



