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also crossed by seven blackish-brown bars, the upper one being, however, somewhat indistinct, and the two 

 lower being separated by an interval which is twice the breadth of the spaces between the other bars. The 

 throat has a broad blackish band running- down its centre, with two similar and nearly parallel bands pro- 

 ceeding from the corners of the mouth, the three bands all merging in a cluster of dark brown lanceolate 

 marks upon the upper portion of the breast, the intervals between these markings and also the whole 

 plumage of the lower sternal and abdominal regions being tinged with a yellowish rufous ; the under tail- 

 coverts are barred with brown and white, the former bars being much broader than the latter ; and the thighs 

 and tarsi are marked throughout their length with narrow equidistant transverse bars of the same colours. 



"A second and apparently less adult specimen in the Norwich Museum resembles the one above described, 

 except in the crest being less developed and in the colours generally being somewhat lighter, particularly on 

 the head, and the markings, especially on the lower part of the tarsi, being paler and less distinct. 



" Spizaetus Nipalensis, Hodgson. — The folloAving description of this fine species, the largest of the Asiatic 

 Spizaeti, is extracted from Mr. T. C. Jerdon's excellent work on the Birds of India, now in course of 

 publication : — ' Plumage of the upper parts deep brown, very dark on the interscapulars, and verging on 

 black on the crown and occipital crest, which is slightly tipped with white, and is 4 inches long; nuchal 

 feathers edged tawny brown ; chin blackish, continued as a median line to the breast, which is fulvous brown 

 and with dark streaks ; or in some, the chin, throat, and breast fulvous, with large blackish-brown ovate spots ; 

 and a dark moustacheal band and two similar lateral streaks, at first very broad, proceed from the corners of 

 the gape ; belly, flanks, lower tail-coverts, and thigh-coverts more or less distinctly banded with brown and 

 white ; tarsal feathers banded whitish ; wings dark brown, banded with blackish ; under wing-coverts banded 

 with white ; tail light greyish brown, with five dark bands, as broad or broader than the interspaces ; upper 

 tail-coverts also banded brown and white. The feathers of the tarsus cover the bases of the toes. 



" 'Length of a male 29 inches ; wing 18; tail 13; tarsus 4; mid-toe 3|. 



" 'Another, probably a female, was 32 inches ; wing 19; tail 14; tarsi 4i; mid-toe and claw 3f. 



" 'This splendid Hawk-Eagle has been found on the Himalayas, in the Khasia Hills, and in Ceylon. I 

 got one specimen only at Darjeeling, where, however, it is well known, though rare, and is said to kill 

 pheasants, partridges, and other birds.' 



"To the above account I would add that the transverse abdominal bars which occur in this species are 

 frequently divided by the brown centre of the feather so as to present an appearance of white ovate spots, 

 which I have not observed in the other Asiatic Spizaeti. I would also remark that the ' Spizaetus orientalis' 

 of Japan and Formosa, of which a Japanese example is figured in the ' Fauna Japonica,' Aves, pi. 3, is 

 certainly closely allied to, and probably not specifically distinct from, this species. 



" Spizaetus cirrhatus, Gmel. — This species (the common Crested Eagle of India and Ceylon) differs 

 from S. Nipalensis in its somewhat smaller and much more variable size, in the paler character of the trans- 

 verse markings on the abdomen and thighs, in the entire absence of the white abdominal ovate spots, and 

 especially in the less powerful development of its talons generally, and of the inner and hinder claws in 

 particular, these being very decidedly smaller and feebler in this species than in S. Nipalensis. 



" S. cirrhatus is figured in the Planches Coloriees, pi. 282, under the name of ' Falco cristatellus.' 



" Spizaetus caligatus, Raffles. — This species is very nearly allied to the preceding (with which many 

 ornithologists consider it to be identical), but appears to differ from it in the following particulars, viz., first, 

 by the non-development of the crest, which is a marked feature in most specimens of S. cirrhatus, but 

 which is entirely absent in the great majority of specimens of S. caligatus, and when it does appear is 

 much less elongated than it usually is in S. cirrhatus ; second, by the bill being somewhat deeper and more 

 powerful, and the tarsi somewhat shorter, in S. caligatus than in S. cirrhatus, the comparison being, of 

 course, made between individuals of equal general size ; third, by the wider geographical rano-e of S. cali- 

 gatus, which is found not only in India and Ceylon, but also in Burmah, the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, 

 Borneo, and Java ; fourth, by the tendency to melanism, which is of constant occurrence in S. caligatus, 

 while in S. cirrhatus such a variety is very rare. This black variety of S. caligatus has been observed in 

 Java to be permanent and hereditary, and to be commoner in that island than the paler race. Some natu- 

 ralists have, indeed, considered it as specifically distinct ; and such is the opinion expressed by Dr. Bern- 

 stein (a resident in Java) in a very interesting paper published in Cabanis's Journal of Ornithology, 

 vol. viii. p. 417. The adult of the paler race is figured by Temminck in the Planches Coloriees, pi. 127, 

 under the title of ' Falco nheus^ and the same work contains a figure, in pi. 134, of the dark variety, 

 under the name of 'Falco limnaetus :' the latter is also figured in Horsfield's Zoological Researches in Java! 

 Aves, pi. 3. 



"In conclusion, I may recapitulate the species of Asiatic Spizaeti which I have above enumerated, and 

 which, in my opinion, may be considered as distinct : — 



-Spizaetus alboniger, Blyth ; S. lanceolatus, Temminck ; S. Kieneri, De Sparre ; S. Philippensis, nobis; 

 S. Nipalensis, Hodgson ; S. cirrhatus, Gmelin ; S. caligatus, Raffles." 



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