ORTYX CAPISTRATA, (nobis). 

 Harnessed Ortyx. 



PLATE XXXVIII. 



O. fronte, superciliis et linea per oculos ferrugineis, vertice cristato ; supra brurmea, 

 plumis nigro pulcherrime penicellatis, linea per rachin maculaque ad apicem tri- 

 angulari flavis ; remigibus nigris albo maculatis, subtus plumbea. 



X his very distinct species we purchased last spring from among a collec- 

 tion of skins brought for sale to Edinburgh. The person who had them 

 for disposal said that they were all collected by himself in different parts 

 of South America ; and all the other skins with which we were acquainted 

 being from that country, we have no reason to doubt the man's veracity. 

 This group also has only yet been found in this part of the world. 



The total length is about ten inches. The bill, as in the congeners, is 

 very strong and thick ; the depth at the base is equal to the length. The 

 head is crested, the feathers continuing elongated for a considerable way 

 down the back of the neck ; a narrow band on the forehead, the eye-brows, 

 and a line extending through the eyes, are pale chesnut-brown ; the space 

 immediately round the eyes is nearly bare of feathers. The crest, back, wing 

 and tail coverts are reddish-brown, delicately barred with black. On the 

 back, the centre of each feather along the shaft, and ending in a triangu- 

 lar spot at the tip, is yellowish-white, and, with the greater wing-coverts, 

 are blotched with black on the inner webs. The lower part of the back 

 and rump are yellowish-white, indistinctly barred with a lighter shade. 

 The quills and secondaries are black, the former spotted with white, the 

 latter irregularly barred with the same colour on the outer webs. The 

 cheeks, neck, breast and belly, are bluish-black, paler on the vent, and there 

 tinged with yellowish-white. The tail is black, the feathers in the centre 

 barred with yellowish-brown, those on the outsides barred only on the 

 edges. The legs and feet are bluish-black, and are remarkably strong. 



