1846.] or Little Known Species 0/ Birds. 5 



Among the true Hawks, we have a similar occipital crest in Astur 

 trivirgatus, (Tern.,) to which may be referred A. indicus, Hodgson, (Beng. 

 Sp. Mag. 1836, p. 177,) it being also the supposed A. palumbarius of 

 Mr. Jerdon's Catalogue. The Society has lately received fine specimens 

 of this Goshawk from Ye (Tenasserim), forming part of a valuable collec- 

 tion from that province, presented by the Rev. J. Barbe, R. C. M.* 



Of Indian true Aquilce, as Mr. G. R. Gray now adopts the genus, 

 as many as nine species exist, which are as follow: — 1. Tolmaetus\ 

 Bonelli, the Nisaetus grandis, Hodgson, and ' Genoese Eagle* of Latham : 

 peculiar to hilly regions. — 2, Aq. chrysaetos : Himalaya, and perhaps 

 Col. Sykes's Dukhun bird, though Mr. Jerdon's supposed * Golden 

 Eagle' of South India, refers to the next species. — 3, Aq. mogilnik, 

 imperialis, and heliaca, Auct. India generally, chiefly however the 

 mountains. Of this robustly formed Eagle, there are two phases 

 of plumage. One is the dark brown, with pale head and nuchal plumes, 

 blackish forehead and throat, and often a great white patch on 

 the shoulder : the other has pale central stripes to the feathers of the 

 back, which are much broader on those of the neck and under-parts, 

 where they have merely dark lateral margins, and the wing also is more 

 or less spotted ; in the latter plumage, the feathers of the back and 

 especially those of the breast and under-parts are considerably more 

 lengthened, attenuated and pointed, than in the other ; and the dress 

 certainly does not appear to be juvenile, but analogous rather to the 

 spotted garb of Aq. nasvia. To judge from Hardwicke and Gray's 

 figure, it might be thought the immature plumage of Aq. bi/asciata, but 

 such is not the case. — 4, Aq. bi/asciata, Gray, v. nipalensis, Hodgson, 

 As. Res. XVIII, pt. II, p. 13. Equal to the last in size, but less 

 robust ; and colour a dead brown, with the secondaries and great range 



* Dr. M'Clelland has lately favoured me with permission to look over his drawings 

 of Assamese animals ; among which is one of his Spiza'etus rufitinctus, Proc. Zool. 

 Soc. 1839, p. 153, which I consider merely to represent the adult female of Astur 

 trivirgatus. 



f This group comprises T. Bonelli of Southern Europe and Asia, and I believe North 

 Africa; and T. bellicosus, v. armiger, (Shaw,) of South Africa. Mr. Hodgson thinks 

 that his name Nisaetus should now stand for this form ; but as he has figured nipaleti' 

 sis as the '■'type of the new genus Nisaetus," J. A. S. V. 227, and subsequently charac- 

 terized that form as short-winged, VI, 361, and elsewhere spoken of grandis as "an 

 aberrant species," 1 am compelled in this case to dispute his claim to the sponsorship, 

 however unwillingly. 



