130 A MONOGRAPH OF THE PHEASANTS 



concern herself with their entire welfare. During their rearing, however, it is necessary 

 to remove the cock bird, as he appears " jaloux de I'affection que la mfere tdmoigne a ses 

 jeunes." The growing of the first plumage and the successive moult is a severe tax upon 

 the strength of the young bird, appearing rather ill and with but little appetite, but when 

 this crisis is past he regains strength with great rapidity. At this time, when little over 

 a month old, the young bird will often spread its diminutive, undecorated wings and tail, 

 and strut about before its mother and its young sister. The young cock birds are larger 

 and brighter in colour than the hens. 



When the young birds are three months old they may be separated from their 

 parent, previous to which they should be united with their younger brethren. If there 

 are three or four young birds, they will live happily, even in a small enclosure, feeding 

 together in the day and sleeping at night side by side upon the same roost. 



DETAILED DESCRIPTION 



Adult Male. — I obtained a large series of adult males of the Bornean Argus, and 

 the detailed description which I have given of a typical specimen need not be repeated 

 for the present species, the differences being so slight. 



On the whole, the white in the Bornean bird is replaced by buff in the Malay species, 

 and the blacks are less strong, more brown in the latter. The orange rufous of the upper 

 breast is a dull chestnut in the Malay Argus. On the under parts and sides in the latter, 

 the white is wholly replaced by chestnut, and the back and rump is decidedly orange, 

 not salmon or vinaceous buff. The Malay bird is also the larger of the two species. 



Adult Female. — In the Malay bird the collar is dull chestnut, not bright rusty 

 red, and the other parts are rufous rather than buff. The blacks in the Borneo Argus 

 become less clear and browner in the Malay Argus. In a good series of specimens these 

 differences characterize the majority, but there are individuals which are quite indis- 

 tinguishable. I secured one female from the interior of Pahang which even excels the 

 typical Borneo birds in their own characters. 



Chick in Down. — Forehead warm rufous, becoming darker posteriorly, but remain- 

 ing dark chestnut over the hind neck, mantle and anterior portion of the wing. From 

 mantle to rump velvet black, shading into rufous on the sides under the wings. A 

 narrow pale buff line extends down the scapular region outlining the antero-dorsal 

 juncture of the wing. On the back these lines suddenly broaden and extend straight 

 back to the rump, bisecting the black area into three, the mid-dorsal black line being 

 about 10 mm. wide, and the two lateral creamy buff lines 5 mm. in width. 



The face and side neck are orange rufous, this warm colour being sustained well 

 across the breast, but paling into buffy white on the chin and very gradually into the 

 same colour on the abdomen. 



The flight feathers and longest coverts are brownish black, irregularly splotched and 

 spotted with pale rufous. The coverts and inner secondaries have a broad sub-terminal 

 band of rufous. The rectrices are barely discernible. 



Seven primaries are growing rapidly, the 8th barely discernible as a very short sheath. 



