﻿HUME'S 
  BARRED-BACKED 
  PHEASANT 
  

  

  Syrmaticus 
  humiae 
  humiae 
  (Hume) 
  

  

  NAMES. 
  — 
  Specific 
  : 
  humiae, 
  for 
  Mrs. 
  Allan 
  Hume, 
  wife 
  of 
  the 
  British 
  ornithologist. 
  English 
  : 
  Hume's 
  

   Barred-backed 
  Pheasant. 
  Native 
  : 
  Loe-nin-koi 
  (Manipuri) 
  ; 
  Yit 
  (Burmese) 
  ; 
  Wuri 
  (Kachin). 
  

  

  Brief 
  Description. 
  — 
  Male 
  : 
  Crown 
  brown 
  ; 
  neck, 
  upper 
  mantle, 
  chin 
  and 
  throat 
  dark 
  metallic 
  steel 
  blue 
  ; 
  

   mantle 
  fiery 
  red 
  ; 
  lower 
  back 
  and 
  rump 
  bluish-green 
  with 
  a 
  narrow 
  white 
  fringe 
  ; 
  wing 
  as 
  in 
  Elliot 
  ; 
  breast 
  chestnut 
  

   with 
  blue 
  gloss 
  and 
  fiery 
  red 
  margins 
  ; 
  belly 
  and 
  sides 
  chestnut 
  ; 
  middle 
  tail-feathers 
  grey 
  with 
  narrow 
  bars 
  of 
  

   mixed 
  chestnut 
  and 
  black 
  ; 
  lateral 
  tail-feathers 
  barred 
  with 
  black, 
  the 
  outer 
  pairs 
  mostly 
  black 
  with 
  grey 
  bases. 
  

   Female 
  : 
  Resembles 
  ellioti, 
  except 
  that 
  the 
  throat 
  and 
  fore-neck 
  are 
  usually 
  devoid 
  of 
  black. 
  

  

  RANGE. 
  — 
  Manipur, 
  the 
  Lushai 
  and 
  the 
  Chin 
  Hills. 
  To 
  the 
  east 
  of 
  Manipur, 
  in 
  Katha, 
  it 
  grades 
  into 
  

   burmanicus. 
  

  

  GENERAL 
  DISTRIBUTION 
  

  

  Hume's 
  Pheasant 
  is 
  very 
  generally 
  distributed 
  in 
  Manipur 
  from 
  the 
  extreme 
  

   north 
  on 
  the 
  Naga 
  Hills 
  boundary, 
  southward 
  through 
  the 
  province, 
  and 
  on 
  into 
  the 
  

   Lushai 
  and 
  the 
  Chin 
  Hills. 
  

  

  Two 
  specimens 
  from 
  Katha, 
  many 
  miles 
  to 
  the 
  east 
  of 
  Manipur, 
  and 
  about 
  an 
  

   equal 
  distance 
  from 
  the 
  Ruby 
  Mines 
  District 
  of 
  Burma 
  proper, 
  are 
  both 
  almost 
  exactly 
  

   intermediate 
  in 
  character 
  between 
  humiae 
  and 
  burmanicus. 
  

  

  GENERAL 
  ACCOUNT 
  

  

  The 
  first 
  specimens 
  of 
  this 
  pheasant 
  to 
  come 
  into 
  the 
  hands 
  of 
  an 
  ornithologist 
  

   were 
  two 
  males 
  — 
  one 
  living, 
  the 
  other 
  dead 
  — 
  which 
  Mr. 
  Hume 
  obtained 
  under 
  most 
  

   interesting 
  conditions. 
  As 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  Mikado 
  pheasant, 
  the 
  first 
  hint 
  that 
  a 
  new 
  

   species 
  was 
  living 
  in 
  the 
  country 
  was 
  given 
  by 
  the 
  tail-feathers 
  of 
  a 
  bird 
  in 
  the 
  head- 
  

   dress 
  of 
  a 
  native. 
  Mr. 
  Hume's 
  account 
  is 
  too 
  interesting 
  to 
  abridge. 
  

  

  He 
  was 
  travelling 
  in 
  the 
  country 
  which 
  lies 
  between 
  Bengal 
  and 
  Assam 
  on 
  the 
  west, 
  

   and 
  Burma 
  proper 
  on 
  the 
  east, 
  and 
  was 
  not 
  expecting 
  to 
  find 
  any 
  new 
  species 
  of 
  game- 
  

   bird. 
  He 
  says 
  : 
  

  

  "The 
  day 
  before 
  I 
  crossed 
  the 
  Jhiri 
  River, 
  which 
  divides 
  the 
  British 
  district 
  of 
  

   Cachar 
  from 
  His 
  Highness 
  the 
  Maharajah 
  of 
  Manipur's 
  territories, 
  the 
  Manipur 
  Envoy, 
  

   who 
  was 
  to 
  accompany 
  me 
  in 
  my 
  peregrinations 
  as 
  guide, 
  mentor, 
  and 
  commandant 
  of 
  

   my 
  Manipur 
  escort, 
  came 
  to 
  meet 
  me. 
  

  

  "In 
  Manipur 
  officials 
  of 
  rank 
  who 
  have 
  deserved 
  well 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  receive 
  from 
  the 
  

   Maharaja's 
  hands 
  a 
  plume 
  of 
  feathers, 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  henceforth 
  entitled 
  to 
  wear, 
  and 
  

   which, 
  in 
  this 
  simpler 
  state 
  of 
  society, 
  represents 
  our 
  stars 
  and 
  garters, 
  our 
  G.C.B.'s 
  and 
  

   grand 
  crosses, 
  etc. 
  Not 
  unnaturally 
  the 
  Envoy 
  who 
  boasted 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  coveted 
  insignia 
  

   drew 
  my 
  attention 
  to 
  his 
  plume, 
  of 
  which 
  he 
  was 
  evidently 
  proud, 
  and 
  on 
  my 
  examining 
  

  

  176 
  

  

  