﻿MIKADO 
  PHEASANT 
  201 
  

  

  has 
  recently 
  bred 
  several 
  healthy 
  hybrids 
  with 
  the 
  Elliot 
  pheasant. 
  These 
  strongly 
  

   resemble 
  the 
  female 
  Mikado, 
  but 
  show 
  a 
  trace 
  of 
  the 
  black 
  throat 
  and 
  the 
  rufous 
  barring 
  

   of 
  the 
  tail. 
  

  

  DETAILED 
  DESCRIPTION 
  

  

  Adult 
  Male. 
  — 
  Feathers 
  around 
  nostril, 
  forehead, 
  ear-coverts, 
  chin 
  and 
  throat, 
  

   dead 
  black. 
  Crown, 
  nape, 
  sides 
  of 
  neck, 
  and 
  lower 
  cheeks 
  glossed 
  with 
  blue 
  green. 
  

   Breast 
  and 
  mantle 
  dead 
  black, 
  the 
  wide, 
  visible 
  border 
  dark 
  violet, 
  with 
  a 
  good-sized, 
  

   sub-terminal, 
  hemispherical 
  spot 
  at 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  shaft, 
  appearing 
  velvety 
  jet 
  black 
  

   when 
  viewed 
  toward 
  the 
  light, 
  shining 
  blue 
  away 
  from 
  the 
  light. 
  

  

  This 
  spot 
  is 
  caused 
  by 
  an 
  actual 
  physical 
  alteration 
  of 
  the 
  barbules. 
  When 
  the 
  

   feather 
  is 
  held 
  against 
  white 
  paper 
  or 
  the 
  light, 
  the 
  spot 
  is 
  revealed 
  as 
  a 
  rounded 
  or 
  

   blunt 
  triangle 
  of 
  very 
  transparent 
  vane 
  area. 
  The 
  barbules 
  in 
  the 
  specialized 
  zone 
  are 
  

   slightly 
  shorter 
  and 
  stouter 
  than 
  normal 
  ones, 
  but 
  this 
  difference 
  is 
  more 
  apparent 
  than 
  

   real. 
  The 
  chief 
  point 
  of 
  distinction 
  is 
  that 
  both 
  rows 
  of 
  barbules 
  are 
  rather 
  closely 
  

   apposed 
  along 
  the 
  upper 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  barbs, 
  being 
  raised 
  at 
  a 
  sharp 
  angle 
  above 
  the 
  dorsal 
  

   plane 
  of 
  the 
  feather, 
  thus 
  giving 
  the 
  barbs 
  a 
  narrower, 
  more 
  isolated 
  appearance, 
  and 
  

   preventing 
  any 
  possibility 
  of 
  interlocking 
  of 
  the 
  very 
  few 
  barbicles 
  present. 
  This 
  change 
  

   of 
  angle 
  causes 
  the 
  alteration 
  of 
  apparent 
  colour, 
  the 
  spot 
  showing 
  as 
  black 
  when 
  the 
  

   terminal 
  fringe 
  appears 
  violet, 
  and 
  as 
  bluish-violet 
  when 
  a 
  shift 
  of 
  light 
  alters 
  the 
  feather 
  

   fringe 
  to 
  black. 
  

  

  Back 
  and 
  rump 
  jet 
  black, 
  with 
  a 
  narrow 
  terminal 
  fringe 
  of 
  steel 
  blue. 
  Coverts 
  

   similar, 
  the 
  fringe 
  becoming 
  green 
  on 
  the 
  middle 
  and 
  outer 
  margins 
  of 
  the 
  greater 
  

   coverts, 
  and 
  the 
  tertiaries 
  and 
  inner 
  secondaries 
  being 
  glossed 
  with 
  green. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  closed 
  wing 
  the 
  only 
  visible 
  wing-marking 
  is 
  a 
  transverse 
  bar 
  caused 
  by 
  the 
  

   broad 
  white 
  tips 
  of 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  greater 
  coverts. 
  As 
  a 
  matter 
  of 
  fact, 
  all 
  the 
  secondaries 
  

   themselves 
  are 
  more 
  narrowly 
  tipped 
  with 
  white, 
  but 
  this 
  is 
  invisible 
  in 
  the 
  closed 
  wing, 
  

   except 
  from 
  the 
  9th 
  or 
  10th 
  inward, 
  where 
  the 
  feathers 
  begin 
  to 
  shorten 
  in 
  a 
  line 
  up 
  the 
  

   inner 
  border 
  of 
  the 
  wing. 
  On 
  the 
  succeeding 
  five 
  or 
  six 
  the 
  slender, 
  wedge-shaped, 
  

   terminal 
  shaft-marks 
  of 
  white 
  show 
  very 
  conspicuously, 
  this 
  line 
  meeting 
  the 
  transverse 
  

   line 
  of 
  white 
  on 
  the 
  coverts 
  at 
  an 
  obtuse 
  angle. 
  

  

  Although 
  ordinarily 
  wholly 
  concealed 
  from 
  view, 
  there 
  are 
  from 
  twenty 
  to 
  forty 
  

   other 
  coverts 
  marked 
  with 
  white, 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  short, 
  narrow 
  shaft-stripes 
  on 
  the 
  

   median 
  coverts, 
  and 
  good-sized 
  round 
  shaft-spots 
  on 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  lesser 
  coverts. 
  Some- 
  

   times 
  all 
  but 
  a 
  score 
  of 
  the 
  wing-coverts 
  are 
  marked 
  in 
  some 
  way 
  with 
  white. 
  In 
  a 
  few 
  

   individuals 
  these 
  white 
  spots 
  show 
  beyond 
  the 
  edges 
  of 
  the 
  overlapping 
  lesser 
  

   coverts. 
  

  

  The 
  secondaries 
  are 
  glossy 
  black, 
  the 
  primaries 
  dark 
  brown, 
  with 
  paler 
  brown 
  

   shafts. 
  

  

  The 
  short 
  upper 
  tail-coverts 
  depart 
  abruptly 
  from 
  the 
  pattern 
  and 
  colour 
  of 
  the 
  

   rump 
  feathers, 
  the 
  narrow 
  terminal 
  fringe 
  changing 
  from 
  steel 
  blue 
  to 
  white, 
  while 
  at 
  

   the 
  same 
  time 
  rounded, 
  basal 
  spots 
  appear, 
  which 
  increase 
  into 
  angular 
  lines, 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  

   longer 
  coverts 
  into 
  regular, 
  narrow, 
  straight, 
  transverse 
  white 
  bars, 
  somewhat 
  clouded 
  

   with 
  dark-brown 
  mottling. 
  

  

  The 
  rectrices 
  are 
  similar 
  to 
  the 
  tail-coverts, 
  the 
  lateral 
  ones 
  with 
  broken 
  bars 
  or 
  

  

  VOL. 
  Ill 
  D 
  D 
  

  

  