﻿202 
  A 
  MONOGRAPH 
  OF 
  THE 
  PHEASANTS 
  

  

  mere 
  spots 
  on 
  the 
  outer 
  webs. 
  On 
  the 
  central 
  rectrices 
  there 
  may 
  be 
  as 
  many 
  as 
  fifteen 
  

   of 
  these 
  narrow 
  white 
  bars 
  ; 
  on 
  the 
  outer 
  a 
  white 
  tip 
  and 
  two 
  bars 
  crossing 
  the 
  inner 
  

   web 
  near 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  feather. 
  

  

  The 
  violet 
  fringe 
  of 
  the 
  breast 
  is 
  relatively 
  long 
  and 
  the 
  central 
  black 
  hemispheres 
  

   quite 
  small. 
  On 
  the 
  lower 
  breast 
  the 
  violet 
  dies 
  out, 
  the 
  remainder 
  of 
  the 
  ventral 
  

   surface 
  being 
  dead 
  brownish 
  black, 
  with 
  barely 
  distinguishable 
  narrow 
  jet-black 
  or 
  pale 
  

   bluish 
  margins. 
  

  

  The 
  under 
  tail-coverts 
  are 
  slightly 
  tipped 
  with 
  white. 
  Facial 
  skin 
  scarlet, 
  with 
  

   several 
  rows 
  of 
  black 
  featherlets 
  near 
  the 
  orbits. 
  Under 
  eyelid 
  thickly 
  covered 
  with 
  

   black 
  and 
  white 
  featherlets. 
  The 
  scalation 
  of 
  the 
  tarsus 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  unique, 
  for 
  instead 
  

   of 
  the 
  hinder 
  portion 
  being 
  covered 
  with 
  scales, 
  it 
  is 
  reticulate, 
  each 
  of 
  the 
  small 
  

   octagonal 
  scales 
  being 
  somewhat 
  elevated, 
  forming 
  a 
  rough, 
  shagreen 
  surface. 
  

  

  Iris 
  hazel-brown, 
  bill 
  bluish 
  horn 
  colour, 
  feet 
  greenish-brown. 
  Culmen 
  to 
  nostril, 
  

   19 
  mm. 
  ; 
  wing, 
  230; 
  tail, 
  625; 
  tarsus, 
  68; 
  middle 
  toe 
  and 
  claw, 
  66; 
  spur, 
  15. 
  

  

  Variation. 
  — 
  A 
  most 
  interesting 
  and 
  significant 
  variation 
  is 
  found 
  in 
  occasional 
  

   individuals 
  which 
  have 
  the 
  feathers 
  of 
  the 
  rump 
  and 
  even 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  lower 
  back 
  widely 
  

   tipped 
  with 
  a 
  white 
  fringe, 
  indicating 
  the 
  close 
  relationship 
  with 
  the 
  Elliot, 
  Hume 
  and 
  

   Copper 
  Pheasant 
  group. 
  Both 
  this 
  and 
  the 
  remarkable 
  variation 
  in 
  the 
  abundance 
  and 
  

   visibility 
  of 
  white 
  spots 
  on 
  the 
  coverts 
  is 
  not 
  due 
  to 
  age, 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  observed 
  both 
  

   extremes 
  in 
  young 
  birds 
  which 
  still 
  showed 
  traces 
  of 
  juvenile 
  plumage, 
  and 
  again 
  in 
  

   full-grown 
  birds 
  with 
  long 
  spurs. 
  Of 
  two 
  such 
  young 
  birds 
  one 
  had 
  not 
  a 
  single 
  

   concealed 
  white 
  spot 
  on 
  any 
  wing 
  covert, 
  while 
  in 
  the 
  plumage 
  of 
  the 
  other 
  there 
  were 
  

   scores, 
  including 
  actually 
  a 
  broad 
  visible 
  band 
  across 
  the 
  lesser 
  coverts, 
  all 
  the 
  feathers 
  

   having 
  wide 
  sub-terminal 
  bands 
  or 
  A-shaped 
  marks 
  or 
  spots. 
  

  

  Adult 
  Female. 
  — 
  Forehead, 
  sides 
  of 
  crown 
  and 
  neck 
  and 
  upper 
  breast 
  greyish 
  

   brown. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  ear-coverts 
  are 
  white, 
  others 
  brown. 
  Crown 
  and 
  nape 
  feathers 
  

   broad 
  and 
  rather 
  elongated, 
  black 
  with 
  dark 
  rufous 
  margins 
  all 
  around. 
  On 
  the 
  upper 
  

   neck 
  the 
  rufous 
  gives 
  place 
  to 
  olive 
  brown 
  and 
  a 
  small 
  rufous 
  shaft-spot 
  or 
  streak 
  

   appears, 
  soon 
  changing 
  to 
  white. 
  On 
  the 
  mantle 
  the 
  white 
  streak 
  becomes 
  enlarged, 
  

   arrow-shaped 
  and 
  very 
  conspicuous. 
  From 
  its 
  base, 
  part 
  way 
  down 
  the 
  feather, 
  a 
  rufous 
  

   band 
  extends 
  outward 
  across 
  the 
  webs, 
  and 
  still 
  more 
  basally 
  is 
  an 
  isolated 
  rufous 
  

   shaft-spot. 
  This 
  is 
  the 
  fundamental 
  pattern 
  of 
  the 
  dorsal 
  feathers, 
  but 
  in 
  various 
  

   parts 
  of 
  the 
  plumage 
  and 
  on 
  various 
  individuals 
  one 
  finds 
  infinite 
  variations 
  of 
  this. 
  

   On 
  the 
  mid 
  back, 
  for 
  example, 
  the 
  oblique 
  bar 
  or 
  circle 
  of 
  rufous 
  has 
  almost 
  disappeared 
  

   and 
  the 
  white 
  and 
  rufous 
  shaft-marks 
  coalesce 
  to 
  form 
  a 
  single 
  elongated 
  shaft-streak. 
  

   Rather 
  abruptly 
  on 
  the 
  lower 
  back 
  and 
  rump 
  one 
  finds 
  the 
  entire 
  feather, 
  save 
  for 
  the 
  

   white 
  and 
  rufous 
  shaft 
  and 
  the 
  olive 
  tip, 
  mottled 
  with 
  rufous 
  and 
  black. 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  scapulars 
  and 
  coverts, 
  the 
  rufous 
  band 
  curves 
  forward, 
  forming 
  with 
  the 
  

   olive 
  tip 
  a 
  frame 
  for 
  the 
  central 
  black 
  — 
  a 
  perfect 
  ocellus 
  on 
  each 
  web, 
  recalling 
  vividly 
  

   the 
  ocellus-pattern 
  on 
  female 
  tragopans, 
  and 
  other 
  pheasants. 
  All 
  but 
  the 
  inner 
  

   secondaries 
  show 
  very 
  regular 
  barring 
  of 
  moderately 
  wide 
  rufous 
  bars, 
  and 
  wide 
  black 
  

   interspaces. 
  On 
  the 
  primaries 
  the 
  bars 
  are 
  perfect 
  only 
  on 
  the 
  outer 
  webs, 
  being 
  broken 
  

   or 
  absent 
  on 
  the 
  inner. 
  

  

  