TO! Illl-Iiiaifli u 



Hypotaenidia striata,* ZW. 



VomaCUlar Nam©S.— [Kana-Koli (Tamil) ; Wade-Kodi (Telegu) ; Yay-gyet 

 (Burmese), Pegu; ] 



ERE again I am terribly at fault as to the real dis- 

 tribution of this species. Dr. Jerdon tells us that 

 this species is found throughout India, from the ex- 

 treme south and Ceylon to the foot of the Hima- 

 layas and the Punjab ; but, so far as I have been able 

 to ascertain, the Blue-breasted Banded Rail occurs in 

 only a fractional portion of India. Dr. Jerdon may 

 have possessed sources of information not open to me, but I 

 must state the distribution as I have at present ascertained it. 



* It seems still somewhat doubtful what name our Indian birds should bear. 

 Striata was described from the Philippines. 



Recently the Marquis of Tweeddale, in one of his valuable papers on the birds of 

 the Philippines, remarked of two specimens of this species : — 



" These Zebu specimens may be regarded as being, typical ; and from them 

 Andaman and Rangoon examples cannot be separated ; consequently the titles found- 

 ed on the Andaman race must fall. A comparison made with Continental, Indian, 

 and Malaccan examples does not support my former opinion that the Andaman 

 birds specifically differ from Indian and Malaccan ; otherwise the Indian race would 

 require a new title." 



This would appear conclusive ; but the fact is that our very large series, probably 

 the largest in the world, does not confirm this view. Our specimens are from Ceylon. 

 Madras, the Nilgiris, the Wynad, the Malabar Coast, various places in Lower 

 Bengal and Assam, Aracan, Pegu, Rangoon itself, various localities in Tenasserim, 

 and all parts of the Malay Peninsula. These are all absolutely of the same type, the 

 birds of the southern portions of the Indian and Malayan Peninsula as a whole 

 slightly palest, those of Assam slightly darkest, but not one single adult bird out of 

 between fifty and sixty making any approach to the colouration of any Andamanese 

 specimens. The Andamanese bird is not only much deeper coloured, its crown and 

 nape are almost maroon against chestnut in the Continental bird, it almost entire- 

 ly wants the brown margins to the feathers of the upper surface, and it is distinctly 

 larger. It is not possible that the Zebu birds should be inseparable from both Ran- 

 goon and Andamanese birds. Either Lord Tweeddale wrote from memory, or he had 

 before him immature specimens, either from Rangoon or Zebu, or from both. For be 

 it noted, that at one stage, before it puts on the complete chestnut head of the fully 

 adult bird, and while this is still much mingled with brown, the immature bird of 

 the Continental race is almost as dark as the mature Andaman bird, but not nearly so 

 dark as the corresponding stage of the latter, which is almost black. 



It still remains uncertain, therefore, whether the Philippine bird, the true striata^ 

 agrees with Indian and Malayan or the Andamanese form. If the latter, then 



