THE MALLAHD. 269 



whitish. N.B. — Sometimes some feathers of cheeks, chin and 

 throat have snuff-brown tips, sometimes marked blackish, others 

 with blackish tips, sometimes glossed green. 



Some birds moulting out of eclipse get some snuff- brown 

 feathers, some shaded blackish towards tip, also buff feathers with 

 blackish tips or streaks on cheeks, these feathers being subsequently 

 shed. 



Adult female. Winter and summer.— Crown heavily streaked 

 black glossed* dull green, feathers edged light buff ; nape light buff 

 iaintly streaked black-brown ; mantle and upper tail-coverts black- 

 brown, feathers fringed pinkish or light buff, and often with irregular 

 markings or V-shaped buff bars ; scapulars as mantle, some long 

 scapulars with streaks of pinkish or light buff ; back and rump 

 black-brown or sepia more or less glossed green, feathers edged 

 pinkish or light buff and in some barred buff, in others with oval 

 spots or central streaks of black-brown ; cheeks and sides of neck 

 light buff narrowly streaked black-brown ; black-brown streak 

 from lores through eye to nape : chin and throat warm buff, in some 

 more or less spotted or streaked dusky or black-brown ; upper- 

 breast light or warm buff, in some cinnamon, centre of feathers with 

 black-brown or ash-brown drops, streaks, or crescent-shaped marks ; 

 rest of breast, belly and vent light or warm buff, in some heavily 

 streaked, in others more lightly spotted or streaked ash-brown or 

 sepia ; sides of body and flanks sepia broadly edged light or warm 

 buff, and with irregular buff markings ; under tail-coverts light or 

 warm buff with central markings or large oval spots of sepia, tips 

 creamy-white ; tail sepia or ash-brown edged and more or less 

 irregularly marked and barred warm buff ; wing as in male, in some 

 speculum narrower ; new innermost secondaries sepia or olive - 

 brown edged and with irregular markings of light buff ; median 

 coverts darker, in some tinged olive and tipped light or warm buff. 

 The body -feathers are completely moulted Oct. to March, in some 

 tail-feathers are moulted Oct. and Nov., occasionally an odd pair of 

 tail-feathers may be renewed in spring ; new innermost secondaries 

 are not acquired till April or May. Forward birds, except for inner- 

 most secondaries, may be in complete breeding dress by Nov. The 

 nest -down is acquired March and April. 



Adult female. Eclipse. — The body and tail-feathers are com- 

 pletely moulted July and Aug. Like winter and summer but 

 feathers of crown with narrower buff edges ; mantle and scapulars 

 more narrowly edged at sides pink-buff, feathers of mantle without 

 buff bars, scapulars with fewer buff streaks, mantle and scapulars 

 thus appearing darker and more uniform ; innermost secondaries 

 without buff streaks, those next speculum not so richly marked 

 chestnut. 



Nestling. — Crown, nape, mantle, back, rump and uropygial 

 tuft, patch on side of body and back of thigh dark sepia or 

 black-brown with an olivaceous tinge, long down-filaments in 

 some with yellowish tinge ; wing-bar, small patch on either side 



