R A S R E S. 



275 



Form. — Small. Bill short, weak ; wings rather long ; tail moderate, 

 of fourteen feathers ; tarsi robust, feathered below the joint with 

 the tibia ; toes rather long ; feathers, on the breast, deeply emargi- 

 nate. Large spot on the head in front, and broad transverse band 

 across the back, crimson; head behind, neck, and under parts, white, 

 tinged with yellow, deepest on the abdomen. Feathers of the breast 

 with partially concealed transverse bands of pale pink or lake-red ; 

 lower part of the breast witJi a wide belt of pale orange ; under tail- 

 coverts crimson. Back (from the band of crimson), rump, and upper 

 tail-coverts, greenish-yellow; wing-coverts pale cinereous, edged with 

 greenish-yellow ; quills brownish-black, with their outer webs green, 

 with metallic lustre ; some of the tertiarics have their exposed ends 

 tipped, on both webs, with the same metallic green ; under wing- 

 coverts ashy-white. Tail pale cinereous, tipped narrowly with pale 

 yellow. " Bill dark green ; legs pale blue ; irides red, with an 

 orange-colored ring around the pupil." (Peale.) 



Dimensions. — Total length, male (of skin), seven and a half inches ; 

 wing five and one-fourth inches ; tail three inches. 



Hab. — Upolu, Samoan Islands, and Mathuata, Feejee Islands. 

 Specimen in Nat. Mus. Washington. 



Several specimens of this beautiful and singularly marked species 

 are in the collection of the Expedition. It is the species named 

 " Ptilinope de Marie," by Messrs. Hombron and Jacquinot, on the 

 plate in the Zoological Atlas to the Voyage of the Astrolabe and 

 Zelee, Birds, PI. XXIX, fig. 2, and since named Ptilinoims Marice, in 

 the volume of the zoology containing Birds of the same voyage (Paris, 

 1853). Mr. Peale's name, as given above, has, however, undoubted 

 priority. 



This bird was observed to inhabit mountain gorges, in the Feejee 

 Islands, but was not abundant. It was also seen in Upolu, one of 

 the Samoan Islands. 



Mr. Peale, in allusion to the present species, and to the plate pre- 

 pared from his drawing, which will be found in the Atlas accompany- 

 ing this volume, gives the following : 



" The specimen was a male, in adult plumage (PI. XXXIII, fig. 1), 

 and was obtained at the Island of Upolu. Fig. 2 differs but little from 



