110 BIHDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 
494. HIEEOCOCCYX NANUS. 
HUME^S HAWK-CUCKOO. 
Hierococcyx nanus, Hume, S. F. v. p. 490^ Hume ^ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 157, 502 ; 
Hume, S. F. Viii. p. 88. 
Description. — Male and female. ^' The whole of the lower parts are 
white, tinged creamy on the lower throat and breast, and more feebly so 
on the middle of the abdomen and tibial plumes ; and all these parts with 
conspicuous black central stripes ; chin, upper throat and lower tail-coverts 
pure unmarked white ; forehead, crown, occiput and nape deep brownish 
slaty ; sides of the neck ferruginous, the feathers dark -centred ; nape 
simiilar, but the feathers feebly margined with pale ferruginous, and one 
or two of the feathers on each side white-tipped ; entire mantle, wings 
and back deep brown ; the feathers, some of them very obscurely margined 
with dull ferruginous, showing that the birds are not quite adult, and 
spots of the same colour on the outer webs of the quills ; the inner webs, 
except towards the tips of the primaries, with broad triangular buflpy white 
bars, coalescing at the margin towards the bases of the feathers ; tail tipped 
with sordid white, then an 0"8 subterminal blackish band, then an 0*6 to 
0*8 pale grey -brown interspace, the next succeeding 0*5 blackish-brown 
band cuspidate on its lower margin, then an 0*5 pale interspace, then an 
0*45 dark bar, also cuspidate on the lower margin, then an 0'5 interspace, 
and then another dark bar ; the whole of which, as well as half of the last 
interspace, hidden by the upper tail-coverts ; the entire wing-lining and 
edge of the wing at the carpal joint uniform cream-colour.-'^ [Hume.) 
Irides brown; the lower mandible, gape and base of upper mandible 
greenish yellow ; upper mandible and extreme tip of lower mandible dull 
black; eyelids, legs, feet and claws orange-yellow. [Davison.) 
Length about 11 inches, tail5'5, wing 5"6, tarsus '75, bill from gape 1*1. 
Judging from Mr. Hume^s figures, the sexes do not differ in size. 
Hume^s Hawk-Cuckoo was discovered in Tenasserim, and, judging from 
the description and size, it appears to be a very distinct species. It occurs 
in the southern portion of the Division from Bankasoon to Tavoy and 
Nwalabo mountain. 
H. fugax, from the Malay peninsula, is very similar in colour, but is 
very much larger, the wing being 7 inches or more in length. Both it and 
H. nanus may be recognized by the white under plumage, streaked with 
brown or black ; and while H. fugax has the whole of the sides of the head 
uniformly grey, H. nanus, according to Mr. Hume (I have never seen a 
specimen), has the sides of the head striped with white and grey in, as I 
gather, alternating bands. 
H, varius, from India, is said by Mr. Blyth to be likely to occur in 
