278 
Allen’s naturalist’s library. 
crown, nnpc, and hind-neck, as well as the sides of tlie face 
and throat, chestnut, slightly mottled with green behind the eye 
and on the occiput ; the lower throat and fore-neck, as well as 
the sides of the neck and of the chest, pale vinous, shaded with 
grey ; remainder of under surface of body from the fore-neck 
downwards pure white ; the under tail-coverts black ; the sides 
of the body ashy-grey, finely vermiculated with darker grey ; 
under wing-coverts ashy-grey ; axillaries white, freckled with 
grey ; bill bluish lead-colour, black at the tip ; feet and toes 
dark brown; iris hazel. Total length, 18 inches; culmen, 
1-45; wing, 10-4; tail, 4-1 ; tarsus, rs5. 
Adult Temale. — Differs from the male, the back being ashy- 
brown, narrowly banned with rufous on the hind-neck and 
mantle ; the dorsal feathers brown-edged with ashy-grey, these 
edgings becoming whiter on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; 
the scapulars with more rufous margins; wing-coverts ashy-grey, 
margined with w'hite, more broadly on the greater series ; the 
bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and primaries as in the male ; 
the secondaries dusky-brown, externally black and tipped with 
w'hite, but not showing a distinct speculum like the male; 
inner secondaries velvcty-black, edged with white on the outer 
web, and separated from the black speculum by a line of white, 
caused by the white outer web of a single inner secondary ; 
tail ashy-brown, narrowdy fringed with white ; crown of head 
blackish, with small white bars, producing a thickly mottled 
appearance ; lores, sides of face, and sides of throat fulvous, 
dotted and spotted with blackish, throat slightly more rufous ; 
remainder of the under surface pure white; the under tail- 
coverts centred and barred with brown ; the sides of the chest 
and of the body mottled with rufous. Total length, 16 inches ; 
wing, 9-6. 
Young Birds. — Arc at first like the old female, and the males 
evidently take some time, probably two or three years, before 
they acquire their perfect livery. The younger birds with the 
speculum developed have often only half the wing-coverts 
white, and, judging by a specimen in the British Museum, 
killed in June at Kiukiang by Mr. Styan, I should say that, 
until the second summer, the male retains a wing e.xactly like 
that of the old female. After the breeding-season, Mr. De 
