t-NRLF B 3 33b Mfl^ •L.<£l *TC1 V ^i f: IT" *9 GIFT OF A HANDBOOK TO THE BIRDS OF BRITISH BFRIAH, INCLUDING THOSE FOUND IN THE ADJOINING STATE OF KAEENNEE. BY EUGENE W. GATES, EX1.CUTJVK ENGINEER, PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT OF INDIA (BRITISH BURMAIl). VOL. II. LONDON: ft. H. PORTER, 6 TENTERDEN STREET, W., AND MESSRS. DULAU & CO., SOHO SQUARE, W. 1883. \> i IBRAItt G ALERE FLAMMAM. FEINTED BY TAYLOR AND FEANCIS, BED LION COTJET, FLEET — _, ' i • ..:.*»*.».« CONTENTS OF VOL. II. Order II. MACROCHIRES. Family CYPSELID^E. Subfamily CYPSELIN.E. 401. Cypselus pacificus (Lath.). 402. subfurcatus, El. 403. infumatus, Sclatvr. Subfamily CHJETUBINJE. 404. Hirundinapus giganteus (v. Hass). 405. indicus (Hume). 406. Rhaphidura leucopygialis (Bl.). 407. Collocalia innominata, Hume. 408. - — spodiopygia, Cassin. 409. - - linchi, Horsf. fy Moore. 410. Macropteryx coronatus (Tick.). 411. longipennis (Rqfin.). 412. comatus (Temm.). Family CAPKIMULGULE. Subfamily PODARGINJE. 413. Batrachostomus aflmis, Bl. Subfamily CAPBIMULGINJE. 414. Caprimulgus asiaticus, Lath. 11"). - — monticolus, Franklin. Hi'>. albonotatus, Tick. 417. macrurus, Horsf. 418. jotaka, Temm. et Schkg. Subfamily PODAGEI; \ 410. Lyncornis cerviniceps, Gould. Order III. PICI. Family PICID^E. Subfamily IYNGINJE. 420. lynx torquilla, Linn. 421. Vivia iunominata (Burt.). 422. Sasia ochracea, Hodgs. Subfamily PICINJE. 423. Thriponax javensis (Horsf.). 424. feddeni (Blanf.). 425. Alophonerpes pulverulentus (Temm.). 426. Hemicercas canente (Less.). 427. sordidus (Eyton). 428. Picus niacii, Vieill. 429. atratus, Bl. 430. analis, Temm. 431. canicapiUus, Bl. 432. pumilus (Hargitt). 433. mahrattensis, Lath. 434. Venilia pyrrhotis (Hodgs.). 435. porphyroinelas (Boie). 436. Gecinulus viridis, Bl. 437. Gauropicoides rafflesii (Viy.). 438. Chrysophlegma flavinucha (Gould). 439. - — puniceus (Horsf.). 440. chlorolophus ( Vieill.). 441. Callolophus mentalis (Temm.). 442. malaccensis (Lath.). 443. Gecinus viridanus (BL). 444. - — striolatus (Bl.). 445. occipitalis ( Vig.). 446. erythropygius, Ettiot. 447. Chrysocolaptes strictus (Horsf.). 448. Tiga javanensis (Ljungh). 449. Micropternus phseoceps, Bl. Vlll CONTENTS OF VOL. II. 450. Micropternus brachyurus(FzW#.). 451. Meiglyptes grammithorax (Math.). 452. - — jugularis, SI. 453. tukld (Less.}. Order IV. COCCYGES. Suborder COCCYGES ANISODACTYL^E. Family UPUPID^E. 454. Upupa longirostris, Jerd. Family MEROPID^E. 455. Nyctiornis athertoni (Jard. fy Selfy). 456. amicta (Temm). 457. Merops viridis, Linn. 458. philippinus, Linn. 459. Melittophagus leschenaulti (Vieitt). Family CORACIID^E. 460. Coracias afiiws,McCleU. 461. Eurystomus orientalis (Linn.}. Family ALCEDINID.E. Subfamily ALCEDININJE. 462. Alcedo bengalensis, Gm. 463. asiatica, Swains. 464. euryzona, Temm. 465. Ceryle guttata ( Vig). 466. rudis (Linn.}. 467. Pelargopsis amauroptera (Pears.}. 468. burmanica, Sharpe. Subfamily DACELONINJE. 469. Ceyx tridactyla (Pall}. 470. Halcyon coromanda (Lath}. 471. smyrnensis (Linn.). 472. pileata (Bodd.}. 473. concreta (Temm}. 474. chloris (Bodd}. 475. Carciueutes pulchellus (Horsf.). Family BUCEROTULE. 476. Dicnoceros bicornis (Linn.}. 477. Rlrinoplax vigil (Forst.). 478. Anthracoceros albirostris, Shaw. 479. Rhytidoceros subruficoUis (SI}. 480. -- imdulatus (Shaw). 481. Anorrhinus comatus (Raffl.}. 482. - — galeritus (Temm}. 483. - tickelli (SI). 484. Aceros nipalensis (Hodgs). Suborder COCCYGES HETERODACTYL^E. Family TROGONID^E. 485. Harpactes erythrocephalus (Gould}. 486. - oreskios (Temm). 487. - duYaucelii (Temm). Suborder COCCYGES ZYGODACTYL^l. Family CUCULID^E. Subfamily CUCULIN^:. 488. Cuculus canorus, Linn. 489. - micropterus, Gould. 490. - striatus, Drap. 491. - sonneratii, Lath. 492. Hierococcyx sparverioides (Vig). 493. - nisicolor, Hodgs. 494. - nanus, Hume. 495. Cacoinantis threnodes, Cab. et Hein. 496. Surniculus lugubris (Horsf). 497. Chrysococcyx maculatus (Gm). 498. - xanthorhynchus (Horsf). 499. -- limborgi, Tiveedd. 500. Coccystes coromandus (Linn). 501. - jacobinus (Bodd). 502. Eudynamis malayana^ Cab. et Hein. Subfamily PHCENICOPHJEINJE. 503. Rninortha cnlorophsea (Raffi). 504. Rliopodytes tristis (Less). 505. - diardi (Less). 506. Poliococcyx sumatranus (Raffi). 507. Rhamphococcyx erythrognatlms (Hartl). 508. Zanclostomus javanicus (Horsf). Subfamily 509. Centrococcyx interniedius, Hume. 510. -- bengalensis (Gm). CONTENTS OF VOL. II. IX Family CAPITONID^E. 511. Megalrcma marshallorum, 512. - virens (Bodd.). 513. Chotorea mystacophanus (Temm.}. 514. Cyanops hodgsoni (Bonap.}. 515. - asiatica (Lath.}. 5 It!. - davisoni (Hume). 517. - incognita (Hume). 518. - ramsayi ( Wold}. •"ill). Xantholaema hfemacephala (P. L. 8. Mill.). 520. - cyanotis (.67.). 521. Calorhamplius liayii (Gray}. Order V. PSITTACI. Family PSITTACID/E. Subfamily PAL^EOBNITHINJE. 522. Palseornis indoburmauicus, Hume. 52:;. - - torquatus (Bodd.). 524. - linschii, Hume. r,i>.",. -- fasciatus (P. Z. 52(3. - cyanocephalus (Linn.}. Family STRIGID^E. 546. Sti'ix flammea, o47. - candidn, Subfamily 527. Loriculus vernalis (Spawn t.}. Subfamily PSITTACIN^:. 52>. Psittinus incertus (Shaw). Order VI. STIUGES. Family BUBONID.lv 52'. ». Ketupa ceylonensis (Gm.). 530. - javanensis, Less. •"»:J 1 . Bubo bengalensis (Frarikl.). 532. - coromaudus (LafJt.). •">:;:;. - nipalensis, Hotlys. 534. - oiientalis (Horsf.). 5:J."). Scops pennatus, 7/o^s. - lei tin, 7/or/V/s. ,-,:}7. - - lempiji (Horsf.). .-).-;s. - sagittatus (Cassia). •"j:;i). Carine pulchra (Ihime). 540. Ninox scutulata (Raffl.}. 541. Glaucidium brodiei (Burt.}. 5-12. - cuculoides (Viy.}. •"){:',. Asio accipitriuus (7V///.). 544. Syrniuni siuense (Lath.). 545. Phodilus badius (Horsf.}. Order VII. ACCIPITRES. Suborder FALCONE S. Family VULTURID^E. 548. Gyps indicus (Scop.}. 549. Pseudogyps bengalensis (Gm.). 550. Otogyps calvus (Scop.). Family FALCONID^E. Subfamily ACCIPITRINJE. 551. Circus melanoleucus (Forst.). — pygargus (Linn.). 553. - macrurus (8. G. Gm.). 554. - aeruginosus (Linn.). 555. Astur trivirgatus (Temm.). 556. - poliopsis (Hume). 557. ^ - soloensis (Horsf.). 558. Accipiter nisus (Linn.}. 559. - virgatus (Reinw.). Subfamily BUTEONIN^:. 560. Buteo plumipes (Hodgs.). Subfamily AQUILINJE. 561. Aquila bifasciata, J. E. Gray. 562. - clanga, Pall. 563. - r hastata, Less. 564. Nisaetus pennatus (Gm.). 50->. Neopus malayensis (Temm. ). 560. Spizaetus alboniger (Bl.). •"><57. - limnaetus (Horsf.). 668. Spilornis cheela (Lath.). 569. - rutherfordi, Swinh. 570. Butastur teesa (Frankl,). 571. - li venter (Temm.). 572. -- indicus (Gm.). •~>7-'5. Haliactus leucogaster (Gm.). 574. - leucoryphus (Pall.). 575. Haliastur indus (Bodd.}. 57 H. brookeanus was based on specimens which exhibited a lemon-yellow tinge on the rump and under tail- coverts ; and Mr. Hume states that this yellow tinge is present in many specimens of undoubted H. sordidus. H. concretus from Java, and probably from other localities, differs from H. sordidus in the male having the entire crest red. The females appear to be inseparable. H. hartlaubi, as figured by Malherbe, has the whole crest red, and is cer- tainly nothing but H. concretus in adult male plumage. Eyton's Buff Woodpecker occurs in the extreme south of Tenasserim as a mere straggler. Mr. Davison appears to have got only one specimen in THE FULVOUS-BREASTED PIED WOODPECKER. 33 the course of some years, but it was a nestling, and consequently this Woodpecker may not be quite so rare at Bankasoon as is supposed. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is also found in the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. Genus PICUS, Linn. 428. PICUS MACIL THE FULVOUS-BREASTED PIED WOODPECKER. Picus macei, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. xxvi. p. 80 ; Malh. Mon. Pic. i. p. 96, pi. xxiv. tig. 1-4 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 272 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pio, p. 25 j Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 120 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 261 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 245. Dendrotypes macei, Bl. B. Burm. p, 77. Description. — Male. Nasal plumes and forehead brown; the whole of the crown of the head crimson; a large triangular patch on the nape black ; sides of the head and neck nearly meeting behind the nape-patch dull white ; upper wing-coverts and upper back black ; the wings, scapulars, interscapulary region, lower back and rump black, with bar-like white spots ; upper tail-coverts and the four central tail-feathers entirely black ; the remaining tail-feathers black barred with white; a stripe running down the side of the throat from the lower mandible to the side of the upper breast black ; lower plumage fulvous, sparingly streaked with black on the breast and abdomen and barred with black on the sides of the body and flanks ; vent and under tail-coverts scarlet. The female differs in having those parts of the head black which are crimson in the male ; the forehead and nasal plumes are also black. This species may be recognized by the whole crown being crimson in the male, black in the female ; by the central tail-feathers being unspotted black ; by the sides of the head and the throat being fawn-coloured, not white ; and by the lower plumage being very faintly streaked and barred with brown. Bill plumbeous dusky, grey-horny at base; feet greenish plumbeous. (Scully.) Length 7*5 inches, tail 3, wing 4%1, tarsus *7, bill from gape T2. The female is of much the same size;. The Fulvous-breasted Pied Woodpecker was received by Mr. Blyth from both the Arrakau and Teuasscrim Divisions. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay met with it on the Karin hills at an elevation of 3000 feet and in Karennee at VOL. II. D 34 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. an elevation of 4000 feet. Mr. Blyth, as quoted by Dr. Jerdon, states that this species is very common at Akyab. It is found in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and it extends along the lower ranges of the Himalayas from Assam to the Cabool river. To the south it is said to occur at Malacca. It breeds in India from March to June. 429. PIOUS ATRATUS. THE STRIPE-BREASTED PIED WOODPECKER. Picus atratus, Bl. J. A. S. B. xviii. p. 803, xxviii. p. 412 ; Malh. Mon. Pic. i. p. 72 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 25 ; Wald. Ibis, 1876, p. 343 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 123, 500 j Hwne, S. F. viii. p. 87. Dendrotypes atratus, SI. fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 77. Description. — Male. Similar to P. macii, differing only in the following points : — The lower plumage is brighter fulvous and very boldly streaked with black ; the feathers of the occiput are lengthened ; the six central tail-feathers are unspotted ; the sides of the head and the throat are pure silvery white ; the breast is tinged with crimson. The female differs from the male in having the crown of the head black, not crimson. This species may be recognized by the crown being crimson in the male, black in the female ; by the six central tail-feathers being unspotted black ; by the sides of the head and throat being pure white ; and by the lower plumage being very boldly streaked with black. Legs and feet dark plumbeous or plumbeous brown ; claws very dark brown ; irides light wood- to deep brown ; upper mandible dull black, dark brown or horny brown ; lower mandible and extreme base of upper mandible pale plumbeous or bluish white. (Davis on.) Length 8 inches, tail 3'3, wing 4*5, tarsus '75, bill from gape 1'2. The female is of much the same size. The Stripe-breasted Pied Woodpecker, so far as is at present known, is confined to British Burmah, and appears to be a rare bird. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it in the Karin hills, east of Tonghoo, at 3000 and 4000 feet elevation ; and Mr. Davison observed it in Tenasserim in the pine-forests of the Salween river and on and near Mooleyit. It does not appear to frequent lower altitudes than 3000 feet. Nothing is noted about its habits. THE SPOTTED-BREASTED PIED WOODPECKER. 35 430. PICUS ANALIS. THE SPOTTED-BREASTED PIED WOODPECKER. Picus analis, Temm.*, Horsf. Zool. Res. Java, Gen. Cat. Fain. xii. ; Malh. Hon. Pic. i. p. 99, pi. xxiv. fig. 5-7 ; Simdev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 25 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 57 ; Wold. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 148 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 309 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 190. Picus pectoralis, Bl. J. A. S. B. xv. p. 15. Dendrotypes analis, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 40 ; Bl. fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 78. Description. — Male. Similar in general aspect to P. macii, but differing in the following respects : — The upper back is barred with white, like the remainder of the interscapulary region and rump ; the upper tail-coverts are barred with white ; all the tail-feathers are barred or spotted with white; the sides of the head and throat are a pure white; the lower plumage is less fulvous, and the chest and breast are conspicuously spotted with black ; the remainder of the lower plumage is closely barred with black; the vent and under tail-coverts are only faintly washed with red. The female differs in wanting the crimson on the head, that part being black. This species may be known by the whole crown being crimson in the male, black in the female ; by the central tail-feathers being barred and spotted with white ; by the vent and under tail-coverts being very faintly tinged with red, instead of being deep crimson as in the preceding Pied Woodpeckers ; and by the breast being spotted with black. Bill bluish black, paler at the base ; iris brown ; eyelids purplish brown ; mouth flesh-colour ; legs and feet plumbeous ; claws bluish horn- colour. Length 7 inches, tail 2*5, wing 4, tarsus '7, bill from gape 1. The female is of much the same size. The Spotted-breasted Pied Woodpecker appears to be locally distributed in Pegu. It is rather common in the neighbourhood of Thayetmyo, and both Mr. Blyth and Lord Tweeddale received it from Tonghoo. Dr. Arm- strong procured it at Elephant Point at the mouth of the Rangoon river ; but I failed to observe it in any portion of Southern Pegu. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay obtained it in Karennee ; but it has not yet been found in any portion of Tenasserim. It occurs in the islands of Sumatra, Java, Madura and Lombock ; and * This name is generally quoted as Horsfield's ; but Horsfield distinctly credits Teinminck with it (/. c.). D2 36 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. it is said to have been found also in Borneo and the Philippine Islands. Dr. Tiraud states that it is common in Cochin China. This Woodpecker frequents brushwood and thin tree-jungle. I have never seen it in thick forest. 431, PICUS CANICAPILLUS. THE BURMESE GREY-HEADED PIED WOODPECKER. Picus canicapillus, Bl. J. A. S. B. xiv. p. 197 ; Malh. Mon. Pic. i. p. 141 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 29. Yungipicus canicapillus, Wold. P. Z. S. 1866, p. 539 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 59 ; Bl. B. Eurm.y. 78 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 309 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 25 j Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 125, 500 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. lyngipicus canicapillus, Hargitt, Ibis, 1882, p. 39. Description. — Male. Forehead and crown grey; the nape, hind neck and a streak over the eye black ; a patch of flaming scarlet on either side the occiput ; lesser and median wing-coverts black ; the remainder of the wings, back, rump and upper tail- coverts black barred with white ; the tail black spotted with white ; a broad streak from the eye down the side of the occiput white ; ear-coverts brown ; a patch on the side of the neck black ; lower plumage dull white streaked with blackish brown. The female differs in wanting the scarlet patches on the sides of the occiput. Iris reddish hazel ; eyelids plumbeous ; bill plumbeous, pale at the gape and on the greater portion of the lower mandible ; mouth flesh-colour ; legs and feet plumbeous green ; claws horn-colour. Length 5'5 inches, tail 1*8, wing 3*2, tarsus '55, bill from gape '7. The female is nearly as large as the male. The Burmese Grey-headed Pied Woodpecker is very generally distributed over British Burmah. Both Mr. Hume and Mr. Blyth record it from Arrakan. I have procured it at various points in Pegu, at Thayetmyo, Pegu Town and in the country extending between this place and Tonghoo. Dr. Armstrong found it at Elephant Point. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay pro- cured it in Karennee at 4000 feet elevation ; and both Mr. Davison and Capt. Bingham found it in every part of Tenasserim that they visited. My own men secured several specimens at the extreme southern point of this Division. To the north of Burmah it has been noted from Cachar, Tipperah and Assam. Mr. Hume states that it is found throughout the Malay penin- sula down to Singapore, and Dr. Tiraud gives it from Cochin China. This small Woodpecker is found in brushwood and small jungle. I did not succeed in finding its nest.' THE YELLOW-FRONTED PIED WOODPECKER. 37 432. PIOUS PUMILUS. HARGITTS GREY-HEADED PIED WOODPECKER. lyngipicus pumilus, Hargitt, Ibis, 1881, p. 599; id. Ibis, 1882, p. 37. Description. — Male. Similar to P. canicapillus , differing in being smaller and in having the central four tail-feathers spotless black or with merely one or two small white specks. Length about 5 inches, tail To, wing 2'8, bill from forehead '5 to '6. This small Woodpecker was described by Mr. Hargitt on my return to England, and his description was based on two specimens procured at Malewoon in Southern Tenasserim. My men secured in all six birds, and these were of the same type and distinguishable at a glance from numerous specimens of P. canicapillus which they also brought with them from the same place. Of these six birds, one male and two females had the central four tail-feathers absolutely spotless ; the others had either one or two minute white spots on one or other of the four feathers. P. canicapillus, as it proceeds south, shows a tendency to acquire a uniform black tail as regards the central feathers, but it shows no tendency to become smaller in size ; and therefore the acquisition of six markedly smaller birds at a place where full- sized P. canicapillus was also obtained fully justifies Mr. Hargitt in separating the small bird from the large one. This Woodpecker is not known with certainty as yet to occur elsewhere than at Malewoon; but Mr. Hargitt suggests that the small Woodpeckers referred to by Capt. Feilden (S. F. iii. p. 59) as occurring at Thayetmyo may belong to this species. 433. PICUS MAHRATTENSIS. THE YELLOW-FRONTED PIED WOODPECKER. Picus mahrattensis, Lath. Ind. Orn. Supjrf. p. xxxi j Malh. Mon. Pic. i. p. 105, pi. xxviii. fig. 1-3 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 31 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 274 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 122 j Ball, S. F. ii. p. 390; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 68 ; Legye, Birds Ceylon, p. 184; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Picus aurocristatus, Tick. J.A.S. B. ii. p. 679. Picus blanfordi, Bl. J. A. S. B. xxxii. p. 75. Liopipo xnahrattensis, Bl B. Burm. p, 78. Description. — Male. Nasal plumes, forehead and anterior half of crown dull straw-yellow ; posterior half of crown scarlet ; a patch of dark brown on the nape ; sides of the head extremely pale yellow tinged with fulvous ; sides of the nape white nearly meeting behind the brown nape-patch; 38 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. the whole upper plumage, wings and tail black spotted with white ; chin, throat, and a line down the fore neck white ; sides of the neck brown ; a line under the ear-coverts white; lower plumage dull white broadly streaked with brown ; centre of the abdomen crimson ; under wing-coverts white mottled with black. The female differs in the absence of the crimson on the posterior part of the crown, this portion being straw-yellow like the remainder of the crown. Bill clear plumbeous, darker on the culmen and tip of both mandibles ; mouth bluish flesh -colour; eyelids dark brown; iris red ; legs plumbeous; claws horny blue. Length 7' 5 inches, tail 2' 7, wing 4, tarsus '7, bill from gape 1*1. The female is of the same size. This species cannot be confounded with any other Burmese Pied Wood- pecker, the straw-yellow head and the crimson abdomen being sufficient to distinguish it. The Yellow-fronted Pied Woodpecker appears to be confined to the northern portion of Pegu. I found it very abundant at Thayetmyo along the banks of the Irrawaddy for some distance down the river, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Tonghoo. It probably inhabits the Indo-Burmese countries ; and it is distributed over the whole peninsula of India to Scinde on the west and to Ceylon on the south. This Pied Woodpecker is more of a forest bird than the others, but it is occasionally met with in compounds and brushwood. In India it appears to breed from February to April. The eggs have not yet been taken in Bur m ah. A vast number of Pied Woodpeckers inhabit Asia, and it is impossible even to enumerate them in this work. None of them, however, are likely to visit Burmah, except perhaps a species which inhabits the Malay penin- sula, and to which Mr. Hume refers (S. F. viii. p. 153) under the name of lyngipicus variegatus. It is allied to P. canicapillus, but has no grey whatever on the crown, which, with the ground-colour of the whole of the upper plumage, is smoky brown. It was procured by Mr. Davison at Klang, and is not unlikely to creep up into Tenasserim. THE CRIMSON-NECKED BAY WOODPECKER. 39 Genus VENILIA, Bonap. 434. VENILIA PYRRHOTIS. THE CRIMSON-NECKED BAY WOODPECKER. Picus pyrrhotis, Hodys. J. A. S. B. vi. p. 108 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 47. Celeopicus pyrrhotis, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 37, pi. xlix. fig. 4-6. Venilia pyrrhotis, ,7m/. R. Lid i. p. 291 ; Wald in £1. B. JSurm. p. 77 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 142. Blythipicus pyrrhotis, Hume, S. F. vii. p. 520, viii. p. 88. Description. — Male. The whole head, chin and throat brown, dark on the crown and with pale shaft-lines, paler on the cheeks, chin and throat ; a broad collar round the hind neck from ear-coverts to ear-coverts crimson; back, scapulars and upper wing-coverts dark cinnamon-red banded with rufous-bay, and with a broad dark-brown band across each feather; wings, rump, upper tail-coverts and tail rufous-bay broadly banded with black ; breast, abdomen and sides of the body blackish brown ; thigh- coverts, vent and under tail- coverts blackish brown narrowly banded with rufous. The female differs in wanting the crimson collar round the hind neck, the sides of the neck just below the ear-coverts being merely tinged with reddish. Legs and feet very dark green, sometimes so dark as to appear black ; claws dark horny brown ; bill pale greenish yellow, strongly tinged green at base and whitish and semitransparent at tip ; irides reddish orange to brownish red. (Davison.) Length 12 inches, tail 4, wing 6, tarsus Tl, bill from gape 2. The female is slightly smaller. The Crimson-necked Bay Woodpecker has been obtained on the Tonghoo hills by Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay, and in Tenasserim by Mr. Davison, who met with it from Kollidoo down to Mooleyit. It occurs in the south-eastern Himalayas from Assam to Sikhim and Nipal, and it has also been found in Cachar by Mr. Inglis. Mr. Davison found this Woodpecker in brushwood and elephant-grass jungle, and he remarks that it is a very shy bird. Mr. Hume is of opinion that the generic name Blythipicus and not Venilia should be used for this species and the next. Both names, how- ever, were given by Bonaparte, and as the latter has gained a wide currency I prefer to adopt it. 40 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH, 435. VENILIA PORPHYROMELAS. THE CRIMSON-NECKED MAROON WOODPECKER. Picus porphyromelas, Boie*, Brief e geschr. aus Ostind. p. 143 j Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 47. Hemicircus rubiginosus, Swains. Birds W. Afr. ii. p. 150. Celeopicus porphyromelas, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 39, pi. xlix. fig. 1-3. Lepocestes porphyromelas, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 48. Venilia porphyro- melas, Hume $ Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 143. Blythipicus porphyromelas, Hume, S. F. vii. p. 520, viii. p. 88. Description. — Male. The whole head, chin and throat brown,, darker on the crown and nape ; a large patch on each side the nape bright crim- son ; back and scapulars maroon, the shafts whitish ; rump and upper tail- coverts brown, suffused with maroon~and obscurely banded with brownish white j tail black, narrowly banded with brownish white ; upper wing- coverts maroon, the centres of the feathers more or less brown narrowly and indistinctly barred with whitish; wings and primary-coverts dark brown with pale rufescent bars, the outer webs suffused with maroon ; fore neck, breast and all the lower plumage blackish brown tinged with choco- late or rufous, and with a trace of maroon on the sides of the body ; under tail-coverts very indistinctly barred with paler brown. Some specimens have a tinge of red on the cheeks. The female differs in wanting the crimson patches on the sides of the nape. Legs and feet dark, varying in shade very much, generally somewhat purplish or purplish brown, sometimes greyish purple, or very dark greyish or greenish brown ; the irides are red, crimson, scarlet, or even salmon- pink ; the orbital skin varies much like the legs and feet, dark purplish grey, dark greyish brown or brownish green to almost black ; the bill is chrome-yellow, more or less strongly tinged with green towards the base. (Davison.) Length 9 inches, tail 3, wing 5, tarsus '9, bill from gape T6. The female is of much the same size. Mr. Davison procured the Crimson-necked Maroon Woodpecker in the southern portion of Tenasserim from Bopyin down to Malewoon, where he states it was very common. My men also found it common at Malewoon. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. This species, according to Mr. Davison, frequents the undergrowth and smaller trees of the evergreen forests. * I have "been unable to find this reference. Count Salvador! assigns to it the date of 1832. BLYTH'S THREE-TOED GREEN WOODPECKER. 41 Genus GECINULUS, Slyth. 436. GECINULUS VIRIDIS. BLYTH'S THREE-TOED GREEN WOODPECKER. Gecinulus viridis, Bl. J. A. S. 1>. xxxi. p. 341 ; id. B. Burm. p. 77 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 71 ; Hume <§• Dav. S. F. vi. p. 144; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 j Bing- ham, S. F. ix. p. 164. Picus scotochlorus, Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 48. Description. — Male. Forehead, lores, sides of the head and neck, and throat yellowish brown, tinged with golden on the sides of the neck ; crown, nape and crest crimson ; back, scapulars, wing-coverts and upper tail- coverts olive-yellow ; rump olive-yellow tipped with red ; tail dark brown, tinged with yellow on the outer webs near the base, arid all but the central pair with white spots on the inner webs ; quills dark brown, the outer webs broadly edged with olive-yellow; the inner webs of all spotted with white; chin blackish ; breast, abdomen, sides, vent and under tail-coverts greenish brown. The female differs in having the crown, nape and crest olive-yellow, almost pure yellow 011 the hinder part of the crest. Bill pale milk-blue ; mouth flesh-colour ; iris red ; eyelids plumbeous ; legs green ; claws horn-colour. Length 10'5 inches, tail 4-2, wing 5'2, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1/2. The female is of about the same size. Blyth's Three-toed Green Woodpecker is common on the Pegu hills between Thayetmyo and Tonghoo, both in the dry and in the evergreen forests. I have not observed it in Southern Pegu. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it on the Tonghoo hills at an elevation of 2500 feet ; Mr. Davison obtained it in almost every portion of Tenasserim ; and Capt. Bingham states that it is fairly common in the Thoungyeen valley. It extends a short distance down the Malay peninsula, where it has been shot at Kussoom. I observed that this Woodpecker was very partial to the large bamboos which grow on the hills, and was seldom or never found on trees. The allied G. grantia from India differs chiefly in having the upper plumage dull red. 42 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus GAUROPICOIDES, Malh. 437. GAUROPICOIDES RAFFLESIL RAFFLES'S THREE-TOED GREEN WOODPECKER. Picus rafflesii, Vig. App. Mem. Raffl. p. 669; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 57. Chloropicoides rafflesii, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 102, pi. Ixxii. fig. 1-4. Gauropicoides rafflesii, Malh. Mon. Pic. i. p. liii ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 54 j Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 146 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Description. — Male. Frontal feathers, lores, cheeks, chin, throat and fore neck orange-fulvous ; crown, nape and a very ample crest scarlet ; a stripe from the eye over the ear-coverts down the sides of the neck and another stripe from the gape under the ear-coverts and continued some distance down the neck white ; the space between these two white stripes black ; another broad band under the lower white streak commencing at the end of the cheeks and reaching down the neck black ; back, rump, scapulars and upper wing-coverts golden olive ; quills dark brown, the primaries paler at the tips ; the secondaries and tertiaries very broadly edged with golden olive ; all the quills with a few white spots on the inner webs near the base ; primary- coverts blackish ; upper tail-coverts and tail black ; breast and whole lower plumage dark brown suffused with olive- green ; the sides of the body barred or spotted with whitish ; under wing- coverts olive-brown boldly spotted with white. In some males the feathers of the rump are tipped with crimson. The female differs in having the whole of the crimson on the head re- placed by black. Legs and feet dark green ; claws dark plumbeous ; irides deep brown to deep brownish red ; upper mandible black or bluish ; tip of lower mandible generally blackish ; rest of lower mandible dark plumbeous to plumbeous blue in different specimens. (Davison.) Length 12 inches, tail 4' 5, wing 5 '5, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1'5. The female is considerably smaller than the male. Raffles's Three-toed Green Woodpecker occurs in Tenasserim from Mooleyit mountain down to Bankasoon ; and it appears to be a somewhat rare bird. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. According to Mr. Davison this species is confined to the dense ever- green forests. GOULD'S YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. 43 Genus CHKYSOPHLEGMA, Gould. 438. CHRYSOPHLEGMA FLAVINUCHA. GOULD'S YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. Picus flavinucha, Gould, P. Z. S. 1833, p. 120 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 57. Chloropicus flavinucha, Malli. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 106, pi. Ixxiii. fig. 1-4. Chrysophlegma flavinucha, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 289 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 71 ; Hume £ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 137 ; Uume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Description. — Male. Forehead and crown cinnamon-brown, the edges of the feathers greenish, and the nape distinctly tinged with green ; posterior portion of the crest and the hind neck bright yellow ; chin, throat and cheeks yellow, the black bases of the throat-feathers showing through ; fore neck greenish black, the bases of the feathers white and showing up very plainly in places ; sides of the head and neck greenish brown ; the whole upper plumage and wing-coverts bright green ; tail black ; primaries barred with black and cinnamon-red; secondaries and tertiaries barred black and cinnamon-red, and with the outer webs broadly edged with green ; the later secondaries and the tertiaries also tipped with green ; breast smoky greenish brown ; remainder of lower plumage ashy brown. The female differs in having the chin and throat reddish brown. Bill dusky bluish white ; iris red ; eyelids, gape and naked skin at gape greenish blue ; legs dusky blue ; claws horn-colour. Length 13 inches, tail 5'1, wing 6'2, tarsus '9, bill from gape 1*6. The female is of the same size. Gould's Yellow-naped Woodpecker occurs in most of the deep forests of Pegu, and it is particularly abundant in all parts of the Pegu hills. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay met with it at Tonghoo and on the Karin hills. Mr. Davison found it in Tenasserim down to about the latitude of Moul- mein ; and Capt. Bingham states that it is fairly common in the Thoung- yeen valley. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan. It extends north into the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal ; and Dr. Jerdon says that it is found throughout the Himalayas. This Woodpecker is found in thick forests; and it is in the habit of descending to the ground to search for food . 44 BIRDS OF BRITISH BIJRMAH. 439. CHRYSOPHLEGMA PUNICEUS. HORSFIELD'S YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. Picus puniceus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 176 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 58. Chloropicus puniceus, Malh. Hon. Pic. ii. p. 110, pi. Ixxiv. fig. 5-7. Callolophus puniceus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 49 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 139 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape, basal portion of the crest and a broad patch on either side of the base of the lower mandible crimson ; remainder of the crest yellow; back, scapulars, rump and upper tail- coverts bright green, the feathers more or less margined with yellow ; tail black; wing-coverts crimson; primaries black, the earlier ones crimson at the base, the amount increasing till, on the last, almost the entire web is crimson; secondaries black on the inner web, crimson on the outer ; tertiaries brown, then pale crimson and broadly tipped with bright green ; all the quills spotted with white on the inner webs ; sides of the head and the whole lower plumage brownish green, paler on the chin and throat ; the sides of the body spotted or barred with whitish ; under wing-coverts brown spotted with white. The female differs in wanting the crimson patches at the base of the lower mandible. Legs and feet pale green, sometimes dingy, sometimes slightly yellowish ; claws pale greenish horny ; eyelids dull black ; orbital skin lavender-blue, bright plumbeous blue, pale blue, sometimes glossed with green close to the eye; irides crimson; lower mandible and base of upper mandible chrome- to greenish yellow ; rest of upper mandible black ; gape lavender. (Davison.) Length 10*5 inches, tail 4, wing 5*1, tarsus '95, bill from gape 1*3. The female is considerably larger. Horsfield's Yellow-naped Woodpecker occurs in the southern portion of Tenasserirn, where Mr. Davison states that it is not rare. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in the islands of Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This Woodpecker inhabits the evergreen forests, occasionally coming into clearings, and it appears to have a remarkable note, quite different to those of the other Woodpeckers. THE SMALL YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. 45 440. CHRYSOPHLEGMA CHLOROLOPHUS. THE SMALL YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. Picus chlorolophus, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. tfHist. Nat. xxvi. p. 78 ; Bonn, et Vieill. TabL FMC. et Mcili. p. 1309; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 58. Chloropicus cliloroloplius, Malh. Mon. Fie. ii. p. 108, pi. Ixxiv. fig. 1-3. Chrysophlegma chlorolophus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 289; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 71 ; Wold, in Bl B. Burm. p. 76 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 138 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 249. Description. — Male. Forehead, a broad stripe on either side of the crown over the eyes and reaching to the nape, and a large patch on either side of the base of the lower mandible crimson ; crown and nape green ; a long occipital crest yellow ; sides of the head and neck, chin, throat and the whole breast brownish green ; a whitish line from the gape under the ear- coverts ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing-coverts and tertiaries bright green, the primary-coverts tinged with aureous ; tail black ; primaries black, the outer webs red at the base, this colour increasing in extent till on the last primary it occupies the whole web ; secondaries black on the inner webs, red on the outer and margined with green; both primaries and secondaries barred with white on the inner webs ; abdomen, sides of the body, vent, under tail-coverts and under wing-coverts dull white barred with brownish green. The female differs in wanting the crimson on the head of the male except a short streak on either side of the nape. The feathers of the chin and throat are white at the base, and these white bases are very plainly shown in some specimens. Iris bright red; eyelids lavender; upper mandible and anterior half of the lower horny black ; remainder of the lower mandible lemon-yellow ; legs and feet dull greenish ; claws plumbeous. Length 1O5 inches, tail 4, wing 5'4, tarsus '85, bill from gape 1'2. The female is of the same size as the male or rather larger. The Small Yellow-naped Woodpecker is stated by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan. I found it in Pegu only between Thayetmyo and Tonghoo, and it appears to avoid the damper southern portion of the Division. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Tonghoo and on the Karennee hills at 3000 feet elevation. In Tenasserim it was observed by Mr. Davison in all parts of the Division down to about Amherst ; and Capt. Bingham states that it is common in the Thoungyeen valley. It is found in Cachar and the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and it extends along the Himalayas from Assam to Nipal. It ranges south to about Orissa. This Woodpecker is found alike in thick forests and in spare tree-jungle. It occasionally descends to the ground. 46 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus CALLOLOPHUS, Salvad. 441. CALLOLOPHUS MENTALIS. THE SPOTTED-THROATED YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. Picus mentalis, Temm. PL Col 384 j Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 58. Chloropicus mentalis, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 112, pi. Ixxv. fig. 1, 5 & 6. Callolophus mentalis, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 49 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 138 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Chrysophlegma mentalis, Bl. B. Burm. p. 76. Description. — Male. Forehead^ crown, nape, ear-coverts and feathers under the eye dull green or greenish brown ; occipital crest bright yellow ; back, rump, scapulars, upper tail-coverts and tertiaries green ; the edge of the wing also green ; primaries dark brown, with rufous spots or bars on both webs, the basal portions of the outer webs more or less crimson ; secondaries with the outer webs crimson, the inner dark brown barred with rufous; upper wing-coverts crimson; tail black; chin and cheeks brown, spotted with dull white ; throat black, streaked with white ; sides of the nape and of the neck and the breast chestnut ; remainder of lower plumage dull green, tinged with yellow; under wing-coverts greenish, barred with fulvous. The fem'ale differs in having the chin and cheeks chestnut like the breast, not brown spotted with white. Legs and feet green; claws plumbeous; upper mandible dull black; lower mandible and edges of upper mandible near nostril pale plumbeous ; orbital skin dark green, at times pale green ; irides deep red. (Davison.) Length 11 inches, tail 4, wing 5*2, tarsus '9, bill from gape T5. The female is of nearly the same size. The Spotted-throated Yellow-naped Woodpecker, according to Mr. Davison, is found in the extreme south of Tenasserim about Bankasoon, where it appears to be rare ; but Mr. Blyth received it from Mergui, much further north. It occurs in the Malay peninsula and in the islands of Sumatra, Java and Borneo. It is probably an inhabitant of dense forests, but Mr. Davison makes no remark about its habits. THE MALACCAN YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. 47 442. CALLOLOPHUS MALACCENSIS. THE MALACCAN YELLOW-NAPED WOODPECKER. Picus malaccensis, Lath. 2nd. Oni. i. p. 241. Chloropicus miniatus, apud Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 116, pi. Ixxvi. fig. 1-3. Picus miniatus, apud Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 59 (part.). Venilia malaccensis, Sclater, P. Z. 8. 1803. p. 211. Callolophus malaccensis, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 50 ; Tweedd. Ibis, 1877, p. 288 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 140 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Chry- sophlegma malaccensis, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 324 (note). Description. — Male. Forehead, crown and the uppermost feathers of the occipital crest crimson ; the lower and longer feathers of the crest yellow ; the whole of the sides of the head mixed fulvous-brown and crimson,, the bases of the feathers being of the former and the tips of the latter colour ; upper neck and back greenish barred with yellowish, the sides more or less tinged with crimson ; rump bright yellow, indistinctly barred with green ; upper tail-coverts brown, tipped with pale yellow; tail dark brown or black ; wing-coverts, the basal portions of the outer webs of the primaries, the whole of the outer webs of the secondaries and nearly the whole of the tertiaries and scapulars crimson ; remainder of the wing dark brown ; the primaries spotted on the outer webs, barred on the inner, with yellowish white ; the secondaries barred on the inner webs j chin, throat, sides of the neck and breast dull buff; remainder of the lower plumage buffish white, closely barred with brown ; under wing-coverts whitish, barred with brown. The female differs in not having any crimson on the sides of the face, and in having the forehead, lores, feathers round the eye, cheeks, chin and throat tipped with white preceded by a black bar. Legs and feet pale dingy green ; claws bluish or greenish dusky horny ; irides commonly red, in some specimens almost brown, in one pale crimson ; eyelids pale plumbeous to dark grey ; upper mandible black ; lower man- dible pale plumbeous to pale bluish white. (Davison.) Length 10'5 inches, tail 4, wing 5*3, tarsus '8, bill from gape 1*3. The female is rather larger than the male. C. miniatus from Java is said to differ in having the whole of the crest crimson and the greater portion of the back in both sexes red. Mr. Hume, however, states that Tenasserim birds are nearer to C. miniatus than to C. malaccensis in this respect. The only specimen which my men brought back from Malewoon does not bear out Mr. Hume's statement, the back being entirely green, merely tinged with red in the immediate vicinity of the scapulars. Another specimen from the island of Salanga is similar. In both specimens the lower and longer feather's of the crest are yellow. I have not been able to examine Javan birds. 48 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The Malaccan Yellow-naped Woodpecker occurs in the south of Tenas- serim from Malewoon up to Mergui, and also in the island of Salanga. It extends down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra and Borneo. According to Mr. Davison, this species is found in evergreen forests, but is also partial to mangrove-swamps. Genus GECINTJS, Eoie. 443. GECINUS VIRIDANUS. THE STRIATED GREEN WOODPECKER. Picus viridanus, SI. J. A. 8. B. xii. p. 1000. Chloropicus dimidiatus, Temm,, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 132, pi. Ixxvi. fig. 4-6 (part.). Gecinus viridanus, Wald. P. Z. S. 1866, p. 539 ; Bl 8f Wald. B. Burm. p. 76. Gecinus vittatus (V.\ Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 51 (part.); Hume, S. F. iii. p. 68; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 310 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 136 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 163. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape and lengthened occipital feathers scarlet; back, scapulars and tertiaries green; rump and upper tail-coverts yellowish green; tail black, barred with white on the basal half; upper wing-coverts green, the base of all the feathers barred with white, but the bars invisible unless the feathers be lifted ; bastard wing, primary-coverts and primaries black, with a series of white spots on both webs ; secondaries black, very broadly edged with green on the outer webs ; the outer webs faintly barred, the inner webs with distinct white bars ; lores, the ear- coverts and the feathers under the eye greyish brown ; feathers immediately above the eye white ; a broad stripe, commencing at the base of the lower mandible, covering the cheeks and running down each side of the throat, black, the feathers margined with white ; chin, throat, breast and sides of the neck sordid fulvous -green, the breast more or less striated with a darker shade of the same ; remainder of lower plumage greenish white, closely striated with brown ; under wing-coverts whitish, barred with greenish brown. The female has the red on the head replaced by black. The whole upper mandible and the anterior portion of the lower dark brown ; remainder of the lower mandible yellow ; eyelids slate- colour ; iris red ; legs and feet dusky green ; claws horny brown. Length 13 inches, tail 5, wing 5 '4, tarsus I'l, bill from gape 1-6. The female is of about the same size as the male. The Javan bird (G. vittatus, Vieill.) appears to me to be quite distinct from the Burmese species. It is characterized by the chin and throat BLYTH'S STRIATED GREEN WOODPECKER. 49 being buffy white with a yellowish tinge, and by the whole of the sides of the neck, fore neck and chest being uniform pure ochraceous yellow without the slightest trace of any striations. The sides of the head are silvery white with black shaft-marks, and not greyish brown as in G. viridanus. A specimen collected in Western Siam by Herr Carl Bock is similar to the Javan bird. Out of a numerous series of Burmese birds in Mr. Hargitt's museum, many of them collected by myself, not one shows any approach to the Javan form. Gecinus weberi, recently described by Herr A. Miiller from the island of Salanga (Orn. Ins. Salanga, p. 69, 1882), judging from examples in Mr. Hargitt's museum, does not appear to be any thing but an intensely green form of G. viridanus. The Striated Green Woodpecker is generally distributed over the whole of British Burmah. Mr. Blyth records it from all three Divisions. I procured it on the Arrakan hills, and I have met with it in every part of Pegu that I have visited, and found it abundant in most places suited to Woodpeckers. Mr. Davison states that it is extremely common throughout Tenasserim, except above the elevation of 3500 feet ; and Capt. Bingham says that it is one of the commonest Woodpeckers in the Thoungyeen valley. To the east it occurs in Siam, and, according to Dr. Tiraud, it is common in Cochin China ; it extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in Sumatra and Java. It is also said to occur in Borneo. This species appears to prefer the drier forests ; but it may be met with in almost all descriptions of jungle, provided there are trees. 444. GECINUS STRIOLATUS. BLYTH'S STRIATED GREEN WOODPECKER. Picus striolatus, Bl J. A. S. B. xii. p. 1000 ; Sundev. Consp. Ac. Pic. p. GO. Chlo- ropicus striolatus, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 134, pi. Ixxvii. fig. 1-3. Gecinus striolatus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 287 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 125 ; Hume, S. F. ii\. p. 68 ; Jft. fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 76 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 585 ; Lcyyc, Birds Ceylon, p. 194; Hume 8c Dav. S. F. vi. p. 136; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. I'm' ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 247 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape and elongated feathers of the occiput scarlet ; back, sides of the neck, wing-coverts, scapulars and ter- tiaries green ; rump and upper tail- coverts golden yellow ; tail blackish, the central pair of feathers barred with white on the basal half, the others obsolete!} barred near the base only ; winglet, primary-coverts and pri- VOL. II. E 50 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. maries dark brown, with a row of white spots on both webs ; secondaries brown, very broadly edged with green on the outer webs, a series of white spots or bars on the inner webs, a few obsolete spots on the outer ; a line of black along the edge of the scarlet on the forehead ; a narrow white line from the eye over the ear-coverts ; lores and a stripe under the eye and ear- coverts whitish ; sides of the head and ear-coverts greyish brown, striated darker; whole lower plumage dull green, the edges of the feathers paler and each feather with two brown stripes meeting near the tip, giving the appearance of scales ; chin and throat greyer and with the stripes less marked; under wing-coverts white, barred with blackish. The female has the red on the head replaced by black. Iris red, surrounded by white ; eyelids plumbeous ; legs olive-green ; claws pale horn-colour; upper mandible and tip of the lower horn-colour, remainder of the lower mandible yellow. Length 11*5 inches, tail 4, wing 5'5, tarsus ], bill from gape 1*4. The female is of about the same size. This species is very similar in general appearance to the preceding. The markings on the lower plumage, however, are of quite a different character in the two species ; and G. viridanus may also be distinguished by the broad black mandibular stripe, which is absent in G. striolatus. Blyth's Striated Green Woodpecker, as far as I have observed it in British Burmah, seems confined to the Prome and Thayetmyo Districts, where it is very abundant. Mr. Blanford, however, procured it in the Irrawaddy Delta ; and Lord Tweeddale received it from Tonghoo. It will probably be found in Arrakan. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries and the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and is found over the whole continent of India down to Ceylon. Information is wanting regarding its limit to the west ; but it has been obtained near Mount Aboo and in Oudh. This Woodpecker frequents the dry forests termed " Ingdein " by the Burmese, and it feeds a good deal on the ground. In India it breeds from March to May, laying five eggs in a hole of a tree. THE BLACK-NAPED GREEN WOODPECKER. 51 445. GECINUS OCCIPITALIS. THE BLACK-NAPED GREEN WOODPECKER. Picus occipitalis, Vigors, P. Z. S. 1830, p. 8 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 61. Chlo- ropicus occipitalis, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 129, pi. Ixxvii. fig. 4-6. Gecinus occipitalis, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. ^87 ; Hume, Nests and Eyys, p. 125 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 70 ; SI, B. Burm. p. 76 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 137 ; Hume, S.F. viii. p. 87 ; Oates, S. F. viii. p. l('5o; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 248 ; Binyham, S. F. ix. p. 164. Description. — Male. Forehead and the greater portion of the crown scarlet ; posterior part of crown, nape, short occipital crest, the feathers immediately at the base of the upper mandible, a streak over the lores and eyes and a broad mandibular stripe black; lores and sides of the head greyish brown ; hind neck, back and scapulars green ; rump and upper tail-coverts brown, the feathers edged with bright yellow ; tail brown, the outer webs of the feathers edged with greenish yellow, and the four central feathers obsoletely barred ; wing-coverts and tertiaries fulvous-yellow ; primary-coverts brown, with obsolete white spots on the outer webs ; pri- maries brown, with white spots on the outer webs and white bars on the basal half of the inner ; secondaries fulvous-yellow on the outer webs, brown barred with white on the inner ; chin and upper part of throat grey ; remainder of the lower plumage green, tinged with fulvous on the vent and under tail- coverts ; under wing- coverts white barred with brown. The female differs in having the forehead, crown and nape black, each feather edged with grey. Bill dull blackish brown ; eyelids purplish brown ; iris dull red \ legs dull green ; claws greenish horn-colour. Length 13 inches, tail 4' 5, wing 5*7, tarsus 1*1, bill from gape 1'8. The female is of the same size. The Black-nap ed Green Woodpecker is perhaps the commonest species of British Burmah, and is found in all parts of the Province except the southern half of Tenasserim, in which Division Mr. Davison did not observe it south of Tavoy ; but Capt. Biugham found it common through- out the Thoungyeen valley. It is probably found in the Indo-Burmese countries ; and it occurs in the hill-ranges of Eastern Bengal and throughout the Himalayas from Bhootan to Afghanistan. This species is found in all sorts of jungle except the dense evergreen forests. I have found its eggs in May and June in Pegu, and Capt. Bingham found them in Tenasserim in April. It lays three or four eggs. E2 52 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 446. GKECINUS EKYTHROPYGIUS. THE RED-RUMPED GREEN WOODPECKER. Gecinus erythropygius, Elliot, Nouv. Arch. i. Bull. p. 76, pi. iii. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 191. Gecinus erythropygius, Wardlaw Ramsay, P. Z. S. 1874, p. 212, pi. xxxv. (descr. orig.). Gecinus nigrigenis, Hume, Proc. A. S. B. 1874, p. 106 ; Hume, 8. F. ii. pp. 444, 471 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 136 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 163. Description. — Male. Forehead, lores, the feathers round the eyes, cheeks, ear-coverts and nape black ; crown crimson ; back, wing- coverts, and upper tail- coverts bright yellowish green ; rump fiery red ; tail black, washed with green on the edges near the base ; wings black ; the primaries with white bars on the outer webs ; all the quills except the last tertiary or two with broad white bars on the inner webs ; the secondaries with the greater portion of the outer webs green ; the tertiaries with the outer webs and a broad tip green ; chin, throat, fore neck, sides of the neck and breast deep yellow ; remainder of the lower plumage ashy brown, with irregular cross bars of greenish brown. The female differs only in wanting the crimson on the crown, the whole of which is black. Young males have the red on the head very dull and small in extent. Bill dark horny ; irides sulphur-yellow ; legs and feet dark green ; claws horny. (Bingham.) Length 13 inches, tail 5-2, wing 6'3, tarsus T2, bill from gape I1 7. The female is of about the same size. Some few birds, both males and females, have a narrow yellow line from the eye over the ear-coverts ; these seem to me to constitute a distinct species, for the Woodpeckers of this genus are not, as far as I know, liable to such variations of plumage. I am, however, unwilling, with the scanty information at my command, to bestow a name on the bird without the eye-streak; for, if distinct, it will certainly require to be named. Mr. Elliot's name applies to the streaked bird ; Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay's name applies to both, he considering that the streaked bird was the male and the unstreaked one the female ; and Mr. Hume's name also applies to both. Out of fifteen specimens in Mr. Hargitt's collection three have the eye- streak, and in Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay's series two out of ten are so marked. In Mr. Hume's museum one in ten appears to be the average of marked birds. I think it will be found hereafter that these birds constitute two species, In no case, however, do I see any reason for considering Mr. Hume's eye- THE GOLDEN-BACKED WOODPECKER. 53 streaked bird distinct from Mr. Elliot's. One of the points Mr. Hume insists upon is that in his bird the eye-streak is white and in Mr. Elliot's yellow; but Mr. Hume himself, when first describing G. nigrigenis, distinctly says that the streak is pale yellow ; and all the birds I have seen from Burmah have the streak yellow or yellowish. The lengthened tail- coverts of the bird in Mr. Elliot's plate again is obviously a mistake of the artist, for no Woodpecker as yet known has tail-coverts of such a length as compared with the length of the tail. The lled-rumped Green Woodpecker occurs in the drier portions of the Province from Tonghoo down to Mooleyit mountain in Tenasserim; and it does not appear to be found to the west of the Sittang river except at Tonghoo, where Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay informs me he obtained it com- monly all round that station for fifteen miles in every direction. This bird was first discovered in Cochin China, and Dr. Tiraud states that it is common in that country. It is most probably found in Siam also. This Woodpecker, according to Mr. Davison, frequents bamboo-jungle and clearings, chiefly on the hills. Capt. Bingham found the nest and eggs in Tenasserim in the Thoungyeen valley in March. The eggs, only two in number, were laid in a hole of a Pynkado tree. Genus CHRYSOCOLAPTES, El. 447. CHRYSOCOLAPTES STRICTUS. THE GOLDEN-BACKED WOODPECKER. Picus str ictus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 170. Picus guttacristatus, Tick. J. A. 8. B. ii. p. 578. Picus sultaneus, Hodys. J. A. S. B. vi. p. 105 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 79. Indopicus delesserti, Malh. Mem. Acad. Metz, 1849, p. 343; id. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 79, pi. Ixiv. lig. 4, 5. Indopicus sultaneus, Malh. t. c. p. 77, pi. Ixiv. tig. 1-3. Indopicus strictus, Malh. t. c. p. 80, pi. Ixv. fig. 1-5. Chrysocolaptes sultaneus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 281 ; Ball, S. F. ii. p. 391 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 04 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 310 ; Inglis, S. F. v. p. JO ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 584 j Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 133; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Chrysocolaptes strictus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 48 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 154; Butler, S. F. ix. p. 238. Chrysocolaptes delesserti, Hume, Nests and Eyys, p. 123 ; Bourdillon, ti. F. iv. p. 389 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Chrysocolaptes gutticristatus, Bl. $ Wold. B. Burm. p. 75. Description. — Male. Feathers at the base of the upper mandible fulvous- 54 BIRDS OF BRITISH BUR M AH. red ; f orehead, crown, nape and occipital crest deep crimson ; hind neck mottled with black and white ; back, scapulars, wing-coverts and tertiaries shining golden yellow, the edges of the feathers of a deeper colour ; lower back and rump crimson ; upper tail-coverts and tail black ; primary- coverts and primaries blackish, the inner webs of the latter with white spots; secondaries chiefly golden yellow on the outer webs, brown barred with white on the inner ; lores dusky ; a white streak from the eye over the ear-coverts, another one from the lores under the eyes and ear-coverts ; two black stripes, one from the gape and another from the side of the gonys, uniting and running down the side of the throat, the space between these two lines white; chin and throat white with a narrow mesial black line ; ear-coverts black ; fore neck white, the feathers edged with black ; lower plumage fulvous -white, each feather edged with black, the edgings becoming less distinct on the abdomen and more broken on the vent and under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts white barred with brown. The female differs in having the forehead, crown, nape and occipital crest black, each feather with a round white spot at the tip. Iris pinkish yellow ; eyelids dark slaty brown ; bill bluish brown ; legs greenish blue ; claws horn-colour. Length 13 inches, tail 4*5, wing 6'4, tarsus 1-2, bill from gape 2*2. The female is of about the same size. These are the dimensions of an average Burmese bird. It does not seem possible to separate this form of Woodpecker into three or even two species. Birds from all parts are alike in coloration, and nothing but size is left for their separation. Mr. Hume has worked out the question of size so carefully that I prefer to adopt his figures, the more as he has had a much larger series of birds under observation than I have been able to examine. Beginning with the Malay peninsula, Mr. Hume records the lengths of the wings of two male birds, the only two apparently obtained in that part, as 6'15 and 6*3 inches respectively. He gives the wings of Burmese birds as varying from 6*08 to 6*7 inches, and those of the Northern-Indian birds (the true C. sultaneus) as from 6'7 to 7'45 inches. The Southern-Indian birds have wings varying from 5*85 to 6*3 inches. The bills of all vary in much the same ratio as the wings. This bird exhibits all those variations in size which are displayed in Dissemurus paradiseus (vol. i. p. 225) ; and the only satisfactory way of dealing with such birds appears to me to be to unite all the races, large and small, under one name. The Golden-backed Woodpecker is found over every portion of British Burmah, except on the higher mountains. It extends north through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, and is spread over the greater part of that peninsula. To the south it is found in THE COMMON THREE-TOED WOODPECKER. 55 Siam and China, in the Malay peninsula and Java, and probably in Sumatra and Borneo. This Woodpecker affects alike dense forest and clearings, and there are few places where I have not observed it. Genus TIGA, Kaup. 448. TIGA JAVANENSIS. THE COMMON THREE-TOED WOODPECKER. Picus javanensis, Ljungh, Act. Stockh. xviii. p. 134, t. 6; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 83. Picus tiga, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 177. Picus shorei, Vigors, P. Z. S. 1831, p. 175 ; Sundev. t. c. p. 83. Tiga intermedia, Bl J. A. S. B. xiv. p. 193. Brachypternopicus rubropygialis, Malh. Rev. Zool. 1845, p. 400. Chloropicoides tiga, Malh. Won. Pic. ii. p. 97, pi. Ixxxi. fig. 5-7. Chloropicoides intermedia, Malh. t. c. p. 99. Chloropicoides rubro- pygialis, Malh. t. c. p. 100, pi. Ixx. fig. o. Chloropicoides shorei, Malh. t. c p. 101, pi. Ixxi. fig. 1-4. Chrysonotus shorei, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 298. Chry- sonotus intermedius, Jerd. if. c. p. 299. Chrysonotus rubropygialis, Jerd. t. c. p. 299. Tiga javanensis, Salcad. Ucc. Born. p. 54 ; Bl. 8f Wald. B. Burm. p. 75; Tweedd. Ibis, 1877, p. 288; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 146; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Oates, S. F. viii. p. 165 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 164. Tiga shorii, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 73, Tiii. p. 88. Tiga intermedius, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 328 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 311. Tiga rubropygialis, Hume, S. F. iv. p. 390, viii. p. 88. Chrysonotus biddulphi, Tick., Wald. Ibis, 1876, p. 344 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 497. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape and occipital crest deep crimson ; hind neck black ; back and scapulars golden yellow washed with crimson ; rump bright crimson ; upper tail-coverts and tail black ; wing- coverts and tertiaries golden yellow ; primary-coverts and primaries black, the latter with white spots on the inner webs ; secondaries chiefly golden yellow on the outer webs, black with white bars on the inner ; a band of white from the eye expanding into a patch on the side of the neck ; a band of black below this ; another band of white from the gape, followed by a band of black from the base of the lower mandible ; the two black bands just mentioned joining on the sides of the neck below the white patch ; chin white ; throat white, with a mesial black line running down the fore neck ; both chin and throat frequently strongly tinged with fulvous ; lower plumage fulvous -white, each feather margined with black ; under wing- coverts white barred with black. The female differs in having the forehead, crown, nape and occipital 56 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. crest black, each feather with an elongated white drop near the tip, and in having a duller crimson tinge on the back. Iris hazel ; eyelids plumbeous ; bill very dark brown ; legs greenish ; claws horn-colour. Length 11 '5 inches, tail 4'2, wing 5'8, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1§5. The female is rather smaller. This species, like the preceding, varies much in dimensions, and there appears to be a perfect gradation in size from the south to the north. Tenasserim birds, according to Mr. Hume, have a wing varying from 5 '18 to 5'45 inches in length. Pegu and Arrakan birds, according to my own measurements, have the wing varying from 5 '6 to 6'05 inches. I have not been able to examine many Northern-Indian birds ; but Mr. Hume remarks of a Kumaon example, with a wing of 6' 25 inches, that it was a ' ' huge " specimen ; and we may therefore conclude that this length is about the maximum for the wings of Himalayan birds. Southern-Indian specimens are identical in size with those from Tenasserim. No distinc- tions, moreover, can be based on the coloration of examples from various localities, for the variations in plumage, such as they are, are not corre- lated with geographical limits ; and under these circumstances I do not think any good will result from attempting to keep the two so-called species T. shorii and T. javanensis distinct. The Common Three-toed Woodpecker is very abundant in all parts of British Burmah and Karennee. It is found in the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Cochin China and Siam. It does not appear to have yet been observed in the Indo-Burmese countries nor in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, but it is met with along the whole range of the Himalayas. It has been procured in Central India, and it appears to be abundant over a considerable portion of Southern India. This is the commonest species of Woodpecker in Burmah, being found in every description of jungle, both near houses and in the wildest forests. It has a very shrill call, and climbs trees in a peculiar jerky manner, fre- quently pausing for some minutes and remaining perfectly still. I found its nest in Pegu in May in a hole of a tree, with three eggs. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenasserim in March. THE BURMESE RUFOUS WOODPECKER. 57 Genus MICROPTEKNUS, BL 449. MICROPTERNUS PEUEOCEPS. THE BURMESE RUFOUS WOODPECKER. Micropternus phaioceps, BL J. A. S. B. xiv. p. 195; Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 294; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 72 ; BL $ Wald B. Burm. p. 77 ; Gammie, S. F. iv. p. 511 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 480 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 145 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 262 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 249. Phaiopicus blythii *, Malh. Rev. Zool. 1849, p. 534. Phaiopicus rufinotus, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 1, pi. xlvi. fig1. 1-3. Picus rufinotus, Stindev. Conxp. Av. Pic. p. 88. Micropternus barmannicus, Hume, Proc. As. Soc. Benrj. 1872, p. 71 ; BL $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 77. Micro- pternus phaeoceps (Bl.*), Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88, ix. p. 112 ; Binyh-am, S. F. ix. p. 164 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 192. Description. — Male. The whole plumage chestnut-bay; the forehead, crown and nape browner ; the back, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail and wings regularly banded with black ; the feathers of the chin, throat and sides of the head faintly edged paler ; the feathers under and behind the eye tipped with crimson ; the feathers of the abdomen, vent, sides of the body and under tail-coverts subterminally dusky. The female differs in wanting the crimson tips to the feathers under and behind the eye, and in having the feathers of the chin, throat and sides of the face more distinctly margined paler. Very old birds of both sexes have the bars on the wings, tail and upper plumage narrow and interrupted ; the feathers of the abdomen and lower plumage in general without the subterminal dark bars. Iris brown ; eyelids plumbeous ; bill very dark brown, plumbeous at the base of the lower mandible ; legs and feet greyish brown ; claws horn- colour. Length 10 inches, tail 3, wing 4' 8, tarsus '9, bill from gape 1'2. The female is of the same size. The Burmese Rufous Woodpecker is spread over the whole of British Bur mah, but is more abundant in some parts than in others. It is found in the hill- tracts of Eastern Bengal and along the Himalayas as far as Kumaon, extending south to Central India. It is also, most probably, distributed over the Indo-Burmese countries. To the south it has been met with in the Malay peninsula at Klang. I have found this Woodpecker most abundant in the evergreen forests ; and it is one of the commonest species near Rangoon in the dense orchards * In publishing this title Malherbe gives his name rujinotus as a synonym, and assigns to it the date of 1845. 58 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMA H. and pine-apple gardens which surround that town. It feeds largely on those ants which construct hanging nests in trees,, and its plumage is generally much smeared with the honey-like matter found in these struc- tures. Mr. Gammie discovered that these Woodpeckers actually lay their eggs in holes bored in these ants' nests, the rightful owners being driven away or, more probably, eaten up. For Woodpeckers this species is remarkably silent, seldom uttering a note, and creeping about in a very quiet stealthy way. 450. MICROPTERNTJS BRACHYURUS. THE MALAYAN RUFOUS WOODPECKER. Picus brachyurus, VieilL Nouv. Diet. cPHist. Nat. xxvi. p. 103. Picus squami- gularis, Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 89. Micropternus brachyurus, Hume, S. F. v. p. 481 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 145; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Description. — Male. Similar in general appearance to M. ph&oceps, but much smaller ; the black bars on the tail broader ; the chin, throat and cheeks blackish, broadly and conspicuously margined with whitish ; the head less brown and more of the colour of the back. The female differs in wanting the crimson tips to the feathers under and behind the eye. Length about 8 inches, tail 2*6, wing 4*5, tarsus '8, bill from gape 1*1. These are the measurements of a male bird from the island of Salanga collected by Capt. Weber. I follow Mr. Hume in identifying the small Tenasserim race of this bird with M. brachyurus, Vieill. It is quite distinct in size and coloration from the bird met with in Pegu and other parts of Burmah. M. badiosus, from Borneo, may be recognized by the male having the feathers all round the eye tipped with crimson, by being still smaller than M. brachyurus (wing about 4'2 inches), by having the margins of the feathers of the chin and throat narrow and indistinct, and by having the tail nearly entirely black. M. fokiensis, from China, appears to be characterized by its deeper colour and by the abdomen being brown, not rufous. The Malayan Rufous Woodpecker is found in Tenasserim from Mergui southwards to Malewoon. It extends down the Malay peninsula to Singapore, and, according to Dr. Tiraud, it is the species which is found in Cochin China ; but he does not seem certain about the identification of his birds with M. brachyurus apud Hume. HORSFIELD'S BARRED WOODPECKER. 59 Genus MEIGLYPTES, Swains. 451. MEIGLYPTES GRAMMITHORAX. HORSFIELD'S BARRED WOODPECKER. Phaiopicus grammithorax, Malh, Mon. Pic. ii. p. 12, pi. xlviii. fig. 4-6. Picus tristis (Iforsf.), Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 91 (part.). Meiglyptes tristis (Horsf.), Wcild. Ibis, 1872, p. 365, 1877, p. 290 (part.) ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 56 (part.) ; BL B. Burm. p. 77 (part.) ; Hume $ Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 131 (part.) ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87 (part.). Meiglyptes grammithorax, Nicholson, Ibis, 1879, p. 165 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 497. Description. — Male. Lores, the feathers round the eyes and the chin yellowish buff ; a patch of crimson on each side the base of the lower mandible ; the whole head and neck all round black, closely barred with narrow lines of pale buff; the ear-coverts tinged with yellowish; back, scapulars, wing-coverts and tertiaries black, rather broadly barred with yellowish buff ; rump plain yellowish buff ; tail-coverts black barred with buff; primaries, secondaries and the feathers of the tail black, both webs with bar-like buff spots ; lower plumage from the neck downwards black barred with buff, the bars broader than those on the throat ; under wing- coverts plain buff. The female differs in wanting the crimson patches at the base of the lower mandible. The legs and feet dirty, dingy or glaucous green ; claws plumbeous ; bill black; edge of eyelids black; irides in about half the specimens of each sex deep brown, in the other half dull red. (Davison.) Length 6'5 inches, tail 2*2, wing 3'7, tarsus '7, bill from gape *9. The female is of about the same size. This species has long been confounded with M. tristis from Java. Mr. Nicholson has shown that the two are quite distinct. The latter differs in having the under plumage black from the lower throat to the abdomen, and in having the lores and the feathers round the eye finely barred with black and buff like the other parts of the head. Horsfield's Barred Woodpecker was observed by Mr. Davison in Tenas- serim at Bankasoon and the neighbourhood, and also at the base of Nwalabo mountain; and Mr. Blyth received it from Mergui. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in Sumatra and Borneo ; Dr. Tiraud procured it in Cochin China. This small Woodpecker, according to Mr. Davison, is usually found in dense forest, and it does not appear ever to descend to the ground. 60 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 452. MEIGLPYTES JUGULARIS. BLYTH'S BLACK-AND-FULVOUS WOODPECKER. Meiglyptes jugularis, Bl. J. A. S. B. xiv. p. 195 ; Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 93. Phaiopicus jugularis, Malh. Mon. Pic. ii. p. 11. Meiglyptes jugularis, Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 63 ; Bl. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 77 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 132 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 161. Description. — Male. The forehead,, crown, sides of the head,, chin and throat black, narrowly barred with buff ; the bars on the throat broader and frequently interrupted; an indistinct patch of crimson on either side the base of the lower mandible ; sides and back of the neck,, a large patch on either side the breast,, the rump, all the wing-coverts next the body and the bases of the tertiaries buff ; remainder of the wing-coverts black tipped with buff; a full occipital crest, back, upper tail-coverts, tail and the whole lower plumage black ; the sides of the body obsoletely barred with bun0 ; quills black, the outer webs of the primaries and secondaries sparingly spotted with buff, the inner webs with bar-like spots of white ; tips of the tertiaries black, with one or two bars of buff; under wing-coverts buff. The female differs in wanting the crimson patch on either side the base of the lower mandible. Bill black ; iris dark brown ; eyelids dark plumbeous ; legs dull bluish ; claws horny brown. Length 7*6 inches, tail 2*3, wing 4, tarsus *8, bill from gape 1. The female is of about the same size. Blytlr's Black-and-Fulvous Woodpecker seems to be found over the whole of British Burmah. I procured one specimen on the Arrakan hills, whence also Mr. Blyth obtained it, and I also got it on the Pegu hills in the ever- green forests. Mr. Davison observed it in Tenasserim as far south as Tavoy, and Capt. Bingham records it from the Thoungyeen valley. It is noted from Siam by Mr. Blyth, and is not known as yet to occur elsewhere outside the limits of British Burmah. This Woodpecker appears to be found principally in dense forests, but Mr. Davison informs us that he has observed it also in clearings and open jungle. I noticed nothing remarkable about its habits. THE BUFF-NECKED BARRED WOODPECKER. 61 453. MEIGLYPTES TUKKL THE BUFF-NECKED BARRED WOODPECKER. Picus tukki, Less. Rev. Zool. 1839, p. 1(37. Hemicircus brunneus, Eyton, P. Z. S. 1839, p. 100. Picus brunneus, Sundev. Consp. Av. Pic. p. 91. Phaio- picus pectoralis (LicM.}, Malh. Man. Pic. ii. p. 8, pi. xlvii. fig. 5-7. Mei- glyptes marginatus (Eeinw.\ Wold. Ibis, 1871, p. 165. Meiglyptes tukki, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 57 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 132 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Description. — Male. A patch on either side at the base of the lower mandible crimson ; forehead, crown, upper neck and sides of the head olive-brown ; chin and throat black, narrowly and closely barred with buff"; fore neck black ; a broad streak down each side of the neck creamy buff ; the whole of the upper plumage, wings and tail brown narrowly barred with buff ; the bars on the tail, primaries and secondaries interrupted; upper breast blackish, very narrowly barred with buff; remainder of lower plumage buffy brown barred with lighter buff, the bars becoming almost obsolete on the abdomen ; under wing-coverts plain buff. The female differs in wanting the crimson patches at the base of the lower mandible, and in always wanting the reddish tinge on the sides of the forehead, which is frequently present in the male. Legs and feet dull or brownish green ; claws a little paler ; irides brown ; upper mandible black ; lower mandible pale plumbeous blue, in some greenish ; in many the tip is dark plumbeous, and the base is also at times a darker plumbeous. (Davison.} Length 8 inches, tail 3, wing 4'1, tarsus '8, bill from gape I'l. The female is of the same size. The Buff-necked Barred Woodpecker was observed by Mr. Davison in the extreme southern portion of Tenasserim at Bankasoou. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. The Woodpeckers of this genus bear a superficial resemblance to those of the genus Hemicercus ; but they may be known at once by the bill, the culmen of which is much curved, and by the absence of plumes over the nostrils. 62 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Order IV. COCCYGES. Suborder COCCYGES AN I SOD ACTYL.E. Family UPUPID^. Genus UPUPA, Linn. 454. UPUPA LONGIROSTEIS. THE BURMESE HOOPOE. Upupa longirostris, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 393 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 69 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 89 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 315 ; Inglis, S, F. v. p. 29 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 149 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 202 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 41 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 90 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 199. Upupa ceylonensis (Reich.~), apud David ef Oust. O?s. Chine, p. 79. Upupa indica (Bonap.}, apud Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 578. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, crest and sides of the head and neck cinnamon-rufous, the crest -feathers broadly tipped with black; chin, throat, breast and upper abdomen rufous-fawn ; lower abdomen whitish, streaked with brown ; vent and under tail-coverts pure white, some of the latter occasionally tipped with black ; lesser wing- coverts like the head ; median coverts black, tipped with white ; greater coverts black, with a bar of white across them ; primary-coverts black ; primaries black, with a broad bar of white across both webs near the tips ; the first primary with or without a white spot on the inner web ; the earlier secondaries barred with white on the inner webs, those nearer the body on both webs ; tertiaries brown, tinged and edged with rufous ; rump and scapulars barred with black and rufous, followed on the rump by a white band ; upper tail-coverts black; back dull vinous; tail black, with a band of white across it. Iris reddish brown or brown ; bill dark brown, pinkish at base ; legs and claws dark plumbeous. Length 12 inches, tail 4*4, wing 5'6, tarsus '85, bill from gape 2'6. The female is smaller, the bill averaging 2' 3 or so. The Burmese Hoopoe is a species which, in my opinion, can always be discriminated from its allies. From U. epops it differs in not having any white on the crest in front of the black tip. From U. nigripennis it differs in being larger, and in having a bill of much greater length. Mr. Hume says that he has never met with U. nigripennis with a longer bill than 2fl ; THE BLUE-BEARDED BEE-EATER. 63 in the present species, even in the young, it is never shorter than 2*2, and in the adult male it reaches 2 '7. The Burmese Hoopoe is very common over the whole of the plains of British Burmah, and is also found in the lower ranges of hills. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries to the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal ; it is found in China, in Siam and Cochin China, and for a short distance down the Malay peninsula, Mr. Davison having shot it at Tonka. This Hoopoe is found in all those parts of the country which are dry and abound in ants ; it frequents alike forests and open plains, gardens and waste land, and appears to be a constant resident. I have always met with it most abundantly in the dry forests called " Ingdein.^ It is entirely a ground-feeder, eating ants and picking them up with great speed and facility by means of its long bill. The note, which is of a very peculiar character, is uttered chiefly during the breeding- season from February to April. When uttering it, the bird puffs out its neck and bobs its head. I found the nest in March and April. The eggs are laid on the bare wood in a natural hollow in a decayed tree ; they were three in number in the two instances in which I found the nests, but there are said to be as many as seven occasionally. They are of a blue colour. Family MEROPID^. Genus JNYCTIOENIS, Swains. 455. NYCTIOENIS ATHERTONI. THE BLUE-BEARDED BEE-EATER. Merops athertonii, Jard. $ Selb. III. Orn. ii. pi. 58. Nyctiornis athertoni, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 211 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 103 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 73 ; Hume A Dav. S. F. vi. p. 68 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 583 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 472. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage, wings, tail, sides of the head and neck deep green ; the feathers of the forehead and crown tipped with blue and the back tinged in places with blue ; a broad line down the front from the chin to the breast deep blue, the feathers lengthened and each one broadly tipped with ultramarine-blue ; breast, abdomen aud sides of the body buff, streaked with greenish; vent and 64 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. under tail-coverts plain buff; under aspect of tail yellowish buff, tipped with brown; under wing-coverts bright buff, the inner webs of the quills of the wing mostly brown. Bill horny, light at the base below ; iris brown ; legs fleshy brown, tinged with green ; claws horn- colour. Length 14 inches, tail 6'2, wing 5 '8, tarsus '7, bill from gape 2'3. The female is considerably smaller. The Blue-bearded Bee-eater occurs sparingly throughout British Burmah, frequenting forest country and being a constant resident. I procured a few specimens in the Arrakan hills near Nyoungyo, and I met with it near Pegu Town once or twice. Mr. Blanford got it at Bassein, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay at Tonghoo and on the Karin hills. Mr. Davison appears to have observed it at numerous places in Tenasserim between Pahpoon and Amherst, and Capt. Bingham in the Tlioungyeen valley. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, and is found over a considerable portion of that peninsula. According to Dr. Tiraud, it is also met with in Cochin China. This handsome Bee-eater frequents forests, but does not appear to be anywhere numerous. It perches on lofty trees, and sallies out after flying insects, returning again to the same perch. Capt. Bingham found the eggs in Tenasserim in April ; they were laid in a chamber at the end of a long tunnel dug in a bank, and were four in number. It is sug- gested that this bird also lays its eggs in the holes of trees. The eggs of all Bee-eaters are white. 456. NYCTIORNIS AMICTA, THE RED-BEARDED BEE-EATER. Merops amictus, Temm. PL Col. 310. Nyctiornis amicta, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 91 ; Bl. $ Wold. B. Burm. p. 73 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 69 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 153; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 378. Nyctiornis malaccensis, Cab. 8f Hein. Mus. Hein. ii. p. 133. Description. — Male. Feathers impending the nostrils greenish blue; forehead, lores and crown of head to a little beyond the eyes shining lilac- rose, shaded with purplish posteriorly ; feathers on the eyelids dull blue ; angle of the chin bluish ; cheeks, throat and a broad band running down to the base of the breast crimson, the feathers of the breast with black centres, which show up in places ; sides of the head, neck and breast, and all the upper plumage, wings and tail dark green, the inner webs of the THE GREEN BEE-EATER. 65 quills brownish and edged at their bases with ochraceous ; abdomen, vent, under tail-coverts and sides of the body pale green ; under wing-coverts bright buff; underside of tail bright yellow-buff, broadly tipped with black. The female differs in having the forehead and lores the same crimson as the throat, the lilac-rose colour being confined to a mere band across the crown ; the feathers on the eyelids are green, not blue ; the underside of the tail is duller yellow and the black tips shorter ; the crimson on the breast is narrower in extent. The young are green throughout. Legs and feet pale green, often dingy, sometimes bluish ; bill black, whity brown at base from nostril to gape of upper mandible, and lower mandible from about angle of gonys to base; irides bright yellow to orange-yellow ; eyelids dark plumbeous green. (Davison.) Length 13 inches, tail 5*3, wing 5*4, tarsus '6, bill from gape 2'5. The female is slightly smaller, the bill measuring about 2*1. The Red-bearded Bee-eater occurs in Tenasserim from the south up to Moulmein, and Capt. Bingham also found it in the Thoungyeen valley. It appears to be tolerably common, and is probably resident. It ranges through the Malay peninsula to Sumatra and Borneo. This fine Bee-eater, according to Mr. Davison, is found singly or in couples, not in flocks. It has a hoarse note, and when uttering it the bird stretches out its neck, puffs out its throat and bobs its head up and down. It probably breeds in March and April. Genus MEROPS, Linn. 457. MEROPS VIRIDIS. THE GREEN BEE-EATER. Merops viridis, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 182 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 205 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 99; id. S. F. i. p. 167, iii. p. 49 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 73 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 304 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 67 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 582 ; Leage, Birds Ceylon, p. .309; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 152. Merops ferrugiceps, HoJgs. in Grays Zool. Misc. p. 82. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, upper back and ear-coverts chestnut, tinged with green on the forehead and crown ; lores and a streak under the eye and ear-coverts black ; lower back, scapulars, wing-coverts and rump bright green; tertiaries and upper tail-coverts green slightly tipped with blue ; primaries greenish on the outer webs, VOL. II. F 66 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. rufous on the inner, all tipped dusky ; secondaries all rufous, broadly tipped with black, and faintly edged exteriorly with green ; tail-feathers bronze-colour, tipped dusky and narrowly edged with blue; a line of bright blue under the black of the face ; cheeks, chin and throat greenish blue ; below this an indistinct rufous collar, then a band of black ; sides of the breast tinged with buff; lower plumage light green tinged with verdigris ; under wing-coverts chestnut. Iris bright red ; bill black, becoming brown at the gape ; eyelids smoky brown ; mouth dusky flesh-colour ; legs pinkish grey ; claws horn-colour. Length 9*2 inches, tail 4*7, wing 3'7, tarsus *4, bill from gape ] *3. The female is of the same size. The only variation in plumage this bird is liable to is in the colour of the head. In Burmah the head is a deep rufous, and in Scinde, at the other end of its range, the rufous tinge is almost entirely wanting. The Green Bee-eater is abundant over the whole of British Burmah except in the south of Tenasserim, where, according to Mr. Davison, it is not found south of Mergui, nor does it in any part of the country ascend the higher mountains. It is found throughout the Indo- Burmese countries and over the whole peninsula of India and Ceylon. It has not yet been recorded from China, but it occurs in Siam and Cochin China. This Bee-eater is one of the commonest and best known birds of Burmah, being found in every part of the country. Its habits are too well known to require any description. It breeds in April and May, making a tunnel in any convenient bank and laying its white eggs, four or five in number, in a small chamber at the end of the tunnel, which varies in length from two to five feet. 458. MEROPS PHILIPPINUS. THE BLUE-TAILED BEE-EATER. Merops philippinus, Linn. Syst. Nat. ed. 13, i. p. 183 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 101; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 89; Wold. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 149; Bl. B. Burm. p. 72; Gates, S. F. v. p. 143 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 72 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 306 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 67 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 152 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 378. Merops daudini, Cuvier, Regn. Anim. 1829, i. p. 442 ; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 162, iii. p. 49 ; Arm- strong, S. F. iv. p. 304. Merops philippensis (Z.), Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 207 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 581. Description. — Male and female. Lores and a broad line through the eyes and ear-coverts black ; above this a narrow line of pale blue, below it a THE BLUE-TAILED BEE-EATER. 67 broader line of bluish white ; forehead, crown, nape and back dull green with a coppery tinge ; rump and upper tail-coverts bright blue ; central tail-feathers blue, elongated, the projecting portion black ; the other tail- feathers blue, the inner webs more or less dusky ; tertiaries bluish green ; primaries and secondaries green on the outer webs, more or less rufous on the inner ones, all tipped with black ; wing-coverts green, brighter at the edges ; chin yellow ; throat chestnut ; lower plumage green with a rufous tinge ; under tail-coverts pale blue ; under wing-coverts bright buff. Bill black ; iris bright red ; eyelids grey ; mouth flesh-colour ; legs plumbeous ; claws horn-colour. Length 12 inches, tail 5' 7, wing 5'5, tarsus *5, bill from gape 2. The female is of about the same size. M. sumatranus from the Malay peninsula belongs to this genus, the members of which have the central tail-feathers lengthened. It has the head and back chocolate-colour and the throat blue. The Blue-tailed Bee-eater is found over the whole of British Burmah, being very abundant in Arrakan and Pegu and somewhat rare in Tenas- serim. It appears to be partially migratory in Tenasserim ; but in Pegu I have observed it during the greater portion of the year, and I think it is resident. This bird has a wide range, being found in the Indo-Burmese countries and over the whole peninsula of India with Ceylon and the Andaman Islands. It is met with in China, Cochin China, Siam, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Celebes, the Philippines and some of the further islands. < This Bee-eater is usually seen in large flocks, flying backwards and forwards in graceful sweeps for long periods without resting, and catching its insect prey entirely in the air. It is particularly addicted to large rivers, in the perpendicular banks of which it digs its nest-hole, which is a roomy chamber at the end of a tunnel three to seven feet in length ; and the eggs are four or five in number. Immense numbers of these birds usually nest together, each pair, however, having its own gallery and nest. 68 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus MELITTOPHAGUS, Sow. 459. MELITTOPHAGUS LESCHENAULTL THE CHESTNUT-HEADED BEE-EATER. Merops leschenaulti, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. xiv. p. 17 j Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 582 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 68. Merops quinticolor ( V.), Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 208 j Wold. Ibis, 1873, p. 301. Merops daudini (Cuv.\ Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 348. Merops swinhoei, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 102 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 163, iii. p. 50 j Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 305; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 312 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 455, viii. p. 85 ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 478. Merops erythrocephalus (#m.), Bl fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 72. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, upper back and ear-coverts bright chestnut ; lores black, continued as a band under the eye and ear-coverts ; wing-coverts, lower back and tertiaries green, the latter tipped with bluish; rump and upper tail-coverts pale shining blue; primaries and secondaries green, rufous on the inner webs, and all tipped dusky ; central tail-feathers bluish on the outer, and green on the inner webs ; the others green, margined on the inner web with brown and all tipped dusky ; sides of face, chin and throat yellow ; below this a broad band of chestnut extending to the sides of the neck and meeting the chestnut of the upper plumage ; below this again a short distinct band of black and then an ill- defined band of yellow ; remainder of lower plumage gieen, tipped with blue, especially on the vent and under tail-coverts. Iris crimson ; bill black ; legs dusky black ; claws dark horn-colour. Length 8'5 inches, tail 3*5, wing 4*2, tarsus '4, bill from gape 1*7. The female is of about the same size. Vieillot received Bee-eaters of this form both from Java and Ceylon, but the birds appear to have got mixed up : most probably in his day few or no birds were labelled. In any case, he recognized two species and described them in great detail. Of the bird which he thought came from Java, but which in reality must have been received from Ceylon or some other part of India, he says, " une plaque triangulaire d'un roux jaunatre couvre la gorge/'' and "la queue est d'un blue-vert en dessus." This appears to me to fix the species beyond all doubt ; and although he refers to Levaillant's plate, which represents a Javan bird with the whole throat yellow, I think more weight should be attached to an elaborate description than to a mere detail of synonymy, and I therefore retain his name in pre- ference to Mr. Hume's. The Chestnut-headed Bee-eater is sparingly distributed throughout the whole province. It is found in Siam and Cochin China and it has also occurred in China. THE BURMESE ROLLER. 69 It extends down the Malay peninsula as far as Penang; but at Perak Lieut. Kelham appears to have obtained the Javan species, for of one specimen he writes, " chin and throat pale yellow, bounded below by a dark bar" (Ibis, 1881, p. 377). To the north it ranges through the Indo- Burmese countries into India, over the greater portion of which country and Ceylon it is found more or less abundantly. This Bee-eater is found in forests or well-wooded parts of the country in small flocks. It has the usual habits of the Bee-eaters, perching on commanding branches and other objects and catching insects on the wing. These birds breed in societies in the holes of river-banks or old quarries and pits, and they lay from four to six white eggs. The Javan species, M. quinticolor, differs in having the whole space from the bill down to the black pectoral band pure yellow without any chestnut, and in having the tail blue. Family CORACIID^. Genus CORACIAS, Linn. 460. CORACIAS AFFINIS. THE BURMESE ROLLER. Coracias affinis, McClett. P. Z. S. 1839, p. 164; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 217; El. B. Burm. p. 72 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 50 ; Armstrong, S. F, iv. p. 305 ; Gates, S. F. v. p. 143 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 581 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 72 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 40; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85; Brooks, S. F. viii. p. 467. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape green, tinged with blue, brighter over the eyes ; hind neck, back, scapulars and tertiaries greenish brown ; rump purplish blue ; upper tail-coverts bright caerulean blue; cheeks, chin and throat purple, with shining blue shaft- stripes ; ear-coverts, sides of the neck and breast vinaceous ; axillaries and under wing-coverts deep purple; abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts bluish green ; central tail-feathers green, the others purple on the basal half or two thirds, pale blue on the remainder ; lesser and median wing- coverts deep purple ; greater coverts purplish brown, edged and tipped with greenish blue; quills rich purple, the first four primaries with a broad 70 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. band of pale blue near the tip ; the outer webs of the later primaries and all the secondaries the same light blue for about an inch below the coverts ; primary- co verts light blue. Bill dark brownish black ; mouth yellow ; edges of the eyelids, lores and skin at the back of the eye yellowish orange; iris brown; legs yellowish brown ; claws black. Length 13 inches, tail 5 '2, wing 7*4, tarsus 1*1, bill from gape I1 9. The female is of about the same size. The Burmese Roller, or Blue Jay as it is usually turmed by residents in Burmah, occurs commonly over the whole Province except in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where Mr. Davisen did not observe it. It is found in Siam, and Dr. Tiraud states that it is very common in Cochin China. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries up to Assam and westerly through Eastern Bengal as far as Calcutta. In India it is replaced by C. indicus ; and the two appear to interbreed in the territory where they meet. This Roller is a very familiar and well-known bird, and is found in almost every portion of the Province except in the interior of the larger forests. It prefers compounds, gardens and places where the trees are not very thickly placed. Perched usually on a dead branch it likes to have a good view all round, in order the more easily to detect the larger insects, which it catches by gliding to the ground. After killing and eating its prey, it returns to the same or a similar perch. This bird breeds in March and April, laying four or five glossy white eggs in a natural hollow in a tree at various heights from the ground. Genus EUEYSTOMUS, Vieill. 461. EURYSTOMUS ORIENTALIS. THE BROAD-BILLED ROLLER. Coracias orientalis, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 159. Eurystomus orientalis, Jerd. It. Ind. i. p. 219 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 105 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 164 • Salvad. U$c. Born. p. 105 ; BL B. Burm. p. 72 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 73 ; Wardlaw Rqmsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 457 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. yi. p. 72 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 285 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 153 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 379 ; Gates, 8. F. x. p. 186. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape dark brown with a tinge of greenish, blue ; from the nape the greenish blue tinge becoming .more decided on the back, scapulars, tertiaries, the wing-coverts, THE BROAD-BILLED ROLLER. 71 rump arid upper tail-coverts ; the whole lower plumage tolerably clear greenish blue, duller on the breast and brighter on the vent, under tail- coverts and under wing-coverts ; throat and upper breast with numerous broad shaft -stripes of glistening violet-blue; secondaries, primaries and their coverts black, the first six primaries with a patch of light blue at their bases ; the next primary with a smaller patch of the same colour ; tail black, more or less tinged with purple at the bases of the feathers ; underside of tail and wings suffused with purple. Bill, legs and feet deep vermilion ; the tip of the bill black ; iris dark brown ; gape yellowish. Length 12 inches, tail 4*4, wing 7*6, tarsus '7, bill from gape 1'7. The female is of the same size or even larger than the male. The Broad-billed Roller is locally distributed over the greater part of Burmah. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan ; I observed it in Pegu in the hills north of Pegu Town, at Tonghoo and at Shwaygheen ; Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay got it on the Karin hills, and Mr. Blanford at Bassein ; Mr. Davison states that it is confined to the southern portion of Tenas- serim, but Capt. Bingham found it in the Thoungyeen valley. To the north of Burmah it ranges through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, and is found over a considerable portion of that country and Ceylon. To the east it is found in China, Siam and Cochin China, and it extends down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra, Java, Borneo and some of the further islands. The Broad-billed Roller is comparatively rare, and is only found in forest country. It appears to be almost crepuscular in its habits, being indolent and little on the move during the day. It perches on dead branches, and catches insects both by flying at them and by pouncing oc them on the ground. It is said to breed in holes of trees, and its eggs are probably white. 72 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Family ALCEDINID^. Subfamily ALCEDININ^S. Genus ALCEDO, Linn. 462. ALCEDO BENGALENSIS. THE LITTLE INDIAN KINGFISHER. Alcedo bengalensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 450 ; Jerd, B. Ind. i. p. 230 ; Skarpe, Mon. Alced. p. 11, pi. 2 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 107 ; Hume fy Henders. Lah. to Yark. p. 178 j Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 92 ; Hume, S. F. i. pp. 168, 169, iii. p. 52 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 71 ; Armstrong, 8. F. iv. p. 307 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 74 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 292 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 580 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 457 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 81 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 155. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape blackish banded with pale blue ; a band from the nostrils through the eye to the end of the ear-coverts bright rufous ; cheeks and a band under the ear- coverts blackish mottled with blue ; a patch of white on each side the neck ; chin and throat white ; under plumage and under wing-coverts bright rufous or chestnut; centre of the back, rump and upper tail-coverts glistening blue ; wing-coverts dark brown speckled with blue ; quills dark brown edged with blue ; scapulars dull brownish blue ; tail pale blue. Bill dark blackish brown, tinged with reddish at the gape ; mouth salmon-colour ; iris brown ; eyelids plumbeous ; legs orange-red ; claws dark horn. Length 6'8 inches, tail 1'45, wing 2'75, .tarsus '35, bill from gape 1*9. The female is quite as large as the male, but has the base of the lower mandible reddish. The amount of banding on the head and the intensity of colouring on both the upper and under plumages vary much in this species ; they are not, however, dependent on sex, but probably on age. A. ispida, the common European Kingfisher, differs in being larger, with a proportionately smaller bill and is also duller in coloration. The Little Indian Kingfisher is found in all the low-lying parts of Burmah and Karennee, except perhaps in those portions of the former which lie immediately near the sea. Elsewhere it has an immense distribution, extending on the west as far as Eastern Africa, on the north to Siberia and Japan, and ranging thence to China, Siam, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, and most of the islands of the Malay archipelago. THE MALAYAN KINGFISHER. 73 This small and well-known Kingfisher frequents streams of running water, canals, ponds and ditches. It is not an inhabitant of forests, being almost always found in comparatively open country. It catches small fishes either by darting on them from a perch on the side of the water or by poising itself in the air in midstream and making a sudden plunge. It lays its eggs, which are sometimes as many as seven, in a chamber at the end of a narrow tunnel bored by the bird itself in the bank of a stream or of a well, and in this latter situation C apt. Wardlaw Ramsay found the eggs near Rangoon. The eggs of this and of all other Kingfishers are glossy white and spherical in shape. In Burmah it probably breeds from March to June. A. grandis, from Sikhim, is similar in general appearance to the present bird, but is of very bright coloration and large size, the wing being nearly four inches in length. It is of extreme rarity. 463. ALCEDO ASIATICA. THE MALAYAN KINGFISHER. Alcedo asiatica, Swains. Zool III 1st ser. i. pi. 50 ; Sharpe, Mon. Alced. p. 23, pi. 5 ; Ball, S. F. i. p. 59 ; Hume, S. F. ii. pp. 174, 494, iv. p. 383 ; Bl. 8f Wald. B. Burm. p. 71. Alcedo meningting, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 172; Sakad. Ucc. Born. p. 93 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 143 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 83 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 188. Alcedo rufigastra, Wald. Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 4, xii. p. 487 ; id. Ibis, 1874, p. 136. Alcedo beavani, Wald. Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 4, xiv. p. 158 j id. Ibis, 1875, p. 461 j Hume, S. F. iv. p. 287 j Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 84; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 36, ix. p. 247. Description. — Male. A patch on the lores ferruginous, bordered below by a narrow black line ; sides of the head bright blue ; a long patch of white on each side of the neck ; forehead, crown and nape black banded with bright blue; back, rump and upper tail-coverts shining cobalt; scapulars dull blue with bright blue tips; winglet and primary-coverts black ; upper wing-coverts blue, each feather tipped with brighter blue ; primaries black, rufous on the inner webs; secondaries and tertiaries brown, washed with blue on the outer webs ; chin and throat white tinged with buff ; remainder of lower plumage bright chestnut, some of the feathers on the sides of the breast tipped with blue. The adult female does not differ from the male as is usually asserted ; but the blue cheeks and ear-coverts are not assumed so quickly as in the male. Traces of ferruginous are visible in these parts until the bird is aged. The young bird differs in having the cheeks and ear-coverts ferruginous : 74 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. in males the blue on these parts is assumed quickly, in females very slowly and some trace of ferruginous in these latter is generally present. Iris dark brown ; eyelid dark grey ; gape and base of bill orange ; remainder of bill black ; legs bright red ; claws red. The fully adult female has the bill the same colour as the male. Young birds have most of the lower mandible red and the tips of both white. Length 6'2 inches, tail 1-2, wing 2'5, tarsus -3, bill from gape 1'8. The female is of the same size. From an examination of a magnificent series of these birds in the British Museum and of a dozen or more specimens shot by myself in Burmah, I have come to the conclusion that there is only one species inhabiting India, Burmah and the Indian archipelago. The bars on the head vary in colour from rich purple in Borneo, Java &c. to rich blue or even bluish green in Burmah ; but the transition is very gradual, and some of the Burmese birds show a distinct tint of purple on the nape. The lower plumage is very uniform in all, young and old alike. It is shown beyond all doubt by sexed females in the British Museum collected by Mr. Wallace, and by birds shot by myself in Burmah, that the fully adult female has the cheeks and ear-coverts blue like the male, but generally intermingled with a little ferruginous until she becomes aged. The Malayan Kingfisher is somewhat locally distributed. I found it abundant in the Pegu hills a few miles north of the town of Pegu and also in a patch of dense jungle a couple of miles north of Kyeikpadein. Lord Tweeddale received a specimen from Tonghoo. Mr. Davison states that it occurs sparingly throughout Tenasserim ; and he and Mr. Hume make two species of the birds found in that Division, the richer-coloured bird being recorded from Bankasoon only and the greener and duller bird from elsewhere. It has a wide range, being found in many parts of the peninsula of India from the north to the extreme south. It occurs in Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, the Andamans, Sumatra, Java, Borneo and some of the further islands. This species is restricted to the dense forests where the ground is broken up by nullahs and ravines. I think it always darts on its prey from a perch and does not hover in the air. I have found numerous nests of this bird in July in Pegu. The eggs, four to six in number, are laid on the bare soil in a chamber at the end of a tunnel dug in the perpendicular face of a bank of a ravine among thick vegetation. THE BROAD-BELTED KINGFISHER. 75 464, ALCEDO EURYZONA. THE BROAD-BELTED KINGFISHER. Alcedo euryzona, Temm. PL Col livr. 86 j Sharpe, Mon. Alced. p. '29, pi. 8 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 95 ; Ticeedd. Ibis, 1877, p. 297 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 49. Alcedo nigricans, Bl. J.A. 8. B. xvi. p. 1180 ; Hume $ Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 81 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 80 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 156. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown and nape dull black barred with greenish blue; back and rump silvery blue; upper tail-coverts a brighter and deeper blue ; tail black with a bluish tinge ; lesser wing-coverts and scapulars dull black tinged near the tips with dull blue ; median and greater wing-coverts dull black margined with bright blue ; quills dark brown, edged partially with blue ; lores ferruginous ; cheeks and ear-coverts black, the feathers broadly terminated with dull blue ; a broad streak on either side of the neck white, ending in pale orange ; chin and throat white ; breast dull blue, the white bases of the feathers appearing in places ; sides of the breast dusky black; sides of the body white streaked with brown; abdo- men, vent, under wing-coverts and under tail- coverts white (varying to buff according to Mr. Hume). The female has the chin and throat white, and the upper plumage and head like the male ; but the whole under plumage is a bright ferruginous. A young female differs in having a good deal of ferruginous on the cheeks and ear-coverts. Male : upper mandible black ; lower mandible very dark brown, almost black, paler at base ; iris deep brown ; legs and feet vermilion. Female : upper mandible black ; lower mandible pale red ; iris very dark brown ; legs and feet pale vermilion ; claws pale orange. (Davison.) The young bird has the lower mandible red and the tips of both man- dibles white. Length 8 inches, tail 1*6, wing 3'4, tarsus !5, bill from gape 2'2. The female is of the same size. I have examined two males from the Indian archipelago in the British Museum, and find them to be identical with a Tenasserim male both in coloration and size. The Broad-belted Kingfisher occurs in Tenasserim from the extreme south to about the latitude of Moulmein ; and Capt. Bingham observed it in the Thoungyeen valley. My men obtained one specimen at Malewoon. It has been procured at Malacca, and in Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This Kingfisher, according to Mr. Davison, occurs in streams which flow through deep forests, is shy, feeds entirely on fish, and is usually seen in pairs. A. beryllina from Java is of the same type of plumage as the present species, but is very much smaller, the wing being 2*4 inches in length. 76 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus CERYLE, Boie. 465. CEEYLE GUTTATA. THE HIMALAYAN SPOTTED KINGFISHER. Alcedo guttatus, Vigors, P. Z. S. 1830, p. 22. Ceryle guttata, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 234 ; Sharpe, Mon. Alced. p. 57, pi. 18 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 110; id. S. F. ii. p. 470 ; Wold, in Bl. B. Burm. p. 71 ; Inglis, S. F. v. p. 19 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 85 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86 ; Bingham, S. F. viii. p. 193, ix. p. 156. Description. — Male. The whole upper plumage, crest, wings and tail black or dark brown barred with white ; on the head the white assuming the shape of oval drops, and some of the crest-feathers being nearly pure white tipped with black ; sides of the head black streaked with white ; a broad band under the cheeks and ear-coverts, a large patch on the hind neck, chin and throat pure white ; sides of the neck and a broad band across the breast barred black and white; breast, abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts white ; sides of the body white barred with black ; under wing- coverts white. The female differs only in having the under wing-coverts buff-coloured. Bill black ; irides dark brown ; legs brown-black. (Jerdon.) Length about 16 inches, tail 4*8, wing 7'2, tarsus *5, bill from gape 3'3. The Himalayan Spotted Kingfisher was observed by Mr. Davison in the hill-streams north of Pahpoon in Tenasserim, and Capt. Bingham met with it in the Thoungyeen valley. It occurs in Cachar, the Dana hills in Assam, and along the whole Himalayan range up to Cashmeer. It will probably be found in the Indo- Burmese countries, as well as in Arrakan and Pegu. Little seems to be known about this large Kingfisher. Dr. Jerdon states that it darts on its prey from a perch ; and Mr. Thompson, as quoted by Mr. Hume, says that it breeds in the Himalayas from April to June, nesting, as is usual with birds of this family, in holes of river-banks. THE PIED KINGFISHER. 77 466. CERYLE RUDIS. THE PIED KINGFISHER. Alcedo rudis, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 181. Ceryle rudis, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 232 ; Sharpe, Mon. Alced. p. 61, pi. 19 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 109 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 52 ; Dresser, B. Eur. v. p. 125, pi. ; El. B. Burm. p. 71 ; David et Oust.Ois.Ckine, p. 77 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 580 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 288 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 143; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 85; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 157. Description. — Male. Lores and a long supercilium white; forehead, crown and nape black, sparingly streaked with white; back, scapulars, wing-coverts, rump and upper tail-coverts black, edged with white ; tail white at the base, then black and tipped with white; primaries black, with a broad band of white at base, and narrowly tipped with white ; secondaries and tertiaries mixed black and white ; the ear- coverts and feathers round the eye black ; cheeks and whole lower plumage white ; a broad band of black across the breast, followed by another narrow one, separated from the first by a narrow band of white ; the lower throat and sides of the body spotted with black in some specimens, unspotted in others. The female differs in having the broad black band across the breast interrupted in the middle, and in having the second black narrow band of the male entirely absent. Bill black ; mouth dusky ; iris dark brown ; eyelids pinkish ; legs black ; claws dark horn. Length 11'7 inches, tail 3*3, wing 5*5, tarsus "45, bill from gape 3. The female is of about the same size. The Pied Kingfisher is found commonly over the whole of Arrakan and Pegu in the plains. In Tenasserim Mr. Davison did not observe it south of Amherst ; but it may extend further south, for it is stated to have been procured in the Malay peninsula. It is a bird of immense range; but it does not appear to be anywhere migratory. It is found in Siam, Cochin China and over a considerable portion of China, in the Indo-Burmese countries, the peninsula of India, Persia, Asia Minor, Southern Europe and the whole continent of Africa. This common Kingfisher is mostly found in open country, where the banks of the streams and ponds are more or less free from thick jungle ; and it appears to be less common in the vicinity of the sea than elsewhere. It hovers in the air, watching for fish, more habitually than any of the other Kingfishers. I have found its eggs in October and November ; and in some streams its nest-holes are quite common. The eggs are usually five in number; and the tunnel leading to the egg-chamber is frequently very short, in some cases not more than a foot in length. 78 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus PELARGOPSIS, Gloger. 467. PELARGOPSIS AMAUROPTERA. THE BROWN-SHOULDERED STORK-BILLED KINGFISHER. Halcyon amauroptera, Pears. J. A. S. B. x. p. 635 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 224. Pelargopsis amauroptera, Sharpe, Mon. Alced. p. 97, pi. 30 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 70 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 305 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 73 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85. Description. — Male and female. The whole head and neck, the entire under surface and the under wing-coverts deep cinnamon-buff, occasion- ally obsoletely barred with black on the neck ; back, rump and the shorter upper tail-coverts bright silvery blue ; the longer tail-coverts and the whole of the wings and tail dark cinnamon-brown. In the immature bird the wing-coverts are edged with fulvous. Bill deep crimson; legs scarlet; irides brown. (Jerdon.) Length about 14 inches, tail 4, wing 5'8, tarsus '6, bill from gape 3*7. The Brown-shouldered Stork-billed Kingfisher occurs along the whole sea-coast line of British Burmah, coming inland only as far as the tidal waters penetrate. It appears to be not uncommon ; but I have never had the opportunity of observing it. It extends along the coast, north to Bengal and south to Junk Ceylon in the Malay peninsula. Although this fine Kingfisher appears to be restricted to salt or brackish waters, yet it is occasionally found elsewhere ; for Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Yeytho, on the road leading from Rangoon to Prome, and about forty miles from the former town. Its habits are similar to those of the next species. 468. PELARGOPSIS BURMANICA THE BURMESE STORK-BILLED KINGFISHER. Pelargopsis burmanica, Sharpe, P. Z. S. 1870, p. 67 ; id. Mon. Alced. p. 109, pi. 35 ; Ball, S. F. i. p. 57 j Hume, S. F. ii. p. 165, iii. p. 50; Bl. B. Burm. p. 70 j Bingham, S. F. v. p. 83 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 73 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 154. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape, lores, cheeks and ear- coverts light brown ; the whole lower plumage and under wing- coverts orange-buff, pale on the chin and throat, and with fine wavy cross bars on THE BURMESE STORK-BILLED KINGFISHER. 79 the lower neck, breast aud abdomen ; the sides of the neck and a broad collar round the neck orange-buff; upper back, scapulars, tertiaries, wing-coverts and the longer upper tail-coverts greenish blue ; lower back, rump and the shorter tail-coverts ultramarine- blue ; inner webs of pri- maries and secondaries brown ; the outer webs of the secondaries and the basal portion of the outer webs of the primaries greenish blue ; tail blue, tinged with purple. In very old birds the wavy lines on the lower plumage disappear. The female differs only in having the back and scapulars tinged with brown. Bill dark red, brown at the tip ; mouth dark salmon-red ; iris dark brown ; eyelids pinkish fleshy, the edges red ; feet a paler red than the bill ; claws horn. Length 14'5 inches, tail 4*5, wing 6, tarsus '7, bill from gape 3'75. The female is larger. The Burmese Stork-billed Kingfisher is abundant over the whole of Pegu and Tenasserim, and probably also Arrakan, although its occurrence in this Division has not yet been noted. Dr. Armstrong did not observe it in the Irrawaddy Delta, but I received skins from Yandoon, and it pro- bably occurs over the whole of the low plains composing the Delta. It is recorded from the Andaman Islands and from Siam. Dr. Tiraud states that it is found in Cochin China, and it extends down the Malay peninsula as far at least as Malacca. This Kingfisher, one of the commonest and best known in Burmah, is found alike in the hills and plains, and is especially abundant in the nullahs of the former. It has a very loud and striking note, and it feeds not only on fish, but also on reptiles. In the rains it may frequently be seen busy catching fish in the inundated plains in the south of Pegu, seating itself on the telegraph-wires which traverse the fields, and darting into the water with great impetuosity. I found the eggs in a hole of a river-bank near Pegu in April; they were four in number. Captain Bingham found the eggs in the Thoungyeen valley in February, March and April in the holes of banks, and on one occasion he identified as the nest of this bird a structure made of grass placed in a bamboo bush ; but there is little doubt, I think, that he was deceived as to the ownership of the nest. There are many races of this Kingfisher : — P. gurial, of the Indian penin- sula, with a dark brown cap; P. malaccensis, from Malacca, somewhat similar to P. yurial, but much smaller; P. fraseri, from Malacca and some of the islands, with a very indistinct cap ; P. intermedia, from the Nicobar Islands ; and others from more remote regions. 80 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Subfamily DACELONINJE. Genus CEYX, Lacep. 469. CEYX TRIDACTYLA. THE THREE-TOED KINGFISHER. Alcedo tridactyla, Pall. Spic. Zool. vi. p. 10, t. ii. fig. 1. Ceyx tridactyla, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 229; Sharpe, Mon. Aked. p. 119, pi. 40; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 51; Bl. B. Burm. p. 71 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 303; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 80; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86 ; Bingham, S. F. viii. p. 193, ix. p. 155 ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 478 ; Oates, S. F. x. 187. Description. — Male and female. The lores and the feathers immediately round the base of upper mandible black, tinged with blue ; forehead, crown and nape chestnut, the portion over the eye and ear-coverts glossed with lilac; chin and throat white; cheeks, ear-coverts and the whole lower plumage buffy yellow, tinged with rufous across the breast ; a spot behind the ear-coverts bluish black ; below this another patch of white ; back black, the lower feathers tipped with shining blue ; scapulars and lesser wing-coverts black ; all the feathers of the latter, and the exterior feathers of the former, tipped with blue ; greater coverts and quills black ; the secondaries and tertiaries edged with blue ; edge of wing chestnut ; lower back, rump and upper tail -coverts chestnut, glossed with lilac ; tail chest- nut, tipped narrowly with brown ; under wing-coverts pale rufous. Bill bright red ; mouth paler red ; eyelids, where visible, plumbeous ; iris dark brown ; legs and claws red. Length 5*4 inches, tail 1*1, wing 2 '2, tarsus '3, bill from gape T55. The female is of the same size. The Three-toed Kingfisher, a lovely and diminutive species, occurs in suitable localities throughout a considerable portion of Burmah. I noticed it to be common in the evergreen forests of the Pegu hills, and also in some thick jungle between Kyeikpadein and the Pegu river on some low hills. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan. Mr. Davison states that it is not uncommon in Tenasserim south of Yea, and Capt. Bingham observed it in the Thoungyeen valley. It occurs over the greater part of India and Ceylon, the Malay penin- sula, Sumatra and Java, and it also extends to Cochin China. This small Kingfisher is fond of rocky streams in dense forests, where water collects in small pools ; it is also found in dry nullahs, but not so commonly. Seated on a rock or a branch, it allows a very near approach, THE RUDDY KINGFISHER. 81 and then darts away with lightning speed, uttering a low sibilant note. ]\Ir. Parker found the eggs in Ceylon in April, July and August; and he states that, unlike those of other Kingfishers, they are pointed at the ends. The birds under observation were breeding in dense forest far from water. The allied C. rufidorsa, from the Malayan peninsula and islands, is still more brilliantly coloured, and wants the blackish-blue patches on the sides of the head. Genus HALCYON, Swains. 470. HALCYON COROMANDA. THE RUDDY KINGFISHER. Alcedo coromanda, Lath. 2nd. Orn. i. p. 252. Halcyon coromandelianus (Scop.), Jcrd. B. Ind. i. p. 227. Callialcyon coromanda, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 101 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 76. Halcyon coromanda, Sharpe, Mon. Alced. p. 155, pi. 57; Hume, S. F. ii. pp. 169, 494; Bl B. Sunn. p. 70; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 456; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 75; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage rich rufous, suffused with shining lilac, glossy on all the parts except the forehead, crown and lores ; the inner webs of the tail and wings duller rufous ; lower back and rump glossy bluish white ; lower plumage rich ferruginous, paler on the throat and darkest on the breast. Bill red, blackish at the base ; iris brown ; legs and claws red. Length 10 inches, tail 2' 7, wing 4'2, tarsus '6, bill from gape 2'5. The female is of about the same size. The Ruddy Kingfisher is one of the rarest in British Burmah, being found only occasionally in a few places. I shot one specimen near the town of Pegu, and I once observed it near Shwaygheen, and the late Colonel Lloyd appears to have sent it to the Marquis of Tweeddale from the neighbourhood of Tonghoo ; it may, however, be more common in the maritime portions of the Division. Mr. Davison found it throughout Tenasserim, but chiefly near the sea, and my men brought me one specimen from Malewoon. This species is found in India along the base of the Himalayas, in Nipal and Sikhim, and also in Lower Bengal. It occurs in the Andaman Islands, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, the Philippines, Celebes, Formosa and Japan; and Dr. Tiraud gives it from Cochin China. VOL. ii. 82 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 471. HALCYON SMYENENSIS. THE WHITE-BREASTED KINGFISHER. Alcedo smyrnensis, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 181. Alcedo fusca, Bodd. Tabl. PI. Enl. p. 54. Halcyon fuscus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 224. Halcyon smyrnensis, Sharpe, Mon. Alced. p. 161, pi. 59 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 105 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 133, pi. ; Bl B. Burm. p. 70 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 306 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 143 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 74 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 579; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 298; Hume, S.F. viii. p. 85; Bingham, S.F. ix. p. 154 ; Kelliam, Ibis, 1881, p. 380. Entomobia smyrnensis, David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 76. Description. — Male and female. Chin, throat and centre of the breast white ; remainder of the head and lower plumage, the whole neck and the upper back rich chocolate-brown ; centre of the back and scapulars greenish blue ; lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts ultramarine-blue ; tail blue, the centre feathers duller ; lesser wing-coverts chestnut ; median coverts black ; greater coverts black, tipped with blue ; primaries with a patch of white on the inner webs, increasing in extent till it occupies nearly the whole web on the last primary; the outer webs correspondingly bluish white, then blue for a short distance, and finally the tips of the feathers black ; secondaries and tertiaries blue, broadly edged with brown on the inner web. Bill dark red, with the margins brownish ; mouth bright red ; iris brown ; eyelids plumbeous, the edges pinkish brown ; legs coral-red ; claws horny. Length ITS inches, tail 3' 7, wing 4*7, tarsus '6, bill from gape 2'6. The female is of the same size. The White-breasted Kingfisher is abundant over the whole Province, except, perhaps, on the higher hills and mountains. It has a considerable range, being found throughout the Indo-Burmese countries, the whole of India, with Ceylon, and further on in Southern Asia as far as Palestine and the Red Sea. It occurs in China, Siam, Cochin China and the Malay peninsula. This Kingfisher has habits peculiar to itself, being in great measure independent of water and living mostly on small reptiles and large insects. It is found principally in well-wooded parts of the country, flying from tree to tree and seizing its prey on the ground. It has a loud and easily recognizable call. The eggs, usually five in number, are laid in a hole in the bank of a ravine in forests and not in the banks of rivers. The breeding-season lasts from April to June. THE BLACK-CAPPED KINGFISHER. 83 472. HALCYON PILEATA. THE BLACK-CAPPED KINGFISHER. Alcedo pileata, n. Buceros galeatus, Gm. Syst. Nat. \. p. 3GO. Rhinoplax scuta- tus, Sahad. Ucc. Born. p. 88. Rhinoplax vigil, Elliot, Mon. Bucer. pi. x. ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 115; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown and nape with a short occipital oivst dark brown ; ear-coverts and scattered feathers on the sides of the head brown edged with rufons ; remainder of the head, all the neck and a considerable portion of the back bare and red ; the upper plumage, wings and breast brown ; the longer upper tail-coverts white ; primaries and most of the secondaries tipped with white; abdomen, sides of the body, vent and under tail-coverts white ; central tail-feathers grey, the others white, the whole with a broad black band near their ends. The female does not appear to differ from the male except in having a shorter tail. The whole of the sides, the top of the casque and the sides of both upper and lower mandible as far as the casque extends are deep crimson ; the truncated front of the casque and the whole of the upper mandible beyond the casque are a bright orange-yellow ; irides dark litharge-red ; legs and feet dirty orange-brown ; skin of eyelids the same dirty red as the other bare portions. (Davison.) Length of male to end of ordinary tail-feathers 43' 5 inches ; tail to end of ordinary tail-feathers 18 ; wing 19*25 ; tarsus 3 ; bill from gape straight to point fr75 ; length of casque along its upper ridge 3; height of upper mandible and casque 3*5. (Davison.) This remarkable form differs from all others in having a short rounded casque quite solid throughout instead of hollow, and in having the central pair of tail-feathers produced a considerable distance, twelve to eighteen inches, beyond the next pair. It has the head, neck and a considerable portion of the back naked and of a red colour, and altogether it is, as Mr. Hume aptly calls it, a perfect nightmare of a bird. The Solid-billed Hombill has been observed in the extreme south of Tenasserim at Bankasoon, where Mr. Davison obtained one specimen and my men another. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and occurs in Sumatra and Borneo. Mr. Davison is probably the only naturalist who has observed this bird in a state of nature, lie says : — " The birds are excessively shy and rare, 90 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. and they confine themselves almost exclusively to the evergreen forests, where they frequent the very highest trees. Their note is very peculiar and can. be heard at the distance of a mile or more. It commences with a series of whoops, uttered at intervals of about half a minute for five or ten minutes ; then the interval between each whoop grows shorter and shorter, till the whoop, whoop, whoop is repeated very quickly ten or a dozen times — the bird ending up by going off into a harsh quacking laugh. There is then a pause of ten minutes or a quarter of an hour or more, and then it recommences." He adds that the specimen shot by him had eaten fruit. Genus ANTHRACOCEROS, Eeich. 478. ANTHRACOCEEOS ALBIROSTEIS *. THE SMALL PIED HORNBILL. Buceros albirostris, Shaw, Gen. Zool. viii. p. 13; Tickett, Ibis, 1864, p. 179. Hydrocissa albirostris, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 247 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 82 ; BL B. Burm. p. 68 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 455 ; Inylis, S. F. v. p. 20 ; Bingham, 8. F. v. p. 84 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 577 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 100; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 46; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86; Bingham, S. F. viii. p. 462, ix. p. 158. Anthracoceros malabaricus (Gm.), Elliot, Mon. Bucer. pi. xiii, (part.). Description. — Male and female. Abdomen, sides of the body, vent and under tail-coverts white; the remainder of the plumage black, more or less glossy ; the four outer pairs of tail-feathers very broadly tipped with white; all the secondaries and all the primaries except the first two tipped with white; edge of the wing white. Bill vellowish white ; the base of the casque and an oblong patch on the fore part dark brown ; base of both mandibles black, extending to the fore part of the naked skin of the face ; orbital skin bluish white ; mouth dark ochraceous brown ; edges of eyelids brown ; iris red to brown ; legs dusky green ; claws horny. The female has a patch of reddish brown in front of the black of the lower mandible, and there is considerably more brown on both mandibles and on the casque than in the male. Length 28 inches, tail 11, wing 11, tarsus 2, bill from gape 5. The female is smaller : wing 10, tail 10, bill from gape 4'5. In the very young bird there is no casque. The casque of this Hornbill is rather cylindrical and reaches over about * As Mr. Hume lias shown, Gmelin's name of malabaricus applies rather to A. affinis than to the present species. In any case I think it preferable to use Shaw's name. BLYTirS WREATHED HORNBILL. 91 two thirds the length of the bill ; in old birds it is nearly as high as the bill itself. Allied species from neighbouring regions are : — A. affinis from Northern India, similar in plumage to the present, but constantly larger; A.frater- (•H/HX from Cochin China, also similar in plumage, but said to have the casque different in colour and shape. A. coronatus from S. India and A. conrcxus from the Malay peninsula are also similar in coloration, but differ notably in having the outer tail-feathers entirely white ; the former is larger in size and the latter smaller. A. malayanus has the whole lower plumage black and a broad supercilium white. The Small Pied Hornbill is found abundantly over the whole of British Burmah. I know of no part of the province where it is not to be met with all the year round. It occurs as often singly and in pairs as in small flocks, and frequents every description of jungle, both dense forest and outlying groups of trees. Fruit constitutes its chief food, but it also eats reptiles and has been known to catch fish. I have frequently got the eggs in March ; they are laid in a hole of a tree at a great height from the ground, and are usually three in number, white, much stained with yellow as incubation proceeds. The female is plastered up in her nest, as is usual with all those species of Hornbills the breeding-habits of which arc known. Genus RHYTIDOCEROS, Seich. 479. RHYTIDOCEROS SUBRUFICOLLIS. BLYTH'S WREATHED HORNBILL. Buceros subruficollis, Bl. J. A. S. B. xii. p. 177. Buceros pusaran, Tick. Ibis, 1864, p. 180 (part.). Rhyticeros subruficollis, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 115 ; Wardlaw Ramsay ', Ibis, 1877, p. 455; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 112; Ilu-mc, S. F. viii. p. 80 ; Bint/ham, S. F. viii. p. 463, ix. p. 159. Aceros subrufi- collis, Bl. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 69; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 46. Buceros subrufi- collis, Tweed. Ibis, 1877, p. 295. Rhytidoceros subruficollis, Elliot, M<»t. Bucer. pi. xxxvi. Description. — Male. Sides of the crown, cheeks, ear-coverts and fore- head pale golden fulvous ; a broad line passing from the base of the bill over the head, widening out to the full width of the neck and reaching down to the back, rich dark golden brown ; feathers at the base of the upper mandible the same rich colour; sides of the neck, chin, throat and upper breast white tinged with pale shining fulvous ; tail white, with a trace of black at the base ; remainder of the plumage glossy black, with 9.2 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. green and bronze reflections, especially strong on . the back and scapulars ; the first and second primaries tipped slightly with white; eyelashes black. The base of the casque and basal third of bill brownish red ; the corru- gations of the casque black in the valleys and yellowish on the ridges ; the terminal two thirds of the bill pale yellow; gular skin bright gamboge- yellow ; eyelids pinkish flesh-colour, the edges red ; iris bright pink ; legs and claws dark brown. The female has the tail white as in the male ; with this exception the whole plumage is black. On the breast there is generally, but not always, a pale fulvous crescentic patch ; this is probably a sign of immaturity. Base of the upper mandible and base of casque reddish brown ; base of lower mandible black ; remainder of bill yellowish white; iris orange-red; eyelids deep reddish brown ; orbital skin purplish brown ; gular skin smalt- blue, changing to yellow at the junction with the feathered parts all round ; legs deep brownish black ; claws dark horn. Length 34 inches, tail 11, wing 16' 5, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape 7. The female is considerably small er5 the wing being about 16 and the total length about 30 inches, bill from gape 6. The casque in this and the next species is small, extending over about half the bill, and is transversely ribbed. The number of corrugations on the casque varies considerably, some- times being only two, sometimes as many as five. Young birds at first have the casque smooth. Blyth's Wreathed Hornbill is found locally throughout British Burmah. Colonel Tickell speaks of its being found in the inland forests of Arrakan ; but I do not know of any one else who has met with it in that Division. In Pegu it is spread over the eastern portion of the Division on both sides the Sittang river from Tonghoo down to the town of Sittang, and I observed it to be most numerous near the village of Khayuay. Mr. Davison found it abundant in Tenasserim from Moulmein to Tavoy, and almost absent in the country south of this latter town. Capt. Bingham notes it from the Thoungyeen valley. It is not yet known to occur outside the limits of British Burmah. It is by no means clear that this bird occurs in Arrakan. Colonel Tickell published an account of Buceros pusaran in ' The Ibis ' for 1864, and Mr. Elliot unhesitatingly identified this bird with R. subruficollis. I cannot find a single word in Col. TickelFs account to show that he referred to R. subruficollis in contradistinction to R. undulalus. In his ' Illustra- tions of Indian Ornithology ? Colonel Tickell figures a Hornbill very beautifully, and gives an enlarged drawing of the head, under the name of Buceros pusaran, and both the figure and the head represent R. subrufi- collis ; but Col. Tickell in his manuscript states that he cannot make out how R. undulatus and R. subruficollis differ; and it is plain that he con- THE MALAYAN WREATHED HORNBILL. 93 founded the two species. It is therefore quite as probable that he procured the former and not the latter in Arrakan. This Hornbill is almost invariably seen in large flocks, flying low, and, when on trees, not showing the same amount of watchfulness as the other species. At Myitkyo, where I had ample opportunities of observing them, I saw them flying in hundreds over the canal-lock and its neighbourhood every morning during the earlier months of the year. After crossing the Sittang river and the canal they would settle on the Pegu plain, and spend the whole morning hopping about the ground. On shooting them on their return to the forests on the east of the Sittang, I found their pouches full of earth and snail-shells : the former was probably required for their nests, and the latter no doubt they fed largely on. I got an egg in March in the forests west of Payagalay, on the Tonghoo road ; it was placed in a natural hollow at an immense height in a wood-oil tree, and the female was built in with clay. 480. RHYTIDOCEROS UNDULATUS. THE MALAYAN WREATHED HORNBILL. Buceros undulatus, Shaw, Gen. Zool viii. p. 26. Buceros pusaran Tick. Ibis, 1864, p. 180 (part.). Rhyticeros obscurus (Gm.), Hume, Nests andEyys,^. 115. Rhytidoceros obscurus (Gm.*), Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 85. Aceros plicatus (? Lath.), El. B. Bunn. p. 69. Rhytidoceros undulatus, Elliot, Man. Bucer. pi. xxxv. ; Tweedd. Ibis, 1877, p. 292. Rhyticeros undu- latus, Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. Ill; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86; Bingham, S. F. viii. pp. 194, 463, ix. p. 159. Description. — Male and female. Similar in coloration respectively to the male and female of R. subruficoUis , but differing in being larger, in having the wing differently shaped, the secondaries and tertiaries being nearly as long as the primaries, and in having several ribs or ridges on the sides of both mandibles near the gape. The bill and other parts of the bird are similar in colour to those of R. subruficoUis , except that in both sexes the gular pouch has a blackish band drawn across its base, more or less broken in the centre. Length 40 inches, tail 12'5, wing 19, tarsus 2*5, bill from gape 8. The female is much smaller: length 35 inches, tail 11, wing 17, tarsus 2*2, bill from gape G'5. The Malayan Wreathed Hornbill appears to occur in but few parts of British Burmah except in Tenasserim. In this Division Mr. Davison states that it is common from Arnherst southwards ; and Capt. Bingham obtained it in the Thoungyecn valley. I have not met with it in any part of Pegu; 94 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. but Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured a young bird at Tonghoo. Mr. Blyth gives it from Arrakan, and Mr. Theobald noticed it at Sandoway. To the north it has been met with in Chittagong, Cachar, the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal and in Assam. On the south it ranges down the Malay peninsula, and it occurs in Sumatra, Java and Borneo; and Dr. Tiraud states that it is found in Cochin China. The habits of this Hornbili do not present any peculiarities. Mr. Theobald in Arrakan and Capt. Bingham in Tenasserim found the eggs in March. Other species of this germs are R. plicatus, from New Guinea and the further islands, and R. narcondami, from the Nicobar Islands. Genus ANORRHINUS, Eeich. 481. ANORRHINUS COMATUS. THE LONG-CRESTED HORNBILL. Buceros comatus, Raffi. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 339. Anorrhinus comatus, Ettiotj Mon. Bucer. pi. xxxix. Berenicornis comatus, Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 106 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86. Description. — Male. The head, a long and ample crest covering the whole crown and nape, the neck, breast, upper abdomen, tail and the tips of all the primaries and secondaries except the first two primaries white ; remainder of the plumage black, with a green gloss on the wings and scapulars. The female has the forehead, crown, nape, crest, tail and the tips of the primaries and secondaries white ; the feathers of the head with black shafts ; remainder of the plumage black, with a green gloss on the wings and scapulars. The legs, feet and claws are black, apparently at all ages ; the irides in the adults are wax -yellow, but oil-yellow in the younger birds. In the old adults the facial skin and the base of the lower mandible are a deep but rather dull blue, in somewhat younger birds it is a paler blue, in the next stage pink tinged with blue, and. in the youngest bird pink. In the oldest adult the bill is perfectly black, except the ridge of the casque and a slight mottling of a pale dull green at the bases of both mandibles. In the youngest birds almost the whole of both mandibles is of this dull horny green-colour, only on the upper mandible there is a large patch of THE BUSHY-CHESTED HORNBILL. 95 horny black on either side just in front of the casque, and behind this the sides of the upper mandible and casque are a duskier horny green than elsewhere. (Davison.) Length about 40 inches, tail 18, wing 15, tarsus 2'4, bill from gape to tip 6'5. The female is rather smaller. The Hornbills of this genus have a small smooth casque indistinctly separated from the upper mandible, over which it extends for rather more than half its length. A peculiar feature of the present species is its enormous and peculiar shaped crest. The Long-crested Hornbill occurs in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where my men procured it at Bankasoou. Mr. Davison also obtained it at this village, and further north at the base of Nwalabo mountain. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and occurs in Sumatra ; and Dr. Tiraucl records it from Cochin China. This species, according to Mr. Davison, keeps about the lower trees and undergrowth and is very shy. It feeds not only on fruit, but also on lizards and small birds, and it is constantly seen on the ground. 482. ANOEBHINUS GALEKITUS. THE BUSHY-CRESTED HORNBILL. Buceros galeritus, Ten mi. PI. Col. 520. Anorrhinus galeritus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 79 ; Tweedd. Ibis, 1877, p. 292 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 109 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86 j Elliot, Mon. Bucer. pi. xlii. Description *. — Male and female. " The forehead, entire top, back and sides of the head and neck, crest and entire upper parts dark brown, with a strong metallic green reflection ; ear-coverts rather darker, and wanting this reflection ; feathered portion of throat, breast and abdomen a dull chocolate-brown, somewhat paler in the middle of the abdomen ; the feathers somewhat glossy, but almost entirely wanting the marked green reflections of the upper surface ; tibial plumes similar but darker, and exhibiting more of these reflections; vent paler and drabby; lower tail-coverts a somewhat pale drab-brown, fringed paler Tail with about the basal three-fifths greyish drab ; terminal two-fifths black or nearly so, glossed with green as the rest of the upper parts. The quills have a barely perceptible pale brownish margin to the outer webs. "In the adult male the legs, feet and claws are black; the irides lake- red ; the gular and orbital skin pale blue, darker at the anterior angle of * My men did not procure this species in Tenasserim, and I therefore quote Messrs. Hume and Davison 's description of the bird. 96 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. the eye ; angle of the gonys and base of throat and eyelids mottled black and white." In the female the gular and orbital skin is probably black. Mr. Elliot states that the skin on the throat is yellow. Length about 35 inches, tail 13, wing 14, tarsus 2, bill from gape 5 "2. The female is very little smaller. The crest in both sexes is very thick and long, measuring as much as five inches in length. The Bushy-crested Hornbill occurs in the south of Tenasserim from Bankasoon up to Nwalabo mountain. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. According to Mr. Davison this species is not uncommon in Southern Tenasserim, but is very wary and difficult to approach. It is strictly arboreal and probably feeds on nothing but fruit. 483. ANOEEHINUS TICKELLI. TICKELL'S HORNBILL. Buceros tickelli, Bl. J. A. S. B. xxiv. pp. 266, 285, xxviii. p. 412. Toccus tickelli, Tick. Ibis, 1864, p. 173, pi. iii. Anorrhinus tickelli, Bl. B. Burnt. p. 69 ; Elliot, Mon. Bucer. pi. xliii. ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86. Ocyceros tickelli, Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 103 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 499 ; Binyham, S. F. viii. p. 462, ix. p. 158. Description. — Male. A patch of feathers behind each nostril pale ferru- ginous ; forehead, crown and nape dark brown, each feather edged with reddish brown, and each feather of the nape with a mesial grey shaft-line ; the whole upper plumage and wing-coverts dark brown ; the scapulars, rump and upper tail-coverts and wing- coverts edged somewhat paler, and the other parts somewhat darker ; tail dark brown, very narrowly edged with greyish white on the outer webs, and all the feathers broadly tipped with white ; primaries black, all but the first and last two with a patch of buff on the outer webs ; secondaries black, edged on the outer webs with pale buff ; tertiaries brown, edged narrowly all round with paler brown ; primary-coverts black, most of them mottled with white near their tips ; the primary quills tipped white ; cheeks, ear-coverts, sides of neck and the whole lower plumage bright ferruginous ; under wing-coverts smoky buff. The female differs in no respect from the male. An immature male has the sides of the head, chin, throat and breast with white shaft-stripes ; but differs in no other respect from the adult. Male : bill yellow, with a patch of red on either side the base of the lower mandible ; orbital skin pale blue ; iris brown ; legs dark brownish TICKELL'S HORNBILL, 97 blurk or dark plumbeous; claws horn-colour. Young male : bill yellow, basal half greenish ; orbital skin straw-yellow ; iris grey ; legs greyish green; claws horn-colour. Adult female : bill yellowish, irregularly blotched with greenish ; orbits dull brownish yellow, with a livid patch at the hind corner of each eye; iris light brown; legs dull livid plumbeous ; claws horn-colour. Another female, apparently immature : skin round eye brownish; ridge of upper mandible yellowish horny, remainder of the bill dirty brown ; legs dark brown ; iris brown ; claws black. Male : length 29 inches, tail 12'5, wing 13, tarsus 1*9, bill from gape 4-6 to 5'2. Female : length 27 inches, tail 11-5, wing 12, tarsus T8, bill from gape 4. The above descriptions are taken from a beautiful series of birds in Captain Bingham's collection. Mr. Hume states that the female differs from the male in having the lower plumage earthy brown, and in having the amount of white in the tippings of the wings and tail reduced in extent; but two females in Capt. Bingham's collection are absolutely like the males in plumage except that one, of which it is noted that it was caught on the nest, has the lower surface a dull ferruginous brown. This is due, I think, to the peculiar habits of the nesting female, who never leaves the nest the whole time incubation is proceeding. The feathers, under these circum- stances, must necessarily become dull coloured by abrasion, but otherwise there is no difference in colour between her and the male. TickelPs Hornbill is remarkably local, being, so far as is at present known, entirely confined to the tract of country in Tenasserim lying to the east of Moulmein. Messrs. Davison and Darling and Capt. Bingham met with it at various places the names of which are carefully recorded in their writings ; but the area may be described as extending from the head of the Thoungyeen river to its junction with the Sal ween, and right across the valley from ridge to ridge. This Hornbill, according to all accounts, is one of the most wary of its tribe except at the breeding-season, when it appears in some measure to put aside its fears. In the many instances in which Capt. Bingham found the nests they were situated quite low down in holes of trees, and the male birds were easily approached. The breeding-season is in February and March ; the eggs vary in number from two to five and are white. These Hornbills are apparently arboreal and frugivorous, never descend- ing to the ground. A. austeni, from the Cachar hills, described by Dr. Jerdon from a speci- men procured by Col. Godwin- Austen, appears to differ from A. tickelli in being larger and in having the throat, sides of the neck and the bases of the primaries white. I have not been able to examine the type, which is said to be in the British Museum. VOL. II. H 98 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus ACEKOS, Hodgs. 484. ACEROS NIPALENSIS. THE RUFOUS-NECKED HORNBILL. Buceros nepalensis, Hodgs. Calc. Glean. Sc. i. p. 249; id. P. Z. S. 1832, p. 15; Tick. Ibis, 1864, p. 182. Aceros nipalensis, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 250 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 69 ; Gammie, S. F. iii. p. 209 ; Elliot, Mon. Bucer. pi. xlv. ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 110 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86. Description. — Male. The whole head, neck and breast bright rufous; abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts deep chestnut ; the feathers of the neck long and covering the upper back ; back, rump, scapulars, wings and upper tail-coverts glossy black ; the tips of the second to the fifth primaries white ; the basal two thirds of the tail black, the terminal third white. The female is black throughout, the wings and upper plumage glossed with green ; tips of the tail-feathers and some of the primaries white, as in the male. The female has the naked space on the throat vermilion, heart-shaped, bounded by a narrow grey-black band confined to the base of the lower mandible and side of neck ; around the eye blue, under eyelid pink ; bill pale waxy yellow, with two well-marked black bars at base of upper man- dible; the lower has a pale soiled appearance for about 1J inch (Godwin- Austen). Naked skin round the eyes and at base of bill rich velvety light blue; the naked skin of the throat bright scarlet; bill yellow with the grooved striae chestnut (Jerdori). Length 45 to 48 inches, tail 18, wing 18, tarsus 2'5, bill from gape 8. The female is smaller : length 42 inches, tail 17, wing 16, bill from gape 7*5. The Rufous-necked Hornbill was observed, and a specimen procured, in Tenasserim by Col. Tickell on a ridge near Mooleyit mountain; and Mr. Davison saw the bird, but failed to secure specimens, at or near the same locality. This Hornbill has been met with in Cachar and the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and it ranges along the Himalayas to Nipal. Mr. Gammie found the nest with a solitary egg in Sikhim in May, situated in the hollow of a tree at a great height from the ground. Other Hornbills from adjoining countries not already mentioned are : — Buceros rhinoceros, from Malacca, with the point of the casque curled upwards ; Cranorrhinus corrugatus, from the Malay peninsula, with the terminal half of the tail chestnut ; Tockus griseus and T. gingalensis, from India, both of a brownish colour and with no casque on the bill ; and Lophoceros birostriSj also from India, with a sharp-pointed and projecting casque. THE RED-HEADED TUOGON. 99 Suborder COCCYGES HETERODACTYL^E. Family TROGONID^E. Genus HARPACTES, Swains. 485. HARPACTES ERYTHROCEPHALUS. THE RED-HEADED TROGON. Trogon erythrocephalus, Gould, P. Z. S. 1834, p. 25 ; id. Mon. Troy. 1st edit, pi. 33. Trogon hodgsoni, Gould, t. c. 1st edit. pi. 34. Harpactes hodgsoni, Gould, t. c. 2nd edit. pi. 42 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 202 ; Hume, Nests and Egg*, p. 99 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 82 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 47 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 66. Harpactes erythrocephalus, Gould, Mon. Trog. 2nd edit. pi. 43 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 498 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85 ; Oates, S. F. viii. p. 164 j Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 152 ; Hume fy Inglis, S. F. ix. p. 246. Description. — Male. The whole head, neck and lower plumage deep crimson, duskier on the head and throat ; back, scapulars, lesser wing- coverts, rump and upper tail-coverts chestnut-brown ; greater and median coverts and tertiaries black, finely vermiculated with white ; primaries black, the outer edges white near the base; secondaries black, vermiculated with white on the outer webs only ; central tail-feathers chestnut, tipped with black ; the next pair chestnut, the tip and the outer half of the inner webs black ; the next pair black, the basal half of the outer web chestnut ; the others are black, broadly tipped with white. The female has the whole neck, breast and upper plumage ferruginous brown, and the lower plumage is less brilliant than in the male. The vermiculations on the wing are buff instead of brown. Bill bluish ; the culmen and tip of both mandibles and the anterior half of the margins of upper mandible black ; gape and orbital skin purplish blue ; iris dull red ; mouth flesh- colour ; legs pinkish ; claws dark at base, flesh-colour at tip. Length 13*5 inches, tail 8, wing 5'8, tarsus '6, bill from gape M. The female is a little smaller. The Trogon of this type from Sumatra and Borneo is said to differ from the Indian race. I have not been able to verify this statement. Should H2 100 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. it differ, however, it cannot bear either of Gould's names, for both are referable to the Indian and Burmese bird. The Red-headed Trogon is found abundantly over the whole of Pegu and Arrakan where there are tracts of heavy forest, and is more common on the hills than in the plains. In Tenasserim Mr. Davison did not meet with it south of Mooleyit mountain ; and Capt. Bingham remarks that it is by no means common in the Thoungyeen valley. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay obtained it in Karennee at an elevation of 4000 feet. It extends north through the Indo-Burmese countries and the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and it is found in the Himalayas as far as Nipal. This species, or a closely allied race, is said to occur in Borneo and Sumatra, but there is no record of its occurrence in the Malay peninsula. This Trogon affects thick forests, and, although solitary in its habits, it is so common in some of the hill-forests that a dozen or more may frequently be seen together. It feeds entirely on insects, swooping on them in the air. I found the eggs in May near Pegu; they were three in number, a very pale buff in colour, and laid on the bare wood in. a hollow of a decayed tree. Capt. Bingham found the eggs in Tenasserim in March. 486. HARPACTES ORESKIOS. THE YELLOW-BREASTED TROGON. Trogon oreskios, Temm. PI. Col. 181 ; Gould, Man. Trog. 1st edit. pi. 36. Har- pactes gouldii, Swains. Class. Birds, ii. p. 337. Harpactes oreskios, Wald. P. Z. S. 1866, p. 538 ; Gould, Mon. Trog. 2nd edit. pi. 46 j Hume, S. F. iii. p. 47 ; Bingham, S. F. v. pp. 50, 82 ; Davison, S. F. v. p. 454 j Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 66; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85. Orescius gouldii, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 31. Harpactes orescius, El. B. Burm. p. 82 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 186. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape, sides of the head and of the neck yellowish green ; chin, throat and upper breast dull yellow ; lower breast, abdomen and sides brilliant orange-yellow ; vent and under tail- coverts yellow ; back, scapulars, rump and upper tail-coverts chestnut ; central tail-feathers chestnut, tipped with black ; the next two pairs black ; the outer three pairs black at base, white at tip ; lesser wing-coverts chestnut-brown ; greater and median coverts and tertiaries black, closely barred with white ; primaries black, the outer webs of the second to the eighth edged with white ; secondaries black, barred with white on the outer webs only. The female has the head and nape olive-brown; the remainder of the DUVAUCEL'S TROGON. 'lOl upper plumage reddish brown ; tail as in the male; wings as in the male, ; pting that the bars on the coverts, secondaries and tertiaries are buff; the chin is yellowish ; the throat and breast greyish brown ; the remainder of the lower parts is deep yellow, without the fiery orange tint of the male. Bill purplish blue, the culmen and tip blackish; orbital skin bright smalt-blue; legs plumbeous blue; claws dark horn; mouth dusky flesh- colour; iris dark brown. Length 12 inches, tail 7'3, wing 5, tarsus *6, bill from gape "85. The female is of the same size. The Yellow-breasted Trogon is found over the greater part of British Burmah. Mr. Blyth gives it from Arrakan. In Pegu I observed it on the Pegu hills near the frontier, and more commonly in some of the forests between the hills and the Sittaug river as far down as Pegu ; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay got it on the Karin hills. Mr. Davison says it is generally distributed and common throughout Tenasserim, being more frequent between Moulmein and Tavoy ; and, according to Capt. Bingham, it is extremely common in the Thoungyeen valley. Out of Burmah it probably occurs in portions of the Malay peninsula, for it is met with in Sumatra, Java and perhaps in Borneo. Mr. Blyth gives it from Siam and Cambodia; but Dr. Tiraud did not find it in Cochin China. This Trogon is not confined to evergreen or dense forest like the preceding species, but is met with also in bamboo- and spare tree-jungle. It has similar habits to the Red-headed Trogon. Both Capt. Bingham and Mr. Davison found numerous nests of this bird in Tenasserim in February. The eggs, two or three in number, are placed at the bottom of a hole in a branch of a tree ; they are of a pale buff colour. 487. HARPACTES DUVAUCELII. DUVAUCEL'S TROGON. Trogon duvaucelii, Temm. PL Col 291 ; Gould, Mon. Trog. 1st edit. pi. 32. Py- rotrogon duvaucelii, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 29. Harpactes duvaucelii, Gould, Mon. Trog. 2nd edit. pi. 40 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 63 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 85. Description. — Male. The whole head and neck black ; back and scapulars ruddy buff ; rump, upper tail-coverts, breast and all the lower plumage bright crimson, becoming paler on the vent and under tail-coverts ; central tail-feathers bright bay, sometimes tipped black ; the next two pairs black ; 102 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. the others black at base and broadly white at tip ; wings blackish, all the coverts, the tertiaries, the outer webs of the secondaries and the outer web of the first primary barred with white ; the outer webs of the other pri- maries narrowly edged with white. The female has the head brown, tinged with rusty on the throat, and the lower plumage a paler crimson; the tail is the same as in the male ; the bars on the wings are buff instead of white; the rump and upper tail- coverts are like the back, but washed with crimson. Legs and feet pale smalt-blue, smalt-blue, dark purplish blue ; claws horny ; irides deep brown ; bare space over eye deep to bright smalt-blue ; gape to within half an inch of tip of bill a rich cobalt, shading to pale cobalt at tip of lower mandible ; tip and ridge of culmen and a narrow streak on each side horny black ; or, gape and sides of bill cobalt-blue ; culmen, tips of upper and lower mandibles, and edges of both for about one third of their length, measuring from the tip, black. (Davison.) Length 10 inches, tail 5'4, wing 4'2, tarsus *4, bill from gape '9. The female is of much the same size. A closely allied race, H. orrophceus, Cabanis, occurs in the south of the Malay peninsula. It has the rump and upper tail-coverts not crimson, but concolorous with the back. DuvauceFs Trogon occurs from the extreme south of Tenasserim up to NAvalabo mountain, and appears to be not uncommon. It extends down the Malay peninsula and is met with in Sumatra and Borneo. Mr. Davison says : — "In habits it resembles the other members of the genus, inhabiting the most shady depths of the evergreen forests, sitting quietly on some low branch, from which it occasionally swoops off to seize an insect, and at intervals uttering its soft note, which much resembles that of the other Trogons, but is much softer." THE EUROPEAN CUCKOO. 103 Suborder COCCYGES Z Y G O D A CTY L^E. Family CUCULID^E. Subfamily CUCULIN^). Genus CUCULUS, Linn. 488. CUCULUS CANORUS. THE EUROPEAN CUCKOO. Cuculus canorus, Linn. Si/st. Nat. i. p. 168 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 322 ; Hume, Ncste and Ei/t/s, p. 133 ; Wold. Trans. Zool. Soc. viii. p. 115 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 78 ; HI. B. Burin, p. 79; Hume, S. F. iv. p. 288 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 4oS ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 65 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 221 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 586 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 199, pi. ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 156; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 253; Oates, S. F. x. p. 192. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage ashy blue ; the wings brown, barred with white on the inner webs ; tail ashy brown, tipped with white and spotted with white along the shafts ; sides of the head, chin, throat and upper breast clear pale ashy ; remainder of lower plumage pale fulvous, narrowly barred with black ; under tail-coverts with hardly any bars or marks. The young bird has the whole upper plumage, wings and tail barred with ferruginous and the feathers tipped white, and the whole lower plumage is white barred with brown. Bill dusky horn, yellowish at the base and edges ; gape orange-yellow ; iris and legs yellow. The young have the iris brown ; edges of the eyelids yellow ; eyelids plumbeous ; mouth deep orange ; upper mandible dark brown ; lower mandible pale green ; legs yellow ; claws yellowish brown. Length 13 inches, tail 7, wing 8, tarsus *8, bill from gape 1*2. The female is rather smaller. The European Cuckoo is of smaller size in Burmah, but does not otherwise differ from the European bird. This well-known Cuckoo is tolerably abundant from August to February round about the towns of Pegu and Kyeikpadein and probably throughout the Pegu Division, for I procured a specimen at Prome in November 104 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Mr. Blyth records it from Moulmein in Tenasserim, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay found it abundant on the tableland of Karennee. It occurs, according to season, over the greater portion of Asia, Europe and Africa. The European Cuckoo appears to be merely a winter visitor to Burmah ; but a few may breed in this country, for on the 8th of August I once shot a bird which was so young that it was in all probability born in Burmah or close by in one of the adjacent countries. I have never heard its familiar call in Burmah ; but Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay states that he heard the note quite commonly in Karennee. It is well known that this Cuckoo lays its eggs in the nests of other birds ; and if it breeds in Burmah its egg will probably be found in the nest of some Timeliine bird. 489. CUCULUS MICROPTEEUS. THE INDIAN CUCKOO. Cuculus micropterus, Gould, P. Z. S. 1837, p. 137 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 326. no. 203 ; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 395 ; Bl. 8f Wald, E. Burm. p. 79; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 79 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. G4 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 156 ; Leage, Birds Ceylon, p. 228 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 193. Cuculus affinis, A. Hay, Bl. J. A. S. B. xv. p. 18 j Bl. B. Burm. p. 79 , Wardlaw Ramsay, Tiveedd. Mem. p. 671 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Cuculus striatus (Drap.), apud Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 328. no. 204. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, sides of head and neck and the cheeks ashy, pale on the sides of the forehead ; chin, throat and fore neck pale ashy ; upper plumage and wings brown ; the inner webs of the quills barred with white; the upper tail-coverts tinged with ashy ; tail ashy brown, tipped with whitish and with a broad sub- terminal black band ; all the feathers with white spots along the shaft, turning to bars on the outermost ones ; the edges of the central feathers marked with spots of rufous ; breast, abdomen, vent and sides of the body white, with numerous broad black cross bars ; under tail-coverts white, with a few indistinct bars. Young birds are dark brown ; the feathers of the upper plumage broadly tipped with rufous ; the head barred with rufous -white ; the lower plumage pale fulvous, with interrupted broad black bars ; tail much as in the adult, but the spots and marks rufous. Iris rich brown ; eyelids greenish plumbeous, the edges deep yellow ; gape yellow ; a small portion of the upper mandible under the nostrils and the greater portion of the lower mandible dull green ; remainder of the bill dark horny black ; legs yellow ; claws dark horn. THE ASIATIC CUCKOO. 105 Length 13 inches, tail 6'4 to 6'8, wing 7'5 to 8'5, tarsus '85, bill from gape 1'3. This Cuckoo, when adult, bears a close general resemblance to the European Cuckoo; but may be recognized by its plain brown upper plumage and the broad subterminal tail-bar; the bars of the lower plumage are also broader and less frequent. There is little doubt that C. affinis was described from a large specimen of C. micropterus. The Indian Cuckoo is generally distributed over Pegu both on the hills and plains, and is tolerably common. In Tenasserim it appears to be rare, for Mr. Davison did not meet with it often. I can find no record of its occurrence in Arrakan, but it is doubtless abundant in that Division. It occurs in the Indo- Burmese countries and the greater part of the peninsula of India with Ceylon. It is also found in China and Cochin China; Lieut. Kelham met with it at Perak and Singapore, and it is recorded from Malacca. It is probably spread over a considerable portion of Central Asia and possibly Siberia, but it is difficult to trace its distri- bution without an examination of specimens. The Indian Cuckoo is, I think, a permanent resident in Burmah, for its remarkable call may he heard during the greater part of the year; and in August I once shot a specimen which was obviously a nestling barely able to fly. This bird is very noisy and utters its call of four notes, which resemble the word bho-kutha-kho, from the top of a high tree almost throughout the entire day and late in the evening during the dry weather. It probably lays its eggs, like the other large parasitic Cuckoos, in the nests of the Timeliine birds. 490. CUCULUS STBIATUS. THE ASIATIC CUCKOO. Cuculus striatus, Di-ap. Diet. Class. a" Hist. Nat. iv. p. 570 ; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 395; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 190; id. Nests and Eyys, p. 134; Bl. />'. linnn. p. 79; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 65; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 15U; Hit me, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 2oo ; Hume, S. F. ix. p. 315 (note) ; O,//v.s S. F. x. p. 193. Cuculus himalayanus, Vigors, P. Z. S. 1831, p. 172 ; Jerd. S. Ind. i. p. 323 ; Seebohm, Ibis, 1878, p. 326. Description. — The whole upper plumage dark bluish ashy, browner on the wings ; the inner webs of the quills barred with white; tail dark ashy brown, with large white shaft-spots, which turn to bars on the outer feathers, and with a subterminal dark bar; sides of the head like the crown ; chin and throat pale ashy ; breast ashy, barred with rufous and 106 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. brown ; remainder of lower plumage pale buff, barred with black ; the bars on the under tail-coverts nearly obsolete. In another stage the whole upper plumage, wings and tail are barred with black and deep rufous. Feet, iris and gape bright yellow ; the upper mandible and the tip of the lower mandible horny green ; the rest of the lower mandible yellowish horny. (Davison.) Length 12 inches, tail 6, wing 6*8, tarsus '7, bill from gape I'l. The female appears to be slightly smaller. I have described above the only bird I procured in Pegu. It was shot in October, and agrees well with other birds from India and Siberia, except that the Pegu bird has a good deal of rufous on the breast. This species may always be distinguished from C. micropterus by the colour of its upper plumage, which is a clear bluish ashy, whereas in C. micropterus the upper plumage is brown with no bluish tinge. C. striatus, as a rule, also has a smaller bill ; but this is not a reliable character. From C. canorus it may be always separated by the subterminal dark bar on the tail. The Asiatic Cuckoo is somewhat rare in Pegu, for I procured only one specimen in that Division, and I never heard its note. Mr. Davison states that it is apparently not rare in Tenasserim. Both to Pegu and Tenas- serim it is probably only a winter visitor. It occurs, according to season, over the greater portion of Asia, extending, according to Mr. Blyth, even to North Australia. Mr. Seebohm procured it in Siberia, and his specimens are identical with Indian examples. This Cuckoo has a very peculiar note, which appears to resemble the cry of the Hoopoe, being a guttural and hollow-sounding hoo. It lays in the Himalayas during June, and deposits its eggs very frequently in the nest of Trochalopterum lineatum. The Cuckoos of South-eastern Asia have received a vast number of names, and it would require many months' labour and the examination of all the specimens contained in the European museums to evolve order from this confused mass of synonyms. C. hyperythrus is a very distinct and beautiful species, which inhabits the Philippines and is also said to occur in China. The whole upper plumage, chin and cheeks in the adult are dark ashy, almost black, and the whole breast and abdomen are a deep rufous unstreaked and unbarred. THE BANDED BAY CUCKOO. 107 491. CUCULUS SONNERATII. THE BANDED BAY CUCKOO. Cuculus sonneratii, Lath. Ind. Orn. i. p. 215 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 325 ; Wald. Trun*. '/<»>!. Soc. viii. p. 55; El. B. Burni. p. 80; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 687 : Hume $ Duo. S. F. vi. p. 15(3; Legye, Birds Ceylon, p. 233; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88; Fiote/, S. F. ix. p. 54. Description. — "Above greenish dusky, numerously cross-barred with rufous (which colour, indeed, may be said to predominate), except on the coverts of the primaries ; quills dusky rufous on the edge of the outer web, pale internally; tail rufous, with a broad dusky bar near the end; the outer webs nearly dusky and the tip white, and the inner webs with narrow bars ; the whole underparts, from the throat, white, very faintly tinged with fulvous on the flanks and marked with numerous narrow dusky cross bars ; sides of head and neck also white, similarly barred ; but the ear-coverts are coloured like the back, and frontal feathers are white at the base, showing conspicuously just over the bill. " The young are more closely barred than adults, with pale rufescent on a blackish ground, and the breast is white banded with dusky ; and aged indiyiduals have the back and wings very faintly barred, the tail with the central feathers nearly all black, the edges scolloped with rufous and the outer feathers with dusky ." (Jerdon.) Irides brown; legs greenish grey; bill dusky; orbits grey. (Vidal.) Length 9'5 inches, tail 4-5, wing 4-8, tarsus *7, bill from gape 1*1. As I have never procured this species in Burmah, and specimens are somewhat rare in English collections, I have preferred to give Dr. Jerdon's careful description. The Banded Bay Cuckoo was obtained at Thayetmyo by Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay, and it is recorded from Tenasserim by Mr. Blyth. It is apparently rare in Burmah. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries, and is found over a great part of the peninsula of India with Ceylon. Nothing is known regarding its nidification ; but, like other true Cuckoos, it probably lays in the nests of other birds. C. pravatus from Malayana is similar, but constantly smaller, the wing seldom exceeding 4*4 inches in length. Mr. Blyth states (/. c.) that C. poliocephalus can hardly fail to occur in Burmah; it has not, however, been yet recorded from this country, and I consequently do not enter it in my work. It is of an ashy colour above ; the chin and throat are pale ashy, and the remainder of the lower plumage is white barred with dusky ; and the wing is about 5'5 inches in length. 108 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus HIEROCOCCYX, Mutter. 492. HIEROCOCCYX SPARVEEIOIDES. THE LARGE HAWK-CUCKOO. Cuculus sparverioides, Vigors, P. Z. S. 1831, p. 173 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 63. Hierococcyx sparverioides, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 331 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 135 ; £1. B. Burm. p. 79 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 80 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 311 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 157 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89: Scully, S. F. viii. p. 256. Cuculus strenuus, Gould, Birds Asia, pt. viii. Description. — Male and female. Chin, forehead, crown, nape, sides of the head and neck and hind neck deep ashy; back,, scapulars, wing-coverts and tertiaries brown ; primaries and secondaries brown, banded with white on the inner webs ; rump and upper tail-coverts ashy brown, the latter cross-barred darker and tipped paler ; tail grey, with four broad cross bars of dark brown, contiguous to each of which is a narrow pale rufous bar ; another subterminal rufous bar about an inch broad, and each feather with a pale rufous tip ; throat white, more or less streaked with ashy ; breast ferruginous, with pale ashy shaft-stripes ; abdomen, sides of the body and under wing-coverts white barred with brown ; vent and under tail-coverts pure white. The young bird has the forehead and crown ashy ; the nape and hind neck rufous streaked with brown ; the whole remaining upper plumage brown barred with rufous ; wings barred on both webs with rufous ; tail much as in the adult; chin ashy; throat and breast pale buff, boldly streaked with brown ; abdomen very narrowly and interruptedly barred with brown. As the bird gets older, the bars below become more defined and the rufous above disappears. Gape and edges of the eyelids yellow ; legs deep yellow ; claws pale yellow ; upper mandible dark brown, lower chiefly greenish ; iris yellow. Length 16 inches, tail 9, wing 9, tarsus 1, bill from gape T4. The female is smaller. The Large Hawk-Cuckoo is found over the whole of Pegu and probably the whole of Arrakan. Mr. Davison met with it in Tenasserim as far south as Amherst, and Capt. Bingham observed it in the Thoungyeen valley. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it in Karennee at 4000 feet elevation. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries and is spread over a considerable portion of India. It is found in China, ranging in the summer as far as Amurland, and it has been recorded in. the south from Malacca. This fine Cuckoo appears to be a resident species in Burm ah, for. I am HODGSON'S HAWK-CUCKOO. 109 under the impression that I have shot it at all periods of the year. It has a loud melodious call, which it utters from the summit of a tall tree. According to Mr. Hodgson this bird lays its eggs in the nests of other birds ; but according to another observer it makes its own nest. Mr. Hodgson's statement is probably the correct one. The Cuckoos of this genus are barely separable from Cuculus in structure; but they are remarkable for having portions of the lower plumage streaked, giving them the appearance of Hawks. H. nisoides, Blyth, founded on a single specimen in the British Museum from Nipal, is like H. sparverioides, but conspicuously smaller, the wing being only 7*5 inches in length. 493. HIEROCOCCYX NISICOLOR. HODGSON'S HAWK-CUCKOO. Hierococcyx nisicolor, Hodys., EL J. A. S. B. xii. p. 943 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 330 ; Hume, S. F. v. pp. 96, 347 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 157 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Oatcs, S. F. x. p. 193. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage, coverts and wings deep ashy, the rump and upper tail-coverts tipped rather paler ; the inner webs of the primaries and secondaries barred with white ; tail ashy brown, tipped with ferruginous, with a broad subterminal black band and five narrower bars, two of which are generally concealed by the coverts ; the narrower black bars are bordered below by pale rufous ; chin, sides of the head and neck deep ashy; lores and base of the lower man- dible whitish ; throat and fore neck pale rufous-white streaked with grey ; breast, abdomen and sides of the body bright rufous, the centres of the feathers ashy, giving a striped appearance ; vent and under tail-coverts white. Legs, feet, claws and eyelids bright yellow ; gape greenish yellow ; lower mandible and region of nostrils pale green ; upper mandible horny black ; irides orange-red. (Davison.) Length 11 '5 inches, tail 6*1, wing 6*8, tarsus *8, bill from gape 1*2. The female is of the same size. Hodgson's Hawk-Cuckoo occurs but sparingly in Burmah. I procured one specimen near Kyeikpadein in November and another near Tonghoo, and Mr. Davison obtained one near Thatone in Tenasserim. I am not awaro of any other instance of its being met with in Burmah. It was first described from Nipal, and it is also recorded from Malacca. Nothing is known regarding its habits. 110 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 494. HIEEOCOCCYX NANUS. HUME'S HAWK-CUCKOO. Hierococcyx nanus, Hume, S. F. v. p. 490 ; Hume fy 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 similar, 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 buffy 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 O8 pale grey-brown interspace, the next succeeding 0'5 blackish-brown band cuspidate on its lower margin, then an O5 pale interspace, then an O45 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/5 (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, tail 5*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. variusy from India, is said by Mr. Blyth to be likely to occur in THE RUFOUS-BELLIED CUCKOO. Ill Burmah ; and Dr. Jerdon, indeed, states that it does occur in Burmah and Malayana. I am not, however, satisfied that Dr. Jerdoii wrote from his own knowledge, and therefore I do not include it in the present work. This species is larger than H. nisicolor, and the under surface from the breast downwards is barred, not streaked. The wing measures about 8 inches in length. Genus CACOMANTIS, Mutter. 495. CACOMANTIS THRENODES. THE RUFOUS-BELLIED CUCKOO. Cacomantis threnodes, Cab. et Hein. Mus. Hein. iv. p. 19 ; Wold. Trans. Zool. Soc. viii. p. 54; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 158; Hume, S.F. viii. p. 89; Binyliam, S. F. ix. p. 167 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 391 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 193. Poliphasia tenuirostris (Gray), apud Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 335. Polyphasia rufiventris, Jerd. Ibis, 1872, p. 15. Cacomantis passerinus (Vahfy, apud Bl. $ Wald. B. Burin, p. 80. Ololygon tenuirostris (Gray), apud Hume, S. F. iii. p. 80. Cacomantis rufiventris, Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 312 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 458 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 587. Cacomantis tenuirostris, David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 62. Description. — Male. The whole head and neck all round and the upper breast clear ashy ; back, scapulars, coverts and wings brown, overspread with a green gloss ; a white patch on the inner webs of the quills ; rump and upper tail-coverts dark ashy, most of the feathers tipped paler ; tail dark brown, tipped with white ; the central feathers notched with white on both webs, the others barred with white on the inner webs ; lower breast, abdomen, vent, under tail-coverts, sides of the body and under wing- coverts rufous ; some males have the rufous extending up to the throat. Females, as far as my experience goes, do not assume the plumage of the male. The whole upper plumage, wing-coverts and tail are ferruginous, closely barred with black ; the whole lower plumage is rufescent white, closely and finely barred with brown ; the wings are brown, with some broken rufous bars on the outer webs. Young birds are like the females, but the head, neck, throat and breast are streaked, not barred, with brown. Iris pale yellow ; upper mandible dark horn ; lower mandible brownish orange, except the tip, which is brown; feet brownish yellow or deep yellow ; the irides are sometimes brown and occasionally crimson. Length 9 inches, tail 4'9, wing 4*4, tarsus '7, bill from gape '9. The female is of the same size or rather larger. Birds from Pegu have the wing varying from 4 to 4'6 inches in length ; 112 BIRDS OF BRITISH BU11MAH. Indian specimens occasionally have the wing 4 7, and in Tenasserim, according to Mr. Hume, males have the wings mostly under 4*2. Further south, wings of 3'9, Mr. Hume informs us, are not uncommon. Under these circumstances it seems impossible, as in the case of some of the Woodpeckers,, to maintain two species on the ground of difference of size. The plumage of all the birds from Bengal to Malacca is identical, and there is really nothing but size to go by. A bird from Java in the British Museum can be matched by birds from Pegu, and the wing measures 4'3 inches in length. It is, I think, very probable that many of the numerous so-called species of this small Cuckoo from the Malayan islands would be found on strict investigation to be nothing more than larger or smaller forms of C. threnodes, but I have not had time to enter upou such a wide field of inquiry. The Rufous-bellied Cuckoo is found abundantly over the whole Province, except in the denser forests on the hills. Capt. Bingham failed to meet with it in the Thoungyeen valley ; but I have no doubt it occurs in that part of Tenasserim, for Dr. Tiraud states that it is common in Cochin China, and Mr. Blyth records it from Siam. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay obtained it in Karennee. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries to Bengal, and it visits China, according to Mr. Swinhoe, to breed. It ranges down the Malay peninsula to Singapore, and is also probably found in some of the islands of the archipelago. This species frequents all descriptions of jungle, even grassy plains and swamps. Its note is a soft monotonous whistle. Capt. Feilden found what he considered to be the eggs of this species at Thayetmyo, in the nests of Tailor-birds. Genus SURNICULUS, Lesson. 496. SURNICULUS LUGUBRIS. THE BLACK FORK-TAILED CUCKOO. Cuculus lugubris, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 179. Pseudornis dicruroides, Hodgs. J. A. 8. B. viii. p. 136. Surniculus dicruroides, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 336 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 61. Surniculus lugubris, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 63; Bl. fy Wold. B. Burm. p. 80; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 159; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 587 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 243 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89. Description. — Male and female. Upper plumage glossy black, a few white feathers on the nape ; lower surface duller black ; under wing- THE EMERALD CUCKOO. 113 coverts dull black, with minute white marks, except in very old birds ; under tail-coverts black, barred with white ; tail glossy bluish black ; the outermost pair of feathers barred with white and tipped with the same ; the next pair with only a few white spots near the shaft and tipped very slightly ; quills black, the tips brown ; first primary with a white spot on the inner web ; the second spotless ; the others and the secondaries with an irregular patch of white on the inner webs; thighs black in front, white behind. The young are black; the head, neck, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, throat, breast and belly spotted with white ; upper tail-coverts tipped with white, portions near the shafts also white ; all the rectrices are tipped with white ; the change to the adult plumage is effected at the first autumn moult. Bill black ; mouth white ; iris brown ; legs plumbeous ; claws blackish. Length 10 inches, tail 5'3, wing 5*5, tarsus '65, bill from gape 1*1. The female is of about the same size. The Black Fork-tailed Cuckoo is found over the whole of British Burmah and Karennee. It is found throughout the Indo-Burmese countries, India, and Ceylon. It ranges into China, Siam and Cochin China, and it extends down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This Cuckoo bears such a close resemblance to the Black Drongo that it is difficult to discriminate the two birds when seen alive. It frequents forests and gardens, and appears to be a constant resident. Its food is chiefly caterpillars. It probably lays its eggs in the nests of Buchanga atra or other allied species. Genus CHRYSOCOCCYX, £oie. 497. CHRYSOCOCCYX MACULATUS. THE EMERALD CUCKOO. Trogon maculatus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 404 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 238. Chry- sococcyx smaragdinus, Bl. J. A. S. B. xv. p. 53. Clirysococcyx hodg- soni, Moore, in Horsf. fy Moore, Cat. Birds Mus. E.I. Co. ii. p. 705 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 338; Dav. et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 62. Chrysococcyx schomburgki, Gould, P. Z. S. 1864, p. 73. Chrysococcyx maculatus, Bl. B. Sunn. p. 80 ; Wald. Ibis, 1876, p. 345; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 458; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89 ; Biny/iam, S. F. ix. p. 167 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 193. Lamprococcyx maculatus, Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 161, 502. Description. — Male. The whole head and neck, breast and entire upper plumage, with the wings and tail, metallic bluish green, the wings tinged VOL. ii. 114 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. with blue and the inner webs marked with white, the outer tail-feathers with large white spots ; the lower plumage, from the breast downwards, white barred with metallic green. Males not quite mature have the forehead, sides of the head, chin, throat and breast barred with white. I have not been able to examine an adult female of this species ; but it probably differs from the male. Two immature birds have the whole forehead, crown and nape unbarred rufous. Legs and feet dark brownish green ; bill bright orange-yellow, tipped black ; irides red-brown. (Davison.) Length 7 inches, tail 3, wing 4 '4, tarsus *6, bill from gape '85. Specimens of this species are tolerably common in collections in England ; but they are not sexed. I am consequently unable to state in what way, if any, the female differs from the male. The Siamese bird, named by Mr. Gould, appears to me, from the examination of the type in the British Museum, to be identical with some birds from the Himalayas. The Emerald Cuckoo is found over the greater portion of the Province. Colonel Lloyd sent it to England from Tonghoo, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it in the Karin hills near that town. Mr. Olive got one specimen near Prome, which I had the opportunity of examining. Mr. Davison observed it in Tenasserim as far south as Mooleyit mountain, and Capt. Bingham in the Thoungyeen valley. Mr. Blyth states that it is found in Arrakan. It occurs in various parts of India from the Himalayas to Ceylon, and it extends into Western China and Siam. 498. CHRYSOCOCCYX XANTHORHYNCHUS. THE VIOLET CUCKOO. Cuculus xanthorhynchus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 179 ; id. Zool. Res. Jam, pi. Cuculus malayanus, Raffl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 286. Chry- sococcyx xanthorhynchus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 62 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 80 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 459 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 89 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 193. Chalcococcyx xanthorhynchus, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 191, iii. p. 81 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 161, 506. Lamprococcyx malayanus, Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 503 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89. Description. — Male. The whole plumage brilliant violet-purple, except on the abdomen, vent, under tail-coverts and under wing-coverts, which are THE VIOLET CUCKOO. 115 barred with white and greenish purple ; outer tail-feathers with large white spots on both webs. In the adult female the whole lower surface, from the chin to the tip of the under tail-coverts, the lores, cheeks, ear-coverts and sides of neck are white, closely barred across with greenish bronze ; the bars on the under tail- coverts are broader and wider apart than elsewhere ; the head, neck, back, rump and upper tail-coverts are shining bronze, tinged with copper on the head ; the forehead and feathers over the eye are speckled with white; the lesser wing-coverts are brilliant bronze, each feather narrowly edged with rufous ; the greater coverts are less brilliant, and are broadly notched all round with rufous ; primaries brown glossed with green, very narrowly edged with rufous, and the later ones also tipped with the same ; the inner web of all with a broad streak of rufous along the basal two thirds of the edge ; secondaries and tertiaries greenish bronze, edged all round with rufous ; centre pair of rec trices uniform bronze- green, tinged with blue near the tip ; the next pair has on each web alternate triangular patches of greenish brown and rufous, the bases of the brown patches and the apices of the rufous ones lying next the shaft • in the next pair the brown patches are less in extent, each pair being fully separated from the next by the rufous and the tip is white ; the next pair again is very similar, the brown being still further reduced and the white tip broader; the outer pair is rufous, with four black bars, and on the outer web between each pair of black bars there is a white patch and the tip is broadly white. In less mature females the central rectrices are barred greenish brown and rufous ; the white spots on the outer pair extend to both webs ; the upper plumage everywhere is closely barred with rufous ; the lower plumage at all ages is the same. Immature males have from a very early age one or more violet feathers showing out in the plumage, and their recognition is consequently easy. The change goes on by an easy transition, and not by a moult. In October the change appears to have just begun, and by February the full plumage is assumed. The young male never assumes the adult plumage of the female, the change to mature male plumage taking place while the upper surface is densely barred with rufous. The young male differs in nothing from the young female, except that the green bars below are much broader and further apart. In the nestling the head and neck are rufous streaked with black ; the remainder of the upper plumage1, wings and tail brown; the secondaries, tertiaries and the four central tail-feathers with rufous spots on the marginal halves of the webs ; the other tail-feathers, the wing-coverts, scapulars, back, rump and upper tail-coverts barred with rufous ; lower plumage pale fulvous, barred with dull brown. Male : bill orange-yellow ; iris red ; eyelids green, the edges red ; 116 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. mouth orange; legs greenish brown; claws black. Female and young: base of bill and gape orange ; terminal portion of the bill dark brown ; the other parts as in the male. Length 6'5 inches, tail 3, wing 4, tarsus '6, bill from gape "75. The female is of the same size. I have no doubt, after carefully examining a large series of these birds, that C. xanthorhynchus and C. malayanus are the same species, the former being the male, the latter the female. I have already (/. c.) fully entered into this question. The Violet Cuckoo is apparently found in all parts of Burmah and Karennee. I met with it very abundantly at Kyeikpadein and near Rangoon, and I also procured it near Thayetmyo. Lieut. Lloyd, R.E., shot a specimen in Karennee, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay also records it from that State. In Tenasserim Mr. Davison obtained it at various points, and my men secured specimens at Malewoon. It extends north to Cachar and the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and it also occurs in the Andaman Islands. It is recorded from Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the Philippine Islands. This small and lovely Cuckoo is usually found in dense groves of trees searching among the leaves for caterpillars, which form the chief portion of its food. It is a silent bird, and is likely to escape observation ; for it is very quiet in its movements. It is a constant resident in Burmah, and probably lays its eggs in the nests of the Grass -Warblers. 499, CHRYSOCOCCYX LIMBORGI. THE WHITE-COLLARED VIOLET CUCKOO. Chrysococcyx limborgi, Tweedd. P.Z. S. 1877, p. 366; Hume, S. F. vii, p. 319, viii. p. 89 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 168. Description. — Adult male. Like C. xanthorhynchus , but with a broad white collar on the upper back reaching to the sides of the neck. Bill yellow ; legs rich green ; irides red. (Limborg.} Length about 7 inches, tail 3'1, wing 4, tarsus '55, bill from gape '8. The only bird of this species I have been able to examine is the type specimen in Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay's collection. The white collar is extremely regular in shape and symmetrical, and there is nothing, primd facie, to lead me to consider it an accidental variety. The type was shot in Tenasserim at the base of Mooleyit mountain on the Houng-draw river; and Capt. Bingham records the occurrence of a Violet Cuckoo with indications of the white collar in the Thoungyeen THE RED-WINGED CRESTED CUCKOO. 117 valley, not very far from where Mr. Limborg procured the typical and only specimen he obtained. Not one out of a very numerous series of C. xan- thorhynchus from the Pegu Division exhibits any white on the back or hind neck ; so that, on the whole, I am inclined to consider C. limborgi a distinct species, confined, so far as we at present know, to Tenasserim. Genus COCCYSTES, Gloger. 500. COCCYSTES COROMANDUS. THE RED-WINGED CRESTED CUCKOO. Cuculus coromandus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 171. Coccystes coromandus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 341 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 138 ; Salvad. Ucc. Bom. p. 67 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 82 j Bl B. Burm. p. 81 ; David et Oust. Ois. CMne, p. 61 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 249 ; Hume $ Dav. 2 : Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89 j Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 168 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 392. Eudynamis chi- nensis (Cab. et Hein.}, apud Bl. B. Burm. p. 81. Description. — Male. The whole plumage black glossed with blue. The female has the whole head and neck streaked with black and rufous in varying proportions according to age ; the whole lower plumage pale rufous, cross-barred with black zigzag lines ; the upper plumage dark brownish black spotted with rufous ; wings, tail and upper tail-coverts black broadly barred with rufous ; the whole plumage shot with green and blue. Other females differ in having the head-streaks deep rufous-bay ; others have the head nearly all black, the rufous streaks being narrow and few ; the bars on the lower plumage and the spots on the upper also vary much in size. Young males have the wings and greater coverts dull brown, the coverts tipped with white ; the under wing-coverts are also tipped with white ; the lateral tail-feathers are irregularly barred with white near their tips. Bill dull green, dusky at the gape and about the nostrils ; mouth flesh- colour ; iris bright crimson ; eyelids pinkish brown ; legs plumbeous ; claws dark horn. Length 17 inches, tail 8, wing 8, tarsus 1'3, bill from gape 1*6. The female is of about the same size. This species differs from the Indian E. honorata in the male being larger with a larger bill, and in the female having the whole head and neck streaked with black and the bars and spots on the body-plumage rufous, whereas the female of E. honorata has these latter white. The Malayan Coel is abundant throughout British Burmah from February to June. At other times of the year it is altogether absent. It extends on the north as far as Cachar and the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, 120 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. i but apparently not to Nipal, as has been stated. It occurs in the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Siam and Cochin China, and it is also recorded from China. The well-known Coel arrives in Burmah at the commencement of the hot season, and all the country becomes alive with these handsome Cuckoos at about the same time. Its loud and melodious call strikes the ear every- where alike in dense forest and in cultivated grounds. It lays its eggs in the nests of Crows ; and Dr. Tiraud states that in Cochin China the eggs are also placed in the nests of Mynahs. I have seen Jungle-Crows care- fully tending young Coels as late as the 23rd May. The eggs are green blotched with reddish brown. Subfamily PHGENICOPH^IN^E. Genus EHINORTHA, Vigors. 503. RHINORTHA CHLOROPELEA, THE SMALL GREEN-BILLED MALKOHA. Cuculus ehlorophaeus, JRaffi. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 288. Rhynortha chlo- rophsea, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 69. Rhinortha chlorophaea, Bl. B. Burm. p. 82 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi, p. 166 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape, sides of the head and neck, back and wings chestnut, deeper on the wings, the quills of which are tipped with dusky ; rump and upper tail-coverts smoky brown, closely and indistinctly barred with yellowish brown; tail dark smoky brown or blackish tipped with white, the whole surface, except near the white tips, closely barred with yellowish brown ; cheeks, chin, throat and breast pale chestnut or buff, passing to dusky on the lower breast; remainder of the lower plumage smoky grey obsoletely barred darker ; under wing-coverts chestnut. The female has the forehead, crown, nape, sides of the head and neck grey; the remainder of the upper plumage bright chestnut; the quills tipped dusky ; the tail tipped white, with a subterminal black bar ; chin, throat and upper breast grey, paler than the head, and in some birds tinged with fulvous ; lower breast fulvous, deepening on the abdomen and sides of the body ; vent and under tail -coverts dull chestnut ; under wing- coverts chestnut. THE LARGE GKEEN-BTLLED MALKOHA. 121 Legs and feet dark plumbeous ; claws black ; bill apple-green ; orbital skin pale green inclining to bluish ; irides dark brown. (Davison.) Length 13 inches, tail 7, wing 4'5, tarsus 1*1, bill from gape 1'4. The female is of the same size. This species, according to Mr. Davison, is found in Tenasserim as far north as Lemyne, a village about a day's march north of Yea, but it is nowhere very common. It ranges through the Malay peninsula to Sumatra, Java and Borneo. Mr. Davison says that " it frequents the densest parts of the evergreen forests and cane-brakes and densest of scrubby jungle. In all its habits it resembles Rhopodytes, but has quite a different note, a peculiar cat-like mew (not the chuckle of the others), which it utters at short intervals as it threads its way through the tangled foliage. It is almost invariably found in pairs. They also feed apparently entirely (I have dissected many) on insects. " Genus RHOPODYTES, Cab. et Hein. 504, EHOPODYTES TBJSTIS. THE LARGE GREEN-BILLED MALKOHA. Melias tristis, Less. Tr. d'Orn. p. 132 ; id. Voy. Belang. p. 231, Ois. pi. 1. Zan- clostomus tristis, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 345 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 142 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 81 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 58 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 144. Rhopodytes tristis, Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 312 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 1G2 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89 ; Bingham, 8. F. ix. p. 168 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 196. Description. — Male and female. Lores sparingly covered with black feathers ; forehead and feathers over the eye white, the bases of the feathers black; upper plumage dark greenish grey, the front of the crown centred with black ; wings, coverts, scapulars, upper tail-coverts and tail shining green, the primaries darker, and the tail-feathers tipped broadly with white ; under- side of tail dull black ; cheeks and throat greyish white, with black shafts ; neck and breast grey tinged with rusty, the shafts black ; abdomen, flanks, thighs, vent and under tail-coverts smoky brown tinged with green ; centre of the abdomen paler; under wing- coverts smoky brown tinged with green. Bill bright green, pinkish about the nostrils ; orbital skin purplish red; iris hazel-brown; mouth dusky; legs greenish slaty; claws dark horn. The female has the orbital skin blood-red ; mouth deep black iris red. 122 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Length 24 inches, tail 16, wing 6*5, tarsus 1/3, bill from gape 1'6. The female is rather larger than the male. The Large Green-billed Malkoha is a common bird all over Pegu, both in the hills and plains. It extends in Tenasserim, according to Mr. Davi- son, as far as Mergui and the Tenasserim river ; Capt. Bingham says it is common in the Thoungyeen valley, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it in Karennee. It is probably common in Arrakan. Out of Burmah it has been found, according to Mr. Blyth, at Penang and Malacca. Mr. Swinhoe got it in Hainan, and Dr. Tiraud states that it occurs in Cochin China. North of Burmah it ranges through the Indo- Burmese countries into India, being found from the foot of the Himalayas down to Central India. This species frequents all sorts of jungle, and is as common in orchards and spare bush-jungle as in deep forests. It goes about solitary or in pairs, gliding among the branches of trees and shrubs in a quiet manner, seldom displaying itself, notwithstanding its long tail. Its food appears to be caterpillars arid grasshoppers, and probably insects of all sorts, as well as small reptiles. It has a low chuckling note. I have frequently found the nest of this Malkoha in Pegu from June to August. It is a slight structure constructed of a few dead twigs and leaves, and placed in a bush or on a leafy bamboo. The eggs are white, very chalky in texture, and two in number. 505. RHOPODYTES DIARDI. DIARDI GREEN-BILLED MALKOHA. Melias diardi, Less. Tr. d'Orn. p. 132. Zanclostoxnus diardi, El. B. Burm. p. 81. Rhopodytes diardi, Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 163 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, upper back, sides of the head and neck ashy grey ; remainder of upper plumage metallic green tinged with blue ; tail tipped with white ; chin, throat and breast of the same colour as the head but paler, becoming dusky on the abdomen and sides of the body and smoky brown on the vent and under tail- co verts. Legs and feet dark plumbeous green; bill pale green; irides dark brown ; the bare orbital space crimson ; edges of eyelids black. (Davison.) Length 14 inches, tail 9, wing 5, tarsus 1*2, bill from gape 1*4. The female is of the same size. Diard's Green-billed Malkoha has been found in Tenasserim from THE SUMATRAN GREEN-BILLED MALKOHA. 123 Mergui southwards. It extends down the Malay peninsula and it occurs in Sumatra and in Cochin China. It is also said to have been met with in Java. Mr. Davison, who observed this Malkoha in Tenasserim and other places, says : — ee In its habits and notes this species resembles R. tristis ; but I have occasionally found it in the evergreen forests of the Pakchan. I found it common everywhere in the Malay peninsula and shot many, but noticed nothing distinctive in its habits, food or voice. " Genus POLIOCOCCYX, Sharpe. 506. POLIOCOCCYX SUMATRANUS. THE SUMATRAN GREEN-BILLED MALKOHA. Cuculus sumatranus, Raffl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 287. Rhopodytes suma- tranus, Sakad. Ucc. Born. p. 73; Hume $ Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 164; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 393. Description. — Male and female. Like R. diardi, but with the centre of the abdomen, vent and under tail- coverts deep chestnut ; the facial skin is bordered above by a very narrow white band, and it is also considerably larger. Legs and feet plumbeous green ; bill pale green ; bare orbital space clear orange, palest round the eye, shading to blood-red at the posterior angle. (Davison.) Length 16 inches, tail 9, wing 6'2, tarsus 1'5, bill from gape 1*5. The female is of about the same size. The Sumatran Green-billed Malkoha has been found in Tenasserim by Mr. Davison. He says : — " In the secondary scrub, with which a great portion of the island of Mergui is covered, this species was quite a common bird. To the north of Mergui I did not meet with it at all, and to the south but seldom, although I met with many places that appeared to me quite as suitable as the places it frequented on the island of Mergui." It extends through the Malay peninsula and inhabits Sumatra, Bangka, Java and Borneo. Mr. Davison remarks that the habits of this species are precisely like those of R. tristis. Lieut. Kelham found the nest near Perak on the 16th of March. He says : — " The nest was a loosely-put-together structure of dry twigs, slightly cup-shaped, and built at about 5 feet from the ground, in a bush standing on the edge of a jungle-path. The eggs, two in number, were 124 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. nearly hatched ; they were 1£ inch in length, in colour white, but much stained with brown matter. " The bird appears to build its own nest, and certainly hatches its own egg ; for on two occasions during the last few days I have stood close by and watched it sitting. It did not utter any note or cry, not even when disturbed from its nest." Genus RHAMPHOCOCCYX, Cab. et Hein. 507. RHAMPHOCOCCYX ERYTHROGNATHUS. THE GREATER RED-BILLED MALKOHA. Phcenicophaeus erythrognathus, Hartl. Verz. Mus. Brem. p. 95. Rhampho- coccyx erythrognathus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 74 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 393. Phcenicophaes erythrognathus, BL B. Burm. p. 81. Phcenicophaus erythrognathus, Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 165. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, ear-coverts, a mandibular stripe and the angle of the chin ashy grey ; the whole upper plumage, including the wings, metallic green ; the primaries tinged with blue ; lower plumage and sides of neck chestnut, becoming tinged with blackish more and more till the vent and thighs are smoky black ; under tail-coverts dull ferruginous ; tail metallic green, the terminal third of the feathers being deep ferruginous ; under wing- coverts greenish. Legs and feet dark plumbeous, or dark bluish or plumbeous green ; facial skin deep red ; lower mandible to beyond the gonys, and upper mandible at base below the nostril, dark maroon-red ; rest of upper mandible pale green; rest of lower mandible green, generally darker than the upper mandible, sometimes shaded with dusky ; irides turquoise- or pale blue in the male, bright yellow in the female. (Davison.) Length 19 inches, tail 10f5, wing 6*8, tarsus 1-65, bill from gape 1*8. The female is rather smaller. The Greater Red-billed Malkoha has been found in Tenasserim by Mr. Davison. It appears to be very common in the southernmost portions, getting rarer northwards and apparently not occurring north of the Yea river. It inhabits the Malay peninsula, extending into Sumatra, Bangka and Borneo. Mr. Mottley, as quoted by Dr. Sclater in the P. Z. S. 1863, remarks of this bird in Borneo : — " A rather common bird about Martapora in the dry THE LESSER RED-BILLED MALKOHA. 125 gravelly thickets, concealing itself among the bushwoods, and when dis- turbed taking very short flights. Its note is a hoarse chatter, much like that of a Magpie." Mr. Davison states that it frequents open forest, gardens and thick secondary scrub, by preference the latter. Genus ZANCLOSTOMUS, Swains. 508. ZANCLOSTOMUS JAVANICUS. THE LESSER RED-BILLED MALKOHA. Phcenicophaus javanicus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 178 ; id. Zool. Res. Java, pi. Zanclostomus javanicus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 75 ; El. B. Burm. p. 81 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 167 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, the sides and back of the neck and the ear-coverts ashy grey, tinged with fulvous on the forehead ; remainder of the upper plumage, wings and tail metallic green tinged with blue ; the tail-feathers tipped with white ; lores, cheeks, chin, throat, fore neck and breast chestnut ; abdomen fulvous-grey ; vent and under tail-coverts deep chestnut ; sides of the body and under wing- coverts ashy. Legs and feet plumbeous, dark and with more or less of a green shade ; bill coral-red ; gape dull smalt ; naked space round the eye blue, in some pale, in some a bright smalt ; irides brown, in some deep, in some light ; in somewhat younger birds the culmen and tip of lower mandible are black. (Davison.) Length 18 inches, tail 11, wing 5'8, tarsus 1-3, bill from gape 1'5. The female is of the same size. The Lesser Red-billed Malkoha is found in Tenasserim from Tavoy southwards. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and it is met with in Sumatra, Java and Borneo. There is nothing on record about its habits. 126 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Subfamily CENTEOPIN^E. Genus CENTEOCOCCYX, Gab. et Hem. 509. CENTEOCOCCYX INTEEMEDIUS. THE BURMESE COUCAL. Centrococcyx intermedius, Hume, S. F. i. p. 454 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 168 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 89 ; Bingliam, S. F. ix. p. 169. Centropus rufipennis, apud BL 8f Wold. B. Burm. p. 81. Centropus eurycercus, apud Wald. in Bl. B. Burm. p. 82. Centrococcyx eurycercus, apud Hume, S. F. iii. p. 83 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 312. Centropus intermedius, Oates, S. F. v. p. 145. Description. — Male and female. Whole head, neck, upper back and the entire lower surface black, glossed with purple and lilac ; the shafts rigid and shiny; the scapulars, the middle portion of the back, the wings and coverts bright chestnut; lower back and rump black glossed with purple, the feathers soft and decomposed ; upper tail-coverts glossy black, the feathers firm ; under wing -coverts black, barred with rufous : the bars appear to disappear with age. The young bird from the nest has the head above and mantle dark brown, with spots of pale rufous on the head turning to bars on the mantle ; sides of the head and neck and the whole lower plumage brown, closely barred with greyish white ; wings and coverts dark greenish brown broadly barred with chestnut ; middle of the back brown, barred with chestnut ; lower back and rump brown ; upper tail-coverts dark brown, barred with white ; tail greenish brown, irregularly barred with whitish ; under wing-coverts brown, barred with white. In December the bars on the head and mantle disappear, and a purple gloss makes its appearance; the wing-coverts, scapulars, middle back and most of the primaries, not all, change to a dull uniform chestnut ; some of the tail-feathers change to greenish black ; on the lower plumage the white bars become indistinct and disappear in places. The adult plumage is completely donned by April. Bill black ; iris crimson ; eyelids and gape purpurescent ; mouth flesh- coloured; legs and claws black. Length 19 inches, tail 10, wing 7*5, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape 1-8. The female is considerably larger. There are four closely allied species of large Coucals in India, Burmah and the Malay peninsula. C. intermedius } C. maocimus, and C. rufipennis have the tail glossed with green, C. eurycercus has it glossed with blue. The first three may be distinguished — C. maocimus by its large size, wing 9 to 9*5 inches, and red interscapulary region; C. intermedius by its smaller THE LESSER COUCAL. 127 size, wing 7*5 to 8' 2 inches, and red interscapulary region ; and C. rufi- pennis, which is about the same size as C. intermedius, by the entire absence of red on the interscapulary region. C. acheenensis is a species described by Messrs. Hume and Pavison from North-west Sumatra ; it belongs to the blue-tailed section, and differs from C. eurycercus in being much smaller. I have not been able to examine a specimen of this species. Mr. Swinhoe (P. Z. S. 1871, p. 393) makes the following remarks :— " I can find no distinctive characters between the Chinese and Bengalese specimens ; but birds from Siarn have the back chestnut as well as the scapulars, = C. eurycercus, A. Hay/' I gathered from this that the Chinese bird has no red on the back, and therefore it cannot be C. intermedius ; but Chinese birds which I have examined in the Swinhoe collection have the interscapulary region chestnut, and appear to me to be inseparable from Burmese examples. TheBurmese Coucal is distributed over the whole of British Burmah. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay records it from the Karin hills, but not from Karennee. It extends through the Iiido-Burinese countries to Eastern Bengal, and appears to be spread over China. The Burmese Coucal is one of those birds which is known to every resi- dent in the Province, both from its striking plumage and its loud call. The latter consists of a series of deep-sounding hoots. It frequents thick entangled jungle, and feeds almost entirely on the ground, on large insects and small reptiles. In July or August it makes an immense nest, domed at the top, about a foot and a half high and fully a foot in diameter. It is chiefly made of grass, but leaves, and sometimes twigs, are incorporated with the structure. It is placed in trees at a considerable height from the ground, and also in elephant-grass. The eggs, two or three in number, are white. This bird is better known perhaps by the name " Crow Pheasant/' 510. CENTROCOCCYX BENGALENSIS, THE LESSER COUCAL. Cuculus bengalensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 412. Centropus bengalensis, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 350 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 144 ; El. B. lliinn. p. 82 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 69 j Oates, S. F. v. p. 146 j Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 171 ; Gammicj S. F. v. p. 385 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 169. Centrococcyx benga- lensis, Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc.viii. p. 59 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 84, viii. p. 89 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 190 ; Kdham, Ibis, 1881, p. 395. Description. — Male and female in summer. Head, neck and lower plumage black glossed with purple, the shafts glistening black ; wings, coverts, 128 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. scapulars and back pale chestnut, the quills dusky at their tips, and some of the feathers of the coverts, scapulars and back with yellow shaft-stripes ; rump and upper tail-coverts bluish black ; tail black, tipped narrowly with yellowish white ; under wing-coverts pale chestnut. In winter both sexes have the head from the forehead to the nape, the back and sides of the neck and the scapulars brown edged with rufous and with yellowish shaft-stripes ; back, rump, wing -co verts and tail-coverts greenish black, barred with rufous ; chin, throat and breast fulvous, with pale shaft-lines ; abdomen, sides of the body, vent and under tail-coverts darker fulvous, closely barred with black ; tail greenish black, tipped with yellowish white ; wings dull chestnut, the quills darker at the tips, the coverts with pale shaft-lines ; under wing-coverts rufous. The following variations occur : — The tail is frequently barred with rufous, either the whole or only the centre pair of feathers, and occasionally only the ends of the centre pair ; the under tail-coverts are sometimes almost black, with few bars ; the throat and breast are frequently marked with arrowhead-shaped marks ; the length of the upper tail-coverts varies very much. Iris brown to yellow j eyelids bluish grey to purplish brown ; mouth flesh-colour ; bill black or coffee-brown, paler on the margins and at the gape ; legs plumbeous ; claws dark horn. Length 14'5 to 15'7 inches, tail 7'8 to 8'5, wing 5'3 to 6'4, tarsus 1'8, bill from gape 1*3. The female is of about the same size as the male. There are many reputed species from the Malayan region, the greater part of them doubtfully distinct from the present species. The investigation of these is beset with difficulties, and does not, moreover, come within the scope of this work. The birds which inhabit British Burmah are un- doubtedly all of one species, identical with the Indian bird, the true C. bengalensis. The Lesser Coucal is locally distributed throughout British Burrnah, and is also found in Karennee. It is more abundant in the grassy plains of Southern Pegu than elsewhere ; but it is also found in considerable numbers in the other parts of the Division, in Arrakan and in Tenasserim. It ranges through the Indo-Burmese countries, and is met with over a great portion of India. It is said to have been found in the Malay penin- sula as far as Singapore ; and it occurs in China, Siam and Cochin China, ' the C. dimidiatus of Blyth from China being identical with C. bengalensis. The Lesser Coucal shows a preference for grass-lands, but is also found in well-wooded localities on the edge of paddy-plains. It is a shy bird and is but seldom seen ; but during the rains its remarkable note, consisting of a series of whoops, followed by a series of notes each of which resembles the word kurook, betrays its presence. It makes a large but neat globular nest of grass in a clump of reeds, and lays three white eggs. THE GREAT INDIAN BARBET. 129 Family CAPITONIDJE. Genus MEGALJSMA, G. R. Gray. 511. MEGAL^MA MARSHALLORUM. THE GREAT INDIAN BARBET. Bucco grandis, Gould, Cent. Him. Birds, pi. 46. Megalaema grandis, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 128 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 150. Megalaema virens (Bodd.), apud Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 309 ; Marsh. Mon. Capit. pi. xvi. (part.). Megalaema marshallorum, Swinhoe, Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 4, vi. p. 348 ; Bl. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 73 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 457 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 250. Description. — Male and female. The whole head, neck, chin, throat and fore neck violet-blue ; a yellow collar on the hind neck next the violet-blue, the shafts brighter; breast, wing- coverts, back and scapulars coppery brown; rump and upper tail-coverts green ; primary-coverts and primaries black, broadly edged with blue ; the other quills brown on the inner webs, green on the outer with more or less of a coppery tinge ; tail bluish green; abdomen bluish, turning to green towards the vent ; sides of the body streaked with yellow and green ; under tail- coverts crimson. Bill yellow, pale in front, dusky at the edge of the upper mandible ; irides brown ; legs greenish horny (Jerdon) . Iris hair-brown ; bill dull yellow, tinged with green; culmen blackish; legs dusky green (Wardlaw Ramsay) . Length 12 inches, tail 4' 5, wing 5 '5, tarsus 1*25, bill from gape 2*3. The Great Indian Barbet was observed to be very common on the Karin hills east of Tonghoo by Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay ; and Mr. Blyth states that it occurs in Arrakan. I can find no other record of its occurrence in British Burmah. According to Dr. Jerdon it is found throughout the Himalayas ; and Col. Godwin-Austen procured it in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal. All the Barbets have certain habits in common. They are arboreal, frequenting forests and tree-jungle ; they have a very loud monotonous call, which they utter throughout the whole day ; they are found singly or in pairs ; their flight is strong ; they feed entirely on fruits ; and they lay two or three white eggs in a hole in a tree, which they generally excavate for themselves. The present species, one of the largest of the family, breeds in the Himalayas from Bhootan to Cashmeer from May to July. VOL. n. 130 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 512. MEGAL^EMA VIRENS. THE GREAT CHINESE BARBET, Bucco virens, Bodd. Tall. PI. Enl. p. 53. Bucco grandis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 408. Megalaema virens, Sivinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 391 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 56 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p, 150 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. pp. 165, 473. Description. — Male and female. Similar to M. marshallorum, but with the head a duller blue and without the yellow collar on the hind neck. Some few birds, however, exhibit yellowish shaft-stripes on this part, but they are obscure and not visible without close scrutiny. Bill and gape wax-yellow, the former whitish at the top and horny at tip ; irides dark brown ; legs and feet dirty sap-green ; claws horny. (Bmgham.) Length 13'2 inches, tail 4*6, wing 5*8, tarsus 1'2, bill from gape 2*1. The Great Chinese Barbet differs very constantly from its Indian ally in the characters pointed out above, and appears to be quite worthy of separa- tion. Another species, which, however, I have not been able to examine, is M. lagrandieri, J. Verreaux, from Cochin China. Mr. Davison met with this Barbet in the neighbourhood of Pahpoon in Tenasserim, and Capt. Bingham states that it is quite common in the Thoungyeen valley. Elsewhere it is known to occur only in China, in the Fokien and Canton provinces. Mr. Davison remarks that this species frequents the higher forest trees, and has the same wailing cry of " pio-pio-pio" as its Himalayan ally. Capt. Bingham found the eggs in Tenasserim in February and March. The eggs were either two or three, and the nest-holes were situated at twenty to thirty feet from the ground. Genus CHOTOKEA, Bonap. 513. CHOTOREA MYSTACOPHANUS. THE GAUDY BARBET. Bucco mystacophanos, Temm. PI Col. 315. Megalaema mystacophanus, Marsh. Mon. Capit. pi. xix. ; Wold, in Bl. B. Burin, p. 74 ; Tweedd. Ibis, 1877, p. 299 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi, p. 152 ; Ifume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Description. — Male and female. Forehead and front of the head as far THE GAUDY BARBET. 131 back as the eyes golden yellow ; the lores, crown and central portion of the nape, the chin, throat and a spot on the side of the neck scarlet ; cheeks blue; a streak over the eye black; a patch at the angle of the nape yellow; a broad band across the fore neck, bordering the scarlet of the throat, blue ; with these exceptions the whole plumage is green, dull beneath, very brilliant on the nape and upper neck, where the feathers are edged paler ; tail bluish underneath ; quills dark brown on the inner webs and on the inner portions of the outer webs ; the tertiaries wholly green. Young birds have the blue cheeks and the red lores from an early age, and the remainder of the plumage green ; the throat becomes yellow, and red begins to appear on the crown ; after the throat has become entirely yellow it commences to change to red, and the other features of the adult plumage are then assumed ; the red spots on the neck are the last to make their appearance. Legs and feet very pale bluish or horny green ; irides deep brown ; bill black; orbital skin dark greenish or greyish brown. (Davison.) Length 9 inches, tail 2'5, wing 4, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1*7. The female is of the same size. It seems doubtful whether C. humii be distinct or not from the present species. I have not had the opportunity of judging for myself, and I therefore do not unite them. The Gaudy Barbet occurs in Tenasserim from the extreme south up to Nwalabo mountain and Tavoy. It extends down the Malay peninsula and is found in Sumatra. It is also said to occur in Borneo together with C. humii. This species is found in the evergreen forests. Mr. Davison remarks : — " This bird has a peculiar note, which might be very well syllablized by tok-tok-tok — tok-tok-tok uttered incessantly. In the forests where it does occur its note may be heard nearly all day, and nearly all night on a bright moonlight night ; but it is most noisy during the evening soon after dusk." 132 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus CYANOPS, Bonap. 514. CYANOPS HODGSON!. THE LINEATED BARBET. Megalaema hodgsoni, Bonap. Consp. Av. i. p. 144 j Wald. P. Z. S. 1866, p. 540 ; Marsh, Mon. Capit. pi. xxxvi. ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 129 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 75; Bl. fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 73; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 583; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 151 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 j Oates, S. F. viii. p. 166 ; Scully S. F. viii. p. 251 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 165. Megalsema lineata, apud Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 309. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape brown, each feather tipped with whity brown, the longer feathers of the nape with streaks of the same ; upper back green, each feather with a streak of whity brown; the upper plumage, including wing-coverts, tertiaries and tail, bright green ; primaries and secondaries black, broadly edged with bright green, a few of the earlier primaries edged with light brown on the terminal halves ; chin and throat white ; sides of the head and of the neck, breast and abdomen coloured like the crown, the light streaks larger and occupying the centre of the feather ; sides of the body, lower abdomen, vent, thighs and under tail-coverts light green. Bill flesh-coloured, dusky at the edges and paler at the gape ; mouth flesh-colour ; iris brown ; eyelids, orbital skin and legs bright yellow ; claws horn- colour. Length 11'3 inches, tail 3'5, wing 5'2, tarsus 1*1, bill from gape 1*7. The female is smaller. I have not been able to examine any specimens of the Lineated Barbet from Java, and they may be distinct from the Himalayan birds. It is therefore advisable to keep them apart for the present and to use Bona- parte's name for the Burmese birds, which are undoubtedly identical with others from the Himalayas. The Lineated Barbet is found abundantly in all the forests of British Burmah, except in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where Mr. Davison did not meet with it. It extends on the east to Cochin China, where Dr. Tiraud states it is common; on the north, through the Indo-Burmese countries to India, where it occurs along the base of the Himalayas, both in the lower hills and in the plains. C. lineata, the Javan race, is met with in Java, and it is said to have been procured in Malacca ; but this latter locality appears to be somewhat doubtful. This Barbet frequents thick forests, and is not usually found in gardens THE BLUE-FACED BARBET. 133 and clearings. Its loud note of " ko-poh " is uttered incessantly throughout the day, and is one of the most wearisome sounds the traveller in the jungle has to put up with. I have not taken the eggs of this species, but in May I have found the nest-holes with young birds. 515. CYANOPS ASIATICA. THE BLUE-FACED BARBET. Trogon asiaticus, Lath. Ind. Orn. i. p. 201. Cyanops asiatica, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 313 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 130 ; id. 8. F. iii. p. 77. Megalaema asiatica, Marsh. Mon. Capit. pi. xxix. ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 73 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 584 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 151 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 252. Description. — Male and female. Chin, throat, cheeks, ear-coverts and a supercilium blue ; another supercilium, superior to this, and a band across the crown black ; the forehead and crown, a spot at the base of the lower mandible on each side, so small as to be barely visible in some specimens, and a large spot on each side the base of the throat crimson • the whole plumage green, bright above, yellower beneath ; quills dark brown, edged with bluish green ; the underside of the tail blue. Iris reddish hazel ; edges of the eyelids dusky orange ; eyelids themselves orange-brown ; upper mandible greenish yellow at base and dark brown on the remainder ; lower mandible greenish yellow ; mouth dusky blue ; legs pale green ; claws greenish horn. Length 9*2 inches, tail 3, wing 4, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1*5. The female is a trifle smaller. The Blue-faced Barbet, as far as I have observed it in Pegu, appears to be confined to the dense evergreen forests on the eastern side of the Pegu hills. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay, however, met with it at Tonghoo and on the hills further east, where it was common. In Tenasserim Mr. Davison observed it in the northern portion of the Division only, about Kollidoo and Pahpoon and nowhere else. With regard to Arrakan, Mr. Blyth records it from that Division, and it is no doubt common. It ranges through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, and is found in Bengal and along the sub-Himalayan region as far as the Jumna river. This Barbet is entirely confined to dense forests, where it keeps to the top of the highest trees, uttering all day its cry of " kooteruk, kooteruk" It breeds in April j but I have not been able to find its eggs 134 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 516. CYANOPS DAVISONI. DAVISON'S BARBET. Megalaima davisoni, Hume, S. F. v. p. 108 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 151 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Bingham, 8. F. ix. p. 165. Description. — Male and female. "Precisely similar to C. asiatica, but somewhat smaller; entirely wants the black crown-band and to a great extent the narrow yellowish line preceding it, and has these replaced by a broader turquoise-blue band, thus diminishing the depth of the occipital red patch ; pectoral red patches rather larger. "Length 8'5 inches, wing 3'9, tail 2'8, tarsus -97." (Hume.} I have not had the opportunity of examining a specimen of this bird. Davison's Barbet is met with at the bases of the lower ranges of hills below Mooleyit in Tenasserim, and also in the Thoungyeen valley, where Capt. Bingharn found it common. It is not yet known to occur elsewhere. Mr. Davison remarks that the note of this species is precisely similar to that of C. asiatica; and Capt. Bingham discovered two nest-holes in March, each with two eggs. 517. CYANOPS INCOGNITA. HUME'S BARBET. Megalaima incognita, Hume, S. F. ii. pp. 442, 486; Wald. inBl B. Burm. p. 74; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 161, 501 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 166. Description. — Male and female. (C Green ; lores and a very narrow frontal band, a small patch on the nape, and two small pectoral patches dark crimson ; chin, throat, cheeks, ear-coverts, forehead, stripe over eye, tinged with turquoise-blue. A narrow ring of tiny bright yellow feathers surrounds the eye/'' (Hume.) Male : upper mandible, eyelids and tip of lower mandible dusky horny ; remainder of bill paler; legs and feet grass-green; irides nut-brown. Female : lower mandible and base of upper mandible pale horny blue ; rest of bill black ; legs and feet dirty bluish green. (Davison.) Length 8'6 to 9 inches, tail 2'4 to 2'5, wing 3'9, tarsus 1 to I'l, bill from gape 1'4 to 1-46. (Davison.) This is another Barbet I have not been able to examine for myself, as RAMSAY'S BARBET, 135 there is not, I believe, a specimen in any English museum. It appears to belong to this genus. In addition to the above diagnosis, Mr. Hume states that the bright crimson lores and frontal band, the yellow eye-ring, and the long and extremely strongly marked black superciliary and gape-stripes serve to distinguish this species at a glance. Hume's Barbet occurs in Tenasserim about Amherst and Yea, and in the vicinity of Tavoy ; and Cap t. Bingham records it as common in the Thoungyeen valley at certain seasons. Mr. Davison remarks that the note and habits of this species are similar to those of C. asiatica. At Tavoy it was met with in thin tree-jungle. 518. CYANOPS RAMSAYI. RAMSAY'S BARBET. Megalaema ramsayi, Wald. Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 4, xv. p. 400 ; id. in Bl. B. Burm. p. 74 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 402 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 457 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 152 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Description. — Male and female. Forehead and a patch on the nape crim- son ; crown shining yellow ; lores black ; a broad supercilium and a patch under the eye with mixed streaks of grey and black ; ear-coverts silvery grey ; a patch at the gape yellow tinged with red ; chin and upper throat golden yellow ; lower throat, fore neck and under ear- coverts dull grey ; a thin band of bright greenish blue joining the ear-coverts, runs over the back of the neck, bounding the bright colours of the head ; a patch of black between the supercilium and the red nape-spot ; remainder of the plumage green, yellower below ; lesser wing-coverts deep purplish blue, which colour passes on to the edge of the wing and the outer webs of some of the primaries ; quills dark brown on the inner webs, green on the outer; under wing- coverts whitish ; tail uniform dark green. Bill horn-brown, dirty white at the gape and sides ; orbits dark brown ; iris nut-brown ; legs and feet pale greenish plumbeous ; claws horny. (Bingham, MS.) Length 9'2 inches, tail 2'5, wing 4, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1-4. The female is of the same size. This species is very close to C.franklinii from India, and differs from it only in having the supercilium mixed with grey instead of having it pure black. Ramsay's Barbet was discovered by Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay in Karennee, and he subsequently found it common in the hills east of Tonghoo. 136 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Mr. Davison met with it on the higher slopes of Mooleyit mountain, and Capt. Bingham in the Thoungyeen valley. It appears to be most common at elevations of from 3000 to 5000 feet. Nothing particular is recorded of its habits. Mr. Blyth notes C. franklinii from Tenasserim on the authority of Col. Tickell ; but I have no doubt the birds so designated were C. ramsayi, those naturalists not deeming the slight differences in the two birds of much importance. Other species of this genus are : — C. ph&ostriata, described from Cochin China some fifty years ago, and not again rediscovered ; it somewhat resembles C. hodgsoni, but has a supercilium and the cheeks bright green. The next three species occur in the Malayan peninsula, and may ultimately be found to extend to Tenasserim : C. versicolor, a very brightly plumaged bird, the head being of many colours, with the whole throat bright blue ; C. chrysopogon, also of gaudy plumage, with bright yellow moustachial bands ; and C. henricii, with the forehead and sides of the crown bright, golden yellow. Genus XANTHOL^MA, Bonap. 519. XANTHOL^MA H^MACEPHALA. THE CRIMSON-GORGETED BARBET. Bucco hsemacephalus, P. L. S. Mull. Natursyst. Siqypl. p. 88 ; Bucco indicus, Lath. Ind. Orn. i. p. 205. Xantholsema indica, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 315 ; Wald. Ibis, 1871, p. 162. Xantholaema haemacephala, Marsh. Mon. Capit. pi. xlii. ; Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 156 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 131 ; id. 8. F. iii. p. 77 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 311 j Gates, S. F. v. p. 144 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 155 j Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 218 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 253 j Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 167 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 390. Megalaema haemacephala, Bl B. Burm,. p. 74. Description. — Male and female. Chin, throat, a spot over the eye and one under it yellow ; forehead and crown back to the eyes and a band across the breast crimson ; cheeks, ear-coverts and a band over the crown black ; sides of the neck greenish slate-colour ; upper plumage, including the wing-coverts and tertiaries, green, the nape tinged with blue ; primaries and secondaries black, the outer webs edged with green ; tail green, the inner webs edged with brown ; lower plumage dull yellow, broadly streaked with green, and with a patch of deep yellow on the breast next the crimson. Bill black, bluish at the gape and base of lower mandible mouth THE BLUE-EARED BARBET. 137 bluish ; eyelids red, the edges brown ; iris brown ; legs coral-red ; claws dark horn. Length 6' 8 inches, tail T8, wing 3*4, tarsus '8, bill from gape 1. The female is rather smaller. The Crimson-gorgeted Barbet, or, as it is frequently called, the " Copper- smith/' is found abundantly in every portion of the Province and in Karcnnee. It is spread over the Indo-Burmese countries and the whole peninsula of India with Ceylon, and it occurs in Siam, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra and the Philippine Islands ; it probably also inhabits Borneo. The Coppersmith is a familiar well-known little bird, found mostly in open country and in gardens and compounds. It is also seen in all thick forests, but not so numerously as elsewhere. Its note, which somewhat resembles the sound caused by tapping a piece of metal with a hammer, is uttered throughout the day, the bird being generally perched on the topmost bough of a tree, and directing its voice in all directions by turning its head. It breeds in March and April, laying either two or three eggs in a hole of a tree, usually at no great height from the ground. From April to the end of the rainy season this Barbet becomes comparatively silent. 520. XANTHOLJEMA CYANOTIS. THE BLUE-EARED BARBET. Bucco cyanotis, Bl. J. A. S. B. xvi. p. 465. Megalaema cyanotis, Marsh. Mon. Capit. pi. xxxiii. fig. 3 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 74 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 155 • Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 1G6 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 192. Xantholaema cyanotis, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 77. Description. — Male and female. The forehead, a line over the eye, ear- coverts, chin and throat dull blue ; the forward half of the crown and a patch at the base of the lower mandible black tinged with green ; a patch under the eye and a broad streak under and over the ear-coverts red ; remainder of the plumage green, darker above and yellower below ; primaries and secondaries dark brown edged with green ; there is a tinge of blue on various parts of the body, especially the abdomen and tail. Bill black ; mouth bluish black ; eyelids and naked skin of face blackish plumbeous ; iris dark brown; legs dull greenish yellow; claws black. Length 6*7 inches, tail 2' 2, wing 3*2, tarsus '8, bill from gape T05. X. duvaucelii, from the Malay peninsula, is closely allied; it differs chiefly in wanting the blue ear-coverts. 138 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The Blue-eared Barbet is found only in evergreen or other dense forests, and is consequently not universally distributed over the Province. I found it common on the eastern slopes of the Pegu hills from the frontier down to Rangoon, and it is especially abundant on the higher spurs. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it on the Karin hills ; Mr. Davison observed it throughout Tenasserim, and Capt. Bingham in the Thoungyeen valley. Mr. Blyth states that it occurs in Arrakan. It extends to the north to the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, Cachar and Tipperah, and to the south down to Tonga and Klang in the Malay penin- sula ; and Dr. Tiraud records it as common in Cochin China. This small Barbet differs in no particular from the others, except in its note, which resembles the word "koturr" repeated incessantly. Capt. Bingham found the nest-hole in Tenasserim in February, containing two eggs. Genus CALOBHAMPHUS, Less. 521. CALORHAMPHUS HAYII. THE BROWN BARBET. Bucco hayii, Gray, Zool. Misc. p. 33. Calorhamphus lathami, apud Marsh. Mon. Capit. pi. Ixxii. Megalorhynchus hayi, Wold. Ibis, 1871, p. 163. Calorhamphus hayi, Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 149 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 88. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage dark brown; the feathers of the crown margined with rusty brown, those of the back, rump and upper tail-coverts margined with pale yellowish green; wing- coverts and quills dark brown, the margins paler ; tail plain dark brown ; sides of the head rufous-brown ; chin and throat paler rufous, obsoletely barred with pale yellowish ; remainder of the lower plumage dirty yellowish white. Bill in the male black, in the female reddish brown to a dirty orange or ochraceous brown ; in both sexes the legs and feet are orange ; the claws black ; the irides dull red or brownish red, occasionally dark brown, with scarcely any perceptible red tinge ; the orbital skin brown. (Davison.) Length 7 inches, tail 2*1, wing 3'2, tarsus '85, bill from gape 1-2. The female is of about the same size. The Brown Barbet occurs in the extreme south of Tenasserim at Banka- soon and Malewoon, where, however, according to Mr. Davison, it is excessively rare. It ranges down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra. THE LARGE BURMESE PAROQUET. 139 This species appears to differ from the other Barbets in habits. Mr. Davison says : — " For a Barbet this species has a most extraordinary note, a low soft whistle. It is generally found in small parties of three or four, sometimes in pairs, and occasionally singly, hunting about the leaves and branches and trunks of trees, peering into every crevice and cranny in the bark, and clinging about in all sorts of positions far more like a Tit than a Barbet. Its food consists quite as much of insects as of fruits. It is a forest-bird." Order V. PSITTACI. Family PSITTACID^E. Subfamily PAL^ORNITHIN^E. Genus PALJEORNIS, Vigors. 522. PAL530RNIS INDOBURMANICUS. THE LARGE BURMESE PAROQUET. Palaeornis alexandri (Z.), Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 257 (part.) ; SI. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 54. Palaeornis eupatrius (i.), Finsch, Die Papageien, ii. p. 11 (part.). Palaeornis magnirostris (Ball), Hume, S. F. iii. p. 65 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 307; Oates, S. F. v. p. 143 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 453; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 117. Palaeornis indoburmanicus, Hume, S. F. vii. p. 458, viii. p. 86 ; Bin g ham, S. F. ix. p. 159 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 189. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, lores and feathers round the eyes brilliant green; sides of the head green, tinged with yellow; chin and throat sparingly covered with black feathers ; the extreme base of the throat yellowish ; the black of the throat narrowly produced upwards on either side of the neck ; a brilliant peach-rose collar round the back and sides of the neck ; the general colour of the plumage green, duller and tinged with yellow below, most brilliant on the back and wings; the primaries and secondaries with the inner edges of the inner webs brown ; wing-coverts green, with the concealed inner webs chiefly brown; the 140 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. median coverts nearest the body red,, forming a most conspicuous spot ; central tail-feathers greenish at base, blue on the remainder and tipped yellowish ; the other feathers green on the outer web and yellow on the inner. The female differs in wanting the black on the chin and throat and the stripe on the sides of the neck ; the peach-rose collar and the glaucous tinge on the nape are also wanting. The red patch on the wing is also smaller. Iris bright yellow ; cere yellow ; bill bright red, the tip yellow ; eyelids pale pink, the edges orange ; legs orange-yellow. Female the same. Length 22 inches, tail 13, wing 8*4, tarsus '7, bill from gape 1'2. The female is rather smaller. The Large Paroquets of India and Burmah have been subdivided into four species, each based on trivial differences in size and coloration. P. eupatrius, the smallest race, inhabits Ceylon -, P. magnirostris, the largest, is found in the Andaman Islands ; and P. nipalensis, an intermediate race, in Northern India. Typical examples of the Burmese race differ in having the base of the throat yellowish, the nape and sides of the head of the same colour as the crown, and the mandibular stripes narrow ; they are, more- over, to be recognized by their very large size, in which respect they equal P. magnirostris , but the bill is very much smaller than in that species. It seems very doubtful whether these races or species are worthy of retention ; but for the present it is convenient perhaps to keep the Burmese bird under Mr. Hume's name. The Large Burmese Paroquet is found over a great portion of British Burmah, and is usually abundant ; but Mr. Davison did not observe it in Tenasserim south of Amherst, nor Capt. Bingham in the Thoungyeen valley. To the east it extends to Cochin China, where Dr. Tiraud states that this race is common ; and to the north it is diffused over the Indo-Burmese countries, ranging into India as far as Sikhim. This Paroquet occurs in small flocks, and is usually seen in plains and the outskirts of cultivation where large trees abound. It does not ascend the hills to any great height, nor is it to be met with in dense forests. Its cry is very loud. Like all the other Paroquets, it feeds on fruit and grain, and also at times eats buds. It breeds in January and February, excava- ting a hole for itself in the trunk or a large branch of some lofty tree, and laying therein three white eggs. THE ROSE-RINGED PAROQUET. 141 523. PALJEORNIS TORQUATUS, THE ROSE-RINGED PAROQUET. Psittacus torquatus, Bodd. Tall PL Enl p. 32. Palaeornis torquatus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 257 ; Finsch, Die Papayeien, ii. p. 17 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 116 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 13; Wald. Ibis, 1874, p. 282; Bl. B. Burm. p. 55 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 56; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 453; Gates, S. F. v. p. 144 ; Leyye, Birds Ceylon, p. 171 ; Hume $ JDav. S. F. vi. p. 118; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 240 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 189. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape and sides of the head green, the hinder part of the head with a bluish tinge ; a fine black line from the nostril to the eye ; chin and throat black, produced upwards as a semi- collar 011 the sides of the neck ; a pinkish-red collar encircling the whole neck except in front ; remainder of the plumage green, darkest on the wings, paler and tinged with yellow on the lower plumage ; central tail- feathers dull blue, tipped with yellowish ; the others yellow on the inner webs and greenish on the outer ; all the feathers tipped with yellow. The female wants the black loral line, and the black and pinkish-red collars as well as the black on the chin and throat are absent ; the whole plumage is green, of the same tinge as in the male ; an indistinct collar of emerald-green round the neck. Bill red, brownish at tip ; cere grey ; legs ashy ; iris pale yellow ; edges of the eyelids pale orange ; claws horn-colour. The female has the same colours. Length 16'5 inches, tail 10, wing 6*8, tarsus '55, bill from gape '8. The female is a little smaller. The Rose-ringed Paroquet is abundant over the greater part of Pegu ; but Dr. Armstrong does not note it from the Irrawaddy Delta, and possibly it does not occur in that portion of the Division ; it is, however, abundant near Rangoon. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay met witli it on the Karin hills east of Tonghoo, and states that it was rare in that part of the country. Mr. Davison and Capt. Bingham did not observe it in any part of Tenas- serim, which is remarkable, for it extends to the east as far as Cochin China, where Dr. Tiraud states that it is quite common. I can find no instance of its occurring in Arrakan ; but it is likely to be very abundant in the plains 'of that Division. It extends through the Indo-Burrnese countries, and is found over the whole peninsula of India and Ceylon. It is stated to have occurred in the Malay peninsula, but probably without foundation. A Paroquet which inhabits the greater part of the African continent is said to be identical with the present species ; but I have not had an opportunity of testing the correctness of this assertion. 142 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The Rose-ringed Paroquet is found in flocks of considerable size, mostly in the neighbourhood of cultivation, in clearings and on the outskirts of forests. It is more frequently caged by the Burmese than any other species of Paroquet. It breeds in January and February in the holes of trees, and lays either four or five white eggs. 524. PAKSEORNIS FINSCHIL FINSCH'S PAROQUET. Palseornis finschi, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 509 ; Wold, in Bl. B. Burm. p. 55 ; Hume fy Lav. S. F. vi. p. 119 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 160 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 139. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape and sides of the head slaty blue ; chin and throat black, produced as a half-collar up the sides of the neck ; general colour of the plumage green, yellower below ; the portion of the neck next the slaty blue of the head tinged with verdigris ; median wing-coverts with a patch of red, forming a conspicuous spot • tertiaries wholly green ; primaries and secondaries with the outer webs dark green, edged very narrowly with yellowish, the inner webs brown; under wing- coverts bluish green ; basal half of central tail-feathers lavender-blue, the edges at the extreme base green; terminal half pale lilac tipped with yel- low ; the other tail-feathers light green on the outer webs, yellow on the inner ; the tips of both webs yellow. I have not been able to examine a female of this species. Of the allied species, P. schisticeps, Dr. Jerdon says that in the female the wing-spot is barely indicated, and Mr. Hume that it is always absent. The sexes do not appear to differ in other respects. The young, as in the allied species, probably have the black on the throat and collar wanting, and the head greenish. Legs and feet pale dirty green ; upper mandible orange-vermilion, tipped yellowish ; lower mandible pale yellow ; hides usually creamy white, but in some specimens grey, with a fine inner ring of golden yellow ; in others pale brown, with an outer ring of white. (Davison.) Length 16 to 18 inches, tail 9 to 12, wing 6, tarsus '6, bill from gape •8. The female is apparently smaller only in respect to total length and length of tail, the latter, according to Mr, Davison, measuring about 8-5. Mr. Blyth (B. Burm. p. 55) records P. schisticeps from the Arrakan hills. The nearly allied P. finschii had not at that time been discriminated, THE RED-BREASTED PAROQUET. 143 and I think it open to doubt which of the two species occurs in Arrakan. In any case I do not think it necessary to include both these closely allied species in my work. P. schisticeps is a larger bird, the wing being about 6* 5 ; the tail-feathers are very broad, being about '5 at the middle of the centre rec trices, whereas in P. finschii they are never more than *3 in breadth, measured at the same place ; and the coloration of the upper plumage is greener and less tinged with yellow. Finsch^s Paroquet has hitherto been procured only in Burmah. Mr. Davison met with it in the hills of the main Tenasserim range in the northern and central portions of the Division ; Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay got it on the Tonghoo hills ; and Capt. Bingham remarks that it is common in the Thoungyeen valley. The Paroquet which I found on the Pegu hills (S. F. iii. p. 56), and which was provisionally assigned by Mr. Hume to P. schisticeps, was probably this species ; and one or both species occur in Arrakan. Mr. Davison remarks : — " It occurs in small parties, frequenting the edges and thinner portions of the forest, and the banks of streams. Its voice is very similar to that of P. schisticeps of India. In its habits it much resembles other Paroquets. I found it feeding on the large red flowers of a silk-cotton tree (Bombay?) north of Pahpoon, and about Myawadee on the large crimson flowers of a huge creeper." The bird I met on the Pegu hills was very common, frequenting the higher trees on the ridges. Many young birds were about in the month of April. 525. PALJEORNIS FASCIATUS. THE RED-BREASTED PAROQUET. Psittacus fasciatus, P. L. S. Mutter, Natursyst. Suppl. p. 74. Psittacus vibrissa, Bodd. Tall. PL Enl. p. 30. Palaeornis melanorhynchus, Wagkr, Mon. Psitt. p. 511 ; Finsch, Die Papageien, ii. p. 70 ; Wald. Ibis, 1873, p. 297, 1874, p. 290; Bl. B. Burm. p. 57 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 308 j Hume, S. F. v. p. 21 ; Ward- law Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 453 j Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 120. Palaeornis javanicus (OsbecJc), apud Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 262. Palaeornis lathami, Finsch, Die Papageien, ii. p. 66. Palaeornis fasciatus, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 118 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 20, iii. p. 56, vii. p. 163, viii. p. 86; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 243 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 160 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 190. Description. — Male. A narrow band of black at the base of the upper mandible ; forehead, crown, nape, cheeks and ear-coverts dull lilac ; chin and upper throat nearly naked ; on each side of these a very broad black patch reaching to beyond the ear-coverts ; a collar occupying the hind neck, and extending down on each side to the end of the black patches, 144 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. emerald-green ; back, rump, scapulars and upper tail-coverts dark green ; central tail-feathers blue, edged with green near the base and tipped yel- lowish ; the others more or less blue on the outer webs and green on the inner ; lesser wing-coverts and the outer ones of the other series dusky green ; the inner median coverts rather bright golden yellow, forming a large conspicuous patch ; the inner greater coverts green, tinged with yellow on the outer webs ; quills green on the outer webs, brown on the inner; under wing- coverts green; lower throat, breast and upper abdomen vinaceous red ; remainder of lower plumage green tinged with blue. The female differs only in having the head tinged with blue, and in having the vinaceous red of the breast produced up the sides of the neck between the lilac-blue of the head and the emerald-green of the neck. Young birds have no red on the lower plumage. Upper mandible coral-red, the tip yellow ; lower mandible black ; the cere dusky green ; eyelids pale greenish ; iris light yellow ; legs dusky greenish yellow ; claws dark horn. The female has the upper mandible black, with the tip yellow ; base of lower mandible pale orange-brown. Young birds appear to have both mandibles black. Length very variable, and reaches up to 17 inches in good specimens, tail up to 10, wing 6'4, tarsus '5, bill from gape 1. The female is of about the same size. An ally of this species, P. alexandri, occurs in Java; it merely differs in both sexes having the whole bill red. P. longicauda is a very beautiful species from the Malay peninsula ; it has the crown a bright green, the moustachial streaks black, and the remainder of the head a beautiful rosy red. The Red-breasted Paroquet is found over the whole of British Burmah, except on the very highest hills. The only portion where it is perhaps rare or absent altogether is the Thoungyeen valley in Tenasserim, where Capt. Bingham states that he has not observed it. It is found, according to Dr. Tiraud, in Cochin China ; in Mr. Seebohm's collection are specimens collected by Mr. Swinhoe in Hainan ; and Count Salvadori gives it from Malacca. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, where it is found in Eastern Bengal and along the Himalayas as far as Kumaon. This Paroquet is found in well- wooded portions of the country usually in small flocks, but when the paddy is ripe in immense numbers. They descend on the fields and do a vast amount of injury, cutting the stems of the rice with their bills, and then eating the half -ripened grains. During the middle of the day they sit on dead trees in clearings, uttering a variety of musical notes. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenasserim in February. THE BURMESE ROSE-HEADl]!) PAROQUET. 115 526. PAL^ORNIS CYANOCEPHALUS. THE BURMESE ROSE-HEADED PAROQUET. Psittacus cyanocephalus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 141. Psittacus rosa, If odd. Tabl. PI. Col. p. 53. Psittacus bengalensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. :!:>•">. Palaeornis rosa, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 259 (part.). Palasornis cyanocephalus, Fuutclt, Die Papayeien, ii. p. 40 (part.); Wald. Ibis, 1874, p. 284 ; HI. $ Wald. B. Vnnu. p. 55; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 118; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 86 ; liinyham, S. F. ix. p. 161. Palaeornis bengalensis, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 16, iii. p. 56; Arm- strong, S. F. iv. p. 308; Oatcs, S. F. vii. p. 46. Description. — Male. Forehead, cheeks and ear-coverts rosy pink, chang- ing to bluish on the crown and nape; two broad black stripes starting from the gape, passing under the cheeks, covering the whole throat and continued in a very narrow form round the neck ; general colour of plumage green,, tinged with yellow on the neck and lower plumage, most intense on the wings ; a patch of deep maroon on the median coverts ; quills dusky on the inner webs and on the outer web of the first primary ; under wing-coverts bright green ; centre tail-feathers blue, tipped with yellow ; the others green on the outer webs, yellowish on the inner and all tipped with brighter yellow. The female has the whole head plum-blue ; there is no black on the throat, nor any black collar, but merely a little dusky brown along the sides of the chin • the fore neck is yellowish, contrasting with the breast ; the maroon wing-spot is rather less developed than in the male, but is always conspicuous. The young are like the female, but entirely want the wing-spot. Cere pale bluish ; upper mandible orange-yellow ; lower mandible black ; eyelids grey ; iris yellow ; legs grey ; claws horn-colour. Length 13*5 inches, tail 8, wing 5'5, tarsus *5, bill from gape *65. The female is not appreciably smaller, but the tail is seldom so long as in the male. This species is very close to its Indian ally, P. purpureus. This latter differs principally in having the under wing-coverts blue, not green, and in the female wanting (fide Mr. Hume) the maroon wing-spot of the male. The Burmese Rose-headed Paroquet is found abundantly over all the plains of the Province, except perhaps in the extreme south of Tenasserini, where Mr. Davison did not observe it. It extends to the east to Cochin China, where it appears to be common. It ranges through the Iiido-Burmese countries into India, where it occurs in Bengal and along the lower ranges of the Himalayas as far as Eastern Nipal. This common Paroquet frequents cultivation and the outskirts of forest and clearings. It is usually seen in large flocks and, like most other VOL. II. L 146 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Paroquets, it consumes large quantities of grain. It lias a musical note, and is a very favourite bird with the natives. I have found the eggs in February and March in Pegu, deposited in the holes of trees at no great height from the ground ; they are usually four in number, and pure white . Subfamily LORIINJ5. Genus LORICULUS, Blyth. 527, LOEICULUS VERNALIS. THE INDIAN LORIQUET. Psittacus vernalis, Sparrm. Mus. Carls, ii, no. 29. Loriculus vernalis, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 265; Wald. P. Z. S. 1866, p. 538; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 119; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 185, iii. p. 57 ; BL B. Burm. p. 58 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 309 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 120 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 87 ; Eingham, S. F. ix. p. 161 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 190. Cory His vernalis, Finsch, Die Papageien, ii. p. 721. Description. — Male. The whole head shining green ; a patch of blue on the throat ; rump and upper tail-coverts brilliant crimson ; back green, with a yellowish tinge ; scapulars, coverts and tertiaries dark green ; quills green, tinged with blue on the outer webs, brown on the inner webs ; underside of wings blue ; under wing-coverts shining green ; tail bluish green, tipped yellowish ; under plumage green, tinged a good deal with yellow on the breast. The female differs in having the green on the head less brilliant and no blue on the throat. Iris pale yellowish white ; eyelids yellowish ; bill dull coral-red, yellow at tip ; cere red ; legs pale orange ; claws pinkish horn. Length 5'5 inches, tail 1*9, wing 3'5, tarsus '4, bill from gape '45. The female is of about the same size. L. indicus, from Ceylon, differs in having the crown deep red ; L. gal- yuluSy from the Malay peninsula, has a blue patch on the crown and a red one on the throat. The Indian Loriquet is found over the whole of British Burmah quite down to the southern end of Tenasserim; it extends down the Malay peninsula at least as far as Tonka. To the north it extends through the Indo-Burmese countries to the Himalayas, along the foot of which range it is found as far as Sikhim. It has been recorded from the Deccan, the Palani hills, Travancore and Khandala, and also from the Andaman Islands. This pretty Loriquet is a forest-loving bird, seldom being found in the THE MALAYAN PARROT. 1 17 open, except in thick groves and orchards. It associates in small flocks, and is remarkable for its rapid flight. It feeds on small fruits and flower- buds, and probably on grain, but I have never detected them in paddy- fields. They bear confinement well, and are more frequently caged than any other species of Parrot. When sleeping, they hang from their perch head downwards. The eggs, usually three to five in number, are deposited in the hole of a tree or of a branch at a considerable height from the ground. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenasserim in February. Subfamily PSITTACIN^l. Genus PSITTINUS, Bl. 528. PSITTINUS INCERTUS. THE MALAYAN PARROT. Psittacus incertus, Shaw, Nat. Misc. xviii. pi. 769. Psittacus malaccensis, Lath. 2nd. Orn. i. p. 130 ; Psittacula incerta, Finsch, Die Papnyeien, ii. p. (312. Psittinus incertus, Sakad. Ucc. Born. p. 25 ; BL 8f Wald. B. Burm. p. 58 ; Tweedd. Ibis, 1877, p. 292; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 120, 500; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 87. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown and nape, rump and upper tail- coverts violet-blue, duller on the nape ; sides of the head and cheeks dull brownish blue; back and scapulars blackish brown, the edges of the feathers paler ; a patch of deep crimson on the lesser wing-coverts ; all the other coverts and tertiaries green, edged with yellow; primary-coverts blue ; primaries and secondaries brown on the inner webs, green on the outer ones and tips ; central tail-feathers green, the others yellow ; under plumage dull sordid yellow ; the centre of the abdomen blue ; the thighs and under tail-coverts green tipped with blue ; under wing-coverts and auxiliaries bright crimson. The female has the forehead and crown greenish brown, the feathers Fringed with rufous; back and scapulars green, edged paler; rump blue, fringed with green ; upper tail-coverts green ; lores and sides of the head yellowish brown, with dark shafts; the whole under plumage green; wings and tail as in the male. Both the male and female vary a good deal in coloration in minor details ; the above description will, however, always enable the birds to be identified. L2 148 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Young birds have the head green, the blue on the rump reduced in extent, and there is hardly a trace of the wing-spot. In the adult males the upper mandible is orange-vermilion; the lower mandible is dusky or dull reddish brown, or sometimes pale horny streaked with dusky ; the legs and feet are pale dirty green • the eyelids and cere greenish brown or dusky green ; the irides creamy white. (Davison.) Length 7'5 inches, tail 2, wing 4'8, tarsus '5, bill from gape *75. The female is of the same size. The Malayan Parrot occurs in Tenasserim from the south up to Tavoy and Nwalabo mountain, where Mr. Davison found it abundant. It extends to Cochin China and down the Malay peninsula to Singapore ; it is also found in Sumatra, Bangka and Borneo. This small Parrot, according to Mr. Davison, is a migratory species in Tenasserim, arriving in that Division about the beginning of April. He does not, however, state when they leave ; and I think it is open to ques- tion whether this Parrot is really migratory in the ordinary sense of the word, or whether it merely moves about the country according as the flowers on which it appears to feed are abundant or otherwise. It goes about in small flocks, and has a sharp whistling note. Order VI. STBIGES. Family BUBONID^. Genus KETUPA, Less. 529. KETUPA CEYLONENSIS. THE BROWN FISH-OWL. Strix zeylonensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 287. Ketupa ceylonensis, Jerd. B. 2nd i. p. 133 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 379 ; id. S. F. i. p. 431 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 64 ; Ball, 8. F. ii. p. 382 j Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. ii. p. 4 ; Hume, S. F. i\\. p. 38 ; JBl. B. Burm. p. 66 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 300 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 40 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 127 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 33 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p, 45 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage buffy brown each feather with a broad black streak down the centre ; the feathers of THE MALAYAN FISH-OWL. 149 the lower back and rump with narrow shaft-lines ; lower plumage fulvous, each feather with a rather broad black shaft-line, and the whole closely cross-barred with fulvous-brown ; a large patch of white on the throat ; ear-tufts and ear-coverts buffy brown streaked with black ; tail brown, with a few pale fulvous bands ; quills brown, banded and mottled with fulvous. Cere pale dusky green ; bill dusky yellow-green, dark brown on the culmen ; iris bright yellow ; legs dusky yellow, turning darker on the toes ; claws horn-colour. Length 21 '5 inches, tail 8'5, wing 16, tarsus 2'7, bill from gape 2, cere •73. The above are the measurements of a fine female shot at Thayetmyo ; the male is rather smaller. The Owls of this genus are of very large size, and may be recognized by their naked tarsi and toes. The species of both Ketupa and the next genus Bubo are furnished with large ear-tufts. The Brown Fish-Owl is common in most parts of the Province, from one end to the other, both in the hills and plains. This Owl has a wide range, extending from China to Palestine. It is common in Cochin China, but it does not appear to be found in the Malay peninsula ; it occurs all over India and in Ceylon. It frequents well- wooded watered tracts, and feeds on fish and crabs. During the day it rests in mango and other trees which have dense foliage. Its cry resembles the word " tee- dote" by which name the Burmese know it, but they also apply the term to all the large horned Owls. I found a nest containing two young birds in March ; it was placed in the fork of a large peepul tree only a few feet from the ground. The eggs of this Owl are white, as indeed are those of all the Owls. 530. KETUPA JAVANENSIS. THE MALAYAN FISH-OWL. Ketupa javanensis, Less. Traite, p. 114 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 384 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 20 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 8 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 66 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 300; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 83 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83 ; Binyham, S. F. ix. pp. 146, 471 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 369. Description. — Male and female. Similar to K. ceylonensis, but smaller and differing in the following particulars : — The whole plumage is deep fulvous both above and below, and there are no transverse striae on the lower plumage ; the black streaks on the upper plumage are broader and 150 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. each feather of the back and scapulars has large oval fulvous spots on both webs ; the smaller size and the absence of cross bars below will always suffice to separate this species from the preceding. Irides light yellow ; cere dark slate-colour ; bill dusky ; legs and feet dusky yellowish brown. (Armstrong.) Length 18 inches, tail 6*5, wing 13' 5, tarsus 2*6, bill from gape 1*8. The female is of about the same size. The Malayan Fish-Owl is stated by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan, and he mentions Ramree Island as a locality whence he received a specimen. It is common in the Irrawaddy Delta, and I frequently observed a large Fish-Owl in the Pegu river which was probably this species. Mr. Davison met with it in Tenasserim from Amherst down to Malewoon, and Capt. Bingham notes that it is common in the Thoungyeen valley. It is found in Siam, and ranges down the Malay peninsula to Singa- pore, and it occurs in Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This Owl is chiefly found along the sea-coast and the course of large rivers. According to Mr. Davison it feeds chiefly on large insects, and has a soft low whistling note. It probably eats fish and crabs like K. cey- lonensis. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenasserim in February with a single egg ; it was placed in the fork of a large peepul tree. Genus BUBO, Cuvier. 531. BUBO BENGALENSIS. THE ROCK HORNED OWL. Otus bengalensis, Frarikl. P. Z. 8. 1831, p. 115. Urrua bengalensis, Jerd. E. Ind. i. p. 128. Ascalaphia bengalensis, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 366; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 62 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 65. Bubo bengalensis, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 25 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83. Description. — Male and female. Forehead black stippled with fulvous • crown, nape and upper neck rich fulvous,, each feather broadly streaked with black ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, tertiaries and wing- coverts brownish black, mottled and otherwise marked with fulvous and white ; quills rich fulvous barred with brown ; central tail-feathers brown, irregularly barred with fulvous-white; the others fulvous barred with brown ; ear- tufts black margined with fulvous ; disk whitish in front with the shafts black ; ruff blackish edged with fulvous ; chin and throat whitish; fore neck and breast fulvous, broadly streaked with black; remainder of lower plumage fulvous, narrowly cross-barred with brown THE DUSKY HORNED OWL. 151 the thighs and long feathers of the flanks almost unmarked, some of the feathers of the upper abdomen and sides of the body streaked down the shaft. Iris orange-yellow ; bill horny black ; visible portion of toes greyish horny ; claws blackish. Length 22 inches,, tail 9, wing 15, tarsus 3, bill from gape T7. The female is of about the same size. The Rock Horned Owl is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan. I have not heard of its occurrence elsewhere in the Province. It occurs over the whole peninsula of India down to the extreme south and westwards as far as Afghanistan. It will probably be met with in the Indo-Burmese countries. The four Burmese Owls of this genus are birds of very large size, with long ear-tufts and with the whole of the tarsus and toes feathered. They are not likely to be confounded one with the other, each having a very distinct style of coloration. This species affects by preference rocky hills and ravines in well-wooded localities, and feeds, as indeed do all the larger Owls, on rats, snakes, crabs, and large insects. In India this Owl breeds from February to April, laying four white eggs on the bare soil in holes of river-banks and cliffs ; and sometimes it appears to deposit its eggs on the level ground under a bush. The cry of this bird, according to Dr. Jerdon, is a loud solemn hoot. 532. BUBO COROMANDUS. THE DUSKY HORNED OWL. Strix coroxnanda, Lath. Ind. Orn. i. p. 53. Urrua coromanda, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 130 ; David et Oust. Ois. Cliine, p. 40. Ascalaphia coromanda, Jlmnc, Hough Notes, ii. p. 371 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 65. Bubo coromandus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 35 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83. Description.— Male and female. The whole upper plumage, scapulars, tert;arics and wing-coverts greyish brown, freckled with a lighter shade of the same, and each feather with a narrow dark brown shaft-stripe ; quills greyish brown barred with dark brown; tail fulvous, broadly barred with brown and tipped whitish ; car-tufts nearly entirely dark brown, contrasting with the plumage of the head; sides of the head, disk, and the whole lower plumage greyish brown with a tinge of fulvous, each feather mottled with brown specks, which assume the shape of fine wavy irregular cross lines in places, and with a dark brown shaft-streak. 152 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Iris yellow; bill greyish white with the tip horn-colour; claws blackish. Length 23 inches, tail 9, wing 16, tarsus 2'3, bill from gape 1*7. The female is slightly larger. The Dusky Horned Owl is another of the large Indian species which Mr. Blyth informs us occurs in Arrakan. It is found over a considerable portion of Northern and Central India, and extends into Western China. This Owl appears to frequent groves of trees and forest-jungle. It makes a nest of sticks in a large tree, or frequently usurps the nest of some other large bird, and lays as a rule two eggs. 533. EUBO NIPALENSIS. THE FOREST HORNED OWL. Bubo nipalensis, Hodgs. As. Res. xix. p. 172 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. ii. p. 37 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 131 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 30 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83. Ptiloskelos amherstii, Tick. J. A. S. B. xxviii. p. 448. Huhua nipa- lensis, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 131 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 378 j id. S. F. i. p. 431 ; SI. B. Burm. p. 65. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage and wing- coverts dark brown, broadly barred and edged with fulvous; tail dark brown, barred and tipped with, fulvous ; quills dark brown, barred irre- gularly with greyish brown ; ear-tufts blackish, barred on the edges with fulvous ; disk more or less brownish ; lower plumage pale fulvous, boldly barred with black ; the terminal bar on each feather not reaching across and being triangular in shape. Iris yellowish brown ; bill olivaceous brown ; cere olive ; feet brownish ; claws dark brownish horn. (Legge.) Length 24 inches, tail 9, wing 17, tarsus 2*6, bill from gape 1*8. The female is considerably larger. The Forest Horned Owl was obtained by Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay at .Tonghoo ; and some years ago Colonel Tickell procured a young bird on Mooleyit mountain in Tenasserim, which Mr. Blyth ascribes to this species. This fine Owl is found over a great portion of India from the Himalayas down to Ceylon, and Colonel Godwin- Austen obtained it in Assam. It is noteworthy that Dr. Anderson records from Bhamo a species which he identifies with Bubo ignavus ; and this bird is therefore not unlikely to be found in British Burmah as a straggler. It may be recognized by its HORSFIELD'S HORNED OWL. 153 toes being very thickly feathered, much more so than in any of the four species of Bubo here treated of. This Owl frequents deep forests, and is said not to be so nocturnal in its habits as the other Horned Owls. 534. BUBO ORIENTALIS. HORSFIELD'S HORNED OWL. Strix orientalis, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 140. Strix sumatrana, Raffl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 279. Bubo sumatranus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 19. Bubo orientalis, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. ii. p. 39 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 31 ; Hume, S. F. yiii. p. 83. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage dark brown, narrowly and closely barred with rufous ; quills brown, barred with paler brown ; tail brown, all but the central feathers barred with whitish on the basal half of the inner webs, and with fulvous-brown on the other parts ; the central feathers barred with fulvous-brown throughout ; ear-tufts dark brown, some of the feathers unmarked, others barred with white ; the whole lower plumage pale fulvous -white, closely barred across with irregular lines of brown. Feet clear yellow or chrome-yellow ; claws black or horny green, at base plumbeous; bill, cere and eyelids yellow, clear in the one specimen, chrome in the other; irides dark brown. (Davison.) Length 18 inches, tail 6'5, wing 13'5, tarsus 2, bill from gape 1*8. The female is probably a little larger. Horsfield's Horned Owl occurs in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where Mr. Davison procured one specimen. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in Sumatra, Java and Borneo. Mr. Sharpe is of opinion that the Javan and Sumatran birds are identical. Nothing is recorded of the habits of this species. The Owls of the next genus are of small size, of remarkably beautiful plumage, and furnished with ear-tufts. 154 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus SCOPS, Savigny. 535. SCOPS PENNATUS. THE INDIAN SCOPS-OWL. Scops pennata, Hodgs. J. A. S. B. vi. p. 369 (part.). Ephialtes pennatus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 136 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 386. Scops pennatus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 53 ; Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 38 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 34 ; Crippsj S. F. vii. p. 255 : Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 147 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 182. Scops bakkamuna, apud BL B. Burin, p. 66. Description. — General colour of the upper plumage dark grey, closely vermiculated and tipped with brown, the feathers of the head with black streaks, those of the upper back with white patches near the tips ; the scapulars chiefly white on the outer web and barred with black; the ear-tufts rich fulvous on their basal halves ; the tail irregularly barred with pale fulvous and brown ; the earlier primaries with white patches on the outer webs; sides of the neck variegated with black and fulvous; lower plumage a mixture of white, fulvous and black, each feather with a black shaft-stripe. The above description is taken from a male shot at Pegu in November ; another male, in December, is much variegated with white above, each feather having several marks on each web. They are obviously the same species. This bird appears to have a rufous phase, but I have never met with it in this plumage. Iris bright yellow ; feet brownish yellow ; claws horny ; bill above black, below greenish yellow. (Cripps.) Length 8 inches, tail 2*8, wing 5*6, tarsus 1, bill from gape '75. The female is larger. This Scops-Owl may be distinguished from the next two by its small size, and by the absence of any well-marked collar on the hind neck and upper back ; its plumage is generally grey, that of the other two most frequently bright rufous, and its legs are very slender. The Indian Scops-Owl appears to be found over the whole Province. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan. Capt. Feilden procured it at Thayet- myo, and I observed it in Southern Pegu round about Kyeikpadein. Mr. Davison states that it is generally distributed throughout Tenasserim, and Capt. Bingham found it common in the Thoungyeen valley. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, and is found over a great portion of that country. The Scops-Owls frequent forests and groves of trees, are nocturnal in their habits, feed entirely on insects, and have a low sibilant note, con- stantly uttered during the breeding-season. They lay two or three eggs in the holes of trees. THE NIPAL SCOPS-OWL. 155 536. SCOPS LETTIA. THE NIPAL SCOPS-OWL, i Scops lettia, Iloclgs. As. Res. xix. p. 176 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 167 ; SJmrpc, Cdf. Birds B. Mm. ii. p. 85 ; El. 8f Wold. B. Burm. p. 65 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 4o ; II mm, S. F. vii. p. 357, viii. p. 83 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 232 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 183. Ephialtes lempiji, apud Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 138. Ephialtes lettia, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 393. Description. — Male and female. General colour of the upper plumage rich fulvous, vermiculated and freckled with brown and black ; the bases of the feathers on the upper back pure fulvous, forming a broad collar ; forehead and sides of the crown pale creamy fulvous, almost unmarked ; eyebrow rich chocolate-brown ; chin and cheeks white ; ruff fulvous, fringed with black ; lower plumage fulvous, delicately stippled with brown, most of the feathers with black centres. The above is the ordinary plumage of the Burmese bird ; there is, how- ever, another plumage, which is usually called the grey phase ; it is not of very common occurrence. In this phase the bird is marked in much the same wny as above described, but the brown marks on the plumage arc replaced by a greyish brown, giving the whole bird a different aspect. Bill pale green, the gape yellowish ; cere dusky pink ; iris dark brown ; eyelids plumbeous, the edges dusky red; toes pale brown; claws pale horn-colour, the tips dark. Length 9 inches, tail 3'1, wing 6*5, tarsus 1*2, bill from gape *9. The female is rather larger. This species and the next may be recognized by their general rufous or fulvous coloration, and by the presence of a broad pale half-collar round the hind neck ; and whereas in S. lempiji the junction of the toes with the tarsus is bare, in S. lettia the junction is concealed by feathers. The Nipal Scops-Owl is recorded from Arrakan by Mr. Blyth, and it appears to be common over the greater part of Pegu, for I found it abundantly near Kyeikpadein and the town of Pegu, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Rangoon and on the Karin hills east of Tonghoo. The specimens sent to Mr. Hume from Thayetmyo by Capt. Feilden are stated (S. F. iii. p. 38) to belong to S. lempiji, but their dimensions are very large for this species. This Owl appears to be found in Nipal and Sikhim, and probably in the Indo-Burmese countries. This species was very common near my house at Kyeikpadein, making its appearance at sunset and retreating in the morning to the shelter of thick clumps of bamboo. I found its nest in March in a hole of a mango tree. 156 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 537. SCOPS LEMPIJI. HORSFIELD'S SCOPS-OWL. Strix lempiji, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 140. Scops lempiji, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 19 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 91 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 38 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 35, 497 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 147; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 370; Hume, 8. F. x. p. 183 (note). Description. — Male and female. Very similar in general appearance to S. lettia in the fulvous phase ; but the fulvous throughout very much deeper and brighter ; the black marks on the upper plumage much larger and more pronounced ; size smaller. This species, according to Mr. Sharpe, has also a brown phase, but never a grey phase like S. lettia. This small Owl may be recognized from the preceding, to which it bears a close resemblance, by the intense rufous colour of its plumage and by the junction of the toes with the tarsus being bare of feathers. Horsfield's Scops-Owl is sparingly distributed over Pegu and Tenas- serim. From the former Division Mr. Hume records specimens from Rangoon and Thayetmyo, and in the latter Mr. Davison found it generally distributed in the better-wooded tracts. Capt. Bingham states that it is common in the Thoungyeen valley. It extends down the Malay peninsula and is found in Sumatra, Bangka, Java and Borneo. Capt. Bingham obtained the eggs of this species in Tenasserim in March. 538. SCOPS SAGITTATUS. THE LARGE MALACCAN SCOPS-OWL. Ephialtes sagittatus, Cass. Journ. Acad. Philad. ii. p. 96, pi. 12. Scops sagit- tatus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 98 ; Gates, S. F. v. p. 247 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 35 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage a rather rich chestnut ; the wings barred on the inner webs with brown, and the tail irregularly banded with the same ; each feather of the upper body- plumage with small arrow-head fulvous marks in the centre and some narrow wavy black lines across ; the forehead for a depth of nearly an inch, a broad supercilium and the inner webs of most of the feathers of the ear-tufts white; the shafts of the feathers of the forehead nearly black ; the tips of the tufts and the top of the head a darker chestnut THE BURMESE SPOTTED OWLET. 157 than the back and without any marks ; the long feathers on the sides of the neck, indicating a ruff, whitish, broadly tipped with blackish ; lower plumage light buff; the shafts of the feathers of the throat black and the webs vermiculated with brown ; the breast with small dark -brown shaft- spots and narrow brown vermiculations j abdomen and vent distinctly spotted, not cross-barred ; the outer webs of the scapulars fulvous- white, with some rather large black shaft-spots on the feathers. Feet and claws bluish white ; bill bluish white ; cere pale bluish green irides deep brown. (Davison.) Length 1T5 inches, tail 5, wing 7'2, tarsus 1*2, bill from gape *9. The female is rather larger. This species may be immediately recognized by its very large size, by its intense rufous or chestnut colour, by the absence of a collar on the hind neck and by its white bill. The Large Malaccan Scops-Owl was obtained by my men at Malewoon in Tenasserim in February ; and Mr. Davison procured it at Meetan on the slopes of Mooleyit mountain. Elsewhere this rare Owl has hitherto only been procured at Malacca. There are a vast number of Scops-Owls known from surrounding countries ; but they are so difficult of identification that it would be of little use to refer to them in brief terms. Genus CARINE, Kaup. 539. CARINE PULCHRA. THE BURMESE SPOTTED OWLET. Athene pulchra, Hume, S. F. i. p. 469 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 39 ; Wold, in Bl D. Burm. p. 67. Carine pulchra, Sharpe, Ibis, 1875, p. 258 ; id. Cat. Birds B. Mm. ii. p. 140 j Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 576 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 84 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 183. Description. — Male and female. Whole upper plumage greyish brown, each feather with a more or less concealed white bar and two white subterminal spots ; tail greyish brown, with five narrow white bands ; quills earthy brown, with large white patches on both webs forming inter- rupted bands ; lower plumage white, irregularly barred with brown ; the thighs and under tail-coverts pure white ; chin and throat white, continued as a broad band up the sides of the neck ; facial disk, which is nearly obsolete, and sides of the head dark brown mottled with whitish. 158 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Bill greenish, yellowish at tip; cere greenish brown; iris bright yellow ; edges of the eyelids black; feet brownish green; claws horn-colour. Length 8 inches, tail 3, wing 5'5, tarsus 1, bill from gape '8. The female is of the same size as the male. I retain this bird as distinct from C. brama with considerable doubt. As a rule, the Burmese birds are smaller than the Indian ones ; but this distinction cannot always be maintained. Two birds which I measured at Thayetmyo had the wings 5'8 inches in length, and another one, now in the British Museum, has the wing 6-2. Indian specimens of C. brama with wings of less than this length are not uncommon. The differences, moreover, pointed out by Mr. Hume in the plumage of the two races are too subtle to be of any value. Mr. Hume, as quoted by Mr. Sharpe, says .__« No doubt the general character of the plumage is the same as in C. brama', but the spotting of the head is smaller and neater. The general colour of the upper surface is a darker and purer brown; the throat-band is more strongly marked. The tail exhibits five or six narrow transverse bands or traces of these, against four or five far broader and more distinctly marked bands in C. brama. The scapulars, too, seem to be generally less barred and more spotted than is usually the case in Indian specimens." The Burmese Spotted Owlet occurs at Thayetmyo and Prome and between those two towns, and it does not appear to be found at a much greater distance than fifteen miles from the Irrawaddy. 3 Dr. Anderson procured it in Independent Burmah, and it does not, s< far as is at present known, occur elsewhere. This small Owlet is abundant to a degree in the Thayetmyo and 3 districts, inhabiting the holes of large trees and the roofs of zayats or resthouses, so common near villages. It may be heard at all hours of the day screeching and quarrelling with its neighbours in some old tamarind- tree, in the holes of which tree it probably deposits its eggs in March and April. The Owls of this genus are of small size and the ear-tufts are absent. THE BROWN HAWK-OWL. l.VJ Genus NINOX, Uodys. 540. NINOX SCUTULATA. THE BROWN HAWK-OWL. Strix scutulata, Uaffl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 280. Ninox scutellatus Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 147 (part.); Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 303; Hume, S. F. iv. p. 373. Ninox scutulata, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 420 (part.) ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. ii. p. 156 ; Bl $ Wold. B. Burm. p. 67 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 84 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 371. Ninox hirsutus (Temm.), Hume, S. F. iii. p. 40. Ninox burmanica, Hume, S. F. iv. p. 285 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 40 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 84 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 148 ; Hume, S. F. ix. p. 245. Ninox innominata, Hume, S. F. iv. p. 286, v. p. 16. Ninox lugubris (Tick.), Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 577 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 183. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, lores and chin whitish, with black shafts ; the whole upper plumage, wing-coverts and tertiaries dark chocolate-brown; the scapulars with large concealed white spots; pri- maries and secondaries dark brown, barred with white on the inner webs ; some of the primaries edged with rufous ; tail ashy brown, tipped paler and with five dark-brown bars across it ; throat rufous streaked with brown ; breast rufous-chocolate, each feather edged on the sides only with white ; remainder of lower plumage rufous-chocolate barred with white ; under tail-coverts nearly pure white; under wing-coverts and axillaries deep rufous, barred with paler rufous. Iris bright yellow ; eyelid plumbeous, the edges yellowish brown ; cere dull green; bill bluish black; the culmen and tip of lower mandible yellowish green ; feet pale yellow ; claws dark horn. Length 12*5 inches, tail 5*3, wing 8'5, tarsus I'l, bill from gape 1. The female is of about the same size as the male. The above description is taken from a Tenasserim bird, the race named N. burmanica by Mr. Hume. Birds from Pegu differ in being a lighter colour above and in having the quills more barred with white. I am of opinion, however, that the birds are not divisible into two species, nor are they to be separated from the birds which inhabit China, the Malay peninsula and the Indo-Burmese countries ; and I accordingly follow Mr. Sharpe in uniting them all under Raines's name. N. luyubris, which, according to Mr. Sharpe, inhabits solely the Indian peninsula, is probably a recognizable species when typical specimens are examined ; but there appear to be numerous intermediate examples which cannot be assigned with certainty either to one race or the other, and the advisa- bility of maintaining two species seems open to doubt. The works above referred to contain every thing of importance that Mr. Sharpe and Mr. Hume luive written on this difficult subject, and the reader who 160 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. wishes to investigate the history of these Hawk-Owls is referred to them for further information. The Brown Hawk-Owl is found abundantly over the whole of British Burmah, both in the hills and plains. It occurs throughout India, Ceylon, the Indo-Burmese countries, the Malay peninsula and islands, Cochin China, China and Japan. This Hawk-Owl is found alike in forests and in spare jungle and gardens. It comes out about dusk and sits on the branches of dead trees, from which it sallies out to capture insects. Its note resembles the word whoo-wuk repeated several times. Genus GLAUCIDIUM, Boie. 541. GLAUCIDIUM BRODIEL THE COLLARED PIGMY OWLET. Noctua brodiei, Burton, P. Z. S. 1835, p. 152. Glaucidium brodiei, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 146 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 417 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 67 ; Bl. B. Bnrm. p. 67 ; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 39 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 84 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 148. Tsenioptynx brodiei, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 71. Athene brodiei, David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 38, pi. 5. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, cheeks, ear- coverts, sides of neck and a band across the throat brown, narrowly barred with pale fulvous ; chin, a stripe under the cheeks and ear-coverts and the whole throat white ; a broad rufous collar round the hind neck, more or less mixed with blackish ; remainder of upper plumage, wings and tail rufous-brown, barred with fulvous ; a broad line from the throat down the abdomen to the vent pure white ; remainder of lower plumage rich rufous, barred with fulvous. In another phase the whole upper plumage is greyish brown, barred with white; the fulvous collar as described above; the outer webs of the scapulars largely marked with white ; the lower plumage less rufous. Cere, bill and feet yellowish green ; iris bright yellow ; claws horny. (Bingham, MS.) Length 6'3 inches, tail 2'2, wing 3'4, tarsus '8, bill from gape '75. The female is larger than the male, the wing being 3' 75 and the total length about 6'8. The Collared Pigmy Owlet is found in Tenasserim from Tavoy northwards, and Capt. Bingham states that it is common in the Thoungyeen valley. I have never obtained it in Pegu ; but I am under the impression that I have frequently heard the note of this small Owl near the town of Pegu THE COLLARED PIGMY OWLET. 161 and on the Pegu hills. It was certainly the cry of a small Owl that I heard, but I was never able to identify it with any species known to me. It has been known to occur in China, and it is found in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal and in the Himalayas. This Owlet is a forest species, and is generally found in hilly country. Capt. Bingham likens its note to the words ivhoo, whoo-hoo, whoo. In the Himalayas it breeds in May and June in the hollows of trees, laying three eggs. G. castanopterum, from Java, is stated to have been met with in Tenas- serim by Dr. Heifer. If such a bird should be found in Burmah, Mr. Hume surmises that it will prove a distinct species. The Javan bird may be recognized by its barred plumage, deep chestnut back, scapulars, wings and tail, and by the abdomen being white streaked with chestnut. The wing measures nearly six inches in length. G. radiatwn, from the Indian peninsula, is stated by Col. Tickell to occur in Arrakan, Burmah and Tenasserim (Ibis, 1876, p. 343). Such a statement implies, I think, that this bird is distributed over the whole Province and is common. No one has, however, met with it in recent years, and it is possible that Col. Tickell mistook the bird for some other species. It is, however, not unlikely to be met with in Arrakan, and I therefore annex Dr. Jerdon's description*. Col. Tickell, in his MS. 111. of Ind. Orn., states that these Owlets are common about Shwayghoon, Htyngbway and Myawadee in Tenasserim, amongst the trees scattered about clearings in the forest close to the towns. * GLAUCIDIUM RADIATUM. " Above brown, uniformly barred with close rays of rufescent whitish and dusky ; wings more rufous, especially the primaries, and barred with dusky brown ; some of the greater coverts and scapulars with white spots ; beneath, throat white ; the rest of the body barred transversely with dusky and whitish ; under tail-coverts white j bill greenish horny ; irides golden yellow ; feet greenish horny, with dusky claws. Length 8 to 8*5 inches, wing 5, tail nearly 3, tarsus not quite 1. " It inhabits the Himalayas and the Indian peninsula, and is said to occur in Arrakan, Burmah and Tenasserim. It is also recorded from the Malay peninsula." VOL. II. BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 542. GLAUCIDIUM CUCULOIDES. THE BARRED OWLET. Noctua cuculoides, Vigors, P. Z. S. 1831, p. 8. Athene cuculoides, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 145 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 414 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 71 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 39 ; Wardlaw Ramsaij, Ibis, 1877, p. 454. Athene whiteleyi, apud Bl Sf Wold. B. Burm. p. 66. Glaucidium cuculoides, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mtis. ii. p. 219; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 37; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 84; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 148; Oates, 8. F. x. p. 183. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage aud wings brown, closely barred all over with ochraceous ; the outer webs of some of the scapulars and outermost wing-coverts with large patches of white; tail blackish, with six bars of white, one of which is concealed by the upper coverts ; all the feathers of the tail also tipped white ; ear-coverts, sides of the neck, a band across the throat and the whole breast simi- larly banded like the upper plumage ; a broad moustachial band reaching to the end of the ear-coverts and a large patch on the fore neck white ; centre of the abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts white ; abdomen and flanks white, broadly streaked with rufous ; front of the thighs rufous, barred with brown ; axillaries and under wing-coverts pale buff, the latter with a few brown streaks. Iris bright yellow ; eyelids greenish plumbeous ; cere brown ; bill pale green, the tip of the upper mandible yellow; mouth flesh-colour; legs greenish yellow ; claws brown. Length 87 inches, tail 3'2, wing 5'8, tarsus 1, bill from gape '9. The female is rather larger. The Barred Owlet is spread abundantly over the whole Province, except in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where Mr. Davison did not observe it. Dr. Armstrong did not meet with it in the Irrawaddy Delta, and it may be absent from the parts he worked ; but it is unlikely, as it abounds round Rangoon for many miles in all directions. It is found along the Himalayas, and it probably occurs in the Indo- Burmese countries. Dr. Tiraud records it from Cochin China; but the species found in that country may be G. whitelyi, a species which is con- sidered doubtfully distinct from the present, and which is met with in China and Japan. G. whitelyi is said to be larger, and to have seven bars across the tail instead of six. This Owlet is found both in forests and in gardens, bamboo-groves and compounds. It is about a good deal during the day, and does not retire to the holes of trees till some time after sunrise. It has a peculiar gurgling cry, uttered both at night and during the day when disturbed. It breeds in the Himalayas from March to May, laying three or four in the hole of a tree. THE SHORT-EARED OWL. 163 Genus ASIO, Brisson. 543. ASIO ACCIPITRINUS. THE SHORT-EARED OWL. Stryx accipitrina, Pall. Reise Russ. Reichs, i. p. 455. Strix brachyotos, Forst. Phil. Trans. Ixii. p. 384 ; Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 289 ; Seebohm, Brit. Birds, i. p. 167. Otus brachyotus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 126 j Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 364 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 41. .ffigolius brachyotus, Bl. fy Wald. B.Burm. p. 66. Asio accipitrinus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 234 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 257, pi. ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 454 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. yi. p. 30 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 253 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 182. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage and wing- coverts brown, each feather margined at the sides with tawny, more broadly so on the neck and back than elsewhere ; tail light tawny, regularly banded with brown ; the tawny interspaces on the central feathers also mottled with brown ; quills bright tawny barred with brown ; a black ring round the eye ; disk dull tawny, streaked with black ; lower plumage fulvous, streaked with dark brown, the streaks broadest on the throat and gradually diminishing in width ; thighs and under tail-coverts without streaks ; ear- tufts very short. Bill and claws blackish ; iris bright yellow. Length 15 inches, tail 6 '3, wing 12, tarsus 1*8, bill from gape 1*2. The female is a little larger. The Short-eared Owl is stated by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured one specimen at Tonghoo in Pegu. This species is found nearly over the whole world, except in very high latitudes ; and it is absent, according to Mr. Sharpe, from West Africa, Australia and the greater portion of the islands of the Pacific Ocean. Mr. Seebohm met with it in Siberia in 67° N. lat. This Owl is found in India principally in long grass, and it is only a winter visitor. It is very likely to be found commonly in some parts of British Burmah when plains of grass are beaten for game ; and I am under the impression I have seen it more than once under these circumstances. It has a cry consisting of three hoots, and it lays its eggs on the bare ground. It does not, of course, breed in Burmah. 164 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus SYENIUM, Savigny. 544. SYRNIUM SINENSE. THE MALAYAN WOOD-OWL. Strix sinensis, Lath. 2nd. Orn. Suppl. p. xvi. Strix seloputo, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 140. Strix pagodarum, Temm. PL Col. 230. Bulaca sinensis, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 357. Ciccaba seloputo, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 21. Syrnium sinense, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 261. Syrnium seloputo, Bl $ Wold. B. Burm. p. 67; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 37; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 28 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 45 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 146; Oates, S. F. x. p. 182. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, chin, and facial disk rather bright ferruginous without marks ; lower edge of disk whitish ; a large patch on the throat pure white ; the space between this patch and the chin ferruginous ; ear-coverts black, barred slightly at the lower end with ferruginous ; top of head and neck very dark chocolate-brown, each feather with two white spots on either web, the spots becoming larger as they recede from the front of the head ; sides of the neck darker, the spots turning into bars; the back, scapulars, rump and upper wing-coverts chocolate-brown, paler than on the head ; the back with large white bars ; the lesser wing-coverts with a few white spots ; the greater wing-coverts with large white spots on both webs ; the rump barred with white ; the scapu- lars with large bar-like drops of white, the exterior feathers, which are usually concealed, being almost entirely white with ferruginous brown bars ; primary-coverts plain rufous-brown ; the general colour of the wings much the same as that of the upper plumage, but duller; the primaries and secondaries barred with fulvous on both webs, except in the first four primaries, where the outer webs are barred with whitish ; the tertiaries broadly barred with white, turning to rufous bars at the bases of the feathers ; tail much the same tint as the back, the central rectrices very sparsely barred with whitish (probably disappearing with age), the others barred narrowly on the outer and broadly on the inner web with fulvescent white ; all the rectrices tipped with dull white ; the whole lower plumage with the under wing-coverts white, with numerous bars of dark brown ; the bases of the feathers, which are very much decomposed and bright fulvous in colour, show through the plumage in patches ; the bars on the thighs narrower and more numerous. The young bird has the whole upper plumage white barred with choco- late-brown ; tips to tail-feathers very white and broad ; the whole lower plumage white, closely barred with brown; thighs plain fulvous- white ; facial disk as in the adult. THE MALAYAN WOOD-OWL. 165 Bill and cere dark horn-brown ; mouth flesh-colour ; iris dark brown ; edges of the eyelids pink ; toes brown ; claws dark horn. Length 18'5 inches, tail 7*6, wing 14*4, tarsus 2'15, bill from gape 1*5. The female is very little larger. The Malayan Wood-Owl is distributed over Pegu and Tenasserim. I found it common near Kyeikpadein and the town of Pegu, and I have seen many specimens that were killed near Rangoon. Capt. Feilden procured some Owls at Thayetmyo which were probably of this species. Mr. Davison procured it only in the extreme south of Tenasserim, but appears to have identified it from its cry in other parts of the Division ; and Capt. Bingham heard its note in the Thoungyeen valley. It occurs in Siam and Cochin China, in the Malay peninsula and in Java. Count Salvadori gives it with doubt from Borneo. This handsome Owl frequents evergreen forests and groves of trees near pagodas and ruined monasteries. It is strictly nocturnal in its habits, and feeds principally on large insects. During the day it roosts on a high branch well protected by leaves. Its cry consists of three or four hoots. I have never found the eggs, but I have taken the young birds in March and April. The eggs appear to be deposited in a roomy fork of some large tree at no great height from the ground, and are probably only two in number. Col. Tickell, in his ' Illustrations of Indian Ornithology/ figures a young Owl which he identifies with S. indranee. He says : — " The individual from which the drawing was taken was brought to me a nestling and lived for about three weeks on small fish, when it gradually sickened and died, probably from want of the admixture of insect food. I have never seen any other specimen of this species, and it may be reckoned in Tenasserim a very rare bird. Its plumage approaches nearest to that of S. indranee as described by Jerdon, but it may possibly be an undescribed and distinct species." The figure represents a bird with the whole head and lower plumage pure white ; the posterior part of the facial disk pale chestnut bordered by a semicircle of black feathers ; the upper plumage che&tnut, barred with black and whitish. As figured it is certainly not the nestling of S. seloputo, with which I am well acquainted, but it is difficult to say of what species it is the young ; and under these circumstances I think it advisable not to admit S. indranee into the Burmese list till there is further evidence of its occurrence in the province. 166 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus PHODILUS, /. G. St.-Hilaire. 545. PHODILUS BADIUS, THE BAY OWL. Strix badia, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 139. Phodilus badius, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 119 j Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 346 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 21 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 309 ; Bl. $ Wald. B. Burin, p. 67 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 27; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83; Oates, S. F. x. p. 181. Phodilus ? nipa- lensis (G. E. Gray], Hume, S. F. iii. p. 37. Description. — Male and female. Forehead and front of the crown pinkish white ; remainder of the crown and nape very deep chestnut ; the whole upper plumage, wings and tail lighter chestnut ; the quills with black hars on the inner webs and incipient bars on the outer webs ; the tail with more or less perfect bars on both webs ; the feathers of the other parts each with a small black mark, and those of the greater wing-coverts, scapulars and tertiaries with some white shaft-spots ; feathers round and in front of the eye deep chestnut ; disk whitish, more or less marked with chestnut; lower plumage fulvous-pink, sparingly spotted with brown, except on the tarsi and under tail-coverts. Length about 11 inches, tail 3'5, wing 7'3, tarsus T9; these are the measurements of birds which are probably males. The females are said to be much larger. The Bay Owl is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan and Tenasserim. Capt. Feilden procured it at Thayetmyo, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay at Tonghoo and on the Karin hills east of that town. I have never myself met with it. It is found in Sikhim and Nipal ; and it extends to Cochin China and down the Malay peninsula 'to Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This Owl frequents forests, but nothing is known of its habits. It has recently been shown that it belongs to the Bubonidge and not to the Strigidse. THE BARN-OWL. 167 Family STRIGID^E. Genus STBIX, Linn. 546. STRIX FLAMMEA. THE BARN-OWL. Strix flammea, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 133 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 291 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 142; Leyge, Birds Ceylon, p. 164; Dresser, Birds Eur.v. p. 237, pi. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 181. Strix; javanica, Gm. Syst. hat. i. p. 295 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 117 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 59 j Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 22 ; Bl. $ Wold. B. Burm. p. 68; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 26; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83; Biw/ham, S. F. viii. p. 191; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 229. Strix indica, Blyth,Ibis, 1860, p. 251; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 342; id. S. F. Hi. p. 37; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 300. Aluco flammeus, Seebohm, Brit. Birds, i. p. 148. Description. — Male and female. Facial disk white, with a rufous spot in front of the eye ; ruff yellowish buff, each feather mottled with brown ; lower plumage light buff spotted with brown ; upper plumage and wing- coverts fulvous ; the terminal halves of the feathers brown, vermiculated with whitish, and each feather with a black and a white spot near the tip ; tail fulvous, barred and vermiculated with brown ; wings the same, but the inner webs chiefly white. Bill pale bluish, with a tinge of pink on the culmen ; mouth flesh- colour ; cere flesh-colour, turning to yellow in front ; iris dark brown ; legs pinkish brown ; claws horny brown. Length 14*5 inches, tail 5, wing 11*5, tarsus 2*5, bill from gape 1*7. The sexes are of about the same size. The Barn-Owl is abundant over the whole of Pegu and Arrakan. Mr. Davison did not meet with it in any part of Tenasserim ; but Capt. Bingham records two birds from that Division captured near Moulmein. This Owl, with slight modifications of plumage (and I follow Mr. Sharpe in uniting them all under one name), is found over the whole world in the tropical and temperate zones. Mr. Seebohm limits its range to forty degrees of latitude on each side of the equator, except in Western Europe, where climatic conditions cause it to range still further from the equator. The Barn-Owl is found in Burmah chiefly in woods and groves of trees, and not unfrequently in the roofs of large buildings, such as the barracks at Thayetmyo. It utters its screeching cry from November to January, and is silent or nearly so at other times. At Kyeikpadein these Owls were very abundant and noisy, and were in the habit of entering my bed- room at night, probably in pursuit of Bats, with which the bungalow was 168 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. swarming. They breed in December and January, and I have found their eggs both in holes of trees and in holes in the ground. They probably nest also in old wells and dilapidated pagodas. The eggs are usually five in number. 547. STRIX CANDIDA. THE GRASS-OWL. Strix Candida, Tick. J. A. S. B. ii. p. 572 j Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 118 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. ii. p. 308 j Bl. B. Burm. p. 68 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 46 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 27 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 181. Scelostrix Candida, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 345 ; Anders. S. F. iii. p. 388. Glaux Candida, Hume, Nest and Eggs, p. 60. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage, with median and greater wing-coverts, dark glossy brown ; the feathers yellow at the base, this colour being more or less mixed with the brown, according to the disarrangement of the plumage ; each feather with a small spot of white near the tip ; lesser wing-coverts pale orange-buff spotted with brown ; tail bufiy white ; the central tail-feathers completely barred across with dark brown, the others successively less barred, the outermost feathers being nearly pure white ; quills in general orange-buff, barred with brown, and the tips also brown ; the whole of the face and sides of the neck white ; a patch of black in front of the eye ; whole lower plumage pure white ; the abdomen, under wing-coverts, sides of the breast and body spotted with brown. Irides very dark brown ; bill horny ; legs livid. (Jerdon.) Length 14 inches, tail 5 '2, wing 13, tarsus 3 '2. The Grass-Owl was procured at Tonghoo by the late Colonel Lloyd. It has not yet been known to occur elsewhere in the Province. It is found in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal and in a great portion oJ the Indian peninsula, and it ranges into China and Cochin China. This species inhabits places covered with thick grass, and it is said to la^ its eggs on the ground in November or December. THE LONG-BILLED VULTUKE. 169 Order VII. ACCIPITEES. Suborder FALCONE S. Family VULTURID.E. Genus GYPS, Savigny. 548. GYPS INDICUS. THE LONG-BILLED VULTURE. Vultur indicus, Scitps. Del. Faun, et Flor. Insub. ii. p. 85. Gyps indicus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 9 j Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 21 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 5 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 18 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 10 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 64 ; Hume 8> Dav. S. F. vi. p. 1 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 165, viii. p. 81 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 177. Description. — Male and female. The head bare, with a few hair-like feathers ; upper part of the neck thinly covered with down ; the lower part naked; upper back, scapulars and wing-coverts dull brown; lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts dull white ; wings and tail blackish brown ; ruff white ; crop covered with dark brown feathers ; lower plumage whity brown to tawny. Bill and cere bluish horny, dusky at tip ; legs and feet dusky cinereous ; irides brown. (Jerdon.) Length 38 inches, tail 1O5, wing 24, tarsus 4*5, bill from gape 3. The female is of about the same size. The Long-billed Vulture appears to be generally distributed over the Province, at least as far south as Moulmein, but it is by no means plentiful. I have never myself shot a specimen of this Vulture ; but I have often observed a species which differed from the very common P. bengalensis, and which was probably the present bird. Capt. Bingham observed it at Moulmein, and thinks the two species equally common. Mr. Hume states that he has seen a specimen that was killed in Upper Pegu. It extends north into India, and is spread over a considerable portion of that peninsula, and it is stated to have occurred in Siam and at Malacca. Dr. Tiraud met with it in Cochin China. This species is found in large flocks feeding on carrion ; and it breeds on trees, laying but one egg, which is sometimes spotless greenish white, and at other times marked with reddish brown. The Western and Central Indian representative of this species (G. pallescens) appears always to breed on the ledges of cliffs. 170 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus PSEUDOGYPS, Sharps. 549. PSEUDOGYPS BENGALENSIS. THE INDIAN WHITE-BACKED VULTURE. Vultur bengalensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 245. Gyps bengalensis, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 10; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 26; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 7; id. 8. F. iii. p. 19 ; Bl B. Burin, p. 65. Pseudogyps bengalensis, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 11 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 142 j Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 1 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 81 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 219 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 142 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 177 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 364. Description. — Male and female. Head and neck naked,, with a few brownish bristles ; a ruff at the back of the neck white,, and a patch above the breast black ; back and upper tail- coverts dark brownish or black ; rump white; lower plumage chocolate-brown, with fulvous-white shaft- stripes ; wings and tail blackish ; the upper wing-coverts margined with reddish brown ; under wing-coverts white ; inner side of the thighs covered with white down. Iris brown ; skin of head pinkish brown ; bill dark plumbeous ; legs brown ; claws black. Length 35 inches, tail 10, wing 23, tarsus 3*8, bill from gape 2*5. The above measurements are those of a female ; the male appears to be of about the same size. The Indian White-backed Vulture is abundant over the whole Province. It is found in the Indo-Burmese countries and the peninsula of India, in Siam, Cochin China and the Malay peninsula nearly down to Singapore. This species bears a superficial resemblance in coloration to the prece- ding, but may be known at all ages by having twelve tail-feathers instead of fourteen, which is the number G. indicus possesses. It is found in large flocks feeding on carrion and frequenting the trees growing near cantonments and villages. It breeds in November and December, making a large nest of sticks in very high trees and laying a single egg. When fresh the egg is very pale bluish white, sometimes marked with reddish brown, and as incubation proceeds it becomes very soiled. These Vultures breed in great numbers in some high trees near the village of Kyeikpadein. THE BLACK VULTURE. 171 Genus OTOGYPS, Gray. 550, OTOGYPS CALVUS. THE BLACK VULTURE. Vultur calvus, Scop. Del Faun, et Flor. Insub. ii. p. 85 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 8 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 64. Otogyps calvus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 7 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 1 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 18 ; Sliarpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 14 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 1 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 j Scully, S. F. viii. p. 217 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 142 j Gates, S. F. x. p. 177 j Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 364. Description. — Male and female. General aspect of plumage black ; head and neck naked ; a few small plumes on the head and round the ears ; plumes on the lower neck black, below which is a crescentic patch of white down occupying the upper part of the breast ; a large patch on each flank pure white ; inner side of thighs naked. Bill dark brown ; cere, base of bill and the head red ; legs china-white ; claws black ; iris yellow. In some the iris appears to be reddish brown. Length 31 inches, tail 10*2, wing 24, tarsus 4'8, bill from gape 2'75. The female appears to be of much the same size. The Black Vulture is found sparingly over the whole Province. It extends into Siam and Cochin China, and down the Malay peninsula as far at least as Perak, where Lieut. Kelham observed it. It is found in the Indo-Burmese countries and over the greater part of the Indian peninsula. This fine Vulture is generally seen in couples associating with other Vultures, and, by virtue of their superior strength, appropriating the best food. It breeds in the early part of the year, making a large stick nest on large trees, frequently at no great height from the ground. It lays a single egg, which is usually unmarked pale greenish white. I once found in March the nest of a Vulture which I at the time considered to be this species ; it contained one young bird, and was built in the celebrated old banyan tree near Pegu, in the roots of which the large image of Guadama is imbedded. The parent birds were not about, and I can only conjecture that the nest belonged to the present species. 172 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Family FALCONID^. Subfamily ACCIPITRIN^l. Genus CIRCUS, Lacep. 551. CIECUS MELANOLEUCUS. THE PIED HARRIER. Falco melanoleucus, Forst. Ind. Zool. p. 12, pi. 11. Circus melanoleucus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 99 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 307 ; Swinhoe, Ibis, 1874, pi. x. ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 61 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1875, p. 225 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 61 j -Hume, S. F. iii. p. 33 j Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 299 ; Hume, 8. F. v. p. 11 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 29 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 21 ; Anders. Yun- nan Exped. p. 572, pis. xlv., xlvi. ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 9 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 250; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82; Bingham, S. F. viii. p. 191, ix. p. 145; Gates, S. F. x. p. 180. Description. — Male and female. The whole head and neck, breast, back and scapulars black, a few of the lowermost feathers of the latter grey ; abdomen, sides of the body, vent, under tail-coverts, rump and upper tail- coverts white, the latter with indistinct bars of pale grey ; tail grey tipped with white, and all the feathers, except the central ones, internally margined with the same ; the first six primaries black, tipped with white ; the other primaries and the secondaries silver-grey, broadly margined internally with white ; tertiaries dark brown ; shoulder of wing and lesser wing-coverts white, tinged with grey ; winglet and primary-coverts greyish white ; remainder of the coverts black. Immature birds have the head and neck fulvous-brown, with large dark- brown spots; the ear-coverts streaked with brown; the lower plumage fulvous-white, streaked with brown, the streaks increasing in size towards the vent ; upper tail-coverts white, with a few fulvous spots ; quills brown, whitish interiorly and barred with darker brown, the shafts glossy hair- brown ; back and scapulars and wing-coverts dark brown with pale edges ; tail rufous-grey, tipped with white and crossed by five or six dark bands ; some of the feathers of the upper wing-coverts whitish, with rich rufous edges. The young bird is very rufous, with dark rufous-brown centres to all the feathers. Base of bill bluish, remainder black ; iris bright yellow ; legs orange- yellow ; cere dusky yellow ; claws horn-colour. Length 17-5 inches, tail 8-5, wing 13*8, tarsus 3, bill from gape 1*2. MONTAGU'S HARRIER. 173 The second, third, fourth and fifth primaries emarginated on the outer webs ; the emargination of the second lying beyond the coverts and just visible without lifting them ; the emarginations on the others are some distance, 2' 5 to 3' 5 inches, below the coverts. The female is rather larger than the male. The Pied Harrier is a winter visitor to British Burmah, and is more or less abundant in the plains of the whole Province. It has a wide range in Eastern Asia, being found in summer in Mongolia, Amurland and Northern China, and extending in winter as far south as Ceylon, Malacca and Cochin China. The habits of this Harrier are peculiar, inasmuch as the adult females do not appear to migrate so far south as the males. All the pied birds shot in India and Burmah appear to be males, and it was long considered that birds in immature plumage were adult females. But even immature females are very rare in the winter, for in the course of many years' collecting I have not succeeded in procuring more than two specimens ; the few that occur are obviously accidental stragglers, the bulk of the females remaining in their summer quarters, or, at most, not moving far south. Mr. Sharpe was, I believe, the first ornithologist to draw attention to the fact that the sexes, when adult, are alike in plumage. Mr. Cripps has lately stated (S. F. x. p. 327) that a pied bird shot by him in Assam, and sexed by himself, was a female, and has thus corroborated Mr. Sharpens statement. The Pied Harrier is found in Burmah from September to May. It is abundant in all the flatter parts of the country, flying backwards and forwards close to the ground, and feeding on crabs, frogs and large insects. 552. CIRCUS PYGARGUS. MONTAGU'S HARRIER. Falco pygargus, Linn. 8yst. Nat. i. p. 126. Falco cineraceus, Mont. Orn» Diet. i. Circus cineraceus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 97 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 303 ; EL B. Burm. p. 01 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon'y. 12 j Dresser, Birds Eur. \. p. 423, pi. ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 368; Seebohm, Brit. Birds, i. p. 131. Circus pygargus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 64; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 28; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 21. Description. — Adult male. The head, neck, upper plumage and breast dark bluish grey ; upper tail-coverts white, broadly tipped with ashy ; tail grey, the centre feathers uniform, the others with the inner webs barred, the bars on the pair next the central being brown, gradually changing to 174 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. rufous on the outer pair, and the interspaces changing in a similar manner from ashy to whitish; wing-coverts ashy grey, tipped darker; secondaries silvery grey, with a black bar across ; the first six primaries black, the others silvery grey ; tertiaries like the back ; lower plumage from the breast downwards white streaked with chestnut; axillaries white with broad chestnut marks. Adult female. Head and hind neck brown streaked with rufous ; back, rump, scapulars, tertiaries, and wing-coverts dark brown, with indistinct fulvous margins to the feathers, the wing-coverts with broader margins ; upper tail-coverts white ; tail brown, tipped paler and cross-banded with darker brown, the bands becoming rufous towards the outer feathers, and the interspaces whitish ; sides of the head brown streaked with rufous ; ear-coverts dark brown ; a patch of feathers under the eye whitish ; lower plumage buffy white, with elongated rufous centres to the feathers ; quills dark brown barred with darker brown, the primaries and primary- coverts tinged with grey externally. The young have the head and neck rich rufous with brown streaks ; the upper plumage brown with rufous edges ; the upper tail-coverts whitish, broadly edged with rufous ; a broad patch under the eye extending to the ear-coverts whitish ; hinder part of ear-coverts dark brown ; entire lower plumage rufous, with a few narrow black streaks ; tail rufous, banded with brown ; quills brown, more or less barred with darker brown. Legs and feet yellow; iris bright yellow (brownish yellow in the female); bill black. Length 17 inches, tail 9-5, wing 15, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape I'l. The female is rather larger than the male. The second, third and fourth primaries only are emarginated on the outer webs, and the emargination on the second primary is quite an inch below the coverts. It is difficult to comprise in any description the various phases of plumage which this species undergoes before it becomes adult. The cha- racter of the emarginations on the primary-quills will be found the safest guide to identification. Montagu's Harrier is stated by Mr. Blyth to be found in Pegu and Tenasserim; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay writes (Ibis, 1875, p. 351) that he thought he once saw this species in Karennee. It is common enough in India and China, and it is therefore a very likely bird to be found in all parts of Burmah. ^ This Harrier is found, according to season, over the greater part of Europe, Africa and Asia. To Burmah and the southern portion of the continent of Asia it is merely a winter visitor. In its winter migration it goes as far as the Moar river in the Malay peninsula, where Lieut. Kelham secured a Harrier which he identifies with the present species. THE PALE HARRIER. 375 • This Harrier is found in dry plains and does not appear to affect swamps. It lays four to six eggs on the ground, and they are greenish white, occasionally marked with reddish brown. 553. CIRCUS MACRURUS. THE PALE HARRIER. Accipiter macrourus, & G. Gmel. N. Comm. Petrop. xv. p. 439, pis. viii., ix. Circus swainsonii, Smith, 8. Afr. Quart. Journ. i. p. 384 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 96 j Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 298 ; Bl. B. Sunn. p. 61 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 441, pi. Circus pallidus, Sykes, P. Z. S. 1832, p. 80 j Hume, S. F. i. p. 160. Circus macrurus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 67 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 28; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 17; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 82; Oates, S. F. x. p. 180. Description. — Male. The whole upper plumage grey; the second to the fifth primaries brown on the terminal half; rump whitish barred with grey; central tail-feathers like the upper plumage but paler, the laterals white banded with grey ; chin and throat pale grey ; remainder of the lower surface pure white ; lower tail-coverts white with a few obsolete marks ; forehead and streak above the eye sordid white ; cheeks and ear- coverts striated with grey and pale rufous. The female has the upper plumage and wings brown, the latter barred darker ; upper tail-coverts pure white, with a few small marks near the tips ; tail brown, barred with five darker brown bars, becoming paler and rufescent towards the outer feathers ; the whole lower plumage rufous- white, the feathers centred darker. In the young the whole lower plumage is ferruginous ; the forehead, crown and nape brown, each feather edged with rufous ; a stripe over and under the eye white ; the cheeks and ear-coverts dark brown mixed with rufous ; the back and scapulars brown ; rump brown, broadly edged with rufous ; upper tail-coverts white ; tail brown, broadly barred with rufous- white ; median wing-coverts pure rufous ; the other coverts brown, edged paler ; wings brown, tipped paler, and all the inner webs broadly barred with rufous-white ; under wing-coverts pale ferruginous, with darker shaft - stripes. Iris yellow ; cere and legs yellow ; claws black ; bill black ; gape greenish yellow. Length 18 inches, tail 9, wing 13*5, tarsus 2*7, bill from gape 1*1. The female is considerably larger, the wing being nearly 15. The second, third 1 fourth primaries only emarginated on the outer web, the emargina- tion of the second primary being situated at the tip of the wing-coverts so as to be almost entirely hidden. 176 BIRDS OF BRITISH BTJRMAH. The Pale Harrier is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan and Pegu. I found it far from uncommon in the great plains in the southern portion of Pegu, more especially on both sides of the canal. This Harrier is found,, according to season, over the greater portion of Europe, Africa and Asia. It visits India, the Indo-Burmese countries, Burmah and South China in the winter season only. I observed this Harrier chiefly along the course of rivers and on the edges of ponds. It perches on clods of earth, and occasionally on a thick bunch of grass, and flies very gracefully. 554. CIECUS ^lEUGINOSUS. THE MARSH-HARRIER. Falco aeruginosus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 130. Circus aeruginosus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 99 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 314 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 51 : id. 8. F. iii. p. 35 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 69 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 61 ; David et Oust Ois. Chine, p. 30 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 415, pi. ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 5 : Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 22 ; Cripps, 8. F. vii. p. 250 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 82 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 226 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 180; Seebohm, Brit. Birds, i. p. 124^ Description. — Male and female. Entire head, neck and breast creamy buff, streaked with reddish brown ; upper plumage dark brown, the feathers edged with fulvous-brown ; lesser wing-coverts creamy white, with rusty brown margins and streaks ; median coverts nearly uniform brown ; the outer greater coverts, the primary-coverts and the secondaries bluish ashy, paler at the tips ; primaries blackish brown, paler at tip and white at their bases; tertiaries brown washed with ashy; upper tail-coverts greyish white tinged with rufous ; tail uniform bluish ashy ; abdomen, sides of the body, vent, thighs and under tail-coverts ferruginous, with buffy white streaks on the abdomen and sides; under wing- coverts buffy white; axillaries with shaft-spots of deep rufous. Young. Forehead, crown, nape, cheeks and throat creamy buff, with rusty shaft-stripes ; ear-coverts, fore neck and the whole lower plumage except the breast deep rufous-brown ; the breast creamy buff, with large central rufous-brown streaks ; wings, tail and upper plumage dark brown ; a few of the smaller wing-coverts broadly edged with pale buff. Very young birds are uniform dark umber-brown. In this plumage they do not appear ever to visit Burmah. Base of bill greenish yellow, the remainder black; mouth purplish flesh- colour; cere greenish yellow; iris yellow; legs pale yellow; claws dark horn-colour. The female and young have the iris brownish yellow. THE CRESTED GOSHAWK. 177 Length 21 inches, tail 97, -wing 16, tarsus 3-4, bill from gape T45. The female is rather larger. The second, third, fourth, and fifth primaries are emarginated on the outer webs : in this respect it resembles C. melano- leucus ; but the young of the two species, apart from their plumage, can always be separated by their size, C. aruginosus being a much larger bird. The Marsh-Harrier is extremely common in all the low-lying plains of the province in the winter season, from September to May. It is found, according to season, in Europe, Africa, and a considerable portion of Asia. In winter it visits, as far as Eastern Asia is involved, India and Ceylon, the Indo-Burmese countries, China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula and the Philippine Islands. Another Harrier (C. spilonotus) occurs in Eastern Asia, and may pro- bably be found to wander into Burmah. The male is entirely white below, with the throat and breast streaked with black. The Marsh- Harrier frequents by preference swamps and localities where water is abundant ; but I have also frequently seen it, late in the hot weather, in parched burnt-up grass-plains. Like other Harriers, it always flies pretty near the ground, resting at times on clods of earth or even on the ground itself. It is said occasionally to remain in India throughout the year and to breed there. Its nest is placed on the ground near water ; and the eggs, three to six in number, are pale bluish green, sometimes marked with pale brown. Genus ASTUR, Lacep. 555. ASTUR TRIVIRGATUS. THE CRESTED GOSHAWK. Falco trivirgatus, Temm. PI. Col. 303. Spizaetus rufitinctus, McCleU. P. Z. S. 1839, p. 153. Astur indicus, Hodys. in Gray's Zool. Misc. p. 81. Astur trivirgatus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 47 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 17 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 105 ; Leyye, Birds Ceylon, p. 20 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81. Lophospizia trivirgatus, Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 116; Bl $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 62 ; Gurnet/, Ibis, 1875, p. 355 ; id. S. F. v. p. 502 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 22. Lophospizia indica, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 25 ; id. 8. F. v. p. 8. Lophospizia rufitincta, Hume, 8. F. v. p. 124; Hume fy Dav. S. F. v. p. 7. Astur rufitinctus, Hume, S. F. yiii. pp. 81, 152 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 178. Description. — Male and female. Above slaty grey, the upper tail-coverts blackish and tipped with white ; head and neck clearer slaty grey, inclu- ding a conspicuous occipital crest, the sides of the neck somewhat tinged with rufous; quills browner than the back, primaries with rufescent VOL. II. N 178 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. shafts, barred above with dark brown, much paler underneath, where the quills are white at the base of the inner web ; tail ashy brown, paler at tip, crossed with four bands of dark brown ; throat white, with a distinct black moustachial streak on each side and a broad median line ; chest clear tawny rufous; rest of under surface white, broadly banded with pale rufous, each bar of this colour having a conterminous brown bar ; the thighs thickly barred with ashy brown without any rufous tinge ; under tail-coverts white ; under wing-coverts white spotted with brown or rufous- brown, and the axillaries similarly barred. (Sharps.} Upper mandible and tip of lower dark brown or black ; remainder of the lower mandible plumbeous ; cere and gape lemon-yellow ; eyelids and orbital skin green; edges of eyelids yellow ; iris bright yellow ; legs yellow; claws black. Length 16 inches, tail 8, wing 8'6, tarsus 2'7, bill from gape I'l. These are the measurements of a bird shot in Pegu. There are two races of this bird, a larger one (A. rufitinctus) and a smaller one (A. trivirgatus). The bird I procured on the Pegu hills belongs to the smaller race ; but birds from Bengal and from Tenasserim belong, according to Mr. Hume, to the larger race. Mr. Gurney gives the measurements of a number of specimens (/. c.}} and it appears that in A. rufitinctus the wings vary in length from 9'4 to 11 '5 inches, whereas in A. trivirgatus they vary from 7'5 to 9 inches. He states that the adults of A. trivirgatus differ from A. rufitinctus not only in their smaller size, but also in their very bright fulvous or rufescent tints on the upper breast and on the sides of the neck. I procured only one specimen of the Crested Goshawk in the evergreen forests of the Pegu hills in April, and Mr. Davison secured two specimens in Tenasserim. It appears therefore to be very rare in Burmah. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, where it is found along the Himalayas from Assam to Nipal, in Bengal, Southern India and Ceylon. It ranges into China, and it is met with in the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the Philippine Islands. This Goshawk appears to frequent dense forests. HUME'S GOSHAWK. 179 556. ASTUR POLIOPSIS. HUME'S GOSHAWK. Micronisus poliopsis, Hume, & F. ii. p. oitf ; /. Mas. i. p. 110; JBingham, S. F. v. p. 81 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 24 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 7 ; Ander- son. Yunnan Exped. p. 573 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Bingham, S. F. viii. p. 190, ix. p. 143 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 178. Micrastur badius, Bl. 8f Wald. B. Burm. p. 62. Scelospizias poliopsis, Gurney, Ibis, 1875, p. 361. Description. — Male and female. Upper plumage bluish grey, the nape mottled with white ; central tail-feathers barless, the others with broken bars of brown and tipped whitish ; throat dusky white ; lower plumage bright rufous narrowly barred with white ; thighs, under tail-coverts and vent white ; quills ashy grey, barred on the inner webs with dark brown arid the interspaces white. A very young bird is brown above, all the feathers edged rufous ; tail ashy brown, with dark brown bars and tipped with whitish ; lower plumage white ; the throat with a central stripe of brown, the other parts with large, central, rufous-brown drops ; quills brown, barred with darker brown, and a large portion of the inner webs rufous-white. At the next stage the rufous edgings to the upper plumage are lost and the drops on the lower parts are more thickly disposed and exhibit a tendency to bars. Length 12*5 inches, tail 6'5, wing 7'2 to 8, tarsus 2, bill from gape *9. The female is larger than the male : length 14 inches, tail 7, wing 8*5. This bird is hardly more than a race of A. badius of India. It differs in being rather larger, in wanting the rufous on the nape, in being of a purer grey, in wanting the throat-stripe in the adult, and in having the rufous bands below broader. Hume's Goshawk is found over the whole province in greater or less abundance. It extends north as far as Cachar, it is met with in China, Siam and Cochin China, and it probably ranges some distance down the Malay peninsula. Mr. Gurney mentions (/. c.) a bird from Ceylon as belonging to this race ; but some mistake must underlie this statement. This Goshawk is found in well-wooded parts of the country and feeds on insects and small reptiles. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenasserim in April ; it was made of sticks and placed in the branch of a large tree, and it contained three eggs, which were pale bluish white. 180 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 557. ASTUR SOLOENSIS. HORS FIELD'S GOSHAWK. Falco soloensis, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 137. Micronisus soloensis, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 17. Astur soloensis, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 114, pi. iv. fig. 1 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 8 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 8; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81. Description.— Adult male and female. The whole upper plumage, wings and tail and sides of the head dark bluish ashy ; the tail browner and crossed by four or five bands of dark brown, indistinct on the central pair of feathers, more distinct on the others ; the bases of all the quills more or less white ; the whole lower plumage pale ferruginous, paling on the vent and thighs ; chin and throat paler, with indications of a brown stripe down the centre of the throat ; under wing-coverts unmarked pale buff; axillaries buffy white ; the bases of the feathers of the upper plumage mostly white and showing up on the nape and sometimes on the scapulars. The young are brown above with rufous edges to the feathers ; the lower surface white, the chest streaked and the breast and flanks barred with pale rufous ; under wing- coverts buff. The legs and feet bright orange; claws black ; cere and nostrils orange; gonys and base of upper mandible plumbeous ; rest of bill black ; irides bright yellow. (Davison.) Length about 11 inches, tail 5*4, wing 7*8, tarsus 1*7, bill from gape '75. The male is rather smaller. The above descriptions are taken from Chinese specimens in the Swinhoe collection ; the adult plumage is described from an extremely old female. Horsfield's Goshawk occurs in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where it will probably be found to be not uncommon. It is met with in China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula and the islands as far as New Guinea. A. cuculoides, an allied species found in China, may possibly visit Burmah at times ; it has the under wing-coverts pure white. THE SPARROW-HAWK. 181 Genus ACCIPITER, Briss* 558. ACCIPITER NISUS. THE SPARROW-HAWK. Falco nisus. Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 130. Accipiter nisus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 51 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 124 ; Dresser, Birds Ear. v. p. 599, pi. ; Hume, Nests and Eyfjs, p. 25; id. S. F. iii. p. 24; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 132; Gurnet/, Ibis, 1875, p. 479 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 27 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 454 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 247 ; Leyye, Birds Ceylon, p. 27 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 10 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 178 ; Seebohm, Brit. Birds, i. p. 135. Description. — Adult male. The whole upper plumage dark slaty, the quills and lateral tail-feathers browner, the quills barred with darker brown; the tail crossed by four dark brown bands and tipped with whitish ; lores grey ; cheeks and ear-coverts deep ferruginous ; chin and throat rufous-white ; lower plumage white barred with rufous, the bars very close together on the breast, wider apart on the abdomen and thighs; sides of the body nearly entirely rufous ; under tail-coverts white ; under wing- co verts and axillaries pale rufous- white barred with brown. The female differs in being browner on the upper plumage ; there is no rufous on the sides of the head and on the lower plumage ; the cheeks, ear-coverts, chin and throat are white streaked with brown, and the whole lower plumage is white, regularly barred across with firm distinct equi- distant brown bands; the longer under tail-coverts are nearly pure unmarked white, and the under wing-coverts and axillaries are white barred with brown. The young are brown above, each feather being edged with rufous ; an eyebrow, cheeks and ear-coverts white streaked with black ; the quills and tail are much as in the adult, but the latter is crossed by five dark bands ; lower plumage white, the throat streaked with black ; the breast, flanks and thighs barred with brown or rufous-brown, these bars being more or less broken and assuming the shape of a series of spots or irregular marks; under tail-coverts white ; under wing- coverts buffy white barred or marked with brown. Bill blue; cere, legs and toes yellow; irides orange; claws black. (Seebohm.) Length about 13 inches, tail 6'2, wing 8, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape '75. * The small Sparrow-Hawks and Goshawks are very like each other, especially when immature. It may be well therefore to remind the student that the length of the middle toe should always be looked at first in discriminating a species of Astur or Accipiter. In the former the middle toe is short and does not much exceed the lateral toes, whereas in Accipiter the toe is extremely long and extends far beyond the lateral toes. 182 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The female is very much larger: length up to 16 inches, tail 7-5, wing 9'5, tarsus 2'4, bill from gape '85. The Sparrow-Hawk has been known to occur a few times in Burmah. Capt. Feilden procured it at Thayetmyo, Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay at Tonghoo, Capt. Raikes at Yandoon near the head of the Irrawaddy Delta, and Mr. Davison on Mooleyit mountain in Tenasserim. It visits India, Burmah, China and Cochin China in the winter, being found in summer in Central and Northern Asia. It occurs also over the whole of Europe and Northern Africa, migrating in those continents accord- ing to season. The Sparrow-Hawk is no doubt commoner in Burmah than the few instances of its occurrence above recorded would lead one to suppose, for it is very abundant in some of the countries to the immediate north. It breeds in some portions of the Himalayas in May and June. In Europe it makes a stick nest in trees, and lays three to six eggs, bluish white marked with reddish brown. 559. ACCIPITER VIRGATUS. THE BESRA SPARROW-HAWK. Falco virgatus, Reimv., Temm. PL Col. 109. Accipiter virgatus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 53 j Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 132 j Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 17 ; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 141 j Sharpe, Gat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 150 j Gurney, Ibis, 1875, p. 480 ; Bl. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 62; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 26; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 26 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 10 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Sharpe, S. F. viii. p. 440 ; Gurney, S. F. viii. p. 443 ; Hume, S. F. ix. p. 231 ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 475 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 178 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 365. Teraspizias rho- dogastra, apud Bl. fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 62. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape very dark bluish ashy; back, wing-coverts, scapulars, rump and upper tail-coverts dark brown tinged with ashy ; quills brown, broadly barred with darker brown, the bases of all whitish ; under aspect of wing brown, broadly barred with white ; tail ashy brown, crossed by three broad blackish bands ; sides of the head ashy brown ; chin and throat white, with a narrow brown gular stripe ; centre of the breast whitish ; sides of the breast and of the body and the thighs ochraceous chestnut, indistinctly barred with whitish ; abdomen, vent and under tail- coverts almost pure white; under wing- coverts and axillaries white barred with blackish brown. The young have the whole upper plumage brown, each feather margined with rufous, the quills barred with blackish ; tail ashy brown, with three dark bands across all the feathers but the outermost ones, which have five THE BESRA SPARROW-HAWK. 183 narrower bands ; chin and throat pale rufous, with a brown gular stripe ; sides of the head mixed brown and rufous ; sides of the neck deep ferru- ginous mottled with brown ; remainder of lower plumage rather bright ferruginous, paler on the abdomen and under tail-coverts ; the breast with broad brown streaks ; the abdomen and sides of the body with roundish rufous-brown spots, showing a tendency in places to become bars ; under tail-coverts with large triangular brown patches ; under wing-coverts and axillaries ferruginous spotted with brown. Legs and feet pale yellowish green ; bill plumbeous blue, tipped blackish ; irides and cere gamboge-yellow. (Hume.) Length about 12 inches, tail 5'6, wing 6'6, tarsus 2'1, bill from gape '8. The female is rather larger, the wing reaching the length of 7' 5. I have drawn up my descriptions from the oldest and youngest birds that I was able to find in Mr. Seebohm's collection. The variations of plumage are, of course, immense, but they will be found, I think, to range between the two extremes above described. I procured an undoubted specimen of the Besra Sparrow- Hawk on the Pegu hills a few miles above the town of Pegu. Capt. Feilden obtained a Sparrow- Hawk of this section which has given rise to much doubt — Mr. Sharpe, according to Lord Tweeddale, having identified it with A. stevensoni, and Mr. Gurney, on the other hand, and according to the same authority, having identified it with the Celebean species A. rhodogaster. It is useless to speculate now on what the bird really was ; but I notice that Mr. Gurney records a specimen of the true A. virgatus from Thayetmyo as being in the Norwich Museum. Mr. Blyth gives A. virgatus from Arrakan and Tenas- serim, but I do not know on what authority. It appears to be a rare species, as Mr. Davison procured only one specimen in the latter Division at the town of Thatone. Two closely allied races, A. gularis and A. stevensoni, occur, the first in the Himalayas, Japan and China, and the second in China and the Malay peninsula. The distinctions between the three races are too minute to be entered upon in this work. So long as the three races of this Sparrow-Hawk remain so difficult to distinguish, it is not easy to trace the exact distribution of A. virgatus. It appears, however, to be spread over India, Ceylon, the Andamans, the Indo-Burmese countries, portions of China, the Malay peninsula and the islands of the Malay archipelago. Mr. Parker found the nest of this bird in Ceylon in June, a small structure made of sticks, placed in a tree, and containing one young bird. 184 BIRDS OF BRITISH BUKMAH. Subfamily BUTEONIN.E. Genus BUTEO, Cuvier. 560. BUTEO PLUMIPES. THE HARRIER BUZZARD. Circus plumipes, Hodgs. in Gray's Zool. Misc. p. 81. Buteo plumipes, Hodgs. P. Z. S. 1845, p. 37 ; Jerd. JB. Ind. i. p. 91 j Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 285 ; Sharps, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 180, pi. vii. fig-. 1 ; Bl. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 64; Hume, 8. F. iv. p. 358 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1876, p. 369 ; id. 8. F. v. p. 65 ; Hume, 8. F. v. p. 347; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 31 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 82 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 225 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 180. Buteo japonicus, apud Hume, S. F. iii. p. 30. Description. — Everywhere dull smoky brown, the wing-coverts and scapulars lighter; primaries dark brown, inclining to purplish brown towards the tips ; the inner web buffy white barred with brown ; shafts whitish • secondaries paler brown like the back ; tail uniform smoky brown, with whitish shafts and pale whity-brown tips, showing under certain lights obsolete remains of light cross bars, which are still distinctly indicated on the inner web and under surface of the tail, which is ashy white ; lores whitish ; sides of face and of neck as well as the entire under surface of the body, including the under wing- and tail- coverts, uniform smoky brown, somewhat washed with rufous on the sides of the face and throat. (Sharpe.) Length 20 inches, tail 9, wing 15 '4, tarsus 3, bare part of tarsus in front 1-1 to the root of the middle toe, on the side to sole of foot 1, culmen 1'25. (Sharpe.) I have not ventured to investigate the difficult group of the Buzzards, and I therefore gladly avail myself of Mr. Sharped description of Mr. Hodgson's type of B. plumipes, the species with which Mr. H ume identifies Buzzards procured in Burmah. I have never seen any Buzzards from that country, and therefore any investigations carried out in England, in the absence of Burmese birds, would have been of little use so far as the object of this work was concerned. The Buzzards vary immensely in the colour of the plumage, and I do not think that any number of elaborate descriptions would enable the bird to be recognized in all its stages. The Buzzards have the upper half of the tarsus feathered, and the whole of the naked part behind is scaled, not reticulated. This character is possessed by the Harriers and Hawks ; but the Buzzards may be distinguished from both these groups by their massive make and by their enormously thick short tarsus. THE STEPPE-EAGLE. 185 The Harrier Buzzard was procured at Thayetmyo by Capt. Feilden ; and Mr. Hume states that he has received a second specimen from the same place. This bird is found over the whole peninsula of India and Ceylon, and, if identical with B. japonicus, it extends to China and Japan. Capt. Feilden remarks of the bird he shot at Thayetmyo that he found it in tolerably thick tree-jungle. The Buzzards are forest-loving birds, and make their nests in Subfamily AQUILIN^E. Genus AQUILA, Briss. 561. AQUILA BIFASCIATA. THE STEPPE-EAGLE. Aquila bifasciata, /. E. Gray in Gray fy Hardw. III. Ind. Zuol. i. pi. 17 j Brooks, S. F. i. pp. 290, 326 j Bl. B. Burm. p. 63. Aquila nipalensis, Hodgs. Asiat. Res. xviii. pt. 2, p. 13, pi. 1 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 507, pi. ; Gurney, Ibis, 1877, p. 222 j Hume, S. F. vii. p. 338, viii. p. 81 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 179. Aquila mogilnik, apud Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 240 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 25 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 8; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 11. Description. — Nearly adult male and female. General colour pale brown, the scapulars browner ; upper tail-coverts white ; quills blackish ; the primaries narrowly tipped with whitish ; the secondaries with broader whitish tips and with some indistinct light bars near the end ; the tertiaries variegated with fulvous-white ; the primary-coverts and most of the great wing-coverts broadly tipped with fulvous-white ; tail dark brown, broadly tipped with fulvous -white and indistinctly barred across. The above is the description of three specimens procured in Pegu, and I think that most of the specimens met with in Burmah will be found to be in this plumage. This Eagle does not undergo any very marked changes from youth to old age. The perfect adult is characterized by a large buff patch on the nape; and the young birds have the wing- coverts broadly tipped with bright fulvous, forming two conspicuous bands across the wing ; the larger coverts are also tipped with fulvous- white as above described, and form a third band. Gape, cere and feet bright yellow ; iris dark brown ; eyelids greenish ; bill black ; claws black. 186 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Length 30 inches, tail 1T5, wing 22, tarsus 3'5, bill from gape 2'8, cere •85. The female is a little larger. It has been shown that the name of A. mogilnik is properly referable to the Imperial Eagle ; and Mr. Gurney agrees with Mr. Dresser in considering the name of A. nipalensis the correct one for the present species. Both A. bifasciata and A. nipalensis apply to the same bird, and the former name is senior by a year. The Steppe-Eagle has long been confounded with the Imperial Eagle, and I therefore do not give any synonyms which apply to both species. A. mogilnik) when adult, is of a dark blackish brown, with some of the scapulars white, and the young birds are lineated. The Steppe-Eagle is not uncommon in Burmah as a winter visitor. Capt. Feilden states that it is very common at Thayetmyo, but I cannot say that I ever found it so. Further south, however, near Pegu and on the banks of the canal, I generally succeeded in shooting three or four specimens every winter. Mr. Davison notes its occurrence in Tenasserim both at Moulmein and Tavoy. It has a considerable range, being found in Eastern Europe, Southern Asia, China and Eastern Siberia. It appears to be more or less mi- gratory. This Eagle is a heavy dull bird ; and the specimens I procured were generally seated on the ground, allowing me to approach within gunshot without difficulty. 562. AQUILA CLANGA. THE SPOTTED EAGLE. Aquila clanga, Pall. Zoog. Rosso- Asiat. i. p. 351 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 248 j Hume, S. F. iii. p. 25 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1877, p. 329 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 9; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 499, pi. j Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 11 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 81 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 179. Aquila nsevia (Gm.), Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 59 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 162 ; id. Nests andEggs,^. 28 ; Anders. P. Z. S. 1871, p. 686 ; Brooks, S. F. i. p. 329, iii. p. 304 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 63. Aquila maculata (Gm.), Brooks, S. F. iv. p. 268. Description. — Male and female. General colour uniform dark purplish brown ; the feathers of the lower back and rump variegated with fulvous ; upper tail-coverts white slightly marbled with brown ; wing-coverts edged paler ; tertiaries subterminally grey ; tail without bars and tipped with whitish grey ; thighs marked with fulvous ; tarsi variegated with white ; under tail-coverts white. Two other birds have the upper plumage dark purplish brown ; wing- coverts and scapulars streaked with greyish white ; back and rump a mixture THE SPOTTED EAGLE. 187 of tawny, brown and grey ; upper tail-coverts white ; under wing-coverts centred with pale fulvous ; the whole lower plumage, from the breast downwards, fulvous-brown with dark brown edges; chin, throat and breast uniform dark hair-brown; under tail-coverts white; thighs mixed pale fulvous and dark purplish brown ; tarsi nearly uniform brown, becoming fulvous or whitish near the toes. Iris, gape and cere pale yellow ; middle part of the bill plumbeous, the tip dark brown; eyelids and orbital skin pale pinkish flesh-colour; toes pale yellow ; claws black. Length 26 inches, tail 10, wing 19' 5, tarsus 4, bill from gape 2' 3. These are the average dimensions of three young males. The female is con- siderably larger, the wing being 2] '5 and the tail 11*5. I have described above the only three Spotted Eagles I ever procured in Burmah. Those birds which visit the Province will probably always be found to be immature, and consequently in a plumage somewhat similar to those above described*. The very young bird is characterized by having buff streaks on the head and neck ; otherwise they are in much the same plumage as above described. The general colour of the old bird, according to Mr. Sharpe, is pale brown, and there are no traces of spots on the wing-coverts and scapulars ; but according to Mr. Anderson and Mr. Dresser, the adult plumage is a uniform dark brown, with some white feathers on the tarsi. These white feathers appear to be a characteristic feature of this Eagle at all ages. The Spotted Eagle visits Burmah during the winter months in small numbers. I procured three birds at the junction of the Canal with the Pegu river, and Capt. Feilden procured it at Thayetmyo. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan, and Colonel Tickeil states that he got it in Tenasserim. This Eagle has a very wide range, being found over a considerable portion of Asia, Europe and Africa. It frequents by preference well-watered and swampy localities, and it appears to feed largely on frogs. The nest is placed on a tree, and the eggs, two or three in number, are white blotched with red. This Eagle and the next may be separated from the others by their rounded nostrils. * I have paid no great attention to the Eagles ; for they are very scarce in Burinah, and there is consequently no opportunity of collecting a series. 188 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 563. AQUILA HASTATA. THE LONG-LEGGED EAGLE. Morphnus hastatus, Less. Voy. Belang. p. 217. Aquila hastata, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 62 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 180 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 31 ; Anders. P. Z. S. 1872, p. 69 ; Brooks, S. F. i. p. 293 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 248 ; Brooks, S. F. iv. p. 269; Gurney, Ibis, 1877, p. 329 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81. Aquila fusca, apud Bl. B. Burm. p. 63. Description. — Male and female. Plumage above glossy hair-brown, most of the feathers tipped with white ; upper tail-coverts barred with white ; quills glossy purplish black ; tail the same, obsoletely barred with dusky grey and with a white tip; throat and breast unspotted brown; breast, abdomen, feathers of the leg, lower wing-coverts and under tail-coverts pale fawn or yellowish white, closely barred with brown; quills and tail beneath grey, mottled and barred with dusky ; in some only the feathers of the hind head and back of the neck are tipped white, three distinct rows of spots on the wings, and the tertiaries broadly tipped with white,; in others the spots are still less developed. Young birds are much lighter brown; the tertiaries and secondaries barred and clouded with whitish and brown; the tail more distinctly barred, and the lower parts from the breast streaked longitudinally with fulvous- white. (Jerdon.) Length 23 inches, tail 9*5, wing 19, tarsus 3' 9. The female is rather larger, the wing measuring about 19'5 inches and the tail 10. Mr. Blyth, in his Catalogue of Burmese birds, records an Eagle from Arrakan under the name of A. fusca, and dentifies it with Dr. Jerdon's No. 30, which is A. hastata. I have never seen a Burmese example of this species, and I therefore think it advisable to quote Dr. Jerdon's description of this Eagle, as it apparently refers to the bird which Mr. Blyth had in mind. The Lesser Spotted Eagle is no doubt not uncommon in Arrakan, for it is found over the greater part of the Indian peninsula. All the Spotted Eagles I procured in Burmah, however, are referable to the preceding species. A very interesting and full description of the changes of plumage of this Eagle is given by the late Mr. Anderson (/. c,), but I regret that it is much too long for me to quote. THE BOOTED HAWK EAGLE. 189 Genus NISAETUS, Hodgs. 564. NISAETUS PENNATUS. THE BOOTED HAWK EAGLE. Falco pennatus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 272. Aquila pennata, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 62; Dresser, Bird* Em: v. p. 481, pi. Hieraetus pennatus, Hmne, Rough Notes, p. 182 ; id. fast* and Eggs, p. 32 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 63 ; Gurnet/, Ibis, 1877, p. 419 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 11 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 82 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 179. Nisaetus pennatus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 253; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 25 ; Leyyc, Birds Ceylon, p. 40. Description. — Adult female. Above brown, the scapulars with a pur- plish shade, some of the highest plumes of the latter pure white, forming a shoulder-patch, the lowest broadly bordered with buffy white, as also are all the wing-coverts ; lesser and median coverts slightly shaded with pale fawn-colour, the greater ones purplish brown, with a broad edging of buffy white; quills blackish, secondaries purplish brown, terminally margined with buffy white, the innermost very pale whity brown ; lower surface of quills dark brown, inclining to ashy white near base of inner web, the secondaries indistinctly barred with dull whitish ; lower back and rump dark purplish brown ; the upper tail-coverts dull fawn-brown, shading into buffy white on their margins and tips ; tail dull sepia-brown, slightly shaded with ashy and tipped with dull white, crossed with four or five indistinct bars of darker brown, the feathers inclining to dark brown towards the tips, but not forming a distinct subterminal band ; head and neck fawn-colour, with lanceolate central streaks of dark brown, the cheeks streaked distinctly with blackish; frontal plumes whitish; under surface of body buffy white, the throat and chest inclining to dull fawn-colour, the throat broadly streaked with black down the centre ; the chest also streaked with dark brown, becoming narrower on the breast, and disap- pearing on the abdomen, thighs and under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts white, scarcely streaked with dark brown shaft-lines, the greater ones with large blackish spots ; cere and gape bright wax-yellow ; bill bluish black, pale blue at base ; feet pale wax-yellow ; iris pale brown. Total length • 24 inches, culmen T7, wing 16'5, tail 10, tarsus 2'8. Adult male. Smaller than the female. Total length 19 inches, wing 137, tail 8, tarsus 2'4. Young. Differs from the adult in the colour of its under surface, which utirely dull brown, with distinct black shaft-lines, the thighs and under tail-coverts a little more sandy, the tarsal feathers buffy white ; upper surface purplish brown, the scapulars and wing-coverts lighter than the back and broadly edged with whitish, the upper tail-coverts almost 190 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. entirely whitish ; uppermost scapulars white, forming a larger patch than in the adult ; head dull fawn, not so rufous as in the old bird, distinctly streaked with black, the cheeks and throat strongly inclining to dark brown ; quills and tail much as in the adult. (Sharps.} I have never seen a specimen of this Eagle from Burmah, and I con- sequently prefer to quote Mr. Sharpens description to writing one of my own. The Booted Hawk Eagle has occurred several times in Burmah. Mr. Blyth records it from Moulmein, and Mr. Gurney states that there is a specimen in the Norwich Museum from that town, probably the same bird which came under Mr. Blytk's notice. Capt. Feilden speaks of it as occurring at Thayetmyo ; and from his account I should judge it to be rather common there, but I never myself met with it. Mr. Davison pro- cured a solitary specimen at Thatone in Tenasserim, and I do not know of any other instances of its occurrence in Burmah. It is found in India and ranges into Europe and Africa. This Eagle in India is generally found in gardens and cultivated land. Capt. Feilden observed it on trees in paddy-fields, and also near the parade- ground of Thayetmyo seated in the centre of moderate- sized trees in full foliage. He adds that they were tame and easily shot. Genus NEOPUS, Hodgs. 565. NEOPUS MALAYENSIS. THE BLACK EAGLE. Falco malayensis, Temm. PI. Col. 117. Neopus malayensis, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 65 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 187; Beavan, P. Z. 8. 1868, pi. 34; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 257 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 63 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1877, p. 423 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 47 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 11 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82. Onychaetus malayensis, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 4. Heteropus malayensis, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 33. Description. — Male and female. All black ; the tail barred with greyish brown above and with dull white below ; the quills barred with white near their bases ; the underparts very dark blackish brown ; the upper tail-coverts brown with a few white bars. The young bird appears to be brown above, with buffy white spots at the tips of the coverts and secondaries; tail-coverts broadly tipped with white; the head with ochraceous margins; the cheeks and throat buffy BLYTIFS HAWK EAGLE. 191 ochre ; the lower plumage rich buffy ochre with dark margins, giving a striped appearance. Cere, gape and feet deep yellow ; bill greenish horny, black at the tip ; iridcs dark brown. (Jerdon.) Length 27 inches, tail 13'5, wing 22, tarsus 3*5, bill from gape 2. The female is larger : length 31 inches, wing 24. The Black Eagle may be recognized by the peculiar formation of its foot, the outer toe being very small and the inner one nearly as long as the middle toe. Mr. Blyth states that this Eagle occurs in Tenasserim, and Mr. Davison observed one on Mooleyit mountain. It has not yet been discovered in Arrakan and Pegu. It extends into India and Ceylon, and it ranges down the Malay penin- sula to Sumatra, Java, Borneo and some of the further islands ; and Dr. Tiraud records it from Cochin China. It frequents deep forests in mountainous countries, and is said to make its nest on the face of a cliff, laying three eggs. Genus SPIZAETUS, Vieill. 566. SPIZAETUS ALBONIGER. BLYTIFS HAWK EAGLE. Nisaetus alboniger, Bl. J. A. S. B. xiv. p. 173. Spizaetus nanus, Wall. Ibis, 1868, p. 14, pi. 1. Spizaetus alboniger, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 14 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 271 j Bl B. Burm. p. 63 j Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 13 Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82. Description. — Adult. Above black, with an occipital crest 2' 75 inches in length, the latter tipped with white ; q uills dark brown, narrowly tipped with whitish, crossed with bands of black, the subterminal one very broad ; tail ashy brown, with two bands of black — one basal, the other subterminal ; lores whitish, the sides of the face black, like the crown ; a broad mous- tachial streak of black ; under surface of body white, the breast plainly marked with large drops of black, the belly and thighs thickly banded with black, the abdomen and under tail-coverts a little more broadly; under wing-coverts white, sparingly barred with black. Total length 22' 5 inches, culraen 1'4, wing 13, tail 9*5, tarsus ?>'3. Young. Above pale brown, the back, scapulars and small wing-coverts darker, the greater coverts, scapulars and upper tail-coverts tipped with 192 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. white ; head and neck fawn-brown, the nuchal feathers rather darker in the centre ; an occipital crest (1'95 inch long) black, with broad white tips to the feathers ; sides of face pale fawn-colour ; under surface of body buffy white, with a tinge of fawn-colour on the breast, a little deeper on the thighs, some of the flank -feathers brownish; under wing-coverts buffy white; quills brown, the primaries blackish, indistinctly barred with darker brown, not very plain below, where the inner lining of the wing is glossy white ; tail brown, tipped with whitish and crossed with three bands of blackish brown, the subterminal one much the broadest. Total length 19-5 inches, wing 11 -2, tail 9, tarsus 3. (Sharpe.} I have never met with this species, and I consequently prefer to give Mr. Sharpens description. Blyth's Hawk Eagle has been known to occur at Mergui and at Banka- soon in Tenasserim. It ranges down the Malay peninsula, and is found in Borneo. 567. SPIZAETUS LIMNAETUS. THE CHANGEABLE HAWK EAGLE. Falco limnaeetus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 138. Falco caligatus, Raffl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 278. Falco niveus, Temm. PI. Col 127. Limnaetus niveus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 70. Spizaetus caligatus, Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 198 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 37 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 27 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv.-p. 297. Spizaetus limnaetus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 15 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 272; Bl. B. Burm. p. 63; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 11. Limnaetus cali- gatus, Gurney, Ibis, 1877, p. 425 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82 ; Bingham, S, F. ix. p. 143 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 179 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 366. Description. — Male and female. Young bird of the year. The head, neck and the whole lower plumage white, the feathers of the crown brown- shafted ; a few of the feathers of the breast with narrow central dark streaks ; a few brown dashes on the sides of the body ; tibial plumes barred with pale fawn ; wings, tail and upper plumage dark brown ; the quills with a good deal of white at the bases of the inner webs ; the tail barred with five or six bars of darker brown. At another stage the lower plumage becomes more streaked and the head is tinged with buff; the thighs are more distinctly barred ; the primaries have some silver-grey on the centre of the outer webs, and the tail-bands are better defined. When older still, the lower plumage is thickly dashed with dark brown, and there is a distinct stripe down the chin and throat ; the thighs and tarsi are very closely and distinctly barred with fulvous ; the head and upper neck are tinged with fulvous and thickly THE CRESTED SERPENT-EAGLE. 193 streaked with dark brown ; there are five very dark bars on the tail, the last one about one and a half inches broad, and all the feathers are tipped with white ; the upper plumage and scapulars are dark glossy brown. "Adult. Above and below deep chocolate- brown, inclining to blackish on the head and back, the quills and tail blackish, the shafts of the latter brownish, the inner webs of the quills clear ashy; tail-feathers below ashy white, brownish towards the tips, the penultimate ones with remains of irregular cross markings/' (Sharpe.} Iris brown, turning to orange-yellow ; eyelids plumbeous ; mouth flesh- colour ; bill black, the gape bluish ; cere dark brown ; feet yellowish green to pale yellow ; claws black. Length 26 inches, tail 12, wing 15'5, tarsus 4'3, bill from gape 1'7. The female is larger. The above descriptions of the immature birds are taken from a series of specimens shot in Pegu ; the plumage of the adult, which appears to be less seldom met with, from Mr. Sharpens Catalogue. The Changeable Hawk Eagle is generally distributed over the whole of British Burmah, being more common in the northern part of Pegu than elsewhere. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, where it is found in Bengal and the Eastern Himalayas ; and it occurs in the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This handsome bird frequents forests, especially those at the foot of mountain -ranges. It is very abundant in the valleys near Thayetmyo, where it breeds in April and M ay, making a nest of sticks near the top of a high tree. Genus SPILORNIS, Gray. 568. SPILORNIS CHEELA. THE CRESTED SERPENT-EAGLE. Falco cheela, Lath. Ind. Orn. i. p. 14. Haematornis undulatus, Vigors, P. Z. S. 1831, p. 170. Spilornis cheela, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 77 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. -22-2 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 40 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 287 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 28 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 60 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 21 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 4o4; Gurnet/, Ibis, 1878, p. 89; Huine $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 14 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82. Spilornis undulatus, Oates, S. F. x. p. 179. Description. — Male and female. Upper head aud crest deep black; the bases of the feathers white and showing up conspicuously, the tips of some mottled with fulvous ; plumage above hair-brown ; the upper wing- VOL. II. O 194 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. coverts slightly tipped with white, and the upper tail-coverts both spotted and tipped with white ; quills dark brown tipped with white, each quill with a lighter brown patch a couple of inches from the tip, and with white patches on the inner web ; tail brown at base, the remainder black with a dusky white bar, each feather tipped white ; chin, throat and ear-coverts brown ; breast hair-brown, with close irregular narrow bars of a darker shade ; remainder of the lower parts the same, but with white ocelli which become broken bars near the legs and tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts beautifully ocellated with white. There are variations : the throat, cheeks and ear-coverts are frequently streaked with dark brown or black ; the wing-coverts are profusely spotted with white in some, hardly at all in others ; the scapulars are sometimes tipped with white, and the abdomen sometimes has a rich tawny tinge. Legs dull yellow ; claws black ; iris bright yellow ; orbital skin greenish yellow; cere greener; bill plumbeous, dusky at tip ; mouth bluish. Length 26 inches, tail 11*5, wing 17*5, tarsus 4, bill from gape 1'8. The female is considerably larger, the length being about 28 and the wing 18'5. I have observed the Crested Serpent-Eagle only in the northern portion of Pegu from Thayetmyo to Tonghoo ; but Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay states that it is common in Burmah, and that its melancholy whistle may be heard in every jungle in the plains. I think, however, that he may have made this statement under the impression that the present and the next species were not worthy of separation. It extends through the Indo -Burmese countries into India, and is found over the greater part of that peninsula. It is also recorded from China. This handsome Eagle, characterized by its beautiful ocellated plumage, is an inhabitant of clearings and the outskirts of forests v/liere there are swamps or pools of water. It feeds almost entirely on small snakes. It makes a nest in trees, laying, as a rule, only one egg. 569. SPILORNIS RUTHERFORDI. RUTHERFORD'S SERPENT-EAGLE. Spilornis rutherfordi, Smnh. Ibis, 1870, p. 85; SI B. Burm. p. 60 ; Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 28; David et Oust. Ois. CJiine, p. 22; Gurney, Ibis, 1878, p. 93 ; Hume $ Dav, 8. F. vi. p. 14 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 82 ; Bint/ham, 8. F. ix. p. 144 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 179. Spilornis melanotis, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 289. Description. — Male and female. Precisely similar to 8. cheela, but smaller. A young bird, shot in March and probably a year old, had the crown and nape pale fulvous-white, each feather with a black spot near the tip ; THE WHITE-EYED BUZZARD-EAGLE. 195 on the neck the spots gave place to subterminal bars, and the longer feathers were tipped with bright fulvous, forming a conspicuous collar ; the feathers of back very dark brown, with a small white spot at the tip of each web ; lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts rich fulvous -brown, each feather tipped white, and the rump-feathers with, in addition, indistinct white ocelli on both webs ; scapulars and wing-coverts paler than in the adult ; the whole lower surface white tinged with pale fulvous, the shafts of the feathers rich brown ; a broad irregular hair- brown band across the breast, barred narrowly with paler brown ; a few patches on the flanks turning into the adult ocellated plumage; under wing-coverts light buff with darker centres. Length 21- inches, tail 10'5, wing 16'5, tarsus 37, bill from gape 1'8. The female is proportionately larger. Mr. Sharpe unites this species to S. melanotis of Southern India; Mr. Hume keeps them distinct. Pending a settlement of the vexed question of the number of species of these smaller Serpent-Eagles, it is perhaps advisable to keep S. rutherfordi distinct for the present. Rutherford's Serpent-Eagle is generally spread over Pegu and Tenasserim; it extends to Siam, Cochin China and China. This Eagle is tolerably abundant in swampy forests and wooded tracts. It does not differ in habits from the preceding species. Genus BUTASTUB, Hoclgs. 570. BUTASTUR TEESA. THE WHITE-EYED BUZZARD-EAGLE*. Circus teesa, Frankl. P. Z. S. 1831, p. 115. Poliornis teesa, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 92 ; Hume, Hough Notes, ii. p. 283 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 49 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 31 ; Bl. 8f Wald. B. Burm. p. 61. Butastur teesa, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 29o; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 19; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82; Oates, S. F. x. p. 180. Description. — Male and female. Upper plumage brown with a reddish tinge and with dark shaft-stripes ; the nape more rufescent, with a white patch ; forehead white ; ear-coverts hair-brown ; throat white, with a mesial dark brown stripe, and a check-stripe of the same colour on either side ; breast dark brown with rufescent edges ; lower breast, abdomen, flanks and vent brown, banded with buffy white ; thighs and under tail- * The "birds of this genus are not Buzzards ; but I may state that in difficult cases like the present I have adopted the trivial names for the species of Birds of Prey given by Mr. Uowdler Sharpe in the public gallery in the British Museum. o2 196 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. coverts buffy white, the latter with some brown streaks ; tail pale rufous, with narrow brown bands ; upper wing-coverts mottled white and brown ; quills brown, inclining to black at the tips, barred on the inner webs with darker brown and tipped with whitish ; axillaries brown. The young have the top of the head and nape white, the former with hair-brown shaft-stripes ; the stripes on the throat and its sides indi- stinct ; tail less rufescent and the bars less distinct ; other parts as in the adult. Legs orange-yellow ; claws black ; cere and gape orange or bright yellow ; base of bill and gape orange or yellow ; remainder of bill black ; iris stone-white or greyish yellow ; eyelids yellow or greenish yellow. Length 157, 16'5 inches; tail 6'4, 7*3; wing 11, 11-5; tarsus 2'4, 2'6; bill from gape 1'3. The first measurements are those of the male. As far as my own experience goes, the White-eyed Buzzard-Eagle is restricted to the northern portion of Pegu, from Thayetmyo down to Prome, and to Tonghoo. Both Dr. Armstrong and Mr. Davison, however, procured it at Thatone in Northern Tenasserim ; and it is therefore probably diffused over the whole of Pegu as a rare species. Mr. Blyth states that it is common near Amherst. It extends into India, where it is found over the greater part of the peninsula. This species is found in paddy-land and low jungle, feeding on crabs, frogs and small mammals. It breeds in India during April, making a nest of sticks in a tree, and laying three bluish-white eggs. 571. BUTASTUR LIVENTER. THE GREY-BREASTED BUZZARD -EAGLE. Falco liventer, Temm. PI Col 438. Poliornis liventer, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 9 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 50 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 31 ; Bl fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 61 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 299. Butastur liventer, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 296 ; HumefyDav. S. F. vi. p. 21 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 142, vii. p. 40 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 180. Description. — Male. Whole head and neck grey ; the throat with an admixture of white ; the crown and neck with dark narrow streaks ; breast and abdomen dark grey, with the shafts darker ; lower abdomen and vent rufescent grey, barred with white; thighs and under tail-coverts white ; back and upper scapulars reddish brown with dark centres ; lower scapulars chestnut ; rump and upper tail-coverts rather bright chestnut with dark shafts ; tail chestnut, tipped with whitish and interruptedly THE GREY-FACED BUZZARD-EAGLE. 197 barred with black ; quills chestnut broadly tipped with dark brown, and a portion of the inner webs margined with white ; the inner webs of the primaries and both webs of the secondaries barred with dark brown; wing-coverts mixed rufous and white ; under wing-coverts pale chestnut barred with brown. The female is like the male, but the rump is of a duller chestnut and the head and nape are darker. The plumage does not vary much in this species ; the colours increase in brilliancy with age, and the bars on the tail, which are very distinct in the young bird, become much interrupted in the adult. In the young the white bars extend to the middle of the abdomen; the edge of the wing is white; the breast is brown, and the throat, lores, and forehead nearly pure white ; the crown is rufous with dark brown stripes ; and the whole plumage, where grey in the adult, inclines to brown in the young. Eyelids and skin over the eye orange-yellow ; iris yellow ; gape, bill and cere orange ; the tips of both mandibles brown ; mouth flesh-colour ; legs yellow; claws dark horn. Length 15*5 inches, tail 6, wing 11, tarsus 2'5, bill from gape T35. The female is rather smaller than the male, and not, as might be expected, larger. The Grey-breasted Buzzard-Eagle is abundant over the whole of Pegu. It appears to be somewhat rare in Tenasserim, and Mr. Davison did not observe it south of Amherst, nor did Capt. Bingham meet with it further east in the Thoungyeen valley. It occurs in Siam, and it has been recorded from Java, Timor, Borneo and Celebes. This richly- coloured bird frequents the same sort of jungle as the pre- ceding, being found in open country and the banks of rivers. It feeds on snakes and crabs. I found the nest in March on two occasions — small structures of sticks placed in low mango trees and containing two eggs, which were pale greenish white in colour. 572. BUTASTUR INDICUS. THE GREY-FACED BUZZARD-EAGLE. Falco indicus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 264. Falco poliogenys, Temm. PI. Col. 325. Poliornis poliogenys, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 290. Poliornis indica, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 9; Bl. B. Burm. p. 61. Butastur indicus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. i. p. 297 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 18 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 19, 497 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82. Description. — Adult. Above brown, inclining to ashy on the head and upper back, and to rufous on the lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts, 198 BIBDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. the latter of which are plainly barred and broadly tipped with pure white ; forehead white ; sides of face clear ashy grey ; sides of neck ashy brown, uniform with the interscapulary region ; wing-coverts rufous - brown, mottled with clearer rufous ; primary-coverts rufous, externally mottled and broadly tipped with black ; quills rufous, narrowly tipped with buffy white; primaries brown externally and towards their tips, also barred with dark brown on their inner webs; the secondaries ashy brown, inclining gradually to whity brown at their tips, washed with rufous and barred with dark brown ; the lower surface of the wing creamy white on the inner webs of the quills, somewhat washed with rufous ; tail ashy brown, whity brown at tip and crossed with three or four broad bars of blackish brown ; the lower surface ashy white, the bars showing more plainly, except on the outermost feather, where they are obsolete ; throat white, with a mesial, line of ashy brown, as well as two not very distinct moustachial streaks ; upper breast ashy brown washed with rufous ; the lower breast and abdomen barred with white and rufous-brown, the latter bars decreasing towards the vent and thighs and totally absent on the under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts with slight cross markings of pale rufous. (Sharpe.} In younger birds the cheeks and ear-coverts are a darker grey ; the occiput, nape and sides of the neck are dark grey-brown streaked with rufous ; the mantle is a nearly pure hair-brown ; the throat is much more tinged with buff; the breast is darker and more mottled; and the rusty rufous is wanting on the wing. In a still younger bird the entire crown, occiput, nape and sides of the neck are mingled darker and lighter brown, ferruginous and buffy white, and the cheeks are streaked with white and the ear- coverts are streaked paler ; the feathers of the breast are buffy white with lanceolate rufous- brown shaft-stripes ; the brown of the abdomen is darker ; and the bars on the tail are much less conspicuous, while the bars on the tibial plumes are almost heart-shaped. (Hume.) The irides bright yellow; legs and feet bright yellow; claws black; cere, gape, greater portion of lower mandible, upper mandible to O25 beyond nostril and eye -shelf orange-yellow; rest of bill black. (Davison.) Length about 17 inches, tail 7'6, wing 13'5, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape 1'4. The female is of about the same size. The above descriptions, taken from Messrs. Sharpe and Hume's writings, give a very clear idea of the changes of plumage that this species undergoes. The Grey-faced Buzzard-Eagle is found in Tenasserim from Amherst southwards, but it does not appear to be anywhere common. My men procured one specimen at Malewoon in the extreme south of the Division. THE WHITE-BELLIED SEA-EAGLE. 199 It occurs down the Malay peninsula and is found in Java, Borneo, Celebes and the Philippine Islands, and it extends through China to Japan. Pere David states that it breeds in the mountains of Pekin. Genus HALIAETUS, Samgny. 573. HALIAETUS LEUCOGASTER. THE WHITE-BELLIED SEA-EAGLE. Falco leucogaster, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 257. Haliaetus leucogaster, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 84; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mas. i. p. 307 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 67 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 17 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 82 ; Oates, 8. F. x. p. 180. Cuncuma leucogaster, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 259 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 48 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 5 : Hume, S. F. ii. p. 149 ; id. S. F. iv. pp. 422, 461 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 298. Blagrus leucogaster, Bl. B. Burm. p. 64. Description. — Male and female. The whole head, neck and lower plumage white; tail black, broadly tipped with white; primaries and secondaries blackish, the outer webs of the former washed with grey; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, wing-coverts, scapulars and tertiaries ashy grey. The young bird has those parts brown which are ashy grey in the adult, and the white portions of the plumage tinged with fulvous; the white band at the end of the tail is absent, the whole tail being dark brown marked with paler brown. Irides light brown ; cere and gape leaden grey ; upper mandible dusky brown, shading into a greyish blue towards its junction with the cere ; lower mandible bluish grey, tipped with dusky brown; legs and feet dirty yellowish white ; claws black. (Armstrong.) Length about 28 inches, tail 10, wing 22, tarsus 4, bill from gape 2-5. The female is rather larger. The White-bellied Sea-Eagle is found in more or less abundance along the whole coast of Burmah, and also up the larger rivers for a distance of sixty miles or so. It is met with on the coasts of India and Ceylon, the Malay archipelago and islands to Australia and the Pacific Ocean. This Eagle is entirely a maritime species, being apparently never, or very seldom indeed, found near fresh water. Its food is chiefly sea-snakes. It makes a large stick nest on high trees and lays two eggs. Mr. Hume observed a vast number of these Eagles breeding on Pigeon Island off the west coast of India. 200 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 574. HALIAETUS LEUCORYPHUS. MACE'S SEA-EAGLE. Aquila leucorypha, Pall. JReis. Russ. Eeichs, i. p. 454. Falco fulviventer, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. xxviii. p. 283. Falco macei, Temm. PI. Col. 8 & 223. Haliaetus fulviventer, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 82 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 14. Haliaetus leucoryphus, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 242 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 308 : Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 545, pi. ; Gurney, Ibis, 1878, p. 454 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 573 ; Oates, 8. F. v. p. 142 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 17 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 225 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 179. Haliaetus macei, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 45. Description. — Male and female. Forehead whitish; crown, neck and upper back sandy brown, darker on the crown and inclining to tawny on the neck, where the feathers are long and pointed ; remainder of the upper plumage and wings dark brown ; a few of the wing-coverts edged with fulvous-browri ; tail black at the base, then white for about 4J inches and tipped black ; cheeks, ear-coverts, chin, throat and fore neck buffy white, varying in tint from almost pure white to fulvous according to age. The whole under plumage dark fulvous-brown, most of the feathers edged paler, and those on the sides of the body almost black; under wing- coverts blackish brown. A young male had the cheeks and ear-coverts mottled and streaked with brown ; and that part of the tail which is white in the adult was marked with dusky. Iris greyish yellow ; cere and gape light plumbeous ; bill dark plum- beous ; lower eyelid pale greenish, upper one bluish ; legs and toes dull white ; claws black. Length 32 inches, tail 12'2, wing 23, tarsus 4, bill from gape 2'65. The female is larger, having the wing about 24. Mace's Sea-Eagle is very abundant in the plains of Southern Pegu, between the Pegu and Sittang rivers, where the country is cut up by tidal creeks and there are clumps of trees to afford it a nesting-place. I have never met with it in any other part of Burmah. Mr. Davison procured it at Thatone on the east of the Sittang river, where the country is very similar to that on the west of the river. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, where it is found in the northern portion of the peninsula, and thence onwards to South-eastern Europe. It occurs also in China and Cochin China. This fine Eagle frequents the swampy grassy plains lying to the east of the Pegu river, where it is very- common and where its loud shrieking call may be heard every morning. It feeds principally on fish. I found many nests in November, December and January. The structure is very large THE BRAHMINY KITE. 201 and made of sticks, and it is used by the same birds year after year. It is generally situated near the summit of a tall tree on the banks of a creek. The eggs, three in number, are dull white. Genus HALIASTUK, Selby. 575. HALIASTUR INDUS. THE BRAHMINY KITE. Falco Indus, Bodcl Tail. PI. Enl. p. 25. Haliastur indus,Jerd.B. 2nd. i. p. 101 ; Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 316 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 51 ; Sharps, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 313 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 35 ; BL B. Burm. p. 64 ; Gates, S. F. v. p. 142; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, ^. 15; Legge, Birds Ceylon,ip.76; Gurney,Ibis, 1878, p. 460; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 22 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 251; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 227 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 145 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 181. Description. — Male and female. Head, neck, upper back, breast and upper abdomen white, each feather with a distinct dark shaft-line ; the first six primaries with the basal half chestnut and the terminal half black ; with these exceptions the whole plumage is chestnut, darkest on the back and palest on the tail, which is albescent at the tip ; the shafts of all the feathers except those of the tail are very dark brown. The young have the head, neck and lower parts pale rufous-white, the shaft-lines distinct and the feathers centred paler ; the back, rump and upper tail- co verts are dark brown strongly tinged with maroon ; the tail is brown, tipped fulvous ; the quills are dark brown, inclining to rufous at the base of the inner webs ; the upper wing-coverts fulvous -brown. In December birds may be found in every stage of plumage, with a mixture of old and new feathers, the young being then in the act of assuming the adult plumage previously to breeding. Iris brown ; bill and cere dark brown ; legs greenish yellow. Length 18 inches, tail 7, wing 15, tarsus 2, bill from gape 1'4. The female is considerably larger. The Brahminy Kite is found abundantly over the whole of British Burmah except in the thick forests of the higher hills. It extends to India and China, and is also found in Cochin China and a portion of the Malay peninsula. To the south it is replaced by H. inter- medius, a very closely allied race, in which the shaft-stripes on the head and breast are narrower and less distinct. This well-known bird is a constant resident in Burmah and extremely 202 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. common near all villages and fisheries. It breeds from December to February, making a large nest in a tree and laying two or three eggs, which are white blotched with reddish brown. Genus MILVUS, Cuwer. 576. MILVUS AFFINIS. THE SMALLER HOUSE-KITE. Milvus affinis, Gould, P. Z. S. 1837, p. 140; Hume, S. F. i. p. 160; Sakad. Ucc. Born. p. 10 ; Sharps, Cat. Birds 3. Mus. i. p. 323 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 35 ; Wald. in Bl B. Burm. p. 64 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 299 ; Gates, S. F. v. p. 142 ; Davison, S. F. v. p. 453 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 23 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1879, p. 77 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 82 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 228 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 145 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 181. Description. — Male and female. The whole plumage dark brown, paling on the head and the upper wing-coverts ; each feather with a distinct shaft-stripe ; chin and throat whitish, with very distinct shaft-stripes ; tail obsoletely barred with dark brown on the central rectrices and the outer webs of the others, more plainly on the inner webs ; the earlier primaries black, mottled with white at their bases on the inner webs; remaining primaries and the other quills of the wing brown, more or less mottled with white at their bases and likewise slightly barred with darker brown ; the under wing-coverts brown margined with rufous ; ear-coverts and feathers behind the eye blackish brown. The young are rather darker brown than the adult, each feather of the whole plumage tipped with pale buff; the shaft of each feather is black, and on the lower plumage there is a buff streak on either side of the black shaft, giving a conspicuous streaked appearance to the bird ; wing as in the adult, but the white mottling less distinct. The above descriptions are taken from a large series of birds collected in Pegu. From the fact that there are no birds intermediate in plumage between the young just fledged and the fully adult, it is probable that the young bird passes into adult plumage in the autumn succeeding its birth. Iris hazel-brown; mouth flesh-colour; legs pale lemon-yellow; claws black ; gape, cere and bill as far as the nostrils pale yellow ; the remainder of the bill black ; eyelids and ocular region bluish grey. Length 23 inches, tail 12, wing 16'5, tarsus 2, bill from gape 1-5. The female is rather larger. THE LARGE JUNGLE-KITE. 203 Mr. Blyth gives M. govinda from Burmah and states that it is common in the cold season. There is little doubt,, I think, that Mr. Blyth did not consider M. affinis worthy of separation from M. govinda. No specimen of this latter has ever heen procured in Burmah so far as I am aware. At one time I thought that M . govinda did occur in Pegu ; but I am now of opinion that all the specimens I procured in that Division are referable to the smaller M. affinis. These two Kites are not always easy to separate : M. affinis is, as a rule, smaller, and has barely any white under the wing ; and I am not aware that any other differences between the two species have ever been pointed out. The Smaller House-Kite is generally distributed over the Province, being rare only in the southern half of Tenasserim. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India and is found over a considerable portion of that country. It ranges down the Malay peninsula, and occurs in all the islands as far as Australia. This common Kite is generally found in the neighbourhood of houses and also of isolated huts in the jungle where garbage is abundant. It dis- appears from June to September, and its return is usually a sign that the rains are nearly over. It makes a nest of sticks in trees and lays three eggs, which are white blotched with rusty. The breeding-season lasts from January to March. 577. MILVUS MELANOTIS. THE LARGE JUNGLE-KITE. Milvus melanotis, Temm. et Sclileg. Faun. Jap., Ares, p. 14, pis. 5, 5 B j Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 324 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 1C ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 574 j Gurney, Ibis, 1879, p. 80 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 181. Milvus major, Hume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 320 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 54 j id. S. F. i. p. 160. Milvus govinda, apud Brooks, S. F. iii. p. 229. Description. — Male and female. The whole body-plumage with the upper wing-coverts rufous-brown, each feather with a dark shaft-line, the portion adjacent to this line being paler than the other parts of the webs ; scapulars brown, edged with rufous ; secondaries, tertiaries and the later primaries brown, obsoletely barred and the bases mottled with white; earlier primaries black, each with a large patch of pure white on the inner web near the base; tail rufous, distinctly barred across with about eight lines of brown ; ear-coverts blackish brown ; vent and under tail-coverts plain fulvous. Young. Head, neck, shoulders and lower plumage down to the abdomen dark brown, each feather with a longitudinal streak of buff down the 204 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. centre, the shafts being brown ; upper wing- and tail-coverts brown tipped with buff ; abdomen, vent, under tail-coverts and the thighs creamy buff, shading off into brown on the margins of the feathers ; scapulars and quills dark brown, all tipped with fulvous, the earlier primaries with a large patch of white on the inner webs and the other quills more or less mottled with white on the inner webs ; tail dark brown, tipped with fulvous white and obsoletely barred. Bill bluish ; cere yellowish white ; iris hazel-brown ; legs dull china- white ; claws blackish. Length 25 inches, tail 12'5, wing 18'5, tarsus 2'1, bill from gape T65. The female is considerably larger, the wing being about 21 inches and the tail 13-5. The young bird is described from a nestling just able to fly procured in Ningpo by Mr. Swinhoe in May 1872 and now in Mr. Seebohm's collec- tion. It is not until the bird is very aged that it exhibits the rich rufous coloration described, and the majority of specimens are in brown plumage. The rufous appears first on the upper plumage, and the transition from the spotted young to the rufous adult is very gradual. This species is of course very distinct from M. affinis ; but it is not always easy to separate it from specimens of the Indian species (M. govindd) until quite adult. As a rule, M. melanotis is very much larger and has a very extended patch of white at the base of the primaries on the underside of the wing. Some specimens from India, however, which from their size should be M. govinda, have nearly as much white on the wing as some specimens of M. melanotis from China ; but I have never seen a specimen of the former with the rich rufous coloration of adult M. melanotis. The Large Jungle- Kite is common in the southern parts of Pegu, in the large grass-plains between the Pegu and Sittang rivers, from October to February, arid probably till later. It occurs in the Indo-Burmese countries and in the peninsula of India, and it ranges through China to Japan. This large Kite, distinguishable at a glance when flying by the large patch of white on the underside of the wing, is of rather a shy nature, keeping to the jungles and to very small clusters of houses where large fishing- operations are carried on. In these latter places large numbers may be seen, and, if not molested, they are very tame, sitting on the roofs of houses and on the stakes of the fishing-nets. I have never met with its nest ; but as in India it breeds in the cold season, it will probably be found to breed in Burmah in January or February. THE BLACK-SHOULDERED KITE. 205 Genus ELANUS, Savigny. 578. ELANUS CJERULEUS. THE BLACK-SHOULDERED KITE. Falco caeruleus, Desf. Mem. Acad. Roy. des Sciences, 1787, p. 503, pi. 15. Falco xnelanopterus, Daud. Traite, ii. p. 152. Elanus melanopterus, Jerd. $. Ind. i. p. 112; Jfume, Rough Notes, ii. p. 338; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 56; id. S. F. i. p. 21, iii. p. 37 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. GO. Elanus caeruleus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 336 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. v. p. 663, pi. ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 17 ; Leyge, Birds Ceylon, p. 85 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 572 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 26 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1879, p. 332 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 181. Description. — Male and female. Lores, forehead, eye-streak, lower plumage, axillaries and under wing-coverts white ; a small patch in front of the eye and a narrow streak over the eye black ; lesser wing-coverts black ; the whole upper plumage and wings ashy grey, the tips of the primaries shaded with brown ; central tail-feathers and the outer webs of the next pair ashy grey ; the inner webs of these and the whole four outer pairs of feathers pure white. The young have the upper plumage ashy brown with bufly tips ; the greater coverts and quills are tipped with dull white ; there are narrow rusty shaft-stripes on the breast and flanks. Legs deep yellow ; claws black ; bill black ; gape and cere pale yellow ; iris crimson or orange-red; eyelids plumbeous. Length 127 inches, tail 5'5, wing 10, tarsus 1-3, bill from gape 1*1. The female is about the same size as the male. The Black-shouldered Kite appears to be generally distributed over Ar- rakan and Pegu in the low-lying portions of the country. Mr. Davison did not observe it in Tenasserim, except in the northern portion near Thatone. It ranges westwards through India into Southern Europe, and it occurs over the whole of Africa. To the east it ranges into China and Cochin China. This small Kite appears to visit Pegu only in the rains. I observed it every year from July to about the middle of October. It was very common in the plains, which at that time of the year are inundated, between the Pegu and the Sittang rivers. It has the habit of hovering in the air like the Kestril. In India it breeds from November to January, constructing its nest in a tree and laying three eggs, which are white blotched with rusty red. 206 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus MACH^KEAMPHUS, Western. 579. MACHJERHAMPHUS ALCINUS. THE SLENDER-BILLED PERN. Machaerhamphus alcinus, Westerm. Bijd. tot d. Dierk. i. p. 29, pi. 12 ; Sliarpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 342 ; Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 269 ; Hume $ Lav. S. F. vi. p. 24 j Gurney, Ibis, 1879, p. 466 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 83. Description. — Adult. Everywhere black with a chocolate-brown shade ; an ill-defined spot above and below the eye white; quills and tail also black, the shafts dull white underneath ; throat and centre of chest white ; the chin and a broad streak down the throat, as well as the sides of the latter and a few spots on the lower part, black. (Sharps.) Irides bright yellow ; bill and claws black ; legs and feet pale plumbeous. (Davison.) Length 18*5 inches, tail 7'8, wing 14% tarsus 2'5, bill from gape 1'8. The Slender-billed Pern is a very rare species about which little is known. Mr. Hough procured one specimen at Malewoon in Tenasserim, and Capt. Bingham informs me that he thinks he once saw it in the Thoungyeen valley. It has been known to occur at Malacca, in Borneo and in New Guinea. This species is probably crepuscular in its habits ; and if this is the case its apparent scarcity is accounted for. An allied species in Africa feeds on Bats. This Hawk has a remarkably narrow carinated bill, large eyes, a very wide gape and an elongated occipital crest. THE CRESTED HONEY-BUZZARD. 207 Genus PEBNIS, Cuvier. 580. PERNIS PTILORHYNCHUS. THE CRESTED HONEY-BUZZARD. Falco ptilorhynchus, Temm. PL Col. 44. Pernis cristata, Cuv. Rbyne Anim. i. p. 335; Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 103; Hume, Rouyh Notes, ii. p. 330. Pernis brachypterus, Bl. J. A. S. B. xxi. p. 436; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 36. Pernis ptilorhynchus, Salmd. Ucc. Born. p. 9 ; Hume, Nests and Eyys, p. 55 ; Bl. B. Bunn. p. GO ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 571 ; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 23 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1880, p. 203 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 181 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 3C9. Pernis ptilonorhynchus, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 347 ; Leyye, Birds Ceylon, p. 89. Description. — Young bird brown above, the feathers more or less edged with lighter; head and neck usually paler, sometimes rufous-brown, at other times whitish, with central dark streaks more or less developed ; beneath white, sometimes only faintly streaked, at times with large streaks, more rarely with large oval brown drops, and with or without a central dark chin-stripe and two lateral ones. In a further stage the brown above becomes darker and more uniform, and the lower parts assume a pale rufous-brown tinge, with the central streak more or less developed according as it was in the young bird, and the incomplete tail-bauds are more clouded. The adult has the plumage above rich brown, the head and lores gene- rally, but not always, suffused with ashy grey, and the lower parts uniform darkish brown, with the dark streak almost obliterated; the tail is brownish ashy, faintly clouded with dusky, and with two wide dark black bars, and a third almost concealed by the upper tail-coverts ; the terminal bar is tipped white or greyish. In most birds in a transition state the feathers of the lower parts are banded brown and white, especially on the lower abdomen, thigh- coverts, &c., and some of these feathers are generally to be found at all ages. (Jerdon.) Iris bright yellow ; cere and bill dark brown, bluish at the base of the lower mandible; legs yellow; claws dark horn-colour. Younger birds have the legs dull yellow. Length 24 inches, tail 11, wing 16, tarsus 2, bill from gape 1*6, cere *5. The female is hardly larger than the male. The variations of plumage of this bird are so great that a detailed description to embrace all the changes would be impossible. Dr. Jerdon's description appears to me to comprise in a brief form all that is necessary to be said. P. ptilorhynchus differs from its European ally P. apivorus chiefly in possessing a crest ; but most birds from Burmah appear to be somewhat 208 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. intermediate between the two species. I once shot a Honey-Buzzard with a crest one and a half inch long ; but all the others (seven or eight) that I obtained in Burmah were crestless, except that in some the feathers of the occiput were slightly lengthened. On the whole,, the Burmese birds appear to be referable to P. ptilorhynchus. The Crested Honey-Buzzard is found in most of the parts of Pegu which are well wooded. I procured it on the Pegu hills between Thayetmyo and Tonghoo, at Thayetmyo, at Prome, Shwaygheen and near Pegu Town. Mr. Davison found it very rare in Tenasserim, and only two specimens were procured in that Division — one at Moulmein and one at Amherst. Mr. Blyth received a long- crested bird from Mergui, upon which he founded his P. brachypterus ; but he afterwards cancelled this name. This Honey- Buzzard will probably be found to be abundant in Arrakan. It occurs over the greater part of the Indian peninsula and Ceylon ; it ranges down the Malay peninsula, and it is met with in Sumatra, Java, Borneo and Bangka, and also in Siam and Cochin China. In the Malay peninsula another species occurs, which has recently been named P. tweeddalii by Mr. Hume. This Honey-Buzzard frequents forests and groves of trees ; its food is chiefly the larvse of wasps and honey, and it also eats caterpillars and other insects. The nest is placed in trees, and the eggs are generally two in number, richly marked with red. The Honey-Buzzards, notwithstanding their variations of plumage, may always be recognized by the lores being thickly covered with scale-like feathers. Subfamily FALCONING. Genus BAZA, Hodgs. 581. BAZA LOPHOTES. THE BLACK-CRESTED KITE-FALCON. Falco lophotes, Cuv., Temm. PL Col. 10. Baza lophotes, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. Ill ; Hume, Hough Notes, ii. p. 337; Sharpe,' Cat. Birds B. Mm. i. p. 352; Bl. B. Burm. p. 60 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 98 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 24 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 83; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 145; Gurney, Ibis, 1880, p. 471; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 369. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage, wing-coverts and tail black ; sides of the head and neck, chin, throat and fore neck black ; breast white ; below and next the breast a broad band of black ; next this again, and occupying nearly all the abdomen, pale creamy buff barred with chestnut ; sides of the body the same ; lower abdomen, vent, THE SUMATRAN KITE-FALCON. 209 thighs and under tail-coverts black ; scapulars white, broadly edged with black, which nearly conceals the white when the feathers are properly arranged ; primaries and secondaries black ; the later primaries and all the secondaries with a chestnut patch on the outer webs ; tertiaries white at base, black at the ends, tinged with chestnut on the outer webs ; under aspect of wing ashy. The young do not appear to differ in any material respect from the adult except in being duller. Male : cere dull blue ; bill a lighter blue, shaded with horny at tip ; iris lake-brown ; legs and feet whitish blue ; claws dark horny. Female : iris dark brown or purplish brown. (Bingham, MS.) Male: length 12'55 inches, tail 5*8, wing 9'35, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1, crest 1-5. Female : length 13'2 inches, tail 6*2, wing 9'8, tarsus I'l, bill from gape 1, crest 2*5. The Black-crested Kite- Falcon is said by Mr. Ely th to occur in Arrakan and Tenasserim. In the latter Division Mr. Davison found it rare and appa- rently confined to the souther a portion ; but Gapt. Bingham states that it is common in the Thoungyeen valley. I have never met with it in Pegu. It occurs in India from Bengal down the east coast to Ceylon. On the south it has frequently been met with at Malacca ; and Dr. Tiraud states that it is common in Cochin China. This species frequents thick forests and appears' to be more or less gre- garious ; it seats itself on the topmost branches of high trees and makes short sailing nights after insects. Nothing is known about its nidification so far as I am aware. 582. BAZA SUMATEENSIS. THE SUMATRAN KITE-FALCON. Aviceda sumatrensis, Lafresn. Rev. Zool. 1848, p. 210. Baz \ sumatrensis, Sharjje, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 357, pi. xi. fig. 1 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 313 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 25 ; Hume, S. F. viii. pp. 83, 444 ; Gurnet/, Ibis, 1880, p. 471. Baza incognita, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 314. Description. — The forehead and a broad but inconspicuous band from the latter over the eyes to the nape pale whity brown; the shafts darker brown ; the crown, occiput, nape and sides of the neck rufescent buff, the feathers broadly centred with dark brown; the crest black, narrowly and obsoletely barred, the feathers with pure white tips ; the interscapulary region and scapulars are a rich dark brown with a decided purplish gloss. All the feathers with an excessively narrow marginal rufescent or fulvous fringe ; on raising the feathers the rich brown with the purple gloss VOL. II. P 210 BIRDS OF BRITISH BIJRMAH. (which has, I may mention, in some lights a greenish tinge) is found to be confined to a broad terminal band ; the basal portions of the feathers are a somewhat pale drab-brown ; the smallest scapulars are the richest and warmest in colouring, the longest the dullest ; the rump and upper tail-coverts much about the same tint as the longer scapulars. The tail a rather pale drab-brown, with a subterminal brownish black baud, and three other moderately dark brown bands, the third almost entirely hidden by the upper tail-coverts ; the quills have the outer webs brown, banded obscurely but broadly with darker brown, the inner web a rather dark drab-brown at the tips and white at the bases, with several broad black or blackish-brown transverse bands ; the primaries, especially the earlier ones, are considerably darker on the outer webs, and have a greyish tinge on the interspaces of these webs ; the tertiaries are much paler brown ; the lesser coverts along the ulna and at the carpal joint are almost black ; the greater coverts are about the same colour as the ground of the tail ; the median coverts somewhat darker ; all the quills are white-tipped, the secondaries most conspicuously so, and a few of the median coverts are also tipped in the same way. There is more or less of a purple gloss over the whole upper surface of the wings and tail. The lores and an inconspicuous band under the eye and the base of the ear-coverts grey, the feathers darker-shafted ; the rest of the ear-coverts and the lateral portions of the throat fulvous, the feathers more or less dark- shafted ; chin and throat pure white, or with the faintest yellowish tinge, with a narrow but very conspicuous black central stripe ; upper breast mingled white and a pale somewhat brownish rufous ; lower breast, sides, flanks, axillaries and abdomen white, with broad regular transverse brownish- rufous bands, darkest on the sides and flanks ; vent and lower tail-coverts white, with a dingy yellowish tinge, with here and there a trace of a trans- verse rufous band ; the wing-lining is yellowish white, with rufous bars and mottlings ; the lower surfaces of the quills are, at the tips, pale french grey, with black transverse bands ; higher up they are white, with pale greyish-brown bands ; the lower surface of the tail greyish white, the dark bands showing through more conspicuously on the outer webs and less so on the inner webs except of the four central tail-feathers ; all the tail- feathers are tipped with drab-brown, paling at the extreme tip almost to white; this tipping is about a quarter of an inch wide on the central, and three quarters of an inch on the exterior tail-feathers. (Hume.) Legs and feet white slightly tinged with blue; irides bright yellow; claws, upper and tip of lower mandible and cere blackish ; the base of the lower mandible paler. (Davison.) Length 18*5 inches, tail 9'6, wing 13*1, tarsus T6, bill from gape 1§35. (Davison.) The Sumatran Kite-Falcon was obtained by both Mr. Davison and THE RED-LEGGED FALCONET. 211 Mr. Hough in the extreme south of Tenasserim. As it was for a long time doubtful whether the Tenasserim bird was the true B. sumatrensisy I have preferred giving Mr. Hume's description of the bird that Mr. Davison got. This species has been met with in Sumatra. The birds of the genus Baza may be recognized not only by their long crest, but also by the double tooth on the edge of the upper mandible. Genus MICROHIERAX, Sharpe. 583. MICBOHIERAX C53RULESCENS. THE RED-LEGGED FALCONET. Falco caerulescens, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 125. Hierax eutolmus, Hodgs. in Gray's Zool. Misc. p. 81 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 42 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. Ill ; El. B. Burm. p. 59. Microhierax caerulescens, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. i. p. 366 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 22; Bingham, S. F. v. p. 80 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 3; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 571; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81, ix. p. 142; Oates, S. F. x. p. 178 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1881, p. 272. Microhierax eutolmus, Hume, S. F. v. p. 127. Description. — Male. Forehead, a broad supercilium, cheeks, sides of the neck and a broad collar on the hind neck white ; crown, nape and all the upper plumage with the wing-coverts glossy black ; primaries and secon- daries black, with a series of white spots on the inner webs, these extending also to the outer webs of some of the later primaries ; tertiaries entirely black ; central tail-feathers black, the others black with white spots on the inner webs ; a thin line round the eyes, the ear-coverts and a prolonga- tion down the sides of the neck black ; chin and throat ferruginous ; breast and abdomen white tinged with ferruginous ; thighs, vent and under tail- coverts very deep ferruginous ; sides of the body black. Females are like the males, but when fully adult the breast and abdomen become ferruginous like the throat, but not so deep as the colour of the thighs ; this full tint of ferruginous does not appear to be ever assumed by the male on the breast and abdomen. Young birds have the frontal band and supercilium and a line under the eye golden ferruginous ; the chin and throat are white ; the nuchal collar is inconspicuous and mottled with dusky ; the changes to the adult stage are very gradual. Bill slaty blue, nearly black at the tip ; cere dark brown ; iris hazel- brown ; mouth fleshy blue ; eyelids plumbeous ; legs plumbeous brown ; claws black. Male : length 6' 2 inches, tail 2'6, wing 3'8, tarsus '85, bill from gape '45. Female : length 7 inches, tail 2'9, wing 4*2, tarsus '9, bill from gape "55. p2 212 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The Red-legged Falconet probably occurs over the whole of British Burmah as far south as 16° north latitude, below which point Mr. Davison did not observe it. Personally I have only procured it in the northern portion of Pegu ; but Mr. Blanford met with it near Bassein. It extends through the Indo-Burmese countries into India, where it is found along the Himalayas as far as Sikhim ; and it occurs in Siam and Cambodia. This beautiful little Falconet is generally observed on the summit of a dead tree, whence it launches out in pursuit of passing insects ; it also at times captures small birds. Capt. Bingham found the eggs in Tenasserim in April; they were four in number, white, and deposited in the hole of a tree. 584. MICROHIERAX FRINGILLARIUS. THE BLACK-LEGGED FALCONET. Falco fringillarius, Drap. Diet. Class. (THist. Nat. vi. p. 412, pi. v. Hierax caerulescens (L.),apud Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 3. Microhierax fringillarius, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 367 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 80 ; Hume # Dav. S. F. vi. p. 5 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Gur-ney, Ibis, 1881, p. 274 ; Relham, Ibis, 1881, p. 364. Hierax fringillarius, Bl. B. Burm. p. 60. Description. — Adults have a narrow frontal band, a streak from a little above the posterior angle of the eye, backwards over the ear-coverts, chin, throat, sides of the neck behind the ear-coverts, cheeks immediately under the eye, breast, wing-lining, and numerous bars on the inner webs of all the wing- and lateral tail-feathers white. The upper portion of the forehead, crown, occiput, nape and a portion of the sides of the neck behind the white streaks, ear-coverts and posterior portion of cheeks, the entire mantle, upper tail-coverts, central tail-feathers and outer webs of lateral tail-feathers glossy black with greenish reflec- tions ; secondaries, primaries and their greater coverts and winglet blackish hair-brown ; sides of the body, flanks and hinder tibial plumes, and tips of longest lower tail-coverts also more or less glossy black ; abdomen, vent, front of tibial plumes, shorter lower tail-coverts buffy white or pale ferru- ginous, or even in the oldest birds rather deep ferruginous. When these parts become the latter colour, the chin and the greater part of the throat are generally suffused with pale ferruginous. In the quite young bird the bill is yellow ; the frontal band and the streak behind the eye are pale ferruginous ; the patch below the eye and a margin round the black ear-patch rather paler ferruginous buff; margin of the wing tinged with the same colour ; no black tip to the lower tail- FEILDEN'S FALCON. 213 coverts ; abdomen very pale fawn ; feathers of the mantle very narrowly fringed with sordid white ; upper tail-coverts more broadly fringed with buff. (Hume.) Hill, legs and feet black; the irides wood-brown; the orbital skin plumbeous ; the eyelids black. (Davison.) Length 6 inches, tail 2'tf, wing 3'8, tarsus '7, bill from gape '5. The female is larger,, the wing being -1 inches and the tail 2*5. 1 avail myself of Mr. Hume's capital description of this Falconet, more especially as it includes the plumage of the very young bird, which I have never seen. The Black-legged Falconet occurs in Tenasserim as high as 14° north latitude. It is met with in the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Borneo, and, according to Dr. Tiraud, in Cochin China. This species is similar to the preceding in habits, and like it deposits its eggs in the hole of a tree. Allied species described since Mr. Sharpe wrote his Catalogue are — M. sinensis, David, from China, and M. latifrons, Sharpe, from Borneo and the Nicobar Islands. Genus POLIOHIERAX, Kaup. 585. POLIOHIERAX INSIGNIS. FEILDEN'S FALCON. Poliohierax insignis, ll'idd. P. Z. S. 1871, p. 627 j id. Ibis, 1872, p. 471 Sharpe, Cat. It ink B. Mm. i. p. :i70 ; Sclater, S. F. iii. p. 417 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 69 j Wardlaw Ihrmsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 454; Hume $ Dav. S.F. vi. p. 2; Tweedd. in Rowley's Orn. Misc. iii. pi. ciii. ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 14i>: Gates, S. F. x. p. 178; Uurney, Ibis, 1881, p. 275. Poliohierax feildeni, Hume, Proc. As. Sue. Beng. 1872, p. 70 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 19. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape and upper back ashy white, with black central streaks to all the feathers ; cheeks and ear-coverts streaked with black and white in equal quantities ; back, scapulars and wing-coverts black ; rump and upper tail-coverts white ; central tail- feathers black, with an obsolete spot or two of white near the base; the next pair black, barred with white on the inner web only; all the others black, barred with white on both webs; quills of the wing black, both webs having spots or bars of white, becoming smaller and less distinct on the secondaries and tcrtiarics ; sides of neck and entire under plumage pure white. 214 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The female has the forehead white streaked with black ; the crown, nape, upper back and sides of the neck bright chestnut ; the hinder part of the ear-coverts also tinged with chestnut; the remainder of the plumage similar to the male. Cere, gape and both mandibles as far as the nostrils orange-yellow ; anterior portion of bill bluish black; eyelids and orbital skin orange; iris brown ; legs orange ; claws black. Male: length 1O5 inches, tail 5*5, wing 5*5, tarsus 1*5, bill from gape '75. Female : length 11, tail 5'8, wing 6, tarsus 1*6, bill from gape '75. This beautiful Falcon was almost simultaneously discovered by Capt. Feilden at Thayetmyo and by Colonel Lloyd at Tonghoo. It is very abundant at the former place, extending on the west to the crest of the Arrakan hills ; but at Tonghoo, according to Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay, it is rare. I never observed it in any portion of Central or Southern Pegu. Mr. Davison noticed it in Tenasserim, from Myawadee down to Mooleyit mountain; and Capt. Bingham procured a series in the Thoungyeen valley. Mr. Gurney informs me that he has seen a specimen from Western Siam. This Falcon is generally found in clearings in the dry forests so abundant in Northern Pegu. It feeds almost entirely upon insects. I have never found its nest ; but from what Capt. Feilden observed, it appears to breed in March and April, and its nest is placed in trees. Genus FALCO, Linn. 586. FALCO PEREGKJNUS. THE PEREGRINE. Falco communis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 270 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 376 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 32. Falco peregrinus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 272 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 21 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 49 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 1 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 59 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 31, pi. ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 19 ; Hume fy Dav. S.F. vi. p. 1; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 101 ; Oates, 8. F. x. p. 177 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1882, p. 293 ; Seebohm, B. Birds, i. p. 23. Description. — Male and female (adult). Forehead greyish; crown, nape, upper back, sides of the head and a broad moustachial streak very dark slate-colour, almost black on the upper back and moustaches; remainder of upper plumage, wing-coverts, tertiaries and scapulars pure ashy blue, THE PEREGRINE. 215 each feather with the shaft black, the central portion more or less blackish and with numerous broken indistinct bar -like spots on both webs; quills dark brown, the inner webs barred with white ; tail dark ashy, closely but indistinctly barred with blackish, the tip white ; chin, throat and upper breast white, the latter with a few black shaft-streaks ; lower breast, centre of the abdomen, vent, thighs and under tail-coverts white washed with rufous and with heart- or arrowhead-shaped spots ; sides of the body barred with black ; under wing-coverts and axillaries white, with broken bars of black. The young are brown above, each feather edged with rufous ; the bars on the inner webs of the quills rufous, not white ; the tail ashy brown, tipped with rufous white, the central feathers with some rufous spots, the laterals with rufous bars on the inner webs ; cheeks and broad moustachial stripe black, as in the adult ; chin, throat and a patch behind the mous- tache white, with a few tine shaft-marks ; an indistinct white collar round the hind neck; lower plumage pale rufous- white, densely streaked with ruddy brown ; under wing-coverts rufous-brown, the feathers margined paler. Iris dark brown ; cere and gape bright yellow ; eyelids pale yellow ; base of bill plumbeous, tip dark horn-colour ; legs bright yellow ; claws black. Length about 16 inches, tail 6'5, wing 12*5, tarsus 1'9, bill from gape 1-2. The female is much larger : length about 17 inches, tail 7' 5, wing 14*5, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape 1*3. The Peregrine is found over the whole of Burmah, but is nowhere common. I have, however, procured it pretty often in Pegu at Prome, Shwaygheen and Kyeikpadein ; and Mr. Davison noticed it in Tenasserim at Thatone and Amherst. The range of the Peregrine is very extensive, and it is found in nearly every portion of the world. It appears to be a constant resident in Burmah ; for I have procured it in February, May and November ; but I have not, however, observed any indications of its breeding in this country. It makes its nest in trees, on the faces of cliffs and occasionally on the ground, laying two to four eggs, which are richly marked with various shades of bright rufous. The specimens of the Peregrine that I have myself shot in Pegu were found in tracts of paddy-land near forests. 216 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 587. PALCO PEREGRINATOH. THE INDIAN PEREGRINE. Falco peregrinator, Sundev. Phys. Tidsskr. Lund, 1837, p. 177, pi. 4 ; id. Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 1, xviii. p. 454 ; Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 25 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 55 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 14 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 382 ; Bl. $ Wald, B. Burm. p. 58 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 500 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 1 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Gurnet/, S. F. viii. p. 424'; Legge, Birds Ceylon,^. 106 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 178; Gurney, Ibis, 1882, p. 291. Description. — Male and female. Similar in general character of plumage to F. peregrinus, but differs chiefly in having the crown, nape, upper back, wing-coverts and moustachial stripes deep black, and the lower surface deep rufous with very few marks, these being chiefly on the thighs, under tail-coverts and sides of the body. The young are blackish above, the feathers more or less margined with rufous, and the lower surface rich tawny streaked with black. The dimensions do not differ appreciably from those of F. peregrinus. The Indian Peregrine was sent to Lord Tweeddale by Colonel Lloyd many years ago. The specimen in question is said to have been shot at Tonghoo, and there is no other instance known of its having occurred in Burmah. It is met with throughout the greater part of the Indian peninsula from the Himalayas to Ceylon. This bird is hardly more than a race of the Peregrine. Another race is F. atriceps from the north-west of India, the chief characteristic of which lies in the moustachial band, which is not separated from the black of the head as in F. peregrinus and F. peregrinator. 588. FALCO SEVERUS. THE INDIAN HOBBY. Falco severus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 135 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 397 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 2 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 • Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 110. Hypotriorchis severus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 34; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 87 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 2 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 59. Description. — Male and female. The whole upper plumage, cheeks and ear-coverts dark slaty black ; traces of rufous on the nape ; chin, throat and sides of the neck creamy white with a chestnut tinge ; whole lower THE KESTRIL. 217 plumage bright chestnut, with a few minute streaks of black on the breast and abdomen and a round spot or two on the thighs ; under wing-coverts chestnut variegated with black ; tail slaty black, the centre feathers obso- letely barred with dark grey and the others barred with rufous on the inner webs ; quills dark brown, barred with rufous on the inner webs. The streaks on the breast are lost when the bird is fully mature. Cere, orbital skin and legs reddish yellow ; bill plumbeous. (Jerdon.) Length about 11 inches, tail 4*5, wing 8'5, tarsus 1*15. The female is considerably larger. The Indian Hobby is stated by Mr. Blyth to occur in Tenasserim. Looking to its distribution it is extremely likely to be found also in Pegu and Arrakan. It is met with in the Himalayas as far as Kumaon and in Bengal. Major Legge includes it in the birds of Ceylon, and it ranges down the Malay peninsula to Java, extending to Borneo, the Philippines, Celebes and New Guinea. There is comparatively little known about this Hobby. Genus TINNUNCULUS, Vieill. 589. TINNUNCULUS ALAUDABIUS. THE KESTRIL. Falco tinnunculus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 127 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 113, pi. ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 36 ; Seebohm, B. Birds, i. p. 45. Falco alauda- rius, Gin. Syst. Nat. i. p. 279. Tinnunculus saturatus, Blyth, J. A. S. B. xxviii. p. 277 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 129. Tinnunculus alaudarius, Jerd. B. Jnd. i. p. 38 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 96 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 21 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 22 ; Bl # Wald. B. Burm. p. 59 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 453 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1881, p. 456. Cerchneis tinnuncula, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 425 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 3 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 114 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 223 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 178. Falco saturatus, Anders. Yunnan E.iped. p. 570. Cerchneis saturata, Hume 4- Dav. S. F. vi. p. 3. Description. — Adult male. Forehead yellowish; head dark bluish ash, with black shaft-lines ; wing-coverts, back and scapulars brick-red, with triangular black spots ; upper tail-coverts and tail bluish ash, the former with obsolete black shaft-lines and the latter with a broad band of black across the end and tipped white; quills dark brown, notched with white on- the inner webs, tipped and partially edged narrowly with white ; sides of the head with a moustache blackish ; chin and throat white ; whole under 218 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. surface rufous-fawn, spotless about the vent and on the under tail- coverts, streaked with black on the breast and spotted on the abdomen and sides. Adult female. Forehead yellowish; whole upper plumage and coverts deep rufous, striped closely on the head, barred elsewhere with black ; the upper tail-coverts with a bluish tinge ; tail dull rufous tinged with blue, barred narrowly with black, tipped broadly with pale rufous-white, and with a broad black subterminal band ; chin and throat creamy white ; ear- coverts mixed white and brown ; a moustache and feathers under the eye dark brown ; uuderparts pale rufous-white, the tail-coverts spotless, the breast striped, and the abdomen and sides spotted with dark brown ; under wing-coverts spotted like the abdomen ; quills dark brown, notched on the inner webs with spots, which are rufous interiorly and white towards the outside. A nearly adult male is somewhat similar to the adult male; but the head and hind neck are strongly tinged with rufous, the ashy colour being less apparent ; the underparts are much duller rufous. Young males are like the female, but paler and more striped on the breast. Legs orange-yellow ; claws black ; cere and eyelids yellow ; iris brown ; bill pale yellow at gape, changing to bluish black towards the tip ; mouth pale bluish fleshy. Length 14 inches, tail 7 '2, wing 9*5, tarsus 1'6, bill from gape *85. The female is larger. The Kestril is a common winter visitor to Pegu, being especially abundant in the vast plains of the south, where it arrives about the end of October, departing again in March. Mr. Davison states that it is rare in Tenasserim, and he observed it only in the northern portion of the Divi- sion. My men, however, procured one specimen at Malewoon, in the extreme south ; and as they did not collect very vigorously, the acquisi- tion of one specimen proves it, I think, to be not uncommon in those parts of Tenasserim. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay found it very abundant in Karennce, and I should judge from his remarks that it may possibly breed in that country. It has a wide range, being found, according to season, over the whole of Asia and Europe and a considerable portion of Africa. The Kestril is found in Burmah chiefly in the grass-plains of the south ; but I have also observed it flying about the numerous large ruined pagodas which adorn most parts of the Province. It feeds almost entirely on mice ; and its habit of hovering in the air at frequent intervals enables any one to identify it at a glance. It makes its nest both on trees and on cliffs, and frequently deposits its eggs in the old nests of Magpies and Crows. The eggs, usually six THE EASTERN RED-FOOTED KESTRIL. 219 in number, are a rich reddish brown, very little of the ground-colour being visible. The Kestril procured by my men at Malewoon is rather richly coloured, and probably belongs to the race which Mr. Blyth named T. saturatus. It does not, however, in my opinion, differ from Indian birds except in this particular point of rich coloration. 590. TINNUNCULUS AMURENSIS. THE EASTERN RED-FOOTED KESTRIL. Falco vespertinus, var. amurensis, Radde, Reis. Amurl., Vog. p. 230, pi. i. fig. 2, a, b, c. Cerchneis amurensis, Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. i. p. 445 ; id. 8. F. iii. p. 303; Legge, fS. F. iii. p. 362 ; id. Birds Ceylon, p. 119 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 81 ; Inglis, 8. F. ix. p. 243 ; Sutler, & F. ix. p. 371 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 178. Erythropus amurensis, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 527, v. p. 6 ; Gurney, Ibis, 1882, p. 148. Erythropus vespertinus, apud Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 22 ; Wald. in Bl. B. Burm. p. 59. Falco amurensis, David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 34. Description. — Adult male. The whole upper plumage and sides of the head leaden black ; the wings and tail more ashy, the outer webs of the quills and the outermost coverts washed with silvery grey ; chin, throat, sides of the neck, breast, abdomen and sides of the body slaty ; lower part of abdomen, vent, thighs and under tail-coverts chestnut ; under wing- coverts and axillaries white. The adult female has the whole upper plumage ashy brown, blacker on the head and back, more ashy on the upper tail- and wing-coverts, the whole with indistinct black cross bars ; tail ashy, with numerous narrow black bars, the terminal one broader than the others ; wings brown, the quills barred with white on the inner webs ; forehead whitish ; feathers round the eyes and cheeks blackish ; chin, throat, ear-coverts and sides of the neck white ; breast, abdomen and sides of the body white tinged with rufous, and with broad black streaks on the breast and abdomen, turning to bar-like marks on the sides of the body ; vent, thighs and under tail- coverts pale buff with a tinge of rufous ; under wing-coverts and axillaries white, barred with black. The young are like the adult female in general appearance ; but the feathers of the upper plumage are margined indistinctly with rufous, and there is an obscure rufous collar round the hind neck ; the lower plumage is also considerably brighter. Iris hazel ; eyelids and bare skin orange ; bill dark orange, black at the tip ; tarsi and feet dark orange. (Gurney.) 220 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Length about 12 inches, tail 5 '3, wing 9, tarsus I'l, bill from gape *7. The female is of very much the same size, perhaps a little larger, not notably so. The description of the adults is taken from a pair shot by Mr. Swinhoe in China, and figured in Mr. Gould's ' Birds of Asia/ C. vespertina, the Western form, is similar in general appearance ; the adult male differs in having the under wing-coverts and axillaries the same slate-colour as the abdomen, not white ; the female differs in having the head rufous and the under plumage almost uniform rufous, with no marks except a few black shaft-lines ; the young bird differs in having no bars on. the sides of the body, and the tail has more bars, usually about eleven against eight in C. amurensis. The Eastern Red-footed Kestril appears to be a winter visitor to Burmah. Capt. Feilden, the only naturalist who has observed them in Burmah, met with them at Thayetmyo in January and February. It is found in summer in North-eastern Asia ; and it winters in Southern Africa, passing en route through India and the Indo- Burmese countries. This Kestril is generally gregarious, and it feeds on insects, which it catches both on the wing and on the ground. Suborder PANDIONES. Genus PANDION, Savigny. 591. PANDION HALIAETUS. THE OSPREY. Falco haliaetus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 129. Pandion haliaetus, Jerd. B. 2nd. i. p. 80 ; Hume, Rough Notes, i. p. 234 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 449 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 7 ; Bl. B. Bunn. p. 63; Dresser, B. Eur. vi. p. 139, pi.; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 14 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 122 ; Hume fy Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 16 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 575 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82 ; Oates, 8. F. x. p. 179 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 367 ; Ourney, Ibis, 1882, p. 594 ; tSeebohm, B. Birds, i. p. 55. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape white, each feather with a brown tip ; ear-coverts, sides of the neck and the whole upper plumage rich hair-brown, each feather obsoletely margined paler ; sides of the head and the whole lower plumage pure white ; the breast streaked with brown tinged with rusty ; primaries dark brown • secon- daries paler, barred with white on the inner webs ; tail brown, the outer feal THE BAR-TAILED FISHING EAGLE. 221 ,thers prominently barred with white on the inner webs ; the central pair obsoletely barred paler. The young have the upper plumage dark brown, with buffy white margins to all the feathers, and the under plumage is white. Iris bright yellow ; cere, gape and eyelids dull greenish blue ; bill black ; legs pale greenish ; claws black. A female measured : length 22*5 inches, tail 9, wing 19, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape 1*6. The male is smaller. The Osprey is tolerably abundant in the Pegu and the Sittang rivers, and probably also occurs in the Irrawaddy river. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan. Mr. Davison met with it only in the extreme south of Tenasserim ; but it is probable that, as it occurs in Pegu, it is also likely to be found along the whole of the coast of Tenasserim at certain seasons. It inhabits almost the whole of the tropical and temperate portions of the world. The Osprey is probably only a winter visitor to Burmah ; I have only observed it in the cold weather, chiefly in November and December. Two or three pairs are usually located in the Sittang river, each pair apparently keeping a portion of the river for its own exclusive use. The Osprey is remarkable for the formation of its foot, the outer toe being reversible and pointing sideways. This causes it to have a very secure grasp of fish, upon which food it entirely subsists, catching the fish by darting down to the water with immense velocity. It hovers in the air a good deal, and at times settles on sandbanks to rest and to bathe. In Europe the Osprey usually builds its nest in some huge tree, construct- ing it of sticks, and laying three eggs, boldly blotched with reddish brown. Genus POLIOAETUS, Kaup. 592. POLIOAETUS ICHTHYAETUS. THE BAR-TAILED FISHING EAGLE. Falco ichthyaetus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 136. Polioaetus ichthyae- tus, Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 81 ; Hume, Hough Notes, ii. p. 239 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 43; Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mm. i. p. 452 j Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 6; Hume, 6'. F. iii. p. '20 ', Legge, S. F. iii. p. 363 ; Bl. B. Sunn. p. 63 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 298; Hume, S. F. v. p. 129; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 72; Gurney, Ibis, 1878, p. 455; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 248 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 82; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 144 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 179 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 367. Description. — Male and female. The whole head and neck all round grey ; the entire upper plumage and breast brown ; tail white, with a 222 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. broad brown band at the end ; primaries black ; the other quills brown ; abdomen, vent, sides of the body., thighs and under tail-coverts white. The young have the upper plumage brown, the feathers of the head and hind neck streaked with paler brown, and the feathers of the other parts margined paler ; sides of the head and all the lower plumage wood-brown streaked with whitish ; quills dark brown, barred darker on the inner webs, and the bases white ; tail brown mottled with whitish, the mottlings forming irregular bars on the central pair of feathers. Bill dark brown, the basal two thirds of the lower mandible bright plumbeous ; cere and iris brown ; legs and feet china- white ; claws black ; loral region dusky greenish ; eyelids plumbeous brown. Length 29 inches, tail 11, wing 19, tarsus 3'6, bill from gape 2*05. The female is considerably larger, the wing being 20 inches or more. The Bar-tailed Fishing Eagle is fairly common over the whole Province in suitable localities. I procured it at Thayetmyo, and I found it very abundant in the swampy forests lying to the west of the Sittang river near Shwaygheen. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay observed it at Tonghoo, and Dr. Armstrong in the Irrawaddy Delta. Mr. Davison states that it is sparingly distributed over Tenasserim ; but Capt. Bingham remarks that it is quite common in the Thoungyeen valley. It is probably abundant in Arrakan. It is found in India, ranging westwards to Nipal and down to Ceylon ; and it occurs in the Malay peninsula and Cochin China, and in the islands of Sumatra, Java, Borneo and Celebes. This fine Fishing Eagle is found in well-wooded parts of the country where large streams and swamps abound ; but it is most abundant in thick forests. It feeds chiefly on fish. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenas- serim in March — a large structure made of sticks, and placed in a tree at a height of about one hundred feet from the ground. It contained one egg, of a chalky white colour. I follow Mr. Sharpe in placing the Eagles of this genus with the Ospreys. It is not yet, however, clearly proved that the formation of the feet is the same with regard to the structure of the outer toe as in the Ospreys ; and I regret that I failed to examine the feet of the fresh birds when I had the opportunity of doing so. Mr. Gurney doubts whether the outer toe is reversible. THE LESSER FISHING EAGLE. 223 593. POLIOAETUS HUMILIS. THE LESSER FISHING EAGLE. Falco humilis, Mull, et Schleg. Verh. Ned. overz. Bez., Aves, p. 47, pi. 6. Polio- aetus humilis, Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. viii. p. 35 j Sharpe, Cat. Birds B. Mus. i. p. 454 ; Sahad. Ucc. Born. p. 6 ; BL B. Burnt, p. 64 j Hume, S. F. v. p. 130, viii. p. 82 j Gurney, Ibis, 1878, p. 455 ; Hume, S. F. ix. p. 244 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 177. Haliaetus humilis, Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 17. Description. — Adult female. Above ashy brown, the back and wings darker and more chocolate-brown, the feathers of the crown and hinder neck slightly fulvescent towards their tips ; lores and an indistinct eyebrow whitish ; cheeks and entire throat and breast, as well as under wing-coverts, entirely ashy brown ; the throat and fore part of the cheeks slightly varied with whitish streaks ; lower abdomen, thighs, vent and under tail-coverts white ; primaries black, whitish at base of inner web ; secondaries brown like the back ; tail pale brown at base, gradually becoming darker brown towards the tip, which is not very broadly white ; a few whitish feathers on the bend of the wing ; bill and cere dusky lead-colour ; feet pale bluish white; iris light yellow. Total length 23 inches, culmen 2'05, wing 16'2, tail 8-8, tarsus 2'85, middle toe 1'95. (Sharpe.) I have never procured the Lesser Fishing Eagle. Mr. Hume states that he received a specimen from Cape Negrais, and consequently it is entitled to a place in this work. The adult differs from the adult of the last species in having the tail pale brown with a white tip, and in being considerably smaller. A third species, P. plumbeus, Hodgs., occupies an intermediate position between the two in regard to size, and the entire upper surface of the tail is a uniform ashy brown. It is found along the base of the Himalayas from Assam to Afghanistan. The Lesser Fishing Eagle is found in the Malay peninsula, Sumatra and Celebes, and probably in Borneo. Mr. Hume also records it from Cachar. Its habits are probably similar to those of P. ichthyaetus. 224 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Order VIII, STEGANOPODES. Family PHAETHONTID^. Genus PHAETON, Linn. 594. PHAETON RUBRICAUDA. THE RED-TAILED TROPIC-BIRD. Phaeton rubricauda, Bodd. Tall. PI. Enl. p. 57 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 849 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 370; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 322, viii. p. 116. Phaeton phoenicurus, Om. Syst. Nat. i. p. 583 ; Gould, B. Austr. vii. pi. 73. Phaeton aetherius, Bloxh. Voy. Blonde, App. p. 251. Description. — A black mark in front of and behind the eye black ; the whole plumage silky white ; the shafts of the primaries and tail-feathers black ; the webs of the lengthened central tail-feathers red ; the centres of the long flank -feathers slate-colour ; most of the tertiaries with a long broad slaty- brown streak down the centre. Bill, in the dry specimen, yellow ; tarsus and about half an inch of the basal portion of the toes and webs yellow ; remainder of the foot black. Length 33 inches, tail 19, wing 13*2, tarsus T2, bill from gape 3*2. The description is taken from specimens in the British Museum col- lected in Australia. There are only three specimens, but they are all in exactly the same plumage. Mr. Hume's description of a bird shot in the Bay of Bengal agrees well with these birds. Dr. Jerdon states that this bird is frequently seen in the Bay of Bengal, and Mr. Hume secured a specimen in these waters. The Red-tailed Tropic- bird occurs in the tropical portions of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The Tropic-birds are of very graceful form, and more or less white in colour. They live in the air, flying about like Terns, and catching fish by plunging down upon them. They breed on islands, laying a single egg in a hole in a cliff, or even in a hole in the ground. The egg is reddish grey, marked with reddish brown. THE WHITE TROPIC-BIRD. 225 595. PHAETON FLAVIROSTRIS. THE WHITE TROPIC-BIRD. Phaeton flavirostris, Brandt, Bull. Acad. Sc. St. Petersb. ii. p. 349 ; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 323, v. p. 498, viii. p. 116; Penrose, Ibis, 1879, p. 277; Legye, Birds Ceylon, p. 1172. Phaeton candidus (Briss.}, apud Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 850. Description. — General colour of the plumage white; a large mark in front of the eye, continued as a broad band down the sides of the head, black ; the first four primaries with the outer web, the shaft and a narrow portion of the inner web black to within an inch of the tip of the feathers j the next few primaries more or less black on the basal portion of the shaft ; a broad band along the median wing-coverts, the greater portion of the tertiaries and the tips of the scapulars black ; shafts of the lengthened central tail-feathers black, those of the others black on the basal two thirds of their length only ; some of the upper tail-coverts with black marks; the longer flank-feathers streaked with slate-colour; with the above exceptions the whole plumage is white. Bill, in the dry specimen, pale yellow, with a pale plumbeous line along the central portion of both mandibles ; tarsus and basal portion of foot yellow ; remainder of foot black. Length 30 inches, tail 18, wing 10*6, tarsus "9, bill from gape 2*5. The above description is taken from four specimens in the British Museum ; they are all in the same plumage and are of the same size. The White Tropic -bird was obtained by the late Col. Tytler at Ross Island, one of the Andaman group, and it must consequently occur on or near the Burmese coast*. It is found in the tropical seas of the whole world, and one of its breeding- places is the island of Ascension. A specimen of this bird was captured at a considerable distance from the sea in Cachar. * All sea-birds of wide range which have been recorded as occurring in the Bay of Bengal must necessarily find a place in this work. VOL. II. 226 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 596, PHAETON INDICUS. THE SHORT-TAILED TROPIC-BIRD. Phaeton aetherius (Linn.}, apud Hume, S. F. i. p. 286, ii. p. 323. Phaeton indi- cus, Hume, S. F. iv. p. 481 ; Sutler, S. F. v. p. 302 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 493; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 116 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1173. Description. — A broad conspicuous black crescent in front of the eye and a narrow black line from the gape to nostrils and nostrils to culmen, dividing the feathers from bill; the whole forehead and front part of the crown, ear-coverts and entire lower parts, including wing-lining and axillaries, pure white, the lower parts of the body glistening like white satin ; a black line from the posterior angle of the eye, running round the back of the nape, where it forms a more or less conspicuous half- collar. The hinder portion of the crown and nape inside the half-collar white, each feather with a triangular black bar near the tips, in a great measure concealed by the overlapping of the tips of the feathers ; the carpal joint of the wing, the four or five posterior primaries, the whole of the secon- daries, the primary- co verts except those of the first five quills, the secondary, greater and median coverts pure white ; the winglet, the greater coverts of the first five primaries, the outer webs of the first five primaries, together with a narrow stripe along the shaft on the inner web, black ; the extreme tips and the inner webs of these feathers white ; the tertials and their greater coverts black, narrowly margined on the exterior webs and tipped with white ; the lesser secondary coverts similar ; the entire back, scapulars, rump and upper tail-coverts white, regularly and closely barred with black, the bars being slightly cuspidate on the upper back, and the longest scapulars being almost devoid of barring, though this is not seen till the feathers are lifted. The shafts of the first five primaries are entirely black, those of the subsequent ones black on their basal portion. The tail- feathers white, the basal portions black- shafted, and the lateral tail-feathers mostly with an arrowhead bar or spot near the tip. The female is pre- cisely similar to the male. (Hume.} Irides deep brown; legs and hallux and its web, and basal joint of other toes white, tinged bluish and creamy yellow ; rest of feet and claws black ; bill dull orange-red ; margins of both mandibles, nostrils and tips dusky. (Hume.) Length about 21 inches, tail up to 10' 3, wing up to 11*8, tarsus I'l, bill from gape 3 '4. I have not been able to examine a specimen of this species. The Short-tailed Tropic-bird was observed by Mr. Davison off the coast at the extreme southern point of Tenasserim, and also off Cape Negrais. This species has been observed in various parts of the Indian Ocean north of the Equator, and it probably has a very extensive range. THE LARGE FRIGATE-BIRD. 227 Family FREGATID^. Genus FREGATA, Briss. 597. PREGATA AQUILA. THE LARGE FRIGATE-BIRD. Pelecanus aquilus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 216. Attagen aquilus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 853. Fregata aquila, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 364 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 116 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1204. Tachypetes aquila, Sharpe, Rep. Trans. Venus Exped. p. 151 ; Penrose, Ibis, 1879, p. 276. Description. — Adult. The whole plumage black, the feathers of the head, back and scapulars lanceolate and glossed with purple and lilac. Length about 38 inches, tail 19, wing 26, tarsus '8, bill from gape 5. A younger bird has the whole head and neck, the upper part of the breast and the lower abdomen white, the breast tinged with rufous ; quills and tail black ; remainder of the plumage smoky blackish brown, the feathers of the back and lesser wing-coverts margined with pale brown. A third bird has the whole head neck, and the entire lower plumage white, except the vent and under tail-coverts, which, together with the re- maining plumage, is smoky brown with pale margins to the feathers of the back and lesser wing-coverts. A fourth bird, which I consider to be the youngest of the series, has the whole plumage smoky brown, the quills and tail black ; the breast and abdomen white ; the lesser wing-coverts broadly edged with pale brown, and the feathers of the back more narrowly edged with the same. The above descriptions are taken from a series of four birds in the British Museum, ranged according to what I consider their progressive stages from the adult to the youngest. The old bird described has an enormous pouch, probably distended by the taxidermist to an unnatural size. Its capacity is about a pint, its length about eight inches, and it stands out from the neck about three inches. The second bird has the throat broadly naked and its junction with the feathered sides abruptly denned. The other two have the sides of the throat covered with tiny feathers. According to Major Legge the gular pouch in the male is scarlet, the iris red, bill pale bluish, nail flesh-colour, feet fleshy reddish. According to Dr. Jerdon this bird has occurred on the Malabar coast, and it is also met with in the Bay of Bengal. It is found in all the tropical seas of the world. The Frigate-birds have great strength and powers of flight; they confine Q2 228 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMA H. themselves to the air, seldom or never swimming, and they hurl themselves into the sea to capture fish or pursue other birds to compel them to abandon their prey, which they immediately seize and eat. They breed on islands, laying one or two white chalky eggs. In general appearance they resemble Eagles, the bill being very strong and hooked. The tail is of great length and deeply forked. 598. FREGATA MINOR. THE LESSER FRIGATE-BIRD. Pelecanus minor, Om. Syst. Nat. i. p. 572. Atagen ariel (Gould), G. ft. Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 669; Gould, B. Austr. vii. pi. 72. Attagen minor, David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 534. Fregata minor, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 364 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 447, vi'ii. p. 116, ix. p. 119 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1203. Description. — Adult. The whole plumage black ; the feathers of the head, back and scapulars lanceolate and glossed with purple and lilac ; a patch of white on the flanks. Length about 30 inches, tail 14, wing 21*5, tarsus about *6, bill from gape 4'2. Another bird has the whole head and neck all round black ; the breast, upper abdomen and the whole of the sides of the body white tinged with rufous ; the white of the breast produced backwards to form a narrow, ill- defined collar round the neck ; lower abdomen, vent and under tail- coverts black ; the quills, tail, median and greater coverts, back, scapulars and rump deep black, the head and back slightly iridescent ; the lesser wing-coverts pale brown margined with whitish. Wing 21 inches, tail 12. What I consider to be a still younger bird has the whole head and neck rufescent ; the breast pale brown ; the abdomen and sides of the body glossy dark brown ; lower abdomen white ; thighs and under tail-coverts dark brown ; quills and tail deep black ; lesser wing-coverts brown broadly edged paler ; remainder of the upper plumage blackish, some of the old feathers of the back being still present and brown in colour. Wing 21*5 inches, tail 13. The above is the description of three specimens in the British Museum. The smaller size appears to be sufficient to separate this species from the preceding ; it has in addition a patch of white on the flanks ; the feet are rather more webbed and the tail less forked. The three specimens before me clearly show that the pouch increases in size according to age. By increasing in size I mean that it becomes more denuded of feathers, and therefore more conspicuous. The youngest bird, with the rufous head, has merely a narrow naked streak down the throat ; THE BROWN BOOBY. 229 the second, with a black head and white abdomen, has this space much broader ; and the third, a bird entirely black with iridescent colours, has the naked skin nearly four inches long and one and a half inch wide. According to Mr. Gould, the orbits and gular pouch are deep red ; the bill bluish horn-colour; irides black; feet dark reddish brown. The Lesser Frigate-bird appears to be a frequent visitor to the shores of Ceylon. It has been observed on the coast of the Malay peninsula, and must at times visit Burmah. It occurs in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, from China down to Australia and New Zealand ; westwards to the meridian of Ceylon, and eastwards to New Caledonia. This bird breeds on Rainess Islet in the Torres Straits, making a nest of sticks either on the ground or on low plants, and it lays either one or two chalky white eggs. Family SULID^E. Genus DYSPORUS, /%. 599. DYSPORUS SULA. THE BROWN BOOBY. Pelecanus sula, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 218. Sula australis, Steph. Gen. Zool. xiii. p. 104 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 318, viii. p. 110. Sula fusca (Briss.), apud Gould, B. Austr. vii. pi. 78. Sula fiber (Linn.}, apud Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 851 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 369; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 324, iv. p. 483. Dysporus sula, David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 530. Sula leucogastra (Bodd.), apud Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1177. Description. — Adult. Breast, abdomen, sides of the body, vent and under tail-coverts pure white ; sides of the under tail-coverts, the flanks and the under wing-coverts slightly marked with brown on the edges of the feathers ; the whole remaining plumage umber-brown, the feathers of the back, scapulars and rump edged with whity brown ; those of the fore neck with the white bases showing through in places; quills and tail dark umber-brown. The young bird has the upper plumage paler brown, and the lower plumage instead of being white is also pale brown. Irides white ; bill creamy white with a bluish tinge in veins ; the pouch, gape, lores and orbital spaces pale hoary greenish yellow ; the legs and feet pale yellow, with a greenish tinge on tarsi ; the claws white with a bluish tinge. (Hume.) 230 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Length about 30 inches, tail 8, wing 16'5, tarsus 1'9, bill from gape 4*5. The above description is taken from a specimen collected by Mr. Pack- man in Tenasserim and now in the British Museum. It is not quite adult, for when old the upper plumage appears to be a uniform umber- brown without paler edges. The Brown Booby occurs along the Tenasserim coast, where it was obtained by Mr. Packman and observed by Mr. Davison. Dr. Jerdon states that it occurs in the Bay of Bengal, and Mr. Hume met with it near some of the islands of the Cocos group. It is found in all parts of the world in the tropical seas. The Boobies are birds of the ocean, seldom going on shore except to roost at night ; they plunge into the sea to capture their prey ; they follow ships and frequently settle on the rigging, and, from their habit of stretch- ing out their necks and owing to their silly appearance, are termed boobies by sailors. They breed on small islands, a single white chalky egg being laid on the bare soil. Mr. Hume has conclusively shown that the name S. fiber, Linn., does not apply to the present species, and he has also suggested that 8. leuco- gastra, Bodd., is probably a small South- American species. 600. DYSPORUS PISCATOE. THE RED-LEGGED BOOBY. Pelecanus piscator, Linn, Syst. Nat. i. p. 217. Sula piscator, Gould, B. Austr. vii. pi. 79 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 852 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 116. Sula piscatrix, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 368 ; Hume, S. F. iv. p. 483, v. p. 312. Description. — Quills and greater wing-coverts blackish, variegated with silvery grey; tail and the whole plumage white, slightly tinged with yellowish on the head, neck and back. The young bird is entirely brown ; the tail and other parts, except the quills and greater coverts, gradually turn to white ; but birds with pure white tails appear to be rare in collections. . This species may always be recognized by its red feet. Even in very old skins the feet remain red. Length about 26 inches, tail 8, wing 13*8, tarsus T4, bill from gape 4- 3. These are the dimensions of an adult bird in the British Museum. Dr. Jerdon records this Booby from the Bay of Bengal, where it is extremely likely to occur. It is found in the tropical seas of the whole world, wandering at times outside the tropics for some distance. THE LARGE CORMORANT. 231 601. DYSPORUS CYANOPS. THE MASKED BOOBY. Sula cyanops, Stntdev. Phys. Sallsk. Tidsk. 1837, p. 218, t. 5 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. :i07? Iluf/cr, -V. /•'. v. p. :iO:j ; Hume, 8. F. v. p. 307, viii. p. 116: Ley ye, IHnJ* Crt/foH, p. J180. Sula personata, Gould, P. Z. S. 1846, p. 21; id. B. Austr. vii. pi. 77. Description. — Plumage white ; the primaries and their coverts, greater wing-coverts and secondaries, as also the tips of the tertials and scapulars, brownish black ; inner webs of the secondaries basally white ; tail very dark brown, somewhat paler than the primaries, the basal portion of the feathers white, extending along the edges of the central pair ; under wing- white. (Legge.) Irides yellow ; naked skin of the face and chin dull bluish black ; legs greenish blue. (Gould.) Legs and feet lavender-blue; bill pale bluish horn; gular skin slate ; irides pale green. (Butler.) Length about 32 inches, tail 7*5, wing 17, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape nearly 5. The Masked Booby has occurred at Ceylon, and consequently it must sometimes be found in the Bay of Bengal. Indeed, Mr. Hume mentions casually (S. F. v. p. 310) that this species occurs at the Cocos Islands. This species has the same wide range as the other Boobies. Family PHALACROCORACID^. Genus PHALACROCORAX, Briss. 602. PHALACROCORAX CARBO. THE LARGE CORMORANT. Pelecanus carbo, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 216. Pelecanus sinensis, Shaw $ Nodd. Nat. Misc. pi. 529. Graculus carbo, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 861 ; Hume. Nests and Eggs, p. 659; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 364; Bl. B. Burm. p. 164; Oates, S. F. v. p. 169. Phalacrocorax carbo, David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 532 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 496 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped: p. 696 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 151, pi. ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1182 ; Doia, S. F. vii. p. 468 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 116 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 248. Description. — Male and female in breeding -plumage. General colour ol the plumage black ; a nuchal crest of narrow, pointed feathers about an inch and a half long ; a white band from eye to eye encircling the bare 232 BIRDS OF BRITISH BITRMAH. throat ; a broad black streak from the eye extending over the ear-coverts and descending to form a collar next to the white throat-band ; remainder of the head, the throat for abont two inches below the black band, the sides of the neck and the back of the neck to about six inches from the forehead white mixed with greenish black, all the feathers short and sharp-pointed ; remainder of the neck, the whole lower plumage, the back, rump, upper tail-coverts and tail deep black, glossed with blue and purple ; the shoulders, scapulars and upper wing-coverts bronze, each feather broadly margined with black ; coverts to primaries and the whole of the quills black, glossed with bronze; under wing-coverts glossy black; a large white patch on the outside of the thighs. In the nonbreeding -plumage the white thigh-patch is absent, and the whole lower plumage becomes much mixed with white in varying degrees, some birds having much more white than others. Iris green; eyelids and the lores dusky yellow; skin of throat and jaws bright yellow, or black profusely spotted with yellow ; skin under the eye orange ; legs and claws black ; upper mandible and tip of the lower dark brown ; remainder of the lower mandible white, varying to pale pink. Length 32 inches, tail (of fourteen feathers) 7'2, wing 13'3, tarsus 2'3, bill from gape 3*8. The female is of about the same size. The white thigh-patch is assumed from about the first of September to the middle of December, and is common to both the sexes. The Large Cormorant is very abundant throughout the low plains of Southern Pegu. It occurs in all the other parts of Burmah, but is of comparatively rare occurrence. It is met with in nearly every portion of Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia, and it ranges to the eastern coast of North America. The Large Cormorant is found in large flocks, frequenting tanks, lakes and rivers, in the latter preferentially above tidal influence. It is a constant resident in Burmah, their numbers being, however, considerably reduced in the dry weather, some of the birds apparently migrating else- where as the streams and ponds dry up. I found immense numbers of this Cormorant breeding at Myitkyo, at the head of the Canal, in October. The nests, made of twigs, weeds and stalks of grass, were placed on trees growing in the water. The eggs, four or five in number, are very long and narrow, dull white in colour and very chalky in texture. These Cormorants associate in large flocks and feed entirely on fish. They spend most of their time in the water, swimming with the whole body submerged and catching each fish by pursuing it under water. When resting on land they have the habit of partially expanding their wings, presenting a remarkable appearance. They fly with great speed, but they are reluctant to take to wing. THE WHITE-TUFTED CORMORANT. 233 603. PHALACROCORAX FUSCICOLLIS. THE WHITE-TUFTED CORMORANT. Phalacrocorax fuscicollis, Steph. Gen. Zoo/, xiii. pt. i. p. 91 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. lisi> ; I/tnnr \ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 496 ; Sutler, S. F. vii. p. 178 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 11(5; Oatcs, S. F. x. p. 24*. Phalacrocorax sinensis, Steph. Gen. Zool. xiii. pt. i. p. 90. Graculus sinensis (Shaw)*, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 862 ; Hume, Nests and Eyy*, p. 060 ; Butter, S. F. iv. p. 33. Graculus fuscicollis, Bl. B. Sunn. p. 164 ; Gates, S. F. v. p. 170. Description. — Male in breeding -plumage. The whole plumage deep black glossed with blue and green ; the feathers of the back, scapulars and wing- coverts brown with broad black margins ; a tuft of decomposed soft white feathers, about an inch in length, on either side the head just behind the ear-coverts ; a few very minute specks of white on the forehead, over the eye and on the lower neck. The female in breeding-plumage differs from the male in wanting the white tufts on the side of the head. In nonbreeding-plumage there is a band of white immediately next the naked gular skin, the white tufts and white specks on the head are altogether wanting, and the cheeks and fore neck are brownish. Iris green ; naked skin of the head yellow ; feet and claws black ; upper mandible blackish, lower whitish. Length 25 inches, tail (of twelve feathers) 6*6, wing 10*8, tarsus 1*7, bill from gape 3'4. The female is of the same size. I am of opinion that, as above stated, the female in the breeding- plumage differs from the male- in wanting the white tufts on the sides of the head ; but I am not quite certain of the fact. The White-tufted Cormorant is very abundant, and resident in the streams which intersect the plain between the Pegu and the Sittang rivers ; but in other portions of Pegu I did not meet with more than a few birds. Mr. Davison noticed it in the creeks between the Sittang and Salween rivers ; and it will probably be found in small numbers in most parts of the Province. It extends through the Indo- Burmese countries, and is found over the greater portion of the Indian peninsula. The habits of this species are precisely the same as those of P. carbo. I found it breeding in the swamps at Myitkyo in July ; the nests were built on reeds near the surface of the water. * The Pelecanus sinensis, Shaw, is undoubtedly the large Cormorant of China. Pele- canm sinensis, Lath. (Ind. Orn. Suppl. p. Ixx) is said to have twelve rectrices, and the description would apply as well to the present species as to any other ; but it is said to be very common in China, and to be the species used by the people for fishing. No one has, however, met with this Cormorant in China in recent years. 234 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 604. PHALACROCORAX PYGM^US. THE LITTLE CORMORANT. Pelecanus pygmaeus, Pall. Reis. Russ. Reichs, ii. p. 712. Carbo javanicus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 197. Carbo melanognathus, Brandt, Bull. Ac. Sc. St. Petersb. iii. p. 57. Graculus javanicus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. >-<;:}. Graculus melanognathos, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. GOO ; id. 8. F. iii. p. 194. Microcarbo pygmaeus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. -'JOO. Graculus pygmaeus, Bl. B. Burm. p. 164; Oates, S. F. v. p. 170. Phalacrocorax pygmaeus, Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 173, pi. ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 697 ; Leyye, Jiirdx Ceylon, p. 1191 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 490; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 116 ; Oaf™, S. F. x. p. 248. Description. — Breeding-plumage. The whole plumage deep black; the feathers of the wing-coverts, scapulars, tertiaries and secondaries paler at the centres, the edges broadly black ; the shafts of the feathers of the upper back glistening; a short occipital crest; several white hair-like feathers on the sides of the head and neck. At other times the chin and upper throat are whitish ; and the feathers are everywhere more or less margined with pale rufescent white, and the whole of the neck and head is more or less brownish. Iris greenish brown, varying to greenish white ; bill fleshy ; upper mandible dark brown; facial and gular skin dark. (Legge.) Length 20 inches, tail (of twelve feathers) 6*5, wing 8, tarsus 1*4, bill from gape 2*3. The female is of the same size. The Little Cormorant is generally distributed over the whole of' Burm ah, and in some parts, such as the low plains of Southern Pegu, ia exceedingly abundant. It is met with over the greater portion of Southern Asia, South-east Europe and Northern Africa. It has not yet been recorded from any part of China nor from Cochin China ; but it extends down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra, Java and Borneo. The Little Cormorant is found as often singly as in flocks, and it appears to be confined to fresh water. It breeds in July and August; and I found great numbers of its nests at Myitkyo in reed-beds. TIIK DAHTKK. 235 Family PLOTID^. Genus PLOTUS, ///////. 605. PLOTUS MELANOGASTER. THE DARTER. Anhinga melanogaster, Pain, in 1 -V//-.S/. ]„<(. /W. p. 22, pi. 12. Plotus mela- nogaster, J<-r- ////^/ /,>///*, p. Or,| : .v,,/,., „/. ffom. ].. :;<'.: : ////.;//<-, -V. /'. iii. p. I'.'J : />'/. /A Ihn-m. p. 1' ft F. \. p. 170: 7xW/'-. Birds <'<;jl<,«. p. HIM; 77// //•-. Ezyerf. p. 398 ; H«,n<-, X. F. viii. p. 1JS'. F. x. p. 248. .-. — Male. Chin, throat, the upper part of the fore neck, and a narrow line about five inches in length from the head down the sides of the neck white ; the head and neek marked with minute streaks of black, brown, whitish and rul'csceiit ; the lower part of the front of the neck and thcwholf lower plumage frlo^s.y black; primaries, tecondaries and tail Ijluck \\ ith green, the latter with tlie central feathers rayed across ; uj>per back glo-sy brownish black, the feathers very narrowly margined with nt, the lateral parts streaked with white; wing-coverts, scapulars and K jti; v black, each feather with a long narrow mesial white streak; lower b^r-k, rump and upper tail-coverts greenish black. The female has the plumage of the same general colour as the male, but ocieties and 1 found hundreds of them ing in the Myitkyo >\\arnp in August on dead trees standing in the R >Y four in n umber, are dull chalky \\h 236 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Family PELECANID^. Genus PELECANUS, Linn. 606. PELECANUS MANILLENSIS. THE SPOTTED-BILLED PELICAN. Pelecanus manillensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 571. Pelecanus philippensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 571; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 858 ; Sclater, P. Z. S. 1868, p. 268; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 658 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 194 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 169 • David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 531 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 495 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 41 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 116 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 247. Pelecanus rufescens, apud Elliot, P. Z. S. 1869, p. 583 (part.). Pelecanus roseus, apud Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 363. Pelecanus philippinensis, El. B. Burm. p. 164 : Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 695 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1198. Description. — Nestling. Covered with white down ; iris dark brown ; bill pale plumbeous ; legs china- white ; pouch pale bluish white. The down on the wings soon turns to pale rufous, and the scapulars, when they appear, are brown edged with ferruginous ; the wing-coverts on making their appearance are furnished with a dense fringe of rufous down, which, however, soon falls off, leaving the feathers with rufous margins. The scapulars are developed very rapidly and their ferruginous margins are diminished in extent as the bird grows ; the down on the head and neck gives place to brownish feathers, and the crest and loose feathers of the mane on the hind neck soon make their appearance. The young bird when fully fledged retains its first feathers for at least one year, the only change being that the brown colours become darker and the rufous edgings abraded and consequently less marked. The impressed spots on the bill are not indicated till the eighth month, and even at the end of twelve months these spots are quite indistinct compared with those of the adult bird. Towards the end of the first year a livid spot appears in front of the eyes and soon becomes clearly defined ; the nail and the terminal third of the edges of the bill are yellow ; the legs and toes flesh- colour. After the first moult, at about twelve months of age, the whole head and neck are covered with short soft downy feathers, the bases of which are black, the tips white ; and the crest and mane are developed to the same extent as in the adult ; the shoulders and scapulars wood-brown ; lesser and median coverts to the secondaries wood-brown, the feathers all edged paler ; greater coverts darker brown, edged with light brown ; coverts to tertiaries greyish brown, edged with pale fulvous ; the whole of the coverts narrow and sharp-pointed ; winglet, primaries and their coverts THE SPOTTED-BILLED PELICAN. 237 dark brown; secondaries and tertiaries brown, tinged with ashy on the outer webs ; the whole back white ; rump, upper tail-coverts and flanks white, with delicate brown shaft-streaks ; tail dark brown, with the base white; lower plumage whity brown, each feather being white with the tip brownish ; the feathers close, dense and soft. In June of the third year, or when the bird is about thirty months old, the moult into adult breeding-plumage is commenced and the change is entirely effected by October, except that in this first breeding-season the wing-coverts never become entirely white as in the old bird, the feathers of these parts being a mixture of long sharp-pointed white feathers and brown, comparatively blunt, brown ones. Between June and October the pouch, which has hitherto been spotless, becomes blotched with livid as in the adult, the blotches extending to the face ; the legs turn to dark brown ; the iris becomes paler brown ; and the spots on the bill become firm and well defined. Adult in breeding-plumage (September to February). — Forehead, top of head, crest and cheeks pure white, the bases of the feathers black, but barely visible ; the hind neck, from the crest to the upper back, covered by rather long, soft, greyish-brown feathers forming a mane ; remainder of head and neck white, the feathers with black bases, showing out slightly ; all the feathers curly, dense and very soft ; crest sharply pointed, erect or falling forwards ; upper back and shoulders white, the feathers sharply pointed; lower back, upper part of rump, and flanks rich vina- ceous, the shafts hair-brown ; lower part of rump pure white, the feathers falling over the upper tail-coverts, which are also pure white but with very conspicuous black shafts ; tail ashy, with dark-brown shafts ; upper scapulars narrow and finely pointed, white with black shafts ; lower sca- pulars broad and rounded, ashy with black shafts; tertiaries more or less white 011 inner webs and more or less ashy on the outer webs ; secon- daries brown, tinged with ashy on the outer webs ; primaries very dark uniform brown ; wiriglet and primary -co verts dark brown : coverts over secondaries — lesser coverts very finely pointed and narrow, white tinged with yellow ; median coverts also sharply pointed, white with black shafts ; greater coverts rounded, brown on terminal half of outer and terminal third of inner webs, bases white ; the median coverts as long as, or longer than, greater coverts and partially concealing them : coverts over ter- tiaries— lesser white ; median vinaceous ; greater pale ashy : under coverts of tertiaries totally vinaceous ; those of the primaries and secon- daries white, splashed in places with vinaceous; lower neck in front, breast and sides of body white tinged with yellow, all the feathers rather rigid and very sharp -pointed ; abdomen from breast to vent white, the feathers soft and rounded ; feathers below vent sharp-pointed, vinaceous ; under tail-coverts ample, soft, vinaceous with dark shafts. 238 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Bill pinkish yellow,, the lateral portions of the upper mandible with large bluish-black spots ; the nail and terminal halves of both mandibles orange- yellow ; the central portions of the sides of the lower mandible smeared with bluish black ; pouch dull purple, blotched and spotted with bluish black ; eyelids and skin round the eye orange-yellow ; skin in front of the eye livid ; legs and feet very dark brown ; claws yellowish horn-colour ; iris stone-white, varying to pale yellow clouded with brown. Length 57 inches, tail (of twenty-two feathers) 8 to 9'5, wing 22 to 24, tarsus 3'3 to 3'8, bill from gape 13*5 to 14'5. The female is smaller, but not conspicuously so. In nonbreeding -plumage (March to August). — The adults assume the same plumage as that worn by the young after the first moult. The Spotted-billed Pelican is found in all the lowlands of Burmah, but is especially abundant in the swampy plains between the Pegu and the Sittang rivers, and again in the plains between the Sittang and the Sal- ween rivers. It is met with over a considerable portion of the Indian peninsula as far west as Scinde, and to the south as far as Ceylon ; it extends to China, whence I have examined Mr. Swinhoe's specimens ; it is found in Cochin China and Siam, and it ranges down the Malay peninsula to Java, Borneo and the Philippine Islands. There seems no room to doubt that Gmelin's two names P. manillensis and P '. philippensis apply to this species, nor that his P. roseus applies to the next. This latter name was founded by Gmelin on Latham's " Rose-coloured Pelican" (Syn. iii. pt. 2, p. 579), which name was again derived by Latham from Sonnerat's " Le pelican rose de Pisle de Lu9on " (Voy. Nouv. Gum. p. 91, t. 54). The Spotted-billed Pelican is never at any stage of its existence rose-coloured, whereas the White Pelican during the breeding- season is of a beautiful rose-colour throughout. The confusion which has arisen regarding the names of these two species is due I think to the paucity of specimens in European museums, and the consequent ignorance regarding the plumages of the two species. The British Museum now possesses upwards of fifty specimens of Pelicans procured by myself in Burmah ; and an inspection of these skins will, I venture to think, lead European ornithologists to agree with me in assigning the name P. manil- lensis to the Spotted-billed Pelican and P. roseus to the next species, usually termed P.javanicus. P. rufescens, the fourth name assigned by Gmelin to a Pelican, is clearly applicable to the Abyssinian bird, a species similar in general appearance to P. manillensis, but differing in several constant characters. In the first place, the crest is not curly, but composed of straight, pointed feathers three or four inches long ; in the second, the feathers of the mane on the hind neck are also straight, not curly and soft ; and in the third, the bill THE EASTERN WHITE PELICAN. 239 at all ages is spotless. Judging also from specimens which I examined in the Paris, Strasburg, and Leyden museums, the adults seem to have the vinous or rufous back and rump throughout the year, not at the breeding-season only as P. manillensis has. The Spotted-billed Pelican is a constant resident in Burmah, but is more abundant from October to February than at other times. It breeds in vast numbers in the tract of country lying to the west of the Sittang river and just north of Paghein. The breeding-season commences at the end of October. The nest is a large structure made of sticks and placed in a very high tree near the top, and from three to twenty pairs of Pelicans make their nests on the same tree. The eggs, three in number, are white and very chalky in texture. Pelicans generally congregate in immense flocks, swim well, and live entirely on fish. They cannot dive ; and their mode of catching fish is to range themselves in a double or even a treble line and beat the water with their wings. Progressing forward at the same time, they drive the fish towards the banks where the water is shallow and then scoop them up into their pouches. They fly exceedingly well, and after the morning feed is over they mount high into the air and circle round at a vast height for some hours together. They frequently perch on trees; but they are incapable of walking far. The two Pelicans that occur in Burmah may be discriminated at a glance by the formation of the feathered portion of the forehead : in P. manillensis the frontal feathers terminate in a concave line ; in P. roseus the frontal feathers come to a sharp point. 607. PELECANUS ROSEUS. THE EASTERN WHITE PELICAN. Pelecanus roseus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 570. Pelecanus javanicus, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 197 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 857 ; Sclater, P. Z. S. 1868, p. 268; Elliot, P. Z. S. 1809, p. 581 ; Salmd. Ucc. Born. p. 363; El. B. Burm. p. 164; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 494;- JZwme, S. F. viii. p. 116. Pelecanus mitratus, Licht. Abhandl. Akad. Wiss. Berl. 1838, p. 436, t. iii. f. 2 j Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 856 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 531 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 116. Pele- canus onocrotalus, apud Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 854; Hume, S. F. viii. p. lie.. Pelecanus minor, apud Gates, S. F. x. p. 247. Description. — Bird of the year. Crest not more than half an inch long, composed of soft loose feathers ; a line of feathers down the hind neck of the same character; head and neck tinged chestnut; the whole lower plumage deep chestnut ; upper plumage dingy white, the centres of the 240 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. feathers darker ; tail dark brown ; winglet blackish ; scapulars and ter- tiaries dark brown ; secondaries ashy brown ; primaries black with white shafts ; lesser and median wing-coverts hair-brown ; greater coverts ashy brown ; under wing-coverts brown, edged with whity brown ; no indication of a breast-patch. The change to mature plumage consists in the feathers turning white and in the assumption of a crest and a breast-patch. The full plumage is probably not attained till the third or fourth year. Adult in full breeding -plumage. The whole plumage a beautiful rosy pink ; primaries black with white shafts, primary-coverts entirely black ; secon- daries varying from blackish in those next the primaries to ashy in those next the body ; breast-patch ochreous yellow. The female has a crest, about four inches long, of narrow straight pointed feathers directed back- wards and lying rather flat. The male, as far as my own experience goes, never has a crest. It may seem extraordinary that the male bird should not have a crest, but I am of opinion that such is the case. Although constantly shooting crested females in Burmah, I never met with a crested male, notwithstand- ing that many males I shot were in the full rosy adult plumage. Dr. Jerdon seems to have described the male of this species under the name of P. onocrotalus, for he describes the plumage as white, the wing as being 28 inches in length, and the occiput with a very small crest of the same kind as the feathers on the neck. His P. mitratus is the female, with a long pendent crest of narrow feathers 4 or 5 inches long, and wing 27 inches. The change from the plumage of the young to that of the adult is very gradual. The scapulars and tertiaries are not pure white till the bird is aged ; as a rule the feathers of both these parts are edged with black lor many years; but all traces of these edgings eventually disappear. Much importance has been attached to these same black edges, arid they have been thought to be a characteristic of P. javanicus ; but the European bird possesses them in an equal degree with the Asiatic, as may be observed in the numerous individuals of the European species to be found in the zoological gardens of England and the continent. The female does not have a crest till she is aged ; and females in per- fectly pure adult white plumage may be shot in Burmah without a vestige of a crest except a few curly feathers. In this state they are P.javanicus, the type of which, now in the British Museum, is nothing more or less than a crestless adult female of the present species. The breast-patch is assumed as soon as the general colour of the plumage becomes white ; it is always present, but becomes more brilliant at the breeding-season, and both sexes have it. The winglet remains black till long after all traces of the black edges to the scapulars and tertiaries have disappeared. It changes to white THE EASTERN WHITE PELICAN. 241 gradually, feather by feather, and eventually becomes entirely white ; but birds with entirely white winglets arc scarce. The rosy colour of the adult is peculiar to the breeding-season, which apparently lasts from September to about February. The deep chestnut lower plumage of the young bird is lost very gra- dually, and even old birds show a tendency to retain a tinge of it on the abdomen. It has been suggested to me that this chestnut colour may be caused by some colouring-matter in the water that the birds frequent ; but I have examined too many birds for this to be possible, and, moreover, the depth of the chestnut colour is always correlated with the brown colour of the upper plumage — the browner the upper plumage, the deeper chestnut the lower. In the young the bill is blue, faintly margined with black ; the nail pale chestnut; pouch ochre-yellow; face violet; iris orange; legs yellowish white, the front of the tarsus and toes blackish ; claws black. In the adult the rib of the upper mandible is blue, slightly mottled with white, the sides of the mandible red, with a central band of blue on the basal half; nail coral-red ; basal half of lower mandible blue, terminal half yellow, the margins of the basal half red ; pouch gamboge-yellow ; face yellow ; iris lake-red ; webs orange-yellow ; tarsus and toes pink ; claws orange-yellow. Males measure : length 62 inches, tail 8, wing 28, tarsus 5*5, bill at front 14 to 15'75. The female : length 54 inches, tail 7, wing 25, tarsus 4-5, bill at front 1O75 to 12, crest 4 to 5. Tail of 22 feathers in both sexes. The Eastern White Pelican is a seasonal visitor to the low parts of Burmah, arriving in August and probably leaving in January or February. It has an extensive range, and is found in India, but how far west it is impossible to say. In the Leyden Museum there is a specimen from Nipal with the lower plumage chestnut, and in the Paris Museum there is another specimen from Oudh killed by Major Sharpe. Mr. Hume met with a White Pelican in Scinde; but I am unable to say whether it was the present species or P. onocrotalus, and Mr. Hume himself throws no light on the question. It extends into China and Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Java, Sumatra, Borneo and the Philippine Islands. This Pelican from February to August visits South Africa. I examined Lichtenstein's type of P. mitratus, a beautiful specimen, now preserved in the Berlin Museum, and found it to be a crested female identical with Burmese specimens ; it came from Kaffirland. There are other specimens in the Paris Museum from the Cape of Good Hope. P. onocrotalus, the European or western White Pelican, may possibly extend into India ; but I was not able to detect a single specimen of this species from India in any of the European museums I visited. I noted P. onocrotalus from the Danube, Greece, Syria, Egypt and Senegal ; and in the VOL. II. H 242 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Berlin Museum I observed a specimen from Mozambique, the most southern locality in Africa where I can state with certainty that this species is found. It remains to point out the characters by which P. roseus and P. ono- crotalus may be recognized. In the first place, P. roseus is a smaller bird, notably so with regard to the bill, which in the male never exceeds a length of 16 inches and is usually under 15, measured from the forehead to tip ; the female has the bill varying in length from 10' 75 to 12 inches and never exceeding, even in very large birds, 12*5 inches. P. onocrotalus has the bill in the male bird exceeding 17 inches and reaching up to 18, and in the female it is usually 14 inches and never, so far as I am aware, less than 13 inches. In the second place, P. roseus has invariably twenty-two rectrices, P. onocrotalus twenty-four. This is the safest and surest test when the tails are perfect, and even when imperfect it is seldom difficult to arrive at the correct number. Professor Schlegel has suggested to me that, like the Geese, the Pelicans may have a varying number of rectrices ; but I am in a position to state that, with regard to the two species I met with in Burmah, the rectrices are invariably twenty-two in number, neither more nor less. All the specimens in museums, which from their size, locality, and other characters should be P. onocrotalus, proved on exami- nation to have twenty-four rectrices. Many mounted specimens were obviously derived from zoological gardens, and in many cases the tails were hopelessly imperfect. The same may be said of living birds, of which I have examined nearly twenty ; the tail is usually imperfect, and the base of the tail so covered with down that the number of rectrices cannot be arrived at with any certainty. Yet, notwithstanding these drawbacks, I counted a sufficient number of tails to make certain that P. onocrotalus has twenty-four rectrices. A third point is the coloration of the imma- ture birds. In P. roseus the young are chestnut below, and a tinge of this colour is retained by even old birds ; in P. onocrotalus the lower plumage in immature birds is brown of various shades, not rufous or chestnut. A fourth point is, that in P. roseus in the breeding-season the forehead is not swollen to any appreciable extent ; in P. onocrotalus it is swollen to such an extent as to form a remarkable feature in the bird's appearance. A fifth point is one on which I do not wish to lay too much stress, for I may be wrong ; it is, that in P. roseus the adult male is not crested . P. longirostns} Hume (S. P. v. p. 491), belongs to the P. roseus type of Pelican, where the frontal feathers terminate in a point. I have not been able to examine Mr. Hume's type, and it is useless to hazard an opinion about it; but I would remark that the length of the bill (18'1 inches) is by no means too long for a male P. onocrotalus*. * I take this opportunity of returning my thanks to the authorities of the museums and zoological gardens at Paris, Frankfort. Strasbourg, Berlin, Hamburg, Amsterdam, Leydeu, Rotterdam, the Hague, and Antwerp, for their courtesy in allowing me to examine, in the fullest manner possible, all specimens of Pelicans, both living and stuffed, under their charge, THE GREY HERON. 243 Order IX. HERODIONES. Family ARDEIDJE. Genus AKDEA, Linn. 608. AEDEA CINEREA. THE GREY HERON. Ardea cinerea, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 230 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 741 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 610 ; Scdvad. Ucc. Born. p. 344 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. Io9 ; Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 190; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 207, pi.; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 437; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 472; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1127 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 243. Description. — Male. Forehead, a streak over the lores as far as the eye and the anterior portion of the crown white ; posterior part of crown, nape and an ample occipital crest of pointed feathers bluish black ; two longer and firmer feathers spring from the crown and slightly exceed the occipital crest in length ; chin, throat and sides of the head white ; fore neck white, the inner webs of the feathers streaked with black ; feathers at base of neck long and narrow, a delicate rufous-grey ; sides of the body, axillaries and under wing-coverts bluish grey, the latter tipped with greyish white ; centre of the breast and the whole abdomen pure white ; a large patch on either side the breast continued as a broad band to the thighs bluish black ; vent mingled white and bluish ; under tail-coverts white ; back and sides of the neck pale rufous-grey ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts and tail bluish grey ; primaries, secondaries, primary-coverts and winglet dark bluish black ; edge of the wing white ; tertiaries, lesser and median coverts bluish grey edged paler ; greater coverts bluish grey on the outer and dark brownish grey on the inner webs ; the larger scapulars bluish grey, darker at the tips ; the feathers of the shoulders and the upper scapulars long and disintegrated, bluish grey with white central streaks. The female differs in being of duller colours and in having the plumes less lengthened. Bill yellow, darker at the base of the upper mandible; eyelids and orbital skin greyish brown ; a patch of yellow skin between the eye and the bill ; iris yellow ; tarsus and toes dark brown ; claws black ; tibia fleshy brown ; underside of toes yellow. Length 39 inches, tail 7, wing 18, tarsus 6, bill from gape 6'1. The Common Heron is spread over the whole of Burmah in the dry weather, and it probably breeds in this country. I do not remember, how- ever, to have met with it in the rains. 244 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. It is found over a considerable portion of Asia, extending north to Japan and south through the islands to Australia. Dr. Tiraud states that it is common and breeds in Cochin China. It inhabits the whole of Europe and Africa. This Heron is generally found singly on the banks of rivers and is of a shy disposition. It breeds in India from March to July, making a large stick nest on a tree, and laying three pale bluish-green eggs. 609. ARDEA SUMATEANA. THE GREAT SLATY HERON. Ardea sumatrana, Raffl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 325 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 740 (part.) ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 610 (part.; ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 344 (part.) ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 159 j Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 469 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 192. Ardea typhon, Temm. PI. Col. 475. Ardea tectirostris, Gould, P. Z. S. 1843, p. 22 ; id. Birds Austr. vi. pi. 54. Description. — The entire upper surface is deep slaty, the scapulars and feathers of the interscapulary region linear, lanceolate, elongated, with the terminal portions greyish white ; the feathers of the base of the back of the neck similar but much smaller, and nothing like so elongated as those of the sides and front of the base of the neck ; a sort of dull purplish- brown shade over the crown, occiput, back and sides of the neck ; an occi- pital crest of numerous linear greyish-white feathers, the longest of which are sometimes fully nine inches in length ; the whole space in front of the eye and a broad band above and behind the eye, and again below the eye to the commissure, bare ; ear-coverts and sides of the occiput light ashy brown, sometimes faintly rufescent ; chin, upper part of throat, feathers on either side of the base of the lower mandible white ; the rest of the throat and fore neck mingled ashy brown and slaty, with here and there a somewhat ruddy brown tinge ; feathers of the base and sides and front of the neck elongated, some of them fully seven inches in length, linear lanceolate, and the visible terminal portions pearl-grey ; rest of entire lower surface ash-grey ; the wing-lining, axillaries and under surface of the wing a very pure blue slate-colour. (Hume.} Length 50 inches, tail 6, wing 18*5, tarsus 7, bill at front 6*5. (Hume.) In a young male the front of the tarsus was dark horny brown ; the bare portion of tibia and back of tarsus and soles pale dirty green ; irides bright yellow ; facial skin pale dirty green ; upper mandible horny black ; lower mandible whitish horny, yellowish towards tip. (Davison.) The Great Slaty Heron was observed by Mr. Davison in the extreme THE PURPLE HERON. 245 south of Tenasserim from Mergui to Bankasoon, and Mr. Blyth gives it from Arrakan. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found throughout the archipelago as far as Australia. Dr. Tiraud records it from Cochin China, where he states that it is not rare. This large Heron appears to be confined to the sea-coast and the mouths of the larger estuaries and rivers. An allied species (A. insignis) is found at the foot of the Himalayas, and I have received it from Bhamo in Independent Burmah. It has the lower plumage white, and it is found inland, apparently never on the sea-coast. 610. ARDEA PURPUREA. THE PURPLE HERON. Ardea purpurea, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 236 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 743 ; Hume, Nests nmJ Ef/c/s, p. 611 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 345 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 159 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 190; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 217, pi. ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 167; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 438 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 472 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1132; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 686; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, an occipital crest, a streak from the gape to the nape through the ear-coverts, a broad streak from the nape down the back of the neck, two narrow streaks one on each side of the neck from the gape and joining on to the streaked fore neck slaty black ; chin and throat white ; with these exceptions the head and neck with the lengthened plumes on the upper breast are chestnut, the lower half of the fore neck and the breast-plumes streaked with black and more or less whitish at the edges ; remainder of lower plumage a mixture of slaty chestnut and black ; lower half of hind neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail, quills and scapulars dark slaty ; the upper feathers of the scapulars long and pointed and chiefly chestnut ; upper wing-coverts ashy tinged with chestnut. The young bird has no crest and no lengthened plumes on the scapulars and breast ; the whole neck is spotted or streaked, and the feathers of the upper plumage are broadly edged with rufous. The nestling has the crown of the head, quills and tail lavender-brown ; throat and chin pure white ; sides of the head and the upper neck rufous ; lower neck rufous-grey, the feathers on the sides being centred with brown ; lower plumage ruf escent, each feather more or less dark-centred ; thighs plain rufous ; upper plumage brown, each feather edged with rufescent, more especially OH the scapulars and tertiaries ; upper and lower wing-coverts bluish brown, each feather broadly edged with rufous. 246 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Iris yellow ; upper mandible dark brown, the margins as far back as the nostrils dusky yellow, produced back to the eye ; margins from nostrils to gape dark brown; anterior half of lower mandible clear yellow, posterior half dull yellow; gape and facial skin greenish yellow; edges of the eye- lids yellow ; legs and toes yellowish, the front of tarsus and toes glossy brown ; claws dark horn-colour. Length 38 inches, tail 5, wing 14*5, tarsus 5, bill from gape 6. The female is rather smaller. The Purple Heron is very abundant and a constant resident in all the lowlands of Burmah. It is found over a great part of Asia, Europe and Africa, extending to Java and Borneo on the south and to Japan on the north. This Heron is found singly or in couples except at the breeding-season, when immense numbers congregate and nest together. It affects conceal- ment, and is generally seen in swamps where there is a considerable amount of cover. I found great numbers of their nests in the Myitkyo swamp in July and August. The nest is made of sticks, and placed on matted reeds near the surface of the water. The eggs, four or five in number, are pale green. Genus HERODIAS, Boie. 611. HERODIAS ALBA. THE LARGE WHITE HERON. Ardea alba, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 239 j Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 231, pi. Ardea torra, Buck., Frankl. P. Z. S. 1831, p. 123. Herodias alba, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 744 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 190 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 159 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 167 ; David et Oust. Ois. CJiine, p. 439 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 360 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1138. Herodias torra, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 347 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 472, 480 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 360 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243. Ardea egretta, apud Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 613. Description. — Male and female in breeding-plumage. The whole plumage pure white ; a long train of soft decomposed feathers springing from the back and extending about four inches beyond the tail ; no crest ; no breast-plumes. In nonbreeding-plumage the dorsal train is wanting. In winter the bill is yellow ; orbital skin greenish yellow ; iris pale yellow ; tibia dull greenish ; tarsus and toes black ; soles yellowish. In summer the bill is black and the facial skin rather bright green ; the tibia bluish black. Length about 36 inches, tail 6, wing 13'5 to 14'7, tarsus 5'2 to 6'1, bill THE LESSEE WHITE HERON. 247 at front 4 to 4'6, from gape about 5'5. The female is of much the same size. The Large White Heron varies very much in size, those from Europe and northern latitudes having the wing about 17 inches in length. A few of these large birds occasionally visit India. Burmese birds have the wing invariably less than 15 inches in length. There seem, however, to be conn ecting-links between the largest and the smallest birds, and therefore I think it convenient to keep all the Herons of this type under one name, as is done by Mr. Dresser and Major Legge. This Heron is found over the greater part of Asia, extending down to Australia ; also in Europe and Africa. A constant resident in Burmah, the Large White Heron is found singly or in flocks in almost every portion of the plains of the Province in paddy- fields, swamps and on the banks of streams. It breeds in the rains in con- siderable numbers near villages and monasteries on large trees, constructing a nest of sticks, and laying three or four pale bluish-green eggs. 612. HERODIAS INTERMEDIA. THE LESSER WHITE HERON. Ardea intermedia, van Hasselt, Wagler, Isis, 1829, p. 659 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 615. Ardea egrettoides, Temm. Man. d'Orn. iv. p. 374. Herodias egrettoides, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 745. Herodias intermedia, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 348 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 159 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 190 ; David ct Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 440 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 476, 480 ; Leyge, Birds Ceijl&n, p. 1141 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 687 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 114 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243. Description. — Male and female in breeding-plumage. The whole plumage pure white ; a train of soft decomposed feathers springing from the back and exceeding the tail by seven or eight inches ; a long soft tuft of feathers springing from the breast ; no crest. In nonbreeding-plumage the dorsal and pectoral trains are wanting. In summer the bill is black ; the facial skin green ; the iris yellow ; the legs and toes black. In winter the bill becomes yellow with the tip blackish. Length about 28 inches, tail 5 '5, wing 11-5 to 12' 5, tarsus 4' 3, bill at front about 2*9. The female is of the same size. The Lesser White Heron is of rather rare occurrence in Burmah ; but it is probably restricted to no particular portion of the country. Mr. Blyth received it from Rangoon, Capt. Feilden observed it at Thayetmyo, and I procured it on the banks of the canal. It may turn out to be commoner 248 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. than I suppose it to be, for, until shot, it is very difficult to discriminate it from the other allied White Herons. It occurs in India, Ceylon, the Indo-Burmese countries and the greater part of Eastern Asia from Japan down to Australia. It is also found over a considerable portion of Africa. The habits of this Heron do not differ in any respect from those of its allies. 613. HERODIAS GARZETTA. THE LITTLE BLACK-BILLED WHITE HERON. Ardea garzetta, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 237 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 616 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 239, pi. Herodias garzetta, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 746 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 190 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 159 ; Hume # Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 476, 480 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 440; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1144; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 688 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 193. Description. — Male and female in breeding -plumage. The whole plumage white ; a crest composed of two or three narrow feathers about five inches in length ; a train of soft decomposed feathers springing from the back and barely extending beyond the tail, curled upwards at the tips; the feathers of the breast long and pointed. In nonbree ding -plumage the crest, dorsal and pectoral trains are wanting. Bill always black, the base of the lower mandible yellowish ; iris yellow ; facial skin greenish yellow ; tarsus black ; toes mixed yellow and black. Length about 25 inches, tail 4, wing 9'6 to 11, tarsus about 4'2, bill from gape about 4. The female is of the same size. The Little Black-billed White Heron is abundant in all parts of Burmah except on the hills. It has a great range, being met with over the whole of Southern and Eastern Asia through the islands to Australia; it also occurs in Southern Europe and over a great part of Africa. This Little Heron is found in small flocks in every spot where there is water, especially in paddy-fields and the edges of swamps. It breeds in trees near villages, making a nest of sticks, in June and July, and laying five bluish-green eggs. THE LITTLE YELLOW-BILLED WHITE HERON. 249 614. HERODIAS EULOPHOTES. THE LITTLE YELLOW-BILLED WHITE HERON. Herodias eulophotes, Swnh. Ibis, 1860, p. 64; Bl Ibis, 1865, p. 37 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 169 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 441 ; Hume $ Dav. 8. F. vi. pp. 478, 480 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114. Description. — Male in May (Swinhoe collection). The whole plumage white ; a crest of numerous straight feathers four inches in length ; a train of feathers springing from the back and not exceeding the tail ; feathers of the breast about 3 inches long ; bill entirely yellow ; legs and toes black. Length of skin 20 inches, tail 3*1, wing 9'3, tarsus 2'9, bill from gape 3-8. Another specimen unsexed and without date is in exactly the same plumage and has the bill entirely yellow ; it measures — length of skin 22 inches, tail 3'7, wing 10' 1, tarsus 3'6, bill 3'9. A young bird (male, Ningpo, Sept. 22) has no crest and no train either on the breast or back; the basal two thirds of the lower mandible and the margins of the basal half of the upper are yellow, remainder of the bill black ; toes yellowish above. Mr. Swinhoe gives the length of the bird as 27 inches; but I do not think that any one of the three specimens, the measurements of which in the skin are given above, could ever have measured this length in the flesh. In breeding-plumage this species may be distinguished from the preceding by the character of the crest and by the bill being yellow instead of black. At other times when the crest is absent the identification will be difficult ; but I think that in H. eulophotes the bill will always be found to be more or less yellow over the greater portion of the lower mandible, whereas in H. garzetta merely the base is yellow, and the tarsus also appears to be always much shorter. The Little Yellow-billed White Heron is stated by Mr. Blyth to have occurred at Mergui in Tenasserim ; and Mr. Davison procured at Amherst, in the same Division, a specimen of a small white Heron which Mr. Hume identifies with the present species. I think it visits Southern Pegu in the winter, but I am not certain of the fact. Mr. Hume mentions another bird shot at the Andamans which he is inclined to assign to this species, and, judging from the colour of the bill as described by him, correctly so. This species inhabits Formosa and the south of China. Mr. Blyth many years ago identified H. immaculata from Australia with the Chinese bird; but, judging from Mr. Gould's plate, in which the bird is represented with a black bill, I am inclined to doubt the accuracy of this identification. 250 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus DEMIEGRETTA, Bl 615. DEMIEGRETTA SACRA. THE BLUE REEF-HERON. Ardea sacra, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 640 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 618. Ardea jugularis, Forst., Wacjl. Syst. Av., Ardea, sp. 18. Demiegretta concolor, BL J. A. S. B. xv. p. 372. Demiegretta sacra, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 346 ; Wald. Ibis, 1873, p. 318 j Hume, S. F. i. p. 254, ii. p. 304 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 481 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114. Herodias concolor, Bl. B. Burm. p. 160. Description. — The adult in full breeding -plumage is everywhere of a deep blackish slate-colour ; the feathers of the head almost black ; the feathers of the upper breast greatly elongated, as are those of the middle back, some of the latter disintegrated ; the elongated feathers of a paler slaty grey, those of the breast not exceeding 3'5 inches in length, those of the back reaching quite to the end of the middle tail-feathers. In most specimens there is a somewhat brownish ashy tinge on the abdomen and vent-feathers. In some adults there are not more than one or two white feathers on the whole chin and throat ; in others there is a well-marked pure white streak from the tip of the chin down the centre of the throat fully four inches in length, and between these two extremes every inter- mediate amount of white occurs. There is a broad full occipital crest about an inch long. (Hume.) A certain proportion of these Herons are pure white throughout, with dorsal and pectoral plumes developed as in the ashy birds above described, except that the dorsal plumes are sometimes longer, exceeding the tail by one inch. It seems to be generally recognized now that the white birds and the ashy ones belong to the same species ; in fact the nestling birds are sometimes white, sometimes ashy and occasionally pied ashy and white, but the old birds apparently never exhibit this latter pied plumage. Length 21 to 24 inches, tail 3 to 4'25, wing 9*85 to 1T75, tarsus 2'7 to 3-1, bill at front 2'65 to 3'5. (Hume.) In nonbreeding -plumage the pectoral tuft and the dorsal train are wanting. An allied species D. gularis differs in having the whole chin, throat and sides of the head as high up as the gape and the ear-coverts white, and it is also larger than D. sacra. The Blue Reef-Heron occurs along the whole coast of British Burmah. It is found in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and it is spread along the shores of the whole of Eastern Asia, from Japan southwards to the islands of the Archipelago, Australia, and some of the islands of the Pacific Ocean. THE CATTLE-EGRET. 251 This Heron is entirely a sea-coast bird, being found singly or in small parties on the shore or a short distance up some of the larger creeks. It breeds from April to June, making a nest of sticks in a low tree on some small island, and laying pale green eggs. Genus BUBULCUS, Pucker. 616. BUBULCUS COROMANDUS. THE CATTLE-EGRET. Cancroma coromanda, Bodd. TaU. PL Enl. p. 54. Buphus coromandus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 749 ; BL B. Burm. p. 160; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 481 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 688 ; Hint/ham, S. F. ix. p. 197 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 193. Ardea coromanda, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 618. Bubulcus coromandus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 350 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 190 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 349 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 441; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1147; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 361 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243. Description. — Summer plumage. The whole plumage white except the head, neck, breast and dorsal plumes, which are a rich golden buff. The feathers of the head lengthened, forming a bushy crest ; the dorsal plumes reaching to the end of the tail, and the pectoral plumes lengthened. In winter the whole plumage is white and the dorsal plumes are cast off or much reduced in length. Iris pale yellow ; eyelids yellowish ; bill, gape and facial skin orange- yellow ; tibia and knee dusky yellow ; tarsus and toes greenish black ; soles green ; in winter the bill is pale yellow. Length 2O5 inches, tail 3'4, wing 1O2, tarsus 3' 5, bill from gape 3. The female is of the same size. The Cattle-Egret is abundant in all the plains of British Burmah, and is a constant resident. It inhabits Southern China and Cochin China, the Indo-Burmese countries and the whole of India and Ceylon ; it ranges down the Malay peninsula and is met with in Java, Borneo, Celebes and the Philippine Islands. This Heron is found in small parties in fields accompanying grazing cattle, and does not much affect water or swampy localities. I have never found its nest ; but in India it breeds in societies with other Herons, making a stick nest in trees from April to July and laying four or five very pale green eggs. 252 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus ARDEOLA, Boie. 617. ARDEOLA GRAYI. THE POND-HERON. Ardea grayii, Sykes, P. Z. S. 1832, p. 158. Ardeola leucoptera, apud Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 751. Ardeola grayi, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 619 ; id. 8. F. iii. p. 190 ; £1. B. Burm. p. 160 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 350 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 167 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 481 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1150 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 114 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 361 ; Bingham, S, F. ix. p. 197 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243. Description. — Male and female in summer plumage. Head and neck greyish yellow, the crown dusky ; a long occipital crest of pointed feathers white ; back and scapulars dark blackish maroon, the feathers very long and decomposed ; remainder of the plumage white. In nonbr -ceding -plumage both sexes have the chin and throat white; the whole head, neck and breast fulvous, each feather broadly edged at the sides, but not at the tip, with dark brown ; the back, scapulars and terti- aries dark brown, a few of the feathers with yellowish centres ; remainder of the plumage white ; the feathers of the occiput lengthened but not forming a conspicuous crest. Iris bright yellow ; orbital skin and gape greenish yellow ; the margins of the upper mandible to within an inch of the tip, the central portion and tip of the lower yellow ; remainder of the bill black ; legs and feet greenish, with some yellow about the joints; claws horn-colour. In the young bird the whole bill is reddish flesh-colour, and the legs and feet are bright green. Length 19 inches, tail 3, wing 8*5, tarsus 2*3, bill from gape 3'1. The female is of about the same size. The Pond-Heron is one of the commonest of the family, being found in every part of the Province except on the higher hills, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay observed it in Karennee. It is found over the whole peninsula of India with Ceylon and in the Indo-Burmese countries. It is not recorded from China, but Dr. Tiraud states that it is common in Cochin China. In the Malay peninsula its distribution is unknown ; but inasmuch as Mr. Davison states that it is common down to the extreme south of Tenasserim, it is not likely to stop short there, but also to be found in a considerable portion of the peninsula. This small Heron is remarkable for its tameness and indifference to man. As long as it rests on the ground the colour of its plumage causes it to escape notice ; but when it starts up, its white wings render it a conspicuous object. It breeds from May to August, making its nest in trees quite close to houses, and laying four to six blue eggs. THE CHINESE POND-HERON. 253 618. ARDEOLA PRASINOSCELES. THE CHINESE POND-HERON. Ardeola prasinosceles, Swinh. Ibis, 1860, p. 64 ; id. P. Z. 8. 187], p. 413 ; Hume, S. F. ii. p. 483 ; BL B. Burm. p. 160 ; David ei Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 443 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 481 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 689 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114. Ardea leucoptera, apud Hume, S. F. viii. p. 161. Description. — Male and female in summer plumage. Chin and throat pure white ; the whole head, a long pointed occipital crest and the whole neck rich vinous chestnut ; breast-feathers very long and soft, deep chestnut tinged with purple; remainder of lower plumage white; back and scapulars with very long disintegrated feathers black tinged with purple ; the whole of the wings, tail, rump and upper tail-coverts white ; the wing- coverts slightly tinged with buff, and the primaries mottled with brown at their tips. In nonbreeding-plumage both sexes resemble A. grayi very closely ; the back, scapulars and tertiaries are, however, a richer brown with a tinge of chocolate or rufous, whereas in A. grayi these parts are a plain brown tinged with ashy. Length about 18 inches, tail 3*1, wing 8'6, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape 3*4, crest 4. 1 have drawn up the above description from a series of Mr. Swinhoe's birds in Mr. Seebohnr's collection. The only point of difference that I can find in the rionbreeding-plumage between this and the preceding species is that pointed out above. In a male bird shot by Mr. Davison in April the irides were bright yellow ; one third of the bill from tip black, then yellow, gradually shading to pale blue at the base of upper mandible; facial skin, gape and base of lower mandible greenish yellow ; feet pale orange ; legs and nude portions of tibia similar, but with a pinkish tinge; claws pale brownish green. An allied species from Java and Borneo is A. speciosa ; in breeding- plumage it has the head, back and sides of the neck pale ferruginous buff, the crest white, and the breast chestnut. The Chinese Pond- Heron was obtained by Mr. Davison in the southern portion of Tenasserim, where it appears to be rare. It is met with in Southern China and in Cochin China ; and Mr. Davison observed it at Tonka in the Malay peninsula. Dr. Anderson also procured it at Bhamo in Independent Burmah. Plate 911 of the PI. Enlum. represents an Ardeola in winter plumage; and it will always, I imagine, remain a matter of doubt to which of the 254 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. two species, the present or the preceding, it refers. It may even represent the winter plumage of A. speciosa, for not much importance can be attached to the locality f< Malacca." On the whole, I think it better to adhere to Mr. Swinhoe's clearly denned name and to reject Boddaert's. Genus BUTORIDES, Bl 619. BUTOEIDES JAVANICA. THE LITTLE GREEN BITTERN. Ardea javanica, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 190. Butorides javanica, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 752 ; Wold. Trans. Zool. Soc. viii. p. 100 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 620 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 351 j Hume, 8. F. ii. p. 310, iii. p. 191 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 160; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 483; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 442 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1153 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 689 ; Cripps, 8. F. vii. p. 308 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 114 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 197 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243 ; Kelliam, Ibis, 1882, p. 195. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape and long occipital crest glossy greenish black ; the upper part of the ear-coverts and a line from the eye below the ear-coverts black ; the remainder of the ear- coverts, the cheeks, chin and throat greyish or yellowish white ; remainder of the head, the whole neck and the whole under plumage dark ashy, the centre of the fore neck and breast fulvous-white; back and scapulars purplish green, the feathers lengthened and pointed ; rump brown, slightly ruf escent ; upper tail-coverts greenish brown ; tail dark ashy brown ; wing-coverts dark glossy green, narrowly margined with whitish ; quills slaty brown, more or less tinged with green on the outer webs and becoming entirely green on the tertiaries ; the secondaries narrowly tipped with whitish. Iris yellow ; facial skin green ; upper mandible black, with a longitu- dinal yellow streak on the margins below the nostrils ; gape greenish brown; lower mandible greenish yellow, more or less black along the edges ; legs and toes green, the front of the tarsus and toes dusky ; soles orange ; claws horn-colour. Length 18 inches, tail 2*6, wing 7'8, tarsus 2, bill from gape 3*1. The female is of the same size. The Little Green Bittern is found over the whole of Burmah on the banks of rivers and swamps where there is brushwood. It occurs over the greater part of India, Ceylon and the Andaman Islands, in the Indo-Burmese countries, China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula and islands as far as Australia, and ranging to some of the THE BLUE BITTERN. 255 further islands in the Pacific Ocean. In China and Japan a similar but larger species occurs, which has been named B. macrorhyncha. Specimens from India are much duller in coloration as a rule than B.javanica from Burmah and Java. This Bittern is very abundant in all the wooded streams of Burmah, concealing itself during the day in bushes and coming out to feed at dusk. I have never found its eggs ; but it probably breeds in July, making its nest in low bushes and reeds. Its eggs are greenish white. Genus ARDEIRALLA, Verr. 620, ARDEIRALLA FLAVICOLLIS. THE BLUE BITTERN. Ardea flavicollis, Lath. Ind. Orn. ii. p. 701 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 621. Ardetta flavicollis, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 753; Bl B. Burm. p. 160; Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 191 ; Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 236 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 446 ; Hume 8f Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 483 ; Cripps, 8. F. vii. p. 308 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 114; Bingham, 8. F. ix. p. 198; Gates, 8. F. x. p. 243. Ardeiralla flavicollis, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 353; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1159. Description. — Male and female. General colour of the plumage ashy blue ; the feathers of the scapulars and breast lengthened, those of the head and neck soft and very ample ; chin and throat white, the feathers tipped with chestnut ; a broad yellowish band down each side of the neck more or less concealed or diminished in extent by the overlapping of the feathers of the fore neck, each of which is whitish on outer web, chestnut on the inner and broadly tipped with black; feathers of the breast ashy blue like the general plumage, but with each feather edged white on the outer web. The young bird, while possessing the general features of the adult plumage, is chiefly brown, the feathers edged with rufous. Bill dusky reddish brown, lighter below ; facial skin purplish brown ; eyelids bluish ; iris golden brown or pale red ; legs dark brown ; claws dark horn-colour. Length 24 inches, tail 2'8, wing 8'2, tarsus 2*9, bill from gape 4. The female is of the same size. The Blue Bittern is common over the whole of Pegu, both in the plains and in the hills, and probably it will also be found to be abundant in Arrakan. Mr. Davison states that it is rare in Tenasserim ; but he procured it at several widely separated localities, and it will therefore be probably found scattered over the whole Division. It occurs over the greater part of the Indian peninsula and Ceylon, the 256 BIRDS OF BRITISH BIJRMAH. Indo-Burmese countries, China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula and the islands nearly up to Australia, where it appears to he replaced by a closely allied race, A. australis, Cuv. This Bittern is mostly found in plains of grass, paddy-fields and swamps ; but I met with it in the streams of the Pegu hills, where it was tolerably abundant. It is chiefly nocturnal in its habits. I have frequently found its nest in July — a shallow structure of sticks placed in bamboo bushes or on cane-brakes, and containing three or four pale green eggs. Genus ARDETTA, G. E. Gray. 621. ARDETTA CINNAMOMEA, THE CHESTNUT BITTERN. Ardea cinnamomea, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 643. Ardetta cinnamomea, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p, 755; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 622 ; id. 8. F. ii. p. 311 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 354; Bl. B. Burm. p. 160; Oates, S. F. v. p. 168 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 447 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 483 ; Cripps, 8. F. vii. p. 308 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 114 ; Bingham, 8. F. viii. p. 197, ix. p. 198 ; Oates, 8. F. x. p. 243; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 195. Ardeiralla cinnamomea, Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1162. Description. — Male. The whole upper plumage, wings and tail deep chestnut ; chin and throat white tinged with fulvous ; sides of the face chestnut ; the whole lower plumage pale chestnut, darker on the flanks and the outside of the thighs • under tail-coverts whitish ; a broken central streak down the front of the neck brown, formed by each feather having a patch on the inner web; an irregular brownish-black breast-band con- tinued as a complete collar round the shoulders, formed by each feather having a central patch of that colour ; the forehead tinged with purple. The female has the forehead, crown and nape purplish brown ; sides of the head pale reddish brown ; chin and throat whitish ; fore neck pale buff, a blackish line tinged with rufous running down its whole length from the throat to the breast ; sides of the neck buff, each feather broadly edged with yellowish; breast and sides of the body buff, each feather centred with dark brown ; abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts white tinged with buff; under wing- coverts buff streaked with brown ; quills chestnut ; primary-coverts chestnut with dusky centres ; upper wing- coverts, tertiaries and scapulars dull chestnut barred with light buff; tail dull chestnut ; back and rump brown with a rufous tinge. Eyelids and facial skin reddish purple ; bill nearly all yellow, the culm en alone being dark brown ; legs and toes yellowish green ; claws brown ; iris yellow to pale red. The female has the facial skin, the margins of the THE LITTLE YELLOW BITTERN. 257 upper mandible and nearly the whole lower mandible yellow ; remainder of bill black ; iris yellow ; legs and toes green ; the back of the tarsus and the soles of the toes yellow ; claws yellowish brown. Length 23 inches, tail 2, wing 6'2, tarsus 2, bill from gape 2'8. The female is rather smaller. The Chestnut Bittern is found distributed over the whole of Burmah, but somewhat capriciously. It is abundant in the plains of Southern Pegu, but rare or altogether absent in the northern portions ; Captain Wardlaw Ramsay observed it at Tonghoo, however, and also at Rangoon. Mr. Davison observed it in Tenasserim from Amherst down to Bankasoon. Mr. Blyth states that it is common in Burmah, and consequently he is likely to have received it from Arrakan. It occurs over the greater part of India and Ceylon, in the Andaman Islands, the Indo-Burmese countries, China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula and islands to Java and the Philippines. A. eurythma is an allied species of great beauty which occurs in China and North Asia. This Bittern is met with in plains of grass and in paddy-fields ; it is nocturnal in its habits, very shy and seldom seen. I have frequently found its nest in July and August — a small structure of grass placed on the ground at the edges of swamps or on the small embankments between paddy-fields where the vegetation is rank. The eggs, generally six in number, are dull white. 622. ARDETTA SINENSIS. THE LITTLE YELLOW BITTERN. Ardea sinensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 642. Ardetta sinensis, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 755 ; Wold. Tram. Zool. Soc. viii. p. 99 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 623 ; id. S. F. i. p. 308, ii. p. 311, iii. p. 193 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 354 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 160 j David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 448 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1156; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 484 j Oate.s, S. F. vii. p. 52 j Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 308 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 243 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 196. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown and nape, primaries, secondaries and tail dark slaty brown or nearly black ; sides of the head and neck cinnamon-rufous, the hind neck of a deeper tint; chin nearly white; throat and whole lower plumage pale fulvous, deeper on the fore neck, the lower breast with a broad partially concealed brown or blackish band ; under wing-coverts white; back and scapulars rufous earthy brown; wing-coverts and tertiaries sandy fulvous ; rump ashy. The female has the sides of the head and neck less bright and more of VOL. ii. s 258 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. the colour of the fore neck, and the whole lower plumage is a yellower fulvous. The young have the whole upper plumage yellowish broadly streaked with brown, and the lower plumage white streaked with pale cinnamon. Iris yellow ; eyelids and facial skin green ; upper mandible dark brown on the culmen and pinkish brown on the margins ; lower mandible pinkish brown, turning to green towards the tip ; the toes and tibio-tarsal joint pale yellow ; tarsus dull flesh-colour ; claws horn-colour. Length 15 inches, tail 2, wing 5*5, tarsus 1*8, bill from gape 2'6. The female is of the same size. The Little Yellow Bittern is spread over the whole of Burmah, and is tolerably abundant in suitable localities. It is met with over the greater part of India and Ceylon, the Indo-Bur- mese countries, China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Java, Borneo, Celebes and the Philippine Islands. This very small Bittern occurs in paddy-fields and other thick cover where the ground is swampy ; it is very shy and seldom observed. I found its nest in August on the bank of the Pegu river, a pad of grass placed on a tangled mass of elephant-grass, and containing four pale green eggs. Genus BOTAURUS, Steph. 623. BOTAUKUS STELLARIS. THE COMMON EUROPEAN BITTERN. Ardea stellaris, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 239 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 757 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 624 j id. S. F. i. p. 256 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 281, pi. ; Butler, S. F. iv. p. 24; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 446; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 j Gates, S. F. x. p. 244. Description. — Male and female. General colour of the plumage ochra- ceous yellow ; the forehead, crown and a moustachial streak blackish brown ; the front of the neck with several longitudinal brown bands ; the sides and back of the neck and the feathers above the breast, the whole of which are very soft, broad and long, finely barred with black ; the whole upper plumage, tertiaries, scapulars, wing-coverts and tail beautifully marked with blackish; quills brown, irregularly banded with rufous; lower plumage boldly streaked with black. Iris yellow ; eyelids greenish ; lower mandible and margins of the upper pale green ; remainder of the upper mandible and the facial skin smoky brown ; legs green with a tinge of yellow ; claws horn-colour. THE NIGHT-HERON. 259 Length 28 inches, tail 4'5, wing 12' 5, tarsus 3'8, bill from gape 3'8. The female is rather smaller. The Common European Bittern is apparently a rare bird in Burmah. Captain Jenkins shot two at Zeinganein, near Pegu, on the 2nd of Decem- ber, and sent them to me the same day. I have heard of no other instance of its occurrence in Burmah. Captain Jenkins shot these two birds in thick paddy growing on the edge of an extensive swamp, and he observed others at the same time. It is met with over the greater part of Europe, Africa and Asia, China and Burmah being about its eastern limit in the latter continent. This Bittern is a nocturnal bird, lying hidden in dense vegetation during the day; its note is a loud croak, but during the breeding-season it utters a very peculiar booming sound. In Europe its nest is placed on the ground in reed-beds ; and it lays three or four eggs, of a brownish- olive colour. Genus NYCTIARDEA, Swains. 624. NYCTIARDEA NYCTICORAX. THE NIGHT-HERON. Ardea nycticorax, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 235. Ardea grisea, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 239. Nycticorax griseus, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 758 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 356; Hume, S. F. iv. p. 415; Bl. B. Burm. p. 161; Oates, S. F. v. p. 168; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1165; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 690; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 484 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 269, pi. ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Scully t S. F. viii. p. 361 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 244. Nyctiardea nycticorax, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 624 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 192 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 350; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 444. Description. — Adult. Crown, nape, a narrow line down the back of the neck, the back and scapulars black glossed with metallic green ; feathers of the nape lengthened ; a few very long narrow feathers springing from the nape white ; forehead, a streak over the eye, sides of the face, chin and throat white ; lower plumage white tinged with grey or pale vinous ; rump, upper tail-coverts, tail, the whole of the wings and the sides of the neck deep grey with a vinous tinge. The young have no crest ; the upper plumage is ashy brown, the quills and the wing-coverts with large whitish spots at the tips ; the other parts more or less centrally streaked with ruf escent white ; the sides of the head and neck and the whole lower plumage pale fulvous, boldly streaked with ashy brown. s2 260 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Iris bright crimson ; eyelids and facial skin dull livid ; bill black ; legs and toes pale rufous ; claws black. In the nonbreeding-season the base of the bill appears to be greenish, and in some birds the legs are described as being yellowish. Length 23 inches, tail 3'6, wing 11 '5, tarsus 3, bill from gape 4. The sexes appear to be of the same size. The Night-Heron is extremely abundant over the whole of the plains of British Burmah. It is found over the greater part of Europe, Africa, North America and Asia, extending in the latter continent down to the Malay islands. This species is met with in immense flocks, resting during the day in trees and bamboos near streams, and very frequently in the fine tall hedges surrounding Burmese monasteries. Towards dusk they fly to their feeding- grounds, uttering those loud quacking notes which must be familiar to every one residing in the country. In India, and probably in Burmah also at times, they construct their nests in trees ; but at Myitkyo I found them breeding in reed-swamps, with Cormorants and other water-birds, in July and August. The eggs are pale green in colour. Genus GORSACHIUS, Pucker. 625. GORSACHIUS MELANOLOPHUS. THE MALAYAN TIGER BITTERN. Ardea melanolopha, Raffi. Trans, Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 326. Nycticorax liznno- philax, Temm. PL Col. 581. Nycticorax goisagi, Temm. PL Col. 582. Ardea goisagi, Temm. et ScUeg. Faun. Jap., Aves, p. 116, pi. 70. Botaurus limnophilax, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 355. Goisakius melanolophus, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 312 ; Bourdillon, S. F. vii. p. 524 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 196. Gorsachius melanolophus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 355; Bl.B.Burm.p. 160; Wold. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 238 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 444 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1169 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 484. Description. — Adult male. Forehead, crown and a long occipital crest purplish black ; sides of the head and the whole of the back of the neck chestnut ; back, rump, wing-coverts, scapulars and tertiaries dull chestnut, closely barred with narrow wavy black lines ; winglet black, broadly tipped with white ; the first two or three primary-coverts black tipped with white, the others chestnut tipped with white ; primaries slaty black tipped with white and with a subterminal patch of chestnut, the white decreasing and the chestnut increasing from the first primary to the others ; secondaries broadly rufous near the tips and narrowly tipped with white ; upper tail- THE MALAYAN TIGER BITTERN. 261 coverts and tail slaty brown ; chin and throat whitish ; front and sides of the neck and the breast dull rufous-grey, the centre of the throat and the middle line of the neck and breast streaked with black, light buff and chestnut; remainder of the lower plumage dull chestnut, marked in various ways with black lines and bars and with white patches; under tail-coverts nearly pure white. Another bird, probably an adult female, is in the same plumage as the male above described, except that the whole head is chestnut and there is no crest of lengthened and pointed feathers. Another bird with a long pointed crest has the forehead, crown, and crest black, each feather with one and sometimes two triangular white patches ; the whole upper plumage dark brown stippled and mottled with white, the feathers of the back with rather large white spots, one on each feather ; sides of the head, sides of the occiput and sides of the neck dark brown boldly marked with white ; quills and tail much the same as in the adult male above described ; lower plumage an indescribable mixture of rufescent white, pale chestnut and dark brown. The plumage of this bird is not well understood, and I have described above three beautiful specimens in the British Museum which I take to be respectively, in the order they are described, the adult male, the adult female and the young. Mr. Hume (/. c.) has elucidated the question in some measure ; but he procured too few specimens in the Nicobar Islands to enable him to describe fully the various stages of plumage. Female. Legs and feet dull green ; claws horny ; irides greenish yellow ; the upper mandible horny brown edged with dull green ; the lower man- dible greenish horny. (Hume.} Male. Bare skin in front of the eye and about the base of the bill green ; legs and feet greenish olive ; claws pale plumbeous. (Bourdillon.) Length 19 inches, tail 3'5, wing 10'3, tarsus 2'5, bill from gape 2'3. The female appears to be smaller. The Malayan Tiger Bittern is stated by Mr. Blyth to have occurred in the island of Ramree off the coast of Arrakan. Mr. Davison observed it in the extreme south of Tenasserim, but did not secure a specimen. It has been met with in Ceylon, in Southern India and in the Nicobar Islands, at Malacca and in Sumatra, and it occurs from Japan down the coast of China and Cochin China to the Philippine Islands, and thence to the Pelew Islands in the Pacific Ocean. This Tiger Bittern appears to frequent forest-streams and to be noc- turnal in its habits. Little, however, is known about it. 262 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Family CICONIID^. Genus LEPTOPTILUS, Less. 626. LEPTOPTILUS ARGALA. THE ADJUTANT. Ardea dubia, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 624 (part.). Ardea argala, Lath. Ind. Orn. ii. p. 676. Leptoptilos argala, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 730 ; Bl fy Wold. B. Burm. p. 158 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 470 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 468 j Bingham, 8. F. vii. p. 25 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Bingham, 8. F. ix. p. 197 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 242. Leptoptilus dubius, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 357 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 605 ; Oates, 8. F. iii. p. 346. Leptoptilus giganteus (Forst.}, Oates, 8. F. vii. p. 50. Description. — Male and female in breeding -plumage. Head, neck and pouch nearly naked, there being only a few scattered hairs or soft feathers here and there ; breast, abdomen, sides of the body, vent and the under wing- coverts immediately next the body white ; remainder of the under wing- coverts dark grey ; under tail-coverts soft, long and decomposed, white tipped with black ; the whole upper plumage, wings and tail black ; the greater wing-coverts and the tertiaries greyish white, the basal portions white and the outer webs narrowly edged with the same. In nonbreeding -plumage the tertiaries and greater wing-coverts become dark, like the other portions of the wing. Bill pinkish flesh-colour ; skin of the head and chin pale reddish brown ; skin of the forehead and at the base of the bill rough and blackish, pre- senting the appearance of having been scorched; neck saffron-yellow, turning to pink at the end of the pouch, the whole of which is spotted with black; loose skin at the base of the back o£ the neck brick-red; iris yellowish white ; eyelids plumbeous, the edges pink ; legs and toes brown, the edges of the reticulations white ; claws black. Male : length 60*5 inches, tail 12' 5, wing 32, tarsus 13, bill from gape 14. Female : length 52, tail 11, wing 28'5, tarsus 11, bill from gape 11. The pouch, when lowered, is frequently a foot or more in length. The Adjutant or Gigantic Stork is more or less distributed over the whole Province ; but it is most abundant in the large plains of Southern Pegu, where they arrive in immense numbers in October and leave again in February or March. It is met with over the greater part of India and the Indo-Burmese THE LESSER ADJUTANT. 263 countries, the Malay peninsula, Siam, Qochin China, Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This immense Stork is very abundant during the cold weather, visiting the plains of Pegu in large flocks, and a few apparently remaining all the year through. It is found in paddy-fields, grass-plains and swamps — any- where, in fact, where its food (frogs, reptiles and fish) is abundant. It is met with in the streets of the large Indian towns, being there semi- domesticated. I found it breeding in the forests west of Shwaygheen and north of Paghein in November, constructing a large nest of sticks in very lofty wood-oil trees and laying three whitish eggs. It breeds in company with Pelicans, and the eggs of both are very similar in size and colour ; but the interior skin of the Adjutant's eggs is dark green, of the Pelican's white ; and therefore the eggs can be safely separated at a glance. 627, LEPTOPTILUS JAVANICUS. THE LESSER ADJUTANT. Ciconia javanica, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 188. Leptoptilus javanicus, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 732 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 358 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 159 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 189 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 449 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 469; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1113; Bingham, S. F. vii. p. 25; Oates, S.F. vii. p. 51; Sharpe, Ibis, 1879, p. 72; Hume, S.F. viii. p. 114, ix, p. 235; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 483 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 242 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 190. Description. — Male and female. The head and neck covered with a few soft decomposed feathers, which are closer together on the nape and hinder neck ; crown of the head bony, smooth and perfectly bare ; neck-run0 and whole lower plumage white ; the whole upper plumage, wings and tail dark brown, with a slightly greenish gloss in places and the smaller feathers more or less edged paler. The fully-fledged nestling has the head naked to about half an inch behind the eye ; the throat and neck are sparsely covered with light brown down; the nape and hind neck are thickly covered with long dark- brown feathers ; the under tail-coverts are much developed and decomposed ; these, with the whole remaining plumage, are white, except the wings, tail and scapulars, which are blackish with a metallic gloss. Bill dirty yellowish ; bare top of head dirty green ; nude face and neck much tinged with yellow and at seasons with red; irides whitish; legs dusky black. (Jerdon.) Length about 54 inches, tail 10, wing 25, tarsus 9, bill from gape 10'5. The female is probably smaller. 264 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The Lesser Adjutant is distributed over the whole Province, but is com- paratively scarce and met with singly, not in flocks. It is found over a considerable portion of India and Ceylon, the Tndo- Burmese countries, Eastern China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This species appears to be a constant resident in Burmah, but is nowhere very common. It frequents the same localities as the last, but, unlike it, is never met with in the streets of Indian towns. I found its nest in November in the forests west of Shwaygheen ; and neither the nest nor the eggs differed from those of the Adjutant. Both these Storks also breed on the limestone rocks near Moulmein. Genus XENORHYNCHUS, Bonap. 628. XENOEHYNCHUS ASIATICUS. THE BLACK-NECKED STORK. Mycteria asiatica, Lath. Ind. Orn. ii. p. 670. Ardea indica, Lath. 2nd. Orn. ii. p. 701. Mycteria australis, Shaw, Trans. Linn. 8oc. v. p. 34; Jerd. E. Ind. ii. p. 734. Mycteria indica, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 607; id. S.F. iii. p. 189. Xenorhynchus australis, £1. fy Wald. B. JBurm. p. 158 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 469 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 51 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 114 ; Parker, 8. F. ix. p. 484 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1117 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 242. Description. — Male and female. The whole head and neck black, glossed with purple and blue ; nape coppery brown, with a rich purple-and-rufous gloss ; scapulars, tertiaries, greater wing-coverts and tail black, more or less glossed with blue and purple ; remainder of the plumage white ; greater under wing-coverts black. The young bird has the whole head and neck buffy brown, the feathers soft and downy ; feathers round the eye dark brown ; body-plumage white, with a brown collar across the upper breast and a brown patch on the rump ; back and lesser wing-coverts beautifully marked with alternating brown and white lines ; the coverts immediately next the body nearly pure white ; greater coverts tipped with white ; scapulars and wings glossy greenish black; the bases of the quills white; tail blackish. Legs and toes coral-red ; claws dusky pink ; bill black ; gular skin and eyelids dusky purple; iris bluish brown. The young have the legs and toes brown and the culmen at first quite straight, not turned up as in the adult. Length 52 inches, tail 9*5, wing 24,- tarsus 13, bill from gape about 12. The female is of about the same size. THE WHITE-NECKED STORK. 265 The Black-necked Stork is generally distributed over Pegu; and Mr. Blyth states that it is found in Arrakan and Tenasserim ; but in the latter Division Mr. Davison observed it only at Pahpoon. It is found over the whole peninsula of India and Ceylon, and probably in all the Indo-Burmese countries. It ranges down the Malay peninsula, through the islands to Australia, and extends eastwards to Cochin China. This handsome Stork is a resident, and is met with singly or in pairs in swampy plains and marshes. I found its nest in Southern Pegu in December and January, a structure of sticks placed in large trees. The eggs, four in number, are white with a green lining. Genus DISSURA* 629. DISSURA EPISCOPUS. THE WHITE-NECKED STORK. Ardea episcopus, Bodd. Tall. PL EnL p. 54. Ardea leucocephala, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 642. Ciconia leucocephala, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 737. Melano- pelargus episcopus, Hume Sf Renders. Ldh. to Yark. p. 295 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 609 ; Salmd. Ucc. Born. p. 356 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 189 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 469. Ciconia episcopus, Bl. B. Burm. p. 158 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 470. Dissura episcopa, Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 j Rainey, S. F. viii. p. 417 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 359 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1119 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 243. Description. — Male and female. Crown, nape and sides of the nape black ; neck, tail, vent and under tail-coverts white ; remainder of plumage black, beautifully glossed with reddish purple on the lower neck, breast, abdomen, upper back and lesser wing-coverts. Iris crimson ; eyelids and facial skin plumbeous ; bill in general black, tinged with red on the culmen, the tips and the margins ; legs and toes red ; claws reddish horn-colour. Length 36 inches, tail 8, wing 20' 5, tarsus 7, bill from gape 6'8. The female is of the same size. The White-necked Stork is distributed over the whole Province in suitable localities, and is a constant resident. It is met with over the greater part of India and Ceylon, the Indo-Burmese countries, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java; Borneo and Celebes. This beautifully coloured Stork is tolerably abundant in the plains, being * I cannot discover who is the author of this name. It appears to have been first used by Mr. Hume (/. c.). 266 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. found generally in small flocks and sometimes singly. I have never taken its eggs. In India it breeds on trees, laying four pale bluish- white eggs. Dr. Mason includes Ciconia alba in his list of the birds of Burmah ; but I think there must be some error, for I have never heard of any one having seen it in the Province. In case, however, that it should occur, I append a short description of it*. Family TANTALID.E. Subfamily ANASTOMATIN.E. Genus ANASTOMUS, Bonn. 630. ANASTOMUS OSCITANS. THE SHELL-IBIS. Ardea oscitans, Bodd. Tall, PL Enl. p. 55. Anastomus oscitans, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 765 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 630 ; BL B. Burm. p. 158 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 192 ; Bingham, S. F. iv. p. 212 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 310 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1103 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 244. Description. — The nestling is a light grey, a little darker on the head and neck, where the feathers are short and the webs hair-like ; the upper back, winglet, primaries, secondaries, tertials, scapulars and tail are black, shot with green and purple reflections ; the naked skin about the chin and base of the beak and the orbits are greenish black j the bill dark green ; the legs brown, tinged with pinky red (but generally covered by a whitish scurf of dirt and droppings) and the irides brown. As the bird grows older, the grey assumes a lighter colour, the black of the back disappears, and the irides get a darker brown. In May, through an actual change of colour in the feathers themselves, the grey becomes pure white; and this is the breeding-plumage, which lasts till the beginning of September, when the bird moults and again assumes the grey phase of plumage. (Bingham.) * CICONIA ALBA. THE WHITE STORK. Description. — The whole plumage white, except the scapulars, quills and greater wing- coverts. Length about 42 inches, tail 10, wing 24, tarsus 8, bill at front 7 -5. THE PELICAN IBIS. 267 Length 32 inches, tail 6' 5, wing 16' 5, tarsus 5 '7, bill from gape 6. The female is of the same size. The Shell-Ibis is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan, and I procured one specimen at Thayetmyo in the Pegu Division. It is found over the whole peninsula of India and Ceylon. Dr. Tiraud states that it is common in Cochin China, and it probably therefore in- habits the whole of the In do-Burmese countries. The remarkable bill of this Ibis will cause it always to be easily recog- nized, the two mandibles failing to meet in the middle and a large space being left between them. It occurs in flocks, frequenting marshes and paddy-fields, and feeding on shells, which are held in the space between the mandibles and crushed. It breeds in India in the rains, July and August, in large societies, making a nest of sticks in high trees and laying from two to five white eggs. Subfamily TANTALINJE. Genus TANTALUS, Linn. 631. TANTALUS LEUCOCEPHALUS. THE PELICAN IBIS. Tantalus leucocephalus, Penn. in Forst. 2nd. Zool p. 20, pi. 10 ; Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 649 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 761 j Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 626 ; BL B. Burm. p. 158 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 452 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 484 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 309 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114; Neivton, S. F.v\\\. p. 415; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1100 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 244. Description. — Male and female. Head, neck and the whole body white ; the head naked to about an inch behind the eyes ; the feathers of the head and neck short and downy ; the rump and scapulars tinged with roseate ; the under wing-coverts, the lesser upper wing-coverts and a broad band across the upper part of the abdomen black, each feather edged or tipped with white ; primaries and their coverts, secondaries, winglet and tail black glossed with violet ; greater wing-coverts pure white, those nearest the body tinged with red ; tertiaries pink, varying in intensity in different in- dividuals according to age and season. The young birds have the cheeks and ear-coverts grey ; the head and neck brown ; the feathers short, soft and pointed ; lower plumage smoky white, darker across the abdomen and darker still on the sides of the body; back, scapulars, wing-coverts and tertiaries hair-brown ; rump and upper 268 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. tail-coverts nearly pure white ; wings and tail black ; the face is less naked than in the adult, and the extent of the bare skin increases with age. Iris pale yellow; bill and facial skin orange-yellow, plumbeous at the base of the bill; legs, toes and claws brown. In the young the iris is brown ; skin of the chin orange, turning to pinkish on the edge of the throat ; facial skin and basal half of bill orange, terminal half dull yellowish brown ; legs and feet brown. Length 40 inches, tail 6*5, wing 20, tarsus 9, bill from gape 10. The female is slightly smaller. The Pelican Ibis is very abundant in the plains of Southern Pegu, where it is a constant resident, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Tonghoo. Mr. Blyth gives it from Arrakan. In Tenasserim Mr. Davison observed it at Tavoy, Mr. Davis at Thatone, and Mr. Hough in the extreme south on the Pakchan river. It is met with over the whole of India and Ceylon, the Indo-Burmese countries, Southern China and Cochin China. South of Tenasserim it is replaced by T. lacteus. This large Ibis is found in large flocks frequenting marshes and inun- dated paddy-fields. It feeds like a Stork, watching for and pouncing on frogs, small fish and young snakes. It probably breeds on the southern coast of Pegu, for the Burmese near Kyeikpadein know the bird well, and informed me that it nested on tall trees in the plains south of Syriam. In India it breeds in October, making a nest of sticks in trees and laying two to four white eggs. Subfamily IBIDIN.E. Genus IBIS, Lacep. 632. IBIS MELANOCEPHALA. THE WHITE IBIS. Tantalus melanocephalus, Lath. 2nd. Orn. ii. p. 709. Threskiornis xnelano- cephalus, Jerd. B. Ind, ii. p. 768 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 032 ; Oates, S. F. iii. p. 347. Ibis melanocephalus, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 359 j Bl. B. Burm. p. 158 ; Elliot, P. Z. S. 1877, p. 488 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 452 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 484 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 114 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1106 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 244. Description. — Male and female in breeding -plumage. — Head and neck naked and black ; the whole plumage white ; the tips of the earlier pri- maries mottled with brown ; the shafts of the primaries black ; the scapulars DAVISON'S BLACK IBIS. 269 and tertiaries lengthened and decomposed, grey ; plumes of the lower neck lengthened. In winter the scapulars and tertiaries are only slightly lengthened and are not decomposed and the neck-plumes are absent. Bill black ; iris brown ; the whole head and neck and the edges of the eyelids dark bluish black ; legs and toes glossy black ; claws dull black. Length 31 inches, tail 5'8, wing 15, tarsus 4, bill from gape 7. The White Ibis occurs plentifully over the plains of Southern Pegu ; it is stated by Mr. Blyth to be found in Arrakan and Tenasserim, and in the latter Division was observed by Mr. Davison, who states that it is not un- common in the plains of the central portion. It is met with over the greater part of India and Ceylon, the Indo- Burmese countries, Southern China, Siam, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This Ibis frequents marshes, paddy-fields and the muddy banks of rivers, going about in large flocks, and searching for its food in the water. It probably breeds in Burmah. In India it constructs a nest of sticks in a tree in June, July or August, and lays two to four pale greenish- white eggs. /. athiopica, the Sacred Ibis of Egypt, is closely allied, differing chiefly in having the tips of the primaries greenish black and the tertiaries blacker and more lengthened. Genus GKAPTOCEPHALUS, Elliot. 633. GRAPTOCEPHALUS DAVISONI. DAVISON'S BLACK IBIS. Geronticus davisoni, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 300. Geronticus papillosus, apua Oates, S. F. iii. p. 347. Inocotis papillosus, apud Oates, S. F. v. p. 169. Graptocephalus davisoni, Elliot, P. Z. S. 1877, p. 490 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 485 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Oates, S. F. ix. p. 300, x. p. 244. Ibis harmondi, Oust. BuU. Soc. Philom. 1877, p. 28. Description. — Male and female. The head and a portion of the neck naked, the front of the head covered with small warts ; the remainder of the neck, the whole lower plumage, the back, scapulars and tertiaries dark brown ; rump and upper tail-coverts darker with a greenish lustre, which is also more or less present on the scapulars and under tail-coverts ; quills and tail glossy bluish black ; the lesser wing-coverts next the body white, forming a conspicuous spot on the wing. 270 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Naked skin of the head and neck blackish brown ; a pure white band encircles the neck at its junction with the head, tinged with blue on the nape; bill bluish ; iris orange-red; legs pale coral -red ; claws brown. Length 30 inches, tail 7*7, wing 15% tarsus 3'2, bill from gape 6'2. The female is rather smaller. This species is very closely allied to the Indian Inocotis papillosus, and differs chiefly in being larger and in having a white collar round the upper neck. The Indian bird, in addition, has warts on the back of the head, which G. davisoni never has. Davison's Black Ibis is not uncommon in the plains of Southern Pegu between the Pegu and the Sittang rivers, and it appears to be a constant resident. Mr. Davison observed it in the southernmost portions of Tenasserim. In occurs in Siam and Cochin China, and Mr. Hume records it from Tonka in the Malay peninsula. /. papiUosus is said to occur in Borneo ; but as the differences between this bird and G. davisoni have only recently been recognized, it is not improbable that the Bornean bird may on re- examination prove to be the present species. After death the conspicuous white neck-collar turns blackish, and all traces of it eventually disappear in rather old skins, so that this feature is not of much service in discrimina- ting the two species. Mr. Blyth records /. papiUosus from Arrakan; but until Arrakanese birds have been carefully examined again and been ascertained to belong to that species, I do not think it advisable to include it in this work. I may note that a black Ibis is not uncommon in the plains near Henzadah, west of the Irrawaddy river ; but I have not been able to examine a specimen from that locality. Davison's Black Ibis usually occurs singly or in pairs, and I do not remember ever to have seen a flock of them. It feeds on the banks of muddy streams and in marshes, and is of a very shy nature. In the hot weather I have seen it on recently burnt-up plains, where, no doubt, insects and small reptiles, deprived of cover, readily fall a prey to this bird, as they do to Kites and many others. I found the nest of this Ibis at Wau, on the banks of the canal, in February ; it was a structure of sticks placed low down in a large tree growing in a wilderness of reeds, and contained two pale blue eggs. The cry of this bird at the breeding-season is very loud and peculiar, and may be heard fully two miles off. Ibis gigantea, a very large species of Ibis from Cochin China, is not unlikely to be found in Burmah. It is blackish brown with green re- flections, and it has the bill yellow and the legs red. THE GLOSSY IBIS. 271 Genus PLEGADIS, Kaup. 634. PLEGADIS FALCINELLUS. THE GLOSSY IBIS. Tantalus falcinellus, Linn, tiyst. Nat. i. p. 241. Scolopax rufa, Scop. Ann. i. p. 93. Numenius igneus, S. G. Gm. Nov. Comm. Petrop. xv. p. 460, t. 18. Falcinellus igneus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 770 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 636 ; id. S. F. i. p. 257 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 360 ; Bl. B. Burin, p. 158 ; Elliot, P. Z. S. 1877, p. 603 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114 ; Doirj, S. F. viii. p. 377 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 245. Ibis falcinellus, flume, 8. F. iii. p. 192 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 455. Falcinellus rufus, Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 684. Plegadis falcinellus, Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 335, pi. ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1109. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, sides of the face, chin and throat brown glossed with green ; the whole lower plumage, the whole neck, back and lesser wing-coverts chestnut ; remainder of the plumage black, glossed with bronze, purple and green. Iris brown, in some mottled with grey; bill dark livid brown; facial skin livid, extending round the eye from the centre of the forehead and thence to the sides of the lower mandible ; legs and feet bronzed brown, bluish above the knee. (Legge.) Length 25 inches, tail 4*5, wing 11*5, tarsus 4, bill from gape 5*5. The female is of about the same size. The Glossy Ibis is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan. Capt. Feilden observed it at Thayetmyo, in Pegu ; and I also once saw a flock of these birds at the same place. It inhabits Europe, Africa, America and all the temperate and tropical parts of Asia down to Australia. This Ibis is found in large flocks, frequenting tanks, marshes and paddy- fields. It breeds on trees, constructing a nest of sticks and laying three green eggs. 272 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Order X. ANSEEES. Family ANATID^E. Subfamily ANSEKIN.E. Genus NETTAPUS, Brandt. 635. NETTAPUS COEOMANDELIANUS. THE COTTON TEAL GOOSE. Anas coromandeliana, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 522. Nettapus coromandelianus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 786 j Anders. Ibis, 1874, p. 222 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 165 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 501 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 486 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 52 ; Cripps, 8. F. vii. p. 311 ; Hume, 8. F. vii. p. 491 ; id. 8. F. viii. p. 114 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1066 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 198 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 101, pi. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 245 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 198. Net- tapus coromandelicus (L.), Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 638. Nettapus coroxnandus (£.), Hume, S. F. iii. p. 192. Description. — Male in summer. Forehead,, crown and nape hair-brown, the former darkest ; remainder of the head, the whole neck and lower plumage pure white ; a broad collar round the neck black in front, glossy green behind; the white of the breast produced round the neck and forming another collar below the black one; under tail-coverts dark brown mottled with white ; back, scapulars, rump, tertiaries and wing-coverts deep glossy green or purple; secondaries glossy green, broadly tipped with white ; primaries dark brown on the basal halves, then white with the tips black ; upper tail-coverts white, freckled with brown ; tail brown ; sides of body vermiculated with brown ; under wing-coverts greenish black. Female at all seasons. Forehead and a supercilium dirty white; crown and nape dark brown; lores and a line through the eyes blackish; re- mainder of the head, the whole neck and the upper breast dull white mottled with brown, the marks on the breast and hind neck becoming well-defined wavy lines ; the lower plumage dull white, streaked and in- distinctly barred with brown; the whole upper plumage, wings and tail brown, the secondaries tipped with white and the inner primaries also more narrowly tipped with white ; upper tail-coverts white, freckled with brown ; under wing-coverts brown, each feather margined with white. The male in winter is very similar to the female, but always retains the conspicuous white patch on the primaries. The young are similar to the female till the first spring. In the male the bill in summer is black ; the iris bright red ; legs, toes THE LESSER WHISTLING TEAL. 273 and webs black, the sides of the tarsus and toes dusky yellow ; claws horny brown. In the winter the upper mandible is brownish and the lower yellowish. In the female the bill is brown above, yellowish below ; the iris is brown, and the legs and toes greenish yellow. Length 13 inches, tail 3, wing 6*5, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1*1. The female is a trifle smaller. The Cotton Teal Goose is very common and generally distributed over the Province, except, perhaps, in Tenasserim, where Mr. Davison did not meet with it south of Tavoy. It occurs over a considerable portion of India and Ceylon, Southern China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, and is even said to occur in Java and the Philippine Islands . It is pretty certain also to be found in the Indo-Burmese countries. This little Goose is the best-known of all the Burmese game birds, being found, whether singly or in flocks, in all swamps, marshes, inundated paddy-fields, ponds and even roadside ditches. It is very tame, except when associating with Ducks, at which times it partakes of their shy nature. It dives well ; and wounded birds generally manage to escape by going under and rising again in dense herbage. Its note is very peculiar, and uttered only when flying. It breeds in the holes of trees ; and I found a nest with ten eggs in September, near Kyeikpadein, in a mango tree, about thirty feet from the ground . Subfamily ANATIN^E. Genus DENDROCYGNA, Swains. 636. DENDROCYGNA JAVANICA. THE LESSER WHISTLING TEAL. Anas javanica, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 199. Mareca awsuree, Sykes, P. Z. & 1832, p. 168. Dendrocygna awsuree, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 789. Den- drocygna arcuata (Cm?.), apud Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 639; Salvad. Ucc. Born, p. 362 ; Anders. Ibis, 1874, p. 222 ; Bl. B. Burin, p. 165 ; Wardlatc Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 472; Oates, S. F. v. p. 169. Dendrocygna javanica, Hume $ Dew. tf. F. vi. p. 4*<>; (Jripps, S.F. vii. p. 311 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 114; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1019 ; Hume # Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 109, pi. ; Bingham, 6'. F. ix. p. 198 ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 486; Oates, S. F. x. p. 245 j Kelham, Ibis , 1882, p. 197. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape fulvous- brown; sides of the head, chin, throat and neck pale yellowish brown., VOL. II. T 274 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. darker on the hind neck ; back and scapulars dark brown, each feather broadly edged with fulvous ; rump and the shorter upper tail-coverts black; the longer upper tail-coverts chestnut; tail brown; lesser and median wing-coverts chestnut ; greater coverts and quills ashy black ; breast yellowish, shading gradually into the light chestnut of the lower plumage ; under tail-coverts light fulvous. Bill, legs and feet brownish blue, the nail of the bill nearly black ; iris brown ; eyelids bright yellow ; claws bluish horn-colour. Length 16 inches, tail 2'3, wing 7*5, tarsus 1*7, bill from gape 1*9. The female is of the same size. The Lesser Whistling Teal is found abundantly over the whole Province, except perhaps in the Thayetmyo and Prome districts, where I procured only the next species. It is met with throughout nearly the whole of the Indian peninsula and Ceylon, the Indo-Burmese countries, Siam, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java and Borneo. This very common Teal occurs on all large pieces of water covered with weeds, in marshes and inundated paddy-fields, and is a constant resident. Usually it associates in large flocks ; but in the breeding-season it is more frequently seen in pairs. It habitually perches on trees when not engaged in swimming, and is not often observed walking on the ground. It swims and dives well, and feeds almost entirely on vegetable food. I have fre- quently found its nest in Pegu in July and August — a mass of dead leaves and grass placed on a low thick cane-brake in paddy-land, and containing six very smooth white eggs. The site for the nest varies much, however ; and it is often placed in tall trees, either on a branch or in a hole in the trunk. At times the nest is on the ground. Those nests I myself found were invariably situated, as above described, on cane-brakes. 637. DENDROCYGNA FULVA. THE LARGER WHISTLING TEAL. Anas fulva, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 530. Dendrocygna major, Jerd. Madr. Journ. 1840, p. 218 ; id. III. 2nd. Orn. pi. xxiii. ; id. B. 2nd. ii. p. 790 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 193. Dendrocygna fulva, Sclat. $ Salv. P. Z. S. 1876, p. 372 ; Hume 8? Dav. S. F. vi. p. 488 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 403 ; id. S. F. viii. p. 115 ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 487 ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 119, pi. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 245. Description — Male and female. Forehead, crown and nape chestnut; re- mainder of the head and upper neck paler chestnut ; a streak the whole way down the hind neck black ; fore neck and sides of the lower part of THE COMB DUCK. 275 the neck with the feathers spare and pointed ; back and scapulars rich browii, each feather very broadly edged with chestnut ; rump and upper tail-coverts black; the central portion of the wing-coverts more or less maroon ; remainder of the coverts, the quills and tail black ; the whole lower plumage chestnut ; the breast paler ; under tail-coverts yellowish white ; sides of the body and under wing-coverts with broad yellowish- white streaks. The bill and other parts are coloured very similarly to the same parts of D. javanica . Length 20 inches, tail 3, wing 9, tarsus 2*5, bill from gape 2*4. The female is of much the same size. The Larger Whistling Teal is comparatively a rare bird in Burmah, except in the northern portions of Pegu, where I found it very abundant in the Engmah swamp, twenty-five miles south of Prome. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Tonghoo ; and I observed it several times in the paddy-fields near Kyeikpadein in Southern Pegu during the rains. I can find no record of its occurrence in Tenasserim or Arrakan. It is met with over a considerable portion of India and Ceylon, and it will probably be found in the Indo-Burmese countries. Elsewhere it has a curious distribution ; for it is found in Madagascar and over the greater part of South America. This species, so far as I had an opportunity of observing it, resembles the preceding very closely in habits. D. arcuata, Cuv., is an allied species, which inhabits Java, the Philip- pines and Australia. Genus SARCIDIOKNIS, Eyton. 638. SARCIDIORNIS MELANONOTA. THE COMB DUCK. Anser melanonotus, Pcnn. in Forst. 2nd. Zool. p. 21, pi. 11 ; Newton, S. F. viii. p. 415. Sarcidiornis melanonotus, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 785 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. G-'iG ; id, S. F. iii. p. 192 j Anders. Ibis, 1874, p. 220 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 165 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 472 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 486 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 507, viii. p. 114; Hume 8f Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 91, pi. ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 486 ; Leggc, Birds Ceylon, p. 1063 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 246. Description. — Male. Head and neck white, spotted with metallic black, the spots more frequent on the crown and hind neck, and causing those parts to be almost entirely black ; base of the neck and the whole lower plumage white ; upper back, the whole of the wings, rump and upper taii- T2 276 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. coverts black; the secondaries glossed with bronze, the scapulars with purple, the other parts with green and blue ; lower back grey ; tail umber- brown. The female is very similar to the male in general appearance, but is much smaller; the head and neck are more spotted with black; the metallic gloss on the upper plumage is much reduced in amount, and the whole rump and upper tail-coverts as well as the lower back are grey ; there is no fleshy process on the upper mandible. Iris dark brown; bill and comb black; legs and feet dark plumbeous. Length 30 inches, tail 6, wing 15, tarsus 3, bill from gape 2' 6. The female is much smaller, the wing being about 11 or 11 '5 inches. The fleshy comb on the bill of the male is about 2 inches high in the breeding- season, and very small and inconspicuous at other times. The Comb Duck is very abundant in suitable localities throughout Pegu. I observed it in the Engmah swamp and also in the large marshes near Payagalay, about thirty miles north of the town of Pegu ; and I have met with it in small quantities near Kyeikpadein in paddy-fields. Capt. Ward- law Ramsay noticed it at Tonghoo. Mr. Davison did not meet with it in any part of Tenasserim ; but it will probably be found in that Division ; and the same may be said of Arrakan, for Mr. Blyth remarks that it is common in Burmah, showing, I think, that he had received it from various quarters. It occurs throughout the Indian peninsula and Ceylon, and probably also in the Indo-Burmese countries. This fine Duck is a constant resident in Barman, being found singly, in pairs, or in small flocks of twenty or thirty individuals in all the larger swamps, and at times even in paddy-fields. It is a tree-Duck, often perching on trees and making its nest in the holes of trees or on the larger branches. THE BRAHMINY DUCK. 277 Genus TADORNA, Fleming. 639. TADORNA CASARCA. THE BRAHMINY DUCK. Anas casarca, Linn. Syst. Nat. iii. App. p. 224. Anas rutila, Pall. Nov. Comm. Petrop. xiv. pt. i. p. 579. Casarca rutila, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 791 ; Hume fy Renders. Lali. to Yark. p. 296 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 641 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 193 ; El. B. Burin, p. 105 : Scully, S.F. iv. p. 198 ; David et Oust. Ota. Chine, p. 497 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 489 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 116; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 362 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 123, pi. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 245. Tadorna casarca, Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 461, pi. ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 699 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1070. Description. — Male in summer. The whole head yellowish or ochraceous white, tinged with rufous in places ; the neck, the whole lower plumage, back and scapulars chestnut, deepest on the breast, vent and under tail- coverts ; a black ring round the neck ; smaller and median wing-coverts white ; greater coverts and secondaries glossy green ; tertiaries chestnut on the outer webs, whitish on the inner ; primaries, tail and upper tail- coverts glossy black ; rump fulvous, minutely cross-barred with black. The male in winter has no black collar round the neck. The female never has the black collar at any time ; the front of the head is whitish ; but she does not otherwise differ from the male. Bill black ; iris dark brown ; legs and feet very dark brown ; claws black. Length 26 inches, tail 6, wing 15'3, tarsus 2'5, bill from gape 2'3. The female is considerably smaller. The Brahminy Duck is a visitor to the Province from October to March. It is very abundant in the large rivers of Pegu ; but Mr. Davison did not observe it in Tenasserim. It is probably common in Arrakan, whence Mr. Blyth received it. It occurs, according to season, over a great part of Southern and Central Asia, Northern Africa and Southern Europe. It has not yet been recorded from Siam, Cochin China or the Malay peninsula. This handsome Duck is found almost entirely on large rivers such as the Irrawaddy, the Sittang and the Pegu ; and banks of nice clean sand seem almost necessary to its existence. It spends a good deal of its time on the shore, especially during the heat of the day, and it is very shy and difficult to approach. It breeds at high elevations in the Himalayas and Central Asia, making its nest on cliffs or in holes in the ground. 278 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus MARECA, Steph.' 640. MARECA PENELOPE. THE WIGEON. Anas penelope, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 202 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 166. Mareca pene- lope, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 804 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 541, pi. , David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 499 ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 198, pi. ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115, x. p. 245 (note). Description. — Male. Forehead and crown creamy yellow ; rest of the head and upper part of the neck chestnut-red ; the cheeks speckled with black ; back minutely barred with transverse wavy lines of black and white ; scapulars black edged with white ; tail blackish grey ; wing-coverts pure white ; the greater coverts with velvet-black tips, some of the lesser ones, near the body, pale greyish ; quills cinereous brown ; speculum of three bars, the middle one glossy green, the upper and under ones black ; chin and throat black ; lower part of neck and breast vinaceous red ; abdo- men white, the flanks with black and white wavy lines ; under tail-coverts black, glossed green. Bull plumbeous blue, black at the tip ; irides red-brown ; legs dusky leaden. The female has the head and neck fulvous-brown, speckled with dusky ; the back and scapulars dusky brown with reddish edges; wing-coverts brown, edged with whitish ; the speculum without the dark green gloss ; the breast and belly much as in the male ; the flanks rufous-brown with ashy tips ; bill and legs more dusky than in the male. In some specimens the forehead alone is yellowish, that tint not ex- tending over the top of the head. In summer the head and neck of the male become spotted with black ; the back and scapulars are mottled and barred with brown and dusky ; the breast and sides are reddish brown with darker bars and lines ; the under tail-coverts white with brown bars. (Jerdon.) Length 19 inches, tail 4'3, wing 10, tarsus T5, bill from gape 1'8. The female is of much the same size. I have reproduced Dr. Jerdon's description of this Duck ; for it seems to me very full and satisfactory. The Wigeon is said by Mr. Blyth to have occurred in Arrakan. Col. Mf Master, who resided in Pegu for some years, remarks that it is com- moner in Burmah than in India. I have never myself met with it ; nor do I know of any sportsman who has shot it in Burmah in recent years. THE PINTAIL. 279 It has a considerable range, being found according to season in most parts of Asia and Europe, Northern Africa and on the eastern coast of North America. It is spread over the Indian peninsula and China in winter, but has not yet been found further south, except as a straggler in Borneo. The Wigeon is a winter visitor, and is no doubt rare in Burmah com- pared with other Ducks. The female may be recognized at a glance from the females of other ducks by the colour of the bill, which is small and tipped with black. Genus DAFILA, Swains. 641. DAFILA ACUTA. THE PINTAIL. Anas acuta, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 202 ; Bl. E. Burm. p. 166 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1076. Dafila acuta, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 803 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 531, pi. ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 193 ; Scully, S. F. iv. p. 200 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 498 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 489 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115 j Scully, S. F. viii. p. 303 ; Hume Sf Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 189, pi. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 245. Description. — Male. Forehead and crown rich umber-brown ; remainder of head and upper neck plain brown ; lower neck, breast and abdomen pure white, the white of the neck continued upwards in two streaks to the nape ; the hind neck between these streaks blackish ; lower hind neck, back, rump and upper tail-coverts marked with narrow undulating lines of black and white, the upper tail-coverts with the outer webs chiefly black ; tail ashy brown, the lengthened central feathers black ; scapulars black edged with grey ; wing-coverts and primaries ashy brown, the greater series of coverts tipped with clear buff; secondaries glossy green, with a subterminal band of black and broad white tips ; tertiaries ashy brown, with the central portion of each feather blackish ; sides of the body barred with black and white like the back ; lower abdomen and vent white stippled with brown ; under tail-coverts black. The female has the whole head and neck fulvous-white streaked with brown, the crown and hind neck darker than the other parts ; the upper plumage and wing-coverts dark brown edged with rufous, and the feathers of the back also with double bar-like spots on the centres ; greater wing- coverts tipped with white as those of the male are with buff; secondaries 280 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH.^ brown, not green, broadly tipped with white, and subterminally blackish ; lower plumage greyish white marked and spotted with brown ; tail brown, with a few oblique whitish bars and the central pair of feathers produced nearly an inch beyond the next pair. For a short period after the breeding-season the males assume a plumage which does not differ very materially from that of the female. They are never seen in Burmah in this state. The bill is plumbeous above, the lower mandible, the culmen and a portion of the margins being black ; iris dark brown ; legs and feet plum- beous brown. Length up to 28 inches, according to the state of the tail, which is often 9 inches in length ; wing 11, tarsus 1*7, bill from gape 2'2. The female, owing to the central tail-feathers not being produced to any great extent, is much shorter, the length being about 22 inches, tail 5, wing 10, tarsus 1-6, bill from gape 2'2. The male of this species cannot be confounded with that of any other ; the female may be recognized by her sharply pointed tail, the central pair of feathers of which are generally an inch longer than the next. The Pintail is generally distributed over Pegu in winter. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan ; but Mr. Davison did not meet with it in Tenas- serim, except on one occasion near Moulmein. It occurs over nearly the whole of the northern hemisphere from the neighbourhood of the equator up to and beyond the Arctic circle, moving about according to season. This Duck, when found, is usually in large flocks. I have observed and shot a considerable number in the Engmah swamp at various times ; and I have also seen it in some of the larger swamps in the plains of Southern Pegu. It may be considered the commonest of the larger migratory Ducks. It is shy and wary ; and its flight is very rapid. It breeds in high latitudes, making a nest on the ground in marshes, and laying a large number of very pale greenish eggs. THE WHITE-WINGED WOOD-DUCK. 281 Genus ANAS, Lhm. 642. ANAS LEUCOPTERA, THE WHITE-WINGED WOOD-DUCK. Anas scutulata, S. Miill Schleg. Mm., P.-B. Anseres, p. 64 ; Wolf, Zool. Sketches, ii. pi. xlix. Sarcidiornis leucopterus, Bl. J. A. S. B. xviii. p. 820. Ca- sarca leucoptera, Jard. Contr. Orn. p. 141, pi. 64; Gould, P. Z. S. 1859, p. 150 ; Jercl B. Ind. ii. p. 793; BL B. Burm. p. 165; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 489; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 170. Casarca scutulata, Bl. Ibis, 1867, p. 176 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115. Anas scutulata, Hume, S. F. viii. p. 158; Hume <§• Marsh. Game Birds, iii. pp. 147, 172, pi. Description. — Head and neck mottled black and white, perhaps pure white in the adult ; hind neck glossy black ; rest of the upper plumage, including the tail, blackish brown ; shoulders and wing-coverts pure white ; greater coverts black ; primaries dusky ; secondaries slaty ; tertials length- ened and wide, dusky, the outermost with a white border, showing as a white line on the wing ; neck and breast glossy black ; rest of the lower plumage dusky castaneous, dark brown on the flanks and under tail- coverts. Bill and legs black. Length 28 inches, wing 15, tail 6, bill at front 3, tarsus 2^, mid toe 3£. (Jerdon.) Having never seen a specimen of this Duck, I quote Dr. Jerdon's description. Mr. Hume assures us that it properly belongs to this genus, and not to Tadorna or Casarca, where it has usually been placed. This, the rarest of all the Burmese Ducks, has been procured in Tenas- serim, at Tavoy by Col. Briggs, and at Mergui by the late Major Berd- more. I can find no other record of its occurrence in Burmah ; but Blyth states that it inhabits all the river-valleys, an assertion which I am pretty certain has no good foundation. It occurs in Assam and in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, in the northern part of the Malay peninsula, and in Java ; for it now seems to be generally admitted that the Javan bird is identical with Mr. Blyth's species. Little is known of this Duck except that it is very shy and inhabits thick forests, feeding in pools of water and probably also in rivers. BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 643. ANAS PCECILORHYNCHA. THE SPOTTED-BILLED DUCK. Anas poecilorhyncha, Forst. Ind. Zool. p. 23, pi. 13 j Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 799 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 643 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 165 ; Butler, 8. F. iv. p. 29 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 699 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 489 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 507, viii. p. 116 ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, in, p. 165, pi. ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1073. Description. — Male and female. The whole head and neck whity brown minutely streaked with dark brown, the streaks most numerous on the crown, hind neck, and on a band reaching from the bill to the gape ; the whole lower plumage pale fulvous-white spotted throughout with brown ; the under tail-coverts uniform glossy brown ; back, scapulars, lesser and median wing-coverts brown, each feather edged with pale fulvous ; greater coverts subterminally white and broadly black at the tips ; secondaries black tipped with white, the later ones with a patch of glossy green on the outer webs forming a speculum ; tertiaries chiefly white on the outer webs, the white forming a band in continuation of the white on the greater coverts ; rump and upper tail-coverts nearly black ; tail dark brown nar- rowly margined with pale ashy brown. Bill black, the base of the upper mandible at the forehead red, the tip of both mandibles yellow, greater in extent on the upper than on the lower ; legs and feet red ; claws black ; iris brown. The young bird wants the red at the base of the upper mandible. Length 24 inches, tail 5, wing 11, tarsus 1*9, bill from gape 2*6. The female is smaller, the wing being about 10 inches. The Spotted-billed Duck is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan and Tenasserim ; but I have never met with it in Pegu, nor did Mr. Davison shoot it in Tenasserim. We must therefore conclude that it is very rare. It inhabits the whole Indian peninsula and Ceylon, where it is a resident species, and it occurs in Independent Burmah. In China it is replaced by A. zonorhyncha, which has no red spot at the base of the bill, and differs also in other slight respects. This large Duck appears to be found in pairs or small flocks in tanks and swamps ; and in India it is considered one of the best for the table. The nest is usually placed on the ground, occasionally on a low branch of a tree ; and the eggs are generally eight in number and white. THE GADWALL. 283 Genus CHAULELASMUS, G. B. Gray. 644. CHAULELASMUS STREPERUS. THE GADWALL. Anas strepera, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 200 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 166. Chaulelasmus streperus, Jenl. I>. Ltd. ii. p. 802; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 487, pi.; David ft Oust. Oh. C?U'H<; p. 400; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 362; Hume. $ Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 181, pi. Description. — Male. Head and neck greyish speckled with brown, the crown and hind neck more uniformly brown ; back and upper scapulars dark brown closely vermiculated with fulvous - white ; longer scapulars brown broadly edged with fulvous; rump and upper tail-coverts black; tail pale grey edged with white ; lesser wing-coverts light brown stippled with grey ; median coverts chestnut ; greater coverts black, the exterior ones chestnut ; primaries and tertiaries ashy ; the earlier secondaries ashy, the next broadly edged with black on the outer webs, the later ones pure white on the outer web ; lower neck and breast dark brown, each feather with a semicircular edging of white ; abdomen and vent white speckled with brown ; under tail-coverts black ; sides of the body narrowly barred with brown and white. The female has the whole upper plumage, breast, sides of the body and under tail-coverts dark brown, each feather broadly edged with fulvous ; the head and neck greyish streaked with brown, the crown and hind neck more uniformly brown ; the wing wants the chestnut of the male, but there are frequently traces of chestnut on a few of the feathers ; the middle greater coverts are black, but not such a deep black as in the male ; and the middle secondaries are white, forming a patch, but not such a large one as in the male. Iris brown ; legs and feet orange ; bill in the male blackish, tinged with reddish on the lower mandible, in the female brownish orange becoming black on the tip, nail and culmen. Length 20 inches, tail 4, wing 11, tarsus T4, bill from gape 2. The female is smaller, the wing being about 10 inches in length or even less. The Gadwall is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in Arrakan ; and as it is a Duck of wide distribution, it is not unlikely to be common in that Division. I have never shot it in Pegu ; nor has it been seen in Tenasserim. It inhabits the whole northern hemisphere from the tropic to the Arctic circle, wandering inside this latter in places, and also approaching the equator in small numbers. Wherever it may be found in Burmah it will be only as a winter visitor. In India it arrives in October and leaves at the end of March. Like most 284 BIRDS OF BRITISH BTJRMAH. other large Ducks, it is met with in flocks ; and it frequents alike rivers, lakes, marshes, and ponds. The nest is placed on the ground in clumps of grass and reeds ; and the eggs, which are sometimes as many as thirteen in number, are pale yellowish white. Genus RHODONESSA, Reich. 645. RHODONESSA CARYOPHYLLACEA. THE PINK- HEADED DUCK. Anas caryophyllacea, Lath. 2nd. Orn. ii. p. 866 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 800 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 644; Bl. B. Burm. p. 16-5; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 492, viii. p. 501. Khodonessa caryophyllacea, Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 173, pi. Description. — Male. The whole head, the sides and back of the neck rosy pink ; entire front of the neck, the whole lower plumage, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail, upper wing-coverts, scapulars and tertiaries dark glossy brown; secondaries salmon-colour, forming a speculum; primaries brownish salmon-colour, paler on the inner webs ; edge of the wing broadly whitish ; under wing-coverts pinkish white. The female has the pink of the head duller and the back of the neck browner. Young birds have the head and neck merely tinged with pink and the whole plumage of a dull brown. The secondaries at all ages are salmon- colour. Bill reddish white, rosy at the base and faintly bluish at the tip ; irides fine orange-red ; legs and feet blackish with a tinge of red. (Jerdon.) Length 23 inches, tail 4'5, wing 11, tarsus 2, bill at front 2'3. The female appears, judging from the specimens I have examined, to be of the same size as the male. The Pink-headed Duck is a rare species, which, according to Mr. Blyth, occurs in Arrakan. I have never met with it in Pegu ; nor does it appear to be found in Tenasserim. It inhabits portions of the Indian peninsula, Assam and the eastern portions of Bengal ; and Mr. Blyth gives Bhamo in Independent Burmah as a locality where this species has been procured. This beautiful Duck appears to be resident in India ; but it is nowhere common, and it is almost always found in weedy tanks and swamps. The nest is placed on the ground in coarse grass ; and the eggs are five to ten in number. The breeding-season is June and July. THE COMMON TEAL. 285 Genus QUERQUEDULA, Steph. 646. QUERQUEDULA CRECCA. THE COMMON TEAL. Anas crecca, Linn. tiyxt. Nat. i. p. 204; Bl. B. Burm. p. 166; Leyye, Birds Ceylon, p. 1083. Querquedula crecca, Jen!. B. Ind. ii. p. 806; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 507, pi. ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 193 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 502 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 700; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 489 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 303 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game. Birds, iii. p. 205 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 245. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, a band continued down the hind neck, the space between the bill and the eye, cheeks, sides and front of neck chestnut ; chin black ; a broad band from the eye running down the sides of the nape and upper neck glossy green, bounded by a narrow white line below ; a patch of blue at the back of the neck ; upper plumage nar- rowly cross-barred with black and white ; upper tail-coverts blackish, each feather edged with fulvous ; some of the outer scapulars creamy white, diagonally edged with black ; wing-coverts and quills greyish brown, the tips of the outer median coverts creamy white forming a large patch ; speculum brilliant green in the middle, black on both sides; fore neck below the chestnut barred with black and white like the back ; breast creamy white spotted with black, most of the spots partially concealed ; abdomen white ; sides of the body beautifully barred with black and white ; under tail-coverts black in the centre, buff at the sides. The female is a dull bird, the whole upper plumage and breast being brown, each feather margined with fulvous or yellowish white ; she retains the speculum of the male in a reduced form, and may always be recog- nized by it ; the green, black, and white forming the speculum are less in extent but as deeply coloured as in the male. Iris brown ; bill dark brown ; legs and feet greyish brown ; claws dark horn-colour. In the young the posterior half of the margins of the upper mandible is orange spotted with black, and the lower mandible is dusky orange-grey. Length 14 inches, tail 3, wing 7*5, tarsus 1*2, bill from gape 1*7. The female is a trifle smaller than the male. The Common Teal is a tolerably numerous winter visitor to Arrakau and Pegu, and in some parts of the latter is very abundant. Mr. Davison did not meet with it in Tenasserim, except in the plains between the Sittang and the Salween rivers. It occurs, according to season, in nearly every part of Asia, Europe, North Africa, and on the eastern shores of North America. The most easterly 286 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. and southerly locality where I can find its occurrence recorded is Cochin China, where Dr. Tiraud states that it is very common in winter. This Teal is found in every part of the country where there is water, and in some large swamps, such as those at Engmah and Payagalay, large flocks are frequently seen. In Europe it breeds at the commencement of summer, making its nest on the ground in grass, and laying ten to fifteen pale yellowish eggs. 647, QUERQUEDULA CIRCIA. THE GARGANEY TEAL. Anas circia, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 204 ; Bl. B, Burm. p. 166 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 1080. Querquedula circia, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 807 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 513, pi. ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 644 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 193 ; Scully, S. F. iv. p. 201 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 502 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 489 ; Cripps, 8. F. vii. p. 312 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 363 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 215, pi. ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 198 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 245. Description. — Male. Crown and a broad band over the nape down the upper part of the hind neck umber-brown ; a broad streak from above the eye white, reaching as far as the umber-brown band; forehead, cheeks, sides of the head and the upper part of the neck chestnut-brown streaked with white ; chin black ; the lower neck and the whole breast fulvous, each feather with a crescentic black bar ; abdomen white ; sides of the body white barred with black ; under tail-coverts yellowish spotted with black ; back glossy brown, the feathers edged with ashy ; scapulars greenish black, long and sharp-pointed, with long narrow white streaks down the centres ; upper tail-coverts fulvous blotched with black ; tail brown, the lateral feathers edged with fulvous ; wing-coverts bluish ash, the greater coverts with a broad tipping of white ; primaries dark brown ; secondaries glossy green tipped with white, the green forming a conspicuous wing- patch ; tertiaries brown, more or less margined with yellowish white. The female has the forehead, crown, hind neck and upper plumage brown, each feather edged paler ; the sides of the head and neck white streaked with brown ; chin and throat pure white ; the wings very similar to those of the male, but the wing-patch formed by the secondaries is brown barely tinged with green ; the breast and the sides of the body are brown, each feather broadly edged with fulvous ; abdomen white ; under tail- coverts fulvous spotted with black. Bill blackish brown, paler on the lower mandible ; legs and feet plum- beous to greenish ; iris brown. THE WHITE-EYED POCHARD. 287 Length 16 inches, tail 3*5, wing 8, tarsus 1*2, bill from gape 1*8. The female is smaller, the wing not often exceeding 7 inches in length. The Garganey Teal is the commonest of the Duck tribe in Burmah. According to Mr. Blyth it occurs in Arrakan ; and I have found it in every portion of Pegu that I have visited. In Tenasserim it has been observed only in the plains between the Sittang and the Salween rivers, near Moul- mein, and at Kaukarit ; but it will probably be found more extensively distributed in this Division. It extends over a considerable portion of Asia, Europe and North Africa. To the south-east it is found in Southern China and in Cochin China, and it is said to have been procured in some of the Malay islands. This Teal visits Burmah during the winter season, and it arrives very early and leaves late. Col. Tickell procured a young bird near Moulmein, and he was led to think that it bred in Tenasserim ; but his conjecture has not been confirmed by the finding of a nest by subsequent observers. In some of the large swamps of Pegu it occurs in immense flocks, some of which must number two or three thousand individuals. It is also often met with in small numbers in tanks and roadside drains. If this Teal should be found breeding in Burmah, it will probably be in June and July. The nest, in Europe, is placed on the ground in marshy localities ; and the eggs, which are sometimes thirteen in number, are very pale yellowish white. Subfamily FULIGULIN.E. Genus FULIGULA, Steph. 648. FULIGULA NYROCA. THE WHITE-EYED POCHARD. Anas nyroca, Giildenst. Nov. Comm. Petrop. xiv. pt. 1, p. 403. Aythya nyroca, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 813 ; Hume, Nests and Eyys, p. <345 ; Scully, S. F. iv. p. i;0^. Fuligula nyroca, in. B. Burm. p. 1C6 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 115 ; Hume # Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p. 203, pi. Fulix nyroca, David et Oust. Ois. Chin,-, p. 507. Nyroca ferruginea (Gm.}, Dresser, Birds Eur. vi. p. 58], pi. Description. — Male. The head and neck rich chestnut, the lower part of the neck all round dull rufous-brown ; the whole breast and upper abdo- men chestnut ; middle of the abdomen white ; lower part of the abdomen, vent and base of lower tail-coverts reddish ashy brown ; terminal portion of lower tail-coverts white ; sides of the body dull chestnut ; back and scapulars brownish black, very minutely powdered with reddish brown ; 288 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. rump and upper tail-coverts dull black ; tail brown ; wing-coverts and quills brown tinged with green ; the first primary with a good deal of white on the inner web, the others progressively with more, till the fifth becomes nearly all white with a black tip, after which the white again decreases in extent; secondaries white, with a broad black tip, the white forming a conspicuous wing-spot ; tertiaries glossed with green. The female differs from the male in having the head and neck more or less brown, the feathers edged with reddish ; and the upper plumage is brown, instead of brownish black or dull black ; the other parts of the plumage are the same as in the male. Bill plumbeous; iris white; legs and toes plumbeous; claws blackish. Length 16 inches, tail 3, wing 7' 5, tarsus 1'2, bill from gape 2. The female is of about the same size. The White-eyed Pochard occurs, according to Mr. Blyth, in Arrakan. There is no record of its occurrence elsewhere in the Province. It occurs throughout the southern half of Asia, the greater part of Europe and Northern Africa. Its south-eastern limit, so far as is at pre- sent known, is Burmah and China. This little Duck, although probably rare in Arrakan, is very common in many parts of India as a winter visitor, arriving in October. It frequents weedy swamps and ponds. It breeds immediately north of India, making a nest of grass in reeds on the edges of lakes, and laying some ten very pale buff eggs. Order XI. COLUMB^E. Subfamily COLUMBINE. Genus COLUMBA, Linn. 649. COLUMBA INTERMEDIA. THE INDIAN BLUE ROCK-PIGEON. Columba intermedia, Strickl. Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 1, xiii. p. 39 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 469 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 499 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 384 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 419 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 339 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 698. Columba livia, apud Bl. B. Burm. p. 145. Description. — Male and female. General colour of the plumage slaty grey, very dark all round the neck, which is glossed with green and lilac THE PURPLE WOOD-PIGEON. 289 and paler on the back and wings ; two bars of black across the wings, one over the greater coverts and one over the secondaries. Tail ashy grey, with a broad black band near the tips ; the basal half of the outer web of the outermost feathers almost pure white. Bill blackish, with a white mealiness at the base above ; irides dull orange; legs dull reddish pink. (Jerdon.) Length 13 inches, tail 5*5, wing 9, tarsus T2, bill from gape 1*1. The female is of about the same size. The Indian Blue Rock-Pigeon differs from its European ally, C. livia, in having the rump of the same colour as the back, instead of white. Mr. Blyth introduces this species into his list of Burmese birds, and remarks with respect to the Province in general, " common, as throughout India. " It may, of course, and probably does, occur in Arrakan ; but certainly in Pegu, so far from being common, it seems to be altogether absent, for I have never even seen a specimen. The same may be said of Tenasserim and Karennee, where neither Mr. Davison nor Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay observed it. It occurs over the whole peninsula of India and Ceylon, extending west- wards to Afghanistan and eastwards to China. Dr. Tiraud records it from Cochin China; but I judge from his remarks that he considers the birds he saw merely domestic Pigeons turned wild. This Pigeon frequents cliffs, caverns, old walls, ruined buildings and pagodas, and feeds on the ground in large flocks on grain and seeds. In India it breeds from December to April, and sometimes later, laying two white eggs. Subfamily PALUMBIN^E. Genus ALSOCOMUS, Tick. 650. ALSOCOMUS PUNICEUS. THE PURPLE WOOD-PIGEON. Alsocomus puniceus, Tick., Bl. J. A. S. B. xi. p. 462 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 402 ; BL 11. Jtttnn. p. 145 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 147 j Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 418; Legye, Birds Ceylon, p. (J'J8 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109; Oates, S. F. viii. p. 167 ; Situ/ham, S. F. viii. p. 19G ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 235. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape and lores greyish white ; primaries and secondaries blackish, more or less edged with ashy ; rump and upper tail-coverts dark ashy; tail black; under tail -coverts dark ashy VOL. ii. u 290 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. brown; with these exceptions the whole plumage is vinaceous ruddy,, approaching to chestnut on the back and wings, and most of the plumage overlaid with a metallic gloss, especially strong on the neck. The female is of a duller colour, but does not otherwise differ. Legs and feet pale purplish or lake-pink ; horny portion of bill bluish white ; rest of bill and gape lake-pink ; irides deep orange or pale yellow ; eyelids bright red ; orbital skin purplish pink. (Davison.) Length 15 inches, wing 8*5, tail 6, tarsus 1, bill from gape I'l. The female is of about the same size. Mr. Blyth records this Wood-Pigeon from Arrakan ; and Dr. Jerdon gives it from Ramree. I found it sparingly distributed over many parts of Pegu, more abundant perhaps near Kyeikpadein than elsewhere ; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Tonghoo. Mr. Davison observed it in Tenasserim nearly down to Mergui, and Capt. Bingham in the Thoung- yeen valley. It occurs in some parts of India and in Ceylon ; and it will probably be found in the Indo-Burmese countries. Mr. Hume notes it from Tonka in the Malay peninsula ; and this appears to be the southernmost point from which it has been recorded. This fine Pigeon is met with in well-wooded parts of the country, and it feeds on fruits. I found the nest at Kyeikpadein in July, a small structure composed of fine twigs, and placed on a branch of a bamboo bush at no great height from the ground. This Pigeon apparently lays but one egg, which, like those of all Pigeons and Doves, is glossy white. Subfamily TURTURIN^E. Genus TURTUR, Selby. 651. TURTUR TIGRINUS. THE MALAY SPOTTED DOVE. Columba tigrina, Temm. 8? Knip, Pig. i. p. 94, pi. xliii. Turtur tigrina, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 506; id. S. F. i. p. 461, iii. p. 164; Bl. B. Burm. p. 145; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 337 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 164 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 665 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 422; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110; Bingham, S. F. ix! p, 194; Oates, S. F. x. p, 235. Spilopelia tigrina, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 296. Description. — Male and female. Forehead and cheeks grey ; a dark spot in front of the eye ; crown, nape and lower plumage vinaceous, paling on the chin, vent and under tail-coverts ; hind neck and sides of the neck THE MALAY SPOTTED DOVE. 291 black, each feather with two squarish white spots at the tip; back, scapulars, wing-coverts and rump brown ; each feather blackish along the shaft and tipped on both webs with lighter brown ; the outermost wing- coverts pure grey on the outer webs ; quill dark brown, some of the tertiaries with blackish shaft-streaks and tipped paler; tail brown, the outer feathers broadly tipped with white, the white reduced in extent interiorly and disappearing on the fifth pair of feathers, which are dark brown ; central pair conspicuously paler brown. The young have no white spots on the neck at first. Bill bluish black ; eyelids and skin of face plumbeous ; irides reddish ; legs deep red ; claws dark horn. Length 12*4 inches, tail 6, wing 5*5, tarsus 1, bill from gape '9. The female is of about the same size. T. suratensis from India differs in having the shaft-streaks on the upper plumage well defined and terminating in a dark spot on the tips of the feathers ; the terminal spots on both webs of these parts are also very large and of a vinaceous pink colour. T. chinensis, from China, differs in being larger and in entirely wanting the dark shaft-streaks on the upper plumage. The Malay Spotted Dove is extremely abundant over the whole Province. It extends northwards through the Indo-Burmese countries to Cachar, and eastwards to Cochin China. It ranges down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the more distant islands as far as Celebes and Amboina. This familiar Dove is met with in all the open and cultivated parts of the Province, and also in small numbers in forests and dense jungle ; it does not, however, ascend the higher hills. It feeds entirely on the ground, on seeds and grain. It breeds almost all the year round, but chiefly from August to March, making a flimsy nest of twigs in low trees, bushes and bamboos, and laying two eggs. 392 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 652. TURTUR MEENA. THE RUFOUS TURTLE DOVE. Columba meena, Sykes, P. Z. 8. 1832, p. 149. Turtur meena, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 476 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 501 ; id. 8. F. iii. p. 163 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 146; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 665 ; Hume fy Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 420 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110 ; Scully, 8. F. viii. p. 340; Oates, 8. F. x. p. 235. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, hind neck and back ashy brown, suffused with vinous, and the feathers indistinctly edged with rufous ; a patch on either side the neck black, each feather tipped with grey ; lower back and rump dark ashy, edged paler ; upper tail-coverts brown, edged with pale rufous ; scapulars, tertiaries, lesser and median coverts brown, broadly edged with rufous ; greater coverts and secondaries edged with ashy, the innermost ones edged with rufous ; primaries dark brown edged with rufous ; lower plumage vinous-red tinged with purplish in some, paler on the chin and throat ; sides of the body, under wing- coverts, vent and under tail-coverts ashy; central tail-feathers ashy brown, the others ashy brown tipped with grey. Bill brown, with a tinge of vinous on the basal half; iris orange-red; eyelids pale blue ; the edges of the eyelids red ; legs vinous-red ; claws black. Length 13 inches, tail 5, wing 7, tarsus 1*1, bill from gape 1. The female is of the same size. The present species differs from its ally, T. rupicola apud Jerdon, prin- cipally in being smaller, and in having the under tail-coverts dark ashy, instead of white tinged with ashy, and in having the plumage browner and less richly coloured. I have not been able to arrive at any con- clusion of my own regarding the validity of these two species, the distinct- ness of which is questioned by Mr. Dresser and Dr. Scully, and upheld by Mr. Hume and others. It is convenient at present to regard T. meena as distinct from T. rupicola, more especially as all the Doves of this type found in Burmah agree in having the under tail-coverts ashy, concolorous with the under wing-coverts, vent and sides of the body, and not whitish as in T. rupicola. The Rufous Turtle Dove is spread over the whole Province, and is a per- manent resident, but is nowhere very common. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay observed it in Karennee at 4000 feet elevation. It occurs in the Indo-Burmese countries, and in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, extending along the foot of the Himalayas to Nipal and thence across Central India to Bombay. According to Dr. Tiraud it is met with in Cochin China ; but it is not found in the Malay peninsula so far as is at present known. THE INDIAN RING-DOVE. 293 This Dove frequents much the same localities as the last, but is by no means so common. It is, however, observed on the higher hills, where T. tigrinus is absent or very rarely seen. It has the usual habits of the Turtle Doves, feeding on the ground in pairs or singly, and flying into trees when disturbed. 653. TURTUR RISORIUS. THE INDIAN RING-DOVE. Columba risoria, Linn. Sijst. Nat. i. p. 285. Turtur risorius, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 481 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 506 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 1C5 ; Wald. in Bl. B. Burnt, p. 146 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vii. p. 51, pi. ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 387 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 666 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 297 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 702 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 235. Description. — Male and female. The whole head, neck and lower plumage pale vinaceous ; a black collar on the hind neck, with a little white above and below it ; upper plumage, tertiaries and wing-coverts light brown ; edge of the wing ashy ; secondaries ashy brown ; primaries black narrowly edged with whitish; lower abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts dark ashy; sides of body and under wing-coverts lighter ashy; central tail- feathers light brown, the others more or less dark grey on the basal halves and light grey on the terminal halves. Bill black ; iris red ; eyelids and skin of the face yellow ; legs blood-red ; claws horn-colour. Length 13'5 inches, tail 5'5, wing 6'5, tarsus 1, bill from gape '9. The female is of about the same size. The Ring-Dove was obtained near Thayetmyo by both Capt. Feilden and myself; but it appears to be very rare, for I only met with it on one occa- sion ; and it has not yet been procured elsewhere in British Burmah. Dr. Anderson observed it in Independent Burmah near Bhamo ; and it occurs in China, Japan and South-eastern Siberia. It is universally distri- buted over India and Ceylon, extending westwards into Europe. This Dove frequents cultivated ground, being found in small flocks, as \voll as singly and in pairs. In India it breeds pretty nearly all the year through, making the usual flimsy nest of a Dove on low trees and shrubs, and laying two eggs. 294 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 654. TURTUR HUMILIS. THE EASTERN RUDDY RING-DOVE. Columba humilis, Temm. PL Col. 258. Turtur humilis, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 482 (part.) ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p, 507 (part.) ; id. S. F. ii. p. 269, iii. p. 165, iv. p. 292 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 338 ; Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 219 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 388 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 423 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 194; Oates, S. F. x. p. 235. Turtur tranquebaricus apud Bl. B. Burm. p. 145. Turtur humilior, Hume, Proc. As. Soc. Beng. 1874, p. 241 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 279. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, nape, hind neck, sides of the head and cheeks ashy ; a black collar on the hind neck immediately next the ashy ; rump and upper tail-coverts darker ashy ; chin white ; throat, breast, abdomen, sides of the neck, back, scapulars, wing-coverts, tertiaries and outer webs of the secondaries vinous-red ; remainder of the wing dark ashy; under wing-coverts, sides of the body, lower abdomen arid vent ashy ; under tail-coverts white ; central tail-feathers ashy brown ; the others dark ashy, broadly tipped with white, the white also occupying all the outer web of the outermost feathers. The female has the black collar of the male ; but the head and the whole upper plumage are brown ; the lower plumage is rufous-grey where vinous- red in the male. Iris dark brown ; eyelids plumbeous ; bill black ; legs vinaceous brown ; claws black; the joints of the scales on the legs white. Length 9*5 inches, tail 4, wing 5*5, tarsus '8, bill from gape *75. The female is of the same size. The present species differs from the allied T. tranquebaricus of India in having the plumage of a deeper red, the under wing-coverts dark ash instead of ashy white, and in having the head and rump darker in colour. The Eastern Ruddy Ring-Dove is universally distributed over the Pro- vince ; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay observed it in Karennee. It extends north as far as Cachar, but is replaced in India by T. tranque- baricus. It ranges into China, Cochin China, and the Malay peninsula, and is found in the Philippine Islands. The habits of this Dove are somewhat different from those of the pre- ceding species : it is generally met with in flocks; and it affects well-wooded localities only, feeding under the shade of trees more frequently than in the open. I have never obtained the nest in Burmah; but this Dove will probably be found to breed throughout the dry season, making, as its ally does in India, a small nest of twigs in the outer branches of large trees, and laying two eggs. THE BAR-T AILED CUCKOO DOVE. 295 Subfamily MACROPYGIIN^. Genus MACROPYGIA, Swains. 655. MACROPYGIA LEPTOGRAMMICA. THE BAR-TAILED CUCKOO DOVE. Columba leptogrammica, Temm. PL Col. 560. Coccyzura tusalia, Hodgs. J. A. S, B. xii. p. 937. Macropygia tusalia, Jercl. B. Ind. ii. p. 473 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 500 ; Wald. in Bl. B. Burm. p. 146 j Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 468 ; Hume $ Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 419 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110. Macro- pygia leptogrammica, Wald. Ibis, 1875, p. 459. Description. — Male. Forehead, chin and throat buff with a vinous tinge; crown, nape and sides of the head vinaceous with a metallic lilac gloss ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, tertiaries and wing-coverts black barred with deep rufous, the hind neck glossed with metallic green or lilac ; quills dark brown ; central tail-feathers black barred with rufous ; the next two pairs ashy at base, barred indistinctly with black, and rufous at the end ; the three outer pairs ashy, with a black subterminal band ; breast and sides of the neck vinous-brown, each feather with a concealed filack bar and a metallic green or lilac tip; abdomen, vent and under tail- coverts buff; sides of the body tinged with ashy. The female does not differ conspicuously from the male ; the bars are more developed and the colours less bright and glossy, and the breast and upper abdomen are barred with brown. Legs and feet pinkish brown or brownish red ; bill dirty purplish or horny brown ; irides, outer ring pink, inner ring blue. (Davison.) Iris white surrounded by pale lilac ; orbital skin grey, with an inner rim of purple round the eye; bill blackish; legs purplish pink. (Wardlaw Ramsay.) Length 15 inches, tail 7 '5, wing 7 '2, tarsus *9, bill from gape 1. The Bar-tailed Cuckoo Dove occurs in the north-eastern portion of Pegu, where Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it on the Karin hills at 4000 feet elevation, and on the Tonghoo hills at an altitude of 3500 feet. He also observed it in Karennee. Mr. de Wet sent it to me in a collection of birds he formed in the country near Tonghoo and the higher hills to the east of that town. Mr. Davison obtained it in Tenasserim on Mooleyit mountain and at Kollidoo further north, at both of which localities he states that it was rare. It occurs in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and along the Himalayas up to Nipal. It also inhabits Java; for Lord Walden some years ago in- formed us that the Javan bird differed in no respect from the Indian. A 296 BIRDS OF BRITISH BTJRMAH. small race of this Dove is found in Hainan, and has been named M. minor by Mr. Swinhoe. The Cuckoo Doves are remarkable for their barred plumage and the great length of their tails. They are of a shy disposition, keeping to thick forests and associating in small flocks ; they chiefly feed on trees, seldom descending to the ground. They breed in trees, making a nest of twigs, and laying two eggs. Captain Wardlaw Ramsay found the nest of the present species on the Karin hills in March. 656. MACROPYGIA ASSIMILIS. THE TENASSERIM CUCKOO DOVE. Macropygia assimilis, Hume, 8. F. ii. p. 441 j Wold, in EL B. Burm. p. 146 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 468 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 420 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110. Description. Forehead and crown chestnut, the black bases of the feathers showing through in some places; sides of the head and neck, hind neck and back brown minutely freckled with greyish white ; rump and upper tail-coverts brown, suffused with rufous at the edges ; wing- coverts, scapulars and tertiaries dark brown tipped with chestnut ; quills dark brown ; chin and throat fulvous • lower plumage rufous blotched with black on the breast ; under wing-coverts chestnut ; the four central tail- feathers brown, the others brown at base and the remainder chestnut with a subterminal dusky bar. Legs and feet dark brownish red; bill pinkish red or pale purplish brown ; irides sometimes grey, at other times grey with an inner ring of blue, at others pearly white ; orbital skin pale blue. (Davison.) Length 13 inches, tail 6*5, wing 5'6, tarsus '7, bill from gape '9. Mr. Blyth gives M. ruficeps from Burmah ; but when he wrote his Catalogue the present closely allied species had not been discriminated. I do not think it probable that both species occur in Tenasserim. The present bird differs from M. ruficeps from Sumatra and Java in having black marks on the breast, and in having the hind neck and back brown with no metallic gloss. The Tenasserim Cuckoo Dove was obtained by Mr. Davison on Mooleyit mountain, and further north at Kollidoo, and it does not appear to be very rare. Captain Wardlaw Ramsay procured it on the Karin hills, east of Tonghoo, at an elevation of 3000 feet ; and Mr. de Wet sent it to me from the same hills. It is difficult to trace its distribution out of Burmah; but it extends some way down the Malay peninsula, Mr. Hume having received it from Ulu Langat. THE EMERALD DOVE. 297 Subfamily PHAPIDIN^E. Genus CHALOOPHAPS, Gould. 657. CHALCOPHAPS INDICA. THE EMERALD DOVE. Columba indica, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 284. Chalcophaps indica, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 484 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 509 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 269, iii. p. 165 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 299 ; Bourdillon, S. F. iv. p. 404 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 147 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 384 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 667 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 424 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 714; Oates, S. F. x. p. 235; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 528. Description. — Male. Forehead and a supercilium greyish white ; crown, nape, a narrow line down the hind neck and a band across the upper back deep bluish grey ; sides of the head and neck and the whole lower plumage deep vinaceous, rather duller on the abdomen ; under tail-coverts ashy ; back, wing-coverts and tertiaries bright metallic green ; the smaller coverts near the edge of the wing chiefly white ; below the green of the back a narrow band of ashy, then a broad black band, then another ashy one, and finally a very broad band, which, with the upper tail-coverts, is dark ashy brown tipped darker ; the three central pairs of tail-feathers dark brown tipped \Taler, the others banded with black and ashy ; quills dark brown, the outer webs of the secondaries chiefly metallic green ; under wing- coverts chestnut. The female differs in having the colours of her plumage much duller and in having hardly any white on the wing-coverts. Bill red ; iris dark brown ; eyelids plumbeous ; legs dusky red ; claws pale horn-colour. Length 1O5 inches, tail 4, wing 5'8, tarsus 1, bill from gape '9. The female is a little smaller. The Emerald Dove is found over the entire province in well-wooded localities. It occurs all over India, Ceylon and the Andaman s, the Indo-Burmese countries, South China, Cochin China, Siam, the Malay peninsula and all the islands nearly down to Australia. This beautiful Dove frequents forests and thick gardens, such as those which are to be found outside Rangoon on the Prome road. It is met with as often in small flocks as in pairs; and it feeds entirely on the ground. The nest is placed in bushes ; and it will probably be found to breed in Burmah during the hot weather and the early part of the rains. 298 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus GEOPELIA, Swains. 658. GEOPELIA STRIATA. THE BARRED GROUND-DOVE. Columba striata, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 282. Geopelia striata, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 298 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 423 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 528. Description. — Male and female. Forehead and crown as far as the eyes, cheeks, chin and throat pure grey ; upper part of the ear-coverts grey, lower part brown ; remainder of the crown and nape vinous brown ; sides of the neck, whole hind neck and upper back, sides of the breast and of the body white, closely and finely barred with black ; centre of the breast and abdomen vinaceoris ; vent and under tail-coverts white ; lower back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, wing-coverts and tertiaries brown, each feather with a terminal black bar ; primaries and secondaries dark brown, the latter broadly edged with the colour of the back ; central tail-feathers pale brown, the others dark brown, the four outer pairs broadly tipped with white ; under wing-coverts chestnut. What appear to be immature birds have the centre of the breast and the whole under wing-coverts barred with black. Front of tarsus and toes pinkish purple with the scutation divided by pink lines ; back of tarsus and soles fleshy pink ; claws dirty greenish blue; base of bill pale clear blue, rest of bill bluish white, darkening towards the tip ; irides generally white, occasionally grey-brown or pale slaty blue ; orbital skin pale clear blue tinged with green. (Davison.) Length 9 inches, tail 4*3, wing 4, tarsus *8, bill from gape *7. The female is of about the same size. Mr. Davison met with this Dove in the extreme south of Tenasserim, on the Pakchan Creek. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in Sumatra, Java, Borneo, the Philippines, Celebes and Lombock. It appears to have been introduced into Madagascar and the Seychelles Islands. Mr. Davison remarks : — " The general habits of this little Dove are the same as those of Turtur tigrinus, except that it never occurs in flocks, being always found singly or in pairs. It keeps about cultivation, and feeds on the ground, walking about here and there and picking up seeds. It is not at all shy, but very rare in Tenasserim, even where it does occur. Its note is quite unlike that of any of the other Doves that I am acquainted with, and sounds like kok-a-kurr-kurr softly repeated several times." THE HACKLED GROUND-PIGEON. 299 Subfamily CALCENIN.E. Genus CALGENAS, G. E. Gray. 659. CALCENAS NICOBABICA. THE HACKLED GROUND-PIGEON. Columba nicobarica, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 283. Caloenas nicobarica, ////;///-, 8. F. ii. p. 271 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 510 j Bl. B. Burm. p. 147 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 425 ; Hume, S. F. viii. pp. 68, 110. Description. — In the adult the entire tail and longer lower and upper tail-coverts are pure white ; the entire head and neck all deep slaty grey, blackish slaty or even blackish brown in some ; from the base of the occi- put and the whole back of the neck stream down a thick bunch of narrow hackles, those from the occiput more or less disintegrated and hair-like, while those from the base of the neck are more regular feathers ; the former entirely dark slaty grey, the latter metallic green shot with gold and copper and margined everywhere with this slaty grey ; the whole of the rest of the upper plumage, excluding the tail and longer upper tail-coverts, is reful- gent with metallic reflections. The lesser coverts immediately along the ulna and at the carpal joint, the outer webs of the primaries, winglet and greater coverts, the earlier secondaries and their greater coverts are glossed with a deep blue ; the rest of the secondaries and their greater coverts, most of their median coverts, the rump and shorter upper tail-coverts brilliant green, like the speculum of a drake's wing, but with more or less of golden or bronzy reflections in some lights ; scapulars, interscapulary region, lesser and median coverts adjoining the scapulars similar, but with a much stronger coppery glow. This fairly represents the general distri- bution of colours ; but some birds are altogether greener, and some are altogether more coppery ; and the colours of the feathers vary in every light, and it is as difficult to convey in words any adequate description of the ever-changing tints of this bird as it would be to paint the sparkle of a diamond. The upper breast is the same colour as the head ; but even here, if the feathers are lifted, it will be seen that inside the broad slaty grey tippings there is a broad patch tinged with metallic green ; and the lower breast, abdomen, sides, flanks, vent and a few of the shortest under tail- coverts are all variegated deep metallic green and blackish slaty, the latter colour being confined to a terminal fringe to each feather. The first two primaries almost entirely want the blue metallic gloss ; and these, together with the inner webs of the primaries and secondaries, their entire lower surfaces and their longest lower coverts, are blackish brown. The rest oi the wing-lining and the axillaries are a brighter or duller metallic green; 300 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. generally tinged bluer along the edge of the wing : in some specimens these parts are deep blackish slaty, only faintly tinged with metallic green and blue ; in some specimens, again, the grey tippings to the breast and abdomen are wanting ; the breast is deep metallic green, the feathers tipped purplish ; the tibial plumes are a rich purplish blue ; the abdomen, flanks and sides are a somewhat bright metallic green, with more or less of a golden glow at the tips and margins of the feathers. Almost all the sca- pulars, the feathers of the interscapulary region, and most of the lesser and median coverts are split at the ends in a very curious manner, the shaft only reaching to within from an eighth to a quarter of an inch of the end of the feather. In the young bird the protuberances at the base of the culmen, which in the adult males when we obtained them were fully as large as a pea, are entirely wanting ; the frontal feathers do not advance nearly so far as in the old birds ; there are no hackles ; the tail and all its upper coverts are bronzy green ; the whole mantle and scapulars are duller and at the same time much redder and more coppery than in any of the adults ; the head, neck all round, and entire lower parts are brown ; the tips of the feathers glossed with dull dark metallic green ; the whole of the rest of the plumage is duller everywhere than in the adults. .(Hume.} The legs and feet vary from pinkish lake to dull purplish lilac ; the claws are chrome-yellow, the soles dull greyish yellow ; bill, cere and fleshy pro- tuberance at the base of the culmen (which, by the way, appears to be less developed in the female than in the male) dark blackish grey or deep slaty; the irides are deep brown. (Hume.} Length 16 inches, tail 3'5, wing 10, tarsus T7, bill from gape 1'5. The female is of the same size. The Hackled Ground-Pigeon is said by Mr. Blyth to be common in the Mergui archipelago. Mr. Davison did not meet with it in any of those islands ; but he probably searched for them at the wrong time of the year. Mr. Blyth also gives it from the Malay peninsula. Dr. Tiraud states that it is found in the island of Poulo-Condore off the coast of Cochin China and some other smaller islands. It is met with in New Guinea and some of the adjacent islands of the archipelago. Its true headquarters, however, appears to be the Nicobar Islands, especially the one called Batty Malve ; and it ranges into the Andaman group. This Pigeon seems to feed entirely on fruits; and it is found generally in small parties on the ground. The nest is placed on the branch of some bushy tree, and never, according to Mr. Davison, contains more than one egg- THE IMPERIAL GREEN PIGEON. 301 Subfamily CARPOPHAGIN^E. Genus CARPOPHAGA, Selby. 660. CARPOPHAGA JENEA. THE IMPERIAL GREEN PIGEON. Columba aenea, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 283. Columba sylvatica, Tick. J. A. S. B. ii. p. 581. Carpophaga sylvatica, Jcrd. B. Ind. ii. p. 455; David et Oust. O/.y. Chine, p. 381. Carpophaga aenea, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 496 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 260, iii. p. 163 j Bl B. Burm. p. 144 ; Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 215 j Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 337 ; Inglis, S. F. v. p. 39 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 416 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 718 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 194 ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 481 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 235 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 527. Description. — Male and female. The whole head and neck and the entire under plumage pearl-grey tinged with ruddy ; base of the bill and the chin whitish ; under tail-coverts deep maroon ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, tertiaries and upper wing-coverts brilliant coppery green, with a purple, blue or lilac gloss in places ; tail dark coppery green, the neighbourhood of the shafts purple or blue ; primaries and secondaries greenish brown, tinged with ashy on the outer webs. Iris red ; bill grey ; the region of the nostrils dull red ; edges of the eyelids, legs and feet purplish red. Length 17 inches, tail 6*5, wing 9, tarsus I'l, bill from gape 1'5. The female is smaller. This species varies very much in size, some indi- viduals being very small. The variation in size, coupled with variations in colour, have given rise to the separation of this bird into many species, the validity of which is very doubtful. The Imperial Green Pigeon is common over the whole Province, alike in the hills and plains where there is forest. It is found over the whole of India except the north-west portion, in Ceylon and the Andamans, the Indo-Burmese countries, South China and Cochin China. It extends down the Malay peninsula ; and, with modifi- cations of plumage and size, it occurs in Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Flores, Lombock and the Philippine Islands. This fine large Pigeon is generally diffused throughout the forests and the well-wooded parts of the country, wherever, in fact, there are trees which yield edible fruits ; and it is a resident. It is entirely arboreal, going about in parties and occasionally in couples, and feeds on fruit. It makes its nest in thickets and bamboo bushes, and lays but one egg. Mr. Inglis, however, brings to notice that he once found two young birds in the same nest. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenasserim in March. 302 BIRDS OP BRITISH BURMAH. 661. CARPOPHAGA GBISEICAPILLA. THE GREY-HEADED IMPERIAL PIGEON. Ducula griseicapilla, Wald. Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 4, xvi. p. 228 ; id. Ibis, 1875, p. 459 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 402 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, His, 1877, p. 467. Car- pophaga griseicapilla, Damson, S. F. v. p. 460 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. ?i. p. 418 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109. Carpophaga insignis apud Bl. B. Burm. p. 144. Description. — Chin and throat pure white ; remainder of lower surface pale grey, the breast being tinged with lilac ; back of neck vinous ; inter- scapulary region brown with a vinous tinge ; wing-coverts brown like the back, but not so strongly tinted with vinous ; quills dark brown, almost black ; uropygium and upper tail-coverts dark ash ; rectrices above dark brown, with a broad grey terminal band ; lower surface of rectrices pale grey ; under tail-coverts pale cream-colour ; forehead, crown, nape, cheeks and ear-coverts pure French grey. (Walden.} Legs and feet deep lake-pink ; bill deep lake-pink, except horny portion, which is pale whity brown ; irides pearly grey (Davison) . Iris greyish white ; orbital skin greyish brown ; bill reddish plum- colour, whitish at the tip ( Wardlaw Ramsay) . Length 18*5 inches, tail 8, wing 9'5, tarsus 1*1, bill from gape 1*6. The female is rather smaller. The Grey-headed Imperial Pigeon was obtained by Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay on the Karin hills east of Tonghoo at from 4000 to 4200 feet elevation ; and on these hills it appears to be confined to the higher parts. Mr. Davison met with it on Mooleyit mountain, where he states that it was not uncommon. He found the nest in January, containing one egg. Mr. Blyth, in his Catalogue, gives C. insignis from the mountains of Tenasserim (misprinted Arrakan, as is evident from a perusal of the original reference, J. A. S. B. xxviii. p. 416). There is little doubt that by this name he intended to indicate C. griseicapilla. Mr. Hume mentions a large Pigeon which Mr. Davison observed in great quantities at Merguiin August, and suggests that it maybe C.badia. This Imperial Pigeon may be recognized by its chestnut-red back and wing-coverts. Observers in Tenasserim should be on the look-out for it. THE PIED IMPERIAL PIGEON. 303 662, CARPOPHAGA BICOLOR,. THE PIED IMPERIAL PIGEON. Columba bicolor, Scop. Del. Flor. et Faun. Insub. ii. p. 94. Carpophaga bicolor, Bally S. F. i. p. 79 ; Hwne, Nests and Eygs, p. 496 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 264 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 292 ; Bl. B. Burnt, p. 145 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 418 ; If'tme, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 527. Myristicivora bicolor, Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 217. Description. — Male and female. Winglet, primaries and secondaries black ; terminal portion of the tail black, the black occupying about half the feather on the centrals, decreasing in extent towards the outer feathers, and on the outermost pair occupying merely a small portion of the tip and the outer web; remainder of the plumage white with a creamy or yellow tinge. Legs and feet pale smalt-blue ; bill leaden blue, the tip darkish horny or dark plumbeous ; irides dark brown. (Damson.} Length 16 inches, tail 5, wing 9, tarsus 1*2, bill from gape 1*3. The female is of the same size. The Pied Imperial Pigeon is said by Mr. Blyth to occur in the Mergui archipelago. Mr. Davison did not, however, observe it in any of the islands. This species occurs in the Andamans and Nicobars, and has a very extensive range, being found in the Malay peninsula and all the islands of the archipelago to New Guinea. It has the same habits as the other Imperial Pigeons, but appears to be a sea-coast-loving species. It breeds in mangrove trees, and, so far as is known, lays only one egg. C. insularis, from the Nicobar Islands, may occur in the Mergui archi- pelago. It is larger than C. cenea ; the upper plumage is darker and bluer ; and the under tail-coverts are dingy brown, tinged with chestnut in places, but not uniformly deep chestnut or maroon as in C. cenea. C. palumboides, from the Andamans, has the wings and tail blackish and the rest of the plumage dusl^y slaty -blue. 304 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Subfamily TRERONINJE. Genus SPHENOCEKCUS, G. E. Gray. 663. SPHENOCERCUS SPHENURUS. THE WEDGE-TAILED GREEN PIGEON. Vinago sphenura, Vig. P. Z. S. 1831, p. 173. Sphenocercus sphenurus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 453 j Hume fy Henders. Lah. to Yark. p. 270 j Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 494 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 163 ; Wald. in Bl B. Burm. p. 144 j Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 415 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 339 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 235. Description. — Male. Head, neck and lower plumage greenish yellow, the crown and breast washed with rufous ; upper back slaty green ; wing- coverts, tertiaries, back, rump and upper tail-coverts dark dull green ; the centre of the back and the lesser coverts washed with maroon ; primaries and secondaries blackish ; the greater wing-coverts and secondaries narrowly margined with yellow ; central tail-feathers green, the others ashy, more and more washed with green as they approach the centre ; flanks and region of the vent mixed ashy green and yellow ; under tail-coverts pale cinnamon. The female differs in having no maroon on the wings and back, in having no rufous tinge on the crown and breast, in being of a darker green, and in having the under tail- coverts centred with ashy green. Legs, feet and claws crimson-pink ; bill dull smalt-blue, horny portion pale skimmed-milk-blue ; orbital skin pale smalt ; irides with an inner ring of pale bright blue and an outer ring of buify pink. (Davison.) Length 13 inches, tail 6, wing 7, tarsus *9, bill from gape '9. The female appears to be smaller and to have a shorter tail. The Wedge-tailed Green Pigeon is found throughout the hill-portions of Pegu and the forests skirting them. Mr. de Wet sent it to me from near Tonghoo; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it on the Tonghoo hills. Mr. Davison met with it in Tenasserim as far south as Mooleyit ; and this is probably its southern limit. It occurs in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal and along the Himalayas to the north-west. The Pigeons of this and the next three genera are termed cf Green Pigeons," from the prevailing colour of their plumage. The males are not difficult to be identified ; but the females resemble each other very closely. The two birds of this genus may be at once separated from all the others by their peculiar wedge-shaped tails and by the absence of a sinuation on the third primary. The present species is found in thick-forest country, frequenting trees THE PINTAILED GREEN PIGEON. 305 which bear fruit, and going about in nocks. In India it breeds from April to July (and it will probably be found breeding in Burmah about the same time), constructing a nest of twigs on the outer branches of trees, and laying two eggs. 664. SPHENOCERCUS APICICAUDA. THE PINTAILED GREEN PIGEON. Treron apicauda, Hodgs. J. A. S. B. xiv. p. 854. Sphenocercus apicaudus, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 454; Wald. in El. B. Burm. p. 144 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 415 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109. Description. — Male. General colour green, tinged with yellow on the crown, rump, upper tail-coverts and lower plumage ; breast tinged with rufous ; under tail-coverts cinnamon, edged with whitish ; primaries and secondaries blackish, very narrowly margined with yellow ; median and greater coverts and tertiaries more broadly edged with yellow on the outer webs; central tail-feathers green at base, ashy on the remainder, the others ashy with a broad blackish band across the middle. The female merely differs in wanting the rufous tinge on the breast. Legs bright crimson-pink ; bill pale blue, horny portion whitish ; facial skin pale blue ; irides, inner ring bright ultramarine blue, outer ring buffy pink. (Davison.) Length 16 inches, tail 8, wing 6'2, tarsus '9, bill from gape 1. The female is rather smaller, and has the tail shorter. The Pintailed Green Pigeon was sent to me by Mr. de Wet from the hills east of Tonghoo ; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it in the same locality. Mr. Davison met with it in Tenasserim as far south as Mooleyit mountain. It is found in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal, and along the Himalayas from Assam to Nipal. There is very little on record about this Pigeon ; but its habits do not probably differ in any respect from those of the preceding. S. korthalsi, which occurs in Cochin China, is not unlikely to be met with in Tenasserim. It has the middle tail-feathers of great length; and it is green, with the mantle maroon and the breast orange. VOL. II. 306 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus TRERON, Vieill 665. TRERON NIPALENSIS. THE THICK-BILLED GREEN PIGEON. Toria nipalensis, Hodys. As. Res. xix. p. 164. Treron nipalensis, Jerd. B. Ind. ii, p, 446 j Hume, S. F. iii. p. 160 ; Bl fy Wold. B. Burnt, p. 143 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 410 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Bingham, 8. F. ix. p. 193; Oates, 8. F. x, p, 235, Description. — Male. Forehead and crown clear ashy, tinged with green on the nape ; sides of the head and neck, and a broad collar round the hind neck extending to the upper back dull green ; chin, throat, breast, abdomen and sides of the body brighter green, the latter tinged with slaty ; back, scapulars and most of the lesser wing-coverts maroon ; remainder of the lesser coverts and the tertiaries green ; median coverts green, broadly edged with yellow, the outermost ones mostly tinged with blackish ; greater coverts blackish, edged with yellow ; primaries and their coverts black, the latter very narrowly edged with whitish; secondaries black, edged with yellow on the outer web; lower back, rump and upper tail- coverts green ; central tail-feathers wholly green, the next pair greenish with ashy tips, the others ashy tinged with green on the outer webs and with a bar of black across ; vent green dashed with white ; under tail- coverts cinnamon-colour, the lateral feathers green tipped with white. The female differs in having the maroon of the upper plumage replaced by dark green, and in having the under tail-coverts white irregularly barred with green. Bill red at base, yellow on culmen, bluish white on the corneous portion ; mouth reddish ; eyelids greenish blue ; iris blue ; legs bright red ; claws pale horn. Length 10*8 inches, tail 3'5, wing 5*7, tarsus '9, bill from gape '95. The female is a trifle smaller. The birds of this genus may be separated from the other Green Pigeons by the shape of the bill, the corneous portion of which is very large, extending back to the edge of the feathers of the forehead ; and the third primary is sinuated on the inner web. The Thick-billed Green Pigeon is found throughout the more hilly and well-wooded portions of the Province, and is abundant. To the north it occurs in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal and the South- eastern Himalayas ; and to the south it extends down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra ; it also occurs in Siam and Cochin China. Like other Green Pigeons, it is found in flocks feeding on fruits and visiting those trees which produce them. Capt. Bingham found it breeding in Tenasserim in February and March ; the number of eggs laid is two- THE YELLOW-FRONTED GREEN PIGEON. 307 Genus CROCOPUS, Bonap. 666. CEOCOPUS VIRIDIFRONS. THE YELLOW-FRONTED GREEN PIGEON. Treron viridifrons, Bl J. A. S. B. xiv. p. 849. Crocopus viridifrons, Hume, S. F. 'iii. p. 161 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 143 j Gates, S. F. v. p. 163 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 664; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 410 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Bing- ham, S. F. ix. p. 194 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 235. Description. — Male and female. Lores, forehead, cheeks, throat, breast sides and back of the neck deep yellow ; ear-coverts, crown, nape and a band across the back of the nape ashy ; abdomen, sides of the body and under wing-coverts ashy • thighs bright yellow ; vent mixed yellow and ashy; under tail-coverts maroon tipped with white; back, scapulars, tertiaries, rump and lesser wing-coverts dull green ; a patch of lilac near the bend of the wing ; winglet and primary-coverts dark brown ; quills dark brown edged with yellow ; greater coverts dark brown broadly edged with yellow ; basal half of the tail yellow, terminal half and upper coverts ashy. Iris blue with an outer circle of pink ; eyelids plumbeous ; mouth flesh- colour ; soft parts of the bill greenish, hard parts bluish white ; legs orange-yellow; claws bluish. Length 12'8 inches, tail 4'7, wing 7*5, tarsus 1, bill from gape 1. The female is a little smaller. This Pigeon differs from its Indian ally, C. phcenicopterus, in having the forehead and basal half of the tail green. The Pigeons of this genus have a distinct style of coloration ; the sexes are alike, and the legs are yellow ; the third primary is sinuated on the inner web. The Yellow-fronted Green Pigeon is spread over the whole Province, alike in the hills and plains, as far south as Moulmein; and Capt. Bingham observed it in the Thoungyeeu valley. Dr. Armstrong did not meet with it in the Irrawaddy delta ; but I think it will probably be found in that part of the country. It extends to the north through the Indo-Burmese countries to Cachar, and eastwards to Cochin China. This species is perhaps not so abundant as some of the other species ; but it is more generally met with wherever there are suitable fruit-bearing trees. I fouud the nest in Pegu in April, Capt. Bingham in Tenasserim in March. The nest is placed in low trees ; and the eggs are two in number. 308 BIRDS OF BRITISH BUKMAH. Genus OSMOTRERON, JBonap. 667. OSMOTRERON BICINCTA. THE ORANGE-BREASTED GREEN PIGEON. Vinago bicincta, Jerd. Madr. Journ. xii. p. 13. Osmotreron bicincta, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 449 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 493 ; SI. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 144 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 337 ; Gates, S. F. v. p. 163 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 411 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 725 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 235. Description. — Male. Forehead, front of crown, sides of the head and neck, chin and throat yellowish green ; hinder part of crown, nape and hind neck ashy ; breast orange, separated from the green of the neck by a lilac collar ; under wing-coverts and axillaries ashy ; abdomen and vent greenish yellow ; sides of the body ashy ; the flanks yellow streaked with dark green ; under tail-coverts cinnamon ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts and lesser wing-coverts green ; winglet and primaries and the primary - coverts black ; secondaries black narrowly margined with yellow ; tertiaries and greater wing-coverts green, broadly edged on the outer web with yellow; central tail-feathers ashy, the others darker ashy, and all the feathers broadly tipped with pale ashy white. The female is very similar, but has no lilac or orange on the breast, this part being of the same green as the abdomen ; the under tail-coverts are pale ashy white dashed with brown or dull greenish. Bill dull green ; iris blue with an outer red ring ; legs pink. Length 12 inches, tail 4*2, wing 6'3, tarsus *8, bill from gape 1. The female is rather smaller. The Orange-breasted Green Pigeon is extremely common, being found in all portions of the Province except on the higher hills of Tenasserim. It occurs over the greater part of the peninsula of India and Ceylon, and probably in the Indo-Burmese countries ; and to the east it extends to Cochin China. It is said to range as far south as Malacca. This bird has the usual habits of the Green Pigeons, associating in flocks and feeding on fruit. I have found the nest in Pegu from March to May ; it is composed of a few twigs and placed on one of the outer branches of a large tree, or sometimes in a bush. The Pigeons of this genus have the bill of the ordinary form, similar to that of Crocopus (that is, with half the upper mandible corneous and half soft) ; the third- primary is sinuated on the inner web; the legs are red ; and the sexes differ in coloration. They may consequently be separated at once THE PINK-NECKED GREEN" PIGEON. 309 by the form of the bill from Treron, and by the colour of the legs from Crocopus. There will be no difficulty found, I think, in discriminating the males of the four species of Osmotreron that occur in Burmah ; with the females, however, it is different, as they are all very similar. The following remarks may facilitate the identification of the females. The first two have the head green and the central tail-feathers ashy ; and whereas 0. bicincta has ;ui ashy collar on the nape and hind neck, O. vernans has the whole head and neck green. In the other two species the head is grey and the central tail-feathers green ; and while in O. phayrii the head is pale bluish grey and the wing more than six inches in length, in O. fulvicollis the head is slaty grey and the wing less than six inches in length. 668, OSMOTRERON VERNANS. THE PINK-NECKED GREEN PIGEON. Columba vernans, Linn. Mantiss. Plant, p. 526. Columba viridis, Scop. Del. Flor. et Faun. Insiib. ii. p. 94. Osmotreron viridis, Hume, S. F. i. p. 461. Osmotreron vernans, Wold. Trans. Zool. Soc. viii. p. 81 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 411 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 526. Treron ver- nans, Salvad. Ucc. Barn. p. 286. Description. — Male. The whole head, chin and throat ashy ; nape, hind neck, sides of the neck, fore neck and upper breast vinaceous pink ; lower breast orange ; abdomen greenish yellow ; sides of the body ashy ; vent and flanks mixed green and yellow ; under tail-coverts deep chestnut ; back, scapulars, rump, tertiaries and wing-coverts green ; the outer median and greater coverts and some of the tertiaries margined with yellow; primaries and secondaries blackish, some of them very narrowly margined with yellow ; upper tail-coverts rufescent ; tail-feathers deep ashy, with a broad blackish band at the end, and tipped with paler ashy. The female has the whole head, neck and brea st green, and the under tail-coverts yellowish white marked with cinnamon and dull ashy green. Tho legs and feet are of a darker or lighter carnation pink, sometimes with a purple shade ; the bill dull white or pale plumbeous ; the cere a dirty yellow. The irides consist of three rings : — the outermost buff, buffy pink or pink ; the next prussian blue ; the innermost, next the pupil, bright ultramarine blue. (Davison.) Length 11 inches, tail 4, wing 57, tarsus -8, bill from gape '85. The female is rather smaller. 310 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. The Pink-necked Green Pigeon occurs in the south of Tenasserim, from Mergui down to Malewoon. , It extends down the Malay peninsula and eastwards to Cochin China ; and it is found in Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Celebes and the Philippine Islands. Lieutenant Kelham found this species breeding at Perak in the Malay peninsula in March, on bushes in swampy valleys, the nest being from six to ten feet from the ground. 669. OSMOTRERON PHAYRIL PHAYRE'S GREEN PIGEON. Osmotreron phayrii, Bl. J. A. S. B. xxxi. p. 344 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 451 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 162 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 144 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 412 ; Hume, S.F. viii. p. 109; BingJiam, S.F. ix. p. 194; Gates, S. F. x. p. 235. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown and nape ashy ; neck, upper back, sides of neck and sides of the head green ; lower back, scapulars, lesser wing-coverts and the greater ones next the body deep maroon ; rump and upper tail-coverts green -, median and greater wing-coverts blackish, broadly edged with bright yellow ; quills black, narrowly margined on the outer web with yellow, tertiaries broadly edged with the same; centre tail- feathers green, the others green at base with a broad ashy tip and a black bar in front of the ashy, the black bar and ashy tip obsolete on the pair next the centrals and getting more pronounced towards the outer part of the tail ; chin and throat yellowish ; remainder of lower plumage green, the breast tinged with orange, the sides of the body with ashy, and the feathers of the flanks and legs with all but the tips yellow ; under tail-coverts cinnamon ; under wing-coverts and axillaries ashy. The female has the maroon upper plumage of the male replaced by green ; there is no orange on the breast ; and the under tail- coverts are mingled green, ashy and white. Legs lake-red ; irides blue, with an outer circle of pink ; eyelids plum- beous ; bill bluish, the base darker. Length 11*5 inches, tail 4, wing 6*3, tarsus '9, bill from gape 1. The female is of the same size. Phayre's Green Pigeon occurs plentifully in all the hill-tracts of the Province as far south as Tavoy, below which place Mr. Davison does not appear to have observed it. It extends to the east as far as Cochin China, and north to Assam and Lower Bengal. THE RUDDY GREEN PIGEON. 311 This species appears to be confined to the denser forests on the hills; and I do not remember to have ever met with it in the plains. There is nothing remarkable about its habits. 670. OSMOTRERON FULVICOLLIS. THE RUDDY GREEN PIGEON. Columba fulvicollis, Wacjl. Syst. Av., Cohimba, no. 8; Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. p. 213. Treron fulvicollis, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 288. Osmotreron fulvi- collis, Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 413 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109. Description. — Male. The whole head and neck, with the upper breast, ruddy vinaceous ; lower breast the same, but paler ; abdomen green ; sides of the body ashy ; vent and flanks mixed ashy green and yellow ; thighs bright yellow; under tail-coverts cinnamon; back, scapulars and lesser wing-coverts maroon ; rump ashy green ; upper tail-coverts and central tail-feathers dull green ; the other tail-feathers green at base, broadly tipped with pale ashy and with a subterminal dark bar ; median and greater wing- coverts, secondaries and tertiaries blackish, edged on the outer web with yellow ; primaries all blackish. The female is very similar to the female of 0. phayrii, but is considerably smaller. Legs and feet in the male purplish pink, in the female lake-pink ; claws dead white in both sexes ; upper mandible to just beyond nostril and lower mandible to angle of gonys, in the male deep red, in the female dull red ; rest of bill in both sexes dead white tinged strongly with greenish blue; irides in the male bufly pink, in the female with an outer ring of pink and an inner one of ultramarine blue ; in both sexes the orbital skin is plum- beous green, the edge of the eyelid orange. (Davison.) Length 10*5 inches, tail 3*5, wing 5'5, tarsus *8, bill from gape *8. The female is rather smaller. The Ruddy Green Pigeon was procured by Mr. Davison in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where it appears to be rare and a migrant, visiting that part of the country only in December and January. It extends to the east as far as Cochin China ; it ranges down the Malay peninsula, and occurs in Sumatra, Bangka, Borneo and the Philippine Islands. This Pigeon is probably only partially migratory, travelling from one part of the country to another as the fruits on which it feeds ripen. 312 BIRDS OF BRITISH BTJRMAH. Order XII. GALLING. Family PHASIANID^E. Subfamily PAVONINE. Genus PAVO, Linn. 671. PAVO MUTICUS. THE BURMESE PEAFOWL. Pavo muticus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 268 ; Elliot, Mon. Phas. i. pi. 5 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 165; Bl $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 147; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 402 Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 668; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 425, 520; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 455, viii. p. 110 ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, i. p. 94, pi. ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 195 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 235 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 529. Description. — It is unnecessary to describe the brilliant plumage of this bird ; and I shall content myself with pointing out the differences between the Burmese and the Indian Peafowl. Structurally they may be distin- guished at a glance. In P. cristatus the crest is composed of feathers the shafts of which are bare except at the tips ; in P. muticus the crest-feathers are webbed throughout their length. The coloration of the two is also very distinct. In P. cristatus the whole head, neck and breast are of a beauti- ful purplish blue, the scapulars, tertiaries and the lesser wing-coverts rufescent barred with black, and the skin of the face greyish white ; in P. muticus the head, the whole neck and the breast are brilliant green, the scapulars, tertiaries and lesser wing-coverts are uniform and unbarred, and the skin of the face is blue above and round the eyes, deep yellow on the remainder of the face. The females may be distinguished by the form of the crest as well as by the coloration of the neck and breast and skin of the face, all of which are similar to the same parts of the male. Iris brown ; legs and bill horny brown ; facial skin blue on the upper, yellow on the posterior and lower part. Length about 45 inches, tail 16, wing 18*5, tarsus 6, bill from gape 2*3. The female is smaller in all her dimensions. The train of the male, the feathers of which constitute the upper tail-coverts and not the tail itself, reaches sometimes to 45 inches beyond the tip of the tail. The total length of the male, from the tip of the bill to the end of the train, is in fine birds as much as 7J feet. THE ARGUS PHEASANT. 313 The train of the Peacock begins to grow about February, and is lost again by August. The Burmese Peafowl occurs over the whole Province in suitable localities. It is very capricious in its choice, being very abundant in some spots and entirely absent from others which seem equally suited to it. It extends north as far as Chittagong, east through Siam to Cochin China (where Dr. Tiraud says that it is very abundant), and south down the Malay peninsula, where Lieut. Kelham observed it at Perak. It reappears in Java ; and it has been asserted that it occurs in Sumatra and Borneo ; but probably this statement is incorrect. The Peafowl inhabits certain spots and tracts of jungle, which it seldom leaves. Usually their haunts are in thick forest where there is a good undergrowth of elephant-grass and abundance of water in the immediate vicinity. Some years ago they were excessively abundant in the Thara- waddy District, and (a very unusual thing with this shy bird) they used to come in the early mornings onto my newly made road and strut about. In Burmah it is almost impossible to shoot them in the daytime, owing to their shyness, and the best way to secure a specimen is to get a native to watch them going to roost, and then to proceed to the trees in the early morning before sunrise; by this means one or two birds may be obtained. The Peahen, the natives informed me, lays about March; I have never been able to find a nest. P. nigripennis is allied to P. cristatus ; but its native habitat is unknown ; it may be recognized by the scapulars and wing-coverts being black, the feathers narrowly edged with green. Genus AKGUSIANUS, Safin. 672. ARGUSIANUS ARGUS. THE ARGUS PHEASANT. Phasianus argus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 272. Argusianus giganteus, Bl. B. Burm. p. 148. Argus giganteus, Elliot, Mon. Phas. i. pi. 11 ; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 427; If time, 6'. F. viii. p. 110; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, i. p. yy, pi. Argusa giganteus, Kelham, His, 1881, p. 530. Description. — The male of this magnificent species is not likely to be confounded with any other Pheasant found in the Province or adjoining regions. It may be recognized by its naked head, its enormous tail, the 314 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. central feathers of which measure upwards of four feet in length, and by the immense development of the tertiary feathers of the wing, which exceed the primaries in length by more than one foot. The female differs from the male not only in being of comparatively dull plumage, but in wanting the lengthened tail-feathers and tertiaries. Like the male, however, she has the chin and throat, the sides of the head and the front of the neck naked. With birds so easily recognized, it seems quite unnecessary to give even a short description of the plumage. The male has the legs and feet bright red, sometimes even vermilion- red ; the female has them of a paler and duller red, sometimes a litharge- red ; the bill and claws are white, slightly tinged with blue ; the cere in the male the same colour as the bill, in the female pale brown ; irides wood- brown to dark brown ; the facial skin dull pale indigo to dark plumbeous blue. (Davison.) Male : length about 70 inches, tail about 50, wing to end of primaries 18, tarsus 4*7, bill from gape up to 2. Female : length about 30, tail 12, wing 12, tarsus 3'6, bill from gape up to 1*7. The Argus Pheasant occurs in the extreme south of Tenasserim, where Mr. Davison observed it in the forests about Malewoon and Bankasoon and about the higher portions of the Pakchan. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is found in Sumatra ; and it is also said to occur in Siam. I gather the following from the interesting account of these birds given by Mr. Davison, probably the only European who has observed them in a state of nature. They are confined entirely to the evergreen forests. Both the males and females live quite solitarily ; and even at the breeding- season the two sexes are not usually found together. The males have a peculiar habit of selecting a piece of ground some six or eight yards square, thoroughly cleaning it from all vegetation and rubbish, and taking up their quarters on it during the day, leaving it only in the mornings and evenings to search for food. On this ground they probably dance and strut. Their food consists of fallen fruit, ants, slugs and insects of various kinds. The female is said to have no regular breeding-season, but to lay at all times except in the depth of the rains. The call of both sexes is very loud, and can be heard an immense distance. THE GREY PEACOCK PHEASANT. 315 Genus POLYPLEOTRON, Temm. 673. POLYPLECTRON THIBETANUM. THE GREY PEACOCK PHEASANT. Pavo tibetanus, Gm. Syat. Nat. i. p. 731. Polyplectron chinquis, Temm. P'uj. et Gall ii. p. 363, iii. p. 675 ; Bl. $ Wold. B. Burm. p. 148 ; Inglis $ Hume, S. F. v. p. 40. Polyplectron thibetanum, Elliot, Mon. Phas. i. pi. 6 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 432, 521 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110 ; Hume % Marsh. Game Birds, i. p. 105, pi. ; Bingham, 8. F. ix. p. 195. Description. — Male. Crown of head with the feathers thick-set and somewhat long, but not forming a conspicuous crest; whole head and neck greyish brown stippled with brown ; lower plumage pale ochraceous barred with brown; whole upper plumage, wings and tail dark brown, minutely speckled all over with greyish white ; the feathers of the back, scapulars, tertiaries and wing-coverts tipped with pale buff, and each having near the tip a large roundish violet-blue spot, tinged with a coppery gloss next the buff tip ; each tail-feather with a large oval metallic-green patch on each web, surrounded by a blackish and then by a buff ring. The female is similar in general appearance to the male ; but the spots on the back and upper plumage are dull, and those on the tail are very small and inconspicuous; the spots on the tail-coverts are altogether absent. In the male the legs and feet were blackish, the claws black; upper mandible and tip of lower mandible black, rest of lower mandible and facial skin pale yellow ; irides white. The female had the legs and feet very dark plumbeous ; upper mandible dark horny brown, paler on cere ; lower mandible pale brown ; irides deep grey ; facial skin pale dingy fleshy yellow. (Davison.) An allied species is P. bicalcaratum, which is said to have occurred at Mergui. Mr. Blyth, however, does not include it in his list of Burmese birds ; and Mr. Davison does not appear to have met with it in Tenasserim. I shall therefore not include it in my work, but merely indicate it here. It is about the same size and form as P. chinquis ; but it may be recognized by the male having a well-defined sharp-pointed crest of narrow bluish feathers, the upper plumage of a clear buff spotted with black, and the ocelli green, not violet-blue. The female is similar to the male in general colour ; but the ocelli on the upper plumage are blackish, without gloss, and those on the tail are very small. The Grey Peacock-Pheasant is found abundantly in Arrakan. I have never procured it in any part of Pegu, nor heard of any one having done so — which is rather strange, for the Pegu hills seem well fitted for it. In 316 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Tenasserim Mr. Davison observed it on Mooleyit mountain; and Mr. Hume subsequently received a specimen from the foot of Nwalabo mountain. Capt. Bingham shot it in the Sinzaway Forest Reserve near Pahpoon ; and he states that it occurs in the Thoungyeen valley. To the north it extends through the Indo-Burmese countries to the hill- tracts of Eastern Bengal and to the Bhootan Doars. To the west it is found in Siam ; but Dr. Tiraud does not record it from Cochin China. It is not known to occur in any portion of the Malay peninsula ; nor, in f act, has it been procured south of Tavoy. This Peacock Pheasant appears to frequent only the thickest forests, and chiefly those which grow on hilly or broken ground. It is extremely shy, and difficult to shoot. The cry of this bird is said by Mr. Davison to resemble the words qua-qua-qua frequently repeated. I have recently described a Peacock Pheasant from Bhamo under the name of P. Helena (Ibis, 1883, p. 136, pi. v.) . It may possibly be found in Arrakan or some other portion of Burmah. It differs from P. thi- betanum in having the ocelli of the upper plumage violet, not surrounded by a buff annular ring, but bounded above and below by a white band ; the spots on the tail are deep violet, not metallic green. Subfamily PHASIANIN^E. Genus EUPLOCAMUS, Temm. 674, EUPLOCAMUS LINEATUS. THE LINEATED SILVER PHEASANT. Phasianus lineatus, Lath, in Vig. P. Z. S. 1831, p. 24. Euplocamus lineatus, Elliot, Mon. Phas. ii. pi. 23 (part.) ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 525 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 165 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 669 (part.) ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 436 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 110 ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, i. p. 205, pi. ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 195; Oates, S. F. x. p. 236. Nycthemerus lineatus, Bl $ Wold. B. Burm. p. 149. Gennseus lineatus, Oates, S. F. v. p. 164. Description. — Male. Forehead, crown, crest, chin, throat and the whole lower plumage black ; the sides of the breast and of the body streaked with white ; the forehead and feathers above the red facial skin stippled with white dots ; sides of the head and neck, the hind neck, the whole upper plumage and wing-coverts black, finely and closely vermiculated with white ; wings and tail the same, but the wavy bars of white broader and not so close ; the central pair of tail-feathers almost entirely white on THE LINEATED SILVER PHEASANT. 317 the inner webs. Younger males have more white streaks on the lower plumage, these extending to the whole breast and abdomen. The female has the forehead, crown and crest olive-brown tinged with rufous ; chin and throat grey ; sides and back of the neck olive-brown streaked with white ; front of the neck pale chestnut with white streaks ; the remaining lower plumage rich chestnut streaked with white ; base of the hind neck and the back olive-brown, with white arrowhead-shaped marks ; wings, coverts, lower back, rump and the shorter upper tail- coverts olive- brown, the feathers edged paler ; the longer upper tail-coverts yellowish white barred with black; the six outer pairs of tail-feathers blackish, broadly barred with white, each of these white bars having another black bar within it, and between the white bars marks of chestnut ; the next pair similar, but the terminal half of the inner web yellowish vermiculatcd with black ; central pair wholly yellowish white on the inner web, and the outer web vermiculated with black. The chickens have the crown of the head fulvous, albescent on the fore- head ; there is a stripe from the base of the upper mandible to the eye, also a black line from the posterior corner of the eye passing under the ear-coverts and terminating at the back of the head; the whole lower sur- face is white with a tinge of fulvous ; upper neck, back and rump black ; two conspicuous fulvous-white lines run from the shoulder to the root of the tail along the sides of the body, one on either side ; quills brown, much freckled with fulvous, and the greater coverts largely tipped with white. Male : iris reddish hazel ; bill green, turning to dusky at the tip and at the base of the culmen ; bare skin of the head rich crimson ; legs plum- beous brown ; claws pale horn ; spur dark brown. Female : legs dusky fleshy ; claws pinkish horn ; bill pale greenish, the base of the culmen blackish ; eyelids plumbeous ; irides bright reddish brown. Male : length 27 inches, wing 9'3, tail 12'5, tarsus 3'2, bill from gape 1*35. Female: length 20 inches, wing 8*5, tail 7'5, tarsus 3, bill from gape 1'3. The Lineated Silver Pheasant occurs throughout Pegu and Tenasserim as far south as Tavoy. On the eastern slopes of the Arrakan hills, which are properly in Pegu, the next species occurs ; but I am not sure whether the two may not be found together in this locality. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it on the Tonghoo hills, east of the town of Tonghoo. Eastwards it extends into Siam, and northwards up the Irrawaddy valley into Independent Burmah as far as Bhamo, but how much further north is not known. This Pheasant occurs abundantly wherever the ground is hilly or broken, and it is most numerous on the higher and wilder parts of the hills. It keeps to dense cover, seldom showing itself, runs with 318 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. great speed, and takes wing unwillingly. At the breeding-season the male makes a curious drumming sound with its wings, a sort of challenge, I imagine, to other cocks. The breeding-season commences in March, and is over by the end of April. The nest is merely a hollow in the ground under a shrub or at the foot of a tree, lined with a few dead leaves. The eggs, which are seldom more than seven in number, are of a pale buff colour. 675. EUPLOCAMUS CUVIERL THE ARRAKAN SILVER PHEASANT. Lophophorus cuvieri, Temm. PI. Col i. ; Hume, 8. F. iii. p. 106, note. Nycthe- merus cuvieri, SI. JB. Burm. p, 149. Euplocaxnus cuvieri, Oates, S. F. iii. p. 343 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, i. p. 201, pi. ; Sanderson, S. F. viii. p. 493. Description. — Male. Like the male of E. lineatus, but with no white streaks on the lower plumage; the breast is strongly tinged with deep blue ; a tinge of blue runs all through the upper plumage ; and the feathers of the rump and upper tail-coverts have broad white margins ; the vermi- culations on the upper plumage are not so frequent nor so white; and there is much less white on the tail. The female is also like the female of E. lineatus in general appearance, but differs in some important particulars. All the feathers of the upper plumage are conspicuously margined paler ; and there are no white streaks on the sides of the neck and hind neck ; the tail is dark chestnut, the four or five outer pairs of feathers without any marks whatever, the others vermiculated with black. The colour of the lower plumage is much duller, and the white streaks are inconspicuous and infrequent. Length 25 inches, tail ITS, wing 9'33 tarsus 3'4, bill from gape 1-6. The female has the wing 8'5 inches, the tail 8'8, the tarsus 2*8, the bill from gape 1'5. E. horsfieldi, which is likely to occur in Arrakan, has the whole plumage glossy bluish black, only the feathers of the rump and upper tail-coverts being conspicuously margined with white. The female bears a considerable resemblance to those of E. lineatus and E. cuvieri, but has no white streaks on the lower plumage, the shafts alone being paler. The tail, with the exception of the central feathers, is black. The Arrakan Silver Pheasant occurs over the whole of the Arrakan hills, extending, I think, quite down to the Irrawaddy river ; but I have never myself procured a specimen nearer to that river than fifteen miles, at a place named Nyoungyeedouk, on the road leading from Prome to Tong- ANDERSON'S SILVER PHEASANT. 319 hoop. Northwards it seems to extend to Chittagong ; for Mr. Sanderson writes that he is of the opinion that lie saw this Pheasant in that Province. I observed this Pheasant only two or three times, and I had no oppor- tunity of watching its habits ; it is, however, extremely unlikely that they differ in any respect from those of the preceding species. 676. EUPLOCAMUS ANDERSON!. ANDERSON'S SILVER PHEASANT. Euplocamus andersoni, Elliot, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 137 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 670, pi. liii. ; Elliot, Mon. Phas. ii. pi. 22. Euplocamus crawfurdi, Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. pp. 437, 521 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, i. p. 203, pi. Description. — Male. Upper parts black, each feather having three or more white irregular lines running parallel to, and meeting towards, the edges ; secondaries black, with broken irregular white lines running length- wise with the feather ; feathers of the rump like the back, but fringed with white, which overlaps the feather beneath and gives this part a beautiful silvery appearance ; top of head, lengthened crest, and entire underparts very deep rich blue ; tail moderately long, middle feather white, thickly covered with rather broad irregular black lines, these most numerous on the outer web and towards the base, becoming less on inner web, and disap- pearing entirely at the tip and on the edge of inner web; rest of tail- feathers black, with fine broken lines of white, these disappearing towards the tips; primaries dark brown, irregularly marked with white lines. (Elliot.) The female does not appear to have been described. The characteristic points in which typical E. crawfurdi differs from E. lineatus are, first, the much coarser and bolder character of the markings of the upper surface, which are all longitudinal, more or less parallel to the margins of the feathers, which are entirely free from the fine more or less transverse markings or mottling characteristic of E. lineatus ; second, in the whole of the central tail-feathers, except just at the tip and the margins of the inner webs, being boldly variegated black and white, instead of, as in E. lineatus, almost the whole of the inner webs and the terminal half, at any rate, of the outer webs being white or sullied white, free from markings, and such markings as exist on the basal portions being fine. (Hume.) Length 30 inches, tail 13'5, wing 1T5, tarsus 3'62, bill from gape T55. The legs and feet dark pinkish fleshy ; the bill pale bluish horny ; the facial skin deep crimson ; the irides brown. (Davison) 320 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. I have not had the opportunity of examining specimens of this Pheasant, the only portion of the plumage I have seen being the tail of a male sent me some years ago by Colonel Lowndes from Bhamo, in Independent Burmah. The female does not appear to be known. Nothing is known regarding the habits of this Pheasant. It has been obtained in Independent Burmah on the borders of Yunnan and again at Dargwin, a police-station about eighteen miles north of Pahpoon in Tenasserim. It seems doubtful what Phasianus crawfurdi (Gray, Griff. Cuv. An. Kingd. viii. p. 27) really is; and I do not think that it is to be unhesi- tatingly identified with the present species. The description is based on a female bird which was said to measure only fourteen inches in length : no female of this latter could possibly measure only fourteen inches in length ; for even the female of E. lineatus, a considerably smaller bird, measures twenty inches. 677. EUPLOCAMUS VIEILLOTI. VIEILLOT'S FIREBACK PHEASANT. Gallophasis vieilloti, G, R. Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 498. Euplocamus vieilloti, Sclat. P. Z. S. 1863, p. 118; Hume, S. F. v. p. 119; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 438; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 110; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, p. 532. Euplocamus Ignitus, Elliot, Mon. Phas. ii. pi. 26 (part.) ; Bl B. Burm. p. 149 ; Elliot, Ibis, 1878, p. 124 (part.). Description. — Male. Lower back and rump glistening fiery chestnut ; remainder of the plumage metallic violet-blue, the sides of the body streaked with white ; the centre of the abdomen and vent plain black ; primaries brown ; secondaries black : central pair of tail-feathers white ; the next pair nearly all white, the basal half of the outer web being brown ; the next pair black, with the end of the inner web whitish ; the remaining feathers black. The female has the chin and throat whitish, the whole head and neck all round, the whole of the upper plumage, the wings and tail chestnut ; the front and sides of the neck streaked with white ; the head, hind neck and upper back plain, all the other parts finely vermiculated with black ; breast black, each feather tipped with chestnut and the margins white; upper abdomen, sides of the body and thighs black, each feather broadly margined all round with white ; lower abdomen and vent white ; under tail-coverts chestnut. Legs and feet vermilion-red ; claws, and in the male the spurs, whitish ; the back of the tarsi in the female fleshy ; in the male the entire bill is whitish or horny white and the cere brownish; in the female the upper VIEILLOT'S FIREBACK PHEASANT. 321 mandible is dark horny brown, the lower horny white ; irides clear pale red ; facial skin smalt-blue, bright in the male, rather duller in the female. (Davison.) Male : Length 28 inches, tail 10, wing 12, tarsus 4'3, bill from gape 1-7. The female : length 23 inches, tail 7'5, wing 10, tarsus 3'5, bill from gape 1§6. Vieillot's Fireback Pheasant occurs in the south of Tenasserim, about as far as the town of that name, and not further north. It extends down the Malay peninsula, and is probably found in the island of Sumatra. Mr. Davison observes : — " These birds frequent the thick evergreen forests in small parties of five or six : usually there is only one male in the party, the rest being females ; but on one or two occasions I have seen two males together ; sometimes the males are found quite alone. I have never heard the males crow, nor do I think that they ever do so ; when alarmed both males and females have a peculiar sharp note, exceedingly like that of the large Black-backed Squirrel (Sciurus bicolor) . The males also continually make a whirring sound with their wings, which can be well imitated by twirling rapidly between the hands a small stick, in the cleft of which a piece of stiff cloth has been transversely placed. I have often discovered the whereabouts of a flock by hearing this noise. They never come into the open, but confine themselves to the forest, feeding on berries, tender leaves, and insects and grubs of all kinds ; and they are very fond of scratching about, after the manner of domestic poultry, and dusting themselves. When disturbed they run rapidly away, not in different directions, but all keeping much together; they rise at once before a dog, getting up with a great flutter, but when once well on the wing fly with a strong and rapid flight ; they seldom alight again under a couple of hundred yards, and usually on the ground, when they immediately start running." E. Ignitus from Borneo is an allied species, differing in having the sides of the body pale chestnut marked with black. E. prcslatus from Siam and Cochin China has a considerable portion of the plumage of a remark- able ash-colour or bluish grey, and the feathers of the rump are black margined with crimson. It is extremely likely to occur in the hill-ranges of North-eastern Burmali; for it has been procured in the Shan States. E. erythrophthalmus, from the Malay peninsula, may extend up to Tenas- serim. The male has the plumage black, with the rump red and the tail rich buff ; the female is remarkable for possessing long spurs (like the male), and the whole plumage is more or less dark green. VOL. II. 322 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus GALLUS, Briss. 678. GALLUS FERRUGINEUS. THE COMMON JUNGLE-FOWL. Tetrao ferruginous, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 761. Gallus ferrugineus, Jet-d. B. 2nd. ii. p. 236 ; Elliot, Mon. Phas. ii. pi. 32 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 528 ; id. 8. F. iii. p. 171 ; Bl B. Bunn. p. 148 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 338 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 164 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 420 ; Anders. Yunnan JExped. p. 669 ; WardlaiO Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 468 j Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 442 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, i. p. 217, pi. ; Bingham, S. F. x. p. 195 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 236 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 1. Description. — Male. Head and neck rich golden, turning to yellow on the longer hackles which cover the back ; back, lesser wing-coverts and lower plumage black; median coverts glistening maroon-chestnut; greater coverts glossy bluish black ; primaries brown ; secondaries brown, broadly edged with chestnut ; tertiaries black ; a band across the lower back connecting the median coverts rich maroon -chestnut, followed by a broad band of rich purplish brown ; lower rump and upper tail-coverts rich golden ; tail black, more or less glossed with green. The female has the crown rufous, the shafts darker; the hackles of the neck dark brown edged with yellow ; the upper plumage and wing- coverts yellowish brown mottled with black, and the shafts yellowish ; primaries dark brown ; secondaries dark brown, the outer webs mottled with yellowish brown ; tertiaries with both webs mottled ; tail dark brown, the outer webs mottled with yellowish brown ; lower plumage reddish brown with paler shaft-streaks, and most of the feathers stippled with blackish. Legs purpurescent brown ; claws dark bluish horn ; comb, wattles, eye- lids and the bare skin of the head dull red ; iris orange-red ; bill dark brown, reddish towards the base, and paler at the tip of lower mandible. Male : length 28 inches, tail 14, wing 9, tarsus 31, bill from gape 1-2. Female : length 18 inches, tail 6, wing 7, tarsus 2'5, bill from gape 1. The Common Jungle-fowl/is universally distributed over the Province, alike in the hills and plains, and is everywhere abundant; and it is met with in Karennee. It occurs in the Indo-Burmese countries and a great part of the Indian peninsula, and it is found in Siam and Cochin China. To the south it ranges down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra. In a modified form, whether wild or semi-domesticated, it has been recorded from numerous islands of the archipelago, and even from some in the Pacific Ocean. There is no description of jungle from which this common bird is absent ; but if it has a predilection for any particular style of country, it is for THE CHINESE FRANCOLIN. 323 broken ground and ravines with dense vegetation. Tn these localities (and there are many such, especially at the foot of some of the hill-ranges) it is abundant to a degree. Considerable numbers are generally found together, the two sexes mixing freely together. In Burmah, I think Jungle-fowl are commoner near tiny villages in deep forest than elsewhere; for in the neighbourhood of these hamlets there is always a certain amount of paddy-land, a good deal of low cover and a running stream. They feed in the mornings and evenings ; and during the middle of the day they remain very quiet, either on some tree or well concealed under low bushes or grass. The female commences to lay at the commencement of the hot weather, the end of February or the beginning of March. As a rule she makes no nest, but merely scrapes out a hollow at the foot of a bamboo or other bush ; at times there appear to be a good many leaves under the eggs. These vary in number from six to nine ; but Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay once found eleven eggs in one nest ; in colour they are pale buff. The Burmese race of the Jungle-fowl has the ear-lappet red, whereas the Indian bird has it whitish or pinkish. Family TETRAONID^. Subfamily PERDICIN^E. Genus FRANCOLINUS, Steph. 679. FRANCOLINUS CHINENSIS. THE CHINESE FRANCOLIN. Tetrao chinensis, Osb. Voy. ii. p. 326. Tetrao perlatus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 758. Francolinus phayrei, Bl. J. A. S. B. xii. p. 1011, xxiv. p. 480 ; id. B. Btirm. p. 149. Francolinus chinensis, Hume, Nests fy Eggs, p. 539 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 171 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 468 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 164 ; Daciil et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 400 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 443 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill ; Jin me 3- Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 27, pi. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 236. Francolinus perlatus, Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 672. Description. — Male. A broad band over the crown black, each feather edged with chestnut ; a band from the bill over the eyes and ear-coverts black; the spaces between these and the coronal band chestnut • a band from the angle of the bill down the sides of the throat black; the space between these and the superciliary streaks white ; chin and throat white ; 324 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. the whole neck, back, breast, ab'domen and sides of the body black ocellated with white, the spots tinged more or less with fulvous, especially on the sides of the body, and becoming larger as they approach the tail ; under tail-coverts chestnut ; rump and upper tail-coverts black barred with white ; scapulars and tertiaries chestnut ; coverts and wings blackish, ocellated and barred with white ; tail black barred with white except at the tip. The female has the chin and throat white, and the whole lower plumage barred with black ; the under tail-coverts chestnut ; the sides of the head fulvous, with an indication of the black cheek-stripe of the male, but with no superciliary or coronal band ; the whole summit of the head brown edged with fulvous-brown ; the hind neck black, barred or ocellated with white ; the back brown with whitish shaft-streaks, a few cross bars and black patches in the centres of the feathers ; the rump and upper tail-coverts brown, freckled and vermiculated with grey and whitish ; tail blackish, barred with white at the base ; the wings brown, barred with white and tinged with rufous on the tertiaries. Iris light reddish hazel ; bill dark blackish brown, paler at the tip of the upper mandible ; eyelids pale greenish ; legs orange ; claws pale horn. Length 13 inches, tail 3*3, wing 5*7, tarsus 1*7, bill from gape 1. The female is smaller. The Chinese Francolin is confined in Burmah to the upper portion of the Irrawaddy valley above Prome. It has not been observed in the very similar country in the Sittang valley about Tonghoo ; but further east Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay met with it in Karennee, where it was abundant. It is found in Independent Burmah, Southern China, Siam and Cochin China. This Francolin is abundant throughout the Thayetmyo and a portion of the Prome Districts. It frequents open places in forests, old clearings, bamboo-jungle and waste land. Seldom are more than two birds seen together ; as a rule they are solitary. They cannot be said to perch, but they are continually standing on stumps and the larger branches of low trees, from which situations they utter their very peculiar cry, which Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay has clearly rendered by the term kuk-kuk-kuich-ka-kd. I have comparatively seldom found them in stubble ; they seem to prefer grass and cover ; and their food consists chiefly of grass-seeds, ants and buds. The breeding-season appears to commence in June ; and the nest or hollow in which the eggs are laid is situated on a hill-side at the foot of a bamboo bush. The eggs, which are sometimes eight in number, are very pale buff. THE BROWN-BREASTED HILL-PARTRIDGE. 325 Genus ARBORICOLA, Hodgs. 680. ARBORICOLA BRUNNEIPECTUS. THE BROWN-BREASTED HILL-PARTRIDGE. / Arboricola brunneopectus, Tick., Bl. J. A. S. B. xxiv. p. 276 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 150; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 443 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birch, ii. p. 87, pi. ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 195 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 236. Arboro- phila brunneipectus, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 449, iii. p. 174 ; Wald. Ibis, 1875, p. 459. Description. — Male and female. Forehead and a broad supercilmm ex- tending to the nape fawn-colour ; lores, a line above and below the eye, meeting behind and passing over the ear-coverts (expanding and joining the sides of the neck) , the sides of the neck and the whole fore neck black ; chin, throat, cheeks and ear-coverts fawn-colour; crown and nape olive- brown, each feather tipped with black, the spots increasing in size till the hind part of the head is quite black ; the fawn-coloured supercilia join behind this black patch ; back and shorter scapulars olive-brown barred with black ; rump olive-brown with only a few black marks, the feathers tipped darker and barred somewhat lighter; upper tail-coverts the same but with no black spots ; tail olive-brown mottled with black ; primaries brown mottled with rufous at the tips ; secondaries brown edged with pale chestnut ; tertiaries and longer scapulars olive-brown tipped with chest- nut, each feather with a large, black, oval patch near the tip ; coverts rufous olive-brown marked with black in places ; breast tawny brown ; centre of the abdomen and vent whitish ; sides of the abdomen and sides of the body tawny brown, each feather with a large, round, white spot and tipped black; under tail-coverts tawny brown barred with black. Bill black ; eyelids, patch behind the eye and skin of the throat red ; iris dark brown ; legs orange or lake-red ; claws orange-colour. Length ITS inches, tail 2'4, wing 5*3, tarsus 1*7, bill from gape 1. The female is rather smaller. The Brown-breasted Hill-Partridge is met with in the evergreen forests on the eastern spurs of the Pegu hills ; and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay pro- cured it on the hill-ranges east of Tonghoo. In Tenasserim it is found as far south as Tavoy. It is not known to occur outside the limits of British Burmah. This bird and the next are equally common in densely wooded ravines and nullahs ; but I never met with the two species together. They skulk in the dense undergrowth, and would seldom be seen were it not that they frequently come down to the beds of the streams to drink and bathe. It is quite impossible to have any sport with them, as they seldom rise, but, 326 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. when disturbed, usually run quietly away. I have never heard them utter any note; but they are said to have a low soft whistle. They are stated to live in small coveys ; but I have never seen more than four birds together, and frequently only two. 681. ARBORICOLA CHLOROPUS. THE GREEN-LEGGED HILL-PARTRIDGE. Tropicoperdix chloropus, Tick., Bl J. A. S. B. xxviii. p. 415. Arboricola chloropus, Tick. J. A. S. B. xxviii. p. 453 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 150 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 444 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 91, pi. ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 195 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 236. Arborophila chloropus, Hume, S. F. ii. p, 449. Peloperdix chloropus, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 176. Description. — Male and female. Forehead and supercilia, widening pos- teriorly and meeting on the nape, white, each feather edged with blackish ; chin, throat and sides of the head white, each feather tipped with black ; the feathers at the base of the throat and end of the ear-coverts tinged with rufous ; a collar round the neck, wide in front and narrow behind the nape, ferruginous, each feather tipped black ; crown and nape rich brown ; the back, scapulars, tertiaries, lesser wing-coverts, rump, upper tail-coverts and the breast rich brown tinged with fulvous, irregularly and closely barred with blackish ; primaries dark brown, freckled with fulvous on the outer webs ; greater coverts and secondaries brown, freckled and marked with fulvous and pale rufous ; tail rufous-brown, with freckles and broken bars of black ; upper abdomen ferruginous ; lower abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts buffy white ; sides of the body pale ferruginous, with bold wavy bars of black ; under wing-coverts chiefly pure white. Iris dark hazel-brown ; bill dusky red at base, the remainder greenish ; mouth flesh-colour ; eyelids and orbital skin purplish ; legs greenish ; claws yellow. Length 11*5 inches, tail 3, wing 6, tarsus 1'7, bill from gape *9. The female is rather smaller. The Green-legged Hill-Partridge occurs in the evergreen forests of the eastern slopes of the Pegu hills; also in Tenasserim from the extreme north down to Tavoy, and probably further south still. Dr. Tiraud records it from Cochin China, the only locality out of British Burmah where it is as yet known to occur. I found this Partridge on the Pegu hills only in the densest and greenest vegetation. Mr. Davison notes that in Tenasserim it is met with in thin tree-jungle. Its habits are precisely similar to those of the last. THE ARRAKAN HILL-PARTRIDGE. 327 Phcenicoperdix chloropus, given by Mr. Gray from Moulmein (Hand-list, ii. p. 269), is probably the same species. I have been unable to detect in the British-Museum collection the specimen referred to by Mr. Gray. 682. ARBORJCOLA INTERMEDIA. THE ARRAKAN HILL-PARTRIDGE. Arboricola intermedia, Bl. J. A. S. B. xxiv. p. 277 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. Ill ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 85, pi. Arborophila intermedia, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 450 ; Gates, S. F. iii. p. 344. Description. — Male and female. Throat and fore neck black; below this a rufous patch ; breast and upper abdomen dark grey ; ear-coverts, cheeks, sides of the neck and feathers under the eye black, the bases of the feathers rufous and showing up ; front of the head as far back as the eyes pale grey ; remainder of the head and nape hair-brown, streaked with black ; these streaks increasing in size and on the upper neck becoming large drops, above which are narrow crescentic marks of pale buff ; lores and a broad supercilium reaching to the back of the head greyish white, each feather with a central black streak ; back, rump and upper tail-coverts glossy olive-brown edged darker, and all the feathers except those on the back with a small lanceolate spot of black ; sides of the body chestnut, each feather with a large grey patch, inside of which there is a long and narrow white streak ; the lower abdomen greyish white ; flanks and thigh-coverts pale buff, with large black spots ; under tail-coverts black at base, white at tip • tail olive-brown mottled with black and the outer feathers tipped with white ; primaries brown, narrowly edged and tipped with pale buff ; secon- daries with broader edges and tips ; tertiaries, scapulars and wing-coverts a mixture of chestnut, fulvous and black, the latter colour being in the form of large oval spots near the tips. Length 11-5 inches, tail 3, wing 5*5, tarsus 1'5, bill from gape 1*1. There does not appear to be much difference in size between the sexes. The Arrakan Hill-Partridge is confined in Burmah, so far as is at present known, to the Arrakan hills. All the specimens I have seen were procured between Nyoungyeedouk and Nyoungyo, on the road leading from Prome to Tonghoop. Colonel Godwin- Austen procured it in Cachar and the Naga hills. This species is closely allied to the next, but may be distinguished by the throat and fore neck being black. 328 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 683. ARBOEJCOLA RUFOGULARIS. THE RED-THROATED HILL-PARTRIDGE. Arboricola rufogularis, SI. J. A. S. B. xviii. p. 819 ; Jerd. B. 2nd ii. p. 578 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 150 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 114 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 444 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 75, pi. ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 349. Arborophila rufogularis, Hume, S. F. ii. p. 450. Arboricola tickelli, Hume, in Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 78, note. Description. — Male and female. Very similar to A. intermedia. The throat, fore neck and sides of the neck, instead of being black, are rufous spotted with black ; and the rufous of the fore neck is divided from the grey of the breast by a black band. Legs and feet pale pinky red; bill horny black; irides deep brown; orbital skin bright red. (Davison.) Length 11 inches, tail 3, wing 5 '5, tarsus 1'5, bill from gape 1*1. The female is rather smaller. The Tenasserim race of this Partridge is said by Mr. Hume to differ from the Himalayan bird in constantly wanting the black band, which in this latter separates the rufous of the fore neck from the grey of the breast. In some Himalayan birds, however, according to the same authority, this same black line, although indicated, is imperfect ; and I therefore do not think this character sufficient to allow the Tenasserim to take specific rank as a distinct species. The difference between the Himalayan and Arrakan Partridges is, in my opinion, of far greater stability and importance, and entitles the two to be considered specifically distinct. The Red-throated Hill-Partridge was procured by Mr. Davison on the higher slopes of Mooleyit mountain in Tenasserim, where it appears to be very abundant. Colonel Tickell, many years ago, also obtained it at the same locality. It is found along the Himalayas from Assam to Kumaon. It will pro- bably be found on the mountains of Independent Burmah and Karennee. This Partridge appears to have the usual habits of the Hill- Partridges. These birds, judging from A. atrogularis, make their nests, as might be expected, on the ground, and lay about four eggs, which are white. A. charltoni is said to have occurred in South Tenasserim ; but on what authority I do not know. Mr. Blyth does not include it in his Catalogue of Burmese birds ; and in the absence of any definite evidence in support of its occurrence in Burmah, I exclude it from this work. It is closely allied to A. chloropus, but has the legs red, not green; it also differs in having the back mottled and freckled, not barred conspicuously, with brown, and the shafts of this part are buff- coloured ; the chin and throat are partially surrounded by a broken black band. THE FERRUGINOUS WOOD-PARTRIDGE. 329 Genus CALOPERDIX, Bl. 684. CALOPERDIX OCULEA. THE FERRUGINOUS WOOD-PARTRIDGE. Perdix oculea, Tcmm. 7V//. ct (ndl. iii. 2nd. p. 732. Tetrao ocellatus, Raffl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 322. Caloperdix oculea, Salvad. Ucc. Horn. p. 310 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. \i. p. 449 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 101, pi. ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 111. Caloperdix ocellata, Bl. B. Burm. p. 151. Description. — Male and female. The whole head, neck, breast and abdo- men chestnut, darkest on the crown and palest on the throat ; a streak over the eye paler chestnut than the other parts ; tips of the ear-coverts black ; lower abdomen and vent ashy white ; base of the neck above, the back, scapulars, sides of the breast and of the body black, each feather with a subterminal white bar ; lower back and rump black, each feather with a central oval spot of chestnut ; upper tail-coverts black, each feather with an irregular V-shaped mark of chestnut ; flanks rich chestnut, with oval black drops ; thighs plain chestnut ; under tail-coverts mixed chestnut and black, the longer ones black tipped with fulvous-white ; tail brownish black, the two centre pairs of feathers irregularly marked with zigzag lines of pale fulvous ; primaries plain brown, all but the first three tipped with fulvous ; secondaries brown, edged on the outer web with fulvous, the edging increasing in extent till it occupies the whole of the web on the inner secondaries ; tertiaries and coverts liver-brown, each feather with a black drop near the tip, and the coverts narrowly edged with rufous ; under wing- coverts brown. Legs and feet pale dirty green; bill black; irides deep brown. (Da- vison.) Length 11 inches, tail 2*5, wing 5*8, tarsus T8, bill from gape 1. The female appears to be of the same size. The Ferruginous Wood-Partridge has been met with in Tenasserim south of Mergui. At Malewoon and Bankasoon it appears to be tolerably abundant ; for my men procured one specimen, which they were not likely to have done had the bird been rare. It is found throughout the Malay peninsula and Sumatra, and probably also in Borneo. Nothing is known of this species. The natives appear to snare them easily ; but they seem difficult to shoot. 330 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Subfamily EOLLULIN^E. Genus ROLLULUS, Bonn. 685. ROLLULUS ROULOUL. THE RED-CRESTED WOOD-PARTRIDGE. Phasianus rouloul, Scop. Del. Fl. et Faun. Insub. ii. p. 93. Tetrao viridis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 761. Columba cristata, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 774. Perdix coronata, Lath. Suppl. Ind. Orn. p. Ixii. Rollulus rouloul, Wold. Ibis, 1872, p. 382 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 308 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 448 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. Ill ; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 103, pi. Rollulus cristatus, Bl. $ Wald. B. Burm. p. 161. Description. — Male. A long thick crest springing from the nape and hinder part of the crown maroon ; a band in front and at the base of the crest white; remainder of the head and neck black; the whole lower plumage, the sides of the breast and the lesser coverts bluish black ; back, rump and upper tail-coverts glossy bluish green ; tail black ; median and greater coverts, tertiaries and secondaries dark brown, more or less freckled with rufous-brown on the outer webs; outer webs of primaries rufous freckled with brown ; inner webs plain brown. The female has no crest ; the whole head and neck are grey, a band of dull black on the hind neck ; the whole of the body-plumage green, washed with slaty on the abdomen and vent ; tail slaty brown ; wings and their coverts chestnut, .more or less freckled with brown. Both sexes have a few long black hairs springing from the forehead. The male has the legs and feet and basal portion of bill scarlet-red ; claws horny ; rest of bill black ; irides slaty grey ; facial skin and edges of eyelids bright red. The female has the legs and feet bright red; bill black; irides deep brown ; facial skin and eyelids bright red. (Davison.) Length 11 inches, tail 2' 5, wing 5*5, tarsus T6_, bill from gape *8. The female is rather smaller. The Red-crested Wood-Partridge is found in the extreme south of Tenasserim, and, according to Mr. Blyth, along the course of the Tenas- serim river. It extends down the Malay peninsula to Sumatra and Borneo, and it is also said to occur in Java. To the east it ranges into Siam, but apparently not into Cochin China. My men procured numerous specimens of this Partridge at Malewoon ; but I have never myself met with it. Apart from its beautiful form and plumage, it is remarkable for wanting the claw on the hind toe. Mr. THE COMMON EUROPEAN QUAIL. 331 Davison remarks : — " This species is always found in small parties of six or eight or more, males and females, keeping to the dense forest and never venturing into the open, living on berries, seeds, tender shoots and leaves, and insects of various kinds. It does not scratch about nearly so much as the Arboricolas, and is much quicker and more lively in its movements, much like a Quail, running hither and thither. They rise well before a dog ; but it is hard to flush them without. Their note is a soft, mellow, pleasant whistle, which is chiefly heard in the morning, but which they also utter when calling to each other after they have been separated/' An allied Partridge is Melanoperdix nigra, found in the Malay peninsula. Subfamily COTUENICIN.E. Genus COTUKNIX, Bonn. 686. COTURNIX COMMUNIS. THE COMMON EUROPEAN QUAIL. Tetrao coturnix, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 278. Coturnix communis, Bonn. Tabl. Enc. Metli. p. 217 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. 'ii. p. 586 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 649 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 151 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 396 j Dresser, Birds Eur. vii. p. 143, pi. ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 756 ; Hume 8f Dav. S. F. vi. p. 447 Crtpps, S. F. vii. p. 298; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 350; Hume $ Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 133, pi. ; Hume, S. F. x. p. 236 (note). Description. — Male. Feathers of the forehead, crown and nape black edged with rufous ; a narrow coronal streak and a broad supercilium pale buff; upper plumage a mixture of chestnut, buff and black, with long, pointed streaks of yellowish white ; a broad band down the chin and throat, expanding on the throat and running up laterally on either side the head to the ear-coverts, black ; sides of the chin and head white, the ear-coverts more or less rufous ; a band of white parallel to and adjoining the cross throat-band ; breast rufous blotched with chestnut and black, and with the shafts whitish ; lower plumage pale buff, the sides of the body dashed with chestnut and black, and with large white central streaks. The female is very similar, but wants the black on the throat. The breast also is paler and more marked with black. 332 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. In both sexes the outer webs of the primaries are barred with rufous. Bill horny brown ; irides yellow-brown ; legs pale fleshy. (Jerdon.) Length 7 inches, tail 1*7 ', wing 4'3, tarsus 1, bill from gape '6. The female is usually, but not always, larger than the male. The plumage of this Quail varies a great deal. I have not been able to examine Burmese birds ; but the above description represents a specimen in ordinary average plumage. The Common European Quail is a rather rare visitor to Burmah, judging from the few instances in which it has been met with . Mr. Blanford procured it in Pegu ; and Mr. Hume has received it from near the mouth of the Bassein Creek ; Mr. Blyth states that it has been found in Arrakan and in Martaban (which now constitutes the northern portion of the Tenas- serim Division); and, lastly, Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay obtained it in Karennee. In short, it is not a bird which the ordinary sportsman in Burmah may reasonably expect to shoot. This Quail is more or less migratory, and occurs, according to season, over the greater portion of Continental Asia, not extending, however, so far south as Ceylon or Cochin China, Siam and the Malay peninsula. Mons. Taczanowski informs me that its northern limit in Siberia is Lake Baikal, and that north of this place it is replaced by C. japonic a, a species not generally recognized, but one which, in that gentleman's opinion, is perfectly distinct, differing from C. communis in having the chin and throat rufous and in wanting the black on and about the throat. Passing from Asia, the Common Quail is found in Europe except in the extreme north, and throughout Africa. The few Quails of this species which may be met with in Burmah will be found in the cold weather, the season at which they migrate south. They frequent grain-fields, thin low grass and stubble, feeding both on grain and insects. The nest is a slight depression in the ground lined with a little grass ; and the eggs, which are numerous, are yellowish or buff speckled with reddish brown. Comparatively few Common Quails remain in India to breed ; and the nest is not likely to be found in Burmah. THE BLACK-BREASTED QUAIL. 333 687. COTURNIX COROMANDELICA, THE BLACK-BREASTED QUAIL. Tetrao coromandelicus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 764. Coturnix coromandelica, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 5(S8 ; JTione, JNW* and Jfyt/*, p. 550 : id. S. F. iii. p. 178 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 151 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill; Hame fy Marsh. Game Birds, ii. p. 151, pi. ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 236. Description. — Male. Similar in general appearance to the preceding, but with the breast black and the black lines on the throat differently disposed ; centre of chin and throat black, of uniform width throughout ; from the lower end of this black patch a narrow band runs up to the ear-coverts, and another from the gape, the two meeting at right angles ; below the cross throat-band another broad band of white, and then another narrower black one. The female is very similar to the female of the preceding. In both sexes the outer webs of the primaries of the present species are edged with rufous, not barred as in the last ; and the two species may, under all conditions of plumage, be discriminated by this character. Irides clear to dark brown ; legs and feet pale fleshy, in some greyish, in some with a yellowish tinge ; bill, in the male, bluish black to dusky, paler at the base below ; in the female brownish horny above, bluish horny below. (Hume.) Length 7 inches, tail 1*5, wing 3*5, tarsus '9, bill from gape '6. The female is of about the same size. The Black-breasted or Rain Quail is found rather commonly in northern Pegu, especially in the dry parts near Thayetmyo, but whether as a resi- dent or a migrant I am not in a position to say. Mr. Hume states that he has received it from the Bassein district. It does not appear to be found in any part of Tenasserim ; but it is probably common in Arrakan. It occurs over the greater portion of India, and it has been met with in Chittagong ; so that it will probably be found throughout the Indo-Burmese countries. This Quail frequents grass-land covered with bushes in preference to fields and stubble. It is generally seen singly or in pairs, running quietly about, picking up grass- seeds and insects. It has a pretty call of two whistling notes. It is not unlikely to be found breeding in Burmah, espe- cially on the dry ground around Thayetmyo. In India it breeds during the rains, depositing as many as nine eggs in a small hollow iu the ground; they are yellowish white or bun0, speckled and otherwise marked with black, purple, or brown. 334 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus EXCALFACTORIA, Bonap. 688. EXCALFACTORIA CHINENSIS. THE BLUE-BREASTED QUAIL. Tetrao chinensis, Linn, Syst. Nat. i. p. 277. Excalfactoria chinensis, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 591 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 553 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 311 ; Oates, S. F. iii. p. 345 ; Wald. Trans. Zool Soc. ix. p. 224 j Bl. B. Burm. p. 151; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 397 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 447 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. Ill ; Oates, S. F. viii. p. 167 ; Hume Dav. S. F. vi. p. 464 ; Elliot, S. F. vii. p. 22 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 305 ; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 113 j Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 795 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 197 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 241. Description. — Male and female. The feathered portions of the head and neck grey, tinged with lavender on the hind neck ; the cheeks, chin and throat washed with blue ; back, rump, scapulars and upper tail-coverts deep purplish blue ; tail bluish brown ; wing-coverts and tertiaries greenish blue ; primaries and secondaries greenish blue on the outer webs, black on the inner ; breast and under wing-coverts greenish blue, similar to the wings ; abdomen, sides of the body, vent and thigh-coverts deep purplish blue like the back ; under tail-coverts white. Anterior half of bill dull red, basal half and the whole culmen nearly to the tip very dark blood-red ; round the nostrils white ; central portion of the shield deep red, the edges brighter red ; iris bright red ; eyelids plumbeous ; legs and toes red, the joints more or less brown ; claws dark horn-colour. Length 17 inches, tail 4, wing 9*6, tarsus 3*6, bill from gape 1*5. The female is of about the same size or rather larger. P. edwardsi from Siam and Cochin China is very likely to occur in Tenasserim ; it has the back, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail and wings uni- form greenish black. P. calvus, which inhabits the Malay peninsula, is also likely to be found in Tenasserim ; it resembles P. poliocephalus in general appearance, but it has the occiput, sides of the face and the chin black. P. ccelestis from China is described as having a white rump, a feature sufficient in itself to separate it from all the other known species of Porphyrio. The Indian Gallinule is found over the whole of Burmah except perhaps in the southern half of Tenasserim, where Mr. Davisou does not appear to have met with it. It inhabits the whole of India and Ceylon, and is probably also distri- buted throughout the Indo-Burmese countries. 352 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. This Gallinule is found abundantly in all swamps and tracts of water covered with floating vegetation. In the rains its area of distribution is much extended ; and it may then be found generally spread over flooded plains, provided there is dense cover in the vicinity, for this species when not feeding likes to conceal itself. I have generally met with them in con- siderable flocks. The breeding-season is July and August; the nest, made of grass and reeds, is placed on the ground in flooded spots amongst thick grass ; and the eggs, which are sometimes as many as ten, are a pale buff richly marked with red and purple. Genus FULICA, Linn. 703. FULICA ATRA. THE COOT. Fulica atra, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 257 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 715 ; Hume, S. f. i. p. 249 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 595 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 162 j Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 472 ; David et Oust Ois. Chine, p. 489 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 465 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vii. p. 327 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 113 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 358; Oates, S. F. x. p. 241. Description. — Male and female. Head and neck all round black; the upper plumage, tail, scapulars, tertiaries and wing- coverts dark ashy brown; quills light brown, the secondaries tipped with white; lower plumage light ashy brown ; under tail-coverts blackish. Iris red ; bill and shield bluish white ; legs and toes liver-brown, tinged with green on the tarsus ; in summer there is a ring of yellow, green and red round the tibia. Length 16 inches, tail 2'5, wing 8'5, tarsus 2*3, bill from gape 1*4. The female is of the same size. The Coot of Europe is locally distributed throughout Burmah and is tolerably abundant. I met with it in the large swamp at Payagalay north of the town of Pegu ; Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay observed it near Tonghoo, and Mr. Davison at Kedai-Keglay, between the Sittang and Sal ween rivers. It is found over the whole of Europe and the northern half of Africa, and it is spread over temperate and tropical Asia, extending through the islands to Australia. The Coot frequents weedy swamps and lakes, being found in flocks swimming about and feeding on vegetable matter. It makes a floating nest, and probably breeds in Burmah in July and August. THE MASKED FINFOOT. 353 Family HELIORNITH1DJS. Genus PODICA, Less. 704. PODICA PERSONATA. THE MASKED FINFOOT. Podica personata, G. R. Gray, P. Z. S. 1848, p. 90, Aves, pi. 4; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 185 ; Bl. B. JBurm. p. 162 j Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 465 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 113 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 241. Description. — Male. Forehead, lores, a supercilium extending to the nape, cheeks, the anterior part of the ear-coverts, chin, throat and front of the neck black ; this black patch bordered by a white line terminating on either side at the posterior corner of the eye ; crown, nape and upper neck dark ashy ; sides of neck olive-brown ; back, rump, scapulars, upper tail- co verts and the whole of the wing brown tinged with green; sides of the breast and of the body brown ; breast and abdomen white, the latter barred with brown ; vent and under tail-coverts brown, closely barred with whitish, the longer feathers of the coverts almost wholly brown ; under wing-coverts sooty brown ; tail plain brown, tipped paler. The female has the chin, throat and front of the neck white with a black margin all round which extends a little over the lores, and has the same white outer border as has the black mask of the male. (Tickell.) Iris hazel-brown; tarsus and toes light green, the webs turning to yellow towards the edges ; claws horn-colour ; bill orange-yellow, paler at the tip ; edges of eyelids yellow. The female has the bill dull yellow and the iris straw-yellow. Length 22 inches, tail 5'8, wing 10, tarsus 2'1, bill from gape 2*3. The female is considerably smaller. The Masked Finfoot is an excessively rare bird, of which very few speci- mens have been procured. The only example I ever met with was secured by Mr. Richardson when we were shooting Ducks in the Eugmah swamp some years ago ; it flew up from under the canoe which was being poled through matted vegetation. Another specimen was brought to me by Lieut. Lloyd, R.E., who shot it in some part of Karennee. Colonel Tickell observed it in Teuasserim, and Mr. Davison procured it in this Division at Amherst, Mergui and Bankasoon. This bird was originally described from Malacca, where Mr. Davison also met with it, and it is known to occur in Cachar and Assam. A skin VOL. n. 2 A 354 BIEDS OF BRITISH BUEMAH. of this bird, which Capt. Wardlaw "Ramsay recently examined in Edinburgh, formed part of a collection made at Darjeeling ; but Prof. Traquair, of the Edinburgh Museum, kindly informs me that some of the birds in this same collection came from Cachar, and the Finfoot may consequently have been shot in this part of India and not at Darjeeling. It is not unlikely,, how- ever, to be found in the hill-streams of the Himalayas as far west as Nipal. This bird has been found, as above recorded, in a swamp ; Mr. Davison shot it on the sea-coast and in mountain-streams far in the depths of the forest, so that it appears to affect all parts of the country. It swims well with all the body immersed ; but when disturbed it takes wing or scrambles up the bank of the stream into the jungle. Suborder ALECTORIDES. Family GRUID^E. Genus GEUS, Bechst. 705. GRUS ANTIGONE. THE SARUS CRANE. Ardea antigone, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 235. Grus antigone, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 662 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 584 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 157 ; Oates, S. F. v. p. 164 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 469 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 458 ; Anderson, Yunnan Exped. p. 684; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 112; Hume fy Marsh. Game Birds, iii. p, 1, pi. ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 238. Description. — Head and a portion of the neck naked, brick-red in colour ; the whole plumage greyish blue ; the quills and inner webs of the tail-feathers darker ; ear- coverts white ; the nape and naked portion of the neck covered with black hair-like feathers. At the breeding-season, from April to October, there is a white collar immediately below the naked portion of the neck ; the scapulars and tertiaries become lengthened and white. Irides reddish orange ; bill and coronal skin greenish glaucous ; skin of the face and neck pale brick-red ; legs fleshy pink, brownish in front. (Wardlaw Ramsay.} Length about 55 inches, tail 11, wing 26, the tertiaries extending some THE SARUS CRANE. 355 6 inches beyond the tip of the primaries in the breeding-season, tarsus 13, bill from gape 7. The female is rather smaller. The Sarus Crane occurs in all the larger plains of the Province, and is common in some parts, rare in others. It is found over the whole of India up to the Indus river, the Indo- Burmese countries, Siam and Cochin China. This well-known Crane occurs, as far as I have observed it, in couples, and is a constant resident. Mr. Davis, however, observed it in large flocks about Thatone in August, and Dr. Anderson saw large numbers flying overhead when he was travelling in March in Independent Burmah to the east of Bhamo. From this I should infer that the Sarus was to a great extent migratory. About Pegu the bird is resident and its fine trumpet- like call is heard at all seasons. The breeding-season is in August and September ; the nest, an enormous mound of vegetable matter, is built on the ground as far out in the plain and away from villages as possible. The eggs are two in number, whitish or pale green speckled with yellowish brown. Grw communis is inserted by Dr. Mason in his list of Burmese birds, but I fear without sufficient warrant. Sypheotides aurita, the Lesser Florikin, is stated by a writer in the ' Bengal Sporting Magazine' (1835, p. 151) to have occurred at Sando- way in Arrakan, as mentioned by Mr. Blyth (B. Burm. p. 152). I think the occurrence of this Florikin in Arrakan not sufficiently authentic, and therefore I shall not insert this species in my list. 2A2 356 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Order XIV. LIMICOL-E. Family (EDICNEMID^E. Genus (EDICNEMUS, Temm. 706. (EDICNEMUS SCOLOPAX. THE STONE-CURLEW. Charadrius oedicnemus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 255. Charadrius scolopax, S. G. Gm. Reise Russl. iii. p. 87, pi. 16. (Edicnemus crepitans, Temm. Man. d'Orn. p. 348 ; Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 654 j Hume, S. F. i. p. 232 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 182 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 152; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 674; Oates, S. F. x. p. 238. CEdicnemus indicus, Salvad. Att. Soc. Ital. Sc. Nat. \iii. p. 380 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 581 j Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 340. GEdicnemus scolopax, Dresser, Birds Eur. vii. p. 401, pi. ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 458 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 112 j Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 969. Description. — Male and female. Forehead, crown, nape, sides of the neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars and lesser wing-coverts ashy brown tinged with rufous, each feather with a black streak down the middle; median wing- coverts with a broad whitish bar and the tips black; greater wing- coverts white, with a broad black bar near the tips of the feathers ; quills black ; the first primary with a large patch of white, the second with a smaller patch ; the later primaries tipped with white ; tertiaries ashy brown, with narrow brown shaft-streaks and the outer webs edged with white ; tail ashy brown, with a broad white band near the tip, above which the feather is blackish, tips black ; a narrow stripe over the eye and a broad band under the eye creamy white ; a moustachial streak brown edged with rufescent ; chin and throat white ; breast rufescent streaked with brown ; abdomen, vent, thighs, axillaries and under wing- coverts white ; under tail-coverts isabelline. Iris bright yellow ; eyelids duller yellow ; bill black, with a large yellow patch at the base of the upper mandible extending from the gape to the anterior corner of the nostril ; legs and toes pale yellowish flesh-colour ; claws dark brown. Length 15 '5 inches, tail 4' 8, wing 87, tarsus 3, bill from gape 2. The Stone-Curlew of Burmah belongs to the smaller race termed CE. in- dicus ; but the variation in size in this species is so great that I do not think the Indian and European birds are separable into two species on the score of size alone. This bird is found over the whole of Lurmah in suitable localities, but is nowhere verv abundant. THE GREAT STONE-PLOVER. 357 It is spread over a considerable portion of Europe and North Africa, and it occurs throughout Asia as far east as Burmah, not, however, extending as far north as Siberia. This species frequents waste land, grassy plains and dry river-beds, and is of a shy natnre. It feeds habitually on the ground, running with great speed, and it is most active at night, at which time its wild notes are frequently heard. It breeds in India, and probably also in Burmah, from February to April, laying two or three eggs on the ground, pale buff marked with brown. Genus ESACUS, Less. 707. ESACUS RECURVIROSTRIS. THE GREAT STONE-PLOVER. GEdicnemus recurvirostris, Cuv. Rtyne Anim. i. p. 500. Esacus recurvi- rostris, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 652 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 579 ; id. S. F. ii. p. 182 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 152 ; Hume, S. F. v. p. 121 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 458 ; Oates, S. F. vii. p. 50 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 112 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 974; Oates, S. F. x. p. 238. Description. — Male and female. A ring of feathers round the eye white; a band of feathers over the eye and another under the eye, meeting both in front and behind the eye, black ; forehead, lores, a streak under the lower black band, chin and throat white ; a moustachial stripe black ; lesser wing-coverts ashy brown, the feathers tipped with blackish ; the remaining wing-coverts, the whole upper plumage, central tail-feathers, scapulars, tertiaries and most of the secondaries pale grey ; tail-feathers, except the centrals, brown with a broad band of white ; the first three primaries dark brown with abroad band of white; the fourth and fifth all brown; the sixth brown with the basal half of the inner web white ; the remaining primaries white, with a broad band of brown across them; the earlier secondaries all brown except the basal portion, which is whitish ; sides of the breast grey ; remainder of the lower plumage yellowish white ; under wing-coverts and axillaries white. Iris yellow ; edges of the eyelids, base of the bill and nostrils yellow ; remainder of bill black ; legs plumbeous white ; claws black. Length 19 inches, tail 4'3, wing 9'9, tarsus 3'3, bill from gape 3'4. E. magnirostris probably occurs on the sea-coast ; and Mr. Davison is of opinion that he once saw it on an island of the Mergui archipelago. It is similar to E. recurvirostris in general coloration but is larger ; and one of the characters by which it may be recognized is the colour of the sixth 358 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. primary, which in E. recurvirostris is brown with the basal half of the inner web white, but in E. magnirostris all white with merely a brown band on the outer web. It is an Australian species, and has been met with in the Andaman Islands. The Great Stone-Plover is found in most of the larger rivers of Burmah, and I found it tolerably abundant in the old watercourses near the canal as well as at the mouth of the Sittang river. It occurs all over India as far as the Indus river and in Ceylon. It is probably abundant in the Indo-Burniese countries, but does not appear to extend to China or Cochin China. This fine Plover is usually found in pairs or small flocks on sand- banks and stretches of shingle and also, less frequently, in dried-up nullahs and swamps. It has a soft whistling note. I found the eggs near Kyeikpadein in May, two in number, laid on the bare ground in a dry nullah ; they were pale stone-colour blotched with blackish. Family PARRID^E. Genus METOPIDIUS, Wagl 708. METOPIDIUS INDICUS. THE BRONZE-WINGED JACANA. Parra indica, Lath. 2nd. Orn. ii. p. 765 ; Sahad. Ucc. Born. p. 343 ; Gates, S. F. v. p. 165 -, Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 464; Hume, 8. F. viii. p. 113; Bingham, 8. F. ix. p. 197 j Gates, S. F. x. p. 241. Metopidius indicus, Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 708 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 591 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 183 j Bl. B. Burm. p. 157 j Butler, 8. F. iv. p. 19 ; Armstrong, 8. F. iv. p. 348 : Anders. Yunnan Exped. p! 683. Description.— Male and female. Chin and centre of the throat whity brown ; a broad white supercilium reaching to the nape ; with this excep- tion the whole head, neck all round, upper back and the whole lower plumage are black glossed with green and the upper back with purple; lower back, scapulars, tertiaries and wing-coverts glossy bronze; rump, upper tail coverts, flanks, tail and under tail-coverts rich maroon; region of the vent and the thigh-coverts maroon-brown streaked with white; primaries and secondaries black, the earlier secondaries narrowly edged with white near their tips, the later ones chiefly bronze on the outer webs. The young bird has the forehead, crown and nape chestnut ; hind neck and upper back purple; back, scapulars, tertiaries and wing-coverts glossy THE BRONZE-WINGED JACANA. 359 bronze ; rump and upper tail-coverts barred with chestnut and purple ; central tail-feathers bronze, the others barred diagonally with pale chest- nut, greenish brown and white; quills bluish black ; a pale stripe over the eye ; sides of the head, chin and throat white ; front and sides of the neck and breast bright buff; abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts white; sides of the abdomen and under wing- coverts purplish black; flanks and thighs barred with pale buff and black. Basal half of upper mandible and the frontal shield livid blue, the portion near the gape pink ; remainder of the upper and the whole lower mandible green ; a rose- coloured spot on either side the base of the upper mandible ; iris brown; legs, toes and claws bluish slate-colour. The colour of the bill is subject to considerable variation. Length 10'5 inches, tail 2, wing 6'2, tarsus 2'6, bill from gape 1*3. The female is very much larger, the wing measuring 7 inches and the tarsus 3*2. The tail consists of ten feathers only. The young bird assumes the black plumage of the adult at an advanced age, probably at the second spring moult. The Bronze-winged Jacana is excessively common in all the swamps of the Province, except perhaps in the south of Tenasserim, where Mr. Davison did not observe it. It is spread over a great part of India, the Indo-Burmese countries, Siam and Cochin China. It has not yet been recorded from any part of the Malay peninsula, but it is known to occur in Java and it probably inhabits Sumatra and Borneo. This handsome bird has the habits of the Water-hens, being found in swamps and ponds which are overrun with weeds and floating plants, upon which it walks with great facility. Its mode of flight, its rounded body, the colour of its eggs and other points show its affinities, however, with the Plovers and not with the Water-hens. It is, as a rule, stupidly tame, walking about unconcernedly near the sportsman, and taking wing reluc- tantly. It has a very peculiar note. The breeding- season is during the rains ; the nest, which is large and made of weeds, is placed on the edges of swamps ; and the eggs, which are usually six in number, are pale buff thickly covered with a mass of entangled black lines. 360 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus HYDROPHASIANUS, Wagl 709. HYDROPHASIANUS CHIRURGUS. THE PHEASANT-TAILED JACANA. Tringa chirurgus, Scop. Del Flor. et Faun. Insub. ii. p. 92. Parra sinensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 709; Kelliam, Ibis, 1882, p. 185. Hydrophasianus chirurgus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 709 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 592 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 185 ; Salvad. Ucc. Bom. p. 343 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 483 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 464 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 113 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 914 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 241. Hydrophasianus sinensis, Bl. fy Wald. B. Burm. p. 157. Description. — Male and female in summer. Forehead, crown, sides of the head, chin, throat and fore neck white ; a patch on the hinder part of the crown black ; nape, hind neck and extreme upper part of back shining golden yellow, this yellow separated everywhere from the white of the head and neck by a black line; back, scapulars, tertiaries, rump and upper tail-coverts chocolate-brown, the latter darkest ; tail black ; upper wing- coverts and primary-coverts creamy white, the latter tipped with brown ; first and second primaries black with a little white at base ; the third with a broad white band on the inner web ; the others white, edged and tipped with black ; secondaries all white ; the whole lower plumage from the breast chocolate-brown ; under wing-coverts and axillaries white. Male and female in winter. Lores and a supercilium whitish; chin, throat and fore neck white ; a band from the gape passing under the eye, over the ear-coverts and round the fore neck, forming a pectoral band, black ; remainder of the lower plumage, under wing-coverts and axillaries pure white ; forehead blackish barred with white ; a broad band from just above the ear-coverts, passing down the sides of the neck, and bordering the black line already described, golden yellow ; crown, the whole upper plumage, tertiaries and scapulars hair-brown ; lesser and median coverts hair-brown, more or less barred with black ; greater wing-coverts pure white ; primary-coverts and quills as in summer ; some of the longer tail- coverts barred with black and white on the outer webs ; central tail-feathers hair-brown, the others white. In summer the tail is very long ; in winter of moderate length, barely exceeding the wings. At both seasons the first three primaries have long narrow appendages at their tips, and the tips of the fourth and fifth prima- ries are much produced in a pointed form. The bird of the year has the crown bright rusty ; the hind neck mixed rusty and brown ; the whole upper plumage, lesser and median wing-coverts and tertiaries brown, each feather very broadly edged with rusty; remainder of the wing as in the adult ; tail white except the central pair of feathers, which are rusty brown ; there are indications of the black line down the THE EASTERN SWALLOW-PLOVER. 361 sides of the neck, but none of the yellow band above it ; the lower plumage is dull white, the breast indistinctly barred with brown. A male in winter plumage had the iris pale yellow, bill dark brown, the basal half of the lower mandible bright yellow, legs dull greenish, claws horn-colour. A female in summer plumage had the iris brown, bill bluish, legs and toes pale plumbeous, claws horn-colour. In summer : length about 20 inches, tail 13, wing to end of appendages 9, tarsus 2'2, bill from gape 1*4, middle toe and claw 3'5. In winter : length about 12, tail 4'5. The Pheasant-tailed Jacana is sparingly distributed over the Province. Mr. Davison did not meet with it in Tenasserim ; but Mr. Davis procured some specimens at Thatone, and it doubtless will be found in other parts of that Division. It is met with over the whole of India as far as Scinde and Cashmeer and in Ceylon ; it occurs in China, Cochin China and the Malay peninsula, extending to the islands of Java, Borneo and the Philippines. In Burmah this bird is a permanent resident, but elsewhere it appears to be more or less migratory. Like the last it frequents swamps and ponds covered with reeds. Its cry at the breeding-season resembles the word hoo-hoo-hoo. The nest is made of weeds. I found this bird breeding near Myitkyo in August, but I could not find the nest and eggs. These latter appear to be generally four in number, laid in the nest with the small ends together and pointing to the centre, as with the Plovers ; their colour is very peculiar, being deep bronze without any marks. Family GLAREOLID^. Genus GLAREOLA, Briss. 710. GLAREOLA ORIENTALIS. THE EASTERN SWALLOW-PLOVER. Glareola orientalis, Leach, Trans. Linn, Soc. xiii. p. 132, pi. 13 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 631 ; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 568; id. S. F. ii. p. 284; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 319 ; Bl B. Biirm. p. 154 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 431 ; Wardlaw Ram- *37 j Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 6. Description. — Male and female. Upper plumage pale brown ; the upper tail-coverts pure white; tail white, broadly tipped with brown 362 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. feathers on the edges of the eyelids white ; chin and throat pale rufous, surrounded by a well-defined narrow black band commencing on each side at the gape and passing under the eye ; sides of the head and neck the same colour as the throat ; lower plumage rufous-grey, turning to white on the lower abdomen, vent and under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts and axillaries chestnut ; quills dark brown ; the shaft of the first primary whitish, the others rufous. Bill black; gape bright red; month flesh-colour; iris hazel-brown; legs purplish brown ; claws dark horn. Length 9'5 inches, tail 3*4, wing 7*2, tarsus !'.'>, bill from gape 1. The female is of much the same size. This species differs from its European ally G. pratincola in wanting the white tips to the secondaries and in having the tail much less forked. In G. orientalis the fork of the tail is about one inch, in the other rather more than two inches. There are other differences of minor importance. The Eastern Swallow-Plover is abundant throughout Burmah in suitable localities from February to June, a few birds remaining up to August. They are very punctual in arriving in February, but less so in leaving, the birds apparently departing in batches as the business of incubation is done with. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay observed them migrating northwards over Tonghoo in April ; and this is the month in which most of the birds leave the Province. It is found over the whole of India up to Scinde and in Ceylon ; it occurs in Mongolia and China, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula and the islands to Australia. This Swallow-Plover appears to visit Burmah solely for the purpose of breeding. I succeeded in finding the eggs in April and May, but the majority of the birds lay in March. They frequent sandy wastes and burnt-up paddy-fields ; and the eggs, two or three in number, are laid on the bare ground. In colour the eggs are buff thickly blotched with blackish brown. These birds run well and spend most of their time on the ground ; but occasionally large numbers may be seen hawking after insects, flying with great speed in circles and backwards and forwards. THE SMALL SWALLOW-PLOVER. 363 711. GLAREOLA LACTEA. THE SMALL SWALLOW-PLOVER. Glareola lactea, Tcmm. PL Col. 399 ; Jerd. B. Iml. ii. p. 632 ; Hume, Netts and ^int*, ]'• 668 j id. 8. F. iii. p. 179 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 154; Armstrong, 8. F. iv. p. 333; Oates, S. F. v. p. 164; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 469; Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 1-5.3; Jftnne, -V. F. viii. p. 112; Zey^e, jftrtfe Ceyforc, p. 984; , 8. F. x. p. 237. Description. — Male and female. Upper plumage and wing-coverts pale brown; upper tail-coverts white; winglet and primary -co verts black; primaries dark brown, the earlier ones with white shafts ; secondaries white tipped with brown; tertiaries like the back; central tail-feathers black, white at base ; the others with an increasing amount of white and less black, the outermost feathers becoming white merely tipped with black ; forehead and a line from the bill to the eye blackish brown ; breast pale ashy ; chin, throat and remainder of lower plumage white ; under wing- co verts and axillaries smoky black. Iris dark brown ; terminal half of bill black, basal half red, changing to yellowish brown at the gape ; legs, feet and claws black. Length 6'8 inches, tail 2'1, wing 5'8, tarsus '8, bill from gape '75. The female is of the same size. The Small Swallow-Plover is found abundantly on the larger rivers and creeks of the Province, except in the southern part of Tenasserim, where it appears to be absent. It occurs over the greater part of India up to the Indus river, in Ceylon, and probably throughout the Indo-Burmese countries. This Swallow-Plover is confined entirely to sand-banks and to the low flat shores of the larger streams. It is a constant resident and is usually seen in large flocks. During the day they run about the sand, and in the evening they fly about like Swallows in search of winged insects. They breed in April, laying three or four eggs in a small depression in the sand. 364 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Family CHARADRIID^. Genus CHARADRIUS, Linn. 712. CHARADBIUS FULVUS, THE EASTERN GOLDEN PLOVER. Charadrius fulvus, Gm. Syat. Nat. i. p. 687 ; Dresser, Birds Fur. vii. p. 443, pi. ; Hume, S. F. i. p. 228, ii. p. 287 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 570 ; id. S. F. iii. p. 179 ; Bl. B. Burm. p. 153 ; Salvad. Ucc. Bom. p. 313 j Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 339 ; Wardlaw Ramsay, Ibis, 1877, p. 468 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 424 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 676 ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 455 j Hume, S. F. vii. p. 482, viii. p. 112 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 350 ; Lecjcje, Birds Ceylon, p. 934 ; Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 197 j Oates, S. F. x. p. 237 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 8. Charadrius longipes, Temm., Bonap. Rev. Grit. 1850, p. 180 ; Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 636. Pluvialis longipes, Temm., Bonap. Comptes Rend. 1856, pt. ii. p. 417. Description. — Male and female in summer. Forehead white, continued back over each eye as a broad supercilium extending down the sides of the neck ; the whole upper plumage black, each feather with large marginal yellow spots on both webs, the spots on the wing-coverts tending to white ; primary-coverts and the greater series brown, tipped and margined with white ; primaries brown, the central portion of the shaft whitish ; secon- daries brown tipped with whitish ; tail blackish, irregularly barred with white ; chin, throat, fore neck, breast and abdomen black ; vent and flanks black mottled with white ; under tail-coverts white ; axillaries smoky brown with white tips. Male and female in winter. The upper plumage is black, the feathers margined with yellow ; the wing-coverts margined with dull white ; the quills and tail much as in summer; forehead and sides of the head fulvous, the latter part streaked with brown ; chin and upper throat fulvous-white ; lower throat, fore neck, and feathers under the cheeks and ear-coverts rather bright fulvous with minute streaks of brown ; breast greyish, the feathers broadly margined with fulvous ; remainder of lower plumage pale buffy white ; the sides of the body more or less marked and fringed with fulvous ; axillaries smoky brown, tipped with white as in summer. No description can be made comprehensive enough to include all the variations of plumage this bird is liable to in winter. The above descrip- tion applies to the majority of birds shot from November to March ; but birds in nearly full summer plumage may occasionally be obtained in Burmah late in the spring and early in the autumn. Bill dark brown ; iris dark hazel-brown ; legs plumbeous ; claws horn- colour. THE GREY PLOVER. 365 Length 10 inches, tail 2*5, wing 6'3, tarsus 1/8, bill from gape 1*1. The sexes are of about the same size. The Eastern Golden Plover differs from the Western form, C. pluvialis, in having the axillaries smoky brown instead of pure white. The American form C. viryinicus has the axillaries of the same colour as those of C. fulvus, but is separated on account of its greater size. The Golden Plover is abundant during the cold season throughout Bur mah_, arriving in September. The majority leave us again in November and December, but a considerable number remain till April or May. It has a wide distribution, being found over the greater part of Asia, straggling into Europe and Africa at times, and ranging on the east down to Australia and some of the islands of the Pacific Ocean. The Golden Plover frequents waste ground, plains of grass and wet paddy-fields, and also the edges of rivers, and is generally met with in flocks of considerable size. It breeds in China, and also it is said in some parts of India, laying four eggs in a hollow lined with a few blades of grass. The eggs are yellowish blotched with blackish sepia. Genus SQUATAKOLA, Leach. 713. SQUATAROLA HELVETICA. THE GREY PLOVER. Tringa helvetica, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 250. Squatarola helvetica, Jerd. B. Lid. ii. p. 635 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vii. p. 455 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 313 ; El. B. Burm. p. 153; Scully, S. F. iv. p. 184; Armstrong, 8. F. iv. p. 338; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 424 ; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 455 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 112; Legye, Birds Ceylon, p. 929; Oates, S. F. x. p. 237; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 7. Description. — Male and female in summer. Sides of the forehead, lores, sides of the head, chin, throat, breast and abdomen deep black ; vent, thighs and under tail-coverts white ; axillaries black tipped with brownish ; the whole head from the forehead to the nape, the upper neck and two broad bands continued down to the sides of the breast white, the centres of the feathers more or less brown ; back, rump, scapulars, tert\aries and wing- coverts a mixture of white, black and brown, more or less disposed in the shape of irregular bars ; upper tail-coverts white barred with brown ; tail white barred with broader brown bars ; quills brown, a portion of the shaft and a long patch on the inner webs white. Male and female in winter. Forehead, lores, cheeks, chin and throat white with a few minute brown streaks ; feathers immediately round the 366 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. eye dark brown; sides of the head and a broad supercilhim rather densely- streaked with brown ; the whole upper plumage, wing- coverts and tertiaries brown, each feather fringed with dull white ; quills much as in summer, but the later primaries with a white patch on the outer webs ; all the quills margined narrowly with white; upper tail-coverts white, with a few irregular brown bars ; tail brown, closely barred with broad bars of brown ; sides of the throat and neck dull white, boldly streaked with brown ; fore neck and sides of the breast similarly streaked but more sparingly ; remainder of the lower plumage white, the sides of the body streaked and barred with brown ; axillaries blackish brown, narrowly tipped with brown. Irides dark brown ; bill, legs and feet black. (Armstrong.) Length 12 inches, tail 3'5, wing 7'8, tarsus 1*7, bill from gape 1'4. The plumage of this species varies excessively ; in general appearance it is extremely like Charadrius fulvus, but it may always be recognized by its black axillaries, absence of a hind toe, and larger size. The Grey Plover is a comparatively rare bird. I have never myself met with it ; but Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Tonghoo, and Dr. Arm- strong observed it in the Irrawaddy Delta between Elephant Point and China Bakeer and again at Amherst. Mr. Blyth records it from Arrakan. It is a winter visitor to the Province. It is a bird of very wide distribution, being found, according to season, in every portion of the globe except perhaps South America. This species appears to be a sea-shore bird in great measure, being com- paratively seldom observed inland except on the banks of very large rivers. Genus ^EGIALITIS, Boie. 714. ^EGIALITIS GEOFFROYI. THE GREATER SAND-PLOVER. Charadrius geoffroyi, Wagl. Syst. Av., Charadrius, sp. 19. .ffigialitis geoffroyi, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 638; Harting, Ibis, 1870, p. 378, pi. xi. ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 318 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 339 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 426 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vii. p. 475, pi. ; Hume fy Dav. S. F. vi. p. 455 ; Hume, S. F. viii. pp. 112, 200 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 939; Oates, S. F. x. p. 237 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 9. Cirrepidesmus geoffroyi, Hume, S. F. i. p, 229, ii. p. 288 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 571. Description. — Male and female in winter. Forehead, a broad supercilium and the entire lower plumage, with the under wing-coverts and axillaries, THE GREATER SAND-PLOVER. 367 white ; the whole upper plumage and wing-coverts cinereous brown, all the feathers obsoletely edged paler; the greater wing-coverts broadly tipped with white ; the longer upper tuil-coverts more or less whitish ; lores, a broad patch under the eye and the ear-coverts like the back ; a more or less distinct band of ashy brown across the breast, sometimes absent ; quills brown, the shaft of the first primary white, those of the others with a portion white ; the last three or four primaries with a central patch of white on the outer webs ; secondaries tipped with white ; outer pair of tail- feathers nearly entirely white, the next pair more or less albescent with a brown patch near the tip, the others brown tipped with white. In summer the forehead is white, bounded on the front part of the crown by a transverse black band ; the upper plumage sandy brown ; lores, a patch under and in front of the eye, and the whole of the ear-coverts black ; breast rufous, extending on to the flanks ; other parts as in winter. Iris brown ; bill black, yellowish at the gape beneath ; tibia and feet slate-bluish or plumbeous, paling to yellowish olive or, in some, fleshy grey. (Legge.) Length 8'5 inches, tail 2*3, wing 5*4, tarsus 1*5, bill from gape 1*1, swollen portion of upper mandible *45. The Greater Sand-Plover is a winter visitor to Burmah, occurring more or less on the sea-shore or its immediate vicinity. Dr. Armstrong observed it near Elephant Point and at Amherst, and Mr. Hume's collectors got it at Thatone and at the mouth of the Bassein river. It will probably be found along the whole sea-coast, for Mr. Shopland sent it to me from Arrakan. It inhabits the shores of nearly the whole of Asia, extending to Australia and the islands of the Pacific Ocean ; and it is found along the shores of Africa down to the Cape of Good Hope, straggling at times into Europe. This Plover and the others of the genus have much the same habits in common. They occur in flocks on mud-banks and shingle, running about with great speed after insects and small crustaceans. They are usually shy and not easily approached. They lay three or four eggs, depositing them on the bare ground in a small depression, and their colour is buff marked with purple and blackish. The present species will not of course be found breeding in Burmah, as it is merely a winter migrant. 368 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 715. ^GIALITIS MONGOLICA. THE LESSER SAND-PLOVER. Charadrius mongolus, Pall. Reis. Russ. Reichs, iii. p. 700. Charadrius mon- golicus, Pall. Zoogr. Rosso-Asiat. ii. p. 136. Charadrius pyrrhothorax, Temm. in Gould's Birds Europe, pi. 299. ^Egialitis pyrrhothorax, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 639. -ffigialitis mongolicus, Harting, Ibis, 1870, p. 384 ; Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 316 ; Hume, S. F. iii. p. 179 ; Bl B. Burm. p. 153 ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 339 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 427 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 942 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 10. Cirrepidesmus mongolicus, Hume, S. F. i. p. 230, ii. p. 289 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 571. -ffigialitis mongolus, Hume $ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 455 ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 299 ; Hume, S. F. viii. pp. 112, 200 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 237. Description. — Male and female in winter. Quite similar to the last, from which it only differs in being smaller. In summer the plumage of the two is also very similar ; but the present species is characterized by being more rufous on the breast, neck and crown. The bill and other parts are coloured as in the last. Length 7'5 inches, tail 2*2, wing 5, tarsus 1*3, bill from gape *8, swollen portion of the upper mandible *3. . This is to be distinguished from the last only by its size and especially by the dimensions of the bill and tarsus. The Lesser Sand-Plover is a common winter visitor to Burmah, being found not only on the sea-coast but on all the rivers of the interior, especi- ally where these have low flat banks. This Plover inhabits nearly the whole of Asia, extending down to Australia ; it is also found in North-east Africa, and it is said to occur occasionally in Europe, but Mr. Dresser excludes it from his list. 716. ^GIALITIS CANTIANA. THE KENTISH PLOVER. Charadrius cantianus, Lath. Ind. Orn. Suppl. p. Ixvi. ^Jgialitis cantianus, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 640; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 340; Dresser, Birds JEur. vii. p. 483, pi. ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 430 ; Hume 8> Dav. S. F. vi. p. 456 j Hume, S. F. viii. pp. 112, 200 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 947 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 237. ^gialophilus cantianus, Hume, S. F. i. p. 230 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 571. ,£Sgialitis alexandrinus (Z.), Bl. B. Burm. p. 154. Description. — Male in summer. Forehead and a broad supercilium white ; crown and nape pale rufous ; a broad band separating the white of the THE KENTISH PLOVER. 369 forehead from the rufous of the crown, the ear-coverts, a streak from the gape to the eye, and a patch on either side the breast black ; the whole lower plumage, axillaries, under wing-coverts and a narrow collar round the hind neck, immediately next the rufous of the head, pure white ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, tertiaries and upper wing-coverts ashy brown, the greater coverts tipped with white ; the four central tail-feathers dark brown ; the three outer pairs white, the remaining pair whity brown ; quills brown, the shaft of the first primary pure white, those of the others mesially white for an inch or more in extent ; secondaries broadly tipped with white. The female in summer differs from the male in having the black bands on the head narrower, and the rufous on the crown extremely pale. Both sexes in winter have the rufous feathers of the crown and nape broadly edged with brown and the black marks on the head are mixed with white. Young birds have the forehead whitish, the crown and nape ashy brown like the back ; the collar round the neck is present, but the white is less pure ; there are no black bands on the head nor patches on the sides of the breast, these being indicated by a brown tinge only. Bill and legs black, iris dark brown. Length 6'5 inches, tail 2, wing 4*5, tarsus I'l, bill from gape '8. The female is of the same size or rather smaller. This and the two preceding species may be separated from all the other small Plovers likely to occur in Burmah by the colour of the shafts of the primaries. In all three, the shaft of the first is entirely white, the others white only on the central portion for a length of an inch or an inch and a half. M. placida was at one time thought to occur in Burmah, and it may yet be found in this country ; it can be recognized by its having the shafts of all the primaries hair-brown, except a minute portion near the tips, which is albescent. I have never met with the Kentish Plover in Burmah, but Dr. Armstrong found it very abundant along the coast about the Delta of the Irrawaddy. Mr. Davison procured it at various points in Tenasserim, and Capt. Ward- law Ramsay at Tonghoo. Mr. Blyth gives it from Arrakan. It occurs in the central and southern portions of Europe, the whole of Africa, and nearly the whole of Asia down to Ceylon on the one hand and Singapore on the other, extending east as far as Cochin China, where Dr. Tiraud met with it. Major Legge found it breeding in Ceylon in June and July on the banks of salt lagoons. It is unlikely to be other than a winter visitor to Burmah. VOL. II. 370 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 717. JEGIALITIS DUBIA. THE LESSER RINGED PLOVER. Charadrius dubius, Scop. Del. Flor. et Faun. Insub. ii. p. 93. Charadrius curonicus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 692. Charadrius philippinus, Lath. 2nd. Orn. ii. p. 745. Charadrius fluviatilis, Bechst. Gemeinn. Naturg. Deutschl. iv. p. 422. .ffigialitis philippensis (Scop.), apud Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 640. -SCgia- litis fluviatilis, Hume, S. F. i. p. 230, ii. p. 289 ; id. Nests and Eggs, p. 572. ^gialitis dubius, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 316 ; El. B. Burm. p. 153 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 429 ; Anders. Yunnan Exped. p. 676 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 227 (note) ; Cripps, S. F. vii. p. 299 ; Hume, S. F. vii. p. 300 (note), viii. pp. 112, 199 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 351 j Bingham, S. F. ix. p. 196; Oates, S. F. x. p. 237 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. 10. ^Egialitis curonica, Wold, in Bl. B. Burm. p. 154 ; Dresser, Birds Eur. vii. p. 491, pi. ; Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 340 ; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 456 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 952. Description. — Male and female. Feathers immediately at the base of the upper mandible black, continued as a band to the eyes, widening and encircling the eye and covering the ear-coverts ; forehead white, next to which is a broad black band succeeded by a narrower white one which is continued on both sides over the eyes to the end of the ear-coverts ; the whole chin and throat pure white continued narrowly round the hind neck to form a collar ; a broad band across the breast black, continued nar- rowly round the hind neck immediately next the white collar ; crown, nape, back, rump, upper tail- coverts, wing-coverts, scapulars and tertiaries ashy brown ; central tail-feathers ashy brown broadly tipped with dark brown ; the next ashy brown, then subterminally dark brown and tipped with white ; the remaining feathers intermediate in coloration between these and the outermost feathers, which are pure white with a brown patch near the centre of the inner webs ; quills ashy brown, the shaft of the first primary white, those of the others all brown; the secondaries broadly tipped and partially margined with white ; the whole under plumage from the breast-band downwards white, as are also the axillaries and under wing- coverts. In winter the plumage appears to undergo very little change, the black bands on the head and breast being merely mixed with greyish and conse- quently being less well defined. Bill black, a very small portion of the base of the lower mandible yellowish ; iris dark brown ; edges of the eyelids yellow ; legs dusky greenish brown; in the summer the legs are said to be yellow. Length 6*5 inches, tail 2-4, wing 4'5, tarsus '9, bill from gape '6. The female is a little larger. The Lesser Ringed Plover appears to be generally distributed throughout Burniah as a winter visitor. I found it tolerably abundant in Southern THE LITTLE INDIAN RINGED PLOVER. 371 Pegu, and Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay procured it at Rangoon. Dr. Arm strong observed it in the Irrawaddy Delta, and Mr. Davison at many points in Tenasserim. I do not remember to have seen it in Northern Pegu, nor has it been recorded from Arrakan, but it is very likely to be found in these parts of Burmah. It has a wide range, inhabiting the greater part of Europe and Africa, and the whole of Asia down to the Philippine Islands and Celebes. This species appears to visit Burmah only in the winter; but it is very probable that it has been overlooked in the summer, for it seems to breed in many parts of India, and there is no reason why it should not do the same in Burmah. Its eggs will be found on sand-banks, probably in April. 718. JEGIALITIS JERDONI. THE LITTLE INDIAN RINGED PLOVER. JEgialitis minutus (Pall.\ apud Jerd. B. 2nd. ii. p. 641 ; Legge, S. F. iii. p. 372 ; Hume Sf Dav. S. F. vi. p. 456 ; Cripps, S. F.\ii. p. 300 ; Hume, S. F. viii. pp. 112, 199 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 238. JEgialitis alexandrinus (Z.), apud Bl. B. Burm. p. 154. ^Egialitis philippinus (Lath.}, apud Hume, S. F. iii. p. 179. JEgialitis jerdoni, Legge, P. Z. S. 1880, p. 39 j id. Birds Ceylon, p. 956. Description. — Similar to ^E. dubia, from which it differs in being smaller, in having the edges of the eyelids swollen and protuberant, and in having the basal half of the lower mandible yellow. Another point of difference, according to Mr. Hume, is that in summer the legs of &. jerdoni do not become yellow as in jE. dubia. Length 6 inches, tail 2*2, wing 4'1, tarsus *9, bill from gape '55. The female is rather larger, approaching in size the male of ^E. dubia. The Little Indian Ringed Plover is generally distributed over Burmah, but is nowhere very abundant. I procured it near Thayetmyo and also in Southern Pegu along the banks of the canal. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay got it at Tonghoo, and Mr. Davison observed it in Tenasserim about the latitude of Moulmein. It occurs in suitable localities over the whole of India and Ceylon, the Indo-Burmese countries, and Cochin China, where Dr. Tiraud procured many specimens near Saigon. This Little Plover is probably a constant resident in Burmah, notwith- standing the fact that all my specimens were procured in the winter season. In the rains when sand-banks are submerged its area of distribu- tion must become much restricted, and it is likely at this time of the year to escape observation. Major Legge found it breeding in Ceylon. 372 BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. Genus CHETTUSIA, Bonap. 719. CHETTUSIA CINEREA, THE GREY-HEADED LAPWING. Pluvianus cinereus, Bl. J. A. S. B. xi. p. 587. Lobivanellus inornatus, Temm. et Schkg. Faun. Jap., Aves, p. 106, pi. 63. Chettusia inornata, Jerd. B. Ind. ii. p. 646. Chettusia cinerea, Hume, S. F. iii. p. 180; Bl. B. Burm. p. 152 ; David et Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 422 ; Hume fy Dav. 8. F. vi. p. 456 ; Oripps, 8. F. vii. p. 300; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 112 ; Oates, S. F. x. p. 238. Description. — Male and female. Head and neck all round grey ; back, rump, lesser and median wing-coverts, scapulars and tertiaries greyish brown with a faint vinous tinge ; upper tail-coverts white ; tail white with a broad black band near the tip, diminishing in width towards the exterior of the tail and totally absent on the outermost feathers ; primary-coverts, winglet and primaries black ; greater wing-coverts and secondaries white \ breast greyish brown, bounded below by a broad black band ; remainder of the lower plumage, under wing-coverts and axillaries white. Edges of the eyelids, lappets and the basal two thirds of the bill deep yellow, terminal third black ; iris red ; legs and toes dull yellow ; claws black. Length 14'5 inches, tail 4-5, wing 9'8, tarsus 3, bill from gape 1'6. The female is perhaps a trifle larger. The Grey-headed Lapwing is tolerably abundant in the winter, but is local, being confined to the neighbourhood of swamps and marshy ground. I observed large flocks of this species once or twice in Southern Pegu and also in the Engmah swamp near Prome. Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay got it at Tonghoo, and it has been obtained at Bassein. Mr. Davison met with it in the low parts of Northern Tenasserim between the Sittang and Salween rivers. There is no record of its occurrence in Arrakan, but it is doubtless found in that Division. It occurs in Bengal and portions of Northern India, in China and Cochin China, and it extends north to Japan and Central Asia. It is said to breed in Mongolia. This Lapwing is always found in flocks of a dozen individuals or more, feeding on the edges of swamps. It is not of a shy disposition and is easily approached. THE SPUR-WINGED LAPWING. 373 Genus HOPLOPTEKUS, Bonap. 720. HOPLOPTERUS VENTRALIS. THE SPUR-WINGED LAPWING. Charadrius ventralis, Wa