OCR Text |
Show 434 THE MARQUIS OF TWEEDDALE ON BATRACHOSTOMUS. [May 15, with brown. A few feathers on the tarsi. Wing 5*30, width of gape 1*30. Other dimensions as in Lampong example. No. 3, 2 (?) young, an immature example of B. cornutus in rufous dress, ex Banjarmassing, in the British Museum, is almost entirely of a pale isabelline-rufous, freckled with dark irregular transverse zigzag lines. Here and there, especially on the head, the uniform rufous feathers of the older stage have come in, and also a few of the white scapular, nuchal, and pectoral plumes. The mandibles are weak, evidently not full-grown ; but the width of the gape is equal to that of B. affinis when adult, and the wing is longer than in that species, otherwise it would be difficult to determine to which species it belongs. Wings 5*10, tail 4*60, width of gape 1*10. No.4, o* (?) adult (?), ex Banjarmassing (Motley, mus. nostr.). (Pl. XLVI.) Were it not for the larger dimensions, a more massive bill, and a wider gape, it would be most difficult to distinguish this bird from males of B. affinis as above described. I am unable to state any feature of its plumage whereby it can be distinguished, other than its having a broad nuchal collar consisting of several tiers of plumes, fulvous-brown at their insertion, crossed by an obsolete brown line, then a fulvous band, followed by a parallel brown line, then a white band, bounded by a third brown line, then another white band edged on either side with a fulvous terminal fringe and tipped with a black drop. The upper plumes of the series want some of these details which characterize the lowest tier of feathers. The ground-colour of the rectrices is perhaps more rufous brown than pale grey, tinged with tawny as in B. affinis. Wing 5*25, tail 5*0, tarsus 0*65, middle toe 0*75, bill from forehead 1*12, width of gape 1*38. Tarsus naked. This and the following are the two males referred to by Mr. Sclater (I. c). No. 5, d (?) adult, ex Banjarmassing (Motley, Mus. Brit.). Wing 5*20, gape 1*40, other dimensions as above ; and the plumage offers no points of difference. Tarsus naked. No. 6, d (?) adult, ex Labuan (Lowe, Mus. Brit.). In this example there is scarcely a trace of rufous colouring. The colours of the plumage are brown, black, grey, and white. The colour of the rectrices is a pale grey, the dark transverse bands being formed by the greater number and density of the brown zigzag lines and markings. These bands are not all more or less parallel to one another, but narrow almost to a point inwards to the shaft. Wing 5*40, gape 1*35, Tarsus naked. No. 7, d adult, ex Sumatra (Wallace, Mus. Brit.). Has the general aspect of the Bornean examples and of those of B. affinis d • The wing- coverts are brown with rufous markings. The white nuchal collar-plumes are tipped with large black triangular drops. Pectoral plumes (other than the white) rufous lineated with brown. The caudal bands have alternately a grey ground and a rufous ground strangely contrasting, both traversed (but not unequally) with numerous zigzag brown lines. These bands are parallel. Wing 5*20, gape 1*35. Tarsus naked. |