| OCR Text |
Show 62 MR. ft, B. SHARPE ON THE GENUS PELARGOPSIS. [Jail. 27, I therefore propose to divide and classify the different species as follows. All the birds enumerated in the " clavis" present some distinguishing characteristic, while there are others which will not admit of a separate diagnosis ; and these are therefore considered in the light of races or subspecies. a. Rostro nigro L melanoryncha. b. Rostro rubro. a'. Scapularibus brunneis 2. amauroptera. b'. Scapularibus cyaneis aut viridi-cyaneis. a". Capite haud pileato, collo postico concolori. a'". Major: supra viridi-cyanea 3. gouldi. b'". Minor: supra laetissime cyanea 4. leucocephala. b". Capite indistincte pileato, ochrascenti-cinereo 5. fraseri. c". Capite distincte pileato. a'". Pileo haud cyaneo lai-ato. a"". Pileo saturate brunneo 6. gurial. b"". Pileo albescenti-cinereo 7. burmanica. b'". Pileo pallide brunneo, viridi-cyaneo distincte lavato 8. floresiana. I may state that the idea of separating these Kingfishers into different species has not been hastily conceived by m e ; on the contrary, the conclusions obtained in the present paper are the result of several months' patient study with a very large series of specimens at m y command from all localities, It has, indeed, before been mooted whether these birds ought not to be separated as species; and Lord Walden has expressed his opinion (P.Z. S. 1866, p. 553) that the variations in plumage were also coincident with changes of locality. 1. PELARGOPSIS MELANORYNCHA (Temm.). Alcedo melanoryncha, Temm. Pl. Col. 391 (1826); Schl. Mus. Pays-Bas, Alced. p. 15 (1863); id. Vog. Ned. Ind. Alced. pp. 10, 47, pl. 2 (1864). Halcyon melanoryncha. Gray, Gen. of Birds, i. p. 79 (1846); Bonap. Consp. Gen. Av. i. p. 155 (1850) ; Cass. Cat. Hale. Phil. Mus. p. 10 (1852); Wall. Ibis, 1860, p. 142, et P.Z. S. 1862, pp. 335, 338. Hylcaon melanoryncha, Reich. Handb. Alced. p. 18, t. cccxcix, f. 3074 (1851). Ramphalcyon melanoryncha, Bonap. Consp. Vol. Anis. p. 10 (1854). Entire body cream-colour, a little deeper on the throat, and approaching to pale orange on the abdomen and under tail-coverts; forehead dusky grey, the base of a few feathers on the crown also slightly showing this colour; cheeks and ear-coverts more decided dusky grey, the feathers narrowly edged or washed with cream-colour ; middle of the back, scapularies, and wing-coverts brownish, washed with dull green, the latter narrowly edged with cream-colour at the tip; quills dark brown, the inner web white at the base, the basal half of the outer web of the primaries and the whole of the outer web of the secondaries dusky green ; tail dusky green above, dark brown beneath; bill black ; feet dusky; eyes dark brown. |
