Journal of the Federated Malay States museums - Sabrizain.org

36 Journal of the F.M.S. Museums. -[Vol. VI,
with their terminal two-thirds scarlet ; axillaries and under
wing coverts orange, the bases of the former black ; thighs
black ; rest of the plumage brilliant scarlet orange, more
scarlet on the rump and upper tail coverts, the bases of the
feathers of the abdomen orange chrome. Bill and feet black,
iris dark hazel.
Adult female.—Head behind the level of the eyes, nape,
mantle and scapulars grey, slightly suffused with greenish.
Forehead to the eyes, a patch round the eyes and a short
superciliary stripe, extending slightly beyond the eyes bright
chrome yellow. Stripe from the nostrils to the eyes, blackish.
Lower back, rump and upper tail coverts, greenish yellow.
Whole under surface bright chrome yellow, the lower of the
feathers of the abdomen white ; the thighs mingled brownish
and yellow. Wings black, the first four primaries uniform on
the outer web, the remainder with a diagonal chrome yellow
bar. Secondaries and tertials with their basal third chrome
yellow and with elongated isolated drops of the same colour
on the outer webs. Lesser wing coverts greyish, except on the
angle of the wing greater ones ;
yellow. Under wing coverts pale
black, their
yello\\' and
tips chrome
fuscous, the
axillaries yellow with their bases, blackish. Innermost pair
of tail feathers entirely black, the next pair mainly black, the
third pair about half black, the black regularly diminishing to
the outermost pair in which only the basal third or fourth is
black ; remainder of the feathers pure chrome yellow.
Dimensions.—Adult male. Total length, 6.75 ; wing, 3.38 ;
tail, 3.25 in.
Adult female. Total length, 6.75 ; wing 3.4;
tail, 3.25 in.
Immature.—The not fully adult birds of both sexes resemble
the adult female, from which garb the male changes into
the adult dress in part by a deepening of the pure yellow
feathers to orange and thence to vermilion scarlet, this change
being very well shown in the large series in the Selangor
Museum. Still younger birds have the yellow colour beneath
duller, the feathers of the head and mantle with white margins,
and the primaries edged with white.
Localities in the Peninsula:—Siamese Malay States:
Bandon (June) ; Trang (November, December, January).
Perils: Pelarit (November). Perak: Temongoh (July) ; Taiping
(July). Selangor: Semangko Pass, 2,700' (February) ; Bukit
Kutu (August) ; Klang Gates (January) ; Ginting Bidai, 2,300'
(September); Ulu Gombak (September). Pahang : Bentong
(June).
Notes :—This race is widely spread throughout the Peninsula
in submontane country, ranging up to about 3,000' in
altitude, above which its place is taken by P. montanus. As is
the case with many other species originally described from
Southern Tenasserim by Hume it is evident that it has no