of the head and neck, chin, throat, back, and scapulars black, the
longer scapulars tipped with chestnut, and all the feathers of these
black portions of the plumage, and also of the crown, fringed with
fulvous after the autumn moult ; a well-defined white patch on the
throat ; rump, upper tail-coverts, and lower plumage rich chestnut,
the middle of the abdomen albescent ; tail black, all but the middle
pair of feathers chestnut on the basal third of their length ; the
median wing-coverts, the innermost greater coverts, and the outer
margins of tertiaries and later secondaries white; remainder of
wings black ; under wing-coverts and axillaries black, with broad
white tips.
Female. Forehead, crown, nape, back, upper part of rump, scapulars, and sides of neck rich brown ; lower part of rump and upper tail-coverts chestnut ; tail dark brown, the basal half of all but the middle pair of feathers dull rufous ; wings as in the male, but the black replaced by brown and the white margins narrower ; lower plumage pinkish ashy, albescent on the abdomen, and with a large white patch on the throat ; under wing-coverts and axil- laries brown, tipped white.
Bill and legs black.
Length about 6 ; tail 2-9 ; wing 3'3 ; tarsus '9 ; bill from gupe -55.
Distribution. Confined to the higher portions of Nepal and Sikhim and the adjoining parts of Tibet and Central Asia, such as Kausu.
641. Ruticilla aurorea. The Daurian Redstart.
Motacilla aurorea, Pall. Rci*. Ru*$. Reicks, iii, p. 695 (1776).
Phcenicura leucoptera, ////////, J. A. S. B. xii, p. 962 (1843)
Ruticilla leucoptera (Bl.) Bli/th, Cat. p. 168.
Ruticilla aurorea (Pall.), Horxf. $ M. Cat. i, p. 305 ; Jerd. B. I. ii, p. 139 ; Hume, Cat. no. 500 ; Seebohm, Cat. B. M. v, p. 345 ; Oates, B. B. i, p. 16 ; Hume, S. F. xi, p. 195.
Reeves' Redstart, Jerd.
Coloration. Male. After the autumn moult the forehead, crown, nape, and mantle are slaty grey, the feathers fringed with slaty brown, the portion over the eye and along the sides of the neck purer grey ; lower back, scapulars, and wing-coverts black with fulvous margins ; rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail chestnut, except the middle pair of feathers of the latter, which are black ; quills black, each secondary with a patch of white, forming a large wing-spot; feathers at base of bill, chin, throat, and sides of head black, with whitish margins ; remainder of lower plumage chestnut. In the spring and summer the fringes of the feathers are much reduced in extent, but seldom entirely lost except on the throat.
Female. Everywhere brown, paler beneath and albescent on the abdomen; a circle of pale foatfaen round the rvc; rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail as in tin male ; wings brown edged with
