Page:Stray feathers. Journal of ornithology for India and its dependencies (IA strayfeathersjou11873hume).pdf/372

348 more specimens are shot and carefully measured and compared, I would not state that this is a constant feature.

On the other hand, with regard to the iris, there is no doubt whatever that in the female it is pure white, and in the male dark brown. In both cases that have come under my notice as I have shewn the birds were pairs, and in the adult state. Every naturalist knows how the eye changes in many immature birds notably in Raptores, but in the case of Phaenicophaus pyrrhocephalus, the difference of colour above noticed is undoubtedly due to sex and not to age. The colour of the iris seems to have been a problem since the bird was discovered^ arising no doubt from the fact of single specimens having always been procured. The remarks of Mr. Holdsworth in his catalogue above quoted bear me out in my experience. He says : "Layard says, the irides of this cuckoo are white; but in the living bird (a male) I had, they were brown, and they are marked as of that colour in specimens in Lord Walden^s collection." These latter are doubtless males.

This bird will no doubt be found to inhabit the forests round the south-eastern and eastern slopes of the mountain zone as well as those of the west, south-west^ and north-east in which localities I have procured it.

 

In the spring of 1873 we went in for steady birds nesting round Murree, from the middle of May to the end of July. As we began rather late, we missed several of the early breeders. To most of our Indian readers the situation of Murree is well known, but for the benefit of those who do not know, it may be as well to describe its whereabouts. It is the most north-westerly hill station in British India, and is on the high road to Kashmir, the highest point is about 7,500 feet. Most of the nests were found at a lower elevation and a large number came from a tract of thick jungle near the river Jhelum which flows through a valley about fourteen miles from Murree towards Kashmir. We did not go over a very large area, but as will be seen below, there was plenty to be done, and we were well rewarded as we obtained, in addition to several rare species, the eggs of one or two birds about whose breeding habits we have seen no all 