Vinten Bros.

CRASPEDOPHORA MANTOUL, Oustalet.

Mantou’s Rifle-bird.

Craspedophora mantowi, Oustalet, Le Nat. 1891, p- 260.—Id. Nouv. Arch. Mus. (3) iv. p. 218, pl. xv. (1892).—
Sharpe, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, iy. p. xii (1894).—Biittik. Notes Leyden Mus. xvi. p. 165 (1894).
Craspedophora bruijni, Biittik. Notes Leyden Mus. xvi. p. 161 (1894).

 

Turs is a very fine species of Rifle-bird, but as yet no perfect specimens have been received in Europe, so
far as Iam aware. The original example was a plumassier’s skin, which found its way into the hands of
M. Mantou, who presented it to the Paris Museum. In the Hon. Walter Rothschild’s collection I have
seen a second example, while a third is in the Leyden Museum. The habitat of the species is not known,
but it is believed to be some part of North-western New Guinea.

The principal differences between C. mantoui and C. magnifica are as follows :—The flank-plumes are
conspicuously longer, and the centre tail-feathers are darker, not being dark metallic green in all lights as in
C. magnifica. The back of C. mantoui is more violet, the sides of the crown and neck purple, and the
structure of the breast-shield is different, not being continued in a median line to the chin, but having the
feathers crinkled, instead of being scaly ; the lower part of the shield, moreover, has only one band of golden
bronze, and no black band at all. The shape of the shield is rounder and not so triangular as in
C. magnifica.

The following description has been taken from the specimen in the Leyden Museum, which is the type
of Dr. Buttikofer’s C. bruijnit. He thinks that his bird may be distinct from C. mantoui, but I see no
reason for believing them to be different.

Adult male. General colour above purplish black, with a purplish-violet gloss, with velvety black tips ;
wing-coverts velvety black, glossed externally with steel-blue, the primary-coverts similarly coloured, the
edge of the wings purple ; quills velvety black, with a steel-green gloss, the inner secondaries with purplish
violet ; tail-feathers velvety black, glossed with purple, the margins of the feathers steel-blue, with which the
centre feathers are glossed ; crown of bead metallic steel-green, the feathers scaly in appearance ; the sides
of the crown and the sides of the face and neck as well as the upper throat purplish violet, with more
distinct purple on the latter; lower throat steel-green, united to a beautiful shield of scaly metallic-green
feathers, which are crinkled and have a purplish-violet gloss ; the lateral feathers of the shield black, with a
steel-green margin; breast and abdomen purplish red, with a bronzy reflection, this portion separated from
the shield by a narrow band of golden bronze; the long flank-feathers blacker with a purple gloss, the long
feathers becoming elongated into blackish filaments ; a tuft of white feathers on the upper part of the
thighs ; under wing-coverts blacker, with a purplish gloss. Total length 11 inches, culmen 2-25, wing 6:9,
tail 3, tarsus 1-7.

The figure in the Plate has been taken from the specimen in the Leyden Museum, and is copied from
a sketch made by Mr. Keulemans.

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