Mad.

AS

X

MONTIFRINGILLA HASMATOPYGIA, Gow.

Red-rumped Mountain Finch.

Montifringilla hematopygia, Gould in Proce. of Zool. Soc., Mar. 25, 1851.

 

Tue specimens from which the accompanying figures were taken were killed in Thibet by Lord Gifford ;
they belong to a species intimately allied to the Prngilla (Linaria) Geblert of M. Brandt, but which differs
from it in its larger size, in the darker colour of the head and face, and in the darker colouring of the back
and rump, which latter is moreover ornamented with a patch of blood-red; it is also destitute of the orange-
red mark on the shoulders, which M. Brandt states to be characteristic of his species.

I am indebted to Lord Gifford for the loan of this fine bird, which is second in interest only to the new
and beautiful Syrrhaptes Thibetanus, also brought by his lordship, and of which figures will be found in
their proper place in this work.

Face and forehead brownish black, gradually blending into the light greyish brown of the upper surface ;
rump stained with blood-red; upper tail-coverts brown, tipped with dull white; tail dark brown, each
feather margined externally with white ; wing-coverts hoary; wings dark brown, the first four primaries
narrowly edged with white, the next five primaries with a broad streak of white along the basal portion of
their external webs terminating ina line with the extremities of the secondaries, which are externally fringed
with hoary; spurious wing dark brown, margined at the base with whitish ; under surface very light brown,
gradually becoming paler, until on the under tail-coverts the hue is buffy white; bill and feet bluish black.

The Plate represents the two sexes of the natural size.