ANORTHURA FORMOSA.

Spotted Wren.

Troglodytes punctatus, Blyth (nec Boie), Journ. As. Soc. Beng. xiv. p. 589 (1845).—Id. Cat. Birds Mus. As. Soc.

jeans (1849).—Bp. Consp. Gen. Av. i. p. 222 (1850).—Jerd. Birds of India, i. p. 492 (1862).—Gray,
Hand-l. Birds, i. p. 188, no. 2565 (1869)

ie -—Hume, Stray Feathers, NSA De OZone Sipe pena cemeon
p- 93.

Troglodytes formosus, Walden, Ibis, 1874, p. 91.—Ramsay, Orn. Mem. Tweed. p- 253 (1881).
Anorthura formosa, Sharpe, Brit. Mus. Cat. of Birds, vi. p- 279 (1881).

 

Turis would appear to be an extremely rare species; for Dr. Jerdon in his ‘Birds of India’ states that he had
only procured one specimen at Darjiling, so that up to the year 1862 this appears to have been the only one
obtained since Mr. Blyth’s typical example. Mr. Hume’s collection doubtless contains examples ; but as far
as this country is concerned, I believe that only a single individual is known; and that one is in the
collection of the late Marquis of Tweeddale.

Some little controversy has arisen as to the name which this species should bear. It would seem that
before Mr. Blyth described the species the name punctatus had already been bestowed by Boie; but this
title has always been considered a synonym of Anorthura troglodytes; the Common Wren of Europe. Under
these circumstances the late Lord Tweeddale proposed the name of Troglodytes formosus for the Darjiling
species ; and to this Mr. Hume has taken exception. He writes:—‘‘In this I am quite unable to concur ;
and as it involves, to my notion, a fundamental error in principle, I feel bound to protest against it. Had
Brehm’s name stood for the species to which it was applied, the proposed change would be correct; but, as
a fact, the name does not stand, it has become a mere synonym, is dead for our purposes, and therefore
the adjective punctatus is again available to characterize some other species of the genus. Blyth did thus
utilize it, and bis name punctatus should, in my opinion, most assuredly stand.” I am sorry I cannot
follow Mr. Hume in his conclusions, backed up as they are by his argument in ‘Stray Feathers’ for 1877,
p. 238; for I think that if a name has been given to any species before, it is better not to employ it again
under any circumstances; and I have therefore adopted Lord Walden’s correction.

The present species stands quite alone in its coloration, and is much more like a true Timeliine bird
than a Wren. The following description is copied from Mr. Sharpe’s ‘ Catalogue of Birds :’—

Adult. General colour above smoky brown, inclining to dull rufous-brown on the lower back and rump,
and verging to more decided rufous on the upper tail-coverts ; on all ie upper parts aoe are tiny rounded
subterminal spots of whitish or pale fulvous, margined with dusky blackish, these spots being absent only on
the crown of the head; wing-coverts dusky brown, with rather larger spots of buffy whitish; the greater
coverts rufous, mottled on the outer web and having a buffy-white spot at the tip; quills blackish, ay
rufous, with five broad bands of black, the inner secondaries more narrowly cae and having a few
terminal spots of white; tail rufous, barred with blackish, about nine narrow bars being perceptible on the
sides of face smoky brown, mottled with fulvous spots, indistinct on the lores but
coverts streaked narrowly with fulvous; throat light sandy buff, deepening
in colour on the breast and abdomen; the whole under surface mottled with triangular whitish spots, which
are brought into relief by dusky central spots, all the feathers oe a ao ao Se aaa
with minute dots of dusky blackish ; the flanks rather browner than the abdomen; under wing-coverts an
axillaries reddish brown, slightly mottled with dusky b i ee
the inner web, and showing some fulvous bars towards the ens ; bey brown ; oe pale brown; iris
brown” (Jerdon). Total length 4°6 inches, culmen 0-6, wing 179, ae LA on oe oe

I am indebted to Captain Wardlaw Ramsay for the loan of ae specimen in the ‘I'weedda e collection, from

; cenit ‘as also tak The figures in the Plate are drawn from this specimen, and
which Mr. Sharpe’s description was also taken. §

represent the species of the natural size. rR. B.S

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centre feathers ; lores and
plainer on the cheeks; the ear-

ars; quills dusky brown below, ashy along the margin of