GYMNOCREX PLUMBEIVENTRIS

Grey-bellied Rail.

Rallus plumbeiventris, Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1861, pp. 432, 438 —F
Rallina plumbewentris, Schlegel, Mus. Pays-Bas, Raili, Pp. 17, 78 (1865)—Id. Ned. Tiidechr
(1866).—Gray, Hand-l. B. ili. p. 58, no. 10402 Gis7ie=sh eee
Rallus hoeveni, Rosenb. Nat. Tijdschr. Nederl. xxix. p. 144 (1867)
(1866).—Rosenb. Reis naar Zuidoostereil. p. 53 (1867).
Rallus intactus, Sclater, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1869, p. 120, pl. x.—

insch, Neu-Guinea, Pp. 180 (1865).

Dierk. iii, p. 349

arpe, Journ. Linn. Soe. xiii. p. 505 (1877).

-—Schlegel, Nederl. Tijdschr. Dierk. iii. p. 349

1. Tristram, Ibis, 1882, p. 144.

Rallina intacta, Gray, Hand-l. B. iii. p. 58, no. 10404 (1871).

Gymnocres plumbewentris, Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genoy. Vil. p. 793 (1
p. 129 (1879).—Salvad. op. cit. xviii. p. 320 (1883)
p. 268 (1882),

875).—D’ Albert. & Salvad, Op. cit. xiv.
—Id. Orn. della Papuasia e delle Molucche, iii.

 

Mr. Wautace first discovered the present species of Rail in the island of Mysol, and the Datch travellers
Dr. Bernstein and Mr. Bruijn afterwards procured it in the Moluccan Islands of Morty or Morotai and
Halmahera. Von Rosenberg has also met with it in the Aru Islands, and Signor D’Albertis found it on the
Hy River in Southern New Guinea. It had previously been brought by Mr. Stone from Momile, a
locality in South-western New Guinea, to the interior of Port Moresby. As Count Salvadori has pointed
out, we erroneously spoke of the original specimen as coming from Morty Island instead of Mysol, when
we were describing Mr. Stone’s collection. A bird procured in the Solomon Islands and forwarded by
Mr. Gerrard Krefft, of Sydney, to Dr. Sclater, was named by bim Radlus intactus. Count Salvadori has
carefully examined the latter specimen and compared it with the type, and has come to the conclusion that
the two are identical.

Nothing is known of the habits of this fine Rail, which, on account of its bare face, is included by Count
Salvadori in his genus Gymnocrex, along with G. rosenbergi of Schlegel, from Celebes.

The following is a description of the type specimen :— .

Adult. General colour above ochraceous brown ; wing-coverts like the back, the greater coverts with a
reddish tinge externally ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and quills chestnut, with a little ochreous brown at
the tips and on the outer web, the inner secondaries ochraceous brown like the back; lower back, rump,
Upper-tail coverts, and tail-feathers black ; crown of head and hind neck deep chestnut, as also the lores,
sides of face, ear-coverts, cheeks, throat, sides of neck, and fore neck, with the throat ne and more ashy
Whitish ; chest and remainder of under surface leaden grey, blacker on the aidonen: sides of body, and
“flanks ; thighs leaden grey; under tail-coverts black ; under wing-coverts and we a ate
broad white tips at the end of the feathers ; quills below chestnut, a little more dusky at the ends.
‘length 13 inches, culmen 2°1, wing 7'1, tail 2:7, tarsus VM.
The figure in the Plate represents an adult bird of the size of life and
specimen of Rallus intactus, recently presented by Dr. Sclater to the British Museum.

s black, mottled with

, and has been drawn from the type

[R. B. S.J

 

 

Semen om ad KM Se

fs

mY

Pete

PND od RON ROLL

C

Pay SRA RANA Fe Se Ay rs IELTS SET OTOSEIOIE =

ROT Oe ee