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B. Mus March 17th '68 Polyplectron Napoleonis

Much of back & wings metallic green with no eyes. The wing feathers are only tipped with the greens & are edged with black, & the black tinge in some feathers runs some way down the shaft; so that by a little change, there could be produced two oblong green spots edged with black. The tail feathers are [insertion:] Probably reversed process

inches long; the tail coverts being long; so that the tail-coverts are longer than in most birds. Near the ends of both kinds of feathers there are upon each near the extremity two splendid eyes of a green-blue iridescent colour bordered with black & these bordered with ashy grey; the rest of the feathers being blackish brown, thickly dotted

[64]

ash colour. In P. ednicospilum enico & cyclospilum tail coverts & tail elongated like a pheasant; the tail being inches long & tail coverts long; so that I think tail coverts longer in proportion than in former species. In both kinds of feathers double eyes as before but eyes of a more greenish purple iridescent tint. In these species the feathers on the neck & wing coverts are ornamented with small single eyes resembling those on the tail.

In the several species of the genus the two eyes on the tail-coverts approach rather nearer & nearer to each other; in P. malaccense & Hardwickii (these species have eyes upon the necks & wing coverts) the two eyes in the tail coverts not only touch but the green centres are fused together on each side of the shaft the black & ash coloured borders curving inwards

 

[64v]

& indenting both at the upper & lower ends two large now single green eye. Hence identical with the eye of the peacock's tail, except that the latter is not indented at the lower edge, only truncated, now it is remarkable that in one or both these spec the eye on the inner side of the shaft of the true tail feathers, has quite disappeared so that we have an approach to the absence of eye in the tail of the peacock.

The females of all the forging species have more or less plain trace of the eyes on the tail & elsewhere but not on the tail-coverts.

P. Malaccense.