Gurney’s Pitta.
Pitta gumeyi, Hume, Stray Feathers, vol. in. p. 296.—Gould, Birds of Asia, part 29—Hume & Davison,
Stray Feathers, 1878, p. 244.
Brachyurus gumeyi, Hume, tom. cit. no. 6, pi. 3.
We are indebted to the pages of ‘ Stray Feathers ’ for a knowledge of this new and magnificent P itta ; and
I can readily conceive with what real pleasure Mr. Allan Hume took up his pen to write a description of so
interesting a bird.
Mr. Hume has given a most careful description o f both sexes of the Pitta gumeyi, and his reason
for dedicating this bird to his friend Mr. J . H. Gurney. He remarks
“ No more beautiful or interesting addition to our Indian avifauna has been made for many a long day;
and its discovery is one of the results of the systematic ornithological survey of the Tenasserim Provinces
which for the past two years has been vigorously prosecuted by my curator Mr. William Davison and my
whole staff.
“ Though conspicuously different from any one o f them, this new species is most nearly allied to
P . cyanura, Gmel. {guaiana, P. L. S. Miill.), P . schwaneri, Temm., P . boschi, S. Mull.
“ There is the same cuneiform blue tail, the same comparatively small bill, the same more or less rufous
olivaceous upper surface, the same difference in the sexes, an orange-brown replacing on the head of the
female the more marked colours o f that portion o f the male.
“ The habitat o f this fine bird is Tenasserim, where it is a seasonal visitant to the evergreen forests of
the southernmost portions of the province. Mr. Davison, who collected the specimens, gives the following
note on their habits :—
“ ‘ This is apparently only a migratory species in Tenasserim, and occurs, so far as I have observed, only
in the southern portion of the province. Laynah was the most northern locality a t which I observed it,
and Kenong within the estuary o f the Pakchan, but on the Siamese o r southern side, the most southern.
“ ‘A few specimens begin to make their appearance in the forests round Malewoon and Bankasoon (where
my specimens were mostly collected) about the 10th or so o f February; but they remain scarce during
February, March, and the first two weeks in April. After that they become rather more numerous, and
continue so to the end of May and until the regular monsoon rains have set in, when they rapidly
disappear, though even in July a few specimens may be met with. The bird confines itself to the evergreen
forests, never, that I am aware, venturing into the open or even into gardens. It is shy and retiring,
and on the slightest indication o f danger hops rapidly away, managing generally to keep some obstacle
intervening between itself and the approaching person. It is by no means a common bird even when it
does occur; and it was only by persistently hunting them, and never missing an opportunity o f securing a
bird where possible, that I and my people succeeded in getting the number we did.
“ ‘ Its habits are like those o f other members of the genus, keeping to the ground ; it feeds on snails, worms,
slugs, and insects of all kinds. When disturbed, unless closely pressed, it seldom flies, but hops rapidly
away, until it gains the cover o f some tangled cane-brake or other refuge, where it remains until satisfied
that all danger has passed, when it emerges again into the more open spots. Favourite resorts are the
narrow valleys lying between the hills. These, though densely wooded, contain little or no undergrowth.
“ ‘ T he note is quite that of Pitta, but yet differs notably from that o f the other species. When suddenly
come upon or otherwise alarmed it utters a peculiar note, a sort o f kir-r-r. I t has a habit of jerking up
its tail and dropping its wings slightly as it hops along, which I have never observed in its congeners.
“ ‘As above mentioned, it is almost exclusively a ground-bird; but one evening I shot a male high up in a
t r e e ; it attracted my attention by the peculiar short double note it was uttering, quite unlike its ordinary
note, and every time it uttered it, it flapped its wings and jerked up its tail. Usually it is found singly,
occasionally a couple together. During the morning and evening they call, and may then be heard
answering one another in all directions/ ”
The figures in the Plate represent, and are drawn from, a pair of birds kindly given to me by Mr. Hume.