W. Hart cULtLÜth,
LORIUS T IB IA L IS » Sdata-.
.Mintrnt- Hr vs. imp.
LORIUS TIBIALIS, Sclater.
Blue-thighed Lory.
Lorius tiUdis, Sclater, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1871, p. 499, pi. xl—Garrod, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1872, p. 788,-Giebcl,
Thes. Om. ii. p. 503 (1 8 7 3 ).—Salvad. Ann. Mus Civic. Genova, x. p. 33 (1877),—W. A. Forbes, Ibis,
1877, p. 278.—-Salvad. Orn. della Papuasia e delle Molucche, p. 240 (1880).
T h i s is a very distinct species o f Lory, and it is very m u ch to be regretted th at a t present we are entirely
ignorant o f the co u n try which it inhabits. I t is, no doubt, as has been suggested by Dr. Sclater, a
denizen o f one o f the Molucca Islands. . . . .
T h e species was originally described by Dr. Sclater from a specimen which was living a t the time in the
Zoological Gardens, and of this bird a v e r y good-figure was given in the ■ Proceedings ’ of the Society.
I t belongs to that section of the genus Lorius wherein the colour o f the head resembles th at o f the
back, instead o f being black. .
T h e 'o n ly Other species which shares the character o f the crimson head is Lorius garrulus; but this is
easily distinguished by its yellow under wing-coverts. T h e original specimen was purchased by Mr. Jamrach
in the Calcutta m a rk e t; it lived for nearly four years in the Zoological Gardens.
T h e followin g iija description o f the type, which proved, on dissection, to be a female
Adult female. General colour above bright crimson, the scapulars like the b a ck ; wing-coverts grass-
green the lesser series milted with crimson and with lilac along the bend o f the wing ; the inner, greater, and
median coverts witli a snbterminal mark o f dark crimson; bastard-wing grass-green, bluish at the end of
the feathers, the outer feathers black a t the base; primary-coverts grass-green, blackish internally; quills
grass-green, the primaries blackish internally, yellow for more than^ the basal half, the basal p a rt being
tinged with red ; innermost secondaries marked with dark crimson near the ends like the greater coverts ;
upper tail-coverts and tail-feathers l i g h t crimson, with a purplish-brown band across the end o f the t a i l ;
crown o f head, sides o f face, and entire under surface of body bright crimson, mottled with yellow bases to
the feathers on the lower throat and fore n e c k ; thighs lilac-blae ; under tail-coverts bright crimson ; under
wing-coverts and axillaries duller iilac-blne, slightly washed with green and on the edge o f the wing with
re d ; quills below black, with a large yellow basal p a tc h ; bill bright o ran g e; feet pale fiesh-colour, claws
bright horn-colour. Total length ■ inches, culmen 1 1 , wing 6-4, tail 3 '7 , tarsus 0 7.
The figure in the Plate represents an adult bird o f the natural size, and is tak en from the specimen
described above. ^ ^ g ^