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Mr. Hodgson, it "inhabits the mountains solely: is chiefly arboreal : and feeds on caterpillars, grubs and soft insects, and equally on pulpy berries."

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Copsychus, Wagler; Dahila, Hodgson. The D'hyals. Of this genus, the Bengal and common Indian species is Gryllivora intermedia, Swainson, and Dahila docilis, Hodgson, As. Res. XIX, 189. this the females have, constantly, the whole upper-parts glossy ash colour, blackening on the middle tail-feathers; while the females of the two following have, as invariably, the upper-parts glossy black, though less intense than in the male, and passing to blackish-ashy on the forehead; now this latter agrees with Edwards' description of the female of his 'Little Indian Pie,' which, however, he adds, was sent from Bengal; and upon Edwards' figure is founded Gracula saularis of Linnæus. Perhaps, therefore, it will be as well to consider the Bengal bird as C. saularis, (Lin.), in conformity with recent systematists. The Ceylon D'hyal would seem to be Gryllivora brevirostra, Sw., having a rather smaller bill than that of continental India, and the males of both have the four outer tail-feathers on each side white, the fourth, however, having commonly some slight admixture of black, while in the females the fourth has, generally, even more black than white. The Malayan D'hyal is Gr. magnirostra, Sw., having a conspicuously larger bill than in the others, and never more than the tip of the fourth tail-feather white, and a good deal of black often on the third. It will range as C. mindanensis, (Gm.), v. Turdus amanus, Horsf., and Lanius musicus, Raffles. Mr. Swainson also describes a Gr. rosea; respecting which Mr. Strickland writes me word, after examining Swainson's original specimen, that it "is certainly only C. mindanensis (v. magnirostra, Sw.), with plumage slightly stained by some rufous material, probably the red soil of some locality."

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Kittacincla macrourus, (Gm.), Gould: Gryllivora longicauda, SwainThe Shámah. This splendid singing bird seems to be common in the hill jungles of Central India, and those at the foot of the Himalaya; and it is especially numerous in the territories eastward of the Bay, and in the Malay countries generally: but in the south of India it is somewhat rare.

Thamnobia, Swainson: Saxicoloides, Lesson. There are two species of this genus: that of Upper India, Th. cambaiensis, (Lath.), the

female of which is S. erythrurus of Lesson, has constantly the head and upper-parts of the male olive-brown; while in that of Southern India, the head and upper-parts of the male are shining deep black, the same as the under-parts,-this latter being Motacilla fulicata, Lin., Enanthe ptygmatura, Vieillot, Th. leucoptera, Swainson, Rusty-vented Thrush, and the female-Sylvia fulicata, var. A, of Latham. The females of the two species are, however, undistinguishable; and I have observed that the younger males of Th. fulicata have the upperparts more or less brown, as in the northern species, the head more especially; but the dorsal plumage (so far as I have seen) is always shining black underneath, and the brown edgings are cast after a while, leaving a more or less perfect black surface. The northern species, on the contrary, has no black on the interior of its feathers. This bird is the Motacilla fulicata of Tickell's list, and it abounds in all Upper India: I have never seen it from below the Rajmahl hills in Bengal, but it is common in the Midnapore jungles.

We may now venture on the great series of Indian Thrushes, which are as follow:

Zoothera, Vigors, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1831, p. 172.

1. Z. monticola, Vigors, ibid. ; Gould's Century,' pl. XXII. The figure cited of this bird is faulty, making the body appear much too large; the legs and toes are also represented too stout and terrene in their character; and even the beak is incorrectly drawn, being too deep at base, instead of the culmen rising from the base and becoming deepest about the middle. In the young, the bill is not longer than that of an ordinary Thrush, but there are indications of its future form; and the plumage of the nestling much resembles the corresponding garb of an English Blackbird. In fact, the Zoothera is merely a stout Thrush allied to the Oreocincle of Gould, with a strangely overgrown bill; but this could never be inferred from Gould's figure of it. A specimen from Arracan is perhaps distinct, or it may be only the ordinary female : it differs from several Darjeeling specimens (males?) in its rather smaller size and less developed bill, in the olive-brown hue of its whole upperparts, in having a distinct whitish loral streak and much intermixture of the same upon the ear-coverts, and in the feathers of the under-parts being whitish with a broad olive-coloured border, surrounding the feather more or less according to the part. Inhabits the Himalaya; and

if that of the Arracan mountains prove identical, as is most probable, it may be expected to occur likewise in those of Assam, Munneepore, Sylhet, &c.*

Oreocincla, Gould, P. Z. S. 1837, p. 145. The more characteristic species of this group make a very close approach to the preceding, insomuch that there is hardly any difference between the bill of the Arracan specimen of presumed Z. monticola above described, and that of a Neilgherry near ally to O. varia, except that in the latter the culmen scarcely ascends from the base, while in other specimens of Oreocincla it distinctly ascends. Again, O. macrorhyncha, Gould, (P. Z. S. 1835, p. 145), from New Zealand, is described to be nearly allied to O. varia, from which it differs "in the much larger size of the bill, and in the deeper black colouring of the margins of the feathers;" so that it is even probable that the dividing line cannot be drawn between the two groups, especially as the black margins to the feathers of the upper-parts, which are especially characteristic of most of the Oreocincla, do not occur in all of them, as for example the species which I introduce next.

2. O. moltissima, nobis, XI, 188: O. rostrata, Hodgson, Ann. Mag. N. H. 1845, p. 326. In some specimens of this bird, the beak appears abnormally grown out, and altogether coarser than in that which I originally described; and Mr. Hodgson's O. rostrata is founded upon an example of the kind: but I have recently examined a fine series of specimens, which has shewn their identity beyond a doubt. They commonly measure from ten to eleven inches in total length; and some have the wing-coverts broadly tipped with pale fulvous of which no trace occurs in others. Common in the vicinity of Darjeeling. 3. O. neilgherriensis, nobis, n. s. This species was originally sent me by Mr. Jerdon as the Turdus varius of his catalogue, which latter he has lately referred to O. dauma (Madr. Journ. No. XXXI, 127); but he has since obtained additional examples of the present species, which is conspicuously distinct from O. dauma. From the Javanese O.

A second specimen from Arracan accords with the above description, except that its size is fully equal to that of the Himalayan bird; its beak, however, being rather smaller. This disposes me to the opinion that it is distinct, in which case I propose for it the name Z. marginata. One or the other of these birds was procured by Dr. McClelland in Assam; apparently the Arracan species, to judge from the drawing.

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varia, it differs (judging both from recollection of Javanese specimens and from comparison with Dr. Horsfield's figure,) in having much shorter and smaller tarsi. The plumage would, however, appear to be the same and the beak is particularly long and coarse, having absolutely the character of Zoothera but little subdued. Length about ten inches, of wing five and a quarter, and tail three and a half; bill to gape an inch and a half, and tarse but an inch and one-eighth ; middle toe and claw one and a quarter: the first primary an inch and three-eighths, and the second three eighths of an inch shorter than the third, fourth, and fifth, which are equal. From the Neilgherries.

O. varia, (Horsfield,) Lin. Trans. XIII, 149; Zool. Res. in Java, with coloured figure. Malay countries.

4. O. dauma,* (Lath.), Strickland, in epistola: Turdus Whitei, Eyton; O. parvirostris, Gould, P. Z. S. 1837, p 136 (a small female). From the numerous specimens which I have seen, I feel convinced that Mr. Gould's O. parvirostris may be referred as above. The species appears to be common in the Himalaya, and can hardly be considered rare in Lower Bengal during the cold season, when it is generally met with among bamboos. It also occurs in central and southern India: and, as a rare and accidental straggler, has been met with in South Britain and Ireland, and some other parts of the west of Europe. The beak of O. dauma is that of an ordinary Turdus, and its colouring only refers it to the present group.

5. O. spiloptera, nobis, n. s. Length about eight inches and a half, of wing four inches, and tail three and a quarter: bill to gape above an inch, and tarse an inch and a quarter. Colour uniform rich olivebrown above, inclining to tawney; below white, with black spots nearly resembling those of the Missel Thrush: middle of throat, lower abdomen, vent and lower tail-coverts, spotless: wing-coverts black, margined more or less with the hue of the back, and each conspicuously tipped with a pure white spot. Bill blackish, and very robust: the tarsi brown and slender. Inhabits Ceylon.

Turdus, L., as restricted.

6. T. viscivorus, Lin. The European Missel Thrush is common in the N. W. Himalaya.

* Intended for Dáma, the Hindoostanee equivalent for Thrush.

7. T. atrogularis, Tem.: T. Naumanni apud nos, XI, 189: Rychili Thrush, Lath., the female. Common in the Himalaya, and I have also seen it from Tipperah.

8. T. Naumanni, Tem. A very rare species in the Himalaya. The following appears to be the female. Length about eight inches and a half; of wing five inches, and tail three and a half; bill to gape an inch and one-eighth; and tarse the same. Upper parts ruddy-brown, the crown and ear-coverts dusky, with a whitish supercilium as in T. iliacus; throat and middle of belly white, the feathers of the sides of the throat marked with a dusky medial line, and the breast and flanks brown, with a pale margin to each feather; sides of the neck below the ear-coverts whitish; the under-surface of the wing chiefly buff, with the fore-part and the axillaries ferruginous: bill yellow with dusky tip; and legs brown. From Chusan, where collected by Dr. Playfair, Surgeon of the Phlegethon War Steamer, and presented to the Society by Dr. McClelland.

9. T. ruficollis, Pallas. Nearly allied to T. atrogularis, from which it differs in having the fore-neck and breast, supercilium, fore-part of the under-surface of the wing, and the tail except partially at tip, ferruginous; lores, under the eye-streak, dusky; and under-parts below. the breast white, a little sullied with light brown. In what appear to be the females, the throat is albescent, with rufous lines, and striæ of dusky spots on each side; the eye-streak also is whitish; the ferruginous colour of the breast weaker, with pale terminal margins to the feathers; and there is more dusky and less rufous on the tail. Bill dusky, with more or less yellow at the base of the mandibles, the lower being sometimes chiefly of this hue and legs pale brown. Length about ten inches, of wing five to five and a half, and tail four inches; bill to gape an inch and one-eighth, and tarse one and a quarter. Inhabits the Himalaya.

T. javanicus, Horsfield, Lin. Tr. XIII, 148: T. concolor, Tem., p. c. Java. This and Oreocincla varia, are the only true Meruline species included in Dr. Horsfield's long list of Javanese Turdi.

10. T. rufulus, Drapiez, Dict. Class. d'Hist. Nat. X, 443: T. modestus, Eyton, P. Z. S. 1839, p. 103. Length eight and a half to nine inches, of wing four and a half to five inches, and tail three and a quarter to three and a half; bill to gape an inch; and tarse one and

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