THE BIRDS OF TRAVANCORE. 251 



range bird life is pretty uniform. One meets with numbers of such 

 forms as Trend, puella, Chloropsis jerdoni, Arachnechthra minima, Als- 

 eonax lalirostris at low elevations an J Dendrocitta leucogastra s Eidabes 

 rel/'giosa, Hypsipetes ganeesa, and others common to the western ghat3 

 higher up. It includes one bird which is peculiar to it, namely, Tro- 

 chalopterum meridionale. Rhopocichla bourdilloni, peculiar to Travancore, 

 is found throughout the range, including the Kanan Devan Hills. 



The second district, which comprises the Kanan Devan Hills or high 

 range, is of a more open character and at a higher elevation. Looking 

 at it from the Cardamom Hills, it appears to run at right angles to these 

 hills and to tower above them. As a matter of fact, the main range 

 runs north and south ; but there are high spurs running east and west, 

 and it is one of these that one first sees. Here again there is plenty 

 of grass land, and much of the forest has been cleared for tea culti- 

 vation. Its average height is 6,500 feet, and its rainfall varies from 

 about 101 to well over 200 according to aspect. The birds peculiar to 

 it are Trochalopterum fairbanki, Cisticola erythrocephala, Phylloseopus 

 affinis, Carpodacus erythrinus, Anthus nilgiriensis, Galerita malabarica, 

 Cypselus melba, Microperdlx erythrorhynchus and Gallinago nemoricola. 

 I have not taken these elsewhere in Travancore. The distribution of 

 the first of these genera, Trochalopterum, is very instructive. The 

 range of T. meridionale extends from the extreme south as far as 

 the Achenkovil Gap. On the High Range T. fairhanki takes its place 

 and extends to the Anamallais and Palnis, which are practically the 

 same range though British territory. 



The Neliampathis, which are in the native State of Cochin, are 

 connected with the Anamallais and the High Range by a ridge 

 of a more or less horse-shoe shape. This part of the hills is, I believe, 

 the habitat of Davison's Laughing Thrush [Trochalopterum cinnamo- 

 meum). There is then a distinct break in the range, which is known 

 as the Palghat Gap. This sharply divides the Neliampathi Hills from 

 the YVynaad and Nilgiris. In the former Irochalopterum jerdoni is 

 found and in the latter T. cachinnans. The distribution of the genus 

 Merula is much the same. M. bourdilloni is found from the extreme 

 south as fir as the Palnis. The habitat of M. erythrotis will, I think, 

 bo found to be the Neliampathi Hills. M. similima is also found on the 

 Palnis, but more often on the Nilgiris, while M. nigripileus is found 

 there and also in Mysore. I have made this digression and pointed 

 out these facts, as there are some mistakes in the volumes of the 



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