404 Capt. P. J. Begbie on the Natural History 



now come to the consideration of the ornithological depart- 

 ment. 



It would swell these pages to an extent greater than it is con- 

 templated^ were I to detail at length the whole of the varied 

 ornithology of the peninsula ; I shall therefore content myself 

 with a simple enumeration of this department, dwelling only on 

 the more remarkable specimens. 



Amongst the Eagle tribe, we find the Falco severus, Horsfield, 

 Javan Falcon. This bird is about twelve inches long. The body 

 is ash-brown, spotted and waved with darker and black. Greater 

 wing-coverts varied with black, brown and pale brown. Arrow- 

 spot on the throat white, outer quill-feathers barred, and outer 

 tail-feathers tipped with white. Middle claw serrate. 



Falco malai/ensis, Tern. Malayan Eagle. Plumage sooty brown. 

 Irregular whitish bands at the base of the wing-feathers, and 

 white lunules on the inside of the tail-feathers. 



The Hornbill tribe, to which we now come, is one of the most 

 curious of nature^s wonders, and no less than five species are 

 procurable in the peninsula. The first of these is 



The Buceros rhinoceros of Linn., or the Rhinoceros Hornbill. 

 It is about the size of a hen turkey, but slenderer in the body, 

 and the plumage is totally black, with the exception of the tail, 

 which is tipped with white. The bill is ten inches long, sur- 

 mounted with a hollow protuberance eight inches long, and 

 curved backwards. 



What the precise use of this appendage is I am unable to say, 

 but I think it not improbable that a communication exists be- 

 tween it and the larynx, producing the shrill and grating cry 

 uttered by the bird, which is heard when it is soaring even at a 

 great height. The hornbills build on the tops of the loftiest 

 trees and are extremely shy, seldom permitting the sportsman to 

 approach within range. When taken alive, they make a stre- 

 nuous resistance with their long and powerful wings. The other 

 species are, t\\e, Buceros monoceros, Shaw (syn. B. malabaricuSj 

 Lath.), the unicorn hornbill ; the Buc. galeatus, Lath., the ga- 

 leated or helmeted hornbill ; and the other two I conceive to be 

 new species, and shall therefore describe them. 



The first of these I shall term Buceros rugosus, or the Wrinkled 

 Hornbill*. This species is two feet and a half long. Body, 

 wings and tail black, with the exception of the cheeks, shoulders 

 and throat, which are dirty white mixed with cinereous. One- 

 third of the tail from the tip smoky white ; helmet and pouch- 

 like protuberance under the throat crimson, the former furrowed 

 with three deep indentations. Upper mandible yellowish brown, 



* This is evidently the Buceros corrugatus of Temminck, Ph Col. 531. — 

 H. E. S. 



