416 Letters, Extracts fi'om Coirespondence, Notices, ^c. 



Malacocircits yriseus, Gmel., with light-brown plumage, dark- 

 brown wings, fulvous rump, white eye, and yellow bill, fre- 

 quenting hedges and gardens in noisy parties, flying into the 

 latter in the early morning, and hopping about and searching 

 for grubs among the dead leaves at the foot of bushes and at 

 the roots of trees. They hop about with ruifled feathers, quarrel 

 and scream in notes between those of Jays and Woodpeckers, 

 and fly from bush to bush with roundly expanded wings, and 

 tails. They a good deal resemble the members of the Garrulax 

 group, but are noisier and bolder. I learn from Jerdon (Birds 

 of India) that some of the Malacocirci are fair songsters. In 

 this respect and in form they constitute close allies of the 

 Chinese and Formosan Song-Thrush [Leucodioptron sinense et 

 L. taevanum) ; and I cannot help thinking that these two species 

 ought properly to be referred to Malacocircus instead of being 

 isolated into a genus for themselves. 



Nectarinia zeylanica, L. S with resplendent purple upper 

 parts and yellow breast ; § greenish. Usually in pairs, very 

 busy about flowering bushes. They seemed to prefer the large 

 Hibiscus flower, hanging about it and searching with their bills 

 the rim of the calyx for small insects. A Crow [Corvus splen- 

 dens) pounced upon one of them under my eyes, and carried it 

 away in his bill, the little creature screaming in agony. Their 

 notes call to mind at times those of Tits, at others those of 

 "WTiite-eyes. 



Milvus govinda, Sykes. The Bombay Kite looked smaller and 

 darker than those of China. They were carrying about sticks 

 for building with. 



Corvus splendens, Vieillot. Abundant and noisy, full of tricks; 

 also carrying about twigs. 



Corvus culminatus, Sykes. Occasionally seen. Their caw, 

 loud and peculiar, not unlike that of the Chinese Crow. 



Coccystes melanoleucus, Gmel. Watched one for some time, 

 through a glass, on a large bush. It kept flying on the leaves, 

 and back to a perch, probably after caterpillars or spiders. 



Dicrurus longicaudatus, A. Hay. Several about gardens. The 

 only species observed. They sit bolt upright on the perch, and 

 are light and extremely graceful on the wing, turning off occa- 



