1. PARUS. 17 



Adult. Entire mantle and back bluish grey instead of yellowish 

 green. In all the other parts this species resembles P. minor per- 

 fectly. Total length about 5 inches, culmen 0-45, wing 2"5-2'6, 

 tail 2-3, tarsus 0-7-0'75. 



Young birds have the mantle and rest of the back dull grey, and 

 the parts which are black in the adult dull black or brownish 

 black ; below ding)- whitish. 



Hah. The Grey Indian Titmouse has a very extensive range, 

 being found all over India from the Himalaj'as to Ceylon, and the 

 southern half of China, as well as in Hainan, Java, Lombock, Flores. 



Obs. In the collection of the British Museum there is one speci- 

 men from the N.W. Himalayas (moulting), one from Behar, one 

 from Ceylon, one from Fokieu, another from Eastern Java, three 

 from Lombock, which have the tips of some of the feathers of the 

 mantle just visibly washed with yellowish green — an interesting 

 indication of the close affinity between the Japanese species (P. 

 minor) and P. cinereus. Some of the typical specimens labelled by 

 Mr. Swinhoe's own hand as P. commixtus, now in Mr. Seebohm's 

 collection, are really intermediate between the olive- and the grey- 

 backed form ; others, again, from the same localities (South-eastern 

 China) are scarcely distinguishable from P. cinereus, and only on 

 close examination is a faint olive tint visible on some parts of the 

 mantle. As these seven slightly aberrant specimens in the British- 

 Museum collection were obtained from the most varied localities of 

 the Indo-Malayan and Chinese regions, it seems to me to prove that 

 this modification of colour is not an indication of geographical race. 



The occurrence of the olive tint on the mantle of P. cinereus may 

 be nothing but the sign of an immature male, especially as the 

 young birds of both species, P. cinereus and P. minor, have the 

 mantle more or less dull olive-green. This, however, is a mere 

 supposition, as of all the specimens examined by me, and more 

 than thirty in number, only a few are sexed by the collectors 

 themselves. 



North-western Race (P. boccharensis). — In Turkestan and Afghani- 

 stan P. cinereus is represented by a somewhat larger and paler race. 

 General colour above pale or French grey : greater wing-coverts 

 and secondaries broadly edged with white ; the two outer pairs of 

 tail-feathers almost completely white ; the white nuchal spot well 

 developed ; throat and centre of breast and abdomen black. 



6- 

 2- 



6. 



«. Ad. .sk. Afghanistan (OriJ^fh). India Museum. 



b. Ad.sk. Khooner (ffri^t/i). India Museum. 



c, (I. d ? ad sk. Gilgit, March 10, 1878, Major liiddulph [C.]. 



5000 ft. 



