188 



PLOCEID.E. 



the head darker ; rump black, with white cruciform marks ; upper 

 tail -coverts glistening fulvous ; tail black ; wings dark brown or 

 blackish ; cheeks, lores, chin, throat, and fore neck black ; sides of 

 the neck and of the breast pinkish brown with pale shafts ; breast 

 and whole lower plumage pinkish white, irregularly but closely 

 cross-barred with black. 



The young are plain chocolate-brown above, without pale shafts 

 or white marks on the rump, and pale buff below with white shafts 

 and irregular cross-bands of brown. 



Iris sepia-brown ; bill blackish leaden, bluish at the base of the 

 lower mandible ; legs and feet plumbeous, in some with a greenish 

 tinge (Legge). 



Length about 4-5 ; tail 1-8 ; wing 2-1 ; tarsus -5 ; bill from 

 gape -45. „ 



Distribution. Confined to the island of Ceylon. 



734. Uroloncha malabarica. Tlie White-throated Munia. 



Loxia malabarica, Linn. Syst. Nat. \, p. 305 (1766). 



Munia malabarica (Linn.), Blyth, Cat. p. 117; Horsf. # M. Cat. ii, 



p. 508 ; Jercl B. I. ii, p. >357 • Hume, N. $ E. p. 451 ; Legge, 



Birds Ceyl. p. 662. 

 Munia similaris, Stoliczka, J. A. S. B. xxxvii, pt. ii, p. 56 (1868). 

 Amadina malabarica (Linn.), Hume, Cat. no. 703; Barnes, Birds 



Bom. p. 263. 

 Aidemosyne malabarica (Linn.), Sharpe, Cat. B. M. xiii, p. 369. 

 Uroloncha malabarica (Linn.), Oates in Hume's N. & E. 2nd ed. ii, 



p. 136. y 



The Plain Brown Munia, Jerd.; Charchara in the N.W. Prov. ; Piddari, 

 Southern and Central India ; Sar-munia, Beng. ; Jinuwayi, Tel. 



Coloration. Upper plumage, wing-coverts, secondaries, and ter- 

 tiaries earthy brown ; primaries and wiuglet black ; upper tail- 

 coverts white, the outer webs of the exterior feathers partially black ; 

 tail dark brown, margined with rusty ; sides of the head and lower 

 plumage pale buffy white, the sides of the body faintly cross-barred 

 with rusty. 



The young closely resemble the adult. 



Upper mandible plumbeous horn-colour ; lower mandible lav- 

 ender ; legs and feet pale purplish pink ; iris dark brown (Butler). 



Length about 4-5; tail 1-9; wing 2-1; tarsus -55; bill from 

 gape -4. 



Distribution. The whole continent of India from the Himalayas, 

 which this species ascends up to 5000 feet, to Cape Comorin and 

 Ceylon. The most easterly locality at which this bird appears 

 to have been observed is Kooshtea on the Ganges, Beugal, 

 where Godwin-Austen obtained it (J. A. 8. B. xliii, pt. ii, p. 3 71). 

 To the west it ranges into Afghanistan. 



Habits, Sfe. Breeds throughout the greater part of the year. 

 The eggs measure *6 by "47. 



