20 Mr. Blyth's Commentary 



same uniform dark olive-brown colour ; lores, chin and throat, 

 and middle of the belly pure white ; sides of the throat, breast, 

 flanks, and tibial plumes rufescent brown ; lower tail-coverts 

 brown, with broad, pale tips, though considerably less broad 

 than are the white tips to the lower tail-coverts of D. affinis. 

 Hah. Himalaya? 



A third species exists in Horornis fiaviventris, Hodgson (no. 

 524). Olive-brown above, with a slight ruddy tinge; below 

 paler ; whitish, with a tinge of yellow, on throat and breast ; 

 lower tail-coverts brown, with dull whitish tips. Wing 2*12 

 inches ; tail 2*55 in., its outermost feather '5 in. shorter than the 

 middle ones. 



A fourth very probably exists in Horornis fortipes, Hodgson 

 (no. 526), to judge from my description of a specimen (J. A. S. B. 

 xiv. p. 585) : " Colour uniform dark olive-brown above ; below 

 pale ochraceous-brown, approaching to albescent; flanks and 

 lower tail-coverts dark brown, the latter margined paler; bill 

 dusky above, paler below ; legs also pale. Length about 4| in. ; 

 wing 2 in. ; and tail 1| in., its outermost feather ^ in. shorter; 

 bill to gape | in. ; and tarsi | in." Mr. Hodgson writes, how- 

 ever, "Bill slender, with notch and inclination distinct; rictal 

 hairs distinct. Tail broad, soft, fan-shaped. Legs strong, and 

 frequently smooth. Wing as in Tribura, more or less pointed, 

 and not absolutely rounded as in Horeites." 



I think that these three (or four) species of Dumeticola might 

 very well be merged in Locustella, L. ncevia has not neces- 

 sarily an aquatic propensity ; for I have observed it in the 

 driest furze-brakes in this country. I suspect that all of this 

 group will be found to have the cartilaginous and stiffened 

 tendons of the muscles of the leg, to which I called attention 

 so long ago as 1834 (Ann. Mag. N. H. vii. p. 341). 



520. Locustella NiEviA, Bodd. ; Sylvia locustella, Lath. 

 {vide J. A. S. B. xxiii. p. 216). 



This is very decidedly not the Motacilla certhiola, Pallas, as 

 figured by Mr. Gould and Dr. Bree. I still think that it is the 

 British species ; perhaps, however, it may be L. hendersoni, Cas- 

 sin (Proc. Acad. Phil. 1858, p. 293) = L. macropus, Swinhoe 

 (P. Z. S. 1863, pp. 93,293). It is not L. ochotemis, Middend. 



