302 Mr. R. Swinhoe on Formosan Ornithology. 



Upper parts sepia-brown, the feathers being centrally darker 

 and margined with yellowish grey. Feathers of the head large 

 and roundish, those of the back large and oblong ; all soft and 

 lax. Wings yellowish brown, margined with light reddish 

 brown ; the fifth and sixth quills rather longer than the fourth, 

 and longest in the wing. Tail yellowish brown, paler edged 

 and obscurely barred, the feathers being tipped with blackish, 

 margined with whitish, and having strong brown shafts. Rec- 

 trices ten in number, much graduated, the laterals being 3^ in. 

 shorter than the centrals, which exceed the two next by 1 in. 

 Lores, space round the eye, cheeks, and under-parts with a pale 

 dingy-ochreous tinge, with a few dark specks interspersed. 

 Axillaries and carpal edge straw-colour ; under-edge of interior 

 quills light rust-colour. Tibiae rufous. Two strong black 

 bristles are given out from the base of the upper mandible on 

 each side, and several smaller ones from the chin. 



This species has its nearest ally in Suya lepida, Hodgs., of the 

 Himalayas, but is at once distinguishable by its very much 

 larger size, 



64. Prinia sonitans, Swinhoe, Ibis, 1860, p. 50. 



This bird, found in all gardens and hedgerows throughout 

 the plains of Formosa, is identical with that found on the Chinese 

 main, from Canton to Foochow. It has only ten feathers in the 

 tail, and two stiff black bristles on each side of the base of the 

 upper mandible, together with several shorter ones under the 

 eye and on the chin. It creeps about the bushes and long grass, 

 making a cracking noise, I think with the tail, as it springs 

 from stem to stem. It has a long, trilling call-note, and a short, 

 sweet song, which the male gives forth as it stands perched on 

 some prominent twig. It has also a curious alarm-note, resem- 

 bling something the mew of a kitten. It is fond of frisking its 

 tail about and throwing it up. It feeds on small insects, chiefly 

 Diptera and caterpillars. It attaches its nest usually between 

 the stalks of long grasses ; at other times it places it in bushes. 

 The nest is composed of dried grasses, fibres, and leaves, cup- 

 shaped, covered with a broad-domed canopy, and lined with 

 feathers and hair. It builds three nests in the course of the 



