44 Mr, E. C. Stuart Baker on the 



close, but rather chalky, and very fragile for the size of 

 the egg ; the surface in one or two of the darkest eggs only 

 exhibits a very faint gloss. 



Three is the usual number of eggs laid, sometimes four, 

 and often but two, for thrice I have taken this number hard- 

 set. They seem to breed principally at the end of May and 

 the beginning of June. 



3. SUTHORA ATRISUPERCILTARIS. {Otttes, Op. cit. i. p. 67.) 



I have taken but one nest of this bird, which was found 

 on the 7th of July, 1893. It was first found by a Naga, who 

 was searching for nests for me, and who, in accordance with 

 the instructions he had received, set some nooses about the 

 the nest to trap the parents, and then came to take me to it. 

 On my arrival I found the female caught, and before taking 

 the nest I waited some time to see whether the male also would 

 come, but as he failed to put in an appearance I took the 

 nest and the single egg it contained. 



Outwardly the nest is composed of fine shreds of grass 

 and whitish grass-bark ; within this are a considerable num- 

 ber of pieces, rather broad, of bamboo-leaves; and, finally, 

 it is lined with a small amount of dark-coloured grass-stems, 

 the dark outer bark of some weed, and two or three tiny 

 scraps of tree-bark. The colour of the exterior is yellowish 

 white, that of the interior darker and browner. The general 

 character of the nest is typical of the subfamily, but it is far 

 less neat and less compact than that of either Paradoxornis 

 or Sc(2orhynchus . In shape it is a deep cup, measuring out- 

 wardly about 3"-l by 2"-45, and inwardly l"-80 by l"-7. It 

 was placed in a thick bamboo-clump, in a cluster of twigs 

 growing from a bamboo quite on the outside of the clump, 

 and was rather over six feet from the ground. The clump 

 in which it was built was one of five or six which were 

 growing on a steep hill-side, scattered about over a large 

 extent of sun-grass, which grew about three to four feet 

 high. The elevation of the mountain where it was taken is 

 over 4000 feet. 



The egg is not at all what one would have expected to 



