' st'izixus. 401 



brown on the inner webs green on tlie outer, the inner secondaries 

 green on both webs but more or less tinged with brown on the 

 inner ; tail yellowish green, with an inch-wide band of dark brown 

 near the tips ; lower plumage dull greenish yellow, brightening to 

 yellow on the belly and under tail-coverts. 



Colours of soft parts. Iris red-brown to pure vandyke-browri ; 

 bill very pale straw-white or ivory-white; legs and feet dull deep 

 flesh-colour to grey-brown. 



Measurements. Total length about 210 mm.; wing 79 to 

 89 mm.; tail about 90 mm.; tarsus about IS to 19 mm.; cidmen 

 about 13 mm. 



Distribution. Hills South of the Brahmaputra, Arrakan, Chin 

 and Kachin Hills to Yunnan. 



Rothschild (Nov. Zool., xxvii, p. 50, 1921) points out quite 

 correctly that Bangs and Phillips's S. c. ingrami is merely the 

 immature S. c. canifrons which has the throat Qvej instead of 

 brown and the under parts rather dull olive-green instead of 

 grrenish yellow. 



Nidification. The Einch-billed Bulbul breeds from the end of 

 April to the end of July from about 3,500 feet np to the highest 

 peaks in the North Cacbar, Khasia and Naga Hills and up to 

 6,000 or even 7,000 feet in the Kachin and Yunnan Hills. The 

 nest can be told at a glance from any other Bulbul's nest, for it is 

 made entirely of tendrils, some stout, some tine and rarely they may 

 be mixed with a few tiny twigs or scraps of bracken, but these 

 are so scanty that they are not noticeable. The lining, as a rule, 

 consists merely of tendrils Hner than the rest but I have seen 

 scraps of dried bracken also used for this purpose. The internal 

 shallow cup measures something under 3 inches (75 mm.) in 

 diameter by under 1 inch (25 mm.) deep but the outer measure- 

 ments are diiRcult to ascertain as the ends of the tendrils stick 

 out in all directions. The nests are extremely well put together and 

 stand very rough handling. The site selected is usually in a tall, 

 scraggy bush or a small sapling, some 5 to 10 feet from the 

 ground, standing in dense evergreen forests or in thick scrub- 

 jungle. 



The eggs number two or three only, four being quite excep- 

 tional, and are like very large examples of those of Xanthucus 

 jiavescens. The ground-colour is anything from the palest pink 

 to a rather deep brick-red pink but they are so completely covered 

 with innumerable freckles and tiny blotches of light red, deep red 

 or dark brownish red, that little of the ground-colour is visible. 

 Many eggs, indeed, look almost unicoloured at a short distance. 

 In shape they are long, blunt ovals and the texture is fine, 

 practically glossless and very fragile. 100 eggs average 25*7 X 

 17-6 mm. ; the greatest length and breadth 28*1 X 18-0 and 

 26-0 X 19-3 mm. and the least each way 24*0 x 16-1 mm. 



Habits. The Finch-billed Bulbul is a bird of fairly high 

 altitudes and is not found below 3,000 feet even in the cold 

 VOL. I. 2d 



