MERULIN^. 527 



colour, darker on the interscapulars, and paler and brighter be- 

 neath ; wings dusky or blackish ; the tertiaries edged with brown ; 

 tail blackish, the under tail-coverts mingled deep brown, or black, 

 and white. 



The female has the colours less intense ; the head and neck more 

 ashy brown, and the chin and throat alone nearly white ; the 

 wings and tail brown, with the outermost feathers of the latter, in 

 some, tipped with white ; lower tail-coverts brown and white. 



Bill, orbits and legs, yellow ; irides brown. Length 10^ inches ; 

 wing 5^ ; extent 16 ; tail 4^ ; bill at front nearly 1 ; tarsus l^^. 



This anomalously coloured Ouzel, generally referred to the 

 Blackbird group, was considered a Geocichla by Bonaparte, and its 

 coloration shows a tendency to that group ; but its general structure 

 is more Meruline. It has, indeed, been considered by some to be 

 a pale variety of M. alhocincta, but I consider it distinct, and 

 Hutton, who has had many opportunities of observing this bird, also 

 denies this, asserting that the Grey-headed Ouzel associates in 

 large parties (in the Avinter, I presume), whilst the Ring Ouzel is 

 always solitary, like Blackbirds in general. I procured a few spe- 

 cimens of this Ouzel at Darjeeling, in winter only ; and it is 

 not very common there, frequenting open forests. 



Other Eastern Blackbirds are M. Kinnisii., Kelaart, from the 

 mountains of Ceylon, and M. leucogaster, Blyth, from the ]\Iunni- 

 pore hills. M. mandarina, from China, has been already alluded 

 to, very like JY. m<7^fms, but with much stouter bill ; M.fumidus, 

 MiilL, apud Bonaparte, from Sumatra, Java, Timor, &c., is the only 

 other Eastern Blackbird recorded ; but there are several from Ame- 

 rica. M. vidgaris of Europe lias been found in Afghanistan, and 

 is said to occur also in Cashmere, where Capt. Brownlow assured 

 Mr. Blyth that it is common at an elevation of from 10,000 to 

 13,000 ft. : the late Lieut. Trotter assured the same naturalist that 

 it decidedly does not occur in the Peshawur District. A very 

 remarkable species, from Syria, with a sort of claw on the 

 wing, was distinguished by the late Prince of Canino as M. 

 dactyloptera. 



The next group is that of the true Thrushes ; and here, again, we 

 find now recognised two divisions, the one typified by the Song 



