BUNTINGS. 



113 



across lower throat ; this is followed by a, broad band of 

 greyish white and then a fairly broaid band of red- 

 brown a< ross the oliest ; abdomen whitisli, washed on 

 the flanks with ot^hreous; beak reddish-brown, lower 

 mandible fleshy at base; feet fleshy-buff; irides dark 

 brown. Female rather smaller; generally duller and 

 less distimttly marke*i ; throat butf, the black gorget 

 broken up, ;us also the red-brown chestband. Habitat, 

 Japan. Eastern Silwria, and North China ; wintering in 

 South China, Burma, and the plains of India, resident 

 in the Xorth-we.st Himalayas. 



According to Blakiston and Pryer {The Ihh, 1878, 

 p. 242), "the Grey-headed Bunting is a common visitor 

 to the plains near Yokohama, retiring to the mountains 

 ai:d to Vezzo to breed." 



Jerdon (" Birds of India," Vol. II., p. 376), says: "I 

 have seen it at Jalna in the Ueocan, at Mhow and 

 Saugor, and also ne4ir N'agpore. In most of these cases 

 it was frequenting rocky and bushy liills in small 

 parties ; and I occasionally saw it in the fields, near 

 hedges and trees." Swinhoe records it as " frequenting 

 standing cornfields in China." Hume (" Nests and Eggs 

 of Indian Birds," Vol. II., pp. 166-167) tells us that "the 

 Grey-headed Bunting breeds throughout the valleys of 

 Llio Sutlej and Beas, and the hills westwards of this to 

 "Hazara, at elevations .if from 6,000 to 8,000 feet. 



"It lays from the middle of May to the middle of 

 July, so far as I yet know, and very possibly both earlier 

 and lat«r. 



" The nest is usually placed on the ground, at the root 

 of some little dense "tuft of gra.ss or stunted bush, or 

 under some large stone well concealed by the surround- 

 ing herbage ; but I have had one nest brought to me 

 said to have been found in a bush nearly a cubit from 

 the ground. 



"The nest is sauoer-shaped, or, perhaps I should 

 rather say, shallow cup-shaped, composed almost entirely 

 of dry grass, and lined with very fine grass-stems and 

 a little hair. It is perhaps a neater and certainly a 

 denser and heavier nest than that of E. stracheyi, but 

 both are much the same size and very similar in other 

 respects. 



" Four .seems to be the regular complement of eggs. 



" The eggs of this .species are by no means of the 

 ordinary Bunting tj-pe. The only Bunting's egg of 

 which I have seen a figure which they at all resemble is 

 that given by Bree of the egg of the Black-headed 

 Bunting {Eu.^piza melanocephala). Like the eggs of 

 MelophvK vulanictervs, there is something of a Pipit 

 and Lark-like character alxiut them. In shape they are 

 long regular ovals, somewhat pointed towards the small 

 end. The ground-colour is a very pale greenish grey 

 or white tinqed with greenish grey, and they are 

 i^jeckled and freckled pretty well all over, but far more 

 densely at the large end, wher« there is an irregular 

 mottled oaip or zone, with dull, rather pale, somewhat 

 reddish or purplLsh brown. They have little or no 

 gloss, and in shape are more elcngat^fd and oval than 

 those of E. sirarhei/i. In length the eggs vary from 

 0.76 to 0.91. and in breadth from 0.57 to 0.62." 



Russ seems only to have been aware that this bird was 

 oooasionally offered for sale at Calcutta; it has, how- 

 ever, l)een exhibited at the London Zoological Gardens. 

 YELLow-imowKD Bunting {Emhrrha clegans).' 



Mantle, scapulars, and upper back chestnut brown 

 streaked witli black and with buffish-white borders; 

 low er baclc, rump, and upper Uil-o overts ash-grey ; the 



..rj,?. *'■', ''''?'''?'''»• Society's List the Tetlow-browsa Buntinir 

 l^t wh" *''^„'"'";^ °f \ rtr.v.opftrv.,. but is said to he from 

 twtSo "^"'YJ- ''"^yopTirvi^ is a Siberiaai bird; I conclude, 

 tbcrefore, that E. elegam is intended. '"■^.""t:, 



latter with a tinge of chestnut; lesser wing-coverts ash- 

 grey ; median and greater coverts blackish, tipped with 

 bull and whitish, forming two wing-bars; flights dull 

 brown, with greyer borders; secondaries and greater 

 coverts pale rufous externally ; tail blackish, the central 

 featliers ashy, the others with ashy brown edges, except- 

 ing the outermost feather, which is white with a black 

 marking at base of inner web and a dusky niarkmg near 

 tip of outer web ; penultimate feather also with a long 

 white patuh on inner web ; crown and nape black 

 divided by a pale yellow stripe which begins alx)ve the 

 eye and bounds the back of head, at the other extremity 

 it passes above the lores and across the forehead as a 

 narrow white band ; base of forehead and sides of head 

 black; a white band alxive the ear-coverts; back and 

 sides of neck a.sh-gi-ey dotted with black ; throat bright 

 yellow; l)ase of chin cros.sed by a narrow black line, 

 a large triangular black gorget separate<l by a white 

 l>and from the yellow throat; remainder of IxKly below 

 white, tlie sides streaked with rust-reddish, more 

 broadly on the flanks, which are streaked in the centre 

 with black; flights below dusky, ashy whitish along 

 inner web ; beak black ; feet flesh-coloured ; irides 

 brown. Female smaller and much duller; the ashy 

 colouring on hind-neck or lower back replaced by 

 chestnut, streaked and bordered like the upper back ; 

 crown also chestnut with black bases to the feathers ; 

 ear-coverts darker; yellow encircling stripe on head, 

 cheeks and throat less distinct, more orange in tint, and 

 duller ; body below dull white, with ill-defined black 

 gorget. Habitat, "possibly a resident in Japan, but to 

 llanchuria and the valley of the Amoor it is only a 

 summer visitor, vontering in China." (Seebohm.) 



Mr. F. W. Styan on "The Birds of the Lower 

 Yangtse Basin " {The Ihis, 1891, p. 355) _ says, " Not 

 tmcommon in vrinter on hillsides, frequenting barnboo- 

 clumps and the rough brambly scrub around farm- 

 clearings. A sweet songster. Breeds at Ichang on the 

 Upper Yangtse." 



Seebohm {The Ibis, 1892, p. 94) says, "Mr. Hoist 

 describes the irides as brown, the bill as dusky grey 

 shading into greyish yellow towards the base of the 

 under mandible, and the feet as reddish yellow." Surely 

 this would be the winter colouring? 



Mr. F. W. Styan on "Birds from West China" {The 

 Ibis, 1899, p. 297) observes that this species was " found 

 by Pere David at Moupin. Seems to be a common 

 breeder in Sechuen." 



Captain H. A. Walton {The Ibis, 1903, p. 28) says, 

 "A few examples of this species were brought to me by 

 a bird-oatcher aA the end of May. I did not see it wild 

 myself." 



Mr. J. D. D. La Touche in his " Field-Notes on the 

 Birds of Chinkiang" {The Ibis, 1906, p. 635) only tells 

 us that this is "a common winter bird. It leaves" about 

 the beginning of April." 



So, although this species is resident in Japan, breeds 

 at Ichang, and is a common breeder in Sechuen, I have 

 been unable to discover any published account of the 

 nidification. 



Dr. Russ includes this species in his book, because it 

 IS said to l)o a favourite cage-bird with the Japs on 

 account of its song, and therefore he concludes that it 

 will soon reach the European market; if, as I believe, the 

 Yellow-browed Bunting (from Japan) in the Zoological 

 Society's list is this species, it has appeared in our 

 gardens more than once. 



QoLDEN-BRE.iSTED BirNTiNG {Embcriza Aavivenfris). 

 Above nape, upper back, and scapulars chestnut-red ; 

 lower back, rump, and upper tail coverts ash-grey; 

 the last-mentioned edged with white; lesser wing- 



