PICARIAN BIRDS AND PARROTS OF CEYLON. 259 
in one nest, but never more. They closely resemble the 
Babbler’s eggs in size and colour, but are generally of a 
slightly different shade. They are broadly elliptical in shape, 
sometimes with rather square ends, the shell is hard, the 
surface smooth, satiny, and slightly pitted, while the ‘* white ”’ 
is greenish instead of being colourless as in Babbler’s eggs. 
The average of a dozen Ceylon eggs is *94 by °76. 
CoccYSTES COROMANDUS (Blanford, Vol. III., p. 226 ; 
Legge, p. 249). 
The Red-winged Crested Cuckoo. 
Description.—Crown, nape, and sides of head black ; a blue- 
green gloss on the longish crest ; a clearly marked half collar 
of white on the hind-neck. The back, scapulars, inner wing 
coverts, and tertiaries are black glossed with green ; the 
remaining coverts and the wing quills chestnut ; rump, upper 
tail coverts, and tail black, the two former glossed with green, 
the last with purple ; outer tail feathers narrowly tipped with 
white. The throat and fore-neck are chestnut-buff ; breast 
and upper abdomen white ; lower abdomen, vent, and thighs 
dusky gray ; under tail coverts black glossed with violet. 
In young birds the feathers of the upper parts are tipped 
with rufous ; chin and throat whitish ; under tail coverts and 
edges of the tail feathers buff. 
Bill black ; iris hazel brown ; legs and feet lead colour. 
Length 15 to 16; wing about 6°4; tail 9°5; tarsus 1; 
bill from gape 1°4 
Distribution —A rare bird, found here and there throughout 
the Island up to about 4,000 feet. The majority of the 
specimens appear to be migrants, arriving in October and 
leaving about Easter, but it is possible that in the northern 
forest tract some birds stay all the year round, and I have an 
egg found in the Puttalam District, which probably belongs to 
this species. This Cuckoo is very rare in the Indian Penin- 
sula, but ranges from Nepaul, through Assam and Burma, to 
China and the Malay Archipelago. 
Habits, &c.—Found singly or in pairs in thick scrub and 
thorny jungle. It feeds on caterpillars, beetles, &c. In the 
north of the Island the eggs may be looked for in the nests of 
