I9I3.] 



E. C. Stuart Baker : Birds. 263 



collection shows distinct signs of the dark coronal bands, the 

 feature which distinguishes austeni from striata. South of the 

 Brahmaputra throughout the Cachar and Naga Hills only austeni 

 is met with, and it would appear to work as far west on the 

 north as Bhutan and perhaps into Eastern Nepal. 



9. Pomatorhinus fcrruginosus (Blyth). 



O. and B., vol. i, p. 120. 

 B. M. Cat., vol. vii, p. 422. 



{a) <f , Upper Rotung, 2150 ft, 6-i-i2. I M. No. 

 25262. 



This is unfortunately rather a poor specimen, but it appears to 

 have the rufous on the breast a good deal more restricted in 

 extent than in any of the series in the British Museum. 



Sub-family TIMELIINAE. 



10. Pellorneum mandellii (Blanf.). 



O. and B., vol. i, p. 140. 

 B, M. Cat, vol. vii, p. 518. 



{a) 5 , Kobo, 400 ft., lo-xii-ii. I.M. No. 25261. 



The so-called Burmese sub-species, P. m. minus, must I 

 think be suppressed. Many years ago when working in the N 

 Cachar Hills, where P. mandellii mandellii was the usual form met 

 with, I was constantly also obtaining birds which appeared to be 

 nearer minus than mandellii. and often there would be one of a 

 pair, one of which was minus and the other of which was a quite 

 typical mandellii. The same thing occurs in the Khasi and Naga 

 Hills where the two extremes are almost equally common and 

 where every intermediate form exists. Again, in the Southern 

 Shan States, though, perhaps, there are more minus than mandellii, 

 yet the latter is quite common, and specimens which cannot be 

 said to be either one or the other are even more so. In order to 

 create a sub-species it is essential that there should be some dividing 

 line either in latitude, longitude or in elevation, but all that can 

 be said as regards this species is that the form mandellii is the 

 more prominent in the north and minus in the south and east of 

 its range. 



The specimen in this collection is a vQxy dark bird with the 

 streaks on the lower plumage exceptionally dark and broad. 



n. Alcippe nepalensis (Hodg.). 



O. and B., vol. i, p. 157. 

 B. M. Cat., vol. vii, p. 620. 



