260 NECTARINIID.i:. 



twig it htiiDgs from, 9 inches in length and 3 in diameter, composed 

 chiefly of dry grass and coeoanut- fibre, with a few feathers inter- 

 mingled in the body of the nest, and the interior thiclily lined 

 with these. About an inch below the point of suspension, the 

 portico projects for 1-25 inch; it is about 1-5 thick; and below 

 this is the little oval entrance to the nest, about 1-25 by 1 inch. 

 Interiorly the cavity is about 3-5 inches deep, and below the lower 

 margin of the entrance-hole nearly 1 75 in diameter. The portico 

 and the upper portion or neck of the nest is chiefly coir, while the 

 lower and broader portions are mostly grass and pieces of bamboo 

 sheaths, a dead leaf or so, and a scrap or two of bark. There is 

 no attempt to decorate the nest externally, as is so common in 

 this genus ; but perhaps the nest was not quite finished, though 

 Da\ ison says they were all alike. 



An egg of this species, taken by Mr. De Eoepstorff in February 

 at Camorta, is a pale dull grey-brown, thickly streaked and freckled 

 with a somewhat darker brown, and with a few minute specks and 

 spots of a much darker brown, each surrounded by a sort of 

 purplish or reddish haze, scattered very sparsely about the egg. 

 On one side of the large end these markings seem to have a ten- 

 dency to form a zone. It measured 0-61 by 0-45. 



Arachnechthra flammaxillaris (Blyth), The Bimnese 

 Yellow-hreasted Sun-bird. 



Araclinechtlira flammaxillaris (M), Hume, Houffh Draft N. <Si- E. 

 no. 234 ter. 



Mr. "W. Theobald states that he obtained a nest of this sjiecies 

 at Tavoy on the 1st rebruary. The nest resembled that of A. 

 asiatica, and was a neat purse, suspended in a lime-tree (Citrus). 

 It contained two oval-pyriform eggs, pale greenish, speckled with 

 greyish ash, which measured 0-56 by 0*43 inch. I suspect some 

 error in measurements here ; these dimensions are apparently too 

 small for the bird. 



Mr. Gates, writing from Pegu, says : — " I have found the nest 

 of this bird from the commencement of July to the end of August. 

 On the 3rd of the former month I observed a female of this species 

 attaching a piece of grass to a twig. On the 8th the nest looked 

 quite finished, and on the 14th I took two eggs from it. Another 

 nest also with two eggs was found on the same day, and subse- 

 quently, during July and August, other nests w^ere found by me. 



" Two appear to be invariably the number of eggs laid. They 

 have little or no gloss ; the ground-colour is pah^ greenish white, 

 and this is nearly all covered with dashes of greyish ash, which run 

 one into the other at the thick end and form a cap. In addition, 

 the egg is sparingly marked with fine, round spots of dark brownish 

 black running at the edges like inkspots on blotting-])aper, 



"All the nests I have met \\itli have be(ni ])laced in secondary 

 jungle, ou shrubs and bamboos, seldom more than four feet, occa- 



