Major-General Dav ibs's Account of a Species of Mufcicapa. 241 
that, when difturbed, its flight is» very fhort, like-that, of a grafs- 
hoppers and that it no fooner alights than it runs with fuch great 
agility that many who have been confident of their having covered 
birds with their hats, have, to their great furprife, feen them again 
take wing at no great diftance: fo that they are always difficult to 
catch. I have, however, to obferve, that the colour of the bird, and 
the length of its legs, muft greatly contribute to its fo eafily efcaping 
the vigilance of thofe who purfue it. I am alfo induced, from the 
circumftance of its bill being well furrounded with briftles, to think 
that its food is {mall flies, and other infects which it catches amongft 
the roots of the grafs and ruthes. 
The length of the bird, from the point of the bill to the end of 
the rump, is three inches; the bill is three-eichths of an inch long, 
of a brownifh black colour, confiderably curved at the point, hav- 
ing the bafe furnifhed with ftrong briftles, and noftrils large and 
low down; irides uncertain; head much flattened and narrow 
towards the bafe of the bill, with a pale azure bar from the bafe of 
the bill over the eye; throat, to the centre of the neck, on each fide, 
azure; front part of the head, cheeks, breaft, fore part of the fhoul- 
ders, thighs, fides and rump, ferruginous; centre part of the belly 
nearly white; hind part of the head, neck, fhoulders, back and 
r ump, greyifh brown, elegantly ftreaked with brownifh black ; 
‘feathers of the back and rump, long, foft, and of a filky texture ; 
wings very fhort, {carcely reaching to the bafe of the tail, of a dark 
brownifh black colour, edged with rufous brown; legs flender, 
three-fourths of an inch long, of a pale dun or horn colour; feet 
flender and long; claws crooked-and very harp, efpecially the hind 
one, which is the largeft, all of the fame colour with the legs; the 
tail, independent of the body, is four inches and more in length, 
fhafts black and very flender, armed on each fide with minute 
Vor, IV. li flender 
