The Common Birds of the Nilgiris 



orange minivet (Pericrocotus flammeus). The 

 head and back of the cock are black. His 

 wings are black and flame-colour, the red 

 being so arranged as to form a band running 

 lengthwise and not across the wing. The tail 

 feathers are red, save the median pair, which 

 are black. During flight the flashing red 

 obliterates the black, so that the moving birds 

 resemble tongues of flame and present a beauti- 

 ful and striking spectacle. The hen is marked 

 like the cock, but in her the red is replaced by 

 bright yellow. This beautiful bird ceases to 

 be abundant at elevations higher than Coonoor. 



THE ORIOLID^E OR ORIOLE FAMILY 



Both the Indian oriole (Oriolus kundoo) and 

 the black-headed oriole (0. melanocepbalus) 

 occur on the Nilgiris, but on the higher ranges 

 they are nowhere numerous. They therefore 

 merit only passing notice. 



THE STURNID^ OR STARLING FAMILY 



The common myna of the Nilgiris is not 



Acridotheres tristis but AUthiopsar fuscus — the 



jungle myna. The casual observer usually 



fails to notice any difference between the two 

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