CERTHIA, 433 
Key to Subspecies. 
A. Upper plumage dark brown ; lower back and 
TUNE) HORN SIN GUS 5a ie esate tage tn ets arapol e oser 2 C. f. nipalensis, p. 433. 
B. Darker above; with very little ferruginous 
on; bathe or TOUNp 82 aaitye ses ya e> acs .. Cf. khamensis, p. 434. 
C. Paler above; only a tinge of fulvous on the 
lower back and rump .°3 2 1)eye (= chore eye's cis’ 5s C. f. hodgsont, p, 434. 
(448) Certhia familiaris nipalensis. 
Tue Nepat Tres-CRreeEper. 
Certhia npalensis Blyth, J. A. S. B., xiv, 2, p. 581 (1845) (Nepal) ; 
Blanf, & Oates, i, p. 380, 
Vernacular names. Dao-mojo (Cachari); Inrui-m-jet (Naga). 
Description. Upper plumage and wing-coverts very dark brown, 
streaked with bright rufous and with a few additional streaks of 
blackish and fulvous-white; lower back and rump ferruginous; 
tail brown faintly tinged with reddish; a fulvous. white super- 
cilium frem the nostrils to the nape ; lores and ear-coverts mixed 
brown and rufous; wings brown, the primaries with an oblique 
band of fulvous edged with black; chin and throat pure white ; 
abdomen, flanks and under tail-coverts fulvous-white. 
Colours of soft parts. Iris brown; upper mandible horny 
brown, lower mandible fleshy horny ; legs and feet flesh-colour. 
Measurements. Wing 67 to71mm.; tail 57 to 76 mm.; tarsus 
about 18 mm.; culmen 13 to 15 mm. 
Distribution. Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan and hills North and South 
of the Brahmaputra above 6,000 feet. 
Nidification. A nest taken by myself in N. Cachar was com- 
posed entirely of scraps of soft green moss, forming a pad fitting 
into a hollow between a projecting piece of bark and the trunk of 
a tree at about 25 feet from the ground. ‘There were only three 
eggs which were taken as I had to leave the place, or doubtless 
more would have been laid. In colour they are a pure white with 
tiny spots of reddish, principally in a ring about the larger end. 
They were taken on the 11th April, 1890 (recorded in error 16th 
May, Journal B. N. H.S. and ‘ Jbis’), and measure 17-7 x 13°1 mm. 
They will possibly eventually prove to be abnormally large, pale 
eggs but [ watched the parent birds for hours previously and am 
certain of their identity. 
Habits. These are in no way different from those of the 
Himalayan T'ree-Creeper. It is found principally between 7,000 
and 10,000 feet North of the Brahmaputra and certainly ascends 
to 12,000 and 13,000 feet during the summer. South of the 
Brahmaputra it was not very rare either in North Cachar or 
the Khasia Hills at 6,000 feet, being found as low as 5,000 feet. 
It is essentially a bird of pine and fir forests but I found it also 
AAO, 15 oF 
