50 SPOLIA ZEYLANICA. 



slightly curved, and notched at the tip ; the rictal bristles 

 are minute, the nostrils oval, the wing rounded, the tail 

 short and square. In the genus Mgiihina there are two 

 moults in the year, and the males have a distinct breeding 

 plumage ; the bill is about two-thirds the length of the head, 

 and the plumage of the rump is very soft and fluffy. In 

 Chloropsis there is no distinct breeding plumage, and only 

 one moult a year. The bill is longer and slightly more curved, 

 the wings are rather longer, and the tarsus very short. The 

 eggs of all our Ceylon species are streakily marked. 



Key to Ceylon Liotrichinse. 



A. — Bill about same length as tarsus ; lower plumage 

 yellow ; wings mainly black and white. 

 Mgithina tiphia zeylonica (Common lora). 



B.^ — Bill considerably longer than tarsus ; plumage mainly 

 grass-green ; a blue moustache stripe. 



(1) Forehead orange. 



Chloropsis malabarica malaharica (Malabar Chloropsis) . 



(2) Forehead greenish. 



C. jerdoni (Jerdon's Chloropsis). 



.Egithina tiphia zeylonica. 

 The Common lora. 



.Mgithina tiphia (Oates, Vol. I., p. 230) ; lora typhia (Legge, 

 p. 490). 



Descriptioyi. — -Male in summer plumage : Forehead, crown 



lores, nape, and mantle satin black ; the remainder of the 



back and the rump black, more or less mixed with dark green ; 



a tuft of concealed downy white plumes on the scapulars ; 



upper tail coverts and tail black ; wing coverts black with a 



broad white patch formed by the terminal half of the median 



coverts, the greater coverts more or less tipped with white ; 



wing quills black, the primaries brownish at the tip, and some 



of the quills with faint pale edges ; face, sides of neck, and 



all the lower parts rich yellow, which grows paler on the vent 



and under tail coverts. In the off season the upper plumage 



