Mr. J. C. Melliss on the Birds of St. Helena. 97 



terior I often saw this bird, either singly or in small parties. It is 

 a stupid heavy species, keeping much to the upper boughs of um- 

 brageous trees, especially those of the fig-group, of which there 

 are a good many kinds in Hainan. It sits silent among the leaves 

 munching the figs, and you may be under a tree a long time with- 

 out knowing that a party of Barbets are overhead, except from 

 the constant falling of berries. On staring up into the tree, it was 

 often difficult to make them out, on account of their resemblance 

 in colour to the foliage. When roused, they hop clumsily from 

 twig to twig, sometimes giving utterance to a short faint note. In 

 flying, they hold the head with the heavy bill well up, the body 

 and tail inclining downwards, while the wings keep on a continued 

 fluttering, and propel the bird in a straight direction. 



Under parts as in M. nuchalis, Gould, of Formosa — that is, 

 with a golden throat, a blue band below it, succeeded by a ver- 

 milion spot, with the rest fine grass-green — differing, however, in 

 having purple intermingled in the blue band. On the crown it 

 differs entirely from that species. Frontal feathers, to past the 

 line of the eyes, with stiff shafts, black, faintly shaded with 

 bluish-green ; occipitals broadly tipped with deep crimson, a 

 spot of the same colour occurring on each side of the bill in 

 front of the eye. Ear-coverts cobalt-blue, tipped with yel- 

 lowish-green. Under the eye to bill black. A little cobalt- 

 blue fringes the red of the occiput. The rest of the plumage 

 as in M. nuchalis, but without the dorsal red spot. Bill rather 

 longer and larger than in that species. Irides deep reddish- 

 brown. Legs leaden-grey, with a green tinge. 



Length about 7*75 ; wing 4'3 ; tail 2*6, of ten slightly gra- 

 duated feathers. 



The accompanying plate (Plate IV.) represents (fig. 1) this new 

 bird, as well as (fig. 2) the head of the allied species from Formosa. 



[To be continued.] 



VI. — Notes on the Birds of the Island of St. Helena. 

 By John Charles Melliss. 



The feathered portion of the St.-Helenian fauna can scarcely 

 be said to be so interesting from a scientific point of view as 



N.S. VOL. VI. H 



