Capt. Beavan on various Indian Birds. 319 



frequented the tops of the dead boughs of some old deodars, 

 whence they occasionally sallied out over a nearly dried-up 

 brook at some height, returning to their perch, like Meropida, 

 with the captured insect. I subjoin the dimensions of speci- 

 mens in the flesh — two shot at Simla, and the third at Fagoo. 



At the last-mentioned place they were abundant in open 

 clearings, seated on a low stone wall, or the dead bough of a 

 tree near the ground, from which they occasionally sallied forth 

 to catch an insect, and then returned with it to their previous 

 perch. 



301. EuMYiAS MELANOPS. Verditer Flycatcher. 



Although this bird is so common at Darjeeling, I found that 

 at Simla in 1866 it was far from being so ; but the few that 

 are found at the latter station breed there about the end of 

 April or the beginning of May, as I had a specimen of the 

 fully fledged young of the year brought to me May 19th. An 

 adult killed April 11th, 1866, measured as follows: — Length 

 5^875; wing 3; tail 2'5 ; tarsus -6875; bill from front •4375, 

 breadth at base *27 ; extent 8*75 inches. In Maunbhoom I pro- 

 cured specimens of this species both at Kashui'ghur and Ambe- 

 kanuggur in 1864. 



310. MuscicAPULA suPERCiLiARis. White-browcd Blue Fly- 

 catcher. 



Not at all uncommon about Simla, in gardens and forest- 

 glades, and not at all shy. I discovered the nest of this 

 species on the 10th of May at that station, with four young ones 

 in it. It is a pretty little cup-shaped structure, composed of 

 moss and hair, placed at the bottom of a small hole in an Ilex, 

 at no great depth inside. The female is of a different colour 

 from the male, being of a dull brown hue. I saw several speci- 

 mens of both females and young of the year in Dr. Stoliczka's 

 collections ; but they were apparently not nearly so common in 

 the vicinity of Simla as the blue-and-white males. 1 append 



N. S. VOL. VI. 2 A 



