336 Mr. F. W. Styan on the Birds of 



Snipe-shooting one puts them up in the long grass every few 

 yards. They rise with a short jerky flight, uttering a single 

 thin penetrating alarm-note, rapidly repeated, and after 

 hovering around, pitch some fifty yards off. Later on, when 

 the plains are mostly under water, they take to the long grass 

 on the low hills. On 9th October I met with a large number, 

 including young birds, congregated together, evidently pre- 

 paring to migrate, for after that date I noticed none about. 



The female in breeding-plumage does not differ from the 

 male ; in both sexes the heads show traces of streaks, some- 

 times faint, sometimes very distinct, especially on the sides 

 and hinder portion of crown. 



Fam. Paradoxornithid^. 



21. Paradoxornis guttaticollis, David. 



(301.) A specimen in the Shanghai Museum was killed 

 at Maychee, south-west of Shanghai. 



22. Paradoxornis heudei, David. 



(302.) This interesting species seems to be almost con- 

 fined to a few reed-covered islands on the Yangtse in the 

 neighbourhood of Nankin. I have only visited its haunts 

 in winter, when the dry reeds are standing in masses from ten 

 to fifteen feet in height. Among these large parties of 

 Paradoxornis are plentiful enough. They flit from one patch 

 of reeds to another in the same way as a party of Tits, and 

 constantly utter a rather pleasing liquid trill. Their flight is 

 feeble, and they generally light at the foot of the reeds and 

 jerk their way upwards, tearing away at the stem with their 

 powerful bills ; their food appears to be entirely vegetable. 



23. SuTHORA wEBBiANA, Gray. 



(369.) Common in large parties in the bamboo-copses and 

 hedges of the Shanghai district. 



24. SuTHORA suFFUSA, Swiuhoc. 



(368.) Plentiful all up the river, frequenting copses, hedges, 

 and scrub-covered hill-sides, especially bamboo-scrub ; some- 

 times found in reed-beds. The fully fledged young are about 

 in June. 



