rARADOXORJUTHID-E. 103 



Family PARADOXORNITHID^. 



"When Blanford and Gates wrote the 'Avifauna of British 

 India' very little had been recorded about the habits and uidifi- 

 cation of this group of birds and it was, perhaps, on account of 

 this that they were placed by them as a Sub-family of the Corvidce. 

 When Harington in 1914 wrote his " Timeliides" in the Journal 

 of the Bombay Natural History Society, he incorporated the 

 Paradoxornithidce in this so-called Order. I can, however, see no 

 reason for raising the Timaliidie to the rank of an Order, and 

 though it appears that in mauv respects these curious birds do 

 form a link between the Titmouses and Babblers, it appears prefer- 

 able to give them the rank of a family between the two. 



The genus Panurus is undoubtedly a close relation of some of 

 our Indian Parrot-Bills, and will have to be incorporated in the 

 same family. 



The Paradoxornithidce differ from the Paridce in having a much 

 longer first primary, the plumage very soft and lax, and in having 

 a thick, soft crest of feathers arising from the whole crown. 

 From the Timaliidce they differ in having the nostrils completely 

 covered with bristles. 



They are verv gregarious in their habits and build cup-shaped 

 nests in reeds, bushes, etc., whilst their eggs are of several types. 

 The bill is very deep, being greater in depth than length in all 

 but Conostoma. The culmeu is very rounded transversely and the 

 margins of the mandible in most species are curiously sinuate. 



Key to Genera. 



A. Tail longer than the wing. 



a. Tail less graduated ; outermost pair of 



feathers fully f length of tail CONOSTOMA, p. 103. 



b. Tail more gi-aduated ; outermost pair of 



feathers not more than f length of tail. 

 a'. Height of bill more than length. 



Commissure greatly curved PARADOXORNIS, p. 105. 



b'. Height of bill less than length. 



Commissure very slightly curved .... SUTHORA, p. 107. 



B. Tail no longer, or shorter, than wing. 



c. Wing well over 3 inches or 76 mm PSITTIPARUS, p. 116. 



d. Wing well under 3 inches or 76mm NEOSUTHORA, p. 115. 



Genus CONOSTOMA Hodgson, 1841. 



The genus Conostoma contains only one ypecies, the largest 

 member of the family. It is characteri'/ed by a tail longer than the 

 wing, but with the feathers considerably less graduated than in 

 the following genera. The bill is proportionately much longer. 



