CISSA. DEXDBOCITTA. 10 



moderately fine roots ; the cavity was 5 inches by 4, and about 1 

 in depth. 



The eggs received from Major Binghain, as also others received 

 from Sikhim, where they were procured by Mr. Mandelli on the 21st 

 and 28th of April, are rather broad ovals, somewhat pointed towards 

 the small end. The shell is fine, but has only a little gloss. The 

 ground-colour is white or slightly greyish white, and they are uni- 

 formly freckled all over with very pale yellowish and greyish brown. 

 The t'recklings are always somewhat densest at the large end, where 

 in some eggs they form a dull brown cap or zone. In some e^gs 

 the markings are everywhere denser, in some sparser, so that some 

 eggs look yellower or browner, and others paler. 



The eggs are altogether of the Garruline type, not of that . of 

 the Dendrodtta or Urorissa type. I have eggs of G. lanceolatus, 

 that but for being smaller precisely match some of the Cissa eggs. 

 Jerdon is, I think, certainly wrong in placing Cissa between Uro- 

 cissa and Dendrodtta, the eggs of which two last are of the same 

 and quite a distinct type*. 



The eggs vary from 1-15 to 1-26 in length, and from 0-9 to O95 

 in breadth, but the average of eight is 1-21 by 0-92. 



15. Cissa ornata (Wagler). The Ceylonese Magpie. 

 Cissa ornata ( Wagl.}, Hume, Cat. no. 673 his. 



Colonel Legge writes in his ' Birds of Ceylon ' : " This bird 

 breeds during the cool season. I found its nest in the Kaudapolla 

 jungles in January ; it was situated in a fork of the top branch of 

 a tall sapling, about 45 feet in height, and was a tolerably bulky 

 structure, externally made of small sticks, in the centre of which 

 was a deep cup 5 inches in diameter by 2| in depth, made entirely 

 of fine roots ; there was but one egg in the nest, which unfortu- 

 nately got broken in being lowered to the ground. It was ovate 

 and slightly pyriform, of a faded bluish-green ground thickly spotted 

 all over with very light umber-brown over larger spots of bluish- 

 grey. It measured 0-98 inch in diameter by about 1-3 in length." 



16. Dendrocitta rnfa (Scop.). The Indian Tree-pie. 



Dendrocitta rufa (Scop.), Jerd. B. Ind. ii, p. 314; Hume, Ron jh 

 Notes X. .y E. no. 674. 



The Indian Tree-pie breeds throughout the continent of India, 

 alik<- in the plains and in the hills, up to an elevation of 6000 or 



feet. 



* I am responsible, and not Mr. Hume, for calling this bird a Magpie. 

 Jerdon calls it a J;iy, but places it among the Magpies, which is, I consider, its 

 proper position, notwithstanding the colour of its eggs. En. 



