COPSYCHTTS. 85 



have never come across more than four and sometimes only two in 

 a nest ; if the eggs are removed, they lay again in the same nest. 

 I have taken hard-set eggs as early as the 7th April in this district 

 and up to the 15th June." 



Mr. James Inglis tells us that in Cachar this species is " very 

 common, and breeds during March, April, and May." 



Mr. Gates, referring to this species in Pegu, says : " I have 

 found nests with eggs from the 30th April to the 20th May. In 

 Burma they almost invariably select a large hollow bamboo, many 

 of which are generally to be found lying about the verandahs and 

 cucumber-framings of the native houses, and place their nest about 

 two feet inside, nearly up to the first joint. They also build in 

 holes of trees." 



Mr. Swinhoe very correctly remarks : " Lieutenant E. C. Beavan 

 says (Proc. Zool. Soc. 1864, p. 376) that Copsychns saularis ' builds 

 in bushes/ This is remarkable for so genuine a Robin as this bird 

 is. In Amoy I have only noticed its nest in the holes of walls, 

 banks, or houses, oftenest in some corner of the under-roof or 

 beaming of a verandah." 



This is quite my experience here, and that of nearly every one 

 who has communicated with me on the subject. 



The eggs are typically oval, neither very broad nor very narrow ; 

 somewhat elongated, pyriform, and almost globular varieties also 

 occur ; they are moderately glossy. The ground-colour varies as 

 much as does the size and shape of the egg. In some it is greenish, 

 in others greenish white ; while in others it is a beautiful pale sea- 

 green, or, again, a delicate pale, only slightly greenish blue. Many 

 of the eggs are perfect miniatures of eggs of Merula simillima, and 

 recall varieties of those of the English Blackbird, which, indeed, 

 are almost the only English eggs with which I am familiar to which 

 their colouring at all approximates. They are all streakily blotched 

 and mottled with different shades of brownish red some compara- 

 tively thinly, generally somewhat densely, and occasionally so closely 

 as to leave but little of the ground-colour visible. In all cases the 

 markings are most numerous at the large end, where they very 

 commonly form a conspicuous irregular mottled cap. Occasionally, 

 but rarely, small specks and spots take the place of streaky blotches, 

 and the smaller end is almost entirely free from markings. Eaint 

 underlying spots of pale inky purple are traceable in a few spe- 

 cimens. In the extent and bold streaky character of the markings 

 these eggs seem to me to stand apart from those of the Saxicolince, 

 where Jerdon places the genus, and to approximate to those of the 

 Turdince, where Gray locates it. No doubt the eggs show a strong 

 affinity to those of Thamndbia, but this latter also has no business, 

 according to my view, amongst the Saxicolwce. 



It is noteworthy that some specimens of the eggs pretty closely 

 resemble the peculiar variety of the Nightingale figured by Mr. 

 Hewitson, pi. xxxiii. fig. 2. 



In length the eggs vary from 0'78 to 0*95, and in breadth from 

 0-6 to 0-75 ; but the average of forty-three eggs is nearly 0-87 by 

 rather more than 0-66. 



