SEEILOPHUS. 291 



be identical in shape and texture, and there are large and small 

 OIK'S of both, but the eggs with markings are almost glossless, 

 while those which are pure white are fairly glossy. 



JXme eggs measure from O93 to 1-13 in length, by O65 to 0'76 

 in breadth. 



Serilophus lunatus (Gould). Gould's Broadbill. 

 Seriloplms lunatus (Gould), Hume, Cat. no. 139 bis. 



Mr. W. Davison writes of this Broadbill in Tenasserim: 

 " This species breeds, I should say, from April to July. On the 

 4th of April, at the village of Om-ben-gwin, on the road from 

 Tavoy to Moulmein, I found a nest of this species, shooting the 

 female as she left it. 



" The nest was empty and not completely finished ; it was built 

 at the end of a small branch overhanging a stream, and in appear- 

 ance was like that of a huge nest of Arachnechthra asiatica. 



" At Amherst on the llth July my Burman shikaree brought 

 me four partially incubated eggs, together with the female bird 

 shot off the nest. Unfortunately he had destroyed the nest (think- 

 ing it of no value), but he described it as a moderately large globu- 

 lar mass of dry grass, small twigs, and dead leaves, with the entrance 

 on one side, suspended from the extreme tip of a branch of a bush 

 about 4 feet from the ground. The nest was found in thin tree- 

 jungle at the base of the hills. The dimensions he gave would 

 make the nest about 6 inches in diameter and 7 to 8 high. 



" On the 28th of July I found an old nest clearly belonging to 

 this species. The young had flown, but in the nest was one 

 addled egg, pure white, and similar in shape to those brought to 

 me, but somewhat smaller ; no doubt one of those abnormally 

 small and unfecundated eggs continually laid by birds of all 

 species. 



" The nest was suspended to the extreme end of a small branch 

 overhanging a stream, the bottom of the nest being about 3 feet 

 above the surface of the water. It was about 2 feet in total 

 length ; at about 15 inches from the point of suspension, the sus- 

 pending portion of the true nest branched into two, meeting the 

 nest at opposite sides, like a very broad handle to a basket, and 

 leaving, as it were, two wide openings to the nest. Probably the 

 nest had originally only one entrance, but as the young grew it 

 was found that there was not room for them all to perch (as young 

 birds delight in doing) on the edge of the original entrance, so 

 another opening was effected on the opposite side, thus giving the 

 nest its basket-like appearance." 



Mr. Oates writes from Pegu : " I found a nest of this species 

 a few miles from Pegu at the commencement of May. It was 

 empty. On the 12th I revisited it, and took four eggs, which 

 were all fresh, although the old bird was sitting. 



" The nest was suspended from the branch of a small shrub in 



19* 



