SIBIA. 



49 



buff; a short eyebrow-streak from the back of the eye 

 and a lozenge-shaped patch enclosing the eye, pale 

 ashy grey* ; cheeks, sides of the neck, throat, and under 

 surface tawny buff, with black shaft-streaks on the 

 three first mentioned ; sides deeper in colour and more 

 olive in tint, centre of abdomen ashy ; lower abdomen, 

 thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts deep tawny buff ; 

 under wing-coverts tawny buff, excepting those of the 

 lower series, which are ashy brown ; quills below dark 

 brown, reddish along the edge of the inner web ; bill 

 brown, with the base of the lower mandible yellowish, 

 almost yellow in old birds; legs and claws yellowish; 

 iris of eye yellow. This species appears to be confined 

 to China. 



In The Ibis for 1891, pp. 334-5, in an article on the 

 " Birds of the Lower Yangtse Basin," Mr. F. W. Styan 

 observes: "Abundant throughout the district on 

 wooded hills, where they frequent the thick cover and 

 find their food among the dead leaves. They are not 

 shy, but thread their way so rapidly through the 

 densest brushwood, half flitting, half hopping from 

 branch to branch, and sometimes dodging along the 

 ground among the stumps, that it is difficult to shoot 

 them. They sing most beautifully morning and even- 

 ing, and are then more easily approached. Thev are 

 favourite cage-birds with the natives, who can always 

 rouse them into song by imitating their note. When 

 caged they exhibit considerable powers of mimicry, and 

 are often known as ' Mocking-birds.' 



" Though naturally hill-birds, they sometimes stray 

 into the plains when good cover attracts them. I have 

 seen them in our garden, and shot them inside the walls 

 of Kiukiang city, also in the Kahing silk-districts." 



In The Ibis for 1906, p. 438, Mr. J. D. D. La Touche 

 says: "Common on the higher wooded hills, but also 

 found in copses on the plain. It breeds in April, May, 

 June, and July. 



" A nest which I took on May 5 was placed 

 in a small holly-bush in a wooded ravine. It con- 

 tained four incubated eggs. The nest was composed of 

 leaves, coarse grass-blades, and twigs, and had a lining 

 of pine-needles. The measurements were : outer 

 diameter about 5^in. by 6in., outer depth 4^in., inner 

 diameter 3^in., inner depth about 2fin. Twelve eggs 

 taken near Chinkiang average 1.04in. by O.Slin. ; the 

 largest is l.lOin. by 0.83in., and the smallest 0.95in. 

 by O.SOin." 



In the Catalogue of Eggs in the British Museum, Vol. 

 IV., p. 9, under T. canorum, we read: "Eggs of the 

 ' Hwa-mei,' or Chinese Laughing-Thrush, are of a rather 

 broad oval form, glossy, and of a spotless pale blue 

 colour. They measure from 1.00 to 1.C4 in length, and 

 from .80 to .85 in breadth." 



Herr Wiener says : " Unusual opportunities of observ- 

 ing this Thrush allow me to name him as an incom- 

 parable songster, a long-lived cage-bird, and one of rare 

 intelligence." Unhappily, my experience has been the 

 reverse ; my bird was taken out of a room where he had 

 a good deal of liberty, and was transferred to a Thrush 

 cage ; he gave me a few notes, not unlike those of a 

 Blackbird, on the first two days of its captivity, but he 

 was very nervous, soon began to mope, and after about 

 three months he died dn a decline. Judging by what I 

 saw of it in a room with numerous other birds, I should 

 sav that Herr Weiner is mistaken in saying : " In thp 

 aviarv the hard would certainly prove quarrelsome, an-d 

 might prove destructive." I saw it in company with 

 Blue-birds, Liothrix Weavers, Larks, Crested Pigeons, 

 Bulbuls, Cardinals, etc., and though it is as large as a 



* This character probably disappears after death, as it is omitted 

 in all scientific descriptions that I have seen. A. G. B. 



Blackbird and far more active, it did not seem to 

 interfere in any way with its companions. Its flight 

 in this comparatively small area was rapid but short ; 

 rather more like a series of long leaps than a true 

 flight, though when frightened by the net it showed 

 that it could fly and turn in the air very rapidly. 



Dr. W. H. Brazil (The Featured World, August 26th, 

 1892) observes : " The Chinese seem very fond of these 

 birds, and in Shanghai I saw a great many of them 

 hung up outside the houses in pretty little bamboo 

 cages. Unfortunately I never heard one of them sing, 

 but they have the reputation of being good vocalist.-. 

 I was told also that they are very difficult to bring over 

 to this country, as they usually die on the Voyage, but 

 I suspect this is through improper feeding." 



With regard to the South -Island Thrush (Turnagra 

 crassirostris), it is not very likely to come into the hands 

 of our readers, although specimens have been deposited 

 at our Gardens. New Zealand birds seem seldom to 

 arrive in our Bird-market, and this species is not even 

 mentioned in Dr. Russ's big work. Should it ever come 

 into the possession of any fortunate aviculturist I should 

 recommend him to look up the species in Buller's " Birds 

 of Xew Zealand." 



BLACK-HEADED SIBIA (Ma'.acias capistrata). 



Head, cheeks, and ear-coverts black, crown crested ; 

 nape pale chestnut or rust-reddish ; back brownish- 

 grey in the middle, deep red at back and on upper tail- 

 coverts ; tail, with the exception of the central feathers,, 

 deep red, black at base ; the central feathers reddish 

 grey with a broad subterminal black belt and grey tip, 

 the inner webs red ; bastard-wing black ; primaries with 

 grey-whitish outer edges, outer secondaries with bluish 

 outer edges, inner secondaries red, washed on outer 

 edges with blue-grey ; smaller coverts brownish-grey, 

 like centre of back; median coverts white, forming "a 

 bar ; outer-coverts bluish-grey ; throat pale reddish, re- 

 mainder of under-parts deeper red ; bill black ; feet 

 yellowish-brown, irides brown. Hab., "The whole' 

 Himalayas from Simla to Bootan, and is one of the 

 most abundant birds about Darjeeling. It is found from 

 4,000ft. to 8,000ft., but most common about 7,000ft. It 

 frequents the highest trees, climbing up the larger 

 branches, and clinging round and below the smaller 

 branches, almost like a Woodpecker or Nuthatch. 



" It is often seen alone, or in pairs, but occasionally 

 in small parties ; and is constantly uttering its twitter- 

 ing call, which Hutton syllables as titteeree, tittaree,. 

 f tree i/a, cften answered bv one at some little distance. 

 It is very fond of concealing itself in the thick masses 

 of Epiphytic plants found on all lofty trees in Sikhim, 

 and its favourite food is the fruit of the Epiphytic 

 Andromedas so abundant about Darjeeling ; it occasion- 

 ally, however, picks insects from moss, or crevices of 

 the bark. 



"I on one occasion saw it at Karsion, 4,500ft. high, 

 in winter, climbing up and down the thatched roof of 

 a bungalow. Hutton procured the nest at Mussooree,. 

 made of coarse grass, moss, wool, and roots ; and the 

 one egg he got was pale bluish-white, with rufous, 

 freckles." (Jerdon, " Birds of India," Vol. II., p. 55.) 



In Hume's " Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds." Vol. I., 

 p. 133, we read: '"The Black-headed Sihia lays 

 throughout the Himalayas from Afghanistan to Bhootan, 

 at elevations of from 5,000ft. to 7,000ft. 



" It lays during May and June, and perhaps part of 

 July, for I find that on the llth of July I found a nest 

 of this species a little below the lake at Nynee Tal, on 

 the Jewli Road, containing two young chicks apparently 

 not a dav old. 



D 



