202 MUSCTCAPID^ 



azurea, Jerd. B. hid. i. p. 45o > No. 290; Hume, Nests and Eggs, p, 198; 

 id. Sir. F. ii, p. 217, iii. p, 103; F&irbank, Str.F* 1876, p. 257; Arm- 

 strong. /. c. p. 322 ; Hnme, /. c> p. 395 ; .#/. and Wald^ B. Burnt* p. 131. 

 The BLACK-NAPED BLUE FLY-CATCHER. 



Adult Male. A patch om the nape, a narrow frontal line, chin and a 

 crescentic band across the fore neck blacky sides of the face, throat and fore* 

 neck light azure blue ; rest of under surface white, washed with bluish ; the 

 whole remaining plumage with the lesser wing coverts blue; greater wing 

 coverts black, externally edged with blue ; wings brown, narrowly edged with 

 blue ; tail brown, suffused with blue on the central pair of feathers and on 

 the outer webs of the others ; and with either a very narrow nearly obsolete 

 white tip, or this is wanting; bill dark blue or plumbeous, the edges and 

 tip black ; inside of mouth yellow 5 legs plumbeous ; iris dark brown j edges 

 of eyelids blue. 



Length. $% to 6-4 inches; wing 2'8 ; tail 2-85 to 3; tarsus 07; oilmen 

 0-55 to 075, 



The female has the head above azure blue, the sides of the head, chin and 

 throat duller ; breast greyish brown ; abdomen, flanks and under tail coverts 

 white, tinged with grey ; wings, black ; rump and upper tail coverts brown ; 

 tail darker brown, the outer edges washed with blue and all but the central 

 feathers tipped with white. 



Length. 6-5 inches ; wing 2-95 ; tail 3 ; tarsus 07. 



Hab. India generally, ranging through the Burmese countries to Pegu, 

 Tenasserim, and the Malay Peninsula ; also China, Cochin-China, and the Indo- 

 Burmese countries and Ceylon. Occurs in the Punjab, N. W. Provinces, Oudh, 

 Bengal, Central India, the Concan, Deccan, South India, Pegu, British Burmah 

 generally, and Nepaul. It affects every description of jungle, also gardens 

 orchards, and bamboo groves. It is an active bird and ever on the move, 

 darting on insects and capturing them on the wing. Jerdon says it is almost 

 always solitary, flying from tree to tree. It breeds in the low, warm, well- 

 wooded valleys of the sub-Himalayan ranges up to 3,000 feet, from May to 

 August, The nest is a delicate cup, made of green grass and coated with 

 cobwebs, and is generally placed in the fork of a tree, or a bamboo, not far from 

 the ground. The eggs, 3 to 4 in number, are white, or white with a salmon 

 tinge, speckled and spotted with pale red and purple, or reddish pink ; size 

 0-69 x 0-53. 



229. Hypothymis occipitalis, Vigors, P. Z. s. 1831, P . 97; 



Sharpe, Cat, B. Br. Mus. iv. p. 275. Myiagra tytleri, Beavan Ibis, 1867, 

 p. 324; Hume, Sir. F. 1874, p. 217. Hypothymis azurea(??^. Bodd) Waldcn, 

 Ibis, 1872, p. 102 ; Oates, Str. F. 1877, p. 149; Sharpe, Ibis, 1887, p. 18 ; 

 id. Tr. Lin. Soc. n. s. i. p. 235 ; Tweedale, P. Z. S. 1877, PP- 6 93> 760, 

 825 et. 1878, p. 284. The ALLIED BLACK-NAPED BLUE FLY-CATCHKR, 



