664 TANTALID^E. 



tipped with brown ; hind neck, wing coverts, tail and sides of the body ashy 

 grey ; first three quills emarginate near the tip ; bill black, yellow at base of 

 lower mandible ; orbitar skin yellowish green; irides blood red. 



Length. 22 to 23 inches; wing 12-5 ; tail 375; bill at front 2'8; tarsus 3. 



Hab. Sind, Beloochistan, Persia, Afghanistan and throughout India, 

 Ceylon, and Burmah. It is a permanent resident in India, and breeds from 

 May to September in societies. The nest is a loose structure of twigs. Eggs 

 3 4, glossless pale sea-green; size 1-92 x 1-35. 



Gen. GorsachillS, Pucker. 



Bill moderate, higher than broad at base ; tarsus moderate ; tibia feathered 

 for the greater portion of its length ; feet and toes long ; neck thick. 



1363. Gorsachius melanolophus (Raffles), Sahad., Ucc. Bom. 



p. 355; Blytli, B. Burm. p. 160; Legge, B. Ceylon, p. 1169. Ardea melano- 

 lopha, Raffles, Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 326. Botaurus limnophilax, Salvad., 

 Ucc. Born. p. 355. Gorsachius melanolophus, Hume, Sir. F. ii. p. 312; Bour- 

 dillon, Sir. F. iii. p. 524 ; Hume, Sir. F. viii. p. 114. The MALAYAN TIGER 

 BITTERN. 



Forehead, crown and a long occipital crest purplish black ; sides of the 

 head and back of the neck chestnut, as are also the back, rump, wing coverts, 

 scapulars and tertiaries, but these parts are closely barred with undulating 

 narrow bars of black ; winglet black, broadly tipped with white ; the first two 

 or three primary coverts black, tipped with white ; the others chestnut and also 

 white tipped ; primaries slaty black, tipped with white and with a subterminal 

 patch of chestnut ; secondaries also tipped with white ; upper tail coverts and 

 tail slaty brown ; chin and throat whitish ; front and sides of the neck and breast 

 dull rufous grey ; the centre of the throat and middle line of the neck and 

 breast streaked with black, light buff and chestnut ; under surface of the body 

 dull chestnut, marked irregularly with black lines and white patches ; under tail 

 coverts white. Facial skin green ; legs and feet greenish olive; irides greenish 

 yellow. 



Length. 19 inches ; tail 3'5 ; wing 10*3 ; tarsus 2-5 ; bill from gape 2*3. 



Hab. Southern India and Ceylon ; also Tenasserim, Arracan, and the 

 Nicobars. 



Family, TANTALID^E. 



Bill long, stout, rounded, curving downwards in many, flat in others; wings 

 long ; tail rather short ; toes webbed at the base. 



Sub-Family, TANTALIN^:. 



Bill long, slender and curved; sides compressed to the tip, or thick and 

 rounded ; tail even; inner toe shorter than outer ; hind toe long. 



