24 



omnivorous. They build large nests of sticks, domed and placed 

 in trees or large bushes. 



The two Indian species of: Magpies are very distinct from each 

 other. The large local Himalayan species has no allies. But the 

 smaller Magpie, which is the same as the Euglish one, varies con- 

 siderably over the extensive tract of country it inhabits, chiefly in 

 the amount of white on the quills of the wing. 



Key to the Species. 



a. Wing always under 9 inches ; a white or 



ashy band across the rump P. rustica, p. 24. 



b. Wing always over 10 inches ; the rump 



entirely black P. bottanensis, p. 25. 



10. Pica rustica. The Magpie. 



Corvus pica. Linn. Syst. Nat. \, p. 157 (1766). 



Corvus rusticus, Scop. Ann. i, p. 38 (1768). 



Pica media, Ulyth, J. A. S. B. xiii, p. 393 (1844) ; id. Cat. p. 91 ; 



Horsf. fy M. Cat. ii, p. 551. 



Pica caudata (Ray], Blyth, Cat. p. 91 ; Horsf. $ M. Cat. ii, p. 550. 

 Pica tibetana, Hodgs. A. M. N. H. (2) iii, p. 203 (1849). 

 Pica bactriana, Bonap. Consp. i, p. 383 (1850); Horsf fy M. Cat. ii, 



p. 550 ; Hume fy Renders. Lah. to Yark. p. 240 ; Hume, N. $ E. 



p. 416 ; Scully, S. F. iv, p. 158. 

 Pica leucoptera, Gould, Birds Asia, v, pi. 55 (1862). 

 Pica pica (Linn.), Sharpe, Cat. B. M. iii, p. 62. 

 Pica rustica (Scop.), Hume, S. F. vii, p. 407 ; Anders. Yunnan 



Exped., Aves, p. 590; Hume, Cat. no. 668 bis; Uiddulph, Ibis, 



1881, p.^78 ; Scully, Ibis, 1881, p. 572 ; Oatcs in Hume's N. $ E. 



2nd ed. i, p. 13. 

 Akha, Cabul. 



Coloration. The entire head and neck, the upper plumage, breast, 

 thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts black, the rump with a whitish 

 or greyish band across ; scapulars, abdomen, and the greater portion 

 of the primaries white ; wings brilliantly glossed with blue, and 

 the tail with green, lilac and purple. 



Bill and legs black ; iris dark brown. 



Length about 20 ; tail up to 12'5 ; wing 7*5 to 8'5 ; tarsus 1-8 

 to 2; bill at front 1-3. 



With the exception of the amount of white on the primaries I 

 cannot find that the Magpies of Asia differ in any respect from 

 those of Europe. The amount of white is very variable and forms 

 no character, in my opinion, by which two or more species may be 

 recognized. 



Distribution. The Magpie is a permanent resident over a consider- 

 able portion of Kashmir, coming down in winter to 5000 feet and 

 ascending in summer to about 8000 feet. It occurs, so far as is 

 known, in no other part of the Himalayas, but it reappears within 

 our limits around Khelat in Baluchistan and also at Bhamo in 

 Upper Burma, where both Anderson and my collector procured it 

 in the cold weather. 



