CRA.TEROPFS. 113 



Coloration. Upper plumage and sides of head and neck brown, 

 the feathers of the head edged with cinereous, those of the back 

 with large whitish shaft-streaks, and a dark streak on each web ; 

 quills dark brown, edged with ashy on the outer webs ; upper tail- 

 coverts tinged with rufous ; tail dark brown, paler at base, cross- 

 rayed \ "chin, throat, and breast very dark brown, sometimes almost 

 black, with broad ashy edges ; remainder of lower plumage dark 

 fulvous, the sides of the body tinged with brown. 



Legs feet, claws, bill and orbital skin dirty fleshy white ; upper 

 mandible and claws tinged pale brown ; iris clear white (Davison). 



Length about 10 ; tail 4 ; wing 4*2 ; tarsus 1'3 ; bill from 

 gape 1. 



This species closely resembles C. canorus, from which it differs 

 chiefly in the dark colour of the throat and breast. 



Distribution. Ceylon, Ramesvaram, and part of Southern India. 

 There are many specimens of this bird in the British Museum, 

 collected at Coonoorand Ootacamund, on the Nilgiris, quite insepa- 

 rable from Ceylon birds. 



Habits, fyc. Breeds in Ceylon from March to July, building its nest 

 in bushes and laying two or three eggs, which measure *96 by '72. 



113. Crateropus somervillii. The Rufous-tailed Babbler. 



Timalia pomervillei, St/kes, P. Z. S. 1832, p. 88. 



Malacocircus somervillei (Sykes), Horsf. fy M. Cat. i, p. 219 ; Jerd. 



B. I. ii, p. 63 ; Blyth, Ibis, 1867, p.' 6 ; Blanf. J. A. S. B. xxxviii, 



pt. ii, p. 177 ; Hume, N. fy E. p. 272 ; Fairbank, S. F. iv, p. 258 ; 



Hume, Cat. no. 435 ; Vidal, S. F. ix. p. 64 ; Barnes. Birds Bom. 



p. 180. 



Malacocercus sykesii, ,Jerd. B. I. ii, p. 63 (1863). 

 Crateropus somervillii (Sykes), Sharpe, Cat. B. M. vii, p. 482. 



Coloration. Forehead, crown, and nape dark brown, the feathers 

 with narrow pale edges ; lores white ; sides of the head and neck, 

 back, wing-coverts, and tertiaries paler brown tinged with rufous, 

 the feathers of the back with white shafts ; rump and upper tail- 

 feathers ferruginous ; tail reddish brown ; both tail and tertiaries 

 cross-rayed with blackish ; primaries and secondaries black ; chin 

 and throat dark brown, each feather with a broad ashy margin ; 

 breast brown with broad white shaft-streaks ; abdomen, vent, and 

 under tail- coverts deep ferruginous ; tail tipped paler below. 



Bill greyish white ; iris yellowish white ; orbits yellow ; feet 

 and claws fleshy yellow (Hume Coll.}. 



Length about 10 ; tail 4 ; wing 4 ; tarsus 1*3 ; bill from gape 

 I'l. 



This species is the best defined of the genus and can be easily 

 identified by its rufous tail and deep ferruginous lower parts. A 

 specimen procured by Hume at Kollachal in the extreme south of 

 Travancore is remarkable for a number of rufous patches on the 

 neck and back. 



Distribution. The Western Ghats and the country lying between 



YOL. I. I 



