Length about -K> ; tail 1'5; wing ^2 tarsus ()") ; bill from gapu'O. 



Distrilmtiim. The Himalayas from Garwh.il to the Daphla hills in 

 A-sam ; llu- Naga lulls in Manipur. This species appears to be 

 found at considerable elevations only. It extends into China. 



y/A//.s-, c\r. Gainmie found a nest in Sikhim in June ; a mere pad 

 of moss and wool in a large tree. It contained four white eggs, 

 \\hich measured '58 by '43. 



Genus ZOSTEROPS, Vigors & Horsf., 1826. 



In the * Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum ' the geuus 



xU-ro-ps is placed by Gado\v among the Mcliphagvdix, but he 

 remarks with regard to the Zosteropince that their degree of relation- 

 ship with Mdiphagida is doubtful and that they might, perhaps, 

 with more propriety be ranged with the Dicceidce. 



Seeing, therefore, that the position of Zosterops is still doubtful 

 and that none of the true Melipliayidce are found in India, I am 

 disposed for the present to place Zosterops with the Sibiince, with 

 many genera of which subfamily it has undoubted affinities, especi- 

 ally with Yuliina. 



In Zosterops the bill is about half the length of the head, slender, 

 curved and pointed, and the nostrils are covered by a largemem- 

 brane. The head is not crested. The eye is surrounded by a 

 circle of small white feathers, which gives a characteristic appear- 

 ance to the bird. The tongue, according to Gadow, is protractile, 

 bifid, each half broken up into numerous stiff horny fibres so as to 

 form a brush. 



The wing has ten primaries, but the first is very minute, so minute 

 as frequently to evade observation. This first primary, in addition 

 to being small, appears to grow over the second one, not under it, 

 and this makes it the more difficult to be detected. Its shaft is, 

 however, always visible with a small lens. The tail of Zosterops is 

 short and quite square. 



This genus is represented over a considerable portion of Africa, 

 Southern Asia, and Australia. The White-eyes are all small birds 

 found in flocks on trees, the leaves of which they search for insects 

 with a constant twitter. Several of the Indian species are very 

 closely allied to one another in coloration and size. 



Key to the Species. 



a. Chin and throat yellow ; abdomen grey. 

 a'. Upper plumage golden yellow. 



a". Abdomen entirely grey Z. palpebrosa, p. 214. 



b". Abdomen grey, with a* yellow band down 



the middle Z. aureiventris, p. 215. 



V. Upper plumage olive-green. 



c". Yellow on the chin and throat pure and 



confined to those parts Z. sirnplex, p. 215. 



d". Yellow on the chin and throat tinged 



with green and extending to the breast. Z. ceylonensis, p. 215. 



b. The whole lower plumage yellow Z. siamensis, p. 216. 



