DTCRUETJS. 31 5 



Length about 12 ; tail up to 7, but usually between 5-5 and 6-5 ; 

 wing up to 5*8 ; tarsus *7 ; bill from gape !! ; depth of fork of 

 tail more than two inches. 



Large and small specimens of this species occur in the same 

 pla-i-e ; for instance the tail varies thus : Nepal 6-2-6-6 ; Sikhim 

 5-6-6-3; Simla5-9-6-4; Bombay 6-1- 7*0; Belgaum 6'2-T'O; Etawah 

 6-0-6-3 ; Dollah 6-2-6-8 ; Ceylon 5-6-5-8. The wing varies from 

 5 in Ceylon to 5'8 in Belgaum, Sikhim, and Dollah. The colour 

 of all continental birds, large or small, is absolutely the same. 



Distribution. The whole of India from the Hazara country to 

 Assam, north of the Brahmaputra river, and from the Himalayas 

 to Ceylon. The only portion of this vast tract from which this 

 species appears to be absent is Sind, Gaizerat, and portions of 

 Eajputana. On the Himalayas it is found as high as 10,000 feet, 

 and Stoliczka observed it far up the valley of the Sutlej river. On 

 the east the river Brahmaputra appears to be everywhere its limit, 

 the Drongo of Dacca and Skillong being D. cineraceus. 



Habits, <$fc. Very similar to those of D. ater, but the present 

 species is more frequently found in forests and well -wooded 

 localities, and less frequently near houses. It perches habitually 

 on the summit of trees and takes longer swoops, rarely touching 

 the ground. It breeds chiefly in May and June, constructing its 

 nest high up in trees. The eggs are of various types, but on the 

 whole resemble the spotted eggs of D. ater and measure "95 

 by -74. 



329. Dicmrus nigrescens. The Tenasserim Ashy Drongo. 



Buchanga intermedia (Blyth), Walden, P. Z. S. 1866, p. 545 ; Oates, 



S. F. v, p. 149. 

 Buchanga longicaudata (Hay), Hume & Dav. S. F. vi, p. 213 ; Oates, 



B. B. i, p. 220. 

 Dicmrus nigrescens (Oates\ Oates in Hume's N. & E. 2nd ed. i, 



p. 208. 



Coloration. Above dark metallic ashy indigo ; below dark grey ; 

 the lores and frontal feathers blackish. 



Iris red ; bill, legs, and feet black. 



Length about 10-5 ; tail 4-9 to 5-5 ; wing up to 5-4 ; tarsus -7 ; 

 bill from gape 1-05 ; depth of fork of tail much less than 2 inches. 



Distribution. From about a line connecting Eangoon, Pegu town, 

 Thatone, and Pahpoon to the extreme south of Tenasserim, and 

 thence to Junk Ceylon, the most southern point from which I have 

 seen this species. 



Habits, $c. Similar to those of D. lonyicaudalus. I found a nest 

 of this Drongo at Kyeikpadein near Pegu on the 27th April, con- 

 taining four eggs, which were white marked with pale purple, and 

 measured about -89 by *7. 



