488 LANIID^!. 



he amount of rainfall. Specimens from the arid parts of Sind are 

 the palest, and those from Southern India and the humid parts of 

 Burma the darkest. 



Distribution. Every part of India, except the extreme north- 

 western portion of the Punjab, from Sind to Bengal, and from the 

 foot of the Himalayas to Cape Comorin ; Ceylon ; the Andamans ; 

 Assam and the whole country to the east of the Bay of Bengal 

 down to Tenasserim, where this species becomes rare or entirely 

 disappears. It does not ascend the Himalayas nor any of the 

 higher hill-ranges of Southern India. 



It extends into Siam and Cochin China, is not yet known 

 to occur in the Malay peninsula, but reappears in some of the 

 larger islands such as Java and Borneo. 



Habits, $c. Breeds from June to October, constructing a very 

 similar nesfc to that of P. roseus, but very much smaller, on high 

 branches of trees, and laying, as a rule, three eggs, which are 

 greenish white marked with brownish red, and measure about -67 

 by -53. 



501. Pericrocotus erythropygius. The White-bellied Minivet. 



Muscicapa erythropygia, Jerd. Madr. Jburn. L. S. xi, p. 17 (1840). 

 Pericrocotus erythropygius (Jerd,), Blyth, Cat. p. 193 ; Jerd. B. I. i, 



p. 424; Blanf. J. A. 8. B. xxxviii, pt. ii, p. 174; Stoliczka, 



J. A. S. B. xli, pt. ii, p. 236 ; Sharpe, S. F. iv, p. 21 1 ; Hume, 8. F. 



v, p. 177 ; Ball, S. F. vii, p. 211 ; Sharpe, Cat. B. M. iv, p. 85 ; 



Hume, Cat. no. 277 ; Damson, S. F. x, p. 366 ; Barnes, Birds Bom. 



p. 153 ; Oates in Hume's N. fy E. 2nd ed. i, p. 344. 



Coloration. Male. The whole head, chin, hind neck, back, 

 scapulars, lesser, median, and primary coverts, upper tail-coverts, 

 and the four middle tail-feathers black ; the other tail-feathers 

 black at base and white elsewhere, the amount of white increasing 

 towards the outer feathers ; throat and sides of neck white ; rump 

 and breast orange-red ; remainder of lower plumage white ; the 

 greater wing-coverts white; quills black, all but the first four 

 primaries with a white basal patch and some of the tertiaries 

 broadly margined with white. 



Female. The upper plumage, lores, and ear-coverts smoky 

 brown ; the rump orange-red ; tail as in the male ; wing as in the 

 male, but the black replaced by dark brown ; forehead and the 

 whole lower plumage white. 



Bill and legs black ; iris brownish yellow (Jerdon}. 



Length about 6 ; tail 3 ; wing 2-6 ; tarsus -55 ; bill from gape -5. 



Distribution. This species has an extensive distribution over the 

 peninsula of India. It is found throughout Eajputana, Cutch, 

 and Guzerat ; and I have seen a specimen which was obtained at 

 Makrani, in Sind. On the north I have examined specimens 

 obtained at Umballa, Delhi, Agra, Etawah, and Lalganj in Tirhoot. 

 On the east, Ball records this bird from Lohardugga, Sirguja, and 

 Sambalpur. It appears to be spread over all the central parts of 



