HIEROCOCCTX. 213 



and graceful. Its food, partly at all events, consists of caterpillars. 

 According to Mr. Hodgson's notes, the female lays her eggs in the 

 nests of Trochalopterum niyrimentum and Ixops nepalensis amongst 

 other birds ; but on the Nilgiris this bird is believed to have been 

 observed by both Miss Cockburn and Mr. E. H. Morgan to build 

 its own nest, of sticks, without lining, and to lay 3 or 4 nearly 

 white slightly speckled eggs, measuring T39 by T05. 



1109. Hierococcyx varius. The Common Hawk-Cuckoo. 



Cuculus varius, Vahl, Skriv. Nat. Selsk. iv, p. 61 (1797) ; Blyth, 

 Cat. p. 70 ; Layard, A. M. N. H. (2) xiii, p. 452. ^ 



Cuculus lathami, Gray in Hardwicke's III. Ind. Zool. ii, pi. 34, fig. 2. 



Hierococcyx varius, Horsf. fy M. Cat. ii, p. 700 ; Jerdon, B. 1. i, 

 p. 329 ; Blyth, Ibis, 18(36, p. 361 ; Adam, S. F. i, p. 373 ; Butler, 

 S. F. iii, p. 460 : Bourdillon, S. F. iv, p. 392 ; Fairbank, S. F. v, 

 p. 397 ; Vidal, S. F. vii, p. 55 ; Ball, ibid. p. 207 ; Cripps, ibid. p. 264 ; 

 Hume, Cat. no. 205; Scully, S. F. viii, p. 255; Legge, Birds Ceyl. 

 p. 240 ; Reid, S. F. x, p. 27 ; Davison, S. F. x, p. 359 ; Barnes, Birds 

 Bom. p. 126; Davidson, Jour. Bom. N. H. Soc. i, p. 182; Oates 

 in Humes N. $ E. 2nd ed. ii, p. 383 ; Shelley, Cat. B. M. xix, 

 p. 234. 



Hierococcyx nisoides, Blyth, Ibis, 1866, p. 362 ; Hume, S. F. vii r 



p. 371. 



Kupak or Upak, Pupiya, H. ; Chok-gallo, Beng. ; Bim-pi-yul, Lepcha ; 

 Kutti-pitta, Tel. ; Zakkhat, Deccan ; Iro!an, Mai. This is the " Brain- 

 fever bird '' of Anglo-Indians. 



Fig. 61. Head of H. varius, > r . 



Coloration. Upper plumage ash-grey ; quills browner, their inner 

 webs broadly barred with white, some white on outer upper tail- 

 coverts ; tail grey, tipped with rufescent and usually with 4 bars 

 (occasionally 5) beyond the coverts, the terminal bar broadest, the 

 others each with a pale or rufescenfc posterior border, and the 

 penultimate much nearer to the last than to the antepenultimate ; 

 occasionally the penultimate band is faint or wanting ; sides of 

 head ashy, lores and cheeks whitish ; chin and throat white, more 

 or less tinged with ashy ; fore-neck and breast rufous mixed with 

 pale ashy, lower breast with bars ; abdomen white, anteriorly 

 tinged rufous and with transverse grey bars, posteriorly like the 

 under tail-coverts pure white ; edge of wing the same. 



The young above dark brown with rufous cross-bars ; lower parts 



