404 STURNIA 



brown. Culmen 0*8, wing 4*2, tail 2*1, tarsus I/O inch. The female is 

 browner and duller, the upper parts being dark greyish brown and the 

 slate-grey on the head is duller. 



Hob. Eastern Siberia, Northern China and Mongolia, winter- 

 ing in Burma, the Nicobars, and the Malay Peninsula to 

 Java. 



Like its congener S. cineraceus, with which it often consorts, 

 it inhabits the plains where there are old trees, and it is said to 

 be rather tame and trustful than shy. It places its nest in the 

 hollow of a tree, and the eggs are usually deposited early in 

 June. The male of this species is said to have a sweet though 

 somewhat short song. Like its congeners its food consists 

 exclusively of insects. It breeds in Dauria, but I have not 

 been able to examine authentic eggs! 



Temenuchus pagodarum (Gm.), Acridotheres tristis (Linn.), and 

 Acridotheres ginginianus (Lath.), three well known Indian birds, 

 have strayed into Afghanistan, but as they do not belong to 

 Palsearctic genera I have deemed it best to exclude them. 



575. RED-CHEEKED STARLING. 

 STURNIA VIOLACEA. 



Sturnia vwlacea (Bodd.), Tabl. PI. Enl. p. 11 (1783) ; Sharpe, Cat, B. 

 Br. Mus. xiii, p. 70 ; S. ruficollis (Wagler), Syst. Av. Pastor, sp. 

 19 (1827) ; S. pyrrhogenys (Temm. and Schlegel), Faun. Jap. Aves, 

 p. 86 (1850) ; S. dominicana, Salvad. Ucc. Born. p. 269 (1874). 



Shiina-muku-dori, Jap. 



ad. Differs from S. sturnina in having the head and neck dull 

 creamy grey ; the nuchal patch wanting ; the chin and upper throat dull 

 rufous isabelline, the sides of the neck more or less marked with chestnut- 

 red, the breast and flanks warm slate-grey and the scapulars glossy black 

 unmarked with white ; bill and feet dark bluish. Culrnen 0'8, wing 4'2, 

 tail 2-2, tarsus 0'95 inch. The female resembles that of S. sturnina but 

 has the crown paler, and there is no trace of the light colour on the 

 scapulars. 



Hob. Japan, wintering in the Philippines, Borneo, Celebes, 



and the Moluccas. 







With regard to the habits of this species, I find nothing on 

 record nor do I find any description of its nest or eggs. 



