258 THR ZOOLOGIST. 



claws. Young mucli duller in colour, with no trace of crimson 

 or black on the plumage, but j-ellow above and below the eye and 

 on the tln-oat. This small Barbet is the commonest of the Indian 

 species, and appears to have a more extensive distribution than 

 any other of the genus. We have seen it from Tipperah, 

 Chittngong, from Ramree (Arracan), and it abounds in the 

 Teuasserim provinces, occurring likewise in the Malayan 

 peninsula, about the latitude of Penang, but we have not seen it 

 from Malacca. It inhabits Sumatra and Java, and the description 

 of B. 2->hilippensis, from the Phillippine Islands, accords, except 

 that the black band on the crown and sides of the neck is not 

 mentioned. We have not remarked it from Assam; nor in 

 Himalayan collections. In Lower Bengal it is extremely common, 

 and appears to be equally so in the Indian peninsula. Mr. 

 Jerdon writes of it: — "The Copper-smith is extremely common 

 in all parts of the country, wherever there is a sufficiency of 

 trees, inhabiting open spaces in the jungles (never in tlie denser 

 portions), groves, avenues, and gardens ; being very familiar, 

 approaching close to houses and sometimes perching on the 

 house-top. When not employed in feeding, it generally perches 

 itself on the very top of a tree, and gives utterance to its 

 monotonous call of ' took, took, took ' (as represented by Sykes), 

 nodding its head at each call, first to one side and tlien to the 

 other." Such are its habits, as familiarly observed in Bengal : 

 but its sonorous and repeated "hugh " is often uttered as it hops 

 from twig to twig, regardless of observation, its throat puffing out 

 at each repetition of the sound. 



B. MALABARicus, nobis, J. A. S. xvi. 465 ; described and 

 erroneously referred to B. barbiculus, Cuv,, ibid. xv. 13. — " Length 

 5 in." (probably moi*e in the recent specimen) ; " of wing 3^ in., 

 and tail If in. ; bill to forehead f in. General colour deep green ; 

 the forehead, around the eyes, and the throat, crimson, the last 

 margined with yellow; occiput and cheeks pale blue." From the 

 Malabar jungles. 



B. RUBEiCAPiLLus, Gmelin, founded on pi. xiv. of Brown's 

 ' Zoology.'— Length about in ; of wing 3 in., and tail 1 J in. ; 

 bill to forehead f in. Colour green above, much paler, witli a 

 slight bluish tinge below, and a more conspicuous tinge of blue 

 on the sides of the neck ; broad frontal space, and also a slight 

 gorget, crimson ; thioat, and above and below the eye, deep 



