5*4 



PERCHING BIRDS. 



mimic of the notes of other birds. Mr. Gates gives the following description of 

 the male : — " The forehead and front of the crown orange-yellow, ear-coverts and 

 lower-throat black, chin and upper-throat purplish blue; a yellow collar passes 

 round the black of the throat ; the remainder of the plumage is bright green." 



The true bulbuls, of which there are several genera, among 

 which Pycnonotus may be regarded as typical, form a subfamily 

 {Brachypodince), differing from the preceding by the following characters : — The 

 sexes are alike. The metatarsus is very short, and never exceeds the length of the 



True Bulbuls. 





PALESTINE AND WHITE-NECKED BULBULS (i nat. size 



middle toe and its claw ; while the wing is rounded and moderately long, and the 

 nape generally furnished with some hairs. As regards their general habits, and the 

 coloration of their eggs, the true bulbuls resemble the green bulbuls. While many 

 of the bulbuls have a more or less largely developed crest, those of the genus under 

 consideration are practically crestless. They are further characterised by having 

 a bill of moderate size with the culmen curved and the sides compressed to the tip ; 

 the gape being furnished with a few short, weak bristles, while the nostrils are 

 basal and placed in a groove, the wings are moderate and rounded, the tail is fairly 

 long and rounded, and the feet are furnished with strong claws. Well represented 

 in Africa, this genus is also found in India. Among the species, the Palestine 

 bulbul {Pycnonotus nigricans) is very common in Syria, Arabia, Cyprus, and 



