OF BIRDS IN BRITISH BURMAH. 473 



down and formed a very convenient bridge over the Winsaw 

 cbounjr below the village of Booloowav in the lower Thoung- 

 yeen. The road over this part of the Winsaw not being much 

 used, I found that a pair of Mulleripicus pulverulentus had bored 

 a hole into the side of the tree. It was 3^ inches in diameter, 

 extended for about a foot inwards, and then for about 8 inches 

 downwards, and contained on the 30th April two fresh, rather 

 glossy white eggs, measuring 1*41 X I'll and 1*4 L x 1*12 

 respectively. There was no lining to the nest, the eggs resting 

 on the bare wood. 



The eggs are very broad ovals but markedly pointed towards 

 the small end. 



191 bis— Megalaema virens, Bodd. 



On the 12th February, on the bank of the Mekhnay choung 

 in the Thoungyeen Valley, 1 found my first nest of this bird. It 

 w r as in a hole in a jungle tree, name unknown, at a height of 

 about 30 feet from the ground. Not made as many Barbets' nests 

 are made on the underside of a branch, but bored into the upright 

 stem for about 3 inches, terminating in a natural hollow, at the 

 bottom of which on the bare wood lay three fresh eggs, broad 

 ovals, dull white, but only here and there with faint traces of a 

 gloss. A second nest on the 3rd March at Meeawuddy coutain- 

 ed two young ones. 



A third, found on the 26th March on the bank of the Maigla 

 choung, contained one young one, apparently just hatched and 

 one very hard-set egg. This was in a hole in a dead teak tree at 

 about 20 feet from the ground, and was like the first an entrance 

 bored into a natural hollow, which was unlined. 



I am glad to say that, though the getting out of the egg 

 necessarily enlarged the entrance hole, the birds did not desert 

 their young one, for I saw them feeding it the next day. The 

 four eggs procured measured 1*35 * 1*06, l - 30 X 1*05, T32 x 

 1-05, and 1-37 % VOL 



344 ter.— Pitta cyanea, Bly. 



For some reason or another Pittas were excessively plentiful 

 this year at Kaukarit. 



Of the above species I found two nests with eggs and four 

 with young ones. Of these I only found one myself, the others 

 were marked down for me, and I went and saw them. 



All the nests were of one type, globular masses of earth, leaves, 

 twigs, &c, bound together with vegetable fibre and lined interior- 

 ly with roots. One I measured was aboutS inches in diameter aud 

 about the same in height. In five the entrance hole was about 

 halfway up one side. Iu one the opening was close on to the 



