ASSAM, SYLHET AND CACHAR. , 147 



this possibly extends to Manipur, but I never met with it 

 there. At the same time I may say once for all that there 

 were at least three Poinatorhini, with whose notes I became 

 familiar in the Eastern Manipur hills, of which I never could 

 succeed in shooting specimens. These birds mostly keep in 

 deep forest undergrowth. You may hear them calling within 

 thirty yards, you may wait, watch and listen, or strive to 

 creep full length on the ground noiselessly towards them, but 

 nineteen times out of twenty, do what you will, they see or 

 hear you before you can catch a glimpse of them, and a 

 moment after you hear them calling again, far away, up or 

 down the hillside. P. /erruginosus was also found very 

 abundant under Tomputu peak of the Dafla hills (which are 

 really part of the Himalayas) at 5,000 feet by Godwin -Austen, 

 and with reference to what he says about this species not being 

 a noisy bird, but uttering only a faint chirp, I may note that 

 all the many Pomatorhini I know have two notes, one of the 

 chirp order, more or less low, heard all the year round, 

 and the other a more or less rollicking call, almost exclusively 

 heard in the breeding season, or say from March to July, 

 though occasionally also heard at other seasons. Ferruginosus 

 does not, that we know of, extend to British Burmah,^ being 

 there replaced by phayrei and albogularis. 



401biii. — Pomatorhinus phayrei, Bly. 



There is a subgroup of three species of this genus very closely 

 allied, all with medium length, compressed, deep, moderately 

 curved bills (as distinguished from the long, compressed, slender^, 

 well-curved bills of the ochraceiceps subgroup), which represent 

 each other in neighbouring areas. 



Crown and occiput — Blackish — (1) P. ferruginosus, 



Bly., Himalayas and 

 Naga hills. 

 „ „ Olivaceous brown. (2) Upper surface with 



a strong rufescent 

 tinge ; foreneck, 

 breast and upper 

 abdomen rather pale 

 butf. P. albogularis, 

 Bly. Central Tenas- 

 serim and Karen 

 hills. 



* Ramsay wrongly gives Blyth as an authority for the Arakan habitat of 

 this species, IMs, 1878, 135. I explaiiieil how Blyth appeared at one time to 

 say this, it/ore he bad discriminated /-'Aa^jri, S. F., VI., 280. 



