OF THE TRAVANCORE HILLS. 387 
smaller, and one very beautiful and apparently old adult is only 
14 and 3:8. Specimens from Northern Tenasserim and Southern 
Travancore and the Dhoon seem intermediate in size. Under 
no circumstances, however, can a small difference like this by 
itself justify a specific separation and there are a good many 
Sikhim birds which are not larger than the largest of the South 
Tenasserim birds. 
145.—Toccus griseus, Latham. 
‘* Common in heavy jungle from 1,000 to 3,000 feet eleva- 
tion. It has a very ludicrous call reminding one of a Punch 
and Judy show. It is shy and, unlike that of the last species, 
its flight is rapid and easy. The specimen sent had bright red 
irides and wasamale. A full grown specimen in the Trevan- 
drum gardens, and perhaps a female, has dirty white or pale 
grey irides.—F. W. B.” 
A male of this species, procured at an elevation of about 
1,600 feet, measured :— 
Length, 22; expanse, 26°5; wing, 8°25; tail, 9:5; tarsus, 
1:6: bill at front along curve of culmen, 4:1. 
The bill was horny yellow, overspread with a brownish red 
tinge, except towards the tips ; the margin along the commissure, 
black; the tips, paler; the orbital skin, black; irides, red ; 
tarsi and feet, greenish. 
Dr. Jerdon’s description does not correspond over well with 
this specimen. 
The forehead is greyish white; a broad superciliary stripe 
from the nostrils over the eyes extending some distance back, 
a slightly brownish white ; the feathers of the crown and occi- 
put slaty grey ; the latter conspicuously elongated and with 
greyish white shaft stripes; faint greyish white tippings to 
most of the feathers of the crown; the ear coverts dark brown 
paler shafted ; feathers of the chin, whitish; entire throat and 
sides of the neck, grey ; the feathers pale, almost white shafted. 
The whole of the plumage of these parts is dull, as is also that 
of the lower parts, but all the rest of the upper parts is well gloss- 
ed. The entire back, rump, upper tail coverts, scapulars, and 
wing coverts, dark greyish dusky, with a faint greenish reflection 
on it, the coverts have mostly the faintest possible pale edges, 
and the shafts of many of the feathers have in certain lights 
a scarcely perceptible line on either side of them. The quills 
and tail feathers are black, with a greenish lustre on them, very 
conspicuous on the secondaries and tail feathers, except the 
central pair. The third to the eighth primary inclusive 
broadly tipped with pure white on both webs, the ninth similarly 
tipped but on the inner web only. 
