BIRDS OF UPPER PEGU. 91 



more or less of the outer webs, white ; the rest of the inner webs 

 blackish, or in abraded specimens dull brown ; the rest of the 

 tail feathers, blackish, or, as above, dull brown, very narrowly- 

 tipped with white or rufous white ; entire lower parts, pure white, 

 with only a faint, rosy, or ruf escent tinge on the sides and flanks, 

 scarcely visible except in good specimens. 



I do not think that this species has ever before been described, 

 but Mr. Blyth (loc. cit.) pointed out that it differs from L. 

 vittatm, Dum=Z. Hardwlckii, Vigors — (1<^), in having the entire 

 crown nigrescent, passing gradually from the black of the forehead 

 to the dark ashy of the nape, the ear coverts being uniformly 

 colored with the feathers superiorly adjacent; (2nd), in having 

 the rump and upper tail coverts of the same deep maroon color as 

 the back and scapularies; (3rd), in the much greater develop- 

 ment of the ferruginous margins of the great wing coverts and 

 tertiaries ; and (4>t/i) , in having the under parts uniformly white, 

 a little subdued, and tinged with a very faint bluish, but having 

 no trace of rufous on the flanks and elsewhere. 



Mr. Oates says : ' ' The White-bellied Shrike is common, except 

 from the end of the cold-weather to the end of July, or there- 

 abouts. It apparently goes away to breed. I did not find it in 

 the Pegu Hills during this interval. A specimen shot on the 

 15th March was apparently about to breed. It has the usual 

 habits of Shrikes, and is very fond of perching on telegraph posts 

 and wires like so many other birds. It comes in abundantly 

 about the 15th July; at least this was what I observed during 

 two successive years. A male that I shot measured : Length, 8 ; 

 expanse, 11; tail, from vent, 3*95; wing, 3*5; bill, from gape, 

 0*82 ; tarsus, l'O. 



"The irides are pale reddish brown ; the eyelids, bluish grey; bill, 

 black; gape and greater portion of lower mandible, fleshy grey; 

 legs, plumbeous; claws, horny." 



261.— Lanius cristatus, Lin. 



Specimens from Thayetmyo are precisely similar to those 

 from other parts of Eastern India and the Himalayas. 



Mr. Oates remarks : " This species is by no means common 

 during the greater portion of the year, but about the middle of 

 September it comes in in great numbers, and is then rather shy 

 and. very noisy. It spreads at this time over the whole district ; 

 and even now in November, in the large town of Prome, one is 

 generally to be seen in my compound. Later on in the year (and 

 I am not sure that they do not entirely disappear during the hot- 

 weather and rains) I have seen but few in the district ; hypoleucos 

 is the only common Shrike. A male I shot measured : Length, 

 7*5; expanse, 10-6; tail, from vent, 3-6; wing, 3*45 ; bill, from 

 gape, 0*89; tarsus, 1. 



