430 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXIII. 



They ha\^e rather long bills which are as long as the hind-toe and claw 

 together. 



N. B. — I think this genus should be restricted to only this species. 



ii. P. palustre, Jerdon. 



Wants the^rufous cap, and has the under parts streaked, but not boldly 

 striped as in the last ; the bill is shorter than the hind-toe and claw, the 

 latter being remarkably well developed. They appear to form a connecting 

 link between the last and Dnjmocataphus, and I think, are nearer that genus 

 than Pelloyneum. 



iii. P. ignotum, Hume. 



Have neither a rufous cap nor a streaked or striped lower plumage, other- 

 wise in structure very like P. palustre. 



N. B. — I think this species should be placed in Dripnocataphus. 



Key. 



A. — ^Breast boldly striped with dark brown. 

 a. — Mantle not streaked. 



a^. Crown pale rufous . . 



b^. „ ,, chestnut 



c^ „ ,, dark chestnut. . 



b. — Mantle streaked. 



d^. Upper back with dark brown streaks 



'- • ;> )> ?> !> j; }} 



B. — Breast streaked brown and greyish-buff 



0. —Under plumage not striped or streaked. 

 f^. Breast tinged brownish 

 </^. „ „ bright rufous 



Distribution. — P. r.ruficeijs, Swainson, practically the whole Peninsula of 

 India, except the extreme South ; P. r. granti, Harington, Travancore ; P. /'. 

 mandeUi, Blanford, from Nepal to Assam, and N. and N.-E. Burma ; P. r. 

 9)iinus, Hume, Central Burma ; P. r. subochraceuon, Swinhoe, Lower Burma ; 

 P. 2>c''lustre, Jerdon, Assam ; P. i. ignotum, Hume, Assam ; P. 2. dnnamomeum, 

 Kippon, Shan States, Burma. 



Pellorneum rtjficeps ruficeps, Swainson. 



The Indian Spotted Babbler. 



Pellorneum ruficeps, Swainson, Faun. Bor-Am. Birds, p. 487 (1831) ; 

 :Sharpe, Cat., B. M., vii., p. 520 ; Gates , F. B. I., i., p. 141 ; Baker, J. B. N. 

 H. S., viii., p. 186. 



Description. — Lores buff slightly tipped with black ; forehead, crown, and 

 nape rufous brown ; a pale buft' supercilium, and above the eye mottled with 

 brown ; whole upper plumage olive-brown ; tail narrowly tipped with white ; 

 sides of the lil^ad and ear-coverts pale olive-brown or the same colour as the 

 stripes on the breast ; chin and throat white ; breast white tinged with buff 

 and boldly streaked with umber-brown ; flanks and under-tail coveitts 

 olivaceous, the latter tipped with white. 



;^ote. — Birds from Western India, Mahableshwar and the Paresuath 

 Hills are similar to birds from Madras and the Wynaad, but have the 

 rufous cap very much paler ; the sides of the head and ear coverts buff, and 

 no spots on the side of the head. 



Distribution. — The whole of the Indian peninsula, with exception of Travan- 

 core, as far north as Khandesh and to the Paresnath Hills. Mr. Stuart 



