450 JOUliNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXIII. 



Birds from Tenasserim are slightly smaller, and are inclined to be rufous 

 on the wing. Average wing measurement of 6 J c?, 62 mm. or 2.46"., max., 

 64mm. or 2.5"., miu., 61 mm. or 2.39". Of 4 $ $ , 60 mm. or 2.36"., max., 

 61mm. or 2.35"., min., 58 mm. or 2.27". 



Distribution. — From the Bhamo Hills, through the Shan States and 

 Karennee, down to Tenasserim, in the hills only. Davison mentions that 

 he only met with this species ( ne^yalensis ) in the hills of Tenasserim while 

 A. davisoni i^phayrei ) inhabits the low country. 



Habits. — I found this a very noisy and inquisitive little bird, and not at 

 all shy and retiring like the great majority of small babblers. ''Its habits 

 are those of a Fly-catcher, and it seldom descends to the undergrowth, but 

 takes up a position and thence makes short sallies in order to catch flies, 

 precisely in the same manner as the small Fly-catcher do. It is common to 

 find pairs a little distance apart, frequently uttering their call, which 

 consist of five notes, and is loud for the size of the bird." ( Rippon.) 



Nest and Eggs. — Its nest seem to be similar to that of A. oiepalensis, 

 those found by me in the Bhamo Hills were composed of either leaves and 

 grass or moss, and were lined with some kind of red fibre, and measured 

 4" by H", and were placed from two to four feet from the ground. All my 

 eggs were of one type, having a white ground colour profusely spotted 

 with rusty red, and measured -ST' by "58" to "77" by '57". The eggs of this 

 species most probably vary in the same manner as those of A. ne]}alensis, as 

 Mr. Stuart Baker informs me that he has received eggs from Burma similar 

 to those of that species. 



Alcippe ph^ocephala PH^ocEPHAiiA, Jerdon. 



The Nilghiri Quaher-Thrush. 



Thimalia poioicephala, Jerdon, Madras Journ., L.S., xiii., p. 169 (1844). 



A. phcEocepJiala, Sharpe, Cat., B.M., vii., p. 622 ; Gates, F. of B.I., i., p. 

 158. 



Description. — Head and neck brownish ashy-grey ; ear-coverts hair- 

 brown ; back brownish olive-brown, tinged with grey on the upper portion, 

 and with rufous on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; outer edge of primaries 

 and tail chestnut ; chin and throat greyish-bufi" ; breast and under parts 

 ochraceous bufi'. 



Average wing measurement of 10 specimens, 68 mm. or 2'68", max. 

 69 mm. or 2-69", man., 67 mm. or 2-64". Bill, 14 mm. or -55". 



"Iris slaty-grey; legs, feet greyish fleshy, bill horny-brown." (Gates.) 



Distribution. — Hills of Sovithern India, Mlghiris, Coonoor, the Wynaad 

 and Travancore. 



Note. — This is a very rufous species, and easily distinguishable from birds 

 of the Western Ghats. 



Habits. — I can find nothing recorded as to the habits of this species, it 

 ascends the hills to 5,000 ft., a height to which none of the others of this group 

 venture upto. 



The eggs are delicate pink with a few large conspicuous smudges of darker 

 pink, and dark red spots, and hair-like lines of almost black and measure 

 from -76" to -86" by -58" to -65." 



Alcippe ph^ocephala bkucei, Hume. 



The Bombay Quaker-ThrusJi. 



Alcippe brucei, Hume, J. A. S. B., xxxix. pt. ii., p. 122 ( 1870 ) ; Harington, 

 BuU., B.G.C., xxxiii., p. 61 (1913). 



" This sub-species was first described by Fairbank, who forwarded his 

 description to A. G. Hume. The latter, however, does not appear to have 



