DICRURIN.E. 439 



286. Chibia hottentota, Lm. 



Corvus apud Iinn^us — Blyth, Cat. 1211 — Horsf., Cat. 20-t 

 — Criuiger splendens, TiCKELL — Edolius Elrishiia, Gould — 

 Latham, Gen. Hist. 3 pi. 40 — Chibia casia, Hodgs. — E. barbatus. 

 Gray — Dicrurus criniger, Jekdon", Cat., 2nd SuppL, 58, bis — 

 Klirishna-raj, or Kishen-raj or Kesraj, Beng., and Hind — Kesya 

 in Nepal — Povong-pho, Lepch. — Yentika-passala-poK-gadu, Tel. t. t". 

 the Haired Drongo. 



The Hair-ceested Drongo. 



Descr. — Deep black, -with purple and blue reflections on the 

 hind-neck and breast ; wings deep glossy bronze-green ; tail the 

 same ; abdomen deep black ; bill and legs black ; irides red-bro^Yn. 



Length nearly 12 inches ; wing tH ; tail to end of outer tail- 

 feathers 5 ; bill at front If ; tarsus L 



Captain Roberts, of the 36th M. jST. L, first made known the 

 existence of this bird in Southern India, he havino- found it in 

 Coorg; and Lieut, (now Lieut.-CoL) Blake also shot it in the same 

 locality. I procured it afterwards from the Eastern Ghats as 

 mentioned, Madr. Jour. XIIL, and since that have procured it in 

 Malabar. I found it in March on the silk-cotton trees, Bombay 

 malabaricu7n, several together, apparently feeding on insects 

 harbouring in the fine flowers of that tree, for which its lono- 

 tenuirostral bill must be well adapted. I again saw it hoppino- 

 and flving among the branches of a lofty tree in Wynaad, appa- 

 rently picking insects now and then ofl: the twigs or leaves. 

 Tickell, who procured it in the jungles of Chota Nagpore, says that 

 it frequents large timber-trees on the banks of nullahs, tanks, *tc., 

 and mentions that the cotton-tree in blossom was a great resort. 

 It frolics about, says he, in small parties ; its voice is changeable, 

 and in constant exertion, from a beautiful song, to whistling, 

 chattering, and creaking like a rusty wheel, at times resembUng 

 the higher strains of the organ, both striking and plaintive. 



Besides the localities referred to above, the Hair-crested Drongo 

 is foimd about Calcutta, in the Sunderbuns, and in the Himalayas, 

 extending int<* Assam. Blyth observed it, in abundance, in 

 parts of the forests of Upper Martuban. 1 procured it from the 



