BRACHYPODID^E. 75 



by its long and curved beak representing Pomatorhinus. Turdus 

 vulpinus, Hartlaub, one of the Mimince, figured in P. Z. S. 1850, 

 could not, by the Indian ornithologist, be mistaken for ought but a 

 Timaline form. 



Fam. Brachypodid^e — Short-legged Thrushes. 



Legs and feet very short, only suited for perching; wings 

 moderate or rather long ; bill various, long and Thrush-like in some, 

 short and somewhat depressed in others. 



In this family I include both the Bulbuls and Orioles, which 

 agree in their short legs and feet, food, and arboreal habits. 



As in the last sub-family we found that the strong legs and feet 

 afforded the most certain guide to their classification, to the exclu- 

 sion of the bill, so, in these, the short feet are the most character- 

 istic feature. It has not been usual to class the Bulbuls and 

 Orioles together, but they are, in most systems, placed near each 

 other ; the green Bulbuls are by some arranged with the Orioles, 

 and by others with the Bulbuls ; and I see no essential difference 

 between them, more than warranting a sectional separation. I was 

 at one time inclined to place them in the family Merulidce, as Gray 

 and Horsfield do, but, on full consideration, have now considered 

 them distinct. 



The Short-legged Thrushes are peculiar to the old world, being 

 most abundant in India and Malayana, not rare in Africa, one or 

 two species extending to the south of Europe, and one or two to 

 Australia. The bill varies from somewhat long and slender, as in 

 Hypsipetes, to thick and Finch-like in Spizixos. It is generally 

 more or less wide and depressed at the base, and usually slightly 

 notched at the tip. The wings are moderate, rather long in a few, 

 and somewhat pointed. The tail is usually short or moderate, 

 even or slightly rounded. The tongue of several is slightly pen- 

 cilled or brushed, and, in consequence, some of them have been 

 classified as a division of the Melliphagida, or Honey-eaters of 

 Australia ; but the structure and habits of these last, with their geo- 

 graphic distribution, forbid the association, though there is a good 

 deal of mutual resemblance between some of the species of each 

 group, and they perhaps pass into each other. Mr. Blyth ra- 



