244 Ornithology of Amoy. [No. 3, 



22. Halcyon atricapilla, Grmelin ; pileata, Boddaert. 



Rarer than the preceding ; its feathers are also used for orna- 

 ments, to which they give a deeper tone. 



23. Alcedo bengalensis, Gmelin. 



A very common resident and generally known as the " King of 

 the Shrimps ;" called by Amoy Chinese Any tony mng. 



24. Ceryle rudis, L. 



Very common on the river ; where it rises on the wing at a height 

 above the water, and drops suddenly on its scaly prey. I have 

 also seen it strike obliquely when flying close to the surface of 

 the water. 



25. ZTpupa epops, L. 



Stays all the year and is nowhere common ; builds in the holes 

 of walls and exposed coffins ; is called by the natives the Cofiin- 

 bird, and flies with long "undulating sweeps. 



26. OrtJiotomus phyllorapheus, n. sp. \_lbis, Vol. II, 49.] 



Length 4| inches ; wing 1 T 9 „- ; tail 2. Bill along culmen -| ; to 

 gape T 7 o". Tarsus T 8 „- ; mid-toe T 6 ^ ; hind-toe T % ; outer toe rather 

 longer than the inner. Bill pale flesh-colour, along the ridge 

 dark hair- brown. Legs and toes pale yellowish-brown. Iris 

 buff; narrow circle round the eye, pale buff. Forehead fer- 

 :raginous, gradually changing to olive-brown on the head. Back 

 bright olive-green. Wings and tail hair-brown, the coverts- 

 margined with olive-green, and the quills with yellowish olive- 

 brown. Round the eye and all the under-parts, including the 

 shoulder-edge, ochreous-white, darker on the flanks, and buff on 

 the tibiae. The two central tail-feathers of the male gradually 

 lengthen at the commencement of spring until May, when they 

 are about 1-| inch or so longer than the others, which are all 

 somewhat graduated. I observe that these lengthened feathers 

 soon become worn and usually drop after the first nesting, to be 

 replaced by others scarcely longer than the lateral ones. 



Mr. Blyth remarks — " Your Orthotomus, I think, is new, and con- 

 stitutes the 12th species (!) now to be recognised. The other 

 11 are described by Mr. F. Moore in his monograph on the 

 genus, read before the Zoological Society, 28th February, 1854." 



This bird is usually seen in pairs, and is very common in most 



