996 Mr. BlytJis Report for December Meeting, 1842. [No. 143. 



feathers, which are white : the beak and its casque are spotless yellow- 

 ish-white, excepting the base of the former and hindmost part of the 

 latter, which are black : head crested, as usual. The casque is allied 

 in form to those of the two preceding species, but especially to that of 

 B. albirostris, being less inflated than in the latter, and much less 

 compressed than that of B. Malabaricus ; moreover, its front does not 

 project forward as in the last mentioned species. Length about two 

 feet and three-quarters, of which the middle pair of tail-feathers 

 rather exceed fourteen inches, these being two inches longer than the 

 next pair, and the rest graduating but slightly ; wing twelve inches 

 and a half; bill to gape five inches and a half, and casque rather ex- 

 ceeding five inches. The young, according to Mr. Eyton, have the 

 incipient casque black. Originally described from the Malay penin- 

 sula, but the Society's specimen is probably from the Moluccas. 



5. B. Ginginianus, Shaw : Vutteal Dunnase of Lieut. White, As. 

 Res. IV, 121 : common Grey Hornbill of India generally. A small spe- 

 cies, with a low and compressed casque, the ridge prolonged anteriorly 

 to a very acute angle, and the hind part concealed by the feathers of 

 the forehead, and not extended backward over the crown. General 

 colour grey, paler below, and from the breast gradually albescent ; ear- 

 coverts darker, and a light streak over the eye; primaries and second- 

 aries dusky, the latter margined with grey, and all tipped with white; 

 tail also black near the end, and tipped with white. Bill and casque 

 dusky, the tips and ridges of both mandibles whitish. 



In the colouring of the tail of this little species may be discerned a 

 slight approach to the extraordinary Helmeted Hornbill (B. galeatus) 

 of the Moluccas, wherein the middle pair of tail-feathers, which in 

 the present species and some others exhibit a marked tendency to be 

 prolonged considerably beyond the rest (as in Prionites, Crypsirina, 

 &c), attain an extraordinary developement; and it is remarkable 

 that in B. galeatus the portion of them chiefly from the tips of the next 

 pair to the subterminal dark band are generally much nibbled away 

 by the bird, except when quite newly put forth, and to such an ex- 

 tent in the Society's adult specimen, which has one of its long middle 

 tail-feathers new and the other old, that, in the latter, the barb is 

 pretty well bitten away, as so usual in Prionites. This latter singular 

 genus, which presents the nearest approach to the Hornbills in the 



