1849.] in the Asiatic Society 1 s Museum. 815 



It appears to be peculiar to the island of Ceylon, where Mr. Layard 

 informs us that " it builds in the houses of Newera Eliya, and does not 

 migrate." A remarkable contrast to the habits of H. daurica ; while it 

 curiously resembles in its stationary abode the H. cahirica." 



No. 1834. Alcippe nigrifrons, nobis. Closely affined to A. 

 atriceps, (Jerdon), from which it differs in not having the whole crown 

 black, but only the forehead continued as a line backward over each eye, 

 and the ear-coverts. The tail also is darker, and distinctly rayed with 

 dusky-black. General hue fulvous-brown above, and on the flanks and 

 lower tail-coverts : rest of the under-parts pure white, the axillaries 

 tinged with rufescent. Wing 2\ in. 



Inhabits Ceylon. 



Genus Drymocataphus, nobis. Type Brachypteryx nigrocapitata, 

 Eyton. 



No. 1835. Dr. fuscocapillus, nobis. Like Br. nigrocapitatus, but 

 the supercilia, uniform with the lores, ear-coverts, sides of neck, throat, 

 and entire under-parts, pale ferruginous-brown, a little deeper on the 

 breast : coronal feathers dark brown margined with dusky-black, and 

 pale-shafted : rest of the upper-parts uniform greyish olive-brown, the pri- 

 maries margined paler, and the extreme tips of the tail-feathers rufescent. 

 Bill pale, the upper mandible dusky : and feet pale. Length about 6^ in., 

 the wing 2| in., and tail 2-J- in. : bill to gape ^f in. ; and tarse 1 in. 



Inhabits Ceylon. 



No. 1079. Acrocephalus dumetortjm, nobis : Syn. Act. Mon- 

 tana of India, auctorum. " Calamoherpe montana of India," writes 

 Mr. Strickland, "is not Horsfield's montana, in which the wing is 2 in. 

 long, graduated ; the 5th quill longest." 



No. 1836. Leucocerca compressirostris, nobis. Like L. albo- 

 frontata, but with the bill much more compressed. Perhaps a variety 

 only. From Ceylon. 



No. 1219, C. Dicrtjrus macrocercus, var. The Cinghalese repre- 

 sentative of this species appears to be invariably much smaller than the 

 race of all India, adults having the wing but 5 to 5^ in. (instead of 6 

 in.), and the rest in proportion. B. longicaudatus of Ceylon differs in 

 no respect from the common Indian bird ; but B. ccerulescens of India 

 is replaced in Ceylon by the nearly affined B. leucopygialis : and a very 

 distinct species exists in the same island, the B. edoliformis, which is 



