DISTRIBUTION OF BIRDS IN THE SOCIETY'S MUSEUM. 37 



of the south-west, but not so plentiful as I expected, in the upper 

 parts of that district, in the Randy country, and all throughout 

 the Central Province as high as Nuwara Eliya. In the low- 

 country of the south-west it affects by choice bamboo jungles. 



73. Garrulax Cinereifrons, Blyth. — The Ashy-headed 

 Babbler. 



.Distributed sparingly throughout the Western, Central, and 

 Southern Provinces (south-west), and inhabiting the "damp and 

 gloomy " mukalana " only. It is somewhat common in parts of 

 Dumbara, I am told, and I have met with it in the Kukulu 

 K6ral6, where I have no doubt it is more numerous than any- 

 where else, as the great Sinha Rajah forest contains so many of 

 our peculiar Island species in abundance. 



74. Malacocercus Striatus, Swain son. — The striated 

 Babbler, " Dung Thrush " of Europeans; Demalichcha, Sink,; 

 Malacocercus Bunalensis. — Lay arc! , Annals Natural History, 

 1853, page 271; Malacocercus Striatus, Swainson; Kelaart, 

 Prodromus Fauna3 Zeylanica, page 122. 



Throughout all the low-country in great abundance, especially 

 numerous in the maritime districts of the Western and Southern 

 Provinces, extending both into the Central and Morovvak Kdrale 

 hills to an elevation of about 2,500 feet ; common up the valleys 

 of the Gindurah and other southern rivers, numerous in the north- 

 east; in fact, Layard says, loc. cit, "it is one of our commonest 

 birds," to which I would add also, Allcippe nigrifrons, Pycno- 

 nottus hasmorrhous, Ixos luteolus, Orthotomus longicauda, our 

 two species of Corvidse, and a few others. 



75. Layarda Rufescens, Blyth— -The Rufous Babbler, 

 " Red Dung Thrush" of Europeans ; Kalu-parandal, Sink.; Mala- 

 cocercus Rufescens. Bh/th. — Layard, Annals Natural History, 

 1853, volume 12, page Keiaart, Prodromus Faunae Zey- 

 lanica, page 122. 



Central, Western, and Southern Provinces. In the former it is 

 common in parts of Pussellawa, Deltota, Dumbara, Knuckles, and, 

 according to Holdsworth, at Nuwara Eliya in the north-east 

 monsoon, in the Western Province ; it is abundant in the jungles 

 and sometimes in the native gardens of the Hewagam, Payigam, 

 and Kuruwiti Kdrales (I noticed it particularly plentiful at 

 Labugama during the Kraal in 1871); in the Southern Province 

 it is numerous all through the low wooded country on either side 

 of the Gindurah up to the Sinha Rajah and Morowak Kdrale 

 forests, where I found it at the latter end of the south-west mon- 

 soon. It is remarkable that out of the seven species of Babblers 

 found in this Island, five are peculiar to it. 



