DISTRIBUTION OF BIRDS IN THE SOCIETY'S MUSEUM. 47 



from having escaped from cages brought from India to both the 

 above towns. I have only seen it twice in Galle, and that was at 

 the Esplanade close to the Fort. 



110. Passer Indicus, Jerd. and Shelby,— The Indian House 

 Sparrow. Ge-kurulla, Sink. 



Throughout the whole island wherever there are inhabitants. 



111. Mirafra affinis, Jerd on. The Southern Bush- 

 Lark. — Layard, Annals .Natural History, 1854, volume 13, 

 page 258. 



On dry, open grass and scrubby land in the northern, western, and 

 south-eastern districts; scarce in the Western Province, occur- 

 ring in the Cinnamon Gardens; absent from the south-west ; 

 abundant in the lowlands of the south-east, particularly near the 

 sea, and from thence round the east coast to Trincomalee and the 

 north; very numerous about the grassy margins of tanks in the 

 north-east. Layard found it at Point Pedro, and Holds worth 

 records it as plentiful at Aripu, just the kind of country to suit it. 



112. Pyrrhulauda grisea, Scop. — The Indian Finch 

 Lark.— Layard, Annals Natural History, 1854, volume 13. page 

 259. 



Abundant in the Northern Province, in the south-east, and probably 

 all round the east coast to Trincomalee, where it is numerous; 

 also strays into the Central Province. Jaffna, the north-east 

 coast, and the Kataragama and Hambantota country are the 

 localities where I have found this bird numerous, and on the 17th 

 November, 1870, while riding up the Kamboda Pass I was 

 astonished to find a male feeding in some grass by the road side 

 at an elevation of 6,000 feet I I was within ten yards of it, and 

 watched for five minutes; so I made no mistake when noting this 

 extraordinary occurrence down. In India I am not aware that it 

 has ever been recorded at such an elevation, being essentially 

 a low-country, plain-and-desert-loving bird. 



113. Alauda Gulgula, Frank. —The Indian Sky-Lark. 



Northern, western, and south-eastern districts, and probably through- 

 out the Eastern Province ; migratory to the south in the north-east 

 monsoon. It is abundant throughout the dry districts of the north, 

 north-west, and north-east, and occurs on the western and south- 

 western coasts in such places as the "Galle Face" at Colombo, 

 and esplanade at Galle, or on any similarly situated open land. 

 I did not find it anywhere on the hill patanas, and am of opinion 

 that it never leaves the low-country. 



