THE GHEAT INDIAN BARBET. 
129 
Family CAPITONIDiEl. 
Genus MEGAL^EMA, G. E. Gray, 
511. MEGALiEMA MARSHALLORUM. 
THE GREAT INDIAN BARBET. 
Bucco grandis, Gould, Cent. Him. Birds, pi. 46. Megalaema grandis, Hmne, 
Wests and Eggs, p. 128 ; Hume ^' Dav. S. F. vi. p. 150. Megalaema virens 
(JBodd.), apud Jerd. B. Ind. i. p. 309 ; Marsh. Mon. Capit. pi. xvi. (part.). 
Megalaema marshallorum, Swinhoe, Ann. Nat. Hist. ser. 4, vi. p. 348 ; Bl. 8f 
Wald. B. Burm. p. 73 ; Wardlaiu Bamsag, Ibis, 1877, p. 457 ; Hume, S. F. viii. 
p. 88 ; Scully, S. F. viii. p. 250. 
Description. — Male and female. The whole head, iieck_, chin, throat and 
fore neck violet-blue ; a yellow collar on the hind neck next the violet-blue, 
the shafts brighter; breast, wing- coverts^ back and scapulars coppery brown; 
rump and upper tail-coverts green ; primary- coverts and primaries black, 
broadly edged with blue ; the other quills brown on the inner webs, green 
on the outer with more or less of a coppery tinge ; tail bluish green; 
abdomen bluish, turning to green towards the vent ; sides of the body 
streaked with yellow and green ; under tail- coverts crimson. 
Bill yellow, pale in front, dusky at the edge of the upper mandible ; 
irides brown; legs greenish homy {Jerdon), Iris hair-brown; bill dull 
yellow, tinged with green; culmen blackish; legs dusky green [Wardlaw 
Ramsay) . 
Length 12 inches, tail 4*5, wing 5*5, tarsus 1*25, bill from gape 2*3. 
The Great Indian Barbet was observed to be very common on the Karin 
hills east of Tonghoo by Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay ; and Mr. Blyth states 
that it occurs in Arrakan. I can find no other record of its occurrence 
in British Burmah. 
According to Dr. Jerdon it is found throughout the Himalayas ; and 
Col. Godwin-Austen procured it in the hill-tracts of Eastern Bengal. 
All the Barbets have certain habits in common. They are arboreal, 
frequenting forests and tree-jungle ; they have a very loud monotonous 
call, which they utter throughout the whole day ; they are found singly or 
in pairs ; their flight is strong ; they feed entirely on fruits ; and they lay 
two or three white eggs in a hole in a tree, which they generally excavate 
for themselves. 
The present species, one of the largest of the family, breeds in the 
Himalayas from Bhootan to Cashmeer from May to July. 
VOL. II. 
K 
