THE BLUE MAGPIE. 401 
Length as much as 28 inches^ tail 17 to 19_, wing 8^ tarsus 1*9^ bill from 
gape up to 1'7 or even more. The female is considerably smaller. 
It seems to be now generally admitted that if the Burmese birds which 
Mr. Blyth named U. magnirostris differ from the Himalayan U. occipitalis 
it is merely in the colour of the iris and legs. But even this distinction 
appears to rest on doubtful ground. Dr. Jerdon^ as far as I know, is the 
only naturalist who has stated that the iris of the Himalayan bird is red. 
Dr. Scully states that in three Nipalese birds the irides were brown, and 
Colonel Godwin- Austen remarks of a bird from the Naga hills that the iris 
also was dark brown. The balance of evidence is thus in favour of the 
iris of the Himalayan bird being brown like that of the Burmese bird. As 
for the legs, I find them described by Capt. Beavan as coral-red, by Dr. 
Jerdon as orange, and by Dr. Scully as orange-red or coral-red. With 
regard to the Burmese bird, I find that I described the legs as coral-red, 
and Capt. Eeilden as scarlet. There is not much difference between these 
various terms ; they all point to the same colour. I can moreover find no 
difference between the two supposed races in the matter of coloration or 
size of bill, and I consequently unite them under one name. 
I found this beautiful Magpie common in the Thayetmyo district, in 
the dry forests, for some fifteen miles round the station of Thayetmyo. 
Capt. Wardlaw Ramsay found it at Tonghoo, and notes that it was very 
common in Karennee. Mr. Davison met with it about Pahpoon, on the 
Yonzaleen river, and noticed it at Wimpong, near Thatone ; and Capt. 
Bingham states that it is common in the Thoungyeen valley. It has 
been found in Arrakan, but I do not know in what part of that Division. 
Mr. Gould received this bird from Siam. Mr. Blanford mentions having 
seen it at Ava (Mandelay) ; Dr. Anderson procured it near Bhamo ; and 
Colonel Godwin- Austen in the Naga hills. It is found in Sikhim, Nipal, 
Kumaon and along the Himalayas as far, at least, as the valley of the 
Sutlej, where Dr. Stoliczka met with it. It appears not to occur in Bhootan, 
where it is replaced by U. flavirostris, a yellow-billed species. 
The Blue Magpie is found in small flocks of from three to six indivi- 
duals, feeding chieliy on the ground, but also spending a good deal of its time 
in trees. It is a bird of the jungle, but is often seen in the immediate neigh- 
bourhood of villages and camping-grounds, looking out for food left by 
travellers. It is a favourite cage-bird and bears confinement well. Mr. W. 
Dunn has favoured me with an interesting account of some Magpies he kept 
in Burmah for several years, but I regret that it is too lengthy for this work. 
Capt. Bingham found the nests of this species in March and April in 
Tenasserim, solid structures of twigs and branches, lined with finer twigs 
and placed invariably at the top of sapling trees about fifteen feet from the 
ground. The eggs, three or four in number, were white marked with 
claret-colour. 
VOL. I. 2d 
