416 
BIRDS OF BRITISH BURMAH. 
Borneo and the Philippine Islands^ and Mr. Swinhoe observed it at Amoy 
in China. According to Messrs. David and Oustalet it ranges even up to 
the Corea. 
It was recorded from Java by Temminck^ but its occurrence in that 
island requires confirmation. The Leyden Museum possesses a specimen 
which is said to have come from the continent o£ India ; the occurrence 
of this species in India^ however^ is very doubtful, as no one in more recent 
years has met with it there. 
The Lesser Blue-winged Pitta is a summer visitor to Burmah, being 
found very abundantly distributed over the whole country from May to July. 
They make their appearance very suddenly, and all at once the jungle 
seems alive with these birds ; and their loud melodious note, consisting 
of a double whistle, may be heard in every well-wooded locality. As a 
rule, these birds remain on the ground ; but when calling (which they do 
chiefly in the morning and evening) they mount a tree, frequently perching 
near the summit. They are not gregarious, but numerous birds may 
generally be found together. They feed on worms, land- shells, ants and 
other insects. 
Mr. Davison states that he has observed these Pittas in the extreme 
south of Tenasserim from J anuary to J uly ; it is therefore probable that 
this locality and the adjacent parts of the Malay peninsula may be a sort 
of neutral territory, where some of these birds are permanent residents. 
Soon after their arrival the nesting-operations are taken in hand. The 
nest, a huge structure composed of sticks, leaves and roots, bound together 
with earth, is placed on the ground, either in an open place or against the 
root of a tree ; but little or no attempt is made at concealment. It is 
globular in shape ; sometimes longer than it is broad, at other times nearly 
spherical ; and the entrance is at one side, close to the ground. The eggs 
vary in number from four to six, and are white, marked with spots and 
scrawls of purplish. 
387. PITTA MEGARHYNCHA. 
THE LARGER BLUE-WINGED PITTA. 
Pitta megarhyncha, Schleg. Vog. Ned. Ind.^ Pitta, p. 32, pi. 4. f. 2 ; Elliot, Ihis, 
1870, pL xii. ; Hume ^ Dav. S. F. vi. p. 242 ; Hume, S. F. viii. p. 94. Bra- 
cliyurus megarhynchus, Wald. in Bl. B. Burm. p. 98. 
Description. — Male and female. Very similar to the preceding species, 
but differing slightly in coloration, in being larger, and in having a much 
longer bill. The coronal streak is obsolete or altogether absent, the brown 
of the head is darker, the breast is paler, and the black collar narrower. 
