446 
TENTHA AND TENTHACA OF THE TARAI. 
vociferating from its perch. Bold and dar- 
ing in its manners, and easily caught by 
any insect bait. 
Colour. Above, deep slaty ; below, with 
the whole rump and upper tail coverts, 
bright rusty: chin and throat, centre of 
the lower belly, lining of wings and quills, 
internally and basally, rufescent white : 
wings, externally, black brown, with broad 
rusty margins including the coverts, and 
void of speculum.* Caudal plumes, red 
brown ; gradually diluted from the middle 
into pale sordid rusty, with which the tips 
of the centrals are sensibly marked. The 
black frontal band is narrow across the base 
of the bill, but spreads laterally, and ex- 
tends through the eyes and ears half way 
to the shoulders : bill and legs, jetty : base 
of the former, ruddy flesh colour : iris, dark 
brown. The female is as large as, or larger 
than, her mate : her slaty mantle is less 
deep, and her breast and flanks are crossed 
by transverse, sublunate zigzags of a blackish 
hue. She has, also, frequently a white 
superciliary line over the black band, which 
latter is usually deficient across the front. 
The young are lineated like the female ; 
at first, above as well as below, and inclu- 
sive of the wings and tail which have both 
a subraarginal dark zone. The black facial 
band is first grey, then brown in them : the 
mantle is brown smeared ; and all the 
colours are less pure and more diluted than 
in maturity, not excepting the bill and legs, 
which are brown black or dusky. 
In early youth the mere chin and mere 
belly, with the lining of the wings, are im- 
maculate. The changes of the plumage are 
truly perplexing.+ 
2nd Species, new. Tricolor nobis. 
Rather smaller than the last, with charac- 
ters and habits identically similar. 10 inches 
by 11^ in expanse of wings, and 1| oz, in 
weight. Of the 10 inches of length the 
bill is 13-1 6ths, and the tail, 5f. Tarsus 
1, 15-16ths; central toe 12-16ths. Hind 
8-16ths. A closed wing, 4 inches; 
whereof the 1st quill is 2f, the 2nd, 3i, 
the 4th and 5th, subequal and 4 ; the 
5th is usually the longest of all ; the tertials 
being § less. The gradation of the tail is 
1^ to 2 inches, or more than in the prece- 
dent ; and the tail is longer in proportion to 
the bird. This, with the customary preva- 
lence of the 5th alar quill over the 4th (in Ni- 
palensisthe 4th is more often the longest), 
constitutes all the difference of external 
structure between the two species which the 
• The absence of the speculum is a fixed 
peculiarity of importance in distinguishing’ 
the speci es. 
■i Possibly there may be a second species, 
bearing the same relation to Nipalensis as ex- 
cubitoroides does to excubitor; but I doubt it. 
most rigid examination can establish. The 
sexes entirely resemble each other ; nor 
does nonage afford any very obvious mark. 
Colour. Head and neck, superiorly, as 
far as the gape, with the top of the back, 
the wings, and tail, jet black. Body, 
superiorly and laterally, with the vent and 
tail coverts, brilliant rusty: body below, 
pure white, in summer subtinted rusty : 
lining of wings and quills internally and 
basally, the same : lateral tail feathers 
paled, basally and marginally, to rufescent 
white, and the whole broadly tipped with 
the same hue : tertials next the body with 
broad rufous margins : a white speculum 
on the primes, apert and appearing (as 
usual) from below the false wing : bill and 
legs, black : iris, dark brown. In the young, 
the colours are less clear and deep ; the black 
parts diluted with brown ; the caudal marks 
confused ; and the bill and legs by no means 
fully jet ; the former having a clear blue 
grey or fleshy hue towards the base and 
along the tomiae. 
3rd Species. Ferrugiceps or Rusty- 
pate nobis. Structure essentially the same 
as in the two precedent, but assimilating 
with Collurio minor by its smaller size, 
longer wing, and shorter and more even tail. 
8 inches long by 10§ in expanse: bill 
12-16ths ; tail 3|^. Tarsus 1, l-16ths ; 
central toe,10-16ths ; hind, 7-16ths : weight 
1 oz. 
Wings but 2 inches short of the tail, which 
has the extreme laterals gradated less than 
one inch, and the i*est trivially rounded. 
Crown of the head and rump, brilliant rusty ; 
the former margined to the front and sides 
with white : back, tertials, coverts, and cau- 
dal plumes, rusty-brown : primaries and 
false wing, black : no speculum : tertials 
and covex’ts with broad rusty margins : lores, 
lower part of orbitar region and ears, black. 
Below, wholly white, subrufescent on the 
flanks : legs and feet, slaty blue : bill, gray 
blue, with black tips : iris, brown. Female, 
similar, save that the facial black band is 
pale brown in her. Almost confined to the 
lower region of Nepal. Manners of the pre- 
ceding two species. 
LANIANiE. 
Genus T^nthaca nobis. 
T^ntha and T^nthaca of the Nipalese 
Tarai’. 
The birds of this proposed genus differ 
very signally from the typical Lanii (Collu- 
rio of Vigors) by a longer, straighter, slen- 
derer, and more conical bill, distinctly fossed 
at the base, and less incumbered by the fron- 
tal plumes, more suddenly bent at the tip, 
and less powerfully hooked and toothed ; 
by longer and stronger wings ; a shorter 
and even tail ; and much feebler legs and 
feet, with toes differently constructed and 
