492 
lOEA TIPIIIA. 
the breeding-plumage the male has the white tippings to the lateral feathers more or less reduced, and the central 
tail-feathers, like the rest, jet-black and white-tijiped. In other respects the plumage is not dissimilar to that 
of I. tiphia. 
Distribution . — The Bush-Bulhul is a common bird in Ceylon and widely distributed, being scattered 
throughout all the low country and the hills up to about 2500 feet. It is of course numerous in the open 
cultivated lands of the south and west ; but it is not less so in the scrubby low jungle-tracts round the north 
coasts, including the J affua peninsula. It inhabits also the east side of the island in the same abundance that 
it does the west. In the dry forests of the north-central part of the island it is not unfrequent, but it is not 
found in the damp timber-jungles of the south. In Dumbara and other similarly elevated valleys of the 
Kandyan Province it is not uncommon j but I am not aware that it ascends to the upper hills, except perhaps 
in Haputale and other districts in Uva bordering on the low country. 
This Bulbul has a very wide distribution on the continent," and is, in many portions of the Indian 
peninsula and the regions beyond the Bay of Bengal, as common as it is in Ceylon. In Southern India it is 
an abundant inhabitant of the plains, and extends into the hills to the elevation of Ootacamund, whence 
Mr. Hume records it. It is not, however, noted cither from the Travancore ranges by Mr. Bourdillon, nor 
from the Palanis by Dr. Pairbank, though the latter procured it at the base of the hills. It is found in the 
Deccan and in the northern parts of the Western Ghhts, whence it ranges to the north-west as far as Mount 
Aboo, where it occupies a somewhat isolated position, the circumjacent plains being inhabited by the recently 
discriminated and allied species, /. nigrolutea. Turning eastwards from the northern extremity of the Western 
Ghats we find it inhabiting the central provinces, Chota Nagpur, and extending northwards to Oudh, Dehra 
Doon, Kumaon, Nepal, and along the Himalayas to Assam. In Lower Bengal it is common, and about 
Calcutta it is numerous. In Burmah it is also common, and inhabits therein the Irrawaddy Delta in tolerable 
abundance. It is plentiful throughout the province of Tenasserim, not, however, ascending the hills. 
Southward it extends through the Malay peninsula, specimens being recorded from Wellesley, Pinang, Malacca, 
and Singapore, and thence onw'ard through the archipelago it is an inhabitant of Sumatra, Borneo, and 
J ava. 
Habits . — Owing to its partiality for large trees, which are usually found about the houses of Europeans in 
Ceylon, this little Bulbul is one of our most familiar birds. It delights in the luxurious shade of the suriah, 
the mango, the bread-fruit, and in the north the stately tamarind, which spreads out its welcome shelter 
in the midst of almost every sea-coast village. In one of these latter trees a pair (for they are generally found 
together) will remain sometimes for fully an hour searching among the boughs and foliage for insects, the 
male every now and then uttering its flute-like whistle, cK^-toob, which imparts to the attentive listener the 
idea that the little bird must be in a very contented frame of mind ! It is fond of open groves of trees, the 
edge of jungle, and vegetation at the sides of roads, and it is very partial to the low scattered jungle bordering 
the sea-shore on the north coast. Occasionally several pairs may be seen frequenting the same tree ; but it is 
not usual to find more than one couple together. It is of a restless disposition, hopping actively about the 
leaves in search of its food, and often clinging, like a Tit, to a slender twig while scrutinizing the surrounding 
foliage. In its mode of flight it differs from all its family : owing, perhaps, to the fluffy nature of its long 
flank-feathers, it appears to have no little difficulty in acquiring speed on the wing ; and its flight is at best 
laboured, being performed merely from one tree to the other with a quick beating of its wings and a dipping 
motion of the body, which combine to produce a whirring sound. 
I have occasionally seen it dart out and sejze a passing moth or butterfly on the wing, and alighting again 
swallow it whole, a habit which is testified to by the large Mantidse and other winged insects which are often 
found in its small stomach. While in the black plumage the male presents a very handsome appearance, his 
black back contrasting with his brilliant yellow breast, and when he darts from one tree to another, puffing 
out while on the wing his long white flank -plumes, looks more like a ball of feathers than any thing else. Jerdon 
remarks that the natives in the south of India state that this species repeats the words “ Shoubhiya, Shoicb- 
hiya ” before rain. 
