Page:The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma (Birds Vol 1).djvu/481

 CEBTHIA. 435 taken in early June and the others between the 18th and the end of that month. The nest is like those of the rest of the genus, a pad of moss, lined with a few feathers and placed high up in a crevice or in between the tree and some projecting piece of bark. The eggs are hke those of M mala y ana but apparently varv greatly in size; twenty-five eggs average 15-8 x 11*9 mm. and the greatest length and breadth are 16-8 X 12-6 nnn. and the least 14-8 X ll'l and 15-0 x H'O mm.

Habits. This Tree-Creeper seems to be a bird of rather higher elevations than most, never descending below about 7,500 feet in the breeding season and ascending up to 10,000 feet. With this exception there is nothing special calling for remark about it. Certhia discolor Blyth. Four races of this species are found within the limits of this work, ranging from Nepal to the extreme east of Burma and the Slian States; these four include one hitherto undescribed but referred to by Gates as being found in Karenni and as being inseparable from the Sikkim bird. Further material, however, shows that when series from the two places are compared one with the other they differ very greatly and can be easily distin- guished from one another. Key to Subspecies. A. Lower plumage eavthy-brown, fidvescent on posterior Hanks and abdomen .... C. d. discolor, p. 435. B. Lower plumage more fulvou?, especially on throat C. d. mnnipuvensis, p. 437. C. Much darker above; chin, throat aud breast reddish fulvous C. d. victorice, p. 437. D. Very dull, with little ferruginous above and no fulvous tint below C. d.fuliginosa, p. 438. C. d. fuUrjinosa is not unlike C. d. meridioncdis Eob. & Kloss, Ibis, 1919, p. 609, but can be distinguished by its paler lower plumage which is more a smoky grey than dark grey aud without any tinge of rufous on the belly.


 * Certhia discolor Blyth, J. A. S. B., xiv, p. 580 (1845) (Darjeeliug); Blanf. & Oates, i", p. 331.

Vernacular names. Saddyer-'pho (Lepcha).

Description. Upper plumage dark brown, streaked with fulvous; rump and upper tail-coverts bright ferruginous; tail bright reddish- brown with red shafts aud obsoletelv cross-rayed; wings dark 2e2