Page:The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma (Birds Vol 2).djvu/43

Rh species, but each feather of the ruinp, upper tail-coverts, and abdomen has a triangular streak of brown. No other specimen ivxiMubling it has yet been found, and it is probably an accidental variety. It came from Nepal.

Bill and legs black ; iris brown ; mouth flesh-colour ; claws black.

Length about 6 ; tail 2*8 ; wing 3*2 ; tarsus *65 ; bill from gape -7.

Distribution. The whole Empire with the exception of Sind, Ceylon, the Andamans and Nicobars, and that portion of the peninsula of India south of the Nilgiris. This species breeds throughout the Himalayas up to about 9000 feet, and visits the plains during the winter. It probably breeds in some portions of the plains, and in some of the hill-ranges of the peninsula and Burma, for I have examined specimens killed at Ahmednagar in July, Shillong in the same mouth, and Momein, to the east of Bhamo, in June. Hume found it breeding in Manipur, and Godwin-Austen on the Khasi hills. This Flycatcher extends into China, Cochin China, and the Malay peninsula. Habits, <$fc. Breeds from April to July, constructing a nest of moss inside a hole in a tree, wall, or bank, and laying four eggs which are pinky white, sometimes unmarked, at others speckled with reddish. The eggs measure about '78 by '57.

580. Stoparola sordida. The Dusky-blue Flycatcher.

Glaucomyias sordida, Wald. A. M. N. H. (4) v, p. 218 (1870) ; Hume, S. F. iii, p. 401.

Stoparola sordida (Wald.}, Sharpe, Cat. B. M. iv, p. 440; Hume, Cat. no. 302 bis ; Lef/</e, Birds Ceyl. p. 419, pi. xviii ; Oates in Hume's N. 8f E. 2nd ed. ii, p. 11.

Coloration. Male. Forehead and a short eyebrow bright cobalt-blue ; lores and region of the nostrils black ; the whole body-plumage ashy grey tinged with blue, brightest on the crown ; abdomen, vent, and under tail-coverts albescent ; wing-coverts, wings, and tail dark brown, very narrowly margined with ashy blue.

The young are dark brown above, each feather with a streak or oval drop of fulvous in the centre ; lower plumage fulvous white, each feather margined with blackish ; abdomen albescent.

Iris reddish brown to brown ; bill black ; legs and feet dark plumbeous, the feet sometimes blackish, much darker than tarsus ; claws black (Legcje).

Length about 6 ; tail 2-5 ; wing 3 ; tarsus '75 ; bill from gape -7.

It is very probable that the female of this species will be found to be slightly duller in colour than th<> male, but I have seen no sexed female. All the birds in the small series of this species in the British iMuseum appear to be males, but only one is so sexed.

Dittributmn. A resident in Ceylon up to 2000 feet.