Page:The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma (Birds Vol 1).djvu/172

Fig. 26.—Garrulax l. leucolophus.

Family TIMALIIDÆ.

The intrinsic muscles of the syrinx fixed to the ends of the bronchial semi-rings; the edges of both mandibles smooth or the upper one with a notch; hinder aspect of tarsus smooth, bilaminated; with with ten primaries; tongue non-tubular; nostrils clear of the line of forehead, the lower edge of the nostril nearer to the commissure than the upper edge is to the culnien; plumage of the nestling like that of the adult female but paler; nostrils never entirely concealed from view although frequently covered by hairs or bristles; rictal bristles present; rectrices twelve; inner and hind toes equal in length.

The Family Timaliidæ contains a very large number of birds, nearly all tropical and subtropical, which Gates called Crateropodidæ and which Harington raised to the rank of a suborder which he called Timeliidæ. There are, of course, no grounds for this, as the Timaliidæ are so close to other families that some ornithologists include with them such groups as the Thrushes and others. From these, however, they seem to me to be-