Page:The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma (Birds Vol 2).djvu/69

This page needs to be proofread.
RHIPIDURA
55


Female. Resembles the male, but has the lower plumage more tinged with buff.

The young resemble the adult, bufc the back and the wing-coverts are broadly tipped arid fringed with rufous.

Iris brown ; bill black, fleshy at the base of the lower mandible (//nine and Davison).

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

Distribution. Tenasserim from Tavoy southwards, extending to Slum, Cochin China, the Malay peninsula and islands.

607. Rhipidura pectoralis. The White- spotted Fantail Flycatcher.

Leucocerca pectoralis, Jerd. III. Ind. Orn. text to plate ii (1847) ; myth, Cat. p. 200 ; Jerd. B. I. i, p. 453 ; Hume, N. $ E. p. 203. Muscipeta leucogaster, Cuvier,Jide Pucker. Arch. Mus. vii, p. 333 (1854).

Rhipidura pectoralis (Jerd.), Blyth, J. A. S. B. xii, p. 935 (1843) ; Marpe, Cat. B. M. iv, p. 335 j Oatesin Hume's N. $ E. 2nd ed. ii, p. 38. Leucocerca leucogaster ( Cuv. Hume, Cat. no. 293 ; Barnes, Birds Bom. p. 101. The White-shotted Fantail, Jerd.

Coloration. Resembles R.javanica. Differs in having the breast-band ocellated with white and the outer tail-feathers merely paler towards the tips, not abruptly and broadly pure white.

Iris blackish brown ; legs, feet, and bill black (Butler).

Length about 7 ; tail 3'8 ; wing 3 ; tarsus '7 ; bill from gape -6.

Distribution. Found chiefly and most abundantly in the western portion of India from Abu nearly down to Cape Comorin. To the eastward this species has been found at Raipur (Ball), Chikalda (McMaster), Goona (King), Chanda (Blanford), and a line connecting these localities probably represents its eastern limits. It a j) ] tears to be found up to 6000 feet or even higher.

Habits, fyc. Breeds from April to August, constructing a nest very similar to that of R. albifrontata. The eggs are buffy white, with a zone of brownish spots round the larger end, and measure about -66 by -47.