In the Chats the bill is strong and the rictal bristles occasionally very numerous and strong ; the wing in most is pointed ; the tail,
of twelve feathers, is seldom or never longer than the wing ; and the
tarsus and foot are of medium size and strength.
The 'Chats nest in holes in the ground or in walls, or among heaps of stones, and they lay eggs which, so far as is known, are always marked with brown or rufous.
Key to the Genera.
a. Bill broad at base ; rictal bristles numerous and strong. a'. Tail shorter than wing ; outer feathers reach- ing nearly to tip PRATINCOLA, p. 58.
b'. Tail about as long as wing ; outer feathers falling short of tip by about half length of tarsus OREICOLA, p. 66.
b. Bill narrow, not strikingly broad at base ; rictal bristles few and weak.
c'. Tail with a pattern of two colours SAXICOLA, p. 67.
d'. Tail entirely of one colour . CERCOMELA, p. 79.
Genus PRATINCOLA, Koch, 1816,
The genus Pratincola contains a considerable number of species of wide distribution, some of which are migratory and others resident. They are mostly familiar birds, displaying little fear, and one or more species are generally common in every part of the Empire except the tracts covered with forest.
In Pratincola the bill is rather less than half the length of the head, broad at base and well notched ; the rictal bristles are very strong ; the wing is rather sharp, and the first primary varies from one half to one third the length of the second ; the tail is shorter than the wing and slightly rounded, and the tarsus is moderate in length. The sexes are invariably dissimilar, and the seasonal changes of plumage are very marked.
Key to the Species[1].
a. Plumage entirely black and white. a', Wing about 2'8 ; bill from nostril to tip '3 . P. caprata <$ , p. 59.
b'. Wing about 3 ; bill from nostril to tip '4 . . P. atrata tf, p. 60.
- ↑ I exclude the following species from the Indian list : PRATINCOLA ROBUSTA, Tristram. Pratincola robusta, Tristram, Ibis, 1870, p. 497 ; Hume, 8. F. ix, p. 133. The type of this species, said to have been procured in Mysore by Mr. H. E. Fox more than twenty years ago, has been obligingly lent to me by Canon Tristram. It is identical with the larger Bush-Chat of Madagascar, and both Sharpe and Tristram agree with me in this identification. There are two Bush-Ghats of this type in Madagascar, agreeing in coloration but differing in size. To one
