ALCTPPE. 105

decided tendency to form a more or less perfect, and more or less
confluent, cap or zone at the large end.

Two of the eggs measure 0-72 and 0-71 in length, and 0-54 and
0-52 in breadth.

Prom Sikhini, Mr. Grammie writes:—"I have only found this
Babbler breeding in May at elevations about 5000 feet, but it
doubtless breeds also at much lower elevations, probably down
to 2000 feet. The nests are placed within 2 or 3 feet of the
ground, between several slender upright shoots, to which they are
firmly attached. They are exceedingly neat and compact-built
clips, measuring externally about 4 inches across by 2*75 deep,
internally 2-15 wide by 1-6 deep. They are composed of dry
bamboo-leaves held together by a little grass and very fine, hair-
like fern-roots. The egg-cavity is lined with fern-roots.

" The eggs are three or four in number."

Numerous nests of this species kindly sent me by Messrs.
G-ammie, Man del li, and others, taken during the months of May
and June in British and Native Sikhim, at elevations of from 3000
to 5500 feet, were all of the same type and placed in the same situ-
ations, namely amongst low scrub and brushwood, at heights of
from. 18 inches to 3 feet from the ground. The interior and, in
fact, the main body of the nests appear to be in all cases chiefly
composed of fine black hair-like roots, with which, in some cases,
especially about the upper margin, a little fine grass is inter-
mingled. The cavities are generally much about the same size, say
~2 inches in diameter by 1*25 in depth : but the size of the nests as
a whole varies very much. The nest is always coated exteriorly
with dry leaves of trees and ferns, broad blades of grass, and the
like, fixed together sometimes by mere pressure, but generally here
and there held together by fine fibrous roots, and this coating varies
so much that one nest before me measures 5*5 in external diameter,
and another barely 4, the external covering of fern-leaves, flags,
and dry and dead leaves being very abundant in the former, while in
the other the covering consists entirely of broad dry blades of grass
very neatly laid together. Two, three, and four fresh eggs were
found in these several nests, but in no case were more than four
eggs found.

Two nests taken by Mr. Grammie contained three and two fresh
eggs respectively. The eggs had a delicate pink ground, and were
richly blotched, in one egg exclusively, in the others chiefly about the
larger end, with chestnut, or almost maroon-red, here and there
almost deepening in spots to black, and elsewhere paling off into a
rufous haze. The markings are confluent about the large end, and
there in places intermingled with a purplish tinge. The other
eggs had a china-white ground, with more gloss than the specimens
previously described, with numerous small, blackish brownish-red
spots and specks, almost exclusively confined to the large end,
where they are more or less enveloped in a pinky-red nimbus.

These eggs varied from 0-75 to 0-79 in length, and from 0*56
to 0*6 in breadth.