SALPORNIS SPILONOTA. Spotted Creeper. Certhia spilonota, Frankl. in Proc. of Comm. of Sci. and Corr. of Zool. Soc., De lps le Salpornis spilonotus, Blyth, Cat. of Birds in Mus. Asiat. Soc. Calcutta, p. 338. sptlonota, Gray, Gen. of Birds, vol. i, pl. xliv, upp. fig. 1867, p. 461. Jerd. Birds of Ind., vol. i. p. 382.—Blanf. in Ibis, Tue singular bird figured on the accompanying Plate has many characters in common with the Climacteres of Australia, and is not very far removed from the single member of the genus Zichodroma. Hitherto it has been ranked among the rarities of Indian ornithology, and its true locality was almost unknown. Franklin’s solitary specimen was all the material at the disposal of the late D. W. Mitchell for his figure of the species in Mr. G. R. Gray’s ‘ Genera of Birds ;’ but I have been more fortunate, having had several fine examples lent to me by Mr. W. T. Blanford (from the Rev. S. Fairbank) and by my friends Captains Stackhous, Pinwill, and Julian. “One belonging to the last-named gentleman was collected in Oude; and Captain Pinwill writes me the following note :—* I shot a specimen in a grove of mangoe trees. It had the manners of an ordinary creeper ; it was in a large migrating party of Sitta castaneoventris and Yungipicus Hardwickii, no doubt at the time moving from the more central jungle into the Oude terai, or low hills.” Fortunately other interesting notes relating to the habits and economy of this species have appeared in ‘The Ibis’ and elsewhere ; and these I take the liberty of transcribing. Mr. Jerdon states that “this bird inhabits the hilly parts of Behar and probably similar regions in Central India, Bundelkund, &c. It does not appear to have been again discovered since Franklin procured it, now more than thirty years ago, except by Hodgson, who received it from Behar; but the exact locality in which it was obtained is still unknown. It was probably the hilly and jungly tract which extends from Mount Parisnath, where it is very likely to be found, through Chota Nagporee, towards the source of the Nerbudda.” In a letter to the Editor of ‘The Ibis,’ dated ‘ Geological Survey Office, Calcutta, July 17, 1867,” Mr. W. T. Blanford says :— **T think all who have paid attention to the ornithology of India will be interested in hearing of the rediscovery of Franklin’s long-lost Certhia spilonota (Salpornis spilonota, Gray). 1 have collected birds during the past year around Nagpoor, and in the country to og south, DHowE heal and Siroucha; and amongst other rarities I had the good fortune to obtain eight or nine ee of Os of them in good condition. They agree perfectly with the somewhat meagre original description Bren Peo Franklin in the ‘ Proceedings ’ of the Committee of Science and SO eer of the Zoological Society for 1831, p. 121, and with Mr. Blyth’s fuller account in ‘The Ibis’ for 1865, p. 48. My first ee was killed about twenty miles south of Chanda; but the birds there appeared to be very By i ie ae less so, though still very far indeed from common, in the great loreal upon the Prawaite a noe rivers, about Siroucha. This is five hundred miles south of Higa siie s supposed original a ie a 2 further from Behar, whence Mr. Hodgson is said to have obtamied specimens. It is mony La ee i“ neighbourhood of the Godavery is the principal locality of this bird, and oe the eu obiamnce a e It is curious that Mr. Jerdon did not meet with it in Bustar, which is not very northward were stragglers. ae : a ame great forest-tract, which, indeed, stretches from the Godavery a far from Siroucha, and is a portion of the s : ro : I > ndia. é s the largest extent of ‘jungle’ m | SI cory wane P f a Sitta, clinging to the largest trees, running It has much the appearance of a S0//a, ging 6 Were aa ; ye es : 4 . muds is not a I found Coleoptera in their : ; : archine for insects. round and round their trunks in all directions, and oes bot T had noe ehelecoalewae aemrnmme® . 2 . . ut le 7 : E fa -ed, and evidently breeding ; stomachs. In April the sexes were paired, } any of their eggs.” Stripe over the eye greyish white ; body with greyish white; wings dark grey, centre tail-feathers grey, with spots of black alton | well-defined bars of white; chin and throat whitish ; che ele Greene grey, barred with dull black and grey 5 bill horny brown, lightest ot ; it appears to have been flesh-coloured ; fee a The figures represent the bird in two position Ss S »ad and spotted all over the upper surface dull black, streaked on the hea | crossed by broad bars of dull black and greyish white ; two a -emainder ereyish brown, crossed with ig their edges ; the remainder greyish BID : | st, flanks, abdomen, and under tail-coverts brownish ban) of the under mandible, where t apparently light brown. is, of the size of life. y iY : ee disks ‘el P c