GARRULAX PCECILORHYNCHA, Gow.
Black- and Yellow-billed Garrulax.

Garrulax pecilorhyncha, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc. 1862, p. 281.
pecilorhynchus, Swinh. in Ibis, 1863, p. 283.

 

How different in character must be the trees and forests of Southern Asia from those north of the great dividing
ranges ! and how different must they be from the trees and forests of Europe and of England ! for in neither
of the countries last alluded to have we any member of this particular form; and, on the other hand, none
or scarcely any of the true Thrushes are found in those inhabited by the members of the genus Garrulaz,
whose structure and thick plumage is so admirably adapted for the peculiar kind of vegetation amid which
they are destined to dwell. These gregarious birds also exhibit many peculiarities in their habits and eco-
nomy, and are said to be very garrulous and noisy, constantly pouring forth the loud laugh-like notes by
which they may be distinguished from all the other birds of the forest.

“This,” says Mr. Swinhoe, “is a commoner bird in the forest-ranges near Tamsuy than the G. ruficeps ;
like that species, it never descends to the lower unsheltered hills. It is a noisy, chattering species, assem-
bling several together in the underwood, and keeping up an incessant jabbering, with frequent loud discord-
ant cries interspersed. It is sly and vigilant, and tries to elude observation, generally escaping from the
opposite side of the bush it is in, with short flights to the next, and so retreating from approach. In the
G. ceruleatus, from Nepaul, we have a close representative of this species, with similar brown upper plumage
and a scaly head; but that bird is readily distinguished from the G. pecilorhynchus by the whiteness of its
under surface.”

Crown of the head, nape, back, rump, throat, and chest deep rusty brown ; orn of the feathers of the
crown slightly fringed at their tips with black, a hue which is also observable on the tips of the ear-coverts ;
reddish brown on their inner webs, the external edges of the former light grey,

primaries and secondaries
tail deep rusty chestnut, particularly the six central feathers, the

and of the latter deep rusty chestnut ;
ker, having less of the chestnut hue, and becoming lighter and of a reddish fawn-colour

barred with a shade of brown, distinctly
abdomen and thighs deep

remainder being dar
towards their tips; ‘these feathers are moreover obscurely
when the feathers are new, but the bars almost entirely fade away with wear ;
blue-grey, tinged on the latter with rufous; under tail-coverts fawm-colois basal portion of the bill gromn
black, the apical portion bright ochre-yellow, with a greenish tinge ; legs brownish grey, with light brownish

soles and brown pads ” (Swinhoe).
The sexes are alike. The figures are of the natural size.