Proparus dubius, _Hume; Hume, cat._ no. 622 bis.
Mr. W. Davison has furnished me with the following note:--"On the
21st of February I took a nest of this species on Muleyit mountain
containing two eggs, and out of the female which I shot off the nest
I took another egg ready for expulsion which was in every particular
precisely similar to those in the nest.
"The nest was a large globular structure, composed externally of dried
reed-leaves, very loosely put together, the egg-cavity deep and lined
with fibres. It was placed on the ground close to a rock, and at the
foot of a Zingiberaceous plant, and rather exposed to view. The nest
was not unlike that of _Pomatorhinus_, but of course considerably
smaller, not so much domed, and with the mouth of the egg-cavity
pointing upwards.
"A few days later, on the 25th, I took a second nest, quite similar in
shape and materials to the first one, but placed several feet above
the ground, in a dense mass of creepers growing over a rock. It was
quite exposed to view, and from a distance of 3 or 4 feet the eggs
were quite visible.
"There were three eggs in the nest, similar to those in the first
nest. Both parent birds were obtained. The first nest measured 5
inches long by 4·5 wide, the egg-cavity 3·8 deep by 2·75 wide at the
entrance. The other was about half an inch smaller each way.
"The measurements of the six eggs varied from 0·76 to 0·81 in length
by 0·56 to 0·6 in width, but the average was 0·78 by 0·59."
The eggs are rather narrow ovals, as a rule, occasionally much pointed
towards one end. The shell is very fine and has a faint gloss. The
ground-colour is white. The markings, which are difficult to describe,
consist first of spots, specks, and hair-line scratches, dark brown,
almost black occasionally, and a great amount of irregular clouding,
streaking, and smudging of a pale dirty-brown, slightly reddish in
some eggs. Besides this, about the large end there is an indistinct
irregular zone of faint inky purple spots and small blotches, and a
few spots of this same colour may be observed on other parts of the
egg.
182. Sittiparus castaneiceps (Hodgs.). _The Chestnut-headed
Tit-Babbler_.
Minla castaneiceps, _Hodgs., Jerd. B. Ind._ ii, p. 255; _Hume, Rough
Draft N. & E._ no. 619.
Mr. Hodgson's notes inform us that the Chestnut-headed Tit-Babbler
breeds in the neighbourhood of Darjeeling in May and June, laying four
eggs, which are figured as somewhat elongated ovals, having a very
pale greenish-yellow or dingy yellowish-white ground finely speckled,
chiefly at the large end, where there is a tendency to form a zone,
with red or brownish red, and measuring 0·75 by 0·52. The nest is said
to be placed in a thick bush, at a height of about 3 feet from the
ground, in a double fork; to be very broad and shallow, composed of
twigs, grass, and moss, and lined with leaves. One, taken on the 18th
May, 1846, measured 6 inches in diameter and 2·5 in height externally;
the cavity was only 2·1 in diameter and 1 in depth.
From Sikhim Mr. Gammie writes:--"A nest of this bird, with one fresh
egg and female, was brought to me in May. The man said he found the
nest in the Rungbee forest, at 6000 feet, among the moss growing on
the trunk of a large tree, a few feet from the ground. It was a solid
cup, made of green moss, with an inner layer of fine dark-coloured
roots, and lined with grassy fibres. Externally it measured 4 inches
in width by the same in depth; internally 1·5 wide by 1·25 deep."
Three eggs sent by Mr. Gammie measure 0·7 to 0·75 in length and 0·55
to 0·59 in breadth.
Mr. Davison says:--"On the 20th of February, when encamped just under
the summit of Muleyit, on its N.W. slope, I found a nest of this bird
containing three eggs, but so hard-set that it was only with the
greatest difficulty that I managed to preserve them.
"The nest, a deep cup, was placed about 5 feet from the ground, in
a mass of creepers growing up a sapling. It (the nest) was composed
externally of green moss and lined with fibres and dry bamboo-leaves.
"On the 29th of the same month I took another nest, also containing
three eggs, precisely similar to those in the first nest; but these
were so far incubated and the shell was so fragile that they were
all lost. This nest was also composed externally of green moss,
beautifully worked into the moss growing on the trunk of a large tree,
and it was only with considerable difficulty, and after looking for
some time, that I found it. The egg-cavity of this nest was also lined
with fibres and dried bamboo-leaves.
"The first nest found was open at the top, and measured 5·5 inches in
depth, 3 across the top externally, the egg-cavity 3·5 in depth by 1·8
in diameter at top.
"The second nest was completely domed at the top, and measured
externally 7 inches in depth by about 3·5 at top. The egg-cavity was
2·5 inches deep by 1·5 across the mouth.
"Three eggs measured 0·7 to 0·75 in length, and 0·55 to 0·59 in
breadth."
The eggs are broad ovals, a little pointed towards the small end,
the shell white, almost devoid of gloss. A dense ring or zone of
excessively small black spots surrounds the large end, and similar
specks are rather sparsely distributed over the whole of the rest of
the surface of the egg, having, however, a tendency to become obsolete
towards the small end. Sometimes a little brown and sometimes a little
lilac is intermingled in the zone.