Myiophonus horsfieldii, _Vig., Jerd. B. Ind._ ii, p. 499;_Hume, Rough
Draft N. & E._ no. 342.
Mr. W. Davison says:--"The Malabar Whistling-Thrush (rather a
misnomer, by the way) breeds on the slopes of the Nilghiris, never
ascending higher than 6000 feet. The nest is always placed on some
rock in a mountain torrent; it is a coarse and, for the size of the
bird, a very large structure, and though I have never measured the
nest, I should say that the total height was about 18 inches or more,
and the greatest diameter about 18 inches. Exteriorly it is composed
of roots, dead leaves, and decaying vegetation of all kinds; the
egg-cavity, which is saucer-shaped and comparatively shallow, is
coarsely lined with roots. It breeds during March and April."
Miss Cockburn says:--"A nest of this bird was found on the 22nd of
March in a hole in a tree situated in a wood at a height of about 40
feet from the ground. Two bamboo ladders had to be tied together to
reach it, for the tree had no branches except at the top. The nest
consisted of a large quantity of sticks and dried roots of young
trees, laid down in the form of a Blackbird's nest. The contents of it
were three eggs. They were quite fresh, and the bird might have laid
another. The poor birds (particularly the hen) showed great boldness
and returned frequently to the nest, while a ladder was put up and a
man ascended it."
Such a situation for the nest of _this_ bird may seem incredible; but
my friend Miss Cockburn is a most careful observer, and she sent me
one of the eggs taken from this very nest, and it undoubtedly belonged
to this species; moreover, there is no other bird on the Nilghiris
that she, who has figured most beautifully all the Nilghiri birds,
could possibly have mistaken for this species. At the same time, the
situation in which she found the nest was altogether unusual and
exceptional.
I now find that such a situation for the nest of this bird is not even
very unusual. On the 3rd of July Miss Cockburn took another nest in a
hole in a tree, about thirty feet from the ground, containing three
fresh eggs, which she kindly sent me; and writing from the Wynaad Mr.
J. Darling, jun., remarks that there this species commonly builds in
holes in trees. He says:--"_July 22nd_. Nest found near Kythery, S.
Wynaad, in a crevice of a log of a felled tree in a new clearing 11
feet from the ground. Nest built entirely of roots. The foundation was
of roots from some swampy ground and had a good deal of mud about it.
Another nest was in a hole of a dead tree 32 feet from the ground."
Mr. Frank Bourdillon writes from Travancore:--"Very common from the
base to near the summit of the hills, frequenting alike jungle and
open clearings, though generally found in the neighbourhood of some
running stream; I have known this species to build on ledges of rock
and in a hollow tree overhanging a stream, in either case constructing
a rather loosely put together nest of roots and coarse fibre with a
little green moss intermixed. The female lays two to four eggs, and
both birds assist in the incubation."
Mr. T. Fulton Bourdillon records the finding of eggs on the following
dates:--
"April 29, 1873. Two hard-set eggs.
May 15, 1873. Three " "
May 15, 1874. One fresh egg.
May 30, 1874. Two slightly set eggs."
Col. Butler sent me a splendid nest of this species taken in the
cliffs at Purandhur, 15 miles south of Poona. It was placed in the
angle between two rocks; it measures in front 7 inches wide, and 1·5
in. high; posteriorly it slopes away into an obtuse angle fitting the
crevice in which it was deposited; the cavity is 4 in. in diameter,
perfectly circular, and 2·25 in depth. The compactness of the nest
is such that it might be thrown about without being damaged. It is
composed throughout of fine black roots, only a stray piece or two of
light coloured grass being intermixed, and the whole basal portion is
cemented together with mud.