# The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma/Birds/Order Passeres/Family Paradoxornithidæ/Genus Psittiparus

Genus PSITTIPARUS Hellmayr, 1903.
Blanford's name of Scæorhynchus being preoccupied, Hellmayr's name of Psittiparus must be used for this genus. It differs from Neosuthora in having the tail longer, about equal to the wing and still less graduated, the outermost feather being nearly or quite five-sixths the length of the central ones. The bill is larger and longer in proportion. The 1st primary is a little more than half the length of the 5th, 6th and 7th, which are longest and subequal. The legs are exceptionally strong.
Key to Species and Subspecies.
| A. | Crown of head rufous; chin white. |
| B. | Crown of head grey; chin black. |
(101) Psittiparus ruficeps ruficeps.
The Red-headed Pakrot-Bii.l.
    Paradoxornis ruficeps Blyth, J. A. S. B., (I) ii, p. 177 (1842) (Bootan).
    Scæorhynchus ruficeps. Blanf. & Oates, i, p. 68.
Vernacular names. Chongto-phep-pho (Lepcha).
Description. Head, nape, upper back, lores, cheeks and ear-coverts chestnut; upper pluujage, tail and exposed parts of wings olive-brown, tinged with rufous; the whole lower plumage white, tinged with brown on the sides of the body, vent, thighs and under tail-coverts.
Colours of soft parts. Iris deep red-brown; upper mandible horny brown, lower fleshy-brown; eyelids and mouth slate-blue; legs dark plumbeous blue; claws horn-brown.
Measurements. Total length about 180 mm.; wing 84 to 86 mm.; tail about 85 mm.; bill "from forehead to tip in a straight line 14 mm." (Hartert); tarsus about 28 mm.
Distribution. Hills north of the Brahmaputra east to Sadiya. Nepal and Sikkim.
Nidification and Habits. Not distinguishable from those of the next subspecies. Seven eggs in my collection average 22·8 × 16·7 mm.
(105) Psittiparus ruficeps bakeri.
Baker's Parrot-Bill.
    Scæorhyncus ruficeps bakeri Hartert, Nov. Zool., vii, p. 548 (1900) (Hungrum, N. Cachar).
Vernacular names. Daomaogasha gajao (Cachari); Indo-rui Ingaoria (Naga); Vohtéra (Mikir).
Description. Differs from the Red-headed Parrot-Bill in having the under parts tinged everywhere with buff and iu being a little larger.
Measurements. Wing 90 to 95 mm.; tail about 95 mm.; bill from forehead to tip in a straight line 16 mm., and about 14 mm. deep as against 12 mm. in ruficeps.
Colours of soft parts as in ruficeps, but the bill is a darker horny-brown, more especially above, and the legs are generally quite a dark slate-blue.
Distribution. Hills south of the Brahmaputra, Chin Hills, Shan States through the hills of Central Burma to Tenasserim.
Nidification. This Parrot-Bill breeds principally in late May and early June, but eggs have been taken from the 15th April to the 24th July. The nest is couiposed of shreds of grass, shreds of bamboo leaves and the bark of reeds and bamboos, lined with finer grasses and strips of bark and bound together with cobwebs. In shape it is a deep, very well-built cup, externally about 3 to 4 inches broad and deep, whilst internally it is nearly an inch less each way. It may sometimes be placed in reeds and high grass, more often in bamboo clumps, but most nests will be taken from small saplings and high or low bushes. The height from the ground may be anything from 2 to 8 feet.
The eggs, either two or three in number, rarely four, remind one very much of those of the Garden-Warbler. The ground-colour is white tinged with green, grey or yellowish, sometimes reddish. The markings consist of spots, irregular blotches and cloudings of pale sienna-brown, reddish brown and neutral tint; these, never very numerous, are scattered indefinitely over most of the larger half of the egg; sometimes they are quite sparse and confined to the big end. Forty-five eggs average 21·5 × 16·7 mm.
Habits. Baker's Parrot-Bill is found at all heights between 2,000 and 5,000 feet, ascending some 1,000 feet higher than this in the sunnner and perhaps 1,000 feet lower in the winter. They wander about in parties of a dozen or so, seldom showing themselves except momentarily as they clamber through the grass or undergrowth. Occasionally they will visit the higher bushes and small trees in searching for insects but these they leave at once when disturbed. When feeding they utter a constant "chee-chirrup," but when separated from one another their call is ​the typical bleat of the family. So curiously like is it to the plaintive bleat of a small kid in distress that I have more than once been deceived by it.
Whilst almost as active as the Titmouses in climbing about, they are much less so on the wing, for their flight is fluttering, ill-sustained and weak, nor do they ever take to wing unless compelled.
Their food is principally insectivorous, but they also eat a certain amount of seeds and even grain.
(106) Psittiparus gularis gularis.
The Grey-Headed Parrot-Bill.
    Parndoxornis gularis Gray, Gen. Birds, ii, p. 389 (1845) (Sikkim).
    Scæorhynchus gularis. Blanf. & Oates, i, p. 69.
Vernacular names. Chongto-phep-pho (Lepcha).
Description. Forehead, nasal plumes, a supercilium from the forehead to the nape and the chin black; lores and round the eye, cheeks and lower plumage white; flanks and sides of breast only slightly suffused with buff; ear-coverts pale grey; crown and nape dark grey; upper plumage, tail and visible portions of closed wing rufous-brown.
Colours of soft parts. Iris deep red-brown; bill chrome-yellow to an almost orange horny yellow; legs and feet slaty-brown, occasionally with a bluish tinge.
Measurements. Total length about 150 to 155 mm.; wing 90 to 96 mm.; tail about 80 mm.; tarsus about 27 mm.; culmen about 12 to 13 mm. long and about 10 to 11 deep.
Distribution. Sikkim and Bhutan and hills North of the Brahmaputra.
Nidification. Similar to that of P. ruficeps bakeri. The eggs measure about 21·0 × 15·2 mm.
Habits. Similar to the last.
(107) Psittiparus gularis transfluvialis.
Hartert's Parrot-Bill.
    Scæorhynchus gulavis transfluvialis Hartert, Nov. Zool., vii, p. 548 (1900)(Guilang, N. Cachar).
Vernacular names. Daomougasha gophu (Cachari); Indoo-rui gahabale (Kacha Naga).
Description. Differs from the Grey-headed Parrot-Bill in having the whole of the under parts suffused with fulvous and in being rather smaller.
​Measurements. Wing 86 to 89.5 mm.; tail about 78 mm.; culmen 12 to 13 mm. long but only 9 to 9.5 mm. deep at the base; tarsus about 25 mm.
Distribution. Hills South of the Brahmaputra, Chin, Kachin Hills and hills of Central Burma.
Nidification. Cannot be distinguished from that of the Red-headed Parrot-Bill in any way. 38 eggs average 20.7 × 16.2 mm.
Habits. Similar to those of P. r. bakeri, but is perhaps not found at such low elevations. It occurred in the low hills round Margharita in Assam, but here the close proximity of the snow-line gives an avifauna and flora at 700 to 1,000 feet which obtains elsewhere at more than twice this height. It is curious that though all the Red-headed forms of Parrot-Bill consort together when feeding, none of the red-headed birds are ever found mixing with those of the grey-headed races.