Adult male (Bohol, April).—Lores, a narrow frontal line, and a broad band through eye to side of neck black; forehead delicate pearl-gray, shading gradually into earthy brown on the back and becoming more reddish brown on the lower back and rump; chin, throat, jaw, and middle of abdomen white; thighs pale gray; remaining under parts buff; wing-feathers blackish; primaries whitish at their bases; axillars and inner edges of wing-quills white; rectrices earthy brown, narrowly tipped with whitish and obsoletely barred. Bill, legs, and nails black. Wing, 88; tail, 87; culmen from base, 16; bill from nostril, 11; tarsus, 23.

Most of the specimens taken in the Philippines, autumn and winter, have the under parts whitish with varying amounts of dusky vermiculations. This plumage appears to be characteristic of both young and winter specimens.

Young birds differ from the adults in the color of the upper parts, which are “brownish rufous, brighter on the upper tail-coverts; no gray on the head; loral region and a superciliary streak dingy white or cream-color; head, hind neck, mantle, and upper tail-coverts showing faint dark vermiculations; wing-coverts and secondary quills brown, broadly edged with rufous, each feather with a dark brown submarginal line; ear-coverts and a small spot in front of the eye dark brown; chin, throat, middle of abdomen, and the under wing-coverts, axillars, and edge of wing pale creamy white; all the rest of the under parts more strongly washed with creamy or even with rufous, and marked with numerous dark brown cross-vermiculations; bill brown, lighter at base.” (Gadow.)

“One of the commonest of Philippine birds. Doubtless occurs on every island of the group. Found in open fields, where it perches on stones, weeds, bushes, etc. It is a very noisy, quarrelsome bird, and a vicious fighter when snared or wounded. Five males average: Length, 186; wing, 85; tail, 84; culmen, 20; tarsus, 23; middle toe with claw, 22. Five females, length, 188; wing, 86; tail, 82.5; culmen, 20; tarsus, 23; middle toe with claw, 21.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

582. OTOMELA CRISTATA (Linnæus).
BROWN SHRIKE.

Asia, from the Yenesei to Kamchatka and Dauria, and from Yarkand to the east coast of China; wintering in India, Ceylon, the Andamans, Burma, the Malay Peninsula, and as far south as Java. (Dresser.) Borneo and Philippine Islands in winter. (Sharpe.)

“Male adult (Dauria).—Upper parts reddish brown, more rufous on the crown; wings dark brown margined with rufous, the lesser wing-coverts like the back; no white alar speculum; tail reddish brown, paler at the tip; lores and a patch passing through the eye and extending over the ear-coverts black; forehead, supercilium, cheeks, chin, and throat white; rest of the under parts rufous-buff. Bill pale plumbeous, the upper mandible from the nostril, and the tip of the lower mandible dark horn; legs bluish brown; iris dark brown; eyelids plumbeous. Culmen, 17.7; wing, 89; tail, 91; tarsus, 25.4.

“The female has the supercilium creamy white, the under parts isabelline, the flanks rufous-buff, these and the breast faintly vermiculated, and the young have the upper parts distinctly barred and the under parts vermiculated with dark brown.” (Dresser.)