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Ceylon; an Account of the Island Physical, Historical, and / Topographical with Notices of Its Natural History, Antiquities and / Productions, Volume 1 cover

Ceylon; an Account of the Island Physical, Historical, and / Topographical with Notices of Its Natural History, Antiquities and / Productions, Volume 1

Chapter 99: NOTE.
By Sir James Emerson Tennent
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About This Book

This work offers a comprehensive survey of the island's physical geography, geology, and natural history, describing mountains, coasts, rivers, soils, minerals, and gems, and commenting on climate and health. It then traces political and cultural developments through successive rulers and foreign incursions, recording monumental irrigation systems, ruined capitals and sacred monuments. Later sections examine population patterns, caste and compulsory labour, agriculture and irrigation practices, trade and manufactures, technological methods in engineering and metalwork, and the fine arts of painting, sculpture, and architecture.

1: Collocalia brevirostris, McClell.; C. nidifica, Gray.

2: An epitome of what has been written on this subject will be found in Dr. Horsfield's Catalogue of the Birds in the E.I. Comp. Museum, vol. i. p. 101, etc.

Kingfishers.—In solitary places, where no sound breaks the silence except the gurgle of the river as it sweeps round the rocks, the lonely Kingfisher sits upon an overhanging branch, his turquoise plumage hardly less intense in its lustre than the deep blue of the sky above him; and so intent is his watch upon the passing fish that intrusion fails to scare him from his post; the emblem of vigilance and patience.

Sun Birds.—In the gardens the Sun Birds[1] (known as the Humming Birds of Ceylon) hover all day long, attracted by the plants over which they hang, poised on their glittering wings, and inserting their curved beaks to extract the tiny insects that nestle in the flowers. Perhaps the most graceful of the birds of Ceylon in form and motions, and the most chaste in colouring, is that which Europeans call "the Bird of Paradise,"[2] and the natives "the Cotton Thief," from the circumstance that its tail consists of two long white feathers, which stream behind it as it flies, Mr. Layard says:—"I have often watched them, when seeking their insect prey, turn suddenly on their perch and whisk their long tails with a jerk over the bough, as if to protect them from injury."

1: Nectarina Zeylanica, Linn.

2: Tchitrea paradisi, Linn.

The Bulbul.—The Condatchee Bulbul[1], which, from the crest on its head, is called by the Singhalese the "Konda Coorola," or Tuft bird, is regarded by the natives as the most "game" of all birds; and the training it to fight was one of the duties entrusted by the Kings of Kandy to the Kooroowa, or Bird Head-man. For this purpose the Bulbul is taken from the nest as soon as the sex is distinguishable by the tufted crown; and being secured by a string, is taught to fly from hand to hand of its keeper. When pitted against an antagonist, such is the obstinate courage of this little creature that it will sink from exhaustion rather than release its hold. This propensity, and the ordinary character of its notes, render it impossible that the Bulbul of India can be identical with the Bulbul of Iran, the "Bird of a Thousand Songs,"[2] of which poets say that its delicate passion for the rose gives a plaintive character to its note.

1: Pycnonotus hæmorrhous, Gmel.

2: "Hazardasitaum," the Persian name for the bulbul. "The Persians," according to Zakary ben Mohamed al Caswini, "say the bulbul has a passion for the rose, and laments and cries when he sees it pulled."—OUSELEY'S Oriental Collections, vol. i. p. 16. According to Pallas it is the true nightingale of Europe, Sylvia luscinia, which the Armenians call boulboul, and the Crim-Tartars byl-byl-i.

Tailor-Bird.—The Weaver-Bird.—The tailor-bird[1] having completed her nest, sewing together the leaves by passing through them a cotton thread twisted by the creature herself, leaps from branch to branch to testify her happiness by a clear and merry note; and the Indian weaver[2], a still more ingenious artist, having woven its dwelling with grass something into the form of a bottle, with a prolonged neck, hangs it from a projecting branch with its entrance inverted so as to baffle the approaches of its enemies, the tree snakes and other reptiles. The natives assert that the male bird carries fire flies to the nest, fastening them to its sides by a particle of soft mud, and Mr. Layard assures me that although he has never succeeded in finding the fire fly, the nest of the male bird (for the female occupies another during incubation) invariably contains a patch of mud on each side of the perch.

1: Orthotomus longicauda, Gmel.

2: Ploceus baya, Blyth; P. Philippinus, Auct.

Crows.—Of all the Ceylon birds of this order the most familiar and notorious is the small glossy crow, whose shining black plumage shot with blue has obtained for him the title of Corvus splendens.[1] They frequent the towns in companies, and domesticate themselves in the close vicinity of every house; and it may possibly serve to account for the familiarity and audacity which they exhibit in their intercourse with men, that the Dutch during their sovereignty in Ceylon enforced severe penalties against any one killing a crow, under the belief that they are instrumental in extending the growth of cinnamon by feeding on the fruit, and thus disseminating the undigested seed.[2]

1: There is another species, the C. culminatus, so called from the convexity of its bill; but though seen in the towns, it lives chiefly in the open country, and may be constantly observed wherever there are buffaloes, perched on their backs and engaged, in company with the small Minah (Acridotheres tristis) in freeing them from ticks.

2: WOLF'S Life and Adventures, p. 117.

So accustomed are the natives to its presence and exploits, that, like the Greeks and Romans, they have made the movements of the crow the basis of their auguries; and there is no end to the vicissitudes of good and evil fortune which may not be predicted from the direction of their flight, the hoarse or mellow notes of their croaking, the variety of trees on which they rest, and the numbers in which they are seen to assemble. All day long they are engaged in watching either the offal of the offices, or the preparation for meals in the dining-room; and as doors and windows are necessarily opened to relieve the heat, nothing is more common than the passage of crows across the room, lifting on the wing some ill-guarded morsel from the dinner-table.

No article, however unpromising its quality, provided only it be portable, can with safety be left unguarded in any apartment accessible to them. The contents of ladies' work-boxes, kid gloves, and pocket handkerchiefs vanish instantly if exposed near a window or open door. They open paper parcels to ascertain the contents; they will undo the knot on a napkin if it encloses anything eatable, and I have known a crow to extract the peg which fastened the lid of a basket in order to plunder the provender within.

On one occasion a nurse seated in a garden adjoining a regimental mess-room, was terrified by seeing a bloody clasp-knife drop from the air at her feet; but the mystery was explained on learning that a crow, which had been watching the cook chopping mince-meat, had seized the moment when his head was turned to carry off the knife.

One of these ingenious marauders, after vainly attitudinising in front of a chained watch-dog, which was lazily gnawing a bone, and after fruitlessly endeavouring to divert his attention by dancing before him, with head awry and eye askance, at length flew away for a moment, and returned bringing with it a companion who perched itself on a branch a few yards in the rear. The crow's grimaces were now actively renewed, but with no better result, till its confederate, poising himself on his wings, descended with the utmost velocity, striking the dog upon the spine with all the force of his beak. The ruse was successful; the dog started with surprise and pain, but not quickly enough to seize his assailant, whilst the bone he had been gnawing disappeared the instant his head was turned. Two well-authenticated instances of the recurrence of this device came within my knowledge at Colombo, and attest the sagacity and powers of communication and combination possessed by these astute and courageous birds.

On the approach of evening the crows assemble in noisy groups along the margin of the fresh-water lake which surrounds Colombo on the eastern side; here for an hour or two they enjoy the luxury of the bath, tossing the water over their shining backs, and arranging their plumage decorously, after which they disperse, each taking the direction of his accustomed quarters for the night.[1]

1: A similar habit has been noticed in the damask Parrots of Africa (Palæornis fuscus), which daily resort at the same hour to their accustomed water to bathe.

During the storms which usher in the monsoon, it has been observed, that when coco-nut palms are struck by lightning, the destruction frequently extends beyond a single tree, and from the contiguity and conduction of the spreading leaves, or some other peculiar cause, large groups will be affected by a single flash, a few killed instantly, and the rest doomed to rapid decay. In Belligam Bay, a little to the east of Point-de-Galle, a small island, which is covered with coco-nuts, has acquired the name of "Crow Island," from being the resort of those birds, which are seen hastening towards it in thousands towards sunset. A few years ago, during a violent storm of thunder, such was the destruction of the crows that the beach for some distance was covered with a black line of their remains, and the grove on which they had been resting was to a great extent destroyed by the same flash.[1]

1: Similar instances are recorded in other countries of sudden mortality amongst crows to a prodigious extent, but whether occasioned by lightning seems uncertain. In 1839 thirty-three thousand dead crows were found on the shores of a lake in the county Westmeath in Ireland after a storm.—THOMPSON'S Nat. Hist. Ireland, vol. i. p. 319, and Patterson in his Zoology, p. 356, mentions other cases.

III. SCANSORES. Parroquets.—Of the Psittacidæ the only examples are the parroquets, of which the most renowned is the Palæornis Alexandri, which has the historic distinction of bearing the name of the great conquerer of India, having been the first of its race introduced to the knowledge of Europe on the return of his expedition. An idea of their number may be formed from the following statement of Mr. Layard, as to the multitudes which are found on the western coast. "At Chilaw I have seen such vast flights of parroquets coming to roost in the coco-nut trees which overhang the bazaar, that their noise drowned the Babel of tongues bargaining for the evening provisions. Hearing of the swarms which resorted to this spot, I posted myself on a bridge some half mile distant, and attempted to count the flocks which came from a single direction to the eastward. About four o'clock in the afternoon, straggling parties began to wend towards home, and in the course of half an hour the current fairly set in. But I soon found that I had no longer distinct flocks to count, it became one living screaming stream. Some flew high in the air till right above their homes, and dived abruptly downward with many evolutions till on a level with the trees; others kept along the ground and dashed close by my face with the rapidity of thought, their brilliant plumage shining with an exquisite lustre in the sun-light. I waited on the spot till the evening closed, when I could hear, though no longer distinguish, the birds fighting for their perches, and on firing a shot they rose with a noise like the 'rushing of a mighty wind,' but soon settled again, and such a din commenced as I shall never forget; the shrill screams of the birds, the fluttering of their innumerable wings, and the rustling of the leaves of the palm trees, was almost deafening, and I was glad at last to escape to the Government Rest House."[1]

1: Annals of Nat. Hist. vol xiii. p.263.

IV. COLUMBIDÆ. Pigeons.—Of pigeons and doves there are at least a dozen species; some living entirely on trees[1] and never alighting on the ground; others, notwithstanding the abundance of food and warmth, are migratory[2], allured, as the Singhalese allege, by the ripening of the cinnamon berries, and hence one species is known in the southern provinces as the "Cinnamon Dove." Others feed on the fruits of the banyan: and it is probably to their instrumentality that this marvellous tree chiefly owes its diffusion, its seeds being carried by them to remote localities. A very beautiful pigeon, peculiar to the mountain range, discovered in the lofty trees at Neuera-ellia, has, in compliment to the Vicountess Torrington, been named Carpophaga Torringtoniæ.

1: Treron bicenta, Jerd.

2: Alsocomus puniceus, the "Season Pigeon" of Ceylon, so called from its periodical arrival and departure.

Another, called by the natives neela-cobeya[1], although strikingly elegant both in shape and colour, is still more remarkable far the singularly soothing effect of its low and harmonious voice. A gentleman who has spent many years in the jungle, in writing to me of this bird and of the effects of its melodious song, says, that "its soft and melancholy notes, as they came from some solitary place in the forest, were the most gentle sounds I ever listened to. Some sentimental smokers assert that the influence of the propensity is to make them feel as if they could freely forgive all who had ever offended them, and I can say with truth such has been the effect on my own nerves of the plaintive murmurs of the neela-cobeya, that sometimes, when irritated, and not without reason, by the perverseness of some of my native followers, the feeling has almost instantly subsided into placidity on suddenly hearing the loving tones of these beautiful birds."

1: Chalcophaps Indicus, Linn.

V. GALLINÆ. The Ceylon Jungle-fowl.—The jungle-fowl of Ceylon[1] is shown by the peculiarity of its plumage to be distinct from the Indian species. It has never yet bred or survived long in captivity, and no living specimens have been successfully transmitted to Europe. It abounds in all parts of the island, but chiefly in the lower ranges of mountains; and one of the vivid memorials which are associated with our journeys through the hills, is its clear cry, which sounds like a person calling "George Joyce." At early morning it rises amidst mist and dew, giving life to the scenery that has scarcely yet been touched by the sunlight.

1: Gallus Lafayetti, Lesson.

VI. GRALLÆ.—On reaching the marshy plains and shallow lagoons on either side of the island, the astonishment of the stranger is excited by the endless multitudes of stilt-birds and waders which stand in long array within the wash of the water, or sweep in vast clouds above it. Ibises[1], storks[2], egrets, spoonbills[3], herons[4], and the smaller races of sand larks and plovers, are seen busily traversing the wet sand, in search of the red worm which burrows there, or peering with steady eye to watch the motions of the small fry and aquatic insects in the ripple on the shore.

1: Tantalus leucocephalus, and Ibis falcinellus.

2: The violet-headed Stork (Ciconia leucocephala).

3: Platalea leucorodia, Linn.

4: Ardea cinerea. A. purpurea.

VII. ANSERES.—Preeminent in size and beauty, the tall flamingoes[1], with rose-coloured plumage, line the beach in long files. The Singhalese have been led, from their colour and their military order, to designate them the "English Soldier birds." Nothing can be more startling than the sudden flight of these splendid creatures when alarmed; their strong wings beating the air sound like distant thunder; and as they soar over head, the flock which appeared almost white but a moment before, is converted into crimson by the sudden display of the red lining of their wings. A peculiarity in the beak of the flamingo has scarcely attracted due attention, as a striking illustration of creative wisdom in adapting the organs of animals to their local necessities. The upper mandible, which is convex in other birds, is in them flattened, whilst the lower, instead of being flat, is convex. To those who have had an opportunity of witnessing the action of the bird in its native haunts, the expediency of this arrangement is at once apparent. The flamingo, to counteract the extraordinary length of its legs, is provided with a proportionately long neck, so that in feeding in shallow water the crown of the head becomes inverted and the upper mandible brought into contact with the bottom; where its flattened surface qualifies it for performing the functions of the lower one in birds of the same class; and the edges of both being laminated, it is thus enabled, like the duck, by the aid of its fleshy tongue, to sift its food before swallowing.

1: Phoenicopterus roseus, Pallas.

Floating on the surface of the deeper water, are fleets of the Anatidæ, the Coromandel teal[1], the Indian hooded gull[2], the Caspian tern, and a countless variety of ducks and smaller fowl. Pelicans[3] in great numbers resort to the mouths of the rivers, taking up their position at sunrise on some projecting rock, from which to dart on the passing fish, and returning far inland at night to their retreats among the trees which overshadow some ruined watercourse or deserted tank.

1: Nettapus Coromandelianus, Gmel.

2: Larus brunnicephalus, Jerd.

3: Pelicanus Philippensis, Gmel.

Of the birds familiar to European sportsmen, partridges and quails are to be had at all times; the woodcock has occasionally been shot in the hills, and the ubiquitous snipe, which arrives in September from Southern India, is identified not alone by the eccentricity of its flight, but by retaining in high perfection the qualities which have endeared it to the gastronome at home. But the magnificent pheasants which inhabit the Himalayan range and the woody hills of the Chin-Indian peninsula, have no representative amongst the tribes that people the woods of Ceylon; although a bird believed to be a pheasant has more than once been seen in the jungle, close to Rambodde, on the road to Neuera-ellía.

List of Ceylon Birds.

In submitting this catalogue of the birds of Ceylon, I am anxious to state that the copious mass of its contents is mainly due to the untiring energy and exertions of my friend, Mr. E.L. Layard. Nearly every bird in the list has fallen by his gun; so that the most ample facilities have been thus provided, not only for extending the limited amount of knowledge which formerly existed on this branch of the zoology of the island; but for correcting, by actual comparison with recent specimens, the errors which had previously prevailed as to imperfectly described species. The whole of Mr. Layard's fine collection is at present in England.

Accipitres.

  • Aquila Bonelli, Temm.
    • pennata, Gm.
  • Spizaëtus Nipalensis, Hodgs.
    • limnæëtus, Horsf.
  • Ictinaëtus Malayensis, Reinw.
  • Hæmatornis cheela, Daud.
    • spilogaster, Blyth.
  • Pontoaëtus leucogaster, Gm.
    • ichthyaëtus, Horsf.
  • Haliastur Indus, Bodd.
  • Falco peregrinus, Linn.
    • peregrinator, Sund.
  • Tinnunculus alaudarius, Briss.
  • Hypotriorchis chicquera, Daud.
  • Baza lophotes, Cuv.
  • Milvus govinda, Sykes.
  • Elanus melanopterus, Daud.
  • Astur trivirgatus, Temm.
  • Accipiter badius, Gm.
  • Circus Swainsonii, A. Smith.
    • cincrascens, Mont.
    • melanoleucos, Gm.
    • æruginosus, Linn.
  • Athene castonatus, Blyth.
    • scutulata, Raffles.
  • Ephialtes scops, Linn.
    • lempijii, Horsf.
    • sunia, Hodgs.
  • Ketupa Ceylonensis, Gm.
  • Syrnium Indranee, Sykes.
  • Strix Javanica, Gm.

Passeres.

Scansores.

Columbæ.

  • Treron bicincta, Jerd.
    • flavogularis, Blyth.
    • Pompadoura, Gm.
    • chlorogaster, Blyth.
  • Carpophaga pusilla, Blyth.
    • Torringtoniæ, Kelaart.
  • Alsocomus puniceus, Tickel.
  • Columba intermedia, Strickl.
  • Turtur risorius, Linn.
    • Suratensis, Lath.
    • humilis, Temm.
    • orientalis, Lath.
  • Chalcophaps Indicus, Linn.

Gallinæ.

  • Pavo cristatus, Linn.
  • Gallus Lafayetti, Lesson.
  • Galloperdix bicalcaratus, Linn.
  • Francolinus Ponticerianus, Gm.
  • Perdicula agoondah, Sykes.
  • Coturnix Chinensis, Linn.
  • Turnix ocellatus var. Bengalensis, Blyth.
  • Turnix ocellatus var. taigoor, Sykes.

Gralliæ.

  • Esacus recurvirostris, Cuv.
  • Oedienemus crepitans, Temm.
  • Cursorius Coromandelicus, Gm.
  • Lobivanellus bilobus, Gm.
    • Goensis, Gm.
  • Charadrius virginicus, Bechs.
  • Hiaticula Philippensis, Scop.
    • cantiana, Lath.
    • Leschenaultii, Less.
  • Strepsilas interpres, Linn.
  • Ardea purpurea, Linn.
    • cinerea, Linn.
    • asha, Sykes.
    • intermedia, Wagler.
    • garzetta, Linn.
    • alba, Linn.
    • bubulcus, Savig.
  • Ardeola leucoptera, Bodd.
  • Ardetta cinnamomea, Gm.
    • flavicollis, Lath.
    • Sinensis, Gm.
  • Butoroides Javanica, Horsf.
  • Platalea leucorodia, Linn.
  • Nycticorax griseus, Linn.
  • Tigrisoma melanolopha, Raffl.
  • Mycteria australis, Shaw.
  • Leptophilus Javanica, Horsf.
  • Ciconia leucocephala, Gm.
  • Anastomus oscitans, Bodd.
  • Tantalus leucocephalus, Gm.
  • Geronticus melanocephalus, Lath.
  • Ibis falcinellus, Linn.
  • Numenius arquatus, Linn.
    • phoeopus, Linn.
  • Totanus fuscus, Linn.
    • ochropus, Linn.
    • calidris, Linn.
    • hypoleucos, Linn.
    • glottoides, Vigors.
    • stagnalis, Bechst.
  • Actitis glareola, Gm.
  • Tringa minuta, Leist.
    • subarquata, Gm.
  • Limicola platyrhyncha, Temm.
  • Limosa ægocephala, Linn.
  • Himantopus candidus, Bon.
  • Recurvirostra avocetta, Linn.
  • Hæmatopus ostralegus, Linn.
  • Rhynchoea Bengalensis, Linn.
  • Scolopax rusticola, Linn.
  • Gallinago stenura, Temm.
    • scolopacina, Bon.
    • gallinula, Linn.
  • Hydrophasianus Sinensis, Gm.
  • Ortygometra rubiginosa, Temm.
  • Corethura Zeylanica, Gm.
  • Porzana pygmæa, Nan.
  • Rallus striatus, Linn.
    • Indicus, Blyth.
  • Porphyrio poliocephalus, Lath.
  • Gallinula phoenicura, Penn.
    • chloropus, Linn.
    • cristata, Lath.

Anseres.

  • Phoenicopterus ruber, Linn.
  • Sarkidiornis melanonotos, Penn.
  • Nettapus Coromandelianus, Gm.
  • Anas poecilorhyncha, Penn.
  • Dendrocygnus arcuatus, Cuv.
  • Dafila acuta, Linn.
  • Querquedula crecca, Linn.
    • circia, Linn.
  • Fuligula rufina, Pall.
  • Spatula clypeata, Linn.
  • Podiceps Philippensis, Gm.
  • Larus brunnicephalus, Jerd.
    • ichthyaëtus, Pall.
  • Sylochelidon Caspius, Lath.
  • Hydrochelidon Indicus, Steph.
  • Gelochelidon Anglicus, Mont.
  • Onychoprion anasthætus, Scop.
  • Sterna Javanica, Horsf.
    • melanogaster, Temm.
    • minuta, Linn.
  • Seena aurantia, Gray.
  • Thalasseus Bengalensis, Less.
    • cristata, Steph.
  • Dromas ardeola, Payk.
  • Atagen ariel, Gould.
  • Thalassidroma melanogaster, Gould.
  • Plotus melanogaster, Gm.
  • Pelicanus Philippensis, Gm.
  • Graculus Sinensis, Shaw.
    • pygmæus, Pallas.

NOTE.

The following is a list of the birds which are, as far as is at present known, peculiar to the island; it will probably at some future day be determined that some included in it have a wider geographical range.

Hæmatornis spilogaster. The "Ceylon eagle;" was discovered by Mr. Layard in the Wanny, and by Dr. Kelaart at Trincomalie.

Athene castonotus. The chestnut-winged hawk owl. This pretty little owl was added to the list of Ceylon birds by Dr. Templeton.

Batrachostomus monoliger. The oil bird; was discovered amongst the precipitous rocks of the Adam's Peak range by Mr. Layrard. Another specimen was sent about the same time to Sir James Emerson Tennent from Avisavelle. Mr. Mitford has met with it at Ratnapoora.

Caprimulgus Kelaarti. Kelaart's night-jar; swarms on the marshy plains of Neuera-ellia at dusk.

Hirundo hyperythra. The red-bellied swallow; was discovered in 1849 by Mr. Layard at Ambepusse. They build a globular nest with a round hole at top. A pair built in the ring for a hanging lamp in Dr. Gardner's study at Peradinia, and hatched their young, undisturbed by the daily trimming and lighting of the lamp.

Cisticola omalura. Layard's mountain grass warbler; is found in abundance on Horton Plain and Neuera-ellia, among the long Patena grass.

Drymoica valida. Layard's wren-warbler; frequents tufts of grass and low bushes, feeding on insects.

Pratincola atrata. The Neuera-ellia robin; a melodious songster; added to our catalogue by Dr. Kelaart.

Brachypteryx Palliseri. Ant thrush. A rare bird, added by Dr. Kelaart from Dimboola and Neuera-ellia.

Pellorneum fuscocapillum. Mr. Layard found two specimens of this rare thrush creeping about shrubs and bushes, feeding on insects.

Alcippe nigrifrons. This thrush frequents low impenetrable thickets, and seems to be widely distributed.

Oreocincla spiloptera. The spotted thrush is only found in the mountain zone about lofty trees.

Merula Kinnisii. The Neuera-ellia blackbird; was added by Dr. Kelaart.

Garrulax cinereifrons. The ashy-headed babbler; was found by Mr. Layard near Ratnapoora.

Pomatorhinus melanurus. Mr. Layard states that the mountain babbler frequents low, scraggy, impenetrable brush, along the margins of deserted cheena land.

Malacocercus rufescens. The red-dung thrush added by Dr. Templeton to the Singhalese Fauna, is found in thick jungle in the southern and midland districts.

Pycnonotus penicillatus. The yellow-eared bulbul; was found by Dr. Kelaart at Neuera-ellia.

Butalis Muttui. This very handsome flycatcher was procured at Point Pedro, by Mr. Layard.

Dicrurus edoliformis. Dr. Templeton found this kingcrow at the Bibloo Oya. Mr. Layard has since got it at Ambogammoa.

Dicrurus leucopygialis. The Ceylon kingcrow was sent to Mr. Blyth from the vicinity of Colombo, by Dr. Templeton.

Tephrodornis affinis. The Ceylon butcher-bird. A migratory species found in the wooded grass lands in October.

Cissa puella. Layard's mountain jay. A most lovely bird, found along mountain streams at Neuera-ellia and elsewhere.

Enlabes ptilogenys. Templeton's mynah. The largest and most beautiful of the species. It is found in flocks perching on the highest trees, feeding on berries.

Loriculus asiaticus. The small parroquet, abundant in various districts.

Palæornis Calthropæ. Layard's purple-headed parroquet, found at Kandy, is a very handsome bird, flying in flocks, and resting on the summits of the very highest trees. Dr. Kelaart states that it is the only parroquet of the Neuera-ellia range.

Palæornis Layardi. The Jaffna parroquet was discovered by Mr. Layard at Point Pedro.

Megalaima flavifrons. The yellow-headed barbet, is not uncommon.

Megalaima rubricapilla, is found in most parts of the island.

Picus gymnophthalmus. Layard's woodpecker. The smallest of the species, was discovered near Colombo, amongst jak trees.

Brachypternus Ceylonus. The Ceylon woodpecker, is found in abundance near Neuera-ellia.

Brachypternus rubescens. The red woodpecker.

Centropus chlororhynchus. The yellow-billed cuckoo, was detected by Mr. Layard in dense jungle near Colombo and Avisavelle.

Phoenicophaus pyrrhocephalus. The malkoha, is confined to the southern highlands.

Treron flavogularis. The common green pigeon, is found in abundance at the top of Balacaddua Pass and at Ratnapoora. It feeds on berries and flies in large flocks. It was believed to be identical with the following.—Mag. Nat. Hist. p. 58: 1854.

Treron Pompadoura. The Pompadour pigeon. "The Prince of Canino has shown that this is a totally distinct bird, much smaller, with the quantity of maroon colour on the mantle greatly reduced."—Paper by Mr. BLYTH, Mag. Nat Hist. p. 514: 1857.

Carpophaga Torringtoniæ. Lady Torrington's pigeon; a very handsome pigeon discovered in the highlands by Dr. Kelaart. It flies high in long sweeps, and makes its nest on the loftiest trees.

Carpophaga pusilla. The little-hill dove, a migratory species found by Mr. Layard in the mountain zone, only appearing with the ripened fruit of the teak, banyan, &c., on which they feed.

Gallus Lafayetti. The Ceylon jungle fowl. The female of this handsome bird was figured by Mr. GRAY (Ill. Ind. Zool.) under the name of G. Stanleyi. The cock bird had long been lost to naturalists, until a specimen was forwarded to Mr. Blyth, who at once recognised it as the long-looked for male of Mr. Gray's recently described female. It is abundant in all the uncultivated portions of Ceylon; coming out into the open spaces to feed in the mornings and evenings.

CHAP. III.

REPTILES.

LIZARDS. Iguana.—One of the earliest if not the first remarkable animal to startle a stranger on arriving in Ceylon, whilst wending his way from Point-de-Galle to Colombo, is a huge lizard of from four to five feet in length, the Talla-goya of the Singhalese, and Iguana[1] of the Europeans. It may be seen at noonday searching for ants and insects in the middle of the highway and along the fences; when disturbed, but by no means alarmed, by the approach of man, it moves off to a safe distance; and, the intrusion being over, returns again to the occupation in which it had been interrupted. Repulsive as it is in appearance, it is perfectly harmless, and is hunted down by dogs in the maritime provinces, where its delicate flesh is converted into curry, and its skin into shoes. When seized, it has the power of inflicting a smart blow with its tail. The Talla-goya lives in almost any convenient hollow, such as a hole in the ground, or the deserted nest of the termites; and home small ones which frequented my garden at Colombo, made their retreat in the heart of a decayed tree. A still larger species, the Kabragoya[2], which is partial to marshy ground, when disturbed upon land, will take refuge in the nearest water. From the somewhat eruptive appearance of the yellow blotches on its scales, a closely allied species, similarly spotted, formerly obtained amongst naturalists the name of Monitor exanthemata, and it is curious that the native appellation of this one, Kabra[3], is suggestive of the same idea. The Singhalese, on a strictly homoeopathic principle, believe that its fat, externally applied, is a cure for cutaneous disorders, but that inwardly taken it is poisonous.[4] It is one of the incidents which seem to indicate that Ceylon belongs to a separate circle of physical geography, this lizard has not hitherto been discovered on the continent of Hindustan, though it is found to the eastward in Burmah.[5]

1: Monitor dracæna, Linn. Among the barbarous nostrums of the uneducated natives both Singhalese and Tamil, is the tongue of the iguana, which they regard as a specific for consumption, if plucked from the living animal and swallowed whole.

2: Hydrosaurus salvator, Wagler.

3: In the Mahawanso the hero, Tisso, is said to have been "afflicted with a cutaneous complaint which, made his skin scaly like that of the godho."—Ch. xxiv. p. 148. "Godho" is the Pali name for the Kabra-goya.

4: In the preparation of the mysterious poison, the Cobra-tel, which is regarded with so much horror by the Singhalese; the unfortunate Kabra-goya is forced to take a painfully prominent part. The receipt, as written down by a Kandyan, was sent to me from Kornegalle, by Mr. Morris, in 1840; and in dramatic arrangement it far outdoes the cauldron of Macbeth's witches. The ingredients are extracted from venomous snakes, the Cobra de Capello (from which it takes its name), the Carawella, and the Tic prolonga, by making an incision in the head and suspending the reptiles over a chattie to collect the poison. To this, arsenic and other drugs are added, and the whole is to be "boiled in a human skull, with the aid of the three Kabra-goyas, which are tied on three sides of the fire, with their heads directed towards it, and tormented by whips to make them hiss, so that the fire may blaze. The froth from their lips is then to be added to the boiling mixture, and so soon as an oily scum rises to the surface, the cobra-tel is complete."

Although it is obvious that the arsenic is the main ingredient in the poison, Mr. Morris reported to me that this mode of preparing it was actually practised in his district; and the above account was transmitted by him apropos to the murder of a Mohatal and his wife, which was then under investigation, and which had been committed with the cobra-tel. Before commencing the operation of preparing the poison, a cock is first sacrificed to the yakkos or demons.

5: In corroboration of the view propounded elsewhere (see pp. 7, 84, &c.), and opposed to the popular belief that Ceylon, at some remote period, was detached from the continent of India by the interposition of the sea, a list of reptiles will be found at p. 203, including, not only individual species, but whole genera peculiar to the island, and not to be found on the mainland. See a paper by DR. A. GÜNTHER on The Geog. Distribution of Reptiles, Magaz. Nat. Hist. for March, 1859, p. 230.

Blood-suckers.—These, however, are but the stranger's introduction to innumerable varieties of lizards, all most attractive in their sudden movements, and some unsurpassed in the brilliancy of their colouring, which bask on banks, dart over rocks, and peer curiously out of the decaying chinks of every ruined wall. In all their motion there is that vivid and brief energy, the rapid but restrained action which is associated with their limited power of respiration, and which justifies the accurate picture of—

"The green lizard, rustling thro' the grass,

And up the fluted shaft, with short, quick, spring

To vanish in the chinks which time has made."[1]

1: ROGERS' Pæstum.

One of the most beautiful of this race is the green calotes[1], in length about twelve inches, which, with the exception of a few dark streaks about the head, is as brilliant as the purest emerald or malachite. Unlike its congeners of the same family, it never alters this dazzling hue, whilst many of them possess the power, like the chameleon, but in a less degree, of exchanging their ordinary colours for others less conspicuous. The C. ophiomachus, and another, the C. versicolor, exhibit this faculty in a remarkable manner. The head and neck, when the animal is irritated or hastily swallowing its food, becomes of a brilliant red (whence the latter has acquired the name of the "blood-sucker"), whilst the usual tint of the rest of the body is converted into pale yellow. The sitana[2], and a number of others, exhibit similar phenomena.

1: Calotes viridis, Gray.

2: Sitana Ponticereana, Cuv.

Chameleon.—The true chameleon[1] is found, but not in great numbers, in the dry districts in the north of Ceylon, where it frequents the trees, in slow pursuit of its insect prey. Whilst the faculty of this creature to blush all the colours of the rainbow has attracted the wonder of all ages, sufficient attention has hardly been given to the imperfect sympathy which subsists between the two lobes of the brain, and the two sets of nerves which permeate the opposite sides of its frame. Hence, not only have each of the eyes an action quite independent of the other, but one side of its body would appear to be sometimes asleep whilst the other is vigilant and active: one will assume a green tinge whilst the opposite one is red; and it is said that the chameleon is utterly unable to swim, from the incapacity of the muscles of the two sides to act in concert.