birds' nesting in rajpootana. $? 



some considerable height from the ground. They are strongly but 

 slightly made, so much so, that the contents of the nest can be seen 

 from below; they are composed of grass stems and roots neatly 

 interlaced. The eg^s, four in number, are ^lossless white with 

 numerous spots and specks of rusty red and reddish-brown; occasionally 

 the eggs are of a deepish salmon tint, the spots and specks being 

 brownish-red. I have never found a pure white egg. They measure 

 one inch in length by about three quarters of an inch in breadth. 



288, — Muscipeia paradisi : Lin. 



The only nest of the Paradise Flycatcher that I found was in 

 June, and it was not quite finished. I sent a shikaree a week later 

 to examine it, when it contained a single egg which he brought in; 

 it measures 0*8 inch in length by 0"(5 in breadth, and is an exact 

 miniature of a richly coloured King Crow's egg. 



292. — Leucocerca aureola: Vieili, 



The White-browed Fantail breeds from the latter part of February 

 to the commencement of August, but most nests arc found in March 

 and July, and from this I infer that they have two broods in the 

 year. The nest is usually placed on the upper surface of a horizontal 

 branch ; it is round and cup-shaped, rather deep, and is composed 

 of fine grass roots, tightly bound with cobwebs, and is a very 

 beautiful nest, not much bigger than the top of a wine-glass. 

 The eggs, three in number, are little bufty ovals, with a nimbus or 

 belt of spots round the middle. They measure 0*66 inch in length 

 \>y about 0'5 in breadth. 



385. — Pi/ctoris sinensis : Gm. 



The Yellow-eyed Babbler breeds from July to September. The 

 raests are placed either in small forks in trees, or between the stalks 

 of growing corn or sedges. When in the former situation, the nest is 

 deep cup-shaped, but in the latter it is more cone-like, the bottom of 

 the nest being frequently prolonged to a point. The nest is very 

 handsome, and is composed of broad-leaved grasses, strips of bark, 

 vegetable fibres and cobwebs. The eggs, four in number, vary much 

 in colour, some being white with bold hieroglyphic blotches of rusty 

 red and reddish-brown ; others are pinkish-white, but so closely 

 stippled and streaked with bright brick-dust red as to leave little of 

 the ground colour visible. Every possible combination of these two 

 types is to be met with, but all the eggs in a nest are of the one kind- 

 In shape they are broadish ovals, but here again considerable 



