130 BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. 



5. I am, however, strongly of opinion that no more should be done than the 

 mere prohibition of sale and restriction by license. 



J. Mum Mackenzie, 

 Acting Director, Land Records and Agriculture. 



No. 1615 of 1888. 



General Department ; 

 Bombay Castle, 16th May, 1888. 

 Forwarded to Mr. G. W. Vidal, CS., for favour of information upon the 

 points specified in para. 1 of the Memo. No. 807, dated 8th May 1888, from 

 the Director of Land Records and Agriculture. 



E. Lawrence, 

 Acting Under-Secretary to Government. 



No. 6192. 



Poona, 28th September 1888. 

 In returning the above correspondence, the undersigned has the honour to 

 express his regret for the delay which has occurred in answering the reference 

 made to him. 



2. As far as Mr. Vidal's experience goee, no insectivorous birds are snared on 

 this side of India, the preservation of which can confidently be declared to be 

 necessary in the interests of agriculture. Most of the birds which are snared to 

 any considerable extent, leaving purely aquatic birds out of consideration, are 

 graminivorous birds, such as partridge (including the common grey partridge and 

 the painted francolin), peafowl, sand grouse, quails (including the grey quail, the rain 

 quail, the bustard and button quails, and two or more species of bush quail or 

 dwarf partridge) ; bustards and florikins, which are more insectivorous than grami- 

 nivorous , are also ruthlessly snared wherever they can be found. But these 

 together with the birds above mentioned will all presumably receive partial 

 protection under Act XX. of 1887. 



3. If the undersigned may venture te express an opinion on the general 

 question raised in the correspondence, no sufficiently exact knowledge is at present 

 available, (1) as to the particular irjsects whose destruction is needed, or (2) as to 

 the particular species of birds whose services can be counted on to fulfil the 

 desired object, to make any special action in the matter other than a blind 

 experiment. 



4. Mr. Rainey, it will be observed, has not even attempted to name the species 

 of birds whose special preservation in the interests of agriculture he considers 

 necessary, and Mr. Vidal doubts Very much if any one living could supply this 

 omission. Great numbers of the birds whose chief habitat is found in highly 

 cultivated tracts are graminivorus, as well as insectivorous. As a matter of fact, 

 such birds are not snared in such quantities as to upset the balance of nature, 

 or to have any appreciable effect on agriculture. But assuming that special 

 protection of such birds would reduce the damage done by insect pests, these 



