NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 9 



0'58 to 0'63 ; but the average of the only nine eggs I measured 

 was 0*89 nearly, by rather more than # 61." 

 Eastern Narra, Sind, August, S. B. Doig. 



530.— THE INDIAN TAILOR BIRD. 

 Sutoria sutoHa, Forst. 



The Tailor Bird is a common permanent resident throughout 

 Western India, except in Ratnagiri, where it is stated by Mr. Vidal 

 to be only sparingly distributed. 



They breed from June to the end of August. To one unacquainted 

 with their habits, their nests are hard to find, although during the 

 time the hen is sitting on the eggs, the cock (who may be dis- 

 tinguished by his elongated central tail feathers), keeps up an 

 incessant but pleasant twittering, on a neighbouring bough, and 

 though one knows that a nest is somewhere close at hand, it requires 

 a careful and persevering search to find it. 



If the bird chooses a leaf sufficiently large, it sews the opposite 

 edges together with cotton fibre or even spider's web, and in the 

 cavity thus formed, it makes a soft nest of cotton, with just a few 

 hairs to keep it in shape. 



"When two or more leaves are incorporated in the nest, it is not so 

 neatly made, and is much easier to find. 



They lay three or four eggs (twice I have found five eggs, and 

 once seven), of an elongated oval shape, pointed at one end : they 

 average 0'64 inches in length by rather more than 0'45 inches in 

 breadth. They are of two types, in one the ground colour is white, 

 suffused with a reddish tinge when the eggs are fresh and unblown, 

 more or less spotted, speckled and blotched with reddish brown ; in 

 the other the ground colour is pale greenish, also spotted and 

 speckled with brownish-red. The markings in both types are gene- 

 rally more numerous at the larger end, where they often form an 

 imperfect zone ; usually the markings are bright and boldly defined, 

 but occasionally they are dingy. 



532.— THE YELLOW-BELLIED WREN WARBLER. 

 Prinia fin viventt -is, Deles*. 

 Within our limits the Yellow-bellied Warbler has only been 

 recorded from Sind, where it is a permanent resident, breeding 



