110 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. 



692.— THE SOUTHERN HILL-MYNA. 



Eulabes religiosa, Linn. 



I have never met with this bird except in a state of captivity, but 

 Mr. Davidson, who has been more fortunate, has kindly supplied me 

 with the following note : — 



" This bird is not at all uncommon in the heavy jungles, both 

 above and below the ghats in Kanara. Its nests are, however, hard 

 to find, and I only obtained three ; one containing two moderately set 

 eggs, in the end of April ; the second containing three small young 

 on the 6th May ; and the third containing a single fresh egg on the 

 20th May. All were in holes in dead trees or branches, pretty near 

 the top, one being in a dead supari tree, a most difficult place for 

 any one to get at. 



" The natives told me that the bird invariably chooses dead branches 

 to build in, but of course this is not proved. 



" The eggs are very handsome, of a rich blue, marked with large 

 blotches of rusty-red towards the larger end. I have not got the 

 measurement now." 



Mr. Hume says the only two eggs he has measured were respec- 

 tively 1-37 by 0-9 and 1-35 by 0'87. 



694.— THE COMMON WEAVER BIRD. 



Ploceus philippinus, Linn. 



This well-known bird is common throughout the district, on the 

 hills as well as in the plains. 



They begin to make their nests soon after the monsoon sets in, but 

 it is not until the middle of the rains that many eggs are laid. They 

 generally breed in company, but occasionally isolated nests may be 

 found ; but as a rule, I think these are never quite finished ; at all 

 events I have never found either eggs or young in them. 



A colony engaged in building their nests affords a most interested 

 and animated sight ; they keep up an incessant chirping and chatter- 

 ing all the time they are working. Nests in every stage of construc- 

 tion, sway about at the slightest breeze, some scarcely begun, others 

 so far advanced as to have eggs in them. 



The nest, when finished, has been aptly described as retort-shape ; 

 the first portion, which is attached to the extremity of a twig, is 



