74 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XV, 



(277) C. nigra.— The Black Stork. 

 Blanford, No. 1547 ; Hume, No. 918. 



A scarce winter visitant. They also remain till March. My men generally 

 come across one or two every cold weather and have several times fired at 

 them but never succeeded in getting one yet. Once I had a shot at one as it 

 flew over my bungalow at Narhar but it was rather far off for the cartridges 

 I had. I think this is the species the mir-shikars call Mullaik but cannot be 

 certain till they bring me one in. 



(278) Dissura episcopus.— The White-necked Stork. 

 Blanford, No. 1548 ; Hume, No. 920. 



"Very common. Simul trees are the favourite sitss for their nests ; one nest 

 was taken on a pipal. Usually only a single neist is found on the one tree 

 but I have found two touching each other. The earliest nest with eggs was 

 taken on the 15th July, and the latest on the 28th October. They do lay earlier, 

 as a female shot by Mr. G. Dalgliesh on the 3rd June had in the oviduct an 

 egg ready for ejection. This bird had a nest on.the tree on which she was 

 shot ; on going there a month later I found the cock-bird had paired again. 

 I took some young in down from a nest on the 15th August. Feathers com- 

 menced to appear on the head, back and wings on the 20th, and by the 13th 

 September the whole body was covered with them. These birds had perfect 

 liberty and flew away on the 8th October. Most of the day they rested on 

 their tarsus and when about to be fed used to emit a peculiar guttei al sound 

 which seemed to come from far down in the throat. A young bird whilst 

 feeding in a field at Narhar began to stagger and fell. There was some seet 

 water in the field and it must have imbibed some of this which evidently had 

 an intoxicating effect on it. Native names Lag lag and Retwa. 



(279) Xenorhynchus asiaticus. — The Black-necked Stork. 

 Blanford, No. 1549 ; Hume, No. 917. 

 I have found this species decidedly rare here, but Mr. G-. Dalgliesh writes 

 in the Zoologist " a not uncommon resident." I got one, a young female at 

 Narhar in December 1898, and Mr. Scroope sent me the following note on 

 the 19th January 1900 : — " What interested me beyond anything was the 

 diccovery of the black-necked stork at the latter place (Kachara). I got quite 

 close to a pair which were wading .... I saw several huge storks at 

 Minti also which I feel sure were this species." Some mir-shikars saw some 

 at the Benoa Chaur about the end of July but failed to snare any. I have a 

 couple of fine adult birds got in August. Native name Loha sarang. 

 (280) Leptoptilus dubius.' — The Adjutant. 

 Blanford, No. \bb0 • Hume, No. 915. 

 Rather scarce. They arrive in June and I have seen them up to December, 

 one being brought me on the 21st of that month. It is very seldom, how- 

 ever, that they are seen so late as that. I do not think they breed here and 

 the late birds probably go to the Gorakhpur District, The mir-shikars snare 

 them in nooses fastened on small but strong bamboo pegs which are stuck in 



