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



wa<5 evidently this species. Blanford gives it as fairly common in Tirhut, but 

 I think this must be a mistake, as Mr. Edgell, who has done a lot of shooting 

 both in this district and in Monghyr, has never come across it. Mr. Baker says 

 it has been obtained at MozufTerpur. 



On the 9th August of this year a fine male pink-headed duck was brought 

 to me by a mirshikar from Benoa Chaur. There were two of them he said, 

 but he was only able to snare one. This one I kept in my aviary for some 

 time with a pair of mandarins, but it did not thrive, so I killed it. These 

 are the colours of the soft parts -.—Bill, light pink, pinker at tip on tail ; base 

 of maxilla and whole lower mandible flesh colour, this colour being on some 

 skin 5" broad at the base of the maxilla ; edge of nostrils black ; iris, bright 

 red ; legs and feel, reddish black ; rim round eyelids flesh colour. Nobody 

 seems to have noticed the most conspicuously black edge to the nostrils. 

 (302) Tadoena coenuta. — The Sheldrake. 

 Blanford, No. 1587 ; Hume, No. 956. 

 Very rare. I have only received two specimens from this district. The first 

 was received from Mr. Edgell, who shot it on the Suwasingpore Chaur near 

 Shapooroondie about Christmas time, and the second was snared by a mirshikar 

 on the 11th May of this year. This is exceedingly late for this species to be 

 found in India. There was another sheldrake on the Chaur, but the mirshikar 

 could not snare it. Mr. Edgell once saw three on the Baraila Chaur. Native 

 names Sliah-cliulewa and Safaid surkhab. 



(303) Casaeca eutila.— The Ruddy Sheldrake or Brahminy Duck. 

 Blanford, No. 1588 ; Hume, No. 954. 

 Very common during the cold weather. They arrive in October and remain 

 here till the end of April. I have recorded in this Journal the change of 

 plumage after undergoing a moult from pale buff to deep orange brown. I 

 found traces of the black collar in a male shot on the 19th January 

 and the complete collar on one shot on the 4th February. In February 1899, 

 I came across about 200 feeding in the paddy lands near Jainagar. 

 They were mostly feeding in pairs and, on being scared, flew off, keeping in 

 pairs. They were quite a mile from any water. I also counted 26 pairs 

 on the banks of the Kamla near Oosrahi, each pair was only a couple of yards 

 apart. These birds were very wary, but others at Muriah Ghat on the same river 

 were comparatively tame, and one could generally depend on bagging one were 

 there any about. Here they are to be found all over the country, on rivers, 

 on old river beds in which there is water, and also on large and small marshes. 

 Native names ChuJcwa, Chuhri and Surlhab. 



(304) Dendeocycna javanica. — The Whistling Teal. 

 Blanford, No. 1589 ; Hume, No. 952. 

 Exceedingly common. Towards the end of May they start going about in 

 pairs' arranging about nesting sites. They commence to lay towards the middle 

 of July. I took a nest on the 31st August with ten fresh eggs. Like Mr. 

 Baker I consider eight or ten the normal number of eggs. I once found a nest 

 on the ground in some grass not far from the water edge, all others have been 



