432 Zoological Society : — 



" 8th May, 1849. — Saw five or six of the small White Heron feed- 

 ing amongst cattle. They keep close to the animals whilst feeding, 

 and I saw one evidently picking the flies off a hullock ; all these had 

 more or less of the huff-colour on the neck. It is extremely amusing 

 to observe these birds chasing flies, their long neck stretched out as 

 they follow every turn and twist of the fly, which is seized imme- 

 diately it has settled.'* 



The Cattle Heron breeds during the month of April, building in 

 tall trees. The nest is composed of sticks, and contains four eggs of 

 a pale greenish-blue colour, ly^^^ in. in length by l^^in. in width. 

 I obtained eleven eggs from one tree on which there were twenty 

 nests. I do not know if it has been satisfactorily determined whe- 

 ther both sexes assume the buff head and neck during the breeding 

 season. 



Subgenus Nycticorax. 



Ardea Nycticorax. Night Heron. 



Is a tolerably common bird in the Upper Deccan, but from its 

 habit of roosting during the day in thick lofty trees, which it leaves 

 for the streams after dusk, is not often observed. Its harsh grating 

 cry is heard in the early dawn as it returns to its hiding-places. I 

 made several attempts to obtain its nest and eggs, but without suc- 

 cess, neither could I learn its time of breeding ; however, I shot 

 a young bird on 3rd December, with some down remaining on its 

 head, which circumstance leads me to believe that they do not breed 

 at the same time as others of the Heron tribe. Dr. Jerdon says, 

 "it breeds on palm and other trees, many nests together." The 

 Night Heron of England, identical I believe with that of India, 

 "builds in trees," says Mr. Yarrell, "and lays four pale greenish- 

 blue eggs, rather more than 2 in. in length by \^ in. in breadth." 



Genus Platalea. 



Platalea leucorodia. White Spoonbill. 



I have seen flocks of these birds on the river Godavery, and occa- 

 sionally on the smaller streams. ^ They breed during the month of 

 April, building in tall trees on the border of a stream. I append 

 a note on the subject: — "18th April, 1848. Found the White 

 Spoonbill breeding in a peepul tree beside a stream. The nest was 

 not, like those of the species of Tantalus and Ibis, built on the top 

 of the tree, but on the outside branches, about two-thirds from 

 the ground ; it was composed of sticks, and appeared small for so 

 large a bird. It contained four eggs of a white colour, spotted with 

 pale red, of much the same size as those of the Tantalus leucoce- 

 phalusJ'* The egg is 2^^ in. in length, by rather more than 1 ^V^^^* 

 in breadth. The gizzard of the male bird, which I shot rising from 

 the nest whence the eggs were taken, was of a strong and rough tex- 

 ture, much like that of a fowl ; it contained some bright yellow sub- 

 stance, a few small stones, a seed, and a few small particles of grass. 

 Although the Spoonbill does not build its nest in the same situation 



