Capt. R. C. Tytler on the Fauna of Dacca. 175 



have frequently seen in tlie Aci'idothet^es tristis and Sturnopastor 

 contra^ that they become so accustomed, from living in the neigh- 

 bourhood of regimental target butts, as to allow the balls to pass 

 over them whilst they have fearlessly fed between the targets 

 and the soldiers practising.- Before the commencement of the 

 rainy season, a pair of JSettapus coram andelianus built their nest 

 amongst the branches of a large Peepul tree (Ficus r-eligiosus) 

 in the very centre of cantonments ; and what was most extra- 

 ordinary, the tree was situated at a great distance from water. 



The birds occasionally brought for sale to the markets of the 

 city are very interesting : the Palceornis schisticeps, at all times 

 a rare bird in the markets of Bengal, are to be had ; the Galli- 

 crex anstatus and Porzana akool may also be purchased; — the 

 natives keep them in cages as pets. Captain Middleton sent me 

 a cage full of Nectarinia goalpariensis, which had been caught in 

 the neighbourhood; these exquisite little creatures I kept for a 

 very long while, feeding them on water and sugar, bread and 

 milk, occasionally varying their diet with honey ; the males sing 

 in^ captivity, and soon become familiar and confiding iu their 

 dispositions. Few Nectarinia zeylonica are found, but the Nec- 

 tarinia asiatica are common ; the latter breed amongst the 

 bushes; two or three nests were brought to me. mI^ 



' In the long grass jungle for several days I observed a smaH 

 bird, excessively wild in its habit and apparently strong on the 

 wing, and very difficult to approach, flying about, a specimen of 

 which I eventually obtained, and subsequently several others, a 

 couple of which I sent to Edward Blyth, Esq., in Calcutta, and 

 which I took the liberty of calling after myself, namely Cisticola 

 tytleri. In Appendix 6. of his preface to the Catalogue of the 

 Birds in the Museum of the Asiatic Society, Calcutta, page xxvii, 

 in No. 1935, Cisticola erythrocephala, Mr. Blyth makes the fol- 

 lowing remark : — " Albinoid, young ? from the vicinity of Dacca, 

 presented by Captain Tytler, 38th B.N.I. (Qu. n. s. C. tytle^-i, 

 nobis.) " I allude to this simply because I obtained several spe- 

 cimens, and feel ^erf^ctly satisfied that it is distinct from Cisti- 

 cola erythrocephala (Jerdon, Blyth) from S. India ; they were 

 observed to be building prior to my leaving Dacca. 



In the neighbourhood of cantonments several specimens of 

 that curious animal, Caprolagus hispidus, were shot and sent to 

 me ; the formation of this species resembles more the appearance 

 of a tail-less rat than a rabbit or hare. Many doubts arise in 

 the opinion of sportsmen as to its being good for food ; but of 

 this fact there is not the slightest doubt, for its flesh is equal 

 to that of any hare. The ears arc particularly short, and the 

 hair coarse and stiff. The other hares found at the station are 

 Lcpus ruficaudatuSy which are common, and another hare closely 



