992 JOURNA L, BOMB A Y NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. Vol. XIX 



No. XVIT.— BREEDING OF THE MASKED WAGTAIL 

 (^.UOTaCILLA PERSONA! A) IN KASHMIR. 



In his list of birds of the Province of Kashmir, Col. Ward remarks on page 

 723, vol. xvii, No. 3, of the Society's Journal, that this bird breeds at elevations 

 of about 6,000 ft. to S,WO ft. in Kashmir, and probably in Ballislan. In the 2nd 

 edition of " Hume's Nests and Eggs of Indian Biids," it is recoided ihat Major 

 Wardlaw Kamsay found the bird breeding in Afghanistan ihrcughout May and 

 June, and mention is made of one of the nests he found being placed in a recess 

 undf.r a large stone near the edge of the water, and again in Caleb' ''Fauna of 

 British India " ; i. is stated that the eggs have not been described. It seems, 

 therefore, worth my recording '.hat last, year ("908), towards the end of June, 

 I found a pair of these birds building close to my ten s at Arco, in the Siddar 

 Valley, Kashmir, elevation 9,()0U feet. After watching the birds carrying away 

 bits of g-ass, etc.. I discovered the newly commenced nest m a 'kulmanch' 

 {Viburnua futans) bush about two feet above the ground, and 100 yards or so 

 away fr<-m water. The bush was isolated with open ground all round and over 

 andover again I saw the birds fly into it, while tie building was in progress. 

 Before I left the camp, only one egg had been laid, so leaving it I later on sent 

 for the nest which then contained 5 eggs. The nest was a fairly deep cup 

 built of grass roots for a foundation and thoroughly well padded inside with 

 hair wool and bits of coiton, etc., picked up round ihe camp The eggs are 

 very freely speckled with small dusky spots ; especially so at the laiger end. 



20/A September 1909. L. L. FENTON, Col. 



No. XVIII.— A NOTE ON THE NESTING OF THE BESRA 

 SPARROW HAWK {ACCJi'JTE/i VV/f(?/l T6>) AND 

 THE ANDAMAN NIGHTJAR {CA PRJiVUJ.GUS 

 ANDA.\JANICUb) IN THE ANDAMANS. 

 House crows not having yet been sentenced to transportation, an unlidy 

 collection of sticks in the fork of a rain tree, allhough oveihanging a road 

 to a small village, attracted my attention eaily in Maich this year, it contained 

 nothing, but was noted for future inspection. On the 21st Maich I vitited 

 the spot again and found it contained two fresh eggs of the besra Sparrow 

 Hawk, thinking this was probably the full complement for the Andamans, as 

 birds who should know better often play this trick on collectors here, I took 

 them, but secured another egg in the nest on the 25th, my fii-st piece of good 

 fortune. 



The jungle round here was a favourite hunting ground of mine, and I had 

 placed nesting boxes for the Andaman Shama in it. 1 had also noted aaolher 

 stick nest in a rain tree not lOO yaids away frcm the nest I had taken the 

 Sparrow Hawk's eggs from, and it was during one of my subsequent visits (hat 

 I found my little pair of Hawks were repairing this old heme of theirs from 

 which I subsequently (28th April) took four eggs slij^htly incubated. '•' 



