44 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol, XII. 



during the rains till the end of September. Above Ghats I have 

 seen it at all seasons, and it breeds abundantly there in March and 

 April. 



1027. Merops PHILIPPINUS, Linn. 



This bee-eater appears in Karwar in the end of September, and is 

 fairly common in particular places below Ghats till March. It is, how- 

 ver, as far as I know, restricted to a few places ; one near Gokern and 

 another near Kutgul are almost certain to have a few about any time 

 during the winter. Above Ghats I only saw the bird once or twice in 

 March and April. They were merely passing and were gone by next 

 day. I do not think the bird breeds anywhere in the district. 

 1030. Melittophagus swinhou, Hume. 



Generally distributed through the thicker forest portions of the dis- 

 trict both above and below Ghats. Not, however, very common any- 

 where. It breeds singly in March and April in the banks of the various 

 rivers and nullahs. 



1031. Nyctiornis athertoni, Jard. & Selby. 



This is a very shy bird, and were it not for its noisiness would be 

 constantly passed over. I have seen it however along all the roads 

 crossing the Ghats from Nilkund to Anshi as well as in many cases 

 through the forests above Ghats in western and central Kanara. I 

 have taken a good many nests. They are, as a rule, made in banks along 

 the roads (though I have seen one or two in those above streams), and 

 are often five or six feet deep. As soon as the bird begins to lay, the 

 tunnel contains fragments of bees and beetles, and the eggs are laid 

 among a quantity of these. The eggs are generally completely covered 

 with debris, and I cannot understand how the young are not suf- 

 focated. I have taken eggs from the end of March to the middle of 

 April, but the birds have commenced excavating their nests as early as 

 January. I took two nests on the little road between Karwar and 

 Godhalli on the 22nd March, 1896, just before leaving the district. 

 The eggs, four and three in number, were fresh, and the two females 

 allowed me to dig them out. The road coolies are very fond of these 

 birds, and habitually dig out their nests and eat old and young. Cobras 

 are also partial to them, and it is necessary to be cautious in putting 

 your hand into these deep holes. I had a fright once, a snake (not a 

 cobra) coming out when I had half dug into a hole. 



