Nesting of Hoopoes. 25? 



down to nesting operations. We generally have a nest in 

 the comjiound, a cup hung from the horizontal fork of a 

 fir, sometimes very high up. I fancy the same pairs go 

 year after year to nearly the same place. It exists chiefly 

 on fruit, though doubtless insects are taken too, especially 

 when feeding their young. I took a nest of young in Chitral 

 at a tender age; something went wrong with the branch the 

 nest was on Avliile we were inspecting it. A Madrassi servant 

 successfully reared them, chiefly on mulberries, with a few 

 grasshoppers. I think they came to grief on the journey 

 back. They are very noisy birds if one may insult their 

 musical calls by the term noise. Often in Chitral after a long 

 trudge under a scorching sun over a bare sandy stretch one 

 has been cheered by their calls, which meant shade, cold water, 

 fruit of some sort, and above all, other birds. It is a lovely 

 bird; bar a little black on the sides of the face, some on 

 the t-ail and wings, he is all a glorious rich yellow. The female 

 is greenish on the back but is also a lovely bird. But for 

 the gunner, his near and beautiful relative, the European 

 Oriole would be making music in English groves. Whether 

 the fruit-grower would welcome his presence is another matter. 

 I never found them doing damage to our garden fruit. They 

 are strictly arboreal. Length about 9.5 inches, tail 3.6 

 To he Continued. 



Nesting of Hoopoes. 



U'pitpa epops, Linn. 

 By M. Aemstkin. 

 Conli7iued from page 222. 

 Now the young are fully reared, I can olTer the fol- 

 lowing additional particulars : — 



The hen alone incubated, I never once saw her off 

 the nest, she sat so close that I was under the impression 

 that she must be dead in the nest and 'became so anxious 

 that I put in my hand and was relieved to find she was all 

 right — she is so tame that she did not come off, merely making 

 a sort of " spitting " protest. I regret I cannot give exact 

 period of incubation as she was sitting some days before I was 

 aware of so interesting an occurrence. 



The nesting place was quite a dark corner, behind a 



