found in Eastern Bengal. 87 



Cuckoos are very numerous at Dacca and in the surround- 

 ng districts, I obtained twelve species of the family : — 1. 

 Cuculus micropterus was abundant and noisy. 2. Hierococcyx 

 variua (The Hawk-Cuckoo) : these birds vary greatly in plu- 

 mage. 3. Pohjphasia nigra is common everywhere. 4. Coc~ 

 cystes melanoleucos is very conspicuous at the end of the rains. 



5. Eudynamis orientalis is a perfect nuisancCjand will hardly 

 permit a person to sleep after 2 a.m. in the early spring. 



6. Centropus rufipennis is common all over Eastern Bengal. 



7. Centropus viridis is to be found in great numbers on the 

 sandy uncultivated spots near the rivers where the tamarisk 

 grows and grass is high and thick after the early rains. The 

 following Cuckoos are rare near Dacca. I twice obtained 



8. C canorus ; but I hever heard its note^ so common in 

 Upper India. 9. Polyphasia tenuirostris, the rufous bellied 

 Cuckoo, was also twice sent to me; one was got close to 

 Dacca, and the other in Tippera. 10. The lovely Emerald 

 Cuckoo did not appear to be very rare ; I had several ; and in 

 October 1871 one was brought to me alive and uninjured. 

 11. Coccystes coromandus was sent to me from Tippera; and 

 I obtained it also in Cachar. 12. Zanclostomus tristis is not 

 uncommon in certain places. I always saw it when shooting 

 to the north-west of Dacca in the bushy jungles^ where was 

 found also that rare hare Lepus hispidus. 



Dacca is situated on the left bank of the navigable river 

 the Boorigunga, which flows into larger rivers at Narain- 

 gunge. Here it meets the Luckya, a river of singularly pure 

 water from Mymensing, and the streams known as the Sylhet 

 rivers, from the north-east. The Goomter, or Tippera river 

 has its mouth a little to the south-east of Naraingunge ; and 

 all these smaller streams meet the large and most easterly of 

 the outlets of the Ganges flowing past Pubna, and the streams 

 from Assam, generally known as the Brahmaputra rivers ; 

 all these join south of Naraingunge, where the districts of 

 Dacca, Furreedpore, Tippera, Burrisaul, and Novakholly 

 near each other. The large tidal river is there known as the 

 Megna, and flows into the Bay of Bengal not far from Chit- 



