191 7-] Nid'ification of some Indian Falconidie. 237 



ledge of rock on a cliff-side, and Mr. Percy Maedonald 

 found it breeding in a still more unusual place, taking; a 

 solitary young bird from a liole in tbe bank of tbe jNIugitha 

 River in tbe Pakkaku District of Upper Burma. In tbis 

 case tbe young bird was squatting on tbe bare ground, witb 

 no pretence of a nest, in a bole in tbe bank about tbirty feet 

 above tbe water (Bombay N. H. Journal, xvi. p. 518). 



Bourdillon found what he believed to be a nest of this 

 species in Travancore, in a position very similar to those found 

 by me in Assam, built on a tree overhanging a precipice. 



In tbe Tehri Garhwal Mr. C. H. Donald found it to be a 

 regular breeder, but he gives no description of nest, eggs, or 

 nesting-site (Bombay N. H. Journal, xviii. p. 936). 



The Indian Hobbies breed much about tbe same tim.e of 

 year as the Shabin — that is to say, during April ; a few birds 

 begin, how^ever, in the end of March, and second clutches 

 may be taken in May or even in June. They generally lay 

 three eggs, though a fair number of fours may be taken. 

 Fewer than three incubated eggs I have not seen, though 

 it must be remembered that Mr. Maedonald found a single 

 young one in the nest-bole in the River Mugitba. 



The eggs are, as might be expected, very similar to those 

 of the Common Hobby, but are on the whole much more 

 richly coloured than tbose of that bird, more nearly 

 approaching those of the Merlin in tbis respect. 1 have 

 one clutch in my collection, of which one egg is figured 

 (Plate V. fig. 1), which is extraordinarily handsome, and 

 which must be of a very rare type. The ground-colour is the 

 usual pinkish brick colour, very pale, and is well covered 

 with minute specks, freckles, and spots of light and dark 

 red, in addition to which there are a few very bold, large 

 blotches of deep reddish vandyke-brown. Tbe nearest 

 approach in coloration I have seen to these eggs has been 

 in some extra handsome KestreFs eggs. On the other hand, 

 I have one or two clutches of the Indian Hobby which are 

 of the same dull pale brickish-brown colour so very often 

 seen in the eggs of the Common Hobby. 



In shape and texture there is nothing by which they may 



