160 Mr. C. Ingram — Ornithological 



admitted he had never been able to prove absolutely -their 

 identity. However, on one point he seemed tolerably 

 certain, i. e. that the same species of birds are selected 

 every year by each kind of Cuckoo, because the eggs found 

 in the nests of certain foster-birds are always pretty much 

 of a similar type. 



52. CucuLUs SATURATus Hodgs, Himalayan Cuckoo. 



Cuculus intermedins Seebohm, B. Jap. E:np. p. 169. 



Jap. : Tsu-tsu-dori. 



This was the first species of Cuckoo to reach Fujiyama, 

 and its cry could be heard on ail sides by May 20th. 

 Enquiries illicitcd the information that a few individuals 

 had been heard at least five days earlier. 



Closely as this bird resembles C. canor/is I fonnd that the 

 Japanese fully appreciated the difference, but this was 

 doubtless brought to their notice in the first place by the 

 bird's very distinct call — a muffled hoo, hoo, hou, uttered 

 two, three, or more times iu succession, preferably from the 

 top of an exposed dead tree or an upstanding branch of 

 the forest. 



r);3. Cuculus poliocephalus Lath. Little Cuckoo. 



Cuculus poliucephalus Seebohm, B. Ja[). Emp. p. 171. 



Jap. : Hototo-gisu. 



Towards the end of May the inhabitants of Subashiri 

 were vigilantly on the look-out for the arrival of this small 

 Cuckoo^ and the first bird was recorded on the 25th of 

 that month. It appears that the country-folk in this 

 neighbourhood have a superstitious belief that the body of 

 this bird possesses peculiar curative properties. Iu con- 

 sequence of this it is most eagerly sought after and for 

 several days following its arrival the sound of shots may be 

 frequently heard in the surrounding wood. Happily for 

 the species it is extremely wary, like most of its allies, and 

 not many fall victims to this foolish superstition. Wishing 

 to procure a specimen for my collection, I offered a Japanese 

 a comparatively hight price for one, but he flatly refused it, 

 eveu though I promised to return the body after having 



