Nidification o/Halc3^on pileatus and Tarnix blanfordi. 455 



XVII. — Ofi the Nidification of Halcyon pileatus and 

 Turnix blanfordi in Hong Kong. By Staff- Surgeon 

 K. H. Jones, R.N. 



Both of these species are among the many concerning the 

 breeding-habits of which little or nothing appears to be on 

 record. 



Halcyon pileatus is exceedingly common in the island of 

 Houg Kong, and the observations which follow concerning 

 its nidification have reference to that locality. This bird 

 spends the winter months on the sea-coast and on the small 

 estuarine mud-flats and mangrove-swamps which abound 

 in certain parts of the Kwang Tung littoral. In the third 

 week of April, however, birds, already paired, suddenly 

 make their appearance in the neigiibourhood of the places 

 in which they intend to nest. These places have been 

 far from the sea-coast, and. sometimes at a considerable 

 distance from it, in all cases which have come under my 

 observation. 



The site of the nest in Hong Kong is almost always some 

 perpendicular face of disintegrated granite, such as is found 

 in many of the water-worn nullahs plentifully scattered over 

 the lower ranges of the hills, or a locality where a small 

 landslip has taken place and left bare a perpendicular cliff, 

 perhaps many feet high. But occasionally an artificial 

 cutting through the disintegrated granite along the course 

 of a road is made use of, in the less frequented parts of the 

 Colony. The site is often one which has been in use for 

 many years, to judge by the number of holes to be seen, and 

 in certain cases the same burrow is occupied for two or more 

 succeeding seasons. 



The nesting-hole is rarely more than two feet in length, 

 never more than three, and at the inner end an excavation of 

 some fifteen inches in diameter is made to receive the eggs. 

 The birds not infrequently make several attempts before 

 they are able to bore a hole of the requisite depth, the hard- 

 ness in the disintegrated granite or embedded pieces of rock 

 sER. IX. — VOL. II. 2 k, 



