Descriptive List of the Common Birds 



The redstart is an easy bird to identify, it 

 behaves as though it had St. Vitus' dance in the 

 tail. As it flies away all the red in its plumage 

 shows, so that the bird looks like a ball of 

 fire. It feeds largely on the ground, taking 

 cover in bushes when alarmed. It frequents 

 gardens. 



A winter visitor to India. Very common in 

 the north and rarer in the south. 



66. 7hamnobia cambaiensis : The Brown- 

 backed Indian Robin. (F. 66i), (J, 480), ( + 1.) 



Cock : A glossy black bird with a brown 

 back, a narrow white bar in the wing, and a 

 conspicuous patch of brick-red under the tail. 



Hen : A sandy brown bird with a brick-red 

 patch under the tail. 



A familiar bird which haunts gardens and is 

 very partial to dry sandy localities. It builds a 

 neat cup-shaped nest on window-ledges or in 

 holes in walls, banks, etc. It usually carries 

 the tail raised almost vertically and so dis- 

 plays the red patch. Occurs all over Northern 

 India. South of the Godaveri it is replaced 

 by 6^. 



6y, Thamnobia fulicata : The Black-backed 

 Indian Robin. (F. 662), (J. 479), ( + 1.) 



The hen of this species is scarcely distinguish- 

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