BREEDING SEASONS OP CEYLON BIRDS. 29 



the hottest months of the year. In a normal year very little 

 rain falls during the south-west monsoon, and the country 

 gradually becomes dry and parched. 



Now let us see how this rainfall affects the breeding season 

 of the different classes of birds. We will first take the birds 

 which build nests in trees or bushes. Many of them begin to 

 breed as soon as the rains have well begun, and the foliage has 

 become green and thick enough to give them plenty of cover 

 for their nests ; and as they are in no danger of being swamped 

 out they do not mind building in the middle of a wet spell. 

 They will go on breeding intermittent' t as long as favourable 

 weather continues. The approach of dry weather curtails 

 their nesting ; but if enough rain falls at any unusual time, 

 they will start again. For instance, in 1909 I took the eggs 

 of such birds as the Golden Oriole {Oriolus melanocephalus) , 

 the Madras Bulbul {Molpastes hsemorrhous) , the Jungle 

 Wren-warbler {Prinia sylvatica), and the Magpie Robin 

 {Copsychus saularis) in the North-Central Province in 

 February. I was up there again at the end of April and 

 the beginning of May, when the country was still fairly fresh, 

 and found all these species and many others still laymg eggs. 

 In November of the same year, they were again breeding. In 

 April, 1911, I found the drought had already set in and 

 discovered very few eggs. In that year there was a general 

 drought all over the Island, and I got very few eggs anywhere. 

 In May, of this year, the tanks in the North-Central Province 

 were stiU full, and the country green ; birds were breeding 

 plentifully. Again, last August I struck a small patch of 

 villages about 20 miles north-east of Anuradhapura where some 

 local thunder-storms had freshened up the district, and I 

 discovered the eggs or nestlings of no less than 20 species. 



Of course, there are many exceptions which require further 

 explanation. For instance, why do the Crows not breed till 

 June ? But as a broad rule, in the dry zone of the low-country 

 birds which build among branches will nest at any time 

 provided that there has been sufficient rainfall to revive the 

 vegetation and bring out their food supply. 



The ground nesters do not begin to breed nearly so early. 

 They have to wait until the heavy rains are over, until the 



