MIGRATION OF BIRDS. 293 
the western side of the peninsula before Cape Comorin is 
reached. Probably, too, many of our hill migrants arrive 
by this route, as it affords them a more direct journey, and 
avoids the long stretch of unsuitable country in South-eastern 
India and North Ceylon. 
The evidence that a large number of birds reach us vid the 
north of the Island is equally satisfactory. This route would 
appear to feed especially the north-west, north, and east of 
the Island. Many of our lagoon-haunting species are found 
on the north-west coast as far south as Chilaw, and all down 
the east coast as far round as the Tangalla district, while 
between Chilaw and Tangalla they are rarer or absent. There 
are a good many such species, e.g., the Little Green Shank 
(Tobanus stagnatilis), the Whimbrel (Numenius pheopus), 
the Red Shank (Yotanus calidris), and the Green Shank 
(7. glottis). 
Again, the Wood Wagtail (Limonidromus indicus) is 
extremely common round Puttalam during the north-east 
monsoon, and spreads across through the forests in the north 
of the Island. It is very rare further south. 
To this evidence we must add that some common species, 
such as the Swallow and the Eastern Golden Plover, appear 
in the north of the Island just as soon as in Colombo. Mr. 
Hartley tells me that the Golden Plover is generally seen by 
him on the Royal College grounds very early in September. 
This year they appeared on the 2nd. I once saw a flock at 
Mannar on August 30. 
There is one species which seems to give a very striking 
proof that these two routes are the main fly lines. The Indian 
Ashy Drongo (Dicrurus longicaudatus) is with us a migrant 
found chiefly in the forests of the north and east of the 
Island. It has been seen at the beginning of the north-east 
monsoon at Jaffna and Trincomalee, and also at Colombo, 
but apparently at no other points on the coast. 
There are also traces of cross-country migration, between 
the south-east or east and the west or north-west. On April 
22 of this year, for instance, Mr. Roberts of Kotiyagalla, 
Bogawantalawa. shot a Black Bittern (Duwpetor flavicollis) in 
14 6(5)20 
