GLOSSY IBIS. 523 
Writing of the habits of this bird in India, Mr. Doig remarks (Stray 
Feath. 1879, p. 377):— In May 1878 I observed these birds in pairs and 
sent men after them to try and find out their breeding-grounds, but in 
vain ; and so being unable to go myself, in consequence of work, I was 
obliged to give up the search. This year, however, in June, I was able 
to search myself, and found them breeding in great numbers on trees along 
the banks of the large lakes inside the sand hills, along the banks of the 
‘Narra.’ The nests were placed on the tops of kundy-trees, and were 
constructed of sticks, about the size of Plotus melanogaster ; on the same 
trees I found Jnocotis papillosus and Ibis melanocephala breeding, while 
close by were numbers of nests of Herons, Egrets, and Cormorants.” 
Legge found this bird breeding in Ceylon, and writes :—“ In March 1872 
I found a small colony of these Ibises, numbering about eight pairs, 
nesting at Uduwila, near Tissa Maha Rama. The nests were placed on 
thorny trees growing in the half-dried bed of the small tank already 
referred to in former articles, and the trees chosen were those on which 
the Shell-Ibises were nesting. The nests were small and mostly made of 
twigs and grass-roots, almost flat in shape, and placed upon the horizontal 
forks of small branches high up in the trees. The young were fiedged, 
but unable to fly, and when I approached the trees stood up in the nests, 
scrambling along the branches and climbing actively about them as I 
mounted to the nests ; when seized they clung tightly with their feet, and 
were with difficulty removed. My efforts to keep them alive were not © 
successful, for while several Pelicans and Pelican-Ibises thrived on fish 
and meat, the Glossy Ibises died, only living two days. When flying 
away from their nests the old birds made a whizzing sound with their 
wings.” The Ibis only appears to rear one brood in the year. 
The general colour of the Ibis in summer plumage is brownish chestnut, 
suffused on the forehead and crown with metallic green, on the back with 
purple, and on the wings, rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail with both 
purple and green ; the under tail-coverts are nearly black. Bill greenish 
brown ; legs and feet greenish grey, claws black; irides brown; facial 
skin slate-grey. The female resembies the male in colour. In winter the 
underparts are earthy brown, slightly suffused with reddish purple; the 
head and the upper half of the neck are earthy brown, each feather margined 
but not tipped with white. “Young in first plumage and birds of the year 
differ very little from adults in winter plumage, but have much less 
metallic gloss on the feathers. 
