6 BREEDING SEASONS. 
country is the absence of any information on this point. At first, search 
for nests is only made in the spring and summer months, but in the 
course of time eggs are found incidentally in other months, both 
earlier and later, and it gradually becomes evident that hours of fruitless 
search and watching of birds, to trace from their movements where their 
nests are concealed have been thrown away, which a little experience 
would have saved by teaching that the breeding season were eitner 
already over or had not yet begun, or in some instances even never 
would begin in that part of the country. It is to answer at all events 
partially this question, when do the birds breed? that these notes 
are published. The question is now being answered in full detail for 
each bird by Mr. Hume’s book already referred to in the preface, and 
this little book will give a review of the year month by month, indicating 
the direction in which search can at any given time be profitably 
carried on. 
In dealing with a limited area, either tropical or temperate, it would 
be comparatively easy to furnish a complete guide on this point in 
a small compass; but witha large country like India, including every 
variety of climate from the eternal snows of the alpine Himalayas 
to the unvarying round of heat in the southern peninsular on the 
one hand, and from the arid deserts of Sind to the humid forests of 
Assam on the other hand, It is a task of much difficulty to afford 
full details in a single book. The area dealt with is bounded by the 
main ridge of the Himalayas on the north; the Suliman range and 
the Arabian sea on the west; by the Indian ocean on the south; 
and by the bay of Bengal and Assam on the east. Climate has by 
far the largest influence in determining the breeding period with birds, and 
thus over so large an area it is clear that great variations must occur 
at different points. Speaking generally, it may be assumed that the 
colder the climate, the more uniformly will the breeding season be 
confined to the warmer months; and the hotter and less variable the 
climate, the more irregularly will the breeding season be spread 
throughout the year. Among hot climates the drier the climate, the 
more the breeding season inclines to the summer and monsoon months ; 
while in damp tropical climates the winter months are more prolific 
in proportion ; but in India, excluding the Himalayas, there is no place 
where eggs of some species may not be obtained in every month of 
the year. 
The fewest number of kinds of birds known to breed in this country 
