100 Mr. E. L. Layard on the Ornithology of Ceylon. 



take him for a knot in the decaying timber ; with noiseless rapid- 

 ity the barred wings pass on, and the log is untenanted. Fast 

 clutched in the talons of his merciless foe, the frog is borne to 

 the well-known perch, and a sharp blow on the back of the head 

 from the bill of the bird deprives it of life. H. Cheela builds its 

 nest in the recesses of the forest, or lofty trees. The structure is 

 a mass of sticks piled together and added to year by year. The 

 eggs, generally two in number, are 3 inches in length by 2 in dia- 

 meter, of a dirty chalk-white, minutely freckled at the obtuse 

 end with black dots. 



7. H^MATORNIS SPILOGASTER, Bl)i;h. 



This new Hmnatornis was sent to Mr. Blyth both by Dr. Ke- 

 laart and myself about the same time ; the Doctor procured his 

 specimen at Trincomalee, whilst I killed mine in the Wanny. I 

 afterwards shot another pair at Pt. Pedi'O. I presume they are 

 migratory like H. Cheela, which visits us in the north about 

 March and leaves in July. All the specimens were shot in one 

 year. I know nothing of theii" ceconomy. 



8. PoNTOAETUs LETJCOGASTER, Gmel. Cadal ala, Mai. ; lit. Sea 

 Eagle. 



The " fish eagle " is not uncommon, but local, the same pair 

 frequenting the same eyrie year after year, and adding to its nest 

 every breeding season, until a vast accumulation of sticks in 

 some aged Bo-tree reveals the roosting place of the adult birds : 

 to this they nightly repair. During the season of incubation 

 the female is very fierce, defending her nest vigorously against 

 intrusion. The superstitious fears of the natives also operate in 

 her defence, as the sanctity of the tree (always dedicated to some 

 dfemon) prevents any adventurous youth from climbing it even 

 for pecuniary reward. The flight of this species is noble and 

 imposing : poised high over the resounding surge it wheels above 

 on circling pinions, and mth extended neck surveys the finny 

 tribes. Here, vshoals of beak-nosed fishes swim in their seasonal 

 migrations along the coral reef; there, brilliant Chsetodons float 

 in the shallows. The tide has partially I'cceded, and the water 

 lies in still crystal pools in the depressions of the reef : over one 

 of these the fish eagle passes : an abi'upt wheel shows his atten- 

 tion arrested, a moment's pause, and down he plunges, his body 

 swaying to and fro. The surface is reached, the legs suddenly 

 thrown out, and with exulting cries he soars aloft, bearing in his 

 talons a writhing snake, eel or large fish. The efforts of the bird 

 to seciu-e its prey in a proper position are now curious. If a fish 

 is captured, the feat is comparatively easy; the talons of the 



