77 



Mr. Jerdon, in his excellent work on the " Birds of India," 

 states that the Long-billed Vulture frequently nests on cliffs. 



This vulture is well figm-ed in Gray's " Genera of 

 Bii-ds," pi. 3. 



SPECIMENS OF GYPS DWICUS. 



No. 1. adult Bengalore, India (G) Mr. Leadbeater. 



No. 2. adult Siam, 200 miles N.E. of Bankok (G) Mr. Mouliot, per 



Mr. Stevens. 

 No. 3. nestling... Ditto (G) Ditto. 



GYPS BENGALENSIS fGmelin.J 

 GYPS LEUCONOTUS (Gray.) 



WHITE-BACKED GRIFFON VULTURE. 



This Vulture is an inhabitant of the whole Indian penin- 

 sula, and also of Burmah, Assam, Ladak, Cashmere, and Afghan- 

 istan; but, in the last-mentioned country, it has been observed 

 to appear as a summer visitor only. A vulture, apparently iden- 

 tical with this species, also occiu's in Eastern Afi-ica, being 

 found in Abyssinia, Sennaar, and Kordofan, and sometimes 

 occurring as far northwards as Nubia ; but as all the African 

 specimens, which have come under my notice, are in the brown 

 plumage — which, in India, is peculiar to the immatiu'e birds — 

 I am disposed to think that, until fru-ther observation has 

 decided whether the adult plumage of the Afr-ican and Indian 

 bu'ds is or is not identical, the question of whether they really 

 do, or do not, belong to the same species, cannot be considered 

 as definitively settled. The White-backed Vulture is a re- 

 markably familiar bird, feeding on carrion, and habitually 

 seeking its food in the vicinity of human habitation; its habits 

 are decidedly gregarious, as it both flies, feeds, and nests in 

 company. It selects both cliffs and large trees for the pm-pose 

 of nidification, a single tree often contains as many as four 



