592 Mr. J. Scully on the 



its breeding in the district. My specimens agree completely 

 with European examples, and consequently do not accord 

 with the description of Ardea brag from Cashmere. 



229. Ardetta minuta (Linn.). 



I only secured one specimen of the Little Bittern in Gilgit ; 

 it was captured in a rice-field on the 20th September. The 

 example, an immature male, agrees well in plumage with 

 specimens of a similar age from Holland. Length ] 4"3 inches, 

 tail 1*9, tarsus 1'6, mid toe and claw 2"1, bill from gape 2*5 ; 

 iris bright pale yellow, orbital skin pale green; bill pale grey, 

 dusky along culmen ; feet green, claws black. 



230. Nycticorax griseus (Linn.). 



The Night-heron is a summer visitor to Gilgit, but is only 

 found there in very small numbers; a few pairs probably 

 breed in the district. An adult female, obtained on the 5th 

 May, with a wing 11 inches, had a crest 6 inches long, and 

 weighed 14 oz. 



-/-233. Spatula clypeata (Linn). 



The Shoveller is not uncommon in Gilgit on migration in 

 spring and autumn ; I shot specimens from the middle of 

 April to the first week in May, and again throughout Sep- 

 tember. A female shot on the 30th September is remarkable 

 in having precisely the plumage worn by the adult male from 

 July to October; the lesser wing-coverts are glossy grey-blue, 

 and the inner half of the speculum bright green. 



-( -234. Anas boscas, Linn. 



Although some specimens of the Mallard are to be obtained 

 throughout the winter in Gilgit, it is most common there in 

 October and November, and again in March and April, the 

 greater number of the birds that visit us evidently wintering 

 further south. 



235. Anas strepera, Linn. 



This Duck merely passes through the district in spring and 

 autumn, hardly making any stay in Gilgit, which is not a 

 favourable locality for the duck tribe. I obtained specimens 



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