1922.] Birds of Jhang Dlstrid. 26l 



During the winter months both rivers, robbed of their 

 waters l)y the canal systems, dwindle to slow, narrow, shallow 

 streams tracing a winding course among the sands and islands 

 of the river-bed. With the melting of the Himalayan snows 

 they rapidly swell until, from about April to October, they 

 present the appearance of a vast, swift flood, a mile or so in 

 width, with only the larger islands uncovered. Rises in the 

 level are very sudden though often short-lived, and cause 

 floods which frequently extend three or four miles into the 

 surrounding country. This riverain area, including tlie longer 

 islands, is very consistent in character throughout the length 

 of the district. The sandy soil, enriched in varying degrees 

 by successive layers of silt, is intersected by numerous 

 channels, usually dry and sandy, but filling Avitli any rise in 

 the river. Extensive belts of tamarisk scrub, often so thick 

 and strong that a horse can with difficulty pass through, are 

 diversified by small pieces of cultivation in which crops of 

 wheat, grain or vetches are grown along the edge of this area ; 

 and often extending into it are high-lying strips and j)atches 

 of waste ground of a sandy texture covered with a thick 

 growth of Sarkana grass. 



Along the western edge of the Jhang and Shorkot tehsils 

 lies a high plateau, known as the Thai, more or less com- 

 pletely covered with belts and dunes of blown sand, which 

 alternate with hollows of fairly good soil studded with stunted 

 trees and bushes. The whole effect is most monotonous, and 

 on the only occasion when I visited this tract it appeared to 

 contain but few birds. 



The remainder of the district may be described as illus- 

 tratino- the conflict between nature and civilization which 

 ensues when modern engineering has brought canals into a 

 region semi-desert by nature. Large stretches of cultivation, 

 wheat, cotton, and turnip crops, sparsely studded with Kikar 

 and Shisham trees, are diversified with patches of waste 

 ground covered with wild Caper and " Lana^' plants. 



In places, notably towards Khiwa and Shorkot, there 

 extend wide plains of this barren and desolate land, awaiting 

 only a further extension of the canal system. In parts, 



