of certain. Indian Birds. 77 



alive to the trickery ; and there is hardly a day, during the 

 breeding-season, that Koels may not be seen making their 

 escape from trees, hotly and unrelentingly pursued by one 

 or more Crows of this species. I have twice rescued female 

 Koels from the hands of these marauders, once on the ground 

 when the victim was in the act of being mobbed by a horde 

 of Crows, and on another occasion when the bird flew into 

 the veranda of my house for protection. 



But the curious thing in connexion with this subject is that 

 the male Koel is just as often the object of attack as the fe- 

 male ; and I have frequently observed both sexes flying out 

 of the same tree simultaneously, though in opposite directions. 

 From this it may be inferred that some strange instinct guides 

 a male bird to the tree along with the female when she is 

 about to deposit her eggs, the object presumably being to 

 attract the attention of the rightful occupants of the nest 

 while the egg is being laid. On one occasion a Koel dropped 

 her egg on the ground whilst beating a rapid retreat ; and on 

 another I extracted an egg which was ready for exclusion, 

 from the oviduct of a bird I shot as she emerged from a tree. 

 The Crow was following about a yard behind, and had evi- 

 dently driven away her enemy before she had time to accom- 

 plish the deed. 



Summing up the evidence before us, the following facts may 

 be deduced : — 



1st. That the same Koel may lay a number of its eggs in 

 the same nest. I infer this much from having found three 

 eggs in nest No. 1, which may be apportioned to one bird. 



2nd. That she does not wittingly eject the eggs of the foster- 

 parent ; and that when there is a deficiency in the normal 

 number, it is in all probability due to accident, owing to the 

 KoeFs hurried movements. Nest No. 1, again, supports this 

 theory ; for C. culminatus had in this case laid her usual num- 

 ber undisturbed. 



3rd. That C. culminatus is easily duped, while her cunning- 

 congener, C. splendens, is fully aware of the deception. 



4th. That when the female Koel is about to intrude her 

 egg, she is frequently accompanied by a male bird. 



