AQTTILA. 137 



centre. It contained a single, fresh, large, dead white egg, spotted 

 here and there with deep reddish brown, and with a few very pale 

 pinkish spots sparsely scattered over the shell. The Groorkhas' 

 name for this bird is Kaka-Kool ; they declare it to be a snake-eater, 

 but the female above alluded to had nothing in the stomach but a 

 couple of rats, which appeared to have been recently swallowed." 



Major C. T. Bingham writes: " On the 14th May I found a 

 nest of this Eagle placed on an immense babool-tree on the banks 

 of the Nezzufgurh Escape canal, where it passes through a number 

 of gardens under the ridge at Delhi. As I got underneath the 

 tree the bird glided off, so after examining the nest, which was a 

 large rough platform of sticks containing two eggs, I hid myself 

 close by and watched for the return of the bird, which happened in 

 about three-quarters of an hour, and as soon as she was seated I 

 moved out and shot her as she went off. The eggs were perfectly 

 fresh, dirty white in colour, with a few scattered lilac spots faint 

 and washed out. They measure respectively 2-41 inches and 2'22 

 inches by 1'95 inch and 1*82 inch." 



Mr. J. C. Parker sends me the following note : " I had the good 

 fortune to secure another egg of this species on the 9th May, 1877, 

 and from the top of the same mahogany tree in the Botanical 

 Gardens as that from which I took an egg on the 2nd May, 1875, 

 but the nest was not on the same branch, being near the summit 

 of the second great limb of the tree, a good 80 feet from the ground. 

 I experienced the same difficulty in securing this egg as on the last 

 occasion, the tree being a very dangerous one to climb. As both 

 birds were shot in 1875, it is a singular fact that another pair of 

 this rather rare species should have selected the same tree to build 

 on ; perhaps the birds of 1875 were the young of the present pair, 

 as they were very light coloured, whereas the only one seen this 

 year was very nearly black on the back." 



Mr. J. E. Cripps, writing from Furreedpore in Eastern Bengal, 

 says : " On the 1st of April I saw a bird fly up into a tamarind- 

 tree with a twig in its mouth, and on the 16th May I took the 

 only egg there was. This tamarind-tree formed one of a clump 

 growing on a deserted * ryot's bheeta.' The trees were all very 

 large, and the undergrowth of cane, &c., was very dense. The nest 

 was a large structure of sticks and twigs, with a lining of the latter, 

 and contained only one egg. The chick's bill protruded while 

 carrying it home. The nest was about 50 feet from the ground 

 and right on the top of the tree. The parent bird sat very close, 

 taking ever so many stones to drive her off the nest when I shot 

 her. On two adjoining trees I found the nests of B. coromandus 

 and S. rutJierfonli. These Eagles are very tame, allowing of an 

 easy approach at all times. On no occasion did I see them catch 

 birds for food. They perch on the trees that are studded about 

 the expanse of paddy-fields during the day, and retire for the night 

 to the tree-jungle." 



Three eggs sent by Captain Unwin seem scarcely distinguishable 

 from those of -1. itndAiana, though possibly they may on the whole 



