MASON AND LEFROY. 39 



A very common habit which can often be noticed in India is the 

 love they, with other birds, have of mobbing snakes. King-crows 

 and mynahs usually join the crows in this, and should a snake cross 

 a lawn or open space in the day time one can usually tell what is 

 the matter by the noise that these birds make in concert. 



Crows may often be noticed worrying kites, though the kite 

 takes very little notice of such attentions. An instance is recorded 

 in the Bombay N. H. S. Journal how on a Green Pigeon shoot crows 

 followed the pigeons and so showed on what trees the pigeons had 

 settled. 



Pitta brachyura (933) is often mobbed by crows. B. N. H. S. J., 

 XVI, 491, and Jerd. (B. 3, 138) mentions the fact that a Scops 

 giu found dead was probably killed by crows. I have seen crows 

 pursuing and mobbing Strix flammea, which I once disturbed from 

 a pipal tree at midday. The owl soon escaped. Crows will in fact 

 mob any bird that happens to pass by, when they have nothing 

 else to do. 



Of crows Mr. W. L. Sclater (I. M. N., Vol. II, pp. 117-121) 

 says : "With regard to those of mixed diet. . . .it would certainly 

 be inadvisable to protect them, since they may do much greater 

 harm in devouring fruit and grain than they do good in destroying 

 insects, such is specially the case with crows and starlings." 



From a glance at the stomach records one would feel that with 

 regard to their insect food these crows are certainly beneficial, but 

 it must be remembered that some considerable damage is done to 

 grain, possibly considerably more than the injurious insects would 

 have done. Crows cannot be definitely classed as beneficial, and 

 require if anything to have their numbers kept within certain limits 

 as is the case with C. frugilegus in England. Local conditions are 

 the only ones that can determine this, and certainly nothing can 

 possibly be said by way of recommendation either way, generally 

 speaking for India, with a bird that has such varied food materials. 



The Koel (Eudynamis honorata) deposits its eggs in the rests 

 of this species, and though it apparently does not turn out the cro\\s 

 from the nest possibly keeps a small check on the crow's numbers. 



