MARCH. 



THE birds of prey are still in full season, and though many of the 

 larger kinds have ceased to lay their places are filled by others, especially 

 among the owls. Most of the bee eaters, kingfishers, parrots, wood- 

 peckers, barbets, nuthatches, larks, plovers, and terns are either laying 

 or building, and several species of swifts, goatsuckers, shrikes, fly- 

 catchers, thrushes, babblers, bulbuls, chats, warblers, titlarks, jays, 

 mynahs, and game birds are beginning to lay. 



In the HIMALAYAS, the king vulture is still laying, also the 

 bearded vulture (Lammergeyer), the black-capped falcon, and Bonelli's 

 eagle. The crested serpent eagle, the long-legged buzzard and the 

 greater Indian kite, and several of the owls are laying. The slaty- 

 headed paroquet and the scaly-bellied green woodpecker have eggs. 

 The white-tailed and velvet-fronted nuthatches, the hoopoe, the bronzed 

 drongo, the ashy swallow shrike, the verditer flycatcher, the Nepal 

 quaker thrush, the white-browed warbler, the white-eyed tit, the 

 red -capped, crested black, and mountain tits, the nutcracker, magpie 

 and jay, the large hill mynah, the tree sparrow, and the white-crested 

 king pheasant all begin laying ; and the goshawk, Himalayan fishing 

 eagle) collared pigmy owlet, common swallow, crag and Kashmir 

 martins, Hodgson's trogon, roseband paroquet, woodpeckers, piculets, 

 flower -peckers, tree-creepers, raquet-t ailed drongos, chestnut-bellied 

 chat thrush, white-collared ouzels, missel thrush, red-headed wren 

 babbler, rufous-necked and rusty-cheeked scimitar babblers, black 

 gorgetted laughing thrush, iron grey bushchat, blue-headed redstart, 

 black-eared and grey-headed warblers, western spotted forktails, yellow- 

 cheeked tits, blue magpies, green jays, and spotted-winged stares are 

 all pairing and building. 



In the PUNJAB, the vultures, hawks, falcons, and true eagles are 

 still laying, also the short-toed eagle. The buzzards and several owls 

 commence laying. The dusky crag martin, the pied king-fisher, the 

 grey shrike, the babblers, the streaked scrub warbler, the streaked 

 wren warbler, the raven, the larks, doves, the common sandgrouse, 

 the common quail, the big bustard, most of the plovers, the common 

 heron, the king curlew, most of the terns, and the scissor bill have 

 eggs during the month ; and the painted sandgrouse, the seesee 

 partridge, the lesser button quail, and the gull-billed terns are 

 pairing and making their nests. 



In the NORTH-WEST PROVINCES, the white scavenger vulture 



