48 THE BIRDS OF CALCUTTA. 



the first moult a contingency which is always possible with 

 albinos unless they have pink eyes. On one occasion also I 

 saw a bird in the Bazaar with pale cinnamon body-plumage, 

 and once the skin of one such was submitted to me, which 

 showed a change to the normal colour actually going on by 

 moult. Abnormalities in Mynah complexion, therefore, 

 may often be set down to individual weakness of constitu- 

 tion ; but the Mynah is a vigorous bird as a rule, and given 

 to enlarging his borders as a species. Most of the Indian 

 Empire, from Kashmir to Mergui, is held by him, 

 and he ascends the hills up to a very temperate climate, 

 though I was assured on good authority that he had only 

 penetrated to Darjeeling within the last twenty years. 

 Outside India man has helped him to a settlement in the 

 Andamans, Australia, New Zealand, and Honolulu, but he 

 is a bird which she aid be introduced into a new country 

 with caution, as he is too powerful and too free a breeder 

 to be allowed to increase without checks, and in the last- 

 mentioned place has rendered himself a decided nuisance 

 by his aggressive habits towards domestic birds, for he 

 will turn out pigeons without compunction ; and the 

 disappearance of the pretty little white Mynah (Sturnia 

 andamanensis) from Ross Island in the Andamans is 

 doubtless due to his presence there, though it is found on 

 other islands and is sometimes brought for sale to Calcutta. 

 The Mynah has also wild relatives here, notably the Bank 

 Mynah (Acridotkeres ginginianus) with its grey body 

 colour and buff facings, set off by a red face and 

 orange legs and bill, and the Jungle Mynah (Aethiop- 

 sar fuscus) which has the grey body and orange 



