FOR NORTHERN INDIA 113 



which are cuckoos that do not lead a parasitic 

 existence, are now busy with nursery duties. 

 The nest of the crow-pheasant or coucal is a 

 massive structure, globular in shape, with the 

 entrance at one side. Large as the nest is, it 

 is not often discovered by the naturalist 

 because it is almost invariably situated in the 

 midst of an impenetrable thicket. Three or 

 four pure-white eggs are laid. 



The white-necked storks or beef-steak birds 

 (Dissura episcopus) are busy at their nests 

 in June. These birds build in large trees, 

 usually at a distance from water. The nest 

 is rudely constructed of twigs. It is about one 

 and a half feet in diameter. The eggs are 

 placed in a depression lined with straw, grass 

 or feathers. White-necked storks often begin 

 nest-building about the middle of May, but 

 eggs are rarely laid earlier than the second 

 week of June. House-crows nest at the same 

 time of year, and they often worry the storks 

 considerably by their impudent attempts to 

 commit larceny of building material. 



The breeding season of the paddy-birds has 

 now fairly begun. These birds, usually so 

 solitary in habit, often nest in small colonies, 

 sometimes in company with night-herons. 



