FOR NORTHERN INDIA 184 



herons, paddy-birds, storks, cranes, pelicans, 

 whimbrels, curlews, ibises and spoonbills ; 

 the birds that live among sedges and reeds 

 the snipe, reed-warblers, purple coots and 

 water-rails. Then there are the birds that 

 fly overhead the great kite-like ospreys that 

 frequently check their flight to drop into 

 the water with a big splash, in order to secure 

 a fish ; the kingfishers that dive so neatly as 

 barely to disturb the smooth surface of the 

 lake when they enter and leave it ; the grace- 

 ful terns that pick their food off the face of the 

 jhil ; the swifts and swallows that feed on 

 the insects which always hover over still 

 water. 



Go where we will, be it to the sun-steeped 

 garden, the shady mango grove, the dusty 

 road, the grassy plain, the fallow field, or 

 among the growing crops, there do we find 

 bird life in abundance and food in plenty to 

 support it. 



This is not the breeding season, therefore 

 the bird choir is not at its best, nevertheless 

 the feathered folk everywhere proclaim the 

 pleasure of existence by making a joyful 

 noise. From the crowded jhil emanate the 

 sweet twittering of the wagtails, the clanging 



