THE STARLINGS OR MYNAHS. 47 



eyes of the normal colour (a speckled grey), which after- 

 wards reverted, one completely, and the other partially, 

 to the natural colour ; this being likely to happen when 

 the eyes of a white bird are not pink. 



The House-Mynah has been introduced into several 

 other countries Mauritius, the Andamans, the Sandwich 

 Islands, Australia, and New Zealand. Only in the Sand- 

 wich Islands has he proved an undesirable colonist, as he 

 there attacks the eggs and young of the native birds, 

 many of which are only found in these islands. 



THE BANK MYNAH (Acridotheres ginginianus), is called 

 Ganga maina in Hindustani, and Gang salik in Bengali, 

 is smaller and slighter than the House-Mynah ; it has the 

 same pattern of colour, but the tints differ. The head is 

 black as in the other species, but the body-colour is iron- 

 grey and the light bands on the wings and tail cinnamon ; 

 the bare face is bright red, and the feet and bill orange, 

 instead of yellow. The young birds are sometimes merely 

 dull editions of the adult, as in the Common Mynah, but 

 more often differ strikingly by having drab heads. 



The Bank Mynah derives its name from its curious 

 nesting-habits ; it burrows into banks to make its nests, 

 a number of birds associating to. form a colony. It is a 

 curious fact that the bird is particularly partial to the cast 

 sloughs of snakes as a lining to the nest. This Mynah 

 is peculiar to India, and to the northern part of it ; it 

 does not extend to the east of the Bay of Bengal, but it 

 ascends the Himalayas to some height. It does not seem 

 to be truly migratory, but the changes frequently 

 occurring in the beds of rivers in India no doubt often cause 



