THE DECCAN AND SOUTH MAHRATTA COUNTRY. 369 



pretence to exbaustiveness than the present catalogue, which 

 will, I am only too certain, itself prove similarly imperfect. 



This catalogue includes altogether 452 species, but out of these 

 3 (viz. Nos. 473, 533 and 538) are doubtful as species, and these 

 I have entered in italics, while the occurrence of 20 other species, 

 (viz.'Nos. 26, 34,50,61, 87, 101, 273, 291, 357, 434, 488, 512, 

 594, 596, 601, 742, 831, 911, 916 and 960,) is to my mind 

 questionable, and to these I have prefixed a note of inter- 

 rogation. 



The species included are arranged as in Dr. Jerdon's work, 

 and Mr. Hume's Tentative list of the Birds of India, published 

 in Vol. VIII., p. 73, et seq. This arrangement is admitted on 

 all hands to be in many respects imperfect, but it is the one with 

 which most Indian ornithologists are familiar, and I have 

 therefore adopted it. 



In conclusion I can only express a hope that all ornithologists 

 who discover from time to time errors and omissions in this 

 catalogue will notify the same to the Editor of Stray Feathers 

 for publication in his Journal. 



2. — Otogyps calvus, Scop. The Black Vulture. 



Permanent resident. Occurs throughout the region. Not 

 uncommon as a rule, but less abundant in some districts than 

 in others. 



4 bis. — Gyps pallescens, Hume. The Long-billed 

 Pale-Brown Vulture. 



Permanent resident. Not uncommon in districts where 

 there are high cliffs to which it resorts to breed. This is pro- 

 bably the species entered in Mr. VidaPs list of Ratnagiri 

 species as G. indicus ( S. F., IX., 29). According to Sykes, 

 G. indicus of Latham, Vantour Indou of Tem., P. C, 26, is 

 common in the Deccan. Possibly he refers to the present 

 species, but Temminck's plate, to which he specially refers, repre- 

 sents appai-ently G. fulvescens, Hume, and possibly this also 

 should be included in this list. 



5.— Pseudogyps bengalensis, Gmel. The White- 

 backed Vulture. 

 Permanent resident. Common throughout the region. 



6.— Neophron ginginianus, Lath. The Indian 

 Scavenger Vulture. 



Permanent resident. Common throughout the region, though 

 less numerous in Ratnagiri than in other districts. 



