THE BIRDS OF A DROUGHT. 63 



whether they shall accept them as mere races of one species, .or 

 as three distinct species, is a matter for each one to decide for 

 himself. That they are all three invariably distinguishable from 

 curruca, of Europe, by the proportions of the primaries I hold 

 to be pretty well established. 



583 bis. — Sylvia nana ; extremely abundant in the low scrub. 

 591. — Motacilla dukhunensis. 602. — Anthus campestris. 



657.— Corvus laurencei, Hume. 



This Raven swarms about Jodhpoor. Our camp was a laro-e 

 one, perhaps containing 1,000 souls, and in amongst the tents, 

 from dawn till dark, familiar and fearless as sparrows, were at 

 all times from 50 to 100 of these ravens, stalking about singly 

 and croaking vigorously to each other. 



It may be my ignorance, but I cannot help considering this 

 Raven distinct from corax of Europe, of which I kept two as a 

 boy, and with which I have been very familiar. 



In the first place, the note is decidedly different, less hoarse, 

 less deep, less unmusical. 



In the second place, the colour of the sheen is different, and 

 there is a purplish tinge on the throat and upper breast hackles 

 in fine specimens, of which I find no trace in skins of corax. 



In the third place, the bird is only about half the bulk, it 

 seems to me, and very differently shaped. 



The very largest male that I have ever met with measured 

 only 24-75 inches long ; old males average 24*0 ; females, 

 23"0. The heaviest bird out of some fifty that I have weighed 

 at different times only weighed 2fbs. 5oz.; 21bs. to 2fbs. 2oz. is 

 the weight for fine males; l*12oz. to l'14oz. for females. 



Then the wings are excessively long for the size of the bird, 

 and vary from 16*3 in the smallest female measured (but only 

 good adults were measured) to 17'4 in the largest male. 



The wings in the fresh bird reach, as a rule, when closed, quite 

 to the end of the tail ; in no case have I found them fall more 

 than 05 short of this. 



The tail is very much rounded, the outer tail feathers are always 

 2 and occasionally fully 2*5 inches shorter than the central ones. 



I have unfortunately no sufficient series of European speci- 

 mens to compare, but I shot and preserved a dozen of this sup- 

 posed species at Jodhpoor, which I shall send home for com- 

 parison there. 



Our bird I may rote is a permanent resident in the N. W. 

 Punjaub, &c, and breeds there freely. (See Nest and Ego-g, 

 Rough Draft, 408.) 



It has been suggested that my bird might be umbrinus, but 

 considering that the adult has no brown about it, (of course the 



