MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 55 



slightly alarmed the bird would raise the wing farthest from the in- 

 truder, but when "cornered", both wings would be extended and 

 brought forward until they reached beyond the tip of the benk, and 

 the tail spread, so that the beautiful spotted markings were fullj- 

 shown. The hissing, as described by Finn, was ver}' noticeable in the 

 older bird, but in the j^ounger one it was replaced b}' a low plaintive 

 whistle, so it possibly only occurs with the more fully developed 

 birds. 



The "Painter" is reported as breeding two or thi-ee times 

 during the season, and it is likely that the breeding season in Bangkok 

 extends over the greater part of the rains. The nest is the usual 

 hollow, often with a pad of grass, and the eggs are four in number, 

 slightly pyriform in shape, yellowish stone colour with large maikings 

 of very dark brown or black. The eggs measure 1.4 by 1 inches. 

 Should anyone be so fortunate as to conie across a sitting bird, it 

 would be interesting to note whether it is a male or lemale, as the male 

 is the inferior bird and there is reason to believe that it sits on the 

 nest. 



E. (;. HERBERT. 

 Odoher, 1913. 



-^ No. VI, BREEDING OF PAINTED SNIPE IN SIAM. 



The point as to whether the Painted Snipe breeds around 

 Bangkok has been discussed and doubted so often that it will interest 

 sportsmen and naturalists, I feel sure, to know that while shooting this 

 season at 8ala Yah, I came across a mother with four chicks. This 

 was on September 22nd. My man caught one of the chicks. It was 

 quite small and unable to fly, being covered only with down, and had 

 therefore obviously been hatched out only a few days. I did not k>^v\> 

 the chick or make any special note of its coloration, but the parent bird, 

 wdiich I saw at quite close quarters, was clearly a *' Painter." 



a H, FORTY. 

 November, 1913, 



^- No. VII.— THE MOULTING OF SNU'E. 



I noticed this season that the " Pintails," or, at any rate, the 

 earl)' arriv.-ds, were already in moult when they reached Bangkok. In 

 tiie case of four of the hrst birdr^ ^ll()t ( Sept. ]4.tli ), one had complet- 

 ed the moult of the primaries l.)ut the new featiif rs wei'e not quilt* 

 full}' developed ; the second had only the two outer primaries of the 



old feathers remaining and the new ones wei'e in var\ iiig states of 



• '•11 

 developement ; the tliird had lost six of the old |ti'ini.iries, and tlie 



fourth bird had only lost four. In the latter tw(; instances the new 



