22 On the breeding of Manns Melanopterus. 



I believe, yielded their eg"gs to him of all our Indian oologists^ 

 and the number of these latter is now leg-ion. 



Recently, Mr. Adam has also taken the nest, and I think that 

 all Indian ornithologists will read with interest the accounts 

 given by these two gentlemen of their successes. 



Mr. Blewitt writes, " This kite (Elanus Melanopterus) evi- 

 dently breeds from, I should say, the middle of November to 

 January. I first secured its eggs in the Sumbulpoor district on 

 the 20th December, while I obtained a pair of quite young half 

 fledged birds on the 11th January. The nests, including a newly 

 made one found empty, were placed on the forks of the upper 

 branches of low forest trees about 18 to 20 feet from the ground. 

 In form they were circular jmd composed of small sticks and 

 twigs somewhat compactly put togetlier, with the ego^ cavity 

 about an inch deep, neatly lined with fine grass. There is no 

 doubt that this kite breeds in all those tracts in the Sumbulpoor 

 district that are sparsely wooded and extensively cultivated 

 with rice ; and probably as it is somewhat common there, this 

 may also be the case, in the Raipoor district. I tjike three to be 

 the normal number of the eggs. The young birds had become 

 very tame, when, unfortunately, one day the crows carried off the 

 male bird and so injured it, that it died a day or two after. The 

 female on losing her mate pined away and died a week after. 

 I had them about seven weeks. In these young kites, when I 

 got them, the iris was a dark brown, but when I lost them, light 

 hazel. From this fact, and other inspections of numerous speci- 

 mens from the immature to the adult stage, I am certainly of 

 opinion that the iris is first of all dark brown, which gradually 

 with age changes to the light hazel, then yellow, and lastly, to 

 the carbuncle red of the full adult. I have never noticed the 

 alleged crepuscular habits of this bird." 



Mr. Adam says, " At the village of Kuchrodda, about six 

 miles south of the town of Sambhur, there is a large jheel 

 with a tope of khajur palms, (Fhceniw Sylvestris) on one side, and 

 straggling trees of this species all round. 



" On the 19th July, 1872, near one of the solitary khajur trees, 

 I observed an ELinus Melanopterus, and as this bii'd is rather 

 rare about the Sambhur Lake, I went in its direction, intend- 

 ing to kill it; but just as it rose from the ground, I saw it 

 was carrying a twig in its bill, and this it carried to the top 

 of the khajur where I found it had a nest nearly finished. Both 

 birds were employed taking twigs to the nest. 



" On the 7th August, I sent a man to see if the nest con- 

 tained eggs, but he found it had been abandoned, and a new 

 nest commenced on one of a group of six Lusora trees {Cordia, 



