Conirihutlons to the Ornithology of India, ^e. 133 



Mungranee, all proved males. Where are the females? 



6^/i. — At Larklianaj a pretty little station^ just three or four 

 houses on the banks of a broad canal, with numbers of large peepul 

 and other trees. B. dilutus, very abundant. H. leucoryphis and 

 H. indus, several -psiirs^Trinyoides hypolencos, T. ochrophtis, 

 and C. rudis. A. ispida and H. smyrnensis, common in the 

 canal, and from a hole in a huge pepul tree we dislodged and 

 shot a pair of Strix indica. Merops viridis, pretty common. In 

 the evening, walking by the canal bank, we saw a number of 

 night herons and shot a pair of Athene Irama, and Bictorides 

 javaniciis, The latter seem very crepuscular in their habits. 

 It was just sun-set when we saw the first creep out of the stack 

 of brushvvood, where it had apparently spent the day. On our 

 approaching it, it ran back to its hiding place from which it 

 did not emerge for some minutes. We saw at least half a 

 dozen others appear from and disappear into similar hiding 

 places. From 7 o^ clock this morning, one or other of us and our 

 shikarees have been along the canal without seeing one. 



1th. — 14 miles to Kumber, where we. breakfasted. The road 

 led through cultivated lands, wheat and rice, and swamps now 

 nearly dry, and paved with dead rushes. . In the young wheat 

 fields we saw flocks of Chettaisia gregaria, and in the swamps C. 

 leuctira. Mallard and teal, and ispida, smyrnensis, and rudis, 

 extraordinarily numerous. Ilerodias alba and garzetta, Ardea 

 cinerea, Totanus ftiscus and glottis or (canescens,) and Limosa 

 cegocephala, abundant. Tmiur risorins and cambayensis and a few 

 humilis — Poliornis teesa, and buzzards of every shade of colour 

 from the deepest chocolate, with a purplish bloom, only relieved 

 by the white patch on the u:nder-surface of the wing and broad 

 grayish white bars on the tail, to an almost white bird variegated 

 with reddish fawn on the wings, mantle flanks, and abdomen. 

 Eagles of many kinds were seen. A very fine Pseudaetus Bonellii 

 was killed as well as others, nmvia and imperialism On the 

 branches of numerous ragged-looking- mango trees, dotted and 

 clustered here and there amidst the rice fields, I noticed several 

 small parties of pigeons, which on a closer approach proved to 

 be my old Punjaub friend-, Balwrnbana Bversmanni. They were 

 unusually sh}', and I only secured some half dozen specimens.. 



Starlings were very numerous, and we saw here, as at Jacob- 

 abad, a few rosy pastors. The stock doves appear to be only 

 found in Sindh, in the rice districts, and are never seen in Rooree.. 

 In the afternoon, we came on eight miles to Dost Allee through 

 perfectly level, more or less saline, inmidation land, quite bare 

 or more or less thickly covered with comparatively stunted 

 tamarisk bushes ; in one place where these were rather thick. 



