Notes on the Birds of the Sriniljhur Lake Sj' its vicmitif. 39;3 



were barely clisting-uishable from the females, but for a few 

 black cross bars on the breast feathers. 



Male, leng-th, 7'1 j expanse, 10'3; wing-, 3*2; tarsus, 1; 

 bill at front, 5 5. 



Female, leng-th, 67; expanse, 10 '1 ; wing, 3*1 ; tarsus, 1; 

 bill at front, 0-5. 



829.— Coturnix communis, Bonn. 



This bird is often met with in grass lands or near to cultiva- 

 tion. A male in my possession has none of the black spots 

 and blotches on the breast, sides of neck and flanks described by 

 Jerdon. 



830. — Coturnix coromandelica, Gmel. 



The black -breasted quail is nowhere common, but it is now 

 and then met with amongst the scrub and cactus jungles near 

 the foot of the hills. 



836.— Otis Edwardsi, Gray, 



Although I have never seen this bird about here, it has- 

 been shot by some of the Railway Engineers so close to this 

 neighbourhood as to warrant my including it in this list. 



837.— Houbara Macqueeni, Gray. 



I have met with this bird on three occasions during the cold 

 weather, and out of a party of six I obtained two and wounded 

 a third -, it is very wary. One morning I flushed a Houbara, 

 and when it settled on the top of a sand hill, it turned round 

 and deliberately watched my course, and when I reached the 

 top of the sand hill, I found that it had turned at a right angle 

 to the line I was taking. 



839.— Sypheotides auritus, Lath. 



I have only obtained one specimen of this bird, a fine male, at 

 Sambhur. It was shot on the 1 9th July. 



840. — Cursorius coromandelicus, Gmel. 



This species is very abundant about the lake during the 

 whole cold season. It frequents the sandy plains, and is 

 frequently seen in company with flocks of Cursorius gallicus. 

 I saw a few birds towards the end of May, so it is probable that 

 it breeds here. 



840 his. — Cursorius gallicus, Gmel. 



The cream-colored courser is very abundant all over the 

 sandy plains during the cold weather. On the approach of 

 the hot weather it disappears, and I believe goes further west or 



