PARASITIC HABITS OF THE INDIAN KOEL. lib- 



it was born less than twenty-four hours before the two larger crows, yet its 

 eyes were open on July 5th, while theirs were still half closed on July 12th. 

 As the koel grew older the terminal bars on the tips of his" wing and tail 

 feathers grew fainter and, by the 18th July, they had completely^disappeared ; 

 by this date the koel looked ready to leave the nest while the crows were 

 still in a very backward state. On July 20th the young koel was still in the 

 nest. I then left Lahore for nine days. On my return on the 30th, the 

 young koel was sitting on the tree outside the nest and looking very little 

 different from the adult male koel, the two elder crows were sitting near the 

 nest and the smallest crow was still inside it. 



When there are only koels in a nest they soon fly away when once they are 

 able to leave the nest. In cases, however, where there are crow nestlings 

 as well, the koel hangs about the nest tree to be fed by the foster parents 

 until the young crows are ready for flight ; then they all depart together. 

 Nest Numbee I. 

 On June 13th this nest contained one crow's egg. By the 15th a second 

 had been added. On the 16th the nest contained three eggs. In this nest I 

 now put a large fowl's egg, for I was anxious to prove what I have for so long 

 contended, that the theory that cuckoo's eggs are " mimic," those of the host 

 is not tenable. I had previously in England put sparrows' eggs in swallow'* 

 nest, and a robin's egg in a blackbird's nest. This time I was determined to 

 put my belief to a very severe test. I chose the most intelligent of the birds 

 and put in its nest a white egg at least three times the size of its own blue 

 eggs splotched with brown. Within ten minutes of the deposition of the fowl's 

 egg the crow was sitting upon it in the most matter-of-fact manner. I may 

 mention that I had previously put a fowl's egg in a nearly completed crow's 

 nest, wondering whether the presence of this egg would fire the hen to lay in 

 the nest without bothering to give this latter the finishing touches. The crows 

 ate up that egg. Evidently the incubating instinct at that stage of the pro" 

 ceedings was not sufficiently strong to overcome the ordinary intelligence of 

 the bird. On the 17th I returned to the nest and found not only my fowl's 

 egg safe and warm, but an additional crow's egg. There were now five eggs 

 in the nes-t — four legitimate ones and the fowl's egg. On the 18th the nest 

 contained a fifth crow's egg and the fowl's egg was still in the nest. On the 

 19th all six eggs were in the nest. The crow must have had difficulty in cover- 

 ing them all. I then learned from the Khansamah who had furnished me with 

 the fowl's egg that this was a fresh one from his village, so I determined to 

 leave it in the nest for twenty-one days and see whether a young chicken 

 would appear. 



On the morning of June 18th the six eggs were all intact and it was evident 

 that the fowl's egg was incubating. 



On the evening of July 2nd I inspected the contents of the nest and found 

 that the crow's eggs of the 16th and 15th June had yielded young ones.. 

 The other three crow's eggs were still in the nest. The egg of the 13th had 



