158 NOTES ON THE NIDIFICATION 



June 3rd with eggs. The number of eggs appears to be four. 

 They are not unlike some of the eggs of C. saularis. Tolerably 

 glossy, ground colour greenish and the whole shell is thickly 

 freckled and streaked with rich brown with a tinge of rufous. 

 The eggs vary in length from *89 to *79 in length and from 

 64 to "-6 in breadth. (N. & E., p. 307.) 



44 — Orthotomus sutorius, G. #. Forst. (530.) 



Appears to nest from the middle of May to the end of 

 August ; common throughout Pegu. (N. & E., p. 331.) 



45.— Prinia flaviventris, Deless. (532.) 



I have found the nest in May and July. In shape it is 

 o-enerally oval, being pulled out at the points of attachment. 

 The interior is always profusely lined with grass seeds and 

 down. It is suspended between two or three stems of ele- 

 phant grass at a short distance from the ground. (N. & E., p. 

 334.) 



46.— Prinia Beavani, Walden. (538 bis.) 



Before describing the nest I may remark that this Prinia 

 has twelve rectrices and not ten, as stated in the original descrip- 

 tion of the bird (P. Z. S., 1866, p. 551.) The outer pair is so 

 short as to be concealed by the under tail coverts, and thus pro- 

 bably escaped Lord Walden's observation. 



June 2Vth. — Found a nest sewn into a broad soft leaf of a 

 weed in forest about two feet from the ground. The edges of 

 the leaf are drawn together and fastened by white vegetable 

 fibres. The nest is composed entirely of fine grass, no other 

 material entering into its composition. For further security the 

 nest is stitched to the leaves in a few places, the depth of the nest 

 is about three inches and internal diameter all the way down 

 about one and a half. Eggs three, very glossy, pale blue, with 

 specks and dashes of pale reddish brown, chiefly at the larger 

 end, where they form a cap. Size '58, "62, '61, by '47. 



47, — Cisticola schcenicola, Bonap. (539.) 



The majority of birds begin laying at the commencement of 

 June, and probably nests may be found throughout the rains. 

 I procured a nest on the 2nd of November, a very late date 

 I imagine. It contained four eggs. This latter nest was a 

 neat deep cup, thickly felted within; others, found in the 

 rains, have been huge, circular balls. Perhaps this bird adapts 

 the shape of the nest to the season. The ball-nest is an ad- 

 mirable structure for the monsoon. (N. & E., p. 343.) 



