88 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HLST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXI. 



discover it except in Damoh, where it is multitudinous, that 

 district is included with Saugor as constituting the area to which 

 this note refers. 



I have not attempted ordinarily to describe either birds, nests or 

 eggs, for this is done, very excellently, by Oates and Blanford who 

 have throughout been my authorities. In one or two instances I 

 have commented on or added to the information which they give, 

 but my notes are purely topical and my chief object has been 

 simply to record the permanently resident birds of the two districts. 

 My list, which is the result of many miles of tramping and many 

 hours of watching with glasses all over Saugor district and also 

 in Damoh, gives 155 birds as resident and mentions a few more 

 which I have been unable to verify myself. I think a list of, say, 

 165 birds would practically cover all our resident species. 



The local vernacular names which I give differ very considerably 

 from those mentioned in Oates and Blanford as Hindi names, but 

 local variations are, I imagine, the rule rather than the exception. 

 The limitations in nomenclature are striking : some birds have no 

 names at all ; in some cases different species of the same genus or 

 family all have well known individual names, e.g., every one of 

 the eight varieties of Larks in the district has its own distinctive 

 name and any native who knows anj^thing about birds at all will not 

 only recognize each name but pick out and differentiate each par- 

 ticular lark from all the others. On the" other hand, there are 

 whole different families which have to rest content with one 

 common name, e.g., Bagia, applied indiscriminately and without 

 differentiating epithets to Storks, Herons, Ibises and practically^ to 

 any long legged wader. I have onlj given names perfectly well 

 known and in common use in the district. 



The subject of birds imitating other birds' calls is very fascinat- 

 ing. My notes mention a case of the King-crow imitating the 

 Shikra, a performance for which the former is well known among 

 the natives, and which is done deliberately and for a definite object. 

 The Harewa, Jerdon's Chloropsis, goes even one better, following 

 up the sharp cry of the Shikra with an imitation of the alarm and 

 distress note of the common Bulbul, a combination which will 

 drive every bird in hearing into cover. Mr. Tucker had a tame 



