276 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, V<.;. XXL 



No. XXXIX.— RECOVERY OF BIRDS FROM INJURIES. 



On 31st Decemher 1909 while snipe shooting, with a friend, I noticed a 

 Oattle Egret {Bubulcus coromandus) sitting alone on the edge of a swamp. 

 Other egrets were sitting and moving about, but at a little distance from 

 this one which appeared to have a stick protruding from its back. Imme- 

 diately I moved towards the bird, it flew away and its appearance with 

 a mast erect between its wings was quaint. Thinking the bird must be 

 suffering, I called to my companion to shoot the bird which he did. 



The Karens use cross-bows a great deal and some attain a marvellous 

 degree of accuracy with them. This bird, however, was in all probability shot 

 by a fluke while flying. The arrow was of the usual type used for shooting 

 at birds and small mammals — bamboo with hardened point. It was some 20' 

 in length; had penetrated and passed through the abdomen, its exit being- 

 through the sacrum a little above the ischiatic foramina. About 16" of the 

 arrow had passed through the body, we found that the bird must have 



