308 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXL 



Writing of thirty years ago Col. L. L. Fenton noticed this semi- 

 migratory habit and speaks of their being especially plentiful in 

 the neighbourhood of the Rajkot-Wadhwan Road to the N.-"W. of 

 the Province in the cold weather and increasing greatl}^ in num- 

 bers about Rajkot itself during the rains. Hume deals with this 

 matter very briefly and merely says "It is to a great extent 

 migratory, spending one season of the year in one part of the- 

 country, and moving to another to breed. Thus, for instance, 

 in what used to be called Bhattiana, now the Sind District it is 

 extremely abundant during the rainy season, when it breeds ; 

 whereas, during the cold season, it is comparatively scarce. 

 Further on (p. 12^ Hume quotes Davidson to the following effect 

 " In Poona and Sholapur it is certainly a permanent resident, that 

 is to say, that at all seasons a few may be found in all parts of the 

 Collectorate. I think, however, that more breed in the district 

 than are to be found there in February or March, and that birds 

 come in, in the beginning of rains, to breed and leave when their 

 young are able to fly." 



The Great Indian Bustard usually associates in small flocks. 

 In the cold weather two or three cocks or two or three hens may 

 be seen keeping one another company, but in the breeding season 

 the parties consist as a rule of an old cock bird with his harem of 

 two to six or more wives. Sometimes, however, they collect in 

 large droves. Jerdon says " I have seen flocks of twentj^-five or 

 more, and a writer in the Sporting Revieiv mentions having seen 

 above thirty on one small hill." Mr. E. James also records that 

 on one occasion he counted more than thirt}' birds in a flock and 

 Mr. S. Doig found no less than 34 birds feeding together in one 

 Jamba field. Such flocks as these must, however, be but rare, 

 though droves of 8 or 10 and upwards are often met with. Major 

 A. B. Burton informs me that an officer in the Hyderabad 

 Contingent came across 1 7 birds together in the Raidan Doab, 

 and Major R. W. Burton once saw 19 birds at Tuggali, on the S. 

 M. Railway, East of Guntakul, though on the latter occasion the 

 birds appear to have formed two flocks, one of 6 and one of 13. 

 Numerous other correspondents have met with flocks of 10 or 12. 

 On the other hand, solitary birds are constantly met with at all 



