MISCELLANEOUS^ NOTES. 367 



season. This tank iu particular usually dries up before the end of the cold 

 weather. But supposing such tanks with wells were multiplied over a con- 

 siderable but compact area and were peopled with these small fishes and 

 supposing that the water level rarely sunk below the mouths of the wells and 

 that the fishes continued their peculiar ebullitions throughout the year, it 

 might well happen that the paddy-birds of the area or a certain proportion 

 of them would take to making their living mainly in this fashion and per- 

 haps learn also to take fishes in kingfisher fashion under other conditions too. 

 We might then be able to witness the birth of a new race. The paddy- 

 bird, I imagine, whilfi specialising on frogs, does not disdain to snap up a 

 fish, should one come within its reach. But there is a great difference be- 

 tween this and taking fish in the way which I have described. In the one 

 the bird hunts in shallow water and has its feet on Mother Earth in some 

 form. To launch itself through the air at a prey swimming in deep water 

 is quite another thing. Though the birds did not make as clean an entry 

 as a kingfisher but took rather what at school we used to call " bellyfloppers," 

 they did strike the water beak first in true kingfisher fashion. This method 

 would operate on quite a different set of qualities both of form and func- 

 tion to those brought into prominence by the paddy-bird's usual method of 

 shikar. And it can hardly be doubted that in the course of generations 

 structural and nervous changes would follow upon the continued practice of 

 the new method. 



Mayo College, Ajmek, G. B. F. MUIB, i.c.s. 



UStJi September 191o. 



No. XVI.— FANTAIL SNIPE {GALLINAGO CCELESTIS) BREEDING 

 ON THE TEESTA RIVER. 



Perhaps the following may be of interest to you and others : — To-day the 

 Teesta River is in full flood and whilst I was out in a boat visiting different 

 houses on the deeorah, I came across a piece of grass land that was all but sub- 

 merged, and there flushed a snipe and saw o young ones. As the river was 

 rising and the little bit ©f ground on which the birds were was quickly going 

 under water, I got out of the boat and tried to catch the young ones that 

 could not fly. I got one but unfortunately two ran into the water and were 

 swept away before I could rescue them ; the one I caught I am releasing this 

 evening on the bank of one of the tanks here Avhich has good feeding ground ; 

 and on which one finds many snipe in the cold weather. The little "batcha" 

 is undoubtedly a "Fantail." There was only one parent bird with the 

 young and I only saw three young ones. As I have not found snipe breeding 

 here before I thought it might be of interest to you. 1 mentioned to a gen- 

 tleman in June that I thought I had seen some snipe about and he ridiculed 

 the idea, but now from finding this old one and three young ones I am sure 

 that what I saw at a distance that day were snipe. 



Kakina, p. O. Rungpub. Dist. Bengal, G. H. HODDING. 



l'2th Aiirjitst 191o. 



No. XVII.— EARLY ARRIVAL OF THE SHELDRAKE {TADORNA 

 GORNVTA, Linn.) IN THE DARBHANGA DISTRICT, TIRHUT. 



On the 28th of last month a mirshikar brought me a female sheldrake. It 

 was in wonderfully good condition and was evidently not a wounded bird 

 which had got left behind at the time of migration. A few teal have been 

 noticed flying over for the last three weeks. 



Baghownie Factory, Laheria Sakia, CHAS. M. INGLIS. 



Sth August 191o. 



