824 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXIV. 



No. XII.— BREEDING OF THE BANDED CRAKE (RALLINA 

 S UPER CILIARIS) . 



The Fauna <\f British India says about this bird : — '•' Its summer quarters 



and breeding haunts are unknown Nothing certain is 



known of the niditication." Since this was written, however, Mr. T. R. 

 Bell and Major Betham have found nests of this Crake near Poona and 

 Karwar respectively, and have given detailed descriptions of the nests and 

 eggs on pages 180, 393 and 813 of Vol. XIV of this Journal. 



So far as I am aware no one has reported the bird as breeding north of 

 Bombay, so that an account of a nest found recently by me near Dehra 

 Dun will perhaps be of interest. 



On July 10, while exploring a small nala about a mile from Dehra, full 

 of exceedingly dense jvingie consisting of various shrubs and brambles, I 

 came on a nest of this bird in the middle of a low thick bush. The nest 

 was 4 feet from the ground, composed of dead leaves and a few sticks with 

 a slight depression in the centre. The bird was sitting on the nest. 



On my advancing my hand in the direction of the nest, the bird, instead 

 of making off, stood up on the nest puffed out her feathers and pecked 

 viciously at my hand. Having done this, she sat down again on the eggs. 

 I again put out my hand, with the same resiilt, and this was repeated 

 several times, the bird refusing to leave her eggs. I then pushed mj^ hand 

 under her, while she stood up and delivered a series of good hard pecks 

 which were not altogether pleasant. I took 4 eggs from under her and 

 having examined them, returned 2, leaving her sitting on the remaining 

 5 esgs. 



When I got home, finding that the niditication of this bird was not 

 recorded in the Fauna of British India, I decided to take the remaining 

 eggs, which I did in the following day, though I was very loth to do so, 

 after the extraordinary bravery displayed by the parent bird. On my 

 second visit on the following day the bird did not wait for me to put out 

 my hand but left the nest, walking along a b^'anch in my direction and 

 opened the attack by pecking me on the hand. She then returned to 

 the nest and settled down on her eggs again. 



I have seen very many incubating birds but never one which exhibited 

 such extraordinary pluck and pugnacity. All the time she was delivering 

 her attacks she gave vent to a peculiar low noise somewhat resembling 

 the swearing of a cat. The eggs, seven in number, were slightly incubated, 

 pale creamy white, close in texture, with a fair amount of gloss, and 

 measvire about 1'4" X 1'05". 



B. B. OSMASTON, i.f.s. 

 Dehra Dux, U.P., July, 1916. 



No. XIIl.— OCCURRENCE OF THE BAY-BACKED SHRIKE (LANIUS 

 VITTATUS, Val.) AND THE LATE STAY OF THE SHEL- 

 DRAKE {T ADORN A CORNUTA, Gmel.) IN THE DARBHANGA 

 DISTRICT, BEHAR. 



On the 30th of last month I got a specimen of the Bay-backed Shrike 

 (Lanius nttatus). This is the first time I have ever come across this bird 

 here, though I have been collecting now for many years. 



Sheldrake (Tadorna cornuta) are far from common birds in the District. 

 I have heard of one being bagged this last cold weather. On the 12th of 

 this month one was obtained here, a fine drake with an exceedingly well 

 developed knob on his bill. The bird was by itself iu a small patch of 



