160 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XI. 



me they were building. On the 18th February I was watching the taking of 

 the eggs of the crimson-breasted barbet (Coppersmith), when I noticed one of 

 these little birds with something in its bill, and this drew my attention 

 towards it. Almost immediately it disappeared into what appeared a dry 

 leaf, but on closer inspection, it resolved itself into a nest, and this nest was 

 built very near the extremity of the branch of a custard-apple tree, on 

 which were numerous dead leaves of about the same colour as the nest. 

 But for seeing the bird enter the nest, I should never have noticed it, although 

 it was quite close to the house. It was about 9 or 10 feet from the ground, 

 and the nest is a beautiful little structure, purse-like in shape, very soft 

 and elastic, being composed of cobwebs and what appears like portions of a 

 flower. I am sorry I cannot give its name, as I do not know it. The nest 

 has an entrance at the side with a regular ledge, apparently for use when the 

 young are hatched. Oates in his " Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds " describes. 

 the nest very well. I took two eggs to-day, 23rd February, as apparently the 

 bird was not going to lay more and had commenced sitting. They are white-, 

 splashed and speckled with pink, the colour forming a zone round the larger 

 end, not unlike miniatures of the common Madras bulbul. I believe Oates. 

 in his classification calls this bird " Piprisoma squalidum" 



R. M. BETHAM, Captain, 



8th Bombay Infantry, 

 Bakoda, 23ri February, 1897. 



No. IX— SMALL GAME OF THE PESHAWAR DISTRICT. 



The following is a list of the small game shot by the Officers of the- 

 Devonshire Regiment, near Peshawar, between 8th September, 1895, and 

 16th April, 1896 :— 



37 mallard. 133 quail. 



105 common teal. 6 blue pigeons. 



4 blue-winged teaL 5 wood pigeons. 



16 pochards. 2 pintail sand-grouse. 



1 marbled teal. 2 large sand-grouse. 



14 shovellers. 3 grey partridges. 



1 smew. 1 chukore. 

 16 gadwall. 33 seesee. 



2 tufted pochards. 5 woodcock. 



1 pintail duck. 1 houbara. 



2 widgeon. 3 bitterns. 

 2,355 snipe. 2 plovers. 



Duck were numerous on the Cabul river, but very wild, as the natives, who 

 all possess guns, were constantly after them. 



Snipes were particularly plentiful from 1st February, and large bags were 

 made, 82£, 52£ and 50 couple being the three best bags made by two guns, 

 and 36 couple to one gun on 16th April. 



