THE BIRDS OF NORTH CACHAR. 223 



solitary bamboo, amongst which are also a few trees, nearly all very 

 old and rotten and full of hollows. Passing one of these trees I heard 

 a loud hissing, but so well screened was the tree by the surrounding 

 jungle that it was some time before I could make out the bright chest- 

 nut head of a small owl peering out of a large hollow only just above 

 my head. I, of course, sent a man up to find out whether there were 

 eggs, and on his reporting that there were three of them, went after 

 the bird and shot it. The eggs, spherical as usual, are rather large for 

 the bird, measuring 1-35"X1'23"; l'35"x 1*16", and I*34"Xl*12". They 

 were hard set and extremely stained and dirty, no amount of washing 

 reduced them to anything approaching whiteness. They were taken 

 on the 18th of April. 



I was much surprised to find this bird breeding in a bamboo jungle, 

 as they keep so much to heavy tree forest, outside of which they are 

 but rarely met with. From the cast up pellets I have examined, 

 Photodilus badius seems to feed almost entirely on small mammals, 

 birds, and reptiles, and I have seen hardly any remains of insects. 



Beyond the hissing of the bird I heard on the nest, and a low 

 chuckle given by it when alighting on a tree close by, and which I 

 again heard when going after another specimen, I have not heard 

 them utter any sound ; but the natives assure me that it gives vent to 

 the most awful shrieks and screams on dark nights, keeping, generally, 

 more quiet on moonlight ones. A noise I heard one night which 

 sounded like a number of cats, with unusually powerful voices, fighting 

 amongst one another, was said to have been caused by a pair of these 

 owls, but I failed in my attempt to get a shot, so I cannot be certain 

 about the matter. 



(486) Asio accipitrinus. — The Short-eared Owl. 

 Hume, No. 68. Blanford, No. 1157. 



I have not yet seen a specimen of this owl from Cachar, but one was 

 obtained from North-East Cachar by Inglis {vide " Strav Feathers," 

 Vol. XI). 



(487) Syenium indbani. — The Brown Wood Owl. 

 Hume, Nos. 63, 64. Blanford, No. 1160. 



A rare bird in Cachar of which I know little. I should think it 

 probable that the shrieks attributed by Layard and others to the 

 Brown Wood Owl may be made by birds of the genus Photodilus. 



