554 



THE BIRDS OF THE MADHUBANI SUB-DIVIf^ION OF THE DAR- 



BHANGA DISTRICT, TIRHUT, WITH NOTES ON SPECIES 



NOTICED ELSEWHERE IN THE DISTRICT. 



By C. M. Inglis. 



Part IV. 



{^Continued from page 371 of this Volume^ 



Order— STRIGES. 



Family Strigkl(s, 

 (149) Strix ft.ammea. — The Barn-OwI. 

 Blanford, No. 1152. Hume, No. 60. 

 I have not found it very common, but Scroope says it is so. It at any rate 

 cannot be called rare. I have only taken one clutch of egcs, three in number, 

 which were situated on a pillar, between it, the roof and the wall of the press- 

 house at Narhar. This was on the 21st February 18V'8. Native name 

 Madoosa. 



(150) Strix Candida.' — The Grass-Owl, 

 Blanford, No. 1153. Hume, No. 61. 

 I have found this species decidedly rare. Half a dozen were flushed in a 20 

 biggah grass E. of Jainagar and one shot. Two nests were found in the same grass 

 on the 26th October 18y9, One contained five highly incubated eggs ; three of- 

 the eggs were cracked, and two were saved for my collection. The other nest 

 was empty. Where the eggs were found the grass appeared to have been pressed 

 down for a considerable space round them. Another nest with a single egg 

 was found on the 1st November which was left, but on being visited on 

 the 6th it was found to be deserted and the egg smashed. A bird of this 

 species was caught at Jainagar during some heavy rain, quite unable to fly. 

 I kept it a few d;iys, feeding it on gerbilles {G. indicus). It latterly escaped. 

 In some parts of the district I believe this species is not so rare, often rising 

 in front of the beaters daring a partridge shoot. Their flight is slow and 

 even, they keep their hind legs hanging down. They only fly a few yards 

 and then settle. 



Sub-family Asion'mce. 

 (151) AsiO ACCIPITRINUS. — The Short-eared Owl. 

 Elanfm-d, No. 1 157. Hume, No. 68. 

 This species is scarce. The first specimen was secured in broad daylight, 

 on the 12tb November, seated on a ridgn in a waste field. There was no 

 grass near the place, and the nearest crops were paddy. Its stomach only con- 

 tained the remains of a hard coleopterous insect. On the 17th December 

 eicfht were seen in a good-sized but patchy grass. The birds kept to the 

 ground near the roots ef some small kheir and other thorny trees ; when dis- 

 S u'bed flew into the rahi fields. Tliree were shot, one being a dark-coloured 

 one and the others light. On the 27th January one was snared at Baghownie 

 in a noose set for duck. 



