NOTES ON CERT HI A HIMALAYAN A. 465 



from 2\ feet to 29 feet, but the majority that came under notice were 

 less than 4-| feet from the ground. One nest was placed in a crevice 

 formed by the thick upper roots of a Cedrus deodar a, which had got ex- 

 posed, and was actually below the level of the ground. 



The eggs were not laid on the bare wood, but the crevices or holes were 

 lined with thick masses of small feathers, in which a few pieces of dry grass 

 and straw were occasionally intermingled. In some cases the nests were 

 mere pads of feathers on which the eggs reposed ; in others, the pads were 

 more substantial, and the egg-cavities somewhat deeper. 



The nests were shapeless — exactly like those of the ordinary sparrow — 

 and could not stand removal. 



The nests take roughly about a week or a fortnight to complete, and both 

 the birds help, not only in carrying materials, but also in the building 

 operations. They seem to become very bold at this time, and I have 

 frequently, from within a few feet of the nest, watched them going in and 

 out of a hole with feathers. As the sexes are alike, it is difficult to make 

 accurate observations, but so far as my experience goes, the hen bird alone 

 appears to perform the labours of incubation. She then becomes fearless, 

 and sits very close. I have frequently caught her on the nest. She 

 generally begins to brood after the first or second egg is laid, and the cock 

 feeds her on the nest. The eggs appear to be laid one daily, (I have only 

 been able to put one nest under observation as regards this point), and 

 take from 13 to 14 days to hatch. Both the old birds help in feeding the 

 young, which leave their home in about three weeks, and follow their 

 parents about for some time, and are fed by them. 



The following are some extracts from my daily journal relating to the 

 nidification of this bird : — 



(a) 27th-30th March. — Four fresh eggs. Nest consisting of small 



feathers, straw, etc., and placed in old hole belonging to "Wood- 

 pecker in small Ehododendron tree ; height from ground 9 feet ; 

 elevation 6,900 feet. The old bird was caught in the nest, and 

 released after identification. 



(b) 3rd April. — (i) Four eggs, slightly incubated. Nest a shallow pad 



of feathers placed in crevice formed by two thick branches of a 

 Himalayan Cedar (Cedrus deodara), shooting upwards from main 

 trunk. Height from ground 2^ feet. Elevation 6,200 feet. 



(ii.) Another nest to-day containing five fresh eggs placed in 

 crevice of upper roots of Cedrus deodara, which had got exposed, 

 either through the action of the rain, or by the hill on one 

 side having given way. The nest was a pad of feathers, and 

 was actually below the level of the ground. Elevation 6,800 

 feet. 



(c) 6th April.— Another fresh egg from nest (a). 



