1158 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XX. 



laid : the eggs are longer in shape and much less speckled than those of 

 Tnbura luteiventris or Tribura mandellii. 



Merula maxima. — Central Asian Black-bird. — Several pairs were seen at 

 13,000 feet and over, and several nests with young, the eggs must have 

 been laid early in May, when the whole place was under deep snow. 

 However, I was lucky enough to find one pair building in June and on the 

 21st got a fine clutch of four from the nest, securing the birds. Their 

 dimensions are somewhat larger than given in the Birds of India, the male 

 being 12 inches long, wing 6*25, tarsus 1*55, bill from gape l - 25 and the 

 eggs are larger than those I have seem from Cashmere. All the nests 

 seen were massive structures of dry herbage and grass with a little earth 

 on the foundation and very thickly lined with fine grass. They were all 

 placed on ledges of rock, sometimes quite unconcealed, but the birds were 

 very wary in approaching them. It is curious that the existence of this 

 bird should have been overlooked in these parts, as it is fairly common and 

 much in evidence, both from its frequenting the open and from its rattling 

 alarm call. 



Adelura cceruleicephala. — Blue-headed Robin. — I got three nests of this 

 bird, each with four fresh eggs, or from 10 to 11,000 feet in the last 

 fortnight of May. They were all placed in banks and concealed by 

 drooping grasses. The eggs are as described by Wardlaw Ramsay of a 

 dull cream colour with a darker zone. The birds are very wary, while 

 building the male appearing to be always on guard, anyhow I never saw him 

 assisting in building : the female sits very close, once the eggs are laid, 

 and we could never find a nest by searching, the only chance was to find 

 a pair building, which was not at all easy, and I consider these nests as 

 among the most difficult to find. Great numbers of these birds were 

 passing up the Bhaghirathi Valley in April, and it would seem they do not 

 all remain to breed in these valleys. 



Ruticilla frontalis. — Blue-fronted Redstart. — This was a common nest 

 from 11 to 13,000 feet ; it has, of course, been recorded before, but I found 

 one nest building in a cavity in a birch tree, quite 20 feet up, and on June 

 5th, I took the eggs (3) and secured the bird, it being such an unusual 

 position for the nest of this bird, all the numerous nests I have seen 

 having been on the ground, usually sheltered by an overhanging bank, 

 stone, or grass tuft. 



Grandala ccslicolor. — Hodgson's Crandala. — On July loth we found a nest 

 with two young at 16,700 feet, it was placed under a ledge of rock at the 

 top of a snow bank and was very neatly built of fine moss with a lining of 

 leathers, a rather large nest, 9 inches across, internally 3J- inches. The 

 eggs must have been laid by June 15th, when the place would have been in- 

 accessible from snow. The nest was discovered by seeing the female 

 catching little white moths in the grass and flying oft' with them, but it 



