7.3i> JOUIiXAL, BOMBAY NATUIiAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXI. 



then easily raised but during the heat of the day it lies very close 

 and is often flushed with difficultj^ I have known one instance? 

 of one being killed by a horse stepping on it." 



On some occasions, however, even this bird lives up to the 

 general reputation of its familj'- for wariness. Jerdon himself admits 

 that such a bird is sometimes met with and Hume saj-s that in the 

 cold weather when in short grass or young crops the}^ are about! 

 the most difficult bird he knows to get near. 



As might be expected the Likh is rather a favoiirite bird with 

 Falconers ; its habitat, its powers of flight and the ease and fre- 

 quency with which it is found all combining towards this. Jerdon 

 writes: "Its pursuit is consequently a favourite sport, and from 

 the open nature of the ground it frequents, it is well adapted for 

 being hawked. I have killed it occasionally with the Lugger, but 

 generally with the Shaheen, and have already given an account of 

 the manner of hunting it. Shoiild the Shaheen miss her first 

 stoop, I have seen the Florihin accelerate its speed so greatly, that 

 the falcon was unable to come up with it again under 600 yards or 

 so. I have seen one struck dead by the Wokhab, Aquila vindhiana.. 

 I had slipped a Luggur at it, which was in hot pursuit, though at 

 some little distance behind, when two of these Eagles came down 

 from a vast height, and joined in the chase. One of them made 

 a headlong swoop at it, which the Florilin most skilfully avoided,, 

 only, however, to fall a victim to the talons of the other, which 

 stooped almost immediately after its confederate, and dashed the 

 poor bird lifeless to the ground. It had not, however, time to pick 

 it up, for I rode up, and the Eagles soared off" most unwillingly, 

 and circled in the air long above me. The Florihin had its back 

 laid open the whole length." (Jerdon's 111. Ind. Orn. Ic.) 



It would seem a favourite prey of wild as well as tame falcons^ 

 and eagles, for Hume also says that one of the very few specimens- 

 he obtained in the Etawah District was killed by a Bonellis Eagle 

 after he had flushed it. 



The flight of the Syijiheotis aurita is much like that of other- 

 Bustards, but the wing strokes are rather quicker. Blanford saysr 

 " It flies well, with a quicker flight than other Bustards, having,, 

 when flying, a slight but peculiar resemblance to a duck." By 



