B4 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol.X. 



small pigeon of a greenish-bronze colour, but I did not shoot one ; so 

 am unable to identify it. In the river there is very good mahseer 

 fishing, the best runs being towards Aladand and almost opposite 

 Chakdara. Many fish were killed, the biggest 23 lbs., all with a spoon. 

 When I was in the Swat Valley about the 7th April, the river was 

 fairly clear, though the water rose every afternoon owing to the melting 

 snow ; but I should say that little fishing could be done there after 

 the third week in April. I am told that chikor, seesee, and black 

 partridge are to be found on the lower slopes of the hills enclosing 

 the Swat Valley. After crossing the Swat the road lay up the valley 

 to Uch and then through the Katgola Pass. The hills over which we 

 passed were covered with wild mint ; a few pine trees were to be seen 

 for the first time, walnuts and chinass being abundant. On some of 

 the hills there was considerable cover of wild roses and korindah 

 bushes, but I was told that beyond a few black partridge and chikor 

 there was nothing on the hills. At Serai (first called Gunbat) there 

 were a good number of black partridge and hares about. Here the 

 road lay downwards through the Shamshi Khan Pass on to the Panjkora 

 River. Few birds were to be seen but the common stone-chat and the 

 king-crow. In the Shamshi Khan Pass we first came upon a species 

 of holly which covers the sides of the hills in the Barant, Dir, 

 and Kunar Valleys. At Sado on the Panjkora Eiver there were a few- 

 quails in the cultivation and I put up one jack snipe. The Panjkora 

 is a very rapid stream, and as it comes straight from the snows, it is at 

 this time of year (I5th April) very dirty. A few trout were taken 

 with atta and a worm, but they were mostly under half a pound. 

 No doubt in the season there would be very good mahseer fishing. 



There is cultivation along the banks of the Ushiri River, the whole 

 way to Mundia Khan (now called Mundah), the Fort of Umra Khan in 

 the J andoul Valley, and which is situated on the Jandoul River, a tribu- 

 tary of the Ushiri. Here we managed to get some very good fishing, 

 mahseer being killed up to 22 lbs. while I was there, and since I hear 

 of one weighing 40 lbs. There are some splendid runs, and no doubt 

 many fish come up the Ushiri when the Panjkora is so thick. Most of 

 the successful fishermen used a silver spoon about 2" to 2^" long, but I 

 got five fish weighing 43 lbs,, biggest 18 lbs., on a 1^" gilt fly-spoon. 

 The oriole, king-crow and common mynah with the wire-tailed swallow 



