MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 6H7 



Li conclusion I may add that during the 18 years that I have been studying 

 the birds of Burma, I have only met with the Finfoot on four occasions; the first 

 was in Tomigoo in 1903, the next in North Arakan in 1909, and last on two 

 occasions at the same place near the head-waters of the Tavoy river in 1918 and 

 1919. In every case the bird was solitary on a jungle stream in heavily wooded 

 country. Although I once travelled through the area where Messrs. Smith and 

 Marlow have found the nests I did not see the bird, nor have I ever met with it 

 on the comitless swamps, marshes and lakes I have visited in pm-suit of water- 

 fowl and their nests. 



CYRIL HOPWOOD, m.b.o.u. 

 Maymyo, 

 I9,th August 1920. 



No. XV.— NEST OF NAKTA OR COMB DUCK {S. MELANONOTUS). 



{With a plate.) 



The accompanying photograph of a Nakta's nest containing 47 (forty- so ven) 

 eggs may interest you. As the eggs were in two layers, they are not all sliovvn 

 in the photograph. The height of the nest from the ground was about 25 ft., 

 the entrance to it — not shown — on the far side of the branch some 4 ft. above 

 the eggs. 



I regret to say I took the eggs as there was no point in leaving them after having 

 laid open the nesting hole with a tomahawk before a crowd of villagers. I also 

 wished to determine the stage of incubation and to make use of them in other 

 ways. On placing them in a basin of water 1 noticed that except for about a 

 dozen fresh ones, the remainder were all in about the same stage of incubation 

 first standing on end at the bottom of the basin — none floating. I should say 

 they had been sat on for 10 — 13 days. From this it would appear that two or 

 three females had laid in this nesting hole, if not more. Thirteen eggs, taken 

 at random from the incubated ones, I had placed imder a hen. Of these the 

 man entrusted with them broke four by accident, the remaining nine hatched 

 out into strong chicks on the same day — August 26th (after 13 days' incubation). 

 They are now (Oct. 6th) very strong and vigorous yoimg ducks. 



It may also interest you to know that within a 100 yards of this nest, on a 

 small village tank, a single tree of moderate size contained the nests and eggs 

 of the following six species of birds : — 



White-necked Storks (one nest at the top). Dissura episcopus. 



Open-bill Storks. Anostomus oscifans 



Snakebirds, Plotus melanogaster. 



White Ibis. Ihis melanocephala. 



Great Egret. Herodias alba. 



Lesser Egret. Herodias intermedia. 



T. R. LIVESEY. 



KOTAH, RaJPUTANA, 



6th October 1920. 



Writing again from Kotah on November 5th, Mr. T. R. Livesey says : — 

 As you were interested in my Nakta ducks perhaps you would care to hear 



again how they are. I have now 5—3 males and 2 females— the other 2 pairs 



having been given away to Mrs. Martin at Baroda. 



