156 H. J. Walton — Notes on birds collected in Kumaon. [No. 2, 



indeed, and as it is precisely in such places that many of the birds are 

 met with, unless one has plenty of time at one's disposal, one is sure to 

 overlook a great many species. The Garhwalis do not seem to take 

 much interest in birds, and they are by no means skilful in marking 

 down those that are shot. I lost a great many birds owing to the diffi- 

 culty of finding them in thick undergrowth. 



The climate of Garhwal, in summer, presents great and sudden 

 variations. As one marches along, it is often very cold on the higher 

 roads, and then, after a steep descent into a low-lying valley, the heat 

 becomes very trying. This, of course, is a good thing in one respect, 

 as the birds met with necessarily vary very much, even in the course of 

 a single march. 



At the beginning of April the weather was cold with a good deal 

 of rain. The latter part of the month of May and the beginning of June 

 were hot and fine. The rains began about the 10th of June, and soon 

 became very heavy indeed. At the end of June and throughout July 

 the birds were very silent : the jungles were wet and slippery and full 

 of small but voracious leeches, and, consequently, not very attractive. 



Nearly all the birds were breeding at the time I visited Kumaon : 

 I regret that I had too little time at my disposal to devote any attention 

 to nests. The choice lay between birds and eggs, and I preferred the 

 former. All the pheasants were breeding or preparing to breed, and 

 had retired into the depths of the jungles, consequently I did not see 

 very many. I was shown a breeding-place of the White-bellied or Snow- 

 pigeon (Columba leuconota) at the lower end of the Mana pass, but on 

 May 20th, the date of my visit, the eggs had not been laid. I hope to 

 receive some from the headman of the neighbouring village, later on. 

 I also saw two breeding sites of the Alpine Swift (Cypselns melba) in rocky 

 precipices above the Alaknanda river, but they were quite inaccessible. 



I left Naini Tal on April 9th, and marching via Almora and 

 Ranikhet, entered Garhwal on April 18th. I went first to Kedarnath, 

 which is about 10,000 feet above sea-level in the north-west of the district. 

 The roads were crowded witli pilgrims on their way to the famous 

 temple. These people come every year from all parts of India, most of 

 them marching up the Ganges valley from Hurdwar, as soon as the 

 fair there is over. I met pilgrims from Hyderabad (Deccan) and Quetta. 

 The pilgrimage season lasts for about six months, and one can only 

 hope that the spiritual benefits received are at all in proportion to the 

 physical discomforts undergone by the pilgrims, many of them very old 

 men and women. It was bitterly cold at Kedarnath, and snowed hard 

 the day I was there (May 4th). 



From Kedarnath I went via Ukhimath and Yoshimath to the 



