ERISMATURA LEUCOCEPHALA. 257 



in a quiet way for some ten yards. Its appearance, whilst swimminor 

 with its tail upturned, was most peculiar. I tried to frighten it into 

 flving, but it would not rise ; so I shot it whilst swimming." 



Mr. Hume thought records of this bird would soon come to hand after 

 this was written, and with reason, for " within a few months of this pre- 

 diction Mr. F. Field shot an immature bird of this species close to the 

 Civil Station of Ludhiana. This was on the 28th October, 1880.'' (The 

 bird already recorded.) " On the 21st January, 1882, Mr. Chill obtained 

 an immature male of this species near the Najafgarh jheel (approximately 

 lat. 29° N., long. 77° E.), and now, again, another near the same locality 

 on the 28th October of the same year. 



'• Since this was written, Mr. Lean, of the 5th Bengal Cavalry, informs 

 me that he has just shot a duck of this species in the Philibheet district." 



Again, in the same volume of ' Stray Feathers/ appears a note by 

 Mr. Chill, dated 8th February, 1883: "On the 27th December last, 

 I sent you in a tin box an Evhmatura levcocephala. Since that I have 

 managed to purchase two more of that species — one a cat took away, and the 

 other I have got stuffed.'' These were apparently got near Faruknagar, 

 near Delhi. 



About this time (February 1883) Mr. Bomford also got a specimen on 

 the Indus, at Multan, Keengurh. 



From this time none are recorded until Lieut. Burke shot one at 

 Halkote in February 1891. 



The next recorded specimen was not met with until almost exactly 

 two years later, when, in the ' Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of 

 Bengal,' occurs the following note by Mr. Finn : — " {Erismatura leuco- 

 rej>Juda.') The present individual w^as sent to the Editor of the Asian 

 newspaper by Captain H. R. Davis, who stated (Asian, Feb. 14th, 1896) 

 that it was shot by Captain E. D. White, 52ud Light Infantry, at 

 Bettiah, near Hardoi, between Lucknow and Bareilly. It is in heavy 

 moult and quite incapable of flight, which, considering the time of its 

 occurrence, is rather surprising, and almost looks as if the species might 

 lie somewhere resident within our limits." 



It is mentioned in the list of l)irds in Mr. W. R. Lawrence's recently 

 pul)lished work on the ' Valley of Kashmir ' as having occurred in that 

 country. 



Yet again, in 1890, but on December 27th, Major J. (!. P. Onslow, R.E., 

 shot two, and Mr. H. B. Campbell one of these ducks, in the Ganges, 

 Kadur, about twenty miles south of Kadur. 



S 



