XXIX 



CRESTS OR TOP-KNOTS 



365 



cranes, which are found in large naral)cr,s around the 

 lake : they tolerate tliem in the villages merely for 

 their beauty. In the (juiet of the evening these birds 

 take up positions on the apex of the huts or on the flat 

 top of a tall tree near the village, perched motionless 

 on one leg, silhouetted against the sky, like sentinels. 



Tlie Helmet-shrike. 



These birds are pretty, very tame, and most amusing 

 when they perform their quaint antics. They dance to 

 meet one another with nodding heads, necks advanced, 

 and wings outspread, bowing and jumping in a 

 grotesque manner. They are as easily approached as 

 fowls in a barn-yard. The Nandi are very fond of the 



