16 THE BIRDS OF CALCUTTA. 



Wherever our " wandering Pie " — ^as it is called ia 

 some books — goes ia India, it will find poor relatives,, 

 much resembling itself in all but colour, which, 

 for some reason or other, have failed to spread as 

 Dendrocitta rufa has done. At present the problem- 

 defies solution ; but as the distribution of birds 

 generally has been pretty well mapped out by this 

 time, I hope the day is not far distant when ornitho- 

 logists will begin to try and find out the reasons for 

 it — ^why, for instance, one species of a genus should 

 be able to live almost anywhere, as in the present 

 case, while the others have bounds set to their 

 wanderings. 



The European Magpie, sometimes seen as a pet- 

 in Calcutta, where it has been imported from China, 

 is another good case of a successful bird, for it is 

 found all round the Northern Hemisphere, and is 

 still extending its range, having invaded Ireland and 

 become very common there even in human knowledge, 

 though not by any means recently. Even in our 

 Indian Empire it appears in Cashmere and Upper 

 Burma, and the clan of Tree-pies may yet find in it 

 a dangerous competitor, for a bird that is active 

 both below and aloft has advantages which few 

 possess. 



A word seems needed for other exotic Magpies oftea 

 seen in Calcutta as pets. These are the white-backed 



