114 THE BIRDS OF CALCUTTA. . 



reverts to vegetarianism ; and how he gets brought 

 up at all under the circumstances is somewhat of a 

 puzzle. There is no doubt whatever that crows 

 hate the old Koels and persecute them literally to 

 the death when they get the chance ; nevertheless, 

 they perform a parent's duties to their offspring 

 when once the supposititious bantling has been 

 safely foisted into the corvine nest. To get this 

 done the male Koel is said to show himself and draw 

 off pursuit while his mate, who is speckled like a hen 

 pheasant and not in the least like him, deposits her 

 egg where it is to receive parental attention. As 

 the said egg is very like a crow's there is no great 

 wonder that it should be hatched as if it were one ; 

 nor can a crow be expected to notice that the change- 

 ling's toes are in pairs, not three in front and one 

 behind, as crows' toes should properly be. But one 

 would expect that when the young bird is fledged 

 its appearance would provoke suspicion. It is 

 not so big as a young crow, and though it is some- 

 times as black as its real or foster-father it generally 

 betrays a certain speckling, more or less according 

 to its sex, of the plumage of its maternal parent ; 

 though even the lightest coloured young hen Koel, 

 by her dark bill and eyes, is easily distinguished from 

 ■her mother, whose ruby eyes and jade-green bill are 

 like those of her husband. Probably, by the time 



