6 GLIMPSES OF INDIAN BIRDS 



attention was attracted by a curious grating sound 

 that emanated from the branches immediately over 

 my head. On looking up, I saw a crow-pheasant 

 {Centropus rufipennis) running up a branch in the 

 inimitable manner of his kind. His bright red eye was 

 fixed on me, and he had evidently made up his cuculine 

 mind that " distance lends enchantment to the view " 

 of a human being, and accordingly lost no time in 

 making his exit. 



Scarcely had I lost sight of him when there was a 

 considerable commotion in the pipal tree near by. 

 When running to discover the cause of this I startled 

 half a dozen pipits {Anthus rufulus) that, hidden by 

 the grass, were feeding on the ground. They, as is their 

 wont when frightened, flew into the foliage. Pipits are 

 dull brown birds, streaked like larks, that display tail- 

 wagging propensities. I discovered that the bird 

 making the commotion near the summit of the pipal 

 tree was a vulture. Very large and out of place did it 

 seem struggling among the slender branches with wings 

 spread-eagled. It was tugging away vigorously at a 

 small branch and soon succeeded in breaking it off. 

 Having accomphshed this, it scrambled on to what 

 looked like a large ball of dried leaves and twigs caught 

 in one of the upper branches. This was a nest in course 

 of construction, which the vulture was lining with 

 pipal brandhes. Presently the huge bird flew off, and 

 I was then able to identify it as the white-backed 

 vulture {Pseudogyps bengalensis) . I returned to the 

 mango tree beneath which I had been standing, and 

 in so doing disturbed a bee-eater {Merops viridis) that 



