176 FALOONID^. 



In size the eggs vary from 1-9 to 2-35 inches in length, and from 

 1'55 to 1-85 inch in breadth ; but the average of 273 eggs measured 

 was 2-19 by 1-77 inch. 



Milvus affinis, Gould. The Smaller House-Kite. 

 Milvus affinis, Gould, Hume, Cat. no. 56 ter. 



Of the Smaller House-Kite, Mr. Gates writes : — " Nests com- 

 monly throughout all Pegu. Usually three eggs. From 3rd week 

 in January to end of March. The nest answers well to Mr. Hume's 

 description of that of M. govinda. Average of 12 eggs 2'09 by 1'63 ; 

 in length they vary from 2-2 to 2-0, and in breadth from 1'75 to 

 1'55 ; the egg-liniug is bright green ; the shell tolerably smooth 

 and glossless ; ground-colour dull white, and all the eggs I have 

 are marked and blotched with rust-colour, bright in the majority, 

 but pale in a few. The marks are reduced to mere specks in one 

 or two eggs." 



Mr. W. Davison tells us: — "I obtained two eggs of this Kite 

 at Moulmein on the 5th of January. In appearance they are 

 quite similar to many of those of M. govinda, and, as is not un- 

 frequently the case with Kites' eggs, though both were taken from 

 the same nest they are ' very dissimilar in appearance — one being 

 blotched and spotted, but only at the large end, with a dark umber- 

 brown, some of the spots and blotches being almost black ; the rest 

 of the egg is sparsely spotted and blotched (but the blotches are 

 small) with a paler brown. The markings on the egg, which are 

 also at the large end, consist of a medley of streaks and scratches 

 and irregular spots of a rusty brown, the whole of the remainder 

 of the surface being covered with numerous scratches of a very 

 pale inky purple and a few very faint spots of a paler rusty brown. 

 These two eggs measure 2-11 by 1'71 and 2-08 by 1'7. 



" The nest, the usual shallow saucer of dry twigs, &c., was placed 

 in a moderately high tree about 30 feet from the ground." 



Except that thej are rather smaller and, as a rule, rather more 

 poorly marked, the eggs of this race or species are so precisely 

 similar to those of M. govinda that any separate description is 

 needless. 



Milvus melanotis, Temm. & Schleg. The Jungle-Kite. 



Milvus major, Hume ; Hume, Rough Draft N. 8^ E. no. 56 bis. 

 Milvus melanotis, T. 8f S., Hume, Cat. no. 56 bis. 



The Jungle-Kite lays in the Himalayas from January to the 

 beginning of May. 



They build large stick-nests, similar in every respect apparently 

 to those of the House-Kite and placed like theirs on trees. I have 

 obtained the eggs from Kooloo, Busahir, Koomarsain, and other 

 portions of the hills, north, north-east, and north-west of Simla. 

 Mr. Brooks obtained the eggs in Kashmere in May. 



