ELANUS. 179 



were built near the top of low thorny trees growing in grass-bei'ihs, 

 at heights varying from 9 feet to 15 feet from the ground. The 

 nests are not difficult to discover if the birds are watched in the 

 breeding-season (although I never saw a pair in the act of building), 

 as either one or both of the old birds are invariably to be found ou 

 guard, sitting on some low tree near the nest ; and after observing 

 them in the same place once or twice you may be pretty sure that 

 there is a nest at no great distance, and if you examine every 

 conspicuous thorny tree within a radius of 150 yards from the tree 

 the birds frequent you are almost certain to discover the nest. 

 The old bird sits very closely, and will often allow several stones 

 to be thrown up and the tree to be shaken violently before leaving 

 the nest. The eggs vary in number from three to four. One or 

 two of my specimens show a great deal of white. 

 " August 6th. A nest containing 4 fresh eggs. 

 „ 14tb. „ „ 3 



,, „ „ „ 3 young birds about 10 days old. 



„ 18th. „ „ 3 fresh eggs. 



„ 3Gth. ,„ „ 4 „ 



" The nest taken on the 30th was built by the same pair of birds 

 whose nest was robbed on the 5th inst., and it was built on a tree 

 only about 350 yards from the first nest. In one or two nests 

 there was a scanty lining of dry grass." 



Captain J. H. Tule has favoured me with the following interesting 

 note on this species : — " About Poena they are \ ery common, and 

 I give you the dates of the nests I have taken this year, since I 

 began collecting : — 



" February 2nd. 4 young. 

 June 16th. 4 eggs. 

 „ 21st. 4 eggs. 



July 1st. 1 egg. 



„ 3rd. Nest, but did not get up to it, bird sitting. 



„ 14th. 1 egg. 



„ 19th. 4 eggs out of nest. I took one on the Ist. 



„ 29tli. Young. 



August 17th. 2 nests, 4 eggs each. 

 Sept. 4th. 3 eggs. 



Oct. 10th. 5 eggs. 



" The nests were rather loosely made, lined with dry grass, and 

 placed generally on a thin branch, from 12 to 20 feet from the 

 ground. 



" They were nearly all on babool-trees, two or three on another 

 thorny tree in thin jungle, and one on a small mango-tree. In 

 most cases the eggs could be seen through the nest from below." 



Mr. J. Davidson writes from the Sholapoor District : — " It may 

 perhaps interest you or some of your readers to know that E. ccera- 

 letts bred here twice this season. The bird used to be a rare one 

 in the district, but since the famine a very great deal of laud has 

 returned to its pristine condition, and this little Kite is kow the 

 commonest bird o£ prey. In April, when I came back here, I found 



12* 



