280 BOMBAY DUCKS 
vultures feeding on the carcass, to say nothing of a 
rabble of crows. The scavenger vulture adopts a differ- 
ent procedure. There are in every town in the East 
certain places where its food is almost invariably to 
be found; these it visits in turn. It is a good flier, 
and when seen upon the wing looks quite a respectable 
fowl. The under parts of its wings appear pure white 
in the sunlight, and the black border gives them a 
finish, 
The nest of the scavenger vulture is in keeping with 
the character of the bird. It is a mass of sticks, dirty 
rags, and other rubbish heaped together anyhow. It is 
sometimes placed on a stout forked bough of a large 
tree ; more often it is to be found on a building. 
For many years some of the Madras WVeophrons have 
utilized the steeple of the Scotch kirk as their nursery. 
As soon as one pair of vultures has brought up its 
family, the site is seized by another couple; hence, 
during most of the cold weather a lady vulture is to be 
seen “sitting” high up in the steeple. 
This species seems rarely to lay more than two eggs. 
Frequently, as in the illustration, one only is laid. The 
egg is the solitary beautiful thing connected with 
scavenger vultures. Its colour is dark red or crimson, 
richly blotched with russet. These hues, alas! wash off. 
The bird will have nothing to do with cleanliness in any 
shape or form; if you want to keep her eggs you must 
have them unwashed. Yet even this most degraded of 
birds is not without its virtues. The hen scavenger is 
a good mother. It takes a lot to make her leave the 
nest. The bird at the kirk allowed Captain Fayrer and 
