LESSER WHISTLING TEAL 153 



Voice. The note is invariably described as an oft-repeated and regular whistle, 

 uttered when on the wing, and probably the same in both sexes. Hume and Marshall 

 (1879) speak of it as a "double hissing whistled note," and Baker (1908) calls it "not 

 very clear, rather sibilant, and by no means harsh or shrill." Its voice, no doubt, 

 suggested some of the native Indian names, "sili," "silhahi," etc. During the breed- 

 ing season Baker heard the birds giving vent to a low chuckling, not unlike the gar- 

 rulous notes of the Cotton Teal. 



The lower trachea of the male is dilated into a simple symmetrical chamber, and 

 in the female the tracheal rings in the same region are imperfect and filled in by a 

 membrane (Heinroth, 1918). 



Food. Although there are many references to its feeding in paddy fields, and 

 living on a vegetarian diet, the flesh is so constantly disagreeable in taste that it 

 seems likely that the bird indulges in some peculiar animal food, which causes the 

 flesh to become distasteful. The old birds feed on anything and everything, but 

 bring up their young principally on animal food. They graze in the rice-fields, but 

 only when the plants are very young, and they have been seen in cold weather eat- 

 ing the coarse dhub-grass which grows in sandy spots by the edges of tanks (Baker, 

 1908). Legge (1880) and Hume and Marshall (1879) mention their feeding on 

 the matured, cultivated rice, during harvest time. Baker (1908) lays particular 

 emphasis on the fact that they devour large quantities of small fresh-water snails, 

 which may, he thinks, account for the poor flavor of the meat. 



Courtship and Nesting. In India the breeding season varies from the middle 

 of June to the middle of October, but generally falls within the months of July and 

 August (Hume and Marshall, 1879). In more southern regions, where the rains are 

 heavy, the birds breed after the rains; that is, in the early months of the year in 

 Ceylon, excepting in the western part of that island, where the breeding season 

 extends, as in India, from June to August (Legge, 1880; Wait, 1917). In Pegu, July 

 and August are the months of breeding (E. W. Oates, 1883), while in the southern 

 part of the Malay Peninsula, Kelham (1882) found the birds breeding during the 

 rainy season, that is from August and September to January or February. In the 

 Andamans the breeding period seems to be somewhat later than in India, falling in 

 August and September (Osmaston, Journ. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc, vol. 17, p. 491, 

 1907). According to Owston (1899) eggs were found in the Loo-choo Islands on May 

 31st and June 21st. 



As to courtship, nothing appears to be known, beyond what applies to all species 

 of Tree Ducks and has been related for other species. The nests are variously lo- 

 cated, depending largely on the physical characteristics of the region. Almost every 

 kind of location is mentioned by Hume and Marshall (1879) who quote observers to 



