4 Notes on the Nidification of Indian Birds. [July, 



gliding to her aid from the opposite bank of the river. The two 

 then charged together towards the nest with the rage and fierceness of 

 despair, and so terrified the man in the tree, hampered as he was with 

 the young ones, that had I not fired at and wounded the Eagles as 

 they advanced, they would assuredly have hurled him into the river. 

 In this manner however, after repeated attempts to come to the rescue, 

 we managed at last to drive them off, and secure the booty. At the end 

 of 5 weeks the young ones exhibited as nearly as possible the plumage 

 of the bird figured by Hardwicke and Gray as " H. lineatus."* 



No. 2. — [ <( Epkialtes scops" (L.) : 



E. spilocephalus, Blyth, (a large specimen in 

 immature plumage). 



Scops pennata, Hodgson (grey variety) : 

 Sc. sunia, Hodgson (rufous variety.)]. 



This species occurs on the Himalaya in the neighbourhood of Mus- 

 sooree, at an elevation of about 5,000 feet, and nidificates in hollow 

 trees, laying 3 pure white eggs, of a rounded form, on the rotten wood, 

 without any preparation of a nest. Diameter of egg 1 T 3 ¥ * 1 ins. The 

 nest was found on the 19th March. 



In the 169th number of the J. A. S. for 1846, Mr. Blyth has 

 named and described this species as " Epkialtes spilocephalus," giving 

 " Noctua auribarbis" and " Athene badia" of Hodgson, as doubtful 

 synonymes.f In plumage and aigrettes the bird is to all appearance a 

 Scops or Epkialtes, — but the wing is that of Noctua or Athene, having 

 the 4th and 5th feathers longest — whereas in Scops, as laid down by 

 Mr. Hodgson in J. A. S. No. 65 of 1837,— the 3d and 4th are longest. 

 Mr. Gray, in his Catalogue of the collection presented by Mr. Hodg- 

 son to the British Museum, gives " N. auribarbis" of that naturalist 

 as a synonyme of " Athene cuculoides" of Vigors, — but it seems scarce- 

 ly probable that Mr. Hodgson would have placed his " auribarbis" 



* Mr. G. R. Gray, in his Catalogue of Mr. Hodgson's specimens presented to the 

 British museum, erroneously gives H. lineatus as a synonyme of the common Kite of 

 India : but the Kites are closely allied to the Hali'deti, and immediately connected with 

 them by the interposition of Haliastur. The ferocity of the Indian Kite when it has 

 young in its nest must have been remarked by most residents in this country. — E. B. 



t Noctua auriburbis, Hodgson, is now referred by Mr. G. R. Gray (as mentioned 

 above) to Atltene cuculoides, and Alh. badia doubtfully as the young of Ath. Brod'm, 

 -E. B. 



