SOME COMMON INDIAN BIRDS. 147 



reminds one very much of the Jackdaw, but his altogether 

 heavier build and dark eyes distinguish him from that bird. 

 His soft and glossy plumage of purple and green reflections, 

 grey neck, and black cap, all tend to make him a beautiful bird. 

 The House-Crow breeds from April to July, and, as well as 

 having to rear its own brood, it often has in addition to bring up 

 the young of the Koel (Eudynamis honorata), a parasitic Cuckoo 

 that deposits its egg in the Crow's nest. The Crow is very fond 

 of sipping the juice out. of the pots of toddy, or native liquor, and 

 occasionally becomes a victim to intemperance, and in this state 

 falls into the hands of his most dreaded enemy, man, who is not 

 slow to take advantage of the bird's helpless condition, and pay 

 it out for old scores. One poor bird was once found by my people 

 which had the lower mandible cut off by some rascally native, 

 and it was hand-fed for some time on sopped bread. 



Common Indian Magpie (Dendrocitta tufa) . — Though not such 

 a bold and cunning thief as its relative the Crow, the Magpie is 

 not above petty larceny and murder. Dr. Jerdon tells of one 

 which used to visit daily a cage of small birds he had in his 

 verandah. It at first only fed on the seed given to the birds, but 

 apparently tiring of this fed on the birds themselves, and was 

 for this misdeed promptly executed. I myself have often watched 

 it feeding on callow nestlings, and it is also very partial to garden 

 produce, such as peas, beans, and fruit of all kinds ; but its chief 

 diet is the eggs of numerous small birds. Unlike our English 

 Magpie, the Indian bird seldom descends to the ground, but con- 

 fines its movements to the leafy foliage of trees, and is far oftener 

 heard than seen, its note sounding like " kook a lee." Unlike the 

 English bird also, it makes no dome to its nest, though fond of 

 building in similar situations, such as thorny trees and shrubs. 



Common Mynah (Acridotheres tristis). — I can never understand 

 why Linnaeus gave the specific name of tristis to this bird, as it 

 is quite a libel on the bird's whole nature, for, far from being sad 

 or melancholy, it is one of the most active and cheerful of our 

 Indian birds. It is very likely Linnseus's description might have 

 been taken from a stuffed specimen, and if such was the case 

 then perhaps the bird as he saw it might well have looked sad 

 and melancholy. The generic name Acridotheres, i.e. "grass- 

 hopper-catcher," is much more appropriate, as the bird consumes 



