104 Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. [March, 



V, — Ornithological notes, chiefly on some hirds of Central, Western 

 and Southern India ; by W. T. Blanford, F. Gr. S., C. M. Z. S. 

 (Abstract.) 



Mr. W, T. Blanford said that it was unnecessary to take up the 

 time of the meeting by reading- the paper in detail ; it consisted 

 chiefly of notes on the distribution, breeding, and habits of some of the 

 less known birds of India. Since the publication of Dr. Jerdon's 

 invaluable work, by far the most important publication on Indian 

 Zoology ever printed, the study of Indian birds had been very greatly 

 facilitated, and it became now an object to complete the information 

 concerning them. In several instances, many of them pointed out 

 by Dr. Jerdon, additional data were required, especially concerning 

 distribution. Mr. Blanford had had rather favorable opportunities, 

 when travelling about India on the duties of the Geological Survey, 

 of seeing the fauna of different parts of the country, and he only re- 

 gretted that he had not taken more complete notes. 



As an instance of the interest of the subject, he would point out that 

 he had been able to add several additional observations to those already 

 recorded on the differences between both the migratory and non- 

 migratory birds of Eastern and Western India, employing the name 

 India in the way in which it is generally understood in India, and 

 not in that in which it is equally generally misunderstood in Europe, 

 and restricting it to the Cis-G-angetic Peninsula. Thus the common 

 red-breasted fly-catcher of Bengal, Erythrosterna leucura, was not met 

 with at Nagpur, while the European E. parva abounded. In the same 

 way Saxicola opistholeuca and S. atroyularis, Circus cyaneus and 

 Emberiza Huttoni were all found at Nagpur, or at Chanda still further 

 south, not one of which has been met with in Bengal. On the other 

 hand, Mr. Blanford had never seen a specimen of Circus melanoleucos 

 or of Oallinago stenura in Central or Western India. They might 

 occur, but probably only as stragglers, as neither appears hitherto to 

 have been recorded. 



Some of the non-migratory birds also, especially those which are 

 Malay forms, do not appear to have so wide a range as is generally 

 supposed. Thus neither Carpophaga sylvatica, nor any species of 

 Osrnotreron appear to be found in the great forests of the Lower 

 Nerbudda and Taptee vallies. Mr. Blanford had been throughout 



