THE BLACK-BREASTED OR RAIN QUAIL, 1 57 



a nest with the bird sitting on it. As the nest was distinctly a 

 Quail's, I think their putting additional eggs in out of some 

 other Quail's nest very unlikely, as by that they simply got the 

 reward for one nest, instead of two. 



" One thing about these Quails I noticed was the enormous 

 number of nests that are destroyed. I hardly ever walked out 

 without discovering broken eggs lying about ; but what animal 

 was the culprit I never could be sure, though I suspect the 

 Common Crow Pheasant and a large lizard are generally the 

 offenders. 



" The nests were of the most rudimentary description, a slight 

 hollow with a few blades of grass or Jowari laid in it formed the 

 whole concern, and in some cases even this was wanting, and the 

 eggs were laid in a hollow in the bare ground. 



" The first eggs I obtained were two nests on the 9th August 

 containing five and eight fresh eggs respectively. 



" The last, also containing five fresh eggs, was obtained on 

 the 2nd October, but this was probably owing to a former nest 

 being destroyed." 



" Since the above was written I have found them breeding in 

 the Deccan from the first week of August until late in Novem- 

 ber, according as the monsoons were late or early, full or scant. 

 In the Panch Mahals they bred early in August in 1878, and I 

 saw young birds about in the beginning of September." 



Captain Butler again says : — " I found nests of the Rain Quail 

 at Deesa on the following dates, 1876 : — 



August 5th a nest containing 6 fresh eggs. 



>> 



6th 



»> 



» 



7 



» 



a 



5) 



10th 



a 



j> 



9 



j> 



»» 



J5 



13th 



5> 



» 



6 



» 



J» 



M 



17th 



j> 



» 



9 



» 



JJ 



n 



17th 



j» 



» 



5 



j> 



)J 



» 



1 8th 



» 



» 



6 



)» 



» 



3) 



19th 



» 



» 



7 



>» 



» 



" In addition to these nests, I saw several others in September. 

 All of the above were in grass preserves, and consisted of a 

 slight depression in the ground scratched by the birds them- 

 selves, with, in some instances, a scanty lining of short pieces of 

 dry grass." 



The eggs of this species are excessively variable both in colour 

 and size, but I observe that all the eggs of one clutch are, in the 

 vast majority of cases, not only similar in shape and type of 

 colouration, but also very uniform in size. So much so is this the 

 case that I mixed up eight clutches (every egg dated), and then 

 without once referring to the dates picked out each clutch merely 

 by the look of the eggs without a single mistake. No doubt in 

 some few clutches one, two, or more eggs of a different type to 

 that of the rest, do occur. These, I believe, must have been laid 

 by other birds and not by the hen to which the nest belonged. 



