120 
Tii.'o Vultures, 
" I am enclosing two snapshots I took a few weeks ago of vultures, 
" about five miles outside Calcutta. The place is where all dead domestic 
" animals are taken. The bodies of horses and cattle are, after being 
"skinned, converted into manure in a factory erected for the purpose; 
" while those of dogs and cats are thrown away. It is upon these that 
" the vultures feed. At the time of my visit there must have been between 
" two and three hundred of these revolting birds- — in fact there were so 
" man}- that they could not be all got into the ]Mcture at once." 
" 111 the i)lioto the bird nearest the camera is a King or Pondichery 
" Vulture, and another of this species is a little way behind it; but all the 
" rest are White-backed Vultures. Not far away from the vultures are 
■' Pariah Kites, one or two pairs of Brahminy Kites, Crows, and a single 
" ]jair of Adjutant Storks are to be seen." 
In " Glimpses of Indian Birds " Mr. D. Dewar gives 
the following account of the two species : 
" WniTE-B.^CKED Vulture {Pscudogyps bcngaleiisis). This is not a 
" bad-looking bird in its solemn lugubrious way. Its genedal colour is 
" ashy-black — the black of a threadbare coat. Its back is white, but this 
" ns''-'llv pntirelv hidden by the dark wings, and shows merely as a streak 
" of white along the middle of the back. The dark grey head and neck are 
" almost devoid of feathers, and their nakedness is accentuated bf a ruff or 
" collar of whitish feathers. The bareness of the head makes the large 
" booked beak 'ook longer and bigger than it really is. The bird is 
" nearly a yard long." 
" PoNDiCHKRY VuLTURE (0/ogyps calvus). A yet finer bird. The 
" back and ways are glossy black, relieved by white patches on the thighs. 
" Its bare head and neck are yellowish-red, and there is a wattle of this 
" colour on each side of the head. This bulture, unlike the last species, 
'■ is solitary, and is called the " King \^u!lure " because when it comes 
" to a carcase, all the vulgar herd of smaller vultures, kites and crows, 
" give way before it. and, as a rule, are afraid to approach until this regal 
" bird has had its fill." 
" Vultures build huge structures of nests high U]) in lofty trees, and 
" like srmd martins, rear their young in the winter." 
A few days after their arrival I erected temporary 
quarters, each enclosure being" lofty and some 8ft. x 6ft., in a 
large shed, and turned into them the three Pondicherrys, 
placing the White backed in a vacant harness-room. They 
came through the winter well and are now fine specimens, 
though not as yet fully developed. 
