944 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXVIII. 
From the smallness of these birds they must belong to the eastern race parvi- 
frons with which they well agree. Grant (Ibis. 1915, p. 47) in a revdew of races 
of the Water-hen gives as the measurements of this race: 155-175; $, 159- 
162. Our birds come well -vvithin these measurements, in fact the two females 
are smaller than his minimum. 
It is interesting to find this race so far west and it is in keeping with what 
we know about the occurrence of not a few other eastern races in our area. 
315. Coot. Fulica atra. “ Dijaj Mai.” 
FiiUoa aim, L. (Syst. Xat., 1758, p. 152 — Sweden). 
In its general distribution the Coot is very common in winter in all the marshes 
and inundations while parties may be met with on the rivers right down to Fao. 
Probably many are winter visitors but in some places, at all events it breeds. 
Thus Pitman found many breeding in the marshes west of Museyib near the 
Barrage in June and on the 9th found a clutch of five incubated eggs ; in July, 
August and September he saw many adults and young ones. Buxton met with 
several on the Hamar Lake on May 19th so it is quite likely that it breeds there 
also. Livesay also obtained eggs, probably in the Euphrates marshes. 
Magi-ath records that the Coots were very tame and familiar and used to swim 
round when “ Tommy ” was bathing and pick at the soap suds. The bridge of 
boats at Samarra was a constant source of annoyance to the flock of coots which 
used to live all day above it ; the current drifted them down to the bridge whence 
they used to flap up stream again to their chosen spot only to be drifted down 
again and so on ad infinitum. 
316. Purple Qallinule. Porphyrio poiiocephalus. “Birhan.” 
Porphyria poliocephalus poliocephalus, hath. (Ind. Orn. Suppl. p. Ixviii, 
1801 — India). 
Common and resident in all suitable large marshes, where reeds are plentiful; 
Cheesman records that it was apparently going to breed in the Horr Sanef. Bux- 
ton found it breeding in the Hamar Lake on May 19th — 21st where he found 
their nests containing three to four eggs, fresh to much incubated. Pitman saw 
plenty in the marshes west of Museyib and found a nest of four eggs on June 9th 
nearly hatching. Marshall and Tomlinson found nests at Kurna, three eggs on 
May 15th and four eggs on May 3rd. Logan Home found it breeding plentifully 
at Abu Aran in June. The nest built in reed beds, where the water is two to four 
feet deep, resembles a coot’s nest and is made of dead reeds with a few stalks 
bent over above to make a slight screen. The Arabs collect the eggs for eating. 
Ten specimens examined : (J $ , Horr Sanef, 20-3-18 (P. Z. C. and K. E. C.) ; 
(J, Amara, 12-5-18 : 3 J, 29> Hamar Lake, 20-5-18 ; Amara, 5-1-18 (P. A. 
B.). Besides these I have examined three others on the British Museum from 
Mesopotamia. 
The typical race comes from the peninsular of India ; there has been described 
a race — seistanicus — from Seistan by Zarudny and Harms (J.F.O., 1911, p. 240), 
differing from the Caspian bird by the paler coloration, and the Caspian bird 
has been described by Hartert as caspius (Novit. 24, p. 266) on account of its 
larger size as compared with the typical race. The question therefore arises as 
to what race tlie Mesopotamian birds belong. Hartert gives as wing measure- 
ments of ca.spiMiqJ , 270 — 286,9 259 — 266 mm. Our birds measure 257 — 272, 
9 239-2.55 mm., and three unsexed examples 224, 250, 253, so evidentl}'^ our 
birds are not caspius, in fact they agree well in measurement with and are not 
at all paler than Indian peninsular examples. — Indian birds (both sexes) measure 
237-271 mm. Nor can I find an_v difference b 3 ^ which our birds maj' be differen- 
tiated from Indian birds either in size of bill or tarsi or feet, all of which vary 
very much. 
