1069 
A DESCRIPTION OF THE NESTS AND EGGS OF THE COMMON BIRDS 
OCCURRING IN THE PLAINS OF THE UNITED PROVINCES. 
BY 
E. H. N. GILL. 
(^With a plate.) 
Corvus macrorhynchus (4) . . The Jungle-Crow. 
Local name . . . . . . Kala-Kaowa. 
Anglo-Indian name . . . . Raven. 
This bird breeds commonly throughout the Province ; the most favoured 
months being February and March. In the eastern districts (those lying east of 
Benares) domestic operations are commenced as a rule in January, almost all the 
nests having eggs between the middle and end of February. I have taken slightly 
incubated eggs in the first week of March, and have found young ones on several 
occasions by the middle of March. By the end of March and beginning of April 
mostly all the nests contain young, and so far as my experience goes, it has been 
rather the exception than the rule to find fresh eggs after these dates. In the 
Western districts (those lying west of Benares) the period of nidification seems 
to be slightly delayed, but I would not go so far as to say that this constitutes 
a general rule. In Allahabad, Fatehpur, Cawnpore, and Lucknow, I have 
taken eggs in April, mostly all in various stages of incubation. But then I have 
also taken eggs in the same stations in March, so that the inference to be drawn 
is not conclusive. However, the Eastern districts not being subjected to the 
winter cold of the Western districts, the period of nidification in the latter would 
probably have a tendency to be longer delayed. 
The Jungle-Crow does not seem to favour any particular tree when choosing 
a site for its nursery, nor is any great importance attached to height. The top- 
most branches of a gigantic “Pipal” are as acceptable as the low, lean branches 
of some thorny acacia, or the leafy comfort of the “Mangoe”. Being by nature 
an outrageous buUy, scant attention is paid to any effort at concealment. In fact, 
in numerous cases it would seem as though every effort were made to render the 
nest as visible as possible. Both birds assist in building the nest, incubating 
the eggs, and rearing the young, but their powers of discrimination are as feeble 
as the parental instinct is strong ; for I know of one particular pair which nursed 
a golf-ball with loving care for weeks after their eggs had been removed. 
The nest externally^ is a crude structure of coarse sticks which serve the pur- 
pose of a substantial foundation ; but internally the egg cavity is a marvel of 
construction for such a clumsy bird. Beautifully cup-shaped, between 6 and 
8 inches in diameter, and 4 to 5 inches in depth, and lined with fine grass-roots, 
and vegetable fibres, over which is placed a soft cushion of horse-hair carefully 
fashioned to the internal shape of the nest. From below all that is generally 
visible of the sitting bird are the tips of the bill and tail. 
I have never found more than three eggs in a nest, which I consider is the 
maximum number laid. So far as coloration is concerned the variation is not 
considerable, except that the groimd -colour in some specimens may be of a richer 
or lighter shade than in others, and the markings in some much darker, and more 
irregular than in others. The ground-colour of a normal specimen is what might 
be described as a greenish-blue with little or no gloss, more or less blotched and 
streaked with different shades of yellowish-brown. In shape they are typically 
long ovals, distinctly pointed towards one end, but.in size they vary considerably, 
even in regard to the eggs of one clutch. A normal egg would measure about 
I ’75 by U2 inch. 
