MISCELLANEOUS NOTES, 
1133 
No. XV.— EASTERN SOLITARY SNIPE SHOT AT NALBAN ISLAND, 
CHILKA LAKE, ON THE 16th DECEMBER 1921. 
While out duck shooting with Mr. T. McDonnell of 9, Theatre Road, Calcutta, 
at Chilka (Nalban Island), I flushed and killed a Solitary Snipe. As duck were 
fairly plentiful and flighting well at the time we did not trouble to fire at snipe. 
These were very plentiful and were being flushed almost every time we moved. 
This particular snipe however first attracted my attention by its loud cry. Then, 
noticing its large size, I shot it. (No. 5 shot. Smokeless Diamond). 
Mr. McDonnell identified it as G. solitaria and informed me that Mr. James 
Smythe of Calcutta had flushed several in the same locality in X’mas, 1920. 
We spent 3 days on the Chilka Lake and although we flushed and killed 
numerous Fantails and Pintails we saw no more Solitary Snipe. 
Unfortunately I did not skin and preserve my specimen as I then did not realise 
that it was so rare on the Chilka. I guess it weighed between 6 and 7 oimces. 
There were 18 tail feathers. Legs were olive green. 
I have no doubt that Mr. McDonnell’s identification was correct, 
H. B. TILDEN. 
Carlton Hotel, 
Bombay, 9th May 1922. 
' No. XVI.— IS THE DHAYAL {COTSYCHUS SAUL Alii S) A MIMIC ? 
Legge says of CopsycAws saularis, “Its power of imitation is considerable, 
tempting it to mock the voice of fowls and other birds in the vicinity of its 
domicile ” {Birds of Ceylon, p. 435). To illustrate this habit of mimicry in the 
Magpie-Robin, he has quoted an anecdote related by Layard. The latter’s 
observation is that even in freedom the Dhayal can mock to perfection the voices 
of other creatures. If this observation be true, the birds’ behaviour appears 
quite singular, for even the parrots, which are past-masters in the art of mimicry, 
do not exhibit their apish propensity in their wild life. 
It is very strange, however, that aU the writers on Indian birds are silent on 
the Dhayal’s power of mimicry. We find nothing about it in the works of Frank 
Finn, Jerdon, Eha, Dewar, and Dalgliesh. Even the Fauna of British India does 
not touch the point. On the other hand, Gould, in the Birds of Asia, Vol. Ill, 
states positively that this bird is not “ degraded by apish tricks of imitation.” 
My own aviary has harboured Dhayals for a long time, but no effort on their 
part to mimic the voices of their mess-mates has come to my view. I am anxious 
to know if any of the readers of this Journal has any experience of the above 
trait in the character of the Dhayal. Information on this point through the 
medium of this Journal would certainly add to oih knowledge about the be- 
haviour of the bird. 
SATYA CHURN LAW. 
No. XVII.— DESCRIPTION OF CHICK OF THE BENGAL FLORICAN 
(SYPHEOTIS BENGALENSIS). » 
In a notice on Mr. Stuart Baker's game birds, published in the April number 
of the Ibis, there is the following remark : — “ Of the remaining Bustards, more 
especially the Bengal Florican, Sypheotis bengalensis, complete accounts have been 
given and we are suiprised to find that apparently the chick of that species does 
not appear to be known.” 
I am very certain that I sent Mr. Stuart Baker, when at Dacca, a series of 
Bengal Florican skins, including that of a chick, which I had acquired ; but as he 
