442 
Rev. F. C. R. Jourdain on the 
will stand until they can almost be pushed down by hand. 
As may be imagined, it is by no means pleasant work cutting 
out a nest at a height of fifty or sixty feet from the ground 
in a tree which rocks ominously from side to side all the 
time and may come down at any moment, and I have never 
been able to obtain any assistance in this task from the 
natives. Occasionally I have been lucky enough to discover 
a nest at a moderate height. The lowest I have seen was 
close to the top of a stump 17 ft. high, which was so rotten 
that we were obliged to support it by means of three stout 
poles laid against it and roped together at the top, before it 
would bear a man's weight, and after all the hole proved to 
contain young about a week old ! It is pleasant to be able 
to confirm the accuracy of Whitehead’s notes on his species 
in f The Ibis/ 1885, pp. 28-31, but in one or two cases I am 
able to supplement them. Thus in several cases old nesting- 
holes of Dendrocopus major were certainly used, and the 
external opening in these cases was quite neatly rounded. 
The hissing sound, which closely resembles the word 
“ sch-wer, sch-wer/' forms no part of the call-notes or song 
of this species, but is the alarm-note. The song is a rapidly 
uttered whistle, 4f Pe-pe-pe-pe-pe-pe-pe," not unlike that 
of Paras major corsus. Few birds are more confiding: 
while engaged in cutting out a nest I have frequently had 
both the bird swithin arm's length, apparently displaying 
much interest in the proceedings, and while cutting away the 
wood at the back of a nest I have seen the hen make 
several attempts to enter at the other side. In most cases 
the full clutch consisted of six eggs, sometimes of only five. 
The breeding-season is rather variable. In one case the first 
egg must have been laid about May 1, while two other nests 
contained full clutches on May 12 and 18, but the best 
average date is about May 25 or 26. When the young are 
first hatched they are sat upon by the hen. The cock bird 
brings food to the nest at short intervals, calls the hen off, 
and remains some little time inside feeding the young. On 
his leaving, the hen ie-enters the nest and covers the young 
till he returns. I have seen this repeated half a dozen times* 
