221 
of certain Indian Birds . 
Although the Nuktas nest by preference in trees, I have 
known their doing so in holes of old ruined forts; as a general 
rule they select localities in close proximity to water. 
I have no actual proof of their appropriating old nests, as 
is frequently done by the Whistling Teal; but it is worth 
mentioning that a nest of Haliaetus leucoryphus, which I had 
examined last winter for the eggs of Ascalaphia bengalensis, 
and which was at the time tenanted by this Owl, actually con¬ 
tained seven or eight rotten eggs which are, in my opinion, 
referable to this Duck. 
The number of eggs seems to vary considerably; fifteen 
and twenty have been brought to me from one nest, the ad¬ 
vanced state of incubation clearly indicating that in all cases 
the full complement had been laid. I was present, however, 
at the capture of a female Nukta on her nest, which yielded 
the extraordinary number of forty eggs ! Of course it is just 
possible, though highly improbable, that this may have been 
the joint produce of two birds; but the emaciated condition 
of the one captured, coupled with the fact that one egg was 
an abnormally small one, and evidently her last effort, do 
not favour such a supposition. 
The tree selected was an ancient banyan ( Ficus indica) 
which overlooked a large sheet of water, several miles in cir¬ 
cumference ; the nest-hole was at an elevation of some 20 
- feet, 3 feet deep, and 2 in circumference. 
The eggs (incubation was barely commenced) were laid 
several tiers deep, and those at the bottom were a little soiled 
from resting on the damp wood. It is highly probable that 
a large proportion of these eggs are never hatched, and that 
they all become discoloured as the process of incubation 
progresses. 
The thirty-nine full-sized eggs average 2f x If inches; 
they are long obtusely pointed ovals; and in feel, polish, and 
texture they resemble a white billiard ball. 
The boss or fleshy protuberance of the drake gets greatly 
enlarged during the breeding-season, frequently measuring 
2*2 x 2*4 inches at the base. 
SER. III.—VOL. IV. 
R 
