THE

JOU RNAL

OF THE

Bombay Natukal Histoey Society.

EDITED BY

W. S. MILLARD, R. A.'SPENCE and N. B. KINNEAR.

VOL. XXV.

Consisting of Five Parts and containing Eight Coloured

Plates, Forty Lithographed Plates, Diag7'ams and

Maps and Forty -four Text-Figures^

Part 1 {Paget 1 to 160) ., // (,Pages 161 to 32+) III {Pages 325 to 520) IV {Pages 521 fo 770) V {Lidex, 4-c.)

Dates of Publicatiofi.

•• ••

••• •■• •»

•••

••

••• •••

20<A Mar., li.17. \'jth Sept., 1917. loth Jan.^ 1918 1(W(. June, 1918. 2Uh Deer.. 1918.

^^ 0 in b :i 1) :

PRINTED AT THE TIMES PRESS

JOURN. BOMBAY NAT. HlST. SOC

S^ilm^:4^iae,isiplkseiMif%t.^^iiKii^j&li^^

MENPES PRESS, WATFORD

r.'fi';

GALLUS SONNERATI.

The Grey Jungle-fowl, i Natural Size.

CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXV.

No. 1.

Page

The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. Part XXI. (With a Plate of Gallus sonnerati, the Grey Jungle- fowl). By E. C. Stuart Baker, f.l.s., f.z.s., m.b.o.u... 1

Scientific Kesults of the Mammal Survey No. XY 40

A. The Indian Gerbils or Antelope Rats. By 11. C.

Wroughton 40

B. The Slender Loris of Malabar. By R. C. Wroughton. 45 C. A New " Leaf Monkey " from the Shan States. By

R. C. Wroughton 4G

D. Paradox^irtis niger and hermaidhroditiis of Blanford.

By R. C. Wroughton 48

The Palms of British India and Ceylon, Indigenous and Introduced. {With Plates X C VI to XC IX and 3 text

figures.) By E. Blatter, s.j 52

Bombay Natural History Society's Mammal Survey of India, Burma and Ceylon. Report No. 27, Bhutan,

Duars. By R. C. Wroughton 63

A List of Birds from the North Chin Hills. By J. C.

Hopwood and J. M. D. Mackenzie 72

A Catalogue of New Wasps and Bees. Part III. By

T. V. Ramakrishna Aiyar, b.a., f.e.S., f.z.s 92

Butterflies of Tharrawaddy and the Pegu Yoma. QVith

aMa.p.) By E. V. Ellis, i.F.s 104

The Game Pishes of the Persian Gulf. Part II. By

Major W. H. Lane 121

The Butterflies of Lahore. By G. W. Y. de Rhe-Philipe,

F.E.S.- 136

Review 143

Roll of Honour 145

Miscellaneous Notes :-^

I. Measurements of Markhor and Urial Heads.

By Capt. A . L. Molesworth 146

520^8

\v CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXV.

Page II. Jackals in Lower Burma. By C. W.

Allen 146

III. Kathiawar Black Buck. By H. D. Rendall,

i.c.s 147

IV. Au Arboreal Panther. By J . R. Jacob,

i.r 148

V. Note on the Scal}'^ Anteater (Manis crassicau-

data). By S. F. Hopwood, i.F.s 148

VI. Large Pintailed Sandgrouse (P. a. cmidata)

settling on water. By Lt.-Col. H. A. F. Magrath 149

VII. Occurrence of the Wood-snipe (Oallinago ne-

moricola) in Salsette. By Major M. L. Ferrar, J.A 149

\'1II. Note on the Habits of the Checkered Water

Snake (Tro]3ido7hotus jnscator). By B. D.

Richards 150

IX. Feeding Habits of the Python (Python

molurus). By C. G. Stewart 150

X. Occurrence of Russell's Earth Snake (Eryx

conicus) at 2,200 feet altitude in the

C. P. By C.,G. Chevenix Trench, i.c.s.... 151 XI. Note on the Hamadrayad or King Cobra

(^Naia buncjariis) in North Kanara. By

Lt.-Col. L. L. Fenton 151

XII. Food of the Bull Frog (Rana tigrina). By

N.Davidson 152

XI 1 L TheGi'eat Indian Spiders, Genus Pcecilotheria.

By Lt.-Col. L. L. Fenton 153

XIV. The " Preying Mantis " as an Entomologist.

By Lt.-Col. L. L. Fenton 154

XV. Some Cerambycids from Kurseong, By B.

A. D'Abreu, F.z.s 155

XVI. Note on a Flight of Sphingidae. By Capt.

F. C. Eraser, i.M.s 155

CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXF. v

Pa(jk XVII. Notes on the Larva of Dilephila livornica (Striped Hawk Moth). By Capt. V. H.

Scott, I. A 156

Proceedin(js 1-57

No. a.

The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. Part XXII. (^With a Plate of Gennceus albocristatus, the White-Crested Kalij). By E. C. Stuart Baker, f.l.8.. F.Z.S., M.B.O.U 161

Scientific Results from the Mammal Survey No. XVI. 199 A. The Tiipaias of South Tenasserim. By Oldfield

Thomas 199

B. Notes on Millardia and its Allies. B}^ Oldfield

Thomas 201

C. A New Genus of ilf wnc^oe. By Oldfield Thomas ... 203

D.— The Spiny-Mouse of Sind. By Oldfield Thomas ... 205

The Palms of British India and Ceylon, Indigenous and Introduced. Part XIX. (With Plates C—GIII and 8 text figures.) By E. Blatter, s.j 207

The Raptores OF the Punjab. {With 2 Plates.) By C.

H. Donald, F.z.s 231

On the Determination of Age in Bats. {With a Plate,)

By Knud Anderson, F.z.s 249

On the so-called Colour Phases of the Rufous Horse- shoe-Bat OF India {Bhinolophus rouxi, Temm.) {With Plates I and II.) By Knud Anderson, f.z.s 260

Bombay Natural History Society's Mammal Survey of India, Burma and Ceylon. Report No. 28, Kalim- pong. (Darjiling). By R. C. Wroughton 291

Liverworts of the Western Himalayas and the Punjab, with Notes on known Species and Descriptions of the the New Species. By Shiv Ram Kashyap, m, so. ... 279

The Female of the Dragonfly, Brachythemis fuscopalliata

(Ris). (With a Plate.) By Capt. B\ C. Fraser, i.m.s.. 282

vi CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXV.

Page

The Cone of Selaginella pallidissima, Spr. (With a Plate.)

By S. S. Ghose, M.sc 284

Preliminary Notes on a Kecent Botanical Tour to the High Wavy Mountain (S. India). By E. Blatter, s.j., and Prof. F. Hallberg 290

Obituary Notice : Rev. F. Dreckmann, s..i., and Lt.-Col.

K. R. Kirtikar, i.m.s 293

Miscellaneous Notes :■

I, The Breeding of the White-eared Bulbnl

(Molj)astes leuGotis). By H. W. Waite ... 297

II. The Indian Grackle or " Hill Mynah " (Gra-

culus intermedins) resident in Calcutta. Bj- Capt. A. E. Lowrie, i.A.R.o. 297

III. Note on the Great Brown Vulture (Vultur

monachus) in captivity. By the late Major F. L. Hughes 298

IV. Occurrence of the Ashy Wood-Pigeon (Also-

comus pulchricollis) in the Jalpaiguri

District. By C. M. Ingiis 300

V. The Breeding of the Gull-Billed Tern {Sterna

anglica). By H.W. Waite 300

VI. Late Stay of Teal (Nettium crecca). By Capt.

E.J.D.Colvin 301

VII. The Height at which Birds are able to fly.

By C. H. Donald, F.z.s 302

VIII. The Span of Large Birds. By C. H. Donald,

F.z.s 302

IX. Notes on the Bird Life of Ahwaz, Persia.

By F. Ludlow, i.a.r.o 303

X. The Weights of Pintail and Fantail Snipe.

By R. F. Stoney 306

XI. The Bronze-backed Tree Snake (De7idrola- phis tristis) in Central India. By Major C. E. Luard, i.A 306

CONTENTS OF VOLUME SXV. vii

Page XII. The Bronze-backed Tree Snake (Deoichola- phis tristis) in the Central Provinces. By E. A. D'Abreii, F.z.s yOG

XIII. Notes on the Russell's Viper. (^With a Plate.)

By C. R. Narayan Rao 307

XIV. Exceptionally large Saw Scaled Viper

(Echis carinata). By Lt.-Col. F. F. * Major ... ... ... ... ... 308

XV. Notes on an interesting specimen of the Sea Snake Hydrophis caerulescens . By Lt.- Col. F. Wall, I.M.S., C.M.G., C.M.Z.S 308

XVI. A Large Cai'p from the Euphrates River.

By Major W. A. Light 308

XVII. The Packing of Papered Butterflies for safe- keeping or despatch by post. (JVith S Text Blod-s.) By Major H. D. Peile,

i.M.s 309

XVIII. Note on the colour of flowers in iJysophylki

stellata,Bt\i. By M. K. Venkata Rao.... 312 XIX. An interesting case of distribution. By

M. K. Venkata Rao 313

XX. Fall of seed in rain storm. By E. Brook- Fox 313

Proceedings 314

Accounts for 191G 321

No. 3.

The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. Part XXIII. (With a Plate of Phasiajitis humict, Mrs. Hume's Pheasant.) By E. C. Stuart Baker, f.l.s.,

F.z.s,, M.B.O.U 325

Scientific Results from the Mammal Survey No. XVII. A. The Shan States Langur A Correction. By R. C.

Wroughton 361

JB. A New Indian Hare, Lepu^ rajpnt. By R. C.

Wroughton 361

viii CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXV.

Page The Nomenclature of the GeogtRAphical Forms of the

Panolia Deer (Rucervus eldi and its Relatives).

By Oldfield Thomas 363

A Selection of Lectotypes of Indian Mammals, from

THE Oo-TYPES described BY HODGSON, GrAY, ElLIOT

AND OTHERS. By Oldfield Thomas 368

Description of a New Lizard of the Genus Aganteo-

DACTTLus from MESOPOTAMIA. By G. A. Boulenger,

LL.D., d.sc, f.r.s 373

A Popular Treatise on the Common Indian Snakes.

Part XXIV. Typhhps. (With Plate XXIV and

Diagram.) By Lt.-Col. F. Wall, c.m.g., c.m.z.s., f.l.s. 875 Two New Indian Dragonflies. By Capt. F. 0. Fraser,

i.M.s 383

The Palms of British India and Ceylon, Indigenous and

Introduced. Part XX. (With Plates CIV to CVI

and 7 text figures.) By Rev. E. Blatter, S.J 386

New Indian Scropevlariace^ and some Notes on the

SAME Order. By Rev. E. Blatter, s.j., and Prof. F.

Hallberg 416

The Common Butterflies of the Plains of India, Part

XIX. By. Mr. T. R. Bell, i.F.s 430

Indian Dragonflies, (With 13 Plates.) By Capt. F. C.

Fraser, i.M.s 454

Bombay Natural History Society's Mammal Survey of

India, Burma and Ceylon. Report No. 29, Pegu.

By R. C. Wroughton and Winifred M. Davidson 472

Herbaceous Monsoon Flora at Castle Rock and a New

Species of Balsam. By L. J. Sedgwick, f.l.s.. i.c.s. 482 Some Notes on Game Birds in Mesopotamia. By Capt.

0. M. ThornhiU 486

Miscellaneous Notes :

I. A Fight between a Dog and a Porcupine.

By R. D. Macleod, i.cs 491

CONTENTS OF TOLUME XXV. ix

Page il. Buffalo in the Nicobar Islands. By Lt.-Col.

R. W. Burton, i.A 491

ill. Notes from the Oriental Sporting Magazine, New Series, 1869-1879. By Lt.-Col. R.

W. Burton, i.a 491

IV. Further Notes on Birds nesting in the Tons

Valley. By B. B. Osmaston, i.f.s 493

V. Birds nesting in the Bhillung Valley, Tehri

Garhwal. By W. H. Matthews 495

VI. The Occurrence of the Indian Pitta (Pitta

brachyura) in the Kangra District, Punjab.

By 0. H. Donald, F.z.s 497

VII. Arrival of Duck and Teal in the Darbhanga

District, Beliar. By 0. M. Inglis 499

VIII. Nidification of the Lesser or Common Whist- ling Teal (Dendrocycna javanica) and Bonelli's Eagle (^Hiercetus fasciatns). By S. G. de C. Ireland, i.c.s 499

IX. Extension of Habitat of the Hair-crested Drongo (Chibia hottentotta) . Bj C. H.

Donald 500

X. Some Notes on the Burmese Peafowl (Pavo

7)iuticus) in captivity. By C. M. Inglis ... 500

XL Occurrence of the Pink-headed Duck (Rhodu- nessa caryophyllacea) in the Punjab. B}' A. II. Marshall 502

XII. Food of Bulbuls. By B. D. Richards 503

XIIL Notes on the Nidification of the Common Grey Hornbill (Lophoceros Ijirosiris). By

Eleanor Frances Hall 503

XlV. Note on Kalij Pheasant, especially on a specimen from the Goalpara District,

Assam. By Chas. M. Inglis 505

XV. Curious position of a Dove's Nest. ( With av

Ilhistration.) By W. G. Barnett 507

X conti:nts of volume xxv.

Page XVI. Habits of the Green Turtle (Ghelone mydas).

By Lt.-Col. R. W. Burton, i.A 508

XVII. Occurrence of the Tree-Snake (JDendroi^his Indus') in Kumaon. By Lt.-Col. F. Wall, i.M.s 509

XVIII. Pythons breeding in captivity. By E. A.

D'Abreu, f.z.s 509

XIX. The Varieties of Cobras in Central India.

By Major C. E. Luard 510

XX. Cobras without the Cuneate Scale. By

Major H. R. AVatson 510

XXI. Fight between Vespa cindn, Fabr., and

Polistes hebraeus, Fabr. By Chas. M. Inglis. 511

XXII. The Influence of the Monsoons on Insect Life in India. By Capt. I". C. Eraser, I.M.s 511

XXIII. The distance Mosquitoes can fly. By Major

Robert E. Wright, i.M.s 511

XXIV. Phosphorescence in the Persian Gulf. By

Major Robert E. Wright, i.M.s 512

XXV. Phenomena of Interchangeability of Vegeta- tive and Fruit Structures in Opuntia elafior, Mill. (With Plates I and II.) By G. B. Patvardhan 513

XXVI. A Sport from Opuntia elatior,'M\\\ . {With

Plate III.) By G . B . Patvardhan 514

XXVII. The Barton Shooting Seat. {With a Plate.)

By L. H. Savile 515

Proceediinkjs 5] 6-520

NO. 4.

The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. Part XXIV. {With a Plate of Pucrasia nnacrolopha, the Koklass Pheasant.) By E. C. Stuart Baker, f.l.S., f.z.s.. M.B.O.U S21

CONTENTiS OF VOLUME XXV. xi

P.\(;e Summary of the Results from the Indian Mammal

Survey of the Bombay Natural History Society.

By R. C. Wroughton, f.z.s ■)'\1

Notes on a Collection of Sea Snakes from Madras, By

Lt.-Col. F. Wall, C.M.G., C.M.Z.S., F.L.S., I.M.S ol)9

Indian Dragonflies. Pai-t II. {With 5 Text-Jic/ures.) By

Capt. F. C. Fraser, i.m.s (j08

A Popular Treatise on the Common Indian Snakes. Part

XXV. Callophis macclellandi and Silyhura occellata.

(With Plate XXV and Diagram.) By Lt.-Col. F. Wall,

C.M.G., C.M.Z.S., F.L.S., I.M.S 028

The Common Butterflies of the Plains of India. Part

XX. By T. R. Bell i.F.s 036

Notes on the Birds of Ambala District, Punjab. By H.

Whistler, M.B.O.U., f.z.s 665

The Cyperace^e of the Bombay Presidency. By L. J.

Sedgwick, f.l.s., i.c.s 682

A Revision of the Indian Species of Rotala and Amman-

NiA. By E. Blatter, s. J., and Prof. F. Hallberg 701

Contributions towards a Flora of Persian Baluchistan

and Makran from materials supplied BY' Capt. J.

E. B. HoTSON, i.A.R.o. By E. Blatter, s.j., and Prof.

F. Hallberg 723

Miscellaneous Notes :

I. Notes from the " Oriental Sporting Maga- zine," Nevv Series, 1869-1879. By Lt.- Col. R. W. Bnrton, i.a 740

II. Crows in Busrah. By Lt.-Col. H. A. F.

Magrath 741

III. Black-headed Sibia (Lioptila cafistrata) in the Jalpaiguri District, Bengal. By. C,

M. Inglis 742

IV. Occurrence of the White-tailed Blue Robin (Notodela leucura) in the Buxa Duars Dis- trict, Bengal. By C. M. Inglis 742

xii CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXV.

Page V. An Addition to the Indian List of Birds.

By Hugh Whistler, m.b.o.u., f.z.s 742

VI. Some Further Notes on Cuckoos in Maymyo.

By J. M. D. Mackenzie, m.b.o.u., f.z.s. ... 742

VII. Occurrence of the European Great Bustard

(Otis tarda) near Peshawar, ^y the Hon.

Sir George Roos-Keppel, g.c.i.e., k.c.s.i. 745

VIII. The Wliite-necked Stork in the Punjab.

By Hugh Whistler, m.b.o.u., f.z.s 740

IX. Comb Duck {^arcidiornis melanonotus) in

Sind. By R. E. Gibson, i.c.s 747

X. A Few Notes on the Nests and Eggs of some

of the Burmese Scimitar Babblers. By J .

M. D. Mackenzie, i.f.s., m.b.o.u., f.z.s. ... 748

XI. Miscellaneous Notes on some Birds in the

Chin Hills, Burma. By P. F. Wickham,

p.w.D 750

XII. Close-barred Sandgrouse at Muscat. Bj-

Major A. R. Burton 751

XIII. The Span of Large Birds. By Capt. S. S.

Flower 752

XIV. Capturing Tigers with Bird-lime. By Sur- geon-General W. B. Bannerman, C.S.i.,

i.M.s 753

XV. On an undescribed colour variety of the Snake (Zaocys mucosas) from the Central

Provinces. By E. A. D'Abreu, f.z.s 753

XVI. Notes on a Gravid Hijdrophis cyanocinctus and her Brood. (With a Diagram.) By Lt.-Col. F. Wall, C.M.G., C.M.Z.S., f.l.s.,

I.M.s 754

XVII. Note on the Breeding of the Rasp-skinned Water Snake (Ohersydrus yranulatus), Schneider. By Lt.-CoL F. Wail, c.m.g., C.M.Z.S., F.L.S., I.M.s 756

CO A TEN ns OF VOLUME XXV. xiii

Page XVIll. Notes on Flies for Trout Fly Fishing in

Kashmir. By F. J. Mitchell 757

XIX. Note on the Habits of the Death's-Head Moth (Acherontia sti/x). By Surgeon- (reneral W. B. Banuerman, i:;.s.i., i.m..s. ... 759 XX. A New Species of Phytophthora parasitic on

the Para Rubber Tree. By W. McRae ... 760 XXI, PJxamples of mimicry in Spiders. (With an.

Illustration.) By C. E. C. Fischer, i.f.s. ... 760 XXII. On Red Sea Water. By Lt.-Col. H. J.

Walton, C.M.Z.S., i.m.s 7til

XXIII. Cultivation of the PJdible Date Palm (Phcenix

dactylifera) in South India. {With a

Plate.) By Surgeon-General W. B. Ban-

nerman, c.s.i., i.m.s 763

XXIV. Fall of Seed in a Rainstorm. By L. J.

Sedgwick, I.e. s 764

PliOCEEDI^CiS 7(3(3

ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.

-VOX.XTIVEJE:

Page

AiYAR, T. V, Ramakkishna, B.A., F.E.S., F.Z.S. ; A Ca- talogue of New Wasps and Bees. Part III

Allen, C. W. Lower Burma

Jackals in

Andersen, Knud, F.Z.S. ; On the Determination of Age in Bats. (With a Plate). . .

; On

the so-called Colour Phases of the Rufous Horseshoe-Bat of India (Rhinolopku-s rouai, Temm.) {With Plates I and II).

92

146

249

260

B. E. Rev. Father F. Dreck-

3V1ANN, S.J. ; Obituary . . 293

Lieut. -Col. K. R. Kirtikar,

I.M.S. (Retd.) Obituary.. 295

Baker, E. C. Stuart, F.L.S., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. Part XXI {With a Plate). The Common Jun- gle-Fowl, Burmese Jungle- Fowl, Grey Jungle-Fowl, and Ceylon Jungle-Fowl . . 1

Part XXII {With a Plate). The White-Crested Kalij, Nepal Kalij, Black-backed Kalij Pheasant, Black- breasted Kalij Pheasant, William's Kalij Pheasant . . 161

Page

Baker, E. C. Stuaet, F.L.S., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U. ; Part XX III {With a Plate). Oates' Silver Pheasant, Grant's Silver Pheasant, The Chinese Silver Pheasant, Yunnan Silver Pheasant, Ruby Mines Silver Pheasant, Mr.s. Hume's Pheasant, The Burmese Barred-Back Pheasant, and Stone's Phea- sant ..... . . . . 325

Part XXIV {With a Plate). The Koklas or Pukras Phea- sant, Kashmir Koklas, Nepal Koklas, Chestnut-Mantled Koklas, Meyer's Koklas, The Yellow-necked Koklas and Amherst Pheasant . .

Bannerman, Surgeon-Gene- ral W. B., C.S.I., I.M.S. ; Capturing Tigers with Bird- lime . .

Notes on the Habits of the Death's Head Moth {Ache- rontia sty.v) . .

521

/•).j

r59

Cultivation of the Edible Date Palm {Phanix dactyli- fera) in South India . . 763

Barnett, W. G. ; Curious Po- sition of a Dove's Nest {loith an Illustration) . . , . 507

LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.

XT

Page

Bell, T. R., 1.B\S. ; The Com- mon Butterflies of the Plains of India. Part XIX .. 430

Part XX

Blatter, E., S. J. ; The Palms of British India and Ceylon, Indigenous and Introduced. Part XVIII. {With Plates XCVI-XCIX and .'} Text -Jiffs.)

; Part XIX.

h;36

{Wit/i Plates C-CIII and 8 Text'fiffs.) -207

. ; Part XX.

(With Plates CIV-CVI and

7 Text-figs.) . . . . . 386

Blatter, E., S. J., and Pro- fessor F. Hallbekg ; Preli- minary Notes on a Recent Botanical Tour to the High Wavy Mountain (S. India). :^90

New Indian Scropkulariaceoi and some Notes on the same Order 416

A Revision of the Indian Spe- cies of Rotala and Ammania. 701

Contributions towards a Flora of Persian Baluchistan and Makrau from materials sup- plied by Capt. J. E. B. HoTsox, I.A.R.O 723

Bombay Natural History

' Society's Mammal Survey

OF India ; Report No. 27,

Bhutan Duars. By R. C.

Wroughtox. . .. 63

1 Page

Bombay Natural History

Society's Mammal Survey OF India ; Report No. 28, Kalimpong (Darjiling). By R. C. Wroughton . . . . 274

Report No. 29, Pegu. By R. C. Wroughton and Wini- fred M. Davidson . . . . 472

Scientific Results, No. XV.

By R. C. Wroughton . . 40

' ' "~*~~ •) No. XVI. By Oldfield Thomas 199

No. XVII. Wroughton

By R. C.

361

Summary of the Results. By

R. C. Wroughton . . . . 547

Boulenger, G. a., LL.D., D.Sc, F.R.S. ; Description of a New Lizard of the Genus Acanthodactylus from Meso- potamia . . . . . . 373

Brook-Fox, E.; Fall of Seed

in Rain Storm . . . . 313

Burton, Major A. R. ; Close- barred Sandgrouse at Muscat. 751

Burton, Lt.-Col. R. W., I. A. ; Buflalo in the Nicobar Islands. 491

^— ;

Notes from the Oriental Sporting Magazine, new series, 1869-1879 . . 491, 740

" j

Habits of the Green Turtle [C/ielone mydas) . . . . 508

CoLViN, Capt. E. J. ; Late Stay of Teal {Nettium crecca) . . . . . . 301

XVI

LIST OF CONTJRIBUrORS.

Page

D'Abrbu, E. a., F.Z.S. ; Some

Cerambycids from Kurseong. 155

»

The Bronze-backed Tree Snake (Dendrolaphis tristis) in the Central Provinces . . 306

,

Pythons breeding in capti- vity 509

On an undescribed colour

variety of the Snake {Zaocys

mucosus) from the Central

Provinces Davidson, N. ; Food of the

Bull Frog {Rana tif/rina) . . Davidson, Winifred M. See

Bombay Natural History

Society's Mammal Survey

of India Donald, C H., F.Z.S. ; The

Raptores of the Punjab.

( With 2 Plates) . ; The

Height at which Birds are

able to fly . . ; The

Span of Large Birds

; The

Occurrence of the Indian Pitta {Pitta brachyura) in the Kangra District, Pvinjab . . " ; Ex-

tension of Habitat of the Hair- crested Drongo {Chibia hottentotta) . .

Ellis, E. V., I.F.S., Butter- flies of Tharrawaddy and the Pegu Yoma ( With a Map) . .

Fenton, Lt.-Col. L. L. ; Note on the Hamadrayad or King Cobra {Naia huw/arus) in North Kanara

Page

753

152

231

302 302

49;

500

J 04

Fenton, Lt.-Col. L. L. ; The Great Indian Spiders, Genus

Pcecilotheria . .

; The

" Preying Mantis " as an Entomologist

Ferrar, Major M. L., I. A. ; Occurrence of the Wood- Snipe {Gallinago nemoricola) in Salsette . .

Fischer, C. E. C, I.F.S. : Examples of mimicry in Spiders. {Witha7i, illustration).

Flower, Capt. C. S. ; The Span of Large Birds

Eraser, Capt. F. C, I.M.S.; Note on a Flight of Sphingidre

Indian Dragonflies.

IS Plates)

( With

The Influence of the Mon- soons on Insect Life in India.

151

Indian Dragonflies. Part II.

[With 5 Te.vt-fi(/ures). Ghose, S. L., M.Sc. ; The Cone

of Selayinella pallidisi7iia, Spr.

{With a Plate)

Gibson, R.E., I.C.S. : Comb

Duck {Sarcidiornis melanono-

tus) in Sind . . Hall, Eleanor Frances;

Notes on the Nidification of

the Common Grey Hornbill

[Lophoceros birostns)

154

149

'60

752

155

The Female of the Dragon- fly, Brachythemisfuscoj)aUiata (Ris.) ( With a Plate) . . 282

Two New Indian Dragonflies. 383

454

511

608

284

747

503

LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.

xvii

PaC!E

Hallbeku, Prof. F. Sec Blatter, E.

HopwooD, J. C. ; A List of Birds from the North Chin HiUs

HopwooD, S. F. ; Note on the Scaly Anteater (Manix cras- sicaudata)

Hughes, Major F. L.; Note on the Great Brown Vulture {Vultur monaclius) in capti- vity

Inglis, cm.; Occurrence of the Ashy Wood- Pigeon {A Iso- comus pnlchricollis) in the Jalpaiguri District . .

; Arrival of

Duck and Teal in the Dar- bhanga District, Behar

: Some Notes

on the Burmese Peafowl (^Pavomu ticus) in captivity...

; Note on the

Kalij Pheasant, especially on a Specimen from the Goal- para District, Assam

; Fight between

148

298

Vespa cincta, Fabr., and Po- listes hebracus, Fabr.

; Black-headed

Sibia {^Lioptlla capistrata) in the J alpaiguri District, Bengal

: Occurrence of

300

499

oOO

r>(\:

)K lO

511

742

the White-tailed Blue Robin (Nvtodela leucura) in the Buxa Duars District, Bengal. Ireland, S. G. de C, I.C.S. : Nidification of the Lesser or Common Whistling Teal {Dendroci/cna javanica) and Bonelli's Eagle {Hiercetux fascia tus) 3

'42

308

Page

Jacob, J. li., I. P. ; An Arbo- real Panther . . . . 148

Kashyap, Shiv Ram, M.Sc, B.A. ; Liverworts of the Western Himalayas and the Punjab, with Notes on known Species and Descriptions of the New Species , . . . 279

Lane, Major W. H. : The (jrame Fishes of the Persian Gulf. Part II . . . . 121

Light, Major W. A. ; A large Carp from the Euphrates River . .

LowRiE, Capt. A. E., I.A.R.O. ; The Indian Grackle, or '' Hill Mynah " (Graculus interme- dius) resident in Calcutta . .

LuARD, Major C. E., I.A. ; The Bronze-backed Tree Snake (Dendrolaphis tristh) in Cen- tral India

; The

varieties of Cobras in Central India . .

Ludlow, F., I.A.R.O. ; Notes on the Bird Life of Ahwaz, Persia

Mackenzie, J. M. D., M.B.O.U., F.Z.S.;A List of Birds from the North Chin HiUs

297

306

510

499

Some Further Notes on Cuckoos in Maymyo . .

A few Notes on the Nests and Eggs of some of the Burmese Scimitar Babblers . .

MACLEOD, R. D., I.C.S. ; A Fight between a Dog and a Porcupine

72

742

74R

491

XVIH

LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.

Page

McRae, W. ; A New Species of Phytophthora parasitic on the Para Rubber Tree . . . . 760

Magrath, Lt.-Col. H. A. F. ; Large Pintailed Sandgrouse (P. a. caudata) settling on water . . , . . . . . 149

Crows in Biisrah

741

Major, Lt.-Col. F. F. ; Ex- ceptionally large Saw Scaled Yrper {Echiscarinata). . 308

Marshall, A. H. ; Occurrence of the Pink-headed Duck Rhodonessa caryophyUacea in the Punjab 502

Mattews, W. H. ; Birds nest- ing in the Bhillung Valley, Tehri Garhwal . . . . 495

Mitchell, F. J. ; Notes on Flies for Trout Fly-Fishing in Kashmir . . . . . . 757

Molesworth, Capt. A. L, ; Measurements of Markhor and Urial Heads . . . . 146

OsMASTON, B.B., I.F.S.; Fur- ther Notes on Birds nesting in the Tons Valley . . . . 493

Pat7ARDHan, G. B. ; Pheno- mena of Interchangeability of Vegetative and Fruit Structures in Opuntia elatior, Mill. ( With Plates land II). 513

; A Sport

from Opuniia eluiior, Mill. {With I'late III) .. .. 514

Page

Peile, Major H. D., LM.S. ;

The Packing of Papered Butterflies for safekeeping or despatch by Post . . . . 309

Rao, C. R. Nayaran ; Notes on the RusseU's Viper , . , . 307

Rao, M. K. Venkata ; Note on the colour of Flowers in Dysophylla stellata, Bth. . . 312

; An in-

teresting ase of distribution. 313

Rendall, H. D., I.C.S. ; Ka- thiawar Black Buck . . . . 147

Reviews : A Bird Calendar for N. India 143

Rhe-Philipe, G. W, V. i»e, F.E.S. ; The Butterflies of Lahore . . . . 136

Richards, B. D. ; Note on the Habits of the Checkered Water Snake {Tropidi'iiotus picastor) . . . . . . 150

; Food of Bul-

buls

503

Roos-Keppel, The Hon'ble Sir George, G.C.LE., K.C.S.I. ; Occurrence of the European Great Bustard {Otis tarda) near Peshawar . . . . 745

Savile, L. H. ; The Barton Shooting Seat. ( With a Plate). 515

Scott, Capt. F. B., I.A.; Notes on the Larva of Dilephila Uromica (Striped Hawk Moth^ 1£6

LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS.

\\\

Page

Sedgwick, L. J., F.L.S., T.O.S.; Herbaceous Monsoon Flora at Castle Rock and a Now Species of Balsam . . 482

The CyperaceiB of the Bom- bay Presidency

Stewart, C. G. ; Feeding Habits of the Python {Phij- thou molurus)

Stoney, R. F. ; The Weights of Pintail and Fantail Snipe ^ .

Thomas, Oldfield, F.R.S. ; The Nomenclature of the Geographical Forms of the Panolia Deer (Rucervus eldi and its Relatives)

A Selection of Lectotypes of Indian Mammals, from the Co-types described by Hodg- son, Gray, jilliot and others ,

See also Bombay Natural History Society's Mammal Survey of India.

Thornhill, Capt. C. M. ; Some Notes on Game Birds in Mesopotamia . .

682

Fall of Seed in a Rainstorm. 764

150

306

363

368

486

Trench, C. G. C, I.C.S. ; Occurrence of Russell's Earth Snake {Eiyv conicus) at 2,200 feet altitude in the C. P. . . lol

Page

Waite, H, W. ; The Breeding of the Gull-Billed Tern {Stet-na angelica) . . . . . . 300

Wall, Lt.-Col. F., I. M.S., C.M.G., C.M.Z.S ; Notes on an interesting specimen of the Sea Snake {Hydrophis

c eri3

scens)

A Popular Treatise on the Common Indian Snakes. Part XXV, Caliophis niac- aellandi. ( With a Flate and a Diagram) . .

308

A Popular Treatise on the Common Indian Snakes. Part XXIV. Typhlops ( With Plate XXI V and Diagram) . 375

Occurrence of the Tree Snake {Dendrophis pictus) in Ku- maon . . . . . . . . 500

Notes on a Collection of Sea

Snakes from Madras . . 599

628

Notes on a Gravid Hydrophis cyanccnctus and her Brood ( With a Diagram) . . . . 754

Notes on the Breeding of the Rasp-skinned Water Snake ( CherKTjdrus gvanulatus ),

Schneider . . . . . . 756

Waite, H. W. ; The Breeding Walton, Lt.-Col. H. J., of the White-eared Bulbul I C.M.Z.S., l.M.S. ; On Red {Molpa ies leucotis) .. .. 297 J Sea Water 7f:I

XX

LLST OF CONTEIBUTORS.

Page

Watson, Major H. 11. ; Co- bras without the Cuncate Scale olO

Whistlbk, H., M.B.O.r.,

F.Z.S.; Notes on the Birds * of Aiubala District, Pun- jab . . . . . . . . 665

An Additi(^i) to the Indian List of Birds . . .. .. 742

The White-necked Stork in

the Punjab . . . . . . 746

Page

WiCKHAM, P. F., P.W.D. ;

Miscellaneous Notes on Some Birds in the Chin Hills, Burma . . . . . . 750

Wright, Major Robert E., I.M.S. ; The distance Mos- quitoes can fly . . . . 511

! Phosphorescence in the Per- sian Gulf . . . . . . 512

Wrotjghton, R. G.—See Bombay Natural History's So- ciety's Mammal Survey of India.

LIS T 0 F PLATE S.

No 1

Page

The Game Birds of India, Burma aud Ceylon. The Grey Jungle- fowl (Gallus sonnerati) . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

The Palms of British India and Ceylon. XCVI-XCIX.—

XCYl.—Eapkia niffia, Mart. 52

XCVII. Wine Palm (liaphia vinifera, Palis de Beauv.) . . 56

XC VIII. —Sago Palm {Metroxylon safjus, Rottb.) . . . . 60

XCIX, Rumph's Sago Palm {Metroaylonrumphii, Mart.) 61

Map of the Tharrawaddy and the Pegu Yoma, Lower Burma. . . . 104

No. 2.

The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. The White-crested

Kalij (GenncBus albocristatus) . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

The Palms of British India and Ceylon. C-CIII.—

C. Zalacca xvallichiana , Mart. . . . . . . . . 208

CI. Plectocomia assamica, Gri^l. . . . . . . . . 214

CII. Plectocomia elongata, Mart. . . . . . . 21o

cm. Calamus leptospadiXjGiXiS. .. .. .. .. 228

The Raptores of the Punjab

Wing of Vulture . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Figs. 1. Steppe Eagle (Aquila bifasciata).

2. Bonelli's Eagle (Hieratus fasciatus),

3. Laggar Falcon {Falco jugger),

4. Shikra {Astur badius) . . . . . . . . 242

On the Determination of Age in Bats. Tooth wear as an Indication

of Age in Rhinolophus. Figs. A-B & I-V . . . . . . . . 258

Colour Changes in Rhinolophus roua-i, I-II.

I.— Figs. 1-4 < .. .. 270

II.— Figs. 5-8 = 271

Genital Organs and Wing of the Dragon Fly Brac/igt hernia fuscoiml-

liata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

The Cone of Helaginella pallidissima, Spr. Figs. 1-10 . . . . . . 284

The Late Fr. Dreckman, S.J. (Portrait) 293

The RusseU's Viper (Ft>em /-MS-seZZO- Figs. A-E 307

xxn

LIST 01 PLATES.

No. 3.

The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. Mrs. Hume's Phea- sant (Phasiaiius huinice) A Popular Treatise on the Common Indian Snakes, XXIV , .

Figs. 1-2 Typhlops anutus.

3-5— Typhlops brahminus. 6-7 Typhlops diardi.

The Palms of British India and Ceylon. CIV-CVI.—

CIV. Calamus viminalis, Willd.

CV, Calamus rot any, L. . . CVI. Calamus scipio')ium,, Lour.

Indian Dragonflies. I-XIII.

I. Dorsal Aspect of a Dragonfly . . II. Head and Mouth Parts . . III. Main Neuration of Fore and Hind Wings IV. Atypical and Typical Wings of Libellulines . . V. Fore and Hind Wings of ('ordulines and Aeschnines.. VI.— Figs. 1 & 2.— Wings of a Gomphid.

Figs. 3 & 4. Hind-wings of a Calopterix and Euphoea VII. Wings of Agrionines and of a Micromerus VIII. Agrionines pairing IX. Sexual Organs and Anal-appendages of Dragonflies. . X. Larvae of (I) Aeschnid ; (2) Gomphid ; (3) Microme- rus ; (4) Gomphid . . . < XI. Larvfe of (1) Libelluline ; (2) Agrionine ; (3) Gom- phid ; (4) Libelluline.. XII. Mask of Dragonfly Larvae XIII. Respiratory System of an Aeschnine Larva . .

Phenomena of Interchangeability of Vegetative and Fruit Structures in Opuntia elatior, Mill., I i^- IT

Barton Shooting Seat

No 4.

The Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon. The Koklass Pheasant

(Pucrasia maerolopha) A Popular Treatise on the Common Indian Snakes. XXV . .

Figs. 1-3. Callophis macclellandi, var, typica. Fig. 4. Silybura occellata.

Cultivation of the Edible Date Palm (^Pluenix dactylifei-a) in Southern India. 1. Date Palm in Flower ; 2. Two Bunches of Fruits.

Page

.32.5

388 .394 411

4.54 456

458 458 458

468 468 462 462

466

464 466 468

.513 515

521 632

763

Aeechnine, Head, PI. II.

Larva, PI. X

_ Respiratory

System, PI. XIII

Mask of Larvs©.

PI. XII . .

Page

456 466

468

.. 466 Mouth Parts, PI. II. 466

- Wings, PI. V

Agrionine, Head, PI. II

Larva, PI. XI

=- Male Anal Appen- dages, PI. IX . .

Mask of Larvae, PI.

XII

.- Mouth Parts, Fl. II

Wings, PI. VII

Agrionines pairing, showing the two acts of copulation, PI. vin

Agnonoptera insignis, Male

Secondary Sexual Or g a n s. Fig.

Wings,

Fig

Ampkitkemis curvistyla, Anal Appendages, Figs.

. _ Sexual

Organs, Figs. . .

/;act7te?js, Anal Ap-

p e n d a- ges. Fig.

468 466 466

462

466 466

458

462

622 622

626 626

626

Page

Amphithemis vaciUans,M&\e Se-

c o ndary Se X u a 1 Org ans, Fig. .. 626

Wings,

Fig 626

Anax, Female Sexual Organs and Anal Appendages, PI. IX 462

Male Secondary Sexual

Organs, PL IX . . 462

Aquila bifasciata, PI. . . . . 242

Argia gomphoides, Anal Append- ages,Male and Female, PI. IX. 462

Astur badius, PI. . . 242

Barton Shooting Seat, PI. . 515

Bonelli's Eagle, PI 242

Bracht/themis fuscopalliata, Ge- nital Organs and Wing, PI. 282 Butterflies, packing of, for Safe- keeping or Despatch by Post, Figs. .- .. 309-312

Calamus aeanthospathus, BTanch. of Fruiting Spadix, Fig. .. .. 398

. didymocarpus, Portion

of Fruiting Spikelet,

Fig 410

erectus, Portion of

Male Spike- let in Longi- tudinal Sec- tion, Fig. . . 224

Top Part of

Branch of Spadix, Fig. 226

XXIV

INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page

Calamus erectus, Part of Fruit- ing Spadix, Fig. . . 226

fjrifflthianus. Female

Flower with In- volucre still clo- sed, Fig. 217, 218

Female

Flower cut open,

Fig.

217

Female

Flower with out In V o 1 u- cre, Fig. 217

Female

Fl o w e r during Anthesis, Fig. . . 218

Fe m a 1 e

Fl o w e r with In- vo 1 u c re during Authesis, Fig. . . 218

latifoUus, Part of

Stem, fig 407

~ loptonpadix, Fruit,Fig. 228

Scales of

Fruit, Fig. . . 228

L o ngitu-

d i n a 1 Sectio n of Seed, Fig. . . 228

Page

Calamus leptospadLr Part of FlageUum of Female Spadix, Fig. . . 228

rotang, PI. . . . . 394

-— Flowers and

Fruit, Figs. . . 395

><c{pionum, PI. ' . . 411

tenuis, Branches of

Fruiting Spadix, Fig. 393

unifarius pentong , por- tion of Flowering Spikelet, Fig. .. 410

viminalis, PI. . . 389

Callophis viacclellandi , Head,

Figs. . . 634

'- typica,

PI 632

Calopterygine, Male Second- ary Sexual Or- gans, PI. IX. 462

Penis of, PI.

IX .. .. . ..462

Calopteryx chinensis, Hindwing,

PI. VI 468

Colour Changes in Rhmolophus

rouxi, Pis. I-II . . . . 270

Cordulia, Mask of Larvjs, PI.

XII 466

Corduline, Wings, PI. V . . 458

Daemonoropis, Cirrhus of a. Fig.. 413

jenkinsianus, Ver- tical Section of Fruit, Fig , . 414 Date Palm, Edible, PI. . . 763

Dove's Nest, Curious position. Fig 507

Dragonfly, Dorsal Aspect, PI. I. 454

Genital Organs and

Wing, PI 282

Head and Mouth

Parts, PI. II . . 456

DEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS.

XXV

Page

458 466

46:>

282

Dragonfly, Main Neuration of Wings, PI. Ill

Masks of Larvie, PI.

XII .. ••

Sexual Organs and

Anal Appendages, PI. IX

Wing, PI

Dragonflies, Indian, Pis. I- Xm . . 454, 456, 458, 462, 466, 468, Figs. 618, 620, 622, 625, 626. Dreckmann, The late Fr., S. J.,

Portrait Eagle, Bonellis, PI.

Steppe, PI.

Euphcea dispar, Hind-wing, PI.

VI

Falcojugger, PI.

Falcon, Laggar, PI

Gallus sonnerati, PI. Game Birds of India, Burma and Ceylon, Pis. XXI- XXIV . . 1, 161, 325,

Gennceus albocristatus, PI. Glauconia blanfordi, Fig. Gomphine, Head of, PI. II

Larva, Pis. X and XI.

Male Anal Appenda- ges, PI. IX Male Secondary Se- xual Organs, PI. IX.

Mask of Larvse, PI.

XII Wings, PI. V

293 242 242

458

242

242

1

Hieraetus fasciatus, PI. Hydrophis cyanoeinctus, Varia- tion of Lepidosis, PI. Hylceothemis, Male Secondary Organs, Fig. . .

^- Wings, Fig.

Jungle Fowl, Grey, PI. Kalij, White-crested, PI. 4

521 161 380 456 466

462 462

466 458 242

754

620

620

I

161

Koklas Pheasant, PI. . . Laggar Falcon, PI. Libelluline, Head, PI. II

Larva, PI. XI

Male Primary Se-

xua Organs, PI.

IX

Mask of Larvae, PI.

XII Wings, PI. IV . .

Page

. 521

242

. 456

. 466

Maps, Tharrawaddy and the Pegu Yoma, Lower Burma . . Metroxyiov. rumphii, PL

, Corolla of

MaleFlow- er, Fig. .

Female

!F 1 o w er, Part of, Fig .. Male Flow- er, Fig.

Pistill ode

of Male Fl o w e r, Longi t u- dinal Sec- tion, Fig..

sagus, PI. . .

Micromeru^. Larva, PI. X

. Mask of Larvte,

XII

lineatus, Fore-wing

of Female, PI. VII . . Opuntia elatior, Phenomena of Interchangea- bility of Ve- getative and Fruit Struc- tures, Pis. I and II

-, Sport rom,

PL III

462

466 458

104 61

62

62

62

60

466

466

458

513

514

XXVI

INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS.

Page

Palm, Edible Date, PI. . . 763

Palms of British India, Pis. XCVI—

CVI. 62, 208, 214, 215, 228, 388,

394, 411, Figs. 56, 57, 62, 209, 213, 216, 217, 218, 224, 225, 228, 393,

395, 398, 407, 410, 413, 414. Pegu Yoma, Lower Burma,

Map of Phasianus humice, PI. . . Pheasant, Koklas, PI.. . Mrs. Hume's, PI.

Phcenix dactylifera, PI.

Pithecus harbei, Blyth. Head of.

Fig

Plectocomia assamica, PI.

Scale of

F r u i t,

Fig-

Sec t i o n

of Seed. Fig. . .

Seed, Fig.

elongata, PI.

Tip of Fe- male Spi- ke of Spa- dix, Fig,

khasiyana, Sc al e s

of Fruit, Fig. ..

Sectio n

of Seed, Fig. ..

Seed

enclosed in the Flesh, Fig. ..

Tip of

Spik e, Fig. ..

104 325 521 325 763

47 214

213

213 213 215

216

213

213

Page

Raphia ruffia, PI. . . . . 52

Female Flower,

Fig 55

Male Flower, Fig. 55

rinifeva, PI. . . . . 56

Female Flow-

Pucrasia macrolopha, PI. Python molurus, Fig. . .

213

216 521 150

er. Fig. .

Seed, Fig.

57

Male Flower,

Fig. . . 67

i:>i

Rhinolophus, Tooth wear as in- dicator of Age in, PI 258

rouai, Colour Chan- ges in. Pis. l-II . . , . 270 Rumph's Sago Palm, PI. . . 61

Russeirs Viper, PI 307

Sago Pahn, PI. . . . . 60

. Rumph's PI. . . 61

Selaginella jjallidissima, Spr.,

Cone of, PI 284

Shikra, PI 242

Shooting Seat, Barton, PI. . . 515

Silybura occellata, PI. . . . . 632

Anal Region,

Fig. . . 634 Head Shield- ing, Fig. . . 634

Tail, Top of.

Fig. . . 634

Snakes, Common Indian, Pis.

XXIV-XXV.

378, 632

Dia- grams .. .. 380,634

Spider, Leaf-like, PI 760

Steppe Eagle, PI 242

Tetrathemis platyptera, Female

Sexual Organs, Fig. . . 618

INDEX ro ILLUSTRATIONS.

XXVll

Page

^retrathMTiis platijptcra, Wings,

Fig..

Tharrawaddy District, Lower

Burma, Map of Tooth wear as indicator of Age

in Rhinolophux, PI. . .

Turtur cambayensis, curious po- sition of Nest, Fig. . . Typhlops acuius, PI. . .

Fig

brahminus, PI.

Fig.

diardi, PI.

Fig.

Viper, Russell's, PI. Vipei'a rusaelli, PI.

618 104

507 378 380 378 380

378 380

307 307

Page

Vultur monachm, Figs. 1-3. 298-299 Vulture, Great Brown, Figs. 1-3 298,

299 .. 232 .. 161 5

Wing of, PI.

White-crested Kalij, PI.

Wine Palm, PI.

Fig

Wing of Vulture, PI. . .

Zalacca Wallichiana, PI.

Terminal

Spike of Spadix,

Fig. ..

Upper

Part of Spadi X, Fig. ..

57

232

208

209

209

XXVllI

ERRATA.

No. 1, Volume XXIV.

Page 186, in column " length " line 8, for 7' 11" read 7' 1"- ,, ,, in column " Remarks" /or " 511 lbs.'' read " 565 lbs."

No. 1, Volume XXV. Page_^80, line 22, for Engenii read Eugenii.

No. 2. Volume XXV.

Page 233, line 18, /or " Type C " substitute Type B. ,, 236 ,, in the middle of the page under Type " B "

should be " C " and " C " should be " B " 237, lines 21 and 22, under Type, substitute " C "

lor "B" and '^ B " for " C. "

No. 3, Volume XXV.

Page 475, line 25, for " a fine onmusth (tuskless male) " read " a Hine (= tuskless male) on musth. "

493 ,,, 18, for " Home-like " read " Hun-like."

494 ,, 8, from the bottom, for " big level " read " High-level. "

508 14, delete "them."

508 ,, 6, from the bottom, for " dupped " read

" dropped. "

513 ,, 14, from top, /or negative read vegetative.

513 20, from top, /or 1914 read 1917.

No. 4, Volume XXV.

Page 669, 5 lines from bottom of page, for Certhia himalayan read Certhia himalayana. ,, 767, line 19, for Euhlephariui^ read Euhlepharis.

JOURNAL

OF THE

Bombay Natural History Society,

Mar. 1917. Vol. XXV. No. 1,

Mroa:'xcx:.

No. 5— THE INDEX NUMBER— OF VOL. XXIV

has been delayed owing to the manuscript of the Index not having arrived from England. It will he published and issued to members as soon as possible and will also include a General Index of Volumes XVIII to XXIV, inclusive. The previous General Indexes were published as follows :

Vols. I to XIII, in No. 5, Vol. XIII.

Vols. XIV to XVII. in No. 5, XVII.

Editors,

Journal, Bombay Natural History Society. March 1917.

•ICO aic ail iLiiuiioiioj. vviuii a ucoiiv cioouui uuillU UllU W ILXl

wattles or lappets either hanging from each side of the throat, as in all three of the Indian species, or with a single one from the centre of the throat as in the Simda Island bird, varius. The tail consists of fourteen feathers in our three species and of sixteen in the last mentioned bird. The wings are well rounded, the first primary being shorter than the tenth and the fifth the longest. The central tail feathers in the male are greatly lengthened, being from three to four times the length of the outermost, the shafts are pliant 1

XXVIH

ERRATA.

No. 1 Volume XXIV.

Pag6 186, in column " length " line 8, /or 7' 11" read T !"•

in column " Remarks" for " 511 lbs." read " 565 lbs."

J> 3J

No. 1, Volume XXV. Page__80, line 22, for Engenii read Eufienii,

,, , ^^^y, j^. ij.ogauivo itiUjiXj vegetaiiive. 513 ,, 20, from top, /or 1914 read 1917.

No. 4, Volume XXV.

Page 669, 5 lines from bottom of page, for Certhia Mmalayan read Certhia kimalayana. ,, 767, line 19, for Euhlepharius read UuhU'pliaris.

JOURNAL

OF THE

Bombay Natural History Society.

Mar. 1017. Vol. XXV. No. 1.

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA, BURMA AND CEYLON.

BY

E. C. Stuart Baker, F.L.S., F.Z.S., M.B.O.U.

Part XXI. With a Coloured Plate.

PHASIANIDiE.

,Genus GALL US.

The Genus Gallus contains the true Jungle-fowl, of which there are fo^ir species entirely confined to the Indo-Malaj-an region. Jungle-fowls are closely allied to the true pheasants, like them the sexes differ in plumage, the males greatly exceed the females in size, and their haunts are well-wooded tracts with an ample water suppl3^ The principal external difference is in the tail which in the Jungle-fowl is sharply compressed whereas in the true pheasants it is flat ; it is linked however with these latter by many intermediate forms such as Gennceus, containing the Silver and Kalij Pheasants, Crosoptilon or Eared Pheasants, etc., in which the tails ai'e almost as compressed as in the Jungle-fowl.

The males are all furnished with a fleshy crest or comb and with wattles or lappets either hanging from each side of the throat, as in all three of the Indian species, or with a single one from the centre of the throat as in the Sunda Island bird, varhts. The tail consists of fourteen feathers in our three species and of sixteen in the last mentioned bird. The wings are well rounded, the first primary being shorter than the tenth and the fifth the longest. The central tail feathers in tlie male are greatly lengthened, being from three to four times the length of the outermost, the shafts are pliant 1

2 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

over the greater portion, and the feathers droop in a graceful curve when the tail is raised. The feathers of the neck and rump are long and lanceolate, forming hackles, the latter falling well down on either side of the tail. The legs are very powerful, and the tarsus, which is furnished with a long shaft spur, is longer than the middle toe and claw together. The females have no spur.

Key to Species.

A. Comb and spurs highly developed.

a. Neck-hackles red or golden-red with no spots.

a\ Breast black G. banhiva j .

l)^. Breast reddish orange G.lafaveUii ^.

h. Neck -hackles blackish with golden bars

or spots G. so7inerati r^ .

B. No spurs and comb rudimentary.

c. Breast rufous-brown with faint pale

shaft lines G. JianMva $ .

d. Breast mottled brown and black and

white - G. lafaveftii 5 .

e. Breast white, each feather edged with

brown G. sonnerati 5 .

There are two very distinct races or subspecies of the Common Red Jungle-fowl inhabiting the one India proper excluding the Indo-Burmese districts and the other extending through Burmah, the Malay Peninsula, Cochin, China and Siam. In the outer Burmese Indian districts of Eastern Assam and Chittagong we find, as we should expect, an intermediate form between the two.

The Indian form may at once be known by its pure, white lappets, the Burmese form having these red, but there are other differences also, the Indian bird, the true ferrugineus, has the hackles of the neck of a red much less deep than they are in the Burmese bird, moreover they are far more j^ellow or orange-yello^^' at the base of the neck, and in addition are more lanceolate, the Burmese form often having the ends comparatively broad instead of p;?oduced to a very fine point.

Hume recognised the differences between the Burmese and Indian bird, and thus writes of them :

" I have referred to the Indian and Burmo-Malayan races of "this bird. The plumage of the latter is said to be redder, " and taking a large series there seems to be some truth in " this, though in'iividual birds from Dehra Dun and Johore, " for instance, can be entirely matched as regards plumage, " but in the Burmese and Malayan birds, the small ear lappet " is invariably red, whereas in the Indian it is almost equally ^ "invariably vhite ov imilcy vhite.''

I

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 3

The Burmese form will be known as Gallus hanhiva banJciva, Temm.

Key to Sub-species

A . Ear lappets white G. h. ferrugineus.

B. Ear lappets red G. h. hankiva.

The Red Jungle-fowl is generally accepted as the original an- cestor of the domestic fowl, but there is really nothing to prove this beyond the fact that the wild Red Jungle- fowl is extremely close in appearance to the domestic bird of the Game-cock strain. On the other hand Seabi-ights pencilled Hamburg's and many other domestic strains which are known to be of artificial origin are much more like the Grey Jungle-fowl than the Red, Remains of extinct and fossil birds placed in the genus Gallus, have been found in many countries in Europe and also in New Zealand, which date back to the Pleocene and Pleistocene periods and the most that can be said concerning the origin of the domestic fowl is that it is probable that its immediate ancestor may have been something like the Red Jungle-fowl.

I have followed Blanford in not accepting Gallus r/allus as the name of the Wild Indian Jungle-fowl, but as hanldva is an older name than ferrvgineus the species must be known by this name, the Indian race or sub-species taking the trinomial ferrugineus.

[Gallus bankiva ferrugineus.

The Common Jungle-fowl.

Phasianus ff alius. Linn, Syst. Nat. I, p. 270 (1766).

Gallus bankiva. Jardine, Nat. Lib., Orn. iv., p. 175, pi. (India); Hodgs. in Gray's Zool. Misc., p. 85 ; Gray, Cat. ; Hodgs. Coll. B.M. ed. i, p. 125 ; Adams, P.Z.S., 1858, p. 498 ; Blyth, Ibis 1867, p. 156.

Gallus ferrmjineus. Blyth, Ann. Mag. N. H. XX, p. 387 (1847) ; id. Cat. Mus. As. Soc, p. 242 ; Adams, P.Z.S., 1859, p. 185; Irby, Ibis 1861, p. 234 ; Jerdon B. Ind. iii., p. 536 (part) ; Blyth, Ibis 1887, p. 154 (part) ; Beavan, Ibis 1868, p. 381 ; Brooks, Ibis 1869, p. 60 ; Bulger, Ibis 1869, p. 170; EUiot, Mon. Phas. ii., p. 184, pi. 32 (part); Hume, N. & E., Ind. B. p. 528 (part) ; Ball, Str. F. II., p. 426; Hume, Str. F. ii., p. 482 (part) ; Blyth and SValden, Cat Mam & B. Burma, p. 149 ; Hume Str. F., ibid III., p. 171 ; Armst. IV., p. 338 ; Hume and Inglis, ibid V., p. 44 ; Gates, ibid v., p. 164 ; Wardlaw-Ramsay, Ibis 1877, p. 468 ; Marshall B. Nest Ind. p. 59 ; Hume and Marshall, Game B. Ind. I., p. 217 pi. ; Anders, B. W., Yunnan p. 669 ; Hume and Davison, Str. F. VI., pp. 442, 521, Ball., ibid VII., p. 225; Hume, ibid, VIII., p. 68; Scully, ibid, VIII., p. 348; Bingham, ibid IX., p. 195; Fasson, ibid, IX., p. 205 ; Gates, ibid, X., p. 236; Marshall, Ibis 1884, p. 423 ; Taylor Str. F, X., p. 531 ; Hume, Str. F. XI., p. 304 ; Gates, ed, Hume's Nests and Eggs. III., p. 417 (part) ; Blanf., Avi. Brit. Ind. IV., p. 75 (part) ; Sharpe, Hand-L. B. I., p. 39 (part); Stuart Baker, Jour. B. N. H. S. XII., p. 436 (1899) ; Inglis, ibid, p. 676 (1899) ; Fulton, ibid, XVI., p. 61 (1904) ; Ward, ibid, XVII., p. 944 (1907) ; Inglis, ibid, p. 971 (1907) ; Magrath, ibid, XVIII p. 298 (1908) ; Gsmaston, ibid, XXII, p. 544 (1913).

4 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

Gallus gallus. Ogil vie -Grant, Cat. B. B. M. XXII, p. 344 (part); id. Hand-L. Game B. II, p. 48 (part) ; Gates, Journ. B. N. H. S., X., p. 106 ; id. Game B. of In. (part) I.; p. 366.

Vernacular Names. Jungli Murgha, Bun Murgha J , Jungli Murghi, Bun Murghi 5 (Hin. Upper India) ; Bunkokra, Bunkukra, {Bengali) ; Bun kukur (Assamese) ; Natsu-pia, Magse-ya (Bhutia) ; Pazok-tchi, Tangkling {Lepcha, Sikkim, Dooars) ; Bir-sim (Eoles) ; Gera-gogor c? , Kuru $ (Gonds) ; Lall (Chanda Dist.) ; Ganga (Uriya) ; Daono (Cachari) ; Vok [Kuki) ; Inrui {Kacha Nac/a).

Description Adult Male, Crown of the liead, nape and upper mantle, together with the sides of the neck, deep bright orange-red, changing to reddish gold or orange on the longest hackles, which are marked with black down their centres ; upper back, below these long hackles, black glossed with Prussian blue or green ; lower back deep maroon red, highly glossed and gradually changing into fiery orange on the long hackles of the rump ; these latter are more or less centred with black, the centres, however, being- concealed by the overlying feathers ; upper tail-coverts and tail- feathers black brilliantly glossed with green, blue-green or copper green ; the blue generally dominant, on the coverts, and the gloss absent or slight on the outermost tail feathers. Smallest wing coverts, and shoulder of wing black, glossed like the back with blue or blue-green, or pm-ple-blue ; median wing coverts like the lower back ; greater coverts black like the smallest; quills dark brown, in some specimens almost black; the primaries edged on the otiter web with light cinnamon and the secondaries with the whole of their visible portions of this colour except the innermost which are of a glossy blue-green with only a part of the outer webs cinnamon.

Under plumage, under wing-coverts and under tail-coverts deejj brown or blackish, faintly glossed with green.

Colours of soft parts. Irides varying from reddish brown in the young bird, through red to bright orange red in old males. Comli generally a bright scarlet crimson, sometimes duller, more red and sometimes almost a brick-red ; wattles the same in colour, but sometimes a more livid red ; ear lappets white, sometimes touched with pinkish on the lower posterior portions, especially in Assam birds ; skin of face, throat and upper neck red, generally of a rather bluish or fleshy tint ; legs vary between greenish grey and a deep slaty brown, every intermediate tint being met with, the most common colour being a rather dark plumbeous with a faint tinge of brown or purple ; the spur is always more or less brown, almost black at the tip. Bill dark korny brown, the gonys and tip of the lower mandible paler and the former often reddish. The colour of the comb and wattles is much brighter in the breeding season than at other times, both in the male and female, just as it is in barn-door hens when they are in full laying.

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 5

MeasuremenU.—^Sfxng 8" (203-2 mm.) to 9-6" (243-8 mm.); tail anything between 12" (304-8 mm.) and 15" (381-0 mm.); tarsxis about 3" (76-2 mm.) or rather more ; bill from gape abont 1-25" (32-6 mm.) and from front about -80" (20-3 mm.) ; the spur is generally about an inch (25-4 mm.) but I have seen one or two specimens with spurs a full 2" (50-8 mm.). Weight, according to Hume, lib. 12ozs. to 21bs. 4ozs., but one male shot by me in Cachar weighed oxi\j just short of olbs. and two or three others well over 2^1bs. The majority weight just under, rather than over, 21bs.

Post nuptial lylumage. The cock Jungle-fowl has a sort of post nuptial plumage caused by the moult of the neck hackles and the long tail feathers, the former being replaced by short blackish brown feathers. Often these same blackish feathers may be observed in patches on other parts of the body, principally the back and wing coverts. These feathers probably replace others lost by accident or some other abnormal cause.

This post nuptial plumage is interesting in that it corroborates the theory that all extraordinary colouration or shape in any por- tion of a bird's plumage is due to excess vitalit}' and with a drop in the vitality to a sub-normal condition sombre colours or normal shaped plumage is assumed. In many cases this post nuptial plumage is never assumed and cock birds may be shot all the year round in perfect feather. When assumed it is most irregular and maj' be found in any month between May and October, though generally the hackles are dropped in June and July and reassumed in the September-October moult.

[nvmature Male has the hackles less developed both on neck and rump, and the black centres to these feathers comparatively broader and far more visible ; as a rule also the neck hackles are more yellow and less deep orange in tint. The cinnamon of the wing- quills is darker, and the whole of their surface except at the basal halves of the outer webs are finely powdered and vermiculated with blackish ; the greater-wing coverts are also more or less powdered in a similar way.

Colours of soft farts. Iris brown, or reddish brown ; wattles and undeveloped comb duller than in the adult, and skin of face bluish or leaden colour.

Quite young Males in their first feathers are similar to females of the same age.

Adult Female. Top of the head blackish brown, the feathers broadly edged with golden yellow. In most birds the forehead is more or less metallic crimson and this colour is produced backwards as supercilia above and behind the ear coverts whence they widen and meet on the foreneck in a broad gorget. In some specimens the red will be found to occupy nearlj^ the whole of the fore crown

6 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HLST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

and to deepen the yellow of the posterior crown to a deep orange. Feathers of the nape orange yellow, with broad blackish centres, changing to pale golden yellow on the longer hackles along the back. Upper plumage, wing-coverts and inner secondaries reddish buff or reddish brown, the feathers with pale shafts and vermiculat- ed all over with black or very dark brown ; primaries deep brown or brown, sometimes edged on the outer web with rufus. Tail blackish brown, the central tail feathers more or less mottled with rufus, which in some cases extends to the next two to four pairs of feathers on. their outer webs. Breast below the red gorget light Indian red with pale shafts, gradually becoming paler and duller on the lower breast, and shading into pale dull cinnamon on the belly, much vermiculated with brown ; under tail covers black or blackish brown.

Colours of soft iKirts. Iris brown or hazel; bill horny brown, gape and lower mandible plumbeous fleshy or fleshy grey ; comb and orbital skin reddish crimson ; wattles very rarely present and very small, like the comb but paler and more livid, legs generally dull plumbeous brown but varjdng in tint as in the male. Un- developed spurs are occasionally present. Tickell obtained such a specimen in Singhbhum and I have myself shot at least half a dozen females showing spurs, which in one case exceeded half an inch in length.

Measurements. Wing 7" (177-8 mm.) to 7*7" (195-6 mm.); tail from vent 5-5" (139-7 mm.) to 6*5" (165-1 mm.); tarsus about 2-5" (63-5 mm.}; bill from front about -75" (19-5 mm.) and from gape about 1-1" (27-9 mm.)

"Weight lib. 2ozs. to lib. lOozs."— (Hume). Young femcdes in their first year are generally more yellow buff and less red below and have the feathers boldly mottled with brown on the breast and lower parts. The extent of the crimson or rusty-red of the head is also a sign of age, though a few females seem never to acquire this.

Chick in down. A broad band down from the centre of the crown to the end of the back a rich plumb brown ; a streak of similar colour from the posterior lores produced in a fine line over the eyes and as a wide line down the sides of the neck ; lateral bands of buff down each side of the back succeeded by other bands of the same colour at the centre.

Sides of the body rich warm reddish buff changing to pale buff on throat, foreneck and centre of breast and belly.

The wing feathers when they first appear are isabelline finety vermiculated with black, the quills gradually becoming more or less immaculate on the inner webs as they grow larger.

The bills are fleshy yellow and the legs rather clear olive greenish. Distribution. Hume's very full note on the distribution of the

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 7

red jungle-fowl leaves little to be added. Eliminating the areas in which the Burmese form occurs his summary' is as follows :

" Throughout the lower ranges of the Himalayas, the " Dhuns Tarais, and submontane districts and the Siwaliks " from the southern outer ranges of Kashmir to the extreme •' head of the Assam Valley bej^ond Sadiya.

'' Throughout the whole of Assam including the less "elevated portions of the Caro, Kliasi and Naga Hills, Cachar "' and Sylhet, the whole of Eastern Bengal, including the " Sunderbans. Again in the hilly portions of Western Ben- " gal from the Rajmehal hills, through Midnapore, and •' westward of this, through the whole of Chota Nagpore, and " the northern and eastern portions of the Central Provinces, " it is the only jungle-fowl that is found. It is common " along the Kymore Range, and extends northwards to the " neighbourhood of Piinnah and Chairkhari, and south- " wards on the ]\Iaikal or Amarkantak Ranges.

" Southwards and eastwards of these latter, it occupies the '' whole country north of the Godavari, Orissa, the Tributary "Mahals, Ganjam, Vizagaptam, and part of the Godavari " District, Joonagurh, Kareall, Nowagurh, Jej^pore and "other Feudatory States. It occurs also immediately below " Pachmarhi." Forsj^th has shewn that the habitat of this jungle-fowl is prac- tically that of the Swamp Deer (Cerviis duvauceli) and of the Sal- tree (Shorea robusta') and a curious corroboration of this is the occurrence of all three of these in the Deinwa Valley, near Pach- marhi, although there is an intervening country of some J 50 miles eastward before the three are again met with. At the same time it must be noted that the Red Jungle-fowl does not occur in Bhawalpore and Sind where the Swamp Deer is found, though not the Sal-tree.

A'idijication. The Red Jungle-fowl breeds, over the whole of its habitat, the season apparentlj^ not varying much in different locali- ties as it does with some birds. Thus even in the hot, drj^ portions of the Central Provinces and Punjab, etc., they appear to lay from April to June, not v.-aiting until the bursting of the rains ensures more food and a cooler temperature. At the same time it is certain that although the months just mentioned may be the principal breeding months a much wider margin of time than is covered by these miist be allowed for their nidification. I have personally taken their eggs in the Santhal Perganas, Chota Nagpore, Assam and Cachar in every month of the year except October, November and December. In the last mentioned month, however, I have seen just hatched chicks, so it would be unsafe to exclude any month of the year from their breeding season. In Assam

8 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

undoubtedly most birds lay in March and April, many in February and June and the rest at odd times throughout the year.

I have not known them breed above 6,000 feet, but have taken eggs at this height in the Assam Ranges, and have received a clutch of 8 eggs taken at Simla at this height by Mr. P. Dods- worth, whilst in the Naga Hills and hills in the extreme east of Assam they are found up to 7,000 and even 8,000 feet in summer, and almost certainly breed at this elevation.

They nest in practically any kind of jungle, but undoubtedly prefer for this purpose the dense tangle of secondary growth which is found in deserted cultivation clearings. Next to this kind of jungle, bamboo forest which is dense and which has some undergrowth appears to be a favourite resort and, thirdly, broken hills well covered with dense bush and tree forest. As regtirds the nest, this may be either a depression scratched in the ground by the birds or a natural hollow sometimes devoid of all lining, or, on the other hand, well lined with fallen leaves and rubbish. Sometimes there is no hollow even, and the eggs are just laid on the ground under the protection of a bush or clump of bamboos, whilst often a mass of leaves, grass and rubbish is collected in a heap, a hollow formed in the centre, and the eggs laid therein. I have also taken several nests made in the centre of bamboo clumps, the eggs being deposited in the mass of leaves and rubbish which always fill up the inside of these clumps to a height of two to four feet.

As a rule the nests are well concealed, especially where they are made in secondary growth, but I have more than once found them so placed that they could be seen from some feet away without any search having to be made for them. One such nest was placed on the ground in a shallow green mossy ravine running through ever- green forest. A certain amount of dead leaves, bracken and moss had been collected in a depression, whence a large stone had been turned out, and on these the eggs w^ere laid, conspicuous from about 20 feet in every direction, except from . the point at which they were screened by the boulder which still lay where it had been thrown on one side. Another quite unconcealed nest lay in a very open bamboo jungle, in a small bare space where nothing grew and here on a few dead bamboo leaves lay the five eggs, saved from molestation only by their resemblance in colour to the bamboo leaves.

The period of incubation appears to be 20 days, equivalent in tropical countries to the 21 days the domestic fowl takes to hatch her eggs in more temperate regions. The hen sits close, and when forced to leave, creeps away silently through the jungle more like an animal than a bird, though occasionally when very suddenly disturbed she may get up with as much fluster and fuss as a barn- door fowl.

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 9

The number of eggs laid is generall}'- 5 to 8, rarely 9, and whilst 5 or 6 is nndonbtedly the usual full complement, often only 4 are laid. Some hundreds of clutches have passed through my hands, or have been actually seen by myself in the nests, and Dr. H. N. Coltart must have seen almost as many,^ but neither of us have ever known more than 9. Jerdon states that they some- times lay as many as a dozen, but his zoological notes are not very correct, and he, like many others, who have made similar state- ments as to the number of eggs laid, have been probably misled by natives. In appearance the eggs cannot be discriminated from those of the common Indian domestic fowl, and ovXj differ from those of the English birds in being so much smaller. The}^ vary in colour from almost pure white merely tinged with cream to a deep cream buff or cafe-au-lait tint like that of a Brahma fowl's Qgg. Now and then one comes across a deep coloured set of eggs covered with white specks and spots, and I once had a clutch of bright pink-buff eggs marked with' white blotches and spots over the larger half.

In length 200 eggs vary between l-5o" (39-6 mm.) and 2-05" (26-6 mm.), whilst in breadth the extremes are 1-27" (32-2 mm.) and 1-62" (4M mm.) The average of 200 is 1- 82" (48-2 mm.) by 1- 40" (35- 5 mm.)" It will be seen that the average size of my eggs is a good deal larger than those of Hume, but is slightly less than those of the British Museum, according to Oates.

So many writers have constantly asserted that Jungle-fowl hens always cackle and call after laying an egg in the same way as the domestic bird does that I cannot pass over the subject without reference. Having read Tickell's and Kainey's remarks in Hume's " Game Birds " I made the most careful investigations, and must say that I have found nothing to support their asser- tions. It is true that time after time I have heard hens cackling and shouting as if full of pride at the recent achievement of laying an egg, but have never 3^et been able to find the agg so laid. Again, I have often heard hens when not breeding calling in the same manner, and sometimes several birds in one flock all giving vent to their feelings at once. As a rule I am quite sure the cry is the result of some fright and is merely the hen's way of ex- pressing indignation and not pride. A tiger or leopard stalking through the jungle will often be abused in this manner, and even a jackal maj^ ' be the mean cause of a similar commotion ; often myself when out shooting and stealthily going through the forest I have suddenly come on one or moi*e hens who, after flying a short distance have relieved their feelings by loud and prolonged cacklings. It seems hardly possible that a wild bird full of anxiety for its future young should announce to all the predatory world " here is an egg, come and eat it." It was this inherent 2

10 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XX F.

improbability in the idea that first made me investigate it, and I have no doubt that there is no foundation for it in fact.

Another common theory which there seems good reason to doubt is that Jungle-fowl are always polygamous. Hume draws attention to this and^aj's :

" Lastly, I am quite certain that they are not always

" polygamous. I do not agree with Hutton that they are

" always monogamous, because I have constantly found

" several hens in company with a single cock, but I have also

" repeatedly shot pairs without finding a single other hen in

" the neighbourhood."

There is, however, a good explanation of the first mentioned

condition of affairs, for I think that the J^oung cocks leave the

family circle before the young hens do, and in consequence the

male parent may often be seen in company with half a dozen hens

and no cocks, so that whilst one seldom finds hens wandering about

by themselves, unless they are incubating eggs, one often comes

across young cocks, either quite alone or with one other young

cock of like age ; probably a brother. It may be that the old cock

drives off the young birds, but it is more likely that the latter

being of a more roving, independent nature, clear off sooner than

the hens.

General Habits. Jungle-fowl may be found in practically any kind of country in which there is sufficient cover, but there is little doubt that they prefer country consisting of shallow valleys, low hills and broken ground at the foot of big hills rather than open plains country or the higher hills. As already mentioned, they maj^ be found up .to, or even over, 6,000 feet, but they are mere stragglers to such heights, and it is below 2,000 feet rather than over that we must look for them if we want them in number sufficient to make the shooting of them a regular business. Another undoubted attraction is cultivation when it borders on forest or bamboo jungle ; nor does it seem to matter much what the cultivation is, whether grain, rice, mustard, cotton or chillies. Any kind of crop seems to offer food either in itself, in the insects it attracts or in its semi-open patches which supply an easy hunting ground.

Jungle-fowl are extraordinarily numerous in the Garo, N. Cachar and other hills south of the Brahmapootra, and it is often possible to see hundreds in a morning's or afternoon's wandering. Once when shooting on the Kopoli River, a stream which divides the Khasia and N. Cachar Hills, I must have seen full}^ 500 birds during the day. It was then early in March, and the flocks of birds had not yet broken up into pairs to commence breeding, and every afternoon and evening they frequented the long stretches of mustard field which run along the banks of the stream. Although

THE GAME BIliDS OF INDIA. 11

nowhere wide, seldom over a hundred feet or so, these patches often ran for lialf a mile or more withont the break of a patch of forest, and they formed simply ideal feeding' grounds for every kind of game, from the Jungle-fowl and barking-deer to elephants and bufialoes. The miTstard was high enough to afford good cover, so that in spite of the wiliness of the birds it was possible to obtain quite a good bag bv wandering alona' inside the edge of the iungle, whilst a couple of men beat through the mustard about 20 yards behind one. On the morning in question, whilst the sun was still invisible I had got to the first patch and was about to start along the edge of the forest whilst my men did the beating, when I caught sight of a barking-deer coming out of it and a snap shot with my express turned it over and so commenced a lucky day's shoot.

The shot, however, disturbed every thing close by, so as we were only a few hundred yards from the camp, I sent one man back with the deer and waited for his return. By this time the birds had regained confidence and were out feeding once more and we had hardly started our beat before about a dozen Jungle-fowl were up with a tremendous fluster, and had dived headlong into the forest, leaving a fine old cock on the ground, whilst another bird escaped with a bad scare. A hundred yards furtiher on a second but smaller lot were flushed, and again resulted in a miss and a hit, another cock being added to the bag. After this a quarter mile's slow trudge showed nothing but a glimpse of a couple of hens as they scurried on foot into the undergrowth, too far way for a shot then a single cock gets up and is missed and within another 200 yards I managed at last to bring off a clean right and left at two hens, the last of a lot to get away out of the mustard. This sort of thing goes on until by about 9-0 a.m. I have got to the end of the cultivation, and have collected 8 Jungle-fowl, a couple of Kalij Pheasant and one Barking-deer, and have expended some 20 car- tridges. Of course the great majority of birds have got up well out of shot, and in one stretch of about half a mile of mustard well over 200 birds miist have been flushed without my firing off my gun once. In fact the majority of shots obtained were from tiny patches of mustard which lay so snuggled in the forest that the birds could not see us until we emerged from the forest tract into the cultivation. Even in there, however, as often as not we failed to obtain a shot, though the birds were there in numbers. All we saw as we peeped out of our leafy cover would be the last of a flock as it dis- appeared, an old cock bringing up the rear of his family, tail and head down as he ran for all he was worth into safety. Of course, on such occasions when it was possible a running shot was taken, and when shooting without dogs and especially when shooting to feed oneself and a hungry crowd of coolies, it ir, absolutely legiti- mate to do so or else go without any dinner.

12 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

Jungle-fowl ai'e jiist as great skulkei'S and runners as are nearly all other tropical game birds of the Pheasant tribe, and almost in- variably prefer to seek safety on their legs rather than b)^ wing, in fact except when one has good dogs or can work cultivated ground as above, it is absolutely impossible to get the birds to rise unless a regular beat is organised.

We used to have quite good shooting for from 4 to 6 giTus in the N. Cachar Hills with a line of 20 to 40 coolies. Our method used to be for the guns to keep well ahead of the betters along jungle paths or the beds of streams, a gun on either side of these latter when possible, whilst two other guns went along the extreme wings of the lines. In the mornings and evenings the birds were always found low down in the valleys near the water, and \evj favourite haunts were the numerous scrub covered islets which were dotted all along the stream. The line of coolies worked down the stream and about a hundred or two hundred yards up the sides of the hills on either side. The birds generally ran some distance in front of the shouting line of coolies and then broke across the stream, flying up the opposite hill and so giving real sporting shots at good distances. In this way we would sometimes get 30 or 40 birds in a morning and evening, chiefly Jungle-fowl but with a few Black-backed Kalij, an old bambooo partridge or so and per- haps a deer thrown in.

The Jungle-fowl is not an easy bird to kill and flies far faster and takes much straighter powder then a novice would imagine. A friend of mine who came out to India with the well-deserved reputation of being a real good pheasant-shot, at first when asked to do so absolutely refused to go out and shoot barn-door fowls, as he called them. He was, however, eventually induced to go out after Kalij Pheasant, and in the course of this shoot succeeded in firing well behind several Jungle-fowl which were put up to his gun. After this we heard no more contemptuous remarks against them, although, once he had taken their measure he became as fine a shot at these birds as at our home pheasants.

I have never been present at any very big shoots at Jungle- fowl, our shoots being merely scratch affairs got up at a moment's notice when we could get a day or half a day off" work, but the railway oflacials under the leadership of Mr. Vernon Woods used to have an annual Jungle- fowl shoot at which very big bags were made.

A great charm about Jungle-fowl shooting, whether in big beats or alone with a couple of shikaries or beaters is the wonderful variety of game one meets with, both large and small.

It is many years now since Hume warned Griffs as to the necessity for being prepared for any eventuality when shooting small game in heavy jungle, and this warning holds good now just

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 13

as it did then. Hume describes how when out Jungle-fowl shooting in 1853 he once ran into a party of four bears, and was at once charged by an old female whom he succeeded in killing, but at such close quarters that he and the bear all fell over together.

More than once I have had to shoot surely old boars who resented my intruding on to their feeding ground and once when I had foolishly left my rifle behind when going for an evening's stroll I had to retire in haste, whilst an ill-tempered cow buffalo grunted and pawed the ground in the middle of a mustard patch I wanted to shoot through. On another occasion I had a still more narrow squeak, walking straight on to a tigress engaged in finishing her meal off a wretched Mikir coolie whom she had killed. She was fortunately full and apparentlj^ did not quite understand what the object in front of her was, and eventually was good enough to make off, but as I only had a shot gun in my left hand and was too near her to risk changing it into my right, it was with no small relief I saw her leap to one side and rush away through the grass. The next year, curiously enough, when again Jungle- fowl shooting in the same place, I again saw her, this time at a safe distance, and was enabled to add her to my string of Jungle-fowl and Pheasant.

The crow of a Jungle-cock is quite a game wild sound, very like that of the game bantam; it is, however, always recognisable by its shrill yet full note, and, above all, by its very abrupt termination. In the domestic bird the last note is the one usually prolonged and most dwelt upon, whereas in the wild bird the last note is the shortest. Even in those parts of its habitat where the domestic birds are for the most part so constantly crossed with wild birds that they are to all intents and purposes of the same breed I think the full abrupt note of the really wild bird can be always re- cognised.

They do not crow much during the cold weather, though even in these months an odd bird or two may be heard throughout the day, whilst nearly every bird within hearing will be heard calling every morning and evening. In the breeding season, however, they not only crow several times just before daybreak and after sunset, but they crow constantly during the day, and are only quiet for the hottest hoiirs between noon and three or four o'clock.

During the breeding season, they do occasionally crow when strutting . about on the ground, breathing defiance against every other cock in. the neighbourliood, but as a rule they mount some convenient stump, or perch on a bamboo or tree branch and from this point of vantage challenge other birds to mortal combat with many crowings and flapping of wings.

Even, however, when they announce their presence thus to any sportsman who may be near, "they are so wily and so sharp of hear- ing that it takes a very careful stalk to enable one to get a shot.

14 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

The slightest snap of a twig or iTistle of a leaf and, even is in the middle of a crow, it collapses, and when you arrive the bird has gone. About the only time a Jungle-cock can be caught un- awares is when he is fighting, and then, so intense is his interest in the business on hand that I have known them caught by natives siuiph' throwing a cloth over the two struggling birds.

They are quite as pugnacious in their wild state as sluj breed of game cocks, and often fight to the death, indeed on some occa- sions until both birds are h or s-de- combat. One such occasion came within my own knowledge when my coolies picked up a dead Jungle-cock on the forest path, and just beside it another cock, blinded and so weak that it made no attempt to escape when caught and died before it could be bro.ught into camp. They will also fight with pheasants and other birds, and I was once fortunate enough to see the whole of a fight between a Jungle-cock and a Black-backed Kalij.

At the time this occurred I was seated behind a bamboo clump in a thicket of low bushes watching a Mikir attempting to call up Jungle-fowl. We had been there about ten minutes when his calls made to simulate a hen chuckling and scratching about for food attracted a cock who replied by crowing for two or three minutes, after which fluttering down from his bamboo perch, he strutted into the small open piece of ground immediatel}^ in front of us. At the same moment a fine cock Kalij also came into the open about five paces away, and without a second's hesitation the cock rushed at him, and taking him unawares bowled him over. The pheasant was, however, much the bigger bird of the two and apparently unhurt, though somewhat confused hj the rush tactics of his enemy, at once took up the gauntlet. For a few seconds the two birds faced one another, beaks low down to the ground and tails raised, and then like lightning the Jungle-cock rose and jumped over the pheasant, striking lustily as he passed and making the feathers fly.

No real damage was done by this, and the pheasant wheeling once more faced his active little adversary. Again the two birds walked round like a couple of pugilists, watching intently everj' movement of the other ; heads never more than a couple of feet apart, until one or the other made his effort, with varying success, to pass over the other bird striking as he leapt.

Similar proceedings went on for the next ten minutes, the pheasant occasionally taking the offensive, but seldom with anj- effect. By sheer weight he now and then succeeded in bowling over his enemy, but slowness in taking advantage of his momentar}'^ success always enabled the Jungle-fowl to slip away and again attack. At the end of the time mentioned it was a wearj?- and l)leediug pheasant v/hich faced a still alert and fresh Jungle-fowl ;

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 15

for a few more minutes however he still stuck to his guns, but then turned and fled, only to be at once caught and knocked over again and again as he tried to escape ; finally as he again turned to bolt, the cock struck fair, and his spur went right into the nape of the neck, and before he could disentangle himself from his victim, both birds were covei'ed by the Mikir's blanket. When we got them out of the folds of this the pheasant was dead, whilst the cock was almost unharmed beyond a broken spiir and a torn comb. To the Mikri's indignation I insisted on the release of the winner of the fight, who at once scuttled off into the bamboos and when at, what he considered, a safe distance flew into a branch and crowed victoriouslv.

Although I have so frequentl}- come across the birds when fight- ing, I have never come across a regular fighting ground such as that described by Hume. He writes :

" No one specially notices the extreme pugnacity' of these " birds in the wild state, or the fact that where they are "numerous they select regular fighting grounds much like " Rufls.

" Going through the forests of the Siwaliks in the north- " eastern portion of the Saharanpur district, I chanced one "afternoon, late in March, on the tiny open gi'assj' knoll, " perhaps ten yards in diameter and a yard in height. It " was covered with close turf, scratched in man)'' places into "holes and covered over with Jungle-fowl feathers to such an " extent that I thought some Bonelli's Eagle, a great enemy " of this species, must have caught and devoured one. Whilst " I was looking round, one of my dogs brought me from some- " where in the jungle round a freshh^ killed Jungle-cock, in " splendid plumage, but with the base of the skull on one side " pierced by what I at once concluded must have been the spur " of another cock. I put up for the da}^ at a Bunjara Perow, " some two miles distant, and on speaking to the men found " that they knew the place well, and one of them said that he " had repeatedl}^ watched the cocks fighting there, and that he " would take me to a tree close by whence I could see it for myself. Long before daj'light he guided me to the tree, telling me to climb to the fourth fork, whence, quite con- " cealed, I could look down on the mound. When I got up " it was too dark to see an}i;hing, but a glimmer of dawn soon " stole into the eastern sky, which I faced ; soon after crow- "ing began all round, then I made out the mound dimly, •• perhaps thirty yards from the base of the tree, and forty from "my perch; then it got quite light, and in a few minutes "later, a jungle-cock ran out on to the top of the mound and "' crowed (for a wild bird) vociferously, clapping his wings.

(t

16 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

" and strutting round and round, with his tail raised almost " like a domestic fowl.

" And here I should notice that although, as has often been " noticed, the wild cocks always droop their tails when run- " ning away or feeding in fact almost whenever you see them " yet I believe from what I then and once subsequently "saw, that, when 'challenging rivals, they probably always " erect the tail, and I know (having twice so surprised them "before they saw me when watching for Cheetul aii,d Sambur " from a machan, near water in the early morning) that when " paying their addresses to their mates, they do the same during " the preliminary struts round them.

" I learned so much and no more ; there was a rush, a yelp ; " the jungle-cock had vanished, and I found that one of my "wretched dogs had got loose, tracked me, and was now " careering wildly about the foot of the tree.

" Next day I tried again, but without success. I suppose

" the birds about had been too much scared by the dog, and I

" had to leave the place without seeing a fight there ; but put-

" ting all the facts together, I have' not the smallest doubt

"that this was a real fighting arena, and that, as the Bunjara

" averred, many of the innumerable cocks in the neighbour-

" hood did systematically fight there."

In the Sunderbans, where, as Rainey and Hume both believed to

be the case, most, if not all, the birds are derived from tame stock ;

they are often caught by the cultivators who use a tame cock as a

decoy spreading nooses round about him in which the wild birds

who come to answer his challenge are caught. This method which

is described by Rainey and quoted by Hume is the common way

of catching Jungle-fowl over practically the whole of their habitat,

but the hill tribes often catch them by nooses just set about and

around some small patch which they bait with grain.

They are very hard birds to domesticate, if kept in confinement they soon pine awaj^ and die, and if allowed to run about with the farmyard birds they nearly always clear off the following breeding season, though they may continue to haunt the vicinity for some time, months even, after they first take their departure. At the same time they often haunt the vicinity of villages attracted, of course, by the surrounding cultivation and by the droppings of grain, etc. In such cases it is no iTiicommon thing for a cock to take up his abode in some tree or bamboo clump in the immediate out- skirts of the buildings, where he sleeps at night and dail}^ visits the domestic hens as they wander about in the cultivation. The tame cocks seldom attempt to resent his appearance, and when they do they generally get such a troimcing that the attempt is not made twice. It is curious that although in some villages the hens are so

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 17

coutinually crossed with the wild cocks that to all intents and purposes the birds are nothing but wild birds pure and simple, yet the cocks never have the same robustness and fighting abilit)^ as the actual wild ones. In appearance they are one and the same birds until one examines the spurs and then it is seen that the spur of the wild bird is generally far longer, finer and cleaner than that of the village bird. One seldom meets with the short bulgy spur in a feral state and the texture also seems to be much harder and closer and naturally, as a weapon, is far more effective.

The strength and vigour with which the Jungle-cock can use his spur is really astonishing ; in addition to the cases already men-, tioned in one of which the neck vertebrae were severed and in the other the eye and brain pierced, I have more than once known them to drive the spur full into their opponent's brain behind the comb, and on another occasion found a cock with his wing broken at the carpal joint. Sometimes so fierce is the blow given that the spur itself gets broken or torn awaj'-, and once that is done the owner is no more of use in the ring, however great his pkxck and determination.

In spite of what Hume says to the contrary, for the table the qualities of the Jungle-fowl must be rated nearly as high as his pugilistic attributes. When shot round about villlages he maj^ sometimes be found to be a foul feeder, though this is not my own experience, but normall}' his flesh is excellent, even old birds are comparatively tender and sweet, except for their legs, whilst birds of the year are much better eating than are Kali] Pheasants of the same age. Like all game birds they are all the better for hang- ing when the climate permits, but when it is impossible to keep them for two or three days they should in the alternative be plucked, cooked and eaten as soon as possible after being killed.

Like the domestic fowl the Jungle-fowl is practically omnivorous, but is by preference rather a vegetaiian than an insect eater. All kind of seeds, grain, etc., are greedily devoured, and also many kinds of roots, buds and yoang shoots. Bamboo seeds are a yqyj favourite food, and where there are stretches of bamboo which have seeded and the seeds are beginning to fall, these birds and others collect in almost incredible numbers into a very small area. I have known them eat in addition to their ordinarj^ seed and grain diet, worms and small lizards, insects of all kinds, tadpoles out of a little backwater in a hill stream, and, once, I saw a hen rushing about with a small grass snake in her bill pursued by two other Jungle-fowl. Whether they would have finished the snake or not cannot be said, as my appearance on the scene dis- persed the meeting. They are very fond of all kinds of wild figs and berries and also of the mowa flower when this ripens and falls to the ground.

3

18 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

As a rule Jungle-fowl feed almost entirely on the ground, scrat- ching about, turning over leaves and fallen rubbish and hunting for their food just as the domestic bird does in the back yard, but I have more than once disturbed them feeding in the Pepul and Banyan trees, scrambling about on the branches and picking the fruit as thej'" go. They are extremely clumsy birds when thus employed, and seem to easily lose their balance and fall over.

The young birds fly within a ver^- few daj^s of hatching, and when the hen is forced to take wing follow her well and seem to have no difficulty whatsoever in keeping pace with her. At this stage of their development their wings appear to be very large in proportion to their bodies, and their flight is very quiet and sound- less compared with the noisy flight of the adult bird.

GaLLUS BANKIYA BANKIVA.

The Burmese Juiujle-Foivl.

Phasianus bankiva. Rafll., Trans. Soc, Lmu. XIII, p. 319, [Sumatra] (1822). Grand Gaille de la Chine. Sonn.; Voy. India Orient., II, p. 171 (1782), (China).

Hackled Partridge.— Lath. Gen. Syn., II, p. 766, pi. 66 (1783), id., Gen. Hist., VIII., p. 307, pi. 129 (Cape ? ).

Tetrao ferrugineus. Gm. S. N., i., pi. 2, p. 761 (1788), China.

Perdi.r ferruyinea. Lath. Ind. Orn., ii., p. 651 (1790), Africa.

Cotumix spadicea. Bonnat. Tabl. Encycl. Meth., i, p. 218 (1791), China.

Gallus bankiva. Temm. Pig. et Gall., ii., p. 87 (1813), Java, iii., p. 654 ; Steph, in Shaw's Gen. Zoo., XL, p. 198 ; Horsf., Tr. Linn. Soc, XIII., p. 185 ; Griff, ed. Cuv., III., p. 20 ; J. E. Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. i., 43, fig. 3; Robinson and Kloss, Ibis, 1910, p. 672.

GaUusfeyrugineus. Jerdon, B. Ind. iii., p. 536 (part); Blyth, Ibis, 1867, p. 154 (part) ; Elliot, Mon. Phas., ii., p. 184, pi. 32, (part) ; Hume, M. and E., Ind. B., p. 528, part; Kelham, Ibis, 1882, p. I; Nichols, Ibis, 1882, p. 65; et? Ibis, 1838, p. 255; Gates, erf Hume's Nests and Eggs, III., p. 417 (part) ; Blanf., Avi. Bri, Ind., IV. p. 75 (part) ; Sharpe, Hand-L.-B., i., p. 39 (part) ; Bonhote, P.Z.S., 1901, p. 78 ; Ingram, Nov. Zool., XIX, p. 271 ; Barton, Journ. N. A. Siam, p. 108 ; Gairdner and Macolm-Smith, ibid, p. 151 ; Macdonald, Journ. B. N. H. S., XVII., p. 496 (1906) ; Baker, ibid, XVII., p. 764 1907) ; Harington, ibid, XIX, 309 (1909) ; Id, ibid, p. 365 (1909); Id, ibid, XX, p. 1010 (1911); Cook, ibid, XXI, p. 625 (1912); Hopwood, ibid, XXI, p. 1214 (1913).

Galluii gallus. Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B.B.M., XXIL, p. 344 (part) ; id Hand-L, Game B., II., p. 48 (part) ; Gates, Game B., of In. i., p. 366 (part).

Vernacular Names. Taukyet (Burmese).

Description Adult Male. Differs from the common Indian Jun- gle-fowl in having the ear lappets red instead of white. The plumage above is generallj^ a deeper red, the neck hackles being less of a golden yellow or orange at their tips. It is also noticeable that the nock hackles are less attenuated and broader at their tips, though the characteristic is very variable, and ma}^ in some instances be due to an admixtm-e of domestic blood.

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 19

Measvirements and colours of soft parts do not differ from those of the Indian bird except for the ear lappets, as already stated. Adult Female similar to that of Gallns h. ferruijineus . Young Male and C/iick in down cannot be distinguished from the same stages in the Common Indian Jungle-fowl until after the first autumn moult, when the deep red of the upper parts at once be- comes noticeable. The white ear lappets are replaced by red or deep pink even in very j^oung birds, and will always suffice to show to which sub-species a specimen belongs.

Distrihution. The whole of Burmah and the Malay Peninsula, Siam, Cochin, China, Sumatra and also Java, and many of the Islands of the Malay Islands, as well as in the Great and Little Cocos. In the Cocos the birds are certainly descended from tame stock, and probably in the majority, if not all of the Malay Islands, their origin is the same.

Kidification. The Burmese Jungle-fowl appears to breed princi- pally in the cold weather, from November to March, but in the hills rather later than this, generally in March and A.pril. Even here, however, it is often a very early breeder, for Harington tells me that he found them breeding in January and February in the Chin Hills, obtaining hard-set eggs in the former month and young chicks in the latter. Mr. C. B. Moggridge found broods of young birds as early as the 10th and 14th of January. In Pegu, Gates found them breeding from the end of February or beginning of March on into June and my collectors took eggs here as late as July, whilst Mr. Barton records finding a bird sitting on six eggs at Raheng in Siam on the 11th March. In the Malay Peninsula thej' are said to lay during February, March and April, and I have received eggs laid in these months from the vicinity of Taiping.

There is nothing to distinguish either nest or eggs from those of the Indian bird. Gates says:

" As a rule she makes no nest, but merely scrapes out a "hollow at the foot of a bamboo or other bush ; at times there "appear to be a good many leaves under the eggs. These " vary in number from 6 to 9 ; but Captain Wardlaw-Ramsay " once found 11 eggs in one nest ; in coloiir they are pale buff." Mr. C. S. Barton, to whom I have already refei'red, records find- ing a nest containing 6 eggs in an old stump. This is the only record I can find of the bird building off the ground, though it doubtless sometimes makes its nest in clumps of bamboos just as the Indian Jungle-fowl does.

The usual number of eggs is 5, 6 or 7; often the}' only lay 4, and on the other hand 8 or 9 ma}^ sometimes be found.

In size, shape and texture they differ in no way from those of the Indian bird.

General Habits. The Burmese Jungle-fowl seems to differ in

20 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

character from the Indian Jungle-fowl more decidedly than it does in outward appearance, and is probably even more closely allied to the domestic fowl than is the latter bird. It is on the whole less wild, less of a skulker, and far more amenable to restraint and domestication, for several writers record successfully rearing and keeping these fowls together with their barn-door fowls.

A regards choice of country to live in both Indian and Biirmese forms seem to have similar likings. Gates writes :

" There is no description of jungle from which this common " bird is absent ; but if it has a predilection for any particular " style of country, it is for the broken ground and ravines with " dense vegetation. In these localities (and there are many " such, especially at the foot of some of the Hill ranges) it is " abundant to a degree. Considerable numbers are generally " found together, the two sexes mixing freely together. In " Bur mail, I think, Jungle-fowl are more common near tiny " villages in deep forest than elsewhere, for in the neighbour- " hood of these hamlets there is always a certain amount of " paddy land, a good deal of low cover, and a running stream. " They feed in the mornings and evenings, and during the " middle of the day the}^ remain very quiet, either in some "tree or well-concealed under low bushes or grass." Mr. G. B. Moggridge (in a letter to the late Gol. Harington, which the latter had kindly made over to me with all his own notes) confirms what Gates saj'S, and also emphasises the Jungle-fowl's love of cultivation. " Anyone who has done much Jungle-fowl shooting soon learns to tell at a glance where the birds will fly when put up, but if one does not know the ground one is apt to take the first open space one finds, if it is fairly clear all round for shooting, with disastrous resiilts. The two best pla- ces I know are in Gargaw and Madaya^ but the former is the better as there are places where both sides of the creek are cultivated for miles, not with paddy, but in gardens. Here the favourite haunts of the birds were in Lu, a species of grain (^Milmm 'paspalu'in), Nantsi (Sessamer) and in gardens where a few Zeethe bushes had grown up among the others. All round the villages in Madaya you would find just as many birds as in Gargaw, but between the villages is where the latter gains, the cultivation extending so much further. We always found the beating very easy where there was a creek to stand in or beat over. Jungle-fowl like stajdng near water, and seem to haunt trees and bushes on the banks of the creeks, not onlj^ because of the water itself, but also because they prefer a clear space in which to spread their wings as they fly down from their nests, rather than having to dive down in and out through the closer set trees and bushes. At one place in the district, Gargaw, Mr. P.E, Cleaver got 97 birds to his own gun in one day."

THE GAME BIRDS OF IN-DIA. 21

Jungle-fowl are probably more numerous in suitable places throiighoutBurmah than they are anywhere in India, for the gentle- man above quoted in other letters writes :

" Bell and I in 1904 in eighteen days shot 360 Jungle-fowl " and in 1905 in thirty days got 435 birds. The number of " days mentioned represents the total number of days we were " oiit in camp, and on some of these days we did not shoot at all, " being in jungles away from cultivation, etc. All our shooting " was done as we were on the march from one camp to another, " and no day was taken off work and devoted entirely to shoot- " ing. Under the same conditions as the above, and being " quite by myself, I shot whilst moving from one camp to " another between the 8th of January and end of February " 1910, 316 head of game, of which 127 were Jungle-fowl." They also seem to collect in larger flooks in Burmah than they normally do in India. In the latter place I have sometimes seen a couple of hundred in the same stretch of cultivation, but they were all broken up into flocks of a dozen or less, and anything over this number was quite exceptional. Davison and Hildebrand on one occasion counted 30 males and females seated on one enormous bent bamboo. This was in Pahporn in Tenasserim where Davison found them extremelj^ abundant. Again near Bhamo Major White- head once counted 40 birds together, but these were all cocks without ^a single hen.

These cock-parties are not unknown in India where young- unpaired cocks often seek each other's society and assemble in small flocks of half a dozen or so, but I have never myself come across so large a party as Major Whitehead's, nor have ] any simi- lar record from any other observer outside Burmah.

In regard to its food there is nothing special to remark upon, and as an article of diet itself it appears to be much the same as its Indian brothers and sisters.

The crow is said to be distinguishable from that of the Indian Jungle-fowl, and to be more like that of the domestic bird, i.e., with the last note more prolonged and the crow as a whole le«s short and jerky,

Gallus sonnerati. The Grey Jungle-foivl.

Coq et I*oule sauvage des Indes. Sonn. Voy. Ind. Orient, II., p. 148, pis. 94-95 (1782).

Wild cock.— Lath, Gen. Syn., 11., p. 698 (1783).

Fhasiamcs r/allus. Scop, (nee Linn.), Del. Flor. et B'aun. Insnbr. pi. 11., P- 93 (1786) ; Lath, Ind. Orn., IL, p. 625 (1790).

Sonneraf s Wild Cock.— Lath., Gen. Hist., VIII., p, 181 (1823).

Gallus sonnerati.—Teraxn. Pig. et Gall., 11., p. 246 (1813) ; 111., p. 659 ; Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool., XI., p. 200, pi. XII.; Temm, PI. Col. V., pis. 1 and 2 ; Griffith's ed. Cuv., 111., p. 19 ; Sykes, P. Z. S., 1832, p. 151 ;

22 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

Jard., Nat Lib. Orn., p. 186, pis. XI. and XII. ; Blyth, Ann. Mag. N. H. XX., p. 388 ; iti., Cat. Mus. As. Soc, p. 243 ; Burgess, P. Z. S., 1856, p. 29 ; Jordon, B. Ind., III., p. 539 ; Bulger, P. Z. S., 1866, p. 571 ; Blyth, Ibis, 1867, pp. 154, 307 ; Elwes, Ibis, 1870, p. 528 ; Elliot, Mon. Phas., II., p. 34 ; Lloyd, Ibis, 1873, p. 401 ; Hume, N. and E. Ind. B., p. 531 ; Butler, Str. Fr., IV., p. 5 ; Fairb., ibid, IV., p. 262 ; Hume, ibid, IV., p. 404 ; Butler, ibid, v., p. 222 ; Fairb., ibid, V., p. 409 ; Marshall, B. Nests Ind., p. 59 ; Gould, B. Asia, VII., p. 56 ; Hume and Marsh, Game B. Ind., I., p. 231, pi. ; Davidson and Wend, Str. Fr., VII., p. 86 ; Butler, Cat. B. Sind, p. 53 ; Mclnroy, Str. Fr. VIII., p. 493 ; Vidal, ibid., IX., p. 76; Butler, ibid, IX., pp. 205, 421 ; Davidson, Str. Fr. X., p. 316; Davison, X., p. 409; Swinh. and Barnes, Ibis, 1885, p. 131 ; Taylor, Str. Fr., X., p. 464 ; Terry, ibid, X., p. 479 ; Gates, ed. Hume's Nests and Eggs, III., p. 420 ; id. Game B. of In., I., p. 364 ; Blanf., Avi. Brit. Ind., IV., p. 78 ; Sharpe, Hand-L., I.; p. 35 ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. B. M., XXI., p. 350 ; Barnes, B. N. H. S. Jour., VI., p. 3 ; Davidson, ibid, XII, p. 63 (1898) ; Betham, ibid, p. 363 (1900) ; Ferguson, ibid, XVI., p. 3 (1904) ; Finn., Avi. Mag. Feb., 1910, p. 129.

Phasianus indicus. Leach, Zool. Misc., II., p. 6, pi. 61 (1815).

Fernacular names, Jungli-murgha S , Jungli-murgi $ [Hindus) ; Komri {Mt. Abu); Pardah-Komri, {Gondki, Chanda Dist.) ; Ean-Kombada c? > Ran-Kombadi 5 {Marati) ; Kombadi {Deccmi) ; Kattu-Kozli or Koli (Tarn.) ; Adavikode (Teleffu); Koli, Kad-Koli, (Canarese) ; Geera-Kur (Marie Gond),

Description Adult male. Feathers at the sides of the forehead dull rufous ; head, neck and hackles of the extreme upper back black with grey, fringes to the bases, and with numerous bars changing from golden j^ellow on nape and shoulders to pure white on the back ; on the longer feathers the black bars are glossed with purple blue. Feathers of the back, rump, and lesser win^ coverts black fringed with gray, and with broad white shaft streaks, the majority also Avith concealed longitudinal grey bars. Longest and lateral rump feathers highl}^ glossed with purple and with chestnut instead of grey fringes, in addition to which they are marked with pale yellow or white spots. Upper tail coverts l3lack glossed with violet, purple and blue, and edged with chestnut and buif.

Median wing coverts and scapulars black, barred on the basal half with grey and Avith white shafts which expand at the tips for a length of about an inch into spatulate, flat plates of orange j^ellow about two inch wide ; the majority of which have fringes on the outer side of deep red. Greater coverts and quills blackish brown, the innermost quills and coverts with white shafts, and sometimes a small amount of whitish freckles near the tip. Lower parts from the hackles to vent dark grey brown to black with broad v/hite shaft stripes and grey or grey-white edges ; feathers of posterior flanks and a few of those on the abdomen with orange rufous edges. Feathers of vent and centre of abdomen dull rufes- cent brown ; under tail coverts black with white edges.

Colours of soft parts. " The legs and feet are yellow, or reddish yellow, and the claws black, but I have one specimen, probably a 3'oung bird, noted as having had the legs and feet greenish brown.

THE (iAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 23

The bill is in the adult, more or less of it, black, the upper mandible often yellowish at the base, and the lower mandible also pale horny, Imt in younger birds the upper mandible is horny or greenish brown, and the lower mandible yellow. The irides of the adult are yellow or reddish orange, occasionally bright red, in younger birds yellowish bi'own." (Hiinie.)

Finn says that the legs of males in full vigour are a salmon red, and it appears that they are brighter and more red during the breeding season than at other times. The comb, bare face and wattles are crimson, brightest during the breeding season.

Measurements. " Length 28-0 to 32-0 ; expanse 27*0 to 31-0; wing 9'35 to 9"65 ; tail fi-om vent 14-0 to 16-0; tarsus 2-85 to 3-0; bill from gape 1-28 to 1-3; weight 1 lb. 10 ozs. to 2 lb. 8 ozs.; length of spur 1-3 to 1-75 inch." (Hume.)

The measurements of the birds which have passed through my hands somewhat exceed the above, two cocks having had a wing of full 10 inches (254 mm.) and one or two others nearly approaching it. I have also seen one bird with a tail of 18 inches.

Youmj male. Like the female, but much more rufous and more boldly barred and blotched.

Young male on moulting from first plumage and before acquiring hackles has the whole upper plumage black, the feathers grey edged and with white shaft lines ; the wings and tails are like the female, but much darker, the underparts are like the adult but without the rufous on the flank and belly feathers. The median coverts and the scapulars where waxj- yellow and spatulate in the adult are marked with rufous in the young bird, and a few of the feather shafts are already somewhat flattened and spatulate.

Colours of soft parts. Legs dull waxy yellow, or horny yellow, never with an}- reddish tinge ; irides brown or yellowish brown ; bill horny, the culmen darker and the base of the upper and whole of the lower yellowish horn}'. The spurs are generally short and blunt, not exceeding 12 mm. in length.

The rudimentary comb and wattles are dull crimson red, but the face is almost as bright a crimson as in the adult.

The adult cock has a semi-moult during the rains, June to August, and loses his long neck hackles, and the long central tail feathers, the former being replaced by short feathers of dull brown black without the terminal sealing-wax spots of yellow.

Adult female. Upper part of the head dull pale brown, rufes- cent on the forehead and the feathers faintly white centred ; neck golden brown, feathers white shafted and with brown bands on each w^eb which increase in size on the mantle. Whole upper plumage, wing coverts and secondaries finely vermiculated pale sandy brown and dull black ;. tail dull rufous black mottled with rufous on the central feathers at the edges.

24 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISr. fiOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

Below white, each feather edged with dark brown and more or less speckled with brown inside this edging ; flanks mottled sandy brown and brown with broad white central streaks.

Colours of the soft parts. Irides red or yellowish red in fnlly

adnlt birds, yellowish brown in the vounger ones and brown in

birds of the first jear. Legs and feet dull waxy 3- ellow or yellowish

brown, according to Hume brownish fleshy in younger birds : the

soles are paler and the toes, generally, darker than the tarsus ;. claw

dark horny brown or blackish. Bill horny brown, paler at the

base of the tipper mandible and yellowish white on the whole of the

lower. Rudimentary comb and bare facial skin dull crimson or

brick red, less dull during the breeding season than at other times.

Measurements. "Length 18-0 to 20-0; expanse 26*0 to 27*0;

"wing 7-8 to 8-3; tail from vent 6-0 to 7-0 ; tarsus 2-2 to

"2-55; bill from gape 1-02 to 1-2; weight 1-lb. 9-ozs. to

" 1-lb. 12-ozs.'" (Hume).

Chicle in down. Similar to that of the Bed Jungle-fowl, but

with the lateral bands almost pure white instead of bright pale

buff and the sides and lower parts dull grey instead of rich buff" and

buff" respectively.

HiTme considers that the northern birds, Mount Abu, " run rather larger and considerably heavier than the Nilgiri ones."' 1 can find nothing to confirm this, and have seen two bigger birds from the south of Travancore than from anywhere else further north.

Distribution. In 1898 Blanford thus defined the habitat of the Grey Jungle-fowl, and since that date [ have seen no record claim- ing and any further extension.

" Throughout Southern and Western India in hill}^ and jungly " ground. This Jungle-fowl is found near the Eastern coast " as far no]"th as the Godaveri, and in the Central Provinces its " limit is some distance East of Sirmcha, Chanda and Seoni. " It is found throughout the Nerbudda Valley west of Jubbal- " pore, and in parts of Central India and Bajputana, as far as " the Aravalis and Mount Abu, but no further to the northward " or westward. It is met with near Baroda, but has not been " observed in Kattywar. It is common throughout the " Western Ghats and Satpuras, and it is found, though not " abundantly, on the tops of the Nilgiri and Palni Hills." South'\A'ards it is found almost, but not quite, down to the ex- treme south of Travancore.

Nidif cation. The breeding season, properly speaking, extends over Februarj^, March, April and May over the greater part of this bird's habitat, though Davison writing of the Western Nilgiris records October, November and December as the principal breeding months. As a matter of fact eggs, fresh and hard-set, and young, just hatched or nearly fully fledged, may be found in practically

THE GAME BIRlJ.'S OF lABIA. 26

every month of the year. The months in which most will be foimd are those in which food is most abundant, a matter depen- dant upon the rains and other climate influences. In Travancore they breed steadily from March to -ruly, and Mr. T. F. Bourdillon took eggs as late as August 20th. They make their nests when they make any and la>- their eggs in much the same kind of country and jungle as do the Red Jimgle-fowl, and, like the latter birds, seem to specially approve of dense secondary growth and bamboo jiingle. They breed freely in the Sholas, or small woods, which nestle in the hollows in the Xilgiri Hills, but thej^ also breed in just as great numbers in the vast woods of Travancore and Mysore. Often they lay their eggs in a small hollow, either natui-al or scratched out by themselves in the shade of some bush or bamboo clump, and the nest consists merely of a slight collection of rubbish and fallen leaves. Sometimes the nest is formed of a mound of such material with a hollow in the centre for the eggs ; more rarely it is comparatively weW made of sticks, leaves, bamboo- spates, matted together in a solid mass whilst in still more cases it is perched up on a dead tree or stump or a clump of bamboos.

The number of eggs laid is rather a vexed question. Miss Cock- burn, who was always extraordinarily lucky in the number of eggs laid bv birds with which she came in contact, says that the num- ber of eggs found in a nest is from 7 to 1 3 j Jerdon says from 7 to 10, and Davison says from G to 10. On the other hand Mr. J. Davidson tells me that he has never found more than 4 eggs in a nest, and Barnes mentions the number as 6 or 7, occasionally more. Mr. J. Stewart, through whose hands have passed a very large number of Travancore clutches, and who has seen an immense number in situ in a letter to me sa5^s, " I am sending you a clutch of 7 eggs of the Grey Jungle-fowl, an unusual number, for they generally lay only 4 or 5, and sometimes even less." There is a general tendency to overestimate the number of eggs laid by game- birds, and from the testimony of modern collectors I think it will be found that 4 or 5 eggs is the number most often laid, and that whilst a fair number of clutches of 6 or 7 eggs may be found, more than this is quite abnormal.

The eggs are of coiirse very small, but can be otherwise all matched by varieties of the domestic fowl's eggs. The most com- mon type is fawn, or fawn-buff, but they varj- from very pale cream to a rich warrn bufl, generally quite immaculate, but sometimes covered with innumerable freckles of light brown, and occasionally distinctly spotted and speckled with light brown, dark brown, or reddish brown. In the latter case the spots are generally sparsely and irregularh' scattered over the whole surface of the egg and xsLry in size from that of a pin's head to spots as much as a couple of millimetres or more in diameter. These spotted and freckled eggs 4

26 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

are, however, exceptional, though comparatively a good deal more often met with than they are in Gallus hanMva ferrvgineus.

As a rule the surface is ver}^ fine, smooth and glossy, but they vary from this to a surface which is densely pitted with tiny pores like those found on a guinea-fowl's egg. In shapes they are typical fowl's eggs, but in a large series a fairly wide divergence of shape may be met with, from a long narrow oval almost the same at either end to a broad scjuat oval with the smaller and distinctly pointed and compressed.

In length the 50 eggs I have measured myself or of which [ have had measurements sent me varied between 1-72" (43-7 mm.) and 2-12" (53-9 mm.) in length and between 1-30" (35-0 mm.) and 1-46 (37'1 mm.) in width. The average of the 50 eggs is 1-80" (45-7 mm.) by 1-40" (35-5 mm.).

Oates gives the variation in breadth of the series in the British Museum as being far greater than given above, but I have most carefully measured the series and find them all to come within these limits.

General habits. Since Davison wrote his splendid description of this bird's habits there has been practically nothing further of value recorded, and so exhaustive and interesting ai"e these notes, that it is not likely that there will ever be much to add. He writes :

" The Grey Jungle-fowl occurs but sparingij^ about the " higher portions of the Nilgiris, but is common on the lower " slopes, in the low country about the basis of the hills, and " throughout most parts of the Wynaad. I have found it " most abundant in the jungles between Metapolliem and " Kullar, and between this j^lace and Burliar about half-way " between Kullar and Coonoor, I counted 26 once (while " riding up to Cooncor early one morning) feeding along the " cart road here.

" Unlike the Red Jungle-fowl, this species is not grega- " rious, and though occasionally one meets with small coveys, " these always consist of onlj' one or two adults, the rest " being more or less immature. As a rnle, they are met with •' singlj^ or in pairs.

" The crow of the male is very peculiar, and might be " syllabled, Imck-haya-hya-lvuck, ending with a low, double syl- " lable like 'Jcyukun, hijuhvn,' repeated slowly, and very softly, " so that it cannot be heard except when one is very close to the " bird. Only the males crow, and that normally onlj'in themorn- " ings and evenings, though occasionally they crow at intervals " during the day when the weather is cloud3\ The crow is " very easily imitated, and with a little practice the wild " birds may be readily induced to answer.

THE GAME BIRDS OF 2M)IA. 27

" They do not, however, crow the whole j'ear through, but " only from October to ]\lay, when they are in full plumage.

" When flushed by a dog in the jungle, the}' flutter up into " some tree above with a peculiar cackle, a ' Kuch-lcuck-lcuck, ' " which, however, they onh" continue till they alight.

" They come into the open in the mornings and evenings, " retiring to cover during the heat of the day, unless the '• weather is cloudy, when they, may be met with in the open " throughout the day.

" Though found in evergreen forests, tliey seem to prefer " moderatelv thin and bamboo iungle,

" Ordinarily, as already remarked, thej- are found scattered ; " but when a tract of bamboo comes into seed, or any other "particular food is locally abundant, they collect there in vast " numbers, dispersing again as soon as the food is consumed. " I remember on one occasion when the undergrowth of the " Sholas about Pykarra (which consists almost entirelj' of " Strohilanthes sjj.) seeded, the Jungle-fowl congregated there " in the greatest numbers. I mean by hundreds, and were '•' excessively numerous for more than a fortnight, when they " gradually dispersed, owing, I believe, not so much to the " seeds having all been eaten, as to what remained of them " having sprouted and so become uneatable.

" In some ways they are not very shy ; by taking an early " stroll, even without a dog, along some quiet road by which " cattle and grain pass, several can always be obtained, but *• when they have been at all disturbed and shot at, they " become very wary, and even with a dog, before which they " ordinarily perch at once, they are very difficult to secure. In " such cases they run till they think they are out of shot, and " then rise, and instead of perching, take a long flight, often " of many hundred yards, and when they do alight, commence •' running again.

" When out feeding they do not usually' wander far from " cover, and on any indication of danger they dart back into " this. They do not, however, go far in, generally only for a "very short distance, before stopping to listen, when, if all " seems quiet, they reappear in a short time within a few " yards of the spot at which they entered. If, on the contrary, " after listening thej- think that there is still danger, thej- " then retreat quietlj' and silently into the depths of the "jungle; occasional!}", after they have got some distance " flying up and hiding themselves in some bushy tree.

'• When, however, as sometimes, though rarely happens, "' they are surprised some distance out in the open, they *' do not ran but rise at once and flv for the nearest cover,

28 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

" either perching in some leafy tree, or else dropping to the " ground.

" The}^ are very punctual in their appearance at particular " feeding grounds, and when one or more are met with in any " particular spot, they are certain, if not disturbed in the " interim, to be found there again in the same place at about " the same hour the next or any subsequent day on which they " may be looked for. There was one particularly fine and " remarkabl}" shy and cunning old cock that frecjuented an " open glade in the forest (above the Government Cinchona " Plantations at Neddivuttum) in i;he morning, Avhereas in the " evening he always came into the plantation and wandered about under the cinchona trees, and along the plantation roads. He never, to ni}'^ knowledge and I mvist have seen him fifty times at least came into the plantation in the " morning, or into the glade in the evening. There was no ' ' doubt as to this being the same bird that frequented the two " places (nearly a quarter of a mile distant), for he was the " largest, handsomest, and to judge from his spurs, the oldest " C(5ck I ever saw. •' I loved that cock as a brother, I did, and " at last I circumvented and shot him.'

" The best time to shoot the Jungle-cock is from October "to the end of May, as then his hackles are in the best " condition.

" In June the moult begins, and the male gradually drops " his hackles and long tail feathers, the hackles being replaced "by short feathers, as in the female ; dming the rains the male " is a poor mean-looking object, not in the least like his " handsome self in the cold weather, and, fully conscious of " this fact, he religiously holds his tongue during this period.

" In September, a second moult takes place, the short " feathers of the neck are again replaced by the hackles, the " long tail feathers reappear, and by October the moult is " complete and our Southern Chanticleer as noisy as ever.

" The male usually carries its tail low, and when running, " it does so with the tail lowered still more, the neck out- " stretched, and the whole body in a crouching position as in "the Pheasants.

" I do not know for certain whether the species is polygam- " ous or monogamous, but from what I have observed I should " think the latter ; for although the male does not, I believe, " assist in incubation, yet when the chicks are hatched, he is " often to be found in company with his mate and little ones.

" These birds are, I believe, quite amtamable, even when " reared from the egg, and though in the latter case they may " not be so wild as those captured in maturity, they never take

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 29

" kindly to domestic life, and avail themselves of the first " opportimity for escaping-. It is needless to say that they " cannot easily be induced to breed in captivity. I have " known the experiment tried time after time unsuccessfully.

" Numbers are trapped by the professional fowlers of South- " ern India and brought for sale, together with Pavo cristaius, " and Verdicula asictica to the stations on the Nilgiris, where " cocks in good plumage may be purchased for about 8 annas " each. Numbers are also brought to Madras from the Red " Hills, where they are even cheaper. When caught, the eyes " are closed by a thread passed throiigh the upper and under '• ej'elids and then knotted together ; a short string is then tied •• to one leg, and the other end made fast to a long stick. A " number of birds are placed side by side on this stick, which is " then carried about on a man's head. The poor blind birds " remain quiet, not attempting to flutter or escape.

" Except for his feathers or as a specimen, the Grey Jungle- " cock is hardh' worth shooting ; the breast alone is really *' eatable, and even at the best the breast is very dry and " hard.

" They roost on trees, continually in the earl 3^ mornings, " just at daylight, when out shooting Sambhur, I have disturb- " ed them from the trees on which they had spent the night.

" Although armed with most formidable spurs, they are not, " so far as my experience goes, quarrelsome or pugnacious. " In the wild state I have never seen them fighting, and I for " many 3 ears enio3'ed peculiar opportunities for observing " them. In captivit3" half a dozen, with as many females, " will live in the same compartment of an aviary in perfect " peace.

" Another proof of their non-belligerent character is to be " found in the fact that the native bird-catchers never peg " males out to attract others, as the3^ do in everj- part of the " East with all liirds that are naturall3'' pugilistic. Scores of " times I have listened to two cocks crowing at each other " vigoi'ously from closel3^ adjoining patches of cover, but " neither apparently ever thinking of, as an Amei'ican would " say, fioing for that other cock.

" They are, I think, altogether less plucky birds than the " Eed Jungle-fowl, and thev are so extremely war3^, where " birds and animals of pi'e3- ai-e concerned, and wander such " short distances from the edges of cover, that I think ver3'- " few of them fall victims to an3^ enem3^ but man. There are " plent3'- of Bonelli's Eagle and some Hawk-Eagles too in " the Nilgiris, but 1 do liot think that these ever succeed in " capturing Grej^ as they do elsewhere Red, Jungle-fowl ; at

30 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HLST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

" any rate, I have never once seen the feathers of sonnerati " strewed about, as I have those of ferrugineus in Burma.

" Their great timidity and watchfalness result in their " yielding much less sport than the Eed Jungle-fowl. You ■' may get these latter in standing crops and in many other " similar situations without any extraordinary precautions, but " the Grey Jungle-fowl never goes more than a few yards inside " the fields, and if a stick cracks, or a sound is heard anywhere " within 50 yards, he vanishes into the jungle, whence it is " impossible to flush him. Only when beating the narrow " well defined belts of tree jungle that run down the ravines •' on the hill sides in the Nilgiris, and which we there call " 'sholas,' is anything like real spot to be got out of them. " Then indeed the gam at the tail end of the shola may get " three or four good shots in succession, as they rise at the " end of the cover and fly ofi" with a strong well-sustained " flight to the next nearest patch. Even thus, working hard " and beating shola after shola, a man will be lucky to bag 5 " or 6 brace in a day.

" The reason is, that all the well-defined sholas which can " be thoroughly beaten are in the higher parts of the hills, " where the birds are comparatively rare, while, when you get " lower down, where the birds are plentiful, the jungles are so " large that they cannot be effectively worked. If you merely " want to liill the birds, you might get perhaps 10 or a dozen " in a short time poking along some of the roads, but they " afford no sport thus, only a series of pot shots.

" I remember once watching an old cock that my dogs had " driven up into a tree. For some time I peered round and " round (the tree was a large and densely-foliaged one) " without being able to discover his whereabouts, he all the " while sitting silent and motionless. At last my eyes fell " upon him, that instant he hopped silently on to another " bough, and from that to another, and so on with incredible " rapidity, till, reaching the opposite side of the tree, he flew " out silently, of course never giving me a chance at a shot.

" As for food, they seem to eat almost anji^hing ; grain, ■' grass seed, grubs, small fruits and berries, and insects of " different kinds. I have sometimes killed them with " nothing but millet in their crops ; at other times quantities " of grass seeds, or again, after the grass has been recently " burnt, the tender, juicy shoots of the new grass."

Gallus lafayetti.

G alius laf ay etti. Less. Traite d'Orn., p. 491(1831); Des Murs. Icon. Orn. p]. 18 ; Elliot Mon. Phas. ii., p. 33 (1873) ; Hume X. and E. Md. B. p. 530 (1875) ; Hume and Marshall, Game B. Ind. i., p. 241, pi. ; Hume,

IHE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 31

Str. Featli. VII., p. 429; Legge. B. Ceyl. III., p. 736, pi. ; Gates ed Hume's Nests and Eggs, iii, p. 422; Ogilvie-Grant. Cat. B. 13. M. XXII., p. 349 (1893) ; id. Hand-L. of Game B.ll., p. 53 (1897) ; A. L. Butler, Jour. B.N. H. S. X., p. 311 (1896'!; Lewis, Ibis 1898, p. 339, 560; Blanf. Avi. Brit. Ind. IV., p. 77; Sharp, Haud-L. i., p. 39.

Gcdlm stanlei/i.—Gmy, III., In. Orn. III., pi. 43 (1833) ; Blyth, Cat. B. A. S. B., p. 243 (1849) ; Jerdon B. of I. III., p. 540 (1860). Gallus li7mttus.— Blyth, J. A. S. B. XVI., p. 387 (1847). Vernacular names. Weli-kukula S, Weli-kikili $ (Cint/.) ; Kada Koli (Ta7n.j

Description, adult male. Crown dull orange rufous ; feathers at the base of the naked throat in a patch about an inch long rich violet purple ; hackles on neck and upper back orange yellow shading into this from the rufous of the head and again into fiery orange red on the back ; the yellow feathers have black central streaks and the red feathers rich maroon ones, the black and the maroon marks grading into one another just as the rest of the col- ours do. Lower back and rump still darker, almost copper, red, the centres to the feathers here being deep violet blue, whilst the central and least lanceolate feathers have also a broad terminal patch of this colour ; a few of the longest upper tail coverts all black glossed with blue except for a narrow edge of fierj^ red. Tail black glossed with Prussian blue or blue-green, never apparently glossed with copper as in G. h. ferrugineus. Lesser wing coverts like the hackles of the neck, gradually merging into the median coverts which are like the back ; greater coverts black on the visible portions, deep rufous red or mottled rufous and black on the con- cealed portions. Breast and flanks like the back, the non-lanceo- late feathers next the abdomen rufous chestnut with broad black terminal bands ; vent and centre of abdomen dull brown-black with paler tips. Thighs black, most of the feathers with narrow chestnut fringes ; under tail coverts glossy blue-black.

Colour 0/ soft imrts. " Iris light golden yellow ; face, throat and wattles livid or purplish red ; comb bright red with a large interior yellow patch, brightest in front and blending into the surrounding colour; bill brownish i-ed, the lower mandible and tip of the upper pale ; legs and feet wax yellow, washed anteriorly with brownish, more especially on the toes." (Legge).

Measurements. " Length of examples with fine tails (which vary in length) 26-0 to 28-0 inches; wing 9-2 to 9-5; tail 13-0 to 15-0 ; tarsus 3-2 to 3-4 ; middle toe 1*7 to 1-8; claw (straight) 0-5 to 0-6 ; bill to gape 1-2. Length of comb from forehead to extremity 3-2 to 3-3 inches; spur 0-7 to 1-2." (Legge).

" In the birds I have been able to measui'e the wings vary between 8-5" (215-9 mm.) and 9-5" (241-3 mm.) and the longest tail was 16" (406 ram.) whilst others were as short as 9" or 10" (228-6 to 254-0 mm.) "Weight 2-lbs. to 2-lbs. 5-ozs." (Hume).

Yoiinfj males when they first acquire adult plumage appear to have

32 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

the centre of the belly and vent more rufous, the black bases to the feathers hardly showing.

Younger birds still first acquire a certain number of semi-lanceo- late feathers intermediate in colouration between the adult and the first plumage ; the upper parts from the back to the tip of the tail are dark rufous, vermiculated with black, some of the back feathers shoAving small violet blue patches. Below the breast is a deep rufous chestnut, slightly barred and vermiculated with black on the upper breast and profusely so on the lower breast where it chan- ges into the dull dirty grej^'-black abdomen, lower flanks and vent. The under tail coverts are mixed rufous and black.

" Young males in first plumage. In the bird of the year the iris is light yellowish, the bill much the same as in the chick; the comb and spiirs but very little more developed and the wattles are absent. The head and upper part of the hind neck are yellowish rufous, the feathers with darker centres, deepening into chestnut red on the inter-scapular region, sides of neck, and breast ; in the lower part of the hind neck the feathers are somewhat elongated, with glossy blackish centres, and there are signs of the dark foreneck patch ; the metallic purple of the adult rump is present in small patches on the feathers ; the ground colour and tail, which is short, is ferruginous, mottled with blackish, with a greenish black wash on some of the tail feathers ; wings blackish brown, the secondaries and their coverts handsomeh" mottled with rufous and buS"; chin and gorge whitish, the feathers very short, lower parts rufescent, tipped with rufous." (Legge).

Adult female. Forehead dull rufous red, crown dull brown, the feathers finel}^ tipped black, nape, sides of the neck and sparse feathers of the throat dull rufous. Mantle, of which the feathers are far less lanceolate than in h. ferrugineus, blackish brown with pale shaft streaks and golden buif edges. Remainder of upper plumage pale buff*, rufous buff" or rufous brown vermiculated all over with black in fine wavy bars ; on the tail the vermiculations are bolder becoming irregular longitudinal barrings and blotches of black glossed with green. Median and smaller coverts like the back, but with sub-terminal bars of black and often white shafted ; the greater coverts and edge of wing are boldly barred with black and pale yellow buff ; primaries pale brown, mottled on the outer webs with black and bulf ; outer secondaries brown, boldly barred with black and buff" on the outer webs, inner secondaries vermiculated brown and buff along the centre, and boldly barred with black and buff on both webs and with chestnut vermiculations showing here and there.

Below the almost semi-nude throat and foreneck a few feathers with broad glossy black edges take the place of the black patch in

THE GAME BlliDS OF INDIA. 33

the male : upper breast, sides of the lower breast, and flanks vermi- ciilated black and rufous brown, remainder of breast, belly and thigh coverts white, each feather with a narrow black edging and one or two broad black bands near the visible base. Vent dull pale buff, under tail coverts black and rufous brown, much marked with white in some individuals.

In some females which appear to be much younger birds the rufoiis brown of the upper breast extends low^er down, the brown of the flanks extends on to the breast, and only the centre of this latter is black and -white, a few red vermiculated feathers appearing amongst the others. In these birds it is also noticeable that there are no white shaft streaks to the upper pliTmage, and the general tone is more rufous and less earth-brown. The throat is, of course, comparatively well feathered with downy grey plumes.

Colours of soft parts. '■ Ii*is3-enowish olive ; bill, vipper mandible dark brown, lower yellowish ; tarsi and feet brownish in front, yellowish posteriorly," (Legge).

Measurements. "Length about 13"75"; wing 6-8 to 7*0; tail 3-5 ; tarsus 2-3 to 2-5 ; middle toe and claw 2-0 to 2-1 ; bill to gape M." (Legge).

Wings of the females in the British Museum series and of a few others I have measured have varied between 6-5" (165*1 mm.) and 7-2" (183-8 mm.)

Distribution. Confined to the Island of Ceylon in which Legge describes its distribiition as follows :

" More or less scattered through the dry jungly districts of

" the low country, and diffused throughout the hills of the

" Southern and Central Provinces, It is rather rare in the

"jungles of the maritime portions of the Western Province

" and south-western district, and is not common even in the

" forests of the interior .... On the eastern slopes of the

" Morawah Korale where a drier climate prevails it finds a more

" congenial home, and along the Wellaway River and from that

" eastward it is numerous. In the maritime poilions of the

" south-east it abounds . ,. , In the hills it is resident and

"breeds commonly up to 6,000 feet."

It is perhaps to some extent locally migratory, ranging higher

or lower on the hills according to season, but beyond this appears

to be resident wherever found.

Xidijication.^lt is almost impossible to say that; the Ceylon Jungle-fowl has an}' real Ijreeding season, for throughout its range it woidd appear to be breeding during practically the whole year.

Legge records that in the north of the Island it breeds princi-

pall}- during the early part of the year, but that in the Hambantola

district he found young birds in July, others in the neighbourhocd

of Kadugannawa in December and others again in the Horton

5

34 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

Plains in April, whilst he took eggs in Kukal Korale in August. Again writing to Hume he notes having seen j^oung birds with their parents in the South of the Island as early as February ,

Mr. W. E. Wait of the Ce3don Civil Service informs me that " the birds breed more or less throughout the year, and I have eggs taken in the months of Februar}'-, April, June and August," whilst I have seen others taken in some of the months already mentioned and also January, Ma}^ and November.

As a rule the Ceylon Jungle-fowl makes its nest of- a pile of leaves and fallen rubbish in some natural hollow in forest. In his " Birds of Ceylon" Legge writes :

" The nest is almost alwaj^s placed on the ground near a " tree, under a bush, or beneath the shelter of a fallen log; a " hollow is scratched and a few dry leaves placed in it for the " eggs to repose upon. [ once found a nest in damp soil " between the large pi'ojecting flange-like roots of the Doon- " tree, containing two eggs partially incubated.

"In 1873 Mr. Parker found a nest on the top of a young

" tree about 30 feet high. He writes me that it had the

' appearance of a Crow's or Hawk's nest, of ^^'hich the Jungle-

" hen had taken possession. She flew off and three eggs were

" found to be in the nest."

This curious habit of making its nest at some considerable

height from the ground seems to be rather a characteristic of this

Jungle-fowl. Many years ago I was told that such was the case

by Mr. W. A. T. Kellow and by a jMr. W. Jenkins who collected

for me in Ceylon and recently Mr. W. E. Wait again refers to tliis

trait. He says :

" In one respect I differ from Legge's account of the nest- " ing of the Ceylon Jungle-fowl, or perhaps I should say '' siipplement what he says, for I would add that this bird's " nest is quite as often built off the ground as on it. The " most peculiar situation I have come across was in an oven- " shaped hollow about 8 feet from the ground in a fairly large *' tree which stood at the edge of a cart track running " through the jungle. A big braiich had been torn off at its "junction with the stem of the tree and the socket had rotted " out. In the hollow thus formed four eggs had been laid on " a soft layer of touch -wood which had crumbled to dust. On " another occasion I came across a nest in a biish overhanging " a dry water course. It was a mere depression in a matted " platform of dead leaves which had been swept down the " water course in some flood, and had been caught up by the " overhanging branches.

" A favourite site is a stump of a tree which has been *\felled and left standing after the tree has been taken away.

THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 35

'In these cases there is a scant}'' bed of dead leaves which have

" fallen from the stirroiinding trees and collected in the hollow

" which generally forms on the upper surface of the stump in

" a very short time."

Other naturalists who refer to this habit of building in the stumps

of old trees are Layard, Parker and Hart, so that it seems to be

one well known both to the natives of Ceylon as well as to

European observers.

The Ceylon Jungle-fowl lays but very few eggs and we may dismiss Layarde's statement that they lay from 6 to 1 2 eggs without further consideration. The normal clutch would seem to be 2, 3 being sometimes laid and very rarelj' 4. Legge says :

" I have generally found that the eggs do not exceed 2 in

"number, but sometimes 3, and occasionally 4 are laid."

And Mr. Wait writes me that his own experience agrees with

that of Legge and that whilsL he has but one clutch each of 4 and

3 eggs, he has taken many of 2, the majority of which have shown

signs of incubation, slight or advanced.

The eofo-g. when seen in a series at once strike one as differino- from all other Jungle-fowl's eggs, in that the majority are more or less spotted and speckled, whilst some are quite heavily marked in this way.

I have now seen a considerable number of the eggs of the Ceylon Jungle-fowl ; 9 in the British Museum series, a fine series collect- ed by Mr. Wait, and a few others collected hj Jenkins, Kellow and others and some in the Ceylon Museum.

In colour they are a pale stone, pale yellow buff or cream, in one or two slightly darker, but in none that I have seen do they ever approach the rich buff tint often seen in the eggs of the other species of Jungle-fowl. A few eggs are practically unmarked, but 3 out of 4 differ from those of the Red and Grey Jungle-fowl in being distinctly and profusely spotted with light brown or light purple brown. In some eggs the markings consist entirely of the finest freckles scattered over the whole surface of the egg in such numbers that at a short distance and casuall}^ examined the egg looks almost unicoloured ; in the majority of eggs, however, the tiny specks are accompanied b}- small blotches and larger freckles giving them a distinctly spotted appearance, whilst in others the shell is boldly blotched and marked with light brown, a few of the larger blotches measuring as much as 3 to 4 millimetres in diameter.

One egg in Mr. Wait's collection has a pinkish stone coloured ground with numerous very fine freckles of dark red brown and a few small but bold spots and blotches of dark brown.

The eggs in a clutch are not as a rule very evenly coloured, one being generally more spotted than the others, and sometimes

36 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

the contrast between the different eggs in the same clutch is veiy striking.

The texture of the eggs is similar to that of the domestic fowl's egg, and varies to about the same extent. In some it is quite smooth and highly glossed, in others, just as hard and glossy, the whole surface appears to be minutely pitted with tiny pores, and in nearly every such case the pores contain the dark coloriring pig- ment which gives the freckled appearance.

In shape they are remarkably constant, being broad short ovals, the smaller end differing but little from the larger. 1 have two eggs which are exceptionally long and narrow, and have seen one other which had the smaller end somewhat compressed.

They vary in length between 1-65" (41-9mm.) and 1-95" (49-5 mm.) and in breadth between 1-27" (32-2mm.) and 1-57" (39-8 mm.), whilst the average of 28 eggs is 1-82" (46* 2mm.) xl-39" (o5-3mm.)

The cock is apparently polygamous, though there is no very decided proof one wa}^ or the other. At all events, no one has yet discovered him taking an interest in his chicks, a trait which has been observed in the Grey Jungle-cock.

The affection between hen and her chicks and vice versa has, however, been more than once commented on, and Legge notes how he once shot a hen whose half-grown chicks ran backwards and forwards about her where she fell uritil he had come up quite to them. The young would seem to remain with the hen until the succeeding breeding season, although the cock birds again mingle with the hens as soon as their duties of rearing their young are completed.

General kahits. On the whole the Ceylon Jungle-fowl appears to be a bird of the drier parts of the Island, being excessively com- mon in the maritime portion of the south-east coast in the dense Euphorbia Jungles which are there found in long stretches. It is probably resident wherever found, but it possibly only wanders into the highest hills during certain seasons of the year. Legge obser- ves :

" It is resident and breeds commonly up to about 6,000 feet. " On the Nuvara-Eliya Plateau and up on the Morton Plains " it is very abundant during the north-east monsoon, coming " up from lower down on the hills, and probably to some " extent from the low country, to feed on the berries of the " nilloo. It is probable that many remain throughoiTt the " year in these uplands ; but, as I have only visited the Horton " Plains during the cool season I am unable to say if it is " found in that locality to any extent during the wet season."

The Ceylon Jungle-fowl seems to be found in all sorts of jungle, fi'om the mafjnificent tree forest which covers the sides of the hills

TRE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA. 37

and iiioiintaius to the low Euphorbia and other scrub jungle found on the sea coast and elsewhere. It is equall}- common in the bamboo-covered country, and may be found in bush, semi-culti- vation, or the dense secondary growth surrounding villages and old cultivation.

They are extremeh* quarrelsome, pugnacious birds ; quite as fond of fighting as the Red Jungle-fowl and far more prone to this diversion than the grey birds. Layard says :

" The cocks fight most desperately in defence of their serag-

" lios, the combat freqiiently terminating in the death of one

" of the engaged parties."

Their pugilistic tendencies often bring them to grief in other

ways, however, for the natives are aware of them and, vide Legge,

make use of them to decoy them within shot.

" The sound of the flapping of the wings, which is of course

" the invitation to battle, has the effect of always drawing two

" birds together and the knowledge of this fact has given rise to

" the device of imitating the noise, b}" doing which the sports-

" man can bring the cock up to him, and if he be pi'operly con-

'' cealed caueasih^ shoot him. * The natives make this sound by

" clappitig against their thighs with the palm of the hand

" hollowed, but Europeans can best do it by making a pad

" with the handkerchief and beating it against the palm of the

" other hand. By this means the exact sound can be made

" and 1 myself once procured a very fine specimen in the

" Ostenburgh Woods by adopting this plan."

I have never heard anyone speak of making a regular business of

shooting the Jungle-fowl in Ceylon as sportsmen do with the Grey

Jungle-fowl in the Nilgiris and with the Red Jungle-fowl in many

districts.

Legge remarks that :

" This handsome bird, although so xqvj abundant in many ' parts is by no means easj' to shoot. It dwells entirely in ' cover, and though it is so fond of frequenting the vicinity of ' paths and tracks through forest, its sense of hearing is so ' acute that it removes to a safe distance at the sound of appro- ' aching footsteps, and though it will continue to utter its

challenge cry of "George Joyce", it gradually makes its ' way off behind some protecting hillocks or rise in the ' ground which shuts out the road or path from its view. The

north-eastern forests are well suited to its habits, the ground ' being covered with dry leaves, which do not decay so soon ' as in the humid jungles of the south ; and among these, ' hai'bouring a multitude of seeds, insects, and grubs, it ' scratches exactly after the manner of its domestic race. This ' scratching may often be heard on a still morning at some

38 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV,

m

" distance away, and if the bird be behind a mound, or little

" eminence it can be approached if the sportsman is cautious

" and makes no noise."

Mr. W. E, Wait of the Ceylon Civil Service who has been so

good as to send me some very interesting notes on Ceylon game

birds, says that he thinks the words " Chuck joy Joyce " describes

the cry of the Ceylon jungle-fowl even better than does the usually

accepted syllables " george Joyce." He adds :

" The cocks often crow in the morning before coming down " from the branches on which they roost as I have several " times found when stalking a crowing bird. I have general- " 1}^ found them on a branch some 8 to 12 feet from the " ground, never very high up, although Legge says that they " roost on good-sized branches at a considerable height from " the ground.

" Both cocks and hens feed along the grassy strips b}?" jungle " roads and paths in the mornings and evenings, especially if " the ground is damp after rain. They do not, however, stay " out very late, and by about 9-0 a. m. they have all entered " into the jungle again, and the cocks have stopped crowing. " Sometimes, however, if the weather is cloudy or wet and cool " the}^ will stay out feeding all day long, even when it is " actually raining. I remember once bicycling over a main " road through a forest in the North- Western Province on such " a da}' and within a distance of a mile or less I saw over a " dozen birds, mostly cocks.

" Hens with chicks keep more closel}^ to cover than do the

" cocks, leading their broods about in the undergrowth,

" uttering a little squeaky metallic chuck as they go, ap-

" parently a call note to the little ones. The broods remain

" together until the chicks are almost full-grown, but I have

" never seen cocks accompanying hens with chickens. The

" cocks are polygamous, and I have frequently seen one feed-

" ing with two or three full-grown hens, but he sheers off as

" soon as family duties commence."

It is a very common idea amongst the natives of Ceylon that

when the Jungle-fowl eat the seed of the " nilloo", a species of

iStrohilanthes which grows from 5,000 feet upwards, they become

either blind or drunk, in which condition they are rendered so

devoid of all sense or are so incaj^able that they are often caught.

It is rather difficult to say whether there are grounds for this belief

or not. Bligh wrote to Legge in connection with this belief:

" About that season of the jear if village fowls be brought " to the hills they rarel}^ escape a serious eye disease, which " rapidly spreads throughout a given district, and in many •' cases they become totally blind in two or three weeks. This

THE GAME BIRDS 01 J^DIA. 39

" is the disease which the Jungle-fowl evidently catch, A

" dog of mine caught a Jungle-cock with one eye lost, and

" evidently from this cause."

A collector working for me in Ceylon also once wrote to me that

he had caught a cock sitting crouched under a bush, which made

no attempt to fly as he approached, and which, when released,

tumbled about for a bit on the ground, and then huddled itself up

in some grass and allowed itself to be again caught. Nothing was

observed to be wrong with this bird phj'sically, but its actions gave

it the appearance of being hopelessly intoxicated.

Mr. W. A. T. Kellow also once wrote to me and said that his collector informed him that it was no rare thing for them to catch Jungle- fowl in this as they termed it intoxicated condition. It may, however, be that Bligh's explanation is the correct interpreta- tion of these curious cases of apparent intoxication. That there is something which occurs at the time the Strohilanthes seeds, which renders the Jungle-fowl practically helpless is vouched for by Legge himself who asserts :

" Certain it is that at this period the Jungle-fowl in the " Horton Plains and about Naivara-Eliya do become affected, " and are apparently so intoxicated that they may be knocked " down with a stick." The crow of the Ceylon Jungle-cock has been described, as I have said above, as a call of " George Joyce" rapidly repeated. This call, according to Mr. Holdsworth, is uttered by the cock as he runs up and down some stout branch, raising and lowering his head at each call. Never having seen the bird in its wild state, I cannot say whether this is correct or not, but when in -captivity it undoubtedly " crows" much as a domestic cock does, stretching himself on tip-toes higher and higher as he proceeds, and often flapping his wings both before and after crowing. I have often seen the Red Jungle-fowl crow, and certainly this is the attitude always adopted by them, and it is most amusing to see a fine Jungle-cock caught in the middle of a crow ; his triumphant attitude of challenge to the whole world crumples up so instantane- ously as he leaps to the ground and skulks off" with head and tail down and body as close to the ground as he can get it.

The Cejdon Jungle-fowl is not easy to bring up in captivity, and as a rule, does not long survive close confinement. At the same time a good njany birds have been successfully reared and domes- ticated, though 1 know of no instance in which birds allowed their freedom have not eventually cleared ofl" altogether.

40

SCIENTIFIC KESULTS FROM THE MAMMAL SURVEY.

No. XV. (A) The Indian Gerbils or Antelope Rats. By R. C. AVroughton.

The group of animals represented by the name Gerbilhs wcZicws, m Blanford's Mammalia (No. 2C4), was recognised as a sub-genus of Gerhillus, by Lataste, in 1882 (Le Natnraliste, ii. No. IG, p. 126) under the name Tatera. In 1902 it was accepted as a full Genus, whose members were found from Cape Town, northwards throughout Africa, and thence eastwards through Persia and India to Ceylon. The tj-pe species of the genus w^as " Gerhillus inclictis, Hardwicke."

The tail in all the African species (except in nigricmida, from British East Africa, which has a wholly black tail) is dark above and pale below, whereas in all the Asiatic forms the tail is dark above and below, and pale on the sides. Mr. W. R. Sherrin has recently called my attention to a skull character, viz., the shape of the parietal bone, which on examination proves to be quite as constant a distinguishing character as the tail pattern. I now therefore have no hesitation in separating the African forms as a distinct Genus, which I propose to call.

Taterona, gen. nov.

Genotype Taterona afra (Gerhillus afer, Gray.)

The tail is dark above and pale i3elow (except in nigricauda, where it is entirely black), whereas in restricted Tatera, it is dark above and below and pale at the sides.

The lateral sutures of the parietal, from the post-orbital pro- cess backwards, run horizontally for a certain distance, then turn vertically downwards for a greater or less distance; and again return sharply to the horizontal. In Taterona the length of the middle vertical part of the suture varies a little, but never ex- ceeds one-third of the distance between the post-orbital process and the downward turn, while in 'Tatera it is approximately equal to this distance.

In Taierona the basi-sphenoid appears to taper forward to a point or narrow neck, owing apparentljj to the turning upwards of the lateral edges, almost to the vertical ; in Tatera, in which these edges are less turned upwards the basi-sphenoid does not seem to taper.

Finally in Taterona the bridge over the ante-orbital foramen is relatively wider than in Tatera and the plate below the lachrymal formed by the flattening of the front edge of the orbit

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS FROM THE MAMMAL SURf'EY. 41

terminates more abnipth' at its OTiter end in Taterona tlian in Tatera, in which latter it is also usually broader. These last two characters however, though true in a very large number of cases, are not constantl}' reliable.

The Geographical ranges of Tatera and Taterona correspond with the continents of Asia and Africa respectiveh'.

When I studied these Gerbils some j-ears ago (A.]\I.N.H. 7, Vol. XVII, p. 474, 1906), the material available from India was so scanty that I was forced to content myself with recognising the two species indica and cuvieri. With the material now made avail- able by the Survey, I have been encoTiraged to make a fresh examination of the forms contained in the Genus Tatera as restricted above.

The species of the Genus Tatera.

The Genotype and earliest species? of Tatera to be described was G. iiidicns by Mr. Hardwicke in 1807. The type locality was given as " India." The type itself is in the National Collection, but faded almost bej^ond recognition and with its skull much dam- aged. In 1838 Mr. Waterhouse separated cuvieri, also giving the tj^DC locality as " India". Thist^-peis likewise in the National Col- lection, having been received from the Zoological Society so long as 60 years ago. A manuscript catalogue of that Societ3''s Collection before it was dispersed, which has recenth' been found shows that the specimen was from Arcot, Madras. In 1843, Mr. Gray, in his List of Mammalia, published the name G. liardwickei ^\■ithout any description, but he placed under it as synonyms " G. indicus, Waterhouse and Mus (Gerbillus) indicus, Elliot." Waterhouse in describing his cuvieri compares certain of its characters Avith those of an animal which he calls " Gerhillus indicus, Hardwicke", these characters, however, are such that an}^ determination of the exact animal referred to is impossible. Mr. Elliot, however, gives a very full description of the Dharwar Tatera (under the name Gerhillvs indicus, Hardwicke) of which several specimens, unfortunately in very poor condition, contributed by Mr. Elliot himself, are in the Kational Collection. As Mr. Waterhouse recorded nothing which does not apply to this animal we are entitled, indeed constrained, to accept the Dhar\A'ar Tatera as the animal indicated under the name hardAvicTx^i by Mr. Graj" and to consider Mr. Elliot's specimens as the co-tj-pes. . Ten j-earsago (A.M.N.H. 7, Vol. XVII. p. 499,1906) I named T. ceylonica, basing it on a single immature specimen very badl}' made up. The characters, I recorded, are, on more careful examination and comparison with Surve}' specimens, shown to be misleading. It is now clear that the type of cet/lonica is really a young animal of thespecies of which very long series were obtained in Cevlon bv Major Mavor. Next the series obtained by

6

42 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Fol. XXV.

Mr, Prater in Sind, proves to be quite distinct from any other fonnd in India, resembling in its colouring as is not unnatural, the Persian species tceniura, i?ersica, &c. Finall}', some specimens collected by Col. Dunn, at Ambala, also rec|uire a name.

There are thus six species inhabiting India and Ceylon (but not Burma) which may be arranged in a ke^^ as follows :

Key.

A Feet and tail short, only exceptionally exceeding 40 ard 190 mm. respectively. a General colour bright bay (Central India and Behar).

(1) Tatera indica, Hardwicke. b General colour drab grey (Sind)

(2) Tatera sJierrini, sj).n. c General colour pinkish buff (Ambala, Punjab).

(3) Tatera dunni, sp.n.

B Feet and tail longer, at least 44 and 200mm. respective^. a Anterior palatal foramina very long (10mm.), general colour ba} (South Maratha Country)

(4) Tatera hardivicJiei, Gray. b Anterior palatal foramina short (6-7mm.).

aa General colour buffy (Soutli Madras)

(5) Tatera cuvieri, Waterhouse. bh General colour reddish (Ce5'lon)

(6) Tatera ceylonica, Wroughton.

(1) Tatera indica, Hardwicke.

Mr. Hardwicke describes this species as " bright bay, mixed with pencil-like strokes of dark brown longitudinall}^ disposed." Unfortunately no really mature specimens were obtained by the Survey in Kumaon, from whence so many of ]\Ir. Hard- wicke's specimens were obtained, but I think there can be no doubt that the bright bay animal found throughout Behar, Khandesh, Central Provinces. Kathiawar and Palanpur be- longs to this species. The dimensions given hj Mr. Hard- wicke (reduced to millimetres) are head and body 167; tail 175. The average of eight adult specimens from Behar and Khandesh is head and bodj^ 175 ; tail 190 ; hindfoot 40 ; and ear 24. The type skull is badly broken, but its greatest length is 4G mm. and from a skull of this length from Midnapur I record the following measurements, viz.: Condylo-incisive length 41*5; zj^gomatic breadth 25.; interorbital breadth 7; diastema 13; nasals 20 ; anterior palatal foramina 8-5 ; posterior palatal foramina 2*5 ; and upper molar tooth row 7.

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS FROM THE MAMMAL SURVEY. 43

So far as material is available it seems that the range of indica is Behar, the United Provinces, the Dekhan, and Gnjerath.

(2) Tatera sherrini, sp. nov.

Size as in indica. Fnr soft, silky, and fairly long (20-25 mm. on lower back). General colour above "ecru drab", below pure white. Face with usual pale markings before and behind the eyes. Feet white. Tail quadricolor, blackish above and below buff" on the sides, tip (60-65 mm.) black, with lengthened hairs almost amounting to a tuft.

Skull smaller than in indica ; the anterior palatal foramiaia short, the posterior exceptionally long ; bulte relatively large.

Dimensions of the type. Head and body 162 ; tnil 191 ; hind- foot 37 ; and ear 24. "

Skull : Greatest length 42 ; condjdo-incisive length 37"5 ; Zygomatic breadth 21 ; interorbital breadth 7 ; palatilar length 18-5; diastema 11-5; nasals 18; anterior palatal foramina 7; posterior palatal foramina 3*5 ; and molar tooth row 6.

Habitat. Sind. Type from Jacobabad.

Tii2ye.— Old male. B. M. No. 15. 11. 1. 88. Original number 427.' Collected by Mr. S. H. Prater on the 21st February 1915 and presented to the National Collection by the Bombay Natural Historj- Society.

Altogether 22 specimens were obtained by the Survey. The contrast between the drab colouring of sherrini and the ochraceous of indica, or even the buff' of diinni, is very marked, and in this sherrini seems to approach much more closely to taeniura, persica, &c., the Persian forms.

1 have much pleasure in naming this very distinct species after Mr. W. R. Sherrin, of the Natural History Museum, who has given such invaluable assistance in organising the storage of the Survey material and in many other ways.

(3) Tatera dunni, sp. n.

A Tatera of the same size as sherrini, from which it is distinguish- able by its pale buffy coloration.

Size as in sherrini. Fur soft and silky, but shorter than in that species (15-20 mm. on the lower back). General colour above " pinkish buff"," below pure white. Otherwise as in sherrini.

Skull slightly longer and stouter than in sherrini, the anterior palatal foramina markedly longer.

Dimensions of the type. Head and body 160 ; tail 190 ( ? the Collector recorded it as 203, but it bad obviously been distorted, the other specimens gave nvuch smaller figures); hindfoot, 37 ; ear 24. Skull : Greatest length 44 ; condylo-iucisive length

44 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

39 ; zygomatic breadth 22 ; interorbital breadth?; palatilar length 20: diastema 12; nasals 19*5; anterior palatal foramina 8*5; posterior palatal foramina 2-5 ; upper molar tooth row, 6*5.

Habitat. Ambala, Punjab.

T^jjs. Old male. B. M. No. 9. 4. 6. 10. Original number 254. Collected on 11th Jantiary 1909 and presented to the National Collection by Col. H. N. Dunn, R.A.M.C.

Eleven specimens are in the Collection. This species seems to me, judging by the skull, to be more related to indiea than to sherrini, and it is possible that, when more material is available from Rajputana and the Punjab, it may be found to intergrade with the former,

(4) Tatera hardvncJcei, Gray.

As recorded above Mr. Gray based this name on Mr. Elliot's des- cription of the Dharwar Tatera, which gave the colour as " uniform bright fawn" and the dimensions as : Head and body 175; tail 202 ; hindfoot 50 ; ear 22*5 (these are converted measurements). These fairly correspond with those of the -Survey material in the Dharwar, Kanara, and Koyna Valley Collections, except in the size of the hindfoot. I have never seen a Tatera with a hindfoot of 50 mm., so no doubt Mr. Elliot's measurement was taken differently from the method now employed, which gives an average of 44 mm. (max. 45). The skull is noticeable for its very long anterior palatal foramina. The following are the dimensions of the skull of an adult male from Dhawar, viz.. Greatest length 48; condylo-incisive length 41-5; zygomatic breadth 25 ; interorbital breadth 7 ; palatilar length, 21; diastema 13; nasals 21 ; anterior palatal foramina 10; poste- rior palatal foramina 2-5 ; upper molar tooth row 7.

This species extends from Dharwar District southwards along the wooded belt on the West Coast to Travancore, and north along the Konkan and Ghats, at least as far as Ratnagiri, We have not sufficient material to dogmatise on its extension inland, but we know that in the north it gives wa}^ to indiea in Ahmednagar, and in the south to cuvieri in Bellary and Mj^sore.

(5) Tatera, cuvieri, Waterhouse.

" General colour very bright cinnamon j'ellow" is Mr. Waterhouse's description, and be gives the dimensions as: Head and body 177 ; tail 200; hindfoot 44; ears 15. These correspond very fairly with those of specimens from Seringapatam, Vijayanagar, Trichinopoty, &c., except that the ear measurement cjuoted is evidently not the same as that now in use. The type skull is badly broken, but I gather that its greatest length was about 44 mm. From the skull of an old female from Seringapatam, I can record the following

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS FROM TRE MAMMAL SURVEY. 45

measurements, viz., Greatest length 45 ; condylo-incisive length 39 ; zygomatic breadth 25 ; interorbital breadth 7 ; palatilar length 21 ; diastema 12; nasals 19; anterior palatal foramina 8; posterior palatal foramina 2 ; npper molar tooth row 7 .

The range ot'cuvieri seems to be Bellarj-, Mj'-sore and the whole coun- try soutli of them, except the wooded Ghat strip on the West Coast.

(6) Tatera ceylonica, Wronghton.

I regret to saj" that in making these species I M-as misled bj^ the condition of the solitary specimen, contributed by Mr. Kelaart. The fine series now available enables me to give a revised descrip- tion of the species.

The general colour of the adult is very similar to that of harcl- toickei (not cuvieri, as would seem probable), but there is a somewhat larger admixture of black. The body dimensions are almost exactly those of cuvieri. The skull measurements of an adult female are as follows, viz., Greatest length 47 ; condylo-incisive length 40 ; zygomatic breadth 23-5 ; interorbital breadth 8 ; palatilar length 20; diastema 1 2 ; nasals 20; anterior palatal foramina 7 ; posterior palatal foramina 2 ; upper molar tooth row 6"5.

Tatera ceylonica seems to be spread all over the Island.

(B) The Slender Loris of Malabar.

By R. C. Wroughton.

When dealing with the Mysore Collection (Vol. XXII, p. 285^ 1913) Miss Ryley explained that the name gracilis for the Ceylon Loris must give place to the much older tardigradus, and that these Mysore specimens must be known as lydekkerianus, Cabrera, being practically topotypes of that species. Later, on receipt of the Coorg Collection, not having specimens from Ceylon for comparison, she recorded them (Vol. XXII,, p. 494, 1913) as tardigradus. Since then Major Mayor having obtained some specimens in the two Ceylon Collections (Nos. 13 and 18), I have now compared the three series of Loris and have come to the conclusion that the animals of Ceylon and Coorg belong to distinct species, and I propose to found a new species for the Malabar Loris under the name :

Loris malaharicus , sp. n.

A Loris markedly smaller than either tardigradus or li/deJiJceriamis with a strong russet tinge.

Size smaller than either tardigradus or lydelcJieriamis. General colour above "wood brown"^ darker on the nape and upper back, but without any sign of a dorsal median dark stripe as in the

46 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

Mysore Loris. Hairs of dorsal area tipped with silvery as in the other forms. Below buff, dull white in the other two species. Dimensions as below :

malaharicus. tardigradus . hjdeklierianus,

Head and body

216

245

260

Tail

7

Hindfoot

45

51-5

54

Ear

25

32

32

Skull:

-

Greatest length

48

55

55

Condylo-basal length

41-5

46

47-5

Zygomatic breadth

29

34

35

Upper molar tooth row

13

14

15

The Collector records that the type of mrtZct&aHc^^s had a tail 7 mm. long when taken. Probably all have a very short tail which is not appreciable in a skin.

Hahitat. Malabar. Type from Kutta, South Coorg.

Tij]p6.—A. young adult female. B. M. No. 13. 8. 22. 3. Original number 2586. Collected by Mr. G. C. Shortridge, on the 21st February, 1913, and presented to the National Collection by the Bombay Natural History Society.

The Survey obtained altogether four specimens while another from Travancore in the British Museum Collection also belongs to this species.

(C) A NEW "LEAF monkey" FEOM THE ShAN StATFS.

By R. C. Wroughton.

When writing the Shan States Keport (J. B. N. H. S., Vol. XXII., p. 715, 1914) Miss Ryley recorded the local leaf monkey as P. ithayrei. In the Mt. Popa Report when true phayrei had been received, I suggested (Vol. XXIII, pp. 464-465, 1915) that the Shan States animal might be harhei.

Three descriptions of harhei are available, viz. Bh^th's original description (J. A. S.B., xvi., p. 734, 1847), another in his Cata- logue of the Mammalia in the Museum of the Asiatic Society (p. 14, 1863), and a third by Anderson (Ind. Mus. Cat., i., p. 48, 1811). Both Blyth and Anderson note that the shoulders and fore- limbs are pale (" silvered," " greyish brown "), but neither of them notices the radiation of the hair from a single central point on the forehead. I M'rote to Dr. Annandale of the Indian ]\Iuseum, Calcutta, who replied that the type of harhei " is an old specimen which has been mounted and exhibited for the last 70 j^ears. There is no crest on the top of the beast's head and no definite whorl of hair." Dr. Annandale had the head photographed and most kindl}" sent me a cop}- which is here reproduced.

SCIEXriFIC RESULTS FROM THE MAMMAL SURVEY. 47

Head of the t3-pe of FWiecus harhei, Elyth.

This evidence seems to me conclusive that harhei belongs to the section of the lano-urs which have the hair laid straio'ht back from the forehead over the crown. The Shan States langnr has a dis- tinct centre from which the hair radiates, on the forehead, and cannot therefore be harhei, I propose therefore to describe it as new under the name :

Pithecus shanicus, sp. n.

A leaf monkey with the hair on the forehead radiating from a single central point ; smaller than any other Indian species having this character; most nearlj- approaching (amongst them) hiipoleucos in general colour, bnt wanting the black limbs of that species.

Size small. General colour above a slaty grey with a paler brown- ish tinge on the upper back ; hind limbs and base of tail slightly

48 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

washed with silvery ; a dull whitish collar extending across the nape between (and including) the whiskers. Upper and lower lips white. Hands and feet black. Below sparsel}'- haired, greyis-h white.

Sknll more spherical (less elongate) and ninch smaller than in the true langnrs ; frontal ridges obsolescent, the flattened area immediately above them, so marked in entelhcs, schistacetis, &c., entirely absent, with a conseqnently shortened muz ale.

Dimensions of type, Head and body 690 ; tail 755 ; hindfoot 168; ear 33. Skull; Greatest length 107; condylo-basal length 83; zygomatic breadth 79; breadth across orbits 65 ; palatal length 37 ; upper molar tooth row 28.

Habitat. Northern Shan States. (Type from Hsipaw, alt. 1,400').

2'7j.>e.— Adult male. B. M. No. 14. 7. 8. 5. Original number 3080. Collected by Mr. .G. C. Shortridge, on the 26th May 1913, and presented to the National Collection by the Bombay Natural History Societ}'.

In all 20 specimens obtained. Dv. Anderson in his Anat. and Zool. Besearches records having seen troops of monkeys, which he surmised to be P. barhei, but which were almost certainly these species " in the Valley of the Tapeng, in the centre of the Kakhyen hills " and again " in the defile of the Irrawaddy, above Mandalay, on the left bank of the river."

These species fall in Blanford's key, into Section .A, on account of the whorl of hair on the forehead, this arrangement though conve- nient is quite artificial, for shanicus is in no way closely i-elated to the true langurs, but, as already stated, to the leaf monkeys such as obscurus, &c.

(D) PaRADOXURUS NIGER AND HERMAPHRODITUS OF BlANFORD.

By E. C. Wroughton.

Of the five species placed by Blanford in his key to the genus Paradoxurns, one he places in a section, " B," by itself. This species is now general!}^ recognised as belonging to a distinct genus, Paguma, mainly on the characters used by Blanford. The two species aureus and jerdoni, from Ceylon and Malabar respectively, are such strongly marked forms that they too may be left out of consideration here. Thus there remain the two names niger and her maphrod.it us, undei' which Blanford has ranged all the true toddy-cats.

On laying out all the available material for comparison, it at once becomes clear that we have not only two, but five forms, as follows, viz. : (1) a northern peninsular form, (2) a southern peninsular form, (3) an Assam form, (4) a Burmese form, and finally (5) a northern Malay form, which extends into our limits, at any rate throughout Tenasserim.

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS FROM THE MAMMAL SURVEY. 49

The following is a list of the names given at various times to the .Indian toddy-cats, viz. :

1778. V. h-irmaphrodita, (Pallas), Schreb. Saiig., iii., p. 426.

1820. V. 2?rehensilis, nigra and bondar, Desm. Mamm., pp. 208,

210.

1821. F. ti/pus, F. Cuv., Hist. Nat. :>ramm., pi. 186. 1828. r. leKcojms, Ogilb., Zool. Journ., iv., p. 300.

1832. P. pallasi, pennanti, crossi, and limmltoni, Gray, P. Z. S., pp. 65-68.

1836. P. hirsutus, Hodgs., As. Res., xix., p. 72.

1837. P. stridus, and qiiadriscriptus, Horsf., A. M. N. H. (2),

xvi., pp. 105, 106.

1841. P.felimis, Wag., Schreb. Saug., Supp. ii., p. 349.

1855. P. (juinquelineatus, and musangoid£s, Gray, Ch. M. N. H., i., p. 579.

1864. P. nigrifrons, Gvaj, P. Z. S., p. 635.

1891. P. niditatans, Tayl., J. B. N. H. S., vi., p.

1910. P. vicinus, Schw., A. M. N. H. (8), vi., p. 230.

1914. P. hennapkryditus ravus, Mill. Sni. Misc. Colls., Ixi., 21, p. 2.

The name liennapkrodAhis undoubtedly represents a Paradoxurus, Irat is specifically indeterminable, and was recognised as such by Desmarest so long ago as 1820. The habitat was given as " Bar- barey". Of Desmarest's three names the first, prehensilis, is 1 believe not specifically recognisable, the habitat is said to be Bengal. It is stated to be based on a drawing from a sketch by (?) B. Hamilton. The second name, niger, answers the description of the southern toddy-cat. Its despatch alive to Paris from Pondi- cherry confirms this diagnosis. It is true that Desmarest adds : "On la dit originaire des Molluques," but I attach little importance to this, which was more than probably the vendor's attempt to enhance the value of his goods. The third name, bondar, is again based on a sketch from one of (?) B. Hamilton's drawings, also with the habitat " Bengal ". I cannot place it at all certainly, and find it safest to accept it as a synonym of niger, of which also the i//j.>us of Cuvier is another, as are also leucopus, Ogilb., and niditatam, Taylor, these being albino examples from Orissa. Gray's names, pallasi, pennanti. crossi and hamiltoni, were all based on menagerie specimens and but for the fact that the types of crossi and pallasi are extant would all be indecipherable. These t\^es show that crossi is the same species as Itirsutus, Hodgson and niger, Desmarest. Horsfield's strictvs and qnadriscriptus represent the Assam form. Wagner's felinns and Gray's nigrifron.<(, quinqvelineatus , and mnsangljides, based on animals- in captivity^, are all equally beyond recognition. ^liller's ravus represents the Tenasserim form.

50 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL KIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

These five forms maj-now be arranged in a key, as follows, viz. :

A. Back and sides not or only obscu-

rely striped and spotted. ; (North India) ... ... crossi, Gray.

B. Back and sides distinctly striped

and spotted.

a. Smaller, hindfoot 75-80 mm.,

greatest length of skull

105-110 mm. Ground

colour gray. (South

India) ... ... ... niger, Desmarest.

h. Larger, hindfoot 80-90 mm., greatest length of skull 115-120 mm. a^ Ground colour fulvous.

(Assam) ... ... stridus, Horsfield.

h^ Ground colour dull or buffy white

d' Crown of head black

(Upper Burma) ... hinnanicus, Wroughton. b' No black crown

(North Malay) ... ravus, Miller.

Paradoxurus crossi, Graj^

1832. Paradoxiirus crossi, Gra}^, P. Z.S., p. 66.

1836. Paradoxurus hirsutus, Hodgson, As. Res., xix., p. 72.

1864. Paradoxurus niijrifrons, Gray, P.Z.S., p. 635.

A Paradoxurus showing ordinarily a mere smear of blackish (often amounting to a dark mauve brown rather than to black) on a grey ground.

Hair fairlj^ long but rather coarse. Rarely showing definite strijDes on the back and never the usual &T)ots on the flanks. Hodg- son records it from the Nepal Terai, whence it occurs westwards through Rohilcund, the Deccan and Central India to Rajputana.

Paradoxurus niger, Desmarest.

1820. Viverra niger, Desmarest, Mamm., p. 208.

1820. Viverra bondar, Desmarest, 1. c, p. 210.

1821. Paradoxurus tyjjus, F. Cxiyier, Hist. Nat.. Mamm., pi. 186. 1828. Paradoxurus leucopus, Ogilby, Zool. Journ., iv., p. 30(>

(albino).

1832. Paradoxurus jiaUasi, Gray, P. Z. S., p. 66.

1891. Paradoxurus nictitatans, Taylor, J. B. N. H. S., vi., p. 2.

A smaller animal than the preceding and either of the following. The stripes and spots very heavily marked in deep black on a grey ground. The type was from Pondicherry ; it ranges however from

SCIENTIFIC RESULTS FROM THE MAMMAL SURVEY. 51

Orissa on the east to Ceylon in the south and the Southern Mahra- tha Country in the nortli.

Paradoxurus strictus, Horsfield.

1837. Paradoxurus strictus, Horsfield, A. M. N. H. (2), xvi., p. 105.

1837. Parado.ntrus quadriscriiAns, Horsfield, 1. c, p. lOG.

1910. Paradoxurus vicinus, iSchwarz, A. M, N. H. (8), vi.,p. 230.

A larger animal, about the size of crossi. Fur long and soft, the stripes and spots marked in black on a fulvous ground. Hodgson records it from the central region of Nepal, whence it ranges east- ward through Dai"jiling, Bhi^tan Duars, and Assam. Schwarz's vicinus is a very brightly coloured specimen, with smaller measure- ments, but it is quite a young animal.

Paradomirus hirmanicus, sp. n.

A Paradoxurus of fully average size, with distinct black stripes and spots on a very pale, almost white, ground.

Size as in strictus and crossi. Fur shorter and coarser than in strictus. Head black, with the usual white blaze across the face, between the eyes and the ears. General colour above a dull white or very pale buffy gre}-, with the usual three median dorsal stripes, and with scattered spots arranged more or less in lines parallel to the stripes.

Skull as in crossi, &c., but lighter and somewhat smaller.

Dimensions of the type : Head and body, 570 ; tail, 510 ; hind- foot, 85 ; ear, 48.

SJndl: Greatest length, 110 ; condyio-basal length, 109;z3-go- matic breadth, 60 ; palatilar length, 49 ; nasals, 25 ; back of m' to front of p', 19.

Habitat : Burma. Type from Mingun, near Sagaing, Upper Burma.

T//^e:— Old female. B. M. No. 14. 7. 19. 89. Original number, 3261. Collected by Mr. G. C. Shortridge on 10th July 1913. Presented to the National C^ollection by the Bombay Natural History Society.

This species seem to extend throughout Burma, including the Shan States, till it meets the intruding North jNlalay toddy-cat (P. ravus) in Tenasserim. It would seem also to extend eastwards into Siam. Schwarz's cochinensis from Camboja, and Kloss's JcuAensis seem both to be of this type, though both are much smaller,

Paradoxurus ravus. Mill.

1914. Paradoxurus ravus, Miller, Sm. Mix., Colls., Ixi., 21, p. 2.

Veiy similar to hinvnicus, but easily recognisable by the absence of the black on the crown. The type locality is Trong, S. W. Siam, but it undoubtedly ranges through Tenasserim, and probably into South Peon.

52

THE PALMS OF BRITISH INDIA AND CEYLON,, INDIGENOUS AND INTRODUCED.

BY

E. Blatter, S.J.

Part XVIII.

(With Plates XCVI to XGIX and 3 text figures.)

(Continued from page 6SS of Volume XXIV.)

IV.— L EPILOG ARYINCE.

Spadix branched once or more in a 2-ranked arrangement ; flowers in concinni or 2-ranked spikes with bracts and bracteoles round them, carpels 3, fast nuited, covered with scales ; fruit 1 -seeded, covered with hard scales ; feather or fan leaves, reduplicate.

4. Mauritiece.

Leaves fan-shaped with regularly or irregularl)^ divided, slightly reduplicate segments. Flowers dioecious 1, dimorphic.

Distribution. Tropical America, east of the Andes between 16° S. L. and 12" N. L.

Mauritia L., Lepidocaryum, Mart. Not represented in India.

5. Metroxijlece.

Leaves paripinnate with regularly divided spinous pinnae. Flowers polygamous-hermaphrodite or diclinous. Distribution. The moist tropics of the Old World.

S'uh-tribe : EAPHIE^.

Flowers polygamous-hermaphrodite, or male and female flowers on the same branches of the inflorescence. Ovary completely 3- locular. Embrj^o horizontal.

Distribution. Africa on the coast of Guinea and inland to the sources of the Nile, also in East Africa on the coast of Zanzibar and perhaps in Western Madagascar.

BAPHIA, P. de B., Oncocalamus, Wendl. & Mann, Ancistro- phi/lhim, Hook., Eremospatha, Wendl. & Mann.

'rAPHIA, Beauv. Fl. Owar. I. 75, t. 44, fig. 1, 45, 46.

Lam. lllustr. t. 771.— Gaertn. Fruct. t. 40, f. 1.— Sprgl. Gen. PI. 283 {Metro.ry Ion) ^Mart. Hist. Nat. Palm. I], 53, t. 45, 47, fig. 5, 48 (irt^Ms) ,• m, 2] 6, 34.3— Kth. Enum. PI. Ill, 2J6.— Meissn. Gen. PI. 265.— Griff. Palm. British India, t. 182.— Wallace Palm. Amaz. 42, t. 2, 16. Mann & Wendl. Trans. Lin. Soc. 24, 437, t. 39, 42.— Oerst. Palm. Centroam. 1858. Dnide in Fl. Brasil. Ill, 11, 286, t. 61, 62.— Benth. & Hook. Gen. PI. Ill, II, 935, 110.— Luers. Botan. II, 332.— Becc. in Webbia III (1910), 37— 130.

JouRN. Bombay Nat. Hist, Soc.

Plate XCVI.

Raphia Ruffia, IMart.

THE PALMS OF BRITISH INDIA AND CEYLON. 53

Laz'ge trees ; stem short, stout, anuulated. Leaves gigantic, regular, pinnate ; leaflets linear with the midribs and edges spinu- lose ; bases of the petioles sheathing, persistent some way down the stem, the margins fibrous.

Spadices growing from among the leaves about 3^ feet long, much branched. No common spathe, but many small, incomplete sheaths. Flowers monajcious, reddish-brown or greenish, male and female in separate bracts of the same branch, Male flowers : calyx campanulate, truncate ; corolla triphyllous ; stamens 6 8. Female flowers : calyx 3-dentate, corolla campanulate-infundi- buliform, o-partite half-way down. Ovar}' 3-locular ; stigmas 3, sessile.

Berry with large imbricated scales, unilocular and 1 -seeded by abortion. Seed cylindric oval, elongate-erect ; embryo horizon- tal in the middle ; albumen ruminate.

Species about 20. Tropical Africa and America.

RAPHIA RUFFIA, Mart. Hist. Nat. Palm. Ill, 217 ; Kunth. Enum. PI. Ill, 217; Wright in Th. Dyer. Fl. trop. Afr. VIIl, 104 (partim) ; Drude in Engler Nat. Pflanzenf . I, 46, f. 36 ; Becc. in Agricolt. colon. IV. (1910), t. I ; Webbia III (1910), 47. R. pedunculata P. Beauv. in Desv. Journ. Bot. II, 87, et in Fl. d'Oware et de Benin, I, 78, t. 44, f. 2, et t. 46, f. 2.— R. lyciosa et R. polymita Comm. ex Kuuth, Enum.. PI. Ill, 217. R. tama- tavensis Sadebeck in Engl. Bot. Jahrbiicher, XXXVl (1905), 354 —i^. vinifera, Drude (non Palis, de Beauv.) in Mart. Fl. Bras. v. 111. pt. II, tantum in tab. 62, f. I. D.- R. nicaraguends Oersted in Vidensk. Meddel naturhist. Forening, Kjtibenh. 1858 (1859^ 52. R. vinifera var. nicarn- guensis Drude in Fl. Bras. 1. c. Sagus farinifera, Gaertn. Fruct. et Sem. II, t. 120, f. Z.— Sagus Ruffia Jacq." Fragm. 7 ; No. 27, t. 4, f. 2.— Sagus pedunculata Lara. Encycl. Suppl. V, 13, et Illustr. Ill, 357, t. 771, f. 2, a-g. Sagus laevis. Griff. Palms Br. Ind., tantum in tab. CLXXXII. Metroxylon Ruffia Spreng. Syst. II, 139.*

Names of the Tree.

English : Raffia, raffia palm, rafia palm, raphiapalm, roffia, roffia

palm. FrewJi : Mouflia, palmier de Mayotte, raffia; rafia, raphia. German : Bambuspalme, ]Madagaskarische Sagopalme, Raffia-

bastpalme, Raffiaweinpalme. Butch: Madagascarsche sagoboom, sagodragendepalm.

Names of the Fibre, In Madagascar : Rafia, English : Raffia, rafia fibre, French : Raffia,

German : Bambuspalmenfaser, Raffia, Raffiafaser, Raphiastroh. Dutch : Raffia, raffiabast, raffiabindbast, rafiavezel, raphia. Description. Stem up to 30 feet high and often (in very strong- specimens) 3j feet in diameter, ringed. Leaves rising straight

Synonymy ex Becc. 1. c.

54 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. 80CIETY, Vol. XXV.

lip, reaching 50 feet in length. Petiole very stout, relatively short, abruptly dilated at the base into a short and broad sheath surrounding the stem, deeply excavated c>n the upper side, convex on the lower ; margins very acute, armed with short pale ascending spines, similar to those at the base of the segments. Segments very numerous, biseriate and more or less distinctly geminate on both sides of the rhachis, broadly linear, very slightly restricted towai'ds the base, long-acuminate, very thin- ly coriaceous, rigid for the greater part of their length, green and shining above, whitish-pulverulent below. The segments vary as to length and breadth on the same leaf according to their position : the lowest are very acuminate ; as long as the middle ones, but naiTOwer, about -| inch broad, and more spinous than these. The central segments are distinctly geminate, the bigger ones 4-4f feet long, sometimes up to 6 feet, and 15-lf inch bi'oad, spinulose on the margins, more or less spinulose on the median rib, or also entirely unarmed. The segments near the apex become gradually smaller as to length and breadth, less distinctly geminate and entirely unarmed.

Spadix veiy large, rising successively from the axils of the highest leaves, first erect, then recurved and turned downwards ; the same plant bears several spadices at the same time and of different age ; they vaiy in length from 7-11 feet. Spadix cylindric, about 8 inches thick at the time of flowering ; peduncle stoitt, recurved, slightly compressed, about 5 inches broad, sheathed below by 2 coriaceous, about 3f feet long, spathes ; the outer spatlie acutely bicarinate ; then follow other empty spathes which surround the peduncular part ; and finally there are many others of which each bears in its axil a partial inflorescence. Partial inflorescences compressed, short and broad, 6-8 inches long, cimeate at the base, getting gradually broader towards the apex, divided into branches or floriferous spike- lets of unequal length. Each partial inflorescence arises from the axil of a primary spathe which is rather broader than long and which terminates abruptly in an acuminate apex, being, on the whole, longer than the corresponding inflorescence. Primary spathes thinly coriaceous, of chestnut colour inside, hazel outside. Each inflorescence has a very short peduncular part which is strongly com- pressed, 5-lf inch long, |^-± inch broad, and sheathed by a short secondary spathe ; this is narrowly sheathing, narrowlj'- 2-winged, prolonged at the apex to the right and left into a very acuminate subfalcate and acutely carinate apex ; the tertiary spathes, from the axils of which rise the spikelets, are close to each other, very shortly infundibuliform truncate at the apex, entire, non- ciliate, with a thin margin. Spikelets bearing perfectly bifarious flowers, vermiform, strongly compressed, slightly sinuose, about I inch broad at the base, getting very slightly thinner towards

THE PALMS OF BRITISH INDIA AND CEYLON.

55

the apex ; the lowest ones are

larger

and measure 3-G inches

in length ; the upper ones getting gradually shorter. Female flowers ; ovate, acute ^ inch long ; involucellum membranaceous, yellow, form- ing a cupule almost complete or more or less split on the back, narrowly embracing the calyx. Calyx tubular-urceolate, truncate, tmtire and slightly narrowing at the moiith from which rise the conical apex of the ovary and the stigmas, which form a pyramidal trigonous, aci;te poinr. Corolla invisible externally, being entirely

/^.i

ry

\j/

Fig.

1. Raphia ruffia, Mart. Left: Female flower without spathellule. seen from the axile side. Middle : Male flower. Right : Median section of male flower. (After Beccari.)

included in, r.nd slightly shorter than, the calyx, divided into 3 large, broadly triangailar, acuminate lobes. Staminodes forming a membranous cupule which is irregularly sinuous 6-dentate, the teeth ])eing more or less triangular. Ovary ovate, stigmas o, triangular, acute, connivent. Male flowers perfectly distichous and uniseriate, •| inch long and .^L inch broad. Spathellule of male flower slight- ly longer than the calyx of its own flower, acutely bicarinate, shortly bidentate at the apex (fig. 1). Calyx tubular-cyathiform, superfici- ally and obtusely 3-denticulate, slightly shorter than the corres- ])onding spathellule. Stamens normally 6, sometimes 7-8, equal; iilaments stout, clavate-fusiform, abruptly conti-acted at the connective, connate at the base ; anthers linear, sagittate- auriculate below, obtuse. Corolla about twice as long as the calyx, subterete, divided to its lower fourth into 3 linear-lanceolate, thinly coria-

i;eous segments.

Fruits variable in shape and size, 1-2 inches long, 1^-1 5 inch broad, more or less turbinate, or globose-ovate, and slightly longer than broad, or subglobose, always slightly depressed at the apex and terminated by a very short conical top, more or less attenuate below into an acute and symmetrical base, more rarely rotundate at the base. Scales disposed on 12-13 orthostichies, of chestnut or

56 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV.

mahogany red colour, shiuing, strongly convex, deeply sulcate lon- gitudinalty, margin very narrow, scarious, blackish, fimbriate-ciliate, prolonged into an obtuse apex. Pericarp on the whole ^-|- inch thick. Seed obovate, rotundate at the apex, more or less attenuate and acute below, sometimes .^^--^^ i^^ch thick, and still thicker at the base ; albumen yevy hard, osseous, white and penetrated by intrusions of the integument which render it more or less ruminate. Embryo situated on one side, a little below the middle.

Habitat. Indigenous in Madagascar. Extensively cultivated on the Mascarene Islands. Naturalized in America.

Illustration. The specimen of Raphia ruffia shown on plate XCVI grows in the Botanic Gardens of Peradeniya. In the centre of the crown a fruiting spadix is visible. The palm was photo- graphed by Mr. Macmillan.

RAPHIA VINIFERA, Palis, de Beauv. in Desvaux, Journ. de Bot. lb (1809) 87, et Fl. d'Oware et de Benin, 1, 77, t. 44, f. 1, 45 (excl. syn. Gaertn.) et tab. 46, f. 1. a. b. c. d. ; Martins Hist. Nat. Palm. Ill, 217 (ed. 1) ; Beccari in Webbia III (1910) 88. Sar/us vinifera Lam. Encycl., Suppl. V, 13 {?)Safjus Ruffia rar. /5 Willd. Sp. pi. IV, A0i.—Metro.vylo7i mnifevum Spreng. Syst.veg. II, 139, n, 2.

Names of the Tree.

JEnglislb : Bamboo palm, Jupati palm, Pharaoh's date-palm, wine

palm. French : Bourdon, palmier a vin, raphier. German : Bambuspalme, Echte Weinpalme, Weingebende Sago-

palme, Weinpalme. Dutch : Raphiavezelpalm.

Names of the Jujce.

Engiish : Palm wine, todd}'. French : Vin de paime. German : Palmwein. Dutch : Palmwijn.

Names of the Fibre,

English : African bass, African bass fibre, Lagos bass, Lagos rafia, West African bass. West African bass fibre. West Afri- can piassava, West African rafia.

Butch : West-Afrikaansche raflia.

Of the fibre from the young unopened leaves.

English : Rapliia grass.

Description. Stem comparatively short. Leaves rising nearly vertically from the stem, bending out on every side in graceful curves, forming a magnificent ph n.e.Spadices very large, com- poundly branched and drooping, growin <uw between the eaves and having numerous bract-like sheaths. fPartial inflorescence on

JouRN. EOMr.AY Nat. Hist. Soc.

Plate XCVII.

Wine Palm {Raphia vinifera, Palis, de Beauv.).

THE PALMS OF BlilTISH INDIA AND CEYLON.

i>i

the whole ovate, strougly compressed, with the spikelets dense 1}^ arranged and distichous, about \\ foot long comprising the pedun- cular part which measures about 3 inches and which is sheathed by some tubular spathes, of which the outermost is bi-winged and prolonged on both sides into a falciforme acuminate apex. The general spathe of the partial inflorescence is much dilated at the base and ends in a broad and rather long acuminate point, is opa- que and hazel outside, shining and chestnut inside. Spikelets slightly arcuate, much compressed, of pectiform appearance on account of the regular arrangement of the flowers ; the bigger ones situated on the lower third are Sj-Sl? inches, long ; the upper ones become gradually shorter, about ^ inch thick comprising the flowers ; the spathellules are distinctly and densely ciliate-paleaceous on the margins. The flowers seem to be perfectly distichous. Male flowers (fig. 2) : small, when fully developed h inch long, curved calyx cyatiform, superficially o-denticulate and ciliate-paleaceous on the margin, corolla about 2^ times longer than the calyx, opaque on the outside, divided almost to the base into 3 linear segments. Stamens 9 ; filaments stout, subfusiform, free or more or less united at the base of the corolla. Female floANcrs (fig 2) : about ^ inch long and }. inch broad, acuminate, sliohtlv attenuate at the base.

Fig. 2. liaphm vinifcra, P. I>. B.

Upper row Left : Two female flowers.

Middle : Sing'le female flower.

Rigfht : Seed seen from below. Lower row Left : Transverse section of seed with embryo.

Middle : Male flower with bract and bracteole.

Rigrht : Male flower opened ( after Drude).

•Calyx not very deeply 3-lobed ; lobes obtuse, ciliate-paleaceous on the margin, especially at the apex. Corolla by about ^ longer 8

58 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Fol. XXV.