&.JfltMt«ur0Ml THE JOURNAL OP I'HK Bombay Natural History Society EDITED BY HC TVI. PH1PSON, CIVI.Z.S., Honorary Secretary. VOLUME V. 1890. CONSISTING ©P K©«fl NUMBER ^jMD CBNT^ININS 17 IliMSTI^TOjVS, Bomfoag: PRINTED AT THE EDUCATION SOCIETY'S PRESS, BYCULLA. 1890. CONTENTS OF VOL V, p/ Nesting in Western India. By Lieut. H. E. Barnes, F.Z.S. (With 3 Plates) ...1,97, 815 The Butterflies of the Central Provinces. By J. A. Bethain 19,152,279 A Preliminary List of the Butterflies of Mysore. By E. Y. Watson • 28 Notes on Indian Ants. By George Alexander J. Bothney, F.E.S. 41 The Venomous Snakes of North Kanara. By G. W, Vidal, C.S. 64 Indian Cattle. By J. H. Steel, A. V. D 71 List of Bombay Grasses. By Dr. J, C. Lisboa, F. L. S.. 116, 226, 337 Description of a new Morphid Butterfly from North-Eastern India. By Lionel de Niceville, F.E.S. C.M.Z.S., &c. {With a Plate C). 131 Prehistoric Bombay. By W. E. Hart 132 Description of a new Fungus ^Ecidium Esculentum, nov. sp. on Acacia Eburnea, Willd. By A. Barclay, M.B., Bengal Medical Service {With a Plate) 161 Note added to Dr. Barclay's Paper. By Dr. D. Prain. (With a Plate) 165 Some new Books of Indian Zoology. By W. F. Sinclair, C.S.... 176 On New and Little-known Butterflies from the Indian Region, with Descriptions of three new Genera of Hes- pebiidjs. By Lionel de Niceville, F.E.S. C.M.Z.S., &c. (With Plates D and E) 199 On New and Little-known Hymenopteka from India, Burma and Ceylon. By Major C. T. Bingham, F.Z.S., Forest Depart- ment, Burma. (With two Plates) 233 Mules. By J. H. Steel, A.V.D., Principal, Bombay Veterinary College 252 Notes on the Larvae and Pup^i of some of the Butterflies of the Bombay Presidency. By J. Davidson, Bo. C.S., and E. H. Aitken. (With 6 Plates) 260 & 349 Notes on the Economic Botany of the Cucurbitace-e of Western India. By Dr. W. Dymock 286 List of Chin-Lushai Butterflies. By Lionel de Niceville 295, 382 List of Ferns Gathered in North Kanara. By Major T. R. M. Macpherson , 375 The Physical Geography of the Neighbourhood j>f Bombay. By W. F. Sinclair, C.S 377 '■> 52078 PAGE 380 0 CONTENTS. Wounded Bear Charging up a Tree. (With a Plate.) By J. D Tnverarity • JEnictus-Typhlatta and Some New Genera of Formicid2e. By Auguste Forel, Professor at the Zurich University 388 Bombay Gardens. By G. Carstensen, Superintendent of Municipal Gardens, Bombay ; Gr. Hort. R. D. Agr. Coll. (Copenhagen) ... 397 ( 'oURESrONDENCE — The Ech is Carinata and its Alleged Antidote .". 82 Book Notices— " The Butterflies of India, Burma and Ceylon" 298 Notes on "Oates' Birds of India." 167, 300 Miscellaneous — Branching Tree Ferns 86 Snipe Sitting in the Open 86,191 Notes on Locusts in India 86, 184 A Manual of Forestry 188 Mr. Giles' Dragon-Fly 190 Measurements of a Boar , 191 Tiger Cubs 191 Panthers Tree'd by Wild Dogs 191 Painted Sand Grouse near Baroda 305 The Gadwall and the Blue-beaked Booby 305 A Trait of Heredity 306 Egg-laying Animals 306 A Panther chasing a Nilghai 307 The Protective Colouring of Chrysalides , 309 Tigress's Milk as a Medicine 416 The Bengal Water Cock (Gqllicrex crittatus) first observed in Guzerat ... 416 Proposed Introduction of the Black Partridge and other Game into the Neighbourhood of Bombay 417 Periodical Flowering of Strohilanthes, Spp., and JEchmanthprft Tr>mentosa,TSees f 417 Markhor Shooting in East Afghanistan , 418 Parasitic Flies ,. ..... 420 Dissemination of Larvae 421 Red Ants' Nests , 422 A •• Malabar Crow Pheasant" Taking to the water 422 Bees Destroyed by Lapindus emarginatm 423 Proceedings 92. 192, 309, 342 ■ ■ . mo L 530 . 0RTH0T0MUS SUTO Rl U S . Forst , Tht. I ,lor Bird... i&fcARY] so] JOURNAL OF THE BOMBA y lattpl IfeimtS No. 1.] BOMBAY, 1890. [Vol. V. NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. By Lieut. H. E. Barnes. {Continued from page 255, Vol. IV.) 475.— THE MAGPIE ROBIN. Copsychus miilaris, Lin. The Magpie Robin is another species that appears to be rare, if not altogether absent from Sincl; it occurs sparingly in Guzerat, becomes much more common in the Deccan, and is most abundant in Ratnagiri and the Southern parts of the district generally. As a rule they are permanent residents where they occur, but I never succeeded in finding a nest in the neighbourhood of Deesa, but Mr. Littledale has found several at and near Baroda. In all the other parts of Western India it is a common breeder. The breeding season lasts from early in May to about the middle of July, but nests may be found both earlier and later than this. The nests are generally placed in holes in trees, occasionally in holes in walls, &c, and are composed of grass roots, vegetable fibres, moss, &c. It is a shallow saucer in shape, often a mere pad, and the eggs, five in number, sometimes only four, much more rarely six, are as a rule oval in shape and pale greenish-white in colour, but are subject to much variation both in shape and colour; they are 1 2 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. streaked, spotted, speckled, and blotched with various shades of brownish-red. One clutch I have is a pale sea-green, sparingly but beautifully blotched with reddish-brown, and having smudges of faint inky purple at the larger end. In another clutch the ground- colour is a bluish-green. The markings are usually much more numerous at the larger end, where they often form an imperfect zone or cap. Often the markings are so thick as to leave little of the ground colour visible. They vary much in size, but the average is 0*87 inches in length by rather more than 0-66 in breadth. Mr. Davidson tells me that, according to his experience, this bird seems to breed only in the West part of the Presidency ; thus, he has taken its nest in Satara and the western talukas of Nassick, never in Khandeish, Sholapur, or the eastern Nassick talukas. In Kanara it swarms, breeding from the middle of March to the rains. After the eggs are hatched, the birds are very quarrelsome, boldly attacking any other bird or animal that approaches the nest. The young are easily reared by placing them in a cage accessible to the parent birds, who will attend and feed them in the same way that the Golden Oriole does. They have a sweet song, which is heard to most advantage in the early morning during the breeding season. Poona, April to June. R. E. Barnes. Bombay, 18th March to June. ,, Satara, Middle of March to Jane. J. Daridson, C.S. Western Nassich, „ „ „ Kanara, Baroda, ,, „ II. Littlcdale, B.A. 476.— THE SHAMA. Cercotrichas macrura, Gin. The Shama only occurs in the southern portion of the Presidency, where it is a permanent resident, but I can find no record of a nest having actually been taken there. Mr. Davidson notes — "Common though this bird is in the above ghat portion of Kanara, from March to May, and probably all the year, I not only never got a nest (the birds were then breeding), but I never managed to shoot a hen-bird." NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. According to Mr. Hume's Nestscmd Eggs &f Indian Birds, page 306> they breed during April and May in boles in trees, making- a large nest of leaves and twigs, lined with fine twigs, and laying three eggs moderately broad oval in shape, a good deal pointed at one end, and exhibiting a slight pyriform tendency. The shell, which has a slight gloss, is fine and compact. The ground colour is dull greenish-stone (but very little of it is visible), and it is everywhere very densely freckled, in some rather streakily, with a rich, almost raw, sienna- brown, in amongst which dull purplish markings are, when the egg is- closely looked into, found to be thickly mingled. The combined effect, when looked into at a little distance, is of a dense ruddy purplish- brown mottling. The eggs vary from 0*87 to 0*9' inches in length, and from 0*6 to 0*62 in breadth. They are small for the size of the bird. As Mr. Hume remarks, they remind one of some of the Lark's eggs. 479.— THE INDIAN BLACK ROBIN. Thamnobia fuMccda, Lin. It is considered doubtful by many whether the Indian Black Robin is distinct from the- Northern Indian Robin {Thamnobia cam- laiensis, Lath.) It is hard at times to distinguish between them : typi- cal specimens are of course widely different, but many intermediate forms occur linking them together, but so long as the Black and Painted Partridges, the Dark Ashy, and Stewards' Wren Warblers, and many others are considered entitled to specific distinction, these also must be retained. I cannot attempt to define the limits of each, but generally speaking, typical fulicatw occurs in the south and cam- baiensis in the north, but it is difficult, in fact impossible, to draw any hard and fast line between them. They breed from April to the middle of July. The nest is a mere pad composed of grass stems and roots,, vegetable fibres, cotton, moss, &c, lined with hair and feathers^ and is placed in a hole in a wall or bank, on ledges of rock, and occasionally between the roots of trees ; very rarely is the nest placed in a bush ; in this latter case it is much more neatly and compactly made, and is cup-shaped. The eggs, usually three in number, sometimes four, more rarely only two, are moderately elongated ovals in shape, pinched in a little 4 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. at the smaller end, and are greenish -white in colour, thickly speckled, spotted, streaked, and freckled with reddish and yellowish-brown. These markings usually form a more or less irregular cap at the larger end. They average 072 inches in length by rather more than 055 in breadth. 480.— THE NORTHERN INDIAN ROBIN. Thamnobia cambaiensis, Lath. The Northern Indian Robin breeds in exactly the same way as the Indian Black Robin and about the same time. The eggs, three in number, are moderately elongated ovals in shape and pointed at one end ; they vary very much both in the ground colour and character of the markings, but the usual type is greenish -white closely freckled, or stippled with reddish-and yellowish-brown. Others are more or less boldly streaked and spotted with bright red- brown, with an occasional underlying spot of pale inky-purple. Creamy-, bluish-, and pale brownish-white varieties are not uncom- mon. One clutch I have is most beautiful, being of a pale sea-green colour, with a few large blotches of faint pinkish-purple and clayey- brown. Had I not shot the bird from the nest, I should have been at a loss to identify the eggs. They measure about 0 79 inches in length by about 0-59 in breadth. 1 81. —THE BLACK STONE-CHAT. Pratincola caprata, Lin. The Black Stone-Chat or White-winged Black Robin is a common permanent resident throughout the district ; it however almost disap- I K ;ii- from some parts during the breeding season, which extends from April to June. They build flat saucer-shaped nests, composed of grass, fine roots, vegetable fibres, &c. It is, as a rule, placed in a hole in a bank, or well ; occasionally, however, they build in bushes, but even here the nest actually touches the ground. I once found a nest in a small heap of rotten grass. They are much more common on the hills than on the plains, mure especially during the breeding season. NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 5 The eggs, four in number, often five, are moderately broad ovals in shape and pointed at one end ; the ground colour is pale bluish-green, freckled, speckled and streaked with brownish-red. The markings are much more dense at the larger end, where they often form a confluent cap. They vary much in size, but the average is 0'67 inches in Length bv about 0'55 in breadth. Khaudalla, April to June. II. E. Barnes. Satara Ghats, April. J. Davidson, C.S. Nassick Ghats, March to May. ,, Kanara, May. ,, Eastern Narra, Sind, April to August. S. B. Doig. 439.— THE PIED STONE-CHAT. Saxicola picata, Blyth. At present the Pied Stone- Chat can only be said to be a cold wea- ther visitant ; common in Sind and the north generally, becoming more and more scarce in the central portion of the Presidency, and being altogether absent from the south. I found it to be a common breeder at Chaman, on the Khoja Amran range of hills in Southern Afghanistan ; I have reason to believe that it breeds also in the Bolan Pass, and would not be sur- prised to learn that eggs had been taken in Northern Sind. They breed in holes in trees in March, making a pad-shaped nest of grass, composed of dry grass and roots, lined with hair and feathers. The eggs, four in number, are elongated ovals in shape, pinched in a little at one end ; the ground colour is a delicate greenish-blue, obsoletely speckled with rusty-brown or pale brownish-red at the larger end, where the markings form an irregular zone. A few specks of the same colour are scattered over the rest of the surface of the egg. The average of twelve eggs measured is 081 inches in length by 0*56 in breadth. Chaman, South Afghanistan, March. H. E. Barnes. 492for.— THE GREY-BACKED WARBLER. JEdon familiaris, Mene. This is a very uncommon species, and only occurs as an exception- ally rare winter visitor to Sind and Northern Guzerat ; further west, 6 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. in Beloochistan and Persia, it becomes more common, breeding freely at Bushire. Mr. J. W. N. dimming, to whose kindness I am indebted fof a clutch of eggs of this species, has most obligingly furnished me with the following note, which is at present the extent of our information regarding the breeding of this somewhat rare bird : — " Once only have I come across the nest of the Gre}r-backed War- bler, and that on the 14th April 1884, in the telegraph garden at Bushire. It was placed inside (a few inches from the top) of one of a number of old hollow telegraph posts, standing about three feet out of the ground, and forming supports to the wire fencing sur- rounding the garden. The eggs, four in number, were entirely cover- ed with minute yellowish-brown spots and very pale purple blotches, hiding almost completely the white shell, and are similar in shape tor though a good deal larger than, those of Thamnobia cambaiemis. " The nest was cup- shaped, and the materials consisted of fine grass-, well lined with hair and fibres. In the evening of the same day, the female was caught seated in the nest, about to lay its fifth and last egg, for, on dissecting the ovary, after the removal of the skin, I found an entire and perfect egg, which would in all probability have been laid that night. "My brother, also, when at Fao, came across a number of nests of this species, chiefly in holes in walls and on date trees, in the hollows at the bases of the leaves." The eggs are very similar in shape and colour to the thickly speckled type of egg so commonly met with amongst those of Thamnohia cambaiensis et fuUcata, but are rather larger, those in my collection measuring 0*82 inches in length by rather more than 0*62 in breadth. Strictly speaking, an account of the nesting of this bird ought not to appear in this paper, as it has never been found breeding in this Presidency, but I have been assured that since the present arrange- ments for the supply of water at Karachi, this and several other rare birds have become more common, and it is not unlikely that sooner or later a nest will be found. 494.— THE BROWN EOCK-CHAT. Cer(v»it'/(/ fusca, Bh/tJi. The Brown Rock-Chat is very common at Mount Aboo, and in the vicinity of JNeemuch, Rujpootanu. NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 7 It does not occur in >Sind, and is absent from the south. Mr. Davidson did not meet with it in Khandesh or in Nassiek. It is a permanent resident where found, breeding- twice a year, during March and April, and again in June and July. It is a bold and familiar bird, and is the Shama* of Mr. Phillips, {Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds) ; they frequent old buildings, forts, outhouses, and such like places, in holes and crevices in the walls of which they build their nests. The bird has a peculiar habit of heaping up a pile of small stones, pebbles and broken tiles, leaving a depression in which it places its nest. I had the curiosity to weigh one of these heaps, which was composed entirely of broken tiles, and found it to weigh 7 lbs. 2 oz. ; this was, however, much larger than usual. The nest itself is a thick, saucer-shaped pad, composed of tine grass, lined with wool and hair. The eggs, three in number, occasionally four, are moderately broad ovals in shape, pointed at one end, and are pale blue in colour, faintly speckled with pale reddish-brown. Sometimes the markings are bolder and brighter, and form a well-defined ring round the larger end. They measure 0'82 inches in length by about 0-62 in breadth. Mount Aboo, March to April and Jane to July. H. E. Barnes. Neemuch, „ „ „ „ „ „ Saitgor, „ „ „ „ ,, „ 515.— THE LARGE REED WARBLER, Acroccphalus stentorius, Hemp (Did Ehr. Mr. Doig appears to be the only oologist who has succeeded in obtaining eggs of the Large Reed Warbler within our limits or even in India, although the bird breeds abundantly in Cashmere. He says {Stray Feathers, Vol. ix., p. 279) :— " On the 4th August, while my man was poling along in a canoe, in a large swamp, on the look out for eggs, he passed a small bunch of reeds, and in them spotted a nest with a bird on it. " The nest contained three beautiful fresh eggs. A few days later I joined him, and on asking about these eggs, he described the bird, and said he had found several other nests of the same species, but all * The native name of this bird throughout the Central Provinces is " Shama" ; the real Shama, Cercotrichas macrura, does not occur there. — H. E, B. ' 8 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. of them contained young ones, nearly fledged. I made him show me some of these nests, all of which were situated in clumps of reeds in the middle of the swamp, and in these same reeds I found and shot the young one, whieh though fledged was unable to fly. This I sent with one of the eggs to Mr. Hume, who has identified them as belong- ing to this species. " The nests were composed of frayed pieces of reed-grass and fine sedge, the latter being principally towards the inside, thus forming a kind of lining. The nests were loosely put together and were about three inches inner diameter, one and a quarter inches deep, the outer diameter being six inches ; they were situated about a foot over the water, in the tops of reeds growing in the water." Mr. Hume, in Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds, page 327, writing of eggs received from Cashmere, described them as follows : — "The eggs of this species, as might have been expected, greatly resemble those of A. turdoides. In shape they are moderately elongated ovals, in some cases almost absolutely perfect, but generally slightly com- pressed towards one end. The shell, though fine, is entirely devoid of gloss. " The ground colour varies much, but the two commonest t}'pes are pale green or greenish-white, and a pale, somewhat creamy, stone colour. Occasionally the ground colour has a bluish tinge. " The markings vary even more than the ground colour. In one type the ground is everywhere minutely, but not densely, stippled with minute specks, too minute for one to be able to say of what colour ; over this are pretty thickly scattered fairly bold and well marked spots and blotches of greyish-black, inky -purple, olive-brown, and reddish-umber-brown ; here and there pale inky clouds underlay the most distinct markings. " In other eggs the stippling is altogether wanting, and the markings are smaller and less well defined. " In some eggs, one or more of the colours predominate greatly, and in some several are almost entirely wanting. " In most eggs the markings are densest towards the large end, where they sometimes form more or less of a mottled, irregular, ill-defined cup. " In length the eggs vary from 0*8 to 0*97, and in breadth from NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 9 0'58 to 0'63 ; but the average of the only nine eggs I measured was 0*89 nearly, by rather more than 0#61." Eastern Narra, Sind, August, S. B. Doig. 530.— THE INDIAN TAILOR BIRD. Sutoria sutoHa, Forst. The Tailor Bird is a common permanent resident throughout Western India, except in Ratnagiri, where it is stated by Mr. Vidal to be only sparingly distributed. They breed from June to the end of August. To one unacquainted with their habits, their nests are hard to find, although during the time the hen is sitting on the eggs, the cock (who may be dis- tinguished by his elongated central tail feathers), keeps up an incessant but pleasant twittering, on a neighbouring bough, and though one knows that a nest is somewhere close at hand, it requires a careful and persevering search to find it. If the bird chooses a leaf sufficiently large, it sews the opposite edges together with cotton fibre or even spider's web, and in the cavity thus formed, it makes a soft nest of cotton, with just a few hairs to keep it in shape. "When two or more leaves are incorporated in the nest, it is not so neatly made, and is much easier to find. They lay three or four eggs (twice I have found five eggs, and once seven), of an elongated oval shape, pointed at one end : they average 0'64 inches in length by rather more than 0'45 inches in breadth. They are of two types, in one the ground colour is white, suffused with a reddish tinge when the eggs are fresh and unblown, more or less spotted, speckled and blotched with reddish brown ; in the other the ground colour is pale greenish, also spotted and speckled with brownish-red. The markings in both types are gene- rally more numerous at the larger end, where they often form an imperfect zone ; usually the markings are bright and boldly defined, but occasionally they are dingy. 532.— THE YELLOW-BELLIED WREN WARBLER. Prinia fin viventt -is, Deles*. Within our limits the Yellow-bellied Warbler has only been recorded from Sind, where it is a permanent resident, breeding in JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. apparently three times a year, viz. March, June and September. I have never seen a nest, but they are well described by Mr. Hume in his "Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds." He says: — " The nest is of an oval shape, very obtuse at both ends, measuring externally four inches in length and about two and three-quarters in diameter. The aperture, which is near the top of the nest, is oval, and measures about an inch by one and a half inches. The nest is fixed against the side of two or three leafy twigs, to which it is bound tightly in one or two places with grass and vegetable fibres, and two or three leafy lateral twigs are incorporated into the sides of the nest, so that when fresh it must have been entirely hidden by leaves. " The nest was in an upright position, the major axis perpendicu- lar to the horizon. It is a very thin, firm, close, basket-work of fine grass, flower stalks, and vegetable fibres, and has no lining, though the interior surface is more closely woven and of still finer materials than the outside. The cavity is nearly two and one half inches in diameter." This is a description of a nest presented to Mr. Hume by Mr. J. C. Parker, who took it from the swampy banks of the canals that intersect the salt water lake, Calcutta. The eggs, four in number, are broad regular ovals, of a nearly uniform mahogany-red, measuring 0#56 inches in length by 0*45 in breadth. They are highly glossy. A nest taken by Mr. Doig was lined with horse hair and fine grasses. Eastern Narra, Sind, March, June and September. S. B. Doig. 534.— THE ASHY WREN WARBLER. Prima socia/is, Sykes. Typical specimens of the Ashy Wren Warblers (Prinia soda/is) and Stewart's Wren Warbler {Prinia stewarti) differ only in size, and many birds may with equal justice be assigned to either species. I am personally of opinion that there is only one species. Captain (now Colonel) Butler in his Birds of Guzerat, identified all his birds as 80ciali8 ; the Deccan birds are also considered to be socialis. Mr. Davidson considers the birds he found in Western Khandeish to be stewarti (these birds were sent to Mr. Hume, and he also identified them as stewarti)', in Neemuch an intermediate type prevails. NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 11 They are permanent residents, breeding from the commencement to the end of the rains. The nests differ greatly, some of them are placed between two or more leaves, sewn carefully together, tailor-bird like, but as a rule not so neatly, a good deal of line grass being used in addition to the cotton. Occasionally the nest is placed in a tuft of grass, and is then composed of tightly woven grass, and is dome-shaped, having the aperture near the top. Others are composed of vegetable down affixed to leafy twigs, much in the same way as those of the Yellow- bellied Wren Warbler (Prima fiaviventris). The eggs, four or five' in number, are oval in shape, and are of a brilliantly glossy-brick or mahogany-red colour, darker as a rule at one end, where it forms an indistinct cloudy cap. They average about 064 inches in length by 0*47 in breadth. 535.— STEWART'S WREN WARBLER. Prima stcwarti, Blyth. The eggs of Stewart's Wren Warbler average 0'62 inches in length by about 0-46 in breadth, or rather smaller than those of the Ashy Wren Warbler ; in all other respects they are identical. 538.— THE MALABAR WREN WARBLER. Prima hodgspni, Blyth. It is now admitted by most ornithologists, that the Malabar and Franklin's Wren Warblers (Prinia gracilis) are one and the same species, hodgsoni being nothing more than gracilis in breeding plumage. The Malabar Wren Warbler is more or less common in suitable places in Western India, with the exception of Sind and perhaps Cutch, where it is not known to occur. Mr. Davidson, who has had excellent opportunities of observing this bird, says in epis : " As far as I know I have never seen this bird in Sholapur, Satara, Poona or Kanara, while it is common in Khandeish and found in Nassick ; I therefore suspect it is a Northern form in the peninsula." They are permanent residents, breeding during the rainy season, making a somewhat similar nest to that of the Tailor Bird, but much smaller it is composed of very fine grass, placed between two 12 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. or more leaves, carefully sewn together, with cobwebs, cotton, or wool, and is almost completely hidden by leaves. The eggs, four in number, are of an oval shape, and are of four distinct types, viz.: — a. Pure unspotted glossy white. b. White, speckled and freckled with reddish-brown. c. Pale unspotted greenish-blue. d. Pale blue, spotted and freckled with reddish-brown. All the eggs in one nest are of one type. Some of the spotted eggs have the markings thickest at one end, where they often form an imperfect cap or zone. They measure 0'57 inches in length by about 0'42 in breadth. Baroda, July to September. H. Littledale, B.A. Western Khandeish, July to October. J Davidson, C.S. 539.— THE RUFOUS GRASS WARBLER. Cisticola cursitans, Franhl. With the exception of the higher ranges of hills where it is scarce, and in the desert tracks where it is altogether absent, the Rufous Grass Warbler is a more or less common permanent resident, breed- ing during the rains, making a long purse-like nest, composed of silky, white, vegetable down, which is placed in the centre of a clump of grass, at a short distance only above the ground. The blades of grass around the nest are so firmly interwoven with it, that it cannot be removed intact. It is rather larger at the bottom than at the top, and the tacking together of the blades of grass is continued higher on one side than the other, a small entrance being left on the opposite side, between the untacked stems ; the inside is well lined or felted with soft vegetable down. The eggs, four or five in number, are broadish ovals in shape, nar- rowing somewhat at one end ; they average 0*58 inches in length by 046 in breadth. In colour they are white, or faint greenish-white suffused with a pinkish tint when fresh and unblown, and are thickly speckled with pale reddish-brown. These specks are much more numerous at the NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 13 larger end, where they often form an imperfect zone or irregular cap. Hyderabad, Sind, July. H. E. Barnes. J)eesa July to September. Bo. Kliandeish, September. J. Davidson, C.S. Ba ro((a, June to August. II. Littledale, B.A. 543.— THE COMMON WREN WARBLER. Brymceca inornata, Sykes. The Warblers belonging to the Brymceca group, seem to be very much mixed, the different species being very hard to discriminate. Personally I have only met two in the flesh that I could feel sure about ; these are the present species and Brymceca sylvatica. I strongly suspect that specimens of this last often do duty for rufescens and imignis. The Common or Earth-brown Wren Warbler is a permanent resi- dent throughout Western India, breeding from the middle of July to the end of September. It usually constructs a rather pretty nest, composed of fine strips torn from blades of green grass, which are plaited together like those of the Baya, but the strips are finer and the nest is altogether neater. It is usually fastened to the thorny twigs of acacia bushes, at no great height from the ground, and the shape depends largely on the position of these twigs. According to my experience, the nests are never lined, but Mr. Davidson writes that he has taken nests lined with fine fluff, with similar eggs, apparently belonging to this bird, but he has never actually shot the parents. Another type of nest is composed of similar material, but is much coarser and is more loosely woven. Nests of this latter description are built in clumps of sarpat, guinea, or other coarse-growing grass, or even in standing corn ; they are purse- shaped with the aperture on one side, the opposite side being prolonged and projecting over so as to form a canopy. In some cases the nests are sewn by shreds of fine grass, to the under side of a large leaf of the shrub that grows so commonly in grass jungle ; this leaf forms a canopy over it, and effectually protects 14 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. it from rain ; the nest, which is bag-shaped, is held in position by- long stays of fine grass or fibres sewn and fastened to the nearest leaves and stalks. The eggs, four or five in number (usually five), are moderately long ovals in shape, and are of a glossy pale greenish-blue colour, boldly spotted and blotched with chocolate and reddish-brown, and having a delicate tracery of interlaced hair-like lines at the larger end, but occasionally these lines are absent ; the small end is com- paratively unspotted. The ground colour is subject to variation, eggs having been taken of a dull olive tint, and still more rarely of a clear reddish-white. They average 0-61 inches in length by about 0 45 in breadth. 544 Us.— THE GREAT RUFOUS WREN WARBLER. Drymoeea rufuscens, Hume. Captain (now Colonel) Butler, in his Birds of the Deecan and South Mahratta Country, says that the Great Rufous Wren Warbler is probably a permanent resident ; it is also not uncommon in North- ern Guzerat and on Mount Aboo. I cannot find any record of a nest having been taken in Western India, but Mr. Hume in Wests dud Eggs of Indian Birds describes the nests as being a somewhat shallow, flimsy, watch-pocket, loosely put together, composed of coarse grass, and having a good deal of wool mixed with it ; it is lined with fine grass. Captain Cock, who took the eggs at Seetapore, says they breed in August, and that the eggs are facsimiles of those of Pratincola ferrea, i.e., of a pale greenish-blue colour, minutely speckled with rufous, principally at the larger end. The size is not given. Mr. Davidson asks, " Is this a good species ? " as birds which he at first considered to be this, and which he sent to Mr. Hume, were identified by Mr. Sharp as specimens of Drymoeea sylvatica in sea- sonal plumage. 545.— THE JUNGLE WREN WARBLER. Drymoeea sylvatica, Jerd. The Jungle Wren Warbler occurs in Central India and Khandeish ; it has not been recorded from the Deecan, Guzerat or from Sind. NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 15 I found it breeding near Neemuch in July ; the nest was purse- shaped, composed of rough grass, and contained three fresh eggs, pale greenish-white in colour, thickly freckled with rusty-red ; the specks were much more numerous at the larger end. Another nest taken at the same place, early in August, contained five eggs, similar in size and shape, but having the ground colour very pale greenish-white. Mr. Davidson found them to be far from uncommon in Western Khandeish, and he informs me that the number of eggs is usually four, occasionally five ; he remarks that the eggs vary much, from pale bluish-white unspotted, to pinkish and bluish-white much marked with rusty-red. They measure 069 inches in length by about 0*49 in breadth. Neemuch, July to August. H. B. Barnes. Saugor, July to September. Do. Western Khandeish, July to September. J. Davidson, C.S, hiobis.— THE GREAT WEEN WARBLER. Drymceca insignis. Mr. Littledale found many nests, which he considered as belong- ing to this species ; he describes the nests as domed, composed of fine grass, interwoven with growing grass. I have never met with the bird. Baroda, July to September. M. E. Barnes. 550.— THE STREAKED WREN WARBLER. Burnesia gracilis, Riipp. The Streaked Wren Warbler is a common permanent resident in Sind, frequenting the dense tamarisk thickets that occur so com- monly on the dhunds. It is somewhat rare in Guzerat, and does not occur at all in the Deccan. It breeds from May to September ; the nest is built in a low dense tamarisk bush, and is of an oval shape, with the entrance hole at one side near the top, and is composed of small dry tamarisk twigs and fine grass, well lined with soft vegetable down. The eggs, three in number, are greenish- white in colour, profusely streaked, speckled and spotted with bright brownish-red. The markings are usually more numer- ous at the larger end, where they not unfrequently form an imper- 16 JOURNAL BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. feet zone or cap. In shape they are broad ovals, pointed at one end, measuring 055 inches in length by about 0'42 in breadth. Hgdrubeicl, Sine/, June to August. H. E. Barnes. 560W«.— THE STREAKED SCRUB WARBLER. Scotocerea inquieta, E'upp. The Streaked Scrub Warbler has been procured on the hills that divide Sind from Khelat, where it is most probably a permanent resident : it has not been recorded from any other part of Western India. They breed freely on the plain between Chaman and Gratai, in Southern Afghanistan, and also in the Pishin Valley, and I have seen the birds during the breeding season in the Bolan Pass. The nest is globular in shape, not unlike that of the Rufous - fronted Wren Warbler [Franldinia buchanani), but is somewhat larger ; it is usually built in a stunted bush not more than two feet from the ground ; it is well lined with feathers and fine grass, the outer portion consisting of coarse grass and fibres. The maximum number of eggs is six, but four incubated ones are often met with; they are oval in shape, white, with a pinkish tinge when fresh, very minutely spotted and freckled with bright red. These spots are usually more dense at the larger end, but frequently they are evenly speckled over the whole surface. They average 0"64 inches in length by 0*49 in breadth. Chaman, South Afghanistan, March to April. H. S. Barnes. Pishin Vat leg, „ March. „ 551.— THE RUFOUS-FRONTED WREN WARBLER. Franklinia buchanani, Big. The Rufous-fronted Wren Warbler is common in Sind, and is most abundant in Guzerat and Rajpootana, and Mr. Davidson found it to be very common in Western Khandeish, but with the excep- lion of Ahmednugger (from whence it has been recorded by Mr. Fairbank) it appears to be absent from the southern portion of the P residency. It is a permanent resident where found, breeding during the monsoons. The nest is a loose, ragged structure, of an irregular NESTING IN WESTERN INDIA. 17 purse-like shape, ccasionally almost globular, with the aperture near the top, rarely cup-shaped. It is composed of fine grass, and is lined with soft vegetable down. It is generally placed in a low thorny- bush, not more than a foot or so from the ground. The effos, four or five in number, as often one as the other, are of a slightly elongated oval shape, and are white in colour, thickly spotted and speckled with dingy or purplish-red. In most eggs the markings are densest at the larger end, where they not infrequently form an irregular zone or cap. In length they measure about 062 inches by nearly 048 in breadth. Deem, June and July. H. E. Barnes. Hydrabad, July and August. „ Neemuch, July to September. „ Dhulia, Khandeish, June to October. J. Davidson, C.S. 553.— SYKES' TREE WARBLER. Hypolais rama, Sykes. Sykes' Tree Warbler occurs more or less commonly throughout Western India, in most places only as a cold-weather visitor, but in Sind it is a permanent resident. Mr. Doig found them breeding most abundantly from March to July. He says (Stray Feathers, Vol. IX., p. 280) :— " Locally they are very numerous, as I collected upwards of 90 or 100 eggs in one field, about 8 acres in size. They build in stunted tamarisk bushes, or rather in bushes of this kind, which were origin- ally cut down to admit of cultivation being carried on and which afterwards had again sprouted. These bushes are very dense, and in their centre is situated the nest, composed of sedge, with a little soft grass reed. The eggs are as a rule four in number, and are of a dull white ground, with brown spots, the large end having as a rule a ring round it of most delicate, fine, hair-like brown lines, some- thing similar to the tracing to be seen on eggs of the Common Wren Warbler (Drymceca inornata)." I found a nest containing young ones just hatched, and a few fragments of shells, which I carefully preserved, in a small bush at the foot of the Khojak, near Chaman, South Afghanistan. I did not see the bird, and it was not until I received a clutch of eggs from Mr. Doig, that I was able to fix the identity. 3 18 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. I have also received eggs taken by a friend close to Karachi. The eggs are broad oval in shape, averaging 0*615 inches in length by 0*495 in breadth. Eastern Narra, Bind, March to July. S. B. Bmg. Chaman, South Afghanistan, May. H. E. Barnes. 5835is.— THE DESERT WARBLER. Sylvia nana, Hemp, and Ehr. This bird occurs in the Sind deserts and also in the Runn of ditch, Mr. Doig found young birds just able to fly at the latter place. This is all I can find on record regarding this bird, which person- ally I have never met with. Runn of ditch, loth Nov. (young only). S. B, Boig. 589.— THE PIED WAGTAIL. Motacilla maderaspatensis, Gm. The Pied Wagtail is very generally distributed throughout the Presidency ; it is a permanent resident, breeding nearly the whole y ear through. They have several broods during the season. One pair, that frequented a small tank adjoining my compound at Poona, had a nest with two young ones and an addled egg on the 3rd March ; on the 23rd April I took three incubated eggs from the same nest ; they made another nest about a yard away from the first one, which contained two eggs on the 9th May. In July I noticed them feeding a pair of young birds, and towards the end of August, they were making preparations for another brood ; so that this pair had at least five clutches of eggs in one year. They were the only Wagtails on the tank and were very pugnacious, and would allow no other bird to remain on the tank ; their own young ones, as soon as they were able to forage for themselves, were even driven away. The nest, which is a mere pad, composed of grass, sedges, fibres, &.c, is always near water, and is built upon something solid, such as the ledge of a rock, a niche in a stone bridge or wall, a hole in a bunk or well, or any such similar place. The eggs, three or four in number, vary much both in size and phapo, bul arc always more or less pointed at one end. The general BUTTERFLIES OF THE CENTRAL PROVINCES. 19 colour is greenish or earthy-white, spotted, speckled, streaked, clouded or smudged with olive-, purplish-, or earthy-brown. They average 0'9 inches in length by about 0'65 in breadth. 600— THE INDIAN TITLARK. Conjdalla rufida, Vieill The Indian Titlark appears to be a common permanent resident throughout Western India, breeding from about the middle of March to the commencement of June. I think they have at least two broods during the season. The nest, composed of grass roots and stems, is usually placed in the centre of a clump of coarse grass (resting on the ground), occasionally under the shelter afforded by a clod of earth. The nest is practically cup-shaped, but many, especially when in the first named situation, have a small quantity of grass sprinkled lightly over the nest, as if by accident, which effectually hides it from all those who are not in possession of the secret. The eggs, from two to four in number, are oval in shape and dingy brownish- white in colour, profusely speckled and spotted with brown- ish-red and umber-brown, more densely so at the larger end. The eggs are liable to variation both in size and colour, but the average is about 0*8 inches in length by about 0-6 in breadth. THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE CENTRAL PROVINCES. By J. A. B. The Central Provinces, consisting of nineteen districts, are situated almost in the centre of the Indian Peninsula. Roughly speakiug, they are bounded on the east by the Bengal Presidency, on the north by the North-West Provinces and Central Indian Native States ; on the west by the Bombay Presidency ; and on the south by Berar, the Nizam's Territory and the Madras Presi- dency.* Most of the country which borders these provinces, * Their length is, from east to west, about 600 miles, and their breadth from north to south, about 500 miles. Their area is about 113,000 square miles, of which 84,200 are English, and 28,800 Feudatory territory. 20 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. however, does not belong to the British Government, and, as a fact, only 160 miles of the borders march with English territory, out of a total of 2,700 miles. They are thus almost entirely isolated from other purely British provinces. They are geographically divided into two parts by the Satpura range of mountains. Com- mencing in the east at the peak of Amarkantak, 3,500 high, these mountains stretch away till they meet the Western Ghats, gradually decreasing in height as they trend westwards, although many of the peaks and plateaux have a higher elevation than has Amarkantak. The highest peak is Dhupgarh, 4,500 feet, a thou- sand higher than the Pachmarhi plateau and sanitarium, which it overlooks. The hills go away in two ranges, between which there is a table land, and on which are situated the districts of Balaghat, Seoni, Chindwara, and Betul. The table land is broken up and diver- sified by numerous ranges and peaks, and valleys of various extent, height and depth, each range bearing a local name. The table- land closes in on the west, and the two main ranges run north and south of the Tapti River, joining the Bajpipla Hills in Khandesh, and another tract of hilly country, till the Western Ghats are reached. North of the Satpura Hills lies the plain of the Narbada Valley, and north of this again there is a plateau on which are situated the districts of Damoh and Saugor, the eastern scarp of which is bounded by the Bhanrer and Kaimur hills, both offshoots of the Vindhyan range. South of the Satpuras lie the plains of Nagpur and Chhattisgarh, and to the east of Chhattisgarh is the plain of Sambalpur. Chhattisgarh and Sambalpur are drained by the Mahanadi. South of the Nagpur plains flows the Godaveri. Both these rivers flow to the east and empty themselves into the Bay of Bengal, while the Tapti and Narbada flow to the west into the Ara- bian Sea. There are several other large rivers in the Provinces, all tributaries of the four great rivers already mentioned. To the north of the Chhattisgarh and Sambalpur plains there are ranges of hills, a continuation of the Satpuras, but of lower elevation, covered for the most part with dense jungle, and south of these two plains lie the forest-clad hills of Jeypore and Bastar, the latter country extending away to the Godavery, south of the Nagpur plain, where there is another large tract of forest country. BUTTERFLIES OF THE CENTRAL PROVINCES. 21 The Central Provinces, it will thus be seen, is generally a moun- tainous couutry, with plateaux, plains, hills and valleys breaking up and diversifying its surface, and giving to it a greater variety of scenery than, perhaps, is to be met with in any other part of India. It may not be so grand as in many other districts, but for variety and charm I think these Provinces hold their own against many more celebrated and better known. The year is divided into three seasons — the cold season, the hot season, and the rainy sason, four months of each. On the plateaux the climate is usually cool, even during the hottest part of the year, and during the winter frost is not uncommon. In the plains the cold weather is the pleasantest time, but it is a pity that it does not last long enough. The rains are moderate, ranging from thirty to sixty inches in the various parts of the Provinces, the greater rainfall, of course, being where the forests are thickest, and the lesser where the open country predominates. The hot weather in the plateaux is not at all unpleasant, the nights being always cool ; and even in the plains this is usually the case. During the day, however, the hot weather in the plains is burdensome, for a fierce wind, like the breath from a furnace, rages, and the thermo- meter shows a high register — one hundred degrees being about the average. To protect ourselves we have to resort to the grateful and fragrant khas-lchas tattie, the gently swinging punka, and the softly murmuring thermantidote. As we have three seasons, so there are three periods of the year when butterflies do most prevail — these times being at the change of the seasons in February, June, and October. The butterflies that have two seasonal broods only come out in June and October and the latter brood would appear to hybernate ; for in February, when numerous other species appear in lovely freshness, the (< seasonal brooded" butterflies appear, but none of these double-brooded butterflies have I seen in February that seem fresh and new. The best times for procuring these in their different forms is in June and October, and October is undoubtedly the best month in all the year for every variety of butterfly. I have prepared a list of all the butterflies that have been collected by myself in the Central Provinces, together with a few JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1890. notes about them. From Mr. Lionel de Niceville, the author of " The Butterflies of India, Burmah and Ceylon/' I have received much help in compiling these notes. I had been a collector of butterflies and other Natural History ' ' curiosities" off and on since I was a boy at school. The study of entomology, and particularly of Lepidop- tera, was fostered in our young minds by the existence, in our midst, of a scientific master, who used to appropriate all our best specimens : but at the same time, be it said in justice to him, he always gave a prize for the best classified collection of butterflies and moths at the end of the midsummer term. When I came out to India, and saw the immense variety of Nature's works around me, I set about collecting those which could most easily be preserved. Birds, a specimen or so of each, I have skinned of every kind that I could come across ; snakes, lizards, eggs, fossils, &c, I have collected, and last but not least (to my mind), butterflies and moths. But all in a desultory sort of way. I could never classify anything except perhaps the birds (thanks to dear old Jerdon) because I had no books to refer to. In the mofussil, where my lines have been chiefly cast, libraries are few and far between, while, where these do exist, works of reference on Natural History do not usually find in them a place. I made several collections of Butterflies, all gone to rack and ruin, alas ! and was in despair of ever getting my specimens named till about eight years ago, when Mr. de Niceville made an appeal for help to enable him to get together materials for the publication of his great work. I at once responded to his appeal, and the result has been that I have been able to name my speci- mens through his kindness. I used to send him all my specimens till 1883, when I had to go home on sick leave; but on coming out again in the following year I thought I might as well begin a classified collection for myself. It was not, however, till 1886 that I was able to take it up as thoroughly as I could wish. Much of the Central Provinces is not favorable for the collector ; but the ground was then quite new, for, as far as I know, no one else had before me taken up this branch of Natural History in these parts with an eye to working it up. There is no doubt that the Satpura Hills, and the forests all over the Provinces, would, if properly worked, yield many rare species. There may still be some new to science, BUTTERFLIES OF THE CENTRAL PROVINCES: 23 and I think that almost as many other species as those I have obtained may eventually be found to exist. One species, a Melani- tis, quite new to science, was discovered in 1886, and there is no reason why there should not be others in these remote hills and forests to delight the hearts of collectors. The collection and study of butterflies in this country is a most fascinating and delightful way of improving one's leisure hours. In the first place, their variety is so infinite, their colouring so exquisite and wonderful,