The Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds Part 22

Proparus chrysaeus, _Hodgs., Jerd. B. Ind._ ii, p. 256; _Hume, Rough Draft N. & E._ no. 621.

The Golden-breasted t.i.t-Babbler breeds, according to Mr. Hodgson's notes, near Darjeeling and in the central region of Nepal. It lays from three to four eggs, which are figured as somewhat broad ovals, measuring from 07 by 05, with a pinky-white ground, speckled and spotted thinly, except towards the large end, where there is a tendency to form a cap or zone, with brownish red. The nest is oval or rather egg-shaped, and fixed with its longer diameter perpendicular to the ground in a bamboo-clump between a dozen or so of the small lateral shoots, at an elevation of only a few feet from the ground.

One, taken near Darjeeling on the 12th June, measured externally 6 inches in height, 45 in breadth, and 3 inches in depth, and on one side it had an oval aperture 25 in height and 175 in breadth. It appeared to have been entirely composed of dry bamboo-leaves and broad blades of gra.s.s loosely interwoven, and with a little gra.s.s and moss-roots as lining.

Hodgson originally named this bird _Proparus chrysotis_, but as the bird has _silvery_ ears Hodgson himself rejected this name and adopted the one given above. Mr. Gray, however, retains the specific name _chrysotis_. Now, I think a man has a perfect right to change his _own_ name; what I object to is other people presuming to do it for him.

Subfamily BRACHYPTERYGINAE.

187. Myiophoneus temmincki, Vigors. _The Himalayan Whistling Thrush_.

Myiophonus temminckii, _Vig., Jerd. B. Ind._ i. p. 500: _Hume. Rough Draft N. & E._ no. 343.

The Himalayan Whistling-Thrush breeds throughout the Himalayas from a.s.sam to Afghanistan, in shady ravines and wooded glens, as a rule, from an elevation of 2000 to 5000 feet, but, at times, especially far into the interior of the hills, up to even 10,000 feet.

It lays during the last week of April, May, and June. The number of eggs varies from three to five.

The nest is almost invariably placed in the closest proximity to some mountain-stream, on the rocks and boulders of which the male so loves to warble; sometimes on a mossy bank; sometimes in some rocky crevice hidden amongst drooping maiden-hair; sometimes on some stream-encircled slab, exposed to view from all sides, and not unfrequently curtained in by the babbling waters of some little waterfall behind which it has been constructed. The nest is always admirably adapted to surrounding conditions. Safety is always sought either in inaccessibility or concealment. Built on a rock in the midst of a roaring torrent, not the smallest attempt at concealment is made; the nest lies open to the gaze of every living thing, and the materials are not even so chosen as to harmonize with the colour of the site. But if an easily accessible sloping mossy bank, ever bejewelled with the spray of some little cascade, be the spot selected, the nest is so worked into and coated with moss as to be absolutely invisible if looked at from below, and the place is usually so chosen that it cannot well be looked at, at all closely, from above.

Captain Unwin sent me an unusually beautiful specimen of the nest of this species, taken early in May in the Agrore Valley--a ma.s.sive and perfect cup, with a cavity of 5 inches in diameter and 3 inches deep; the sides fully 2 inches thick; an almost solid ma.s.s of fine roots (the finest towards the interior) externally intermingled with moss, so as to form, to all appearance, an integral portion of the mossy bank on which it was placed. In the bottom of the nest were interwoven a number of dead leaves, and the whole interior was thinly lined with very fine gra.s.s-roots and moss. In this case the nest had been placed on a tiny natural platform and was a complete cup; but in another nest, also sent by Captain Unwin, the cup, having been placed on the slope of a bank, wanted (and this is the more common type) the inner one-third altogether, the place of which was supplied by the bank-moss _in situ_. In this case, although the cavity was only of the same size as that above described, the outer face of the nest was fully 6 inches high, and the wall of the nest between 3 and 3 inches thick. The former contained three much incubated, the latter four nearly fresh eggs.

A nest from Darjeeling which was taken on the 28th July, at an elevation of about 3500 feet, from under a rock which partly overhung a stream, and contained two fresh eggs, was composed in almost equal proportions of fine moss-roots and dead leaves with scarcely a trace of moss. In this case the nest was entirely concealed from view, and no necessity, therefore, existed for coating it externally with green moss to prevent its attracting attention.

Dr. Jerdon remarks:--"I have had its nest and eggs brought me (at Darjeeling); the nest is a solid ma.s.s of moss, mixed with earth and roots, of large size, and placed (as I was informed) under an overhanging rock near a mountain-stream. The eggs were three in number, and dull green, thickly overlaid with reddish specks."

"In k.u.maon," writes Mr. R. Thompson, "they breed from May to July, along all the smaller hill-streams, from 1500 up to about 4500 feet.

In the cold season it descends quite to the plains--I mean the Sub-Himalayan plains. The nest is generally more or less circular, 5 or 6 inches in diameter, composed of moss and mud clinging to the roots of small aquatic plants or of the moss, and lined with fine roots and sometimes hair. A deep well-watered glen is usually chosen, and the nest is placed in some cleft or between the ledges of some rock, often immediately overhanging some deep gloomy pool."

"On the 16th June," observes Captain Hutton, writing from Mussoorie, "I took two nests of this bird, each containing three eggs, and also another nest, containing three nearly-fledged young ones. The nest bears a strong resemblance to that of the _Geocichlae_, but is much more solid, being composed of a thick bed of green moss externally, lined first with long black fibrous lichens and then with fine roots.

Externally the nest is 3 inches deep, but within only 2 inches; the diameter about 4 inches, and the thickness of the outer or exposed side is 2 inches. The eggs are three in number, of a greenish-ashy colour, freckled with minute roseate specks, which become confluent and form a patch at the larger end. The elevation at which the nests were found was from 4000 to 4500 feet; but the bird is common, except during the breeding-season, at all elevations up to the snows, and in the winter it extends its range down into the Doon. In the breeding-season it is found chiefly in the glens, in the retired depths of which it constructs its nest; it never, like the Thrushes and _Geocichlae_, builds in trees or bushes, but selects some high, towering, and almost inacessible rock, forming the side of a deep glen, on the projecting ledges of which, or in the holes from which small boulders have fallen, it constructs its nest, and where, unless when a.s.sailed by man, it rears its young in safety, secure alike from the howling blast and the attack of wild animals. It is known to the natives by the name of 'Kaljet,' and to the Europeans as the 'Hill Blackbird.' The situation in which the nest is placed is quite unlike that of any other of our Hill-Thrushes with which I am acquainted. The bird itself is as often found in open rocky spots on the skirts of the forest as among the woods, loving to jump upon some stone or rocky pinnacle, from which it sends forth a sort of choking, chattering song, if such it can be called, or, with an up-jerk of the tail, hops away with a loud musical whistle, very much after the manner of the Blackbird (_M. vulgaris_)."

Sir E.C. Buck says:--"I found a nest at Huttoo, near Narkhunda, date 27th June, 1869, on an almost inaccessible crag overhanging a torrent.

It contained three eggs, but two were broken by stones falling in climbing down to the nest. Nest not brought up; one egg secured and forwarded. I saw the bird well, and have no doubt as to its ident.i.ty."

Writing from Dhurmsalla, Captain c.o.c.k informed me that he had obtained several nests in May in and about the neighbouring streams, up to an elevation of some 5000 feet. From Murree, Colonel C.H.T. Marshall remarks:--"Several nests found in June, near running streams, about 4000 feet up."

Dr. Stoliczka tells us that "it breeds at Chini and Sungnum at an elevation of between 9000 and 11,000 feet."

The eggs are typically of a very long oval shape, much pointed at one end, but more or less truncated varieties (if I may use the word) occur. They are the largest of our Indian Thrushes' eggs, and are larger than those of any European Thrush with which I am acquainted.

Their coloration, too, is somewhat unique; a French grey, greyish-white, or pale-greenish ground, speckled or freckled with minute pink, pale purplish-pink, or pinkish-brown specks, in most cases thinly, in some instances pretty thickly, in some only towards the large end, in some pretty well all over. In the majority of the specimens there is, besides these minute specks, a cloudy, ill-defined, purplish-pink zone or cap at the large end. In some few there are also a few specks of bright yellowish brown. The eggs have scarcely any gloss.

In length, they vary from 124 to 155 inch, and in breadth from 095 to 11 inch, but the average of fifty eggs is 142 by about 10 inch.

188. Myiophoneus eugenii, Hume. _The Burmese Whistling-Thrush_.

Myiophoneus eugenii, _Hume; Hume, cat._ no. 343 bis.

Major C.T. Bingham contributes the following note to the 'Birds of British Burmah' regarding the nidification of this species in Tena.s.serim:--"On the 16th April I was crossing the Mehkhaneh stream, a feeder of the Meh-pa-leh, the largest tributary of the Thoungyeen river, near its source, where it is a mere mountain-torrent brawling over a bed of rocks strewed with great boulders. A small tree, drifted down by the last rains, had caught across two of these, and being jammed in by the force of the water, had half broken across, and now formed a sort of temporary V-shaped dam, against which pieces of wood, bark, leaves, and rubbish had collected, rising some six inches or so above the water, which found an exit below the broken tree. On this frail and tottering foundation was placed a round solid nest about 9 inches in diameter, made of green moss, and lined with fine black roots and fibres, in which lay four fresh eggs of a pale stone-colour, spa.r.s.ely spotted, especially at the larger ends, with minute specks of reddish brown. Determined to find out to what bird they belonged, I sent my followers on and hid myself behind the trunk of a tree on the bank and watched, gun in hand. In about twenty minutes or so a pair of _Myiophoneus eugenii_ came flitting up the stream and, alighting near the nest, sat for a time quietly. At last one hopped on the edge of the nest, and after a short inspection sat down over the eggs with a low chuckle. I then showed myself and, as the birds flew off, fired at the bird that had been on the nest, but unfortunately missed. I was satisfied, however, about the ident.i.ty of the eggs and took them. In shape they are somewhat like those of _Pitta_, and measure 145 x 102, 150 x 102, 146 x 101, and 150 x 101."

189. Myiophoneus horsfieldi. Vigors. _The Malabar Whistling-Thrush_.

Myiophonus horsfieldii, _Vig., Jerd. B. Ind._ ii, p. 499;_Hume, Rough Draft N. & E._ no. 342.

Mr. W. Davison says:--"The Malabar Whistling-Thrush (rather a misnomer, by the way) breeds on the slopes of the Nilghiris, never ascending higher than 6000 feet. The nest is always placed on some rock in a mountain torrent; it is a coa.r.s.e and, for the size of the bird, a very large structure, and though I have never measured the nest, I should say that the total height was about 18 inches or more, and the greatest diameter about 18 inches. Exteriorly it is composed of roots, dead leaves, and decaying vegetation of all kinds; the egg-cavity, which is saucer-shaped and comparatively shallow, is coa.r.s.ely lined with roots. It breeds during March and April."

Miss c.o.c.kburn says:--"A nest of this bird was found on the 22nd of March in a hole in a tree situated in a wood at a height of about 40 feet from the ground. Two bamboo ladders had to be tied together to reach it, for the tree had no branches except at the top. The nest consisted of a large quant.i.ty of sticks and dried roots of young trees, laid down in the form of a Blackbird's nest. The contents of it were three eggs. They were quite fresh, and the bird might have laid another. The poor birds (particularly the hen) showed great boldness and returned frequently to the nest, while a ladder was put up and a man ascended it."

Such a situation for the nest of _this_ bird may seem incredible; but my friend Miss c.o.c.kburn is a most careful observer, and she sent me one of the eggs taken from this very nest, and it undoubtedly belonged to this species; moreover, there is no other bird on the Nilghiris that she, who has figured most beautifully all the Nilghiri birds, could possibly have mistaken for this species. At the same time, the situation in which she found the nest was altogether unusual and exceptional.

I now find that such a situation for the nest of this bird is not even very unusual. On the 3rd of July Miss c.o.c.kburn took another nest in a hole in a tree, about thirty feet from the ground, containing three fresh eggs, which she kindly sent me; and writing from the Wynaad Mr.

J. Darling, jun., remarks that there this species commonly builds in holes in trees. He says:--"_July 22nd_. Nest found near Kythery, S.

Wynaad, in a crevice of a log of a felled tree in a new clearing 11 feet from the ground. Nest built entirely of roots. The foundation was of roots from some swampy ground and had a good deal of mud about it.

Another nest was in a hole of a dead tree 32 feet from the ground."

Mr. Frank Bourdillon writes from Travancore:--"Very common from the base to near the summit of the hills, frequenting alike jungle and open clearings, though generally found in the neighbourhood of some running stream; I have known this species to build on ledges of rock and in a hollow tree overhanging a stream, in either case constructing a rather loosely put together nest of roots and coa.r.s.e fibre with a little green moss intermixed. The female lays two to four eggs, and both birds a.s.sist in the incubation."

Mr. T. Fulton Bourdillon records the finding of eggs on the following dates:--

"April 29, 1873. Two hard-set eggs.

May 15, 1873. Three " "

May 15, 1874. One fresh egg.

May 30, 1874. Two slightly set eggs."

Col. Butler sent me a splendid nest of this species taken in the cliffs at Purandhur, 15 miles south of Poona. It was placed in the angle between two rocks; it measures in front 7 inches wide, and 15 in. high; posteriorly it slopes away into an obtuse angle fitting the crevice in which it was deposited; the cavity is 4 in. in diameter, perfectly circular, and 225 in depth. The compactness of the nest is such that it might be thrown about without being damaged. It is composed throughout of fine black roots, only a stray piece or two of light coloured gra.s.s being intermixed, and the whole basal portion is cemented together with mud.

He gives the following account of the mode in which he acquired it:--

"I got this nest in rather a singular way which is perhaps worth relating. At a dance last year in Karachi, in a short conversation I had with Colonel Renny, who was then commanding the Artillery in Sind, he mentioned that he had three Blue-winged Thrushes in his house that he had procured at Purandhur the year before. The following day I went over to his bungalow, and after inspecting them and satisfying myself of their ident.i.ty, ascertained from him where the nest they were taken from was situated and the season at which it was found. Possessed with this information I wrote in May to the Staff Officer at Purandhur, and told him where and when the bird built and asked him if he would kindly a.s.sist me in procuring the eggs. In reply I received a very polite letter saying 'that he knew nothing about eggs or birds himself, but that he would be most happy to offer me any a.s.sistance in his power in procuring the eggs referred to, and that he would employ a shikarri to keep the hill-side that I had mentioned watched when the breeding-season arrived.' I wrote and thanked him, sending him at the same time a drill and blowpipe by post, with full instructions how to blow the eggs, in case he got any; and to my delight, at the end of July a bhanghy parcel arrived one morning with the nest and eggs above described.

"Colonel Renny told me that the birds built on this cliff-side every monsoon."

Mr. E. Aitken has furnished me with the following note:--

"Of this bird I have seen two nests--one containing two hard-set eggs on April 29, 1872, situated in a hole in a tree overhanging a stream about 20 feet from the ground; the other containing three hard-set eggs on May 22nd, 1872, and situated on a ledge of rock in the bed of a stream; both the nests were rather coa.r.s.ely made of roots. My brother says he has also found three other nests, two placed in holes of trees and the other on a rocky ledge, but the nests were in every case near to running water. The bird stays with us all the year, and is one of our commonest species. Its clear whistle is always to be heard the first thing in the morning before the other birds get up, and daring the violent rains of the S.W. monsoon it seems almost the only bird which does not lose heart at the incessant downpour. April and May appear to be the breeding months."

Messrs. Davidson and Wenden remark:--"Scattered all over the Deccan in suitable localities. W. got two nests, one on the Bh.o.r.e Ghat on 5th August, and one on the Thull Ghat on 17th of same month. That on the Bh.o.r.e Ghat was built on a ledge of rock some 15 feet _in_ from the face of a railway tunnel where 30 or 40 trains daily pa.s.sed within a few feet of it. That on the Thull Ghat was in a cutting at the _entrance_ of a tunnel, and about the same height above and from the rails as the one on the Bh.o.r.e Ghat. In both cases the eggs were much discoloured by the smoke from engines, but on being washed, W.

observed that one of the three eggs in each nest was of a decidedly _greenish blue_, finely speckled and splashed with pinky brown, while the others were of the _pale salmon-pink_, as described in Mr. Hume's Rough Draft of 'Nests and Eggs.' The male bird was sitting on one of the nests and was shot. W. saw numerous other nests, some high up on cliffs, beyond the reach of a 15-foot ladder. Two nests in holes in trees were reported to him, but he could not go to examine them. The nests were about 4 inches diameter by 2 inches deep inside and 8 to 10 inches broad outside, and not more than 10 inches high. The foundation portion contained a great deal of clay and earth, which seemed to be necessary to secure the nests in positions so exposed to the heavy gusts of wind which prevail on these ghats during the monsoon."

Mr. Rhodes W. Morgan, writing from South India, says:--"I found the nest of this Thrush on the Seeghoor Ghaut of the Neilgherries. Mr.

Davison was with me at the time; and the nest being built on an open ledge of rock, we both sighted it at the same moment; and I having managed to make better use of my legs than my friend, was fortunate enough to secure it, and one egg, which was of a pale flesh-colour, with a few faint spots and blotches of claret towards the larger end.

The nest was made of leaves and moss mixed with clay, and lined with fine roots. The dimensions of the egg are 13 inch in length by 85 in breadth. It was in May that I found this egg; but the nest had evidently been deserted for some time; for the egg has a hole in its side, through which the contents had escaped or been sucked by a snake or some animal."

Dr. Jerdon says:--"I once procured its nest, placed under a shelf of a rock on the Burliar stream, on the slope of the Nilghiris. It was a large structure of roots, mixed with earth, moss, &c., and contained three eggs of a pale salmon or reddish-fawn colour, with many smallish brown spots;" and such is unquestionably the usual situation of the nest.