The Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds, Volume 1Hume, Allan Octavian
Philosophy
The Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds, Volume 1
Hume, Allan Octavian
Birds -- India; Birds -- Nests
"After having wished for some years to obtain the eggs of this bird, I
was delighted to hear from my brother that he had seen a Nuthatch go
into a _small_ hole in a tree, and that, on looking into it, he had
seen something like a nest. I went prepared with a chisel and hammer,
but wished first to ascertain fully who the owner of the nest was.
After watching at a respectful distance for a long time, an Indian
Grey Tit flew to the hole and peeped in. My first thought was one
of great disappointment at having ridden many miles with such high
expectations to find only a Common Titmouse's nest; but it did not
last long; the inquisitive Grey Tit found the hole too small for him,
and flew off just as happily as he had flown to it. I continued to
watch, and was quite repaid by seeing a Velvet-fronted Nuthatch fly to
the top of the tree containing the nest, and descend rapidly down the
trunk (which was about 12 or 13 feet high), as if it knew where the
wee hole was, and disappear into it. This was sufficient proof as to
the proprietor of the nest; I walked quietly up to the tree, and when
within a foot of it out flew the bird. My handkerchief was stuffed
into the hole to prevent any chips breaking the eggs, should there be
any: and making use of the chisel and hammer, I soon made the hole
large enough to admit my hand. The nest contained three eggs, which I
most carefully extracted one by one. The nest was then brought out,
and consisted of a quantity of beautiful green moss, feathers (many of
which belong to the bird), some soft fine hair, and a few pieces of
lichen. This nest was discovered on the 10th February. The tree it was
found in grew nearly alone, at the side of a road not much frequented.
"The eggs were quite fresh, and most probably the bird would have laid
at least one more; but these were sufficient to show the colour of
the eggs, which were pure white, with dark and light red spots and
blotches, chiefly at the thick end, besides a circle of spots like a
Flycatcher's eggs."
Mr. Rhodes W. Morgan, writing of South India, says, in 'The
Ibis':--"It breeds in holes of trees, preferring the deserted ones
excavated by _Megalama caniceps_. The nest is built of moss, and lined
with the fluff of hares and soft feathers. The eggs are always four in
number, spotted with pinkish red on a white ground, the spots being
more numerous towards the larger end. They breed in March. Dimensions,
0·71 inch long by 0·57 broad,"
Mr. Mandelli sent me a small pad-like nest of this species found on
the 4th May in Native Sikhim. It was placed in a hollow of a trunk of
a large tree about 3 feet from the ground. It is composed of very fine
moss felted together with a little fine vegetable fibre, and the upper
surface coated with a little fine short silky fur, probably that of a
rat.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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