Page:The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma (Birds Vol 1).djvu/91

Rh Distribution. Tenasserim, S.W. Siam, Malay Peninsula and Sumatra.

Nidification. The nests were first obtained by Davison and again quite recently by Messrs. Hopwood and Mackenzie in Tenasserim. They are rough, heavy affairs of twigs, roots, etc., cup-shaped with a shallow internal hollow. They are placed in tall bushes, small trees or palms some 6 to 8 feet from the ground. The eggs number two or three and are exactly like big eggs of Cissa chinensis. They measure about 33·5 × 23·1 mm.

The breeding season appears to be March and April.

Habits. According to Davison "this species keeps entirely to the forests, going about usually in parties of from four to six. They have a deep, rolling, metallic note, which they continually utter as they move from tree to tree. I have never seen them on the ground; they probably get their food, which consists of insects, and, occasionally at any rate, of fruit, amongst the trees. They are excessively restless and always on the move, flying from tree to tree, generally at a considerable height and continually uttering their harsh, metallic call. They restrict themselves to the evergreen forests, never, that I am aware, coming into the gardens or open ground."

Hopwood says they are common about Tavoy and that they are not shy.

 

The genus Garrulus contains the True Jays, of which there are numerous species in Europe and Asia, three species and several subspecies being found within the limits of the Indian Empire. These Indian Jays are resident species but may be partially migratory to the extent of moving up and down the slopes of the mountains according to season.

The Jays are birds of bright plumage, the wing especially being marked with vivid blue. They are not exactly gregarious but often three or four are found together.