Page:The Three Presidencies of India.djvu/50

33 THE THREE PEESIDEXCIES OF INDIA. jungle. These birds are usually seen in flocks of fifty or a hundred, making a noise resembling loud laughter. The plumage of the back

wings and side is olive-brown; on the tail the brown is that of amber. The head is ornamented with a crest of rounded feathers. A black line passes from the beak across the eyes to the ear-covers, and excepting this the whole of the head is white, as are also the throat and breast.5

Amongst the insects, the locust is of common occurrence, frequently visiting particular districts in such clouds as to darken the air. The natives fry these creatures in oil, and eat them with considerable relish. The leaf-insect, which in shape and colour bears so close a resemblance to a number of leaves as to render it impossible to detect them on