The VS School Record of 1909 does not mention the domestic sparrows, which we find now in great numbers, along with their cousins, the tree sparrows. They lament about the absence of the House Crows-but a few have made their way up to the hills. The great black Jungle Crows still comfortably outnumber them. Instead of the Ashy Drongos, that the record mentions, we find many Black Drongos; and on rare occasions the handsome Racket-tailed Drongo. The Common Mynahs have persisted, screeching and quarreling all day long. Plenty of Blue Rock Pigeons are also found.

Other birds which we commonly find on our doorsteps are the Himalayan whistling Thrush - the blue black bird covered with light blue dots. It is a pleasure to awaken to their melodious whistling at dawn. The sprightly Green-backed Tits flit in and out of bushes and trees, chirping merrily. House Swifts and Common Swallows swarm the skies, flying at great speed. with apparent lack of purpose. The record makes scant mention of the Swallows and none of the Swifts. Of the Bulbuls, we have only have been able to identify the Red-vented variety. Hosts of Tickell's Warblers-tiny greenish yellow birds fly about tree tops in an endless search for food. Well camouflaged in the under-growth live the soberly attired Nepal Babblers and the Spotted Babblers. Their 'chur chur' call, however, Is heard easily enough. The call of the Long Tailed Nightjar is also a familiar one, but it is only rarely that one can glimpse this purely nocturnal bird. The summer days are filled with the haunting call of the Cuckoo, a shy grey bird, perched on a tree top, with its wings spread, oscillating from side to side while It repeats 'Cuckoo cuckoo' ad nauseum. During the monsoon we have seen several Slatyheaded and Blossom-headed Parakeets take up residence in the trees in and around Victoria and Dow Hill.

We have observed the elegant grey, black and white Hodgson's Pied Wagtail, and the similarly coloured Dark Grey Bushchat. Frequent visitors to our garden are the Pied Bushchat, and the Hoopoe which struts about smartly, erecting its crest at any unexpected noise. The handsome Black-headed Sibia, a russet and black bird lives in a big thorn bush just behind our house. It is most amusing to watch the White-tailed Nuthatch (?) creeping all over the bark of trees, searching for insects. A Mountain Thrush has also recently started to share its abode.

To see the more picturesque birds, one has to venture further afield. It is enchanting to see the red and black Scarlet and Orange Minivets (?) with their equally arresting yellow and black mates. Another is the Fairy Bluebird-the male a glistening ultramarine, and the female a duller blue. The Blue Rock Thrush, leaden blue all over sits perched on a rock surveying its surroundings. The Golden Oriole flashes yellow and black as it swoops to catch an insect. We have also seen its relative, the Black-headed Oriole. The Rufous-bellied Niltava perches on a telegraph wire, a beautiful deep blue bird with bright chestnut breast and abdomen. Our attention may be drawn by a burst of colour as a Yellow-backed Sunbird flutters from one azalea bloom to another to drink nectar. The Red-billed Leiothrix searching the ground for food is another attractive sight. In winter, the White- capped Redstart may be seen dancing on a stone by the jhoras, flying off when startled. If one is very very lucky, like us, -one may also glimpse a Pheasant dashing off to take cover. We once saw a Kalij Pheasant.

The soothing cooing of the Rufous Turtle Dove floats out to us, and we are hard put to identify the grey and russet bird. In the evenings we have occasionally seen the Scops Owl and the Himalayan Barred Owlet fly past on silent wings to settle on the branch of a tree.

This list is necessarily incomplete, as restricted by time, we have had to limit our field of observation to the compound around our house, walks taken to Forest School, along Aranya Sarani (Old Military Road), and the road to Kurseong town. Armed with Dr. Salim Ali's 'The Indian Hill Birds', we have endeavoured to identify all the birds we have seen. We hold hopes that in future we may extend our field, and so convey a more complete picture of birds in and around Dow Hill.