The Gazetteers Department

" None of the breeds of Khandesh domestic animals are of any special excellence. Of HORSES, mares and foals the 1878-79 returns show a total of 14,087 head. Though the local breed is now poor and small, Dhulia horses were once esteemed the best and strongest in the Deccan. At present, the only animals of much value are a small but hardy breed of ponies raised by Thilaris, a tribe of wandering herdsmen, chiefly inhabiting the Khandesh. Some of these go excellently in the small curricles, tongas, used in the district. Of late years, Arab stud horses placed at most mamlatdars' headquarters, have done something to improve the breed. But as a rule the Khandesh people pay little attention to horse-breeding, and are far behind their neighbours in Nagar and Poona.

BULLOCKS, returned at 314,400, are not as a rule of any great value. There is a very good breed known as the Thilari, somewhat small but strong and hardy fast-trotting and very teachable. It has suffered much from injudicious crossing. Weak and stunted bulls are allowed to roam at large with the village herds, and even where, as at the Government farm, a good bull is at hand, little care seems to be taken to obtain his services. Want of fodder in the hot dry weather goes far to injure the breed; only the more wealthy cultivators give their cattle anything like proper sustenance. A pair of good bullocks costs from £1 to £10 (Rs. 10―Rs. 100).

COWS, returned at 222, 215, are poor and ill-fed. Little care is taken of the breed. ' Khandesh suffers terribly from cattle disease, apparently of many types, and showing various symptoms. Most forms of the disease may probably be traced to the want of proper food and clean water, and to exposure to the cold at night and the heat in the day. The price of a cow varies from 8s. to £ 1 (Rs. 4― Rs. 10).

BUFFALOES, returned at 108, 428, are on the whole much better than the other cattle. The people prefer their milk to cow's milk, and take more care of them, feeding and tending them better. The young males are usually sold into other districts as they are not much used for carriage or pack purposes. The finest buffaloes are found in the wilder parts where grazing is plentiful, especially near rivers. But there is not a hamlet where buffaloes, sometimes in considerable numbers, are not found. Female buffaloes cost from £ 1 10s. to £ 3 (Rs. 15―Rs. 30).

The roving Vanjaris sometimes bring fine cattle for sale from Nemad and Malwa, and thus enable the local farmers to improve their stock.

DONKEYS, returned at 7,852, are found nearly all over the district. They are used chiefly by potters in carrying clay or bricks, and by Bhois and others in carrying grain. They are a hardy breed of animals, picking up their food as best they can.

Herds of SHEEP and GOATS, returned at 198, 625, chiefly belonging to Dhangars, are found throughout the district. The breeds are very poor and stunted. Coarse blankets are woven from the wool.

The monthly cost of keeping a horse varies from 16s to £ 2 (Rs. 8―Rs. 20); of a bullock from 8s. to £1 (Rs. 4―Rs. 10); of a cow from 4s. to 10s. (Rs. 2―Rs. 5); and of a sheep or goat from 6d. to 2s. (annas 4―Re 1). Except milkmen whose she-buffaloes cost them from 4s. to £1 (Rs. 2―Rs. 10) each a month, cultivators seldom spend more than 4s. (Rs. 2) on a horse, and 2s. (Re. 1) on a pair of bullocks. The poorer classes spend little or nothing on their cattle, grazing them on village lands and hills free or on paying a nominal fee. Though sometimes kept by bankers for carrying bullion, camels are almost unknown.

Dogs, and sometimes cats, abound in every village generally without any recognised owners.

FOWLS are reared in large quantities everywhere by the lower castes, and especially by the hill tribes. There are no special varieties, and no trouble is taken to prevent promiscuous breeding. Cock-fighting, once a favourite amusement, has of late years died out. In former days a Mhar was proud of his pet fighting cock, and looked well after the breed. Eggs are the chief value of a poultry yard. But Khandesh has not as yet begun to supply the Bombay market.

Up to the seventeenth century, the hilly tracts to the north or Dhulia were a great breeding place for wild ELEPHANTS. But probably from the frequent passage of armed bodies during the Moghal conquest of the Deccan, from the increase of traffic down the Tapi valley to Surat, and from the spread of tillage in Dhulia they were during the eighteenth century, frightened off. [Finch (1610) in Kerr's Voyages, VIII. 277. In 1630, Jamal Khan Karawal came to the Gujarat-Khandesh frontier and captured 130 elephants in the Sultanpur forests, of which seventy were sent to Delhi (Watson's Gujarat, 71). Whether lions were formerly found in Khandesh seems doubtful. The Ajanta paintings contain some well painted lions, and the Oriental Sporting Magazine (II. 44) has a song on Lion-Hunting from Khandesh. The same magazine (II. 195, Compare Asiatic Intelligence, 184, in Asiatic Journal, New Series, VII) has also a paper headed " Lion-Hunting in Khandesh ", giving an account of the destruction, in three days (15th-18th May 1831), of three lions and a lioness near the old town of Patan. The article is signed "An Old Khandeshi", but from references in it to Abu and Sidhapur there is no doubt that the old town of Patan is not Patan near Chalisgaon, but the ancient capital of Gujarat about sixty miles north-west of Ahmedabad. Special inquiries have been made, but there would seem to be no record of lion-shooting in Khandesh since the beginning of British rule.] The chief wild animal still found in the district is the TIGER, vagh, Felis tigris. In the disturbed times at the beginning of the present century, large tracts passed from tillage into forest, and tigers roamed and destroyed in the very heart of the district. In 1822 wild beasts killed 500 human beings and 20,000 head of cattle. Their destruction was one of the most pressing necessities, and in May, June and July of that year (1822) as many' as sixty tigers were killed. [Mr. Chaplin's Report. 20th August 1822.] In spite of the efforts of Sir James Outram and his successors, tigers and other large beasts of prey continued to be so numerous that the fear of them kept waste and desolate some of the richest tracts in Khandesh. Even as late as the mutinies (1857-59) Khandesh, more than almost any part of Western India, continued a strong-hold for wild beasts. So dangerous and destructive were they that a special division of the Bhil Corps were, as tiger hunters, set apart to aid the Superintendent of Police. Since 1862. under the Superintendent of Police, Major O. Probyn, the destruction of tigers has gone on apace. Of late years, to the efforts of the district officers have been added a rapid spread of tillage and increase of population. The tiger is no longer found in the plains. Among the Satpudas in the north, along the Nemad frontier and the Hatti hills in the east and the south-east, in the Satmalas in the south, and in the Dangs and other wild western tracts he still roams. Even there his number is declining. The loss of cattle is inconsiderable and the loss of human life trifling. In the five years ending 1879, sixteen human beings and 391 heads of cattle were killed by them. The returns show a fall in the number of tigers slain from an average of nearly fifteen in the five years ending 1870 to ten in the nine years ending 1879. [The details are: 1865, 28; 1866, 24; 1867 6: 1868, 12: 1869, 9; 1870, 23; 1871. 8: 1872. 20; 1873, 11: 1874, 6; 1875, 9; 1876, 7; 1877, 2; 1878, 16 and 1879, 14.]

The PANTHER, bibla or bimta, Felis pardus, is generally said to be of three distinct species, two large and one small. Of the two large kinds, one rivals the tigress in size, and as he will attack unprovoked, is equally or even more dangerous to man, the other smaller, stouter, and with a round bull-dog's head, has a looser, darker, and longer fur, with spots much more crowded and quite black along the ridge of the back and up the legs about as high as the shoulders and thighs. The third variety is a very different animal, much smaller and darker. As it lives chiefly on dogs, it is known among the natives as the dogslayer, kuttemar. In the fifteen years ending 1879, 658 panthers were killed, the yearly number varying from seventy-eight in 1878 to nineteen in 1870. [The details are; 1865, 22; 1866, 73; 1867, 50;1868, 31; 1869, 30; 1870, 19; 1871, 28; 1872,36; 1873, 36; 1874. 68; 1875, 52; 1876,46, 1877, 69; 1878, 78; and 1879, 20.] The HUNTING LEOPARD, chitta, Felis jubata, quite a different animal from the panther, has like a dog claws that do not draw in. In form like a greyhound, it has a short mane, bushy black-spotted fur, and a black tail. It is very rare in Khandesh. found in the Satpuda hills only. The WILD CAT, ran manjar, Felis chaus, met all over the district, is comparatively harmless, and differs in size, colour, and length of tail, only slightly from the house cat. The LYNX, Felis caracal, a rare animal, is occasionally found among rocky hills. It is very shy, and is seldom abroad after daybreak.

The HYENA, taras, Hyaena striata, once very common, is now rarely seen. The WOLF, landga, Canis pallipes, formerly caused much havoc among sheep and goats, and is even known to have carried off young children. Like the other flesh-eaters, he has been forced to give way before the spread of tillage. Still he is very destructive, and though he seldom attacks human beings, kills an immense number of sheep and goats, and two or three together will often pull down a good-sized young buffalo or heifer. During the fourteen years ending 1879. 4,138 wolves were killed, the yearly number varying from 603 in 1874 to seventy-one in 1879. [The details are:1865,195; 1866, 360; 1867, 531; 1868, 267; 1869, 255; 1870, 180; 1871, 282; 1872,360; 1873, 345; 1875, 603; 1875, 125;1876, 252;1877, 209; 1878. 103; and 1879 71.] Besides the above, the JACKAL, Kolha, Canis aureus, and the FOX, khokad, Vulpes bengalensis, abound in the open country. The WILD DOG, kolsunda, Cuon rutilans, is also found in the Satpuda hills, hunting in packs.

The INDIAN BLACK BEAR, asval Ursus labiauts, is found in all the forest-clad hills of Khandesh. Formerly abounding in the rocky hill tops of Pimpalner and Baglan in the south-west, the number of black bears has during the past twenty years been much reduced. Though not generally dangerous to life he is at time very mischievous. Sugarcane, when he can get it, is one of his favourite articles of food and he destroys much more than he eats. The flower of the moha, Bassia latifolia, tree is his chief sustenance at the beginning of the hot season. This flower, which produces the common spirit of the country, seems to affect the bear with a kind of intoxication, as he is known to be most dangerous at that season, and apt to attack man unprovoked. A vegetarian, except as regards ants and some oiher insects, he does no injury to flocks or herds.

The HOG, dukkar, Sus indicus, of all wild animals, causes most loss to the cultivator. Though, save in the set of his tail, much like the domestic village pig, he differs from him widely in habits. A pure vegetable eater, he is most dainty in his tastes. He must have the very best the land affords, and while choosing the daintiest morsels, destroys much more than he eats. Sugarcane, sweet potato and other roots, and juicy millet and Indian corn stalks are his favourite food. A few years ago herds of wild pig were found everywhere, but their numbers are now much smaller. From the border hills they still sally at night to ravage the crops in the neighbourhood, but they are no longer so destructive as they once were. With the aid of their dogs and spears, the Bhils hunt and kill them for food, and the clearing of the forests has made their destruction comparatively easy. Twenty years ago in the country east of the Purna river, then belonging to His Highness Sindia, herds of some hundreds might be seen marauding in open day. Night and day the cultivator had to watch his fields. Though comparatively few are left, herds of fifty and upwards are still occasionally seen.

The BISON, gava, Gavaeus gaurus, is found only in the Satpuda and Haiti hills. The shyest and wariest of forest animals, its chief food is grass and young bamboo shoots. The STAG, sambar, Rusa aristotelis, is found in all the hill country on the borders of the district. It feeds in the plains and fields at night, and seeks the hill tops at early dawn. It seldom, if ever, lies in the plain country. The SPOTTED DEER, chital, Axis maculatus, is now rare, lie is never found far from water, and generally in thick forests. In the country east of the Purna spotted deer were formerly found in immense numbers, but most of them were shot or driven away while the railway was in the making. They are still in small numbers near rivers in the Satpuda hills, and in the western forests along the Tapti. The BARKING DEER, bhekre, Cervulus aureus, and the FOUR-HORNED ANTELOPE, also called bhekre, Tetraceros quadricornis, are occasionally met with in the Satpuda hills. The BLUE BULL, nilgay, Portax pictus, was once common everywhere, but is now confined to the few strips of forest land left between the Satpuda and other hills and the open plains, and to the low country on the west. He seldom enters the hills or dense forests, feeding chiefly on palas, Butea frondosa, or other trees in the flat country. The INDIAN ANTELOPE, kalvit, Antilope bezoartica, frequents the open fields and devours the com. Disliking forest country they were never so plentiful in Khandesh as in the Deccan and Gujarat plains. Very few of them are left. The INDIAN GAZELLE, chinkara. Gazells bennettii, loving the shrub brushwood and rocky eminences of Khandesh are still comparatively plentiful. The COMMON HARE, sasa, Lepus ruficaudatus, found in considerable numbers all over the district, completes the list of four-footed game animals.

Birds.

Of Game Birds there are among Rasores, PEAFOWL, Pavo cristatus, living in all woods and shady gardens, GREY JUNGLE FOWL, Gallus sonnerati, and SPUR FOWL, Galloperdix spadiceus, found only in forests.

Of PARTRIDGES there are two kinds: the GREY, Ortygornis ponticeriana, found over the whole district, and the PAINTED, Francolinus pictus, widely distributed but less common.

Of QUAIL there are several sorts, both the Bush Quails, Perdicula asiatica and argoondah, found in brushwood all the year round; the Common Grey Quail, Coturnix communis, a cold weather visitor; and the Rain Quail, Coturnix coromandelica, a resident. The Bustard, Turnix taigoor, and both Button Quails, T. Joudera and dussumierii, are also occasionally seen.

Sand Grouse, both the Common and Painted, Pterocles exustus and Pterockes fasciatus, are common.

The GRALLATORES are well represented. Among them are the Bustard, Eupodotis edwardsi, and the Florican, Sypheotides aurita,. a bird of passage visiting the district during the rainy months and not widely distributed.

Of PLOVERS are, the Golden Plover, Charadrius fulvus, a rare bird; the Oxeyed Plover, Aediknemus scolopax, or false florican; and the Lapwings, Lobivanellus indious and Lobipluvia malabarica.

Of SNIPE the Common, Gallinago gallinaria, the Jack, Gallinago gallinula, and the Painted Snipe, Rhynchaea bengalensis, are found, but in no great numbers.

Of CRANES the karkocha or kalam, Anthropoides virgo, visit the district during the cold months in large flocks. The Saras, Grus antigone, or large crane, is almost unknown.

Though most ordinary kinds occur, the number of Duck and Teal is small. The chief Khandesh Ducks are the Ruddy shieldrake or Brahmani Duck, Casarca rutila, the Whistling Teal, Dendrocygna javanica, the Shoveller, Spatula clypeata, the Pintail, Dafila acuta, the Spotted Billed Duck, Anas poecilorhyncha, the Gadwal, Chaulelasmus streperus, the Widgeon, Mareca penelope, the White eyed Duck Fuligula nyroca, the Common Teal, Querquedula crecca, the Bluewinged Teal, Querquedula circia, the Redheaded Pochard Fuligula ferina, and the Mallard Anas boschas. The Little Grebe, Podiceps minor, if it can be called a duck, is found in all the ponds.

Of GEESE the only one observed is the Blackbacked Goose, Sarcidiornis melanonotus. The Grey Pelican, Pelecanus philippensis, and the Flamingo are rare. The Indian Snake Bird, Plotus melanogaster, is common in the west.

Of birds not recognised as game the following have been identified:

Among RAPTORES, of Vultures, the Black Vulture, Otogyps calvus, a handsome not very common bird with bare head and red neck; the Whitebacked Vulture, Gyps bengalensis; a Cliff Vulture, either Gyps indicus or Gyps pallescens; and the White or Scavenger Vulture Neophron ginginianus. The Eagles include Aquila Mogilnik noticed in the cold weather at the base of the Satpudas; Aquila vindhiana, a common resident; Hieraetus pennatus, seen occasionally everywhere; Limnaetus cirrhatus, fairly common all along the Satpudas, and recognisable by its musical cry which can be heard a mile off. Circaetus gallicus, and one of the Spilornidae have also been noticed. The three well known Kites, the Common, Milvus govinda: the Brahmani, Haliastur indus; and the Blackwinged, Elanus melanopterus are all found, the Brahmani being much the rarest. The White-eyed Buzzard, Poliornis teesa, is very common, and the Honey Buzzard Pernis ptilorhyncus or cristata, is occasionally seen.

Of FALCONS a large class there are the Peregrine, Falco peregrinus rare the Kestrel Tinnunculus alaudarius, much more common and the Shaheen, Falco peregrinator, the Laggar Falso jugger, and the beautiful Turnmti Falco chiquera, common Of HARRIERS, there are two or three kinds with marked light grey plumage. Two HAWKS, the Shikra, Astur badius, and the Sparrow Hawk, Accipiter nisus are are well known.

There are many OWLS in the forests. The Brown Fish Owl, Kotupa ceylononsis, and the Dusky horned Owl, Bubo Coromandus, are both found. Rock horned owl. Bubo bengalensis. is also found along all the rivers. The beautiful Spotted Owl, Syrnium ocellatum, is very common among mango groves, and the Shorteared Owl Otus brachyotus is a winter visitant. The Screech Owl, Strix javanica, is rare. Both the little Owlets, Carine brama, and Glaucidium radiatum, are found, the latter only in forest districts.

Of SWALLOWS, in the cold, weather the Common Swallow, Hirundo rustica. is everywhere, and one or two Martins, the Bank, Cotyle Sinensis, and the Cliff, Cotylo concolor. are found all the year round. The pretty Redbacked or Mosque Swallow, Hirundo erythropygia, is not uncommon. But its smaller congener, Hirundo fluvicola, is very rare. The Common Swift, Cypsellusaffinis, is widely distributed. The Alpine Swift, C. melba, is rare, as is the Palm Swift, C. batassiensis. The beautiful Crested Swift, Dendrochelidon coronatus, is common among the Satpudas.

Of NIGHT-JARS the chief are, the Common Night-jar Caprimulgus asiaticus, called the Ice Bird from its quickly repeated note, like a stone bounding across ice. It is purely a night bird, feeding on moths and beetles. Especially when seen early in the morning or when starting on a journey, the natives consider it a bird of ill omen. C. marathensis and C. monticolus are also found.

Of BEE-EATERS, Merops viridis, is in every field, and M. philip-pinus is an October visitant.

Of ROLLERS there is the Indian Roller, Coracias indica, called by Europeans the Blue Jay.

There are several KINGFISHERS. The White breasted, Haloyen smyrnensis, with bright skyblue back, is commonest; the smaller Blue Kingfisher, Alcedo bengalensis, is also found. The large Alexandrine or Stork-billed Kingfisher, Pelargopsis gurial, lives in some of the larger rivers. The Pied Kingfisher, Ceryle rudis, is very common, and may be seen hovering over every pond and stream.

Of HORNBILLS, Bucerotidse, the Common Grey, Ocyceros birostris, a grotesque bird with a huge bill and slow wavering flights, is found in the plains.

Next to these arc grouped the SCANSORES or Climbers, mainly represented by the Parrots, Woodpeckers, and Cuckoos. Of PARROTS the best known is the Roseringed Paroquet, Palæornis torquatus, seen everywhere; the Roseheaded Paroquet, Palæornis purpureus, a most beautiful bird, generally found in woodlands, and the Large Paroquet, Palæornis magnirostris, found in the Satpuda forests.

Of WOODPECKERS, Picidæ, the most notable is the Golden-backed Woodpeckers, Chrysocolaptes sultaneous, his back a mass of crimson and gold. He is generally found in forests, where his loud tapping may often be heard. Not quite so brilliant, but still very beautiful, are the Blackbacked, Chrysocolaptes festivus, and the Smaller Goldenbacked, Brachypternus aurantius. Two other varieties, Picus marathensis, and a small spotted one, Yungipicus nanus, are seen in the plains. Their food is almost entirely insects picked out of the bark of trees and rotten wood.

Barbets, Megalæmidæ, approaching woodpeckers in structure, are mostly of a greenish colour with strong bills and feet. They feed on fruit. Two kinds are common in Khandesh; the Large Green Barbet, Megalæma caniceps, found in all forests, and the Small Redcrested Barbet, Xantholæma haemacephala, which from its incessant metallic note, is known as the coppersmith. The Smaller Green Barbet, Megalæma viridis, found in the Satpudas in Central India, has not yet been recorded from Khandesh.

Of CUCKOOS the best known is the Indian Koel, Eudynamys honorata, a hot season visitor; the male is nearly black, and the female light and speckled. The Common Indian Cuckoo, Cuculus micropterus, an ashy coloured bird, is also met with, and the cry of the English Cuckoo, Cuculus canorus, is occasionally heard in the Satpuda hills. The Emerald Cuckoo, Chrysococyx hodgsoni, dark green with light breast, is rare. The well known Indian Coucal, Centrococcyx rufipennis, by some Classed among the cuckoos, but more properly of the Conirostres or crow class, is well known as the Malabar Pheasant.

TENUIROSTRES, including the brilliant plumaged Honeysuckers and Hoopoes, are a most interesting family. Of the former the Purple Honeysucker, Cinnyris asiatica, and the Large Purple Honey-sucker, Cinnyris lotenia, are perhaps commonest. Both the European and Indian Hoopoes, Upupa epops and U. ceylonensis, are found, the European only in the cold weather.

Of DENTIROSTRES there are, of Shrikes, Laniadæ, the Grey Shrike, Lanius lahtora, the Rufousbacked Shrike, Lanius erythronotus, and the Baybacked Shrike, Lanius vittatus, all of them common. The Minivets, Pericrocotus ftammeus, peregrinus, and ery-thropygius, are rare. They live chiefly on insects, impaling them on thorns before eating them. A well marked variety of shrike is the Drongo or Dicrurus. The king Crow, Buchangaatra bluish black with a forked tail, is common over the whole district, and the White breasted, B. cocrulescns, in the hills. The Racket-tailed Drongo, Dissemurus paradiseus, is probably found in the Satpuda and western forests.

Of the same tribe are the three well known families of Thrushes, Bulbuls, and Babblers. Of Thrushes, Merulidae, several kinds are common. Allied to them are the Orioles found in almost every mango grove. The Common Bulbul, Molpastes haemorrhous, and the Green, Phyllornis jerdoni, and Iorn tiphiak, are less widely distributed. The Babblers, Malaeocirci, known as the Seven Sisters, are a well marked dusky-feathered family, very noisy and generally in groups.

To the same tribe (DENTIROSTRES) belong the Flycatchers and Warblers, a very large family. Of Flycatchers the most remarkable is the Paradise Flycatcher, Muscipeta paradisi, a small bird with a black crested head and very long dark chestnut or snow-white central tail feathers. It is sometimes called the Widow Bird. The Whitebrowed Fantail, Leucocerca aureola, is found in every grove uttering a few clear quick note, as if whistling part of the scale. The Whitespotted Fantail, Leucocercu leucogaste a smaller variety, is also very common. The Blue, Cyornis tickelli, and the Robin. Erythrosterna parva. Flycatchers are rarer.

The Warblers, an immense family, include Robins, Redstarts, and Wagtails. The North Indian Robin, Thamnobia fulicata, and the Redstart, Ruticilla rufiventris, very tame birds, are seen everywhere; the Tailor Bird, Orthotomus sutorius, with its lovely nest of two or three hanging leaves, sewn together as with a needle and thread, and lined with cotton, hair, or wire, is also common. Of Wren Warblers. Drymoicæ, there are several kinds. The Large Pied Wagtail, Mota-cilla maderaspatensis, and the Indian Field Wagtail, Budytes cinere-ocapilla, are common near water.

Of Crows, the Common Crow, Corvus splendens, and the Black, Corvus culminatus, are well known. Of Magpies two kinds occur, Dendrocitta rufa, in the plains, and Dendrocitta leucogastra, in the forests.

The STURNIDE or Starlings are represented by several species. The Common Myna, Acridotheres tristis, is universal, and a Wattled Myna, probably Eulabes religiosa, though rare, is also found. During the cold season, the Jvari Bird, Pastor reseus, may be seen in large flocks in every grain field.

Of FINCHES, Fringillidae, are the Common Sparrow, Passer domesticus, and the Weaver Bird, Ploceus philippinus, with its well known hanging bottleshaped nest. Several Larks, Alaudae, belong to this family, as also the well known Amadavat, Estrelda amandava.

Allied to some of the game birds mentioned above are the Pigeons and Doves. Of these the Blue Rock Pigeon, Columba intermedia, much like its European namesake, is seen everywhere. The beautiful Bronzewinged Pigeon, Chalcophaps indica. is rare, seen only in forests alone or in pairs. The Common Green Pigeon Crocopus chlorigaster, is found wherever banyan trees are plentiful.

Of Doves proper four varieties are pretty generally distributed, the Common Ringdove, Turtur risorius, the Spotted Dove. The sura-tensis, the Small Brown Dove, T. senegalensis, and the Red Dove, T. tranquebaricus.

WATER BIRDS are divided into two orders, GRALLATORES or waders, and NATATORES or swimmers. Among waders, besides the snipe and plover mentioned among game birds, are several Sandpipers. Allied to the cranes already mentioned are the Storks. Two kinds, Ciconia alba and Melanopclargus episcopus, are occasionally found as also the Great Stork or Adjutant, Leptoptilus argalus, and a smaller variety, Leptoptilus, javanicus. Of Herons and Egrets there are several varying in size and colour, such as Ardeola grayi, and Ardea cinerea, the commonest. Most of the larger rivers have three kinds of Ibis, the Wartyheaded Ibis, Iconotis papillosus, the Pelican Ibis, Tantalus leucocephalus, and the White Ibis, Ibis melanocephala. The NATATORE include Duck and Teal, and some Terns and freshwater Gulls. There are so few ponds in Khandesh, that waders and swimmers are very scantily represented ".

Most of the species of domestic and wild animals and birds described above are still extant in many parts of Dhulia district, especially the forest regions, though the circumstances of their rearing and their economic use have undergone a considerable change. Excluding, therefore, these aspects of the animals and birds as given in the old Khandesh Gazetteer, the rest of their description holds good even today.

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