Sexes alike. Brown above, slightly darker on wings and tail; black perky crest distinctive; crimson ‘whiskers’ behind eyes; white underbody with broken breast-collar; crimsonscarlet vent. Sociable; pairs or small flocks, occasionally gatherings of up to 100 birds; lively and energetic; feeds in canopy, low bush and onground; enliven its surroundings with cheerful whistling notes; tame and confiding in some areas.
Sexes alike. Glossy steel-blue above; chestnut supercilium, sides of head, neck-collar and rump; dull rufous-white below, streaked brown; deeply forked tail
diagnostic. Small parties spend much of the day on the wing; the migrant, winter-visiting race nipalensis, is highly gregarious; hawks insects along with other birds; freely perches on overhead wires, thin branches of bushes and trees; hunts insects amongst the most crowded areas of towns, over markets and refuse heaps, flying with amazing agility, wheeling and banking and stooping with remarkable mastery.
Sexes alike. Glistening steel-blue above; chestnut cap; unmarked, pure white underbody distinctive; two long, wire-like projections (tail-wires) from outer tail feathers diagnostic. Solitary or small parties; almost always seen around water, either perched on overhead wires or hawking insects in graceful, acrobatic flight, swooping and banking; often flies very low, drinking from the surface; roosts in reed beds and other vegetation, often with warblers and wagtails.
Bright blue and red long-tailed swallow; upperparts deep glossy blue, with bluish brown wings; chestnutred forehead and throat, with blueblack breast band below; underparts highly variable, depending on race – from white to rufous; long, deeply forked tail, with row of broad white subterminal spots and tail streamers; distinguished from other swallows by dark breast band; in flight, by unbroken dark upperparts, except for forehead; gregarious; often huge flocks in passage; communal rooster; skilled flier; hawks insects low over ground, water.
Small, dark brown swallow, almost always found near water; upperparts dark brown, wing edges slightly darker, with white throat, half collar and belly contrasting sharply with clearly marked dark brown breast band; clearly forked tail; distinguished from Plain by white throat and half collar distinctly demarcated from dark ear coverts and breast band; gregarious; always with other swallows and swifts; hunts aerially with smallbilled, wide-gaped mouth over water; perches on exposed overhead wires or branches.
Sexes alike. Grey back; black crown continued along sides of neck to broad black band from chin along centre of underbody; white cheeks, nape-patch, wing
bar and outer feathers of black tail; ashy-white sides. The White-naped Tit P. nuchalis of W India lacks black on neck sides; has extensive white in wings and sides of body. Pairs or small bands, often with other small birds; restless, clings upside down, and indulges in all sorts of acrobatic displays as it hunts amongst leaves and branches; holds food fast between feet and pecks at it noisily; tame and confiding.
Medium-sized grey and chestnut starling, with white irises; head and neck pale grey, usually with whitish shafts or hackles; upperparts grey; underparts rufous chestnut; hackles on breast; prominent blue base to yellow bill; tail chestnut, with central feathers grey; female duller, paler; racial variations; very gregarious;
usually in noisy feeding flocks; mainly arboreal, though will descend to lower fruiting, flowering shrubs, or to ground; acrobatic feeder.
Sexes alike. Rose-pink and black plumage; glossy black head, crest, neck, throat, upper breast, wings and tail; rest of plumage rose-pink, brighter with the approach of spring migration. Gregarious; flocks often contain young birds, crestless, dull brown and sooty; often along with other mynas on flowering Erythrina and Bombax trees; causes enormous damage to standing crops; seen also around grazing cattle and damp open lands; overall an aggressive and extremely noisy bird; huge roosting colonies, resulting in deafening clamour before settling.
Sexes alike. A grey, black and rufous myna; black crown, head and crest; grey back; rich-buff sides of head, neck and underbody; black wings and brown tail with white sides and tip distinctive in flight. Female has a slightly smaller crest, otherwise like male. Small parties, occasionally collecting into flocks of 20 birds; associates with other birds on flowering trees or on open lands; walks typical myna style, head held straight up, confident in looks; communal roosting-sites, with other birds.
Sexes alike. Black and white (pied) plumage distinctive; orange-red beak and orbital skin in front of eyes confirm identity. Sociable; small parties either move on their own or associate with other birds, notably other mynas and drongos; rather common and familiar over its range but keeps a distance from man; may make its ungainly nest in garden trees, but never inside houses, nor does it enter houses; more a bird of open, cultivated areas, preferably where there is water; attends to grazing cattle; occasionally raids standing crops.
