FORTHE PEOPLE

FOR EDVCATION

FOR SCIENCE

LIBRARY

OF

THE AMERICAN MUSEUM

OF

NATURAL HISTORY

RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST

IN

EGYPT & OTHER COUNTRIES.

'§m\\hlts of n '$n\\m\M

IN

^

""YPT

k OTHER COUNTRIES.

WITH AN ANALYSIS OF

THE CLAIMS OF CERTAIN FOREIGN BIRDS

TO BE CONSIDERED BRITISH,

AND OTHER ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES.

BY

J. H. GURNEY, JuN., F.Z.S.

LONDON :
JARROLD AND SONS, 3, PATERNOSTER BUILDINGS.

Z^-fl1»^ 4r^>>'

PREFACE.

In the following pages I have endeavoured to describe
truthfully the incidents of sundry journeys undertaken in
the last half-dozen years, more or less with a view to the
prosecution of my favourite study — Ornithology — which is
fast striding after its sister sciences in the public favour.
If I may presume to think that anything I have written
can in any degree help to render Ornithology more popular,
I shall be amply repaid for the labour and trouble which it
has cost me.

I have added a statement, which may not be wholly
without interest, of the claims of certain rare species of
birds to be included in the British list. The present plan
of placing such stragglers on a level with our native
species is to be reprobated ; at the same time it is not easy
to know what to do with them. They clearly cannot be
passed over, for they are too important. The proper course
is to submit them to a close scrutiny, and insert such as
pass the ordeal in small type, or by indenting them, or
some other means make it plain that they are not to be on
the same footing with our indigenous species.

vi PREFACE.

It is impossible to write a book which is entirely free
from error, but I have done my best to make my lucubra-
tions accurate, and I commit them to the public, trusting
that my readers will look leniently on mistakes should they
find any. I can only say, may they prove to be few and
far between ; and in conclusion, let me remark that I have
had the assistance of my father, so that the work has had
the advantage of a double supervision.

J. H. G., J UN.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

To Russia and Back - - - - i

My Journal in the Algerian Sahara - - 21

Notes during the Franco-German War - - 63

Six Months' Bird Collecting in Egypt - 84

Passing Notes on the Birds of Italy - - 244

Analysis of the Claims of Certain Birds to be

Accounted British - . - - 249

Additions to the Avifauna of Durham - 273

Netting Sea-Birds on the Wash - - - 280

Short Notes on British Birds - - 283

Gibraltar _ . . . . 294

TO RUSSIA AND BACK,

With an Account of the Birds to be met with at the
principal Markets, and a fezv
Notes on the Mnscnms and Zoolos:ical Gardens.

At 6.15 p.m., on the nth of August, 1869, the "Ranger"
left her moorings below London Bridge, and steamed
rapidly down the Thames. It was a finer night than the
weather had given any promise of, and I amused myself
with standing on deck and watching the docks, and fields
and houses, passing in a continually changing panorama,
and a small flock of Gulls* lazily flapping over the water,
until the waning twilight made it too dark to see. By
day-break next morning we were at Gravesend, where the
river is a considerable breadth, and plenty of shipping
dotted about presented an animated scene. Here the river-
pilot and the officer of customs wished us a prosperous
voyage, and went ashore in the boat which brought the
captain.

'■* In the autumn of 1871, I sent to the Zoological Gardens a Herring
Gull which had strayed as far as Kentish Town, by which time it had
got exhausted, and afforded a fine Sunday's amusement to sundry
" loafers " who ran it down and captured it. This fellow had a fine
appetite, and easily managed three herrings at a meal.

B

2 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

When off Harwich great quantities of wasp-Hke insects
(SyrpJiida;), and a good many Lady-birds, and a few
Butterflies came on board. I thought at the time it
might have been in consequence of the sugar which formed
part of the cargo ; but it seems, according to the Times
newspaper, that on the same day a marvellous flight
of Lady-birds arrived at Ramsgate, where they were
shovelled up by spadefuls ; and on the 24th of the pre-
ceding month, a yacht off Hunstanton passed through a
black stripe in the water two or three miles in length, all
composed of defunct Lady-birds. (Norfolk Naturalist's
Society, 1869, p. 62.)

We sighted Denmark on the 15th of August. When still
many miles from shore a common Dunlin (Triiiga alpiiia L.)
en trajct, flew on board, was speedily caught, and is now in
my collection. I could by this time see that the coast
presented a succession of islands, good places for birds I
dare say, and no doubt inhabited by a fishing population,
whose one-storied and black-roofed houses were plainly
visible. On the i6th we were steaming slowly up the
Kattegat, with Denmark on our right and the bold coast of
Sweden on our left. The sky was cloudless. The chop-
ping waves of the North Sea were exchanged for the
calmness of the " Narrows." Three formidable forts bar
the entrance to Copenhagen — vouchers that the Danes will
show their teeth to any second Nelson who shall try to
ride in their harbour. The Captain allowed an hour and a
quarter, and no more, for walking about the place. The
houses look old, but many of the edifices are large, and
must have been grand a century ago. In that short time I
could not find the regular birdstuffer, but I noticed in a
shop window two Goshawks, an old one and a young one.
Swallows, Swifts, and Martins were flying about, as wel-
come and as much at home as in every town in England.

There is one hour difference between Copenhagen time

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. 3

and that of London. After setting our watches right, we
steamed off again and passed to the north of the island of
Bornhohii, and near to the unpronounceable place called
Utkhipporna. No view to be obtained of the Prussian
coast at any time.

The following morning, a little before 7 a.m., when the
" Ranger " had passed the island of CEland — visited for
egghig purposes by Messrs. Wolley and Huddleston in
1866 — and was off Gottland, on the Swedish side of the
Baltic — weather thick and inclined to rain — several Inses-
sorial birds alighted on the rigging. With them was a Hawk,
which, according to the report of the man at the helm, was
so exhausted that it fell into the sea. When I came on
deck, the only bird which remained was a Phyllopncuste — I
believe P. trocJdliis (L.). It was joined by another, ap-
parently of the same species, somewhat later in the day.
At 2.45 a female Pied Flycatcher (Aluscicapa atricapilla L.)
settled on the ship, which I got a good view of by creeping
along under the bulwarks. There was no wind at that time.
It had no sooner left us than one of the boys caught a bird
which had been about, I believe, all the morning, and
which proved to be a Red-backed Shrike. Doubtless these
feathered pilgrims were but the vanguard of the great
autumnal tide of migration. They must have come from
the immense firwoods which skirt the Swedish shore, and
extend into the interior. The author of a " Note Book of a
Naturalist" mentions, (p. 64) that when he was sailing
near the same place, a Long-tailed Titmouse came on
board, which is far more remarkable than any of the birds
I saw.

As evening drew on, the sea, which before was calm
as glass, began to be gently rippled by a passing wind.
Quickly the sails felt the breeze. Quickly our good ship
ploughed her way onwards, and as she went she left
behind her a broad wake of foam, on which there fell the

4 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST,

rays of a red setting sun in most transcendent splendour.
Gradually we left CEland in the distance, but the sun had
illumined the vault of heaven, and there remained a glittering
pathway over the waters of the Baltic for many hours, until
night shrouded the scene. On that occasion I observed a
ship in the ball of the sun, as he dipped to his rest below
the horizon.

The day following we entered the Gulf of Finland. On
the 20th, when off Hogland island, a Kestrel (Tinnuncuhis
alandarius) paid us a visit, which was the only other bird
we saw, for the same evening we anchored outside the
bristling batteries of Cronstadt. Thousands of half-wild
Pigeons were swarming about the harbour, and I recognised
my old friend the Grey Crow, (Corvns comix L.) not often
to be seen in our country in August, but here in Russia
they are stay-at-home birds, and probably do not migrate
at all. Their tameness at St Petersburg would shock
Alexander Selkirk. They stalk about the streets with the
air of a landed proprietor, who is kindly permitting the
wood merchants to pile their timber on his wharf It is
said they have been even known to seize the sacred
Pigeons !

The city of St. Petersburgh is built almost entirely upon
piles. Nevertheless, it is on such a low bad site, that if
Lake Ladoga overflowed, and a certain conjunction of
wind and tide took place, it would infallibly be swamped ;
and a good many people expect that this will happen some
day.

The finest edifice is the Isaac Cathedral, beyond all
question. It is in the form of a Greek cross. Its grand
simplicity is very effective. Hemmed in by no houses like
our St. Paul's, yet with all the finest buildings in the
capital grouped around it, its noble porticos, its colossal
proportions free from all meretricious ornament, and its
vast gilded dome tower up into the air. It is surmounted

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. 5

by a cross, which may serve the newly-arrived stranger as
a landmark from all parts of the city. Pigeons make it
their home, semi-wild ones of domestic origin, like those
which in London frequent the British Museum, the Houses
of Parliament, and Somerset House. Crowds of House
Martins had gathered on the Winter Palace. The pert
Jackdaw was also there, and the ever-present Sparrow, the
same as in England.

Those who are not pressed for time when they have done
the principal sights, not forgetting the Hermitage and
Peter the Great's House, ought to take steamer to Peterhof
Palace. One of the rooms is panelled from skirting-board
to ceiling with t,6S portraits of girls, all selected for their
beauty ; besides this singular collection there are other
things in the palace worth seeing. A fire had just taken
place at this suburb when I was there, and nearly two
acres of houses had been burnt downj but the Russians are
too much accustomed to this sort of thing to think much
of two acres of wooden houses. Great precautions are
taken in the city by building lofty watch-towers, from
which, by means of a system of hoisting balls, alarm can
be given in case of fire.

The streets are spacious but badly paved ; they are
covered with snow half the year, and I suppose the in-
habitants do not think it worth while paving them any
better. Many of them are of wood, which is delightfully
easy to drive on in your " droski " when new, but wears out
very soon, without an upper coating of asphalt. They are
well lighted with gas, and there is nothing prettier than to
lean on the parapet of St. Nicholas' Bridge, and look up
the river at the two long rows of lamps reflected in the
water.

There is a garden on the Vassili Ostrof which is used in
summer as a market for live birds, rabbits, snakes, lizards,
tortoises, shells, etc. Here I saw, besides sundry birds

6 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

which appeared to have been imported from other countries,
Skylarks, young StarHngs, the Marsh Titmouse, to which
De Selys gave the name Panis borealis, Bullfinches (Pyrr-
hula curopcva, Leach), Blue-throated Warblers, and Black-
caps: and in gunmakers' windows, stuffed specimens of the
Golden Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Eagle Owl,* Snowy Owl,
Black-throated Diver, Shelduck, and Curlew.

Not far from, the Millionaya Street there is a small game
market, and at one shop a Whooper or Wild Swan, and a
Nutcrackerf (Niicifraga caryocatactes L.), were hanging up.
An attempt had been made to stuff them, so I dare say
they had been suspended there all the summer.

Shooting commences on the I5tli (27th) of July, but
Capercaillie are not in season so early as that. A freshly-
killed young bird is of course far superior to what are
brought over and vended in Leadenhall market. Old ones
would hardly be considered fit to eat in Russia. The
Tcterka (Blackgrouse), and RiabcJiick (Hazelgrouse), are
also capital birds for the table. It is said that considerable
numbers of the Grey Partridge (Pcrdix cinerea Lath.) have
been turned off in the vicinity of the metropolis. There
are a great many stories about the Capercaillie ; one is that
after death it swallows its tongue. Like many other fables
it is founded on fact ; for the organ is sometimes retracted
so far as to become quite invisible. |

'"' I find that in a tame Eagle Owl of ours, when exhausted with long
incubation, the pupils of the eyes become almost white. I also find that
the iris in this species becomes very much lighter with age.

t The middle tail feathers are so abraded at the end in a Nutcracker
of mine, killed at Christchurch in Hampshire, as to leave the shafts
almost bare, and they are worn in the same way in a specimen of my
father's, killed at Rollesby in Norfolk.

{ The number of Scotch Capercaillie sent up to Leadenhall Market
is very large, perhaps 200 in a winter, exemplifying the remarkable hold
which this species has again taken in North Britain, particularly in

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. 7

I must now say something of the Museum, which is at
the Academy of Sciences (between the Exchange and the
University), and contains the famous Mammoth, whose
unfossihzed remains were found embedded in ice on the
banks of the Lena. Professor Brandt was away, but I was
glad to meet Dr. Radde, who drew attention to his Fiiligiila
bacri, which would appear to be one of those puzzling
hybrid Ducks, (Reisen im Suden von Ost-Sibirien in den
Jahren 1855 — 1859, P- ZT^') ^^'^^ to the beautiful specimens
oi Anas falcata and A. glocitans, which latter is the species
to which by English authors some hybrids were incorrectly
assigned under the name of " Bimaculated Duck." I also
especially noticed no less than twenty varieties of the
Blackgrouse, and several of the Capercaillie, also both
sexes of the spurious Rakkelhan Grouse (Tctrao medius
(Meyer) Teni.), the female of which appears to be exactly
like a small female Capercaillie. Another handsome cross
is that between the Black Grouse and Willow Grouse, of
which I afterwards saw several, but did not succeed in
obtaining a specimen. I had hoped to find a good series
of the Red-breasted Goose, but I only saw four ; one of
them a plain grey bird without a particle of red was marked
a female, doubtless immature. The collection of Brazilian
species is large ; but not being well up in South American
birds, I directed my attention to the specimen of the Great
Auk. I found that there was no Qgo^ of this bird in the
Museum, but Professor Newton had told me that he
believed there were two in the city, and I set on foot
enquiries, but without any result beyond learning that
Mr. Champley of Scarborough had been making enquiries
before me.

Perthshire. They come earlier and are smaller than the Norwegian,
and may be known by having been shot. Numbers are also sent to
the Glasgow poulterers, according to Mr. Gray. (B. of Scotland,
p. 228.)

8 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

I passed some birds in the ante-room recently set up,
which I rather think were from Finland. They were the
Curlew Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Swifts, etc. Also a
Short-eared Owl just brought in and skinned, and a
Hen Harrier, which was no doubt killed in the environs.
There were specimens of both in the collection marked
St. Petersburgh. In another ante-room there was an artist
at work painting a Ruff, with Gould's " Birds of Europe "
to help him. I must not omit to mention seeing some eggs
of the Waxen Chatterer,* with the following testimony to
an Englishman's perseverance : —

" In memoriam Johannis WoUey, quern in regionibus Europce,
hyperboreis naturae arcanorum per multos annos studiosum, fames,
frigus, bellum, non deterrerunt, hoec ampelidis garruloe ova musoeo."

On the 3rd I saw the Zoological Gardens, and bought a
curious muff made of nine necks of Black-throated Divers
in their fullest plumage. The gardens are really very poor
for a great place like St. Petersburgh. They are a private
undertaking, and the property of a lady. Wild Tree
Sparrows were flying in and out among the bushes. By
the Rumiantsoff Obelisk I saw a Greater Whitethroat {?).

Going again to the Museum, the taxidermist, Monsieur
Wosnessensky, showed me a Honey Buzzard (Pernis apivo-
rus, L.) just set up. I likewise saw a couple of young
Cranes, which had been reared by hand. They were a
yellowish brown colour; the crown of the head not bare;
the iris dark.

Before going away I paid my respects to another live-
bird market, where I saw Redwings, Redstarts, Snow

*^ The Waxen Chatterer goes as far south as Algeria. Professor
Newton, in his fourth edition of Yarrell, " B. B.," says indeed that it
does not cross the Mediterranean, but both he and Mr. Dresser must
have overlooked what Loche says : — " De passage en Algerie de loin
en loin." (Cat. des Mammiferes, etc., p. 88.)

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. 9

Buntings, Pine Grosbeaks, an Oxeye Titmouse, a Long-
tailed Titmouse, a Pied Flycatcher, and five Storks. I
bought a Sparrovvhawk* and a Cuckoo, which I skinned
the following day, together with an Oystercatcher, which an
English resident had shot on lake Ladoga. From its
brown back, and from the edgings to the feathers, I have
no doubt that it is a bird of the year.

On the 8th of September I travelled by a second-class
carriage to Moscow. I thought it much more comfortable
than an English first-class, and a perfect banquet was pro-
vided at the stations where we stopped for refreshment.

The only birds seen on the way were a few Wood
Pigeonsf and Magpies, a Rook, and an old Buzzard perched
upon a pole.

I was unfortunately just too late for a meeting of Zoolo-
gists and scientific men, in which I might have heard some
interesting questions discussed.

As soon as I arrived I hastened to the live-bird market,
where I found for sale the Common Sandpiper, Hawfinch,
Crested Titmouse and Shorelark ; and the next day at
some other shops outside the wall of the " Kitai Gorod," a
Golden Oriole, a Missel Thrush, and a Raven ; and in the
game market the following dead birds — Goshawk (in an
interesting state of change), Capercaillie, Hazel Grouse,

^' On the 31st of August, 1873, a young cock Sparrowhawk was made
a prisoner in our bantam-house, having dashed through the top netting,
of which the mesh is only two and a half inches in diameter, It must
have been a squeeze, but he could have come in no other way.

i* November 20th, 1871, a gamekeeper in Norfolk drew my attention
to a Silver-fir tree with two leaders, near to a Pheasant-feeder, (a wooden
contrivance for corn,) remarking that he knew this deformity and many
others like it to have been caused by Wood Pigeons coming after the
corn, and settling on the tops of the trees when they were young and
breaking them thus.

10 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Willow Grouse* (in part summer plumage), Double Snipes,
and Teal.

While I was examining them, a fine Buzzard soared about
overhead on the look-out for anything he could pick up. I
soon afterwards saw some more, circling at no great height.
I have understood that they propagate as well as roost in
the steeples and minarets ; and that besides clearing up all
kinds of refuse, as the scavenger Kite once did in London,
they make prey of the Pigeons which infest Moscow.

Pigeons are never shot in the town ; they roost and
nidify in the Kremlin's gilded cupolas, and are very com-
mon throughout the city.

Of course I visited the Zoological Gardens of the Imperial
Acclimatisation Society, which are prettily laid out, and
with a fine sheet of water. I was informed that the animals
had fallen off, but there still remained a fine collection, in-
cluding upwards of twenty Eagles, and a similar number of
Ruddy Shelducks, also one or more of the following species
— Caucasian Snow-Partridge, Great Bustard, Coot, Black-
tailed Godwit, Green Sandpiper, Capercaillie, Snipe, and
Common Sandpiper ; altogether there were sixty-five sorts
of birds in the Gardens, and the collection was very superior
to that at St. Petersburg!!.

On the 1 2th, after glancing over the bird market, where
I noticed a Nutcracker, an albinoe Quail, and a Waxwing,
I drove with a friend to the famous Sparrow Hills, whence
Napoleon first viewed the city. It was a noble stand-point,
almost equal to Arthur's seat at Edinburgh. "All this is
yours," he is said to have exclaimed, and the shout of

* Mr. Yarrell, in 1843, gives the price of Ptarmigan at four shillings
a brace, (B. B., 11., p. 327,) but does not say if they were Scotch
Ptarmigan or Norway Willow Grouse. The latter is far and away the
commoner in Leadenhall market. The price has gone up since his time,
Scotch Ptarmigan being twelve and sixpence a brace in October, and
Norway Willow Grouse six shillings

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. II

" Moscow ! Moscow ! " was taken up by the foremost ranks
and carried to the rear of his army.

On the 13th I got a Spotted Crake, a Sclavonian Grebe,
and a young RufT;* and took a peep into the celebrated
Riding-school, 560 feet in length, supposed to be the
largest room in the world. Here in the winter two
regiments of Russian cavalry can manoeuvre at the same
time, when the intense cold does not permit of their going
through their exercises out of doors.

I had failed in seeing the birdstuffer at St. Petersburgh,
M. Dode, though I made his acquaintance in London in
the spring of 1871, but I was more fortunate at Moscow.
Taxidermy is not a lucrative trade there, and I cannot say
much for the way in which a Dipper and a Little Gull were
mounted. The latter was in very complete nuptial plumage,
and I believe they breed near Moscow.

On the 14th I bought a Garganey Teal and a Nyroca
Duck. For the latter I was charged one hundred "copeks,"
equivalent to a " rouble " or three shillings in English money.
Afterwards the birdstufifer's wife came to me with the
following birds — White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta europcea,
Lin.), Jay, Golden-crested Wren, Chaffinch, Thrush, Willow
Wren, Crested Titmouse, Marsh Titmouse (Parus borealis),
and Blue Titmouse. The latter was a remarkably pale
light-coloured specimen, but several of the best Ornitholo-
gists to whom I have shown it consider it to be merely a
variety.

September 15th. — A Shoveller Duck at the market,

1 6th. — A very wet day. Picked out from among a lot
of other wild-fowl a nestling Nyroca Duck, not half fledged.
The market is a famous place for Double Snipes ; basketsful

* In 1871, in the early part of the summer, I am informed a drove of
sixty old Ruffs were seen at Hickling Broad (in Norfolk), yet there
were only two nests, I hear, and, sad to say, the eight young birds were
all shot.

12 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

of them are brought in every morning. They are very
greasy but delicious eating.

17th. — At the market, Corncrake, Tufted Ducks, Pintail
Ducks, Blackbird, Thrush, and Golden Plover. I bought a
Common Snipe, which had the outer tail feathers elongated.
Compared to the Double Snipe it is quite a rarity.

20th. — I <7-ot a Smew before breakfast, and in the evening
the birdstufifer's wife brought a Jack Snipe, a Brambling,
two Siskins, a Whinchat, a Skylark, two Spotted Crakes, a
Jay, and a Cuckoo. This Cuckoo, and the one I obtained at
St. Petersburgh, were most curious specimens. Both were
immature. In the first one the peculiarity consisted in a
broad mark of reddish brown like a stain all down the head
and back, and two others similar upon the wings. In the
second the wings and all the upper surface were mealy-
colored.*

2 1 St. — Paid a final visit to the market and got a drake
Gadwall. I had been led to expect great things from the
Russian markets. Waxwings and Pine Grosbeaks were to
be had for a few " copecks " I was told, and heaps of other
rare birds ; but this can only apply to the winter, when I
have no doubt they would vie with any in Europe.

I must not omit to say that the Zoological Cabinet at the
University is particularly worth seeing, containing as it does
no less than yS'^S^ specimens. The birds are fairly stuffed
and in good order. I saw a beautiful skin of the rare Red-
breasted Goose, and a mounted one which was not so good.
One case was full of bottles of various sizes. Each bottle
contained a card on which was gummed a bird's gizzard and
its contents — gnats, flies, beetles, etc. The Rook, being of
special importance to agriculture, the stomachs of no less

** The Cuckoo has been stated to have a pouch, but I have not
succeeded in finding it, though I have remarked the very gelatinous
skin of the neck in some specimens.

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. 13

than eight were displayed. The preparations were really
very neat, and each had a separate label. In the Interna-
tional Exhibition of 1862, there was a very similar series of
the dried contents of the gizzards of the chief birds of
France.

The University was founded by Elizabeth, daughter of
Peter the Great. There are seventy-five professors, and the
library contains about 160,000 books.

The line of railway which connects the two chief cities of
Russia is straight as an arrow. The story goes, that the
Tzar took a ruler and drew a line across the map, and said
to the government engineer, " That is how the railway is to
go." He made it accordingly, and it is 403 miles long.

On re-visiting the live- bird stalls at St. Petersburgh I
saw pretty much the same species as before, and a few
additional ones, to wit, the Pied Wagtail, Reed Bunting,
Creeper, and Lapwing. In a poulterer's window I saw a
stuffed Blackcock most beautifully pied, and a hybrid be-
tween that species and the Willow Grouse. I purchased a
Green Woodpecker and a Goldeneye Duck, and tried to
skin them, but the Woodpecker was almost too stale for
the purpose. It is difficult to see what birds the poulterers
have, for they keep them shut up in lockers instead of hang-
ing them out.

On the 24th I saw a Waxwing at the Exchange Gardens
for sale, and bought a Missel Thrush. On the 25th I
dropped on to some fresh birds at the market, three Little
Stints, a Dunlin, a Ring-Dotterel (Charadrius intcnncdius),
and a young Grey Plover, which was so yellow that but for
its black axillaries it might have passed for a Golden.

The close of the month was wet, and I was not sorry to
leave on the 28th of September, after collecting fifty-nine
birds, a considerable number for so short a time. St.
Petersburgh is wonderfully hot in summer, considering how
far north it is ; but the climate appears to suit the English,

14 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

who muster plentifully there ; though indeed where are not
our countrymen to be found ?

By train to Berlin was about the longest journey without
a break I ever made, occupying nearly forty-two hours ; and
so sparsely furnished with birds was the tract through which
we passed, that I saw nothing worth recording.

The Zoological Gardens at Berlin are not equal to ours at
London, though I think the grounds are larger. The
Society is well off in Accipitres, and a pen of fifteen Little
Egrets and Squacco Herons was a beautiful sight. A
mouse, which my approach frightened into the Crane's en-
closure, was caught up in a twinkling.*

The trade in Thrushes, carried on in the open place by
the theatre, is quite a business. This was the only market
I could find. I saw a Great Bustard (Otis tarda) in it, but
nothing else worth mentioning.

I thought none of the Berlin sights better worth seeing
than the Aquarium. In fish it has now been eclipsed by
that at Brighton, but in addition to the fish there were
many birds of considerable interest and rarity.

The Museum is too renowned to call for any praise from
me. It is in the left wing of the University. In passing
through the Thier Garten to see the Royal Necropolis, I
had a capital view of a Greater Spotted Woodpecker. I
have been told they are rather common.

My next stage was to Hanover. The Zoological Gardens
there are decidedly good, and the Raptorial birds well cared
for. In one cage was a nearly white Buzzard, and in
another two more with a great amount of white.

From my bedroom window at the hotel I observed a

• Some years ago my father kept a pair of Purple Herons. Some
rats burrowed a hole in the ground at the bottom of their cage. A can
of water was poured down to bolt them, and two half-grown ones ran
out, but they only escaped drowning to be instantly captured and
swallowed by the Herons.

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. 1 5

pair of Black Redstarts. They seem partial to bricks and
mortar. So is the Crested Lark, which at Hanover will
perch freely on buildings. Near the Waterloo Column I
had about twenty of the two species in view at once.

Having done the Museum, which contained a Great Auk,
I took the train to Brussels. In Brussels* market I have
always found good birds, and on this occasion I made the
following list of species during the few days I spent there : — ■
Curlews, Hazel Grouse, Serin Finch, Spotted Redshanks,*
(easily picked out by their long bills,) Scaup, f Gadwall,
Pintail, Shoveller, Grey Shrikes, Hawfinch, Jays, (some of
them plucked !) Dunlins, Spotted Crakes, Coots, Water-
Hens, Dabchick, Jack Snipes (in plenty). Woodcocks (a fair
number), Pheasants (a few), Grey and Red-legged Partridges
(about equally common), Quail, Red Grouse, (these at a
poulterer's,) Wood Pigeons, Wild Geese, (I forget what
species ; but on another occasion I saw a small but un-
doubted Bean Goose,) Short-eared Owls, Lapwings, Golden
Plovers, Green Woodpecker, Magpies,^ Merlin. The con-
sumption of Thrushes is nearly as great as at Berlin, and
many birds which we should not much esteem are sold for
food, e.g., Thrushes, Redwings, Blackbirds, Ring Ouzels,
and an occasional Fieldfare or Missel Thrush, which find
patronizers. Nor are there wanting people who have the
heart to dine off Bramblings, Larks, and Tree Sparrows ;
and I even saw a Robin and a Cole Titmouse offered among
the more legitimate gibier : but my greatest stroke of luck

** I have often seen Spotted Redshanks in Leadenhall market. They
have been got there in all states of plumage, but the commonest is the
adult winter, and the rarest the adult summer.

■f In the Exeter Museum there is a curious female Scaup Duck with
a white collar, also a white chin, which was shot on the Exe.

\ On the 23rd of December, 1869, I saw an astonishing number of
Magpies in the market at Paris, but nothing else except a great many
Squirrels.

l6 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST,

was when I detected a knot of people on the staircase
handling a splendid Kite, which of course I bought.

At Brussels I met my father, who had been in the town
a few days.* On reference to his diary, I observe that he
met with some species in the market which I did not, viz.,
Kestrel, Jackdaw, Greater-spotted Woodpecker, Ortolan
Bunting, Corncrake, Water Rail, Teal, and Wild Duck.

Being at the market again in December, 1870, I saw a
Starling, some Great and Blue Tits, Linnets, Purple Sand-
pipers, Brent Geese,f {plucked all except their wings,)
and a Velvet Scoter (plucked also, a choice morsel all
ready for the first fasting devotee who came a market-
ing) : nor have I yet got to the end of my list, for on
another occasion I saw several magnificent old drake
Smews, Goosanders, and Shelducks, quite a fine ornitho-
logical sight ;J besides which the late Dr. Saxby enumerates
in his "Notes on the Birds of Belgium," (Zoologist, 7537>)
Scops Owl, Tengmalm's Owl, Lapland Bunting, Black
Grouse, and Red-crested Duck ; to which I can further add
Richardson's Skua :§ but I think I have said enough to
make anyone's mouth water who is fond of poking about
for rare birds in markets.

** He had just come from Ghent, where he got four Richard's Pipits
from among Larks and Wagtails in the poulterers' shops and eating-
houses.

f Willoughby describes " a very heedless fowl " found in Yorkshire,
called a Rat or Road-Goose.. " If a pack of them come into Tees it is
seldom one escapes away." This is the Brent, and the name of Road-
Goose, is persistent to this day at Tees-mouth.

J This was after the very hard weather which ushered in 1871. The
same week I saw several adult male Goosanders in Leadenhall market,
and about seven magnificent Smews were killed in Norfolk. (Zool. ss.,
2600.)

§ I have more than once had Richardson's Skua, from Flamborough
Head in Yorkshire, in July.

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. 1/

The Museum, of which M. Alf. Dubois is curator, contains
22,500 specimens. The Macqucen's Bustard (killed in the
vicinity in 1845,) has a beautiful ruff, equal I think to the
finest Houbaras which I obtained in Algeria. It appears
that* two others were killed with it. The Great Auk seemed
(for it was getting dark when I got round to it,) to be a
well-stuffed specimen, in summer plumage of course. It
was bought of Frank, through w^iose hands several have
passed, twenty years ago, when they were not considered to
be extinct, for 150 francs in the skin. As far as I remem-
ber, all the Great Auks which I examined had the ribs on
the bill white, (cf. Zoologist, 1642).

I must now mention a Goose in the Zoological Gardens
which had pink legs, and yet from the length of its bill was
an undoubted Bean Goose. Curious as this is, it is not
more so than the converse which has happened in Somerset-
shire to Mr. Cecil Smith. That naturalist has recorded
(Zoologist, 3412, 3627, 4333,) Pink-footed Geese of his own
breeding with yellow legs, but as they were that colour in
early youth, it is not to be taken as any corroboration of
Strickland's exploded notion that the Pink-footed Goose
was the young of the Bean. Strickland's " Bean Goose "
was Bartlett's true Pink-footed Goose. Both these writers
agreed that the Geese with black nails to their beaks were
divisible into two species, but they differed about the names
which should be applied to them. Now that the distinc-
tions are properly understood, it appears clear that the
Pink-footed is much the commoner, and that many even of
the more recent records of " Bean Geese " must be taken as
referring to it. I happened last June to see living examples
of both in an enclosure together, and there is no tangible
difference in plumage. Practically the best marks to seize
on are those originally published, viz., the short bill, smaller
stature, and pink legs of the Pink-footed Goose, and also
the middle of the beak pink, as opposed to the yellow

c

1 8 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

colour of the same parts in the Bean Goose. Oddly enough,
I could find no specimens of the " Long-billed Car Goose " in
Mr. Strickland's collection in the York Museum.

With many apologies for being led into this digression,
I will now return to my journal. At the chief poulterer's at
Lille I saw more than a dozen Tufted Ducks, and a beauti-
ful Grey Phalarope. It is the custom to hang up skins,
and at this game-shop there was a Kentish Plover, and at
another a Merganser, a Scoter, and a Black-tailed Godwit.

With regard to the Museum of this town I cannot do
better than quote my father, as his note is more full than
mine.

" There are two collections of birds in the Museum here, one a
good general collection, the other a very fine series (in a separate
room) of the birds of Europe, which formerly belonged to the late
Dr. Degland, author of " Degland's Birds of Europe," who lived at
Lille. In the general collection there are a fine pair of adult
Goshawks from the Ural Mountains, which seemed to me to have
the transverse bars on the breast decidedly narrower and finer than
on the breast of adult Goshawks in Western Europe.

" In the collection which was formerly Dr. Degland's, there is a
remarkably fine series of Honey Buzzards, chiefly from the
Pyrenees, some specimens of Greyheaded Wagtails killed near
Lille, and one similar Wagtail killed there with a head quite black,
and in fact the same as the black-headed yellow Wagtail of the
south of Europe, and also as Mr. Vingoe's Cornish specimen,
except that the latter has, I think, a little white mark near die eye.
There were also nearly pure albinoes of the common Yellow Wag-
tail and the Tree Pipit ; two specimens of the Turdus Atrigularis,
said to have been killed at Amsterdam ; a nestling Golden Oriole,
taken from the nest near Lille ; a nestling Ring Ouzel, very differ-
ent from the adult, and spotted almost like a young Blackbird ; a
Siberian Bunting ( Emhcriza chrysophrys, Pall. ), caught near Lille ;
a nestling Little Gull from the Ural Mountains ; and lastly, a Great
Auk, bought by Dr. Degland of a dealer at Amsterdam in 1835.

TO RUSSIA AND BACK. I9

It seems a small adult bird, with the cheek spots quite white, and
also the throat, except the chin, which is black."

My next move was to Calais, where, on the 28th of
October, I had a good opportunity of watching a Velvet
Scoter, which was swimming between the piers. I suspect
it had swum there purposely, as the next day there were
two, seemingly both females. They were diving in the
most unconcerned manner, but I know not whether they
were fishing, or whether they were trying to escape the
stones with which a gang of small street Arabs were pelting
them. A little flock of Purple Sandpipers proved even
more interesting than the Scoters. I was watching their
quaint actions at the edge of the water, when a man came
up and began to stone them also. Stoning seems a favourite
diversion of the French. Walking home I saw a Woodcock
flying wildly among the chimney tops. A Chaffinch was
shown me which had killed itself against the lighthouse,
a lofty structure which can be clearly seen from Dover.
A wire netting has been found necessary to protect the
lantern from the birds which dash against it. The keeper
showed me into a room where there were about eighty
species of birds set up, all of which he asserted had killed
themselves against that light. I can hardly credit it, al-
though he made the same assertion to my father, for there
were several which appeared to me most unlikely to be
obtained in such a way, e.g., Montague's Harrier, Rock
Thrush, Little Bittern, Avocet, Purple Heron, Red-necked
Grebe, (full breeding plumage,) Razorbill, and Gulls, The
story he told my father was that, in 1855 a Whooper
Swan flew against the lantern, and broke the glass and its
own wing. This was stuffed, and after that specimens of
all the species which killed themselves against the glass had
been preserved. The tickets testify that the collection has
been long finished. Of late years all the birds have gone

20 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

to a collector at Saint Pierre, but for the last two years the
keeper admits that nothing but Larks and small birds have
been got*

Proceeding to Boulogne, I found that most of the birds
in the Museum there had been collected by M. Demarle
of Douai, but the rare Capped Petrel bears the name of
Lebeau Lonquety as donor. There are local specimens (as
indicated by two blue lines upon the ticket) of the Spotted
Eagle, Crested Titmouse, King Duck, and Caspian Tern,
besides four Purple Waterhens, which may not have been
really wild. Only the Eagle and Titmouse are included in
the list in Bertrand's History of Boulogne by Demarle, en-
titled " Oiseaux observes dans le Boulonnais."

And here my notes on this journey terminate. Leaving
in a steamer at 6.30 for Folkestone I had a quick passage,
but did not see many birds worthy of record. I have, how-
ever, once seen Fulmar Petrels about midway in the straits.
I mistook them at first for Gulls, until as they came nearer,
their buoyant flight attracted my closer attention, and I
made out what they really were. I have also sometimes
seen great flocks of restless Scoter Ducks, particularly in
November, 1870, near Ostend, and parties of Puffins and
Gannets prowling along in pairs ; and I have known the
steamer go so close to a Red-throated Diver as nearly to
run it down.

•* A Wild Duck once flew against Happisburgh lighthouse, in Nor-
folk, broke the glass and indented the copper; but this is nothing
to a story of what happened at the Lundy Island lighthouse. One
frosty night a large flock came full tilt against the lantern, the glass of
which was 5/16 of an inch thick, which they immediately broke.
Seven of the foremost were killed by the concussion, but the rest flew
through the breach, and actually smashed the glass on the other side,
leaving nine more of their number slain. The relics of this gallant
band passed through in safety over the dead bodies of their com-
rades ; and the keeper, as compensation for the smash, netted a haul
of eight couple of Wild Ducks.

MY JOURNAL

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA,

Monday, 2^th of January, 1870.

A SWARM of low-class Arabs and swarthy negroes pounced
upon me as I stepped on to the quay at Oran, and bade
me yield my luggage to their care. Pestered with their
importunities I fled to the custom house, and while my
cases were undergoing a nominal examination, the official
in charge drove back the exasperated crowd of mendicant
porters, until I could select two less frantic than the rest,
to carry my baggage up to the hotel. It was a lovely day.
Oran, the westernmost town in Algeria, a French seaport
and chief place of the province, lay spread before me. It is
no inconsiderable place, having a population half as large
as that of Algiers, two hotels, a theatre, z. place, a market,
and sundry large bureaus ; but it is not much visited by
tourists. In this instance it appeared that there were some
English there already, for a party of sportsmen who, I
heard belonged to our nationality, had been out shooting,
and had just brought back three wild boars : stretched upon
the pavement they lay with bullet holes in their rugged
sides. There is no lack of them in the brushwood on the

22 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

mountains, but the sport is considered expensive, owing to
the number of beaters required. After duly inspecting
them, I remembered that I had come to Africa to study
birds ; and all athirst for unknown species, I ascended to
Fort St. Croix.

Having satisfactorily identified some Dartford Warblers,
{Melisophilns luidatus) whose flight was very weak, especially
if there was any wind, I worked my way home by another
path, noting as I went along the Kestrel (Tinnuncuhis
alaiidarijis), the Black-headed Warbler (Sylvia mdano-
cephala), the Corn Bunting (Emberiza iniliaria), the Wren
(Troglodytes parvuliis), and the Grey Wagtail (Motacilla
siilphiirea, Beck.), flirting about by a ditch of water. Other
birds I saw in the distance, but enough had been identified
to show that the avifauna of Algeria was not so very
difl"erent from that of England ; however, on the hillside I
listened to a truly African bird (as I believe), the Dusky
Ixos (Ixos obsatrus). Its notes rang through the newly-
planted pine groves. There were three in the market,
which confirms my impression that the bird I heard was
the Ixos. It is said to have occurred in Britain. It is very
sombre coloured. I made notes of two species not in-
cluded in the late Mr. Drake's "Birds of Eastern Morocco,"
(Ibis, 2nd series. III., p. 142. — V., p. 147,) the irrepressible
Sparrow (Passer domesticus), which I thought I had left
behind me in England, and the Barbary Partridge (Caccabis
petrosa), which flies fast and straight with neck outstretched,
making as much noise with its wings as our grey one when
flushed, and giving utterance to a shrill note or two. I was
surprised to see some in the town with their throats 7iot cut,
which the Arabs generally insist upon doing, for your true
Mahommedan conceives himself forbidden by the direct law
of the prophet to eat anything which has not died by the
knife. I afterwards got eleven eggs of this Partridge.

There was a steamer to Algiers on the 2Sth, a distance of

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 23"

about 250 miles, which I preferred to travelling over land.
It was a clear day and a calm sea, and we coasted along
near enough to observe the verdant hills, in some places
sparsely covered, in others clothed with rich foliage. I
stood on deck watching some Manx Shearwaters, until the
blue bay of Algiers came in sight, and we cast anchor at a
short distance from the boulevards, constructed for the
French government by Sir Morton Peto. Algiers is one of
those places which have been so much written about, that
nothing more remains to be said. Piesse's " Itineraire de
I'Algerie," and Bernard's " Indicateur de I'Algerie," give a
sufficiently good account of it, and to them I refer the
reader. An astonishing number of English make it their
winter quarters, the climate being recommended in cases of
consumption and lung disease ; and some of them hire
houses, and have delightful gardens, in the suburb of
Mustapha. The Moorish part of the town is highly interest-
ing, while the French part can boast of capital hotels (the
Hotel d'Orient is perhaps the best,) and a great number
of first-class shops. There is very good society, and plenty
to see in the neighbourhood for those who do not go further
into the interior.

I copy the following extracts from some correspondence
in the ''Field',' which may be of use to anyone intending to
go there.

" Houses can be obtained in the suburbs at ^20 to ^40 per
inonth furnished, and the owners let them generally only for the
season of six months, and not for a less period. English furniture
would be 'useless here, or at any rate quite incongruous. The
houses, moreover, are let furnished. There are no dependable
house agents. It is a good plan to come here early, perhaps in
the beginning of October, and stoj) at an hotel until a selection of
a house can be made. There are doctors of all nations in the
season. Horses can be bought at all prices, from ;^8 to ;^i2o.
The best horses that can be bought (for the Arabs will not sell

24 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

their best) are to be had for 3,000 francs ; any higher price that
may be paid is money thrown away. Very fair horses may be
hired at' ^^5 per month, the hvery-stableman keeping them and
providing saddles and bridles. Good servants are very difficult to
obtain, especially for short periods. A thorough good cook earns
nearly at the rate of ^^30 per annum.

W. P. B. (Algiers, April 9th, 1873.)

" For a sportsman Algiers, or rather its vicinity, affords excellent
shooting ; Snipe and Duck, golden and grey [?] Plover, being the
principal winter game ; and in spring great quantity of Quail can
be got. I remember killing ten brace of Quail in a few hours.

"Within two days' journey of Algiers there is a large lake called
Lac Alloula, where capital sport can be had. It is covered with
wild duck in the winter with a good supply of geese and wild
swans, and the margin of the lake is full of Snipe — a friend and
myself killing forty couple of Snipe and several Bittern in a few
hours. * '■'' * "' ^ *

Waverley. (Oct. 21st, 1872.)

For a graphic account of this lake, and the ornithological
treasures to be had there, see the " Ibis" for i860, p. 149.

I procured from Madame Loche (the widow of the dis-
tinguished ornithologist) a Golden Eagle (Aquila cJirysaetos),
which had been killed at Arba, twenty miles distant from
Algiers, about three months before. I also saw another
alive. Captain Loche had several, but they, with other
Accipitres to the number of 180, perished in the following
manner. An earthquake occasioned the fall of an immense
wall, beneath which was the " fauconnerie," and alas ! it
buried in its debris the precious birds which it had taken the
Captain ten years to collect.

The adventures I had in getting a " permis de chasse "
were quite as amazing as Canon Tristram's. It did not cost
so much as an English game license, but the number of
officials whose signatures were necessary was something

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 2$

awful. The mayor did me the honour to write " my descrip-
tion." From him I obtained the gratifying information that
my hair was chestnut, my nose regular, my beard fair,
my chin short, my eyes brown, and my complexion red ! !

The next day I left early for Mustapha to explore the lanes
there. This beautiful suburb is the Richmond of Algiers,
and the favoured resort of the best families. My first shot
was at a female Black -headed Warbler. Instead of slate
colour as in the cock, the back was brown, and the head no
darker than a Lesser Whitethroat's. Males of this species
would appear to preponderate. After crossing several
fields, and losing a specimen of Chlorospiza aiirantiiventris,
the interesting Algerian representative of our Greenfinch,*
from which it can scarcely be said to be distinct, I came to
a wooded valley, where I had a couple of shots at an
Ichneuman. I missed him, and never had a chance of
getting another. Here I fell in with a Serin (Scrinus
Jiortuloriiin), singing merrily even then, at a period when
winter had hushed for a time the notes of most of its
congeners. One of the rarer British birds, it may be dis-
tinguished at a glance from the hen Siskin, the only one
on the list with which it could be confounded, by its thicker
beak. Trying to scramble up some sandrocks I disturbed
a dozing Barn Owl, which, being brought to bag, proved a
very spotted specimen, with the bars of the tail more defined
than in English examples. The next bird was a Cirl
Bunting (Euibcri::a cirliis), not an uncommon species in
Algeria. Then leaving the valley I gradually worked my
way home by the sea shore, and the only bird I procured
was the White Wagtail (JHotacilla alba), but the blue bay
beneath me, and the transcendent scene, made up for the
small bag, and I returned well satisfied with my walk.

• In the summer of 1871, I saw an Algerian Greenfinch in the
Zoological Gardens, supposed to be eight years old.

26 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

February },rd. Bought a cock Sandgrouse (Pterocles
arenariiis, Pall.) at the poulterer's, killed at Aumale, and
went to the " Exposition," which is in one of the arches
below the " Place du Government." M. Loche's birds are
nicely set up and arranged, but the space devoted to them
is not very large. The rest of his collection of skins is now
dispersed. I saw his eggs at No. 9, Rue Marine, which are
very good indeed. There were several drawers of duplicates.

February 6th. Observed a curious pale-coloured variety
of the Robin in the market, and also a slightly pied Black-
bird. A short time ago I read of a single taxidermist
having twenty-nine pied Blackbirds to stuff in about a
twelvemonth in Ireland. Surely they are as common there
as pied Ring Ouzels are in Alsace and Lorraine. I have
never had more than one or two since I began to collect
birds.

February jth, Sunday. Attended service in one of the
arches beneath the " Boulevards." The large congregation
showed how much need there was for the English Protestant
Church, a site for which had been found not far from the
Eastern gate, and which was already near completion. I
began the new week at Blida, so famed for its delicious
oranges, which are exported to Paris where one may see
" Blida oranges " advertised in the shop windows. Among
its scented groves I daily sauntered, and found the same
choristers which we have at home. The familiar garden
Thrush was quite common, and so were Redbreasts. Willow
Wrens and tuneful Blackcaps seemed to abound every-
where. Starlings, Titlarks, and Linnets were in some num-
bers, and the sprightly Blackbird was not uncommon. But
most beautiful of all were the Buff-backed Herons ; perched
on the backs of cattle, they stand like alabaster images, and
no herdsman but gladly makes them welcome. Here I
shot the rare Dipper, or Pale -backed Water Ouzel, des-
cribed by Dr. Tristram as Ciuclus minor (Ibis, 1870, p. 496,)

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 2/

but since assigned in Dresser's " Birds of Europe " (Part
24 and 25, p. 3) to C. albicollis (Vicill). Loche says of it
in the " Exploration Scientifique," p. 306 —

"Le cincle plongeur, que nous n'avons rencontre que tres
accidentellement en Algerie y semble excessivement rare, et il est
supposable qu'il ne doit y etre que de passage."

But M. Germain, at p. 6^, says : —

"Sedentaire — Se recontre sur le cours de \oucd — Anasscur
(Milianah)."

On the 1 6th I caught a green Lizard, about a foot and a
quarter long, but having nothing to preserve it in, set it at
liberty. While I was in the " Tell,"* and afterwards in the
Sahara, I had not much time to attend to anything but
birds. I however made notes of a Water Tortoise at
Miliana, of a Weasel (apparently the same as ours), of some
Bats, and of Foxes in the rocks at Boghari, and of a few
other things which will be mentioned in the course of my
narrative.

On the 17th I took the Diligence to Boumedfa, a village
stated to contain about 270 inhabitants, (though I should
have supposed it much less,) and leaving again on the i8th,
moved to the fortified town of Miliana. Miliana is a place
of considerable importance. Its ornithology has been
worked by Monsieur Germain, but I \vas not aware of the
existence of his paper, or I should not have been so much
surprised at meeting with Rnticilla ]lIoitssicri,-\ a beautiful
bird of restricted range, which he makes the subject of a
long note ; or at shooting Pants Icdoiicii (Malh.), figured in
Sharpe and Dresser's " Birds of Europe," and the only

^ The " Tell " is the mountainous country of the Atlas, from the sea
to the commencement of the Sahara.

f In Captain Shelley's collection I recently noticed a male marked
" Blida, ist of March, 1S73."

28 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Specimen they could obtain for their work. The latter
is very like our English Coal Tit.

From M. Germain's list, printed in the " Nouvelles
Archives du Museum d'histoire Naturelle," I., p. 59, (Paris)
and entitled " Catalogue Raisonne des oiseaux observes
dans la subdivision de Milianah," I cull a few remarks on
this species : —

"Commune dans les forets de chenes du Zaccar, des Beni —
Menasser et des montagnes de la rive gauche du Chelif. A
Milianah, elle descend quelquefois en hiver dans les jardins les
plus ele'ves. Partout ou Ton rencontre cette espt;ce, on est certain
de trouver le Geai cervical (Garrnhis cervicalis) qui, comme elle,
parait ne se rencontre qu'a une altitude determinee, que j'evalue
a sept on huit cents metres au dessus du niveau de la mer. Je
crois aussi que ces deux especes n'habitent que les regions eleves
oil la neige est durable en hiver."

Of this species also M. Labonysse, in his " Lettre sur les
oiseaux de la partie littorale de la province de Constantine,"*
says : — •

" La Mesange Ledoux pratique en terre, dans le foret de
I'Edough, un trou de Oiii 15, de profondeur, ou elle etablit son
nid. Elle a ete observe'e pour la premiere fois le 16 Avril, 1842."
(Annales de Societe' d' Agriculture de Lyon, 1853, p. 15.)

Another rarity which I got at Miliana was Cetti's
Warbler (Ccttia sericca, Natt), a tame little bird which
ventured quite up to houses on the outskirts of villages. I
found it equally in woods and gardens, but always near a
ditch. At Algiers I got one, and at Blida three specimens.

On the 25th I moved from Miliana to Boufarik, once a
mere morass, but now an important place numbering 4,000
inhabitants. There are a good many Griffon Vultures near

* About no species are included, with some notes of considerable
interest, besides a short article on domestic birds in this " letter."

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA, 29

here. Monsieur Jeannot, ornithologist, Hotel du Mazagram,
showed me a pair killed with ball in the plain of Metidja.
About April he told me some of the cattle generally die,
and when the hot weather has made them partly putrid, a
score or more of these Vultures will come from the moun-
tains to feed on them, and in this way they are occasionally
obtained. I did not get one then, but I bought a ragged
skin (nearly adult) of a Zouave at Laghouat, which has
since been made presentable by Mr. Burton, of Wardour
Street.

At a wood outside the village, as I was sitting on a
little bridge, I saw an old Jackal quietly coming up the
ditch at a slow swing trot. I watched him with a binocular-
glass until he was within twenty-five yards, when probably
scenting me, he leapt into the wood.

On the 26th I returned to Algiers, and on the ist of
March I made my start for the Great Desert, having laid
in a good stock of things for the journey, including a
sovereign's worth of alcohol for preserving reptiles. By
train to Blida, and by "diligence" to Medea along a first-
rate French road, is the route, passing through the famed
gorge of the Chiffa. Here I stopped at the " Ruisseau des
Singes" aiibcrgc, where Canon Tristram tried in vain to
obtain accommodation, and saw exactly the same species
of birds as he saw, ("The Great Sahara," p. 33) including
the Blue Thrush (PctrocossypJiiis cyanens). I did not obtain
a specimen of it, for I had no opportunity of using a gun,
but I bought a female in winter plumage at Algiers. I
never saw it again in my Algerian travels, nor did I ever
come across the Rock Thrush (Moiiticola saxatilis).

There are a good many Monkeys on the beetling sides
of this verdant, rocky, pass. Two at the " auberge " ap-
peared to be the same sort as I saw at Gibraltar. The
Barbary Ape I believe they are called.
, The Medea road passes through a line of forest country.

30 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

The Arabs burn the bark off the trees, which is as valuable
as our oak bark is to us in England, but this practice ruins
the picturesque. Beneath many a stately monarch of the
forest we passed, now scorched and blackened. I believe
these great woods are chiefly composed of oak, ilex, and
cork ; seven sorts of oaks are enumerated in Piesse's
" Itineraire de I'Algerie." They form a safe home for such
woodland birds as Pica niaiiritanica, Lanins anriailatiis, and
Friiigilla spodiogena, which nest here in perfect security.
Perched on one scathed limb, a noble Eagle seemed to keep
guard over all around him : he eyed us as we approached
him, and it was not until we were almost within gunshot
that he condescended to stretch his broad pinions.

After a long drive, Boghari came in view, an Arab village,
close to the town of Boghar, and the usual stopping place for
travellers as there is an inn there, and to ascend to the town
would be much further. Here the traveller may taste
'' C0USC071S," an Arab preparation of barley, milk, meat, and
fruits. It is variously called couscous and couscoiisoo. He
will also see the black nomadic tents of camels' hair, which
he is afterwards destined to sleep in. They are very ill-
constructed, and so low, that you can barely stand upright
in the middle. A partition divides them into two chambers,
one for the men, and one for the women where the cooking
is done. They are generally made of camels* hair, some-
times of goats' hair, interwoven with wool, black or in
coloured stripes. They are propped up with sticks, and are
grimy in the last degree. To sum up the description of
them, they are the reverse of picturesque at a distance, and
present a filthy appearance on closer inspection ! Half a
dozen surly dogs mount guard, and so obstreperous are
they that I was several times on the point of shooting them,
and only refrained from fear of offending their masters.

After inspecting the Jews' quarter, which is worth a visit
for the sake of seeing the Jewesses who dress very gaily,

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 3 1

wearing a variety of ornaments, and peeping into a Moorish
bath, the inner room of which was intensely hot, and ex-
amining the stock in trade of a negro who dealt in jewelry,
scent, spurs, purses, and swords, and after collecting speci-
mens of the Black Whcatear (Saxicola Icuatra), Little Owl
(Athene glanx), Rock Dove (Columbalivia, Lin., C. tiirricola
Bp.). and Ultramarine Tit (Pants tenerijfcc, Less.), I made
the discovery that I had seen all that was worth seeing at
Boghari, and on the 8th I ensconced myself and my impedi-
menta in the weekly " Diligence." Six horses drag it. In
the " Tell " eight are not considered too many ; indeed I
sometimes saw ten to a large vehicle, but then admirable as
the French government roads are, the hilly nature of the
country must be remembered. Mules and horses are yoked
indifferently to the same vehicle.

The first caravanserai is Bougzoul. It is in the " Hauts
Plateaux." A caravanserai in Algeria is a one-storied forti-
fied house, enclosing a large court-yard, with chambers on
two sides for the accommodation of travellers, and stabling
for several horses. The "Hauts Plateaux" is a term for
the northern portion of the Little Desert (or Algerian
Sahara), which commences where the " Tell " ends, and ter-
minates at Waregla. The water at Bougzoul is nearly
unfit for drinking ; it comes from the neighbouring marsh
where the phenomenon of mirage may be seen. Canon
Tristram found a profusion of aquatic birds at this marsh —
Flamingos, Ruddy Shelducks, White-headed Ducks (Eris-
matura mcrsa), Gull-billed Terns, White-winged Black
Terns, Stilts, Purple Gallinules, Great-sedge Warblers, etc.
When I was there it was nearly dry. The Sandgrouse, and
the Desert Wheatear (Saxicola deserti, Rupp.) had sup-
planted the waders. I obtained however one Flamingo,
and was assured by many persons that they are occasionally
found dead under the newly-constructed military telegraph,
as well as " Ganga " (Sandgrouse) and other birds. The

32 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

commonest bird at Bougzoul was the English Skylark, next
to that the Calandra, and then Reboud's Lark (Calendrella
minor, Cab. ; C. reboiidia, Tristram). The Skylarks were
still in flocks, but the Calandras had paired.

February nth. Went a twelve-mile drive in the broiling
sun with the keeper of the caravanserai. At some Arab
tents we were entertained with coffee, hot bread, and Msab
dates, in return for which we gave our hosts as much powder
and shot as we could spare. Coming home wc saw eight
Cranes (Grns cinerca) marching abreast across the plain in
the grey twilight. We guided the cart nearly to within
gunshot, when they all ran together with their heads up,
and without uttering any call, slowly sailed away, to seek
safer quarters in the adjoining marsh. There is just enough
traffic to mark a road over the desert to Ain-oussera, a
lonely caravanserai with a muddy stream winding before the
entrance. Nothing but a scanty herbage clothes the plain,
a coarse kind of grass, to the height of two or three feet,
(different from u^hat grows in the zveds) forming a bleak
retreat for the Desert Wheatear, the Dotterel, and the
Tawny Pipit. Well may Dr. Tristram term this place "a
genuine piece of desert." In front, behind, and on either
side stretches the vast Sahara. Sometimes level, often un-
dulating, like a great sea of sand it stretches away. In
some places the soil is soft and sandy (where it is red it is
very soft), in some, hard and pebbly; but the herbage is
everywhere reduced to a minimum. Every chott and
SebkJira* is coated with a saline incrustation, and the tan-
talising mirage leads the traveller to suppose that he has
in view a magnificent lake. Seen from afar the resemblance
is perfect, but as he draws near, the mists are dissipated, and
the lake resolves itself into bushes, rocks, or even camels.

As the setting sun sheds its glare over this treeless plain of

** Salt lakes of more or less extent.

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 33

Ain-oussera, and the shadows lengthen, one feels inclined to
speculate on the not distant period when bands of lawless
Bedouins roamed over the desert now so completely brought
under French jurisdiction. Should the Nomads again
break out, a (ew days will suffice to bring a column from
Algiers sufficient to subdue any insurrection. Aleanwhile
the Barbary states remain at peace, from the palm-shaded
oases of Tripoli to the bazaars and gardens of Moorish
Tangiers, and not even the reverses in the terrible Franco-
German war emboldened the Bedouin to attempt another
rising, so deep is their respect for the "chassepot," and for
French military organisation.

February \2tJ1. Breakfasted sumptuously offaHoubara
Bustard (Houbara uiidulata, Bp.), an agreeable change after
the customary meal of goat. This magnificent bird is still
common. I saw three at Ain-oussera, and afterwards at
Lairhouat no less than seven were brought to me. In one
old cock the feathers which composed the ruff were seven
inches long.

The master of the caravanserai killed a pair of Grey-
headed Wagtails. I afterwards obtained some brilliant
specimens at Laghouat. One had a white throat, dark
ear-coverts, and no white line from the eye to the beak.
But this variety, generally called Biidytes einereicapida
(Savi), merges on one side into B. flava (L.), and on the
other to B. melanoccpJiala (Liclit), and has no constant
characters to establish its specific difference. Loche ob-
tained the three, and treats them as separate (Catalogue,
p. 80) ; but subsequent research has proved that B. ciiicreica-
Dilla at any rate is not a good species.

It was not until the 13th of March that I noticed a Hoopoe
(UpHpa cpops). It happened to be Sunday, and I was re-
clining on a stack, when at a distance I observed what at
first I took to be some great Creeper coming right at me.
I marked where he settled, watched his habits a considerable

D

34 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

time, and the next day shot him. Though I have since had
the rare chance of scrutinizing this bird in England * it did
not afford me so much pleasure as this my first encounter
with it at Ain-oussera. Afterwards I saw a pair at Laghouat
feeding on a path, near to which the commandant had
planted a row of willows, and one of them flew up to rub
its bill against a branch, a very common action in birds to
get rid of soil after feeding. On going to the place I dis-
covered a number of dead locusts under the trees. Now
was the Hoopoe feeding on them ?

The tongue in this species is very small, hence there is no
groove on the inside of the lower mandible.

MarcJi \Afth. Shot a Desert Wheatear, which had lost
seven toes ! It was a female, the only female I obtained.
Saxicola homochroa (Trist.) is stated by Mr. Dresser to be
referable to the female of this species (P. Z. S., 1874, p. 225).
A rather favourite perch of the Desert Wheatear is the
Laghouat telegraph wire, on which the French there pin
their faith, and to cut which would be the greatest crime an
Arab could commit, for it would be tantamount to rebellion.

Guelt-El-Stel. March 20th. I came here on the i6th,
having passed — novel sight — a clump of trees about forty
feet high. On one was a Moorish Magpie, on another a
Raven, on another a Neophron or Egyptian Vulture,
Doubtless in a month's time each -tree would have its nest.
Two armed Arab troopers came to the caravanserai with
five prisoners, also Arabs ; they had chains round their
necks. They reminded me of the poor prisoners I have
seen in chains marching through the streets of Moscow.
Among other birds that I collected here were the Stapazine
Wheatear (Saxicola rufa) and Tree Pipit ; the latter with
flesh-coloured claws, but precisely like ours in other respects,
and coming north with the migratory tide. By Monsieur

• In May, 1874, at Leyton in Essex (cf. Zoologist, 4035).

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 35

Taczanouski this Pipit was seen continually, (Zoologist,
p. 2584) "from after the month of March."

2 1 St. Our route lay between Zahrez and Sebka Zahrez,
great shallow lakes, stated by Canon Tristram to be nearly
thirty miles long in wet weather. I could not go near
enough to them to see the myriads of Flamingos which he
saw, but on one of the streams which flows into them I ob-
served a Tern, probably of the White-winged species. At
Rocher-de-Sel the soil becomes more sandy, while a frost-
like whiteness coats the plain. After passing the Salt
Mountains (from which the caravanserai takes its name),
the country assumes a more fertile appearance. These
mountains are worth a visit. At a little distance they pre-
sent a blue appearance.

At Djelpha I witnessed an interesting spectacle. An
Arab tribe with upwards of a hundred camels and numerous
horses were getting ready for an expedition, and were
having a grand review before starting. Tearing as hard as
they could go over the plain in pairs, they suddenly caused
their horses to swerve — one to the right, the other to the
left — discharging, as they wheeled round, their long guns at
the feet of the spectators. The white burnouses waving in
the air, the clouds of dust, and the cries of the combatants,
made this wild fantasia the more like a battle, while the
eye was arrested by their swarthy visages and the splendid
trappings of their horses. Eight gaudy palanquins (each
borne by a camel, and surmounted with a bundle of sticks
and a tuft of leaves,) contained the wives of the chief Agha.
Doubtless mounted on his best Mahri* camels, they in the
hour of battle would be kept in the rear, that they might be
ready to escape into the wilderness, should the day go
against their Bedouin lord.

At this place Roman ruins terminate. None are known

* The tall white Dromedary of the Touareg Arabs.

36 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

further south, which would seem to attest that beyond
Djelpha the Romans never penetrated into the Sahara.
As I was in haste to get to Laghouat I did not sleep
at Djelpha, but pressed on as soon as dinner was over.
Near the " Assassination Rock," so named from several
dreadful murders having been committed there, we passed
through a small flight of locusts, and that was the only
incident worth mentioning, until tired and weary we beheld
the banner of France floating over the fortress of El
Aghouat, the pearl of the desert, the key of the Great
Sahara. Laghouat (Lar'ouat) or El Aghouat, according
as we prefix the French or Arab article, is the last French
outpost. So far civilization extends and no further; be-
yond is nominal submission of the " tribus indigenes," men
who, like the Chamba and the Touareg, trust to the fleet-
ness of their camels, and own no master. An exception
only must be made in the case of the Mzab, who are a
peaceful nation and the good allies of the French.

Situated on the right bank of the river Mzi — I should
hesitate to say river, for it is only in wet seasons that there
is any water — Laghouat is, in fact, the first oasis. Twenty
thousand matchless palms encompass the town, forming a
noble belt of verdure, beneath which the vine, the fig, the
pomegranate, and the apricot interlace their foliage, ming-
ling in rank confusion. About half a mile to the north the
"river" forms a small marsh, which I found to be an ex-
cellent collecting ground. Nearly all the houses are white,
flat-roofed, and made of mud-bricks. The same materials
partition off the Arab gardens. In the centre of the town,
and half way between the two forts, is the Place de Randon,
named after Marshal Randon. It is a neat French square,
with a sort of bazaar on one side and the officers' club on
the other, embellished by about a dozen palms. Many of
the streets are entirely occupied by Arabs, and present a
very uninviting appearance. The heat inducing a natural

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 37

apathy amonc^ these gentry, some of them are generally to
be seen stretched at full length on the pavement, wrapped in
the universal burnous, which approximates so nearly in
colour to sand and boulders, that at Boghari I used to find
it very hard to distinguish them. Without a burnous you
never see an Arab. These garments have no arms, but are
open down the middle, so that when the wearer applies
himself to manual labour, he must either throw one side
over his shoulder or take it off altogether, and the lazy
Arabs universally do the former.

Banish from your mind all high-flown sentiment, for
there is nothing picturesque about them. The French
have improved away the old stock, and the present people
are their degenerate descendants. Not so the Chamba and
the Touareg, wild tribes of the true desert, who still cherish
a deadly hatred towards that people against whom their
hardy fathers swore eternal enmity.

There are very few French besides the military, and they
lose no opportunity of endeavouring to render themselves
more popular ; but it is misspent energy. The old antipathy
still exists, and the Arabs are and ever will be jealous of
them. By nature a distrustful people, they deem every
improvement an innovation. Their masters may strive to
ingratiate themselves by acts of kindness, but they cannot
put down popular feeling, any more than they can obliterate
the remembrance of the severity with which the rebellion
of 1864 was met, a severity which perhaps was necessary,
but which will ever rankle in the bosoms of a vancjuished
people.

]\Iarc]i 2/[tk. Shot two Aquatic Warblers ( Acroccphahis
aquaticns). The legs are rather whiter than the Sedge
Warbler's, and the iris is not red as figured by Dr. Bree,
but dark brown. I found them chiefly in the rushes. They
are restless little birds, but sometimes they settle at the
bottom of a reed, and then is the best chance of getting them.

38 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

April 2,rd. I strolled to-day in an easterly direction to a
place where I had shot one of a pair of Galerida macro-
rJiynca (Trist.), G. randoni {Loche. Revue et Mag., de
Zool., April, i860, p. 148, plate XL, fig. 2), and found the
other apparently mated again. They are the only ones I
have seen here, though Canon Tristram found them " abun-
dant near Laghouat." They were quite tame, and evidently
meant to nest if they had not eggs already. While I was
watching them, a number of shadows attracted my attention,
and looking up I saw a flight of locusts overhead. I have
been several times made aware of locusts by first seeing
their shadows on the ground. I must not omit to state that
I shot a Blue-throated Warbler (Cyanecula lencocyanca ?),
with the chest spot partly white and partly red. Un-
fortunately it was too much shattered for preserving. Loche
mentions having shot near Brouage specimens with the
chest spot "roussatre" (Exploration, Sc. V., p. 224),

Every evening, almost before the sun went down, I used
to hear the hooting of the Little Owls ( Atliene glaitx, Sav.),
and again at daybreak I could hear them. The ear in this
species is nearly round, and not large for an Owl. One day
I observed a Black Wheatear (Saxicola Icnciird) on some
rocks in the town. As the eye wanders over the dreary
landscape, it is a relief to see one of these handsome fellows
spreading his tail on a grey rock, and displaying himself to
advantage as the pairing season approaches. I have found
on this Saxicole a formidable white-bodied tick with eight
legs. The Frenchmen at Laghouat call them "Merle de
Roche," a name applied by Buffon to the Rock Thrush.
On another occasion I saw a Goldfinch in the town. This
common species yields in beauty to none. To my mind, if
you see them in the sunshine, they are brighter than the
brightest butterflies ; but African specimens of many birds
surpass English in richness of colouring. Loche adds that
as a rule they are smaller, but this is certainly not the case

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 39

with the Tawny Owl (Strix ahico, Lin.), of which there are
two very large specimens in the Algiers Museum, and which
the late Mr. Verreaux proposed to describe as a distinct
species, and name after my father.*

On Sunday, happening to be out for a stroll, I observed
twelve Vultures at a distance, circling round a mountain ;
and having nothing to do, I determined to cultivate their
nearer acquaintance. When however I got to the foot I
counted them again and there were were only eleven, but
the twelfth, while I was wondering what had become of him,
leisurely turned out from behind a boulder, not fifty paces
from me, and displaying the huge body and pinions of a
stately Griffon (Gyps fiilviis) slowly sailed away to where
his mates were still performing their aerial evolutions. That
he had been gorging I have no doubt, which would account
for his tameness, for on no other occasion did I ever get so
near one, though I often saw them at a distance.

I will only mention the Swallow for the sake of saying
that it is a mistake to suppose that this bird, or any of the
European Hinuidinidcv (except Cotylc rupcstris, the most
stay-at-home of all the family,) pass the winter in Algeria.
It was not until the end of February that I observed
Swallows, and I am convinced that few, if any, remain
throughout the year. On the 26th and 27th of March we
experienced a very cold wind at Laghouat, and so be-
numbed were they that hundreds might have been killed
with stones. The poor birds were to be seen sitting about
in all directions. I shall not forget one affecting incident
of which I was a witness. I found a Swallow lying dead in
the town with its mate beside it, and although the poor
creature had been some time dead, she would not leave it.
Constant to her post beside its head, she sang (if their notes

* Specimens of this Algerian race are preser\-ed in the Norwich
Museum.

40 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

can be called anything more than a twitter,) and heeded
not my approach until I could almost have touched her ;
and before I had gone three yards she was back again. I
quite felt for the unlucky little bird, as I watched her trying
to restore her partner to life by every means in her power,
and wailing out her lamentations at her vain efforts. The
House Martin was so far affected by the same cold wind of
March 27th, that I found many in the early morning upon
the sand, and others clinging to the mud-brick walls which
partition off the gardens. I caught some with my hat,
which will give an idea of their extreme feebleness.

While enumerating the principal birds, I wish also to
make some mention of other animals. Once I shot what I
suppose to have been a Short-tailed Marmot, and occasion-
ally I could have shot Hares, but did not, as they would
have been too much trouble to carry home. I brought
back to England a Panther's skin, a brace of Boar tusks, a fine
head of Gazelle, Gazclla dorcas, (of my own preparing)
and several curiosities in mythellated spirits, including a
Chameleon exactly like one of my father's, which he had
alive and kept a long time by feeding it on meal worms.
In every direction are to be seen the singular footprints of
the Jerboa, or jumping mouse, whose holes perforate the
plain. I got one and kept it alive some days. I found two
huge frogs at the foot of a garden wall, on the edge of
the marsh. Large Lizards were often brought in. Con-
cerning them and Serpents I shall have something to say in
another place. On the brink of the stream which feeds the
small and half-dry marsh, there are a good many water
tortoises. When one gets near them they slip into the deep
water like English flounders. I do not remember having
ever seen any Butterflies, but Beetles of every size and
shape swarm. The Ant of the desert digs a curious struc-
ture, though not on the scale of magnitude of its mor^

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 4I

southern relatives, as described to us by many African
travellers.

I left Laghouat on the 9th of April for the Mzab. For
this expedition I had engaged by way of a Dragoman an
Arab named Mahommed Belhuri, and another to act under
him, named Mzoud. We bestrode two mules, and behind
us came Mzoud on a camel, beneath whose belly slung a
goat-skin containing our water for three or four days. I
had also a joint of meat, a keg of wine, a dozen new loaves,
six boxes of sardines, a German sausage, a supply of cheese,
a paper of cigars, the first and second volume of Sclater's
" Ibis," and a new journal-book. Thus armed and equipped
I proposed to explore the Mzab country, and see if the
inhabitants were the fiery sons of Ishmael which they had
been represented to be. By ten a.m. we sallied out of the
south gate, breathing all manner of slaughter against rare
birds, and began our journey. As we rode along I shot two
new to me, the Bifasciated Lark (CcrthilaiLcia dcsertoruni) ,
and the Bleached Shrike (Lanius latJiora). I never got the
former again in Algeria, but I saw the latter daily infesting
every Mzab garden. A favourite perch is the bottom of a
Palm's crest, where the fronds are broken short, whence
they dart off to snatch the passing beetle, or rise into the
air after the more high-flying locust. But what are my
guides looking at so intently } A great thick snake. One
of them jammed its head off with a pole. It was, as near
as I remember, about three feet in length, but thick in pro-
portion, with beautifully marked coils, something like our
common Viper's. Only on two other occasions did I see
snakes. There is one sort that the French are very much
afraid of, called the " Vipere a corne." An English tourist
is said to have encased his feet in tin boots as a protection
against them.

Though viewed from the highest rock in Laghouat, the
Southern Sahara had appeared to be a boundless plain, we

43 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST,

soon descried dayats* ahead, and halting beneath their
welcome shade, consumed our fruoal huich. Attentive
Mohammed had provided a repast of roasted locusts, which
tasted something like shrimps. The remains of a fire and
the horns of a Gazelle showed that some travellers had
been there before us.

When the sun sank to her rest, our first day's journey
Avas ended. We had reached more clumps of trees —
Jujubes, Terebinths, Olives, etc. ; all the larger ones had
Ravens' nests on them ; and I may here remark that the
Ravens of Algeria appear to be much smaller than English
ones. They moreover breed in society. In 1S67, L. Tacza-
nouski, of the Warsaw Museum, was so struck with this
difference in size that he refused to catalogue them as
Corvns corax (Zoologist, p. 2587) ; and Lieut-Col. Irb}' has
since bcsto\\'ed the name of Corvns tiiigitaiius on this variety
(Ibis for 1S74, p. 264). Ravens are proverbial for their
shyness, and I never had the luck to shoot one. Though
glad to find other's carrion, or to make carrion of them if
he can do it with impunity, as some writer has observed, the
Raven takes good care that none shall make carrion of him.
I have seen one pursue a bird of prey for a quarter of a mile,
and on one occasion I witnessed a sharp fight between a
Kite and a Raven, in which the blows of their wings could
be plainly heard like distant pistol shots.

Early next morning we descried some tents, where we
were treated to dates, sheep's milk, and the staple dish
couscous. This, their favourite repast, is served on a carpet,
which is always spread on the arrival of strangers, for no
Algerian would invite you to sit upon the ground. I ob-
served several pairs of Bushchats (Saxicola mcusia, Licht.,
6". philopJitJiamna, Trist.), hopping about it. They are pretty

• Davats are miniature oases where there is no constant supply of
water, and consequently no palms, though other trees grow there.

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 43

birds. Mr. Dresser, in the "Birds of Europe," part XVII.,
says : —

" One of the least known of tlic Chats ; this species has a very
restricted range, and has hitherto only been met with in North-
western Africa, Palestine, and Persia, not having as yet been re-
corded from any portion of the large intervening tract of country."

He states that in summer the cock is much brighter than
in winter, and figures the former plumage from a specimen
obtained by Loche, who appears to have got them about
the same time as Canon Tristram, but to have considered
them the same as Dronwlcca isabclUna (cf. Ibis, 1S59, p. 299).

Hanging in the tent wc had come to were the head
and foot of a Griffon Vulture (jiissr), whilst several kids
w^ere tethered to a cord inside, and outside others gambolled,
and occasionally got upon the roof. Not far off two
Egyptian Vultures, an old one and a young one, were dis-
cussing the skeleton of a defunct animal. They are most
effective scavengers, never, I believe, leaving a carcass while
a bone remains unpicked. The young one permitted a very
near approach, but the old one was more wary. Well
known are they to the Arabs by their name of Rackma.
Here I had opportunity of looking at the women, who in
general are so jealously guarded by their masters as to be
invisible to the stranger's inquisitive eye. They are short
and bent, probably from carrying heavy waterskins. They
appear to be kind to their children, and give them bracelets
and earrings made of shells, beads, and bright pieces of tin.
But the Arab himself has few ornaments to deck his shabby
tenement. In flocks and herds his wealth consists. If
there be enough tents to form a circle, these are driven in
and folded at night, and are guarded by dogs of a savage
breed against the Hyenas and Jackals which are lurking in
the iveds. The Arab is his own cobbler, and a rough sort
sort of (laced) boot he makes, but I suppose he thinks it
better than walking barefoot over the soil, which in some

44 KAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

places is covered with pebbles, and in others with small
bright stones. On the sand he prefers to go barefoot.
Socks are not worn by the poorer class. Every man carries
a knife, professedly for eating, but also for defence when
occasion requires, and I fear for offence also, the " piping
times of peace " being not much known in those dark lands.
It is slung round his waist, and kept in its sheath by a piece
of string passed through a hole in the handle. All classes
tattoo themselves more or less, and Jicnna is in great re-
quest among them, for staining their nails pink.

Having added to our party an Arab named Ateya
Banateya, whose local knowledge for the next few miles
Avould be a great assistance to us, we now began to pass
through a vast plain, slightly undulating, interspersed with
dayats, each a mile or half a mile apart. Ateya inveighed
against the French for imprisoning his son at Marseilles,
who had joined in the revolt ; while Mohammed beguiled
the time with an account of how when a boy he had gone
to war with his father, and killed a man by spearing him in
the back ; which was no doubt very plucky, but some rough
unhewn stones by the wayside had a deeper tale for me
than the exploits of either of them. I judged them to be
the graves of wayfarers who had in all probability perished
of thirst. They may have been the very cairns which
Canon Tristram and Mr. Peed reverently contributed a
stone to. Meanwhile I was on the " qui vive " for every-
thing. [This region has been visited by only two ornitholo-
gists, while the route from Waregla to Gardames is still a
"terra incognita" to naturalists; for if the unfortunate
M. M. Dupere and Joubert, who were murdered near that
city, made any collections, they perished with them. I
am convinced that an expedition there would repay any
naturalist, for he would infallibly meet with forms of desert
life unknown to science, and I would recommend him to
pay particular attention to the Chats and Larks.]

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 45

I saw Ravens, Kestrels, Pigeons, Turtle Doves, and Hoo-
poes, and other birds which I did not know, but we were
pressed for time and could not collect many. I shot one small
bird not unlike a VVhitethroat, which I have no doubt was a
Spectacled Warbler (Sylvia conspicillata) . Canon Tristram
calls it " the common and characteristic Warbler of the
whole Sahara" (Ibis I., p. 417) ; but I only shot one other,
and that was a female at Laghouat. Nearly every Terebinth
of any size carried several nests, and the ground beneath
them was white with the droppings of birds. As we rode
along, the Desert Horned Lark (Otocorys bilopJia) ran before
us, and twice I saw a benighted Wryneck crouching on the
plain. Here was indeed a glorious country for a collector.
I kept a look out for Ostriches, but never had the good
fortune to see any. " The capture of the Ostrich," says
Dr. Tristram, "is the greatest feat of hunting to which the
Sahara sportsman aspires : and in richness of booty, it ranks
next to the plunder of a caravan." To this I may add, that
the feathers and the eggs are so highly prized, that they are
worth more at Laghouat than in London. " A skin in full
plumage is worth on the spot from 40 to lOO Spanish
dollars," i.e. £22. Step by step civilization is driving this
brevipennate southwards. Like the Garefowl of Geir fugla
drangr (Alca inipcnnis), its ancient haunts know it no
longer ; like that flightless bird, its appearance, its actual
name will be forgotten, and in process of time its existence
will become a matter of tradition to be talked about
over the camp fire with the Roc and other legendary
birds. So surely as the advancing hunter substitutes his
express rifle for the firelock of the Arab will the Ostrich
forsake the desert's fringe and seek an asylum far beyond
the country of dates. Does not its impending extinction
in the country I passed over typify the decay of the Nomad
in the Northern Sahara .-"

About noon on the second day we came to water, the

46 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

first we had seen since we started ; it was dirty, but my
guides pronounced it drinkable. A Gazelle (Gazclla dorcas),
which was quenching its thirst, suffered a near approach, but
bounded over the plain when we were within sixty yards.
I often saw these graceful animals, but they were generally
very shy. When browsing at a distance they look like
herds of sheep, though a practised eye can distinguish them
in a minute. Once I was offered a lovely fawn alive, which
I surmise had been caught in a trap set for Bustards in the
LalpJia grass. I have seen them in confinement, but I have
heard that they are very difficult things to rear successfully.
We were obliged again to sleep in the open air. The
Arabs kindled a fire, but it was bitterly cold. The wind
had got up during the day, and at 9 p.m. it rained in
torrents: of course our fire was speedily extinguished. The
gusts now howled over the Sahara, vivid lightning shot
across the sky, and terrific peals of thunder shook the
firmament. In vain we shifted to the other side of the
bush, under the lea of which we had endeavoured to obtain
shelter : everything was completely soaked. We were in
the saddle again before daybreak, but my wet burnous
hung on me like a dead weight. The heavy rains of the
preceding night seemed to have converted the Sahara into
an expanse of mud. At length the Mozabite town of
Berryan hove in sight, and leading our mules up a some-
what steep ascent, we beheld the panorama of her Palm
gardens, all of which had been laid under water by the
recent rains. A carpet was quickly spread in an unoccupied
house called the guest house, and the chief, with about
thirty other Arabs, squatted round us in a circle. While
Mohammed detailed our adventures I produced the cre-
dentials which had been furnished by the " Commandant
superieur" at Laghouat, and which were of the greatest
possible service to us. Let me here thank that gentleman,
and everyone also who contributed to the success of the ex-

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 47

pedition, for their courtesy to a stranger — a courtesy more
stamped on the French than on any nation in the civilized
world.

Calling for a pipe (scbsi) and some tobacco, I had an
opportunity of seeing the way the Mzab smoke. They
brought me the bone of a sheep, about six inches long, with
a bit of black leather fastened at the end. It was hollowed
out, and in this makeshift for a bowl was inserted about
half as much tobacco as one would put into an ordinary
briar-root. The tobacco was quite green* and very strong,
but fatigued as we were with the journey it was very accept-
able, and had a soothing effect.

It \vas a two-storied court where we were located. In
the rafters I observed a pair of House Buntings (Fri)igiUaria
saharm, Bp.). As this desert species is so little known in
Europe, and as I was the first to bring the eggs and young
to England, I shall be excused for copying '\\\ detail the
account of it contributed by me to the " Ibis."

" Emberiza SaJiari (Levt.) " Exploration Scientifique de I'Algerie."
Plate IX., Bis. fig. 2. House Bunting of Tristram.

" I think every house in Gardaia is tenanted by a pair of House
Buntings. They are e lually common in the other ]\Izab cities. A
nest in the inner court at Berryan was upon some plaster in a large
square hole. It contained one young one, yellow about the gape,
and covered with a whitish down. It was a shallow nest made of
the thin twigs of firewood, and lined with hair. The hen generally
flew to it from the edge of the opposite wall. As I afterwards
found other nests, I was able to make further observations. I think
the eggs must be deposited in March, as in most instances the
young had been hatched off. Judging from the one at Berryan,
which had flown when I returned to that place on the last day of
the month, the young remain in the nest at least twenty-one days.
On the 23rd of April I saw a nestling full grown and able to feed

*" The tobacco smoked by the fellaheen of Egypt, which they call
Siecdy, is green.

48 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

itself, which must have been hatched about the ist. The eggs are
rather Hke Sparrows' eggs, but rounder. I only got three. Dr.
Tristram did not get any, and there are none in the Museum at
Algiers. The nest is generally, but not always, placed in a hole,
and is composed of twigs or little sticks, and lined with hair, with
sometimes the addition of wool or a bit of cotton. On one
occasion two were found together, which probably belonged to the
same bird, as one of them was unfinished. The young are less
noisy than Sparrows : the female brings them food about every ten
minutes ; and they never chirp except when they see her. I never
could detect anything in her beak, or see on what she fed them,
although I watched the operation often ; so I do not doubt that
.she reproduces what she has eaten for the benefit of her callow
offspring. Until the young leave the nest the male takes no share
in feeding them. The female bears away the faeces. The males
sing much the loudest, indeed the females never do more than
twitter ; but the cock pours forth a lively strain during the season
of incubation. They are as tame as Robins. Frequently one
would hop upon our carpet, to search for fragments of couscous,
scrutinizing us within a few feet with his dark brown trustful eye.
They are iiearly omnivorous. I caught one in a trap baited with
grain, and saw another nibbling green carrot leaf; and once the
female at Berryan made her appearance with a large fly, which was
not swallowed without a great effort and after much mastication.
They drank out of our goatskin, fluttering and clinging to the wall
for the moisture which had oozed through. For a few seconds
before settling down for the night I used to see them "hovering"
perpendicularly, with quivering wings and tail brought forward.
Half circles of accumulated droppings under the rafters showed
where they roosted."

Near this town I saw examples of the Woodchat, and
White-headed Rock Chat ( Saxicola kncoccpJiala), now united
with Saxicola Iciicopygia ; while the Egyptian Turtledove
(Turtiir cgyptiacus, Tern.) was so common, that I had only
to take my stand in a garden and load and fire until as
many had been killed as I required. Directly one falls the

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA, 49

Arabs rush up to it to cut its throat before it dies, and I
soon found out that they would never cook any which did
not die by the knife. Of course they ruin everything for
stuffing. A splendid Golden Eagle, which Dr. Tristram
shot, was served in this way. The natives do not shoot the
Doves, simply because they do not think them worth
powder, which the French traders are not allowed to sell
them under any pretence. They come among the houses
and peck and walk about the tents exactly like tame
pigeons. They were not then paired. Neither were the lovely
Bee-eaters ( Merops apiastcr), many of which I saw irradia-
ting the landscape by their beautiful colours. In their
buo}'ant and graceful flight, Bee-eaters are not unlike
Martins. Few birds surpass them in beauty as they glide
nearly motionless through the air (except when a momen-
tary rapid beating of the wings is necessary to gather
impetus). Like a meteor they glitter in the sunlight for a
moment and are gone.

Berryan is a town of some 400 houses, surrounded by a
mud-brick wall with a good many small towers. They are
pierced for musketry, and have been used on various
occasions for defence against the Chamba. The wall is
surmounted by a fence of thorns, which serves as a favourite
perch for the Pallid Shrike (Laniiis lahtora, Sykes ; L.
pallens, Cass. ; L. dealbatus, De Filippi). Messrs. Sharpe
and Dresser say they have never seen nestlings of this
species. I got one on the 25th of April just able to fly.
All the upper surface, which is grey in the adult, is ashy
brown, faintly barred, the lore and ear-covets are very faint,
as well as the other parts which are black in an adult, but
the breast and underparts are the same, the beak in my
skin is yellow.

The loftiest building in the town is the Mosque ; its tower
is in the shape of an obelisk ; but what interested me most
was the wells. In my paper read on my return to the

E

50 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Norwich Naturalists' Society, I endeavoured to describe the
method of drawing water; but Canon Tristram's description
is so much better, that I will quote it.

" But the machine for drawing water from the well is both
original and ingenious. There is a double pulley and a large
leathern bucket slung by pulleys across the beam. The water-
drawer holds two ropes, one of which draws up the bucket, which
has a leathern funnel at the end of it, to which the second rope
running on the other pulley is attached. This second rope, when
the bucket reaches the top, turns the tube into the cistern,-- on the
same principle which we see adopted in some English mines."
(1. c. 134.)

The drawer is generally assisted by a camel, or sometimes
a brace of mules pull the cord. There is always an inclined
pathway for them to run down, which materially lessens the
labour. There is no garden without its well, and some of
them are very deep. The wheel reaches to at least ten feet
above the ground. Little trenches convey the water all
about the garden, as the sand would soon soak it up ; these
trenches, says Canon Tristram, are " beautifully formed of
hard lime, and branching in all directions from the well, so
that the precious fluid could be conveyed without the slightest
waste through the grounds." He considers the cultivation
in these gardens " far superior to that of Laghouat," but the
southern oasis is capable of greater things. The water is
limpid and tasteless. All day long the Mzab haul it up.
" The Mzab work always " has become a saying. Men,
women, and children toil in the gardens, even in the noon-
tide hours when no European could venture out of doors.

There are two cemeteries, one with a row of common
earthenware urns on each grave, and the other without.
Canon Tristram gives a woodcut of the urns in his work.
A Marabout, or Sheik's tomb, was distinguished by some

* Generally a stone tank, sometimes two.

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 5 1

flags, but not by any Ostrich eggs as some of those at
Gardaia were.

On the 14th news came that the Touareg — a lawless
tribe of robbers — were assembling in force on the Waregla
route ; and the following day a letter was brought to me
(in Arabic) with tidings of a great camel "razzia" at Zergoun,
(which though not in our road, lay to the north of us,) in
which 2,000 camels had been carried off, and it was said six
men killed, but I did not place much reliance on this latter
statement. The " Spahis," Arab soldiers in French pay,
were in hot pursuit, but with little chance of coming up with
the fugitives. Trusting that they would not come on our
Avay, we on the 16th left Berryan and travelled to Gardaia,
which is the chief city of the Mzab confederation.

Our road lay through a dreary tract of country — stony,
brown, and mountainous — save at rare intervals, where the
dull prospect was suddenly broken by a patch of green,
formed by the rain collecting in a hollow ; but these fresh
spots were few and far between. In this ride Canon Tristram
got Dupont's Lark, a species I never met with.

And now by narrow defiles our cavalcade drew near the
capital. I could not help thinking, as often as I reined in
my mule, what awful havoc the long guns of the Arabs
would make with an invading army in such a place ; and
no doubt for them many a winding pass teems with
historic interest. That the city has figured in more than
one sanguinary conflict the bullet marks on the walls testify.
But who will forget the first view of Gardaia .-• Standing
upon a gentle eminence, crowned by the never-failing
Mosque — her flat-roofed houses rising tier over tier above
the evergreen Palm trees, the ancient Arab city bursts upon
your view.

It is too hot to go out in the middle of the day, her
gardens therefore should be visited in the cool of the
morning, or in the red blush of sunset. Then the woods

52 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

resound with joyous carols, while the sparkling Bee-eater,
the painted Roller, and the gilded Oriole flicker in the
foliage — a veritable naturalist's paradise!

Nothing can exceed the fertility of the oasis. Vines, sur-
passing any which I ever saw in size and luxuriance, were
bent with many an unripe cluster, trained from Palm-stem
to Palm-stem, and all the Figs, and Pomegranates, and
Apricot trees were loaded with green fruit, while high over-
head there towered six-and-fifty thousand Date Palms. I
saw the last red rays of the setting sun as they shed a
golden pathway through the trellissed stems, grander than
the grandest palace.

I had now come, as I calculated, about 430 miles from
the sea, in a nearly direct line due south from Algiers —
only one or two Englishmen have to my knowledge ever
penetrated further.

An inquisitive mob gathered round us in the market
place — brawny men and /ie7ina-sta.med children pressed for-
ward, or mounted on the bench of justice with cries of
surprise. Doubtless many of the latter had never seen a
white face before. The Guest house was in the market
place ; it had two doors, and three apertures which did duty
for windows. As it was three-storied I used the bottom
part for the mules, received guests on the second floor, and
kept the top story for skinning and writing. Canon Tristram
gives a picture of it (1. c). How strange to be quartered
in the same room of the same house where he and Mr.
Peed were, fourteen years before !

While we awaited the arrival of a negro with a ponderous
iron key, I could not help noticing how many there were
in the crowd who were blind. Alas! ophthalmia is only
too prevalent among them. When we had washed and
taken coffee, which is an indispensable ceremony among
the Arabs, the chief led the way to the Jews' quarter. We
entered the house of a wealthy Hebrew. The Rabbi, as I

TPIE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 53

suppose him to have been, was reading in the doorway.
He rose on the entry of Simhamed Betoumi (that I beHeve
to have been the name of my conductor,) with many genu-
flections. As he seemed anxious to show me everything,
we walked all over his house without any ceremony.
There were texts upon the walls, and printed books which
appeared to be portions of the Old Testament. The man
was a silversmith. Before leaving I was invited to partake
of the thin Jews' bread, and some absinthe, the most
dangerous of all spirituous liquors.

I found that the Mzab sheiks knew the name of London,
and some very curious questions were asked me through
the interpreter about its extent ; also about the Queen and
our navy — whether we had more men-of-war than the
French, etc. .'' I catechising them in return about their
manners and customs. They evidently supposed that I
had come to inspect the products of the country with a view
to commerce.

I had often asked my attendant to get me an opportunity
of seeing the Mosque, but knowing the prejudices of the
Arabs, and that he was himself a Mahommedan, it was
quite unlooked for when the chiei's sanction came one
morning, and a Christian and a stranger I passed up the
slippery ascending passage, by which the faithful draw near
the sanctuary at Gardaia ; but I was not to be permitted to
enter. From the top of the roof only might the Christian
dog look down upon the worshippers. In an inner open
court, some forty feet square, about a dozen devotees are
chanting, in a low monotonous tone, the prayers which
Mahomet commanded. No verses from the Koran, no
gilded lamps, no mural decorations, only the same
reiterated wailing chant. But my attendant hints that we
are there by stealth, so after briefly noticing that they keep
the Jiaik on, (for their heads are shaven) I slip away from
the precincts and return to the Guest house, glad to have

54 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

seen the Moslem devotees, and to have had a glance into
the interior of their Mosque. There are two towers, one
perfect, the other leaning ; the court alluded to is not
directly beneath either of them.

We stayed until Friday for the weekly market, which is
one of the most important in southern Algeria, being far
larger than that at Berry an. It was formerly held outside
the walls, no doubt that tribes from a distance might trade
without seeing the internal arrangements of the city, but
now it is in the market place near the south gate. The
buyers sit, and the sellers walk about among them, calling
over the wares, which consist of woollen stuffs, burnouses,
butter, desert potatoes, and dates of all sorts, as well as live
stock — camels, goats, and sheep — which are brought up by
merchants to be conveyed into the Tell. Jews vend silver
bracelets, and cracked date stones are sold as food for
camels! It is a mart for everything .brought by the cara-
vans, which are constantly going and arriving. Yet it does
not last above three hours. The merchants began to come
about eight o'clock, mounted on Mahri or Mahai-a camels,
from Waregla, and by eleven it was all over.

We were now nearly into May, and though my health
had been wonderfully preserved hitherto, I was anxious, with
the summer coming on, to get back to the coast. If before
I feared the rain and the cold nights, I now dreaded tenfold
more the unendurable mid-day sun. Accordingly on the
22nd we moved to Mellika, determined to make our visits
to the other towns as short as possible. The next day,
strolling out with my gun, I collected specimens of the Pied
Wheatear (Saxicola Icnconicla, Pall), a male in moult, with
the under tail-coverts as nearly white as possible, and a
good deal of grey on the crown, (the gizzard contained a
thick white grub about three quarters of an inch long),
Rock Pigeon, (generally observed in pairs on the rocks,
and not in the palms where the Doves were,) Egyptian

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 55

Turtledove, Common English Turtledove, Pied Flycatcher,
Wood Wren, Willow Wren, House Bunting, and Rock
Chat ( Saxicola Iciicopyga). These Rock Chats are quite
the handsomest birds in the oases. They are very common
about the zveds, (i.e. dry rocky water-courses,) and on the
wells, where I suspect they breed, as I saw some fly down
them. I saw a boy with one which he had doubtless caught
on its nest, tied to a long string which was passed through
its nostrils ! On the 25tli I shot a Roller ( Corracias garrula,
Lin.). Its stomach contained four of the largest beetles.
As might be expected, so rich an oasis affords food and
shelter for many beautiful birds unknown in other lands ;
and one, which from its gay colours has attracted the notice
of all travellers, is the Roller. Accordingly M. M. Peysonnel
and Des Fontaines, in their " Voyages dans les regences de
Tunis et D' Alger," say : —

" On voit aussi le long des rivieres un bel oiseau qu'on nomme
chcr agra. * * * - C'est un espece de Geai : il se
nourrit de sauterelles. Get oiseau est de passage ; il parait en
Barbaric vers le mois de Mai, et y sejourne jusqu'en automne. II
y niche dans des trous le long des rivieres ; son cri est : g>-a, gra,

This work was published in 1838, five years after Des
Fontaines' death. What few birds Des Fontaines collected
are in the Paris Museum. His life was so much taken up
with the study of flowers, that he seems to have only had
time for one ornithological " brochure," entitled " Memoire
sur quelques especes nouvelles d'oiseaux des cotes de Bar-
baric." (Mem. de lAcad. des Sc. (1787), p. 496.) It contains
figures and descriptions of seven species — Otis Hobara
(Houbara 'uiidulata), Tiirdus fuhiis ( Crater opus fiilvns)
Turdus bar bat HS ( Pycnotiotus barbatus), Tctrao syhaticiis
(Tur)iix syhatica), Tetrao fasciatus (Ptcrocks arciiarius),
Falco cQjr ulcus ( Elanus carulcus), Upupa alaudipes (CcrtJii-
lauda dcsertorujn). For a sight of it I am indebted to

56 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Professor Newton. The name alaudipcs for the Bifasciated
or curve-billed Lark, takes precedence I presume of C.
dcsertorum, Stanley, being twenty-four years older ; and in
that case five of Des Fontaines' specific names would be
adopted.

Often in my rambles I intruded on the haunts of the
cunning Cratcropus fulvns, a bird first made known to
science by Des Fontaines. It is exactly the colour of sand,
like so many other birds in these arid regions.*

The venerable Kadi Bouhanimed, who was chief of Mellika
in Dr. Tristram's time, is doubtless gathered to his fathers ;
the present man is Salki Benadulla. Barbaaisa Bembamen
is Kadi of Bou-Noura, and Adown of Benisguen. All
these towns are in the same oasis, and the dry course of the
Wed N'ca winds between them. Bou-Noura is a heap of
ruins ; half the town has been dismantled, and the crumbling,
unroofed, long-deserted houses have grown brown like the
rocks which surround them. El Ateuf and Benisguen are
in better preservation, and contain some shops or magazines,
the principal wares, says Canon Tristram, " being leather,
dyed cloths, and all sorts of materials for tanning and dye-
ing." Benisguen has long been the rival of Gardaia, and
that its inhabitants still aspire to the chieftainship of the
oasis was proved by a new wall which we found them con-
structing, and which affords an instance of the intestine
rivalry which has rendered every stand against the French
abortive. The day is far distant when the burnous will
vanquish the tricolor flag.

We did not start upon our return journey until the last
day of the month. Then bidding a hearty farewell to the
Sheiks, and giving them at their request a certificate of our

* I should think the species observed by Mr. W. T. H. Chambers in
Tripoli (Ibis, 1867, pp. loi and 104) is more likely to have been this
species than C acacice.

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 5/

thorough .satisfaction with our entertainment, to be followed
by a more tangible present of silk burnouses when we got
to Laghouat, we trod once more the inhospitable desert.
One of them was good enough to say he would accompany
me, and I further availed myself of the convoy of two
S/'a/iis, who had been sent with letters from Laghouat.
The first day's journey was performed in a sharp sirocco
wind, and the only rare bird seen was a Houbara Bustard.
I noticed however a Lizard, about two feet long, running
over the stones in the barest part of the sterile chcbka. I
had one brought to me at Laghouat which was more than
three feet long. Berard, in his " Indicateur," says, " On
trouve le Pleitiondon Aldrovandi ou Scinque C}'prien,
gracieux lezard a bee de poisson qui plonge dans le sables
comme un poisson dans I'eau." Perhaps this was the species
I saw. The next morning I shot Aninioniancs rcgtiljis, a
pretty little sand-coloured Lark, described in 1857 by Prince
Bonaparte (Canon Tristram terms it "a very scarce bird,"
and I believe justly,) and Saxicola evytJircca (Ehr), ^. Jialo-
pJdla (Trist.), erroneously given in my list in the " Ibis " as
S. JiouiocJiroa.

When the Chebka Mzab w^as passed, I had further oppor-
tunity of examining the Dayats. It was now the period of
migration (May 2nd), and where there was water they were
teeming with life. It was as if all the spring migrants of
Southern Europe had been compressed into fifty acres.
Beneath every jujube tree — at every thicket — were massed
and congregated all manner of rare birds : — Pied Flycatchers,
Hoopoes, Doves, Rollers, Woodchats — Warblers without
end, seeking shelter from the burning midday sun. The
Neophron (Neophron pcrcnoptcnis ) and the hoarse croaking
Raven perched upon the taller Terebinths. Different sorts
of Sandpipers flew before us, mingling with noisy Shrikes,
while dozing Little Owls, awakened by our approach, dashed
out from the deep foliage and hid themselves again. The

58 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

shores of France and Albion's white cHffs are the migrants'
goal. Like a great tidal wave they press on, dropping I
suspect a few laggards here and there, who, tempted by the
water and rich foliage, remain and rear their progeny in
these glorious Dayats.

This is the country to which the Arabs apply the term
" Sahara^ I know it is the Great Desert which is so
marked in maps, but this is the true " Sahara " — the habit-
able country which ends where all regular supply of water
fails. Of course I worked hard with note-book and scalpel.
Inter alia I procured examples of the Orphean and Subal-
pine Warblers, Abyssinian Crested Lark, and Short-toed
Lark. Canon Tristram and Mr. Salvin did not meet with
the Subalpine Warbler, but M. Taczanouski seems to have
encountered it freely in Constantino. Loche in his catalogue
(p. 69) gives as its habitat — " Le cercle de Milianeh ; " but
it appears not to be included in Germain's " Birds of Miliana,"
a catalogue comprising 162 species. It is an elegant little
species. A cock and hen, shot at Bou-Noura on the 25th of
April, were in perfect plumage.

Mr. Dresser unites Galerida Abyssinica (Bp.) the Abyssin-
ian Crested Lark, with G. c r is tata (Birds of Europe, Part XX.),
but I am sure that my bird is not the same as the common
Crested Larks I shot in the " Tell." I noticed the difference
directly I shot it ; it is a much lighter bird, with a longer
beak. Possibly it may be G. arenicola (Trist), but it signi-
fies little, as Mr. Dresser with a sweeping hand has united
them both with G. cristata. Matters are not helped by a
discrepancy between Canon Tristram's account of G. arenicola
and M. Taczanouski's. The former says, " This bird may be
at once distinguished from its congeners by its bill, which is
extremely elongated" (Ibis, 1859, p. 426); but the latter
remarks — " Like the preceding species (G. cristata), this one
is short-beaked" (Zoologist, 2582).

My Short-toed Lark, Calcndrella bracJiydactyla (LeisL),

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 59

C. Jicruioncjisis (Trist.), has the crown of the head slightly
rufous. In the "Birds of Europe," Part XXII., it is stated
that " M. Taczanouski observed it in the winter in Algeria ; "
but in his list, translated in the Zoologist, that naturalist
says, '' Not seen during the zvhole winter. In the beginning
of March we caught sight of a small flock for the first time."
(ZooL, 2581).

With thankful hearts we rode into Laghouat on Thursday
morning. It was nearly a month since I had seen an
European, and I was not sorry to get back to the comforts of
a bedroom at the hotel. On all hands I heard of the Camel
"razzia" at Zergoun. I might almost say it had created
some uneasinesss. I w'as very glad to take the first
"courrier," and return to Algiers as quickly as possible.
I did not attempt to shoot any more, but at Ain-El-Ibel
I was given a Red-necked Goatsucker (Capriniulgus ruficol-
lis) in fine plumage. The next day being Sunday, I slept
at Guelt-El-Stel, and saw three more of the same species,
apparently attracted by the young locusts with which the
ground was perfectly black in places. It is not included by
either Tristram, Salvin, or Taczanouski. Near Medea I got
the finest Golden Oriole (Oriolus galbula) I ever saw. The
coach stopped to bait at a roadside public-house, the land-
lord of which had shot it on a fruit tree in his garden. Its
stomach contained a mass of hair, apparently that of hairy
caterpillars.

Nothing else worth mentioning occurred until I reached
Algiers. There I saw two more new birds, the Yellow-legged
Herring Gull (Lams lencopJuvns), and the Purple Heron
( Ardea purpurea), the former in the harbour, the latter in a
barber's shop apparently just set up. In crossing to Mar-
seilles I observed Stormy Petrels ( TJialassidroma pelagica)
at the Balearic Isles, and Cinereous Shearwaters (Puffinus
cinereus), both of which may be included in the Algerian
avifauna. Indeed in May, 1856, Dr. Tristram shot eight

60 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Cinereous Shearwaters in the bay in three days. One of
these — the specimen figured by Dr. Bree in his " Birds of
Europe " — through his kindness now enriches my collection.
In addition to these I saw the Cream-coloured Courser
(Cursorius galliais), as I firmly believe, running and flying
before the heads of our mules in the Tibrem country ; Manx
Shearwaters (as already mentioned) when I went by sea
from Oran to Algiers ; and Kites so often in the course of
my wanderings, that I think I may at least include Milvus
ictinns and ]\T. inigrans. Skins of the Greater Spotted
Cuckoo (ChchIhs glandarius) , and Cisalpine Sparrow (Passer
cisalpinus) I bought in Algiers before I went into the
interior, which had been killed in the vicinity. Jays (Gar-
rulus ccrvicalis, Bp.*^ I often saw in cages, though never
wild, and once a dainty Stilt (Hivia?itopus candidiis) shut
up in a rabbit-hutch at Laghouat, and fed by Zouave soldiers
on bread, meat, fish, insects, and rice. At the same place
two Lanner Falcons (Falco hviariiis), taken young from
the nest, were offered to me. I bought one, and on my
return to England deposited it in the Zoological Gardens,
but it only lived three years, probably owing to the pernicious
habit of feeding it on butcher's meat, instead of rats and
rabbits.

Including all the above (except the Stormy Petrel), and
deducting Dromolcva Icucocephala as not a good species, the
total number of birds identified by me in four months was
152. I refrain from including the Lammergayer, though
often in the Atlas I saw large birds of prey which I should
think could scarcely have been anything else, neither do I

* Mr. Dresser states in his "Birds of Europe" that I saw the Jay
at Tibrem and Medea, but there he shghtly misquotes me. It was the
Moorish Magpie, not the Jay, which I saw at those places. The eye in
G. cei'vicalis is exactly the bluish colour of the British Jay's, with an
inner ring of brown.

THE ALGERIAN SAHARA. 6l

reckon the Garganey Teal ; albeit, I flushed a brace of
Ducks on April 4th, which looked uncommonly like them.

ADDENDUM.

In the Ornithological Journal — the " Ibis " — edited by
Salvin, and published by Van Voorst, I have given at pages
68, 2S9 of the 1st vol. of the 3rd series, an extended account
of all the species I positively identified. The following
slight rectifications require to be made.

No. 31. Cincliis aqiiaticus should be Cinclus albicollis
(Vieill).

No. 36. Droinohva Iciicopygia is to be united with No. IJ,
D. leucocephala.

No. 43. Saxicola JiomocJivoa should be vS". erytJircea (Ehr.)
■5". Jialophila (Tristram). The only specimen obtained was
a female at Berryan, on the 30th of April, 1870.

No. 59. Sylvia hortensis. "Only shot one," add "in the
Gardaia oasis, 26th of April."

No. 6^. Sylvia coiispicillata. " Tibrem ; " add " and
Laghouat."

No. 72. Anthits arhorcus. " Common in Summer," should
be " Common in Spring."

No. 80. Calandrclla brachydactyla. " Once seen at
Laghouat," should be "one shot at Laghouat, May 4th,
1870."

No. Z6. Galcrida abyssitiica. The only one obtained was
a female between Tibrem and Laghouat, May 3rd.

No. '^J. Two lines from the bottom. For " Galcrida
abyssinica is found on the hills," read " Galcrida cristatal'

No. 95. Passer salicicola. For "ten near Blida," read
" three near Blida."

No. 104. Pica mauritanica. This Magpie was seen at
Tibrem and Medea.

62 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

No. 1 06. Piciis Diinor. Only met with in the wood of
Oued El Alleg (in the Tell), February 14th, 1870. Figured
in Part XI. of Sharpe and Dresser's "Birds of Europe."

No. 123. (EdkncjHus crepitans. "A fine specimen in
the Algiers market about the end of February," should be
"on the 5th of February."

No. 135. Crex pratcusis. "I found one about the end
of February," should be "on the 3rd of February."

No. 138. Anas clypcata. For the "Market at Algiers,"
read " The markets at Algiers and Oran." "

No. 140. Anas acuta. One in the market at Algiers
about the 7th of February.

Note. — The white variety of the Corn Bunting, so
common in England, is occasionally met with in Algeria.
Canon Tristram obtained one, April 21st, 1856; and
Germain observes that pied specimens are frequently seen
(1. c).

NOTES DURING
THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR.

Feeling very strongly for the French peasantry, who
had lost their all during the ravages of the Franco-German
war, I joined a body of delegates for their succour ; and I
think that some memoranda from a journal kept during
that memorable time will be found interesting. Of course
I had other things to attend to than Natural History, but I
contrived to put together a few ornithological notes. Our
head quarters were at Metz.

December 2)id, 1 870. Starting from Luxembourg, at length
we reached the French frontier. The people at the village
stations said they had had 300 Prussians billeted on them.
Some were kind to the women and children, some were not.
They had had sufficient to eat, and the only thing they
complained of was having their tools taken away. Presently
we passed some more small villages, whose inmates had
deserted them, and then Thionville came in sight. No one
who has not witnessed its effect can realize what war is.
Some of us were looking forward with a strange curiosity,
for in Thionville we had learnt that we should see a dire
sample of the dreadful scourge. Before its calamity fell
upon it, the town must have stood in a wood. Desolate
enough it looked now ; all its trees felled. Everything —
sheds, shrubs, and walls — levelled for a cannon-shot all

64 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

round. But it was worse inside. There its split walls, rent
roofs, and ruined houses, presented a spectacle never to be
forgotten while memory last. Upwards of twenty-five
houses were totally destroyed, and one hundred others ren-
dered uninhabitable. All this was the work of the sugar-
loaf shells,* one of which had pierced the face of the old
church clock, stopping its hands at twenty minutes after
one. The bombardment had begun on the 20th of Novem-
ber at six o'clock in the morning, and continued, with one
short interval of rest, for two days. The victors marched
in on the 26th, and immediately hastened to extinguish the
flames, but two houses were smoking still when we arrived.
The ability displayed in managing the assault was very
great. Before beginning, the Germans divided their artillery
into three batteries, so placed as to be about equidistant.
From each of these was hurled, no round shot, but the much
more effective shell — oblong and conical — which bursting
into fragments jeoparded alike life and property, while at
the same time the petroleum inside ignited, quickly kindling
all that it might happen to come in contact with. No
sooner was a house perceived to be in flames than the guns
were compressed into a focus on it, and all the efforts of the
artillerymen were directed to spreading the conflagration.
This was the mode of warfare, and the gutted town bore
awful testimony to its success. We did not see a French
soldier; they had been all sent away into Germany. They
were chiefly the " Garde Mobile." Very few of them were
killed or wounded. Only the poor inhabitants were made
to suffer, for the enemy did not fire at the ramparts. This
explains why the town did not surrender sooner. In spite
of the confusion we got a capital dinner, but the people
were atraid to light a fire, dreading lest there might be an
unexploded bomb in the chimney. However, I believe it

** 20,000 were thrown into this devoted town»

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 6$

was a needless alarm, for the Prussian shells were much
better than the French ones, which very often did not go
off when they were meant to. The landlady was most
polite and obliging, though she had two officers billeted
upon her, and the upper part of her " Hotel de Luxem-
bourg" was in ruins. There was only one chamber intact,
so some of us had perforce a draughty night of it.

December yd. Utter disorder prevailed at the railway
station. German guards, porters, drivers, stokers, had been
substituted for French ones, and the people could not or
would not make themselves understood. Even the ticket-
clerk did not know French money when he got it, or a
bond fide traveller when he saw one !

Arrived at Metz. Three prisoners, recaptured runaways,
were chilling themselves and their guard on the platform
until they could be taken off prisoners into Germany.
Wretched-looking objects ! Plow different from the smart
uniforms in the " Grand Place," where were being drilled
a moiety of the five and thirty thousand Prussians who
now garrisoned Metz, as was currently reported. The flower
of France went down before these broad-shouldered fellows.

December ^tJi. Walked to the village of Woippy ; noticed
Crested Larks in small flocks upon the snow. Just before
we got to the village, we met the Cure, who sent for the
" Maire," who sent for the Sergeant of the Police, who con-
ducted us to the farm of St. Agathe. The Prussians had
taken it and held it, and the " chassepot " had left its mark
on the walls in many places. I picked up in the grass
several bullets shaped liked a miniature shell, barring the
ribs. He then took us to Chateau Ladonchamps, which was
held by both parties and twice bombarded. It is a square
castellated building in a wood, surrounded by a moat. We
found outhouses, extensive stabling, a chapel, etc., and al-
together it must once have been — before its investment — as
nice a residence as any country gentleman could wish to

F

66 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

live in ; but chance, or its castellated character, had cost it
dear. The lead was wrenched off the chapel roof; the
beautiful stained-glass window was broken ; the altar was
a shapeless wreck. Even an antique folio missal had not
escaped the rancour of an incensed soldiery, and I picked
up and brought home as relics some of its leaves which were
strewn on the floor. One shell, after boring through two
roofs and a granary, had buried itself deep in the founda-
tion. Another had smashed right into a costly mirror,
which had probably been too large to take away. Every-
thing had gone to rack and ruin. Plaster had crumbled,
lead was curled, slates displaced, wood shivered into pieces.
But perhaps the most singular sight was the trees on the
road pitted with bullet marks, as if the " franc-tireurs " had
sheltered behind them, and here and there a large bough
riven by some fragment of shell. A little to the right were
two mounds surmounted by a simple cross, but thousands
of brave men were placed beneath the sod with no sign to
mark their graves. We heard some revolting stories of
bodies which were not buried deep enough, but I think my
readers will spare me the recital. The regulation depth
was only two feet. The sergeant gave me a few brief par-
ticulars of the fight. It was commenced, he said, on the
7th of October, by the " franc-tireurs," at half-past three in
morning. The constant firing lit up the horizon, while the
rattle of the musketry so terrified the Hares and Partridges,
that they allowed the soldiers to catch them with their
hands. Bazaine's troops made several sorties, and at first
drove the Prussians back ; but running short of ammunition
were repulsed in their turn, and defeated with the loss of a
general. The nearest Prussian post to Metz was the " Bois
de Woippy," near Saulny. The French were finally worsted,
but not until they had left 4,000 of their foes dead on the
field.

6th. As I was passing through the streets, I saw some

THE FRANCO -GERMAN WAR. 6/

waggons at the head of Rue St. Marcel, full of rusty, dirt-
begrimed French rifles. I suppose they were what Bazaine's
warriors had thrown into the Seille, and had been fished up
and just come in.

8th. A horse came to our depot which had had its mane
and tail eaten ofT by another horse during the siege ; but
this does not give an idea of what they were reduced to.
One of the most shocking sights I ever saw, was one poor
skeleton brought up into the "Place" which had been found
in a cellar. It was simply sickening ; but it excited no pity
in the lookers-on, for what time have men who are engaged
in butchering one another to think of the sufferings of dumb
animals ? The poor wretch had been shut up many days
without food and forgotten by its inhuman master. The
trees inside the fortifications of Metz were in many places
completely barked by the famished horses ; while outside
whole groves of them were felled whenever they could inter-
fere with a cannon's range. Round the Redte. du Pate
the desolation was something extraordinary. Fortunately
the face of the country, far and wide, was wrapped in a
mantle of snow. This in a great measure concealed what
had happened, hiding up for the time being the dreary
spectacle.

9th. Saw six of the captured mitrailleuses and their
carriages. The guns are brass, with centrepieces of steel
pierced for twenty-five bullets. They were not as efi'ective
as was expected. I believe the principal fault found with
them was that they drop their shot.

Hitherto I have said nothing about ornithology, but I
had been wishing to see the Metz specimen of the Great
Auk, and was very glad when I found time to get to the
Museum. It proved to be not in good condition, and but
indifferently stufied, standing on its toes, with loose leg
wires and long neck (which appeared to have been cut
open) ; its attenuated frame was suffering much from mould

68 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

on the back and ear. Its head was chafed by the shelf
above, and no care seemed to be taken of it whatever.
There were eight white ribs on the upper mandible, and
eleven on the lower. Perhaps the principal birds of local
interest are a White's Thrush — the first killed in Europe,
two young Sea Eagles, and a Pelican {Pelecanus onocrotabis),
which was shot at Remilly in 1835.

On the 13th I was deputed to accompany a lady who
was leaving our party to return to Carlsruhe. We had
hardly started and got clear of Metz station when we ran
into a train of trucks, and broke the buffer of a waggon.
We proceeded again, but we had not gone very far before we
were once more brought to a standstill by an accident to a
train just in front of us. This announcement filled some of
the passengers with consternation, but after sitting still
about an hour we were all ordered out. It was now quite
dark. There had been a rapid thaw, and nobody relished
a walk of two hundred yards in the slush and melting snow
into the heart of a deep wood, where the cutting took us, to
a place where sixty men, with flaring laths dipped in pitch,
were working against time to repair the loosened line. It
was a wild sight. Three of the carriages had fallen over
the embankment, but whether many people had been
wounded I could not hear. My only wonder is that the
trains ran at all, considering how disorganised everything
was. I have no doubt it was the passage of the heavy
artillery which had displaced the metals.

There is rather a nice Museum at Carlsruhe. I remarked
a curious variety of our common Nuthatch, in which
the throat and crown of the head were pure black, and
another specimen pure white. I never heard of but
two other vv^hite Nuthatches ; the first killed in August,
1834, in Suffolk (Mag. of Nat. Hist, VIII., p. 112); the
second at Lyng in Norfolk, in 1846, presented to me by
Mrs. Clarke. I also remarked a Great Titmouse with

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 69

crossed mandibles, which immediately reminded me of one
picked up in a street at Faversham, and figured as a fron-
tispiece by Mr. Lewin to the first volume of his " British
Birds;" and I noticed a young Brent Goose with a very
dark breast. The very great differences in the colour of the
underparts of the Brent will be fully entered into in the
third volume of the " Birds of Norfolk." The birds were very
fairly stuffed, and the European series good. Many speci-
mens were varieties, the most remarkable deviations being
an extraordinary Ikshs of a Blackbird, a very singular Bull-
finch, and the Nuthatches already mentioned.

The Zoological Gardens possess a good many interesting
birds for so small a place ; but I will only mention one of
them, which was a white Magpie with pink eyes. Albinism,
not leucotism. Flitting about in the bushes were Marsh
Tits, Tree Sparrows, and Yellow Hammers. The Tree
Sparrow is certainly a very common bird on the continent
of Europe. In Lorraine I consider it was the most numer-
ous of all small birds, which assuredly could not be said of
it in any county in Great Britain. It is an inhabitant of
the country. I only once saw one in a village.

The " iron road " makes a considerable detour before
entering Strasbourg. The point where the train enters the
walls appeared to have been made a special mark, if one
might judge from the numerous dints with which the bricks
were pitted. The drawbridge was also burnt, and some
brass guns on the ramparts had met with very severe usage ;
but the oddest sight was a long train of empty trucks which
had been drawn up three deep, and which had come in for
their full share of the knocking about.

One or two holes had been made in the Museum, but
nothing of any consequence was lost. It is in the Rue de
I'Academie. The birds are in first-rate preservation with
the exception of the Great Auk, which is unhappily a
wretched specimen. Part of its neck is bare, its lower

fyO RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

mandible is without a sheath, and its breast is spotted with
grease. The tongue appears to be still in the mouth. In a
cursory glance through, I noticed an 2.^\AX.HaliaetHs pelagicus ;
and a Red-breasted Goose, not the specimen recorded by
Vieillot as killed near Strasburgh, of which Kroener makes
no mention ("Appergu des oiseaux de I'Alsace et des
Vosges ") ; also a separate collection of Alsace birds, contain-
ing many rarities of local interest, e.g., four adult (grey-
visaged) Honey Buzzards, and an example of the white
variety, which is rarer than the white or whitish Common
Buzzard, a Hawk Owl, killed in 1842 in the forest of
Brumath, and a Tengmalm's Owl. Of this last the editor of
the fourth edition of "Yarrell" says, "occasionally occurs
on the Vosges." He might have gone further, since, accord-
ing to M. Kroener (1. c, p. 5), it is sedentary (though very
rare) nesting " dans les hauts vallons de la vallee de
Munster,"

I brought away two relics from the house of the taxider-
;mist. Perhaps some will remember an account of the havoc
which the bursting shells played among his insects and
stuffed birds. One was a piece of a Middle spotted Wood-
'pecker, which had originally been stuffed, but having had
the misfortune to be hit again, was instantly torn in pieces.
The other was a Water Ouzel, which had had a similar hard
fate of being shot twice over.

A venerable pile is the ancient Minster of Strasburg, and
very sorry I was to see that on one side its long buttressed
nave had suffered a good deal. Though not a mark itself
for the Prussian artillerymen, except when used as a look-
out, it would appear that some of the houses in its immediate
vicinity were selected to suffer. Of one called the Maison
Ohlmann, which is but divided from the Cathedral by the
breadth of the street, only the bare walls remained. The
shoemaker who tenanted it may well have envied his neigh-
bours, for the houses on either side of it were untouched.

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 7 1

It seems that the major part of the bomb-shells which were
pitched into this unlucky town were not filled with petroleum
as at Thionville, but with bullets, which however well suited
to a field of battle, are not intended for streets and houses
where the object is not the taking of life, but the destruction
of property. It was these which had chipped the fretwork
of Strasburgh Cathedral and her stately sculptures, and
dotted so many holes in the grand old stained-glass windows
of the fourteenth century. Although there was every likeli-
hood of the war not being finished for some time, and in the
opinion of many, Strasburgh stood a fair chance of being
besieged again, the sanguine townspeople were busily
mending their cracked roofs and broken houses. The effect
of putting bright new tiles into old roofs was very absurd,
for it made the town look as if an epidemic of red spots had
broken out.

2 1 St. Shortly after my return, a friend and I ascended
the heights of St. Quentin. On this lofty hill, at a short
distance from Metz, has been built an almost impregnable
fort, for it was obvious that if this hill was once taken, and
cannon placed upon it, Metz would be at the mercy of the
invader. But the Prussians had no thought of trying to
take it. They knew an easier way of getting into the town ;
and so far as I could see not a shot had been fired at its
walls, though I believe it took part in the affair of St. Privat.
It is also stated on the 9th of September to have shelled
St. Blain and Ars, and perhaps some of the shells we saw
in Chateau Ladonchamps came from hence. In every
direction were strewn about, caps, cartridge-cases, straps,
cleaning cases, fusees, sand bags, and all those small muni-
tions of war which a retreating soldiery leave behind them.
The trees were gnawn, and the ground trodden wherever
horses had been picketed. Bridles were hanging in some
of the boughs ; and here and there a good steed's skeleton
was given over to the Carrion Crows and Rooks, whose sable

72 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

flocks with loud caws flew overhead, or picked the bones
hah' hidden by the deep snow.

22nd. An echpse of the sun from ii a.m. to i p.m. At
twelve it took the form of a crescent. The disk was not
perfect at three.

23rd. Drove to Gravelotte, but it would be impossible
to see the whole field of battle in one day. In fact it was a
three days' engagement, reaching from Ars to St. Privat.
In every direction I could perceive graves ; some with
crosses, some without. On one I saw four helmets. Others
were the graves of horses and cattle. The latter had died
by hundreds ; the former were shot by thousands. The
recent heavy rains had washed away the mould, and I had
to give a wide berth to all carcases partially exposed. It is
a marvel they did not breed a pestilence, The deep ruts of
wheels could be seen in those heavy soils in every direction
where the field artillery had been dragged by the straining
horses ; and a piece of the army telegraph was still hanging
on a tree, which the fugitives had not tarried to cut down.
The peasants had gathered up the scabbards, etc., which
were now lying in heaps around the village, and the con-
querors had carried off the swords and guns, and everything
which could be used again, even to the brass tops of the
helmets which were lying on the road by hundreds ; but
many small articles were still lying about, some of which
I particularly remember, such as a silk handkerchief which
had been used to staunch a wound, a sleeve cut off at
the elbow, a nosebag, pegs of tents, and an empty mitrail-
leuse cartridge. The schoolmaster who, terrified out of his
life, had seen it all from the tower of the church, showed us
from the brow of the hill the wood which sheltered the
Prussian cavalry, and the place where the mitrailleuses had
stood which worked such fearful execution among them.

24th. Visited Nouilly, Noiseville, St. Barbe, and Vremy.
It was a strange sight to see the people getting ready an

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 73

altar for Christmas eve in their wreck of a church. The
churchyard had apparently been attacked, for many of the
tombstones were wrenched up and thrown across the gate-
way to barricade it. We saw the ground all trampled and
trodden, haversacks tossed about, a dead horse in an en-
trenchment not buried yet, and all war's ghastly symptoms.

25th. Towards evening firing heard : supposed to be
letting off of cannons which had been loaded by the French
at the forts, and abandoned without being discharged.
Our Christmas was one of the coldest days I ever ex-
perienced. The keen frost, which had lasted with little inter-
mission since our arrival, had bound everything in its icy
fetters ; but this rigorous weather, while it increased the suffer-
ing of many poor people, was a most valuable check to the
spread of infection. Typhus, Dysentery, and Small-pox
were rife. No less than five members of our small society
took the last, and one, who had come out to do all she
could for the sick and impoverished people, succumbed to
its virulence.

Of course the wild birds suffered as much as the people.
Gangs of famished Rooks* swarmed on the roads, in the
fields, or by the river's edge, searching for the food they
could not find. Some, more lucky than the rest, had dis-
covered a partially uncovered rubbish-heap. I drove them
away, and picked up one of the " field-post " letter boxes
used by the French regiments.f

** Some ladies in England reared a young Rook which was blown
out of its nest. Instead of evincing its gratitude by quitting its bene-
factors when it grew up, this tractable bird built two nests of holly
leaves ; but ultnnately it joined its sable companions, showing that its
natural instinct was in the end stronger than anything else.

f I read a curious account of the wounded soldiers at Sedan beckon-
ing for the field-postman before calling the ambulance, showing their
extraordinary eagerness to communicate with their friends. Blank
sheets were generally carried with each box for the men to write upon.

74 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

It is not necessary to describe all the villages we visited.
It was the same sad spectacle of beggary, dirt, and disease,
the same affecting complaints made by men in their earnest
dialect at most of them ; but now and then, in happy con-
trast, one came across some peaceful hamlet which was not
in the " path of war."

Jamiary 6th, 1870. No place that I saw was more
thoroughly given over to the flames and despoiled than the
once well-to-do Peltre. I should say about three-fourths of
this large village was blackened and roofless. The rights
of the story will probably never be known, but the Prussians
are accredited with having set fire to it when they evacuated
it. Thus the poor inhabitants were forced to look on while
their homes were flaming, if indeed their ruthless masters
did not make them assist in firing them. It was pitiable to
hear the " chers soeurs " (nuns) tell their tale of woe. They
were turned out of their convent at an hour's notice, where
they had been sedulously tending the wounded of both
nations, with scarce time as they said " to put a clean collar
on," their habitual love of neatness asserting itself at that
dreadful moment. This building was very large for a
country village, with a children's school and a substantial
chapel at the back. The railway station was reduced to a
lieap of ashes ; so was the church. The carved images had
dropped from their pedestals, and the cross of the tower had
fallen. The clock likewise had dropped in, leaving one hand
etill sticking on the wall, and a chaos of its wheels and works
was lying on the ground. The wooden pews were burnt, the
iron was bent, the lead melted, the windows fallen in, the
altar rails broken. But the wasteful ruin had not stopped
here. In the village all was havoc and confusion. Burning
shutters had left their marks upon the houses, chimneys
stood by themselves, cellars were exposed. Everything
had stamped upon it in characters only too intelligible the
progress of a devouring and implacable fire.

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 75

9th. Business connected with our Society took me to
Phalsburg. It was three weeks and two days since this
stronghold had fallen. Darkness set in ere we could climb
the steep ascent, and it was night when we heard the
challenge of the sentries summoning us to halt. The orders
of the guards were to be very particular about admitting
any persons after nightfall. After a short parley we were
permitted to show our credentials, and when they had been
examined and nothing treasonable found, we were marched
off under military escort to the guard -house, where, after
being detained for an hour like prisoners, we were per-
mitted to go our way. The tight little city of Phalsburg
underwent three assaults, and forty houses were destroyed
irretrievably. However, it fared better than Thionville,
for whole streets were untouched ; but the petroleum shells
had set the church ablaze, and the stone of the tower had
peeled off in great flakes. It does seem wonderful to me
that these cities did not prefer surrendering at once, know-
ing that they must eventually capitulate, by which they
might have saved an infinity of property. After an hour
spent with the authorities, we set out for the villages under
the guidance of a lad.

The Cure at the village of Mittlebrun appeared to be a
more honourable man than some of his fraternity. He told
us frankly that he did not consider his parishioners to be in
want, indeed he said they were well off compared with the
villages round Metz. The next place was the Protestant
village of Zilling. Only about eighty inhabitants, few of
whom could speak French. They said the principal trade
of the place was the straw hat manufacture. Since the war
broke out, trade had been depressed, and they had only
been receiving two " sous " a hat, straw provided.

On our way home I went to see the earthworks of one of
the Prussian batteries. The guns had been placed on the
brow of a slope, facing away from the town, so that while

^6 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

able to pitch in their projectiles, they were themselves in a
great measure protected. This was much more dexterous
than putting them on the top of the slope. I believe there
were not more than a dozen large guns at each battery.

At Nancy I saw a Missel Thrush, which I mention be-
cause M.M. Kroener and Fournel say it is a summer migrant.
There is a Common Buzz,ird, pure white even to the claws,
at the Museum. It was killed at St. Barthelemy marshes
hard by. I saw another one quite as good and bought it
for the Norwich Museum, at Metz. There are also at
Nancy local specimens of the Hawk Owl and Tengmalm's
Owl, and a brace of Ring Ouzels with pied heads. I saw
similar Ring Ouzels in Alsace, particularly in the public
Museum at Carlsruhe, and since my return home I have
seen several (Zoologist, s.s. 2607, 2805). Both at Metz and
Nancy I was shown Long-tailed Titmice, with the white
head, and without it. Fournel clings to the exploded idea
that the nest of the Long-tailed Titmouse has two openings.
I call it exploded, but I am not at all sure that this observant
naturalist may not be right, in spite of the weight of testi-
mony against him. I can say, as others have said, that I
never saw a nest with two holes, but negative evidence is
not worth much. See "Land and Water" of May nth,
1872.

The birdstuffer at Metz was M. Buchillot, and I have
much pleasure in recommending him as a skilful taxider-
mist. Where all retail trade is at a low ebb, bird-stuffing is
not likely to come to the fore. He quitted the town before
the war was over and came to England, but I hear that he
is now set up in business at Rheims. I saw a Greater
spotted Woodpecker brought in to him, and a Grey-headed
Woodpecker. I had never seen the latter in the flesh
before. It is decidedly scarcer than the Green. I was in-
formed that the Middle spotted Woodpecker was scarcer
than the Greater spotted. One of the latter at M. Buchillot's

THE FRANXO-GERMAN WAR. 'JJ

was remarkable for having the throat and breast chesnut
colour. It may have been only a stain. All varieties of
Woodpeckers are curious. I have a cock, shot at Easton
in Norfolk on the i8th of June, 1870, which is strongly
tinged or stained with this chesnut colour on the occiput and
scapulars.* If Malherbe, the author of the great work on
Woodpeckers, had been alive, he could have settled the
question. He lived at Metz, and I had the pleasure of
being introduced to his widow. In the Transactions of the
Imperial Academy of Metz for 1866, will be found a memoir
of him, and a list of his works. Only the duplicates of his
collection of Woodpeckers — in number about 200 — are in
the Museum ; the rest were sold. At his death he left some
1,500 stuffed birds, and a collection of eggs, which were
purchased by the Freres de Beauregard, of Thionville, at
whose college I saw them. No localities marked upon the
tickets. How much this diminishes the interest of any
collection ! If Naturalists would reflect that the particulars
known only to them will infallibly be lost after their death,
they would surely be more careful on this point. His
Natural History library was also disposed of

The titles of the books upon the " Ornis " of Lorraine
are: —

1st. A catalogue of Buchoz, 1771.

2nd. Faune du department de la Moselle, Holandre,
1825.

3rd. Supplement, 1835.

° My father also has or had a similar one, which was shot near
Norwich. At a gentleman's house at Brandon I saw a curious young
Greater spotted Woodpecker with the nape and lesser wing coverts choco-
late brown. I have seen another very similar in a collection at Cam-
bridge ; also another — a cock — in the late Mr. Newcome's collection,
with brown back and very brown wings ; and again another is recorded
in the " Zoologist " having the scapulars and a portion of the back " an
intensely rich brown colour" (p. 8199).

78 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

4th. Faune de la Moselle, Fournel, 1836.

5th. Zoologie, dans la Statistique du department de la
Moselle, Malherbe, 1854.

6th. Especes d'oiseaux observees recemment. Malherbe.
1855. "Bulletin de la Societe d'histoire naturelle de la
Moselle."

7th. Zoologie de la Moselle. Malherbe.

8th. Zoologie de la Lorraine. Godron. 1863.

It will be seen from the above list, which I believe may
be depended upon, though I have not seen all the works,
that Lorraine is a " Norfolk " among the provinces, and that
of patrons there have been plenty for our favourite study.

The fine collection of indigenous birds, formed by M.
Hollandre, should have found its proper resting-place in the
town Museum ; but they are already so much cramped there,
that there was no room for them, and they are at the Hotel
de Ville at present.

I obtained of M. Buchillot a most beautiful variety of the
Grey-headed Wagtail, without a speck upon it. It is white,
pervaded with the most delicate tint of canary yellow. He
was so good as to get down all the rarest birds in his shop
to show me. One which I would particularise was a Great
crested Grebe, with all the underparts of a deep rufous
colour, especially about the lower neck, which was almost
chesnut* Another was a Crossbill with the upper mandible
greatly prolonged, the lower not being prolonged at all,
similar to a malformation mentioned by Mr. Stevenson in
the "Birds of Norfolk," vol. I., p. 239. A third was an old
cock Merlin, which he said was rare in the adult state. A
fourth a Grey Plover in breeding plumage. And a fifth, a
cock Blue- throated Warbler without any pectoral spot —
Cyanecida Wolfi (Brehm) — (Dresser B. of E., pi, 228). He
told me it was not the only spotless one he had seen. The

' The colour did not extend beyond the tips of the feathers.

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 79

white spotted form generally occurred, the red spotted
never (he added), which tallies with a statement of M. Marin,
of Lille (formerly of Metz) to my father.

He told me the names of four species which were not
included by Fournel (1. c), but of which he had stuffed
specimens. The Spoonbill (imature, killed at Forbach),,
Purple Sandpiper,* Grey Phalarope, and Double Snipe
(twice).

January \6th. At the market. Common Buzzard, Hazel
Grouse, Reed Bunting, Yellow Hammer, Goldfinches, Green-
finches, Linnets, and many Bramblings. I bought the
Buzzard for two " sous." It had been killed at Sarbruck,
and frozen as stiff as a board. After being thawed in a
portable cooking-stove it made a good skin. It was very
rufous on the under-parts. I did not think much of this
market, but M. Buchillot told me he had obtained there
the Meadow Bunting (Evibcrisa cia), and other good birds
occasionally.

20th. Called again on my friend the birdstuffer, and
found him in the act of skinning a Whooper Swan,f one of
a pair just sent in from Auboue. They were very plentiful
about this time in England, vide Zoologist (ss., 2601).

2 1st. Two dead Barn Owls shown to me; identical
with the English white-breasted kind. I have good reason
for believing that the fulvous variety figured in Rowley's
"Miscellany" occurs. Fournel says they eat bats (1. c,
p. 102) ; so does Dr. Altum,

** I have shot the Purple Sandpiper at Blakeney, in Norfolk, with
down adhering to the neck, but there was no reason to suppose it was
bred there.

f Among the numbers of Whoopers which I have seen, for the most
part hanging up in markets, I have very seldom seen a cygnet, and
never a Bewick's cygnet. My father, however, has bought a Bewick's
cygnet in the market at Norwich.

80 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

The following is a newspaper cutting. The species is not
mentioned, but I have read of a Tawny Owl (Strix stridula,
Lin.) giving a man who ventured to meddle with its young
such a'box on the ears that his face was lacerated, and it
might have easily cost him an eye; but I cannot credit an
Owl taking vengeance for her ravished offspring four days
after their abduction : —

" The Avranchin states that in a Commune, near Avraiiches (in
Normandie), an Owl has taken terrible vengeance for the loss of
her young, which had been killed by a farmer's lad. For four days
the Owl was on the watch, and on the fifth, upon the boy leaving
the farm-house, the injured bird, which had been perched upon a
tree, pounced down upon him, and with one stroke of its claws tore
out his left eye, the sight of which is permanently destroyed."

On the 27th I drove by way of Thionville to Longwy
with Mr. S. James Capper, who has given a lengthy but
very graphic account of our ride and its results in his
"Wanderings in Wartime." It was a long way. About
two o'clock in the afternoon of the second day I caught
sight of our destination, and joyfully exclaimed, " There is
Longwy!" "No," said my companion, "it is a ruin." We
were both right. Longwy it was, and as utter a ruin as
modern artillery could make it. This celebrated fortress,
built by the great Vauban, had capitulated two days before
at 10 a.m., and was now the disastrous chaos which we saw.
Sixty out of its 300 houses were computed to be entirely
destroyed, and most of the rest were much battered. Of
course the petroleum had set some on fire. A few of them
were not yet extinguished : I even saw one in flames. All
the public buildings — the cavalry barracks, the artillery
caserne, the hospital, the church, etc., were more or less
destroyed. The main thoroughfares were blocked with debris
of stones, slates, laths, and rafters; and every street was
besprinkled with hundreds of fragments of bombs of all
shapes and sizes. We had come away from Metz directly

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 8 1

we received the news of the surrender, and hence we viewed
war's hideous desolation in all its recentness. However,
they say you cannot be the first Englishman anywhere, and
sure enough the "Times'' correspondent was at Longwy
before us.

A German artillery officer took us round the fortifications,
and really it was wonderful to see the effect of modern
missiles from large mortars. Nothing gave me a better idea
of the force with which they came than the mangled trees*
on the ramparts. They were most dangerous things to have
there. I could quite believe that the Frenchmen dare not
show themselves near them for the splinters. A jagged
splinter wound is more intractable than a shot wound.

During the nine days' rain of bombshells, the inhabitants,
to the number of 400, took refuge in the casemates. On
visiting these, I found them to be low arched passages under
the fortifications. Dreadful places, with scarcely any venti-
lation. I cannot think how so many people herded into
them. Even here they were not safe, for in spite of being
warranted bomb-proof, I saw one place where the massive
roof had been broken. Hundreds of beds in rows, which
the people had slept in, were still there, and some sick and
wounded were not yet removed. For nine days they had
endured this black hole, amid the noise and din of 30,000
bursting bomb shells. Yet such good care did the French
soldiers take of themselves, that by all this extraordinary
burning of powder, only a very {q\w were killed of the i,Soo
who formed the garrison of Longwy. On the German side
the destruction of life was equally small ; only nine men
killed and twenty wounded. I should think there are very
few instances on record of a fortified town being besieged
and captured with so little loss. Before they began to
bombard, the Germans generously allowed all the women

** At another place I saw some good-sized timbers cut clean in two.

G

82 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

and children to go out who wished, but no men. As to
this they were very strict. About 2,000 took advantage of
their license. Their conduct was certainly characterised by
humanity all through the afifair.

The French soldiers were marched off the first thing after
the town was ceded, but some of the officers were still there.
Whether they were on parole I did not ascertain, or whether
they were permitted the convenience of remaining to pack
up after the common soldiery had gone.

We transacted our business with M. Offeld, the "juge de
paix," whose father commanded the artillery of the National
Guard in 18 14, and who had seen Longwy bombarded
three times ; and then set our faces towards Longwy Bas, a
village at the bottom of the hill, where we left our horse and
cart, to have the extreme "satisfaction" of discovering that
a rogue had stolen the harness. After three hours' worry
we got some more ; but our troubles were not over, for at
Aumetz the gallant steed ran away while we were in the
inn, and broke spring, trace, and dashboard !

We drove into Metz on the Sabbath morning. As we
drew near, the distant reverberation of cannon was borne to
us on the frosty air. Paris had capitulated, and flash after
flash gleamed from the lofty heights of Phlappeville and
St. Julien in celebration of her downfall. Two hours later,
and we rattled up the streets crowded with men of both
nations, who were hailing the good news of a three-weeks'
armistice.

On this journey I saw a great many Buzzards (Buteo
vulgaris, Leach). Some thought the dead horses attracted
them, but I fancy that this kind of carrion was mostly
underground before Christmas.* At any rate I saw enough

^' The son of the castellan of Raglan Castle, near Monmouth, had a
tame Buzzard when my father was at the castle in 1872, which he had
obtained from an adjacent wood. He told him that he gave it twenty-

THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR. 83

on that frosty morning's drive to know that war does not
scare them away, as suggested in " The Field " of March
nth, 1871, and by Lord CHfton in the Zoologist, (pp. 2481,
2561). Again and again, as we rode along the crisp high-
way, I had to shout to make them get off the poplar trees ;
and often I longed for a gun to procure some of the singular
varieties, for few birds vary more than the Common Buzzard.
I also noticed a good many Kestrels asleep in the trees,
and now and then a small covey of Partridges (Perdix
cinerca). The so-called French Partridge* is exceedingly
rare in Lorraine, and not found at all in Alsace, according
to Kroener (1. c).

After my return to England, Count Cotlosquet had the
goodness to have shot and to send me a very fine Kite,
which had its nest in a wood near Metz,

eight dead rats at once, which was enough to nonplus most Hawks, but
the undaunted Buzzard proceeded most methodically to split their
heads open, and eat the brains of every rat in succession. I dare say
they are still found in limited numbers in that part of Wales.

* A gunner of the name of Hornigold chanced to see eight birds
alight in Lynn Wash — that is to say on the water. Wild fowl being his
livehhood, he lost no time in " lying down " to them in his punt, but
great was his surprise when instead of Ducks they proved to be a
Avorn-out covey of Red-legged Partridges. They may have been a
band of migrants, though I do not think it. More likely frightened
and shot at on land, they flew they knew not whither, and losing their
way in the fog, escaped Scylla to perish in Charybdis. Hornigold
bagged them, and no doubt thought a covey of eight Red-legged
Partridges was an unusual booty.

SIX MONTHS'
BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT.

CHAPTER I.

On the 7th of January, 1875, at the first streak of break-
ing day, the shores of the great land of the Pharaohs and
the Pyramids became dimly visible to a small knot of
expectant gazers standing on the after-deck of the good
S.S. Hindostan, one of the finest boats, after the Australia,
belonging to the P. and O. Steam and Navigation Co,

The Herring Gulls of the Mediterranean in their unsullied
purity had been our constant companions. For four whole
days a flock of them had followed in our wake, nor do I
suppose it was because they were hard up. Theirs was no
slender chance of daily bread, for in fact a great deal of
broken victuals were constantly being thrown overboard ;
besides, with what unctuous rapture the grease from the
engines of a steamer is gobbled up by your hungry Gull !

I had never been in Egypt, and as the day broke I could
not enough admire the panorama stretched out before me.
To the right lay the suburb of Ramleh, and the Viceroy's
Summer Palace. To the left the lighthouse and a frowning
fort, which seemed to keep the peace between the " old

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 85

harbour," and a capital modern mole, three quarters of a
mile long and sixty feet wide. In the foreground, the
harbour, with all its varied flags of many nations. Behind,
Great Pompey's Pillar, tall and meaningless ; and to back
all, a blue sky of such transcendent purity as no painter
could depict. As we approached nearer I could perceive,
with the help of my glasses, the swarthy sailors with their
fantastic clothes and strange headgear, and then our good
steamer snorted horribly and came to anchor, and the
quarantine men leapt on board, and after that Achmed
Abdallah, our Dragoman, all smiles and welcome.

Alexandria is utterly different from Cairo ; as much so
as St. Petersburgh is from Moscow. In each case the
northern is the Europeanized representative of the southern.
It is delightful in its way, but besides being far less rich in
remains of antiquity, it is not so healthy as Cairo ; and yet
I think tourists are wrong in allowing their Dragomen to
hurry them, unless, as was our case, their Diabeyha* be al-
ready engaged and waiting for them.

There is the celebrated Cleopatra's Needle, which it would
never do to go away without seeing. It is about its sister
obelisk (for obelisks are all in pairs), that there has been
so much discussion lately. The facts of the case are that
it belongs to us, but our government, deterred by the tre-
mendous expense which our neighbours put themselves to
in removing one of the Thebes obelisks to Paris, have not
liked to take it ; albeit, there have been sundry rumours
that the Prince of Wales meant to bring it home, and
suggestions that he should dig a channel up to it and put it
on a raft, for it lies near the sea. It is also a question with
right-feeling people whether all objects of antiquity are not
best left in sitit. The two "needles" stand in a stone-
mason's yard, and about as much care is taken of them as of

** Nile boat.

86 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

most of the other Egyptian monuments, that is to say, none
at all.

Our first sight ornithologically speaking, was perplexing,
for we passed some men carrying Greek Partridges and
Pheasants, where from I cannot say, but certainly not from
Rosetta, the locality given me. It was unfortunate that
the latter were soiled, for specimens of the true unmixed
breed are not easy to get in England.

Let me here mention that there are two birdstufifers in
Alexandria, M.M. Piacentini and Mayer ; but the former had
no stock, and appeared to have almost given up the business,
(or the business to have given him up,) and the latter talked
of moving to Cairo, where I should think he might meet with
some custom from the numerous influential visitors who
take up birds for pastime or for study.

It may also be serviceable to others to say that the
gunmaker is Mr. W. Redding, behind St. Mark's Church ;
and the gunmaker at Cairo, M. Cassegrain. They supply
fair powder at a price, and central-fire cartridges.

The railway journey from Alexandria to Cairo was the
most interesting I ever made, for the line skirts Lake
Mareotis, and every moment I kept seeing some new species
of bird which I had never beheld in the live state before, so
that we laid the commencement of that long list of species
observed, which ultimately reached 223, — a number, I think
I may safely say, never surpassed by any other observer in
one tour in Egypt.

This line was constructed in 1851, and was the finst rail-
way ever made in Egypt. Now there are railways to
Minieh, Damietta, Zagazig, and Suez ; and the Khedive's
engineers are even constructing one in Soudan. Formerly
it was all praise to him for his enterprizing spirit, but now
men begin to say that if he saps the public funds much
more, he will permanently diminish the country's resources,

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 8y

and that he must be hard up to sell his shares in the Suez
Canal.

Grand Cairo is truly an Eastern city, despite stucco
houses and other inroads of modern innovation. Its streets,
dirty, narrow, and badly paved, are the worst thing about
it ; yet even these are redeemed by the antique wood carving
of the lattice windows. The lofty tapering minarets, and
the numerous Mosques, are unique in their way. I went
over the Mosques of the Citadel and Sultan Hassan, From
the ramparts of the former a noble view is obtained of the
city, of the distant Pyramids, of Boulac, and the shipping, and
of the silver river winding its course to Rhoda.* Here the
last of the betrayed Mamelucks, when his companions were
fallen and dead, made his despairing plunge into the gulf
below.

It is the Sultan Hassan Mosque that is partially built of
the polished casing of the Great Pyramid. It has been long
falling into sad decay. Most of the Mosques are banded in
the most extraordinary way with red and white, not blocks
of granite and alabaster as any one would naturally suppose
from the paintings of Roberts and others ; but tawdry,
vulgar paint. This is very bad taste in embellishment, and
it extends to the houses and coffee shops, many of which
are bedaubed with most absurdly grotesque figures of .ships,
trees, lions, and all manner of nameless monsters. Such is
the art of painting among the modern Egyptians ; and to
make it worse, they will often erect a hideous thing like a
scaffold for tying coloured lamps to on fantasia days. It
was never my fortune to witness one of their illuminations,
but they need be very splendid to compensate for the
excessive ugliness of the scaffolding at all other times.

The shops and bazaars present a glittering appearance

** There are two islands called Rhoda, but this is "Nilometer"
Rhoda.

8S RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Avith tlieir swords, and carpets, and rich Stambouli shawls,
and lamps, and turquoises (which are very cheap at Cairo),
and grand amber mouthpieces, and red slippers, and attar
of roses. The curious system of shopping is altogether the
most inconvenient that ever was invented, and it shows it-
self, for instance, in buying pipes. If you want to purchase
a chibook, you go to one shop for the stem, to another for
the bowl, and to the bazaar for a mouthpiece, and you
haggle over each purchase until you beat the price down
one half, losing your temper and wasting your valuable time.
If the article be a costly one, the arguing lasts proportion-
ately longer ; coffee is sent for ; and passers-by mix in and
freely give their opinion on the value of the goods. Time
is no object in Egypt, as many a western traveller has dis-
covered to his cost. There is no fixed price for anything,
and you waste an hour over what could be bought in five
minutes in London.

There are three kinds of pipes in general use — the Chibook,
the Nargcckli, and the GozeJi. I have smoked them all, and
give the preference to the NargedcJi, though that is said to
be the most injurious from the effort of pulling, which causes
the smoker to inhale the tobacco into his lungs like air.
The Chibook is perhaps the one most commonly in use. It
is a stick, some five feet long, of cherry or jasmine, with a
Siout pottery bowl (brown or black), and a handsome amber
mouthpiece. Ccrani is the best tobacco for the Chibook ;
Tovibak for the Nargcclcli.

I wish I knew how to give an idea of gay Cairo, the
ancient city of the Memlook Sultans, the capital of modern
Egypt, and its busy throng. In the cramped and crowded
Mosquee* all known trades would seem to flourish, and are
represented by all known languages, which issue forth in a

*' The principal street in Cairo.

SIX months' bird collecting in egvpt. 89

strange Babel from the mouths of men clad, I may say, hi
all known hues of burnous, scarf, and turban. Like Brewster's
kaleidoscope are the ever-shifting tints of so great a multi-
tude of many -coloured dresses beneath the vertical glare of
an eastern sun. The noiseless camel witli heavy load
bumps against the passer-by. Black eunuchs attend the
carriages of the ruler's hareem.* Veiled women ride on
white asses, nobly caparisoned. Gaily-dressed runners pre-
cede the carriages, vociferating to the crowd to get out of
the way, — and he who is run over after that, must blame
himself

The seller of tobacco sits cross-legged on his divan. The
money-changer counts up coins of many nations. The ven-
dor of sweet liquor clatters his brass cups as he walks about.
There are men for every trade, and purchasers for every
ware. Pot-bellied boys, bareheaded derwishes, and blear-
eyed beggars jostle tlie subtle Greek with the embroidered
scarf and the grave old Bey on his red-pomellcd ass — ^jostle
American tourists, English speculators, French engineers —
jostle soldiers, muezzins, and artizans — all who come in
their way, rich and poor, high and low, walkers, riders,
drivers, in alleys so blind, in streets so crooked, in lanes so
narrow, as only the mind of an eastern architect could have
conceived.

The public garden is called the Ezbekeah. It has been
laid out at great expense by the present Viceroy. Notwith-
standing every difficulty, a beautiful lawn of grass has been
obtained, such as I never thought to see in Egypt. On the
ornamental sheet of water are pinioned Tufted Ducks and
Pochards. Warblers resort to the trees, of which many

* Eastern etiquette requires that all people should turn their heads
and look another way when the Hareem passes. He who does not
comply with this custom may chance to receive a blow from the flat of
the eunuch's sword.

90 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST,

foreign kinds have been introduced ; and even the Barn
Owl finds a retreat there, and is to be seen at night fear-
lessly flying over the gas lamps. A few years ago, before
the Viceroy took it in hand, this place was a swamp, and at
hieh tide was a " birkcf full of water.

CHAPTER II.

We started from Cairo on the 12th of January, for
Damietta. The following are the names of the crew, as
taken down by one of my compaions : —

Reis Taha (Captain).

Reis Ismail (steersman).

Mohammed.

Hassan.

Ahmed.

Alii.

Alii el Safeeh.

Ahmed Dar.

Hassanin.

Faguir.

Mensoor.

Selim.

Machmoud (the companion of our walks, whom we

afterwards took to the Faioum).
Abdalla.
Ahmed.

Dragoman.
Ahmed Abdalla (from Alexandria).

Waiters.

Stephano Rinaldini (a Swiss).
Mohammed Ali.

92 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Cooks.

Abdou (from 2nd cat.)
Khaire (from 3rd cat.)

Dragoman'' s Boy.
Pharach.

The above may seem a large retinue, but it is impossible
with the present system to do the Nile voyage with less,
unless you are content to go up in a steamer ; but no one
should think of that who has plenty of time to spare, and
can afford a Diabeyha.

Little need be said of the voyage down the Damietta
branch. There are no ruins, and it is only undertaken by
those who go to shoot. At the Barrage we were de-
tained several hours both in coming and going. Unless
tourists agree otherwise in their contract, they will have to
pay about seven pounds toll on the bridges, and the same
on their return. We had a great deal of rain, and lightning
several times, and our sailors, many of whom were Nubians,
a23peared to feel the cold very much.

I must now try to describe the night I passed on Lake
Menzaleh. I dare say some persons have seen in English
estuaries flocks of Ducks so large that they might be
estimated by acres ; but I am not exaggerating when I say
that I saw there such droves as could not be distinguished
from extensive islands. For over three miles the whole
horizon sparkled with one vast unbroken horde, which, when
they rose in countless myriads, seemed to darken the air.
Pochards were the commonest species ; next to them Shovel-
lers, Pintails, and Widgeon, in about equal numbers. Nor
was this amazing sight of Ducks all, for in the distance I
could perceive an immense line of Flamingoes, whose re-
flected hues of white and roseate were flashed back from
the water, while the helter-skelter of a mighty army of

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 93

Coots, as they rose, sounded like distant thunder. Alone
by himself, a stately Pelican rode at anchor like a monarch
of the waters ; and the shrill cry of Gulls and Terns was
heard as they passed us in the air.

The fishermen had an order to procure four Swans for
the Viceroy, and one man had been on this special quest
five days. Hasselquist (175 1) mentions Swans on the coast
at Damietta, and Mr. Macgregor says he saw some on Men-
zaleh, (" Rob Roy on the Jordan," p. 70,) but still it is some-
way south for such noble denizens of more northern regions,
and the Viceroy is quite right to get them when he can.
But in this instance the fishermen evidently thought his
wishes could not be complied with, in which case the
bastinado awaited the delinquents. An order sometimes
comes (so they told us) for a thousand Ducks to be sent
alive to the capital. Thereupon they have to bestir them-
selves, and the Sheik assigns about three hundred to each
company of seven boats, with the alternative of twenty
guineas' fine if they are not forthcoming by a certain date.
They had now in a week only got 113, the order having
arrived since the commencement of the moon, which had
been full on the 21st. As we approached cautiously to the
boats, three in number, I could see that they were slowly
driving the Ducks to where the nets were set. Great care
is necessary, for if they go too fast or tack too slanting, the
Ducks are up directly, and all their trouble will have been
for nothing. The nets are not unlike what were in use
among the ancient Egyptians (see Rossilini, fig. clap-net).
The men have a rope to pull ; they are concealed on an
island, and when they see the Ducks are in the right place,
they all unite their strength, tug at the rope, and entrap
them before they have any time to swim further. A couple
of forked sticks are seen standing out of the water, and
when the Ducks are between them, this indicates that they
are in the right place. The net may be about twenty-five

94 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

yards long; the rope is at least seventy. Too ponderous
an affair for one man to manage. The haul was only one
Widgeon — not much for many hours' labour, for I was told
they had been driving since daybreak.

The thing was done on a smaller scale by our own boat-
men, who placed a small clap-net at the end of the island
where we anchored, and made a kind of cacJic in which one
of them spent the night, and next morning he produced a
drake Pintail which he had caught, and which we kept alive
in a hutch for long after.

I must now describe how Coots are captured, for it was
more particularly to see the mode of taking them that we
had come out. As soon as night sets in, four or five " Coot-
catchers " sally forth in a flat -bottomed boat, provided with
a fireplace of baked mud, and a couple of punting poles,
for the greater part of this immense lake is very shallow.
Soon the distant "muttering" of the quarry is heard. The
boat is propelled circumspectly, silence is enjoined, until
from the increasing volume the men judge that they are
within a few hundred yards of the place the sound comes
from. Then one, more hardy than the rest, slips aside his
pelisse of sheep-skin, stands erect for a moment, naked save
a thin waistband and a tight-fitting black skullcap, winds a
long casting net round his right arm and jumps into the
water ; and now the use of the skullcap is seen, for as he is
immersed to his nostrils it is the only part which shows,
and of course it resembles a Coot exactly.*

He makes a trial essay with his net, which he throw^s
with consummate skill. I have seen men in England who
thought they knew how to throw a casting net, but I never
saw one who could equal in dexterity these Menzaleh
fishermen. I should say he would be certain death to any

* Formerly a -whliQ plaque was added to represent the frontal shield,
but this is now dispensed with.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 95

Coot within twenty-five feet, though there is no cord
attached to the net. As soon as he has disappeared in the
darkness we He down again and wait tlie result ; nor have
we long to wait. On a sudden the rush of many wings is
heard. The affrighted Coots are up. He has made his
cast : there is no longer any need for silence. His comrades
in the boat make up the fire, and after throwing out a
bundle of blazing reeds to show they have moved, pull
rapidly towards the place the sound came from. We strain
our eyes in peering through the darkness until in a few
minutes we perceive him returning dripping wet, with the
Coots alive in the net, having been absent little more than
a quarter of an hour, — long enough all the same to freeze
him to the very bones. They wrap the poor wretch in a
"burnous," and then he stands over the fire and hterally
steams.

All night these sturdy fellows follow the working of the
Coots with dogged perseverance if they go on feeding, but
if the night is calm. Coots do not feed after twelve. On a
still night they sleep best, and then as many as 150 are
sometimes caught. They have an ingenious mode of
securing them by tying the tips of the wings together under
the body in front of the legs. A fat Coot sells for a shilling,
a thin one for a franc. I saw basketfuls on sale in
Damietta, but I imagine a good many are consumed on
board the boats, for near Geut-El-Nosara* quantities of
wings were to be seen floating on the water, which had once
appertained to Coots. I searched for the Crested Coot, but
could not learn that such a bird was known.

Before leaving the lake, we anchored against a small
island which had been once a Roman station, for there were
any amount of urns of all shapes and sizes, (but none of
them perfect,) and bricks in squares, and hundreds of little

* i.e. the Christians' country, — the port at the west end of the lake.

g6 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

pieces of glass of brillant and varied colours. Besides these
treasures we found a ring, a polished seal, and many coins
of copper or bronze. Nor is this the only island that those
ancient heroes dwelt on, for on one which we did not visit,
so many valuables have turned up that it is commonly
called the Island of Gold.

Our Diabeyha returned to Cairo on the 14th of February,
and before starting for Upper Egypt it was resolved to
devote a day to the Pyramids. They stand on a rock, and
cultivation or Jiagar goes nearly up to them. The ascent
of the big one is generally made at the north-east corner,
where the pathway to the summit is well marked. Half
way up several large stones have been removed, where th^e
pilgrim can rest awhile, and one regrets to see that many
are gone from the base at the corners. The Pyramid Arabs
are an unmitigated nuisance. They have a nominal right
to a tarif of two francs: of course they exact four shillings,
and would be a cheap riddance at the price, but go they
will not while one of the Hozvadjas is left. Between the
second Pyramid and the Sphinx, fragments of mummies are
lying about in various directions : these things ought to be
put underground. I saw a great many at Massara, where
the Viceroy has been making a tramway to the quarries.
One of the skulls had some hair upon it of a reddish colour.

I will not inflict on my readers any long account of the
Nile voyage, which has been worn threadbare. I will only
say that I cannot imagine anything more delightful. Un-
fortunately it is very expensive, and is becoming more so ;
yet to the invalid and antiquarian it is money well spent.
Master of a well appointed boat, he sees an ever-changing
panorama pass by him of Pyramids, Temples, and Tombs,
altogether unparalleled in the history of the world. He
sees the creaking Shadoof and the Sakia-\VQ\\, the pigeon
village, the raft of pots, the swimming Dcmnsh, the
browzing camel, and the Doiirra Palm, the women who

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 97

draw water, and the naked children with potbellies and
filthy flies clustering around their eyes, and marvels anew
at each bend of the river. As he smokes and lounges on the
quarter-deck, he hearkens with amusement to the shrieks
for backshish with which an infant population rend the air,
in the insane hope that the Diabeyha will stop for the
express purpose of giving them a present. Backshish is the
potent word of Egypt, and it is probably the first they learn
to utter. It assails the traveller almost before he can set
foot upon the quay, it follows him out shooting, it goes with
him to the temples, it becomes obstreperous at the Pyramids,
and the night after his visit there, backshish will mingle with
his dreams of those mighty relics of the past.

The principal stopping place is generally made at Thebes,
which is only a small place, but the unrivalled ruins —
grander than any others in the whole known world — are
naturally a great attraction. The magnate of the place is
Her Majesty's Consul, Mustapha Basha. To him we lent
" Moss Gathered," or a " Guide Book to Thebes," by
R. S. Ferguson, which must have tickled the old gentleman,
who had never seen it, and who there found his peculiarities
and the minutiae of his daily life set down at full length!

I do not like to pass by Thebes without describing the
glories of the great hall of Karnac, but I feel that I can say
nothing which has not been better said by others before me.
With regard to the superb tombs of the kings, I shall not
forget what a broiling walk I had to them, how deliciously
cool they were after it, and how richly the sight of the
paintings, fresher far than anything I saw in any other part
of Egypt, rewarded me. That day is fixed in my mind for
another reason, for, coming back from the rocky gorge, I
encountered five new species of birds (Lesser Kestrel, Rock
Thrush, Nightingale, Collared Flycatcher, and Glossy Ibis,)
and shot four of them.

At Thebes, in accordance with the custom, we illuminated

H

98 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

our boat, and very pretty she looked with about lOO lanterns,
each reflected in the water.

Minieh, Siout, and Keneh, are good-sized towns, which
merit a visit. Keneh is celebrated for its dates, which are
too much flavoured with musk for my taste. At Siout
there is a manufactory of pottery very much patronised by
English tourists. The principal things turned out are red
and black pots trays, gooleh jars, pipe bowls {some of them
on wheels), coffee cups, and " Crocodile foot scrapers,"
which are bought for a mere nothing and packed in crates
by the vendors.

CHAPTER III.

There were three rifles on board, but they were not
suited for crocodiles, nor were they of much use for birds.
The fact is, it is extremely difficult to hit even a very large
bird at 150 yards from a Diabeyha, and a couple of Storks
was all our rifles killed. The banks are too populous —
particularly in the Delta — to use a long-range weapon with
safety.

The following is a list of some of the birds we shot which
have more interest to the sportsman than to the naturalist.
We arrived too late for good Duck shooting ; indeed, any-
one wishing to visit Egypt for the winter sport ought to go
in November.

Snipe
Jack Snipe
Painted Snipe

- 136

46
29

Garganey Ducks
Teal
Marbled „

7
6
6

Egyptian Geese
White-fronted Geese -

10

2

Sandgrouse
Senegal Sandgrouse

35
12

Pintail Ducks

18

Pelicans

3

Pochard Ducks

4

Crane

I

Nyroca „

Tufted

Wild

3

I

Storks -
Spoonbills -
Eagles -

7
- 16

7

Widgeon

I

Avocets

12

Ruddy Shelduck -
Shoveller Ducks

I
8

Quails -

307

Small birds can be conveniently preserved with carbolic
acid by those who have not leisure to skin them. We car-
bolized 200, and lost ten per cent, chiefly from keeping

100 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

them too long before they were done, but they are more
susceptible to the attacks of insects than skins. The
7nodits operandi is as follows, First break in the keel of
the breastbone. Then cut with your long-handled, sharp-
pointed scissors from the posterior margin to the vent, and
after applying plaster of paris freely, squeeze out the entrails
by pressing on the back with the thumb. Then remove
lungs and heart, and stop up the cavity with acid and
wool. Half a teaspoonful is enough for a Dunlin, which is
as large a bird as you can safely do. It then only remains
to put a quarter of a teaspoonful down the mouth, and the
bird is done.

The crystallized carbolic is best, as that is undiluted. It
must not be exposed to heat or light, or it will become
liquid and lose a portion of its strength.

Great care is necessary not to drop any on the fingers. It
hardens the flesh and takes away the sense of touch, or it
may produce an ulcer. The antidote is to wash it off im-
mediately, and steep the part in oil. The " Collector's
Vade Mecum," by Mr. Hume, gives a still graver caution.
" Remember," says the author, " that the smallest drop of
the acid in the eye permanently destroys the eyesight."
This useful brochure gives full instructions for preparing
birds by carbolic acid and other means. I ought to say
that though birds preserved with it can be skinned after-
wards, they are a great deal of trouble, and never look well.

Beasts.

There is no large game on the Nile, except Crocodiles
and a few Gazelle. A small herd of the latter inhabit the
desert at Gow, where we saw them in the up voyage, and
again in the down voyage. Hyenas are said to exist, and
at the Memnonium I saw a beast one night which I was
told was a Wolf Jackals cannot be very common, as I

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 101

never observed any. Going along the edge of a field one
day in the Delta, I met three large Ichneumons following
one another up a rut, their backs appearing and disappear-
ing as the waving corn — then about six inches high — was
bent down by the wind. On several occasions we came
upon these creatures — always unexpectedly, which was
probably why we never shot one. At Assouan I bought
a Monkey's skin, probably brought from Soudan. At the
Faioum a Hedgehog was offered to us.

Bats. "Woofwat."

Egypt with its rock-cut tombs and temples, is a great
country for Bats. As I did not know their names, I could-
only distinguish them by size. There was one very small
species, smaller than our Pipistrelle ; another somewhat
larger went in flocks. Perhaps this is the species which
attacks the Palms ; I was told at Damietta that they
suffered greatly, and that men were employed to search out
the Bats systematically and kill them. In a tomb at Siout
I saw about 200 of the largest size, and shot a male and
female ; the former, which was the larger, measured twenty-
two inches from tip to tip. I also saw hundreds of Long-
tailed Bats go down a hole at Beni Hassen.

In the square, one afternoon in June, at Alexandria, there
were many which had come out before their usual hour, and
they were flying so low that the coachmen were hitting at
them with their whips.

Fish.

The fish of the Nile are poor and unpalatable, though
they grow to a large size. I saw one enormous creature
dead at Girgeh ; it must have weighed 100 pounds. Two
Griffons were watching its decomposition with an appearance

102 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

of interest. They are mostly taken with hooks. Macgregor
mentions small fish jumping into his canoe at Menzaleh.
This occasionally happened to us in our punt.

Reptiles.

A " woiran " or Monitor Lizard was shot at Gebel-Abou-
Foeder, fifty-six inches long. It was clinging to the base of
the cliff. This was the largest of the tribe we saw, but
Egypt is full of Lizards and Snakes. I believe no Croco-
diles are found below Abou-Foeder. We saw a small one
there, and several larger ones higher up.

Insects.

No sooner had we arrived on board our Diabeyha than
we became aware of fleas in large numbers, which marked
us out as their legitimate quarry. Whenever in Upper
Egypt, owing to a head wind or for the sake of sport, we
stopped, we became a prey to a malignant host of devasta-
ting flies, who were not to be banished by the infusion of
quassia, or by a nightly slaughter among their serried ranks.

At the Faioum an alarming incursion of insects took
place into our tents almost every evening, generally about
eight o'clock, chiefly flying beetles of strange contour and
vast proportions : while at Shepphard's Hotel, night was
rendered hideous by pertinaceous mosquitoes, which no
amount of smoking would keep off.

Palm Trees.

The common tree of Egypt is the Date Palm. Every
Palm pays a tax to the Viceroy — not much inducement to
the fellaheen to plant more. There is frequently so little
soil on their roots, that it seems as if the first puff of wind

SIX iMONTHS' BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. I03

must bring them down ; but they have rather a tenacious
grasp of the ground. I consider them very bad trees for
birds. The wood is not of much use. The inhabitants of
ancient Syene take a six-foot log of it, and on that venture
to come down the cataract of El Bab. We purchased logs
of them, and after a good deal of practising, one of my com-
panions attained some proficiency in this art of paddling.
Some time ago a young Englishman was so excessively
foolhardy as to attempt the cataract, which no one but a
native can safely do : his rashness cost him his life.

In Upper Egypt the Date Palm gives place to the Dhom,
the tree from which vegetable ivory is obtained. The fruit
grows in clusters, and is about the size of a large apple.
Those I examined were hard and brown. Having with
considerable difficulty cut one open, I found the vegetable
ivory to be the core. There is also a third species of Palm
called the Dourra, which is hardier and more generally
distributed than the Dhom.

CHAPTER IV.

Let me try to sketch an ornithological walk, any bright
Spring morning, in the land of Egypt. The rising sun is
bursting through a cluster of stately Palm trees, but it sheds
its light on no birds there, for the Palms, contrary to what
has been said by some, are not good trees for birds save
and except the moping Night Heron, who is now so sleepy
as to be indifferent to the presence of the arch-enemy, man ;
but in the line of Sont trees on the other side, a sparkling
flock of Beeeaters are celebrating their arrival by flashing
backwards and forwards in its rays, unmindful of the herds-
man and his flocks. In the midst of the grove stands the
village with its 150 inhabitants, who dwell in squalid houses
built of mud. They are the heavily-taxed and oppressed
fellaJiecn, the agricultural population of the country. Some
of them are smoking the long diibook ; others squat on
their hams and do nothing, or idly watch the laden women
returning home with GoolcJis of water on their heads. That
invariable accompaniment of every Egyptian village, a pond,
is now nearly dry, but a dainty Stilt Plover thinks there is
enough water to wade in, and I may here remark that I
never saw this bird avail itself of its unusual length of limb
for deep wading, preferring rather the shallows, for which
one would not imagine from its contour that it was so well
adapted. The yellow Pariah dogs, which have been eyeing
the strangers with a national hatred, no longer kept back
by their masters, rush furiously out, and their barking
quickly frightens the Stilt away. At the same time a

SIX months' bird collecting in egvpt. 105

Green and a Common Sandpiper, which had been feeding-
unnoticed on the mud, fly up, but settle again at the end of
the pond ; while a flock of Temminck's Stints, too accus-
tomed to the noise of a village to be disturbed, only stop
feeding for a minute, and then resume again, running about
and feeding as if their very lives depended upon getting
through a peck of marsh worms by sundown.

The villages are generally about a mile apart, and at
every village there is a Palm grove. They are seldom far
from the banks of the Nile, which at this time of the year
is low, uncovering many a tempting sandbank, where flocks
of Herons preen themselves, and the Egret — the loveliest
of all known birds — performs its solitary ballet dance. A
word must be given to the sandbanks. Here the Ziczac
Plover, that most characteristic of Egyptian birds, flies
at the intruder, and with a winnowing motion of its armed
wings endeavours to intimidate him, and reiterating its
harsh cry, drives the crocodile, which had come out to bask,
to his lair at the bottom of the river. Here too the gay
" Pluvian " flies low over the surface of the water, and here
six Garganeys, the last left of all the Duck tribe which
swarmed a few weeks ago, disport themselves in a back-
water such as one sees in many a tidal harbour.

The most careful steering will not prevent Diabeyhas
from running on to sandbanks, and sticking hard and fast
there. When this happens there is nothing for it but to
tug and strain and heave and bellow until they are got off
again, and this is sometimes a work of many hours, even
occasionally of days. Meanwhile the mortified passenger
sees the cangia and the lighter nicrkcb pass him by with
impunity. But this delay is an opportunity for striking
inland to where the desert and cultivation meet, a limit
defined for miles and miles, which the shifting sands may
modify but can never obliterate.

The last field is soon reached, and there is no animal

I06 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

life beyond that, according to my experience, save perchance
at its very fringe a few Chats, and the Crested Lark which
is omnipresent ; but nothing, I am convinced, to repay a
long and weary trudge into the Sahara. It is not the
desert, it is the ripening barley and the strips of lentils
which will tempt the sportsman and beguile him to keep the
Diabeyha waiting with a favourable wind, for these teem
with Quails so fat, so tender, and so luscious, as to more
than merit the high praise which has been bestowed on
them. It would give an English yeoman a fit to see the
Hoivadjas walking through the standing crops, but not a
word does the farmer of Egypt say. He looks on with
perfect indifference : no complaint escapes him. Even a
smile lights up his stolid face, and he appears to be inwardly
applauding when his tame Pigeons go by, and a successful
shot brings them down. Different races have different
ways. Truly de gnstihns, etc. But he really cannot stand
it when the Howadja walks among his water-melons for a
paltry Rufous Warbler, and he does feel called upon to
object to his trampling down such valuable plants for such
insignificant game. Accordingly it is only due to him that
his wrath should be appeased with a backshish of powder, a
present more acceptable than the copper alloy coins, of
which every dragoman thinks it necessary to bring a
sackful.

All this time there has not been a cloud overhead, and
only a close scrutiny into the clear blue sky will reveal the
Griffon Vultures which circle far up, like dots, in the vault
of heaven ; yet nothing escapes them from their dizzy
height. If there be a carcass or any putrid matter about a
village, the Neophrons are the first to find it out, by their
eyes and not by their nostrils. " Pharaoh's Hens " are a
marked feature in the zoology of Egypt, and valued for
their sanitary qualities, for they are the birds which preserve
the public health by clearing away the filth and festering

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 10/

offal, of which the very stench alone is enough to breed a
pestilence. Scavengers they are, at once the most loath-
some and the most useful of winged animals on the face of
the earth. You may see them distended with dung, their
beaks reeking with gore, yet still tearing at the meal with
which they are already overgorged. You may see them
again at sunset congregating to roost ; and you see them
again next day still ravenous as ever to partake of that
which it is their office to remove.

Second only to these harpies of the air are the Yellow-
billed Kites, in their usefulness in removing tainted matter,
and the Board of Health of Egypt, or in default of such an
institution, public opinion, has decreed to both protection.
They are as bold and audacious as birds would be which are
dependant on man for their living.

The hovering Kestrel stands out in bold relief against the
sky, but the Sparrowhawk prefers to keep among the trees,
where he waits his opportunity to make prey of the White
Wagtail, which was so abundant a short time ago. The
Harriers also do not object to perch on trees, though it is
not their general rule. They like beating the fields better,
which they may be seen doing any day in April in a
workmanlike manner. The Marsh Harrier is commonest,
Swainson's second, then the Hen Harrier, and lastly
Montague's, which perhaps is accidental or only found on
migration.

I have been led into somewhat lengthy remarks on the
Accipitirs ; of all families it is the one best represented in
Egypt ; so much so, that the most unobservant person can-
not fail to be struck with it.

While my attendant is rolling a cigarette, I pause a
moment to wonder what goal all the thousands of pale
Egyptian Swifts which are careering by can have. They
pass by, but there is no check ; others take their place. Can
they who press on with such steady purpose stop short of

I08 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Europe ? Their heads are all to the north ; they are flying
low, like birds with a settled object. Less numerous, but
still innumerable, and with the same aim, and flying in the
same direction, I see a cloud of Sand Martins. At the rate
they are now going they will soon be decimating insect
life at Cairo, and hawking over the pools of El Fostat,
in conjunction with the Rufous -breasted Swallow and its
distinct English congener. But all Egyptian birds are not
migrants. There are the stay-at-homes, and one of these is
the Hooded Crow, which sits in the Sycamore-fig, announcing
with loud caws, to all who may be interested in the fact,
that she has laid her eggs ; and another is the parasitic
Greater spotted Cuckoo, which chuckles at the thought of
having added one to the number. These belong to a class
which is divisible into flats and sharpers ; birds who " do "
others, or are themselves " done."

In the long grass the Fantail builds her gem of a nest,
and the Drymceca gracilis, another minute Warbler, chir-
rups to her young ones, " branchers " already with little
bodies and no tails.

Small rodents spring into the ditches : lizards scuttle up
the walls of the houses ; the moving snake eyes the
fledgling ; and the sly fox trots away among the tobacco
plants. So great is the overflow of animal life, that no one
can fail to be struck by it. Only those can appreciate the
scene in its zoological aspect who are capable of discrimina-
ting between the many species, though all can and must,
listen with unmixed feelings of pleasure to the chanting of
the choristers, and the hum of many insects, and all must
feel the balmy air and fragrant luxuriance of foliage and
blossom, and derive enjoyment from the view before them,
the rock-cut tombs, the tents, the camels, the Bedouins with
their long guns, the latteen sails upon the river, and the
mountains in the hazy distance.

I shall be pardoned if I next submit a brief companion

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. lOQ

picture of the prominent species to be met with in June at
such a lake as the Faioum (Birket-El-Korn). First the
little long-tailed African Cormorant goes by with straight
undeviating flight, like one who knows what place he wants
to go to and is going there, leaving behind him the wanton
Terns, who have no object in life but lightly to sport over
the water as they watch for their finny prey, assured that
the warm sun will take care to incubate their eggs. In
noisy conclave the Buff-backed Herons trim their nests, and
the shyer Squacco is uneasy at any disturbance the mean-
ing of which he does not understand, while the cautious
Egret takes his stick away again, wisely jealous of revealing
the whereabouts of his yet unfinished edifice. The Dalma-
tian Pelican swims away with all sail set, or flaps and glides,
and flaps and glides over the water, his huge form mirrored
on the surface, startling the basking fish, which hurry from
the presence of their enemy. Marbled Ducks in pairs rise
from among the sedges : agile Grebes put their trust in
diving : the tall reeds quiver as the Green-backed Porphyrio
seeks their friendly shelter: the Reed Warbler sounds a
loud alarum. All fly to the nearest cover, and in those thick
beds they find a secure haven.

CHAPTER V.

I HAVE often thought it would be convenient if collectors
would give a short summary of the results of their expedi-
tions. The only absolutely new bird to Egypt which I can
claim to have got was the Lesser White-fronted Goose,
bought of M. Filliponi ; for the Norwich Museum contained
a specimen of the Desert Buzzard* from Rosetta ; the
English Swift was admitted to inhabit Egypt, though it had
never been obtained there ; and the Marbled Duck was
once got by Canon Tristram, albeit the fact was not made
public ; but these three species now appear as Egyptian for
the first time on positive information. The confirmation of
Captain Shelley's suppositions concerning the first two is of
great interest. With regard to the Green-backed Porphyrio
and African Cormorant which we got at the P"aioum, though
they had escaped the observation of the English, they had
been noticed by some of the continental authors ; and here
again the corroboration which we are now able to give to
the latter was very desirable.

Several of the birds collected by us differed in a marked
manner from British specimens, but while giving the points
of difference under their respective heads (see the Stone-
chat and Sand Martin), I have felt that it would be too
great a riskf to describe any of them as specifically distinct.

"' Also see the Huddersfield Naturalist, Vol. II., p. 304.
•f It would appear that quite seven-tenths of the names which have
been bestowed on " new birds " within the last few years, have ah-eady
sunk into synonyms, and the advance of science has thereby been im-
peded.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. Ill

Of species previously supposed to be winter visitors, we got
the Sanderling and some others in May, and the Avocet,
Little Stint, Pigmy Curlew, and Lesser Tern in June ; and
I may add the Little Bittern in the same month, about
which nothing certain was known.

The range of the Olivaceous Warbler and the Scissorbill
was extended north, and that of the Caspian Tern, White -
winged Tern, Linnet, and one or two other species, south.

The right of admission was also confirmed to sundry
doubtful birds, and I regard this as one of the best results
of our researches, such as Baillon's Crake and Montague's
Harrier, which were only admitted into his work by
Captain Shelley on sufferance.

All the birds which we got and he did not get I have
marked in my list with a star (*). For convenience sake
I will here give a list of them :* Sociable Vulture, Bonelli's
Eagle, Honey Buzzard, Montague's Harrier, Grey Wagtail,
Black Redstart, Rock Swallow {?), Orphean Warbler, English
Swift, Reed Warbler, Great Sedge Warbler, Baillon's Crake,
Dunlin, Sanderling, Marbled Duck, Eared Grebe, White-
winged Tern, Lesser Tern, Lesser Pelican, African Cor-
morant, and twenty-second and last, the rare Lesser White-
fronted Goose.

Eighteen hundred and seventy-five was reckoned a cold
spring, and a backward summer. There was no KJianiseen
(the hot south wind). Li spite of this I noticed some very
early migratory arrivals ; for instance the Egyptian Swift
{ Cypselus pallidus) was seen on February 14th ;f others, on
the other hand, came later than the time given for them in
the "Birds of Egypt," as, for example, Tiirtur isabellina,

^ All but three are mduded in the " Birds of Egypt."

f Mr. E. C. Taylor tells me that he does not consider that Cypselus
pallidus is a migrant.

112 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Avhich we had been looking out for full three weeks before
we saw it on the 26th of March.

The following parallel columns of dates are intended to
show the difference in the time of arrival between Egypt and
England, but they are not the same individual birds which
pass from the one country to the other, at least we may
fairly surmise that they are not. The dates for Egypt are
from my notebook, those for England being the mean of
twelve years' observations of earliest arrivals made by my
father, or abstracted by him from the various periodicals.

]

EGYPT.

ENGLAND.

Sand Martin

February 21st'

March i8th

Wheatear -

Marc

:h 8th

„ loth

Swallow

5)

14th

„ 26th

Reed Warbler

))

31st

April 25th

Redstart

5)

;>

„ 23rd

Turtle Dove

April

2nd

May 8th

House Martin

))

3rd

April 2nd

Sedge Warbler

V

5th

March 28th

Cuckoo

>)

7th

„ 1 8th

Nightingale

»

13th

„ 26th

Lesser Whitethroat

))

5?

- ' April 28th

Greater „

J)

14th

„ 2ISt

Spotted Flycatcher -

>)

22nd

May 6th

Whinchat -

))

23 rd

April 15 th

Tree Pipit -

?)

?j

„ 14th

Golden Oriole

May

I St

May 6th

I will now draw a further comparison between Egypt
and Algeria, and it may be as well to remember that
Algeria is upwards of 600 miles, or more than ten degrees
further north than the tropic of Cancer, which bounds Egypt
to the south ; yet there is very little difference in the time
of the arrival of its migrants.

EGYPT. ALGERIA.

House Martin - April 3rd - February 17th

Swallow - - March 14th - „ 19th

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. II3

EGYPT.

ALGERIA.

Tree Pipit -

April 23rd

March i8th

Sand Martin

February 21st

„ 22nd

Sedge Warbler

April 5th

„ 24th

Redstart

March 31st

„ 27th

Nightingale

April 13th

„ 31st

Greater Whitethroat

„ 14th

April 1st

Turtle Dove

„ 2nd

„ nth

Spotted Flycatcher

„ 22nd

„ 24th

Roller

„ 9th

„ 25th

It is in April that the great tide of birds press northwards,
and ours, which happened to be by many Aveeks the last
Diabeyha up the river, just hit off the feathered pilgrims,
as I had calculated it would do. A mighty army they
were, bound many of them for the Delta, many of them for
the more northern shores of Europe. By the 29th the main
troop had passed : the rush was over. The Tree Pipit and
the Golden Oriole, the last of the migrants, had arrived.
When these stragglers had passed we saw no more birds, ex-
cept the residents and a few Turtle Doves, Rufous Warblers,
etc., which had found their journey's end sooner than the
main body, and were already commencing the duties of
incubation, not to migrate any more until the returning
wave in autumn should impel them south again.

I am not one of those who think that migration in Egypt
is very dependent on the overflow of the Nile. I know
that the early writers attributed it to that, but they seem to
have ignored the fact that the vernal and autumnal move-
ments take place just as much in any other country, though
I can well believe that it is nowhere more observable or
more patent to everybody's eye. I am of course aware that
the Nile at Christmas offers a splendid resort to all water-
birds, and countless throngs avail themselves of it, but
these very birds show that they are not wholly governed
by the subsidence of the waters by not quitting before
March, a period when the river is comparatively low, and

I

114 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

when Ducks and Geese are equally quitting England and
other countries in Europe. Again, I do not believe that
they come to Egypt before November or late in October,
though I cannot speak from my own observation. The
river Nile begins to rise at the end of May, so. that it
must be nearly "high Nile" before they arrive.

No doubt thousands of Spring birds which come to Egypt
have wintered not further south than Abyssinia ; but many
probably come from a region beyond the equator, where
winter is turned into summer, having already bred once.
These bring their offspring with them, which, being in the
puzzling plumage of immaturity, lead closet-naturalists to
set them down as being two years in arriving at maturity.*
Others may breed on the great lakes which are the sources
of the Nile. In that class I should put the Grey-headed
Wagtail, of which I saw large flocks at the end of April,
composed almost entirely of young birds, yet fully grown.
I think this is the only way to account for the young of
Insessorial birds turning up in Europe in April, at which
time, in the ordinary course of things, they ought to be in
full dress. Instances of their occasionally doing so must
have come under the notice of every ornithologist in Eng-
land.

I do not think the sum of the birds of Egypt can be
put at more than 316, which may be roughly divided into
138 residents, 70 accidental stragglers, 48 winter visitors,
33 spring and autumn visitors, and 27 summer visitors.
Further researches would probably extend the last item.
What is wanted is to work the country between June and
October, for the collections which have come to England
and America — and they have been numerous, though for
the most part made by unscientific persons — have been

* In Zambesi, says Dr. Kirk, birds pair in October and breed in
December. (Ibis, 1864, p. 313.)

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 115

formed almost without exception in the winter and
spring.

The most likely place for a future investigator to get new
facts is Lake Bourlos (as yet unvisited by any English
ornithologist), which lies between Alexandria and Damietta.
It is forbidden to shoot on Menzaleh, and Mareotis and the
Faioum have been pretty well worked. Indeed the Faioum
has been visited by at least four collectors. Going how-
ever as late as we did, I was sanguine that we should drop
on something new, and if I had not been unwell I have no
doubt I should have done a good deal there; as it was, we
saw enough to repay us for our journey. Let me recom-
mend no one to go the Faioum without a filter, as the water
is disgustingly dirty. For getting about the lake a " Una "
boat* would be the best thing to bring, as punts, canoes, and
indiarubber boats are too small.

** Mr. Broadway of Cairo has two, but he objects to letting them out
except for the Nile trip.

CHAPTER VI.

I SHOULD now like to say something about a bird on which
a special interest centres in connection with Egypt, because
in old days the pagan dwellers in that land worshipped it, —
the Ibis (Ibis cethiopica, Lath., /. religiosa, auct.) What
they saw in this fowl to make it one of the objects of their
veneration is a vexed question. Some content themselves
with saying that it was so; some jump to the conclusion
that it was a deadly foe to noxious reptiles ; some quote
the plausible Plutarch, who gives three highly recondite
reasons, viz., that its black and white plumage resembled
the moon's gibbosity, that the space between its legs formed
an equilateral triangle, and that it was supposed to make a
medicinal use of its beak !

Alas ! alas ! the Sacred Ibis is no longer found in Egypt.
What would the shaven priests say if they could live
over again "l My humble opinion is that they would
say that in their wild state they never were anything but
rarities, and confirm the theory of Dr. Adams (Ibis, 1864,
p. 32,) that they were imported from the south, I look
upon them as an imported exotic, for I cannot conjecture
what natural cause can have operated upon them to produce
their extinction, if they ever were natives. They were
domesticated, in time they became totally dependent on
man, Egypt was conquered by another nation, the hand of
protection was withdrawn, and the breed died out* But it

* The great men who wrote so many reams of paper about its my-
thological history, never seem to have known that it was extinct or
moribund.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 11/

will be fair to place before my readers all that is to be said
in favour of their having been natives, a view hitherto
adopted by the majority of naturalists.

First. We have a representation in Rosselini of young
Ibises in a nest of water-plants (Monumenti Civili., Vol. II.,
plate XIV.) The body of a nestling in the British Museum
is white, the head and neck are black and covered with
down. This does not tally very well with the plate; my
father suggests that they may be young Glossy Ibises.*

Secondly. Herodotus says they are common and often
seen, an expression more likely perhaps to be used of wild
birds than tame ones.

Thirdly. I have found a second species figured in Rosse-
lini's " Monuments," supposed to be Gcroiiticiisconiat2ts (Ehr.),
which, though never sacred, may, for ought we know, have
been once common in Egypt, and now retired further
south. If that was so, what happened to the Geronticics
may have happened to the Ibis.

The Sacred Ibis then is^ from past association, an illustri-
ous fowl, and so accommodating is it to the gentry and
nobility of England, that like Cook's placards, all who go to
Egypt see them ; but to the ornithological portion of the
community it never reveals itself! The downright nonsense
which has been written about the " Sacred bird of Thoth "
would fill a book. The hundred and one authors who
have raved about Egypt, vie with each other as to who can
say the most improbable things about it. Each chronicles
the never-to-be-forgotten moment when at last he saw the
venerable Ibis of antiquity. One of the fraternity, at a loss
for an epithet, dubs it " the pink-eyed Ibis ; " another, with
a fine power of imagination, avows that it came nothing
short of "a winged star, dazzling in the sunshine." Yet

• It appears however that the young of that bird is the same colour
as the young Sacred Ibis (cf. Zoologist, ss. 15.)

Il8 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

probably none of these people have ever seen the real bird.
They are the dupes of dragomen ; and indignant as they
would be if they were told it, the Buff-backed Heron has'
been passed off upon them as the vara avis, its unsuspicious
character rather assisting than otherwise in keeping up the
deception. This has been the real object of their aspira-
tions, or some other white bird of the Heron tribe.

The fact is that the only modern author who has fallen in
with the genuine article, as far as my reading has carried
me, is Savigny, and as the account which he gives of its habits
seems to have been overlooked, I will quote him. He
writes : — '

"Vers la fin du mois de fructidor de I'an 8, [September, 1800]
comme je descendois le Nil pour me rendre a Rosette, j'appergus
les premiers Ibis blancs, neanmoins, je ne pus les suivre m'en
procurer et les examiner attentivement que plus de trois mois
apres, pendant un sejour que je fis dans les environs de Damiette
et de Menzale. On voyoit encore, k cette epoque, quantite' d'Ibis
noirs, mais deja les blancs commencaient a devenir rares ; je ne
les retrouvai meme en certain nombre que pres de Kafr-Abou-Said
sur la rive gauche du Nil, a 3,000 metres de ce fleuve et a 20,000
de Damiette dans de grandes inondations qui s'etendent jusqu'au
lac Bourlos."

At p. 50 he says that during autumn Ibises of both species
are found in the markets of Lower Egypt, particularly
Damietta, with their heads cut off; and that the Glossy
Ibis has been often brought him alive, and once the Sacred
Ibis; and then at p. 52 he adds : —

"Ilparoit que I'espece sejourne en Egypte environ sept mois,
au moins encore quelques individus \ Kafr-Abou-Said, le 24 nivose
(14 Janvier)."

Its extinction therefore must be of comparatively recent
date. Fortunately it has not been extirpated altogether,
like the Great Auk and the Nestor prodnctiis. It is still

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. II9

common in more southern regions, though driven from its
stronghold in Egypt.

A statement has been made that it is still a regular
migrant in small numbers to Lake Menzaleh, but for this
I could find no foundation. If it occurs, it is only as a
straggler, and the most unlooked-for rarity. The only
reliable instance that I could hear of its being seen of
recent date was by Captain Arkwright, who being familiar
with it in Abyssinia, may be supposed to know the bird
well. He saw one at the Faioum. There are also two said
to be Egyptian, but I attach very little credence to them,
in the mixed collection at the Kair-El-Aiainy at Cairo, and
two or three more in our British Museum with "Egypt" on
their stands, but I should not dream of placing the slightest
reliance on these after my experience of wrong localities
placed upon British Birds in the national collection.

A few years ago I saw an Ibis in a garden at Eastbourne
in Sussex, the property of Mr. Hurst. It had been shot in
the neighbouring parish of Bulverhithe, and being only
winged, and that slightly, was purchased and kept alive by
a huckster. From him it passed to the keeper of a public
house, and from him to Mr. Hurst. It was generally sup-
posed that it had escaped from a ship, as vessels come
rather near to that portion of the coast, but there is no
proof that it was not a voluntary migrant. As it was in
good condition and not shy, I was able to make a careful
examination and compare it with a specimen oi IbiscetJiiopica.
There was a difference, and the conclusion I came to was
that it was the Indian Ibis melanocepJiahis*

Other birds were venerated in Egypt besides the Ibis,
though it is as hard to understand what guided the ancient

* In Gerbe's edition of "Degland" (II. p. 327), it is stated that the
Prince Bonaparte turned the Ibis cet/uopica of Egypt out of the
European hst, and admitted /. melaiiocephalus of India in lieu thereof.

120 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

people in their choice, as it is to comprehend why the
wisdom of parHament should enact that the Chiff-chaff be
protected and not the Willow Wren (35 and ^6 Victoria,
chap. 78).

Captain Shelley thinks the Kestrel was made sacred
because it destroyed that great pest of Africa, the locust ;
but then did it not destroy also the much-loved scarabcEiis,
the most sacred of all the emblems of palmy Egypt .-* I
believe, if it zvas sacred, that it was chosen out of many for
affecting the haunts of men, building its nest as it yearly
does in the walls of the houses. Did we in England deify
a bird as sacred to home and hearth, the Martin would be
selected, or the Swallow, which always court the society of
man. But the Kestrel was not the sacred emblem of Horus.
That bird was probably the Lanner Falcon {Falco aroeris of
Wilkinson, vide "The Ancient Egyptians," V., p. 210), pour-
trayed on the monuments with a dark moustache. Dr.
Adams, it is true, treats of the bird of Horus as the Kestrel,
but I am of opinion that all his remarks really apply to the
Lanner (cf. Ibis, 1864, p. ii).

With regard to the identification of the numberless birds
on the monuments, it is a subject which has been never
fully investigated. Before going through the few memo-
randa which I made respecting it, I would draw attention
to the statement in Murray's guide book that the names are
written under some of the animals, which ought to assist
considerably in elucidating their species.

In the Museum of Mariette Bey at Boulak, there is an
undoubted portrait of two Red-breasted Geese, a species
not given in Shelley's "Birds of Egypt."* They are half

' The Red-breasted Goose has another and a far more recent claim
to be called an Egyptian bird. The late Mr. Allen, while resident in
Alexandria, obtained a specimen (not adult) which is now in Mr.
Crichton's possession. It is figured in Gould's " Birds of Great Britain."

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 121

the size of life, and are painted, together with four White-
fronted Geese, upon a slab which was found by the gentle-
man who has amassed this unrivalled collection, at Meydoun.
They are supposed to be older than the Pyramids themselves.
They are the best executed, and by far the most life-like
of any bird-pictures that I saw in Egypt. The White-
fronted Geese are not adult, having but little or no black
barring on the under surface ; and curiously it was the same
with those which we got, which looks as if the species was
longer in arriving at maturity than in England.

The only other bird in the museum which calls for re-
mark, though there are many other things of the highest
interest, is an exquisite Sacred Ibis, very fresh and very
faithful, which has been drawn, not from the conventional
pattern of the tombs, but from nature. In the temple at
Edfoo there is a delineation (uncoloured of course) most
wonderfully like a Bustard, a species included by Wilkinson
with a query ; and in the last tomb but one at Beni Hassan
it is easy to make out the Spoonbill, the Barn Owl, the
Masked Shrike, and sundry others. No one, naturalist or
not, ought to go by this grotto without visiting the two
end tombs, though the pictures have been shamefully
defaced. The unrivalled cartoons in the tombs of the kings,
the beautiful temple of Phils, and many other tombs and
temples have been almost spoilt by the selfish cupidity and
crass ignorance of a class of visitors who are an unmitigated
disgrace to whatever nation they belong to. The Viceroy
sees and knows that this is going on, and yet he provides
no custodian for any of these places except Dendera.

To return to the birds which occur in the sculptures. Sir
Gardner Wilkinson gives a list, with a facsimile of outlines,
in his " Manners and Customs of the Ancient Egyptians,"
among which one can recognise the Lesser Ring Dotterel,
Spurvvinged Plover (a very characteristic Egyptian bird),

at(

2 V.

»

VII.

VIII.

X.

XI.

XIII.

XIV.

122 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Avocet, Common and Demoiselle Cranes ; and in the
second volume of Rossellini's " Monumenti Civili," there are
some capital plates which cannot fail to interest. My father
and I think they may be identified as follows : —

Night Heron.

Pintail Duck. Ruddy Shelduck.
Mallard. Teal.
Red-backed Shrike. Hoopoe.
Avocet.
Dove.

White-fronted Goose. Sacred Ibis.
Pelican. Ostrich. Young Ibises in
nest (see antea).

In Vol. I. a Geroiiticiis, probably G. coinatus, Ehr., will be
found at plates XXXI. and CLV. There is also a figure
in Wilkinson's plate LXXV, which I refer with very little
doubt to Lcptoptilus cnuneuifer, Cuv.*

I have mentioned elsewhere that the Red-breasted Goose
is to be considered a bird of Egypt. I will conclude this
chapter by enumerating a few others which put in a
claim.

First. Captain Shelley originally admitted the Eleonora
Falcon ("Ibis," 1871, p. 42), and I think it should be rein-
stated, as my father considers that the figure of a young
male Falco gracilis (A. and L. Brehm) killed near Cairo in
September, 185 1, (Archiv fur die Ornithologie, 1856, p. 194,)
is undoubtedly nothing else.

Second. There is in the Norwich Museum an adult
Accipitcr spJicmiriis marked " Egypt," but I greatly doubt
the correctness of this locality. It was obtained from a
dealer named Warwick.

* A Marabou Stork, probably this species, is believed to have
occurred at Ajmokra in Eastern Algeria. (Zoologist, 2591.)

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EG\TT. 1 23

Third. There is in the same institution an example of
the small race of the Spotted Eagle {Aquila maciilata)
from Nubia.

Fourth. Messrs. Dresser and Blandford mention an
Abyssinian Roller (Coracias abyssinica, Bodd) from Egypt,
(the "Ibis," 1874, p. 337,) which is a species which is said
to have occurred in Britain (Bree "Birds of Europe," I.,

p. 157).

Fifth. When Macgregor speaks of a large Indian King-
fisher arrayed in red and blue, on the Zrier river near Man-
sourah, in "The Rob Roy on the Jordan," he probably
alludes to Halcyon sjnyrncnsis.

Sixth. At p. 278 of the " Histoire Naturelle d'Egypte,"
Audouin and Savigny include the Grasshopper Warbler,
and in their thirteenth folio plate they give a figure of it.
The species, however, treated of by these authors are some
of them Syrian.

Seventh. The Striped Bunting {Embcriza striolata,
Licht.) is stated in Temminck's "Manuel" (3rd part, p. 641)
to have been brought from Egypt by Ehrenberg and
Riippell, but there is probably a mistake here. I find no
mention of Ehrenberg's specimen in the " Symbolje Physics,"
and Riippell's, if correctly named, were probably brought
from southern Nubia. Here let me enter my protest
against the loose fashion in which the term Egypt is made
use of Egypt proper ends at Assouan (the first cataract),
though Captain Shelley, for the convenience of Nile tourists,
has very properly extended his work as far south as Wady-
Halfeh.

Eighth. Saxicola erythrcea, Ehr, S. libanotica, Trist,
S.finschii, Heugl., are three names referring to one species,
which, though not included by Captain Shelley, is stated
to have occurred by Mr. Dresser on Von Heuglin's authority,
and by Canon Tristram, who mentions having obtained it
from Egypt (" Ibis," 1870, p. 495).

124 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Ninth. The author of the "Birds of Europe," in his
article on Fidigula riifina, says, " Schlegel speaks of Fuligida
riifina as occurring in Egypt, (Mus. Pay Bas, anseres,
p. 25,) and Von HeugHn records it from Lower Egypt in
winter," which adds another to the hst of Ducks.

CHAPTER VII.

In arranging my notes on the Birds of Egypt, I have
consulted all the works I knew of likely to give me assist-
ance, except the German works of Heuglin, Riappell, and
others, which for lack of a knowledge of German I have
been unable to use as I could have wished. In particular
I have made free use of Dresser's " Birds of Europe," and
of all the papers in the " Ibis " which have any reference to
Egyptian Ornithology. Of Shelley's " Birds of Egypt'" I
needly hardly say that it was of the greatest service to me.
No one should think of going to shoot birds in Egypt with-
out it. I can bear testimony to the accuracy of his field
notes. I was surprised not to find it on sale at Robertson's,
the English bookseller, either at Cairo or Alexandria, but
perhaps the edition is exhausted. The general manual of
ornithology for the British tourist is Smith's "Attractions
of the Nile," and a very good book it is, but it is not suffi-
cient without the more scientific work of Captain Shelley ;
and those who wish to make a good use of their oppor-
tunities should provide themselves with both works before
leaving England.

It does not seem necessary to enumerate the titles of all
the publications which have treated of Egyptian birds, but
there are three on which I should like to offer a iow rt marks,
Hasselquist, Savigny, and Sonini. The title of Frederic
Hasselquist's work is, '^ Iter Palestinmn, eller Resa til
helige Landet," etc. Stockh, 1757. It was translated into
German in 1762 ; into English in 1766; and into French in

126 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

1769. My references are to the English edition, which has
a different pagination from the original. Nearly half the
book is about the Natural History of Egypt, and thirty-
five birds are enumerated with remarks. His letters (re-
printed from the Literary News of Stockholm,) extend from
the spring of 1750 to the spring of 175 1, during all which
time it is believed he was either at Alexandria or Cairo.
They are full of references to Natural History, He died at
Smyrna on the 9th of February, 1752, and to Linnseus the
Queen of Sweden committed the task of arranging and
publishing his notes.

The title of Savigny's work is " Explication Sommaire
des Planches dont les dessins ont ete fournis par I. C. Savigny
pour I'histoire naturelle de I'ouvrage — Oiseaux de' I'Egypte
et de la Syrie — par Victor Audouin." I learn from the
preface that some of the drawings are by M. Pretre, the rest
by M. Savigny, and that the letterpress is by M. Audouin,
assisted by M. Payrandeau (cf, p. 286). It appears that
M. Savigny was unable — owing to illness — to complete his
work, but as Government required its publication, the
Minister of the Interior assigned the office of editor to
M. Audouin, Savigny's former pupil.

Sonini's "Travels in Upper and Lower Egypt," 1799,
can hardly be called an ornithological book, though a great
many notes on birds are scattered through his three volumes.
The accuracy of some of his remarks, as that on the flight
of the Pelican, I can fully confirm ; at the same time I
think he is mistaken in the names of several birds ; for
instance, he mentions both the Titmouse and the Wood-
pecker, two genera which have never professed even to come
to Egypt. He informs us that the quantity of Quails at
Alexandria (on their migration) is really past belief. Four
were to be had at the market for three farthings. " The
crews of merchant ships were fed upon them ; and there
existed at the consul's office at Alexandria several com-

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 12/

plaints preferred by mariners against their captains, for
giving them nothing but Quails to eat" (III., p. 321). Ex-
traordinary as this may appear, I can quite believe it from
what I have seen and heard.*

He gives a lengthy account of the habits of the Egyptian
Dove, and mentions two instances of nests on window-sills
where he was lodging. In more than one place also he
mentions the abundance of the White Wagtail. At p. 202
of Vol. II. he remarks — "There is no kind of bird more
plentiful in Egypt. * * * Some of them came

into the vessel's cabin during our voyage upon the Nile,
and would feed close by our sides with engaging security."
At p. 136 of Vol. II., he has rather an interesting note on
the Ostrich. I could not hear that these birds are ever to
be found in Egypt now, though I believe that fresh eggs
are to be sometimes bought at Assouan. Their plumes are
often brought there, together with native spears, ebony clubs,
and monkey skins, from the Soudan.

It only remains for me to acknowledge the special civility
of M. Eugene Filliponi of Damietta, who has enriched this
volume by a list of all the Arab names of birds he has been
able to collect in that neighbourhood. I beg to acknow-
ledge myself greatly indebted to him for his courtesy in
furnishing this very valuable contribution. Mr. T. B.
Hughes had collected twenty-four such names, and I had
also collected a few, but I have determined to give the
preference to M. Filliponi's names in every case. I have
added a few which he omitted, viz., the Nightingale, English
Turtle Dove, Kingfisher, (and Bat) on Mr. Hughes' authority ;
and the Neophron Vulture, Little Owl, Egyptian Turtle

• At p. 510 of Sir T, F. Buxton's Memoirs I find the following : —
"Sir Thomas Cullum told me that on the 2nd of May, two or three
years ago, he found upon enquiry that duty had been paid on 80,000
Quails. Pretty well for one day." This was in Italy, about the year
1837.

128 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Dove, Sandgrouse, and Wild Goose, on my own ; and in a
few cases where our names differed considerably from his,
I have thought well to give both. Any discrepancy is
easily accounted for by the difference in dialect between
Upper Egypt and the Delta.

Let me say also that my best thanks are due to
Mr. T. B. Hughes for the loan of his large collection, and
also to the Hon. E. Russell and Mr. S. C. Buxton for their
assistance. I have also to thank Captain Shelley for kindly
giving me access to his Egyptian skins, and Mr. E. C. Taylor
for a like civility.

■Jf L Sociable Vulture, Vultur mibiais.

On the 2 1st of April, one of the largest Vultures I ever
saw was killed in the act of flying from a carcass on the
river near Bellianeh. This immense brute measured 109
inches from tip to tip, and looked, when hung up on the
boom to dry, larger even than a Griffon. It was 39 inches
long; the wing from carpus 30; the tarsus 5^ ; weight \^\
lbs. The head was bare, and of a purplish flesh colour.
The skin of the crown white ; round the ear a few feathers ;
the chin coated with black bristles pointing backwards ;
mouth purple ; eye hazel ; legs and cere bluish. No
feathers on the sides and thighs ; these parts were entirely
covered with down. It is possible that this species may be
much commoner than is supposed in Egypt.

2. Cinereous Vulture, Vultur mojiac/ms (Linn.).

We saw this species not unfrequently ; at least some of
the Vultures were so very dark that I set them down as
this species. I believe Von Heuglin found it rarer than the
Sociable Vulture ( Vultur nubicus), from which it is not
easily distinguishable at a distance.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 29

3. Griffon Vulture, Gyps fnlvus (Gmel.).

This again is another splendid Vulture, which is con-
sidered to be resident ; a common bird, and generally
distributed, barring the Delta, where we did not see any.
Those who are only acquainted with northern Europe can
form no conception of how big Vultures look when their
wings are spread, or what a grand spectacle a score or so
present sailing on motionless pinions in the neighbourhood
of their eyrie, which is generally on some steep mountain
side. There was a place of the kind opposite Minieh, where
some two score had located themselves on the ledges of the
steep cliff on the east bank. They were too far for our
guns, and they knew it, though I could have got them if I
had used a poisoned sheep. I never had the luck to catch
one gorged — an event which surely cannot be so common
as some authors would have us believe ; but at Girgeh a
brace of them were inspecting the carcase of the very largest
fish I ever saw, and I fancy they meant to have a good
" tuck in " when we were gone. I never myself met with
any recognition of the name Nissr, by which this species is
known among the Arabs in some countries.

4. Egyptian Vulture, Neophron percnoptems (Linn.).
(Hasselquist, 14) ; " Rackham."*

These are unsavoury birds, but useful as scavengers.
That is their foul office, and where there is any offal there
they congregate. The lists I have consulted do not say
they are less common in Lower Egypt than in Upper, yet
we only saw one or two north of Cairo. In that city of
picturesque dirt and eastern filthiness they were common
enough, and it was the only place where old and young

'' The Arabic names are given in inverted commas.

K

130 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

seemed to be in equal numbers. In Upper Egypt the
former greatly preponderated. Hasselquist notices their part
in Nature's scheme as follows : —

" The inhabitants of Egypt cannot be enough thankful to Provi-
dence for this bird. All the places round Cairo are filled with the
dead bodies of asses and camels ; and thousands of these birds fly
about and devour the carcases before they putrefy, and fill the air
with noxious exhalations" (I.e.).

That the celerity with which Vultures find dead animals
is marvellous, is true ; but I am of opinion that in nearly
every case they are guided by their acute vision.

I never could understand how they managed to soil their
backs, for that part never was pure white, which I presume
it ought to be naturally.

5. Short-toed Eagle, Circaetus gallims (Gm.).

I had long had a keen wish to get this large Eagle, and
as I was returning from Quail shooting, on the 20th of
March, at Erment, I was lucky enough to make a very long
shot at one with a wire cartridge. Perhaps it was the same
which had waited over us in the lentils, so high up that it
looked like a Goshawk, with every bar perceptible in that
clear atmosphere. I have no doubt it had killed the four
snakes which we found lying together in a field close by.
For what reason it brought them together, or whether it left
them to watch us, I cannot divine. It seemed to take a
great interest in our Quail-shooting, but I never saw it
attempt to catch one. It proved to be a female, as I ex-
pected from its large size, for it measured twenty-six inches
in length, and five feet seven inches in expanse. Its stomach
only contained a frog. Legs, stone-colour ; weight, 3f lbs. ;
eye, light yellow, but very bright ; pupil small ; head dis-
proportionately large.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. I31

The Short-toed Eagle is not uncommon nor very shy,
and I rather wonder that we never succeeded in kiUing
another. Shots were obtained at Gou-El-Kebeer and Edfou,
but were not so successful as they ought to have been ; but
I would particularise these as good places for them. Ac-
cording to Von Heuglin it is mainly a spring and autumn
migrant ; but I imagine it would be more correct to speak
of it as a resident, whose numbers are increased at those
seasons. I am quite confident that I saw some at the
Faioum* in June, and if I did not observe it in winter, others
have done so.

■X-6. BONELLIS' Eagle, Nisaetus fasciatics (Vieill.).

A fine female was shot on the 22nd of April at Bellianah.
It had been chasing pigeons, and was resting on a sand
bank. Weight 4^ lbs. Length 28 inches; expanse 60
inches. Eye, light hazel ; legs and cere, yellow ; beak, horn-
blue. It was the only specimen which we met with in our
travels. Canon Tristram has a specimen which was killed
somewhere above Cairo by Mr. Meddlycott.

7. Booted Eagle, Aquila pennata (Gm.).

On the 22nd of April — the same day we got Bonellis'
Eagle — two Booted Eagles were shot out of palm trees,
where they were apparently taking a nap after a meal upon
rats. On the 19th of May another was shot, and several
seen near Benisuef. Weight of a male i| lbs. Length 18
inches; expanse 13 inches. This is a small insignificant
bird for an Eagle.

** The Faioum and Birket El Kairoun are the same place ; a lake
near Cairo in the fertile province of Faioum.

132 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

8. Greater Spotted Eagle, Aquila clanga (Pallas) ;
Aquila vittata (Hodgson); A. ncevia, part.

We did not see on an average more than one or two a
week, and none that I remember after April. Most writers
agree that it is only a winter visitant. A pair frequented the
lake at Rackaba, in company with numerous Marsh Harriers.
On the 29th of January, Monsieur Filliponi and I were poled
about among the reeds which fringe that lake, and he made
a very long shot at one of them and brought it down. It was
only winged, and we tried killing it with eati-dc-luce, but I
do not recommend either this or ammonia; though prussic
acid might do. I believe simple pressure on the breast with
the thumbs, or with the knee in case of large specimens, is
the speediest way of killing wounded birds. Mr. S. Bligh
says a good plan is to tightly press the thumb on the
trachea just by the roots of the tongue. (See, Ceylon Branch
of R. A. Soc, trans.) It had a beautiful gloss, which I have
noticed upon the plumage of other specimens : also on the
Osprey shot at Mershoom, v/hich was a freshly-moulted
female. This Eagle was in the immature spotted plumage.

9. Imperial Eagle, Aquila mogilnik (Gmel).

In the Institute at Alexandria there is a dust-covered
and most dilapidated Eagle, which I believe is of this species.
That some of the Eagles we saw in the Delta were also the
Imperial I have no doubt; but they are not much addicted
to the society of man, and we did not get a chance of form-
ing a near acquaintance with any of them.

10. Osprey, Pandion halicBetus (Linn.).
" Mansouri " i.e. Conqueror.

We frequently saw Ospreys on the sand banks — single
birds, often in the vicinity of Herons or Gulls. Rifle shots

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 33

were occasionally tried at them, but the Delta is too populous
to admit of much rifle practice. However, a fine specimen
was shot with the gun at Mershoom. Going up the Nile
we saw eighteen in two days, but very few in coming
down again. At Gebel-Abou-Foeder a pair seemed to
have a nest in the clifis. My father has shown me that,
according to Dr. Bree's translations from Von Heuglin, it
nests in the Gulf of Suez in February and April. It may
be, therefore, that some remain the summer on the Nile, but
I did not see any, to identify them, after the ist of April.

The head of this species and the Spotted Eagle are very
hard to pass in skinning.

II. Lanner Falcon, Falco lanarius, Linn.;
F. feldeggii, Schleg.

I cannot say for certain if the Lanner was seen by us
below Cairo, but I identified it to my satisfaction at the
Pyramids. By the second of those mighty memorials of a
bygone age, my guide sprung a Quail, and an unmistakable
Lanner instantly dashed off in pursuit of it. The quarry
settled and the Falcon "waited on," but when I went up to
flush it again for her, she flew on to the face of the Great
Pyramid, but I had seen her light head, and albeit Pere-
grines were at that time (February i6th) still plentiful, I
was satisfied.

No doubt in Egypt, as in other countries, the Arab sheiks
have trained their Lanners to the noble sport of falconry,
and their high courage has enabled them to be used for
larger game than their natural instincts would lead them to
attack. I imagine that their usual natural food is the Quail
when it arrives, I have sometimes, when shooting them, had
a Lanner dash past me like a flash of lightning, which I had
myself seen an instant before a mere speck in the sky. Yet
from that great height he had seen that one of the Quails

134 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

was wounded, and had come down like a rocket on the
spent quarry, which only just escapes by dropping into the
lentils.

They are not a vindictive bird, though they occasionally
get wrathful with a trespasser near their nest. I once saw
a pair go at an Elanns and buffet him, in a wide open plain
where there was no apparent excuse for such conduct.

In the rocky gorge which leads to the tombs of the kings,
the only birds we saw were a pair of Lanners, hermits in
that unutterable solitude. When those renowned sepulchres
held the monarchs for whom they were made and painted,
to kill a Lanner was a crime which could only be atoned
for by death ; but although on the present occasion
Mr. T. B. Hughes and I had no compunction, the birds
evidently remembered their sacred character and refused to
come within range.

On an island in Birket-El-Kairoun I found the only nest
which was accessible on a projecting rock. Never having
had much experience in Falcons' nests, I was not a little
amused at the collection of rags and bones. It only wanted
a few ropes and bottles to be a regular marine store-shop.
Clearly the prosperous couple had decided, when the duties
of incubation were over, to convert it into a salon a manger.
Not to mention the various rags, bones, and remains of
aquatic birds, there were about two score fish, which, before
they were picked, weighed I should say in the aggregate
25 lbs., of the same species I believe as I had seen basking
on the water, I had no idea before that they were piscivor-
ous. There was no mistake about the ownership of the
nest, for I shot one of the Falcons, nor was this an act of
cruelty, for they only had one &gg, and that was empty and
broken. It seemed to agree fairly with the figure in the
"Ibis" (1864, p. 183, fig. i). I see from my note-book that
in Upper Egypt I also shot four. I cannot detail the cir-
cumstances attending the capture of each, but I have a

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 35

remark to offer about the plumage of an immature female,
killed on the 22nd of April at Bellianeh. In colour it was
a dark brown above ; and below was marked with broad
longitudinal streaks of the same, moreover had none of
the luteous crown, except one or two very small feathers.
It was remarkably small for a hen bird, measuring only i6|
inches long, tarsus 2, wing I2|. We all hoped it might
turn out to be a Barbary Falcon, but my father has carefully
examined and identified it. There is a match for it in the
Norwich Museum ; and I saw another, only rather larger,
but in similar dark plumage, in the great hall at Karnak ;
so for the present it stands as a Lanner.

The adult Lanners found in Egypt sometimes vary con-
siderably from the ordinary type, by presenting a deeper
tone of coloration especially on the upper parts, thus ap-
proaching the darker race which is found in Nubia and
Abyssinia, and which by some naturalists has been treated
as specifically distinct, under the name of F. tanyptenis.
In the case of an adult pair, shot by my companion and
myself whilst flying together from the same tree, on the
1 2th of April, in the neighbourhood of Esne, the female was
of the ordinary type of coloration, whilst the male was
much darker on all the upper surface except the tail ; the
head, nape, and upper interscapulary feathers, being even
quite as deeply coloured as in the adult of F. tanyptenis.

Saker Falcon, Falco saker, Schlegel.

I believe this Falcon was also seen, but as no specimen
was shot, I could not identify it with certainty.
My father thinks that Von Heuglin may have con-
founded Falco babyloniciis, Gurney, which he calls
"tolerably common," with the rufous phase of
F. barbarus.

136 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

12. Peregrine Falcon, Falco peregriims, Gmel.

Our first Peregrine caused great excitement on board. It
was a gorged bird, sleeping ofif a meal of Wild Duck on the
sands. My companions were quite sure it was a Greek
Partridge, a species we had seen a day or two before in
Alexandria, and really it was not easy at a distance to say
what it was. The Diabeyha was stopped, and " m.y noble,
generous Falcon " circumvented and slain, when she proved
to have inside her not only the Duck, but also some grain.
Duck and green peas would have been more proper, but
Ducks and grain were her fare on this occasion ; and the
explanation probably was, that the former had eaten the
latter before being herself eaten by the bird of prey.* It
was not so curious as finding a Partridge's &'g^ in a Pere-
grine's nest, or a rat's head in a Woodpigeon's.

Our next one was shot in the act of carrying off a Pewit,
and the next had been making a heavy repast on locusts,
which did not surprise me, for I believe it is ordained that
almost all animals should help in keeping down the numbers
of this destructive pest, which in times of a great visitation
(fortunately rare) will come to a district in such appalling
clouds as to threaten absolute ruin to the poor fellaJieen.
This Falcon would seem to be commoner than the Lanner
in winter. Old " Tiercels " are said to be rare.

13. Hobby, Fako sublmtco, Linn.

I was shown an adult at M. Filliponi's, killed near
Damietta last September, which was the only one we came
across.

"'In the autumn of 187 1, 1 was shown a Peregrine at the birdstuffer's
at Lydd which had overgorged itself, and been stoned. What its last
heavy repast may have been was not known, but a hare was found near
the spot with one of its eyes gouged out.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 37

14. Western Red-legged Falcon, Falco vespertiuus

Linn.

I purchased an immature one at Damietta.

15. Merlin, Falco cesaloii, Tunstal,

Middle Egypt appears to be the habitat of the Merlin,
but I did not find it so abundant as some have done. All
that we saw were, I believe, cocks, which agrees with former
observations,

16. Kestrel, Tinnnncnlus alaiidarius (G. R. Gray) ;
" Sakre ahmar balad."

In a family so largely represented as the Accipitres, the
familiar English Kestrel was by far the commonest, and so
tame were they, in the Delta especially, that I have often
seen stones thrown at them before they would fly away.
They were less common and decidedly shyer in Upper
Egypt, probably because they are more exposed there to
the incursions of the gun-carrying tourist.

I think that in North Africa Hawks go to nest earlier
than with us. Already in January the Kestrels were paired,
and some of them nesting, for the most part choosing crude
brick walls and palm trees. One of my companions saw
one feeding its young on the 13th of January at the Barrage,
that beautiful bridge which spans the Nile at its bifurcation.
They are plucky birds, these Egyptian Kestrels. Once I
winged a Senegal Dove, and almost before it touched the
earth, a hovering and hungry Kestrel bound to it, nor did
he at once give up possession to the lad who went for it. A
Sparrow-Hawk served me the same trick one day, but it is
more remarkable with a Kestrel.

It is said that Egyptian Kestrels are smaller than English ;

138 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

at any rate I think they are bolder. I have seen one swoop
at a Booted Eagle, and I have also seen one feather a
Hooded Crow which ventured too near its nest.

I 6b. Lesser Kestrel, Falco ccnchris (Cuv.)

On the 13th of April, as we were riding across the wide
treeless plain of the Memnonium, we saw a great many
Kestrels. They were almost too scattered to term a flock :
the game they were after was large insects. On shooting
a pair I found to my delight that they were the Lesser
Kestrel, which I had been long looking out for. They
really had not seemed any smaller than the Common
Kestrel, which in appearance and flight they exactly re-
semble. This flock consisted of both sexes ; one I shot
was a hen (cf Ibis, 1864, p. 236), the other was a cock,
which still retained immature plumage on the wings.

17. Sparrow Hawk, Accipiter nisus (Linn.).

Very common, and I am surprised that it has not an
Arab name, but the natives of the land of Ham are "lum-
pers," not "splitters." I need not recapitulate the habits of
so well known a bird. There are many stories extant of
its audacity, to which the following is now to be added. I
was sitting on the deck of our Nile boat, or Diabeyha as it
is called, with my friends, discussing the fragrant Cerani,
when a terror-stricken Sparrow flew under the divan almost
between my legs, and behind him came the pursuer in the
shape of a mettlesome little cock Sparrow-Hawk. He was
baffled of his prey this time, and before we could rise from
our seats he had made good his escape, and the Sparrow,
perceiving that the coast was clear, flew away also, but still
in evident trepidation. I expected to see the chase re-
newed, but the Hawk had clearly had a fright, and the

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 39

Sparrow had had quite enough of it. A few days after-
wards a pair had the impudence to settle on the sails.*

I examined every specimen which was shot for the Short-
toed Sparrow-Hawk, but we did not detect one.

18. Black-winged Kite, Elamis cccndeus (Desfontaines) ;

" Sakre Abiad," i.e. White Hawk.

These are very pretty Hawks, and fairly common. I
have seen them hovering over a field just like a Kestrel, but
a garden with good large trees is their favourite resort.
They are generally to be seen in pairs. They were certainly
commonest in Middle Egypt ; none were seen, that I know
of, south of Keneh. One shot on the nth of May con-
tained the remains of a small bird.

19. Yellow-billed Kite, Milvus parasiticus (Daudin) ;

" Hiddayer."

No village in Egypt would be complete without its
Hiddayer. I think this Arabic name, which is in universal
use there, is as strong evidence as you could well have that
the Hebrew words ddAJi, dayydh, and ayydh, in the Old
Testament, should be translated Kite. In this hot and
sultry country, Kites perform the part of scavengers, and
most useful are they in clearing away the carcass and the
offal which the natives are too lazy to bury, and the putrid
stench of which would be quite sufficient to breed a pesti-
lence in hot weather. When the Diabeyha has been at
anchor, and we have been skinning, I have seen them pass
and repass within a few feet, attracted by the tempting

* In Durham the Sparrow-Hawk is still common, and holds its own
in spite of gamekeepers. At the mouth of the River Tees, at the fall
of the year, I have seen many cock Sparrowhawks skimming over the
fields, but it was a very rare thing to observe a hen.

I40 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST,

body of some bird which had been flayed and thrown out
of the window. The audacity of the Kites of India is pro-
verbial ; they are as bold in Egypt, and I do not doubt
many stories might easily be collected about them, such as
their snatching meat out of the poor people's hands. One
actually brushed the cheek of Mr. Russell in swooping
at a large Woiran* which the steersman had been skin-
ning ; but I cannot say I ever heard of their molesting
young Pigeons, as described by Dr. Adams (Ibis, 1864,
p. 10). The Lanner will do so, and, indeed, goes by
the name of Pigeon-Hawk in some parts. When our boom
was lowered to go down stream, we found a lizard sticking
to the top, which some Kite had left half-eaten. The top
of a mast is rather a favourite perch, and was so in old
times probably, for Wilkinson represents a boat with
fish hanging out to dry, and on the mast a Kite (No. 333).
He remarks that the manner in which it shrieks while wait-
ing for the entrails of the fish is very characteristically shown
in the original. I do not doubt that fishes, dead or alive,
fresh or stale, would be acceptable to any Egyptian Kite ;
but in the mountains, where I always noticed that they
were cleaner, they certainly prey largely on reptiles. I
have occasionally seen them flying about with such things
as snakes and lizards in their talons.

I have observed them two or three times, whilst flying, to
deliver some food from the foot to the mouth. My father
was well aware of this habit, which he says is common to
all the Kites, and has been noticed in the Lammergeyer of
the Himalayas. I once saw a common Rook apparently
do it.

I was never tired of watching the graceful flight of the
Hiddayer ; unclean as one knows it to be, there is something
beautiful about its slow-sailing flight, with wide-spread tail,

** Monito)- niloticus.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYrT. I4I

and pinions which seem to be almost without motion. It
is the rudderhke tail which enables it to turn with such
consummate ease.

During the winter they were shy, and many a cartridge
was expended on them in vain ; but as spring drew on and
tourists went, they forgot their shyness and thought about
making a nest. Indeed a few misguided birds take the
trouble to nest twice or thrice, for the noise of their young
bemg fed in the nest was heard in the Ezbekeeah Gardens*
in January. Their nests, which by April are nearly as
common as Crow's nests, are untidy fabrics, the chief part
being sticks and rags, put together anything but neatly.
They are generally in trees, sometimes in cliffs or on houses.
One of the most accessible I saw was on the tombs of the
Caliphs. Mr. E. C. Taylor took several on the second
Pyramid. I never saw any very young birds : there were
two in Shepheard's Hotel garden when we returned in May,
which had left the nest and could fly.

I must say, to give them credit for one cleanly habit,
that I have seen them standing in the water and washing
themselves. They are often on the sand banks, whether for
fish or to digest their last meal, I do not know : I never
saw one gorged, though I have seen their crops distended
with offal. It is not very usual to see a great many to-
gether. I remember noticing a big flock in a high wind at
Minieh, and a still larger one of perhaps seventy on a sand-
bank at Siout : what they were doing unless digesting I
cannot guess ; they were not near together as if they had
found carrion, but were sitting apart at intervals, lazy and
quiet. But the largest congregation of all was at a place just
outside Cairo, not far from the citadel ; here on the i8th of
February, just after we had shot the bridge and Rhoda was
opening into view, I beheld a surprising flock of Kites, and

° The public gardens in Cairo. (See ante.)

142 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

about a hundred Egyptian Vultures, in graceful soaring
circles, wheeling far up in the blue vault of heaven. I sus-
pect this may be "the square called Rohneli, below the
castle, which is the place for executing capital offenders,"
mentioned by Hasselquist in his " Travels in the Levant,
1749 — 52," where he says these birds assemble with Egyptian
Vultures every morning and evening to receive the alms of
fresh meat, left them by the legacies of wealthy great men,
or at any rate that the two places are near one another.

A bird of this species has lived twenty years in my
father's possession, and is now (Christmas day, 1875) in
good health. It was sent from Sierra Leone.

20. Black Kite, Mihnis migrans (Bodd.).

I cannot have much doubt that we saw this bird, perhaps
very often, yet I do not feel sure. There is much conflicting
evidence about it, but at any rate I can say positively, that
the Yellow-billed Kite is much the commoner of the two
species.

21. Common Buzzard, Bnteo vulgaris, Leach.

A very dusty specimen in a birdstufifer's at Alexandria,
which I have not much hesitation in referring to this species.
I am the more disposed to think so, as my father has lately
obtained a specimen from M. Boucard, which was killed at
Zagazig.

22. Desert Buzzard, Bnteo desertornm (Daudin).

In "The Ibis" for 1871, Captain Shelley hazarded a
guess that this Hawk would be found in Egypt. I am now
able to report two authentic cases. The first was shot by

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. I43

me on the 15th of May at Massara, and dug its claws into
my hand in a way I shall not forget. The second was killed
three days afterwards at Bibbeh. Several others were seen.
My father has examined the birds, and has compared one
of them with the series of Btitco fa^ox in the Norwich
Museum. He thinks it can always be distinguished from
that species by its smaller size. The one I shot was 18
inches long; the wing 14; the tarsus 2.7. The iris was dull
yellow. In the other specimen it was, according to a note
by Mr. Hughes, bluish black. On this point see some re-
marks by my father in Bree's "Birds of Europe" (I., p. 99).
The first bird was much the more rufous of the two; the
thighs in particular were very red. The middle tail feathers
were so abraded that little was left but the shaft. There
was already in the Norwich Museum a specimen from
Rosetta, received from M. Panzudaki of Paris.*

23. Long-legged Buzzard, Butco ferox (S. G. Gmelin) ;
" Garrah," i.e. one that wounds.

The year 1875 was not favourable for the observation of
this species. We certainly did not see many, and shot
none. It is said that they are sometimes common.

■)f 24. Honey Buzzard, Pemis apivorics (Linn.).

A fine adult male was shot by Mr. Russell in a grove at
Bibbeh, where it may have been nesting. May 20th. Length
22 inches ; expanse 43. I believe this is the first authentic
instance of its occurrence in Egypt.

® Some time ago Mr. Gould lent me a specimen killed at Everley in
Wiltshire in 1864. From a comparison with nine skins sent up from
the Norwich Museum, my father was quite satisfied of its being correctly
named.

144 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

25. Marsh-Harrier, Circus ceruginosus (Linn.)

The Marsh-Harrier was the most numerous Hawk near
Damietta, the Kestrel always excepted. On the plain of
Gebel Silsilis they were still commoner, and we shot old
and young in about equal proportions. They are not at all
shy, but require large shot to bring them down. They fly
at no great altitude, and often alight on the ground, but not
on trees I believe. Some monstrous ticks had fastened on
the face of one which was shot. I have several times ob-
served them on sand banks. None of the females had the
grey on the wings and tail peculiar to the adult male.

26. Hen-Harrier, Circus cyaneus (Linn.)

I cannot say anything about the distribution of this.
Hawk; at the same time I have not the least doubt but
that we saw it*

27. Swainson's Harrier, Circus macrurus (S. G. Gmelin).

I seldom went out without seeing a Swainson's Harrier
or two beating low over the fields, yet we only shot three.
Females were commoner than adult males, but not very
much so. In England Harriers are not considered to perch
upon trees,t but I have seen this species do so several times
in Egypt.

*' I have seen Hen-Harriers in Durham, and also the Marsh-Harrier,
quartering the meadows at Teesmouth hke a well-trained dog, but both
are decidedly rare there.

t In Hunt's "British Ornithology" there is mention of a Marsh
Harrier's nest upon a tree, on the authority of Archdeacon Glover of
Southrepps, and it would appear that this is not unique, (cf. Yarrell,
B.B., fourth edition, I., 130.)

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. T45

•X-28. Montagu's Harrier, Cvrus cincracms (Mont.).

Captain Shelley mentions at p. 324 of his work, being
"very sceptical of Circus cincraceiis Xxz.Vxw^ ever been met
with in Egypt." It is satisfactory to have now set this
point at rest, for whatever difference of opinion there may
be about the young birds, there can be no mistake about
the adult male, and we shot two fine old cocks at Gebel
Silsilis on the 3rd of May.

29. Egyptian Eagle- Owl, Bubo ascalaphus, Sav. ;
"Buma hamra bi urun."

Although I visited Great Karnac by the pale moonlight,
and lay in ambush in the mountains behind the Meni-
nonium, I never got a sight of this fine Owl at Thebes ; but
about half way up the second Pyramid I was shown a well
white-washed eyrie. After a great deal of poking we
ejected the Owl, and he flew swiftly out and round to the
other side. I sent a man after him who flushed him again,
and he flew to the Great Pyramid, but I could not get him.
No doubt it was from one or other of the Pyramids that
two pairs of young birds which I saw at Cairo came. In
one pair there was a conspicuous difference in size, which I
have noticed to be the case in the young of the Barn Owl.
The same thing has been recorded of the Bittern and the
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (vide Audubon). It holds good also*
of Montagu's Harrier, the Kestrel, and other birds of prey.
One pair belonged to M. Marco, taxidermist and dragoman,
who also had an old one. He had been in the Soudan.
In Upper Egypt or Nubia he told me he had come across
an Owl larger and darker than Bubo ascalaphiis. Possibly
he referred to HuJma cinercus, of which there is a Nubian
example in the Museum at Norwich, though that is decidedly
not larger, but on the contrary smaller. It may however

L

146 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

have been the larger species, Huhua lacteiis. A fine Eagle-
Owl was shot while we were in Egypt by the Duke of
Connaught's party.

30. Short-eared Owl, Asio accipitrinus (Pall.) ;
Otus brachyotiis (Forster).

I saw skins to sell at Alexandria and Damietta. Mr.
Allen says it comes in April (Ibis, 1864, p. 236). Can this
be a misprint }

31. Barn Owl, Strix flammea, Linn., (Hasselquist, 196);
" Buma Beda."

During the day they generally repose in the crown of a
palm, or in the recesses of cliffs. Once north, and repeatedly
south of Cairo, we met with this Owl. I found one in the
sanctuary, or adytum of Edfou, and all my efforts could
not dislodge him ; but the place where we saw most of
them was in the lofty cliffs of Gebel-Abou-Foeder. Here I
counted as many as three pairs in an afternoon's row. They
had all chosen lower holes than the Egyptian Geese which
were nesting in the same locality, seeming, like the numerous
Pigeons, not to go above high water-mark. On the 27th
May I saw one in the Ezbekeiah garden at Cairo.*

32. Southern Little Owl or Athenian Owl,
Carine glaux (Savigny) ; "Booma."

This is a comical little bird, and very common in every
village. In some parts there is not a clump of Palm tree

'" From Mr. Combin, the keeper of the Cromer Hghthouse, I learn
that Barn Owls are attracted by the moths which come in large num-
bers to the lantern. He has seen them catch them. 1 believe this fine
light, visible at twenty-seven miles' distance, has been the death of
many a rarity.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 47

that does not hold its pair, and the Nabuk, the Cypress,
and all the other trees which afford shade and shelter, are
acceptable to them. Again, they are equally at home on
the flat roofs of the mud hovels, or down the inside of the
" shadoofs ; " or if there are any dismantled mills or caverns,
there you will see the " Booma " bobbing to his own music
and turning his head round to get a look at you. They
certainly pair early, and are more diurnal than most Owls
for I have seen them about and on the feed at noonday. I
have marked one rise into the air some thirty feet, catch an
insect — apparently a locust — and return to his perch on a
Sont tree.

33. Roller, Coracias garrula, Linn.; "Zeturney."

No one who has not seen a Roller can form an idea of
its exceeding beauty. Fortunately for them, they do not
arrive in Egypt until long after the majority of the travellers
have left. The first was seen on the 9th of April, though
it was half a field off us its colours showed out brilliantly ;
and it was not until the 22nd that we saw a second. They
never became at all common. Indeed I must consider
them much rarer than the Golden Oriole. Food, small
frogs, etc.

34, Blue-cheeked Beeeater, Merops cegyptins, Forsk ;
M. siiperciliosiLS (Ibis, 1871, p. 75).

This handsome species was seen on the 29th of March.
Flocks of a score or so were going north, and we often
heard their clear note before we could see them. A week
later and the Common Beeeater began to come in great
numbers, when the Blue-cheeked totally disappeared ; but
in May we again found a io^N pairs settled apparently for
the summer. At the Faioum there were a good many

148 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

along the Bar-El-Wady, doubtless nesting in its steep
mould banks.

A hen bird, shot on the loth of May, was of a very re-
markable blue tint. If it had not been paired with a cock
of the ordinary colour, I should have set it down as a dis-
tinct species. It is probably this variety of hue which has
gained the Blue-cheeked Beeeater and the Little Green
Beeeater so many cognomens.

35. Beeeater, Merops apiaster, Linn.

First seen on the 19th of April, and soon became very
common to the exclusion of its Blue-cheeked cousin. The
last week of the month in particular, flocks were to be
heard all day at a great height migrating. Their call re-
sembles that of the Sandgrouse, and like those birds they
are oftener heard than seen. Towards evening they fly
lower, and at sunset they are one of the first birds to go to
roost in large troops upon the Sont trees.

The roof of the mouth is semi-transparent, as is the case
with some other birds of large gape. The tongue is split
into two or three points, and the beak is very sticky. The
thighs are bare. They are very easy birds to skin, and we
preserved a large number of the three sorts of Beeeaters.
First arrivals were not so bright as some which were ob-
tained later. Captain Shelley says the greater number do
not remain to breed, and I only saw one in June. In some
examples the centre tail feathers taper more than in others,
A short time ago a consignment of a thousand arrived in
England to make plumes !*

* The first known British specimens of the Beeeater were shot in
Norfolk in 1794. One of them was given by Mr. Thomas Talbot of
Wymondham to Sir J. E. Smith, who after lending it to Mr. Lewin to
take its portrait (B.B., 1 1, p. 28) and exhibiting it to the Linnean Society,
gave it — according to the late Mr. Lombe's MS. — to Lord Stanley, and
Lsuppose it is now in the Museum at Liverpool.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 149

' 36. Little Green Beeeater, Merops viridis, Linn.
(Hasselquist, 20, Corviis ccgyptins) ;* " Huader."

Two days after leaving Cairo we fell in with this exquisite
bird, the most tropical form we had seen ; and it continued
very common as far as Assouan. The central tail feathers
in the best one I brought home extend three inches beyond
the others.

37. Black and White Kingfisher, Ce;y/e mdis (Linn.).
(Hasselquist, 22) ; " Tayr betaa es samak."

I should say this well-marked resident was infinitely
commoner below Cairo than above it, though others may
not have found it so, but it was commonest of all at the
Faioum. There were several pairs always to be seen within
a few hundred yards of our camp, and I spent hours watch-
ing them. It is not necessary to re-describe the process of
fishing, but I may mention that they were much more
successful there than I ever saw them on the Nile. At
Benhouk a Hooded Crow was seen to knock one into the
river more than once. Nobody would think their feet
adapted for a wire, but they sometimes use those of the
telegraph as a perch. I have also seen one perch upon a
tree^ On the 13th of April, Mr. Russell observed one chase
a bat, probably in play.

38. Kingfisher, Alcedo ispida, Linn.

The English Kingfisher was often to be seen in the Delta
in January and February, but I doubt if it remains there
durino- the summer. Sometimes one would be perched on

» Hemprich and Ehrenberg refer Corvus CBgyptius to the Common
Kingfisher.

I50 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

some root, overhanging perhaps a ditch, from which eleva-
tion it would dart off with a straight steady flight, its little
back gleaming the while like an emerald. One day one
of a pair was shot at and wounded. It fell into the water,
and immediately its mate — undeterred by the presence of
three people — attacked it in the most savage manner, and
struck it furiously a number of times with its beak. It
seems to be a law of nature that the strong should kill the
weak, sickly, and wounded, among animals.

My specimens have much whiter throats than British
ones.*

39. Hoopoe, Upupa epops, Linn. ; U. major, Brehm. ;
"Hidhid."

Familiar denizen of the villages, the Hoopoe stalks about
on every dung-hill, perches on the mud-walled houses, pries
into the sakias,t and is seen on the fertile banks of the
river. In the Delta, where they are everywhere common,
I could have sometimes killed three at a shot; but like the
Ziczac and many others, they become scarcer up the Nile.
The gape in the young bird is quite as yellow as Gould
makes it in the " Birds of Great Britain." In Upper Egypt
the Arab name is Hud Hud; in the Delta, and in the
province of Faioum it is Hid Hid. In Algeria I found this
bird to be a migrant, but in Egypt which is several hundred
miles further south, it is a resident.

** In the north of England a friend was fishing one day on the
Cocker stream, when a Kingfisher settled on his rod. He was amazed
and delighted at the mistake the bird had made, but of course it did
not stay many seconds. The incident, though curious, is not unique. I
have read of parallel cases two or three times.

f Sakias are wells, and a description of them may be found in every
book on Egypt.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 15I

40. Greater spotted Cuckoo, Coccystes glandarius

(Linn.)

This fine bird is common in Middle Egypt, and we had
no difficulty in shooting as many specimens as we wanted.
Old birds and young of the previous Spring were in about
equal quantities. It was generally to be found singly on
the Sont trees (Acacia nilotica), but I have also seen it
perch on the Palm and the Cypress. Other writers say it
is generally to be found in pairs. In these minor points
observations of different naturalists must often differ. I
have seen as many as five in the course of a short walk, yet
they were barely near enough together to be called a flock.
I have frequently heard it give a loud harsh chattering cry,
and I suppose it utters "cuckoo," as a native boy applied
that name to one I shot (cf Ibis, 1862, p. 357).

Underneath the feathers there are a number of large
hairs. The testes are small as in the Common Cuckoo,
Small birds will sometimes mob it, but I never saw it
meddled with by Hooded Crows, though I have seen it
most suspiciously near their nests.

41. Common Cuckoo, Oicuhis canorus, Linn.

April 7th, I shot one at Gebel Silsilis. May the roth
several were seen in a garden belonging to the Viceroy at
Minieh, and a female, still in the brown plumage, but with
blue rump, was shot. It struck me that they were quite
mute : they were evidently migrating.

42. Isabelline Goatsucker, Caprinmlgtis cegyptius,
Licht; "Bakkak."

With the other spring migrants came Goatsuckers. I
always saw them flitting over the water or very near to it,

152 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

but though we tried two or three times to shoot them from
the Diabeyha, we never got a specimen ; and I am undecided
whether to set them all down as the IsabelHne Goatsucker
or not. I was inclined at the time to think that some of
them were the English one, which is larger.

■)f43. Common Swift, Cyselns apus, (Linn.).

As it was a great point to establish this as Egyptian, I
kept a sharp look-out among the thousands of pale Swifts,
Near Gebel Silsilis, on the 29th of March, I had the great
good fortune to see one and obtain it, but it was the only
one we ever fell in with.

44. Pale Egyptian Swift, Cypselus pallidus, Shelley.

First seen near the Barrage on the 14th of February. On
the 26th, I shot one on the top of a mountain at the
Massara stone quarries, but it was not until April that we
really saw them in great numbers. It seems incredible that
a portion of the hundreds of great flocks which were then
pressing north should not go beyond Egypt. The mouth
of one shot at Esne was crammed with small insects.*

45. Oriental Swallow, Hirundo savignii (Steph.) ;

H. riocoiirii Audouin.

" Hasfur El Genneh," i.e.. The Bird of Paradise.

Is one of the most abundant native birds in the north of
I^gypt. Numbers of them any day may be seen skimming

*' The White-rumped or Galilean Swift is not an unlikely species to be
found in Egypt. It is the Cypsehis affinis of Gray. Mr. Dresser
states that it is non-migratory and very local. It has a white rump,
and at first sight might be mistaken for a House Martin.

SIX months' bird COLLFXTING in EGYPT. 1 53

noiselessl}', low over the pools in search of insects. Yet it
is not common in Upper Egypt ; and when we were return-
ing north from Assouan, we did not see many compared
with the Chimney Swallow, which was then becoming very
plentiful. In the beginning of May I noticed a great many
very light -breasted ones on the telegraph wires at Minieh.
They were no doubt all young Oriental Swallows, but the
tone of colour was not darker than is sometimes seen in
the Chimney Swallow.

46. Chimney Swallow, Hinmdo rustica, Linn.

The first one shot was on the 4th of March, but these
harbingers of spring did not become plentiful until some
time after. I think the first large flight I saw was on the
20th of April. As there were still a good many when I
left in June, I surmise that this species breeds in the country.
The specimen shot on the 14th of March was a short-tailed
bird with a brown head, like the one Captain Shelley shot
on the 25th of February, which I have seen. But it is
evidently a mistake to call either of them young birds, as
the Swallows, when they leave England for the sunny south,
have already blue heads. Messrs. Sharpe and Dresser have
shown that the head becomes brown again while they are
wintering in Africa. (P. Z. S., 1870, p. 244.) My specimen
agrees with No. 4 of their series.

47. House Martin, Chelidon iirbica (Linn.)

On the 3rd of April a few were seen at Silsilis, and one
shot. I also saw it at least once in May, and once at the
Faioum in June.

154 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

48. Sand Martin, Cotyle riparia (Linn.) ;
C. littoralis (Hemp, and Ehr.)

The first of the spring migrants. On the 21st of February
they appeared in large flocks ; after that they became very
common, and were daily to be seen by hundreds skimming
over the water. On the 6th of March they had commenced
nesting operations at Siout, but Canon Tristram seems to
have found them breeding in February (Ibis, 1859, p. 27).
Long after the 6th of March I saw large flocks which were
restlessly pressing northwards, having evidently no fixed
abode in Egypt.

The three specimens which I brought home are lighter
than English ones, and the pectoral band is much less
strongly marked, besides which there is nearly half an inch
difl'erence in the wing, which is longer than in the English
bird. I suspect this is the bird referred to by Von Heuglin,
but I cannot reconcile it with the description of Cotyle
minor (Cab.) given by Mr. Sharpe (P. Z. S., 1870, p. 303).

49. Pale Crag Swallow, Cotyle obsokta (Cab.)

Is probably a partial migrant. During April I sometimes
observed them skimming over the crops as if they had just
come from the south, whereas, when we first saw them, it
was only in the mountains. They nest in comparatively
accessible places, beneath the overhanging ledges of a cliff,
in the Tombs of the Kings, in the Temple at Philoe, etc.

■^50. Crag Swallow, Cotyle ntpestris (Scop.).

Mr. C. B. Cory showed me a Crag Swallow which he ob-
tained at Girgeh on the i8th of January, which from its
large size and dark coloration was I think Cot. rupestris.
It had a much darker back than the specimens of C obsoleta

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 55

in his collection, and rather darker under tail-covcrts. At
the same time some individuals of C. obsolcta are much
darker than others, as remarked by Dr. Adams, and the
pink tinge noticed by Mr. Smith ("Attractions of the Nile,"
1 1, p. 247) varies much in Egyptian specimens.

51. Pallid Shrike, Laniiis latJiora, Sykes ;
" Deknasch swrreti."

I saw some, birds of the year, on the desert side of the
Faioum, upon the tamarisk bushes; and just before leaving
England, I was shown four or five at Mr. Cutter's shop,
which had been sent to him from the Delta, but it certainly
cannot be common.

52. Red-backed Shrike, Lanins collnrio, Linn.

I bought a female of M. Piacentini, killed at Ramleh
near Alexandria.

53. Woodchat, Laniits aHriai/atus,M.\x\\QY \ L. niloticus ;
" Deknasch."

First shot March 26th, and soon became common. Its
actions are not sprightly. It is often seen alone on the top
of a plant. Does not as a rule fly far, or perch high,

54. Masked Shrike, Lanins nubiciis, Lichtenstein,

The Masked Shrike arrived at Minieh on the ist of
March, and soon became extremely common. It varied
much in intensity of colour, some of the earlier specimens
being much blacker than later ones, I suppose these were
more advanced in summer plumage. The sexual difference
was certainly not sufficient to account for it. The Wood-

156 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

chat varies in the same way (cf. Yarrell, B. B., fourth
edition, p. 219.)

55. Spotted Flycatcher, Mnsdcapa grisola, Linn.

A scarce bird in Egypt. I got it first on the 22nd of
April, and from time to time I saw single birds up to the
second week in June.

56. White-collared Flycatcher, Muscicapa collaris

Bechst.

I shot a hen at the Memnonium on the 13th of April,
which I refer to this species.

57. WlHTE-VENTED BULBUL, Pycuonotus avsiiioe (Licht.)

Five seen at the Faioum, of which I shot two. The
natives called them Bilbil, and said they ate apricots.
There was an apricot tree close to where I shot them. One
was seen near Medinet on a tall palm, singing. Hemprich
and Ehrenberg obtained their first specimens in this pro-
vince, therefore I cannot say we have extended its range,
but the bird is really a Nubian species. I compared one of
my specimens with one of their types in Captain Shelley's
collection, marked " Dongola : " it was somewhat larger and
rather whiter on the under parts than mine.

58. Fieldfare, Tnrd2is pilaris, Linn.

I saw one at Mayer's shop at Alexandria, no doubt the
same seen by Captain Shelley.

59. Song-Thrush, Turdiis infisicus, Linn. ;
T. planiceps, Hemp. & Ehr. ; " Chahrur."

Two were shot in the Delta.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 57

60. Blackbird, Turdus mcrula, Linn.

I insert this with some doubt : it was seen by a friend
on the 23rd of January. I also saw a couple in cages.
Captain Shelley says it comes to Egypt.*

61. Golden Oriole, Oriolus ga/bula, Linn.; "Sufri."

This is about the last of the migratory Passercs to arrive.
The first seen were old males ; then several young males
and females. They prefer the thicker foliaged trees, as has
been observed, and in spite of their bright colours are not
very easy to see when sitting. Only once did I hear the
flute -like note of the Oriole, and it appears to me that many
of the spring visitors, which pass through Egypt in April,
are not near enough to the time of their nesting to be in
much song. The Cuckoos, for instance, were mute, but in
England the first announcement of their advent is their
familiar note. I believe very many birds pair en route, but
I believe also that they reserve their song of exultation until
they reach the scene of their labours for the summer.

62. Blue Thrush, Monticola cyana (Linn.) ;
.? "Hamamet-Um Aby."

If not got when first seen, it is of little use following the
crafty Blue Thrush, for it will keep on ahead taking short
flights, alluring one on, but always taking care to be just
out of gunshot. We shot one in the great hall at Karnac,
and saw another at Medinet-Haboo. It is not at all un-

* In April, 1838, a pair of Blackbirds were put into my father's
aviary, and niirabile dictu, these httle monsters, in about forty-eight
hours, killed twenty-six small birds which were confined there with
them.

158 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

common. I see my first specimen is marked the 26th of
February ; I take it this is a resident species, but that its
numbers are increased in spring and autumn.

63. Rock Thrush, Monticola saxatilis (Linn.)

A spring and autumn visitor. I met with it on migration,
and shot two cocks as we were going down the Nile ; the
first in the Memnonium, the second at the village of Radam.
Is said to be partial to graveyards ; but though I went to
many, I never happened to meet with it there. In fact it is
much scarcer than the Blue Thrush, of which I have seen
as many as four in a day. We never met with an adult
male of either.

64. Black-throated Chat, Saxkola melanoleuca (Giild.)

The above seems to be the correct specific name, and
S. enrymekvna, H. and E. ; and 5. zanthomelcena, H. and E.,
synonyms. The species is common in Upper Egypt. The
first I shot was on March 17th, a very bright clear bird with
black throat and wings. Then afterwards I shot four more
without black throats (that part being of the same colour
as the breast and belly,) which I set down as being the
same, but Messrs. Dresser and E. C. Taylor have examined
them, and decide that they are the young of the next
species, S. stapaziua (L.) ; but as I am not satisfied about it,
I shall keep them under the present heading. Probably
they were birds bred during the winter season further south.

65. Eastern Black-eared Chat, Saxkola stapazina
(Linn.) ; 5. ampJiileiica, Ehr,

First seen on the loth of April; not so common as the
Black-throated Chat.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 59

66. Menetries' Wheatear, Saxicola isahdlina (Rupp.) ;
■5". saltatrix, Menetr.

Their flight and appearance is so far different from
5. cenantJie (the Common Wheatear) that one soon learns to
distinguish them at a distance. From the Pyramids south-
wards Menetries' Wheatear is common, but neither this nor
any other Chat was seen by us in the Delta.

67. Common Wheatear, Saxicola ainanthe (Linn.).

I think this is about the commonest of the Chats. A
cock, shot on the 8th of March, had nearly completed its
summer plumage on the back and wings.

6"^. Desert Chat, Saxicola deserti (Rupp.).

Rather common after Girgeh. Several hens were seen,
5". JioinocJiroa, Tristram. These Chats can hardly be
termed gregarious, as they are frequently seen alone, or with
6". ce/ianthc and S. viclaiiolcuca. A little bush, high enough
to raise them a few feet above the plain, is always a favourite
perch, or the banks of a field, or the mud walls of a garden,
or in default of these a stone. They occasionally fly high,
but seldom go far without alighting.

On placing my series of five skins in a row with five
which I shot in Algeria, I take note that the latter are
several shades more rufous on the back, a point which
appears to have escaped Mr. Dresser.

69. Mourning Chat, Saxicola leucomcla (Pall.).

First seen at the Pyramids, and next at Massara.
Probably to be found along the east bank as far as Minieh ;
but we did not generally go on that side, as there were so

l6o RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

many islands, and so little water for the Diabeyha. Higher
up we did not see any. Among other things I believe they
eat locusts, as one was seen to catch a locust by a friend
(cf Dresser, B. of E., part XXVII.) Audouin and Savigny
say that locusts are the principal food of ^. lencopyga.

In a large series collected by Mr. Cory between Cairo
and Thebes, I did not see any of the white-vented species
(S. 7)10 rio, Ehr. ; 6". leiicomela, Jerdon). See Dresser, B. of
E., part XXVII.

70. White-rumped Chat, Saxicola lencopyga, Brehm.

The granite rocks between Assouan and Philce are a sure
find for this species. It is true I did see some further north,
and Mr. E. C. Taylor has obtained it at Cairo (Ibis, 1867,
p. 59). I found white-headed ones (Saxicola Incomcla,
Brehm.) rarer than black-headed, but mottled specimens
were frequent. The perch they like is the top of the
biggest granite rock they can find ; and though they have an
objection to fields, they have none whatever to houses, on
which I have seen them.

71. Stonechat, Saxicola riibicola (Linn.).

We found the Stonechat common enough in the Delta,
and I shot one as far south as Gebel Silsilis, but I never
detected Hemprich's Stonechat. Captain Shelley gives as
its distinguishing mark, "basal half of the tail white." This
is not very apparent in a female in his collection shot at
Esne. My Silsilis specimen is such a very light bird that
I think it may possibly not be 5. nibicola. Through the
kindness of Mr. Sharpe I compared it with a large series at
the British Museum, but I was unable to determine it satis-
factorily.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. l6l

Ji. WrilNCHAT, Saxicola rubctra (Linn.).

I had expected to meet witli this species during the
winter in the Delta, but I only saw a few, males, towards
the end of April in returning down the Nile.

Jl- White-spotted Bluethroat, Raticilhc leucocyana

(Brehm.).

I shot one, which I have no doubt is a female, at Silsilis,
on the 3rd of April, with an entirely white throat ; also a
male at Samanhoud with only a little red. The red-spotted
are decidedly much the commoner.

74. Red-spotted Bluethroat, Ruticilla succica (Linn.).

This proved to be not near so common above Cairo as in
the Delta, where I should say it is one of the commonest
small birds in winter. In May and June I did not shoot
one : it may be therefore that it leaves in summer. It is a
bird that is almost always on the ground, and you may
recognise them immediately by their tails, yet it is ex-
ceedingly difficult to get a sight of the breast spot, as they
invariably turn their backs upon you.

75. Redstart, Ruticilla phoeiiicimis (Linn.).

This bird appears to be resident in small numbers.
Captain Shelley hints as much, and Dr. Adams, whose notes
refer to November and the two following months, says —
" Not uncommon in Lower Egypt, and seen at Thebes "
(Ibis, 1864, p. 18). Mr. Allen, however, who was a very
correct observer, says it is not seen during the winter. This
is a point for further investigation. We did not shoot one
until the 31st of March, after which it was rather common.

M

1 62 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

In this species, and in the case of most of the spring
migrants, the males came first. The specimen I brought
home is still in winter plumage as to the throat.

^^6. Black Redstart, RuHcilla titys (Scop.).

This is a common bird in Europe, but it is scarce in
Egypt. We however saw six, viz., four (upon trees) in the
Delta and two at the Pyramids, and shot five of them. One
of the males had no white on the wing. I have a Plymouth
specimen without it — one of those alluded to by Mr, Gat-
combe in Part V. of the fourth edition of Yarrell's " British
Birds." With regard to the spelling of the word titys, see
the Ann. of N. H. for 1872, p. 227.

'j'j. Nightingale, Danlias hiscinia (Linn.);
Philomela Inscinia ; "Bulbul."

We encountered some Nightingales at Thebes on the 13th
of April, and shot two, midway between the Tombs of the
Kings and the river. I think there were five in all, evidently
a migratory party on their way to Europe. We were not
regaled with their delightful notes.

■)f78. Great Sedge Warbler, AcroccpJialus amndinaceus

(Linn.).

I bought one at Alexandria, which I was informed had
been got at Ramleh.

79. Clamorous Sedge Warbler, Acrocephalus
stcntoreus (Ehr.).

This is doubtless resident, as we got one at Damietta on
the 23rd of January. I believe it had not been got before

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 63

in the winter. On the 29th I went out on purpose to shoot
some, but though three were seen, their skulking habits
rendered it impossible to get them. I have nothing to add
to the admirable account given by Captain Shelley, beyond
confirming the accuracy of his observations.

■^80. Reed Warbler, Acroccphalus strepcms (Vieillot) ;
Salicaria anindinacca.

On the 31st of March I shot two in a barley field at
Silsilis, and the following week I saw a few more. We
found it again in June among the reeds at Lake Faioum.

81. Savi's Warbler, Acroccphalus luscinoidcs (Savi).

Single ones were seen between Siout and Girgeh in the
luxuriant corn fields, but none were got. Captain Shelley's
account of their habits agrees exactly with my observations.
He only brought home one specimen (Ibis, 1871, p. 132).

^2. Sedge Warbler, Acroccphalus scJioenobcenus (Linn.) ;
Salicaria pJiragniitis (Bech.).

A few seen in the barley fields at Silsilis the first week in
April, and others in ditches at Minieh the beginning of
May. I did not shoot any there, but I brought home one
example from Damietta. It is decidedly greyer than
British ones, but this may be owing to winter plumage.

83. MOUSTACHED Warbler, Acroccphalus melanopogon

(Tem.).

I shot two or three at Damietta in the winter. It was
met with nowhere else.

164 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

84. Rufous Warbler, Aedon galactodcs (Tern.).

Was got first on the 24th of March, and shortly after-
wards it had become common in the tobacco fields, etc. It
is very fond of the lower branches of the Sont tree. I have
seen one perch as high up as twenty feet, but that is ex-
ceptional. It is generally to be seen upon the ground,
strutting about with its tail cocked up. I found this species
at the Faioum. In Dr. Bree's translation of Hcuglin, it is
stated that Dr. Hartman observed one at the end of Novem-
ber in Lower Egypt, but I cannot help suspecting that
there may have been a mistake as to the species seen by
him.

•)f85. Orphean Warbler, Sylvia orphca (Tem.).

I shot this in a low tree near Benisouef, February 24th.
It appeared to be alone : I did not see another one, and
indeed I should not expect it to be mated so early.

86. Black-headed Warbler, Sylvia melanocephala

(Gm.).

I hardly know if I am justified in including it, but
every other writer seems to have found it common. Mr.
E. C. Taylor even goes so far as to say that it is perhaps
the most abundant Warbler in March (Ibis for 1867, p. 62).
I believe that I saw it once or twice ; and as the probabilities
are thus strongly in its favour, perhaps I should be least
justified in omitting it.

87. Lesser Whitethroat, Sylvia aimica (Linn.).

Probably this is a migrant which winters in Egypt further
south than the Chiff-Chafif, and yet not so far as the majority"

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 65

of the Warblers. Whether any stop north of Thebes durhig
the winter I cannot say. We first met with them on the
1st of March at Minieh, and as we progressed further south
they seemed to get commoner every day, until at Assouan
they literally swarmed. I shot one in which the feathers of
the crown were stained by something it had been feeding
upon, bright purple.*

88. Greater Wiiitethroat, Sylvia riifa (Bodd).

I shot one on the 14th of April near Karnac. It is very
much rarer than the Lesser Whitethroat, the above being
the only specimen we obtained.

89. Long-tailed Drymceca, Drymceca gracilis (Rupp).

I think this minute species is commonest at the Faioum,
where I obtained the q^^, but it is not nearly so common
on the Nile as the Fantail. I saw some on a little island
on lake Menzaleh, which must have made a long flight to
get there. It is very comical to see the young birds which
have no tails.

90. Fantail Warbler, Cisticola schccnicola (Bp.).

Resident and common in every field. When frightened
it rises angrily into the air, going straight up with its jerk-
ing flight, and uttering a loud note for so small a bird. I

* The Lesser Whitethroat is decidedly common near London. In
the beginning of September I have seen nearly fifty alive in a single
shop, all of which had been caught in the vicinity of the metropolis.
Further north it is rarer. In Durham, for instance, though some may
be met with at Darlington, it is so uncommon at Teesmouth that I
never shot but one there.

1 66 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

was never lucky enough to find a new nest: indeed, broods
of young flyers were to be seen by the end of March. I
saw the first that could fly on the 15 th.

gi. Olivaceous Warbler, Hypolais pallida (Ehr.);
Sylvia elcvica, auct.

Found apparently over the whole country in summer. I
shot one as we were coming down, at Minieh, about the 1st
of March, and at the Faioum it was tolerably common. But
it was most abundant at Assouan where there was hardly
a camelthorn which was not swarming with these birds.
Strange to say, Messrs. Adams, Taylor, and Smith appear
not to have met with it.

92. Willow Warbler, Phylloscopus trochilus (Linn.).

I am not sure whether this bird or the Chifif-Chaff is the
commoner in the Delta, as I confess I did not accurately
distinguish between them. There, I never could find any
other sort of Warblers. As spring advanced it became
rapidly scarcer, but two were shot and others seen, as late
as the 27th of March at Philoe.

93. Chiff-Chaff, Phylloscopus collybita (Vieill.) ;
Sylvia rufa, auct.

In the Delta in winter the Chiff-Chafif frequents every
bush, and is seldom seen singly. The smaller Warblers are
all classed under the name of Abit Fisai. As I have al-
ready stated, I owe most of the Arab names to the courtesy
of M. Filliponi. It must be borne in mind that they were
collected at Damietta, for I noticed that some of the com-
mon ones were pronounced difterently in Upper Egypt.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 6/

94. BoNELLi's Warbler, Phylloscopiis boncllil (Vieill),

Naturally Dr. Adams failed to meet with this in the
winter. It is a spring migrant. We first got it at the most
southern point of our journey, Philoe, on the 27th of March.
It may be best distinguished from the Willow Warbler by
the underparts being white from the vent to the beak very
faintly shaded, and by the lower part of the back being
yellow. My specimens are rather lighter in the back than
two Spanish ones in my collection, marked Vittoria and
Gibraltar.

Obs. Subalpine Warbler, Sylvia siibalplna, Bon.

I thought I saw this once in April, but may easily
have been mistaken.

95. Tree Pipit, Anthus trlvlalls (Linn.);
A. arboreus (Bech).

Captain Shelley says this bird arrives about March, but
the first I shot was on the 23rd of April, after which I saw
it plentifully in the groves. On being flushed from the
ground, it would generally fly into an upper branch of the
nearest tree.

96. Red-throated Pipit, AntJms cervlnus (Pall);
A. cecllll, Aud. (Desc. de I'Egypt, p. 281, 1825); A. coutellli,

Aud., .? I.e.

This was extremely common, more particularly in the
Delta, where you could hardly cross a field without seeing
numbers of them. I shot some without the least red on
the throat in January and February, others with only a

I'68 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

little. Some naturalists consider that A. cervinus and A.
pratensis are not to be distinguished in winter, but there is
an appreciable difference in the colour of the back. I am
not aware that I saw any Pipits at the Faioum.

97. Water Pipit, Antlius spipoktta (Linn.).

I shot one at Mientanosara, near Ziftey, February 6th,
and bought another in the market at Cairo.

98. Tawny Pipit, Anthus campestris (Linn.).

Is rather common. Specimens shot out of a flock on
March 12th were in winter plumage, while some shot before
were in breeding plumage. I never saw it perch on trees,
which the Anthus cervinus sometimes does.

99. White-winged Wagtail, Motacilla vidua, Sund.

A specimen was obtained at the First Cataract, where
everybody meets with it : but it appears that it is not very
common even at this, its northern limit, or we should have
shot more than one.

100. White Wagtail, Motacilla alba, Linn. ;
" Abu fasada."

This is by far the commonest bird in the Delta in the
winter. And really they rather pall on you after a time,
for one sees White Wagtails at every step, in every field,
on every pathway, and frequently in company with Sand-
pipers on the sand-banks — singly, in pairs, in family parties,
in flocks of hundreds ; and sometimes they came upon the
Diabeyha. A large flock will generally have some Red-

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 169

throated Pipits with it. But as spring draws on and one
goes further south, both these birds become scarcer : indeed
I do not remember seeing any White Wagtails in June.
The last great flock I saw was on the 12th of March, — a
countless stream migrating northwards. The next day-
there was not one. Wilkinson says that Abou fasada means
" Father of corruption." An explanation of this name more
probable than that which he and Dr. Adams favour, has
been given to me, viz., that the Wagtail seeks its food
(small flies) among the droppings of the cattle.

■^lOL Grey Wagtail, Motacilla sidphurca (Bech).

I got this the first day we went out. During January
and the early part of February I saw at least six, all alone.
I observed one pecking about and flirting its tail in a boat
in the town of Mansourah, and more than a fortnight after-
wards, when we were coming back, I saw it again in the
same place.

102. Btidytes flava (Linn.), M. neglccia, Gould.
103. Budytcs viridis (Gmel.).

In Egypt, at any rate, these two "species" cannot be
kept apart ; but as the latest authorities still sunder them, of
course I cannot do better than follow suit. They are very
generally distributed, but specimens without the eye stripe
are commoner than those with. At the end of April I saw
large flocks of young birds of the year. They are very
different in colour from the old ones, having on either side
the throat a marked black band, and no yellow at ah.
They were like Mr. Dresser's figure of the young B. flava
(loc. cit).

170 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

104. Black-headed Yellow Wagtail, Budytes
melanocephala, Savi.

Of this trio of Wagtails the Black-headed was the com-
monest in Upper Egypt, but we never saw it in the Delta.
Some of the old males were magnificent. I have found it
to consort with B.flava (with the eye stripe). I have seen
both sorts running in and out among the goats, and picking
up the insects behind them, and have killed them both at
one shot. They are very fond of cattle, particularly on a
field of grass, which is rather a rare thing in Egypt.
Splendid old cocks were sometimes to be seen by melon
fields, poppy fields, and corn fields, the contrast of black
and yellow glistening as they ran about among the herbage,
but without wagging their tails so much as English Wag-
tails would have done ; or feeding in a wet ploughed field
where it is amazing how they can be a minute without get-
ting muddy. Where the river's edge was sand or mud I
seldom saw them, and I never detected one perching in a
tree. When we came upon a flock I considered that they
were migrating. If there were forty or fifty birds, the num-
ber of males would not exceed ten.

105. Chaffinch, Fringilla ccekbs, Linn.

Three or four times I met with small flocks on the trees,
in the Delta, clad in the same suit which we know them in
at home.

106. Common Sparrow, Passer domesticus (L.) ;
"Asfur dururi."

Egyptian Sparrows are certainly less obtrusive than Eng-
lish ones, but they show the same dependance on man, and

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. I/I

are as much at home among the mud-built hovels of an
Arab village as in the streets of Belgravia ; and their plum-
age is brighter and cleaner. The roofs of the fellahin's huts,
built of mud and straw, are a favourite resort for a flock to
cluster upon, or small road-side bushes of the long-thorned
tribe. About the middle of March they betake themselves
to the fields of ripening corn, and I sometimes roused very
large flocks indeed. Compared with English Sparrows, the
crown of the head is decidedly greyer.*

107. Spanish Sparrow, Passer salicicola, Vieillot.

As to the relative abundance of this species, my observa-
tions lead me to agree with Captain Shelley (Ibis, 1871,
p. 141), but certainly not with his predecessors. I only met
with it in the Delta, and there it was far less numerous than
the Common Sparrow (P. doniesticus, Linn.)t

108. Trumpeter Bullfinch, Erythrospiza githaginea
(Licht.) ; PyrrJiula payraudxi, Audouin.

First seen at Minieh, after which hardly a day passed but
the clear tinkling note of the Trumpeter Bullfinch was heard,
and on some occasions, as at Gebel Silsilis, very large flocks
of them were seen. It was an old Algerian acquaintance,

* I have more than once met with a variety of the (cock) Sparrow in
England, having the throat and chest, which normally should be black,
a rather bright chocolate brown.

t Mr. Hazel states in " Naturalist" for 1853, p. 20., that a FrlngiUa
Hispaniolensis was shot in some woods near Portsmouth, and after-
wards placed in the Museum of the Philosophical Society. From
enquiries I have made I believe that museum is now broken up, but
the specimen may be at Haslar Hospital Museum.

172 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

there considered rather rare. It is almost always on the
ground in the fields and not in the desert*

109. Linnet, Linota cannabina (Linn.).

Flocks were sometimes seen in the Delta, and specimens
shot. I had noted down " Cairo, February i8th," as the last
appearance of this Finch ; but to my surprise, on the 21st of
April I saw three near Girgeh, but unluckily failed to get
one. The cock which I brought home, marked the 13th of
February, has the red breast which in England characterises
the breeding plumage.

Obs. Buntings.

We saw no Buntings at all. This seems singular.
Canon Tristram obtained seven species in
Palestine.

no. BiFASClATED Lark, Certhilauda alaiidipes
(Desfontaines) ; C. salvini, Tristr.

I am rather surprised that Captain Shelley did not find
this bird commoner. I saw it twice in the market at Cairo,
and twice in our shooting excursions, viz., at Gow and Gebel
Silsilis. At the latter place a flock of about a dozen ap-
peared to have taken up their quarters on a little sandy
waste about two miles from the river. Shooting a portion
of them did not frighten the rest away, as I saw them every

* Collectors naturally think that if they go a couple of miles inland
beyond the beaten track of tourists they will find birds plentiful ; but in
reality there is nothing beyond the limits of vegetation, a limit which
varied greatly, but never in the largest plain we came to, extended be-
yond a few miles from the banks of the Nile.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT, 1 73

time I went, running swiftly over the sand. Their legs are
white, and their bleached appearance is most typical of the
true desert. They varied somewhat in plumage. One was
evidently a bird of the year — though so early — April 3rd,
with crescent markings on the upper plumage like a young
Cursorius gallicus, and no chest spots ; but what struck me
most was the extraordinary difference in length of beak,
and in size. The smallest measured 7g- in. ; the largest 9
inches. The bill of the smallest was broken, but the culmen
of the next measured |, while the largest was li in. My
two smallest specimens I attribute to C. salvini (Tristram),
but as Mr. Dresser has united that with C. desertorum, (loc.
cit.) I do the same.

III. Skylark, Alauda arvensis, Linn.;
A. intermedia, Swinhoe.

Rather common in the Delta, where I shot one on the
13th of January. The last I saw was in the market at
Cairo on the 17th of February.

112. Crested Lark, Alauda cristata, Linn.;
"Umbar" or " Kunbarah."

There is little to be said of this very common resident.
They pair early, and I often found their eggs. On the 2nd
of March I saw a young one already able to fly. By the
time they can fly a little the crest is well developed : it
differs from the crest of the adult in being tipped with
white.

I have seen Crested Larks panting with the heat when
the thermometer stood at about 85°, and again when it was
nearly 100°. Sonnini mentions having noticed them "in
the middle of the day with their bills half open, and the

174 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

muscles of their breasts agitated, breathing with difficulty,
as if they panted for respiration" {o. c, III., p. 199). I
have had my attention drawn to the same thing in other
and larsfer birds.

113. Short-toed Lark, Calandrella brachydactyla
(Leisler),

First met with on the 3rd of March, and for the next ten
days it was very common in flocks, no doubt migrating
northwards. After that there was a decided lull. Captain
Shelley thinks it does not stay to breed (Ibis, 1871, p. 140.)
I certainly saw none in June, and I do not think I saw any
in May. It is very terrestrial and very gregarious, prefer-
ring the plains, where its light-coloured plumage, assimilating
to the colour of the surrounding ground, is a protection.
None of my specimens have the crown at all rufous,

114. Tristram's Desert 'Lark, Am^nomanes fratcrculus,

Tristr.

Mr. Dresser unites this with A. dcserti (Licht.), but look-
ing to my series of seven specimens, I think there surely is
enough difference in colouring between them and A. deserti
to earn them specific rank. I found them very common
from Thebes to Assouan, generally in pairs. In one of my
specimens the culmen is 0.6; in another 0.45.

115. Desert Lark, Ammomancs deserti (Licht);
A. isabcllina (Tem.).

I shot one at Feshn on the 25 th of February on the east
bank, where a few pairs were singing blithely upon the stony
barren hills.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 75

Ii6. Starling, Sturmis vulgaris, Lian. (Hassclquist 47) ;

" Zarzur."

Small flocks seen not unfrequently in the Delta and
Middle Egypt.*

117. BroWxNT-necked Raven, Corvus tunbrinus,
Hedenborg.

A Raven was only once distinctly recognized in the
Delta. Up the river they were generally seen in pairs, or
gathered together in a flock — sometimes as many as forty
together — near some carcase ; and yet I have sometimes
seen a large number of them where there was apparently
nothing to attract them. They were not particularly hard
to shoot, and we had soon got enough. I only once found
a nest; it was on a solitary palm tree. The hen sat close.

Only one of those we shot could strictly be called brown-
necked : it was a fine old bird. Some of the others were
entirely black, so that it was an excusable error in certain
former observers to mistake them for our English Raven.
The immature ones are entirely black also. I believe that
the variation in size, which I dare say has been noticed by
others besides myself, is sexual. One specimen had the
nasal feathers a dull yellow,

Yarrell, in his ist edition (B. B. II., 65), "accredits the
English Raven with being found in Egypt. He says that

* In Norfolk, Starlings pair as early as the 2nd of February. As
spring advances the habits of these birds undergo a change. Perched
upon an ash tree or the gable of a barn, they raise their neck hackles to
one another, and seek rather than avoid the proximity of man. One is
surprised at the noise which they now make, and there is no doubt that
they imitate other birds, such as Hens, Crows, Jackdaws, Ducks, etc.
I never listen to them without feeling convinced that this is what they
are really doing, but it all ceases by the ist of May.

176 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

it is not molested, its services in removing offal or putrid
flesh being considered useful. This is hardly correct even
of the Brown-necked species, which I never saw flying in or
over an Egyptian town.

118. Abyssinian Raven, Corvus affinis, Riipp.

This scarce bird is found in Egypt, but to my great regret
I did not get a specimen. Soon after we anchored at
Thebes I saw a pair on the sand, and tried to get near them
both by land and water. On another occasion, having ob-
served a quantity of Ravens congregated at a certain spot,
one of my friends tried the experiment of lying down. The
Ravens soon lost their shyness, and after he had lain still
for some time, one of the rare " Abyssinians" came within
shot, but just as he pulled the trigger a common one got in
the line and received the charge. Altogether I saw four
pairs, of which three pairs were with flocks of the Brown-
necked Raven. I suppose the bird has been frequently
overlooked, but the shape of its wings and tail are so differ-
ent from the common one, that it ought to be distinguished
instantly. At p. 71 of the "Ibis" for 1866, the distinctions
are given in detail with a woodcut.

119. Hooded Crow, Corvus comix, Linn.
(Hasselquist 85) ; " Gurab awar," i.e. The One-eyed Crow,

The " Hoodey " is the commonest of the larger birds in
the Delta, and the tamest, but further south they are
scarcer. One was seen at Boulac (Cairo) with a white patch
on its breast, and another pied one was seen lower down the
river. I have once or twice observed them perch on the
Buffaloes' backs.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 77

120. The Rook, Corvns frugilegns, Linn.

This was long ago ascertained to be Egyptian by Hemp-
rich and Ehrenberg. I frequently saw flocks of them in the
Delta — once a very large flock. On the 13th of February,
as I was standing on the deck of the Diabeyha, I saw a lot
of them crossing over the river, and shot two from where
I stood. One was a glossy old bird, his visage was as
shaven as any Rook's I ever saw ; the other was a younger
one which had kept its nasal bristles. There is nothing to
call for remark in this. It is well known that in every
Rookery a few keep the facial bristles until long after
Christmas. I have shot a fine old glossy bird with them on
the 1st of March in England.

121. Wryneck, Jynx torquilla, Linn.

I shot two in Upper Egypt in April, but the bird is not
common,

122. SCHIMPERS' Pigeon, Columba scJiimperi, Bp.

123. Rock Dove, Columba livia, Linn.;
" Hamam agrak."

I bracket these two together, as I could not draw any
line between them. At the same time it must not be sup-
posed that they are equally common, for Schimper's quite
outnumbers the other. Indeed I am not sure that I saw
any Rock Doves which were quite like British ones.

The pigeon villages on the Nile are indeed a sight. The
largest is at Bellianeh, near Girgeh. These pigeons' habita-
tions differ very much in construction and shape. Some-
times they are funny little towers of brick and mortar, but
more often they are the upper stories of the houses of the

N

178 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

fellaheen, who bear the mess and the fleas therein en-
gendered with Oriental stolidity. The cote consists of
numerous pots, a foot or so in diameter, which are let in, one
above the other, with little round apertures for the pigeons
to go in at. Branches are stuck into the masonry all round
for the pigeons to perch upon. In Upper Egypt the
pigeon houses are square and not generally domed. In
Lower Egypt they are quite different, some of them being
like ant-hills with the tops of the cone shaved off; but see
Mr. Fairholt's remarks in "Up the Nile," pp. 112 — 120.

Rock Pigeons have been so brought under domestication
in many countries that it is hard to say which are really
wild ones, and nowhere more so than in Egypt. Even
when we saw them in cliffs away from houses, at Abou-fceder
and Gebel-El-Thayr, there were dark birds of domestic
origin among them. At Abou-fffider, on the 3rd of May,
there may have been thirty pairs scattered along the base of
the cliff, of which I should think at least ten pairs consisted
of one mottled bird, and one Rock or Schimper's. There
w'as even one pale fawn-coloured bird paired with a Schim-
per's. The way in which they settle on the water to drink —
like Gulls — has been remarked.* They seem to drink far
more than other birds. All day, from every village, streams
of them are passing to and returning from the nearest sand-
bank. They go to roost early. The young are capital,
done spatch-cock fashion, and the old make good soup. I
never heard any objection made to shooting them except in
the Delta — where they are much less numerous — at a time
when they had young.

• A writer in the "Field" newspaper (June 26th, 1875) narrates an
instance of a Wood-Pigeon settling to drink, but it alighted on the
water with outspread wings, which I never saw any of the Egyptian
Pig^eons do.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 1 79

124, Turtle Dove, Tiirtnr auritus (Linn.)
" Yamameh."

First seen on the 2nd of April. By the end of the month
only a portion were paired. They are much wilder than
the other Doves. Owing to their far lighter colouring, they
are generally easy to be told from Ticrtiir isabcllinus at a
considerable distance : indeed, they are lighter than any
English examples I ever saw. We certainly did not find the
difference in time of arrival between the two nearly so great
as Captain Shelley did. I have notes of seeing two large
flocks in May — 100 or 200 in each — one at the Khedive's
nursery garden at Minieh, the other on a bank at Fechn
feeding upon the seeds of a species of thistle.

124B. Ttirtiir isabcllinus, Bp., T. sharpii, Shelley.

Captain Shelley says this bird arrives in the beginning of
February, but though a sharp look-out was kept by us, we
did not get any before the 26th of March, when five were shot
on Elephantine Island. For the next ten days it was very
common, and I saw some large flocks evidently migrating.
Then it grew scarcer, and I began to think we had reached
its northern limits ; but I found it again at the Faioum.
Here it probably nidifies among the tamarisk bushes,
though I often saw it out on the lake. The specimens we
shot at the Faioum were not so sandy-coloured, nor near so
bright as those we killed before. One shot on the 27th of
March contained a perfect e.gg ready for exclusion.

I am informed by Captain Shelley and Mr. E. C. Taylor
that this species is T. isabellinus, though I should never
have supposed it from Bonaparte's figure, but the type has
been examined, and that settles the question.

l8o RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST,

125. Palm Dove, Turtur senegaknsis (Linn.);
" Gumri."

It is hard to say where the Palm Dove is not found, so
universally is it spread through the length and breadth of
Egypt It will probably be the first bird which the observer
meets with when he sets foot on the quay of Alexandria,
perhaps cooing on some stucco cornice, perhaps fluttering
among the boats in the harbour. The only part where we
did not find it was the northern portion of the Damietta
branch, and there for more than three weeks it certainly
was conspicuous for its absence. These Doves frequent the
Palm, Acacia, Nabuk, and every other kind of tree that is
known to grow in Egypt, and practise their love-arts in the
green foliage. By night they roost in hundreds in some
Orange trees at a village near Benisouef, and a grove of
dwarf Palms is often a favourite place. In towns and
villages there are always a good many ; whether consisting
of the rickety tenements of the natives, or the modern inno-
vation of lath and plaster, is all the same to the confiding
Palm Dove. I saw some flying about the inside of a large
sugar manufactory, where they appeared quite at home. I
have often heard of their coming into rooms, and on one
occasion one came into the cabin of our Diabeyha, and
another day a pair settled on the awning ; but it must be
understood that they are not in any sense domesticated. Of
their own free will they affect the society of man, and he
protects them.

The immature Palm Dove is brown, and so unlike its
parents that it might be taken for a different species. There
is also an extraordinary amount of variation in the adults,
a circumstance to which my attention was particularly
drawn by shooting a very light yellowish female on the
1 2th of March. The differences lie especially in the tints

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. l8l

of the head and neck. I could not reconcile them, and I
suspect that the recent subdivision of Turtur auritiis may
before long be followed by a subdivision of T. senegalensis.

126. Singed Sand-Grouse, Ptcrodes exustus, Tern. ;
" Gutta."

This species, which rejoices in the name of the Singed
Sand-Grouse, is better known to the English as the " Desert
Partridge." As a fine sporting bird and very fair eating,
it finds favour with the sportsman in a country where there
is so little game as Egypt. Unfortunately it is not very
common, and so local that it is quite a lucky chance to meet
with it ; yet by dint of working for them I succeeded in
shooting a good many at different places, notably at Beni-
souef, (close to the town) Gow-El-Kebir, Manfalout, and
Biba, and did not find them difficult to bring down if one
could get near them ; but besides being local, they have the
additional bad quality of being very shy, so that one is first
made aware of their presence by their oft repeated " gfittd
guftd," as they are scudding away far out of shot. I believe
this cry is never uttered on the ground. The specific name of
one of the Algerian Sandgrouse (much more beautiful than
either of the Egyptian) P. akJiata, is derived from the native
name which expresses the note. In the middle of April I
noticed that they had become much more silent. Doubt-
less they had to think of the important duty of incubation.
I apprehend that they continue to be gregarious when
nesting, as they were seen in flocks at the Faioum in
June. They are restless birds ; seldom still, and seldom
silent. We generally saw them in coveys of about fifteen,
flying very high and very straight, to or from the water in
the early morning.

It is said that regularly at break of day they go to drink.
Afterwards they spend the noon, some in the desert, and

1 82 ■ RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

some in the plains of Haifa grass, and if there be a bare
place of an acre or two near to tents, it is a likely haunt for
them. At a place of that kind at Gow I saw a flock of
these Sandgrouse and two tame Pigeons, apparently frater-
nising together very amicably.* It surprised me though I
knew their affinity.

The belly of a hen I shot on the 9th of March was entirely
black. I do not think it was the breeding plumage.

127. Senegal Sand-Grouse, Pterodcs sencgallns (Linn.)
Symboloe Physicoe, pi. XV. " Gutta."

The Sand-Grouse at Gebel Silsilis were, I believe, all of
this species, but they were so shy that we only obtained
two. At Radamr near Keneh I shot five, and we obtained
a few more when we returned to Gow, where we had not
observed this species in coming up. The furthest north
that we saw them on the river was at Benisouef, but they
come down to the Faioum, where I was at no loss to
recognise one fine flock by their yellow colour. The note
is also different : they generally say " zvJiccp gutta',' and the
Singed Sand-Grouse I believe only say ^' gutta!' One
generally saw them early in the morning, flying high up
and very wild. They are said to pass the day in the desert,
going down to the river to drink in the early morning and
in the evening. No doubt they do drink a great deal :
some we killed at Gow had as much as a table-spoonful of
water in their crops. I think it probable that they are
gregarious all the year round, though I am ignorant of
their habits after the hatching season.

* I possess a Ruff which was shot in Shetland while feeding with
some tame Pigeons. The Turnstone has been shot in England in the
same companionship (cf. Zoologist, 2652).

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 83

128. Quail, Cotumix coimmmis, Bonnat (Hasselquist, 44) ;
" Semman."

A few winter in Egypt, but not very many: 1875 was
evidently a late season for them. Though most writers
speak of having found them in February, we found no
quantity until March. On March 2nd eight were flushed,
and previously only pairs or single birds were seen.* By
the 14th they had begun to arrive in large quantities. Then
one could realize the scene in the Israelitish camp, when
" the people stood up all that day, and all that night, and
all the next day, and they gathered the Quails ; he that
gathered least gathered ten homers" {Niinib. xi., 31, 32).
Out of a patch of lentils twenty feet square I have seen, I
may safely say, fifty brace rise.

Although they are gregarious in the strictest sense of the
word, they never fly as a flock, but each, regardless of its
neighbour, goes its own course, straight and quick, about a
yard from the ground. They almost invariably get up at
your feet, and seldom fly more than 400 yards. I never
saw any on passage by day, and it is said that unlike the
Storks they only migrate by night. f As Captain Shelley
remarks, they are very unwilling to rise during the heat of
the day. Morning and evening are the best times to shoot
them ; and ripe barley, or strips of lentils (ads.) just ready
to cut, the best places in which to look for them. It is wiser
not to go into barley fields, etc., where the business of har-
vest has commenced, for the following reason, the national
laziness shows itself in the Arab husbandman, who prefers
reaping as he sits. Quails fly low, and his head, hardly

'* On one day in February as many as seven were seen, of course not
together.

f Possibly it is because Storks are voiceless that they migrate by
day and sleep by night.

184 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

visible above the crop, is in danger of receiving tlie sportsman's
charge. I never attempted to make any great bag, but I
have frequently shot ten brace. The biggest bag I heard of
was eighty brace to one gun, or rather to one sportsman with
two guns, at Cairo. The neighbourhood of Cairo is very
good ; indeed it would be hard to particularise any place
which is not good at the right time, but on the whole we
nowhere got better shooting than in the plain of Thebes,
right up to the very Colossi. Without a dog you must
expect to lose a third unless your native is very expert in
marking them. By the middle of April the migration was
all past. On the 12th we killed thirteen brace: that was
the last day we made a bag. After that they became just
as scarce as they had been in the Delta in January.

That some stay the summer to breed is certain, and it
would appear that a few nest in the winter or early spring,
for on the 22nd of March I flushed an early "squeaker "
able to fly, which must have been hatched some weeks. I
never saw any others. I conclude the natives occasionally
catch them for their own consumption, as I was now and
then brought a snared one. In Hasselquist's time they
netted them in Lower Egypt.

129. Corncrake, Ortygomctra crex (Linn.)

The only one I saw was a stufl"ed one at Mr. Mayer's,
killed at or near Alexandria.

130. Spotted Crake, Porzana viaructta, Leach.

Was met with at Damietta and Benha in January.
Captain Shelley may be right in thinking it a resident, but
we did not find any at the Faioum.

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 185

■^131. Baillon's Crake, Porzana pygm(xa (Naum).

Captain Shelley says he has " no other authority than
that of Riippell " for it, and he appears to consider Riippell's
authority worth very little, but at p. 327 he admits that P.
pygmcca is a likely bird to be met with. I shot it in the reeds
of a pond at Benha, February nth. There were a quantity
of Rallidce there — for the size of the place, but I believe they
were Spotted Crakes, and perhaps a few VVaterhens. I
was attracted to it by its loud note, and after looking
steadily for some minutes I saw it moving in the reeds. I
had visited the pond before, on the 15th January, but only
saw a few Snipes and Dabchicks. On one other occasion I.
saw an example, viz., on the 26th of January, on an island
on Lake Menzaleh. I flushed it twice, but could not rise it a
third time ; for though there was not a bush on the island,
there was a good deal of scrubby stuff like heather, as high
as a man's knee.

132. Water-Rail, R alius aquaticus, Linn.

I saw one in the market at Alexandria on the 8th of
January.

133. Water-Hen, Gallinida chloropns (Linn.)
" Misticavi."

Markets at Alexandria and Cairo. I am not sure if I
ever saw it alive, but the species must be pretty common in
the Delta to have an Arabic name.*

*•* The Water-Hen is but a blind flyer at times. In February, 1838,
my father's spaniel flushed one, which flew against a rail with such
violence that it knocked itself completely over.

1 86 rambles of a naturalist.

134. Green-backed Porphyrio,

PorpJiyrio smaragdonottis, Tern. ; P. cegyptiaciis, Heugl. ;

P. JiyaciiitJiiniis, Brehm, jun, nee Temm. ;

P. cldoronotiis, Brehm.

(PoLile de Ris, Hasselquist) ; " Dick sultani."

We made the acquauitance of this fine bird at the
Faioum, where it was frequently to be seen stalking about
among the reeds at the mouth of the Bar-El-Wady canal.
M. Filliponi informs me that they were once common at
Damietta, but now are rare. He writes: — "Vers le 1856,
chaque chasseur Arabe pourrait en tuer jusqu'a 30 par
jour" {in. lift.).

They appear to have been common there in Hasselquist's
time (175 1), under the name of Poule de Ris* He says : —

" This is of the Hen tribe. * - * * They

come in May and the following months, taking up their quarters in
the rice fields" (Engl. Trans., p. 211).

Von Heuglin says very much the same of his P. cegyptia-
ciis, which Finsch and Hartlaub and Schlegel unite with
P. smaragdonotiis; —

" Common the whole summer in Lower Egypt, especially in the
lake of Elku, Damietta, in the rice fields. If I rightly remember
it is not there in winter" (Syst. Uebers, p. 65).

I doubt however its being exclusively a summer migrant.

Dr. R. Hartmann met with it at Mareotis (J. f. O., 1863,
p. 231).

Chaptain Shelley describes his specimen under the name
of P. hyacinthimis as having the back and scapulars green
like mine. It remains to be seen whether the true P. hya-

'■* Sonini has an interesting note on this bird, ("Travels in Egypt,"
II , p. 57) and mentions that it is called the Poule de Ris.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 8/

ciutJi'uius, Temm., is really found in Egypt. I have no
doubt as to what my birds are, but they are not quite so
green as three which I have alive.

Mr. Burton, the taxidermist in Soho, showed me a speci-
men which was obtained in Egypt some years ago by
Mr. Baird.

I must devote a word or two to my tame ones. I have
had them some years now, and they could not look better
than they do. They are out of doors all the twelve months,
but in the winter their cage is covered up at night with
matting. I attribute their good health to its being a
movable cage, which enables us to give them fresh ground
as often as we like. If given fish, they only eat the head.
They like a little grass, but their staple diet is sopped bread.
For a long time they were dumb, but now not a day passes
but they give utterance to the shrill note which carries me
back to the swamps of Egypt.

134B. Coot, FuUca atra, Linn. (Hasselquist, 34).

I never saw any Coots on the river or at Birket-El-
Kairoun, but at Lake Menzaleh I saw such multitudes as I
should not have believed possible. See page 93 for an
account of the method of taking them with a casting net.*

135. Solitary Snipe, Gallinago major (Gmel.).

One at M. Filliponi's killed at Damietta. I have a very
good female obtained on the 9th of May, 1863, by Mr. Allen
at Damietta ; but it is not a common bird.

** Very few authors have noticed that the Coot at a certain age —
just at that period when it begins to exchange down for feathers, has
all the breast, foreneck, and chin, pure white. By the 17th of August
these parts have generally turned grey.

1 88 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

136. Snipe, Gallinago media, Leach; " Kennes."

Very few Snipes were seen by us between Cairo and
Damietta. Between the 13th January and the 20th we
only shot 4^ couple. It was not until we came to El-Badalki
on January 20th that we found them in great numbers, on
the east bank, about four miles south of Damietta. I sup-
pose it is the place alluded to by Captain Shelley at p. 25
(o. c). We shot over twenty couple that afternoon. After-
wards we were shown several marshes on the edge of Lake
Menzaleh, and within easy donkey ride of Damietta, where
very good bags might be easily made. They were inferior
eating to English Snipes.

We did not expect to find any in our voyage up the Nile.
Indeed there are no marshes suitable for them, but ten or
twelve were shot, chiefly single specimens, on the sandbanks
and backwaters. I am rather surprised that we met with
so many. The last was on the 21st of April, and I think
I remember flashing another or two about the ist of May.
I suppose however that there must be some place near
Cairo where they are plentiful, as I heard of one gun getting
forty couple on the nth of January in that neighbourhood.

The majority had the outer tail feathers slightly elongated,
though not quite so much as one I got at Moscow on the
20th of September, \%6^ (vide ante). This variety has re-
ceived the name of S. breliuii.

137. Jack Snipe, Gallinago gallinnla (Linn.)

Very plentiful in the marshes at Damietta; its numbers
in proportion to the Common Snipe being slightly more
than would be the case in England ; for instance, a third of
the bag would probably be Jacks. We did not see many
anywhere else, and none above Cairo that I remember.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 89

Obs. Woodcock. Scolopax rusticola, Linn.

It is possible that the Woodcock may come to
Egypt in very small numbers every winter, for
I conversed with three or four people at Cairo
who had met with it or heard from others of its
occurrence. Von Heuglin speaks of it as found
in March ; and as it is a pure migrant and goes
to Algeria, I do not see why it should not be
found in northern Egypt ; but I can hold out
no hope of cock-shooting to the adventurous
traveller such as he may get in Greece, or nearer
home, in Ireland.

138. Marsh Sandpiper, Totanus stagnatilis, Bechst.

This was met with at El-Badalki, and other marshes near
Damietta, in January, sometimes in flocks ; but what few
we saw in Upper Egypt in April were single birds. I do
not think it breeds at the Faioum. The tail-bars are much
narrower than in the Green Sandpiper, with which only a
casual observer would confound it.

139. Green Sandpiper, Totanus ochropus (Linn.).

I did not find it nearly so common in Upper as in Lower
Egypt, where it was one of the commonest birds. It was
not seen at the Faioum. Probably it is scarce in summer.

140. Wood Sandpiper, Totanus glareola (Linn.).

I found the Wood Sandpiper frequenting the same locali-
ties as the Green, but it was by no means so abundant.
Some remain as late as May.

190 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

141. Common Sandpiper, Totanns hypoleucus (Linn.),

This and Temminck's Stint were the commonest Sand-
pipers in the Delta, but there is one marked difference in
their habits ; the latter goes in flocks, the former is almost
invariably single. The Common Sandpiper is also nearly
as abundant in the upper part of Egypt, and I saw a few at
the Faioum.

The agility with which they dive is well known, as is
their characteristic flight. With drooping wings they skim
so low over the water that the points almost touch it,
uttering " ivheet, tvJieef as they fly. The bird describes a
semi-circle and settles again at no great distance; or if a
a flock of Green Sandpipers or "Pluvians" are passing, he
makes a dash at them and goes up stream in the capacity
of " plover's page " to their rear-guard.

In general I believe the very small water insects are their
food, but I once saw a very ambitious one with what I feel
sure was a frog. He was Avalking about as if he did not
know what to do with it ; and truly it was a large morsel
for such a mouth. Those who have used carbolic acid for
preserving birds must have remarked what very small
mouths the Sandpiper tribe have.

Some time ago there was a discussion in the " Zoologist "
about the diving powers of the Common Sandpiper. I have
seen it in England dive on three or four occasions when
wounded, and I once caught one at Dungeness with my
hand, in the act of diving, but I never saw it dive for
pleasure. A gentleman who knows the bird well, told me
that on one occasion he saw one dive to escape a Merlin,
which Merlin he immediately afterwards struck into the
water with his fishing rod.

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 191

142, Little Stint, Tringa niiinita, Leisl.

The Little Stint though very abundant in the Delta,
and mixing with Temminck's Stint, was decidedly the least
abundant of the two in 1875. A {tw which may have come
from south of the equator, passed through Egypt late in
spring. Specimens were shot on the 27th and 28th of April,
and on the 7th of May ; and in June I found it again at the
Faioum, where it was rather common, and where I did not
see any Temminck's Stints.

143. Temminck's Stint, Tringa teuiminckii, Leisl.

I found this plentiful in the Delta, and often in flocks. I
shot two on the 21st of April, which were still in winter
plumage ; and I do not think I saw many after that.
Captain Shelley does not state whether he considers this
species to be resident, but I should not be much surprised
if it was. In the winter plumage, this is as different on the
back from the Little Stint as it is in spring and autumn.
The Little Stint is mottled ; the Temminck's is uniform.

■)fi44. Dunlin, Tringa cinclus, Linn.

January 8th, two in the market at Alexandria. February
6th, one in the market at Cairo.

145. Pigmy Curlew, Tringa snbarquata, Giild.

I shot two in May, near Gebel-Abou-Foeder, and again in
June I met with some at the Faioum. One shot by me on
the 7th was in beautiful summer plumage.

Mr. E. C. Taylor informs me, that since the publica-

192 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

tion of his last list he has obtained this species at Port
Said.*

•^146. Sanderling, Calidris arenaria (Linn.).

I was much pleased at seeing some flocks on the 6th and
8th of May near Beni-Hassan, and getting three good
specimens which were beginning to assume their breeding
dress, t

147. Painted Snipe, Becassine dor^ of the French ;
Rhynchoea capcnsis (Linn.).

As the Painted Snipe is a bird which is a good deal sought
after by the sportsmen who visit Egypt, it may be ad-
visable to mention all the places where we met with it.
At Chek Megahet — a pond in some fields belonging to
Mr. Serrur — which lies between Damietta and lake Men-
zaleh, ten were found and seven killed. Chek Megahet — I
give the spelling as near as I can — is half a mile short of
the Snipe-marsh called Rogar. At Mientanosara, between
Samanhoud and Zifteh, ten were shot as we were going
south ; and the next day (February 8th) eight at Kafr-El-
Arma, four miles north of Zifteh on the east bank ; and
about a mile further on, four more the following morning
on the same bank ; making twenty-nine specimens in all,
besides four skins which were given us at Damietta. They
are very tame birds, and when you think you have
thoroughly beaten a place, you had better beat it again, as

'•^ In the " Field" of October 9th, 1875, is an interesting letter on the
migratory birds of Port Said.

t I have seen a Sanderling in Leadenhall market, London, in full
winter plumage as early as the 19th of September, which is a case of
very early assumption.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. I93

there will probably be some which have not got up. As they
fly a very short distance and go very slowly, it follows that
when a colony of ten or twelve are found they are generally
nearly all killed. The only thing which saves them is the
propinquity of their reedy haunts to the villages, and the
native population who come out to witness the " battue,"
and are very much in the way. One colony was established
in the village cesspool — a small tussocky place, less than a
quarter of a acre — within forty yards of the houses. The
rushes chiefly frequented by this species seemed to be the
common flowering sort, with a triangular stem. Painted
Snipes should not be sought for in the Snipe-marsh, or the
inundated rice fields : they prefer small reedy ponds, with
tussocks such as I describe. Sometimes we found these
places inland, but in general they were only separated from
the river by the tow-path. Here they run about almost
like rats, and might often be shot before they get up. One
took refuge in a brick-kiln, and two, strange to relate, were
seen to perch on houses ! When only winged, I have seen
one hiss with fright at the person who picked it up. Their
edible qualities are not remarkable. After leaving the
Delta we supposed that we had done with them, but a
single specimen — the first solitary one we had seen — was
shot at Benisouef We flushed it from a piece of ground
where two of us had been looking twenty minutes for a dead
Sandgrouse ; so reluctant are they to rise. At the Faioum
we saw some beautiful specimens, and shot one which had
an egg inside it. They were mostly in moist spots among
the tamarisks, but I saw one squat down in the canal at the
edge. It was done to escape detection, and really it looked
exactly like a lump of mud in the water.

I do not know whether it has been observed that in June
the neck is bulged out in a curious way, and the skin of
that part very much stretched.

At Alexandria I saw two unblown eggs with the old

194 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

birds from Buhoma. They were stated to have been taken
about the 2nd of June.

Eleven out of the sixteen skins brought home by us were
females. They are gayer than the males, but the males
have a more handsomely mottled wing. In Savigny's book
there is a good picture of a male with its wings spread to
show the spotting.

148. Ruff, Machetes pngnax (Linn.).

We did not get the Ruff in the Delta; indeed it was not
until we got to Siout that one was shot, out of a small flock,
on the Bar-Joseph. In April, when we were higher up the
Nile, some very large flocks were seen upon migration — in
particular one flock upon the sand-banks at Erment. Several
times also these birds were seen in fields. Some of the
males which we shot were changing colour, but I never
could distinguish any with a symptom of a rufi" even in the
largest flock. They evidently throw it out with great
rapidity. According to Montagu it is scarcely completed
in May (Ornith. Diet. SuppL). At the Faioum in June I
saw some flocks of Reeves, but whether they breed in
Egypt is not at present ascertained,

149. Curlew, Nuvienins arquatns (Linn.).

None were shot, though they were frequently seen. The
birdstufifer at Alexandria, however, had a specimen.

150. Slender-billed Curlew, Numenius temiirostris,

Vieill.

I include this with some hesitation, as no specimen was
shot, though I believe some were seen both in the Delta
and in Upper Egypt.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. I95

151. Black-tailed Godwit, Lhiiosa cegocephala (Linn.);
? " Bigueka Sultani."

At the Faioum we got one out of a small flock : it was
still in winter plumage. I saw this flock about at the mouth
of the canal as late as June nth. This was the only one
we shot ; and I have some doubt whether Filliponi really-
intended the above name for this species, I suspect one
was never got so late before in Egypt.

152. Redshank, Totaims calidris (Linn).
Rather common in the Delta.

153. Greenshank, Totaiius cancsccns (Gmel.)

We did not shoot more than two or three, yet it is far
from uncommon, and probably resident. It was seen at
the Faioum on the 2nd of June.*

154. Golden Plover, CJiaradrius pliLvialis, Linn.

Plentiful on the 20th of January at El Badalki, near
Damietta. One flock must have numbered three or four
hundred birds ; but we did not shoot any, and never fell in
with them again.

** A painstaking naturalist tells me that Greenshanks are so tame
in the breeding season in Scotland, that he has twice stroked the
dam upon her eggs, which in one case were eight in number. A
Redshank's " nest " has been taken at Hickling in Norfolk with eight
eggs, and it was surmised by the finder that two birds had laid to-
gether. Another was taken at Wells with seven.

196 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

155. Middle Ring Plover, yEgialitis intermedins
(Menetr.).

Is not uncommon in the Delta, associating with the
smaller species, but we did not get any south of Cairo.

156. . Little Ring Plover, ALgialitis flnviatilis
(Bechst.).

A resident, universally distributed and very common. I
imagine they generally breed by the river ; but at Gebel
Silsilis, a small flock had located themselves at the brink of
the desert a mile inland, at a place resembling Thetford
Warren in Norfolk (where /E. Jiiatictila breeds inland).

How interesting it is to watch these Little Plovers running
nimbly over the sand, or gazing at the shipping on the
river, or with quick movements picking up the minute sub-
stances which constitute their food !

157. Kentish Plover, ^gialifis cantiana (Lath.),
(Hasselquist 30).

The Kentish Plover must have been rarer than usual, as

• I only shot one at Gow lake (with some yE. varius), and

saw another in the market at Alexandria. Captain Shelley's

remark is that it is a very abundant Plover both in Egypt

and Nubia.

158. African Sand Plover, ^gialitis varius {\I\^\\\.) \

jE. longipes, Heug. ;

Fig., Ibis, 1873, p. 262.

I did not find this species consorting with the Little Ring
Plover. It may be that it prefers lakes to the river. I

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 1 97

only met with it twice on the Nile, viz., at Gow lake, where
there were some good flocks, and at a much smaller lake,
or rather pond, at Samalout ; but it was breeding at the
Faioum in some numbers. The following is a description
of a nestling. Feathers of the head and back edged with
rufous; chest and over the eye buff; belly white; wing
feathers black ; secondaries and greater coverts tipped with
white.

159. Lapwing, Vanellus vulgaris, Bechst. ;
" Tuktak chamy."

Often seen, and occasionally shot. I also remarked its
muteness during the winter, noticed by Dr Adams. Of this
species, Hasselquist says : —

" Comes in great numbers in the beginning of October, and
remains all the winter. I saw it about Cairo the 15 th of Decem-
ber, 1750, where it is esteemed good eating" (/. c).

Captain Shelley says a few remain to breed, but Von
Heuglin doubts it, and further corroboration is wanted.

160. Spur-winged Plover, Hoploptems spinosus (Linn.),
(Hasselquist 33) ; "Taktak balad."

Most conspicuous of Nile birds are the Ziczacs or Spur-
winged Plovers, and very tame were they in the Delta,
where I killed six at a shot as they stood in an irregular
line by the edge of a field. Yet it is an unusual thing to
see a large flock ; more often they are in twos and threes.
As far as their gastronomic qualities go they are not worth
a cartridge, and we very soon left off shooting at them.
They quite pervade Egypt. At the village pool, on every
sandbank, in every flooded rice field — go at any season you

198 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

like, you cannot fail to find them. Similarly in the young
wheat crops and in the clover fields they are quite at home.
Sometimes when I have been scanning a clover field, my eye
has been arrested by a white patch about the size of a florin,
looking for all the world like an Oxeye Daisy ; but though
a second glance serves to show ,that it is not a flower, it
will remain still for several seconds, and you may imagine
that you see resentment gleaming out of a red eye. During
this time the bird's head is straight towards you, as I have
observed a bird's in a bush generally is, and he is working
himself into a passion. His next performance, when he
cannot stand being stared out of countenance any longer, is
to jerk his body as if someone was pulling at him with a
string, to dart up into the air, menacing you with his armed
wings, and to give utterance to the loud bi-syllabic cry,
which has obtained for him his name of Ziczac.

Many were paired as early as February 1st. Their evolu-
tions in the breeding season are very curious. Sometimes
they assume the most laughable postures. At this time
they are often to be seen resting on the length of the tarsus,
or sitting upon the sand. I have gone up expecting to find
a nest, but there never was one where a bird was sitting.
The nests, when we found them, were generally empty —
mere hollows in the sand. Apparently, like Lapwings and
Wrens, they make many before using one. We obtained
very few eggs. Whatever bird or beast ventures near their
nests they boldly attack with loud screams. They are the
greatest nuisance to anyone watching in a hole for crocodiles.
I should say from my experience that the reptilian monsters
were infinitely more indebted to the guardianship of the
noisy Ziczac than to the Black-headed Pluvian, and for that
reason I should side with those who suppose the former to
be the trochilns of Herodotus. His anecdote and its sub-
sequent embellishments have formed the ground for some
controversy ; but admitting that the story of the tooth-pick

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 199-

is one founded on fact, it is probable that Herodotus only
wrote from hearsay, and knew no more which bird it was
than we do.

The Spur-winged Plover is stated in the Zoologist to
have occurred in England (Zool., 5041) — a mistake doubt-
less.

161. White-tailed Plover, Chettusia villotcci
(Audouin).

I bought a skin at Alexandria, but the only example we
met with ourselves was shot at Rackaba, near Damietta,
on the 30th of January, and being mistaken for a young
Ziczac (!) was thrust incontinently into a bag with other
game. A few years ago this was a very rare bird in
collections.

162. Pluviamis cEgyptins (Linn.), (Hasselquist, 31.)

This is one of the most delicately-coloured birds in Egypt,
and others like myself may call to mind the admiration
which their first specimen evoked. It is considered by
many to be the crocodile bird of Herodotus ; and Gould, in
his " Birds of Asia," makes it the faithful attendant on the
monsters.* I did not see very many in the Delta, nor for
some days south of Cairo. It was most abundant in
Middle Egypt as far as Girgeh, after which it became
scarcer again until we came to Silsilisv In the breeding, or
rather courting season, their actions are very amusing, and
as I often got very near them I could observe their strange
postures and attitudes. I think their colours fade a little
after they begin to breed, and their demeanour is sobered
by the responsibility of having chicks ; their boisterous

' See my note under Spur-winged Plover.

200 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

rompings cease, and their emotions tone down as they sub-
side into the modest parents of a hopeful family. When
wounded they dive even better than Totanus hypolencos,
shaking off the crystal drops from their glossy black backs,
and baffling the attempts of your attendant to retrieve them.

The " Pluvian," or Black-headed Plover, as it is more
correctly called, is a noticeable feature in the scenery of the
Nile. Hasselquist characterised it as the Egyptian Dotterel.
He says it is found in the plains feeding on insects, which is
hardly a correct statement ; and he includes it in his list of
migratory birds under the months of September and Octo-
ber, which is wrong again, as it is a resident. Nevertheless,
he was a good naturalist for his day. It is easy for men
who know better to carp at him now, but the wonder is that
he made so few mistakes.

I never noticed that the present species and the Spur-
winged Plover could raise the occipital feathers into the
kind of low crest represented in the plate of Savigny.

163. Stone-Curlew, (Edicnemus crepitans, Tern.
(Hasselquist, 28, 32) ; " Karavan."

What would be the astonishment of a West Norfolk
gamekeeper to see the Stone-Curlews perching on houses at
Damietta } Our Diabeyha was moored near an ancient
" casern," now fast falling into ruins : the roof of this edifice
was their favourite resort. Twice we laid up for the evening
flight, but in vain, and we had to content ourselves with
listening to their shrill whistle, and watching their dark
forms against the sky. Up the Nile they were seen at
various places — always I think in pairs — and specimens ob-
tained at Fechn, Minieh, and How. At the Faioum, also
the Kiravaii, as it was there called, was rather common.
They are such swift runners that you have very little chance

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 20I

with a winged one. I ought to say that those in Damietta
were in flocks, but it is clear that they pair early.

164. AVOCET, Reciirvirostra avocetta, Linn. ; R. halebi,
Brehni, ; " Hdlcbyr

To have seen Avocets in a state of nature is alone enough
to repay me for the long journey to Egypt. My first
acquaintance with them was near Mansourah in the Delta
on the 1 8th of January. We had been successful in shoot-
ing three out of four Teal, and had walked on some way
when we came to a pond, the mud round which was so soft
for a considerable distance that it would not sustain the
weight of a boy. In this secure retreat were a magnificent
flock of Avocets, and a flock of Shoveller-Ducks. They
allowed us to come within seventy yards, and then the
Avocets rose first in a compact phalanx of white and black.

On another occasion as we were returning from a village,
we saw six, high in the air, coming towards us from the
river, but they swerved before we could conceal ourselves.
I have one or two other entries of having seen them in the
Delta. When we went up the Nile we encountered Avocets
for some time after leaving Cairo, and I never could suffi-
ciently admire their gait, their re-curved bills, and their
black and white plumage. The last shot above Cairo was
on the 15th of March at Negardeh. It was in a state of
change. The new feathers which had just come being
pure black ; the old ones being dull brown. But the most
interesting fact in connection with the Avocet — Captain
Shelley having marked it as a winter visitant — was the dis-
covery by Mr. Russell of a colony at Mareotis on the 19th
of June, very tame, and apparently breeding.*

'^ The Avocet is one of England's departed glories. " May 12th,
1839. A man of the name of Gaffer says the Avocet used to be very

202 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

165. Stilt, Himantopus candidjis, Bonn. (Hasselquist, 29) ;
"Abou magazel."

Of all the queer birds that Nature ever formed, this is
the queerest. "At first sight," says Gilbert White, "one
might have supposed the shanks had been fastened on to
impose on the credulity of the beholder : " but Nature is
never wrong, and what seems to the superficial observer a
deformity, is a beautiful instrument adapted to the require-
ments of a wading bird which seeks its food in shallow
waters. It is a strange yet elegant sight to see them bend
forward the body at each step, as they slowly pace along in
the water ; but when frightened, they rise up, they are only
grotesque. With such unusual length of limb, it is needless
to say that they are slow fliers. For some seconds their
legs hang down like a Flamingo's, and they are greatly
incommoded by them. I have seen one go a hundred
yards with them dangling at right angles, which so re-
tarded his progress that my companions fired seven shots
at him before he was out of range. Let me say that though
not shy, either the closeness of their feathers, or the small-
ness of their bodies, makes them a very hard bird to kill.
It was on the sandbanks between Thebes and Assouan
that they were most plentiful. We only shot one in the
Delta, which I am rather surprised at. Sometimes they
were single, but more often in pairs. Once one of my
friends saw a flock of forty, but this was most exceptional.
Doubtless it is a resident. I shot one at the Faioum in
June.

In "An Account of the Birds found in Norfolk," it is re-
marked that the changes of plumage to which the Stilt is

common [at Weybourne in Norfolk], and that he killed sixty-two at one
shot in the year 18 14."
The above is a MS. note by the late Charles Buxton.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 203

subject appear to require further elucidation.* They do
not appear to have got it, as I cannot lay my hand on any
work which explains why two adult black-backed males, shot
in the spring, should have, the one a dark-brown head and
neck, and the other those parts white ; but it is so in two of
my Egyptian skins. I shot eight or nine Stilts, and I took
some pains to unravel the mystery of their plumage, but all
I could ascertain was that the black-backed ones were never
females, though the brown-backed ones might occasionally
be males. Perhaps the white head is the summer plumage.f
Mr. Blyth has some remarks on the colour of their heads in
"The Ibis" (1865, p. 35), and he concludes by saying that
the most likely explanation is " that differentiated races of
this bird have been more or less commingled." This is
probable, but not satisfactory.

The skin of the leg is scurfy, and the colour varies, the
lightest birds having the lightest legs. The tarsus in the
male is longer than in the female.

166. Collared Pratincole, Glarcola pratincola
(Linn.) ; " Abou El Rusr."

Generally in flocks, but occasionally solitary. First shot
on the 2nd of April. All naturalists have found a difficulty
in saying to what family these birds belong. In their cry,
flight, etc., I think they more resemble Terns than any
other birds, and they are more often seen on a sandbank
than inland. Four shot on the 9th of June out of a large
flock had beetles in their crops with red backs and a peculiar
smell. Their being in a flock looked as if they were not
breeding.

^ Vide Gurney and Fishei- in "Zoologist" for 1846, p. 33.

•f Against this view I must remark that Canon Tristram has a black-
headed specimen, shot by himself in Algeria in June, and he informs
me that others killed at the same time were black-headed also.

204 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

167. Cream-coloured Courser, Cursorius gallicus
(Gmel.)

On the 9th of March we saw a pair on the plahi at Govv,
and on the 27th of April I found a single bird at the same
place. He ran like a greyhound ; but, by making a stalking-
horse of a camel, I managed to get a long shot. He had
been eating white grubs about \\ inches long. Mr. Cory
showed me a couple which he had shot, I think he said at
Golosanah, but it cannot be considered by any means a
common bird. The legs are white.

Obs. Houbara Bustard, Hottbara imdulata (Jacq.)

I hoped to have got this bird at the Faioum. The
overseer of the sugar factory there knows it well.
He said they were not uncommonly brought in
by the Arabs : he had one alive three months.

168. Crane, Gvjis commnnis, Bechst.
(Hasselquist, p. 207).

I am not positive what was the last date on which we
saw the Crane. We thought we saw two on the 17th of
May, ; but if they really were Cranes, they were stragglers,
behind the main body which had departed north some
weeks before. They are said to be common in winter, but
I did not see one before February 14th. He was on a
sandbank with some Herons. As he towered above his
lesser brethren I felt no doubt of what he was, but we were
just then scudding along before a famous breeze, and could
not stop even for a Crane. But at Gebel-Tair on the
28th of February, nineteen were counted. Even this was
nothing to what we saw afterwards. At Siout and Gow

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 205

great flocks were slowly sailing grandly round — in magnifi-
cent circles. This was in the second week in March, Their
pinions were almost motionless, their necks were stretched
a little downwards, and their whole appearance was
majestic. Perhaps moved by curiosity, they came right
over the Diabeyha, and I then saw that it was not a game of
" foUow-my-leader," but that each marked out its own circle
and took its own separate course.

At other times they might be seen on the ground, march-
ing off with great strides, like a much better drilled regiment
of soldiers than any the Viceroy has. I believe it is con-
sidered a great feat to shoot a Crane, as they are notoriously
shy and wary birds. Only once was it our luck to do so. On
the 27th of February we had gone out for a long walk near
Minieh, and we came upon a pair in an open field. They
were standing still with their heads bent down to the ground,
and really they looked such large brown creatures that it
was difficult to believe they were birds at all. On one side
of the field were some beans about three feet high, on the
other a yellowish crop like mustard. Mr. Russell hid him-
self in the former, and I, taking a circuit, concealed myself
in the latter. When plenty of time had been allowed us,
the Cranes were put up and made straight for the beans.
I heard two reports, and saw one bird go on : this was the
cock. Mr. Russell had shot the hen. If he had killed it
with his first barrel he would easily have got both. It
weighed eleven pounds. We tied it to a large stick, and I
fancy the Arab who carried it on board was not sorry when
tJiat job was over. The red skin on the head turned black
next day, and red again after it was skinned. The length
as noted down at the time was forty inches ; the expanse
fifty-one. I looked for the ova of parasites on the axillaries
which I had found in all my British specimens, but there
were not any.

No doubt Hasselquist was correct in supposing that the

206 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Crane came to Lower Egypt in autumn ; but the statement
made to him by some Egyptians that it came there from
the south was wrong.

169. Heron, Ardea cinerea, Linn.; " Balachoun."

The grey English Heron is a very common bird in Egypt
and resident, but its numbers are probably diminished in
the summer. They are very fond of standing in parties of
a dozen at the extremity of a sandbank when they are not
fishing, where they can command a good view round.
Upon these sands of Egypt they look almost white in the
hot glare of the eastern sun. I observed some about the
lofty ledges of Gebel-Abou-Foeder, where the mountains
rise in a precipice on the east side. They are of stupendous
height, and this is considered the most dangerous place on
the Nile. There were numbers more on the cliffs beneath
the Coptic convent of Gebel-Tair (i.e. the mountain of a
bird). I dare say they breed there. These cliffs are about
two hundred feet high. Those at Abou-Foeder are higher
still.

We shot several specimens on the Nile, but none so fine
as a very old bird which I shot at the Faioum. I have
often noticed some rusty yellow on the carpal joint, but in
this one there was also a considerable amount of it on the
lower portion of the fore-neck. Two, got about the end of
April, were still in immature plumage. Fish is their general
food : one fellow had eleven good-sized ones in his throat.
It is possible that they themselves are occasionally made
prey of by the crocodiles, as one was seen to snap at a
Heron on the edge of a sandbank. Vierthaler, in his Orni-
thological Diary on the Blue Nile, says that he and Brehm
observed unmistakable traces of a quarrel between a Croco-
dile and a Crane, in which the former was victorious.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 20/

I shall have some remarks to make on the occipital plumes
of the Night-Heron. In the present species Yarrcll states
that they are dark slate blue, which is true of mine ; but a
celebrated falconer told me that he once got one with a
white centre. I have twice seen Herons with four plumes,
once with five, and once with six ; but in the last I will not
be sure that they had not been stuck in, as it was at the
shop of a birdstufTer rather clever at such tricks of the trade.

Mr. Rocke mentions getting a cock which at four months
old exhibited the crest (Zoologist, ss.. Si).

170. Purple Heron, Ardea purpurea, Linn. ;
" Hagaf."

This is a very handsome bird. It is of a more slender
build than the Grey Heron, and more solitary in disposition,
but it is not anything like so common. I only shot one in
Upper Egypt, and two at the Faioum, one of which I could
not find. I did not see as many at that lake as I expected.
There were only two or three pairs, which were going to
nest with the Buff-Backs, I have no doubt. The first we
obtained went through some very funny antics. I did not
see it myself, but it was described to me as squatting flat
down on its stomach, with its neck extended to the full
stretch, as if. Ostrich-like, it thought it could hide itself on a
bare bank of sand.

i/L Great White Heron, Herodias alba (Linn.);
" Ryti " and "Balachium abiad."

Seen only occasionally and at such a distance as fully

warranted its reputation of being a very shy bird ; but one

at least — upon Lake Menzaleh — was sufficiently near to
make its identification pretty certain.

268 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

173. Lesser Egret, Herodias garzetta (Linn.) ;
" Baiad."

It was not until March that we fell in with this exquisite
wader. I believe that it is comparatively scarce in winter,
but that there is a northward movement in April. On our
return journey from Assouan a good many were seen and
shot, some with a beautiful plume, others showing scarcely
a trace of it. Probably a few individuals do not assume it.

We found it nowhere so common as at the Faioum in
June, where we shot some superb specimens, and others
with no plume at all. Nor is this a sexual difference, as the
female has sometimes quite as fine a plume as the male.
They were evidently about to breed with the Buff-backs.
Two were seen with nesting materials in their beaks ; one
was carrying a stick a yard long, but he appeared un-
decided which nest to put it on, as after twice flying away
and returning with it, he left the tamarisks in disgust,
determined to sacrifice his long stick rather than let me
see where the nest was.

The Egret is not invariably a solitary, for on the 21st of
April I saw fifteen together with a flock of Spoonbills, and
on the 1st of May four were killed out of a flock of nine.
I have often seen them dancing, and supposed they were
catching flies, but I never saw them set up the dorsal aigrette.

The cere is bluish in April, becoming much brighter in
June; the beak is sometimes covered with a bloom, some-
times not; the colour of the eye is yellow, but somewhat
variable. It would be easy to produce several instances
of variableness in the iris of birds. In the young Ring Dove*
the iris is white, in the adult it is yellow ; but on the 3rd of
June, 1 87 1, I saw a Ring Dove which had the irides slate-
coloured.

'■' Colinnba palambus^ L.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 209

173. Buff-backed Heron, Ardeola mssata (Wagl).
(Hasselquist, 25) ; "Abu guirdan."

Is In some respects the most noticeable bird upon the
Nile, though far commoner below Cairo than above it. I
shot one in winter with a good buff plume, but that is
very rare. Nine-tenths of what the traveller sees are as
white as alabaster. When he beholds them perched like
the purest of statuettes upon a gnarled old sycamore-fig, or
peering out from among the leaves of the Nabuk, he needs
no dragoman's prompting to convince him that now indeed
he has before him the veritable Ibis rcligiosa. As in
England the Crane has bequeathed its name in certain
parts to the Heron, and the Bustard to the Stone-Curlew,
so the Buff-back has inherited that of the Sacred Ibis in
Egypt.

In the meadow land of the Delta they are very common,
and I have sat sometimes watching them by the hour.
Generally they will be in attendance on a herd of buffaloes,
pecking gnats off their legs, or scrutinising their foot-prints.
The cattle and their masters are so much indebted to them
that they become very unwary. I have seen one almost
driven over by a man who was ploughing with two oxen. I
think they prefer the fields very much to the river, indeed I
do not remember ever seeing them wading in the water like
other Herons. In April we saw scarcely any except a few
large flocks on migration. One of these was drawn up on
the Nile banks. Another was on an uncovered sandbank
with some Ruffs and Caspian Terns. Then for an interval
we did not see any, but in May I again found a i^^ in a
field near Minieh. They fly slowly with the neck and head
drawn in like a Little Egret. If they come unexpectedly
on a concealed gunner, they stretch them out and utter a
cry which is dissonant, but not so loud as an Egret's. I

P

210 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

never saw an Egret consorting with them, though I have
occasionally seen the two species flying side by side. The
Buff-back is the smaller bird, and may always be told at a
distance by the shape and colour of his bill.

One of the most interesting sights at the Faioum was a
breeding place of these birds — at that time (June) — in the
most luxuriant plumage. A colony of, I should say, five
hundred of them, had chosen a large bed of dead tamarisks
for their breeding place. None had young, and a good
many had not yet completed the process of building.
Three was the commonest number in those nests which had
eggs, but in one I counted seven. They stand from two to
five feet above water-mark, and are made of branches snapped
off dead tamarisks hard by, or picked up on the shore.
One only had mud in its composition. Several were lined
with a few reeds. They are not very large, the diameter
being about a foot. Many of the old birds were carrying
sticks about, which at a distance gave them the appearance
of very long-beaked birds ; albeit, all I saw near were carry-
ing them crossways. At sunrise troops of them might be
seen going south to forage in the fields as far as Medinet, or
further ; yet at nine o'clock they are not all off their eggs,
and a visitor at eleven would find lOO or 200 which have
already returned, or are perhaps staying there to keep
guard and watch against other birds which might be tempted
to steal from the nests. In the evening again it was very
amusing to watch them like Rooks going home laden with
locusts and beetles which they had caught in the fields
of young sugar-cane and doura-corn, some following the
sinuosities of the shore, some flying along the Bar El Wady
canal (with the Cormorants and an occasional Egret),
some passing straight over the tents, their white forms
stand out clearly against the still blue water, all are
bound for the same haven, a few, earlier than the rest,
have their beaks open as if panting from the heat.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 211

The first I skinned — which was shot at Boulac — contained
eleven frogs. Another a green caterpillar and some grain.
Another locusts. They are said not to feed on fish (Ibis,
1863, p. 37,).

Hasselquist (pp. 85, 195, 198) gives interesting particulars
of the habits of a white Heron which he considered to be the
Sacred Ibis, but which was in reality Ardm biibnlais \ cf.
Savigny's Histoire de I'lbis, p. 6.

174. Squacco Heron, Ardcola comata (Pall.) ;

" Uak abiad zugaiar."

On the 25th January I shot a Squacco Heron at
Damietta. It was wading in a reedy lake with some Red-
shanks, but when I first saw it, it was alone. We did not
meet with the species again until the i8th of April, when a
second was shot from some rushes at the edge of the Nile
near Keneh.

At the Faioum we saw some very handsome ones in June,
among the tamarisks, I surmise that a pair or two were
going to breed in company with the Buff-backs. They were
very different in plumage from the brown-backed bird which
I shot in January.

175. Little Bittern, Ardctta minuta (Linn.).

The only place where we met this bird was at the Faioum.
I had expected to find it there, as I was told that I should,
when at Cairo. It seemed however to be confined to one
small odoriferous swamp, where the water was a foot and a
half deep, and the reeds and bushes were above the height
of a man ; and I have no doubt it only comes here during
the time of nidification. We put up at least fifteen pairs in
a swamp of four acres. In spite of their slow ungainly
flight they rise to some height, but they have not the power

212 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

to go far. They were always perched on the upper part of
the reeds ; one, which was in the middle of a bush, when it
saw me, commenced with deliberate steps and beak pointed
upwards to ascend a slanting branch, with the object I
suppose of getting to a clear place to fly away. This un-
healthy morass is on the south edge of the lake, about
opposite Abouquisse.

I should add that the species is found at Damietta, as
Mr. Hughes purchased a good specimen which had been
obtained there.*

176. Bittern, Botaums stcUaris (Linn.) ; " Uak."

One, Damietta, January. The eye turns downwards in
its socket in this species.

177. Night Heron, Nycticorax griseus (Linn.) ; (23, Alccdo
cegyptia, Hasselquist) ; " Uak sagar."

I presume the Night Heron is resident, though I cannot
say I saw any during the latter part of my tour. Li the
Delta we sometimes saw them singly, but generally in small
flocks, upon the tops of trees ; never on the banks with the
Common Herons. On January 17th we saw about thirty —
the largest flock we saw in Egypt — at Shibrue. There were
several adult birds, but for the most part we saw immature
ones in the Delta ; whereas in Upper Egypt I believe we
never met any except adults — single birds hiding themselves
during the day in the umbrageous tops of the palms, which

* I have heard of several Little Bitterns being kept in confinement.
A hard fate befel one of ours : it stuck its beak too far through the
bars of its cage, and a malevolent Peacock wrenched off the upper man-
dible. The same spiteful trick was played by a Parrot on one of its
smaller brethren.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 215

they would not quit until I was quite under them. One
fine specimen was shot upon a sandbank, but that was
exceptional.

The flight of this bird is slow : when high up, battling
against the wind, he makes no headway, but remains
stationary : his short tail gives him an absurd appearance.

Two is the normal number of occipital plumes. I shot
one with three, but they were short ones. My father has a
Norfolk specimen with six.* A Night Heron weighs about
li lbs.

Wilkinson, who was no ornithologist, thinks that "the
Tufted Benoo " was the Buff-backed Heron, which he mixes
up in his description with the Lesser Egret. I agree with
Dr. Adams that the pictures are much more like a Night
Heron. They vary, but one or two I think are unmistak-
ably the Night Heron, which accordingly has the honour of
being one of the four sacred birds of Egypt.

My father has determined this to be the Alcedo cEgyptia of
Hasselquist, in immature plumage, from the description in
the Latin edition.

178. White Stork, Ciconia alba, Bechst. ; " Billerique."

Egypt is a famous country for collecting the Heron and
Stork tribe : I doubt if any other country has a greater
number of species or individuals. The subject of this note
is familiar to everyone from boyhood as the household bird
of the continent, emblem among the Germans of affection
and constancy, whom it is pious to foster, impious to slay.
But the feeling which protects it in Europe, (and in the
Algerian " Tell,") does not yet extend to Egypt, and the

•At p. 4913 of the Zoologist, Mr. Rodd records the occurrence of a
Cornish specimen with ten !

214 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

fellah will look on unmoved if you desire to shoot one. He
will have a worse opinion of you for shooting the Buff-
backed Herons, and he is right there, because the good
they do is so very palpable and obvious.

With these preliminary observations, I will at once com-
mence with my first experience of Storks in Egypt, which
was about the end of March, and I dare say I shall not be
believed when I describe the prodigious migratory flights
which passed us. Armies of them would whiten the sand-
banks at early morning, which had evidently spent the
night there ; and by day they were to be seen sailing round
and round in countless myriads. It dazed the eye to look
at them. The air seemed scribbled with their white forms.
I am within bounds in saying that there seemed enough
Storks to stock every church, and every tower, and every
public office in the whole of civilized Europe. To those
who deem me romancing, let me say this : no one should
disbelieve a thing because he has not seen it. It must be
borne in mind that Egypt, or at least the Nile valley (they
are synonymous terms) is one of the greatest arteries, so to
speak, by which feathered migrants seek a northern clime.
Like man, they shun to cross the Great Sahara, where the
sands are trackless and the elixir of life — water — is wanting.
Hence their teeming thousands in the Nile valley. For the
same number, which in another and a fertile land would per-
haps be spread over 3,000 miles, are here compressed into a
space which on a average is only three miles broad. And this
will go on for ever. The channel which has been found so
often will be found again ; and unless their numbers are
kept down by disease, each succeeding year will probably
witness greater and greater droves, for few guns are em-
ployed against them, and they enjoy a comparative
immunity alike from the real sportsman, the naturalist, and
the pot-hunter.

The first time we saw a drove was very late in the

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 215

evening, and we did not discern them until a shot, fired at
a passing bird, put them up. Then the whole air was
peopled. Many were the conjectures which might have
been heard on our Diabeyha as to what they were, and we
finally resolved that they must be Numidian Cranes ; but
this great flock was as nothing to what we saw on the 25th
of March. On that day I was just thinking of getting out
of bed — it was about 6 a.m., for I always rose early — when
the waiter tapped at my door and pronounced the magic
word wis, which literally means a Goose, but which was
employed by that functionary to designate any large bird
which he thought we should like. I whipped on my clothes
with something less than the speed of " greased lightning,"
and on coming up on to the deck beheld an extraordinary
spectacle. On the sandbanks before me, motionless and
still asleep,- were three huge regiments of Storks, looking
for all the world like great herds of sheep pasturing on the
wolds of Yorkshire. I judged that in the largest of those
" cohorts " there might be a thousand birds, but the others
were not much less. I shot one with my rifle, and im-
mediately the air was filled with them, each with his legs
sticking out behind him, and a red beak appearing from
between his great wings. After circling, one above another,
in concentric rings (of which the highest seemed the small-
est) for half an hour, during which the sky seemed alive
with them, they took themselves ofif in a northerly direction
to seek some safer quarters.

Besides these vast hordes, which I must say were even a
greater phenomenon than the living islands of Ducks on
lake Menzaleh, I now and then came upon much smaller
flocks halting in the desert ; and very hungry and unsociable
they appeared to be, each a hundred yards or so from his
neighbour, and wrapped up in contemplation of the dreary
scene around him.

^i6 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

The migration which I have attempted to describe was
soon over, but long after the travellers had passed, we used
occasionally to come across a solitary, which was no doubt
some weakly bird which had been unable to keep up with
the ranks. The first of these single ones, doomed to a life
of celibacy, was by my note book observed on the 31st of
March, watching some husbandmen at work by the edge of
the cultivated ground. Its air bespoke a moody and
despondent mind. After a little judicious stalking it was
brought to bag, when it proved to have black beetles in its
throat, and locusts in its gizzard. No doubt it sighed for
the inundation, and the time when it should bear aloft in
its terrible shears the juicy frog.

Other hermits we saw at Silsilis, Kom Ombos, Edfou,
Erment, and Fechn. They had settled down into their
summer tameness, and though cut off from their kindred, it
is to be hoped they found some village mosque on which
to perform the duties of incubation, and partners to aid
them in its most important functions ; but strange to say, I
never saw a nest in Egypt, not even at Alexandria or
Cairo ; yet some must remain for the summer, as I
saw a flock as late as June 12th, but I apprehend that
Storks in full vigour do not find their northern limit in
Egypt.

They appear from what has been written by some authors
to have been met with in winter, but these may have been
only individuals arrested on their southward journey by
the same causes which stopped those we saw on their north-
ward course. On the 19th of February I observed the first
one that I am sure about, but my companions thought they
saw some earlier.

Specimens pulled down the steelyard at from 5^ to
6| lbs. I noticed that there were no tertials or feathers
between the scapulars and secondaries, and that the bron-

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 21/

chial tubes were over five inches in length, in spite of which
the Stork is voiceless.*

179. Black Stork, Ciconia nigra (Linn.).

Rather common, but I believe we did not see any in the
Delta. Mr. Buxton shot an immature bird at Erment, and
an old one near Benisouef. The latter measured 38^ inches
from tip of tail to end of beak ; expanse 53^. A mass of
half-digested fish was pressed out of its mouth. Captain
Shelley says — '"It is an unsociable bird, never congregating
in flocks or associating with other species" (0. c, p. 265 j;
but at Abou-Girg we saw twenty-four with Spoonbills,
Herons, and Ducks in a flock. A single one is sometimes
seen near a pool in the fields. I rather think it is not found
in Egypt in the summer. We however saw one as late as
May 17th, a very fine bird ; it passed over me almost within
gunshot.

180. Spoonbill, Platalea leucorodia, Linn.;
"Abu Malaka," or " Daouas," or "Midwas."

This singular bird was only seen twice in the Delta, but
several were obtained up the Nile, and one at the Faioum.
On one occasion a discharge of four barrels into a flock
resulted in nine specimens, but they were mostly young
birds, and got very dirty from the mud where they fell. In
March I have counted as many as 103 in a flock. In April
the numbers were generally smaller, but on the 22nd about
a hundred were seen together. It is evidently migratory.

* The Stork is a rare bird in Norfolk. In 1861 one paid a visit to
the parish of Northrepps and alighted in a large marl-pit, now disused,
and close to a public road. The keeper went after it and would cer-
tainly have shot it, but a boy put it up. The bird then flew to Wood-
bastwick, where it was killed. It contained an egg ready for exclusion
(cf. B. of Norfolk, II., 181).

2l8 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

We were very much mystified by the small size of some
we shot. It may probably have been that they were hens,
but the circumstance is also noticed by Von Heuglin (Ibis,
1859, P- 346)- What made it remarkable was that they
were, with one exception, old crested birds with short dark
beaks, while the large-beaked specimens were immature.
The bill in the shortest I measured was 7yo* in the longest
9f, a marvellous difference. The tarsus in the shortest 5| ;
in the longest 7^. Captain Shelley gives the entire length
at 36 inches, but I have no doubt his system of measure-
ment is different from mine, as our biggest was only 29.
I measure from the forehead to the tip of the tail ; and per-
haps I ought to add, that wherever I give the length of a
bird it has been taken before it was skinned. Heuglin
(op. cit.) says the eye is yellow in the young, but in one
which I examined it was grey. Several specimens had the
thighs stained with buff, yet I never saw any wade above
the tarsus.

I should think that the White Herons set down as Ardca
garsetta with a query by Dr. Adams were probably Spoon-
bills.

A young Spoonbill in the Zoological Gardens used to
sit on its tarsal joints, with its feet raised an inch or two
into the air, so that no part of it but its knees (or ankles as
they are more correctly called) touched the ground. The
keeper told me that the Storks did the same.

181. Glossy Ibis, Ibis falcinclhts, Linn.

(29, Tririga autumnalis longirostris, Hasselquist) ;

" Herres."

On the 13th of 'April I saw a Glossy Ibis in the water-
course, which one has to cross in going to the Memnonium

* In a young bird of the year shot at Yarmouth (Zool., 2871) it is
only 6.6.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 219

or the Tombs of the Kings. It was standing near some
Bufif-backs. The next day we found it again in exactly the
same place, but without the Buff-backs. When frightened
by being shot at, it mounted very high, flying in circles
with its neck extended.

At Damietta I was offered a pair which had been shot
the previous spring. I took the larger and brighter one of
the two, which I presume was the male. It is a fine bird,
but not so good as an Alexandrian one of Mr. Allan's
which I lately saw on sale at Mr. Gerrard's, and which may
be the specimen referred to in the "Ibis" for 1863, p. 34.
I saw another Alexandrian example at Mr. Mayers'.

Some remarks will be found about the Sacred Ibis (which
we never met with) in chapter VI.

182. Flamingo, Phcenicoptcrus aiitiqnorum, Tem. ;
" Bachirroch," or " Basharoos."

High praise has been lavished on the Flamingo, and the
untravelled Englishman has always been taught that this is
" the bird of all birds," and that nothing in nature is so
surpassingly beautiful ; while all writers have vied with one
another in finding epithets to describe the spectacle of the
pink tints of a band of them rising into the air ''an animated
rosy cloud." Having at last realised the ardent wish to
see them, which I have ever had from childhood, I am bold
to say that on the whole they are not overrated — their
vaunted splendour is not a myth but a real thing, and
nothing will ever dispel from my memory the feelings with
which I first saw Flamingos. It needs not the halo of
Afric's sun to illumine a splendour to which the gilded birds
of the tropics must yield the palm. Marshalled, they stand
in one long glittering line ; some of them apparently with
no head ; others with but one leg ; others with raised wing

220 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST,

and extended neck, evidently enjoying what is denominated
stretch. Their tall forms are mirrored in the glassy lake.
They are silent and still. Perchance a distant boatman
hails us. Perchance the word backshish is borne on the air
with such bawling that the cautious Flamingos, fearful even
in their security, are put up. Then what a delicious scene
arrests the eye, as the black-pointed wings unfold and reveal
the intense red scapularies, which, hidden before, appeared
to be cream-colour, pale by comparison with their bright-
ness now. They take several steps in the air,* half flying,
half walking, and wholly awkward, for twenty yards or
more ; and then gathering themselves together they grad-
ually let their long legs trail out behind. If a small troop,
they perhaps fly away in Indian file ; but if a large one,
they go off in one bright mass, the vivid tints of which are
visible afar off, and which no man who has seen it will ever
forget. When the naturalist has got over his ecstacies he
had better go to the mud where they were standing, as if,
as is most probable, they have been preening themselves,
he will be rewarded by some exquisite feathers.

It has been well said that the salt lakes in the north
of Africa are the Flamingos' home. On the great waters
of Egypt they breed so abundantly, that a birdstufifer at
Alexandria told me that he got 200 eggs from Mariotis at
one raid. What splendid opportunities might here be
afforded to anyone sufficiently sun-proof to work out the
imperfectly-known details of their nidification, and to fill
up the blanks in our knowledge with regard to the posture
which the sitting bird assumes and other points.

Up the Nile, travellers will very likely not see one. We
only saw a few. They were between Cairo and Minieh, and
were young birds. At the Faioum we did not see any at

** See Mr. Macgregor's picture of them taking wing on lake Men-
zaleh. (The Rob Roy on the Jordan, p. 80.)

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 221

all ; at the same time I must say that the lake is large, and
we only explored a portion of it.

^183. Lesser White-fronted Goose,
Anser erythropus (Linn.).

I bought this small Goose of M. Eugene Filliponi at
Damietta, where it had been killed in January, 1875, only a
short time before our arrival. We neither of us knew what
it was, but he was satisfied it was not the White-fronted
Goose (A. albifrons), which is very common. The follow-
ing are the measurements : —

Wing

12.4

inches.

Tarsus

2.2

>>

Culmen

1-3

M

For comparison, these are the measurements of a female
White-fronted Goose, shot at Islay in Scotland.

Wing 17. inches

Tarsus 2.7 „
Culmen 2.1 „

And these of a female which I shot near Minieh in Egypt :

Wing 15.8 inches.

Tarsus 2.5 „

Culmen 1.9 „

The underparts in the Damietta example are brown with-
out any barring. It is evidently a young bird. This is the
first time that this species has been recognized in Africa.

My bird has been examined by Mr. E. C. Taylor, and
Professor Newton, also by my father, who was the first to
make out what it really was.

222 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

184. White-fronted Goose, Anser albifrons, Gm. ;
"Wiz" (Hasselquist, No. 36).

A good many were seen on the Damietta branch, particu-
larly near Mansoura, where we fired at a large flock, which
did not leave the neighbourhood, but returned again to the
same sandbank. Between Cairo and Minieh we saw none,
but on the 3rd of March we met with large flocks of
Anatidce, and obtained two of these Geese. After that, the
sandbanks were entirely deserted by Ducks : no one should
come to Egypt for that sort of sport later than January,
Most Egyptian specimens of the White-fronted Goose, in-
stead of being barred are nearly white on the under-surface,
which has generally been supposed to be the immature
plumage ; albeit, I have known one in confinement live five
years and not get these bars.

185. Egyptian Goose, Chcnalopcx cugyptiaais (Linn.).*

Not seen in the Delta, but very common south of Cairo ;
indeed we saw the first flock before we were clear of the
town. On our return journey a portion of them had
migrated, yet as late as the 20th of May over 150 were
seen upon one sandbank at Zouyeh ; and from the quantity
of feathers and numerous tracks, it was supposed they had
been there a long time. A dropped Q<g^ was picked up
there. They were however generally in pairs, and were
easily obtained by sailing on them in a punt. Mr. Buxton
killed four couples, of which the heaviest one \veighed 6^
lbs. ; but a pair which he shot on the 19th of May only
turned the scale at 9 lbs., so that there seems to be a great

'" I have seen a Pink-footed Goose (marked Bean Goose) in Lord
Londesburgh's Egyptian collection at the Scarborough Museum, but
whether really killed in that country I cannot say.

SIX months' bird COLLECTIxNG in EGYPT. 223

difference in weight. At Gebel-Abou- Feeder we found
them nesting in cHffs. Of course we could not ascend to
their nests, but there could be no doubt that they were
breeding. One shot had a perfect egg ready for laying.
These cliffs are very lofty ; the lower stratum is devoted
to Pigeons ; on the tier above that the Geese ; and still
higher up a few Kites, Griffon Vultures, and a pair of
Ospreys. It was very curious to see them looking down
from their ledges. More wide awake then than the large
flocks which, with beaks inserted beneath the scapulars,
found balancing upon one leg conducive to sleep upon the
sandbanks. They fly with powerful beats, but neither very
high nor very fast.

The coloured pictures of them on the monuments are so
bad that they are barely recognizable. The ancient
Egyptians appear only to have known three or four colours.
Most of their birds are only recognizable by the outline,
which however is generally very correct and characteristic.

It would appear that opinions as to the edible qualities
of this goose are conflicting. Mr. Blandford says it is in
general excellent eating; but Dr. Kirk declares emphatically
that this is the worst of all the Duck kind for the table,
being in many cases quite uneatable. Where doctors dis-
agree who shall decide .''

1 86. Ruddy Shelduck, Tadoma rittila (Pall.) ;
" Abu Ferona."

April 28th. — As I was waiting for the Diabcyha at Gow-
Garbi, the sun having gone down, and it being nearly dark,
I perceived a flock of large birds coming straight at me
across the river. They made a loud noise like Egyptian
Geese, which I at first mistook them for. However, on
killing one it proved to be the somewhat nearly allied
Ruddy Shelduck. Afterwards we saw them three or four

224 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

times nearer to Cairo in May, always in flocks of about
twenty.*

187. Shelduck, Tadorna vulpanser, Fleming.
(35, Anas damiatica, Hasselquist) ; " Chahraman."

My father considers, from the Latin description, that this
is the Damiatic Duck of Hasselquist, and I accordingly
quote it in deference to his opinion.

On the 3rd of June I saw two of these handsome fellows
swimming on lake Faioum, at a short distance from where
we were encamped. I could plainly see that they were
male and female. I let fly at the drake, but he was too far
for me, and I did not get him, and we never saw them again.
The only other example I saw belonged to Mr. Cory, and
was obtained by him in Cairo market.

Most naturalists are aware that the young of this species
has a white face, but it is perhaps not so generally known
that this mark of immaturity sometimes lasts to the spring,
for I have seen a specimen with it on the 27th of March ;
and I have known an instance in captivity of its breeding
with a white face.

188. Shoveller Duck, Spatula dypcata (Linn.) ;
" Hick."

Certainly a very common Duck. I shot four on the
27th of April ; tw^o were drakes, and they were not in
full plumage, but I considered that they were going off", and
not that they had not yet assumed it. Its edible qualities

" Nine supposed occurrences of the Ruddy Shelduck in Great Britain
are quoted in Hai'ting's " Hand List," four of which I beheve would not
stand a proper sifting, viz., those said to have been killed at Caithness,
Orford, Blackstakes, and Epworth.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLFXTING IN EGYTT. 225

are very second rate in Egypt ; but tastes differ, and I have
heard it praised in England. Indeed, a writer in the
"Zoologist" says, "It is one of the best, if not the very
best of the edible Ducks" (p. 6923) (cf, p. 3826).

189. Gadwall,* CJianlcIasuins strcpcrus (Linn.).
Markets at Alexandria and Cairo.

190. Pintail Dafila acuta (Linn.) ; " Balbul."

The Pintail is the commonest Duck on the Damictta
branch of the Nile, and we certainly saw huge flocks of
them. Yet I dare say there would be thousands more, and
other Ducks too, if it were not for the annual slaughter
which takes place at Menzaleh. We shot some at flight,
but the only time when they seem to be approachable on
the river is the early morning.

We kept the drake alive which our boatman took on
Menzaleh (see p. 94) eighteen days, and then let him go
at the Barrage, but I doubt if he would live, as he was very
thin, and his wings cramped from being tied together.
When our captive was roused he hissed, but he was an
apathetic bird.

There is to some extent a separation of the sexes, as I
often noticed a flock all males. In our voyage up the Nile
we still found it the commonest of the tribe, but not in
coming down again. I shot five females the first week in
March, and after that date very few Pintails or Ducks of any
kind were seen on the river, except the Garganey Teal, which
came later. The last Pintail shot by us was on the 8th of

^ Yarrell gives " Grey Dnck " as a synonym of the Gadwall. On the
coast of Durham I have often heard it applied to the common Mallard.

Q

226 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

May, but there were some at Birket-El-Kairoun (the
Faioum) in June.

191. Wild Duck, Anas boschas, Linn.; "Kodari."

Previous writers state that the Wild Duck is everywhere
plentiful. On the contrary, we found it so scarce that we
only shot one all the time we were in Egypt. It is just
another instance of the variableness of Egyptian Orni-
thology— a variableness which has in it a promise of new
facts for new observers. Hasselquist informs us that they
appear "on the tables" about the beginning of November.

■^192. Marbled Duck, Anas angustirostris
(Menetr.) ; " Miniet."

When Captain Shelley published his " Birds of Egypt,"
this species was unknown to him as occurring in the country.
It was therefore with no little surprise that we found it to
be quite common on Birket-El-Kairoun (the Faioum) in
June. We are however forestalled in the discovery by
Canon Tristram, who it appears, some time ago, when out in
the neighbourhood of the marshes near Alexandria, bought
one, fresh and bleeding, of an Arab. It was certainly the
most plentiful Duck at the lake. I saw most the day I
went over to the north side. On the sand by the brink of
a neighbouring pond, there were both single birds and small
flocks. On the lake I saw it in couples near the shore or
near an island, but I never saw it far out upon the water, or at
a distance from the reedbeds. The specimens shot were all
drakes. No eggs were found : I think it very likely that
the ducks were sitting.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 22/

193. GxVRGANEY, QucrqncdiUa circia (Linn.) ;
"Arraeh."

Was first met with on the loth of April, and not far from
El-Kab, the same place mentioned by Captain Shelle}'.
Between then and the end of the month several were shot
in the plashes of water which are left by the receding Nile.
They were evidently on migration. The males appeared
to be going off in plumage.

The young Garganey is just the colour of a young Teal.
It differs from it in having no speculum, and the neck and
bill are both rather larger. Yarrell gives 16 inches as the
length of the Garganey, and 145 for the Teal, but persons
not versed in ornithology would be sure to confound the
young birds.

194. Teal, Qitcrqucdula cncca (Lmn.) ; " Charchir."

I cannot understand how this can be called the most
abundant Duck in Egypt — vide " Shelley's Birds of Egypt,"
p. 286. We found it particularly scarce, only shooting
three couple all the time we w^ere in the country ; yet I do
not mean to say that my predecessor has been guilty of a
mistatement respecting it. The explanation probably is
that the Oruis of Egypt is peculiar, and birds which are
common one season are scarce another. When observers
are multiplied in that advancing country, and we can take
the mean of many observations, we shall arrive at the truth.

195. ^lOY^OYi, Mareca penclope (IJmvi); " Sarvai."

We saw the Wigeon in the markets at Alexandria and
Cairo, but I should have reckoned it one of the rarer Ducks,
had we not seen so many on lake Menzaleh. When we

228 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

were within an hour or two of Geut-El-Nosara (the port of
that lake) flock after flock crossed our bows, all Wigeons,
and chiefly drakes. There was no mistake about them,
even if I had not examined four or five which had been
caught. The only one we shot ourselves was a female, on
tiie 3rd of March, near Minieh. Hasselquist says, — "This
kind was brought alive in great numbers (to Cairo) about
the middle and latter end of November ; they are caught
in nets at night, just before the water is entirely returned or
dried up."*

196. Pochard, FnUgttla fcrina (Linn.); " Homr."

Of all the myriads of Ducks at lake Menzaleh, Pochards
seemed the commonest. I saw acres and acres of them.
In one place an immense flock, which I believe were chiefly
Pochards, extended three miles as they sat upon the water,
without any visible break. The Pochard is occasionally
subject to a white patch on the foreneck. I have seen two
drakes and a duck thus marked. f

197. White-eyed Duck, Nyroca fcrriiginea (Gm.).

We only got this in the winter. It was not uncommon
then in the Delta, and we shot six, but only one was a fine
old drake.

* A tame Wigeon of my father's began to shed its plumage on the
17th of June, and completed the moult on the 20th of August. It
began to reassume the male plumage on the 19th of September, and
finished the process November loth, having been nearly four months of
the year in a state of change. In the above instance I do not think the
period was lengthened by confinement, for I have often noticed what a
long time the drakes of this and other species are in getting their per-
fect dress.

f My father kept a drake Pochard thirteen years. Once, when he
was carrying it from one pond to another, its red eye changed to yellow
from fright, but rapidly recovered its original colour after being released.

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 229

198. Tufted Duck, Ftdigida cristata (Linn.); " Zurk."
Two were shot in the Delta.*

199. Little Gull, Lams viiniitus, Pall.

Mr. Russell saw what I have no doubt was a bird of this
species with some Terns at the Faioum.

Sharpe and Dresser have referred the Lams Dorhignyi
of Audouin, figured in the "Description de I'Egypte," to the
Little Gull. I believe it to be the Black Tern, for the
following reasons. It agrees in size ; the toes are so divided
that there is but very little web ; the tail is more forked
than a Little Gull's ; and the back is much blacker. It is a
young bird of some sort or other, and the description " red
legs" would not apply to a young Lams mituitus more
than to a Black Tern. Neither species is common in the
country. My father, however, thinks that it is more likely
to be a young White-winged Tern.

200. Black-headed Gull, Lams ridibundiis, Linn.

A great many seen in Lower Egypt, but I am not sure
whether they were all of this species. It was only positively
identified at Menzaleh and Benha.

201, Great Black-headed Gull, Lams icJithy actus,
Pall.; "Hin."

I must say I was disappointed with this royal Sea-Gull
•when I saw him at Pelican-point, Damietta. To my mind

'* Since returning to England I have heard from M. Filliponi that he
obtained a pair of the White-headed Duck (Erismatiira kiicocephala)
on lake Menzaleh.

230 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

he is not near such a fine bird on the wing as the Greater
Black-backed Gull ; and he is quite as shy, for we never
obtained so much as a shot. By the 23rd of January this
species had already partly put on its summer plumage, and
in connection with this, I may mention, that I have fre-
quently known the English Black-headed Gull* to have a
nearly black head in winter.

■^202. Common Gull, Lams canus, Linn.

We found this common in the Delta. We first certainly
identified it at Damietta on the 23rd of January, when five
specimens were shot. Near Samanhoude a sixth was shot,
and I am sure several flocks were seen between those places,
yet it has been considered very rare.

203. Mediterranean Herring Gull, Lams
leucophccus, Lict. ; " Norasa,"

A good many were seen in Lower, and I believe a few in
Middle Egypt. A young one, obtained at Damietta, had
the legs white, tinged with flesh colour. Compared with
some young English Herring Gulls, its plumage was whiter.

204. Lesser Black-back Gull, Lamts fjiscus, Linn. ;
L. fiisccsccns (Licht.) ; " Goka."

This Gull is a resident in Egypt, though where it breeds
I cannot say. They were to be seen in the harbour at
Alexandria on the 7th of January, and again on the 20th of
June. I met with them at the Faioum, and in Upper
Egypt also ; this species was very frequently shot in the
beginning of May. I do not know a bird of more unsullied

Larus ridibundus.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 23 1

beauty. Sometimes one might be seen floating beside the
diabeyha ; and I remember there were more than a score of
them swimming within gunshot of the place where we
anchored at Cairo. Though so pure to look at, they are
foul feeders. I shot one beside the stranded carcase of an
enormous Nile fish : it contained scales larger than a
shilling. On comparing five adult Egyptian skins with
three English ones, it is seen that the back is darker by
many shades ; legs yellow, beak ditto, inferior angle red,
eyelid red, eye yellow; length 21 inches.

Obs. Skua Gull.

June 17th, Alexandria, observed a bird which has
not been noticed in Egypt before, viz., a Skua,
but of what species I cannot say. It appeared
too big for Richardson's Skua. It was teasing
the Gulls in the harbour.

205. Caspian Tern, Sterna cospia, Pall ;

" Abou Belaha," i.e., Father of Dates : so called because of

its red beak.

A fine one obtained, January 23rd, at Damietta, where
they are not uncommon, and may occasionally be decoyed
within gunshot by whistling in imitation of their note. Al-
ways intently searching the surface of the water, they fly at
a somewhat greater altitude than the other Terns, from
which they may be distinguished afar ofi" by their magnifi-
cent red bills. We saw several in Upper Egypt, and shot
three splendid specimens near Gebel-Silsilis the first week
in April, besides one at the Faioum on the 2nd of June.
The last seen on the Nile was on the 12th of May. They
weigh about \\ lb. Feet black, mottled with yellow. The
specimen shot at the Faioum was much more backward

232 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

than the SilsiUs specimens, having the head still profusely
mottled. The Caspian Tern* breeds in January in the
region of the Zambesi (Ibis, 1864, p. 337).

Obs. Common Tern, Sterna fliroiatilis (Naum.).

At Menzaleh I observed some small Terns which
may have been S.fliiviatilis. Hasselquist gives
a long description of a Tern which comes to
Trajan's canal in great flocks in the beginning
of January, but I cannot satisfactorily make it
out.

206. Whiskered Tern, Hydrochelidon hybrida (Natt.).

I confess I doubt this being a resident species (cf.
Heugl. Syst. Ubers, No. 734), though it became excessively
common after the 26th of April. In many parts the Nile
was covered with them, as they slowly beat up against the
north wind, which prevailed very much in the beginning of
May, and which was no doubt detaining them. I recollect
one evening at dusk I observed these Terns feeding upon the
yellow-dun fly in company with hundreds of Bats. The
intensity of colour on the breast varied much, the darker
being of course in summer garb.

* In the Dover Museum there is a very young Caspian Tern with
some down on the head. It was brought quite fresh to the Curator
(still in the flesh I believe), and must have been killed not very far off.
He told me that the man who brought it was a foreigner. It is
possible that it came from Sylt ; if on the other hand it was a
British-killed one, it was very interesting in that state. It is not the
example mentioned at p. 265 of "The Note-Book of a Naturalist," by
E. P. Thompson, who I believe started the Museum at Dover.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 233

207. Gull-billed Tern, Sterna anglica, Mont.

January 26th. A few on lake Menzaleh, half a mile from
the village of Geut-El-Nosara. They flew round our boat
in large circles, sometimes darting down as if to catch a
fish, and sometimes checking themselves as they thought
better of it. Occasionally they came within gunshot, when
I could see that they were in winter plumage. When near
us they moved the head sideways, but in the distance^as
I could see with the telescope — they kept steadily looking
down into the water. We afterwards obtained specimens
at Manfalout and Bibba, and saw a flock at El-Bab (the
1st Cat.). I believe we did not see any on the Faioum, but
I did at Alexandria on the 20th of June, so the species
must be resident.

■)f2o8. Lesser Tern, Sterna minuta, Linn.

I am disposed to think that this fairy -like Tern should
be considered a summer visitor rather than a winter one.
It would seem to be not nearly so rare as has been hitherto
supposed. In the first part of May we several times saw
small flocks, and obtained specimens. In particular a great
many were seen between Bibba and Cairo. At the Faioum
also it was rather a common bird, and one was seen carry-
ing some building materials. When we returned to Alex-
andria we saw them again there, on the nth and 17th of
June. I was also shown a skin at Damietta by M. Filliponi,
who said that they were not very rare there.

I watched their actions with great attention, as I have
often done before in Norfolk. They are just the same in
Egypt. Precisely the same discordant cry strikes upon the
ear, and one looks everywhere for their small white forms,
so like in hue to both sky and water, to discover one at last
close to the boat. He passes on with slow, aimless flight,

234 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

his pinions gently waving rather than flying, but all the
while with head and beak pointing downwards intently
scanning the limpid lake, whose glassy surface mirrors him
again and again. His tail is on the move continually. It
is the governor or rudder by which he steers. Every now
and then, as he flies along, he shakes himself up with a kind of
shiver. What this is for I do not know, but I describe him
as I have seen him in that glorious country, which I shall
always look back to as a naturalist's paradise. Now his
wings seem to go back with the force of the air, and he
strikes the water aslant. Without an effort he rises again
and passes on, but seeing a fish, or some floating matter
which he had nearly overlooked, pauses, checks himself,
turns downwards at right angles, and plunges into the water
with a splash.

•^209. White-winged Tern, Hydrochelidoji leucoptera

(Meisn).

This is much scarcer than the Whiskered. We shot four
at the Faioum where I suspect it breeds, and one on the
Nile. The latter was on the ist of May; it was with two
others. The gizzard was full of flies. I also was shown
three which had been killed at Damietta, and one which
had been killed at Alexandria. This is the handsomest of
all the Terns. Von Heuglin seems the only writer who has
met with it. He says that this species and the Whiskered
Tern are common all the year in Egypt and Nubia, and
that in July he has often shot young birds which had
evidently been hatched there (Syst. Ueb., p. 70).

210. SCISSORBILL, Rhyncops flavirostris, Vieill.

A sight of this strange bird is a gain which those have
who visit Egypt late in the season. Ours was, I believe,

SIX months' bird collecting in egylt. 235

the last diabeyha on the river, which accounts for our
getting the Scissorbill and sundry other species not met
with by Messrs. Adams and Smith. Its novel beak is an
eccentricity of nature which no one who confines himself
merely to British birds has any idea of, the mandibles being
flattened perpendicularly, and the lower one projecting be-
yond the upper a long way — 1| inch in one specimen, which
I shot. That, it is true, was the longest. It varies much, and
in another the projection was only f of an inch ; but I refer
the reader to Captain Shelley's picture, which will give a
much better idea than any description of mine.

We were lucky enough to see a great many, and to watch
their habits under very favourable circumstances, especially
at Erment, Silsilis, and Keneh. The first appearance was
on the 20th of March, near the spot mentioned by Captain
Shelley. We had landed to shoot some fowl on the sand-
bank, and the reports put up a flock of about a dozen
Scissorbills. We at once left the fowl to take care of them-
selves, and after some manoeuvring I succeeded in shooting
three of the coveted birds. Their unusual length of wing
makes them look so much larger than they really are, that
they easily pass between large shot. Terns are generally
easy birds to get near, and the Scissorbills, however different
in other respects, proved to be no exception. When we
afterwards met them at Silsilis five were killed at one shot ;
and that day a curious thing happened. A Scissorbill was
shot at about thirty yards' distance, and when I picked it
up a gunwad was sticking to its wing.

There is good reason to believe that they follow the
course of the Nile as far as the Delta. I obtained confirma-
tion of the occurrence of one at Damietta (Ibis, 1864,
p. 243), and they were seen by us at various points as far
north as Minieh, and again two were shot at Benisouef, and
two more were seen on the 21st of May, within twenty
miles of Cairo. They fly very low over the water, every

236 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

now and then just shearing it with their beaks, in play or
in feeding. They make marks with them in the sand, deep
and shghtly curving, some nearly two inches long. What
those hieroglyphics mean I cannot say. Possibly they find
there some small sand worms. I never saw any swimming ;
they appear to be as averse to it as the true Terns ; but
they settle on terra firvia much more than they do.
At night they are as active as by day. Occasionally you
may see them raise their wings until they nearly touch over
the back. The expanse is about 39 inches, but of course
among many specimens there was a good deal of variation.
Eye almost black ; beak coral red at the base, shading off
into light straw-yellow at the tip. I think the females have
rather shorter beaks than the males. At the same time
our shortest was a male according to Mr. Hughes' dis-
section.

Von Heuglin says at the end of autumn these birds
collect and travel in immense flocks (Syst Uebers, No.
IV)-

■)f2iL Cinereous Shearwater, Puffinus kuhli, Boie.

This was the last bird I saw. It was about an hour after
leaving Alexandria harbour, on the 20th of June, that the
first was seen ; afterwards I saw a good-sized flock or two.
After my return to England, M. Filliponi obtained a speci-
men. He writes that it was killed at the mouth of the
river, a few miles north of Damietta, and that two fishermen
who plied their trade at the place informed him that it was
a scarce bird, but that one or two were seen every year
in the autumn, that it always appeared at sundown, and
that they called it Oum-Goiirnayay which means hiding
mother.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 237

212. White Pelican, Pelicamis onocrotahis, Linn,;
(Hasselquist, pp. 85,208,210); " Bagah."

The Pelicans which we saw on lake Menzaleh were pre-
sumedly of this species. There is a neck of land called
Sayal, an hour and a quarter's walk from Damietta, over
which Pelicans not infrequently pass, and in tempestuous
weather they may be got by lying up, but their feathers are
such a tough armour that many are hit for one that is killed.
At this place they flew very low, but we did see some flocks
at a far greater height, and one bird aftervvaixis circling
right over the town of Damietta. I do not remember see-
ing any Pelicans from the time we left Damietta until the
nth of March, when six rosy ones were descried on a sand-
bank near Girgeh. I do not know how long it takes for a
Pelican to arrive at maturity, though it might easily be
ascertained from the numerous specimens kept in confine-
ment, but certainly in the same flock you may see some far
larger than others, and much rosier. The roseate colouring
of the adult Pelicans is probably more intense during the
breeding season. We were too late to see many on the Nile ;
occasionally we met with a single one or a pair migrating
north, and once, on the i6th of May, I counted about fifty-
seven high up and going in the same direction, but we
never had the good fortune to come across such an immense
flock as Captain Shelley tells of, although we were near the
same place at about the same period of the year. On
enquiry we were told that we had come much too late for
Pelicans, and that they were only common in the winter.
This I dare say was true, as I know that other boats had
obtained them ; possibly they go to the large lakes in the
Delta in April to breed. Hasselquist says that some re-
main at Damietta and on the islands of the Delta in
summer.

As it was we were content to get one specimen — a fine

238 RAiMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

salmon-tinted bird, measuring 108 inches from tip to tip.
It was shot on the 9th of April. The tarsus was 5^ inches,
carpus 26|. culmen 18, length 59. Legs yellow, eye brownish
red — not so bright red as in the examples at the Zoological
gardens. The zvhole body, wings included, was covered with
large air-cells.

Pelicans do very well in confinement, and I was told at Men-
zaleh that they could be caught alive more easily than shot.

Hasselquist says, " The inhabitants of Damietta make a
vessel out of the upper part of the beak, with which they
bale the water out of their boats." I should have thought
the lower part more adapted for the purpose.

Before leaving Egypt I purchased a young Pelican which
had been shot at Suez. It is dark brown all over, and
appears to me to be hardly full grown. The bill is 14J,
and the wing 26 inches.

■)f2i3. Pclicanus minor, Rupp. ; P. uiitratus, Licht.

On the 15th of April a pair of Pelicans were discovered
sitting upon a sandbank near Thebes, and Mr. Buxton shot
the smaller of the pair. It measured — length 48 inches,
culmen 12, wing from carpus 26, tarsus 5, expanse 104. It
was pure white in colour without any tinge of roseate, but
it had the usual yellow feathers on the breast, and two of
the secondary quills were white. The crest was nearly four
inches long. The living specimen of P. minor in the
Zoological Gardens has at present no crest (September,
1875). The one we got had the usual air-cells over the
whole body, and in its pouch a parasitical worm.

214. Dalmatian Pelican, Pelicanus crispus, Bruch. ;
" Bagah."

Possibly some of the Pelicans we saw at Damietta were

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 239

of this species; I cannot say, as we never shot one. I
fcHind a dead one one day, but it was too far gone to
examine. We met a Diabeyha returning from the second
cataract with some skins on board. The only one we were
fortunate enough to get was a small grey bird at the Faioum.
When the breast was cut open it was found to have bled so
profusely, that a spoon had to be used to ladle out the
blood. Its beak was 11 f along the ridge, carpus 22 inches.
There were a good many on the lake in similar plumage.
They had white backs, and a white pouch and legs, and
beak very pale. We judged them to be birds of last year.
Several persons asserted that they did not breed on the
lake, but I should think that they would probably be found
to do so if it was well searched, especially as some old ones
were also seen there.

It was the most absurd sight possible to see a Pelican
sitting in a leafless tamarisk bush very little bigger than
himself, yet that was their favourite perch. How the splay
feet manage to hold on I cannot think. They are withal a
cautious bird, for long before the punt has got within shot
the Pelican has slipped off (without any commotion), and is
sailing away nearly as fast as you can row. With his head
turned he steadily looks back at the pursuer, while he
breasts the waves, he calculates the distance to a nicety,
and then he very leisurely raises his wings (leaving the
water with none of the Flamingo's awkwardness), gives two
or three flaps, and sails, and then two or three more flaps
low over the water, you think he is going to alight every
time he glides, after his great flaps ; the tamarisks have
their roots deep down in the water, and a good many fish
may be seen basking near with their backs above water.
Probably these are the attraction to the Pelicans. We
thought that they minded the sail of the punt, as the native
boats have no sail, so I tried to get near them in a large
fishing boat, but they minded that still more.

240 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

B B is the only shot for Pelicans. A loose charge is no
good. A No. 4 shot will drill a clean hole through the big
wing bone without breaking it.

I observe that the example in the Zoological Gardens at
London has a greater power of moving the eye than most
birds. On stating to the keeper that I had seen these birds
sitting in tamarisk trees, he said that one perched on one
occasion on the iron rail which divides their cage down the
middle.

215. Cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo (Linn.);
"Agag."

We saw a few at Damietta and some more in Middle
Egypt as we were going up, but in the Faioum none.

Captain Shelley, Mr. E. C. Taylor, and Dr. Adams, are
of opinion that they stay to breed. I, however, do not
believe they breed either at the cliffs of Gebel-Abou-Fayda,
or of Gebel-Tair.

■Jf2i6. Long-tailed Cormorant, Graailus africauus

(Gm.) ; Sav. Desc. de I'Eg., ois. 8, fig. 2 ;

Carbo longicnuda, Swains; VVestafr, II., p. 255, pi. 31;

Finsch and Hartlaub, p. 847.

This is one of the commonest of birds at lake Faioum in
June. Some we shot were in immature, or perhaps still in
winter plumage, with all the underparts, except the vent,
white ; others were curiously mottled black and white ;
and others were in full breeding plumage. Some of the
latter had the flesh of the forehead raised in a very singular
manner, but on looking at my skins I see that it has much
sunk down. These birds had also crests. But the strangest
thing about them is a sharp bone, about half an inch long,

SIX months' bird collecting in egypt. 241

at the back of the head, which you can feel projecting under
the skin.

It was great sport shooting them in the evening, whicli
may be easily done as they come flying down the Bar-El-
Wady canal, which unites the Bar-Joseph to the lake.
Here one of us would hide up behind the stunted bushes,
and as they were very regular we knew exactly what time
to look out for them. It is necessary to see them a long
way off, as they are rather shy withal, and then to keep
well hidden ; but sometimes the specks which were taken
for Cormorants turned out to be only Buft'-backs, though
generally they flew in a more straggling flock. Now and
then one comes stealing low over the water, or a pair pass
out of shot. They are going to a bed of tamarisks a mile
out in the lake, where they intend nesting with the Buft-
backed Herons. We saw a few sitting upon nests, but they
had evidently not begun to lay. Indeed they may only
have been using empty nests as a convenient perching
place. They took up a position on higher boughs than the
Buff-backs — often seven or eight on the top of the same
tamarisk. All the nests there seemed to me to be the same,
and to be built of the same materials, so that I judge they
were all Buff-backs' or Herons' nests of some kind. I saw
a Buff-back settle upon one, on which a moment before
there had been a Cormorant. They are such good divers,
that of the first six shot (by my friend) only one was
bagged. They are very easy to skin when not fat.

Hartmann found the P. africanus at Gebel-Tair, (J. F. O.,
1863, p. 300) and either this species or the Lesser Cormorant
was formerly common at Damietta, and known by the
name of " Fessek," as I am informed by M. Filliponi, who
however has not seen one this seven years.

R

242 . RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

217. Little Cormorant, Phalacrocorax pygmaiis, Tern.

The Little Cormorant is probably far rarer than the
Long-tailed African Cormorant at the Faioum, as I only-
shot one — a male, on the ist of June. We at once noticed
it as something different, from its entirely black bill and
pouch, dark brown eye, and brown head. All the African
ones we shot — amounting to fifteen in number, had red or
reddish eyes and yellow bills. The rest of the plumage
was also very different. In P. pyguiLVUs it was more
silky, and the scapulars and wing coverts, instead of being
grey, broadly tipped with black, were nearly as dark as
the rest of the back, and each feather was rimmed, not
tipped with black. The only white upon the bird was a
certain number of hair-like feathers very sparsely scattered
over it.

The two Little Cormorants shot at the Faioum in
February, which Captain Shelley describes at p. 296, (o. c.)
were correctly named I have not a doubt. Perhaps the
Long-tailed one is only a summer inhabitant. Von Heuglin
says that P. pygmceus was only met with by him in Lower
Egypt in winter and spring (Syst. Ueb., No. 752).

218. Great-crested Grebe, Podiccps cristatns (Linn.);

? " Chaer."

On the desert side of Birket-El-Kairoun, there is a piece
of water which I suppose forms part of the great lake in
winter. It is fringed with a luxuriant growth of reeds, the
very place for a pair of Great-crested Grebes to nest ; and
here on the 8th of June I saw two beauties, but so expert
are they in diving at the flash, that though I got within
twenty-five yards I failed to shoot one.

SIX MONTHS BIRD COLLECTING IN EGYPT. 243

■^219. Eared Grebe, Podiccps nigricoUis, Sundev.

Von Heuglin seems not only to have found this in winter
(Shelley's "Birds of Egypt," p. 313), but also breeding. I
have not Petermann's " Geographische Mittheilungen," but
the reviewer in the "Ibis" (of his list at p. 311 of part
VIII.) says, he found it breeding at the lake of Tamieh in
Faguin (Ibis, 1862, p. 81, of, p. 195). I do not know where
these places are, but I saw a Grebe on Menzaleh which
appeared, from its size to be this species, on two occasions,
first from the shore, and afterwards from a boat.

220.* Little Grebe, Podiccps minoy (Linn.) ;
" Zah-ut."

Three times I came across them in the Delta on inland
waters, and once in the Faioum on the same pond with the
Great-crested Grebes, but they are equally quick with them
in diving; and unless you get a shot when they are not
looicing at you, you have not much chance. The 17th of
January was my earliest date. The pair at the Faioum,
which were in full summer plumage, were observed on the
8th of June, so we are justified in concluding that it is
resident in the country. f

* The Lesser Kestrel, Sand-coloured Dove, and Coot, were omitted
by error in the numbering, which makes the total 223.

t A marshman, named Rich, informs me that about 1S60, in the
depth of a hard winter, some two hundred Dabchicks made their ap-
pearance at Surlingham Broad, Norfolk, which was frozen over. The
following Sunday, idle fellows from Norwich attacked them on the ice
and drove them into the dykes, and before the expiration of a week
they were nearly all killed.

A somewhat similar visitation took place at Worthing in November,
1868 (Zool. ss. 1482).

244 rambles of a naturalist.

Undetermined Species.

On the 1 2th of June I saw at the Faioum a very long-
tailed bird, rather larger than a White Wagtail, and some-
what similar in colour, flying over a garden of trees near our
camp. I do not believe it belonged to any species, or even
to any genus described in the " Birds of Egypt," and I am
totally unable even to hazard a guess as to what it may
have been.

ADDENDUM.

Since the foregoing list of Birds of Egypt went to press,
my father has received the following, collected at Damietta,
a few miles from the shore of the Mediterranean, from
Mons. E. Filliponi.

Greater spotted Eagle, Aquila vittata. Nine speci-
mens killed in December. Of this fine series, three are
nearly adult and six immature.

OSPREY. December 19th.

Swainson's Harrier.

Marsh Harrier.

Scops Eared 0\^\., Scops gin, xn^X^. September, 1875,

Common Goatsucker, CaprinmlgiLs europceus, male.
September, 1875.

Oriental Swallow, Hinuido savignii.

Roller.

Curlew, Njtnicnins arquatns (Linn.). May, 1875.

Great Black-i-ieaded Gull, Lams icthyactos. Two
fine specimens ; one in full breeding plumage was killed at
the end of February (vide anfca), the other, which has no
ticket, is in change.

Great Crested Grebe, Podiccps cristatus. Decem-
ber 31st.

SIX months' bird collecting in EGYPT. 245

Cinereous Shearwater, Puffinus kuJili. February
25th.*

Note — Lesser White-fronted Goose (Anscr crythropus). I find
from a translation of Heuglin's " Ornithologie Nord-ost Africas," by
Dr. Bree (Field newspaper, November 22nd, 1873), that our party was
not the first to discover the Lesser White-fronted Goose in Egypt, it
having been got before in the Delta.

* This is the same specimen already alluded to.

PASSING NOTES

ON

THE BIRDS OF ITALY.

On the 30th of December, 1874, I was ensconced in a
railway carriage between Macon and Turin. We kept
passing continually rivers — affluents I suppose of the Rhone,
and at one place the waters swelled into a majestic lake.
Here I saw several hundred Ducks, all of which were gone
when I traversed the margin of the lake again in the
summer. Some which were nearer than the rest, I could
see to be common Wild Ducks.

Shortly before entering the famed tunnel of Mount
Cenis, which took us twenty-five minutes to pass through,
my attention was directed to some flocks of Alpine Choughs,
looking exactly like Jackdaws, which I thought they were,
until one came near enough for me to see its yellow bill.

I will now say something about the Natural History of
Turin, which Bradshaw describes as a brand new city. So it
is, and a very good one ; capital shops and good hotels.
The completion and opening of a new arcade was celebrated
while I was there, to be called the " Galleria subalpina."
Perhaps I cannot give a better idea of its avifauna than by
a list of the birds in the market.

PASSING NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ITALY.

247

Kestrel

Song Thrush

Missel Thrush

Redwing

Ring Ouzel

Fieldfare

Blue Thrush

Grey Wagtail

White Wagtail

Water Pipit

Meadow Pipit

Meadow Bunting

Cirl Bunting

Italian Sparrow

Tree Sparrow

Chaffinch

Hawfinch

Stonechat

Robin

Alpine Accentor (eight)

Great Titmouse

Green Woodpecker

Jay

Magpie

Alpine Chough

Cornish Chough

Quail

Greek Partridge

Red-legged Partridge

Grey Partridge

Pheasant

Woodcock

Snipe

Water Rail

Coot

Shoveller

Pochard

Wigeon

Goldeneye

Mallard

Red-breasted Merganser

Black-headed Gull

Though some of the birds herehi named would be hard
to an English digestion, for all this miscellaneous collection
purchasers would be found. I forget if it was at the market
that I saw a Snow Bunting, a fine old cock, but tailless, or
at the birdstuffer's, Carlo Bonomi, Via D'aorgennes, No. 41,
at whose shop I was shown a good many birds. Among
the rarest ones, which I was assured by him had been killed
in the vicinity, I have jotted down Temminck's Stint, Ring
Dotterel,* Lesser Ring Dotterel, Black Tern, Smew, (adult
male and female), Waterouzel, Penduline Titmouse, Scops
Owl, Rock Thrush, Little Crake, Little Bittern, and Nut-
cracker.

There was another birdstufifer, and I may as well give

* The following fact I had from Mr. Bates of Eastbourne. An egg
of a Ring Dotterel lay seven days on a shelf in his house, and on the
seventh he heard the chick begin to break the shell.

248 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

the addresses for future convenience — M. Grasselli, Via di
Po, No. 19.

With the Museum, founded by BoneUi, I was especially
pleased, both on account of the superb collection of Egypt-
ian remains, and on account of the birds. They are dis-
played in excellent galleries, but I was sorry to see some
of the specimens ticketed wrong. There was a very good
Great Auk, and a melanism of a Woodcock, being the fifth
melanism that I have seen, though so rare.* The "Ibis"
says that the whole of the Marchesa Antinori's Abyssinian
collection is here, (Ibis, 1864, p. 410,) and I noticed some
hybrids between Corvns comix and C. corone, to which
allusion is made in the "Ibis" for 1870, p. 450.

From Turin to Bologna was but a short journey. As soon
as I was installed at my hotel I went to visit the bird
market, where I saw nine species which I had not seen at
Turin, — Yellow Hammer, Crested Lark, Wren, Nuthatch,
Starling, Rook, Teal, and Pintail. Here, to complete my
list of market birds, let me give the names of the live ones
which I saw for sale in cages at Turin and Bologna. Barn
Owl, Little Owl, Nightingale, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Serin,
Brambling, Linnet, Ortolan, Hoopoe, Magpie,t Greater-
spotted Woodpecker, and Turtle Dove.

Bolocfiia is remarkable for its leanins; towers. There are

* I think if any further argument was needed for Sabine's Snipe not
being a good species — and there are still a good many sanguine people
who stand up for it — we have it in the discovery that the Woodcock is
liable to melanism, and I believe also the Great Snipe and the Jack
Snipe.

■f How many interesting birds may be discovered even in grimy
London by those who know how to use their eyes. In Regent's Park
I have more than once seen the shy Magpie, a bird I may remark
which is not included in a list of thirty-eight species by Mr. H. Smith
in the " Field," (November 28th, 1874,) nor in another of fifty-seven in
the P. Z. S. (1863, p. 159).

PASSING NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ITALY. 249

two of them ; one leans nine feet, the other five. They are
said to have been built by ancient noblemen, in the days
when a nobleman was not considered a nobleman without a
tower.

In the afternoon, having nothing better to do, I took a
guide to the Cemetery, said to be the best in Italy. It is
very costly and elaborate, many of the beautiful sculptures
being by noted artistg. The best are those of pure white
Carara marble. Others of the second and third quality are
veined with grey. The place has received the name of the
Catacombs — spacious galleries, having three rows of vaults
on either side. For the smallest a man pays five pounds ;
for a larger one much more. These galleries are built in
the form of squares, and the plot of ground within is about
two acres. This is called "common ground," and the poor
are buried here (gratis) in trenches ; the males by them-
selves, the females by themselves, and the children by
themselves. After a lapse of not many years, their bones
are dug up and committed to great cave-like vaults, and
the ground is trenched and sown again, until a fresh crop of
these ghastly remains is ready to be harvested. In working
some excavatigns it was discovered that on this very site
there was, hundreds and hundreds of years ago, a necropolis,
or Etruscan city of the dead.

From Bologna by Ancona to Brindisi is the well-known
route of all travellers for and from Egypt and India.

The cultivated land was no longer divided into fields.
Rows of mulberry trees took the place of trim fences, gar-
nished with drooping vines, and these further south gave
way to the olive. What a different aspect the country
presented when I returned in the last week of June. Then
it was all waving fields of yellow corn, and scores and scores
of Italian husbandmen were coming down by train t© put
the sickle to it.

For miles the iron road skirts the shore of the Adriatic

250 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Sea. It could not have been more placid and calm since
the last Doge of Venice stood on the deck of his gilded
barge and wedded it, amid the plaudits of his nobles by-
dropping in a ring. Here and there a few fishing smacks
with parti-coloured sails'of various bright hues, and here and
there a few stake nets, and a fisherman's house, were all that
was to be seen. For a long time I scanned the sandy-
shore and the limpid water without being rewarded by the
sight of a sea-bird of any kind. At length I perceived a
man with a long gun, hiding behind a heap of seaweed, in
the hope that a flock of Gulls would come within shot of
his ambush. Afterwards two more flocks of Gulls and one
Lapwing appeared, and barring Crested Larks nothing else
whatever.

Probably birds are more plentiful in summer, as when
returning in June I saw the following from the railway
carriacfe, as well as a Manx Shearwater and some Mediter-
ranean Herring Gulls, which I observed as we approached
the harbour of Brindisi.

Kestrel

Swift

Swallow

Sparrow (Passer italicc)

Titlark

Common Sandpiper

Little Owl

Magpie

Redbacked Shrike
Goldfinch
House Martin
White Wagtail
Starling
Hooded Crow (2)

I was rather surprised to see Hooded Crows on the 24th
of June, but writers on the ornithology of Italy say they
are resident.

Several instances have come to my knowledge of their
being seen in summer near Cromer in Norfolk ; for example
last July, one was seen from the 12th to the 27th, and the
keeper at Trimingham picked up seven young Pheasants
of its killiufj.

ANALYSIS

OF THE

CLAIMS OF CERTAIN BIRDS

TO BE

ACCOUNTED BRITISH.

A VERY useful attempt to put together all the recorded
occurrences of our rarer British Birds has recently been
made by Mr. Harting in his " Handbook of British Birds,"
but it was not within the scope of his work to examine
minutely into the claims upon which each individual rested.
Believing that many of these would turn out to be purely
imaginary, I have applied myself to this task, and I now
present the results of my analysis of seven of them. It
is by no means in the interest of science that fictitious
records should be perpetuated and copied from one book
into another, — until the original authorities being dead or
lost sight of, it is too late to verify them.

I intend to go on working at the subject, so I will only
here say that if any reader should chance to be in posses-
sion of valid disproof of any of the occurrences here given,
I shall be greatly indebted to him to inform me of the
same for my future use. The truth, the whole truth, and

252 BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH.

nothing but the truth, is what we wish to arrive at, and with
regard to British Birds that is not always easy.

Eagle Owl.

Few indeed are the number of times that the Eagle Owl
has really been killed in a wild state in this country, yet
many are the supposititious records of it. Mr. Harting
(op. cit.) gives a pretty fair list of them, to which I can add a
few others, having noted down for some time any which I came
across. I wish to premise that though some are obviously
incorrect, and others presumably so, I think this noble bird
of prey has indubitably occurred in one or two instances,
and it may once upon a time have been not very infrequent
in Shetland and Orkney, according to the opinion of the
best authority upon those groups — the late Dr. Saxby ; but
unfortunately it is so often kept in confinement that nearly
all the cases — the more recent ones especially — are open to
the suspicion of being escapes.

In Norfolk an Eagle Owl* was taken alive in 1853, accord-
ing to the Rev. G. Jeans {Naturalist, 1865, p. 258), and a
second in Mr. J. Tomlinson's collection was shot at Somer-
ton in 1864. I believe these would not stand a careful
enquiry, which at present has never been made, but would
speedily find themselves in the category with our tame bird,
which escaped at Northrepps in 1869, and was recorded in
more than one journal with much pomp and parade.

A fourth seems to have been got off Flamborough, _/f(i!?
Mr. P. Hawbridge, in 1837 (Wood's Naturalist, III., p. 155) ;
while a fifth was seen at North Sunderland in October,
12,72, fide Mr. J. Sutton ("Birds of Northumb. and Dun,"
p. 22) ; and again another, supposed on " very good

* In the "Field" of December 13th, 1873, this example is stated to
have come from Norway.

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH, 253

authority" (Selby, B. B., I., p. S^,) to have been killed in
Durham, is said to have been in Mr. Bullock's collection,
but there is no Eagle Owl entered as British-killed in his
sale list.

According to the Rev. F. O. Morris, an Eagle Owl was
shot at Bedale in March, 1845 ; and another at Horton,
near Bradford, in 1824 ; and a third occurred near Harrow-
gate in 1832 (B. B., I., p. 184).

Another was taken, in 1848, in Lincolnshire, but accord-
ing to Mr. Cordeaux was an escaped bird (Cordeaux's
"Birds of the Huinber," p. 12), which being the case, I do
not quite see why my friend has included it in his work.

Mr. Harting {op. cit.) has not mentioned four asserted by
Mr. Stewart (Mag. of N. H., V. p. 579) to have visited
Donegal, and in truth it is so improbable as to be hardly
worth serious consideration.

In the Isle of Sanday, Baikie and Heddle say one was
killed in 1830 (Nat. Hist, of Orkney, p. 31) ; and in Shet-
land Mr. Saxby has two to notice, the first on the faith of
a Mr. Nicholson, who saw it sitting on a stone in dignified
solitude in the autumn of 1863 ; and the second at Balta
in March, 1871, seen by himself, in which on that account,
knowing what an accurate and conscientious naturalist he
was, I should be ready to place confidence.

To conclude, the latest occurrences which I have to
notice, are one at Bridgnorth in 1873 (Zoologist, 3997) ; and
one or two in the same year, I believe, on the Tummel in
Perthshire (see " Pall Mall Gazette " and " Land and Water "
of February 15th, 1873) which had come from the stock of
Mr. Fountaine, the noted breeder of these birds, and had
been purposely set at liberty on an estate in that county.

Red-throated Pipit.
The Red-throated Pipit must be the subject of a note,

254 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

as I am going to show that it has no title to be included as
a British bird, and to prove that, I must quote some extracts
from a pamphlet or paper, professing to be "A list of the
birds that have been observed to breed in the island of
Arran, Scotland, since the year 1835, by Dr. Martin Barry."*
The bird has been admitted into our lists, as most natural-
ists are aware, on the faith of a skin labelled " Unst, 4th
May, 1854," in neat characters by an unknown hand. The
mysterious interloper was lot 401, at the sale of the collec-
tion of Mr. Troughton of Coventry, and its purchaser was
Mr. F. Bond. I turn to the list I have just spoken of, and
there I find the Red-throated Pipit, and at the end the
following remarkable sentence : " I have received a nest
with the old birds from Uist (sic), taken May 4th." I have
not the smallest doubt that here we have the identical bird,
the date agreeing and the locality also, though the latter
appears to be misspelt ; and the obvious explanation is that
Mr. Troughton had bought it at the sale of the collection
said to have been formed by Dr. Barry. It only remains
for me to show that this list, of which I have never seen
but one copy, is untrustworthy, and from the tissue of mis-
statements contained in it I will select as follows : —

" I believe that this fe the first time the Aigle Jean-le Blanc,
Cinaetus gallicus (Vieillot), has occurred in Scotland. I have
several times seen specimens in Ireland ; the last one was nailed
up to warn the smaller fry not to steal poultry.

" The Great Black-headed Gull, Lams ichtJiyaetos, was obtained
by myself on the island of Arran, June 5th, 1844, with the eggs.

" It is strange to find the slender-billed Tern, Anoits tenuirosiris,
breeding so far north — my pair of birds were shot on the Island of
Arran, and three eggs obtained June loth, 1844."

* A recent, and I need hardly say, a trustworthy list of the Birds of
Arran, with notes, appeared in 1872 from the pen of Mr. Robert Gray.
As a matter of course the Red-throated Pipit is not admitted.

birds claiming to be accounted british. 255

Spotted Sandpiper.

Some time ago I set myself to collect all the recorded
instances of the Spotted Sandpiper in Britain, and a most
extraordinary task I found I was in for. I was indeed
astonished at the number of ox:currences, but still more at
the feeble foundation on which most of them rested. I
ended by collecting such a tangled skein of conflicting
evidence, that I laid the job aside in sheer despair, but
have now gone through it again, and present a careful
resume with all the proof and all the disproof that I ob-
tained. The 277th plate of Edwards' " Gleanings of Natural
History," to start with the original offender, represents the
Spotted Sandpiper from Pennsylvania. This distinguished
naturalist and talented draughtsman fancied that it was
also found in England, and in the accompanying letterpress
he mentions a specimen from Essex, which " differed in no
respect from the American Tringa, but in being withoiit
spots on its under side, except on the throat, where it had a
few small, longish, dusky spots down the shafts of the
feathers" (VI., p. 141).

Of course the want of spots shows it to have been a
Common Sandpiper, but I have still further proof I have
found a MS. note in the handwriting of Donovan, in a copy
of Montagu's Dictionary (in the possession of Canon
Tristram), saying that this bird, after standing in the
Leverian Museum twenty years, passed to him. Therefore
it is a fair surmise that Plate CLXXXIV. of his " British
Birds " is its portrait, and no one would want to be told
after looking at it that it represents the Common, not the
Spotted Sandpiper.

And now we come to the so-called Spotted Sandpiper of
Bewick (B. B., ist ed., II., p. in), which is the specimen
mentioned in Wallis' " History of Northumberland." His
admirable woodcut, which is much too accurate to leave

256 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

any doubt about its being the common species, has been
the means of misleading many. Once more the bird had
to be resuscitated, see Yarrell, B. B., ist ed., II., p. 545,
where a certain birdstufifer professes to have received one
unskinued from Cromer. What is become of the valuable (!)
specimen I cannot say, nor does it signify, Mr. Stevenson
having gone into the case some time ago, and satisfied him-
self that it was set up from a foreign skin (B. of Norf., II.,

p. 234)-

After this, a variety of spurious records found their way
from time to time into print, for the most part based on a
misapprehension of the correct coloration. I will take them
seriatim. The first has reference to Shetland (Zool., 1844,
p. 462), but is explained away in the " Birds of Shetland "
(pi 195). The second to Whitby, and is not explained at
present. It was an adult female, Q) stated to have been
shot on the 29th of March, Mr. E, T, Higgins saw it in
the flesh (Zool. 2456), but the intestines had been removed.
Doubts having been raised, I enquired if it could have been
"drawn" and packed in salt, and sent over from America
(cf Zool, 1293), but Mr, Higgins says it certainly was not
salted. Twelve months previously he had thought that he
had seen one at Bridlington (Zool., 2147), which is about
thirty miles south of Whitby.

A short period elapsed, and in July, 1849, an announce-
ment appeared from Mr, J, Duff (Zool, 2499), that within a
few days of the occurrence at Whitby, one had been taken
at Bishop Auckland ; and after a brief interval a second
was reported from that locality: but they proved on a
more critical examination to be only examples of the Green
Sandpiper, (Hancock, B. of Northum, and Dur., p. 123.)

Mr. Hogg quotes Mr. J. Grey for its occurrence on the
river Tees, (Zool. 1173), but I saw, I believe, the very bird
in Mr. Grey's collection at Stockton, and I am sorry to say
that this again was a Green Sandpiper,

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 257

Nor have we yet done with Durham, for it is set down
in Sir C. Sharp's "History of Hartlepool," (app. XVU.) and
in Cumberland in a list by Mr. Robson (Zool., 4166), but in
my opinion both are obvious mistakes.

In September, 1863, a man of the name of Emerson shot
at Epworth in Lincolnshire a Sandpiper, which was pro-
nounced by the local birdstuffer to be a Spotted Sandpiper,
and as such it was recorded, together with a Ruddy Shel-
duck and a Bittern by Mr. S. Hudson (Zool., 9291) ; but
serious doubts having been expressed about them, it was
suggested that they should be examined by a competent
naturalist, when the Ruddy Shelduck proved to be some-
thing very different ; and I cannot help thinking that the
same fate would have befallen the Spotted Sandpiper had
it been forthcoming, but its owner had discreetly sold it to
a commercial traveller at a public house, and I have traced
it no further.

About this time two were shot at Retford (Notts.), ac-
cording to a provincial newspaper, but I can say nothing
about them as I have not seen them or the newspaper.

The "Yorkshire Post" likewise makes mention of one in
some " Miscellaneous Rural Notes for 1867," by Mr. Roberts,
giving I believe Scarborough as the locality, but this was
certainly a case of mistaken identity, as was in all pro-
bability the other.

A Spotted Sandpiper is stated in Harting's " Birds of
Middlesex," p. 180, to have been shot at Kingsbury reservoir,
a large sheet of water near London, considering its inland
situation much affected by waders. Its possessor was
Mr. Milton, and at his sale in 1852 at Stevens' it was
bought by the well-known collector, Mr. Bond. It was lot
75, and entered as killed at Kingsbury. Mr. Bond traced
the specimen, which he has kindly permitted me to see, to
a person named Crane, who formerly worked for Mr. Ward
the taxidermist, and who he believes stuffed it, but no facts

S

258 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

were elicited, and I cannot now ascertain Crane's where-
abouts.

Under the date of August 7th, 1854, Mr. J. Cavafy writes
to the " NaturaHst " to say that Mr. Swaysland had shown
him, among other rare birds killed at Brighton, "several
Spotted Sandpipers." Brighton is noted for rare birds, but
if the above were really procured there, it is singular that
we should have heard no more of them, and accordingly I
think we may take it as pretty certain that there was some
mistake which further enquiries or a more critical examina-
tion revealed. In the case of another which I saw at
Mr. Swaysland's shop in 1871, I am now satisfied that there
was a mistake. He said — doubtless in perfect good faith —
that it was killed between Worthing and Little Hampton
by a Mr. Gringer, whose letter he showed me as proof He
had bought it of Mrs. Wells, the widow of the late trust-
worthy and intelligent birdstufifer at Worthing, and with her
I had some correspondence on the subject, the result of
which was to leave no doubt on my mind that a mistake
had been committed by somebody.

I have further to name another pair [marked " Sussex "
in the sale catalogue of the collection of Mr. Byne of
Milligan Hall, near Taunton, and I think I remember that
gentleman showing them to me, and saying they came from
the birdstufifer at Brighton. I have not the least doubt that
here also there was some mistake, though after a lapse of
several years it becomes not easy to ferret it out.

In Mr. Ecroyd Smith's " Notabilia of the Mersey Dis-
trict," Mr. C. S. Gregson says (p. 51) : —

" Edwin Lord, of Warrington, shot two specimens on the Mersey
below that town in May, 1863, one of which I possess."

I have been obliged by a photograph of this bird. There
is no mistake about it. And Mr. G. vouches for its authen-
ticity to me, in a letter, in the following words : —

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 259

" It was shot on the Mersey by E. Lord, skinned by him under
the wing, given to me by him, and set up by myself after being
shown to various friends fresh."

But though willing to give credence in this instance, I
should for the present withhold it from an example which
I am told is stated in Byerley's "Fauna of Liverpool"
(p. 19) — a work I have not seen — to have occurred on
Form by s\\orQ,Jidc Mr. Mather, a birdstuffer, not now living.

In a foot-note to his "Handbook," p. 140, Mr. Harting
informs his readers that he procured a Spotted Sandpiper of
Mr. Burton, the well-known birdstuffer in Soho, which was
said to have been shot with another on the coast of Kent.
This other I purchased, and at the same time learnt from
Mr. Burton that the name of the person who obtained them
was Bromley, but from his conversation with me he ap-
peared to be exceedingly doubtful of either of them being
British.

My father has a specimen obtained from Mr. Mummery,
the curator of the Museum at Margate, who averred that it
was killed in that part of Kent. I do not believe a word of
it ; not that I would insinuate that he could be guilty of
intentionally deceiving, but a mistake is possible, and may
have been, and no doubt was committed.

I am sorry I cannot abbreviate this long tale. It is a
necessary part of my scheme to quote every instance that
has come to my knowledge, no matter how improbable, no
matter if it be disproved already, no matter that I am
morally satisfied of its not being a sound case.

Professor Newton, who has taken a great interest in the
subject, and for whose assistance I beg to return my best
thanks, feels convinced, after looking over my evidence,
that some more cases might still be refuted ; and several
other able ornithologists deny the right of the subject of
this essay to British citizenship. As the lawyer said, " I

260 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

leave it in the hands of an intelligent jury;" merely ob-
serving that there surely never was a bird about which so
much misapprehension has existed, — a misapprehension
which I read extends even to the continent My next
reference will be to the " Zoologist," (p. 2684) where
Mr. T. J. Tuck has recorded one at Mildenhall in Suffolk.
He saw it soon after being mounted. It was shot, as he has
informed me, about February, 1869, and the possessor of it
is Mr. Gregory Sparke of Bury. Then I hear that it has
a place in Rowe's " Perambulation of the Forest of Dart-
moor," but I have not the book to refer to. There is no
mention of it in his catalogue published in 1863, so I
pass it by as suspicious and go on to those figured in
Mr. Selby's splendid folios, which are equally doubtful. I
could not see them in the Twizell collection which I went
over shortly after his death.

With regard to Scotland, there is an air of probability
about the pair* recorded in Gray's " Birds of the West of
Scotland," (p. 299) to have been obtained in August, 1870,
at or near Aberdeen, which no one can deny, and I must
say that all the careful ' enquiries which I have made from
Mr. Angus and Mr. Mitchell, have not shaken the authen-
ticity of these specimens, but have entirely tended to con-
firm them. I am assured on all hands of their genuineness,
that they were left while in the flesh at the Museum, that
the stomachs were sent to Mr. Gray for dissection, and that
they really were killed where stated. The species is also
in the statistical catalogue of Wick in Caithness, but
Mr. W. Reid, who has examined the bird for me, writes that
it is not a Spotted Sandpiper, and from his description I have
no doubt that he is right in considering it to be a Spotted
Redshank, a very different bird with which it has more

'■' A photograph of them was obligingly sent to me, and I have since
had an opportunity of examining one of them at Mr. Gray's house.

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 26 1

than once been confounded. This is beheved to be the
individual alluded to by Shearer and Osborne in the Trans,
of the Phys. Soc. of Edinburgh. Again I should say that
the example referred to by the late Professor Macgillivray,
as "observed near Montrose," (B. B., IV., p. 358) was the
same which I learn from Mr. Gray is mentioned by Messrs.
Molison and Brewster in their list of the Birds of Craig in
Forfarshire. I have no evidence about it, but Mr. Gray
thinks that a mistake may have been made. Mr. Molison
was a collector and birdstufifer, and I have ascertained that
he possessed " Bewick," the picture in which may have led
him into error.

Ireland may be dismissed with a very few words.
Dr. J. D. Marshall, at p. 395 of the 2nd vol. of the Mag. of
Nat. Hist, says : " One specimen was shot near Belfast in
July, 1828, and another in September." I have no doubt
they were among the instances investigated by Thompson,
who, though a discursive writer, was a most conscientious
naturalist (N. H. of Ireland, II., p. 216).

And now to conclude, after having mentioned so many
other people's Spotted Sandpipers, let me mention my own.
In the course of my enquiries I learnt that Mr. B. Bates,
the birdstufifer at Eastbourne, was in possession of a pair
which he received in the flesh from a gasfitter named Lee
some day in the beginning of October, 1866; and as
Mr. Borrer and others were kind enough to make enquiries
for me with a satisfactory result, and as I found that
Mr. Lee remembered the afternoon when he shot them at
what is called the Crumble pond, about a quarter of a mile
from Eastbourne, a place where a good many rare birds
have been killed, I bought one of them, and have since
seen the other, I carefully examined both and made
further enquiries without shaking the testimony of any one
concerned in the matter, and I can only say that I now

262 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

most fully believe in them.* The circumstance of a pair
being got together is no argument against them : I appre-
hend we have several instances on record of two examples
of an American bird being obtained in England at the same
time.

Here my long list of twenty-six cases terminates. To
give a summary of them I should say that at least fifteen
have been cases of mistaken identity, but the remaining
eleven I believe to have been correctly named ; albeit, I
am persuaded that five were foreign skins, though it is not
for me to say that they were wilfully palmed off as British.
But it must be as clear as daylight to anyone, that it would
be very unfair to doubt all on that account ; and I would
indicate as those most deserving of credence the examples
at Aberdeen, Warrington, Eastbourne, Whitby, Kingsbury,
and Mildenhall. Other American Sandpipers have occurred
dozens of times in England and not been doubted, why
then the Spotted .''

Great White Heron.

British authors have wavered a good deal about the
Great White Heron, but it is now pretty well established.
It certainly has not been for lack of records, for besides the
sixteen enumerated by Mr. Harting in his Hand List, I can
name six.

Firstly. A specimen supposed to have been killed in
Norfolk, teste Mr. Thurtle (B. of Norf, H., p. 149) ; a very
poor one, with all the appearance of having been stuffed
from a skin.

Secondly. A specimen in the sale of Mr. Stephen Miller's
collection, lot 47, bought for seven and sixpence, but by

* Probably the above was the authority for including the species in
the list in Gowland's " Guide to Eastbourne.''

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 263

whom is not known. Mr. Stevenson possesses a letter — or
at least a copy of one — written in 1831 by Mr. Dawson
Turner to Mr. Selby, in which he considers that a reference
is made to this bird by the writer, who offers the loan of
pictures of Norfolk-killed specimens of this and other rare
birds.

Thirdly. The Rev. F. O. Morris says that one was shot
at New Hall by John Townend (B. B., IV., p. 115). No
further particulars.

FotirtJily. An example, seen and shot at, on Romney
Marsh by moonlight, about February, 1849 (Zool., 2419).
If this was what it purports to have been, it may have been
the same which the late Dr. Strong obtained a few months
afterwards at Thorney, teste Messrs. Forster and Little.

Fifthly. Sir Wm. Jardine remarks that during the winter
of 1 840 a "White Heron" was, according to the newspapers,
seen several times on the Solvvay (Nat. lib.. Birds, III.,
p. 135), and it is conjectured that this may have been the
example which was afterwards killed in Haddingtonshire.

Sixthly. Mr. R. Gray has found in a copy of Baikie and
Heddle's "Nat. Hist, of Orkney," a MS. note made therein
by one of the authors, which states that two were met with
on the island of Damsay (Birds of W. Scotland, p. 277).

Long admitted on sufferance, this fine species must now
be considered as having been fully installed by Strickland
and Macgillivray, but most of the other records must be
taken chui grano sails, it being very likely where the bird
has been only seen and not obtained to have been a
Spoonbill or some other species.

Harlequin Duck.

The Harlequin Duck is without doubt one of the very
scarcest of our accidental visitants, yet of our leading Orni-
thologists, one remarks that it has " been frequently cap-

264 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

tured," and another merely says that it is " more rare than
the Long-tailed Duck." It may not therefore be labour in
vain if I proceed to show that Messrs. Yarrell and Gould
were not alive to its real scarcity, by bringing together the
various supposed instances of its occurrence, and showing
how little all of them were worth on investigation ; but
as Professor Newton and Mr. Harting have already been
over the same ground (Ibis, 1859, p. 165 ; Hand-book
of B. B., p. 160), it is not to be expected that I should have
much new matter to bring forward, and I have not. For
the sake of expedition, I may as well dismiss the cases
already disposed of by Professor Newton, and commence
with 1802, when Mr. Montagu published his " Ornithological
Dictionary," and this Duck was introduced on the authority
of Mr. James Sowerby, who had received a pair from
Lord Seaforth. No doubt these are what Mr. Mudie refers
to when he says (B. B., II., p. 354) that the Harlequin has
been seen in Lewis, as I understand that this island was
Lord Seaforth's estate. For the following note by the late
veteran naturalist J. E. Gray, I am indebted to Professor
Newton : —

"The Sowerby Museum was in Meade Place, Lambeth, near
the Orphan Asylum. It became in a bad state from neglect, and
some specimens were sold privately, and the rest at the auction
rooms, now Stevens'. I do not know what became of the Duck.
I think I recollect it in a separate glass case as was then the
fashion, but rather baddish in condition."

The above does not furnish us with much information,
nor am I more fortunate in regard to Mr. Simmons' young
female from Orkney, about which I have nothing fresh to
impart, though I should say prima facie that its being a
young female is against it, for as will be seen in the sequel,
the young of this species and the young of the Long-tailed
Duck have been several times confounded. It is not very

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 265

likely to have been the specimen in Mr. Bullock's sale
(15th day, lot 59), which, according to a MS. note in
Professor Newton's copy of the catalogue, was killed in the
Orkneys and bought by Dr. Adams for a guinea ; though
this latter may be one of the three or four incidentally
mentioned by Selby and Donovan.

In 1858, Major W. R. King shot a fowl which he is con-
vinced was a Harlequin — and a drake in good plumage — at
Buchan in Aberdeenshire (The Sportsman and Naturalist
in Canada, p. 231). He has been so obliging as to inform
me that he shot it after several days' storm from the north-
east, that 'it was swimming a short distance only from the
shore, and that it appeared to be either wounded or much
exhausted. It was stuffed, but during a temporary absence
from home was unfortunately so injured by damp and moth
that it had to be thrown away.

Mr. Gray says, "The Harlequin Duck has since been in-
cluded in a catalogue of the Birds of Caithness, prepared
by Mr. E. S. Sinclair (B. of W. Scotland, p. 394). No
doubt on the same authority it finds a place in Osborne
and Shearer's " Birds of Caithness," (R. Phys. Soc, Edin.,
II., p. 340) but as Mr. Sinclair has been found to be wrong
in the case of the Spotted Sandpiper, there seems to me a
probability of his having been mistaken here as well. His
collection has been sold to the Thurso Museum, as Mr. Reid
informs me.

In the "Naturalist" for 1854, p. 242, Mr. Edward relates
the death of a Harlequin at the hands of a rabbit-catcher
of Loch Strathbeg, who — abandoned wretch that he was —
for the sake of a "paltry sum" sent it "away south," to the
great indignation of the local magnates ; and by doing so
effectually closed the door against incredulous people like
myself, who would have made further enquiries.

Having now done with North Britain, I will begin again
with Norfolk. Nobody knows what has become of the

266 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

specimen which Mr. Wigg bought in Yarmouth market
(Nat. His. of Yarm., p. 12, Intr. XII.). Uncharitable people
insinuate that he consigned it to the spit, like the Red-
breasted Goose which he bought there on another occasion.
We cannot be expected to credit a bird which was eaten ;
and if a man calling himself a naturalist could not get the
better of his unfortunate gastronomic tastes, he must pay
the penalty of not being believed.

There is a note in the series sent by Mr. Joseph Clarke
to Mr. Stevenson, for the use of his work, upon this Duck,
as follows : —

" One shot at Yarmouth in 1833.* Harvey sold it to Mr. Hoy."

Now 1833 was the year before the "Nat. Hist, of Yar-
mouth " came out, and I think I may take it for granted
that this was not Mr. Wigg's bird ; but if it were another
one, how came it that the Messrs. Paget who, as is evident
from their introduction, were familiar enough with Harvey
the birdstuffer, pass it over in silence .'' and how also can we
account for there being no mention of it by Mr. Hoy in his
article on " Rare Birds killed in Suffolk and Norfolk in
1832 — 3" (London Journal for 1834; see also Mag. of
N. H., VII., p. 52), save by the supposition that they dis-
believed in it .''

There is also a drake in the Norwich Museum said to
have been killed near Yarmouth (Zool., 1380). I find that
it was presented in 1839 by my father, who does not believe
in it. Neither do I, for it was remounted, and Mr. Knight,
who took the stuffing out, told me that it had the appear-
ance of having been set up from a skin. I am sorry I have
not made out a better case for Norfolk, but such a rich
county can afford to spare one species ; I have no bias for
or against it, and only wish to get the unvarnished truth.

* Mr. Clarke informs Mr. Stevenson that he saw it in the flesh, and
that it was a young male.

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 267

Mr. Gatcombe has seen the supposed specimen recorded
by Dr. Moore as killed at Plymouth, (Mag. of N. H.,
2nd sen, I., p. 365) as no doubt it was, seeing that it turns
out to be a young Long-tailed Duck. In his " Sketch of
the Nat. Hist, of Exeter," Mr. D'Urban notes that several
immature specimens have been obtained on the Exe, (p. 122)
but in a later edition he has wisely omitted this, and I hear
from him that they turned out, as I expected, young Long-
tails again.

Mr. Yarrell bought two " young females " in the London
market, as he informs his readers (B. B., 1st. ed.. III.,
p. 263), but he did not know the bird from the young
Long-tailed Duck, as his miscalling the one killed by the
Duke of Richmond proves (Ibis, 1859, p. 165), therefore his
evidence must be rejected. Mr. Bond is also very sure that
he once saw three or four young birds there, but even such
a good naturalist as he is may have been mistaken, and as
he did not take the trouble to preserve one, I cannot admit
that he has proved his case.

Again, I have very little doubt that Mr. Yarrell was mis-
taken when he adds, that the keeper at Sir Philip Egerton's
shot a female in Cheshire in 1S40. Great author as he was,
he did not know what a rare bird the Harlequin was. At
this distance of time I cannot attempt to disprove it ; but
the following are a few additional details with which
Sir Philip has favoured me. He writes that he believes
the underparts were not dark, which they ought to have
been, that it was a bird of the year, and that it was never
preserved. Its occurrence was only communicated to
Mr. Yarrell on the authority of Professor Agassiz, who
chanced to be staying at his seat at Oulton Park.

Professor Newton has given me a reference to a page in
the Zoologist (p. 145), where Mr. J. D. Banister records a
young female killed in Lancashire, and I have investigated
it and find that it was a mistake.

268 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

A female is said, in Morris' "British Birds" (V., p. 258),
to have been shot on the Don near Doncaster, and I have
tried to do the same by that, but all the information I
could get was that it was procured a little above the town
by a Mr. Cartwell, that Mr. Reid the well-known birdstufifer
was guarantee for its being correctly named, and that the
Rev. W. E. Strickland purchased it, and there I lost the
clue ; but the locality assigned, so distant from the sea, is
against its having been a Harlequin.

A Duck which Mr. J. Cordeaux shot at Bridlington is
described in the Zoologist {ss. p. 23) as a Harlequin, which
he thought it was at the time, but is now inclined to believe
that it was a young Long-tail, and hence has excluded it
from the " Birds of the Humber." It was not preserved.

The author of the " Birds of Bucks and Berks " (p. 206)
tells us of a Harlequin killed at Maidenhead, I had my
suspicions about it as soon as I read the passage, and they
were well founded, for Mr. E. Andrews, in whose possession
it is, writes me that it has "a beautiful black-and-white
top-knot lying down the neck similar to a horse's mane."
This settles the question as far as the Harlequin is con-
cerned, and though not a very precise description, applies
tolerably well to the American Wood Duck, and I will
hazard a guess that this is what it is.

I scarcely care to make any allusion to two, said to have
been taken in the island of Arran, for I know them to have
been so utterly unworthy of credit — one in 1844, the other
in 1856.

Not one whit more trustworthy is the account quoted
from the Times by Mr. Simeon (Stray Notes on Fishing,
p. 209) of a too-confiding " Harlequin," which visited the
pond of a "Naturalist" and became "quite domesticated
there," though all will agree with his protest against its sub-
sequent fate.

And here I bring to an end this bloodstained roll of

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 269

would-be Harlequins, only regretting that the tragical
deaths of so many innocents should have done so little for
the cause of science. Out of the whole twenty-two I could
have dispensed with twenty. Eight are in my opinion
clearly mistakes, and the rest are all doubtful except two —
those being the original Lewes specimens, and the recent
Aberdeen one.

Red-breasted Goose.

The Red-breasted Goose being such a rare bird at home
and abroad, I am delighted to have it in my power to give
any additional particulars about it. It is a species which
most ornithologists have always viewed with peculiar in-
terest, perchance because it is so high-priced, and so
seldom comes into the market ; perchance because of its
beauty ; perchance because it is by some supposed to be
moribund, though with this I do not agree.

A list of no less than ten reputed British specimens are
given in Mr. Harting's most useful handbook, though I
would deduct four of them, and references to five local cata-
logues are added.

The fine specimen which was shot near London in 1776 —
the locality must not be taken too literally (Fox's " New-
castle Mus.," pp. 96, 212) — is still in good order. It would
seem from external appearance to have the breast-bone in,
which was the old mode of stufifing.

Of the Yarmouth specimen recorded by Paget, and Shep-
pard and Whitear, Mr. Stevenson is going to give a full
account, and I will not anticipate him further than to say,
that he has not been able to get any actual proof of its
having been correctly determined by Mr. Lilly Wigg, who
being, as I have hinted before, afflicted with an unfortunate
pencliant for tasting rare birds, cooked this valuable Goose,
which, skinned and sold, would have laid him golden eggs of

2/0 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

the right sort ; but in a fit of remorse he saved some of the
feathers, which he handed to Mr. Sparshall, who afterwards
gave them to my father, but we cannot find them now.

Accounts differ as to whether the slayer of that one killed
at Berwick was a Mr. Burney or a Mr. Innes of Oserwick ;
but it does not much signify, as I consider it well established
that it really was killed there.

Mr. Moore, in his first catalogue of Devonshire birds, sets
it down among the birds not hitherto noticed in the county,
but in his second (Mag. of N. H., 1837, p. 266) he has two
to bring forward, the first shot at Kenton Warren in 1828,
and in the possession of the late Mr. W. Russell of Dawlish ;
the second, shot February 21st, 1837, on the Teign marshes.
I cannot verify them by ascertaining into whose hands they
have now passed, so I can only hope that the next historian
of the birds of that part of England will take the subject
up and be more successful.

I am sorry that I can place but little confidence in the
example affirmed by Mr. Hogg, to have been shot at
Cowpen near Teesmouth, by a man named Hikely (Zool.,
p. 1178) ; but when I lived at Darlington I saw Hikely's son,
and the account he gave me was so very much the reverse
of reassuring, that I am constrained to let it go to the limbo
of the doubtful.

Mr. T. Amherst possesses a specimen, said to have been
killed at Hastings, in 1866, but I have my suspicions about
that also.*

It is a bird which has always commanded a long price.
I have tried more than once to obtain a specimen, but until
this month (Dec, 1875) I never got an offer of one at a
lower figure than eight pounds. This is a small sum to
what some of the British specimens have fetched. Mr. Hunt

* Two Red-breasted Geese are believed to have been once killed
near Garstang (Zool., ss., 3236.).

BIRDS CLAIMING TO BE ACCOUNTED BRITISH. 27 1

tells US (B. B., II., 234) that Donovan's, which had been in
the Leverian Museum, was knocked down to Mr. Foljambe
for fifteen and a half guineas ; and the Berwick specimen
(which is not in perfect plumage) was sold for the still larger
sum of twenty-seven pounds to Dr. Leach. This is con-
firmed in an old MS. note in the library of Professor Newton,
but both these high figures pale before the thirty-one pounds
which was offered and taken for the Maldon specimen — the
latest and the best authenticated, which is now the property
of Mr. Marshall of Taunton.

Bruennich's Guillemot.

I supplied the author of the Handbook before quoted
with several of his references to Bruennich's Guillemot. I
see that most of them refer to Scotland and its isles, or to
Ireland. I should dismiss the Emerald isle with very little
ceremony, for the example found floating off Dublin (Zool.,
2609) had been dead many days, and as the recorder re-
marks, is hardly a fair Irish bird, assuming that it really
was the species in question, and the cases which Thompson
gives (B. of Ireland, III., p. 213) would never do to fall
back upon, they being something more than doubtful.

In the same manner I should set aside Shetland, where
we have no later authority than Captain Ross for it, and
that open to grave doubts ; which leaves me no choice but
to turn to Orkney, and all that can be said for Orkney is
that we are informed by Professor Macgillivray {B. B., V.,
p. 316) that the only British specimen he ever saw was
among some skins from Orkney, which had belonged to
Mr, Wilson, Janitor of the Edinburgh Museum. This is no
doubt the same individual alluded to in the " Nat. Hist, of
Orkney" (p. 86).

On the mainland of Scotland we have a slight discrepancy.
Mr. A. G. Moore says (Ibis, 1865, p. 449) : —

272 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

" Briinnich's Guillemot is included by Sir W. Milner in his
list of the Birds of Sutherland, published in the Zoologist; but
Mr. Henry Milner has kindly informed me that the bird was not
found breeding there, and only a single specimen was purchased
on that occasion."

This has been requoted by Mr. Gray and Mr. Harting,
but I have turned to Sir William's list (Zool., 2014) and
cannot find any mention of it. I conclude, however, that in
some way confusion has arisen with his later records in the
same volume, (pp. 2059, 2061) in which he speaks of a
Briinnich's Guillemot and egg at Soa, a little island close
to St. Kilda.

It has been "once met with" in Bdiiiffshire, Jide Mr. T.
Edward (Zool., 6971), and once in Caithness.

In England I have no remarks to offer on one killed at
RosemuUion Head, in Cornwall, by Mr. G. Copeland (" Cor-
nish fauna," p. 39), except to say that Mr. Rodd in his
more recent catalogue takes no notice of it ; nor any to
make on a specimen obtained at Freshwater on the 7th of
February, i860, by Mr. Rogers, (Guide to the Isle of Wight,

P- 434)-

On the whole I do not believe in any of them, and I
think that unless further evidence is forthcoming, this
Guillemot might really be withdrawn from the British list.

MISCELLANEA ORNITHOLOGICA.

ADDITIONS TO THE AVIFAUNA OF DURHAM.

In his remarkable but somewhat lengthy paper on the
Birds of Durham, read before the British Association at
York, and reprinted in the fourth volume of the Zoologist,
Mr. Hogg enumerates 202 species. From this number I
should deduct the Ringed Guillemot, (three or four have
been taken, but I deduct it as not being a good species,)
Golden Eagle, Scops-eared Owl, Chough, Great Black Wood-
pecker, Ptarmigan, Spotted Sandpiper, and Red -breasted
Goose, which leaves 194 well authenticated. Mr. W. Back-
house's additions (Zool, 1261) bring it up to 212, and I
shall now preceed to quote from various sources twenty-
five more very rare species, making a total result which will
compare favourably with most counties, and which I trust
will be putting a spoke in the wheel of some future faunist.

Greenland Falcon.

I will commence with that splendid species, the Greenland
Falcon, though I insert it, I am sorry to say, with some
doubt, albeit Mr. Green, naturalist of Stockton, avers posi-
tively that he met with one at Teesmouth chasing some
Terns, and shot it.

T

274 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

I have seen the young male Peregrine which lamed itself
against a floating-light, and was recorded as the present
species ("Naturalist," 1853, p. 60) though the mistake was
afterwards corrected (p. 135). It is a very fine bird, but
not the rarity we could have wished.

Red-footed Falcon.

A mature male near Marsden Rock, October, \Z^6,fide
Albany Hancock (Mag. of Zool. and Bot., I., p. 491).

Snowy Owl.

Helmington, near Bishop Auckland, November 7th, 1858,
fide Mr. H. Gornall (Hancock, Cat. of the Birds of North-
umberland and Durham, p. 20).

Eagle Owl.

I receive with some doubt the statement of an Eagle Owl
being got on the moors, (Selby, Brit. Orn., I., p. ?>i^ but I
am assured that one was seen at Seaton Carew.

Tengmalm's Owl.

Near Marsden, October nth (cir.), 1848 (Zool., ss. 1799,
2765) (Hancock, op. cit, p. 20).

White's Thrush.

Castle-Eden dene, January 17th, 1872. Full particulars
of this fine addition to the Ornis of Durham are given by
Mr. Sclater (Zool., 3019, 3041).

miscellanea ornithologica. 2/5

Golden Oriole.

I have no otlier authority than Mr. Proctor's list in
"Sketches of Durham."

Black Redstart.

This must be added to the Hst. Indeed it is said to have
nested at Durham, and I am surprised not to see it among
the instances cited in the 4th edition of Yarreli, B. B.

Lapland Bunting.
Durham, January, i860 (Hancock, op. cit.)

Alpine Swift.

One seen at South Point, near Durham, July 24th, 1871,
by Mr. G. E. Crawshall (Field newspaper, Aug. 5 th).
During the preceding month examples had been observed
in Kent, Essex, and Norfolk.

Grey-headed Wagtail.
Has been obtained once at least.

Shorelark.
Has occurred on two occasions.

Blue-tailed Bee-eater (Merops philippcnsis).

Seaton-Snook, Teesmouth, August, 1^62, fide Rev. T, M.
Hicks (Hancock, op. cit., 28). I should like this specimen to
be compared again, as I think it may turn out to be Merops

276 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

cEgyptins, Forsk., the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, which is
more Hkely to occur, because it is a much more western
species. Seaton-Snook is not the place where I should
have expected to meet with a Bee-eater, though I remember
being shown a bird of equal brilliancy which was found
there, a Jacamar, already skinned too. The skin of a
Patagonian Penguin was picked up on the " slake " at Jarrow
(Fox's Neuc. Mus., 233). It was supposed to have been
thrown overboard by a whaler, but I have read of one
coming in a consignment of guano, and being picked up in a
mummified state on the land.

Certainly the Cedarbird has no claim to be ad-
mitted in a list of Durham birds, if indeed it be
right to receive it into a British list. I asked
Mr. Heaviside, one of the birdstufifers at Stock-
ton, about the examples recorded at p. 3506
of the Zoologist, and he remembered nothing
about them.

The other supposed occurrences are one — hitherto
unrecorded — in the late Mr. Newcome's collec-
tion, said to have been shot at Highgate, teste
Mr. Holford.

A second in the possession of Mr. Batson of Horse-
heath, Lincolnshire, Zool., 3277, 3506.

A third, shot in Fifeshire in 1841, in the late
Sir William Feilden's collection. Gray, B. of
West Scotland, p. 109.

Crested Titmouse.

This is again a doubtful bird, but I give the published
evidence for what it may be worth. First, three or four
were seen near Witton Gilbert, teste Mr. P. Farrow (Ornsby,
p. 197 ; Hancock, op. cit, p. 'j6, note). Second, a male

MISCELLANEA ORNITHOLOGICA. 2/7

shot on Sunderland Moor, January, 1 850, teste Messrs.
Calvert and Duff (Zool., 2766).

Stockdove.

In May, 1866, I discovered this species at Castle-Eden
dene. I think it was not before known to be a Durham
bird. Mr. Sclater has since found it rather common there.
The following winter I obtained specimens at Darlington
and High Coniscliffe, and I have no doubt, that as a re-
sident species, it will before long become abundant in the
county.

Pallas' Sandgrouse.

Durham shared to a small extent in the visitation of
1863. There was a rumour of them again in 1872 in
Northumberland (Ibis, 1872, p. 334).

Red-legged Partridge.

I am surprised to see no mention of this in Mr. Hancock's
catalogue. In 1866 I was offered a specimen at Darlington.
It is true it had been shot at Richmond, which is over the
Yorkshire border, but I have no doubt of its sometimes
occurring in Durham. Though its numbers may be
diminished where it was once plentiful (and no wonder, con-
sidering the means taken to destroy it,) it has been extend-
ing its area for many years past. Some years ago one was
shot at Stockton, but this may have been one of a bevy
which I learn from Mr. Grey were turned out at Wynyard
and bred at Cole Hill.

Crane.
Mr. Newman Is the recorder of a Crane at Hartlepool

2/8 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

(Zool., 8005), but he omits the date which, when the exact
day is lost, is always worth giving approximately.* Possibly
by some strange mistake it may have been confounded with
the Black Stork next to be noticed ; for there is no mention
of it in Mr. Hancock's catalogue.

Black Stork.

Hartlepool, 1862, fide Mr. W. C. Horsfall, Zool., 8196.
Here again the exact date is wanting, though I know there
is no mistake about the bird, some of my friends having
seen it. The same year one was got at Otmoor (Gould,
B. of G. B.).

Squacco Heron.

A Squacco Heron was got on the " Glasgow "
canal in October, 1852, fide Mr. W. Martin
(Morris' Naturalist, 1853, p. 61). Where the
" Glasgow canal " may be I cannot say, as I am
unable to find it in the map. The bird had no
plumes, and the owner showed his sense of the
value of it by exchanging it for a case of two
Bramblings.

Pink-footed Goose.

Has been obtained by Canon Tristram and others. This
turns out to be the commonest Goose in many parts of
England, now that the distinctions are better understood.

* I may here remark that correspondents of the Zoologist and other
periodicals devoted to Natural History, often say a bird was killed
" last week " or " yesterday," which conveys nothing if a letter is not
dated ; and dates after a signature are so frequently omitted that they
should always be put in the body of the letter, which is the only way of
insuring the insertion.

miscellanea ornithologica. 279

Egyptian Goose.

I saw some in October, 1866, which had been shot at
Tees-mouth. They have been recorded (ZooL, ss. 525)-
Whether they were " escapes " I know not, but one which
I examined in the flesh presented no signs of domestication.
They struck me as being a sedentary bird in Egypt.

Nyroca Duck.

Mr. Rudd records a specimen at Coatham (ZooL, 2773).
This Duck has several EngHsh names, but it is perhaps
most generally known as the Nyroca or White-eyed Duck.

White-winged Tern.

A specimen in Mr. Hancock's collection was shot at
Tees-mouth (op. cit., p. 144).

Pelican.

The last on my list is the Pelican which Canon Tristram
found dead upon the shore (Zool., 5321). It is conjectured
that it may have died on board some passing vessel. It
was Pelecanns onocvotalus, so far as Canon Tristram could
judge from a specimen minus its head.

NETTING SEA-BIRDS ON THE WASH.

In 1873 I saw nets for the first time at Blakeney for
catching birds at night on the muds ; long, large-meshed
nets, supported by poles. I had always thought before that
they were only used in the Wash. Charles Hornigold was
the first man to use them there, that is to say of recent
years, and the art has been carried to perfection by
Mr. F. J. Cresswell of Lynn. One of the best day's wild
fowling I ever had was in company with that gentleman on
the 1 8th of December, 1862. Well protected with wraps,
for the cold was intense, I went on board the " Wild Duck,"
which is the name of his yacht, and all night we rode at
anchor in a sea so tempestuous that she lurched like a
drunken man, in order to be early at the nets in the morn-
ing ; but it was well worth the trouble to see the singular
spectacle which so many varieties of birds dangling in the
meshes presented. There is nothing like a pitch-dark,
blustering night, and the catch was good.

Woodcock - - ■ - I

Curlew - _ - 3

Knot - - - - 15

Golden Plover - - 3

Gray ditto - - - 3

Bartailed Godwit - - i

Redshank - - - i

Oystercatcher - - 2

Dunlin - - - 34
Gulls of dift"erent species, including the

Greater Black-backed - -17

Total 80

NETTING SEA-BIRDS ON THE WASH. 28 1

The success was not quite so great the next night, which
was calmer, but about forty Plover, Curlew, etc., were
taken.

Mr. Stevenson, who gives his readers some interesting
particulars (B. of Norf, II., 376) — in part supplied by me —
enumerates twenty-one species as having been taken in
these nets, but the number is below the mark. I will select
a day in proof from Mr. Cresswell's gamebook, in which
three additional ones are mentioned.

Dec. \st, 1869.

Dunlin

40

Knot

19

Grebe

I

Guillemot

I

Razorbill

I

Gulls

5

Golden Plover

I

I suppose a high tide laid the nets under water, which
would account for the diving birds. Coots are now and
then caught in the same way.

Mr. Stevenson (1. c.) remarks that sixty Dunlins have
been taken in one night : I think that is very likely.
Thirty-six Knots have been, and on one occasion sixty
Oystercatchers, and nothing else ; but the best haul was
seven Grey Geese at one swoop, which rolled themselves
up in one little bit of net into such a ball, that it had to be
cut to pieces to get them out.

With Mr. Cresswell's permission I will give the total take
for eleven consecutive years : —

Birds.

1859

i860

132

292

I86I

192

1862

313

1863

267

282 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

1864)

1865} ■ 493

1866 - 614 „

1867 - 631

1868 - 486

1869 - 273

These statistics are pretty good evidence that the sea-fowl
do not all sleep at night. Grey Crows will rob the nets
when they get the chance ; so will another sort of two-
legged poacher. One of the latter kind forgot he had a
Prince of Wales' feather on the sole of his boot, which left
an impression at every step, and led to his ultimate
detection.

The nets, which are about five feet high, are generally
placed at high-water mark. All of them together reach at
least a third of a mile. They are fatal to everything
between a Lark and a Shelduck. If a Dunlin so much as
touches with the tip of his wing it is wound round in an
instant, and there he hangs until he is taken out and killed.
The majority of the birds are taken out alive, and many
small waders so caught, especially Knots, have been pre-
sented by Mr. Cresswell to the Zoological Society, and have
lived for some years in the cage at the south end of the
fish-house.

SHORT NOTES ON BRITISH BIRDS.

Red-footed Hobby.

As it is a point of interest to know where rare birds are
to be found, I think that this is the time to mention that I
have recently ascertained a young male Red-footed Hobby
in my father's collection, to be the same specimen recorded
in Paget's "N. _H, of Yarmouth." It was shot at Breydon,
not as Messrs, Paget say in 1832, but on the ist of May,
1830. In all probability it was the first killed in Britain.
Mr. D. B. Preston of Catton, to whose notes I am indebted
for clearing up the confusion, says it was killed behind the
"Vauxhall Gardens," and he saw it shot. He adds that
Mr. Lombe of Melton, on hearing of the circumstance, sent
an artist to draw it. On referring to some MS. notes left
by that gentleman I find that " drawings were sent to the
Linnean Society" — drawings that is to say (I suppose) of
my father's bird and his own killed at Horning in the same
year.

AVOCET.

In April, 1867, I had a pair of Avocets from Leadenhall
Market. I was told it was a great thing to get a pair ; but
in April, 187 1, I saw no less than seven there. I think they
came from Dort or Dordrecht in Holland. It was a sight
not to be forgotten.

284 rambles of a naturalist.

Little Egret.

This is the most beautiful bird I ever saw in a state of
nature, and I should say the handsomest on the British list.
Books would have us believe that it has been killed twenty-
times in this country, but this is not true. There are only
five of them, which, like Ceesar's wife, are above suspicion.
I would not give much for the specimen in the Wisbeach
Museum, though the inscription on it says that it was killed
at Sleaford, Anwick, (South Lincolnshire) in December,
185 I. Its history, as far as Mr. Cordeaux and I can learn,
is that it was given as a skin by the Rev. F. Latham* of
Helpringham. I think that the explanation may be that in
a general cleaning it has changed tickets with some other
bird, but there it stands. It is in winter plumage, and is
marked a male.

Great-crested Grebe.

It appears that this ornament of the waters is apt to be
aggressive at times. A friend was one day in his punt
among the mudflats and shoals of the Wash, and he chanced
to wound a Grebe. Without more ado the bird came right
at him, and would have attacked him he thinks if he had
not instantly struck it down with his paddle.

I once read a parallel case in " Land and Water." I have
found up the paragraph, which is as follows : —

" On February i8th, 1870, just at daybreak, a bird attacked a
man who was walking along a wood ; it gave several harsh screams
and rushed at his waistcoat. With difficulty he managed by kick-
ing it to kill it. He said he was very much frightened. He

* Who informs Mr. C, in. litt., that he thinks he got it in Hamp-
shire.

SHORT NOTES ON BRITISH BIRDS. 285

brought me the bird ; it is a fine specimen of the Great Crested
Grebe."

Goshawk.

I think it was in the autumn of 1864, that a Goshawk,
which is a rare bird in Norfolk, was trapped in our woods
at Northrepps, but broke loose, the spring being too feeble.
The bait was the remnants of a Cushat Dove, which he was
eating when first seen, and oddly enough he went into the
trap by moonlight.

Pochard.

At Lynn, as I learn from a friend, the name " Pochard " is
pronounced " Pocka," and it is applied to the Scaup Duck,
while the true Pochard goes by the name of " Red -headed
Pocka," and the Tufted Duck is dubbed the " Whifflino-
Pocka." Provincial names are very confusing.

Grey Wagtail.

There is a certain curious fact in the economy of the
Grey Wagtail, for which I have never seen a satisfactory
explanation given. It has happened over and over again,
that one of these birds took an extraordinary fancy for, or
dislike to, a window, and by way of giving vent to its feel-
ings was found perpetually charging the glass with its beak
until the panes were smeared with marks. One naturalist
actually declares that this kind of thing went on for three
months, and the tapping of the infatuated Wagtail never
apparently stopped for ten consecutive minutes all day.

Wood-Pigeon.
I have taken 440 ivy berries out of a Wood-Pigeon's

286 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

crop, besides trefoil leaves and sundry indigestible bits of
wood. It has often struck me what indigestible things
birds eat. With us in East Norfolk the food of the
" Cushat" in November and December would appear to be
almost exclusively acorns, and the number they can stow
away in their dilatable crops is very great

Greater-spotted Woodpecker.

A Greater-spotted Woodpecker dissected by me, and
which proved to be a male, had almost entirely shed the
red crown of immaturity, without in the least assuming a
red occiput. Mr. Plant has recorded an instance of its
quite doing so (Zoologist, 2824), and his bird was going to
nest. So it appears that there is a period — though a very
brief one — in which the sexes of this species are not dis-
tinguishable.

Snipe.

December 7th, 1875. Saw five Snipes which were killed
at one shot flying.

Peregrine Falcon.

It has been doubted if a Peregrine in its wild state will
tackle a Heron, but the following extract from a letter from
Mr. A. D. Stark to my father, dated December 15th, 1852,
respecting a young female Peregrine which he gave to him,
would seem to show that this is occasionally the case : —

" It was shot on the river wall between Thorpe and Rockland
by a wherryman, who was on board his wherry at the time. It
had struck a Heron to the ground, and appeared so far to have
cowed him that he dare not move, and it was enabled to make two
subsequent strikes. Whilst it was in the act of making a third

SHORT NOTES ON BRITISH BIRDS. 287

Strike, the man fired at it and injured the tendon, as you perceive.
Being thus disabled it was carried by the wind (which was blowing
tolerably hard at the time) out of a direct line from its prey ; and
the Heron seeing his opportunity, availed himself of it and took
to wing."

Though quite winged, this bird lived some years in con-
finement.

Rock Dove.

Mr. Bailey tells me that, in the winter of 1 870-1, hundreds
of Rock Doves were picked up on the rocks at Flamborough
Head dead through stress of weather, and I certainly saw
very few when I was there the summer following. Another
observer adds that some people make a practice of netting
them, as they can get a great price from pigeon-shooters for
them, but that those who want them for the " pot " generally
shoot them by lying up at the fresh-water springs which go
over the rocks. They come inland most when the corn is
cut and the seed is sown. Tons and tons of their dung have
in former years been taken out of a large cavern, called
Bempton Pigeon-cote.

Oystercatcher.

I never but once saw a "pied Oystercatcher" — as some
people term them — which really was pied. It was shot at
Tees-mouth, and was for some time in my possession.

Mr. F. Bond has or had an Oystercatcher with the white
neck ring going quite round. This is unusual, but I have
seen one in Leadenhall in which the same mark, though not
so far continued, was an inch in depth.

Shrike and Golden Oriole.
I possess a dilapidated and tail-less specimen of a hen

288 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Golden Oriole, which I bought of Mr. Baker of Cambridge,
who accounted for its condition by telHng me tliat it was
killed and mutilated by a Grey Shrike. The affair hap-
pened in this wise. Both birds had nests at Falkonswaerd,
in North Brabant, and close together, and jealousy, the
destroyer of amity, crept in between the two mothers : at
least I can only suppose it was this which incited the
butcher-bird, in a moment of vindictive malice, to rip up the
Oriole, so that the King of the Netherlands' falconer and
Mr. Baker actually saw the unfortunate bird's entrails hang
out upon the ground.

Nuthatch.

April 24th, 1872. Led by her clamour, I detected the
tail of a Nuthatch sticking out of a hole forty feet up the
bole of a Scotch fir tree. A pair of Starlings were looking
on. April 30th, one of the Starlings was in the hole and
the Nuthatch had gone. Three days before I had seen
what I think was a Nuthatch's nest only tivo feet from the
ground. It was a small hole in a beech, plastered around
with the customary mud, and lined with flakes of Scotch fir
bark. I took note of another beech tree in which a small
crack or crevice had been filled with mud, evidently by a
Nuthatch, but for what purpose I cannot divine, as it was
far too small for a nest. There was a Starling's nest under-
neath it. A similarity in breeding habits often brings the
Starling and Nuthatch into juxtaposition. I have seen
holes which were alternately the property of Starlings,
Nuthatches, and Bats. One such was in a large ash tree
at Braconash ; and in a second hole in the same tree I
caught the Barn Owl and Stock Dove.

At Hethel I have found and taken the Q.gg of the Nut-
hatch from a hole in a brick wall ; and I am credibly in-

SHORT NOTES ON BRITISH BIRDS. 289

formed of a case in which a nest was found in a common
pump.

These notes refer to Norfolk.

Hawfinch.

The Hawfinch is sometimes not uncommon in Norfolk.
I have seen it at Braconash, Northrepps, Gunton, H ether-
sett, and Barningham.

Sabine's Snipe.

There seems to be a growing"' belief that all Sabine's
Snipes are young birds. Mine certainly is.* The head,
neck, and thighs, have or had a good deal of down on them,
and the underpart of the wing was all young stubs, and
the legs were thick below the tarsal joint, like the young
Stone Curlew. That the bird is a variety I have not a
shadow of a doubt.

Green Woodpecker.

My father lately obtained a Green Woodpecker at Nor-
wich— a male, shot in the neighbourhood. The crown and
occiput are of the usual brilliant red, but the nape is black,
and that colour runs from the eyes to the termination of
the red on the occiput. A constant and somewhat anal-
agous variation has given to the Spanish Woodpecker the
name of Gecmns sharpii.

TaMENESS of THE CoOT.

Coots feed with the Ducks and Waterhens in St. James'
Park, and are so tame that I have had them come within two

** Shot at Wareham (Zool., ss., 1293.)

290 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

paces of me for a piece of bread. I dare say they would
take it from the hand if the Ducks did not drive them
about.

White Gulls.

At p. 97S4 of the " Zoologist," a description is given of a
White Gull shot at Lytham, and I should like to offer a
few remarks upon it, as the bird has since passed into my
possession. It is not correct to speak of it as pure white,
for there are some dark feathers on the occiput, and on the
underparts faint remains of the broccoli-brown, which charac-
terises the immature plumage of the Glaucous Gull, and
that the recorder was correct in referring it to that species I
have little doubt, but I do not at all agree in his conclusion
that it must be a very old one. I should rather judge it to
be in the intermediate stage between old age and imma-
turity. Although he says he has never seen or heard of
one, there are such things as albino Gulls. My father
possessed two, and in each of them I discovered a dark
feather on careful examination, which proved to me that
they were not the Glaucous.

Greater Whitethroat.

It is well known that the autumn plumage is different
from the spring. Among other points is the head, which
turns from brown to grey, but it would appear that some
carry the brown head — like certain cock Blackcaps — into
the ensuing spring, for a female sent from Cromer light-
house, which it had flown against, in May, 1872, was in that
state of plumage. Of course I am well aware that there
are numerous instances of other birds which should in the
normal course of thing, be adult by Christmas, carrying
their immaturity into the spring succeeding, and I think all

SHORT NOTES ON BRITISH BIRDS. 29 1

such cases are very interesting. In my introductory chap-
ter on the Birds of Egypt I have alluded to the theory,
supported by Kirk and other observers, that many birds —
Insessores particularly — breed to the south of the equator in
our winter, which is their summer; and it may be their
young which are got in England in spring in immature
plumage.

Razorbill.

On the 2nd of August, 1871, Mr. Cordeaux saw only six
Razorbills at Flamborough Head — where he had gone on
purpose to study the sea- fowl — in three days ; but when I
was there a few weeks before, viz., on the 21st of June, every
fourth bird I saw on the rocks was one. This shows that
they had shared in the benefits of the recently-passed Act,
and it was some other cause which occasioned their scarce-
ness in August. They appeared to me to be quite as
numerous as the "Parrot" or Pufifin.

I only saw one young one, which was about half-grown ;
all the rest were adults. I was told that the Jackdaws got
their eggs very much ; but what amused me was a story
which was told to me of an overbold Jackdaw who ventured
to worry one of the old birds. The Razorbill bore it until
it could stand it no longer. There was a limit to endurance,
and exasperated beyond measure by such unprovoked
assaults, it at last seized the tormenting Jackdaw and bore
him into the sea.

The Razorbills come quite over the top of the Flam-
borough cliff when the wind is high. Several nearly flew
against me, appearing almost unable to check themselves.

Richardson's Skua,
A man at Lynn saw a Gull, which he said was a Great

292 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Black-backed, attacked by a Richardson's Skua. It must
have been ravenous to venture against such a large bird.
The Gull turned upon its puny assailant, struck him, and
knocked him down on to the ground as a reward for his
overweening ambition. The man then picked him up and
found that one eye was struck out, notwithstanding which
painful injury, he eat some food which was offered to him,
after which he was taken to my informant who sent him to
the Zoological Gardens, but I do not know how long he
survived his injuries.

KiTTIWAKE.

When I visited Flamborough soon after the passing of
the Sea-birds Act, I found that the poor Kittiwakes were
getting up their numbers very slowly. I did not see above
a hundred. It was of course the plume trade which had
thinned them so. Parties always shot at them in preference
to the Guillemots, because they paid part hire of the boat.
Mr. Bailey informed me that they were called " Petrels,"
and in their second year " Mackerel birds."

Black-headed Gull.

In i860, on the day of the great gale — the memorable
28th of May, I visited Scoulton Mere, in Norfolk, with my
father, the largest GuUery of its kind in England. About
16,000 eggs had been gathered. In 1872, when I went
again, only 4,000 eggs were taken. This sad falling off was
due to dry seasons. Brown, the keeper, told me that once
the farmers spread the fields in the neighbourhood with
manure sown with salt, which poisoned the worms, etc.,
upon which the Gulls fed, and that a great number died in
consequence. He said that they suffer from Stoats and
Rats. He had on one occasion 150 of the nestlings and

SHORT NOTES ON BRITISH BIRDS. 293

eggs just chipping destroyed by a Stoat which swam across
to the " hearth," as the island which they nest on is called.

It is surmised that " Scoulton " means " School town,"
which I think doubtful, though one might naturally expect
it to take its name from the great colony of Gulls which
have nested there from time immemorial. The place be-
longs to Mr. Weyland, and intending visitors will do well
to remember that an order from his agent at Norwich is
requisite to go upon the island.

There is another much smaller and more recent Gullery
at Hoveton Broad, in Norfolk. It is divided into four little
colonies, which in 1872 barely numbered 400 birds. The
owner, Mr. Blofield, started with sixteen pairs, which were
supposed to have come from the Martham district, and may
have been the descendants of the old colony at Horsey.

Willow Warbler. .

I have observed this species in the winter (Dec. 25th) at
Bayonne, which looks as if it was within the limit of its
winter migration. The Willow Wren* and Chiff-Chaff are
exceptions among the Sylviads, which as a rule go further
south than was supposed in Mr. Yarrell's time. Neither in
Egypt nor in Algeria could I find a vestige of several
species said in books to winter in North Africa.

* The Willow Wren goes to South Africa but not the Chiff-Chaff, as
far as my father knows.

GIBRALTAR.

There are few better places for birds than Gibraltar. The
number of species enumerated in Irby's recent publication —
the " Ornithology of the Straits of Gibraltar " — proves it.
No doubt this is in a measure from its geographical situa-
tion. Hoopoes, Bee-eaters, and other birds, halt here for a
few hours on their passage. Some meet a premature death
by coming in contact with the panes of the lighthouse on
Europa point ; others pass north and spread themselves
over Spain, France, and England ; others again may settle
down in the vicinity.

In January, 1870, I was detained some days by an over-
due steamer, and found plenty to do in rambling over the
rock, and making notes on its zoology.

Porcupine.
One stuffed specimen killed on the Rock.

Monkey.

I saw nine Monkeys at the back of the Rock, which I
was told was about all there were. They are strictly pre-
served. I was very fortunate in seeing them, as many
visitors hunt the Rock for them in vain.

BoNELLl's Eagle, Nisaetus fasciatus (V.).
From that noble look-out — the signal station — many a

GIBRALTAR. 295

sportsman must have seen this Eagle, and noted the white
patch on the back, alluded to by Colonel Irby (op. cit.,
p. 44).

Kestrel, Cerchneis tinnunculus (Linn.).
One was seen to fly into a hole in the old Moorish tower.

Sparrow, Passer domesticus (Linn.).

Black Wheatear, Dromolcea lencura, Gm.

Seems to keep chiefly to the top and eastern side of the
Rock.

Alpine Accentor, Accentor collaris (Scop.).

Blue Thrush, Petrocossyphus cyanus (Linn.).
Rather solitary, perching upon rocks and rough ground.

Black Redstart, RutkUla titys (Scop.).

Favier says that the immature birds keep together (Irby,
op. cit, 82J, but the old ones are solitary. I certainly saw
more in the adult male plumage than in the female, which
the above may in part explain.

Black-headed Warbler, Sylvia melanocephala, (Gm.).
See "Zoologist," February, 1875.

Blackcap, Sylvia atricapilla, (Linn.).

This warbler would not appear to winter so far south as
some of its congeners.

296. RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

Rock Martin, Cotyle rupestris (Scop.).

Is the species alluded to in the fifteenth letter of the
White-Marshaiti correspondence (Norw. Nat. Soc, Trans, ii.,
181).

Barbary Partridge, Caccabis petrosa (Gm.).

Bought one in the market with its throat cut, indicative
of its Moorish origin.

Stone Curlew, Qidicneums crepitans, Tern.

One in the market. As it was with the Partridges, it
may have come from Africa also.

Curlew, Niwieniiis arqiiata (Linn.).
I saw two which a man had shot.

Jack Snipe, Lymjiocryptes gallimda (Linn.).

Ring Dotterel, ^gialitis hiatiada (Linn.).

Kentish Plover, ^gialitis cantiana (Lath.).

I found that I could distinguish these from the Ring
Dotterels by their speed in running, and greater disinclina-
tion to take wing.

Sandwich Tern, Sterna cantiaca, Gm.

At St. Roque.

Great or Common Skua, Stercorarius catarractes (Linn.).
This bold bird was swimming within about sixty yards of

GIBRALTAR. 297

the steamer. When it got up, its flight was just Hke a
Gull's.

Black-FIEADED Gull, Lanis ridibundits, Linn.
Hovering about the military slaughter-house.

Lesser Black-backed Gull, Lams fuscus, Linn.

Gannet, Sala bassana, (Linn.).
Several seen between Cadiz and Gibraltar.

Puffin, Fratercula arctica (Linn.).
I was shown a young one at a chymist's, being stuffed.

Eared Grebe, Podiceps nigricollis, Sundev.

A Grebe was swimming in one of the moats, which I am
nearly sure was of this species.

Military strictness reigns at Gibraltar. At 5.45 p.m. a
gun is fired, the band begins to play, and the gates of the
town are closed for the night ; after which no one is allowed
to pass the lines on any pretence, and benighted travellers
must find their way back to St. Roque, or sleep on the
sand.

THE BITER BIT.

Terns, Sandpipers, and Crows, are known to have been
caught by cockles and mussels, and to have suffered a lin-
gering death by starvation. Instances are recorded of the
Pewit, Water-rail, and Razorbill having met a like fate.
Made bold by hunger, they incautiously inserted their beaks

298 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST.

into the juicy bivalves, which closed upon them with a fatal
tenacity ; others, which had inadvertently stepped into the
trap, were caught by the toe, and in like manner perished.

THE FIRST EDITION OF YARRELL.

The late Mr. Yarrell adhered to the laudable practice of
devoting a paragraph under each species to its geographical
distribution. With reference to Egypt, he has been sin-
gularly unfortunate in the sources whence he drew his
information. I find that country accredited with possessing
a number of species which are unknown to it, or only
very rare stragglers ; and on the other hand, no mention is
made of a still larger number which do inhabit it.

HYBRIDS.

In June, 1870, I saw at the Bayonne Museum a hybrid
between a male Peacock and a hen Pheasant. In June,
1875, I saw what appeared to be another hybrid Peacock
alive in the Bois-de-Bologne at Paris. I have also seen a
Peahen which had in a great measure assumed cock's
plumage, strutting about in a yard in Norfolk.

MISPRINT.

Ornithologists suffer much from misprints. The
worst I ever saw was cyntscrayers for Sarus Cranes. In
bringing my book to a close,* let me express a hope that
my readers will find nothing so bad as that in the preceding
pages.

* The Sacred Ibis. — Since the preceding pages went to press, I
have learnt from Mons. Filliponi that he has lately obtained a Sacred
Ibis near Damietta, and seen three others. His description of the bird
leaves no doubt on my mind that he has correctly named it, and there
is nothing remarkable in its occasionally occurring in Lower Egypt as
a straggler.

INDEX.

Abyssinian Crested Lark, 58

,, Raven, 176

,, Roller, 123

Accentor, Alpine, C47, 295

African Cormorant, 109 — m

,, Sand Plover, ig6
Algerian Greenfinch, 25

,, Sandgrouse, 181
Alpine Accentor, 247, 295
,, Chough, 246, 247
,, Swift, 275
American Tringa, 255

Wood Duck, 268
Aquatic Warbler, 37
Athenian Owl, 146
Auk, Great, 7, 15, 17, 18, 67, 69, iii

248
Avocet, 19, 99, III, 122, 201, 283

B

Baillon's Crake, in, 185

Barbary Partridge, 22, 296

Bam Owl, 25, 79, 90, 121, 145, 146, 24

288
Bar-tailed Godwit, 280
Bat, 27, loi, 127, 232, 283
Bat, Long-tailed, loi
Bean Goose, 15, 17, 222
Bee-eater, 49, 52, 104, 147, 148, 294

,, Blue-cheeked, 147, 276

,, Blue- tailed, 275

,, Little Green, 149
Benoo, Tufted, 213
Bewick's Cygnet, 67
Bifasciated Lark, 41, 56, 17a
Bimaculated Duck, 7
Bittern, 24, 145, 212, 257
Bittern, Little, 19, in, 211, 247
Black-and-White Kingfisher, 149
Blackbird, 12, 15, 26, 69, 137

Blackcap, 6, 26, 290, 295

Black Grouse, 6, 7, 13, 16

Black-headed Gull, 229, 247, 292, 297

Black-headed Plover, 200

Black-headed Warbler, 22, 25, 164, 295

Black-headed Yellow Wagtail, 170

Black Kite, 142

Black Redstart, 15, in, 162, 275, 295

Black Stork, 217, 278

Black-tailed Godwit, 10, 18

Black Tern, 229, 247

,, ,, White-winged, 31
Black-throated Chat, 158
Black-throated Diver, 6, 8
Black Wheatear, 31, 38, 295
Black-winged Kite, 139
Bleached Shrike, 41
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, 147, 276
Blue-tailed Bee-eater, 275
Blue-throated Warbler, 6, 38, 78
Bluethroat, Red-spotted, 161

,, White-spotted, 161

Blue Thrush, 29, 157, 247, 295
Blue Titmouse, n, 16
Bonelli's Eagle, in, 131, 295

,, Warbler, 167
Booted Eagle, 131, 138
Brambling, 12, 15, 79, 248
Brent Goose, 16, 69
Brown-necked Raven, 175
Bruennich's Guillemot, 271
Buff-backed Heron, 26, 109, 118, 209,

213, 214, 219, 241
Bulbul, White-vented, 156
Bullfinch, 6, 69

„ Trumpeter, 171
Bunting, 172

„ Cirl, 25, 247

,, Corn, 62

,, House, 47, 55,

,, Lapland, 16, 275

,, Meadow, 79, 247

,, Ortolan, 16

300

INDEX,

Bunting, Reed, 13, 79

,, Siberian, 18

,, Snow, 9, 247

,, Striped, 123

Bushchat, 42

Bustard, 46, 121

,, Great, 10, 14

,, Houbara, 33, 57, 204

,, Macqueen's, 17
Buzzard, 9, 10, 14, 79, 82

,, Common, 76, 79, 142

,, Desert, no, 142

,, Honey, 8, 18, 70, in, 143

,, Long-legeied, 143

„ Wliite, 70

Calandra, 32
Capercaillie, 6, 7, 9, 10
Capped Petrel, 20
Carrion Crow, 71
Caspian Tern, 20, in, 209, 231
Caucasian Snow- Partridge, 10
Cedarbird, 276
Cetti's Warbler, 28
Chaffinch, 11, 19, 170, 247
Chatterer, Waxen, 8
Chat, 106

Chat, Black-throated, 158
,, Desert, 159
,, Eastern Black-eared, 158
,, Mourning, 159
,, Rock, 55
,, White-rumped, 160
Chiff-ChafF, 120, 166, 293
Chimney Swallow, 153
Chough, 273
Chough, Alpine, 246, 247

,, Cornish, 247
Cinereous Shearwater, 59, 236, 245

,, Vulture, 128
Cirl Bunting, 25, 247
Cisalpine Sparrow, 60
Clamorous Sedge Warbler, 162
Coal Tit, 15, 28
Collared Flycatcher, 97
Collared Pratincole, 203
Common Bee-eater, 147

,, Buzzard, 76, 79, 142

,, Goatsucker, 244

,, Sandpiper, 9, 10, 105, 190,
250. 25s, 297

,, Snipe, 12

,, Sparrow, 5, 22, 138, 170, 171

,, Swift, 152

„ Tern, 232

,, Wheatear, 159
Coot, ic, 15, 93, 94, 187, 243, 247, 281,

289
Cormorant, 240

,, African, 109 — in

Cormorant, Lesser, 241
,, Little, 242

,, Long-tailed, 240

Corn Bunting, 62
Corncrake, 12, 16, 184
Cornish Chough, 247
Courser, Cream-coloured, 60, 204
Crag Swallow, 154
Crake, Baillon's, in, 185

,, Little, 247

,, Spotted, II, 12, 15, 184, 185
Crane, 8, 14, 32, 99, 122, 204, 277
Crane, Demoiselle, 122

,, Numidian, 215
Cream-coloured Courser, 60, 204
Creeper, 13
Crested Lark, 15, 58, 65, 106, 173, 248,

250
Crested Lark, Abyssinian, 58
Crested Titmouse, 9, 11, 20, 276
Crossbill, 78
Crow, Carrion, 71, 297
,, Grey, 4, 282

,, Hooded, 108, 138, 149, 176, 250
Cuckoo, 12, 112, 151, 157

,, Greater Spotted, 60, 108, 151

,, Yellow-billed, 145
Curlew, 6, 15, 194, 244, 280, 281, 296

,, Pigmy, III, 191

,, Sandpiper, 8

,, Slender-billed, 194

,, Stone, 200, 289, 296
Cushat Dove, 285, 286
Cygnet, Bewick's, 79

D

Dabchick, 15, 185, 243
Dalmatian Pelican, 109, 238
Damiatic Duck, 224
Dartford Warbler, 22
Demoiselle Crane, 122
Desert Buzzard, no, 142

„ Chat, 159

,, Horned Lark, 45

,, Lark, 174

,, ,, Tristram's, 174

,, Partridge, 181

,, Wheatear, 31, 32, 34
Dipper, n, 26
Diver, Black-throated, 6, 8

,, Red-throated, 20
Dotterel, 32

,, Egyptian, 200

,, Lesser Ring, 121, 247

,, Rmg, 13, 247, 296
Double Snipe, 10, 11, 79
Dove, Cushat, 285, 286
,, Palm, 180
,, Ring, 208

,, Rock, 31, 177, 287

INDEX.

301

Dove, Turtle, 45, 55, 57, 112, 113, 122,
127, 179 248
,, Sand-coloured, 243
,, Senegal, 137
Drymosca, Long-tailed, 165
Duck, 61, 124, 246, 289

American Wood, 268

Biniaculated, 7

Damietta, 224

Garganey, 99, 105

Goldeneye, 13, 24, 247

Grey, 225

Harlequin, 263

Hybrid, 7

King, 20

Long-tailed, 264, 267

Marbled, 99, 109 — iii, 226

Nyroca, 11, 99, 279

Pintail, 12, 92, 94, 99, 122, 248

Pochard, 89, 92, 99, 228, 247, 285

Red-crested, 16

Scaup, 15, 285

Scoter, 20

Shoveller, 11, 15, 92, 99, 201, 224,
247

Teal, 99

Tufted, 12, 18, 89, 99, 229, 285

White-eyed, 228, 279

White-headed, 31, 229

Wild, i6, 2Q, 92, 99, 136, 226, 246
Dunlin, 2, 13, 15, 100, iii, 191, 280,

281, 282
Dupont's Lark, 51
Dusky Lxos, 22

Eagle, 10, 20, 30, 99

,, Bonelli s, iii, 131, 295

,, Booted, 131, 138

,, Golden, 6, 24, 49, 273

,, Greater Spotted, 132, 244

,, Imperial, 132

„ Sea, 68

,, Short-toed, 130

„ Spotted, 20, 123
Eagle Owl, 6, 146, 252, 274

„ Egyptian, 145
Eared Grebe, in, 243, 297
Eastern Black-eared Chat, 158
Egret, 105, 109

,, Lesser, 208, 213

,, Little, 14, 284
Egyptian Dotterel, 200

,, Eagle Owl, 145

,, Goose, 99, 146, 222, 279

,, Snipe, 188

,, Sparrow, 170

,, Swift, 107, III, 152

,, Turtle Dove, 48, 55, 127

., Vulture, 34, 43, 129, 142
Eleonora Falcon, 122

English Black-headed Gull, ajo
,, Swift, no. III

Falcon, Eleonora, 122

,, Greenland, 273

,, Lanner, 69, 120, 133

,, Peregrine, 6, 136, 274, 286

„ Red-footed, 274

,, Saker, 135

,, Western Red-legged, 137
Fantail, 108

,, Warbler, 165
Fieldfare, 15, 156, 247
Finch, Serin, 15, 25, 248
Flamingo, 31, 92, 219
Flycatcher, Collared, 97

„ Pied, 3, 9, 55, 57

,, Spotted, 112, 113, 156

,, White-collared, 156

French Partridge, 83
Fulmar Petrel, 20

Gadwall, 12, 15, 225

Galilean Swift, 152

Gallinule, 31

Gannet, 20, 297

Garefowl, 45

Garganey Duck, 99, 105, 227

,, Teal, II, 61, 225
Glaucous Gull, 290
Glossy Ibis, 97, 117, 118, 218
Goatsucker, Common, 244
,, Isabelline, 151

,, Red-necked, 59

Godwit, Black-tailed, 10, 18, 195

„ Bar-tailed, 280
Golden-crested Wren, 11
Golden Eagle, 6, 24, 49, 273
Goldeneye Duck, 13, 24, 247
Goldfinch, 38, 79, 248, 250
Golden Oriole, 9, 18, 52, 59, 112, 113,

147. 157, 275, 287
Golden Plover, 12, 15, 195, 280, 281
Goosander, 16
Goose, Bean, 15, 17, 222

„ Brent, 16, 69

,, Egyptian, 99, 146, 222, 279

,, Grey, 281

,, Lesser White-fronted, no, in,
221, 245

,, Pink-footed, 17, 222, 278

,, Road, 16

,, Red-breasted, 7, 12, 70, 120,
122, 266, 269, 273

„ White-fronted, 99, 121, 122, 222

„ Wild, 15, 128
Goshawk, 2, 9, 18, 285
Grasshopper Warbler, 123

302

index;

Great Auk, 7, 15, 17, 18, (>■], 69, ii8,

248
Great Black-backed Gull, 292

,, Black-headed Gull, 229, 244, 254
,, Black Woodpecker, 273
,, Bustard, 10, 14
,, Crested Grebe, 78, 242, 244, 284
,, or Common Skua, 296
„ Sedge Warbler, 31, iii — 113, 162
,, Snipe, 248

,, Spotted Woodpecker, 286
,, Titmouse, 16, 68, 247
,, White Heron, 207, 262
Greater Black-backed Gull, 230, 280
,, Spotted Cuckoo, 60, 108, 151
,, Spotted Eagle, 132, 244
,, Spotted Woodpecker, 14, 16,

76, 77, 248
„ Whitethroat, 8. 112, 113, 165,
290
Grebe, 109, 281

,, Eared, in, 243, 297
,, Great-crested, 78, 242, 244, 284
„ Little, 243
,, Red-necked, 19
,, Sclavonian, 11
Greek Partridge, 86, 136, 247
Green-backed Porphyrio, 109, no, 186
Greenfinch, 79, 248
Greenfinch, Algerian, 25
Greenland Falcon, 273
Green Sandpiper, 10, 105, 189, 256
Greenshank, 195

Green Woodpecker, 13, 15, 247, 289
Grey Crow, 4, 282
,, Duck, 225
,, Goose, 281
,, Partridge, 6, 15, 247
,, Phalarope, 18, 79
,, Plover, 13, 78, 280
,, Shrike, 15, 287
,, Wagtail, III, 169, 247, 285
Grey-headed Wagtail, 18, 22, 33, 78,

114, 223, 275
Grey-headed Woodpecker, 76
Griffon Vulture, 28, 39, 43, loi, 106,

129
Grosbeak, Pine, 9, 12
Grouse, Black, 6, 7, 16
„ Hazel, 6, 9, 15, 79
,, Rakkelhan, 7
,, Red, 15
,, Willow, 7, 10
Guillemot, 281

,, Bruennich's, 271

„ Ringed, 273

Gull, I, 19, 93, 230, 250, 280, 281
Gull-billed Tern, 31, 233
Gull, Black -headed, 229, 247, 292, 297
,, English Black-headed, 230
,, Glaucous, 290

Gull, Great Black-backed, 292

,, Great Black-headed, 229, 244, 254

,, Greater Black -backed, 230, 280

„ Herring, i, 59, 84

,, Lesser Black-backed, 230, 297

,, Little, II, 18, 229

,, Mediterranean Herring, 230, 250

,, Skua, 231

,, White, 290

H

Hammer, Yellow, 69, 79, 248

Harlequin Duck, 263

Harrier, 8

,, Hen, 107, 144
,, Marsh, 107, 132, 144, 244
,, Montagu's, 19, 107, in, 145
,, Swainson's, 107, 144, 244

Hawfinch, 9, 15, 247, 289

Hawk, 3," 137
,, Owl, 70, 76
,, Pigeon, 140
,, White, 139

Hazel Grouse, 6, g, 15, 79

Hen Harrier, 107, 144

Heron, 105, 206, 286

,, Buff-backed, 26, 109, 118, 209,

213, 214, 219, 241
,, Great White, 207, 262
,, Night, 104, 122, 207, 2X2
,, Purple, 14, 19, 59, 207
,, Squacco, 14, 109, 211, 278

Herring Gull, i, 59, 84

,, Mediterranean, 230, 250
,, Yellow-legged, 59

Hobby, 136

,, Red-footed, 283

Honey Buzzard, 8, 18, 70, in, 143

Hooded Crow, 108, 138, 149, 176, 250

Hoopoe, 33, 45, 57, 122, 150, 248, 294

House Martin, 5, 40, 112, 120, 153, 250

Houbara Bustard, 17, 33, 57, 204

Hybrid Duck, 7

I

Ibis, 116, 119, 122

,, Glossy, 97, 117, 118, 218

„ Indian, 119

,, Sacred, 117, 118, 121, 122, 209,
211, 219, 298
Ichneumon, 25, loi
Imperial Eagle, 132
Indian Ibis, 119

,, Kingfisher, 123
Italian Sparrow, 247
Isabelline Goatsucker, 151
Ixos, Dusky, 22

J

Jacamar, 276

INDEX.

303

Jackdaw, 5, 16, 291

Jack Snipe, 12, 15, 99, 188, 248. 296

Jay, II, 12, 15, 60, 247

K

Kentish Plover, 18, 196, 296
Kestrel, 4, 16, 22, 45, 83, 107, 120, 137,
145, 247, 250, 295
,, Lesser, 97, 138, 243
King Duck, 20
Kingfisher, 127, 149

,, Black-and-white, 149
Indian, 123
Kite, 10, 16, 42, 60, 83, 223
,, Black, 142
,, Black-winged, 139
,, Yellow-billed, 107, 139
Kittiwake, 292
Knot, 280, 281, 282

Lammergayer, 60
Lanner Falcon, 60, 120, 133
Lapland Bunting, 16, 275
Lapwing, 13, 15, 197, 250
Lark, 15, 16, 20, 282

,, Bifasciated, 41, 56, 172

,, Crested, 15, 58, 65, 106, 173, 248,
250

,, Desert, 174

,, Desert Horned, 45

,, Desert, Tristram's, 174

,, Dupont's, 51

,, Reboud's, 32

,, Sand-coloured, 57

,, Short-toed, 58, 174
Lesser Black-backed Gull, 230, 297

,, Cormorant, 241

,, Egret, 208, 213

,, Kestrel, 97, 138, 243

,, Ring Dotterel, 121, 247

,, Tern, in, 233

,., White-fronted Goose, no, iii,
221, 245

,, Whitethroat, 112, 164, 165
Linnet, 16, 26, 79, in, 172, 248
Little Bittern, 19, in, 211, 247

,, Cormorant, 242

,, Crake, 247

,, Egret, 14, 284

,, Little Green Bee-eater, 149

,, Grebe, 243

,, Gull, II, 18, 229

,, Owl, 31, 38, 57, 127, 248, 250

,, Ring Plover, 196

,, Stint, 13, III, 191
Long-billed Car Goose, 18
Long-legged Buzzard, 143
Long-tailed Bat, loi

,, Cormorant, 240

Long-tailed Duck, 264, 267
,, Drymoeca, 165

,, Titmouse, 3, 9, 76

M

" Mackerel Birds," 292
Macqueen's Bustard, 17
Magpie, 9, 15, 247, 248, 250

,, Moorish, 34, 60
White, 69
Mallard, 122, 225, 247
Manx Shearwater, 23, 60, 250
Marabou Stork, 122
Marbled Duck, 99, 109^111, 226
Marsh Harrier, 107, 132, 144, 244
,, Sandpiper, 189
,, Titmouse, 6, n, 69
Martin, 2, 108, no, 112

,, House, 5, 40, 112, 120, 153,
250

,, Rock, 296

,, Sand, 108, no — 113, 154
Masked Shrike, 121, 155
Meadow Bunting, 79, 247

Pipit, 247
Mediterranean Herring-Gull, 230, 250
Menetries' Wheatear, 159
Merganser, 18

Red-breasted, 247
Merlin, 15, 78, 137, 190
Middle Ring Plover, 196

,, Spotted Woodpecker, 70, 76
Missel Thrush, 9, 13, 15, 76, 247
Montagu's Harrier, 19, 107, in, 145
Moorish Magpie, 34, 60
Mourning Chat, 159
Moustached Warbler, 163

N

Neophron, 34, 57, 106
,, 'Vulture, 127

Night Heron, 104, 122, 207, 212
Nightingale, 97, 112, 113, 127, 162, 248
Norway Willow Grouse, 10
Nubian Owl, 145
Numidian Crane, 215
Nutcracker, 6, 10, 247
Nuthatch, 68, 69, 248, 288

White-breasted, 11, 68
Nyroca Duck, 11, 99, 279

O

Olivaceous Warbler, iii, 166

Oriental Swallow, 152, 244

Oriole, Golden, 9, 18, 52, 59, 112, 113,

147. 157. 27s, 287
Orphean Warbler, 58, in, 164
Ortolan, 248
Ortolan Bunting, 16

304

INDEX.

Osprey, 132, 223, 244
Ostrich, 45, 122, 127
Ouzel, Pale-backed Water, 26
Ring, 15, 18, 76, 247
Water, 70, 247
Owl, Athenian, 146

,, Barn, 25, 79, 90, 121, 145, 146,
248, 288

,, Eagle, 6, 146, 252, 274

,, Hawk, 70

,, Little, 31, 38, 57, 127, 248, 250

,, Nubian, 145

,, Scops, 16, 244, 247, 273

,, Short-eared, 8, 15, 146

,, Snowy, 6, 274

,, Southern Little, 146

,, Tawny, 39, 80

,, Tengmalm's, 16, 70, 76, 274
Oxeye Titmouse, 9
Oystercatcher, 9, 280, 281, 287
Pied, 287

Painted Snipe, 99, 102
Pale Crag Swallow, 154
,, Egyptian Swift, 152
Pallas' Sandgrouse, 277
Pallid Shrike, 49, 57, 155
Palm Dove, 180
Parrot, 212, 291
Partridge, 83

,, Barbary, 22, 296

,, Desert, 181

,, P^rench, 83

,, Greek, 86, 136, 247

,, Grey, 6, 15, 247

Red-legged, 15, 83, 247, 277
Patagonian Penguin, 276
Peacock, 212, 298
Pelican, 68, 93, 99, 122, 126, 279
,, Dalmatian, 109, 238
,, White, 237
Penduline Titmouse, 247
Penguin, Patagonian, 276
Peregrine Falcon, 6, 136, 274, 286
Petrel, Capped, 20
,, Fulmar, 20
,, Stormy, 59, 292
Pewit, 136, 297
Phalarope, Grey, 18, 79
" Pharaoh's Hens," 106
Pheasant, 15, 86, 247, 250, 298
Phyllopneuste, 3
Pied Flycatcher, 3, 9, 55, 57
,, Oystercatcher, 287
,, Ring Ouzel, 76
,, Wagtail, 13
Wheatear, 54
Pigeon, 4, 5, 10, 45, 146, 182, 223
,, Hawk, 140

Pigeon, Rock, 54

,, Schimper's, 177

,, Wood, 9, 15, 178, 285
Pigmy Curlew, in, 191
Pine Grosbeak, 9, 12
Pink-footed Goose, 17, 222, 278
Pintail Duck, 12, 15, 92, 94, 99, 122,

225, 248
Pipit, Meadow, 247

,, Red-throated, 167, 169, 253

,, Richard's, 16

,, Tawny, 32, 168

,, Tree, 18, 34, 112, 113, 167

,, Water, 168, 247
Plover, 24, 281

,, African Sand, 196

,, Black-headed, 200

,, Golden, 12, 15, 195, 280, 281

,, Grey, 13, 78, 280

,, Kentish, 18, 196, 296

,, Little Ring, 196
Middle Ring, 196

,, Spur-winged, 121, 197, 199

,, Stilt, 104

,, White-tailed, 199

,, Ziczac, 105
Pluvian, 105, 200
Pochard Duck, 89, 92, 99, 228, 247,

285
Porphyrio, Green-backed, 109, no, 186
Pratincole, Collared, 203
Ptarmigan, 10, 273
Puffin, 20, 291, 297
Purple Heron, 14, 19, 59, 207

,, Sandpiper, 16, 19, 79

,, Waterhen, 20

Quail, 15, 24, 99, 106, 126, 133, 183,
247
,, Albinoe, 10

R

Raven, 9, 34, 42, 45, 57, 175

,, Abyssinian, 176

,, Brown-necked, 175
Razorbill, 19, 281, 291, 297
Reboud's Lark, 32
Red-backed Shrike, 3, 122, 155, 250
Red-breasted Goose, 7, 12, 70, 120, 122,
266, 269, 273
,, Merganser, 247

Red-crested Duck, 16
Red-footed Falcon, 274
,, Hobby, 283

Red Grouse, 15
" Red headed Pocka," 285
Red-legged Partridge, 15, 83, 247, 277
Red-necked Goatsucker, 59
Red-necked Grebe, 19

INDEX.

30s

Redshank, 195, 211, 280

Spotted, 15, 260
Red Spotted Bluethroat, 161
Redstart, 8, 112, 113, 161

,, Black, 15, III, 162, 275, 295
Red-throated Diver, 20

,, Pipit, 167, 169, 253

Redwing, 8, 15, 247
Reed Bunting, 13, 79
Reed Warbler, 109, 11 1, 112, 163
Reeve, 194

Richardson's Skua, 16, 291
Richard's Pipit, 16
Ring Dotterel, 13, 247, 296

,, Lesser, 121, 247

Ring Dove, 208
Ringed Guillemot, 273
Ring Ouzel, 15, 18, 76, 247
Robin, 15, 26, 247
Roc, 45
Rock Chat, 55

,, Martin, 296
Rock Chat, White-headed, 48
Rock Dove, 31, 177, 287

,, Pigeon, 54

,, Swallow, III

,, Thrush, 19, 29, 38, 97, 158, 247
Roller, 52, 55, 57, 113, 147, 244

,, Abyssinian, 123
Rook, 9, 12, 71, 73, 140, 177, 248
Ruddy Shelduck, 10, 31, 99, 122, 223,

257
Ruff, 8, II, 182, 194, 209
Rufous-breasted Swallow, 108
Rufous Warbler, 106, 113, 164

Sabine's Snipe, 248, 289

Sacred Ibis, 117, 118, 121, 122, 209,

211, 219, 298
Saker Falcon, 135
Sand- coloured Lark, 57
,, Dove, 243

Sanderling, iii, 192
Sandgrouse, 26, 31, 99, 128, 148,

,, Algerian, 181

,, Senegal, 99, 182

Singed, i8r
Sand Martin, 108, no — 113, 154
Sandpiper, Common, 9, 10, 57, 105,
190, 250, 255, 297

,, Curlew, 8

,, Green, 10, 105, 189, 256

,, Marsh, 189

,, Pallas', 277

,, Purple, 16, 19, 79

,, Spotted, 255

Wood, 8, 189
Sandwich Tern, 296
Savi's Warbler, 163

Scaup Duck, 15, 285
Scissorbill, in, 234
Sclavoni.m Grebe, 1 1
Scops Owl, 16, 244, 247, 273
Scoter Duck, 20

,, Velvet, 16, 18, 19
Sea Eagle, 68
Sedge Warbler, 163

,, Clamorous, 162

Great, 31,111 — 113,162
Senegal Dove, 137

,, Sandgrouse, 99, 182
Serin Finch, 15, 25, 248
Shearwater, Cinereous, 59, 236, 245

,, Manx, 23, 60, 250

Shelduck, 6, 16, 224, 282

,, Ruddy, 10, 31, 99, 122, 223,

257
Shorelark, 9, 275
Short-eared Owl, 8, 15, 146
Short-toed Eagle, 130
Short-toed Lark, 58, 174
Shoveller Duck, 11, 15, 92, 99, 201, 224,

247
Shrike, Bleached, 41
,, Grey, 15, 287
,, Masked, 121, 155
,, Pallid, 49, 57, 155
,, Red-backed, 3, 122, 155, 250
Siberian Bunting, 18
Singed Sandgrouse, 181
Siskin, 12
Skua Gull, 231

Skua, Great or Common, 296
Skua, Richardson's, 16, 291
Skylark, 6, 12, 32, 173
Slender-billed Curlew, 194

,, Tern, 254

Smew, 12, 16, 247

Snipe, 10, 12, 24, 99, 185, 188, 247, 286
,, Double, 10, II, 79
,, Egyptian, 188
,, Great, 248
,, Jack, 12, 15, 99, 188, 248, 296

Painted, 99, 192
,, Sabine's, 248, 289
,, Solitary, 187
Snow Bunting, 9, 247

,, Partridge, Caucasian, 10
Snowy Owl, 6, 274
Sociable Vulture, in, 128
Solitary Snipe, 187
Song I'hrush, 156, 247
Southern Little Owl, 146
Sparrow, 5, 22, 138, 170, 171, 250, 295
,, Cisalpine, 60
,, Egyptian, 170
,, Italian, 247
,, Spanish, 171
,, Tree, 8, 15, 69, 247
Spanish Sparrow, 171

3o6

INDEX.

Spanish Woodpecker, 2S9
Sparrowhawk, 9, 107, 138, 139
Spectacled Warbler, 45
Spoonbill, 79, 99, 121, 217
Spotted Crake, 11, 12, 15, 184, 185
,, Eagle, 20, 123
,, Flycatcher, 112, 113, 156
,, Redshank, 15, 260
Sandpiper, 255
Spur-winged Plover, 121, 197, 199
Squacco Heron, 14, 109, 211, 278
Stapazine Wheatear, 34
Starling, 6, 16, 26, 175, 248, 250, 288
Stilt, 31, 60, 202
,, Plover, 104
Stint, Little, 13, iii, 191

,, Temminck's, 105, 190, igi, 247
Stockdove, 277, 288
Stonechat, no, 160, 247
Stone Curlew, 200, 289, 296
Stork, 9, 99, 183
,, Black, 217, 278
,, Marabou, 122
,, White, 213
Stormy Petrel, 59
Striped Bunting, 123
Subalpine Warbler, 58, 167
Swainson's Harrier, 107, 144, 244
Swallow, 2, 39, 112, 120, 153, 250
,, Chimney, 153

Crag, 154
,, Oriental, 152, 244
,, Pale Crag, 154
,, Rock, III
,, Rufous-breasted, 108
Swan, Whooper, 6, 19, 79

,, Wild, 6, 93
Swift, 2, 8, 107, no. III, 152, 250
,, Alpine, 275
,, Egyptian, 107, in, 152

English, no
,, White-rumped, or Galilean, 152

Tawny Owl, 39, 80

,, Pipit, 32, 168
Teal, 10, 16, 99, 122, 227, 248

,, Garganey, n, 61, 225, 227
Temminck's Stint, 105, 190, 191, 247
Tengmalm's Owl, 16, 70, 76, 274
Tern, 93, 109, 232, 297

, , Black, 229, 247

,, Caspian, 20, in, 209, 231

,, Gull-billed, 31, 233
Lesser, in, 233

,, Sandwich, 296

,, Slender-billed, 254

,, Whiskered, 232, 234

,, White-winged, 35, in, 229, 234,
279

,, White-winged Black, 31

Thrush, n, 12, 14, 15, 26, 156
,, Blue, 29, 157, 247, 295

Missel, 9, 13, 15, 76, 247
,, Rock, 19, 29, 38, 97, 158, 247
Song, 156, 247
White's, 68, 274
Titlark, 26, 250
litmouse, 126

,, Blue, n, 16
Cole, 15

Crested, 9, n, 20, 276
,, Great, 16, 68, 247

Long-tailed, 3, 9, 76
,, Marsh, 6, n, 69
Oxeye, 9
Penduiine, 247
,, Ultramarine, 31
Tree Pipit, 18, 34, 112, 113, 167

,, Sparrow, 8, 15, 69, 247
Tringa, American, 255
Tristram's Desert Lark, 174
Tnimpeter Bullfinch, 171
Tufted Biinoo, 213

,, Duck, 12, 18, 89, 99, 229, 285
Turnstone, 182

Turtle Dove, 45, 55, 112, 113, 127, 179,
248
Egyptian, 48, 55, 127

U
Ultramarine Tit, 31

Velvet Scoter, 16, 18, 19
Vulture, Cinereous, 128

Egyptian, 34, 43, 129, 142

Griffon, 28, 39, 43, loi, 106,
129, 223

Neophron, 127

Sociable, ni, 128

W

Wagtail, 16, 18

Black-headed Yellow, 170
Grey, in, 169, 247, 285
Grey-headed, 18, 22, 33, 78,

114, 27s
Pied, 13
,, White, 25, 107, 127, 168, 247,

250
,, White-winged, 168
Yellow, 18
Warbler, 89, 108
,, Aquatic, 37

,, Black-headed, 22, 25, 164, 295
Blue-throated, 6, 38, 78
Bonelli's, 167
Cetti's, 28

Clamorous Sedge, 162
Dartford, 22

INDEX.

307

Warbler, Fantail, 165

Grasshopper, 123
,, Great Sedge, 31, iii — 113, 162
,, Moustached, 163
,, Olivaceous, in, 166
,, Orphean, 58, in, 164
,, Reed, log, in, 112, 163
,, Rufous, 106, 113, 164
,, Savi's, 163
,, Sedge, 163
,, Spectacled, 45
,, Subalpine, 58, 167
Willow, 166, 293
Water Hen, 15, 185, 289

Purple, 20
Water Ouzel, 70, 247

Pale-backed, 26
Water Pipit, 168, 247

Rail, 16, 185, 247, 297
Waxen ("batterer, 8
Waxwing, 10 — 13
Western Red-legged Falcon, 137
Wheatear, 112, 159

Black, 31, 38, 295
Desert, 31, 32, 34
Menetries', 159
Pied, 54
Stapazine, 34
"Whiffling Pocka," 285
W'hinchat, 12, 112, 161
Whiskered Tern, 232, 234
White-breasted Nuthatch, 11, 68
White Buzzard, 14, 70
White-collared Flycatcher, 156
White-eyed Duck, 228, 279
White-fronted Goose, 99, 121, 122, 222
White Gull, 290
White Hawk, 139
W'hite-headed Duck, 31, 229
White-headed Rock Chat, 48
White Magpie, 69
White Pelican, 237
White-rumped Chat, 160
White-rumped or Galilean Swift, 152
White Spotted Bluethroat, 161
White's Thrush, 68, 274
White Stork, 213
White-tailed Plover, 199
Whitethroat, Greater, 8, 112, 113, 165,
290

Whitethroat, Lesser, 112, 164, 165

White-vented Bulbul, 156

White Wagtail, 25, 107, 127, 168, 247,

250
White- winged Tern, 35, in, 229, 234,

279
White-winged Wagtail, 168
Whooper Swan, 6, 19, 79
Wigeon, 92, 94, 99, 227, 228, 247
Wild Duck, 16, 20, 92, 99, 136, 226,
246
,, Goose, 15, 128
,, Swan, 6
Willow Grouse, 7, 10

,, Warbler, n, 26, 55, 120, 166,
263, 293
Woodchat, 48, 57, 155
Woodcock, 15, 19, 180, 247, 248, 280
Woodpecker, 126

,, Great Black, 273

,, Greater Spotted, 14, 16,

76, 77, 248, 286
,, Green, 13, 15, 247, 289

,, Grey-headed, 76

Middle Spotted, 70, 76
,, Spanish, 289

Wood Pigeon, 9, 15, 178, 285
,, Sandpiper, 8, 189
,, Wren, 55
Wren, 22, 248

,, Golden -crested, 11
,, Willow, II, 26, 55, 120, 293
,, Wood, 55
Wi-yneck, 45, 177

Yellow-billed Cuckoo, 145

,, Kite, 107, 139

Yellow Hammer, 69, 69, 248
Yellow-legged Herring Gull, 59
Yellow Wagtail, 18

,, Black-headed, 170

Ziczac Plover, 105, 197, ic;

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