( 546 ) 



^ifty Porphyrio caerulea (Vaiulelli). 



The Mediterranean Pnqile Gallinnle was met with fommonly on Lake Fetzara 

 in February li'll, and they arc said to hreed there also in irreat nnrabcrs. Loche 

 found it on the same lake half a century ago, and Tristram met with it even 

 at Tonggonrt! We managed to get, with the help of a French sportsman, who 

 gave ns several specimens, a fine series of ten specimens. Though one heard 

 the loud and sonorous cries frerjnently, one did not see very many of these birds, 

 as they keep mostly to the thick water vegetation, and are not easily put to 

 flight. The Arabs and French called the bird " sultana." The iris is dull red ; 

 the bill scarlet with paler tip and a narrow whitish line at base. Feet coral-red, 

 joints of toes tinged with greyish brown ; claws greyish brown. 



[One of the most interesting puzzles in Algerian ornithology is the occurrence 

 of a specimen of " Rallus jnarginaUs " in January in a ditch in the oasis of 

 Biskra, where it was caught by Taczanowski, as recorded in Journ. f. Orn. 1870. 

 p. 54. This Kail is altogether an enigma. A few specimens only arc known, 

 some from Damaraland, two from Gaboon, one from Kamerun, one from Ribe, 

 near Mombasa, in East Africa, one from near East London in South Africa, and 

 one in the Tring Mnseum from Aldabra Island, where it was obtained in December 

 by Mr. F. R. Mortimer. Andersson said he found it breeding in Damaraland in 

 February and March. We cannot helj) thinking that this may be a mistake. If 

 the bird was breeding in Damaraland it would not be a migrant, and how could 

 it come to be found in East and West Africa, in Aldabra — marked by the collector 

 as on migration — and last but not least in Biskra I 



We cannot help thinking that it might be a palaearctic bird, the home of 

 which is as yet unknown, and which migrates into Africa in winter. 



The systematic position of the species has been much disputed. It was first 

 mentioned by Bonaparte as Porzana marginalis, and described under the same 

 name by Hartlaub ; Uurney called it Urti/yomrtra (which was merely another 

 name for Porzuna) ; tSharpe called it Crex marginalis, and later on {Cat. Birds 

 xxiii. p. 335) Limnobaenus; while Reichenow {Vog. Aj'r. i. p. 282) termed it 

 Corethrtira nvtrginalis. 



We see no reason to separate it from Porxo.na.'\ 



207. Meffalornis grus grus (L.). 



We saw once several Cranes in the great plain of El Outaya, between Biskra 

 and El Kantara, early in March 1908. 



208. Anthropoides virgo (L.). 



On April 2 one of us mot with a pair of these graceful Cranes in the plain 

 south of Boghari, where they nest. A person in Boghari showed us a female 

 which she had kept alive for some years. It was taken when quite small, and 

 laid a number of eggs. Some of the latter were given to us. They arc of the 

 usual type, and measure 85 x 55, .S(j-5 x 53, 8(i'5 x 55, 81.) x 54, 78'2 x 50 mm. 



200. Houbara uiidulata luidulata (Jacquin). 



The Houbara is the only species of Bustard we came across. It is found 

 in the plain of El Outaya and south of Itiskra, is comparatively common on 



