66 A HISTORY OF BIRDS 



as a whole. " The Common or Northern Ostrich," writes Mr. 

 Ogilvie Grant, " is found in Northern and Western Africa, and 

 ranges eastwards to Abyssinia, Arabia and South Palestine ; 

 . . . S. viassaiciis is found in East Africa, 5. molybdophanes 

 in Somaliland and Central Africa, and 5. australis in South 

 Africa." But it must be remembered that the Ostrich, though 

 the characteristic bird of Africa to-day, was not always confined 

 to this great Continent, since fossil remains thereof have been 

 found in India and in Europe, a point to which we shall have 

 occasion to refer later. 



As to the number of sub-regions into which the great area 

 should be divided opinions are divided. Dr. Sharpe recognises 

 eisrht. These are : — 



Of the Saharan and Sudanese Sub -regions the ornithology is 

 practically unknown. So far we may say of the Saharan Sub- 

 region that it is the land of peculiar desert forms, conspicuous 

 among which are Larks and Chats. 



The Sudanese Sub-region includes the country to the 

 south of the Sahara, extending northwards to Nubia below the 

 Nile Delta and including the western and southern shores of 

 Arabia, and the east coast thereof as far as the Straits of Ormuz. 

 " There is evidently," remarks Dr. Sharpe, " a connection be- 

 tween the avifauna of Senegambia and that of Abyssinia 

 evidenced by the occurrence in both countries of such birds as 

 the Abyssinian Roller {Coracias abyssinica) and by certain of 

 the Game-birds. It is a country of Francolins, Quails and 

 Bustards. Many species of birds are peculiar to this sub-region, 

 and here too many European migrants pass the winter. 



The West African Sub-region extends from the forest regions 

 of Southern Senegambia to the Gold Coast, and after a small 

 gap caused by the interposition of the Sudanese Sub-region ^t 



