388 Lord Lilford on the Ornithology of Spain. 



I was shown a Crossbill [Loxia curvirostra) alive in a cage in 

 the village, — the story about this species here being that Carlos 

 III. kept a great many of these birds in an aviary at Rio Frio, 

 a shooting-lodge at a few miles^ distance, of which several pairs 

 escaped and established themselves in the pinar, where they 

 are now common. The possessor of the Crossbill accurately 

 described to me a Bullfinch [Pyrrhula vulgaris) which I never 

 met with in Spain, but which he assured me was not very un- 

 common about San Ildefonso during the winter. On June 6th 

 Manuel and Agapo went for a long day up into the forest, and 

 returned with a fine female Goshawk, shot from the nest, which 

 contained three young birds just hatched. He also brought in 

 a good specimen of Picus major, which is the Common Wood- 

 pecker of this district, and two specimens of Parus ater, which' 

 species I had not hitherto observed in Spain. They had also 

 met with two nests of Vultur monachus, each containing a young 

 bird, and a nest of Aquila ■pennata, which they did not examine, 

 as Manuel could not manage to kill the parent bird. The next 

 day I was able to get about a little on foot ; and whilst Manuel 

 and Agapo again went up into the forest, I wandered about 

 near the village and obtained specimens of the Ortolan {Emberiza 

 hortulana), which is very abundant on the hill-sides here, where I 

 also met with the Stonechat {Pratincola rubicola), which appears 

 to be very locally distributed in Spain, as, although common in 

 many parts of Andalucia, I never met with it m New Castile. 

 I found nests of the Woodchat and Woodlark, but sought in 

 vain for that of the Little Owl {Athene noctua), which we were 

 assured existed in a ruined chapel near the village. Manuel 

 came in at night with a very fine specimen of the Cinereous 

 Vulture, which be had winged with a bullet as she left her nest, 

 an egg of the Booted Eagle from the nest which they found 

 yesterday, and a nest with five eggs of our Common Redbreast 

 {Erythacusrubecula), which, although common throughout Spain 

 in winter, breeds only in the mountains, as I found was also the 

 case in Northern Italy. The boys brought in two beautiful 

 nests of Ficedula hypolais, each containing five eggs, as well as 

 eggs of Sylvia cinerea and Sylvia atricapilla. The next day, 

 having procured ponies, we all went up into the forest together. 



