Ornitholofiy of Asia Minor. 15 



suddenly down to the grass to feed, and flies up again at the 

 slightest alarm. Such was the difficulty of getting at them 

 that, although the wood held at least a dozen pairs, it took 

 two guns a couple of days' stalking and lying in wait to bag 

 three brace of this small game ; and of these, four were killed 

 by long flying-shots. 



The elevation of this locality is 2400 feet ; and the time of 

 observation was from 29th March to 8th April. R. meso- 

 leuca occurred nowhere else in the neighbourhood of Anascha, 

 and was not again met with until found breeding among the 

 cedars and junipers on the Karanfil dagh, at an elevation of 

 at least 5000 feet. Here, on the 24th April, a pair were 

 observed which had taken possession of an old Woodpecker's 

 hole, about 30 feet up a dead branchless cedar. The nest 

 was a foot lower than the entrance to it, and but just begun. 

 Next day a nest was discovered in a natural hole, formed by 

 the rotting away of a juniper-branch 3 feet from the ground. 

 It contained six slightly incubated eggs ; and shortly after- 

 wards another sitting of three fresh eggs was taken from a 

 hollow cedar still higher up the mountain. The birds of 

 these last nests were shot. 



The eggs resemble those oi R. phoenicurus so closely, that if 

 placed side by side with them they cannot be distinguished. 

 The nests were loosely constructed from thin strips of inner 

 juniper-bark interwoven with tufts of black goat's hair and 

 a little ibex-wool, and were lined with more goat's hair and 

 a few stray Partridge- and other feathers. The song of the 

 White-winged Redstart is clear and pretty, and is generally 

 uttered when the bird is perched on a tree-top or on some 

 bare projecting branch. All the males show conspicuously 

 the white alar patch ; and the females are always more sooty 

 on the underparts than those of R. phoenicurus. 



82. RUTICILLA TITYS (Scop.). 



Generally common, and sedentary in the mountains through- 

 out the winter. Specimens obtained in spring are extremely 

 dark-coloured. 



