412 Mr. F. C. Seloiis on 



structures of grass, lined with feathers, and with the 

 entrance-hole on one side. I suppose there were over fifty 

 Sparrows' nests built round each Stork's nest. Most of the 

 former were still unfinished^ and though some had already 

 received their feather lining, none had eggs in them. Many 

 Lesser Kestrels flew out from under the eaves of the village 

 houses, but we could find no eggs, and I do not think these 

 birds had yet laid. In the afternoon I took the nest of a 

 Calandra Ijark [Melanocorypha ccdandra) with four eggs, 

 and late in the evening a Turk showed me the nest, on a 

 stony hillside, of a Chukar Partridge {Caccuhis chukar), 

 containing five Iresh eggs. 



The next day. May 12th, I left Appa at 7.30 a.m., and, 

 passing Aidin at midday, arrived at Baluchik at 1 o'clock. 

 I was now on my way to a large lake and swamp near 

 the mouth of the Meander river, where my fiiends in 

 Bournabat had told me that various kinds of Herons and 

 numerous species of watei'-fowl, including wild Swans, were 



accustomed to breed. Mr. E. W had given me a 



letter to a Greek, living at a village called Sakizbounou, who 

 said he would be able to get men to help me to explore the 

 marsh. I had to go by rail to a place called Sokia, where 

 is a liquorice factory belonging to an English company, 

 and from there ride or drive to the lake. On reaching 

 Balachik I found I had to wait four hours for the train to 

 Sokia, so I went out nesting among the gardens and 

 orchards in the neighbourhood. Birds, however, seemed 

 very scarce, and I found only two Goldfinches' nests, the 

 one with four, and the other with five eggs, in a garden 

 near the station-buildings. On arriving at Sokia at 6 p.m., 

 the Greek station-master, who spoke English very well, and 

 to whom I also had a letter of introduction, said he did not 

 think I would be able to get on to Sakizbounou that night, 

 but promised to get either a carriage of some sort or riding- 

 horses to take me and my two servants (Demetrius and a 

 Turk) there the first thing the next morning. Later in the 

 evening 1 walked up to the liquorice factory with the 

 station-master and was introduced to Mr. B. H . 



