572 Mr. J. A. Bnckiilll on the 



" birds wliicli fly in flecks together like Starlings and which, 

 " as soon as they come to Cyprus, with their song and fliglit 

 " destroy the locusts wliicli infest the Island/^ 



The capturing of liawks and tlieir compulsory despatch to 

 the Sultan is mentioned by <in English visitor in 1596. 



A Utrecht lawyer in 1598 mentions that " the number of 

 "diiforcnt birds is very large: Woodpigeons, Quails, 

 " Partridges, Pheasants, Ducks, and Geese, abound, while 

 " Turtle Doves are as plentiful as Sparrows with us ... . there 

 " are many Eagles and Hawks, even Merlins and Peregrines." 



In 1031 a gentleman fiora Bruges staying at Nicosia writes 

 that the nurnhcr of Crows m\'is incredible, the trees being 

 black with them ; one of his party brought down several 

 with a shot from his arquebus and thereby fell into serious 

 trouljle with the Turkish populace. The same writer refers 

 to " the delightful music of the Nightingales." 



There are references by another author who was in Cyprus 

 in 1G83 to "certain birds not unlike Plovers," and to 

 another sort " not unlike Ducks with a pointed beak," both 

 of which destroyed locusts. 



A writer in the early years of the 18th century mentions 

 the abundance of Snipe; Dr. Pococke, F.R.S., in 1738 is 

 attended at Papho by the chief dignitary's Falconer with his 

 Hawk, he identifles the local Partridge as the same as that 

 of Prance and mentions the Francolin. 



The most important chronicler of Cyprus under Turkish 

 rule was the Abbe Mariti, who resided in the island from 

 17G0 to 1767. He inserted in his ' Travels' a few remarks 

 on Natural History : he writes " Among birds the commonest 

 " are Francolins, Partridges, Woodcocks, Quails, Thrushes, 

 *'and every kind of waterfowl"; he also mentions the 

 Beceafico, Ortolan, and Vultures. 



Passing from the casual references of those who wrote on 

 general matters relating to the island, we come to the first 

 scientific writer who, so far as I am aware, visited Cyprus. 



Dr. J. Sibthorp, the editor of the ' Flora Graeca' and founder 

 of a Professorship of llural Economy at Oxford, visited the 

 island in 1787; he made considerable collections and prepared 

 important lists of and notes on the local Birds, Mammals, 



