192 1.] the Kear East and Tropical East Africa. 625 



I also find that rxiflcollis shows oreat variation, not onl}^ in 

 size but in the amount and density of the coppery plumage, 

 especially on tlie nape and mantle, and that this variation is 

 not constant within a definite area. 



Distribution. — (Near East.) Breeds in southern Palestine 

 south of: a line Gaza, Hebron, north to Jeriisaloni and oast 

 to Jericho and a few miles north. North of this line occurs 

 laurencei. In winter I have seen many of the hitter at 

 Jerusalem and on tlio Jerusalem-Hebron road, but never in 

 the Jordan V;illey or on the eastern slopes of the southern 

 Judsean hills. Also I have never at any season seen 

 ruJicolUs north of their breedino- area. They apparently 

 Ijreed in the hills throughout Sinai and near Suez on both 

 sides of the Gulf of Suez. They breed in the Egyptian 

 D(;sert fringing the Delta, but do not occur in the Delta. 



West of Alexandiia their place is taken at Solium by 

 Corvus c. tingitanus. At Siwa Oasis, south of Solium, 

 mficoUis is resident and common. 



Fresh effo-s taken in Palestine from lo.iii. to 17. iii. 



CORVUS CORNIX. 



1 have examined the following birds : — 

 JS^orth- West Europe. 



61 from Great Britain, Faroe Islands, Finland, Sweden, 

 northern and central Russia, and Germany. 



c?. Wing 316-340; culmen, length 49-60, height 19'5-22. 

 ? . Wing 305-331; culmen, length 49-54, height 19-21. 



Hartert (Vog. pal. Fauna) gives wings of such birds as 

 320-340 mm., and Stresemann (Avif. Macedon.) as 305- 

 338 mm. 



Balkans. 



3 l)irds from Rumania. 



2 c? . Wing 311, 320 ; culmen, length 57-5 and 58, height 

 20, 22. 



1 ? . Wing 316 ; culmen, length 59, height 20. 

 Parrot gives the wings of two Greek birds as J" 309 and 

 ? 294 mm. 



