Ornitholuyy of ike Egyptian Soudan. '<'>\K> 



occasionally seen it at Khartoum and on the White Nile. 

 1 also know of its occurrence as far east as Kassala. 



301. Sarciophorus tectus (Bodd.). 

 a. ? . River Rahad, April 5, 1901. 



The Red-wattled Lapwing is a much commoner bird than 

 the last, but nowhere plentiful. I have generally come 

 across it on dry rising ground about villages, to the vicinity 

 of which it is very partial. It does not seem to seek its 

 food in the neighbourhood of water, like the Spur-winged 

 Plover, and is altogether more of a dry-land bird. 



It is generally distributed on the Blue Nile and its 

 tributaries, and east as far as Kassala, but is rare on the 

 White Nile. 



302. Hoplopterus spinosus (Linn.). 



The Spur-winged Plover is abundant throughout the 

 country where there is water, away from which it is never 

 met with. Its food seems to consist chiefly of small 

 coleoptera. 



I once saw a pair of these birds pecking something from 

 a basking crocodile's head. 



I found it breeding on the Rahad River in April 1903, 

 and took nests containing a single egg on the 10th and 

 11th, and two eggs on the loth. About the same time 

 Mr. W. G. Percival told me that he had found numerous 

 nests on small islets opposite the mouth of the Atbara. 

 The tiniest islands are often chosen by this bird to lay its 

 eggs on — a rock ten feet in diameter is large enough. I 

 can hardly imagine that the young remain in this area until 

 able to fly, and suspect that both this species and (Edicnemus 

 seneyalensis carry their chicks off the islands on which they 

 are hatched, after the manner of a Woodcock. 



303. Vanellus leucurus (Licht.). 



a. ? . Khartoum, Feb. 3, 1903. 



b. ? . „ Feb. 4, 1903. 



Small parties of the White-tailed Lapwing are almost 

 always to be found in winter frequenting the islands 

 just above the junction of the White and Blue Niles at 



