1917-] ^'ue^ Canal Zone and Sinai Peninsula. 549 



Cypselus apus. Swift. 



Odd birds were passing at Suez on April 21 and 23, which, 

 so far as I could judge^ were certainly Common Swifts; the 

 Pallid Swift (C murinus), whicli I saw in great quantity at 

 Cairo and Luxor, may possibly have been passing, and these 

 two species are difficult to distinguish on the wing when at 

 any height. 



Caprimulgns sp. ? Nightjar. 



On Oct. 19 two flying in our camp on the coast at 

 Mohammedia at dusk. 



Alcedo ispida. Kingfisher. 



In April at Suez ; early in September this bird was quite 

 abundant at Mohammedia and all along the coast from 

 there to Port Said, fishing in the pools and perching on the 

 scrub growing on the sand-hills. I think that this was 

 entirely a migratory movement, as I have no note of its 

 occurrence during the last two weeks of October and early 

 November, though 1 passed over exactly the same ground. 



Whether these were of the Egyptian subspecies, Alcedo i. 

 pallida, I cannot say. 



Ceryle rudis. Pied Kingfisher. 



At various places on the Suez Canal and also by Lake 

 Timsali, at Ismailia. 



Coracias garrulus. Roller. 



On April 23 some scores were along the edge of the marsh 

 north of Suez, where there had been none the previous day ; 

 on April 29 there were five left. On the return migration 

 I saw two at " Mt. Royston'^ during the Komani — Katia 

 battle on Aug, 5 and one at Katia on Aug. 13 ; by Aug. 26 

 there were numl)ers at Romani, where I last saw one on 

 Sept. 7. 



Merops apiaster. Bee-eater. 



There were twenty in one tree at Suez on April IJ^^^ evidently 

 just newly arrived ; from April 19 to 23 they were passing 

 in great numbers at Suez, and were to be «een everywhere in 

 the cultivated parts. 



