250



Captain Bernard E. Potter,



Owls are numerous. One is a very large owl, has a con¬

spicuous white rump; another is very small, is brown with white

clots on the wing. Both can be seen flying in the day-time. Their

cries by night I never tire of hearing.


One afternoon, near Palchora—a very small village at the

eastern extremity of the long lizard-like hill on the west of the

Langaza plain, the Deve Kran (camel pack) of the Turks—I saw a

great grey shrike perched on topwood branch of a shrub. Here, too,

bushes and vegetation are much more luxuriant than about the semi¬

circle of hills around Salonika. Here I saw young stonechats.

chaffinches, goldfinch, common linnets, and one specimen of a hunt¬

ing new to me. It had a black and saffron yellow head and patch

of crimson at sides of breast, altogether a beautiful bird. It is not

surprising that greenfinches should be absent from these parts which

have comparatively few trees, for greenfinches always seem to hide

beneath foliage, making their whereabouts known by their well-

known twitter.


Goldfinches are a bird-feature of this country. Great flocks

wheel in the air as one passes, and as they alight the v T ondrous

gold markings are intensified. It is gratifying to see so many here

when in England they would appear to be getting scarce. The

common linnet, which always seems uncommon at home, is one of

the chief singers ; its note reminds one of the song—“ little bit of

bread and no cheese”-—of the yellow-hammer. The latter I have

not yet seen here.


On March 20th I saw a wheatear; on 21st two, and on 22nd

at least four in full plumage. They are very tame. Another bird

appeared about the same time, looking like a very heavily marked

wheatear, with more black feathers and rest of the plumage snowy

white, the hen bird is a sandy colour.


In December and January I used to see in the gullies at

Lembet a steel grey bird with reddish markings about the tail,

especially noticed in flight, which appeared to he a kind of redstart.

But the common English redstart I have never seen here.


On April 4th I noticed swallows for the first time when on a

visit to Salonika, they were flying about the “ White Tower.” There

are now many to be seen in the village of Aivatli near by and some



