276 BRITISH BIRDS. 
ERITHACUS LUSCINIA. 
THE NIGHTINGALE. 
(PLate 9.) 
Ficedula luscinia, Briss. Orn. ili. p. 897 (1760). 
Motacilla luscinia, Zinn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 828 (1766); et auctorum plurimorum— 
Gmelin, Bechstein, (Latham), (Temminck), (Selby), (Gould), (Bonaparte), (De- 
gland), (Gerbe), (Loche), (Salvadori), (Newton), &e. 
Sylvia luscinia (Linn.), Seop. Ann, I. ITist. Nat. p. 154 (1769). 
Aedon luscinia (Linn.), Forst. Syn. Cat. Br. B. p. 53 (1814), 
Curruca luscinia (Linn.), Koch, Syst. bater, Zool. i. p. 154 (1816), 
Daulias luscinia (Linn.), Bote, Isis, 1851, p. 542. 
Philomela luscinia (Linn.). Selby, Brit. Orn. i. p. 206 (1833). 
Lusciola luscinia (Linn.), Keys. u. Blas. Wirb. Eur. pp. lviii, 189 (1840). 
Erithacus luscinia (Linn.), Degl. Orn. Eur. i. p. 499 (1849). 
Luscinia vera, Gray, Hand-l. B. i. p. 220 (1869). 
Luscinia philomela (Bechst.), apud Brehm, Bonaparte, Gray, Cabanis, Gould, Heuglin, 
THarting, &e. 
The Nightingale is a common summer visitor to all the counties of 
England, except those in the north and west, being comparatively rare in 
South Yorkshire, Shropshire, and East Devon, which may be considered 
the limits of its range in our islands. It has never been recorded from 
Ireland; and its alleged occurrence in Scotland rests upon very doubtful 
authority, though it may possibly visit the latter country as an accidental 
straggler. 
It is pretty generally distributed on the continent of Europe during the 
breeding-season south of Scandinavia and west of Russia, only occurring 
in the latter country accidentally. It passes through North Africa on 
migration, a few remain to breed in Algeria; but the majority winter in 
the interior somewhere south of Abyssinia. In South Sweden and Central 
Russia our Nightingale is replaced by the Eastern Nightingale (Hrithacus 
philomela), a species whose breeding-range extends eastwards into Asia 
Minor, Northern Turkestan, and South-western Siberia. Westwards its 
range overlaps that of our bird, occasionally reaghing as far as the valley 
of the Rhine. It is not improbable that this bird has occurred in Great 
Britain, but its presence has been overlooked. An equally near ally, the 
Persian Nightingale (Hrithacus golzii), breeds in the cultivated districts 
of Turkestan and West Persia, extending its western range as far as 
the Caucasus. In coloration this species is intermediate between our 
Nightingale and E. philomela, being slightly more olive than the former 
and slightly more russet than the latter. In its wing-formula it resembles 
the former species; but may be distinguished from both by its slightly 
longer bill (‘07 to ‘06 inch) and much larger tail (3:32 to 2°95 inch). 
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