80 BIEDS OF EGYPT. 



April I saw many young birds just able to fly. In Nubia 

 they are daily to be seen hopping among the rocks or perched 

 upon the mud walls of the native houses. 

 «). ^ //>/ Very old birds. — Top of the head, rump, vent and tail- 



'/ coverts white ; tail white, except the apical half of the two 



centre feathers, which is black ; remainder of the plumage 

 deep black with steel-blue reflections ; beak and legs black ; 

 irides brown. 



Breeding-plumage of the first year . — Top of the headblck ; 

 tail-feathers with occasional dark spots near their tips ; the 

 black of the plumage has no blue gloss ; and the wings incline 

 to brown. 



Immature birds. — Beak shaded with yellow towards the 

 tip and on the lower mandible ; legs dark brown ; the white 

 feathers of the tail with brown spots near their tips. 



Less-adult birds have black feathers mixed with the white 

 crown. 



Entire length 6-5 to 7 inches ; culinen 0'6 ; wing, carpus 

 to tip, 3'7 to 4'3 ; tarsus I'O. 



The sexes are similar in plumage. 



23. Saxicola syenitica, Heugl. 



Von Heughn (Orn. N. 0. Afr. p. 359) mentions a specimen 

 of this Chat killed at El Kab in June 1852. This is another 

 of Heuglin's species of Saxicola the distinctness of which 

 I am inclined to doubt. I expect that it will be discovered 

 to be founded upon a variety of plumage of S. leucopygia, 

 depending on the age of the specimen. 



