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215. Great Spotted Cuckoo. Coccystes glandarius (Linnseus). 



Coccystes glandarius. Shelley, p. 162. 



Probably a resident in Upper Egypt. It visits Middle 

 Egypt in small numbers in spring and lays its eggs in the nest 

 of the hooded crow. Uncommon in Lower Egypt. 



Length 18 inches. Head crested and pale slate grey ; upper 

 parts brownish ; wing and tail feathers tipped with white ; tail 

 bronze black ; throat buff ; rest of under parts whitish. 



Young birds have the head darker and the throat more 

 yellowish buff, and the wing feathers strongly marked with 

 rufous chestnut. 



21C. Lark-heeled Cuckoo. Centropus wgyptius (Gmelin). 

 Centropus cegyptius. Shelley, p. 164. 



Abundant and resident on the Rosetta branch of the Nile 

 and in the Faiyum. We have a specimen from near Giza. 



Length 18 inches. Crown, sides of head and nape black, 

 with a green gloss ; upper parts reddish chestnut ; wings rufous 

 tipped with black ; tail like the head ; under parts dull bufhsh 

 yellow. The shafts of the feathers of the head and under parts 

 very stiff and glossy. 



This " cuckoo " lays white eggs in a large domed nest of 

 its own construction and carries out the work of incubation and 

 rearing the yomig. 



STRIDES. 



217. Barn Owl. Strix alba alba Scopoli. 



Aliico flammea. Shelley, p. 176. 



Abundant and resident from the Mediterranean coast to 

 Nubia, where it is replaced by a nearly allied form, which is 

 darker and more thickly spotted on the mider parts. We have 

 a specimen from Giza which resembles the southern form, 

 S. a. maculata, but this may be an aberration. 



Length 14 inches. Upper parts amber brown vermi- 

 culated with black and spotted with white. A white frill round 

 each eye edged with brown ; under parts pure white in adult 

 males, washed with buff, and spotted with black in females 

 and young birds. 



