( 3 ) 



flies, but not so much so as in Uie oasis of Oiirir, whore they were an almost 

 unsujiiiortable phigue, and a perfect torture to the mules, whose oars became 

 swollen and stiff for a couple of days. The same pests occurred in Touggourt 

 and Onargla, but we did not see them farther southwards, and it is remarkable 

 that in Jnne tliey were qnite alisent* We saw several times Pterocles alchata 

 flying overhead in greater and smaller troops, and obtained a few. Onr last 

 camp before Touggourt was at Tamerna, on an ojien space between two large 

 oases. From Tamerna we made onr last march to Touggonrt — 42 kilometres. This 

 march leads partly through very dreary and uninteresting sebcha, mostly covered 

 with nothing but one kind of plant, a iSulicornia, forming thick bolster-like bushes, 

 partly through sand with very little vegetation and no dunes. Hardly a bird 

 was noticed except the " muka " {Alaci/wn (ilaii(/ijjexi, nw\ once a pair of Si/lr/a 

 dcserticola, of which we shot one. 



From February 26 to March 2 we remained in Touggonrt. Jlost of the 

 time was spent in baying camels and engaging men, and all this would have 

 taken longer had it not been for the kind help of BIr. Henry (Jhazelles. Wo 

 made also some excursions into the gardens. Of butterflies we saw frequently 

 one species of Lijcaena (/-. h/xiinoit), Coli/i.s croceua {^= cdnsa auct.), Pi/rameix 

 carrlai, the common Fieris rapae, and once a Pyrameis atalaiita. Of birds, Lanins 

 crriibitor elegans, 'rurtur scnegalensis niH/i/ptincus, and Sparrows were common ; 

 while of migrants only Motacilla nlba alba and Phi/lloscnpus collybita, the latter 

 sometimes singing, were observed. The little Scops-owls ((itas scopx itcops), which 

 were common in April lOdl), wore alisent, but T>/to idbn i Barn-owls) were noisy 

 on a tower in the fnrt — wliore, liowever, we could not shoot thom. 



At last, on March 2, I had lionglit sixteen camels and hired two mehari (riding- 

 camels), as I could not buy any of the latter. In addition to Ahmed, our cook, 

 translator, and headman and his assistant, both from Biskra, I engaged a guide and 

 eight Arabs, all nomads, some of whom had travelled far and wide in the Sahara. 

 The guide, Abd-el-Kader ben-Lakhdar, and two others were former soldiers and had 

 seen service in Morocco and Tidikelt. Those three were granted military I'ifles and 

 ammunition by the authorities, and I had all the men inscribed at the Bureau 

 Arabe, where my wishes were attended to with the greatest kindness. 



On March 3 wo left Touggourt for the south. We passed the rich and exten- 

 sive oases and towns of Temacin and Zaouia Tamellath, where a groat marabn 

 resides, and marched about 24 km., as far as Bled-el-Ahuiar, Bledot-Ahmar 

 or Bledet-Tamar, a large village, liej-ond which we camped. All the way from 

 Touggourt leads through monotonous sebcha, in places rather slippery, and 

 intervening belts of sand with very scanty vegetation. No interesting birds were 

 seen, except at Bledot-Ahmar some Crested Larks {Galerida cristata urenicolor), 

 and Grey Shrikes, and it is remarkable that this is the southernmost place on 

 this route where the long-billo<l Crested Lark is found. At this place we saw, on 

 the edge of the gardens, two white butterflies. One of which we caught ; a fresh 

 EiicMoi' bdi'.mhi ! This is tln^ southernmost place where it is known to occnr. 

 The full moon rose with tlio wonderful brilliancy of the desert, and the evening 

 tlelivered us IVoni the irritating, tiny sand-flies and a kind of yellowish gnat that 

 bit in the daytime and which we encountered only in this place. 



♦ According U> Mr. E. K. Austen lliesc flies are Lcptm'im't])^ hn-U'ni KicHc^-, only descrilicd as late 

 as 1!I08 in Ann. Mux. Nat. Hung. vi. from Cairo. 



