544 Mr. H. F. Withcrby— Ornithological 



four fresh eggs on May 31st. The eggs are of a pale blue, 

 thinly spotted with brown and mauve, and resemble a clutch 

 taken near Shiraz, now in the British Museum. 



The bird's downward flight with uplifted wings always 

 reminds me of the beautiful flight of a Papilio butterfly. 



72. Accentor jerdoni Brooks. 



371. $ ad. May 28th, Kuh-i-Dinar (9500 ft.). 



At first sight this specimen is barely recognisable as being 

 of this species. The pectoral band, instead of being rich 

 rufous, is exceedingly ill-defined and of a pale buff colour, the 

 throat is unspotted, the eye-stripe is white iu stead of buff, 

 and the upper parts are pale. But the plumage of the bird 

 is considerably worn, and I think that this accounts for much 

 of the difference. Some specimens from Gilgit, in the British 

 Museum, approach my bird nearly, so far as paleness of 

 coloration is concerned, but none have so white an eye- 

 stripe or so faint a pectoral band. 



So far as I am aware, A. jerdoni has not been found out- 

 side India before, and its range in Persia must be limited to 

 the highest mountains. I saw only one pair, which was 

 on a patch of snow near the top of the pass (Gardan-i-Bijan) 

 over Kuh-i-Dinar. They " shuffled " along in the snow with 

 half-closed wings, much as a Hedge-Sparrow does along the 

 bottom of a hedge. Owing to want of small shot at the 

 time I managed to secure only one specimen. 



The ovaries were much enlarged, and the bird was evidently 

 breeding. 



73. Saxicola chrysopygia (De Fil.) ; Blanf. t. c. p. 151. 



343. S ad. May 21st, Berm Firuz (9300 ft.). 



369. S ad. May 27th, Kuh-i-Dinar (9500 ft.). 



The Bed-tailed Wheatear was rare, and only found on the 

 most rocky and barren hill-sides at elevations of over 9000 ft. 

 in the Berm Firuz region and on the pass over Dinar. Both 

 my specimens are males ; and, judging by their actions and 

 by the state of the breeding-organs, the females must have 

 been incubating. Unfortunately, I could not find a nest. It 

 was quite hopeless to search for it, since the country was 



