Journey in Furs, SJV. Persia. 551 



90. TURDUS MERULA SYRIACUS Hcmpi'. & Elll'. 



Turdus merula, var. syriacus Hempr. & Elir. Symb. Pliys. 

 fol. bb (1833). 



Tardus merula syriacus Hartcrt, Wander. Naturf. p. 307. 



Turdus merula Linn. ; Blanf. t. c. p. 157. 



Merula merula Sharpe, Ibis, 1891, p. 109. 



23G, 390. Ad. 



Mr. Hartert has pointed out to me how clearly the Black- 

 birds can be separated by well-marked differences in the 

 female birds. I have compared my specimens with the scries 

 at Tring and find that they agree with this form. The female 

 has the bill yellow with a brown base. The breast of the bird 

 is greyish brown and not rufous as in T. merula, while the 

 feathers of the throat are pale grey, mesially streaked with 

 blackish brown. The male is like that of T. merula. 



Dr. Blanford remarked that the females and young of the 

 Persian Blackbird were decidedly less rufous than European 

 specimens. 



Blackbirds were seen here and there throughout our 

 journey at elevations of from 3000 ft. to 10,000 ft., while in a 

 lew places they were very plentiful. I found a good many 

 old nests, made of shreds of bark, near Dasht-i arjan 

 (0700 ft ) ; while near Basht (4000 ft.) the young were well 

 able to fly on June 10th. 



01. Turdus musicus Linn.; Blanf. t. c. p. 150; Sharpe, 

 Ibis, 1886, pp. 482 & 495. 



2. ? ad. March 21st, Bushire. 



This specimen is paler on the upper parts than any 

 specimen in the British Museum or at Tring, and has no 

 lawny colour on the breast or flanks. Other specimens from 

 thy Persian Gulf, however, are darker than my bird, but 

 they are nevertheless decidedly pale. It would be interesting 

 to know where these pale birds breed. There is no record 

 of their doing so in Southern Persia, and all the specimens 

 obtained there have been met with in winter or spring, but 

 I think it possible that they do breed in the country, because 

 my specimen had the ovaries considerably enlarged. 



