30 Col. E. Meinertzhagen on Birds from [Ibis, 



Phcenicurus ochruros semirufa (Hemp. & Ehr.). 



T obtained a male at Jerusalem on 24. xi. and saw another 

 on the Sea oF Galilee on 9. iii. Doubtless a few wander 

 south during winter. The type came from Egypt, whence 

 it has not since been obtained. 



Luscinia megarhynchos africana Fisch. & Reichw. 



One obtained in the Taita Hills near Voi in Kenya Colony 

 in December. In addition to this specimen other winter 

 birds are known from near Kilimanjaro, southern Arabia, 

 and N. Somaliland. 



In all there are 13 Nightingales in my African collection, 

 all the others being Liisi'inia luscinia. 



Brig.-Gen. T^hirke found a Nightingale breeding commonly 

 at Aleppo in 1919, and thought it was Luscinia m. polzi. 

 1 have not seen any Ale})po specimens. Weigold (J. f. 0. 

 1913, p. 2) records both f/olzi and africana as stragglers to 

 IJrfa in north-west Mesopotamia and not far from Aleppo, 

 and he also records L. m. megarliynclios as possibly breeding 

 at Aleppo, having obtained them in spring up to early May. 

 It seems probable that Clarke's birds were also of the 

 typical race. 



HIRIINDO RUSTICA. 



Hirundo rustica rustica L. 



I am only dealing with the migration of the Swallow in 

 the Near East and eastern Africa. 



Breeds in Armenia, Asia Minor, Crete and Cyprus, though 

 in the latter country birds are said to intergrade [sic^ with 

 savignii (Buckniil, Ibis, 1910, p. 2). 



They were common at Damascus on 8. ix., at Baalbek on 

 10. ix., and at the south end of the Sea of Galilee on 7.ix., 

 but I cannot S!iy whether they had bred there or whether 

 they were early migrants. They are said to interbreed with 

 transitiva in the Galilee District. I found no old nests. 

 But Swallows flood the whole of Syria and Palestine from 

 early September to the end of October, and I noted flocks 

 passing south at Jericho on 19.x. and as late as 27. xi. I 

 doubrif any birds winter in Palestine. 



