EGYPTIAN BIRDS 7 



birds know it. One of my favourite places of 

 observation was at the Sacred Lake at Karnac. 

 By the courtesy of Mr. Weigall, Chief Inspector 

 of Antiquities, Upper Egypt, I was allowed to 

 sleep in a disused building by the water-side, and 

 by that means enjoyed opportunities, which fall to 

 the lot of few, of studying bird life from midnight 

 to early morning, and it is astonishing the number 

 of birds that foregather to that quiet spot. Practi- 

 cally all night through there were sounds of birds 

 coming or going at intervals. The calling of Coots 

 one to another were the commonest sounds during 

 the darkest hours ; but at about 3 a.m., when 

 I thought I could discern a little light, I would 

 distinctly hear the "scarpe scarpe" cry of Snipe. 

 A little later the hooting of the Eagle Owl, whom 

 I knew had his nest up on the top of one of the end 

 columns of the great hall, and then gradually from 

 this side, then from that, came an ever-increasing 

 series of calls and pipings, and one could make 

 out flocks of Duck disappearing over the ridge of 

 sand and broken-up masses of masonry. Later, 

 shadowy forms of Greenshank or Plover showed as 

 they went paddling by some faintly lighted-up pool, 

 till at last the sun was up, and crested Larks 

 were running round the banks fearlessly, and blue- 



