CHAP. X. 



WHIMBRELS. 



ioi 



feeding and running about in the stubble, and occasionally 

 attempting to sing on the ground. The snow-buntings and 

 redpoles had disappeared, and in the streets their place 

 appeared to be taken by white wagtails. Fresh flocks of 

 these charming little birds in full breeding plumage arrived 

 daily ; and in a large flock consisting of thirty to forty birds 

 we noticed among them a green wagtail.* 



Three whimbrelsf passed over us. My companion whistled 

 to them, so cleverly imitating their note that they ap- 

 proached within fifty yards of him, when he shot them. A 

 peasant also brought us a rook,| the only one we saw during 



* The green wagtail (Budytes viri- 

 dis, Gmel.) has not been found on the 

 British Islands, being represented there 

 and in the temperate regions of Europe 

 by a nearly allied species, Motacilla 

 flava (Linn.), which differs in having 

 the colour of the head — and especially 

 of the cheeks and the lores — paler, and 

 in having a white eye-stripe. The 

 former species breeds at or near the 

 Arctic circle, throughout the palsearctic 

 region, wintering in South Europe, 

 North Africa as far south as Abyssinia, 

 India, and China. In the valley of the 

 Petchora we found it as far north as 

 latitude 66J°. 



t The whimbrel (Numenius phceopus, 

 Linn.) is very widely distributed, but 

 appears to be confined to the eastern 

 hemisphere and Greenland. In the 

 British Islands it only breeds in the 

 extreme north, vising the remainder 

 only in spring and autumn on migra- 

 tion. It is said to breed in South 



Russia, otherwise it is doubtful if it 

 breeds very far south of the Arctic 

 circle. In winter it is found throughout 

 South Europe, the whole of Africa, and 

 Southern Asia as far south as Australia. 

 In the valley of the Petchora we 

 did not see it further north than Ust- 

 Zylma. 



X The rook (Corvus fruyilegus, Linn.) 

 breeds in considerable colonies through- 

 out Central Europe, extending east- 

 wards in Asia as far as the valley of 

 the Obb. To the north it becomes 

 much rarer, seldom, if evei - , reaching 

 the Arctic circle. In England, as is 

 well known, it remains throughout the 

 year, but in countries where the winter 

 is more severe it migrates southwards 

 to both shores of the Mediterranean, 

 the Siberian and Turkestan birds appa- 

 rently wintering in Cashmere and 

 North-West India. In East Asia it is 

 replaced by a very nearly allied species, 

 C. pastinator (Gould), which differs in 



