378 THE BIEDS OF HELIGOLAND 



179. Rustic Bunting [WALDAMMER]. 

 EMBERIZA RUSTICA, Pallas. 



Heligolandish : Koad-striiked Nieper = Red-striped Reed Bunting. 

 Emberiza rustica Nauinann, xiii. ; Blasius, Nachtrdge, 180. 



Rustic Bunting. Dresser, iv. 229. 



Bruant rustique. Temminck, Manuel, iii. 229. 



This, like the preceding species, is almost exclusively an Asiatic 

 bird, and counts in a still higher degree among the rarer occur- 

 rences of central and western Europe, Heligoland probably being able 

 to show more instances of its occurrence than ah 1 other parts to the 

 west of its breeding range together. I find it noted no less than six- 

 teen times in my diary, and of these examples eight are at present set 

 up in my collection. The first example of this species was killed 

 here in 1839 or 1840. Claus Aeuckens, at that time a little boy, 

 threw a flat stone at it in such a manner as to sever the head clean 

 from the trunk. Although at that time I neither collected nor pos- 

 sessed the least knowledge of birds, it was at iny instigation that the 

 bird was stuffed in spite of its unfortunate condition. It went into 

 the collection of Herr A. P. Schuldt of Hamburg, who afterwards, 

 when I had seriously devoted myself to the avifauna of Heligoland, 

 most kindly gave it over to me ; and though I am now in possession 

 of a number of far more beautiful examples, the specimen in 

 question still forms a pleasing recollection of my early unassisted 

 steps in the domain of ornithology. The other examples were 

 obtained in the following order : 10th September 1857 ; 9th 

 October 1863 ; 9th September 1870 ; 3rd April 1873, a female ; 

 5th October 1875, a male; 9th October 1878; 27th and 28th 

 of September 1879, one each day ; on the 8th October two or 

 three birds were seen, and one each day on the 9th and 10th; 

 on the 14th April 1880, one in my 'garden; on the 17th of Sep- 

 tember 1881 an example was shot here ; and on the same day one 

 was killed on the opposite coast of England. On the 24th Sep- 

 tember my son Ludwig shot a young bird in connection with 

 which I would remark that, four days previously, he likewise shot 

 the first example of Sylvia (Hypolais) pallida, which had ever 

 occurred here. In the head-markings of the autumn plumage this 

 Bunting shows much similarity to other closely related species, but 

 could nevertheless never be confounded with any of these. It is 

 at once characterised by the abundance of the beautiful rich 

 ferruginous colour, which is spread over the whole of its plumage. 

 The feathers of the hind neck, the shoulders and rump, as well as 



