30 SAXICOLA 



Minor and Asia, north to northern Siberia, east to China, and 

 south to N. India ; a somewhat rare visitant to N. America. 



Frequents open localities, both barren and fertile, especially 

 stony places. It is essentially a ground bird, not perching on 

 trees or bushes. Its flight is low, and not powerful, and its 

 song, which is uttered either on the wing, or when perched 

 on a stone or clod is sweet, but short. It breeds in the northern 

 and central portions of its range, and its nest, which is large 

 and flat, is loosely constructed of grasses, moss, rootlets, &c., 

 and lined with moss, hair, feathers, wool, and is placed in a hole 

 in a wall, amongst stones, in a rabbit burrow, or under a clod or 

 stone on -the ground. The eggs, usually from 5 to 7 in number, 

 are deposited in April or May, and are- pale blue, with a faint 

 greenish tinge, usually unspotted, but occasionally with a few 

 red dots ; in size they vary from 0'80 by. 0*57 to O f 90 by 0'65. 



Specimens of the Wheatear vary considerably in size, those 

 from Greenland being the largest, and those from Palestine and 

 Egypt the smallest. 



43. SEEBOHM'S WHEATEAR. 

 SAXICOLA SEEBOHMI. 



Saxicola seebohmi, Dixon, Ibis. 1882, p. 563, pi. xiv. Dresser, ix. p. 23, 

 pi. 636 ; Koenig, J. f. 0. 1895, p. 185, Tabb. iii., v. fig. 2. 



( ad. (Algeria). Upper parts as in S. cenanthe, but the wings and dark 

 portion of the tail are black, the lores, chin, sides of the head below the 

 eye and the throat are black ; rest of the under parts white ; axillaries 

 and under wing-coverts black edged with white at the tip ; bill and legs 

 black ; iris dark brown. Culmen 0*68, wing 3'87, tail 2'45, tarsus 1'05 

 inch. The female resembles S. cenanthe, but is bro*wner in colour. The 

 young male differs from the adult in having the upper parts tinged with 

 sandy buff, the black on the throat less extended, the wings brownish 

 black, and the under parts dull white. 



Hob. Algeria. 



Frequents desolate, stony localities, and is not shy. Nothing 

 is as yet known of its nidification. 



44. EHRENBERG'S WHEATEAR. 

 SAXICOLA VITTATA. 



Saxicola vittata, Hempr. and Ehr. Symb. Phys. Aves. fol. C. C. (1828) ; 



Dresser, ix. p. 25, pi. 637 (1895). 



< ad. (Arabia). Crown and hind-neck greyish white ; back, wings, 

 and a broad band from the lores to the base of the wing black ; central 



