GECINUSIYNX 457 



Siberian bird (torn. cit. p. 107, note) as G. canus perpallidus, 

 but I cannot see that these are even subspecifically separable 

 from the European bird. 



IYNX, Linn., 1746. 



G56. WRYNECK. 

 IYNX TORQUILLA. 



lynx torquilki (Linn.), Syst. Nat. i. p. 172 (1766) ; (Naum.), 5, p. 356, 

 Taf. 138, figs. 1, 2 ; Hewitson, i. p. 242, pi. Ixii. fig. 1 ; (Gould), B. 

 of E. iii. pi. 233 ; (id.), B. of Gt. Brit. iii. pi. 76 ; Newton, ii. p. 487 ; 

 Dresser, y. p. 103, pi. 289 ; David and Oust. Ois. Chine, p. 55 ; Har- 

 gitt, Cat. B. Br. Mus. xviii. p. 560 ; (Tacz.) F. 0. Sib. 0. p. 727 ; 

 Blanf. F. Brit. Ind. Birds, iii. p. 78 ; Saunders, p. 271 ; Lilford, ii. 

 p. 12, pi. 5 ; Seebohm, B. Jap. Emp. p. 157. 



Tor col ordinaire, French ; Papa-formigas, Portug. ; Torcecuello, 

 Span. ; Torcecollo, ItaL ; Wendehafs, German ; Draaihals, Dutch ; 

 Vcndehals, Dan. and Norweg. ; Goktyta, Swed. ; Kaen-piika, 

 Finn. ; Vertigolovka, Russ. ; G-ardan cycnytha, Hind. ; Meda 

 mdingadu, Tarn. 



(J ad. (England). Upper parts greyish, washed with brown, barred and 

 finely vermiculated and marked with brown and black, the nape, middle of 

 the back, scapulars, and inner secondaries broadly striped with blackish ; 

 quills externally barred with warm buff ; tail minutely vermiculated and 

 pencilled with blackish, and having five to six distinct blackish brown 

 bars ; under parts buffy white, the middle of the abdomen nearly clear white ; 

 throat and upper breast marked with blackish brown bars, which towards 

 the abdomen become arrow-headed in shape ; flanks and tail-coverts barred 

 with blackish ; a blackish brown stripe passes through the eye to the nape, 

 and above this is a buffy white line ; bill dull brown ; legs yellowish 

 brown ; iris hazel. Culrnen 0'58, wing 3'4, tail 2'7, tarsus 0'75 inch. The 

 female resembles the male, but is rather duller in .colour, and the young 

 bird has the under parts more strongly marked with blackish brown. 



Hob. Europe generally up to about 63 N. lat., above which 

 it is rare ; not found in Lapland ; migrating to Africa, south to 

 Kordofan and Senegal ; Asia, north to Kamchatka, east to Japan ; 

 in winter ranging south to the plains of Burma and India. 



Though this bird has the feet of a Woodpecker, its tail is 

 not stiff like those birds', and it but seldom climbs about the 

 trees like them. It has a habit of elongating and twisting its 

 neck in a curious way, and when disturbed in its nest-hole 

 utters a loud hissing sound like the note of a snake. Its usual 

 note is a loud qui, qui, qui uttered quickly, many times in 

 succession, but except during the breeding season it is a silent 



