SAXICOLA LEUCURA. 41 



12. Saxicola leucura (Gmelin). The Black Wheatear. 



Spanish. Sacristan (the Sexton) ; Pedrero (the Stone-mason). 



This bird is merely named as occurring near Tangier by 

 Favier, but is found in Morocco in suitable localities. 



On the Spanish side the Black Wheatear is a common and 

 conspicuous bird at Gibraltar, and to be seen throughout the 

 year; elsewhere some are migratory, arriving in March, and 

 only found on bare rocky ground. The nest is sometimes in 

 clefts of rocks, so deep in as to be inaccessible. 



Mr. Stark took a nest on the 25th of April, near Gibraltar, 

 containing four pale blue eggs hard sat on, marked with a zone 

 of light reddish-brown spots. The nest was very large, loosely 

 built with grass and heather-roots, lined inside with finer grass, 

 two or three feathers of the Neophron, and one bit of palmetto 

 fibre. 



The name of pedrero is applied to this bird from their curious 

 habit of placing small stones as a foundation to their nest, and 

 frequently, as when open to view, making a sort of wall or screen 

 of stones in front of the nest. 



Verner remarks that they much resemble the Blue Rock-Thrush 

 in habits ; and all the many nests found by him had foundations 

 of small stones the first two had foundations only, but the third 

 had a slight wall in front and until he heard from me that this 

 bird was known near Malaga as pedrero he was much puzzled to 

 account for the stones being so placed. In some instances the 

 foundation appears to be useful in keeping the nest dry. 



The most remarkable nest we met with was on the 6th of 

 April, 1894, in a small hole in the roof of a sandstone cave in 

 the Sierra Bartolome. This nest, which I myself saw in situ, 

 was made of grass and fibres lined with finer fibres of the 

 palmetto, without wool or feathers : the cavity was filled by the 

 nest and by the foundation and barrier of stones in front ; the 

 latter was 9 inches long, the same in width, and 2^ inches high. 

 Yerner removed the stones and found that the wall in front 



