HISTORY OF THE EUROPEAN FAUNA. 



(Turnix sylvatica) is probably of North African 

 origin, and has subsequently spread into Southern 

 Spain and Portugal, and eastward as far as Sicily. 

 It is an instance of a migrant utilising the old 

 Mediterranean land-connections in the opposite direc- 

 tion from that described in the last chapter. 



Two of our British Wagtails are very closely 

 related, so much so that it requires a very critical eye 

 to distinguish them even at close range. They also 

 frequently interbreed. In their distribution, however, 

 there is a considerable difference between the White 

 Wagtail (Motacilla alba} and the Pied Wagtail 

 (M. lugubris). While the former ranges almost 

 all over Europe and Asia, the latter is a local 

 form resident in the British Islands, Southern 

 Scandinavia, and France, and a winter visitor to 

 Spain and North-west Africa. The genus Motacilla 

 is probably Oriental in its origin, but it seems as if 

 the Pied Wagtail was a Lusitanian species which 

 had gradually spread northward, only to return to 

 South-western Europe in severe weather for shelter. 



The Bearded Titmouse (Panurus biarmicus] the 

 only representative of the family Panuridce may 

 possibly be a Lusitanian bird. The fact of its 

 being absent from Scandinavia and Northern Russia 

 is suggestive of a southern origin. It is doubtful 

 whether the bird occurs on the south side of the 

 Mediterranean, but it is common in the south of 

 France and Spain, and has also been observed in 

 Sicily, Greece, and Asia Minor. In Central Europe 



