Ornithology of Corsica. 191 



spurs, and the vast masses of the main mouutaiu chains, 

 covered for the greater part of the year with snow, stand 

 out in bold relief. It must, however, not be supposed that 

 the whole of the mountain surface is occupied by forests 

 or barren peaks and snowfields. Everywhere in the island 

 one meets with, the " macchia/' differing in character, of 

 course — here consisting of cistus bushes, broom, and lavender, 

 which is easily brushed aside and forms but a slight encum- 

 brance in one's way; there a vast tangle of lentiscus, myrtle, 

 azalea, and many other shrubs, extending high overhead 

 and rendering progress almost impossible. But from an 

 ornithologist's point of view this sea of brushwood has many 

 advantages. In the first place, it furnishes a secure retreat 

 for thousands of small birds, which breed there undisturbed, 

 except perhaps at rare intervals when some wandering 

 goatherd fi^res a patch of scrub, or the roots of the shrubs are 

 grabbed up for pipe-bowls and the branches stacked for 

 firewood. 



One last word on the natural conditions. The presence of 

 these great forests ensures a continual supply of pure fresh 

 water from the hills. The rivers are, however, little more 

 than rapidly flowing streams of no great size, haunted only 

 by a few pairs of the local race of the Dipper and the Grrey 

 Wagtail. 



Literature. 



With regard to the literature, it is interesting to note that 

 until quite recently nearly all the work of ornithological 

 exploration had been done by Englishmen. Of late years, 

 however, our German cousins have shown more activity in 

 the field, while the late Professor Giglioli was instrumental 

 in largely increasing the list of autumn visitors. 



The following is a list of the most important publications 

 on the subject : — 



[In 1866 the Rev. W. H. Hawker visited the island and explored the 

 higher mountains, but his paper in the ' Alpine Journal,' 1869, 

 p. 269, contains nothing of interest to the ornithologist. The 

 identification of tiie Imperial Eagle is probably an error for the 

 'Jolden Eagle. A. chnjsa'etos.'] 



P. 2 



