1920.] Birds of Queita. 133 



Ziarat a dense juniper forest exists. From a distance, such 

 hills as Tiikatu and Murdar look bare and lifeless, but in 

 reality the veoetation is in places luxuriant and full of bird- 

 life; while, except in these hills, animals during the summer 

 are comparatively scarce, and the number of purely resident 

 species is small ; it is when the spring and autumn migra- 

 tions set in that bird-life is varied and abundant. 



Quetta apparently lies on a main migration route, and, as far 

 as I was able to judge, this route lies N.W. and S.T]. From 

 observations made of Ducks, Bee-eaters, Lai'ks, and other 

 species there is little doubt of this, though birds are naturally 

 seen migrating in all directions at times. V'alleys lying at 

 right angles to this line of migration are comparatively poor 

 in bird-life, whilst valleys parallel to the line are full of it. 

 Migration at Quetta starts early and ends late. In early 

 August the first arrivals appear, while many birds, as yet 

 unknown to breed Avithin Indian limits, are still to be found 

 in late May. It looks as though Quetta was the last baiting- 

 place before the final dash to northern climes. 



Then there is the local migration from high to low alti- 

 tudes. It is as reoular as the latituilinal mioration. The 

 Missel Thrush, Red-billed Chough, several Hawks, and numy 

 other species appear to make their local move every winter, 

 returning only a few miles to their breeding haunts every 

 spring, by an ascent of some 5000 feet. 



From November to early March the hills are snow-clad, 

 and little bird-life remains exc(5[)t in the juniper forests, 

 though I was never able to Hnd out whether Trocludo2)te>'i(i)i 

 Ihieadnii migrates or not. It seems unlikel}' that such a 

 delicate bird could brave out a blizzard, so frequent in 

 a Baluchistan winter. Quetta itself is under snow nearly 

 every February, and throughout the winter it is colder there 

 than on average in Euoland. 



No one can help noticing the European character of the 

 birds. It is no uncommon thing to walk all day round 

 Quetia in the winter and see nothing but a few Missel 

 Thrushes, Mag[)ios, liooks, ►Snijie, })erhai)s a Woodcock, 

 Bramble Finches, and other such familiar English birds. 

 Quetta is, moreover, one of the few parts of British India 



