222 MESSRS. BLANFORD AND DRESSER ON [Apr. 21, 



this with certainty. The same remark applies to several other 

 species, especially S. melanoleuca, erythrcea, and deserti. 



Hub. South-western Europe, including Italy and north-western 

 Africa. It is occasionally found in Germany, and occurs as a 

 straggler in Egypt and the Levant. 



5. Saxicola melanoleuca. 



Muscicapa melanoleuca, Giild. Nov. Com. Petr. xix. p. 468, 

 pi. 15(1775). 



Saxicola xanthomelcena, Ehr. Symb. Phys. fol. aa (1829). 



Saxicola eiirymelcena, Ehr. torn. cit. fol. bb (1829). 



Saxicola albicilla, V. Mull. Naumannia, 1851, iv. p. 28. 



Saxicola hendersoni, Hume, Ibis, 1871, p. 480. 



Saxicola talas, Severtzoff, Turkest. Jevotn. p. 119, pi. viii. figs. 

 1, 3, 4 (1873). 



In plumage this species passes through the same changes as its 

 close ally S. ru/a, and only differs from that bird in having the 

 black on the throat extended much further down ; and as a rule the 

 males have the white portions of the plumage much purer. In 

 many old males the feathers on the crown and sometimes on the 

 back are considerably worn, the blackish grey basal portion showing 

 very distinctly. 



Hab. South-eastern Europe as far west as Malta ; North- 

 eastern Africa; Asia Minor, Persia, and Yarkand. 



6. Saxicola erythr/EA. 



Saxicola erythrcea, Ehr. Symb. Phys. fol. cc (1829). 

 Saxicola halophila, Trist. Ibis, 1859, p. 59. 

 Saxicola libanotica, Trist. Ibis, 1867, pp. 91-94, nee Ehr. 

 Saxicola /wscAw, Heugl. Orn. N.O.-Afr. p. 350.no. 299(1869). 



Adult male. Crown, nape, dorsal region, rump, and upper tail- 

 coverts, lower breast, abdomen, and under tail-coverts pure white ; 

 sides of the head and neck, throat and upper part of the breast, 

 wings, scapulars, wing-coverts and wing-lining black ; quills brownish 

 black ; secondaries slightly tipped with dull white ; central tail- 

 feathers white on the basal half and black on the terminal portion : 

 other rectrices white, broadly terminated with black, and finally very 

 narrowly tipped with dirty white ; bill and legs black ; iris dark 

 brown. Culmen 0*7, wing 3*4, tail 2*35, tarsus 105. 



Young male. Crown, nape, back, and scapulars white, obscured 

 by dull isabelline ; wings as in the adult female ; tail, throat, and 

 underparts generally as in the adult male. 



Adult female. Crown, back, and scapulars dull brownish grey or 

 dust-colour ; rump and upper tail-coverts white ; quills blackish 

 brown, narrowly margined with dull fulvous ; wing-coverts similar, 

 but blacker ; tail as in the adult male, but rather duller in colour ; 

 superciliary region lighter than the rest of the head ; throat, sides of 

 the neck, and auriculars black, considerably obscured by light dusty 



