1873.J DISTRIBUTION OF ASIATIC BIRDS. 647 



PAL^ARCTIC REGION. 



The greater part of Asia is now universally admitted to belong to 

 the great Palsearctic region, which, though (as pointed out by Dr. 

 Sclater) the most extensive in the world, is zoologically the poorest. 



Of the whole country between the Russian dominions in Siberia 

 and our own m India we know so little that I have not been able to 

 find a single locality in which the materials necessary for analysis 

 have been collected. 



It is, however, reasonable to suppose that the immense deserts of 

 Mongolia, the steppes of the Kirghiz, and the snowy mountains of 

 Ihibet contain but little variety of species, and that we shall be safe 

 in including them in the Palsearctic region until they are better 

 known. 



Turkestan. 



In Russian Turkestan M. Severtsoff has collected largely ; and 

 though no account has been given of the birds he obtained, I believe 

 they were mostly species which are known to occur in Western 

 Siberia and Persia. 



From Yarkand a few birds new to science were recently brouo-ht 

 by Dr. Henderson *, by far the most interesting among them being two 

 species of Podoces, a genus restricted to Central Asia, and supposed 

 by Mr. Hume to be more nearly allied to the Timaliinse of India and 

 Africa than to the Corvidse, in which it was placed by Bonaparte. 



In the mountain-ranges which cover a great part of Persia and 

 Afghanistan the fauna becomes more like that of Eastern Europe a 

 few genera only, such as Erythrospiza, Carpodacus, and Tetrao- 

 gallus, being remarkable. 



Afghanistan. 



Of the birds of Afghanistan we have no detailed account, except 

 that by Capt Hutton (J. A. S. B. 1847, p. 775), by which it appears 

 that m a collection of 66 species of land birds made at Candahar 

 there were as follows : — 



Species common to India and Europe 38 



Found in Europe only 12 



In India only 12 



In neither 4 



Among the European birds the most remarkable are Pica caudata, 

 Loxia curvirostra, Merula vulgaris, Sitta syriaca, Alcedo ispida 

 Murnus unicolor ; but almost the only one among the Indian birds 

 which strikes me as unexpected is Myiophonus temmincki, which 

 if a resident m the country at all, must be very local. Tetraogallus 

 Caucasians has not been recorded so far east as this by any other 

 naturalist It is therefore doubtful what, if any, species of that 

 genus will be found in the north of Afghanistan and Badakshan. 



Persia. 

 Of the birds of Persia I have, through the kindness of Mr. Blan- 



* See Lahore to Yarkand : London, 1873. 



