88 A CONTRIBUTION TO THE ORNITHOLOGY 
room, one day, and smashed a mercurial barometer; and on a 
subsequent occasion it was discovered calmly crunching the 
grass minimum thermometer. The Ibex is exceedingly amus- 
ing; and the way it manages to jump up on the roof and run 
along narrow walls is simply wonderful. 
The advent of spring has been very noticeable this month : 
on the 19th I noticed the young leaf buds on the willows, and 
the unfolding of the leaves has since gone on so rapidly that 
the trees are now beginning to look quite green. Wheat has 
been sown this month for the summer crop; and the autumn — 
sowings of wheat and lucerne, which have been lying dormant 
during the winter, are now beginning to sprout. 
The weather during the month has been markedly different to 
what we had in February. There have been 5 days of fairly 
clear weather, witha blue sky ; 14 days of partial cloud or haze; 
and 12 days of sky completely overcast by clouds or a dense dust 
haze. The air has not been so still as in the previous month; and 
on the afternoon of the 27th we had a dust-storm from the north- 
east. This dust-storm exactly resembled in character (though 
not in intensity) those prevalent in the Panjab at a certain 
season: that is to say, a high dark cloud of dust could be seen 
approaching for some time befere we felt the first puff of dust- 
laden wind. Since that, for the last five days, the sky has been 
obscured by a most dense haze of dust, so that sometimes ob- 
jects even 400 yards off are barely visible. 
Rain fell on the 13th and 14th, but the total amount collected 
in the rain gauge did not indicate a fall of more than 0:12 inch. 
In the first half of the month the mean minimum tempera- 
ture in the shade was 33°°4; the minimum being just below 
freezing point on the first five days of the month, while on the 
12th the temperature in the shade did fall below 40°:2. The 
mean on the minimum temperatures on grass was 285; the 
thermometer registering 20°°2 on the 5th and 38°8 on the 
12th. 
In the second half of the month the maximum temperature 
in the shade was 77°-5; the mean minimum in the shade was 
39°°6 (on the 31st not lower than 48°°4) ; and the mean of the 
minimum on grass was 45°35. 
Turning now to our birds this month several important addi- 
tions kaye to be mentioned. 
Falco peregrinus and Falco Tscherniaievi have been obtained ; 
both these species appear to be rare. Zinnunculus alaudarius is 
as common asever. Buteo vulgaris, Buteo ferox and Buteo 
japonicus are, I think, getting more scarce. Circus cyaneus, Otus 
vulgaris and Otus brachyotus areas common as before. Bubo 
maximus has been seen ; and Athene bactriana is still common. 
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