400 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXVITI. 
108. Pied Wheatear. A=Enanthe pleschanka. 
nanthe pleschanka pleschanka, Lepech (Nov. Comm. Petr., 14, p. 503, 
1770—Saratov on the Volga). 
A passage migrant in small numbers and widely distributed, passing through 
in March (earliest March Ist) and again at the end of September and during 
October, in which month it is more plentiful than at other times. Tomlinson 
says it is not uncommon at Basra on both passages and Cumming obtained it 
at Fao in April and October. Cheesman notes that it flies straight up in the 
air in pursuit of flies, but I do not think that this habit is confined to this species 
entirely. It may be commoner than our certain records indicate but some 
observers confused this with the former and the next species. Zarudny lists it 
as a passage migrant and also the white-throated variety (vittata). 
Nine specimens examined : 3, Legait, 1-3-18 ; 6 Shaiba, 4-10-16 ; Sheik Saad, 
29-3-17 (P. Z. C. and R. E. C.); Adhaim, 30-9-17, @, 14-10-17 (two), %, 
20-10-17, 17-10-17 (C. R. P.); %, Basra, 1918 (Hobkirk). 
1o9. Barne’s Wheatear. A?nanthe finschii. 
Ainanthe finschii barnesi, Oates (Faun. B. India 2, p. 75, 1880—Balu- 
chistan). 
This fine black and white Wheatear is a winter visitor, apparently much 
commoner in the area above Baghdad on the Tigris, where stony ground, cliffs 
and nullahs occur, and in the foothills, than in the alluvial plain below Baghdad 
whence there are few records. The earliest record is October 20th and the 
latest March Ist. It is rather a wary bird, found singly or in pairs, frequenting 
bare nullahs, cliffs, ruins, and desert mounds. 
It certainly breeds, according to Cheesman, in the Pa-i-taq mountains on the 
Kasr-i-Sherin-Kermanshah road and may possibly do so in the neighbourhood 
of the former place. Zarudny records finschit and finschit turanica as winter 
visitors to the Karun district. I take both of these to be synonyms of this bird. 
Thirteen specimens examined : &. Kumait, 28-2-18 (P. A. B.); @, Kazimain, 
13-2-19 ; Beled. 1-3-19, 9, 22-2-19 (P. Z. C. and R. E. C.); @, Adhaim, 13-11-17, 
20-10-17 (two), 22-10-17, 14-11-17; @, Beit-al-Khalifa, 11-1-18, 30-1-18 (two); 
Samarra, 6-2-18 (C. R. P.). 
T consider all these to be the race now known as barnesi: wings of males 
90-93, @ 89 mm. The females all have grey throats. This is one of those 
cases where great confusion will be caused by the changing round of names. 
This species was always called finschii and the more eastern race of it barnes, 
Hartert in his Vég. Pal. Fauna, p. 690, changed the specific name to melano- 
leuca of Guidenstadt, a name which had always (falsely according to him !) 
been used for the Eastern Black-eared Wheatear. The name finschii has now 
been reinstated and melanoleuca goes back once more to its original owner. 
The net result of this is that, in the period between these changes and probably 
for some years to come, records under melanoleuca, unless very carefully given, 
will be open to doubt as to which Wheatear is referred to! 
110. Isabelline Wheatear. A=nanthe isabellina. 
Ainanthe isabellina, Cretzschm (Atlas zu Ruppell’s Reise. Végel, 
p- 52, 1826—Nubia). 
The status of this species is not quite clear ; probably a few are resident and 
their numbers are augmented by winter visitors. Cumming says it is a winter 
visitor at Fao remaining till well on into spring and an occasional one is to 
be met within summer. Buxton saw one near Amara on July 13th and obtained 
one on the 25th, so probably afew remain out in the salt desert to breed. Zarudny 
too says it breeds in small numbeis in the Karun district ; on the Syrian boun- 
dary it certainly breeds, as Weigold records that he shot a breeding female in 
April on the steppes between Urfa and Aleppo. 
