THE BIRDS OF MESOPOTAMIA. 421 
winter visitors from elsewhere. In the cliffs bordering the upper parts of the 
Tigris from Fatah Gorge to the Samarra district and on the Euphrates near 
Feluja, it is reported as being an abundant breeding species ; elsewhere ruins 
are occupied and at Museyib Livesay found two nests containing 7 eggs each, 
in each case an old Magpie’s nest being utilized. Pitman records that they were 
pairing off at the end of February at Samarra where every ruin had its pair ; he 
found a nest of young in the middle of a Roller colony at Feluja on May 25th. 
Logan Home found eggs at Tekrit between April 4th and May 15th. 
From Baghdad and Babylon southwards it appears to be a winter visitor as 
we have no nesting records ; Buxton at Amara says it arrives at the end of Sep- 
tember and leaves by the first week in April. In the Shustar district however 
it is a breeding species. 
Nine skins examined: 4, Bait-al-Khalifa, 30-1-18; 9, Adhaim, 4-11-17 
(C. R. P.); 4, Baghdad, 14-1-19; Amara, 21-12-17; Sheik Saad, 22-3-17 (P. Z. C. 
and R. E. C.) ; @, Amara, 1-11-17, 29-10-17, 23-12-17 (P. A. B); @, Hit, 7-4-18 
(Ludlow). 
Wings ¢ 230-250. Q 247-271 mm. 
These agree well with European birds, whose mantles vary much in shade of 
colour. 
166. Imperial Eagle. Aquila heliaca. 
Aquila heliaca heliaca, Sav. (Desc. Egypte. Syst. Ois., p. 82, 1809—Upper 
Egypt). 
Very few Eagles of any sort wee obtained and many records of various Eagles 
have had to be omitted as being unreliable as to the species. Eagles are not 
uncommon in Mesopotamia, all, except Bonelli’s and the White-tailed, being, 
so far as we know, winter visitants. 
The Imperial Eagle is recorded by Mr. Donald twice in October near Basra 
and once near Sheik Saad where he saw one stooping at a hare. Logan Home 
noted it near Gurmat Ali on August 8th. Zarudny records it in winter in the 
Karun district ; Meinerzhagen records it from the Tigris in winter. Cheesman 
obtained one at Beled on March 4th; it had been feeding on stale sheep’s 
“lights ”*. 
167, Tawny Eagle. Aquila rapax. 
Aquila rapax albicans, Riipp. (Neue Wirbelt. V6g., p. 34, 1835—Simen 
Proy. in Abyssinia). 
There are no records which can safely be put down to this species ; perhaps 
it is not uncommon as Pitman obtained one at Kut and Logan Home one at 
Basra. Wings 520 and 525mm. Mr. W. L. Sclater, who has recently been work- 
ing at this group, kindly identified these for me as belonging to this race. 
168, Steppe Eagle. Aquila nipalensis. 
Aquila nipalensis orientalis, Cab. (J. F. O., 1854, p. 369—Volga). 
Fairly common winter visitor in the marshes round Amara and presumably 
elsewhere ; last seen April 7th. Mr. Donald records seeing one rob a Saker of a 
Sand-grouse. Buxton obtained one at Kurna on March 17th, 1918, and Chees- 
man got one, sitting on a desert mound at Beled, on March Ist, 1919, it had been 
feeding on stale chicken; another near Zoar on April 30th, where he saw two pairs. 
Zarudny records both this, the western race, and the eastern typical race nipa- 
lensis from the Karun district in winter as well asa race, glitszht, which 
according to Hartert is a synonym of orientalis. 
I am indebted to Mr. Sclater for identifying these two specimens. 
169. Greater Spotted Eagle. Aquila maculata, 
Aquila maculata (Gm.) (Syst. Nat. I, i, p. 258, 1788—Europe). 
