and in its Neighbourhood in 1864. 63 



water near the Gombo, towards the middle of May. These birds 

 never came up the Arao^ nor have I ever heard of their having 

 been seen on fresh water ; they appear eminently marine. 



About Leghorn harbour and the neighbouring shore along 

 the Ardenza I saw, towards the end of May, Laroides argentatus, 

 L. fuscus, L. canus, and Chrcecocephalus ridibundus, all very 

 common ; while I saw only a few scattered individuals of the 

 beautiful Chroecocephalus melanocephalus and of the Little Gull 

 {Hgdj'ocoloeus minutus). 



As to the Sternina, I never was in a place where so many are 

 seen. Towards the middle of May, when the passage begins in 

 the Maremma and in the fenny country around Pisa, hundreds 

 and thousands are caught with nets ; indeed, so great is the 

 number, that they are sent in bags to the Pisan market, to supply 

 the wants of the poorer classes, who do not object to toughness 

 and a strong fishy taste ; and such is their abundance, and so 

 little their worth, that their wings are cut off before they enter 

 the gates of the town, as they pay duty in proportion to their 

 weight. These mutilated and dead birds may be seen in heaps 

 in the market; but, what is worse, whole cagefuls are brought 

 alive, and sold at the rate of a penny each, for the amusement 

 of street-boys and such like, who torture the poor creatures 

 dreadfully, until hunger puts an end to their lives ; for they will 

 not eat in captivity. The commoner species thus caught are 

 Hydrochelidon nigra, H. leucoptera, and Sternula minuta. Sterna 

 hirundo is scarcer ; and on the 20th of last May, among a lot of 

 Little Terns, I found a fine male specimen of the Hydrochelidon 

 leucopareia. Professor Savi told me that he had got several of 

 them during the spring of 1863. 



Here finishes the list of the birds which came within my obser- 

 vation during my nine months^ stay here. Before concluding, I 

 will add that, from what I have seen, the country around Pisa, 

 especially towards the Maremma, is most favourable to marsh- 

 loving birds, and more especially to some sections of the Sylviirue ; 

 and I doubt not that, as shooting has been recently permitted 

 to ornithologists during the spring and summer, new species 

 may turn up in the Tuscan avifauna. 



Pisa, October 21st, 1864. 



