Crested Larks found hi Egypt. 547 



in the oases of tlie western desert undescribed forms yet 

 await discovery. The object of the present paper is (1) to 

 place on record the results of a careful study of existing 

 material, (2) to attempt to straighten out this somewhat 

 difficult and little understood subject. 



Recently three papers have been published on Egyptian 

 birds in which Crested Larks figure largely. I refer to : — 



1. Lynes and Witherby, '"^ On a Collection of Birds from 



the Mediterranean.''' Ibis, 1912, p. 121. 



2. C. B. Ticehurst, " Birds of Lower Egypt." Zoologist, 



1912, pp. 41-59. 



3. Paul KoUibay, " Bemerkungen iiber die Huubenlerchen 



von Suez, Sinai, und Palastina.''^ Ornith. Monats- 

 ber. XX. 1912, pp. 113-115. 



The first two of these papers are based on collections of 

 birds made during short visits to Egypt, and the last is a 

 careful paper on the form of Galerida cristata from the 

 neighbourhood of Suez. 1 have had the good fortune 

 to examine all the specimens of Crested Larks referred to 

 in Messrs. Lynes and Witherby^s and Dr. Ticehurst^s 

 papers. 



Messrs. Lynes and Witljerby have come to the same con- 

 clusions as I have, and their statements on the ranges 

 of the different forms treated of are, as far as they go, and 

 they are necessarily somewhat limited, perfectly correct. 

 I regret that I cannot agree with Dr. Ticehurst in his 

 review of the Ci-ested Larks obtained during his short 

 visit to Egypt, but his material was very small for such a 

 difficult subject. 



In working out the ranges of the different forms of 

 Galerida in Egypt, it must be remembered that where two 

 or perhaps three forms meet, interbreeding must and un- 

 doubtedly does take place, and some individuals are con- 

 sequently difficult to place with certainty, and that slight 

 variations take place at extrcfnes of the range. It is only 

 by collecting and studying large series from as many 

 localities as possible that any definite conclusions can be 

 made and real facts ascertained. 



