SPANISH SPABBOW. 55 



views in the ^Ibis.' It is very curious in such a central place as 

 Malta, where so many naturalists have touched, that we should be 

 still in doubt as to the common S^^arrow of the island." 



Brehm, in Biideker's "European Eggs," says of this bird: — "It lays 

 from four to six eggs, which are somewhat smaller than those of the 

 House Sparrow, bluish or greenish white, like those of the Italian 

 Sparrow, often very dark at the thick end; generally oval, but some- 

 times much lengthened." 



The male in spring plumage has the top of the head and the 

 nape dark chesnut brown; back black, streaked with cream-colour; 

 upper tail coverts olivaceous brown; cheeks and superciliary ridge 

 pure white; throat and upper part of breast deep black, while the 

 lower parts of the breast and flanks are thickly spotted with large 

 black markings on a white ground; middle of the abdomen and under 

 tail coverts dirty white. The wings with a broad band of white 

 across them, formed by the tips of the lesser coverts, and there is a 

 similar band above the carpus, extending from the cheeks; the lesser 

 coverts are same colour as the top of the head and nape, the others 

 broadly bordered with russet. Tail olivaceous brown, with the feathers 

 slightly bordered with ash-colour; beak black; feet reddish; iris brown. 



In autumn the male has the feathers of the neck and crop bordered 

 with ash, like the Domestic Sparrow, and the white of the cheeks 

 also more ash-coloured. 



The female has the head, top of neck, and body grey brown, with 

 the feathers of the scapularies and the quills of the wings, fringed 

 along their borders with yellowish; below, the colour is dirty white, 

 with faint spots of brown in front of the neck and crop, and the 

 flanks of a russet and ashy tint; beak brownish above, yellowish below. 



The young before the first moult resemble the female, only the 

 tints are paler, and the commissures of the beak soft and yellow. 



My drawing of this bird is from a specimen kindly sent me by Mr. 

 Canon Tristram. It is marked "Hhodes, April 19, 1858." The egg- 

 is from my own collection, and was taken by Kriiper near Smyrna. 



It has also been figured by Houx, Ornith. Pro v., pi. 84, (adult male;) 

 Gould, B. of E., pi. 185. 



