54, DALMATIAN NUTHATCH. 



has a note entirely different from that of the Common Nuthatch. I 

 never observed this bird to perch on a tree or shrub, but almost 

 invariably found them on the most exposed and barren hill sides." 



Mr. W. H. Simpson has also some interesting remarks about this 

 bird in his "Ornithological Notes from Missolonghi and Southern 

 iEtolia," (Ibis, vol. ii., p. 289.) — "On the opposite side of the same 

 stone was a nest of that most eccentric bird, Sitta syriaca; it had 

 been repaired once or twice, but at that period was not inhabited. 

 The nest was plastered over the mouth of a small cavity, and, were 

 it not for the little round entrance hole, would be very difficult to 

 distinguish from the numerous structures of a species of ant which are 

 thickly stuck over the face of the rock, and at a distance resemble in 

 size and appearance the nest of Sitta syriaca itself. But the greatest 

 curiosity of all was to be seen under a large flat slab, which projected 

 enough to afford convenient shelter during a shower of rain. This 

 was a nest of Hirunclo rufula, which had been broken at one end, 

 and consequently abandoned by the bird. Meanwhile a Nuthatch had 

 come and repaired the damage, possibly with the intention of appro- 

 priating the nest. The difference in the workmanship, and to a certain 

 extent in the material, was very apparent when taken in juxtaposition. 

 In shape the nest of Hirunclo rufula is so different from that of any 

 other European bird, that this proceeding on the part of the Nuthatch 

 was still more extraordinary." 



I copy the following from Count Muhle's " Beitraege Zur Ornithologie 

 Griechenlands," p. 50: — "This is a bird which by many of our naturalists 

 is only considered to be an acclimatized variety of the common S. 

 europcea ; but it is certainly a distinct species. It lives only on the 

 rocks, never in woods, and remains willingly about old Venetian for- 

 tresses, where it constantly glides in and out of the shot-holes. When 

 it settles upon a rock, it likes to suspend itself with its head down- 

 wards, and hops off by fits and starts. It seeks its food on trees that 

 are frequented by Coleoptera, such as the bread fruit, or Cactus 

 opuntia. It builds its nest on the rugged rock walls under the natural 

 roof of an overhanging rock, usually on the east or south side — never 

 on the west. It is very large outside, and skilfully built with clay, 

 eleven inches long from the entrance. It is lined with the hair of 

 bullocks, dogs, goats, or jackals. It is always on the outside woven 

 together with the seeds of Chrysomela graminis and Trichocles antiquus. 

 It is usually so compactly made, that I was obliged to separate one 

 with a chisel. This nest had been used many years. The bird is 

 very lively, restless, and inquisitive. The young are easily tamed, and 

 become very confiding; they may be fed upon bread crumbs, but in a 



