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still in such a state that, after working together the pieces, I succeeded in making it up into 

 quite a respectable skin, much better than many which are sent over by collectors. The label 

 was still attached to it ; and on it was written "Alauda lusitania, rare in Malta," in Mr. Wright's 

 handwriting. I lost no time in writing to that gentleman to inquire if he could give me any 

 further particulars, and asking if the specimen was obtained at Malta, and have just received his 

 letter in reply, in which he writes as follows: — "The Lark in question was obtained in Malta. 

 I picked it up myself from one of the stalls in the market, and took it to England in 1868 with 

 other rare birds to determine satisfactorily. The parcel was left with a friend in Northampton, 

 and some of the skins were, as you know, destroyed by a cat. I am glad the Lark has been 

 saved from the wreck." 



In North Africa it is tolerably common ; and is stated by Loche to inhabit the Algerian 

 Sahara, where, however, it is somewhat rare. Canon Tristram writes (Ibis, 1859, p. 423) that 

 " it is more strictly confined to the southern Sahara [than A. deserti], never being found in the 

 northern or rocky districts, and, though not scarce in its localities, is rather solitary in its 

 habits, not more than two or three being, very rarely, observed together." Referring to it again 

 in the same article (p. 424) under the name of Ammomanes regulus, he states that it occurs near 

 Waregla and in the southern portion of the Chamba territory. Mr. J. H. Gurney, jun., shot it 

 in the Mzab country. Mr. G. E. Gray, in his Hand-list (ii. p. 122), gives Lower Egypt as the 

 habitat of this Lark; but Captain Shelley did not meet with it in that country. Professor 

 Sundevall, however (I. c), states that it is found in Lower Egypt and Arabia Petrsea; and 

 Von Heuglin writes (Orn. N.O.-Afr. p. 686) that it inhabits the warmer portions of Arabia, 

 being met with in pairs, occurs in Central and Southern Nubia, probably also at Kordofan and 

 North Sennaar, on the confines of the cultivated country, and appears to be a resident. 



After a careful examination of specimens in the British Museum, and a comparison between 

 them and a series of examples from North Africa, I cannot discover any specific distinction 

 between the Cape-Verd and the North-African birds. It is true that the former is, as a rule, 

 darker and more rufous; but it does not differ in any other respect; and as the individual 

 variation in colour in specimens of this species from different localities, as in A. deserti, is by 

 no means small, I cannot look on a shade of colour as a fairly distinctive character, and therefore 

 unite A. pallida of North Africa with A. cinctura, the latter name taking precedence. First 

 described by Gould (I. c.) from a specimen obtained at Santiago, it was also observed there by 

 Dr. A. Dohrn, who writes (J. f. O. 1871, p. 5) that "it occurs not uncommonly on the plateau, 

 near Porto Praya ;" and Mr. Keulemans sends me the following note : — " It is very common in 

 the plains near the town of Porto Praya, in Santiago, and also on the mountains in the interior 

 of the island ; but I never observed it in any cultivated district. It seems to avoid vegetation as 

 much as it does water, and occurs nowhere save in desert sandy localities. It is usually met 

 with in flocks of from three to seven individuals, or in company with another small Lark 

 (Pyrrhulanda nigriceps, Gld.). During my sojourn in the island I collected about twenty-five 

 specimens, all of which differed somewhat in tint of plumage. In March I obtained several 

 young birds, which resembled the old ones, but had a tendency to become spotted on the breast 

 and sides of the head. The breeding-season is from December to March ; but I never succeeded 

 in finding its nest. It feeds on seeds and insects, and in the stomachs of most of those I 



