570 



according to Colonel Irby (Orn. Str. Gibr. p. 164) it is not at all numerous on the Spanish side 

 of the Straits of Gibraltar, where it appears irregularly from autumn to spring, the latest 

 recorded specimen having been seen by Lord Lilford near the mouth of the Guadalquivir on 

 the 5th of May. 



Passing eastward I find the present species recorded as being of very accidental occurrence in 

 Savoy ; and Count Salvadori says that it is somewhat rare in Italy, where it is met with chiefly in 

 winter and spring. Formerly it appeal's to have been commoner than it now is ; but a few pairs 

 are believed still to breed in suitable localities. In Sicily it is not uncommon in the low portions 

 of the country on the eastern and southern coasts; but about Palermo it is but little known. 

 According to Mr. C. A. Wright (Ibis, 1864, p. 141) it is only an accidental visitor to Malta, where 

 it has been observed in April, August, September, October, and November. Lord Lilford states 

 that it is common on the shores of Corfu and Epirus for a few weeks in March and April ; 

 but, according to Dr. Kriiper, it is but seldom seen in Greece. In Southern Germany it is only 

 known as an accidental straggler. Dr. Anton Fritsch states (J. f. 0. 1871, p. 385) that it has on 

 several occasions been obtained in Bohemia. One shot many years previously near Frauenberg is 

 in the collection of Colonel Feldegg ; and since then only one has been seen there, in the Tritener 

 district. Mr. Hromadko possesses a male which was shot on the Ceperka pond, near Pardubic, 

 in 1847; and Dr. Fritsch himself obtained an immature bird in the Prague market on the 24th 

 September, 1850, and adds that Mr. Voboril received his specimen from Elbekostelec. Messrs. 

 Danford and Harvie-Brown say (Ibis, 1875, p. 420) that it is rare in Transylvania, but is some- 

 times met with during the spring passage. Herr Buda Elek shot one, and saw others at Buss, 

 in the Strell valley They were also told by Count Banffy Bela that he had seen a small flock at 

 Szent Mihaly during May 1875. 



On the coasts of the Black Sea the Oystercatcher is, Professor von Nordmann states, generally 

 distributed ; but it does not appear to winter on the north shore. Gonzenbach records it from 

 Asia Minor ; but Canon Tristram does not appear to have met with it in Palestine. In Africa its 

 range is tolerably extensive. Von Heuglin says that he met with it singly on the North-African 

 coast in winter, and believes it to be a resident on the Red Sea ; for he met with large flocks in 

 May in the Gulf of Suez, pairs and families all through the summer at Qoseier, Sauakin, in the 

 Dahlak archipelago, at Amfila and Belul, and in November and December along the Somali 

 coast near Zela and Berbera. On the east coast of Africa it is, according to Peters, found at 

 least as far as Mozambique, but does not range down to the Cape of Good Hope. In North-west 

 Africa it is found in winter in Algeria ; Von Heuglin received it from Tripoli ; and Favier states 

 that it is found near Tangier, on passage, in April and May and again in October. He says that 

 it sometimes remains to breed ; but this is doubtful ; for Colonel Irby remarks (I. c.) that all eggs 

 sent by Favier as Oystercatcher's were really those of the Stone-Curlew. On the west coast it 

 has been met with as far as Senegambia, whence there is a specimen in the Leyden Museum ; 

 but I do not find any record of its occurrence further south. 



In Asia it is found right across the continent to Japan. Dr. Severtzoff states that it breeds 

 rarely in Turkestan ; and Mr. Blanford says that it is occasionally seen along the coasts of the 

 Persian Gulf and Baluchistan. In India, according to Dr. Jerdon (B. of Ind. ii. p. 660), it is 

 " found both on the east and west coasts, most abundant perhaps on the more rocky west coast, 



