5074 Birds. 



Towards the end of August, while sitting in my tent about mid- day, 

 my attention was attracted by a most inharmonious clanking noise: 

 stepping out of my tent I saw above my head a flight of about fifty-six 

 cranes steering east, but as soon as they were fairly over the camp 

 they commenced to wheel and get gradually higher and higher till 

 nearly lost to sight, when they bore away in about the same direction 

 they were previously going. I observed some more flights come over 

 about the end of September, going south. In the spring, on the 2nd 

 of April, I heard some flying over at night, and from that time till the 

 10th of May I continually observed flocks going over northwards. I 

 observed a couple on the plains at the end of May. 1 often fired ball 

 up at the cranes, but they were always so high that I never succeeded 

 in bringing one down. Lieut. Irby, in his list, notes the flocks in the 

 spring, but says that he could not identify the species. Now of what 

 species were these large flocks ? Dr. W. Carte is rather of opinion that 

 they were the Numidian crane (Grus Virgo), of which he obtained a 

 specimen in March, and which Lieut. Irby includes in his list. My 

 opinion, however, is that they were the common crane (Grus cinerea), 

 because, when in Bulgaria in March, I observed great numbers of 

 slate- coloured cranes on the plains, which I took to be of that 

 species. 



I observed herons on a few occasions, but never to identify any : 

 Lieut. Irby was, however, fortunate enough to bring home a specimen 

 of the purple heron (Ardea purpurea) and also of the great white heron 

 {Ardea Egretta), both of which I saw among his other specimens: 

 he also brought home a bittern (Ardea stellaris), which he shot in 

 December, 1854. 



In September, in looking over the contents of a French soldier's 

 haversack, among a number of birds, including an owl, cuckoo, 

 buntings, quail, &c, I found a bird, which, from recollection, I should 

 have said was the little bittern (Ardea minuta) : this bird is, however, 

 certain, as I have seen more than one specimen from the Crimea since 

 I returned to England. 



An officer who was for some time stationed at Kertch tells me that 

 during the autumn he observed flamingoes, which he describes as 

 breast white, back white, and wings crimson, darkest near the body : 

 this is likely enough to be the red flamingo (Pheenicopterus ruber). 



The curlew (Numenius arquata) was obtained by Dr. W. Carte in 

 March, and I had an opportunity of minutely examining a specimen 

 shot at the end of the same month, a week after which I observed some 

 in the Valley of the Tchernaya 



