ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES FROM S.W. EUROPE. 449 



The mainland in the neighbourhood of Gibraltar is wild, 

 mountainous, and for the most part uncultivated. Trees are 

 mainly present in the shape of extensive forests of cork-oaks. 

 The population is scanty, and for the most part collected in small 

 towns and large villages, and not scattered over the face of the 

 land in numerous small homesteads as at Arosa Bay. 



Aranei Bay, in the north of Sardinia, where, during a short 

 visit a few records were made, is a very wild and barren spot, 

 mountainous, without any large trees, and covered with low-lying 

 scrub. 



Gibraltar is too generally well known to require any special 

 description. 



To one whose observations have mainly been confined to the 

 British Isles, at first sight the number and boldness of the 

 Raptorial birds is quite astonishing. This is of course explained 

 by the fact that there are no gamekeepers, and practically no 

 game-laws ; so that birds of prey have every opportunity to 

 thrive and multiply. It is also astonishing that, in spite of their 

 abundance, Warblers and other small birds are very plentiful. 

 Two familiar birds, however — the Rook and the Song-Thrush — 

 are conspicuous by their absence. 



Turdus merula. — Blackbirds are very common in all the 

 localities mentioned above, with the exception of Sardinia, where 

 I did not observe them. At Gibraltar they are especially com- 

 mon, and one often observed them singing on the wing as they 

 flew in a long downward slant from some highly elevated point 

 to another lower down the rock. 



Saxicola cenanthe. — The Wheatear was first observed at Gib- 

 raltar in March, 1899, when a fair number were about the rock. 

 They disappeared, however, at the beginning of April, and when 

 the Squadron returned, after a month's absence in May, not one 

 was to be seen. Probably they were birds on migration. Both 

 at Arosa Bay and in Sardinia this bird was not uncommon. 



Pratincola rubetra.— The Whinchat was only observed in the 

 neighbourhood of Algeciras, on the Spanish mainland opposite 

 to Gibraltar, where it was first noticed on April 8th. Apparently 

 it was present in fair numbers. 



Ruticilla phoenicurus.—A few pairs of Redstarts were noticed 



