212 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



gorge. On it are perched a few ruins, attributed by tradition, 

 like all ancient remains in the Caucasus, to the great Empress 

 Tamara, after whom half the Georgian girls are named ; they 

 are, however, much older. The first fort was built here by the 

 Emperor Vakhtang Gurgaslan (a.d. 446-499), and restored by 

 David the Eenewer (a.d. 1089-1125). 



It is almost with relief that one emerges in the wider valley 

 between Darial and Kazbek. Here a few Rock-Doves are always 

 to be seen, and I caught a glimpse of one Wall-Creeper 

 (Tichodroma muraria, L.). Here Emberiza cia par, Hartert, is 

 first noticeably common ; this Bunting (Ovsidnka in Eussian) is 

 numerous from Darial up to an altitude of 7000 ft. Suddenly, 

 past a bend in the road, we reach the stantsia of Kazbek, com- 

 manding a magnificent view of the famous mountain. The peak 

 reaches an altitude of 16,546 ft., far above the heads of his 

 neighbours. The two glaciers of Gerget and Devdorak are not 

 visible from the road, but are easily accessible by special 

 excursion. The first attempt to reach the summit was under- 

 taken by Fr. Parrot in 1811 ; he reached an altitude of 13,863 ft., 

 when he was driven back by storms. In 1844 Dr. Kolenati 

 succeeded in reaching 14,547 ft., and the peak finally was 

 overcome by three Englishmen — Messrs. Freshfield, Tucker, and 

 Moore— in July, 1868. 



There are not a great number of birds in the neighbourhood 

 of Kazbek. I saw one Eagle and a pair of small Hawks, which 

 I cannot attempt to name, and a single Rock-Thrush, which was, 

 I think, Monticola cyaneus, L., which is the less common species, 

 and not the more frequent M. saxatilis, L. Black Redstarts are 

 common, and the Chough {Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax, L.) plays 

 the part of Jackdaws. 



But the pride of these mountains is the Tur. This is the 

 Russian name for four species of Wild Goat which are peculiar 

 to the main range of the Caucasus. These are : Copra cylindri- 

 cornis, Blyth (=j>aZZassu, Rouiller), which ranges fromDaghestan 

 to Mt. Elbruz ; C. caucasicus, Guld., an intermediate form 

 occurring in the central Caucasus ; C. sewerzowi, Menzb. 

 (= caucasica, Lyd.), peculiar to the western portion of the range ; 

 and C. dinniki, Sat., a rare and little-known species occurring in 

 the mountainous parts of the Kuban province. They differ 



