40 
of the seabirds in Sea Swallow (22: 16-19). It seems about time that the 
search for novelty in this area, demonstrated for example by the use of 
three expensive pages of Sandgrouse (8: 113-116) for routine descriptions 
of well-known American species which could perfectly well have been placed 
on record in a local newsletter, was replaced by more attention to the 
inadequately studied native birds. 
While commenting on things that have been overlooked, possibly I should 
also confess that, in my recent list of notable past observations of 
migration around Arabia by members of the Royal Naval Bird-watching 
Society ( OSME Bull . 20: 3-5), I also overlooked a previous summary by 
Captain G. S. Tuck ( Sea Swallow 17: 41-42). It included a report of huge 
flocks of possible 100,000 White Storks flying south at 30-45 m as far as 
the eye could see across the mouth of the Gulf of Suez from G. Hammon 
Sayid Musa towards Ras Shukheir by Captain P. P. 0. Harrison on 31 August 
1957, where Cdr J. N. Humphreys also saw some still passing the next day. 
The 5-10,000 White Storks previously reported to have been seen here in 
the spring of 1962 by Cdr M. B. Casement were apparently flying N 30°E at 
450 m from Gebel Leit towards Sheikh Rujak on 3 April. Among other 
records, Cdr Humphreys also reported a swirling spiral of raptors soaring 
at 300 m over Perim Island on the east side of the Strait of Bab-el Mandeb 
on 9 November 1963. 
Dr W. R. P. Bourne, 3 Contlaw Place, Milltimber, Aberdeen AB1 ODS, 
Scotland. 
Dear Editor 
The Ostrich in Oman 
In my note in Sandgrouse 10, I said that I had been unable to trace any 
reports of the finding of Ostrich eggshell in graves in Oman. The 
following report has just reached me from Paul Yule and Gerd Weisberger 
(of the German Mining Museum, Hanover), who are conducting excavations 
around the Samad oasis (22°48'N 58°09'E) in the Sharqiyah district. 
"Worn fragments (maximum diameter 50mm) of Ostrich eggs have been found in 
one grave (Samad 2174) datable to the Bronze Age; another (2184) datable 
to the Bronze Age with an Early Iron Age secondary burial; and a third 
datable to the Bronze Age with a Late Iron Age re-use (101110). Other 
finds have been made during excavations this year (1989). It is not 
possible to say what use these eggshells had, but the sherd from grave 
2174 shows faint traces of blue painted decoration. The sherds are stored 
with the Department of Antiquities, Ministry of National Heritage & 
Culture, Muscat" (inventory numbers respectively DA 10380, DA -, and DA 
5902)". 
Michael Gallagher, Natural History Museum, P. 0. Box 668, Muscat, 
Sultanate of Oman. 
