56 The Birds of the Assyrian Monuments and Records. 
varieties, as tumblers, jacobins, and carriers are known; wood 
pigeons, rock pigeons, and turtle-doves. Several names occur 
on the monuments which appear to designate different kinds 
of doves. Of the order Gallince, sand-grouse (Pterocles aren- 
arius) abound in the large semi-desert plains, cultivated only 
where water is available for irrigation, in south Persia ; this 
is the most abundant game bird, Dr. Ainsworth tells us, of 
Arabia, Syria, and Mesopotamia. The birds of this family 
{Pteroclidai) are very poor and insipid food. Pheasants 
abound in the Caspian forests, but not in Assyria ; rock 
partridges and francolins are more or less common ; sand 
partridges {Ammoperdix) are scarce. 
Coots, water-hens, land-rails, and water-rails, among the 
Rallidw, occur; and that beautifully coloured bird, the 
Porphyrio veterum, the purple gallinule, conspicuous with its 
brilliant blue plumage, and red legs and beak, is said to be 
abundantly found on the Caspian. Of the Scolopacidw mention 
must be made of woodcocks, snipes, sand-pipers, stints, 
dunlins, curlews, stilt-plovers, and avocets. Among the 
family of Charadriida} lapwings abound in the plains of the 
Euphrates valley, and are common everywhere. The golden 
plover (stragglers), the spur-winged Hoplopterus spinosus, the 
collared pratincole, ouster- catcher (very common), and others 
of the family have also been recorded. The Otida, three 
species ; Otis tarda, "the great bustard"; 0. tetrax, "the little 
bustard"; and the 0. McQueenii (Gray), i.e., the Hobara, or 
Hubri, or common bustard of Persia. The Otis tarda is said 
by Ainsworth to be generally a solitary bird, or to live in 
pairs, but sometimes it is found in nocks. It is frequently 
met with in the stony districts of Syria. The Gruidw are 
represented by the common crane (Grus communis), very 
plentiful in South Persia, but only on passage, and by the 
Numidian species {Anthropoides virgo). Of the Ciconido? the 
white stork (C. alba) is especially common, and the C. nigra 
also occurs. The Ibis sacra, the sacred bird of the Egyptians, 
is not found in Mesopotamia, nor hi any part of Asia ; but its 
allied relative in general form, if not strictly in ornithological 
characters, i.e., the Comatibis comata, Great Bald Ibis, is very 
common in some parts of the country. 
