704 
MR. C. A. HAMOND ON A SHORT TRIP TO SPAIN. 
months earlier, but were of course gone to seed. I found a 
variety of small Antirrhinums, Larkspurs, Gum Cistus, Scabious 
and many species of Thistle and Eryngium, all prickly in the 
extreme : we pitied the traditional Moor who made that hillside 
his seat, for if one were lucky enough to find a flat stone among 
the prickles, the Ants soon gave one notice to quit. But the 
sunsets looking over the towers of the Alhambra, the city of 
Granada lying below, and the Yega beyond, stretching to a rugged 
range in the west, were worth a little discomfort to see. 
A ride across the Vega on a blazing afternoon introduced us to 
the Rufous Warbler ; the first we saw attracted our attention by 
his song, as few birds sing in July. They were numerous, dusting 
themselves in the roads, spreading their tails out like fans, and so 
tame as only just to flutter out of our horses’ way. Southern 
Shrikes, Woodchats and Black-headed Warblers were common. On 
a long ride up the valley of the Zenil, Common and Sand Martins 
and Crag Martins, the flight of the latter is very marked and drew 
our attention to it. It has a habit of rising and falling with 
a swoop almost like Wood-pigeon’s play in the breeding season. 
The high range of the Sierra Nevada walled in the valley in 
front of us, rising to 1 1,000 feet. I wished for time and opportunity 
to explore the mountains, as masses of snow were visible from 
this valley. In this neighbourhood, the Lammergeier or Bearded 
Vulture nests, as well as the Neophron or Egyptian Vulture and 
the Griffon. I killed a small Snake in the olive grove where we 
lunched, which I believe was aViperine Snake; it had no poison 
fangs. A kind of Brimstone Butterfly was plentiful here, with 
very beautiful orange upper wings, which my son told me was 
Gonopteryx deopatra. Also Satyrus actcea and Satyrus dree. 
We were sorry to leave the Alhambra, which is not much 
frequented by visitors in summer. Two pleasant American artists 
were staying in the hotel, and a few Sevillians who had come up 
to escape the great heat. Our return journey was on the hottest 
day we experienced in Spain; we waited at the junction at 
Bobadilla for five hours for the afternoon train, and made our- 
selves comfortable in the large cool refreshment room. My son and 
I walked out across the plain to a grove of trees surrounding a farm- 
house about a mile off, and were rewarded for a hot walk by a good 
sight of an Egyptian Vulture. There had been a doubt cast upon 
