CHAP. X.] 
THE PAL.® ARCTIC REGION. 
203 
Dipus, Lepus, and Mus. It is admitted that, as regards every 
other group of animals, North Africa is Palsearctic, and the 
above enumeration shows that even in Mammalia, the inter- 
mixture of what are now true Ethiopian types is altogether 
insignificant. It must be remembered, also, that the lion 
inhabited Greece even in historic times, while large carnivora 
were contemporary with man all over Central Europe. 
Birds. — So many of the European birds migrate over large 
portions of the region, and so many others have a wide perma- 
nent range, that we cannot expect to find more than a few 
genera, consisting of one or two species, each, confined to a sub- 
region ; and such appear to be, Lusciniola and Pyrophthalma , 
genera of Sylviidae. But many are characteristic of this, as 
compared with other Palsearctic sub-regions ; such as, Bradyp- 
tetus, Aedon, Dromolcea , and Cercomela , among Sylviidse ; Crate- 
ropus and Malacocercus, among Timaliidse ; Tdophonus among 
Laniidse ; Certhilauda and Mirafra among larks ; Pastor among 
starlings; Upupa, the hoopoe; Ealycon and Ceryle among 
kingfishers; Turnix and Caccabis among Gallime, and the 
pheasant as an indigenous bird ; together with Gyps , Vultur and 
Neophron , genera of vultures. In addition to these, almost all 
our summer migrants spend their winter in some part of this 
favoured land, mostly in North Africa, together with many 
species of Central Europe that rarely or never visit us. It 
follows, that a large proportion of all the birds of Europe and 
Western Asia are to be found in this sub-region, as will be seen 
by referring to the list of the genera of the region. Palestine 
is one of the remote portions of this region which has been 
well explored by Canon Tristram, and if may be interesting to 
give his summary of the range of the birds. We must bear 
in mind that the great depression of the Dead Sea has a tropical 
climate, which accounts for the presence here only, of such a 
tropical form as the sun- bird (. Nectar inea osea). 
The total number of the birds of Palestine is 322, and of 
these no less than 260 are European, at once settling the question 
of the general affinities of the fauna. Of the remainder eleven 
belong to North and East Asia, four to the Bed Sea, and thirty- 
