348 
SAVAGE SUDAN 
hardly heavier than quail; of all these, together with 
the minor feathered fauna, we treat later. 
Sink at 
Our investigations commenced at Sinkat, close by 
the “Divide” that separates the watersheds of Nile and 
Red Sea respectively. Sinkat, by the way, became for 
seven months (in 1883-84) a focal point in the story of 
British enterprise-—and of some British bungles!—in the 
Sudan. With that aspect, however, we are not concerned. 
At the date of our arrival (March), a chief characteristic 
was the ubiquitous evidence of a marvellous bird-migration 
—half the feathered population were hastening past, all 
in through - transit for Europe. Every bush for miles 
around seemed filled with British or Europe-bound 
warblers — blackcaps and redstarts, common and lesser 
whitethroats, Blandford’s, orphean, rufous, barred, and 
garden-warblers—silent songsters hastening northwards 
day by day ; while, high above, the heavens were streaked 
with files of migrating storks and cranes, and bands of 
buzzards ( Buteo desertorum ), all amove. Besides these 
impetuous travellers daily hurrying past, there were also 
of course the residents, including lovely creatures such 
as the rosy-breasted shrike ( Rhodophoneus cruentus ), met 
with here for the first time; bush-robins, sun-birds, and 
dozens more—I dare not catalogue them here. 1 
Farther afield, on the slopes of the encircling hills, 
we chanced on charming rock-gardens—patches of fawn- 
coloured sand inset amidst crude black boulders, but 
adorned with lavender-like shrubs and by the delicate 
tracery of the acacias, ever graceful albeit somewhat 
hypocritical in their cruel armour of needle-pointed 
1 I have spoken of “silent songsters.” Certain of the above species, 
however, by intermittent song, proclaimed that they had reached, or were 
approaching, their incunabula . These included bush-robins, orphean, 
rufous and Blandford\s warblers, also desert-larks, etc. On March 19th 
we found a nest of woodchat (Lanius paradoxus ) with five eggs ; another 
of grey shrike with young ( Lanius leuconotus') a week later, besides others. 
