410 
Mr. D. A. Banner man : First Impressions [Ibis, 
palm oasis from which the plain takes its name. Both Kites 
and Kestrels were seen in the neighbourhood, the former 
doubtless the Black Kite ( Milvus migrans migrans'). The 
huge expanse, flat as a billiard-table save for the inter¬ 
secting dry watercourses, is absolutely bare and sandy, 
partly covered with small stones and partly cultivated, 
patches of exceedingly green corn standing out in striking 
contrast to the drab desert soil. This is the home of 
many interesting birds—the Calandra Lark ( Melanoeorypha 
calandra calandra ), the Algerian Desert Lark (Ammomanes 
deserti algeriensis ), Hilgert’s Crested Lark (Galerida theklce 
hilgerti ), the Western Russet Wheatear ( (Enantlie hispanica 
hispanica ), the African Black Chat (CEnanthe leucura 
syenitica ), the Pied Chat ( Enantlie lugens halophila ), and 
several other desert birds which I found there on future 
visits. 
The plain takes some time to cross, but gradually we drew 
near to the low range which obscures the view of Biskra 
and the true desert beyond. Running parallel with the 
course of a wide river-bed, the line passes through a cutting 
in the Chaine du Sfa, and as we emerged from the hills the 
great oasis of Biskra came into view, with a single white 
tower standing conspicuously above the palms and cypresses. 
To the east and west the Aures Mountains recede into the 
distance, while to the south stretches the immeasurable 
golden desert, broken only by lines of dark green marking 
other oases on the horizon—and so the edge of the Sahara is 
reached at last. 
Three delightful weeks were spent in the oasis exploring 
the neighbourhood. For a naturalist arriving at Biskra for 
the first time, there is so much to see, and so much to do, that 
the time slips away before half is accomplished. Dr. Hartert 
had kindly instructed me where to go and what to look for, 
and armed with his paper 44 Ornithological Explorations in 
Algeria” (ex Nov. Zool. xviii.), with Mr. Jourdain’s “Notes 
on the Bird Life of Eastern Algeria ” (Ibis, 1915), WhitakeFs 
4 Birds of Tunisia/ and Witherby’s 4 Practical Handbook of 
British Birds ’—the last-named invaluable for the identifying 
