12 Major J. W. Yerbury on the Birds of 
south of which cultivation commences and continues as far as 
Haith-al-him, about eight miles above Lahej. Just above 
Haith-al-hini the river bifurcates, and it is between the 
branches of this fork that all the cultivation lies. This oasis 
is very fertile and produces jowari, Indian corn, telli, and 
other crops. Besides these fields there are several gardens, 
in which vegetables are grown, with groves of date-palms, 
almond, and other trees : grapes also are grown. 
At Haith-al-him there appear to be the remains of an old 
garden, some fine old tamarind-trees standing there, as well 
as some mango, fig, and almond trees. The bund that causes 
the river to bifurcate is some four miles above Haith-al-him, 
and the river above this point runs in a single bed past 
Zaidah, situated about fourteen miles from Lahej*. There 
is a little cultivation on the left bank of the river opposite 
Zaidah. About eight miles beyond Zaidah the outlying spurs 
of the hills are met with. The country from the Barrier Gate 
to Zaidah is almost level, being only broken here and there 
by low sandhills, and the rise is probably only a few feet. 
As may be supposed, the birds of Aden proper are few, the 
residents being confined to the following :—a Bulbul, a Dove, 
a Bobin, a Weaver-bird, a Bock-Martin, a Kite, a Baven, 
the Osprey, and the Egyptian Vulture, and probably two 
or three more kinds of Hawk. All the above, I believe, 
remain and, with the exception of the Baven, breed with us, 
as I have seen them in every month of the year, and have 
found the nests of two or three of them. Some others, 
notably the shore-birds and Gulls, are regular visitants; most 
of the former being cold-weather visitors, while the latter 
seem to be with us all the year round. During the cold 
weather some two or three kinds of Chats visit us also. I 
* A map of Aden and the neighbourhood, on a scale of about 6 inches 
to a mile, is attached to this paper (Plate II.). The green shows roughly 
the cultivation near Lahej. The rivers, though shown in the map, are 
practically dry beds. The II us wall branch is said to come down to the 
sea yearly, hut the Imad branch has probably not come down for many 
years. For further details of the geography and statistics of Aden, see 
Hunter’s 1 Statistical Account of the British Settlement of Aden ’ 
(Triibner & Co., 1877). 
