notes from tunisia and eastern algeria: february 1943 to april 1944

T H E I B I S Vol. 90. JANUARY, 1948.

NOTES FROM TUNISIA AND EASTERN ALGERIA: FEBRUARY 1943 TO APRIL 1944.

By W. H. PAYN, M.B.E.

Received on 2 December 1946.

INTRODUCTION. This paper covers a period of thirteen months spent in Tunisia and Algeria

while serving with my regiment in the North African campaign. It does not profess to embrace the whole of Tunisian and Algerian ornithology, for active-service conditions prevented me from visiting more than the northern and central regions of Tunisia and the eastern part of Algeria. Nevertheless the length of my sojourn in these two countries enabled me to establish the present-day status of a large number of species and to confirm or disprove certain points of distribution previously left undecided by visiting ornithologisp.

In Tunisia my observations were confined to those areas in which we were actually fighting or to which I was able to make trips during rest periods. After the fall of Tunis, however, we moved back into Algeria, to the vicinity of Bone, where we spent nearly ten months, and during this time I had opportunities, while on training or leave, of collecting and observing birds over a large part of eastern Algeria. Over a smaller part of Algeria-a triangle between Bone, Philippeville and Constantine-I was able to range freely for nearly a year, and my acquaintance with this area is therefore very complete.

Inevitably much of this paper is based on sight records only, for owing to lack of cartridges I could not shoot for identification and had to confine my collecting to a good series of the rarer residents and such migrants as I particularly needed. Nevertheless a previous acquaintance with North African birds proved invaluable and 1 was not often in doubt as to an identity.

GEOGRAPHICAL.

I have used the current French spelling for place names throughout.

I do not propose to discuss, other than most briefly, the geographical features of Tunisia and Algeria and their effect on bird distribution. Ae far

VQL. 90. B

2 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TIJNISIA I m , 90

as Tunisia is concerned the subject has been covered most fully by Whitaker (I) and less fully, but very adequately, by Bannerman (2). Very varied typesof terrain occur in both countries. Tunisia, the less mountainous of the two, is the more highly cultivated, the plains and uplands of the north being given over to immense tracts of cornlands, or to olive groves, vineyards and orchards of peach, almond and orange. In eastern Algeria the coastal belt and the fertile plain between the Medjerda and Aures Mountains are also intensively cultivated for grain, fruit, vines and tobacco.

In both countries the orchards and olive groves support a large breeding population of finches, warblen and shrikes, but the open and treeless cornlands are comparatively birdless, their breeding species being confined to Skylarks and Crested Larks, Kestrels and the ubiquitous Stonechat and Corn Bunting.

The forests of the regions under review, comprise two types only, cork-oak and stone-pine, and are virtually restricted to the three mountain ranges which run more or less east and west through Algeria into the western portions of Tunisia.

The Medjerda Mountains, which form the coastal range and consequently receive the heaviest annual rainfall, are clothed practically throughout their length in ilex forest with an undergrowth of heath, arbutus and broom. Isolated patches of firs also occur, while the forest reaches its maximum in both height and variety in the neighbourhood of Ain Draham on the Tunisian side of the frontier. Here are to be found some fine specimens of deciduous oak, Spanish chestnut, pine, ash and ilex. Another patch of ancient forest exists near Bone in Algeria. These ilex and mixed forests are the haunt of numerous birds-notably woodpeckers of three species, tits, jays, tree-creepers and raptors, while in summer the breeding species include Bonelli’s Warbler, Pied Flycatcher and Orphean Warbler.

The central mountain range extends eastwards from the region of Con- stantine, through Guelma, Souk Ahras and Le Kef in Tunisia, to the region of Pont du Fahs. Throughout most of its length this range is clad only in sparse stone-pines with an undergrowth of heath but round Souk Ahras oak and ilex trees occur.

The southern mountain range-known as the Aur6s Mountains-is covered with stone pines and stretches from south of Setif, through Batna and Tebessa to Sbeitla, where afforestation ceases. In the main the stone- pines of this range are stunted and sparse, but they reach imposing dimensions in the region of Batna, the forest on Jebel Chelia (about 7600 feet high) in particular containing some fine cedars. These pine-clad mountains, look- ing down to the north upon rich arable country and to the south upon desert or near-desert, contain a bird-life entirely their own-Crossbills, Cole Tits, Mistle Thrushes and, in the neighbourhood of Batna, the -4frican Dipper.

1948 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA 3

Of the deserts of Tunisia and Eastern Algeria, I need only say that the Northern Sahara looks much the same whether it be in Morocco, Algeria or Tunisia. I made three trips into it, twice to Biskra and beyond and once to Feriana (Tunisia), during one or other of which I had the good fortune to see the Desert Horned Lark, Dupont's Lark and that rarity the Thick- billed Lark.

Both Tunisia and Algeria are poorly provided with rivers and lakes of interest to ornithologists. Most of the streams are raging torrents in winter and dry in summer, and now that Lac Fezzara, long famous for its teeming bird-life, has been drained, Lac Achkel, near Bizerta, takes pride of place as a breeding haunt for water-fowl.

PERSONALIA. I had never before visited Tunisia or eastern Algeria and had only the

slightest acquaintance with their ornithological literature, but after the fall of Tunis I was lucky enough to meet Mons. A. Blanchet, the veteran French naturalist, who proved a mine of information on all matters connected with Tunisian and Algerian ornithology. I must also mention Lieut. Jean Ducrot, our French liaison officer, an expert naturalist and a delightful companion. He accompanied me on many ornithological excursions, when his enthusiasm and local knowledge proved invaluable. Finally I would like to express my gratitude to Col. R. Meinertzhagen, who not only stored for me for nearly three years my specimens as I sent them home box by box, but has also given me great help with the working out of my collection,

SYSTEhlATIC LIST. CORWS CORAX TINOITANUS Irby. Raven. Local in Tunisia and confined mainly to the mountains, single birds only being

observed in the neighbourhood of Tunis city, but it was common in the desert at Rohia in February. Well distributed throughout Algeria as far south as Biskra.

CORWS FRUCILEGUS Linnteus. Rook. I observed a small flock near Bone during the winter of 1943. CORWS MONEDUW CIRTENSIS Rothschild & Hartert. Jackdaw. The Jackdaws of Constantine are elusive creaturzs. Although I visited the town

several times and looked for them always. I only once encountered a flock-abou: 50 strong-which were spending their time flying to and fro between the caves in the gorge and the roof of the local barracks. Not seen anywhere outside the town. Doubt has been cast on the validity of this race, yet it would be surprising if so isolated a colony did not develop characteristics of its own. It is possible that this Constantine colony was originally founded by escaped captives as was the ancient Jackdaw colony of TUNS city.

GARRL'LUS GLANDARIUS CERVICALIS Bonaparte. Plentiful and well distributed in all the cork and mixed forests from the mountains

round Ain Draham-the type locality-down to sea level at Bone and Philippeville. This large and striking bird is typical of the jay family in most of its habits, but is generally more solitary than most jays and I seldom saw more than two or three together.

Black-headed Jay.

The young bird is a dull edition of its parent. B 2

4 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA IBIS, 90 PICA PICA MAURITANICA Malherbe. Magpie. I saw no sign of the Magpie either in eastern Algeria or Tunisia. It apparently

no longer exists in the Medjerda Valley where Bannerman found it 20 yeare ago and I did not visit the acacia forest near Sfax, which appears to be its stronghold in Tunisia.

CORACIA CORACXA (Linnseue). Chough. Seen frequently between Constantine and Batna, but not elsewhere. I did not

identify the Alpine Chough. %"US WLGARIS WLGARIS LinnlWlS. StWlklg. Flocks began to arrive in Algeria in early October, and by the time of the olive

harvest just before Christmas had reached immense proportions. By the end of February the bulk of them had departed northwards. Two specimens collected belong to the typical race.

ORIOLUS ORIOLUS ORIOLUS (Linmua). Golden Oriole. First observed singly in eastern Tunisia on 9 April and thereafter up to the middle

I saw no sign of breeding. The return migration in

Sfurnus mkalor Temtninck was not met with.

of May in small flocks. September-October is not so evident.

COCCOTHRAUSTES CO~COTHRAUSTES BUVRYI Cabanis. Hawfinch. This secretive bird is probably commoner in northern Tunisia and Algeria than

would appear, for most farmers I spoke to about it knew it well. I saw a pair in the forest at Ain Draham in June and during the autumn and winter I located a number of flocks in the orchards round Bone. I obtained females at Hammam Meskoutine in March whose ovaries were almost fully developed.

CHLORIS CHLORIS AURANTIIVENTRIS Cabanis. Greenfmch. Found in small numbers in most orchards and gardens throughout Algeria and

Tunisia. Three Tunisian nests were all built in young cypress trees and were typical structures of grass, twigs, rootlets and wool.

CARDUELIS CARDUELIS AFRICANUS (Hartert). Goldfinch. By far the commonest bird met with in Tunisia and Algeria in all types of country

In Tunisia in April they were still in flocks hundreds strong, At the same time there were

In

and at all times of year. feeding on thistles and the seeds of the stinging nettle. colonies breeding in every orchard. winter flocks are met with everywhere, even to the fringes of the desert.

. A Bock of Siskins spent the winter of 1943-44 on an alder-fringed stream at Ain Mokra in eastern Algeria.

Young were on the wing by mid-April.

CARDUELIS SPINUS (Linneus). Siskin.

CARDUELIS CANNABINA MEDITERRANEA Tschusi. Nowhere common, but found sparingly in all types of country, even in the desert.

SERINUS CANARIUS SERINUS (Linnaeus). Serin. Very common everywhere and was breeding in early April.

Red Linnet.

Several nests held young in May.

Most nests were situated in olive trees and were small, compact structures of grass, rootlets, wool and feathers.

EHYTHROSFIZA GITHAGINEA ZEDLITZII Neumayer. Desert Bullfinch. I encountered this bird on all my trips into the Algerian and Tunisian Sahara. Its

most northerly limit in Algeria seems to be at Barika, some 30 miles north of Biskra, and in Tunisia at the village of Thelepte near Feriana.

1 9 9 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA 5 h X I A CURVIROSTRA POLIOGYNA Whitaker. Crossbill. My observations in Algeria and Tunisia lead me to believe that the Crossbill is a

common bird in all suitable localities in both countries. I met with it in February in the stone pine forest round Batna where it was evidently breeding, and it was also common in similar country on the Tebessa-Feriana road in central Tunisia where I watched flocks coming down to drink at an irrigation ditch one icy morning in March. I also saw Crossbills in the fir woods near Souk Ahras, while M. Blanchet tells me they breed at Pont du Fahs further east in Tunisia.

I collected a good series of skins which confirm that the female of L. c. poryogYna is much greyer than the female of the typical race. I cannot, however, agree that the male Crossbill from North Africa is never as bright as its European counterpart. My series contains males which are as bright as, if not brighter than, any to be found in Europe, but I would say at the same time that males of poliogyna tend to be crimson rather than scarlet.

FRINGILLA C ~ L E B S c m w s Linneus. Chaffinch. Quite common round Bone between October and March.

FRINGILLA ~(ELEBS SPODIOCENYS Bonaparte. One of the commonest and most widely distributed of all Tuneian and Algerian

residents-being very plentiful in all well-wooded regions of the north and extending into the desert as far as Biskra and Kasserine. Several nests found were typically neat and compact, but no lichens or moss had been used, the nest consisting of grass, feathers, rootlets and wool.

I obtained a good series of skins; in addition I am grateful to Col. R. Meinertzhagen and Col. W. A. Payn for the loan of their entire series of North African Chaffinches. Having compared this large series covering all regions from Tunis City to Tangier, I am forced to the conclusion that the three forms which have been described from North Africa-i.e. spodiogenys Bonaparte, ufricanu Levaillant and ken& Rothschild & Hartert-cannot be supported. F. c. qfricanu and keniqi were separated on the strength of supposed differences in

the coloration of the upper-parts of the male bird. In the large series of chaffinches which I have examined from Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Tangier, these differences are not borne out. In general there is more white on the inner secondaries of birds from the east of their range than from the west, but this is not constant : a breeding bird from El Kantara in Algeria is quite as white on the secondaries as birds from Tunis City, while a specimen from Medjez el Bab exactly matches birds from Tangier.

North African Chaffmch.

PETRONIA P~FRONIA BARBARA Erlanger. Rock Sparrow. Sparsely distributed throughout northern and central Tunisia and Algeria. It was

breeding in the Medjerda valley near Medjez el Bab and in the ruins of Hadrian’s aqueduct at La Mohamedia outside Tunis. I collected a fledgeling in an orchard at Tunis in June.

PASSER DOWTICLJS TINOITANUS Loche. PASSER HISPANIOLENSIS HISPANIOLENSIS (Temminck). Spanish Sparrow. Forty years ago Whitaker (I) recorded the House Sparrow only from the extreme

west of Tunisia, whence it was spreading slowly eastwards, interbreeding freely with the Spanish Spakow wherever they met. Bannerman (2) 20 years later assembled a very large quantity of material which enabled him to come to some valuable conclusions. not only in respect of the hybridization of Passe* domesticus with Passer hispaniolencis in the Algero-Tunisian frontier regions, but also with regard to the validity of several described races of Passer hispaniolensis.

House Sparrow.

6 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA IBIS, 90

His conclusions are in my opinion equally valid to-day, except that I cannot agree with his view that in Tunisia, other than in the frontier regions, a race of Passer domesticus which lacks the flank streaks is in process of stabilizing itself without any assistance from Passer domesticus. I obtained two obvious hybrid males at Ain el Asker some 20 miles south-west of Tunis City. These birds entirely lack the flank stripes of hispaniolenris and have a chestnut head with dark, almost black streaks in the Centre of the crown, dirty grey cheeks instead of the white cheeks of the true Spanish Sparrow and a certain admixture of chestnut in the mantle.

In both Tunisia and Algeria I found the Spanish Sparrow to be as much a dweller in buildings as its domestic cousin, while in the neighbourhood of Tunis large colonies of Spanish Sparrows were breeding in the electricity pylons.

EMBERIZA CALANDRA Linnseus. Corn Bunting. Exceedingly common in both countries from the cultivated areas down to the

Between Tunis and Bizerta one day in June I saw literally thousands of these desert. birds thronging the telegraph wires.

EMBERIZA CIA CIA Linnreus. Only met with in the mountains round Herbillon near Bone where it was resident.

I did not meet with Emberiza hortukma. EMBERIZA CIRLUS CIRLUS Linnreus. Common and well distributed throughout northern and central Algeria but not

noted in Tunisia, where Bannerman(2) records it from the region of Ain Draham and Whitaker (I) from the Medjerda valley.

EMBERIZA STRIOLATA SAHARI~E Levaillant. Common in the Arab villages round Biskra and Feriana.

EMBERIZA SCH (ENICLuS Linnseus. I twice saw a bird of this species in the marshes near Bone during the winter.

RHAMPHOCORYS CLOT-BEY (Bonaparte). Thick-billed Lark. Hartert (3) found the Thick-billed Lark in the neighbourhood of Biskra and on

my first visit to that town in November I searched for it in vain, but on my second visit in February, while shooting sandgrouse on a grassy plain five miles north of the town, I walked right on to a flock of Thick-billed Larks. They were very tame and, as usual, advertised their presence by their loud whistle and swift, plover-like flight.

Rock Bunting.

Cirl Bunting.

House Bunting.

Reed Bunting.

CALANDRELLA BRACHYDACTILA BRACHYDACTILA (Leisler). Short-toed Lark. Common in all semi-desert areas which I visited, such as the Goubellat Plain, Bou

Arada and the plateau above Medjez el Bab, and I found it bleeding on the shores of the salt lakes near Bizerta. The only specimen obtained was a female picked up on the road at Protville. Though very worn, it would appear to belong to the typical race.

CALANDRELLA RUFESCENS RUPESCENS (Cabanis). Obtained at Rohia (Tunisia) in February.

MELANOCORYPHA CALANDRA PSAMMOCHROA Hartert. Calandra Lark. Common and beginning to breed in the desert at Rohia and Spiba in February.

Also breeding on the plateau above Medjez el Bab and on the plains round Protville. I saw large flocks on the high tableland round Setif (Algeria) in February. I obtained two specimens, one at Rohia (Tunisia) and one at Medjez. These exactly match specimens of M. c. fmanmo&roa, as does a skin in Col. Meinertzhagen's collection from Boghari, south of Algiers. All three skins immediately strike the eye

Lesser Short-toed Lark. Also seen on the Kasserine-Feriana road

in March.

1948 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA 7 as being very grey when laid out with a series of Calandra Larks from western Algeria and Morocco. AMMOMANES DESBRTI ALGBRIENSIS Sharpe. Desert Lark. I first saw this lark in the red, rocky country just north of El Kantara. Round

Biskra itself it was very common. I did not see the Desert Lark in the neighbourhood of Feriana where both Whitaker (I) and Bannerman (2) found it, but as there were a great many mines in the area I did not search very thoroughly.

GALERIDA CRISTATA CARTHAGENIS Kleinschmidt & Hilgert. Crested Lark. GALERIDA CRISTATA MACRORHYNCHA T r i s t k . GALERIDA THEKLIE HARTERTI Erlanger. The Crested and Theklae Larks of Tunisia and Algeria are well known and my

small series provides no surprises. All the Thekla? Larks obtained by me in Tunisia and eastern Algeria are, as expected, GaZm.da theklce hurterti, and prove to be a very uniform series.

My cristata series from Biskra (south-east Algeria) are G. c. niacrorhyncha and those from Rohia (central Tunisia) are G. c. curthagenis.

LULLULA m o m HARTERTI Hilgert. Wood-lark. Common in low coniferous forest near Sidi Youssef on the Tunisian-Algerian

Later I found the Wood-lark plentiful

Thekla? Lark.

frontier where I collected a pair in February. in autumn and winter on the outskirts of the cork forests near Bone.

ALAUDA ARVENSIS subspp. Sky-lark. Sky-larks were in flocks throughout Tunisia and Algeria during February and

March and proved unapproachable with a small gun. In April and May they were breeding commonly on the plateau above Medjez el Bab and in the cornfields round Massicault .

I only obtained a few adults. A. a. harterti Whitaker, from north-west Tunisia.

A. a. cantarella Bonaparte, from north-east Tunisia. A. a. intmedia Ehmcke, from south-east Tunisia.

Bannerman (2) classifies his birds as follows :- A single specimen of mine from

Rohia, near Thala, can be ascribed to this race.

Three specimens obtained by me in south-east Tunisia and eastern Algeria belong to this race which has grey upper-parts and pale throat and belly.

ALWMON ALAUDIPES ALAUDIPES (Desfontaines). One obtained in the stony desert just north of Biskra.

I had long been anxious to see and collect Dupont’s Lark, but previous visits to the Algerian and Moroccan Sahara had failed to produce a glimpse of it. In March 1944, however, I was able to take a few days’ leave in the region south of Tebesse where M. Blanchet had told me that C. tiuponti occurred.

The country was still heavily mined with German, French and American mines which no one had had time to clear, and the French authorities at Feriana warned me on no account to leave the roads as Arabs were being blown up every day while pasturing their flocks. I had travelled as far as Kasserine and was on my way back towards Feriana when I noticed among some alfalfa grass a small lark with a long, curlew-like bill, an unmistakable Chersophilu~. There were two or three pairs living in an area of tussocky grass and I found them elusive and inconspicuous rather than shy, for they run like mice among the grass tufts, frequently stopping and standing bolt upright to stare about them before crouching to hammer vigorously at the ground with their C U N ~ bills. They fly fast and low, sometimes planing up to utter a short burst of song, and on alighting they dash away at once among the grace

Bifasciated Lark.

CIIERSOPHILUS DUPONTI DUPONTI (VieillOt). Dupont’s Lark.

8 We He PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA IBIS, 90 EREMOPHILA ALPBBTRIS BILOPHA TUnminck. Desert Homed Lark. Whilst in the desert near Barika some 40 miles north-west of Biskra, I came, just

at dawn one icy February morning, upon a pair of Homed Larks feeding by the road- eide and was lucky enough to obtain both. This is, so far as I can discover, the furthest north this lark has ever been recorded in Algeria.

*S CAMPESTRI~ (Linnseus). Tawny Pipit. ANTHUS P M r n S I s (Linnseus). Meadow Pipit. ANTHUS TRIVIALIS (Linnseus). Tree Pipit. Pipit8 were not common in either country and I only identified definitely Meadow

and Tree Pipits mixed with the flocks of wagtails at Philippeville in February and a few Tawny Pipits near Bone in the autumn. A single Tawny Pipit was seen on some grassy uplands near Bizerp in June.

MOTACILLA FLAVA IBERIW Hartert. Wagtails were not common as breeding birds in either Tunisia or Algeria, probably

because of lack of suitable marshes and streams, but where suitable breeding ground did occur, M. f l a w was to be found. At Bled Boucha near Goubellat I obtained epechens of M . f. ibm’ce feeding young out of the nest on 15 May and I also obtained P breeding bird near Bizerta in June. This is the first time that M. f. iberia! has been definitely identified as a breeding

bird in Tunisia. It was also plentiful on migration in Tunisia and Algeria from early March to mid-April and I collected npecimens. No other races of M . fluwa were identified.

Grey-headed Wagtail.

MOTACILLA ALBA ALBA L h u s . White Wagtail. Very common round Philippeville and Bone during autumn and winter.

MOTACILLA CINBREA CINERJM Tunstall. A few seen at Sidi Moussa (Algeria) in February and one at Ain Draham (Tunisia)

CRRTHIA BRACHYDACTnA MAURITANICA Witherby. Tree-creeper. Common in the cork forests round Philippeville and Bone and round Ain Draham,

PARUS MAJOR BXCELSUS Buvry. Very common in the cork woods of eastern Algeria and the frontier regions, yet I

met with it nowhere else, not even in the old olive groves round Tunis which seemed M much to its taste and where the Ultramarine Tit was so common.

Grey Wagtail.

on 10 October. Some wintered on a sewage farm outside Bone.

the type locality.

Great Tit.

PARUS CWRULBUS ULTRAMARINUS Bonaparte. Well distributed though never really numerous in the woods and olive groves of

I also found this tit

Ulti amarine Tit.

both countries. Young were on the wing at the end of May. in the date groves at Biskra in November.

Coal Tit. PARUS ATBR LJDOUCI Malherbe. Occurs locally in the evergreen oak and fir woods near Bone and Philippeville in

Algeria and near Souk Ahras in Tunisia, while I found it common in the mountain forests at Bugeaud and Ain Draham and in the stone pine forests at Batna.

REGULUS IGNICAPILLUS IGNICAPILLUS Temminck. Firecrest. I saw a few in the forest near Souk Ahras in early March.

LANUS EXCUBITOR DODSONI Whitaker. The first appeared at Medjez el Bab about 12 March and paired birds were soon

During early May I found

Dodson’s Grey Shrike.

mblished in their breeding areas by the Medjerda river.


four nests, all large, untidy structures of sheep’s wool and thorns and lined with wool and rootlets, built in low thorn or fruit trees. The four or five eggs were of the brown type. Young were on the wing in June.

The breeding area of Dodson’s Shrike appears to be confined to the valley of the Medjerda river and the country immediately to the south of it, for they were not observed in the region of Tunis or Bizerta and do not extend back into Algeria. I saw a few Grey Shrikes on passage round Bone in the autumn.

My small series of breeding birds from the region of Medjez el Bab in western Tunisia bears out Bannerman’s (2) conclusions that the race breeding in Tunisia is L. e. dodsoni and not algeriensis as was previously believed. All my skins agree very fairly with specimens of L. e. dodsoni obtained in Morocco.

The hen sat closely, allowing one almost to touch her.

LANIUS EXCUBITOR ELECANS Swainson. Present in small numbers at Biskra in November. LANIUS SENATOR SENATOR Linnaeus. Woodchat Shrike. One of the commonest and most ubiquitous breeding birds throughout Tunisia and

Algeria down to the desert’s edge. The f i s t migrants appeared in northern Tunisia on 29 March and by mid-April paired birds were established everywhere, in orchards, woods and cultivation, with the cock birds doing sentry duty on telegraph wires and tree-tops. Newly fledged young were out of the nest on 14 June; others, probably the product of second nests, were only fledged at the end of August. By mid-September all birds had gone.

TELEPHONUS SENEGALUS MEINERTZHACENI Payn, ‘Bull. B.O.C.’ 66 : 15 (1945). Algerian Bush Shrike.

Although we were camped for seven months in the centre of its haunts in eastern Algeria, I did not, during all that time, get a glimpse of a single Bush Shrike. Indeed, it was some time before I was able to identify some peculiarly unavian noises which were heard from time to time from the arbutus scrub on near-by hillsides as belonging to this bird-identification then being only achieved by a process of elimination.

On 25 December 1943 I shot my first specimen, in thick scrub at 2 yds. range, and during the next two months I collected five more of this new race. My birds are considerably larger and darker and have a thicker bill than the western race from Morocco. I did not see this Bush Shrike elsewhere than in the foothills round Bone, but it almost certainly occurs in similar country in Tunisia.

The field habits of my new race appear to match in most respects those of T. s. senegala from West Africa as recorded by Bannerman (4). During the summer months T. s. meinertahagem‘ inhabits the thickest scrub-jungle from which it seldom ventures, but on sunny days in autumn and winter I sometimes found it on the edge of large clearings in the cork forest or in the cactus hedges surrounding cultivation.

The food, judging from crop contents, consists mainly of beetles, grubs and lizards, and I saw one bird carrying a small snake in its bill.

Bannerman describes the song of this species as exquisite. Personally I found it loud, abrupt and unavian, consisting as it does of a series of very loud whistles, interspersed with chuckles, gurgles and clicks. I t has ventriloquial powers and can be heard from a considerable distance. One bird I shot betrayed itself by its song from a distance of more than a quarter of a mile.

Desert Great-grey Shrike.

I saw no nest.

PYCNONOTUS BARBATUS BARBATUS (Desfontaines). Bulbul. Though Whitaker (I) recorded it from the north-western region of Tunisia, I met

with the Bulbul nowhere in that country, but in.the neighbourhood of Bone and


Philippeville in Algeria it was very common. The farmers complained of its destructiveness to their oranges and grapes.

MUSCICAPA STRIATA STRIATA Linnseus. Spotted Flycatcher. Exceptionally common on migration in Tunisi! at the end of April, and by early

May large numbers were breeding in orchards, gardens and clearings in the cork forest. In one Tunis olive-grove I knew of five nests within a hundred yarQ and the bird was equally common in Algeria.

MUSCICAPA ATRICAPILLA SPECULIGERA Bonaparte. Pied Flycatcher. A few were seen on migration, the earliest on 22 April. I also found it breeding

in the forest at Bugeaud near Bone and at Ain D r a h in Tunisia.

MUECICAPA ALBICOLLIS Temminck. Collared Flycatcher. Seen for the first time near Tunis on 20 May when two males appeared in the olive

grove where we were encamped. I obtained one, very fat and in worn plumage. Another bird was seen at Ain Mokra, Algeria, on 9 April. I found the Collared Flycatcher easily distinguished from the Pied Flycatcher by the large amount of white it showed when on the wing.

PHYLLOSCOPUS TROCHILUS TROCHILUS (Linnreus). Willow Warbler. PHYLLoSCoPUs COLLYBITA (Vieillot). ChifTchaff. There were a great number of Phyllorcopi on migration at Philippeville and Bone

in February and I identified both ChEchaf€ and Willow Warbler. I did not see them in any numbers after early April, but they were common on autumn passage and a number wintered in the gardens round Bone. Both were common in the Biskra oaclis in November.

PHYLLOSCOPUS SIBILATRIX (Bechstein). Wood Warbler. Common on migration during the period 2-12 May.

PHYLLOSCOPUS BoNBLLI BONELLI (Vieillot). Breeding in some numbers in the forest round Ain Draham and near Bone.

CETTIA rn~ cmf Temminck. Cetti’s Warbler. Found breeding by all suitable ponds and reed-fringed streams in eastern Algeria.

It does not occur south of the coastal plain, nor did I find it in Tunisia, though Whitaker (I) records it.

Not observed on autumn passage.

Bonelli’s Warbler.

ACROCBPHALUS ARUNDINACEUS ARUNDINACEUS (Linnseus). Great Reed Warbler. A large colony was breeding in the reedbeds of the Caret Achkel near Bizerta. Also

observed on autumn passage near Bone.

HYPOUIS ICTERINA (Vieillot). Icterine Warbler. Breeding commonly in the gardens and orchards round Tunis.

HYPOLAIS PALLIDA OPACA Cabanis. Olivaceous Warbler. A common breeding bird in the olive groves round Tunis. A nest, built about

10 ft. from the ground in an olive tree, was a fragile affair of thin grasses, rootlets and pieces of willow down. The nestlings had three black spots, about the size of a pin’s head, on the tongue.

SYLVIA HORTENSIS HORTENSIS (Gmelin). Orphean Warbler. Breeding in small numbers in the gardens round Tunis where its clear song was

heard all day. Also breeding in the Algerian cork forests.


SYLVIA ATRICAPILLA ATRICAPILLA (Linnreus). Blackcap. Common on passage in January and February. I saw a pair or two apparently

preparing to breed at Medjez in April and a pair which was nesting in the cork forest near Bone in June.

SYLVIA BORIN Boddaert. Garden Warbler. Reasonably abundant in spring and autumn.

SYLVIA COMMUNIS COMMUNIS Latham. Breeding in small numbers throughout central and eastern Tunisia.

SYLVIA MELANOCEPHALA MELANOCEPHALA Gmelin. One of the commonest and most widely distributed birds in both Algeria and

Tunisia in all types of country as far south as the desert's edge. Nests were found in April, built in cypress and catalpa trees. Young were on the wing at the end of April.

Spectacled Warbler.

Common Whitethroat. Common on

passage in Algeria in March.

Sardinian Warbler.

SYLVIA CONSPICILLATA CONSPICILLATA Temminck. My only record is a male shot on the sea shore near Bone in October. SYLVIA UNDATA TONI Hartert. Dartford Warbler. A scarce resident in the more open parts of the heath and cork forest round Bone. SYLVIA SARDA SARDA Temminck. Only met with once, when I obtained a female in a small " maquis "-grown wadi

ACROBATS GALACTOTES GALACTOTES (Temminck). First noted on migration on 20 April.

Marmora's Warbler.

near Tebessa. Evidently a rare bird in both countries. Rufous Warbler.

By the middle of May it was established everywhere in orchards and cactus groves with the males busy displaying and chasing the hens.

The Rufous Warbler is unforgettable-indeed, I look upon it as the most typical bird of a hot, dusty North African summer. Even the most unobservant could hardly fail to notice the contrast of its rich red plumage and white-tipped fan tail and its postures on top of a bush as it gently fans its tail up and down and sings its loud and varied song. From its perch it will descend to dance in the dust before its mate or to chase her round their breeding area.

I found a great many nests during May and June, built, in the majority of cases, on the stem of a " prickly-pear " where the overlapping leaves gave protection with their spines. The eggs were usually of a dull 'I house-sparrow " type, but I found two clutches of a rich blue boldly marked with brown.

CISTICOLA JUNCIDIS CISTICOLA Temminck. Common in both Tunisia and Algeria wherever suitable country existed. TURDUS VISCIVORUS DEICHLERI Erlanger. A scarce breeding bird, apparently confined to the stone-pine forests round So&

TURDUS ERICBTORUM Brehm. Song Thrush. Common on passage at Philippeville in February and a few were still passing

The autumn

Grass Warbler.

Mistle Thrush.

Ahras, Tebessa, Le Kef and Bou Arada.

through western Tunisia in April, but I saw no sign of breeding. passage began in Algeria about mid-October.

TURDUS MERULA ALGIRUS (Madarasz). Blackbird. In North Africa entirely a forest dweller, shunning gardens and orchards. It is

extremely shy and I did not find it numerous anywhere, though there were several in the cork woods round Bone and also at Ain Draham on the Tunisian side of the frontier.


MONTICOLA SOLITARIUS (Linnieus). Evidently local. breeding in Tunisia at Sedjenane and on the Cap Bon peninsula at

I t was curious

Blue Rock Thrush.

Korbus. that I did not meet with Monticola saxatalis.

(ENANTHB &NANTHE IENANTHE (Linnreus). I found all species of wheatear scarce in Tunisia and Algeria, which was surprising

when so much of the steppe and semi-desert country seemed suitable. However, Bannerman’s expedition to Tunisia found chats only in the extreme south of the country.

I saw a few Common Wheatears on passage in the hills round Oued Zarga (western Tunisia) in April and May.

(ENANTHE HISPANICA HISPANICA (Linnreus). A summer visitor to Tunisia.

A few pairs were located in the mountains round Bone.

Common Wheatear.

Also noted in September.

Spanish Wheatear. I found it thinly distributed from Bizerta down to

Spiba, but nowhere common.

(ENANTHE LEUCURA SYENITICA (Heuglin). Common in the Feriana-Kasserine region of Tunisia and round Biskra in Algeria.

(ENANTHE M(ESTA (Lichtenstein). Mourning Wheatear. I have only one record of this char, a courting pair which I observed in February

(ENANTHB LUCENS HALOPHILA (Tristram). Common in November round Biskra.

SAXICOLA TORQUATA RUBICOLA (Linnreus). Stonechat. Very widely distributed all over Tunisia and Algeria at all times of the year.

PHUWICURUS PHIENICURUS PHCENICURUS (Gmelin). Redstarts were common on migration between February and April, but I saw no

PHCENICURUS OCHRURUS GIBRALTARIENSIS (Gmelin). Common on spring and autumn passage. One pair was found breeding in

DIPLWTOCUS MOUSSIERI (Olphe Galliard). Nowhere common, but occurred in small numbers in semi-desert country in both

It was breeding on a farm at El Akouat (Tunisia) in April and

Black Wheatear.

in the desert near Barika, Algeria.

Pied Wheatear.

The Whinchat was not identified.

Black Redstart.

sign of breeding. Black Redstart.

Algeria.

Moussier’s Redstart.

Algeria and Tunisia. also in the gorge of the Medjerda River near Medjez el Bab.

LUSCINIA MEGARHYNCHA Brehm. Nightingale. Common on passage in central Tunisia in April.

LWINIA SUBCICA (Linnaus). Bluethroat. Two only noted, one in a marsh near Teboursouk-Tunisia-and one at Hammam

Meskoutine in Algeria, both being on spring passage. ERITHACWS RUBECULA RUBECULA (Linnreus). Robin. ~ I T H A C W S RUBECULA LAVAUDENI Bannerman. Robins were breeding in small numbers in the hills round Philippevillc and Bone

and in the cork woods near La Calle. In winter their numbers were greatly increased by migrants from Europe. Two specimens I obtained in November at La Calle have been compared by Col. Meinertzhagen with skins of E. Y. rubecula obtained by him in Sweden and they agree exactly. Two skins of breeding Robins from the hills near Bone are very dark brown on the back, rusty on the rump and


deep orange below; this agrees with the original description of E. r. lavmrdeni from the Medjerda Mountains.

PRUNELLA COLLARIS COLLARIS (Scopoli). Alpine Accentors have been collected in North Africa on more Jhan one occasion

and M. Blanchet has met with them regularly in winter on Jebel Ressas near Tunis. I can add a new locality for this bird-the rocky crags at Bugeaud in eastern Algeria.

I first located the accentors in February 1944 when visiting Bugeaud after a heavy fall of snow. A party of five were feeding in the yard of the empty casino and one bird actually settled upon and ran along the coping of the verandah. They proved very shy and soon disappeared over the precipice. I

I found a pair on the same crags in early March and again on 8 April, when from their behaviour, I am convinced that they were breeding or preparing to do so, which would constitute the first record of the Alpine Accentor breeding in North Africa.

Alpine Accentor.

TROGLODYTES TROGLODYTES KABYLORUM Hartert. Wren. Very local and confined to the mountains and foothills. I found it, however,

plentiful in the cork woods round Philippeville and in the hills near Medjez el Bab. Also resident near Bone. Unlike its European counterpart, the African Wren i s shy and secretive and most difficult to collect as it does not come into the open, but runs and skulks in the thickest undergrowth. Two nests were found, typical structures built among creepers growing on a tree-trunk.

CINCLUS CINCLUS MINOR Tristram. Dipper. M. Blanchet could only tell me of two localities in Algeria in which the Dipper

At one of these places-Jebel Chelia near Batna-I was I t was the only Dipper seen.

is to be found regularly. lucky enough to collect a single female on 5 March. The measurements are as follows : bill 15 mm., wing 91 mm.

HIRUNDO RUSTICA RUSTICA Linnzus. Swallow. DELICHON URBICA MERIDIONALIS Hartert. House Martin. Swallows and House Martins were common breeding birds throughout Algeria and

I saw the first Swallow on 7 March and the first House Martin on 9 March. Tunisia. The Sand Martin was not seen.

RIPARIA RUPESTRIS (Scopoli). Crag Martin. A small colony was breeding in the stone quarry at Hammam Lif outside Tunis

On 10 November a flock of and a very large colony in the gorge at Constantine. Crag Martins were hawking flies over the sea at Bone.

APUS MELBA MELBA (Linnieus). Alpine Swift. Five or six pairs were breeding in the quarry at Hammam Lif.

APUS APUS (Linnieus). Common Swift. Common' throughout Tunisia, breeding in towns and villages alike.

Also common in the mountains round Bugeaud and in the Constantine Gorge.

A very large Those examined at a range number were breeding in the old aqueduct in Tunis City.

of a few yards through binoculars did not appear to be A. a. pallida.

CAPRIMULGUS EUROPWUS Linnieus. Nightjar. Breeding in some numbers in the forests round Bone and also noted on passage as

I flushed one in a garden on the outskirts of Tunis on late as mid-November. 16 May.

MEROPS APIASTER Linnseue. Bee-eater. First seen on passage on 23 April. I did not observe it round Tunis, but from

central Tunisia westwards into Algeria it was common throughout the sumnier.

14 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA IBIS, 90 Colonies were breeding along the banks of the Medjerda River and in railway cuttings and embankments, while in the Bone area I was surprised to find the Bee-eater nesting in clearings in the cork forest, digging its tunnels in the sides of small wadis and even in level ground.

Three nests which I dug out on 21 June held newly-hatched chicks and on 27 July I could still hear young calling from other nest-holes. The tunnels of those nests which I opened were some 5 to 6 ft. long, fairly straight and sloping upwards towards the surface. A few wisps of grass and a large quantity of beetle shards comprised the nest itself, while the nesting chamber was small and low. The entrance to the hole was marked by a pile of sand upon which the prints of the birds’ feet were plainly to be seen. The young seemed completely at the mercy of all small ground vermin, yet I knew of no nests being destroyed.

T h e newly-hatched Bee-eater is naked and flesh-pink, but by the eighth day it is beginning to grow a crop of blue quills which soon cover it. At this age its bill is black and square-tipped, its feet fleshy and brown in colour and its eyes a watery blue.

A fledgling which I kept alive for some days displayed remarkable tunnelling powers. Flying down to the ground, it would search for a small hole into which it would disappear, forcing its way into the soil with beak and feet and progressing almost as fast as a mole.

UPUPA EPOPS EPOPS Linmus. Hoopoe. Common and well distributed everywhere from the cork woods round Bone where

it was breeding, down to the desert. The young were on the wing in mid-July and all birds had left by October.

CORACIAS GARRULUS GARRULUS Linnms. Roller. Seen on passage in spring and autumn, but never in any numbers. A pair were

breeding in the ancient aqueduct outside Tunis.

ALCEW ATTHIS Linmx~s. Kingfisher. Seen on all suitable streams in Tunisia and Algeria and I noticed one flying over

the sea at Bone.

Prcus VAILLIANTI (Malherbe). African Green Woodpecker. Probably resident in all mountain forests in Algeria and along the Algero-Tunisian

frontier, but it does not occur in the cork woods at sea level.

DRYOBATES MAJOR NUMIDUS (Malherbe). Extremely common in the forests of the Medjerda Mountains in western Tunisia

and in the cork forests near Bone, but it does not occur in the central mountain range or further south. I observed a pair digging their nesting hole in early March and fully-fledged young were on the wing in June.

The bright vermilion breast-band of the adult Algerian Pied Woodpecker is most noticeable at all times and distinguishes it from all other forms. The young bird has much less red on the breast, and on the belly and vent the red of the adult is replaced by pale pink. The young bird, too, has flanks of pale yellow or grey, faintly streaked with black as compared with the plain dull white flanks of the adult. The frontal band is dark grey, ear-coverts washed grey and neck patches much smaller than in the adult.

Algerian Pied Woodpecker.

DRYOBATES MINOR LEDOUCI (Malherbe). Algerian Barred Woodpecker. Evidently far from rare in the cork forest round Bone and I collected six specimens.

Like all their tribe, however, they are solitary and silent little birds, very easily overlooked.


The young, which were on the wing by mid-June, have no red whatever on the head, the top of the poll and the frontal band being dark grey, while the nape is black and the cheeks grey-brown. The immature bird is also more heavily barred on the flanks and has faint grey spots on the chin.

JYNX TORQUILLA MAURITANICA Rothschild. Wryneck. I obtained specimens of this small, dark Wryneck at Philippeville in February and

All were March and at Hammam Meskoutine, which is the type locality of this race. in full song and appeared to be settled in their breeding quarters.

CUCULUS CANORUS CANORUS Linnaeus. Cuckoo. CUCULUS CANORUS BANGSI Oberholser. Only identified twice during the spring and summer of 1943. A migrant was

calling near Medjez on 13 April and I saw a bird which was certainly C. c. bangsi in the cork forest near La Calle on 22 June.

ATHENE NOCTUA GLAUX (Savigny). Little Owl. Owls of all species were scarce in both countries, the Little Owl being the only

member of the family which was well distributed in both cultivation and forcst land. I collected several, all of which prove to be A. n. glaux. I found no nest, but it wa8 evidently breeding in the hollow olive trees and in the cairns of stones one met with everywhere.

STRIX ALUCO MAURITANICA (Witherby). Appeared to be very scarce in both countries and I only heard it once or twice in

I found a much flattened bird which had been run over

Wood Owl.

the woods at Ain Draham. on the road at Medjez el Bab, which was the only specimen seen.

Tm, ALBA (scopoli). Barn owl. At Massicault, during the final battle for Tunis on 7 May 1943, I saw a Barn Owl

sitting in a small tree apparently quite undisturbed by either the shelling or the crowd of indignant Rufous Warblers which were mobbing it. Two pairs of Barn Owl were resident on a farm at Bone throughout the winter of 1943.

FALCO PEREGRINUS Tunstall. Peregrine Falcon. FALCO BIARMICUS Schlegel. Lanner Falcon. Falcons of various species were not uncommon in the mountains and semi-desert

regions of Tunisia and Algeria, though they were scarcer in the north. A pair of Peregrines haunted a marsh near Bone throughout the winter of 1943-44 and I once saw one of them attack an Egret in flight. The Egret, however, had the best of the encounter, for it turned over in the air and repulsed the enemy with beak and claws.

FALCO COLOMBARIUS -LON Tunstall. Merlin. Seen once or twice during the winter in northern Algeria.

FALCO VESPERTINUS VESPERTINUS Linnsus. A female seen on Cap Bon on 28 June is my only record.

FALCO NAUMANNI NAUMANNI Fleischer. Lesser Kestrel. A small colony was breeding in the aqueduct outside Tunis and there was a larger

FALCO TINNUNCULUS TINNUNCULUS Linnaeus. Kestrel. Well distributed in both countries at all seasons.

AQUIU spp. The identification of most of the Ea:le tribe is far from easy unless the bird is in

the hand, and as I was unable to cJlle-t any specimens, I have confined my observations

Red-footed Falcon.

colony in the gorge at Constantine.

16 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA IBIS, 90 - to those identified without a doubt. but a fair number occur at all seasons in the mountains of Algeria. species were identified :-

The larger Raptores are very rare in Tunisia, The following

AQUILA CHRYBA~~TUS (Linnseus). Golden Eagle. An adult seen L t very close range near Rohia in February. AQUILA RAPAX (Levaillant). Tawny Eagle. The commonest of the eagles and seen throughout the year in eastern Algeria. H~gRAijTus PENNATUS (Gmelin). Booted Eagle. Seen frequently in the cork forests of eastern Algeria.

h o FEROX CIRTENSIS (Levaillant). African Buzzard. Scarce in Tunisia but plentiful in Algeria.

CIRCUS IERUCINOSUS HARTERTI Zedlitz. CIRCUS MACROURUS Cmelin. Pallid Harrier. Harriers were exceedingly plentiful on spring passage in both countries.

One collected.

Marsh Harrier.

On 8 April 1943 I counted 37 Marsh and Pallid Harriers resting together on a ploughed field outside Medjez el Bab. Many others were perched on telegraph wires in the fields round about. I observed almost as many Harriers on the autumn migration and a number of Marsh Harriers wintered near Bone. I obtained a female while it was feeding on a dead horse. A pair of Marsh Harriers was breeding on the Caret .Achkel near Bizerta in June 1943.

ACCIPITER NISUS PUNICUS Erlanger. I did not see more than half a dozen individuals over a period of a year and these

During the summer of 1943 I located a The nest was placed about 20 ft. up in an oak tree and

Both parent birds were tame and The young

Sparrow Hawk.

were all in the cork forest round Bone. breeding pair near Bone. contained three newly hatched young on 26 June. fearless, the female, in particular, swooping down repeatedly at my head. were fed mainly on Turtle Doves and Hoopoes.

MILWS MIQRANS (Roddaert). Black Kite. The commonest of the larger raptores met with. A pair frequented the neighbour-

hood of most villages and I found several nests, one of which still contained young on 18 July.

PANDION HALIA~T~JS (Linnsus). Osprey. Seen on the Lac de Tunis for several days at the latter end obMay 1943.

NEOPHRON PERCNOPTERUS PERCNOPTERUS (Linnsus). Egyptian Vulture. Not observed in Tunisia but common at one or two spots in Algeria, notably round

the refuse dump at Bone and near Constantine where I counted 68 adults and young together. On one occasion 18 Egyptian Vultures and three Arab dogs picked a dead horse clean to the bone in less than 24 hours.

GYPS FULVUB (Hablizl). Griffon Vulture. Almost certainly breeds in the high mountains of northern Algeria, where I saw

CICONIA CICONIA (Linnsus). White Stork. Common round Algiers city in early February, but did not arrive in Tunisia till

late March, and it was always scarce in that country and did not occur at all near Tunis. In the extreme west of Tunisia and onwards into Algeria it became progressively more common, and in the area from La Calle westwards to Philippeville and southward? to Constantine and Setif it was very common indeed, nesting in all the towns and villages. At Blandan, near Bone, every house held two or more nests,

it frequently.


each with three or more nestlings, while the church tower supported no less than seven occupied nests.

Young storks leave the nest early in July and by mid-August practically all adults and young have left for the south. The returning migrants arrived on 28 December and immediately took possession of their old nests. By the end of March eggs were being incubated.

ARDm CINEREA Linnaeus. Grey Heron. Present at all seasons on the rivers and lakes of both countries.

ARDEA PURPUREA Linnaeus. Purple Heron. Evidently not common.

ECRETTA GARZETTA (Linnaeus). Little Egret. ARDEOLA IBIS (Linnaeus). Buff-backed Heron. ARDEOLA RALLOIDES Scopoli. Squacco Heron. A colony of Little Egrets was breeding on the Garet Achkel near Bizerta. In

Algeria both Little Egret and Buff-backed Heron were common on suitable lakes and rivers. The Squacco Heron was scarce and I only saw a few individuals. During the winter the Egrets forsake their aquatic life and spend the day among the herds of cattle, flocking to the nearest reed-bed to roost. Grasshoppers and lizards form a very large part of the diet of these herons.

I saw two immature birds near Bone on 25 July.

PHCENICOPTERUS RUBER ANTIQUORUM Temminck. Flamingo. At least a hundred Flamingos were present on the Sebkret el Kourtzia, the great

TALJORNA TADORNA (Linnaeus). Sheld-duck. ANAS PLATYRHYNCHOS Linnaeus. Mallard. ANAS CRECCA Linnaeus. Teal. ANAS QUERQU~DULA Linnaeus. Garganey. ANAS STREPERA Linnaeus. Gadwall. ANAS PENELOPE Linnaeus. Wigeon. ANAS ACUTA Linnaeus. Pintail. SPATULA CLYPEATA (Linnaeus). Shoveler. NYROCA FERINA (Linnaeus). Pochard. NYROCA NYROCA (Giildenstadt). White-eyed Duck. NYROCA NLIGULA (Linnaeus). Tufted Duck. Ducks of all species are scarce in Tunisia and Algeria during the summer, when

all the marshes and streams are dry and saltpans which still hold water are bare of cover. I saw a few Mallard in Tunis harbour in June and a family party on Lac Oubira (Algeria) in August. A pair of Garganey in eclipse dress in August had almost certainly summered near Bone.

When, however, the autumn rains come and the lakes and ponds begin to fill again, the migrant duck come pouring in from Europe. First-in early October-come T e a l , Garganey, Pintail and White-eyed Duck, followed in November by Mallard, Shoveler and Wigeon and, still later, by Gadwall, Pochard and Tufted Duck. All the Garganey, Pintail and White-eyed Pochard pass on southwards after a stay of a week or two, but by early December the number of Mallard, Wigeon, Gadwall, Teal and Shoveler congregated on the lakes and swamps round Bone and La Calk must be seen to be believed. The water is literally black with fowl.

Contrary to what I have always understood, I found that in North Africa, as in Europe, there is a definite flight at dusk and dawn, and I had some capital flighting at

salt pan near El Aroussa, in May 1943.

VOL. 90. C

18 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA IBIS, 90 Wigeon, Gadwall and Mallard. The Sheld-duck was only identified once, a small party seen on a salt lake between Constantine and Batna in November. I saw no geese, but heard of large flocks on the marshes at Morris (Algeria) during the winter.

I saw several in Tunis harbour during the summer and an odd bird or two on inland lakes during the winter. Lac Fezzara in Algeria, which used to be the breeding haunt of the Lesser Cormorant, has now been drained and all its water-loving birds driven away.

PHALACROCORAX c m o (Linnseus). Cormorant. Not common round the coast.

PODICEPS CRISTATUS (Linneus). Great-crested Grebe. Two pairs were in Tunis harbour on 18 May. PODICEPS RUFICOLLIS Pallas. Dabchick. Two or three birds, adults and young, were noticed on a small lake near Bone

COLUMBA LIVIA Gmelin. Rock Pigeon. Many pigeons were to be seen on cliffs and rocky gorges in both Tunisia and

Algeria, particularly in the Constantine and El Kantara gorges. I shot a number, but they all proved to be domestic or feral birds and I did not identify a single wild Rock Pigeon, though doubtless they do exist in places.

during July and August.

COLUMBA PALUMBUS Linnaeus. Wood Pigeon. Breeding in the forest round Ain Draham and noted during the winter in the cork

STREPTOPELIA TURTUR Linnaeus. Turtle Dove. A plentiful breeding bird in all woods, orchards and olive groves in both countries.

Only met with round Tunis City, on Cap Bon and in the Biskra oases, in all of which

PTEROCLES ORIENTALIS Linnaeus. Imperial Sandgrouse. Met with in some numbers in central Tunisia, even in country which did not seem

suitable to its tastes. In the neighbourhood of Ain el Asker and round Medjez I saw paired birds in April, and during the final battle in the Massicault Plain in May there were flocks of frightened Sandgrouse flying to and fro above the battle field. This Sandgrouse was also plentiful in the plains south of Constantine and round Biskra.

woods near Bone.

STREPTOPELIA SENEGALENSIS PHCENICOPHILA I-htert. Senegal Dove.

localities it was breeding plentifully.

BURHINUS CEDICNEMUS (Linnseus). Stone Curlew. Breeding on the plain east of Medjez el Bab in mid-May.

GLAREOLA PRATINCOLA PRATINCOLA (Linnaeus). Pratincole. Common in suitable areas in Tunisia and Algeria. Near Bone on 22 June a large

flock, both adults and young, were congregated by a small lake where their numbers steadily increased till by early August there were at least 5000 birds assembled in one flock, many of them being very young birds. All birds had departed southwards by the end of October.

I saw a single bird neat Bone in November.

CiiaRaDRIus DUBIUS CURONICUS Gmelin. Breeding on the sandbanks of the Medjerda River during the summer. Common

CHARADRIUS ALEXANDRINUS ALEXANDRINUS Linnsus. Breeding in small numbers by all suitable lakes in Algeria and Tunisia and round

Little Ringed Plover.

on the sea shore and by inland lakes during late summer and autumn.

Kentish Plover.

the shore of the Lac de Tunis.


VANELLUS VANELLUS Linnaeus. Lapwing. CHARADRIUS APRICARIUS Linnteus. Golden Plover. The Lapwing was very common indeed throughout Algeria during the autumn and

The first birds arrived in early A number of Golden

winter, its range extending south to the desert. October and some were still present at the end of February. Plover were accompanying the Lapwing flocks.

EUDROMIAS MORINELLUS (Linnaeus). Dotterel. I saw a flock on the plain south of Ain Beida (Algeria) on 5 March and obtained

TRINCA FERRUCINEA Briinnich. Curlew Sandpiper. A number in full breeding dress were frequenting the salt lake at Bled Boucha on

TRINGA MINUTA Leisler. Little Stint. TRINCA TEMMINCKII Leisler. Temminck's Stint. Both stints frequented the Bled Boucha lake in May and I saw flocks in both

winter and partial breeding dress near Bone in July.

one bird.

12 May. I obtained a female in partial breeding dress near Bone in July.

PHILOMACHUS PUGNAX (LinnZUS). Ruff. Parties of Ruffs and Reeves were observed on passage near Bone in July and

August. The Ruffs were still in partial breeding dress with ear tufts and collars and the Reeves were in full body moult-yet they were apparently migrating in that condition.

CROCETHIA ALBA Linneus. Sanderling. Birds in breeding dress were observed on Bled Boucha in May.

TRINCA BRYTHROPUS (Pallas). Spotted Redshank. A single male in full breeding dress near Bone on 23 June is my only record.

TRINCA TOTANUS (Linnaeus). Redshank. Two pairs frequented the Lac de Tunis in early June and a single bird was noted

There were a number on a small marsh south of Constantine in at Bone on 27 July. November.

TRINCA NEBULARIUS (Gunnerus). Greenshank. Three birds seen at Bone on 23 July.

TRINCA OCHROPUS (Linnteus). Green Sandpiper. Observed on the small streams in central Tunisia during April, and on the return

passage round Bone in August, when I saw flocks numbering nearly 100.

TRINCA GWOLA (Linnteus). Wood Sandpiper. Occurred in parties varying from 6 to 50 in number on a lake near Bone throughout

TRINCA HYPOLBUCOS (Linnaeus). Common Sandpiper. Paired birds were evidently preparing to breed on the small streams of northern

HIMANTOPUS H I M ~ T O P U S HIMANTOPUS (Linnaeus). Black-winged,Stilt. Noted in some numbers on both spring and autumn passage. On 21 July I

obtained an adult male in full moult and an adult female with moult virtually complete.

At rest or when wading in shallow water, the stilt is one of the most graceful of birds, yet in flight it appears quite grotesque with its long shanks trailing behind it,

July and August. The few birds obtained were in worn breeding dress.

Tunisia in April. A few noted on autumn passage in Algeria.

c 2


giving the effect of a black-and-white rocket on a stick. a rudder when in flight and the toes are kept outspread.

The legs seem to be used as

RECURVIROSTRA AVOSETTA AVOSETTA Linneus. Avocet. Noted on a small lake near Bone in July.

LIMOSA LIMOSA LIMOSA Linneus. In February I noted flocks of migrants 2000 strong feeding on the flooded fields

near Bone. These birds kept up a continuous gabble as they fed or rested in the sun. By the end of March they had all moved on northwards, but I saw a few in full breeding dress on the Bled Boucha near Bou Ararda in May. Isolated buds wintered near Bone.

Black-tailed Godwit.

NUMENIUS ARQUATA (Linnaeus). Curlew. Two Curlew were present on the Lac de Tunis on 19 May and a single bird by a

Small parties observed on passage during the water hole in Algeria on 23 July. period January to March.

SCOLOPAX RUSTICOLA Linneus. Woodcock. '

Local sportsmen near Bone told us that the Woodcock was quite common i n the I saw a few which were put up from the scrub by the cork forest during the winter.

beaters during wild pig drives.

CAPELLA GALLINAGO (Linneus). Common Snipe. Seen on migration in both countries in March. In October they began to arrive

in quite incredible numbers in the marshes and bogs round Bone. Here they remained all the winter and when duck shooting we frequently flushed wisps of a hundred or more snipe. After the turn of the year their numbers rapidly dwindled.

LIMNOCRYPTES MINIMA (Brunnich). Jack Snipe. A few were to be found in the marshes with the Common Snipe and I saw some as

CHLIDONIAS NIGRA NIGRA (Linnreus). A large flock on Lac de Tunis at the end of May.and they or others were there

Flocks of adults and young were seen on passage near Bone in

late as mid-April. Black Tern.

throughout June. July and August.

GELOCHELIDON NILOTICA (Gmelin). Gull-billed Tern. Odd birds were seen on the Bled Boucha (Tunisia) in May and near Bone in

I obtained an adult female in worn plumage. STERNA BENGALENSIS PAR Mathews. Allied Tern. Present in small numbers on the Lac de Tunis in June.

August.

The birds were very demonstrative, but in spite of a careful search of all suitable shingle-banks, no nests could be found.

STERNA HIRUNDO Linneus. Common Tern. Noted on the Lac de Tunis in June.

STERNA MINUTA Linneus. Little Tern. A number observed at Tunis in May and June.

frequenting the Lac were non-breeding birds.

LARUS ARGENTATUS (Pallas). Herring Gull. LARUS RIDIBUNDUS Linneus. Black-headed Gull. A lack of gulls of all species was noticeable round the Tunisian and Algerian coasts

No gulls whatever were seen at Tunis in June and only an

Adults and young were also seen at Bone in August.

It seemed that all the Terns

at all times of year.

1948 W. H. PAYN : BIRDS OF TUNISIA 21 occasional Herring Gull was noted at Bone in August and September. Black-headed Gulls spent the winter on the Bone sewage farm.

A flock of

~~EGALORNIS GRUS GRUS (Linnleus). Not observed on spring passage through North Africa, but it was most noticeable

during the autumn migration and a number wintered on the plains round Constantine. The first flocks of migrant cranes passed over Cap Bon on 3 September and thereafter small flocks were seen almost daily flying south. Many of these flocks came down to rest on the marshes and newly-sown cornfields, where the difference between the adults and the smaller, paler birds of the year was most marked. On foot the cranes were unapproachable, but in a car one could drive to within 50 yds. of them. It seems that central Algeria is a regular winter haunt of the crane.

Common Crane.

ANTHROPOIDES VIRGO (Linnseus). Demoiselle Crane. A flock was feeding beside the Souk-Ahras-Ain Beida road on 4 March 1944.

WLUS AQUATICUS Linnaeus. Water Rail. One seen near Bone on 23 July.

GALLINULA CHLOROPUS CHLOROPUS (Linnieus). Moorhen. Occurs on all streams and pools in northern Algeria.

FULICA ATRA ATRA Linnieus. Coot. A number were present on the Lac de Tunis in June. Oiseaux near La Calle in August had probably bred there. arrive on the Bone lakes in October, becoming very plentiful about Christmas time.

The Corncrake was not identified.

Others seen on the Lac des Winter visitors began to

ALECTORIS BARBARA BAREIARA (Bonnaterre). Common in all types of country throughout Tunisia and Algeria.

Barbary Partridge. It was equally

a t home in the vineyards and cultivation of the coastal plains, at the desert's edge at Rohia and in the high mountains of the North. Round Medjez el Bab it waa particularly abundant.

The Arabs, who are not allowed firearms, do not seem to trap many partridges and there is always a covey or two in the neighbourhood of every native village. Between April and June I found many nests, with clutches averaging eight to *e eggs, The Barbary Partridge is nothing if not adaptable, as it has to be if it is to survive its many foes. A bird had a nest in a cactus bush right in the middle of our regimental headquarters at Tunis. It remained unconcerned with soldiers and vehicles passing close by it all day and it eventually hatched off safely. The brood remained in the vicinity of the camp, feeding under the olive trees and dashing for cover in the nearest patch of cactus or camel thorn when danger threatened.

CORTURNIX COTURNIX Linnaeus. Quail. A plentiful resident and passage migrant throughout both countries.

REFERENCES. (1) WHITAKER, J. I. S. (1905). (2) B A ~ A N , D. A. (1927).

(3) ROTHSCHILD, Lord, & HARTERT, E. (1923).

(4) BANNERMAN, D. A.

' Birds of Tunisia ', 2 vols. ' Report on the birds collected and observed during

Ibis (12), Supplement. ' An ornithological autumn journey

the British Museum Expedition to Tunisia in 1925.'

to Algeria.' Novit. Zool. 30 : 79-88. ' Birds of tropical West Africa ', 5 : 418-419.

notes from tunisia and eastern algeria: february 1943 to april 1944

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