a Sc ck Re eRe a Se Pe RE Ree rte a Rp Ie OEY aaah ra a ee re ren Ta rm ray SSS TENSES, STR pe eS ER ae ems ene a ee sit nee tenn eae emanates et canes Fat mata 3 “as nas Lae ey eee eras iene TESTE ate eS eT ata eee te See ais yroheigithcnanih ste eee Seis ee oe oa. sf wv pyos' wy) LM, , 7 - Un 3a eee eee ae ae GING Besa Fol THE eee BILD S Fer. may NPIS + Ctacira Bide Yeprey marly Ho’ eL : a) Oke. Pp. | — 80. | | ah ak ee MG Cuckors, th: P — 1h0. 5 platie.. Geo rr au. | men DOLLS me tesien eee | bes The evork. Pp. 527 ~__ kes ered ae Ly ZL THE OF BY EDGAR LEOPOLD LAYARD, C.M.G., F.Z.S., M.B.0.U., H.B.M. Consul at Noumea, New Caledonia. NEW EDITION. Thoroughly revised and augmented BY RB. BOWDDER SHARPE, SENIOR ASSISTANT, DEPARTMENT OF ZOOLOGY, BRITISH MUSEUM, F.L.S., F.Z.8.. M.B.0.U., M.A. (HON.), BATES’ COLLEGE, LEWISTON, MAINE, U.“A., FOREIGN MEMBER OF THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF LISBON; FOREIGN MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS UNION, ETC., ETC., ETC. —————=a==E el LONDON: G. NORMAN AND SON, PRINTERS, HART STREET, COVENT GARDEN. 548+ 29 be » LUG %, Birds TO EDGAR LEOPOLD LAYARD, WHO, IN CryLon, IN Brazit, In SOUTH AFRICA, tn Fig1, AnD In New Caeponia, HAS EVER PROVED HIMSELF AN EN@RGETIC AND CAPABLE ORNITHOLOGIST, THIS SECOND EDITION OF HIS “BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA,” Is Dedicated by THE EDITOR. PREFACE Tue few prefatory remarks which I have to make will be simply in the form of an apology to everyone whom this work concerns, on account of the unfortunate delay which has attended its production. To Mr. Layard himself I make my apologies for having been so long in bringing a second edition of his most useful book before the public. To my publisher, Mr. Quaritch, I am grateful when I find that his patience has not been entirely exhausted, and that he has not before this closed the publication of the book, in despair of its ever being completed. And lastly to the subscribers, who have not entirely lost faith in me, and who have been most patient and uncomplaining during the nine years which have elapsed since I issued my first part. I can only say in excuse that the great pressure of my work at the British Museum has left me little leisure for private enterprise, and has occupied the bulk of the time at my own disposal. I am fully aware, from the reviews which have appeared in various ornithological periodicals, that the plan of the work, as altered by me, has not met with the unqualified approval of my brother ornithologists, and many field-collectors will doubtless miss the descriptions of the families and genera of birds which were furnished by Mr. Layard in the first edition. It was, however, impossible on the extended basis which I proposed to myself for the second edition, if it was to be published at a price within reach of field-collectors, to include these descriptions of families, &c., and it will be seen that the book has already reached a somewhat unwieldy size. a SE ———— ee el lls ee vi PREFACE. By treating of the avifauna of South Africa according to what I consider to be its natural limits, the area known as the South African Sub-region extends to the Zambesi River on the east coast, and to the Quanza River on the west, and this has resulted in a large increase in the number of birds to be described. I have, therefore, endeayoured to make the geographical distribution of South African birds a feature of the present edition, and in some instances, such as in the Woodpeckers, Grass-Warblers, Wheatears, and Larks, a complete revision of the families has been attempted and new descriptions supplied. In most cases, however, I have retained the original descriptions given by Mr. Layard, inasmuch as they were compiled by a first-rate field-ornithologist for the benefit of field-ornithologists, and because they had proved eminently successful in the first edition. I have to thank all the kind friends who have assisted me in the production of the present volume, and I must mention more particularly the names of Captain Shelley, Mr. J. H. Gurney, Mr. J. E. Harting, Mr. Howard Saunders and Canon Tristram, who by the loan of specimens, or by actual assistance in the revision of certain groups of birds of which they possess special knowledge, have considerably lightened the labour of preparing the second edition of the “ Birds of South Africa.” R. BOWDLER SHARPE. March 24, 1884. ENT ROMUC TT ON: AutHouGH several species of birds from South Africa were known to the early writers, and are to be found figured and described in the pages of Brisson, and Linneus, Sparrmann, Gmelin, and Latham, it was not until the beginning of the present century, when Levaillant published his ‘Oiseaux d’ Afrique,” that any connected history of the ornithology of Africa was attempted. Levaillant resided principally in the southern portion of the Cape Colony, and many of his accounts of the habits of the birds. are exceedingly good, and evidently taken from personal observation, but it is greatly to be regretted that his work contains a large number of species introduced into the book as African which are in reality ; Gebebiteatts of totally different countries ; in fact, on many occasions he admits the circumstance. ‘The late M. Jules Verreaux, who knew Levaillant personally, told us that it was quite by accident that these extraneous species were introduced into his work, that his intentions were perfectly honest, but that many of his specimens were lost, and were not at his disposal when he wrote his book in Europe. He consequently figured many species in his book which he fancied that he had seen in Southern Africa, and that he had no deliberate intention to deceive. In the case of several species which were made up of two or three different kinds of birds, Verreaux stoutly held that Levaillant was himself deceived, and that he really believed the specimens placed in his hand to be individuals of some species which he remembered to have seen in South vill INTRODUCTION. Africa. The late Professor Sundevall has published an elaborate review of Levaillant’s six volumes, which enables the ornithologist so to study the work that all the species, whether truly South African or not, can be easily made out. We have found little to dissent from in Professor Sundevall’s admirable treatise. A work of a much more genuine character was commenced when Sir Andrew Smith began to investigate the Zoology of South Africa. In the South African Quarterly Journal from 1829 to 1834, we find a descriptive account of the birds of South Africa, which, however, never seems to have proceeded beyond the Birds of Prey ; and in the same journal, there are several scattered descriptions of other kinds of birds. In 1836, a separate Report of the expedition into Central Africa was published by Sir Andrew Smith, and this was in every respect a most important contribution to the avifauna of the South African region. It was followed by his great work, the “Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa,” in which no less than 114 plates of birds were published. These were drawn by the late Mr. Ford, and although this admirable artist was by far the best draughtsman of reptiles and fishes that science has ever known, his efforts with regard to the birds were not so successful, and considerable confusion, especially in the case of the smaller Warblers and Larks, has followed from the difficulty of identifying Mr. Ford’s plates. Excepting descriptions of various South African birds in the works of Burchell, Temminck, Swainson, Gray, Bonaparte, and others, nothing of any importance appears to have been published until Sundevall’s account of Wahlberg’s collections made its appearance in the Stockholm (Mfversigt for 1850. Wahlberg penetrated into the Transvaal, at that time included under the general heading of “ Caffraria.”’ He procured many interesting species, both from Natal and the Transvaal State; and he afterwards visited Damara INTRODUCTION. ix Land, where he was unfortunately killed by an elephant. A short paper of his with descriptions of new species was published in 1855, up to which time we had known nothing of the avifauna of that part of South-western Africa, beyond the scanty descriptions of species given by Mr. G. R. Waterhouse in the Appendix to Sir J. Alexander’s Expedition, and a short paper by Messrs. Strickland and Sclater, published in the ‘‘ Contributions to Ornithology” for 1852. Then followed a more elaborate essay by Grill on the birds collected by Victorin at the Knysna and in the Karroo country ; this was issued in 1858. About this date, moreover, several excellent ornithologists were hard at work in the South African region. Mr. Layard was collecting materials for a history of the Birds of South Africa, Mr. Andersson was working well in Damara Land and Namaqua Land, Mr. Ayres had commenced his useful labours in Natal, while Mr. Monteiro had already begun his career as a naturalist: in Angola. Mr. Layard’s energy soon met with an adequate response from naturalists both in Europe and at the Cape, and the publication of his “ Birds of South Africa,” in the year 1867, will mark for ever an epoch in the natural history of the continent; and from this book commences the great progress which has lately been made in our knowledge of South African ornithology. In deference to the intentions of his friend, the late Mr. C. J. Andersson, who intended to publish a work on the birds of South-western Africa, Mr. Layard confined his researches to the species occurring south of the twenty-eighth parallel of south latitude, although he was fully aware that this was but an artificial boundary, and not a natural one. Mr. Andersson did not suryive to carry out his proposed work, but this was undertaken by Mr. J. H. Gurney, who, in 1872, produced an excellent edition of Mr. Andersson’s “ Birds of Damara Land,” which has been of great assistance to us in the preparation of the present work. Mr. Gurney has also published from time to time a considerable number of papers on the ornithology of Natal b x INTRODUCTION. and the Transvaal, founded upon the collections made by that excellent collector, Mr. Thomas Ayres. It is difficult to put too high an esti- mate upon the field work which the last-named naturalist has done during the last five-and-twenty years. On changing his residence to the Transvaal, he continued his natural history labours in that State, and has published many interesting essays on its ornithology. It is indeed to be hoped that either Mr. Gurney or Mr. Ayres himself will gather together these scattered memoirs, and give them to us ere long in a connected form. The corrections in nomen- clature have been somewhat numerous, and we fear that some of them have escaped our eyes, scattered as they are through many volumes of the Ibis. Our knowledge of the ornithology of Natal has also been increased by Captain Shelley in his paper in the Jbis for 1875, and excellent lists of the birds met with by Mr. T. E. Buckley during his journey to the Matabele country in 1873, as well as by Mr. Barratt on his excursions between Bloemfontein and the Lydenburg Gold-fields have been given in the pages of the Ibis. A very important work was achieved by the late Mr. Frank Oates on his journey to the Zambesi, and a full list of his collection was given by ourselves as an Appendix to his posthumous work, “Matabele Land and the Victoria Falls,” edited by his brother, Mr. C. G. Oates. In the pages of the latter work frequent mention is made of the name of Dr. F. Bradshaw, a zealous collector, who resided for some years in the Makalaka country and the Zambesi region, but whose large collections were unfortunately dispersed before any connected account had been taken of them. Some few specimens were secured by the South African Museum ; others passed into our charge at the British Museum ; whilst a large number are in the collection of Captain Shelley. Dr. Bradshaw has for some time held an appointment as Surgeon to the Northern Border Police, and he has fayoured us with a list INTRODUCTION. x1 of the birds observed by him on the Orange River, which we have had great pleasure in including in our “ Appendix.” In 1882 three very important memoirs on South Africa appeared. One of these, by Captain Shelley, contains an account of the birds collected by Mr. Jameson, in his expedition to Mashoona Land, with excellent field-notes by that veteran naturalist Mr. T. Ayres. A second paper by Majors Butler, Feilden, and Captain Reid, published in the Zoologist, gives an account of their ornithological collections made in the upper districts of Natal; while Dr. Holub and Herr yon Pelzeln published, under the title of ‘ Beitriage zur Ornithologie Siid-Afrikas,” a very elaborate work of 385 pages, profusely illustrated with plates and woodcuts, principally of the nests and osteology of South African birds. We must not omit to mention the excellent paper by Sir John Kirk on the birds of the Zambesi region, published in the Ibis for 1864; while a vast amount of useful information will be found in the “ Végel Ost-Afrikas,”’ written by Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub, in 1870. In this work are enumerated all the species collected by Dr. Peters during his expedition to Eastern Africa, the descriptions of which are spread over several years of the “ Journal fiir Orni- thologie.” Besides the elaborate work of Mr. C. J. Andersson on the birds of Damara Land, the late Mr. Monteiro made important collections in Benguela and Angola. His work as a pioneer has been, however, largely supplemented by the vigorous efforts of Senor Anchieta, a Portuguese naturalist, who has travelled exten- sively for the Lisbon Museum in the provinces of Mossamedes and Benguela, and who penetrated to the Cunene River, a locality reached by Mr. Andersson shortly before his death. More than twenty elaborate papers by Professor Barboza du Bocage have been published on the collections which Senor Anchieta sent to Europe, and recently a large work on the ornithology of Angola xi INTRODUCTION. has been published by Professor Bocage, wherein will be found a full account of Senor Anchieta’s labours. We cannot too warmly express our thanks to our excellent friend above mentioned, who has sent us over from Lisbon many rare species to aid us in the preparation of the present work. Finally, we have deemed it of some advantage to future students of South African ornithology to give a list of the principal papers published in the Ibis which relate, more or less, to the subject of the present book; and we only regret that space has not allowed us to give more than the present slight sketch of the labours of our predecessors in the field of South African ornithology. R. Bowpier SHARPE. LIST OF ESSAYS ON SOUTER AFRICAN BIRDS PUBLISHED IN THE “IBIS.” Gurney, J. H. List of a Collection of Birds from the Colony of Natal, in South-eastern Africa.—Ibis, 1859, pp. 2384-252, pl. 7. On Birds collected in the Colony of Natal, in South-eastern Africa.—Ibis, 1860, pp. 203-221. On some additional Species of Birds received in Collections from Natal.—Ibis, 1861, pp. 128-136. An additional List of Birds received from Natal.—Ibis, 1862, pp. 25-39, pl. 3. A fourth additional List of Birds received from Natal.—Ibis, 1862, pp. 149-158, pls. 4, 5. Hartiavs, G. On some new or little-known Birds from the Cape Colony. —Ibis, 1862, pp. 143-149. Gurney, J.H. A fifth additional List of Birds from Natal—Tbis, 1863, pp- 320-320, pls. 8, 9. Scrarpr, P. L. On the Rapacious Birds collected by the late Dr. Dickinson in the Zambesi Region.—I bis, 1864, pp. 301-307, pl. 8. Kirk, Jonny. On the Birds of the Zambesi Region of Hastern Tropical Africa.—Ibis, 1864, pp. 307-339. Gurney, J.H. A sixth additional List of Birds from Natal.—Tbis, 1864, pp- 346-361. A seventh additional List of Birds from Natal.—Ibis, 1865, pp. 263-276. An eighth additional List of Birds from Natal.—Ibis, 1868,. pp- 40-52, pl. 2. Notes on Mr. Layard’s “ Birds of South Africa.”—Ibis, 1868, pp. 135-164, 253-371, pl. 8. A ninth additional List of Birds from Natal. — Ibis, 1868, pp. 460-471, pl. 10. XIV LIST OF ESSAYS ON Layarp, E. L. Further Notes on South African Ornithology.—Ibis, 1869, pp. 68-79. Suarre, R. B. On the Kingfishers of South Africa.— Ibis, 1869, pp- 275-283. Ayres, Tuomas. Notes on Birds of the Territory of the Transvaal Republic.—Ibis, 1869, pp. 286-303. Layarp, E. L. Further Notes on Sonth African Ornithology.—Ibis, 1869, pp. 361-378. Tristram, H. B. Notes on some African Birds.—Ibis, 1869, pp. 443- 438. Suarre, R. B. On the Oriolide of the Ethiopian Region.—Ibis, 1870, pp: 213-229, pls. 7, 8. Ayres, Tuomas. Additional Notes on the Birds of the Territory of the Transvaal Republic.—Ibis, 1871, pp. 147-157, 253-270, pl. 9. Suarpve, R. B. On the Coraciide of the Ethiopian Region.—JI bis, 1871, pp- 184-203, 270-289, pl. 8. Layarp, E. L. Notes on Sonth African Ornithology.—Ibis, 1871, pp. 225-230. Moris, J. On the genus Colius; its Structure and Systematic Position. —Ibis, 1872, pp. 262-280, pl. 10. Gurney, J. H. A tenth additional List of Birds from Natal.—lIbis, 1873, pp. 254-259. Ayres, T. Additional List and Notes on Birds obtained in the Republic of Transvaal.—TI bis, 1873, pp. 280-287. The same.—Ibis, 1874, pp. 101-107, pl. 3. Bucxtry, T. E. List of Birds collected or observed during a Journey to the Matabili Country in 1873.—Ibis, 1874, pp. 355-391. Suetiey, G. E. Three Months on the Coast of South Africa.—Ibis 1875, pp. 59-87. Suarre, R. B. Descriptions of Two New Species of South African Birds.—Ibis, 1876, pp. 52-54. Barratt, F. A. Ornithological Notes made between Bloemfontein and the Lydenburg Gold-fields—Ibis, 1876, pp. 191-214. Ayres, THomas. Notes on Birds collected and observed in the Lyden- burg district of Transvaal.—I bis, 1876, pp. 422-433. Additional Notes on the Ornithology of Transvaal.—Ibis, 1877, pp. 339-354. SOUTH AFRICAN BIRDS. xv Ayres, THomas. Additional Notes on the Ornithology of Transyvaal.— Ibis, 1878, pp. 281-301, 406-411. The same.—I bis, 1879, pp. 285-300, 389-405. The same.—I bis, 1880, pp. 99-112, 257-273. Suettey, G. E. Ona Collection of Birds made by Mr. J. S. Jameson in South-eastern Africa, with Notes by T. Ayres.—Ibis, 1882, pp. 236- 265, 349-368, pl. 7. On the Columbide of the Ethiopian Region. — Ibis, 1883, pp. 258-331. Borter, H. A., Fempren, H. W., and Rein, 8. G. Ornithological Notes from Natal.—Zoologist, 1882, pp. 165-171, 204-212, 243-258, 297- 303, 335-345, 423-429, 460. On the Variations in Plumage of Saaicola monticola as observed in Natal.—Ibis, 1883, pp. 331-337. Smaree, R. B. Note on Sazicola monticola with special reference to the foregoing paper.—I bis, 1883, pp. 337-345. SYSTEMATIC LIST OF THE BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Sub-Class Carinate. Order ACCIPITRES. Sub-order Farcones. Fam. Vulturide. PAGE 2, 793 3, 793 4, 793 5, 793 794 6, 794 7, 794 9, 795 11, 795 18, 795 19, 795 20, 796 20 22, 796 796 22, 796 23 25 26, 796 28 29 30, 797 31 32, 797 33, 797 1. Gyps kolbii (Daud.) 2. rueppelli, Brehm . . 3. Otogyps auricularis (Daud.). 4. Lophogyps occipitalis (Burch.) 5. Pseudogyps africanus (Salvad.) 6. Neophron percnopterus (L.) . 7. i" pileatus (Burch.) . Fam. Falconide. Sub-fam. Polyborine. 8. Serpentarius secretarius (Scop.), 8, 794 Sub-fam. Accipitrine. 9. Polyboroides typicus, Smith . 10. Circus macrurus (Gm.) 11. Circus pygargus (L.) 12. +,, maurus (Temm.) = 13. ,, ranivorus (Dand.) 14. » eruginosus (L.) 15. Melierax canorus (Risl.) 16. ” polyzonus (Rupp.) 17. gabar (Daud) . 18. niger, Bonn. &Vieiil. 9 19. Astur tachiro (Daud.) . é 20 » polyzonoides (Smith) : 21. Accipiter ovampensis, Gurney 22: a rufiventris, Smith . 23. ie minullus ( Daud.) 24, a melanoleucus, Smith Sub-fam. Buteoninez. 25. Buteo jakal (Daud.) . 26. ,, augur, Riipp. . : 27. 4, auguralis, Salvad. . 28. ,, desertorum (Daud.) 29. ,, ferox (Gm.) 5 F Sub-fam. Aquilinz. 30. Gypaetus ossifragus (Savign.) 31. Aquila verreauxi, Less. . 32. » Yapax (Temm.) . 35,797 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48, 49, 50. 51. 52. 53. 54, 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63, 64. 65. 66. 67. 68. PAGE Aquila wahlbergi, Sundev. 36, 797 Nisaetus pennatus (Gm.), 37, 797 » Spilogaster (Bp.) 38, 797 Spizaetus coronatus (L.) : 39 . bellicosus (Daud.). 40, 797 Lophoaetus occipitalis (Daud.) 41 Asturinula monogrammica (Temm.) 42, 797 Circaetus cinereus (V.) 43,797 - fasciolatus, Gray 45 Gypohierax angolensis (Gm.) 45, 798 Haliaetus vocifer (Daud.) 46, 798 Helotarsus ecaudatus (Daud.) 48, 798 Milvus xgyptius (Gm.) 49, 798 » korsechun(Gm.). 50, 798 Elanus czruleus ( Desf.) 52,798 Macherhamphus anderssoni (Gurney) 798 Pernis apivorus (L.) . : 53 Fam. Falconide. Baza verreauxi (Lafr.) . 54 Poliohierax semitorquatus (Smith) 55, 799 Falco communis, Gm. . . 56,800 »» minor, Bp. . 5 . 57 », biarmicus, Temm. . 58,800 » subbuteo, L. A . 59 » Cuvieri, Smith ., é 59 » Tuficollis, Swains. 60, 800 Cerchneis tinnunculus (L.) 60, 800 = rupicola (Daud.) 62, 800 “ rupicoloides(Smith) 63, 800 ” tinnunculoides (Temm.) 64, 800 “A vespertina (L.) 65 fn amurensis (Radde) 66, 801 a" ardesiaca (Bonn, & Vieill.) 67, 801 Fs dickinsoni(Sclater) 68, 801 Sub-order PANDIONEs. Pandion haliaetus (L.) . . 68, 801 Sub-order SrricEs. Fam. Bubonide. Scotopelia peli, Bp. . 69, 801 Bubo capensis, Smith . 70, 801 c xviii SYSTEMATIC PAGE 71, 801 73, 801 74, 801 75, 801 76, 801 802 77, 802 77, 802 78, 802 69. Bubo lacteus (Temm.) . C 70. maculosus (Vieill.) P 71. Scops leucotis (Temm.) . 72. ,, capensis, Smith . 5 . Syrnium woodfordi (Smith) . 74. » nuchale, Sharpe . Glaucidium capense (Smith) 76. = perlatum (Vieill.) 77. Asio capensis (Smith) . . 78. ,, accipitrinus (Gm.) 79, 802 79. Strix capensis, Smith . 81, 802 80. ,, flammea, L. . : 82, 802 Order PICARLE. Fam. Caprimulgidz. 81. Caprimulgus europeans, L. 83, 803 82. = pectoralis, Cuv. . 84 83. a shelleyi, Bocage 803 84. op rufigena, Smith 85, 803 85. “3 fervidus, Sharpe 86 86. AS fossii, Verr. 803 87. és lentiginosus, Smith 87, 803 88. yl mossambicus, Peters 88, 803 89. “A natalensis,Smith 88 90. Cosmetornis vexillarius (Gould) 89, 803 Fam. Cypselide. 91. Cypselus apus (L.) ; . 90, 804 92. 4 pallidus, Shelley . 92, 804 93. » eaffer, Licht. . . 92, 804 94. » aflinis, Gray ‘ 94 95. » parvus, Licht. . 94 96. » melba(L.) . . 95, 804 Fam, Meropide. 97. Merops apiaster, L. . 96, 804 98. » superciliosus, L. . 97, 804 99. », Dubicoides, Desm. . 99, 804 100. ,, bullockoides, Smith . 99 101 » pusillus, P. L. S. Mill. 100, 805 102, Dicrocercus hirundinaceus (V.) 101, 805 Fam. Coraciide. 103. Coracias garrula, L. . 102, 805 104. i: nevia, Daud. . 103, 805 105. S caudata, V. . . 104, 805 106. .» Spatulata, Trimen . 805 107. Eurystomus afer (Lath.) « 106, 806 Fam. Trogonide. 108, Hapaloderma narina, V. - 106, 806 Fam. Alcedinide. 109. Alcedosemitorquata,Swains. 107, 806 110. Corythornis cyanostigma (Ruipp.) 108, 806 111. Ceryle rudis(L.) . . 110, 807 112. ,, maxima (Pall.) . 111, 807 113. Ispidina natalensis (Smith) . 113, 807 114. Halcyon ser icerulea (Forsk.) 114, 807 LIST OF THE PAGE 115. Haleyon albiventris (V.) . 115, 807 116. . orientalis, Peters . 116, 807 117. chelicutensis (Stanl.) 117, 807 118. x senegaloides(Smith) 119 119. Ps cyanoleuca (V.) - 120, 808 120. 7 senegalensis (L.) . 121, 808 121. “ cyanescens, Cab. & Reich. 121, 808 Fam. Bucerotide. 122, Bucorax cafer (Verr.) 7 122 123. Buceros buccinator, Temm.. 125 124, ae cristatus, Rupp. . 126 125. Tockus melanoleucus, Licht. 127 126. » _monteiri, Hartl. 129 127. ;, flayirostris (Riipp.) . 130, 808 128. » erythrorhynchus (Gm.) 131 129. », pasutus(L.) . . 133, 808 Fam. Upupide. 130. Upupa africana, Bechst. . 134, 808 131. Irrisor erythrorhynchus (Lath.) 137, 808 132. Rhinopomastes cyanomelas Ges) 138, 809 133. Scoptelus aterrimus (Steph.) 140 Fam. Musophagide. 134. Corythaix musophaga (Dub.) 141 135. 5s 136. 55 porpbyreolopha (Vig.) 142 livingstonii, G. R. Gray 143 137. » erythrolopha (V.) 144 138. Schizerhis concolor (Smith) 144, 809 Fam. Coliidx. 139. Colius erythromelon, Vieill. 551, 853 140. » capensis, Gm. . 552, 853 141. ,, striatus, Gm. . 555, 853 142. ,, castanonotus, Verr. . 554 Fam. Cuculide. 143. Cuculus canorus, L. . . 147, 809 144. » gularis, Steph. . 148, 809 145. ,, _ Solitarius, Steph. . 149, 809 146. - clamosus, Cuv. . 150, 809 147. » Smaragdineus, Swains. 151, 809 . 148. » _- cupreus, Bodd. . 153, 809 149. » Klaasi, Shaw . - 155 150. Coceystes glandarius (L.)_. 157, 810 151. a cafer (Licht.) . 158, 810 152. oo jacobinus (Bodd.) 158, 810 153. 4 serratus (Sparrm.) 160, 810 154. Ceuthmochares australis, Sharpe 161 155. Centrepus senegalensis (L.) . 162, 810 156. ~ natalensis, Shelley 163,810 157. = monachus, Riipp. 165 158. - nigrorufus, Cuy. . 165, 810 159. 160. 161. 162. 163. 164. 165. 166. 167. 168. 169. 170. 171. 172. 173. 174, 175. 176. Wii. 178. 179. 180. 181. 182. 183. 184, 185. 186. 187. 188. 189. 190. 191, 192. 193. 194. 195. 196. 197. 198. 199. ‘a BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. PAGE Fam. Indicatoridz, Indicator sparrmanni (Steph.) 166, 810 op variegatus, Less, . 167, 810 - major, Steph. . 168, 810 + ‘minor, Steph. . 169, 811 Prodotiscus regulus, Sundey. 171, 811 Fam. Capitonide. Pogonorhynchus torquatus (Dum.) 172, 811 » leucomelas (Bodd.) 173, 811 affinis, Shelley 811 Barbatula pusilla (Dum.) . 175 as extoni, Layard . 176, 811 5 chrysocoma (Temm.) 811 = bilineata, Sundev. 176 Smilorhis leucotis (Sundey.) 177 Trachyphonus cafer (V.) .178, 811 Stactolema anchietz (Boc.) 179 Fam. Picide. Campothera capricorni, Strick]. 180 a bennetti (Smith) 181, 812 “r abingtoni (Smith) 182 re smithii (Malh.) 184, 812 3 notata (Licht.) 186 Geocolaptes olivaceus (Lath.) 187, 812 Mesopicus namaquus(Licht.) 188, 812 5 griseocephalus (Bodd.) 191, 812 Dendropicus cardinalis (Gm.) 190, 812 Fam. Iyngide. Iynx pectoralis, Vig. . 191, 812 Order PSITTACI. Fam. Psittacide. Agapornis roseicollis (V.) . 192 fe pullaria (L.) 193 Psittacus robustus, Gm. d 194 ne fuscicollis, Kuhl 195 oo meyeri, Riipp. . 195, 813 om rueppelli, Gray 196 9 fuscicapillus, Verr. & Desm. 197 Order PASSERES. Fam. Turdide. Sylvia cinerea, Bechst. 829 » Salicaria (L.) . 304, 829 Phylloscopus trochilus (L) . 296, 827 Hypolais icterina (V.) : 295 Acrocephalus bzeticatus (V.) 290, 827 on schcenobanus (L.) 293, 827 ct arundinaceus (L.) 289, 826 cn palustris (Bechst.) 291, 827 Lusciniola gracilirostris, Hartl 287 XIX PAGE 200. Scheenicola apicalis (Cab.) . 283, 825 201. Bradypterus brachypterus (V.) 286, 825 202. 3 barratti, Sharpe 826 203, Be sylvaticus, Sundey. 288, 826 204. Phlexis victorini (Sundev.). 284 205. Calamonastes fasciolatus (Smith) 273, 823 206. Euryptila subcinnamomea (Smith) 273, 823 207, Geocichla litsitsirupa (Smith) 189, 813 208. rf guttata (Vig.) 200 209. oF gurneyi (Hartl.) 202 210. Turdus libonyanus, Smith . 199, 813 211. » Olivaceus,L. . . 200, 813 212. » cabanisi, Bp. . : 813 213 Monticola rupestris (V.) . 219, 816 214, os explorator (V.) . 220, 816 215. = brevipes (Strickl. & Sel.) 221, 816 a Cossypha bicolor (Sparrm.) , 222, 816 217. natalensis, Smith . 223 218, Fe caffra (L.) . 224, 816 219, mH bocagii, Finsch & ‘Hartl. 225, 817 220, FF barbata, Finsch & Hartl. 226, 817 221. ie subrufescens, Bocage 227, 817 222, _ heuglini, Hartl. . 817 223. humeralis (Smith) 228, 817 224, Adonopsis signata (Sundev.) 229, 817 225. Cichladusa arcuata, Peters, . 229 226. = ruficauda (Hartl.) 230, 817 227, Erythropygia coryphzus (Less.) 251, 821 228. oF leucophrys (V-) 252, 821 229, re munda (Cab.) 821 230. e zambesiana, Sharpe 821 231. pena, Smith 253, 821 232, Thamnolxa cinnamomei- ventris (Lafr.) . 232, 818 233. a arnotti (Tristr.) 245, 819 234. - shelleyi (Sharpe) 246, 819 235, Myrmecocichla formicivora (V.) 231, 818 236. “ bifasciata (Temm.) 240, 818 237. cp sinuata (Sundey.) 236, 818 238. Fs cinerea (V.) 242,818 819 239. Myrmecocichla pollux (Hartl.) 244, 819 240. Saxicola monticola (V.), 246, 819, 820 241, a galtoni (Strickl.) . 234, 818 242, . pileata (Gm.) . 238, 818 243, e albicans, Wahlb. 237 244, 3 layardi, Sharpe _. 236, 818 245. Pratincola torquata (L.) . 250, 820 xx 246. 247. 248. 249. 250. 251. 252. 253. 254. 255. 256. 257. 258. 259. 260. 261. 262. 263. 264. 265. 266. 267. 268. 269. 270. 271. 272. 273. 274. 275. 276. 277. 278. 279. 280. 281. 282, 283, 284. 285. 286. 287. 288, 289. 290. 291. 292. 293. 294, 295. SYSTEMATIC PAGE Fam. Pycnonotide. Pyenonotus capensis (L.) . 207, 814 is tricolor, Hartl. . 208, 815 “3 layardi, Gurney 815 nigricans (V.) 815 »” Chlorocichla flaviventris, Smith 203, 813 a occidentalis, Sharpe 814 Phyllostrophus capensis, Swains. 203, 814 = fulviventris, Cab. 814 Andropadus importunus (V.) 204, 814 5 oleaginus, Peters 205, 814 Xenocichla flavostriata (Sharpe) 206, 814 Fam. Timeliide. Sphenzacus africanus (Gm.) 280, 824 “4 intermedius, Shelley 824 natalensis, Shelley 825 Prinia flavicans (Bonn. & V.) 254, 821 » Inystacea, Rupp, . 258, 822 »» maculosa (Bodd.) _ . 259, 822 5, hypoxantha (Sharpe) 260, 822 Burnesia substriata (Smith) 256, 822 Spilotila ocularia (Smith) . 256, 822 Cisticola meridionalis, Sharpe 282, 825 4 aberrans, Smith . 271, 823 ; cisticola (Temm.) . 275, 824 » cherina (Smith) . 278, 824 » textrix,V. . .279, 824 terrestris (Smith), . 824 4 tinniens (Licht.) . 265, 822 natalensis (Smith) . 261, 822 » lugubris (Rupp.) 264, 822, 823 »» subruficapilla (Smith) 266, 823 » grandis, Bocage 825 fi angolensis (Bocage) 822 Pinarornis plumosus, Sharpe 230, 817 Crateropus bicolor, Jard. . 210, 815 iy jardinii, Smith . 212, 815 5 kirkii, Sharpe . 213, 815 *5 melanops, Hartl. 214, 815 > hartlaubi, Bocage 214, 816 Aethocichla gymnogenys (Hartl.) 215, 816 Neocichla gutturalis (Bocage) 215, 816 Cheetops frenatus (Temm.) . 216 y aurantius, Layard . 217 » pycnopygius, Strickl. & Scl. 218, 816 Apalis thoracica (Shaw & Nodd.) 281, 825 Euprinodes flavidus (Strickl.) 299, 828 Dryodromas fulvicapilla (V.) 301, 828 “5 damarensis (W ahlb.) 300, 828 ay icteropygialis (Lafr.) 800 Sylviella rufescens ( V.) . 3038, 829 ruficapilla ( Bocage) 829 LIST OF THE PAGE 296, Eremomela flaviventris (Burch.) 297, 827 297. 5 polioxantha, Sharpe 828 298. a usticollis, Sundey. 298, 828 299. » pulchra (Bocage) 828 300. C scotops, Sundey. 299, 828 301. Camaroptera olivacea (V.) . 294, 827 302, +s sundevalli, Sharpe 293, 827 Fam. Nectariniidz. 303. Promerops cafer(I.) . 5 305 304. 7 gurneyi, Verr. 306 305. Nectarinia famosa (L.) 306, 830 306. “ bocagii, Shelley . 830 307. Anthrobaphes olivacea (L.) . 308 308. Cinnyris yerreauxi, Smith 309 309. eS olivaceus, Smith 310 310. 5 olivacinus, Peters . 830 311. 4 gutturalis(L.) —. 311, 830 312. 5 afer (L.) 2 313, 830 313. 5 ludovicensis, Bocage 830 314. Ps chalybeus (L.) _. 314, 831 315. 7 amethystinus (Shaw) 315, 831 316. = kirkii, Shelley . 317, 831 317. 95 fuseus, Vieill. . 317, 832 318. ss leucogaster(V.) . 318, 832 319. Ps mariquensis, Smith 319, 832 320. + bifasciatus (Shaw) 322 321. + yenustus, Shaw 832 322. . oustaleti, Bocage . §32 323. Anthodieta collaris (V.), 320 324. 9 zambesiana, Shelley 321 325, Anthothreptes anchietz, Bocage 832 326. rs longuemarii, Less, 833 Fam. Meliphagidee. 327. Zosterops capensis, Sund. . 322, 834 328, 5 pallida, Swains. . 324, 834 329. oF senegalensis, Bp. . 325, 834 330. = virens, Bp. . ‘ 325 331. “ poliogaster, Heugl. 326, 834 Fam. Paride. 332. Anthoscopus caroli (Sharpe) 327, 834 333. + capensis(Gm.) 327 334. » flavifrons(Cass.) 854 335, Parus afer, Gm. . . 329, 834 336. ,, niger, Bonn.& V. . 331, 835 337. ,, rufiventris, Bocage 835 Fam, Certhiidee. 338. Salpornis salvadorii (Bocage) 835 Fam. Muscicapide. 339. Parisoma suberuleum, V. . 332, 836 340. 5 layardi, Hartl. —. 334, 836 341. “Ps plumbeum (Hartl.) 836 342. Chloropeta natalensis, Smith 335 343. es icterina, Sundev. 336, 837 344, Cryptolopha ruficapilla, Sund. 302, 829 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. PAGE 345. Hyliota australis, Shelley . 836 346, » barboze, Hartl. . 336, 836 347. Erythrocercus livingstonii, Finsch & Hartl. : < 337 348. Bias musicus (Vieill.) . ; 337 349. Muscicapa grisola, L. . . 338, 837 350. A finschii, Bocage . 837 351, - crulescens, Hartl. 340 352. 5 lugens, Hartl. 341 353. “A cinereola, Kinsch & Hartl. 342 354. Alseonax adusta (Boie) . 339, 837 355. ay minima (Heugl.) . 837 356. Pogonocichla stellata (V.) 342 357. Lioptilus nigricapillus (V.). 343 358. Smithornis capensis (Smith) 344 359. Platystira peltata, Sundeyv. . 345 360. 55 mentalis, Bocage . 837 361. Pachyprora capensis (L.) . 346, 838 362. a molitor (Hahn & K.) 348, 838 363. ne pririt (V.). . 349, 838 364, a minulla (Bocage) 350, 838 365. Lanioturdus torquatus, Waterh. 351, 838 366, Stenostira scita (V.) . 352, 838 367. Terpsiphone cristata (Gm.) 352, 838 368. Trochocercus cyanomelas (V.) 354 369. Elminia albicauda, Bocage . 838 Fam. Hirundinide. 370. Psalidoprocne holomelena (Sundey.) 356 839 839 839 839 840 839 840 840 364 841 840 840 841 367 841 841 368 841 841 841 374 842 841 842 842 842 371. antinorii, Salvad. 372. Chelidon urbica (L.) . 373. Petrochelidon spilodera (Sundey.): 357, 374. Cotile cincta (Bodd.) . . 358, 375. ,, fuligula (Licht. ) . 360, 376. ,, Yiparia (L.) © Chie «95 paludicola (V. ie . 361, 378. Hirundo rustica, L. . 362, 379. os angolensis, Bocage 380. “5 rufigula, Bocage , 381. ~ nigrorufa, Bocage . 382. + albigularis, Strickl. 364, 383. 5 dimidiata, Sundev. 366, 384. * atrocerulea,Sundey. 385. = smithii, Leach . 368, 386. 9 griseopyga, Sundey. 368, 387. - monteiri, Hartl. . 388. - semirufa, Sundey. . 370, 389. ~ cucullata, Bodd. . 370, BEI puelia, Temm. . 373, Fam, Laniide. 391. Lanius minor,Gm. . - 392, ,, souze (Bocage) ' 393. ,, collaris, L. . 374, vty ae subcoronatus, Smith 377, 395, Enneoctonus collurio (L.) . 378, 396, Urolestes melanoleucus (Jard, & Selby) . : . 380, 397. 398. 399. 400. 401. 402. 403. 404, 405, 406. 407. 408, 409, 410. 411. 412, 413, 414, 415. 416. 417. 418. 419, 420. 421, 422, 423, 424. 425, 426. 427. 428. 429. 430. 431. 432, 433. 434, 435. 436. 437. 438. 439. XX1 PAGE Laniarius quadricolor, Cass, 381 7 olivaceus (Shaw) . 382 ¥ rubiginosus, Sundey. 383, 842 . sulphureipectus (Less.) 384 rf gutturalis (P. L. S. Mill.) 385, 842 “5 poliocephalus (Licht.) 387, 842 a atrococcineus ( Burch.) 389, 842 a atricroceus, Trimen 390 x gularis (Finsch & Hartl.) 390 5 major, Hartl. . 391, 842 5 cubla (Shaw) . 392, 842 < hamatus, Hartl. 843 “5 ferrugineus (Cuy.) 393, 843 » erythropterus (Shaw) 393, 843 a senegalus (L.) . 394, 843 triv irgatus (Smith) 396, 843 Nilaus brubru (Lath.) . . 397, 843 » aftinis, Bocage - - 843 Fam. Campophagide. Campophaga nigra, V. - 398, 843 - hartlaubi (Salvad.) 398 Graucalus czesius (Licht.) . 399 . pectoralis, J.and S, 843 Fam. Prionopide. Eurocephalus anguitimens, Smith 400, 844 Bradyornis infuscata, (Smith) 233, 818, 844 mariquensis, Smith 401, 844 oatesii, Sharpe 402, 844 Bradyornis pallidus, Miill. 402 a woodwardi, Sharpe 403 a silens (Shaw) . 404, 844 ‘“ ater, Sundey. 405 Prionops talacoma, Smith . 406, 844 Sigmodus retzii (Wahlb.) . 407, 844 is tricolor (Gray) . 407 Fam. Dicruridz. Buchanga assimilis (Bechst.) 408, 844 Dicrurus ludwigii, Smith . 410, 845 Fam, Oriolidz. Oriolus galbula, L, 411 s notatus, Peters - 412, 845 » larvatus, Licht. . 413, 845 Fam. Corvide. Heterocorax capensis(Licht.) 415, 845 Corvus scapulatus, Daud. . 416, 845 Corvultur albicollis (Lath.) 417 Fam. Sturnidz, Buphaga africana, L. . . 418, 845 rf erythrorhyncha, Stan]. 420, 846 Xxil 440, 441. 442, 443. 444. 445. 446. 447. 448. 449. 450. 451. 452. 453. 454. 455. 456. 457. 458. 459, 460. 461. 462. 463. 464. 465. 466. 467. 468. 469. 470. 471. 172. 473. 474. 475. 476. 477. 478. 479. 480. 481. 482, 483. 484, 485. 486. 487. 488. 489. SYSTEMATIC PAGE Dilophus carunculatus, Gm. 421, 845 Lamprotornis mevesii, Wahlb. 423, 846 af purpureus, Bocage 423 3 australis,Smith 424, 846 a pheenicopterus, Swains. 425, 846 of sycobins, Peters 426, 846 + acuticaudus, Bocage 427 * nitens (L.) 427 + melanogaster, Swains. 428 Pholidauges verreauxii, Bocage 428, 846 Spreo bicolor (Gm.) . . 429, 846 Amydrus caffer (L.) . 430, 846 = morio (L.) . . 431, 846 Fam. Ploceide. Sycobrotus bicolor (V-) . 432 Hyphanturgus olivaceus (Hahn) 433, 846 Hyphantornis ocularius (Smith) 435 as cincta, Cass. . 436 a nigriceps, Layard 436 - spilonotus, Vig. 437, 847 “A temporalis, Bocage 438, 847 a subaureus, Smith 438 iy xanthops, Hartl 438 * yitellinus (Licht.) 439, 847 “i velatus (V.) . 439, 847 5 cabanisi, Peters 442 a nigrifrons, Cab. 442, 847 m capitalis (Lath.) 442 - intermedia (Rupp.) 443 s xanthopterus, F. and H. 443 7 superciliosus, Shelley 847 Sharpia angolensis, Bocage 443 » ayresii, Shelley, 847 Malimbus rubriceps (Sundey.) 444, 847 Textor erythrorhynchus, Smith 445 Plocepasser mahali, Smith . 447, 848 Amblyospiza albifrons ( Vig.) 449, B48 Philoeteerus socius (Lath.) . 449, 848 Sporopipes squamifrons, (Smith) 451, 848 Vidua verreauxi, Cass. - 452, 848 » regia (L.) . . 453, 848 » principalis (L.) . 453, 848 », ardens (Bodd.) . . 455, 849 Spermestes cucullata, Swains. 456 = rufodorsalis, Peters 456 Ortygospiza polyzona (‘lemm.) 457, 849 Hypochera ultramarina (Gm.) = 457 Quelea quelea CL.) - : 458 Chera progne (Bodd.) . . 458, 849 Penthetria albonotata (Cass.) 460 5 axillaris (Smith) 461, 849 LIST 490. 491, 492, 493, 494. 495. 496. 497. 498. 499. 500, 501. 502, 503. 504. 505. 506. 507. 508. 509, 510, 511. 512. 513. 514. 515. 516, 517. 518. 519. 520, 521. 522, 523. 524; 525. 526. 527. 528, 529. 530, 531, 532. 533. 534. 535. 536. 537. 538. 539. 540, 541. 542, 543. 544, OF THE PAGE Penthetria bocagei (Sharpe) 461 % hartlaubi, Bocage 461 Pyromelana oryx (L.) . - 462, 849 oy capensis (L.) . 463, 849 - taha (Smith) . 465 Foudia eminentissima (Bp.) 467 Amadina erythrocephala (L.) 467, 849 Pytelia melba(L.) 4 468 as hartlaubi (Biane.) . 469 Estrelda subilava (V.). . 469, 849 5 dufresnii (V.) ~ . 469, 849 “A incana, Sundey. . 470 ys astrild (L.) . 470, 849 7 guartinii, Bp. ° 470 Sy nitidula, Hartl . 472 os erythronota (V.) . 473 Ureginthus cyanogaster (Dand.) 473, 850 “5 granatinns (L.) 474, 850 Lagonosticta rubricata (Licht.) 475 Es jamesoni, Shelley 475 + minima (V.) 476 Hypargus margaritatus (Strickl.) 476 5 niveiguttatus (Peters) 477 Alario alario (L.) . . 477 Fam. Fringillide. Passer areuatus (Gm.) . 478, 850 » diffusus, Smith. . 480, 850 » mMotitensis, Smith 480 Petronia petronella (Licht.). 481, 850 Poliospiza gularis (Smith) . 482, 850 * tristriata (Riipp.) 482 ” crocopygia, Sharpe 483 Crithagra angolensis (Gm,) . 484, 850 An ictera (V.) - 484, 850 flavyiventris(Shaw) 485 os albogularis(Smith) 485 5 sulfurata (L.) . 486 > chloropsis, Cab. 486 butyracea (L.) —. 487, 850 scotops, Sundey, . 487, 850 canicollis, Swains. . 488, 850 tottus(Gm.) . : 488 es » Serinus » Fam. Emberizide. Fringillaria capensis (L.) _. 489, 851 impetuani (Smith) 489, 851 + tahapisi (Smith) 490, 851 = flaviventris (V.) 491, 851 - cabanisi, Reichen, 491 Fam. Alaudide. Pyrrhulauda verticalis, Smith 492 a smithii, Bp. . 493, 851 * australis, Smith 493 Certhilanda capensis (Bodd.) 494 + rutula (V.) - 496, 851 Alzmon semitorquata (Smith) 499, 851 nf nivosa (Swains.) . 501, 851 Heterocorys breviunguis (Sundey.) 503 ” Ammomanes ferruginea (Lafresn.) 504 545, 546. 547. 548. 549. 550. 551. 552, 553. 554, 555. 556. 557. 558. 559. 560. 561. 562. 563. 564, 565. 566. 567. 568. 569. 570. 571. 572, 573. 574. 575. 576. 577. 578. 579, 580. BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. PAGE Ammomanes erythrochlamys (Strickl.) 506 ” grayi (Wahlb.) 507 Spizocorys conirostris (Sundeyv.) 508 Tephrocorys cinerea (Gm.) . 511, 851 Calendula crassirostris (V.) 513 Mirafra angolensis, Bocage . 851 » apiata (Gm.) . 515, 851 » Yufipilea (V.) . 517 » africana, Smith . 519, 851 » damarensis, Sharpe 522 » africanoides (Smith) 523 » neevia (Strickl.) . 524, 852 x, sabota, Smith . 526 » fringillaris (Sundey.) 527 » cCheniana, Smith . 528, 852 » ligricans (Sundey.) 530 Fam. Motacillide, Macronyx capensis (L.) . 530 * striolatus, Heugl. 532 a amelie, De Tarr. 533, 852 Anthus campestris, Bechst. . 533 » caffer, Sund. . 534, 852 Anthus pallescens, Bocage . 536 » Nicholsoni, Sharpe . 536 x» pyrrhonotus (V.) 537 » brachyurus, Sundey. 539, 852 » lineiventris, Sundev, 540, 852 » chloris, Licht. 541 » crenatus, F. and H. 543 trivialis ( L.) 852 Motacilla longicauda, Riipp. 544 » vidua, Sundey. . 545, 853 capensis, L. . . 547, 858 Budytes flava (L.) . 550, 853 » _Viridis (Scop.) 3 853 »» Mmelanocephala (Licht.) 551 » campestris, Pall. 551 Order COLUMB.E. Fam. Columbide. Sub-fam. Treroninz. . Treron calva, Temm. . 557 », Wakefieldii, Sharpe . 557 » delalandii, Bp. 5 558 Sub-fam. Columbine. Columba phzonota, Gray . 559, 854 . Palumbus arquatrix (Temm. ) 561 Turturcena delegorguei (Deleg.) 563 Haplopelia larvata (Temm.) 564 . Turtur erythrocephalus, Gray 565 » Semitorquatus, Rupp. 566 » decipiens, F. and H. 567 » capicola, Sundev. 567 - 4, Senegalensis (L.) . 568, 854 . Chaleopelia afra (L.) . 570 . Tympanistria tympanistria (Temm.) 571 . G£na capensis (L.) . 572, 854 Fam, Pteroclide. . Pterocles namaqua,Gm._—_. 574, 854 Xxill PAGE 597. Pterocles bicinctus, Temm. . 575, 854 598. op gutturalis, Smith, 577 599: " variegatus, Burch. 578 Order GALLINE. Fam. Phasianide. 600. Numida coronata, Hartl. . 581, 854 601. $ verreauxi, Elliot 585 602. 5 cristata, Pall. 586 603. rs pucherani, Hartl. . 586 Fam. Perdicide. 604, Pternistes swainsoni (Smith) 587 605. ry rubricollis (Gm.) . 589 606. * humboldti( Peters) 589 607. rf nudicollis (Lath.) 589 608. Francolinus adspersus, Waterh. 590 609. es clamator, Temm. 591, 854 610. cs natalensis, Smith 592 611. - pileatus, Smith 593 612. A granti, Hartl. . 594 613. ch afer (Miull.), . 595, 854 614, cf leyaillantii, Temm. 596 615. FA finschii, Bocage 598 616. ” gariepensis, Smith 599 617. rf subtorquatus, Smith 600 618. An schlegeli, Heugl. 602 619. a hartlaubi, Bocage 602 620. Coturnix coturnix (L.) . 603, 854 621. 7 delegorguei ( Deleg.) 605 622. adansonii, Verr. . 606 Fam. Turnicide. 623. Turnix hottentota (Temm.) 607 624. ,, lepurana (Smith) 608 Order GERANOMORPHE. Fam. Rallide. 625. Rallus cxrulescens, Gm. 610 626. ,, aquaticus,L. . F 610 627. Crex crex(L.) . < 5 611 628. ,, egregia (Peters) . 612 629. ,, marginalis (Hartl.) 612 630. Porzana porzana (L.) . 5 613 GAL eee Pbaalloni(\VAien ae 614 632. Corethrura pulchra (Gray 615 633. 5 dimidiata (Temm.) 615 634. oo ruficollis, Gray . 616 635. Coturnicops ayresii, Gurney 616 636. Lymnocorax niger (Licht.) . 618 637. Porphyrio smaragdonotus, Temm. 619 638, re alleni ee: 621 639. Fulica cristata, Gm. . 621 640. Gallinula chloropus, L. 5 623 641. ns angulata, Sund. . 624 Fam. Heliornithidz. 642. Podica petersi, Hartl. . = 625 Fam. Gruide. 643. Grus carunculata, Gm. 626 644. Anthropoides paradisea (Licht. ) &8 645. Balearica chrysopelargus (Licht.) 629 XXIV SYSTEMATIC LIST OF THE PAGE PAGE Fam. Otide. 699. Tringoides hypoleucus (L.) . 686 : . it 700, Totanus canescens, Gm. 687 Pe eee 632 | 01. , __ealidris, Bechst. 688 647. ,, caffra, Licht. 634 | $ ° f au 648. ,, ludwigii, Riipp. - 686,064. | OR (i ee 689 649. Otis scolopacea,Temm. . 687, 854 | 703.» =. OGaropiiny . 689 650. ,, cerulescens, V. 638 | 20% » Staynatilis, Bechst. ‘ 690 651. ,, senegalensis, V. 639 705. glareola, I. 690 652. ” ruficrista, Smith . . 639, 954 | 106- Terekia cinerea, Giildenst. 691 653. ,, melanogaster, nae 642, a5 | 20% Numenius arcuatus (L.) cae 654. ,, afra,Gm. . 3 642 | 708. ” phaopus (L.) 693 655. ,, afroides, Smith . 642, 855 2 . 656. ” rueppelli, Wahlb.. ” 643 Ranh dress 709. Dromas ardeola, Payk. 694 Order LIMICOL. Order GAVLE Fam. Gidicnemidx. Fam. Laride. ag Gidicnemus pee Beas a 710, Stercorarius pomatorhinus (Temm.) ” S 695 659. “" vermiculatus, Cab. 647 | 77), ° crepidatus (Banks) 695 Fam. Parride. 712. +, antarcticus (Less.) 696 Q Str ees | 713. Larus dominicanus, Licht. . 697 660. Parra africana, Gm. . 648 | 714. ,, hartlaubi, Bruch 698 661. ,, capensis, Smith . 649 | 715. ,, phaocephalus, Swains. 698 , . 716. Hydrochelidon hybrida (Pall.) 699 Fam. Glareolide. 717. leucoptera (M. & S,) 700 662. Glareola melanoptera, Nordm. 718. Sterna. fluviatilis, Naum. 701 F ee 650,855 | 719. ,, macrura, Naum, 701 63. » _ pratincola, : 652 | 720. ,, dougalli, Mont. 702 664. Cursorius rufus, Gould. 653, 855 | 721. y, cantiaca. Gm. . . 702 665. “0 senegalensis, Licht. 654, 855 | 722. caspia, allen - 703 666. i bicinctus, Temm. . 654, 855 | 723. ,, _ bergii, Licht. . . 704 667. a bisignatus, Hartl. 655 | 724. ,, minuta, L. 705 668. » cinctus, Heugl. 656 | 725. balenarum, Strickl. 705 669. A chalcopterus, Temm. 656 | 726, Anous stolidus (L.) . . 706 ue ene ee = : be 727. Rhynchops flavirostris, Swains. 706 quatarola helvetica : 65 672. Aigialitis cantiana (Lath. Nae 659 Order HERODIONES. 673. AN marginata (V.) 659 7 674. 3 hiaticula (L.) 660 Fam. Ardeide. LN » mater (Ménétr:) at | 728. Ardea goliath, Temm. 707 ; ; : F 677. tricollaris (V-) 662 | er ‘ esis Gi Vi & Childr 678. geoffroyi (Wagl.) . 664 on 709 679. Endromias asiaticus (Pall.) . 665,855 | ~ 680. Lobivanellus senegalus (L.) 666, 855 | ey By es ina a a i a 681. ee albiceps, Gould 667, 855 | 733. si rufiventris, Hey 713 682, Hoplopterus speciosus (Wagl.) 667 | 734. Herodias alba (L.) 714 683. crassirostris, De Fil. 669 735, aoe eilia (Wagl. ) 714 684, Chettusia melanoptera, Rupp. 669 | 736 yy garzetta (L.) 716 685. x coronata (Temm.) 670, 855 | 737° Bibalens ibis (L:) ; 717 686. Strepsilas interpres (L.) 671 | 738. Ardeola comata (Pall.) f 718 687, Hamatopus capensis, Licht. 672 | 739° Butorides atricapilla (Afsel.) 719 Fam. Scolopacide. i Botaurus pairs we a 688. Recurvirostra avocetta (L.) . 673 749. a serps (L.) . 722 689. Himantopus candidus, Bonn, 675 | 743, Nycticorax griseus (L.) 724 A Gallinago rae : me 744, if leuconotus (W: agi. ) 724 : , major (Gm . 745. Scopus umbretta, Gm. 5 725 692. Rhy mnchiea capensis (L. ) . 679, 855 ; at 1 id 693. Tringa minuta, Leis]. 681 Fam. Balwnicipitide. 694, », bairdii, Coues . 682 | 746. Balaniceps rex, Gould é 727 695, », subarcuata, Giildenst. 682 F Ciconiid 696. ,, canutus (L.) 683 am. Ciconlide. 697. Calidris arenaria (L.) . 3 684 | 747, Ciconia alba, L. . 728 698, Machetes pugnax (L.) ql 685 | 748. ,, nigra, L.. 729 rr > BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. XXV PAGE 749, Ciconia abdimii, Licht. 730 750 + episcopus (Bodd.) 731 751. Mycteria senegalensis, Shaw 731 752, Anastomus lameligerus, Temm. 732 753. Leptoptilus crumenifer (Cuv.) 734 754, Pseudotantalus ibis (L.) 735 Fam. Plataleide. 755. Ibis ethiopica, Lath. . 736 756. Geronticus calyus (Bodd.) 738 757. Hagedashia hagedash (Lath.) 739 758. Falcinellus falcinellus (L.) . 741 759. Platalea tenuirostris, Temm. 742 Fam. Pheenicopteride. 760. Pheenicopterus erythreeus, Verr. 745 761. tn minor, Geoffr. 744 Order ANSERES. Fam. Anatide. 762. Plectropterus gambensis, L. 746 763. Chenalopex egyptiaca (L.) 747 764, Nettapus auritus (Bodd.) 750 765. Dendrocygna viduata (L.) 751 766. Sarcidiornis africana, Eyton 752 767. Casarca cana (Gmel.) . 753 768. Poecilonetta erythrorhyncha (Gm. ) 754 769. Anas xanthorhyncha, Forst. 755 770. 4, sparsa, Smith . 756 771. Querquedula hottentotta, Smith 757 772. capensis (Gm.) 758 773. Chanlelasmus streperus (L.) 759 774, Spatula capensis (Smith) 759 775. Aythyia capensis (Cuyv.) 760 776. Thalassornisleuconota, Smith 761 777. Erismatura maccoa (Smith) . 762 Fam. Procellariide. 778. Oceanitis oceanica (Kuhl) 763 TEE > tropica (Gould) 764 780. s leucogaster (Gould) 764 781. Procellaria pelagica, L. 765 782. Ossifraga gigantea (Gm.) . 765 783. Majaqueus eequinoctialis (L.) 766 784, Cistrelata mollis (Gould) 766 785. + macroptera (Smith) 766 786, Thalassceca tenuirostris tbe ) 767 787, Daption capensis (L.) . 767 788. 789. 790. 791, 792. 793. 794. 795. 796. 810. 811. 812. Halobeena cerulea (Gm.) Prion vittatus (Gm.) » desolatus (Gm.) . Puffinus griseus (Gm.) Diomedea exulans, L. . A 1" melanophrys, Gm. rc chlororhyncha,Gm. - culminata, Gould . Fe fuliginosa, Gm. Order STEGANOPODES. Fam. Phaetontidze. . Phaeton rubricauda (Bodd.) . Fam, Pelecanidz. . Sula capensis, Licht. : . Pelecanus mitratus, Licht. . 4p rufescens, Gm. Fam. Phalacrocoracide. . Phalacrocorax carbo (L.) am lucidus, Licht. neglectus, Wahlb. . Phalacrocorax capensis (Sparrm.) africanus (Gm.) Fam. Plotide. . Plotus levaillantii, Licht. Order PYGOPODES. Fam. Podicipitide. . Podiceps cristatus, L. . im nigricollis, Sund. . minor, L. Order IMPENNES. Fam. Spheniscide. Spheniscus demersus, L. Eudyptes chrysolophus, Brandt Sub-class Ratite. Fam. Struthionide. Struthio australis, Gurney . 791 Page ERRATA. 89, line 19, for ““ Pumbamba” read ** Lumbamba.” 291, 551, 565, 566, 587, 606, 645, 705, 789, 793, , ” ” 35, ll, 30, say 8, 27, “specimen ”’ read “ species.” “(Ball)” read “ (Pall.).”” “ Rufus-headed ” read * Rufous-headed.”” “ Turtus”’ read “ Turtur.” “ Pernistes ” read “ Pternistes.” “ adamsoni” read “ adansoni.”’ “Pam. Charadriide” read ‘* Fam. ¢ Edlicnemide.”’ « Anoys ” read * Anous.” “ demursus ” read “ demersus.” “ Fielden ” read “ Feilden.” LIST OF PLATHS. I. Baza verreauxi. VI. Nectarinia talatala. II. Falco biarmicus. VIIL Drymeeca flavicans. III. Carine capensis. IX, fig. 1. Hirundo semirufa. IV, fig. 1. Merops bullockoides. ie, Cs 5 atrocerulea. ee; 2: FA nubicoides. X, fig. 1. Batis molitor. V, fig. 1. Ceuthmochares australis. | » » 2and3. Batis pririt. peas Ds % aereus. | XI. Laniarius quadricolor, VI. Cheetops aurantius. XII. Podica petersi. BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. ORDER ACCIPITRES. SUB-ORDER FALCONES. Fam. VULTURIDZ. 1. Gyps KOLBII. South African Griffon Vulture. Gyps fulvus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 6 (1867). This Vulture is now recognized as distinct from the ordinary Griffon of Europe, and when seen alive by the side of that bird is at once recognisable by its general paler coloration when adult, and uniform under surface. Although pretty generally distributed through the colony, it appears to become rarer towards Damara Land, as Mr. Andersson writes that it is only sparingly found there. “I have only observed it,” he says, ‘‘in the vicinity of the sea, above Oosop rocks, on the lower course of the Swakop River.” Farther north on the west coast it is not known to occur, as Sefor Anchieta, who is travelling from the northward into Damara Land, has not yet succeeded in finding it. On the eastern coast, however, it is much morecommon. Mr. Rickard notices it from Port Elizabeth and East London, and it is plentiful in Natal according to Mr. Ayres. The latter gentleman found it very numerous during his journey from Potchefstroom to the Iimpopo River, and it is doubtless this species which was met with in the Zambesi delta during November and December, by Dr. Kirk (cf. Ibis, 1864, p. 314). During his journey through the Matabili country Mr. T. EH. Buckley says it was not a very common species. The present bird is one of the typical South African species, being, as far as we know its range, confined to the limits adopted for the present work. Its nearest ally is G. himalayensis of Hume from the B 2 j BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Himalayas and Turkestan. Beyond the next species to be considered, it is probably the only Griffon Vulture found in South Africa, for it is unlikely that the specimen of the true Gyps fulvus in the British Museum, which was purchased from Leadbeater, did really come from the Cape of Good Hope, as it was said to have done. The Griffon Vulture is found throughout the Colony and Natal, and still lingers even in the neighbourhood of Cape Town. They breed in the most inaccessible precipices, depositing a few sticks in some hollow of the rock, on which they lay one egg, which is of a dirty white, more or less blotched and speckled with very light brown, particularly at the obtuse end. Axis, 3’’ 9’’’; diam. 2” 10”; weight 9:03. It is usually laid in June. Mr. Henry Buckley, who has kindly furnished much interesting matter to this work, writes as follows :—* My eggs were taken at Nel’s Poort, June, 1868. They vary from3°72 x 2 75 to 3°62 x 2°58. They are white in colour, with faint brown spots and streaks, which however may be only nest stains.” At Nel’s Poort* is a breeding place of these birds. It is situated half way up a vast accessible precipice, and is their constant resort at all times of the year, It is frequented by great numbers of birds, and their dung whitens the cliff to such an extent, that the spot is visible many miles off. They have bred in this place from time im- memorial, and from it they range over the surrounding country. On killing a springbuck or any animal, it is curious to see how they come trooping in a lengthened string from this place to their anticipated banquet. Though not one may be visible when the shot is fired, in seven or eight minutes hundreds will be gliding to the spot. The Chumie Banner has the following :—“ We are informed by Mr. M’ Alister of the Bontebok Flats, that a little while ago he was sur- prised by ‘ Aasvogels’ making an attack on his flock of sheep. Two persons were on the spot trying to stop these avaricious birds, but in vain. It was not until Mr. M’Alister arrived that they were made to leave their prey, after killing and devouring two full-grown sheep. They even attacked two herds with daring courage, caring for nothing.” The editor has also been informed of an attack made by Vultures on a flock of sheep near Colesberg, and that it really was a Griffon, and no Hagle which was the robber. Specimens are * For an account of a successful raid on the Vultures “ Krantz” in the Nel’s Poort Mountains, see Ids, 1869, p. 68. GYPS RUEPPELLI. 3 promised fcr the national collection, so that the species will doubt- less soon be identified. General cclour fulyous ; head and neck covered with short dirty whitish hairs; lower part of cervix bare and bluish; lower part of throat and middle of breast covered with short grey-brown feathers : whitish down on the rest of throat, sides of neck and upper part of cervix ; a ruff of short white feathers on the back and lower part of neck; wing and tail feathers very dark-brown. Length, 3’ 9”; wing, 2’ 4”; tail, 12”. Fig. Sharpe, Cat. B. pl. 1. 2. Gyps RUEPPELLI. Riippell’s Griffon Vulture. Gyps vulgaris, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 7 (1867). Mr. Jules Verreaux informs us that this Vulture is only found acci- dentally to the south of the Orange River, its head-quarters being to the northward. It is, however, undoubtedly a rare species in Southern Africa. The Norwich Museum contains a specimen from this locality, besides the example procured by Mr. Ayres in Natal. The late Mr. Andersson collected a single one shot at Ondonga, and these notices seem to include all the occurrences of Riippell’s Griffon Vulture within the region of which this work treats. The following description is from the British Museum ‘ Catalogue.’ Nearly adult. Down on head golden yellow ; ruff yellowish white ; interscapular and scapular feathers dark brown, with a conspicuous crescentic edging of fulvous white; wing-coverts creamy white, the brown bases showing plainly on the median and greater series, the latter conspicuously tipped with creamy white, as also are the inner secondaries ; quills black, primaries washed with chocolate-brown ; lower back and rump dark brown, narrowly edged with creamy white, the upper tail-coverts more broadly; tail black, shghtly shaded with chocolate-brown; crop-patch deep chocolate-brown ; under surface dull creamy buff, some of the flank-feathers showing the brown bases; under wing-coverts dark brown, with cream- coloured tips ; bill black ; cere black ; feet black ; iris nearly black.* Total length about 40 inches, culmen 3:8, wing 25:5, tail 11, tarsus about 4°7, middle toe 5:3. Fig. Cretzschm. in Riippell’s Atlas, taf. 32. * The iris varies much in colour, perhaps according to age. Cf. Guriey, Jb’s, 1860, p. 207. B 2 4 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 3. OroGyrs AURICULARIS. Eared Vulture. The Black Vulture is generally distributed, but is not seen in such large flocks as the Griffon, from which it keeps aloof, sailing round in enormous circles, at a great altitude. It usually hunts in pairs, and seems to have dominion over the common species. Le Vaillant states that the eggs are white; but those which we have obtained from the Frenchhock mountains, about 50 miles from Cape Town, are of a dirty white ground, profusely blotched and speckled with deep red-brown (dried-blood colour), especially at the obtuse end, where the blotches become confluent. Axis, 3” 9; diam., 2” 9", weight 9 oz. Another specimen is nearly spotless, and throughout of a dirty white. In the Zwartberg mountains this species builds on dense; flat-topped bushes, forming a vast accumu lation of sticks, so closely matted together that a single nest will hold and sustain the weight of several men. This is resorted to for several years, until the lice and insects generated in the mass be- come unbearable to the parent birds. I have never heard of more than one egg ina nest. ItlaysinJune. Mr. Atmore says the young remain in the nest nearly a year. Mr. Andersson states that it is the ‘commonest species of Vulture in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, and is also found in all the parts bordering those countries.’ Mr. Ayres likewise records it as inhabiting Natal, where however it is more wary and difficult to procure than the Griffon. He has also found it breeding in Trans- vaal. It extends as far as the Zambesi, being noticed by Dr. Kirk in that district, although no specimens were preserved by him. Mr. Buckley writes :—“ An egg in my collection measures 3°48 x 2°76 inches. In colour it is dirty white marked all over with small reddish-brown marks, which become more numerous, larger and more defined at the smaller end. This egg was taken about June 1870, in the Salt River Vley, within fifty miles of the Nieuwveldt Mountains, from a nest which was placed at the top of a mimosa tree. The bird only lays one egg.” The Eared Vulture of North-eastern Africa is supposed to be a different species from that inhabiting the Cape, and Mr. Gurney has the following remarks in his excellent catalogue of the birds of prey in the Norwich Museum :—“ Many of the specimens of this Vulture, killed in South Africa, are found to be destitute of the peculiar fold LOPHOGYPS OCCIPITALIS,. 5 of the skin on the sides of the neck, which produces the ear-like flaps that give to this Vulture its specific name; and north of the equator, the great majority of examples seem to be destitute of this appendage. Some observers have even stated that this peculiar fold of the skin is never found in the more northern specimens of this bird, and many naturalists have therefore considered that these more northerly specimens in reality belong to a distinct species, which has received the name of Vultur nubicus (Smith). I have not as yet adopted this distinction, considering that further observation is in- dispensable before the question can be considered as satisfactorily determined; and I may also observe that the Abyssinian specimen in the Norwich Museum certainly shows traces of the folds in question on the sides of the neck.” In the British Museum are three birds from Shoa, obtained by Sir W. C. Harris, which have also slight ear- lappets, but decidedly less developed than in the South African bird, Dr. A. Brehm has recently insisted (J. f. O. 1872, p. 71.) on the northern and southern birds being considered distinct species. General colour above, brown; head and neck bare ; upper part of breast covered with short brown feathers, surrounded by a ring of white down; feathers of abdomen elongated, dark-brown in the centre, light-brown at the edges; thighs covered with thick white down. Length, 4’; wing, 2’ 7”; tail, 13”, Fig. Temm. Pl, Col. 426, 4, LopHoGyYrs occIPrTaLis. White-headed Vulture. Vultur occipitalis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 5 (1867). This Vulture was first discovered in South Africa by Dr. Burchell on the Makwarin River. We received two specimens from the late Mr. R. Moffat, jr., which were killed at Kuruman, where Mr. James Chapman tells us they are plentiful, and that their habits assimilate to those of the common Vulture. It is possible that the late Mr. Chapman, who was more of a sportsman than a naturalist, has made a mistake in the above identification, as his remarks are somewhat at variance with those of other observers. It hardly appears to come within the boundaries of this colony, and in Natal Mr. Ayres says it is much rarer than the other Vultures, ‘only going in pairs, and generally coming to feed when the other kinds of Vultures are not present.’ Dr, Kirk mentions this species as having been doubtfully 6 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. identified on the Zambesi, but no specimens were preserved by him or by Dr. Dickerson. Mr. Andersson obtained it in Great Namaqua Land and also near the Seeo-Kaama Hill, §.W. of Lake Ngami. It is further known from north-eastern Africa and Senegambia. General colour above, blackish brown ; thighs, under part of body, and neck white ; quill feathers of wing and tail black; bare part of neck, space round eyes, and base of bill white; bill and feet flesh- coloured. Top of head covered with white down in the adult and brown in the immature plumage, which at the back is elongated and reversed. Length, 3’; wing, 1’ 11”; tail, 9”. Fig. Temm. Pl, Col. 13. 5, NEoPHRON PERCNOPTERUS. Egyptian Vulture. At this end of the Cape Colony this is decidedly a scarce species ; but few specimens:have reached our hands. We saw a single bird feeding on a dead horse, off which it drove three hungry white- necked Crows not far from the Paarl. It is very abundant at the Cape de Verde Islands, breeding in the rocky precipices in St. Vincent’s, at the back of the town, off which the steamers lie to coal. We ascended to their nests, which were vast masses of sticks ; but were, we believe, too late (December) for theireggs. Mr. Atmore has found it breeding about Swellendam, and Mr. A. F. Ortlepp near Colesberg. The latter gentleman writes that beneath the nest he found ‘‘ vast num- bers of the crania of small Rodents.” A couple of magnificent eggs were sent to me from the neigh- bourhood of Hopefield in the Malmesbury Division, taken from a nest in a krantz, which is said to be tenanted yearly by a pair of these birds. Mr. Rickard has procured the species at East London, and informs us that it is also said to frequent a krantz on the Buffalo river where Gyps kolbi breeds. Mr. Andersson records it as “ not uncommon in Damara Land and Great Namaqua Land and the parts adjacent, more especially in the neighbourhood of the coast.”” The Leiden Museum also possesses an example from Benguela. On the eastern part of South Africa it is decidedly a scarce species, being very rare in Natal according to Mr. Ayres, and in the Zambesi district it was only once observed in the mountains to the South of Nyassa by Dr. Kirk, who says :—“ It is a rare bird and was nowhere else obtained.” Mr. T, E. Buckley found it rare in the Matabili country. SS ee —— NEOPHRON PILEATUS. 7 Mr. Henry Buckley sends the following note :— My eggs vary from 8:04x1:98 to 2°431°88 inches. They differ much in size and shape, but are usually a broad oval. They vary much in colour, from dirty white with faint markings of brown to others richly coloured all over with reddish brown, and frequently splashed with darker markings of the same colour. (I haveno South African specimens.)” General colour dirty white; feathers of nape narrow, elongated, and pointed; quill feathers of wings black; secondaries greyish black ; tail white ; bill long, slender, horn-coloured at the tip, yellow at the base; space round the eyes, cheeks, ears, chin, and part of throat bare and yellow. Length, 2’ 3”; wing, 1’ 10”; tail, 1’ 11”. The young bird is wholly of a dirty dark-brown. Fig. Gould, Birds of Eur. Pl. 3. 6. NEOPHRON PILEATUS, Hooded Vulture. We have not ourselves met with this species, but have been in- formed that there are two Vultures of this genus inhabiting the coun- try North of the Orange River and Damara Land. One of them is the common N. percnopterus; the other probably the present species. Mr. Andersson says it is not common in Damara Land, but becomes more numerous as one approaches the Orange River. Mr. Ayres states that he has seen but few in Natal, but it is more plentiful towards the Zambesi, for Dr. Kirk writes :—“* The common Vulture, called ‘ Deze,’ of which no specimen was prepared, is universal ; it is a Neophron, resembling the common brown Vulture at the Cape.” It must be remarked that the Hooded Vulture of the countries north of the Equator is always a much smaller bird, although this is usually the case when Cape species occur in northern or western Africa. The Vulture from the latter parts shows the feathers of the hind neck ascending towards the nape, which has been made its claim to specific distinctness in a catalogue of the Birds of Prey in the British Museum, recently published by the editor. Plumage brown, variegated with fulvous on the thighs; tarsi black ; top of head, cheeks, and front of neck entirely bare ; lower part of neck and posterior portion, almost to the hind-head, covered with a close greyish down. Length, 2’ 2”; wing, 19”; tail, 7”. 8 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Fam. FALCONIDZ. Sub-fam. POLYBORINZ. 7. SERPENTARIUS SECRETARIUS. Secretary Bird. Serpentarius reptilivorus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 33 (1867). This bird is widely distributed all over South Africa, and is met with throughout the Cape Colony. Victorin found it from March to September at the Knysna. Mr. Rickard informs us that it is found both near Port Elizabeth and East London. Mr. Ayres has met with it in Natal, where, however, he says it is rare near D’Urban ; and more recently he has procured it in the Transvaal territory. Mr. T. E. Buckley observes :—“ I only met with this bird on two or three occasions in the Transvaal, and I saw one pair on the Lim- popo.” Respecting its distribution in the Zambesi country Dr. Kirk writes as follows —“ Not observed on the lower Zambesi, nor in the vicinity of the Nyassa. One specimen alone was seen on the plain between the Zambesi and Batoka hills, about the confluence of the Kafne. By the natives it is respected from the nature of its food, and from its killing snakes.” The late Mr. Andersson records the Secretary Bird as “found sparingly in Great Namaqua and Damara Land, and on the plains of Ondonga in the Ovampo Country ; it also occurs about Lake Ngami.” It has recently been procured still further to the northward on the west coast, for the Lisbon Museum has received two examples, one from Huilla in the Mossamedes district, collected by Sehor Anchieta, and another from Benguela procured by Seftor Freitas Branco. When a pair establish themselves in any locality, they speedily drive out all others of the same kind, and will breed in the same nest for along period. The latter is a huge structure, added to yearly, placed sometimes in a low bush, sometimes in a thick thorny mimosa. We are told they never lay more than two eggs, which are of a dirty dull white, profusely dotted with light, brownish-red blotches at the obtuse end, and sparsely over the whole shell: axis, 3” 1”; diam., 2” 4’”. The young utter a guttural, rattling cry, precisely resembling the call of the Stanley Crane. They are a long while ere they can walk,.as their legs seem unable to support the weight of their bodies, and snap with the least exertion. One which we were POLYBOROIDES TYPICUS. ‘9 rearing for the Acclimatization Societies of Melbourne and Sydney trod in a small wooden bowl sunk in the ground, and instantly fell, breaking his leg* and wing. We spliced them both, but he died in ten days. We are informed that the texture of the nest is so loose, that the legs of the young hang through the interstices until they acquire sufficient strength to be bent under them, but this we have not found to be the case. [Mr. Atmore writes, “ I have seen several encounters between the Secretary Bird and snakes. If the snake bites a feather the bird pulls it out immediately. On one occasion I saw one leave off fighting and run to a pool of water, where he sud- denly fell down and died: on examining him I found the snake had drawn blood from the point of the pinion. They eat everything, rats, lizards, locusts, snakes, tortoises, etc.’ 2") Mr. H. Jackson says they sometimes lay three eggs, and that the nest is firmly built and lined with hair and wool. Mr. Henry Buckley says that the eggs in his collection vary from 3°07 x 2°23 inches to 3 x 2°38, are pear-shaped and of a dirty white colour. Head, neck, breast, and mantle greyish-blue, slightly shaded with reddish-brown on the wing-coverts. Larger quills black. Throat white; under part of tail white, tinged with russet. Thighs black, tinted brown. Tail-feathers very long, black at the base, then paling into grey, and tipped with white; two long central tail-feathers bluish-grey, tipped with black and white. Crest of ten feathers arranged in pairs, the lesser ones at the top black and grey, the others black. Legs very long, toes short, claws blunt. Length, 48”; wing, 27”; tail, 26”. Fig. Vieill. & Oud. Gal. Ois. I. pl. 260. Sub-fam. ACCIPITRIN A. 8. PoLyBoRomezs tyricus. Banded Gymnogene. Specimens of this curious bird have been procured in various parts of the colony—by Mr. Gird, at the Paarl; Mr. Cairncross, at Swellendam ; and Mr. Atmore, in the George district. Mr. Chap- man also found it in the interior. Mr. Gird observed his specimen beating over a marsh abounding in snipe. The stomach of one we * All who have tried to rear these birds notice this brittleness in their bones. We have, since the above was written, lost several more from similar causes, and have known them snap a leg if suddenly startled into a quick run !! 10 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. opened contained the remains of lizards. Mr. Gird’s bird was pro- bably engaged in the pursuit of frogs. Itis found also near Grahams Town. Mr. Atmore writes :— Meiring’s Poort: Got a fine adult female of P. typicus. She was full of frogs. This accounts for their sitting so long on stumps, ete. by pools of water. They are very easily procured ; not at all shy but scarce.” Mr. Ayres has obtained the present species in Natal, and it was met with on the Zambesi by the late Dr. Dickerson, who collected two specimens there. Dr. Kirk, however, did not meet with it. Andersson did not find the bird in Damara Land, but Sefor Anchieta has sent to the Lisbon Museum a single example from Gambos in the Mossamedes district. Adult. General colour rusty pearl-grey, with a row of large black spots from each shoulder; head crested, and with throat and chest bluish. Flanks, thighs, belly, and vent profusely barred, black and white ;* wing and tail feathers black, and tipped with white, the latter with a broad white bar across the centre; bare space round the eye, cere and legs light-yellow. Iris dark-brown. Length, 2’ 1”; wing, 1’ 6”; tail, 12”. Young. General colour brown, with rather paler margins to the feathers, which are whitish at base; quills blackish brown; the secondaries paler brown, like the back, the latter much mottled with white near the base; all the quills barred across with dark brown ; tail brown, tipped with fulvous, and crossed with five bars of darker brown; head much crested, all the feathers fulvous at their base and on their margins, brown in the centre, somewhat tinged with rufous, especially on the sides of the crown and of the neck ; forehead whitish, slightly streaked with dark brown ; afew feathers under the eye and on fore part of cheeks black; throat and breast buffy white, the feathers mesially streaked with dark brown and washed with sandy rufous ; the lower breast sandy rufous, with fulvous tips; the abdomen, thighs, and under tail-coverts barred with fulvous and sandy rufous, the latter with dark brown ; under wing-coverts fulvous, mottled with rufous or rufous brown; the lower ones brown at tips, like under surface of wing. (Sharpe, Oat. B. I, p. 49.) Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 307. * Mr. Gurney writes :—“It should be noted that these bars are narrower in the old female (= P. maleazii of Verreaux) than in the male.” CIRCUS MACRURUS,. 11 9. Cricus MACRURUS. Pallid Harrier. Circus swainsonii, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 34 (1867). This Harrier has a wide range in South Africa, though doubtless occurring, as Mr. Ayres states, only in our summer months, when it arrives from the north, and makes South Africa its winter quarters. Smith says he saw a few specimens near Cape Town, Natal, the mouth of the Orange River, and the Tropic of Capricorn. Mr. Jackson sends it from Nel’s Poort, and we have shot it near the Observatory, Cape Town, in company with C.ranivorus. Dr. Ather- stone also has procured it near Grahams Town. Our excellent correspondent, Mr. Rickard, has also sent us word that he procured one specimen near Hast London, and marks its occurrence near Port Elizabeth as probable, but not yet thoroughly identified. Although not recorded from Natal, Mr. Ayres has met with this Harrier in the Transvaal territory, where, he says, it is seen “ only during the summer months and then not plentifully. They skim quietly about amongst the trees and houses of Potchefstroom.” On the west coast, according to Mr. Andersson, it is “ migratory, appearing towards the return of the rainy season in Damara and Great Namaqua Land.” Its food consists of small quadrupeds, reptiles, birds, etc.; it prefers a low damp locality. “According to a note received from Mr. Henry Buckley, who has Indian specimens in his collection, the eggs vary from 1°56 inch x 1:23 to 1:64 2: 3, and are bluish-white in colour. The following Seppe are extracted from the editor’s ‘ Cata- logue of Birds’ Adult male. nei pale ‘pluish grey, the crown and intersca- pulary region very slightly darker; lores, a distinct eyebrow and sides of face white, the ear coverts slightly streaked with ashy; under surface of body white with a slight greyish shade on the facial ruff, on the sides of the breast, and on the greater under wing-coverts ; quills blackish brown, primaries externally washed with ashy grey, the secondaries entirely of the latter colour and tipped with white ; primaries white at base of inner web, the rest of the quills entirely white underneath, the secondaries with a nearly obsolete greyish sub- terminal band; upper tail-coverts white, barred across with ashy grey; middle tail-feathers uniform ashy grey, the rest white with seven or eight bars of ashy grey, all tipped with white, under surface of tail entirely white, the bars less distinct. Bill black ; feet yellow ; 12 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. iris yellow. Total length 17:5 inches, culmen 1:15, wing 15-2, tail 8°8, tarsus 2°65. Adult female.—Above brown, the head and hind neck streaked with tawny fulvous, with which most of the feathers of the upper surface are margined and tipped, the small wing-coverts especially broadly ; frontal feathers, a superciliary line as well as a spot below the eye white ; cheeks and ear-coverts dark brown, very slightly streaked with tawny; facial ruff dark brown, plainly streaked with creamy buff; wings nearly uniform sepia-brown, tipped with buffy white, primaries externally shaded with ashy grey ; primaries plainly, secondaries obsoletely barred with darker brown, plainer underneath, where the inner webs are creamy buff; upper tail-coverts white, barred across or diamond-spotted with dark brown; tail pale tawny, crossed with four broad blackish bars, the interspaces inchning to white on the outer feathers, the black bars replaced by rufous on external rectrix, the two centre feathers ashy brown, with six blackish brown cross bars, the subterminal one broadest; under surface of body creamy white, with broad longitudinal streaks of brown on chest, becoming narrower and more rufous on lower breast and abdomen ; under tail-coverts clearly rufescent ; under wing-coverts creamy buff, with diamond-shaped spots and streaks of brown, the lower series barred across with blackish ; axillaries brown, inclining to rufous, with large oval spots of fulvous on both webs; cere greenish yellow; bill horny black, gape dull greenish; feet yellow ; iris dark hazel. Total length 20°5 inches, wing 14°7, tail 10°5, tarsus 2°9. Young.—Brown, like the old female, but not so much variegated above, with tawny margins to the feathers; under surface entirely pale fawn-colour, the facial ruff of this same colour, and therefore contrasting in marked prominence with the dark brown cheeks and ear-coverts, the flank-feathers and axillaries with indistinct brown central streaks; frontal feathers, superciliary streak, and spot under the eye whitish ; upper tail-coverts white, spotted with pale rufous ; tail much as in old female, but the dark bars only five in number. Fig. Gould, B. Eur. i. pl. 34. 10. Circus pycaraus. Montagu’s Harrier. Circus cinerascens, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 34 (1867). Montagu’s Harrier is rare in South Africa. Mr. Atmore procured a fine adult male at Swellendam, and we shot an adult female and a CIRCUS MAURUS. 13 young bird near the Observatory at Cape Town, below which is a marsh much frequented by Harriers of several descriptions. It has also been procured at Tharfield, near the Kowie, by Mr. Holden . Bowker. It preys upon reptiles, mice, and small birds, remains of which we found in the stomach of those procured. Mr. Atmore writes : “ This fellow hunts his ground like a pointer, and drops suddenly on its prey, which, from his minute inspection of fences, I suspect to be mice.” Concerning its appearance in the Damara country Mr. Gurney has the following note :—‘I have seen specimens obtained by Mr. An- dersson at Objimbinque in Damara Land and at Ondonga, Ovampo Land.” Adult Male. General colour of upper parts, neck, and breast light bluish-grey ; the quill-feathers of the wings inclining to black; belly and thighs white, the latter with the flanks longitudinally streaked with bright rufous. Tail pearl-grey above, white beneath, the inner webs obscurely barred. Two outermost feathers on each side barred with rufous, which is deepest on the basal part of the feathers. Trides, legs, and feet fine yellow. Length, 17”; wing 143’’; tail, 9”’. Female and immature Male. General colour umber-brown above ; below pale rufous-yellow, faintly streaked along the shaft of each feather with a darker tint; collar round the neck rufous. Outer tail-feathers white, the rest barred distinctly white and brown. A young female shot by ourselves on the Cape Flats is very dark-brown above, many of the feathers being edged with bright rufous ; below bright rufous, streaked with black. Fig. Gould, B. Hur. pl. 35. 11. Crrcus MAURUS. Black Harrier. This bird has been more than once confounded with the black variety of Montagu’s Harrier which not unfrequently occurs in Europe, but this idea is erroneous, for it is a good species, distinct in all its plumages. Tt is not at all uncommon in the neighbourhood of Cape Town, and it is also found about Grahams Town ;—indeed throughout the Colony. Mr. Rickard tells us it is not very common near Port Elizabeth but very plentiful at Hast London. Victorin procured it both in the Karroo and at the Knysna. Although common enough 14 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. within the limits of its range, the latter is very restricted, for it is not known either to inhabit Natal or the Transvaal, as far as the researches of the indefatigable Mr. Ayres have shewn. It occurs as far north as the Orange river, whence a specimen collected by M. Jules Verreaux is to be found in the Leiden Museum. Andersson says :—“ I have observed this bird in Little Namaqua Land, but am not aware that it is an inhabitant of Damara or Great Namaqua Land.” It is generally seen in pairs, beating the bushes for prey and quar- tering the ground with the regularity of a pointer-dog. After a few heavy flaps with its wings, it sails along with its pinions elevated, swaying to and fro like a clock pendulum; suddenly it checks itself, lets fall a leg, clutches up a cowering lark or unsuspecting gerboa, and flies away with it to the nearest termite heap, on which it perches and commences its repast. If accompanied by its mate, a shrill stridulous cry soon brings it to its side, and the dainty morsel is shared between them. It breeds among reeds, making a thick heavy nest on any elevated root that may lift it above the water. The eggs are usually whitish, rather rough, and three or four in number; they are also often mottled and clouded with reddish brown. At the Berg river we found many nests in September; they were always on the ground in the marshes, unlike C. ranivorus which bred high up on the rushes. We found white and coloured eggs in the same nest, and observed that when the birds laid again after we had robbed the nest the eggs were always whiter than at the first laying. In size they agreed with those of C. ranivorus. Mr. Henry Buckley writes of the eggs of this Harrier :—“ They vary from 1°38 x 1°34 inch to 1°57 x 1'5, and are of a bluish-white colour, marked all over with small brown marks.” General colour black, tinged with rufous; rump white; tail on the upper side with four broad bars of grey, wliich below show white; inside of wing more or less white, upper side grey; a few white spots on the belly and flanks: cere of bill, legs, and irides bright orange-yellow ; claws black. Length, 20’ ; wing, 13’’ 6” ; tail, 9” 9”. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves. pl. 58. 12. Crrcus RANIVoRUS. South African Marsh-Harrier. This is a resident bird and is at present not known to extend its range beyond the limits of the South African subregion. It is not, = a 7 CIRCUS RANIVORUS. 15 however, found in the western portion, for Mr. Andersson says :— “TJ do not recollect to have met with this Harrier in Damara or Great Namaqua Land: specimens were collected in the Lake-country by Mr. James Chapman.” It is nowhere very abundant in the lower Zambesi country, according to Dr. Kirk, who observed it in the Elephant Marsh on the Shiré River. Mr. Ayres has procured it in Natal and Transvaal. He writes: —‘‘A nestling sent to me in January was stated to have been taken in the swamp near Potchef- stroom.” Mr. Rickard has procured it at Port Elizabeth and East London, and throughout the whole colony it may be considered plentiful, frequenting marshy places. It feeds chiefly on frogs and small aquatic birds, and sometimes fish. The nest is built amongst rushes, and is made with the stalks and heaped-up leaves of water- plants. Eggs three or four, of’ a dull white: axis, 1/7 10'”’; diam., 1/76”. The marsh below the Observatory is a favourite breeding-place for these birds, and several nests are annually made among the rushes. We found it very abundant at Zoetendals Vley, and saw it even in the dry Karroo country about Beaufort West. At the Berg river it is very common, constructing a large nest of flags and rushes on the bent down tops of the rushes which line the river banks. On the 11th of September we took ten eggs all fresh and unincubated; on returning to the nests a few days after we again found many of them re-occupied. ; Mr. Henry Buckley’s notes on the eggs are as follows :—“ They vary from 1°76 x 1:42 inch, to 1-91 x 1°53, and are of a bluish- white colour, faintly marked and stained with brown, which appear chiefly nest stains.” Adult.—All the upper parts of the body earthy-brown, that is, all the visible parts of the feathers; the hidden parts are white on either side of the quill. Throat and cheeks thinly sprinkled with whitish feathers, with a brown band; lower parts clear-brown, slightly mingled with white. On the legs rusty red feathers, edged and spotted with white ; wings brown, with transverse white bars on the under sides. Tail rufous-brown, and banded. Length, 19”; wing, 15”; tail, 9”. Young. SNe: throat, and anterior ‘eat of breast deep-brown ; lower parts reddish-brown ; shoulders in two shades of brown. Fore part of neck and breast white, or reddish-white ; wings deep-brown, 16 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. with pale tips. ail deep-brown, with pale bands and tip. Ivis brown-yellow. Fig. Levaill, Ois. d@ Afr. i. pl. 23. 13. Circus xRUGINOsUS. Marsh Harrier. The Marsh Harrier of Europe has only recently been identified as an inhabitant of South Africa, and is doubtless only an occasional visitant. A single specimen was procured by Mr. Ayres at Potchef- stroom in the Transvaal in December, 1869. On the western coast, however, it has twice been procured by Senor Anchieta, at Huilla and on the Rio Coroca in the Mossamedes district. I may add that the late M. Jules Verreaux told us that it had occurred to him at the Cape during his fifteen years sojourn there. Young.—Nearly uniform chocolate brown, the feathers of the upper surface washed with rufous on their margins ; the upper tail- coyerts and under surface more decidedly rufous-brown ; crown of head, throat, and cheeks more or less entirely creamy buff, the feathers of the hinder neck, wing-coverts, and centre of breast often showing margins of this colour, giving a streaked appearance and indicating approaching adolescence; wings brown, the primaries much darker ; tail uniform brown, very slightly mottled with rufous. Adult male.x—Aboye dark brown, with slight remains of rufous margins to the feathers of the upper surface, the least wing-coverts buffy white with dark brown centres ; outer greater coverts, primary coverts, and secondaries bluish-ashy, with very slight white tips; the innermost secondaries brown, more or less washed with ashy-grey ; primaries blackish-brown, much paler at the tips, creamy-white at base of inner web, increasing in extent towards the secondaries, which are entirely light-ashy below ; upper tail-coverts white, some- what washed with grey and tinged with rufous; tail uniform bluish ash-colour, paler and a little more fulvescent beneath ; entire head and neck creamy-buff, streaked with dark brown, the interscapulary region also slightly streaked; facial ruff indistinct, being coloured like the rest of the head and neck; sides of face and throat white with narrow streaks of dark brown, the hinder margin of ear- coverts nearly uniform brown; under surface of body creamy buff, the breast longitudinally streaked with brown; the abdomen and thighs more decidedly rufescent, but appearing partially streaked by reason of the fulyous margins to the feathers; under wing-coverts MELIERAX CANORUS. . ai and axillaries uniform buffy white, the latter with a narrow longi- tudinal shaft-line of brown; cere greenish yellow; bill blackish ; feet yellow; claws black; iris straw-yellow in adult male; dark yellowish-brown in female and immature male. Total length 22-5 inches ; culmen 1°55; wing 16; tail 10; tarsus 3:4. (Sharpe, Cat. B. i. p. 69.) Adult female.—Slightly larger than male. Total length 23 inches ; wing 17; tail 11; tarsus 3°8. Fig. Gould, B. Great Brit. pt, xii. 14, MBuLinrax CANORUS. Chanting Goshawk. Melicrax musicus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 31 (1867). This is also aspecies whose range is at present confined within the limits of this work. It is generally distributed over the colony, being very abundant in the Karroo, but it does not occur in the Knysna according to Victorin, nor have we received any notice from Mr. Rickard of its capture near Hast London or the adjacent parts. Mr. Atmore’s recent collections near Hland’s Post did not embrace an example. Writing in 1868 Mr. Gurney observes:—* The geo- graphical range of this strictly southern bird is singularly limited. I have never seen it from any locality north of the Tropic of Capri- corn. Mr. Ayres has not met with this species in Natal, but ho obtained it in the bush country on the Limpopo River, where it is very numerous.” Neither Dr. Kirk nor the late Dr. Dickerson appear to have met with the species in the Zambesi district, and it is doubtless replaced along the Hastern coast of Africa by M. poliop- terus of Cabanis. Mr. Andersson says that it is ‘common in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, where it is seen throughout the year: it is par- ticularly abundant about Walvisch Bay, and is usually found in open country.” Senor Anchieta has likewise procured it at Caconda in the Mossamedes district. It devours quails, partridges, and other small game, reptiles, and locusts ; builds either in the fork of a tree or a thick bush. The eggs are four, oval, and white: axis, 2’’ 4’’; diam., 1’ 9’’’.. Mr. Henry Buckley informs us that examples in his collection vary from 2°03 x 1:7 inches, to 2°15 x 1°6 and are of a blueish white colour. Mr. H. Jackson says they never lay more than three eggs and generally c .18 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. only two, but Mr. Atmore affirms that he has taken from two to five eggs out of nests of this species. It occurs on the eastern frontier and about the Berg river. Le Vaillant states that the male sings for hours together in the twilight of morning and evening, and sometimes through the night. This we never noticed at Nel’s Poort, where it is very abundant, as it is throughout the Karroo. It will perch on the top of a high tree, utter its mellow piping whistle, and fly off again. We have sometimes heard it call while on the wing, as also has Mr. Atmore. Upper parts and breast pearly-grey ; belly white variegated by many brownish-blue lines; shoulders light grey; rump white. Larger wine-feathers black ; the tail dusky, tipped with white, and crossed by broad white bars, except upon the two middle feathers. Cere and legs red. Irides orange, according to Mr. Atmore dark- brown. Length, 24’’; wing, 13’’ 6’’’; tail, 12’’. The young bird of the first year is brown above, the secondaries being edged with rufous and white, upper tail-coverts pure white. Below it is white, the throat and chest being longitudinally striped with rufous brown ; breast, belly, vent, and thighs transversely barred with broadish rufous bars. é Mr. Ayres (Ibis, 1869, p. 219) gives the following details of the soft parts of an immature male. Inis yellow; bill black at tip, yellow at base; cere yellow; tarsi and feet red. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’ Afr. pl. 27. 15. Metrerax PoLyzonvs. Many-banded Goshawk. Only one specimen of this bird has as yet been known to occur within our limit. Mr. Gurney thus records the circumstance :—“ An adult male of this species was obtained by Mr. Andersson at Ele- phant’s Vley, on November 10th, 1859, and is preserved in the Norwich Museum. I know no other instance of this species occurring so far south ; and it is remarkable that it should have been obtained at the same spot, and within fifteen days of the same date as the specimen of Asturinula meridionalis. Adult male.—Above light bluish slate colour, the sides of the face and region of the eye a little darker ; lesser wing-coverts coloured like the back, the greater ones rather lighter and slightly freckled ex- ternally with white; primaries blackish, externally shaded with ashy grey, the secondaries pale greyish, freckled’ with white, the inner MELIERAX GABAR. 19 secondaries entirely grey, like the back, none of the quills barred ; upper tail-coverts white, crossed with numerous bars of slaty grey ; tail blackish, white at the immediate base, and at the tips, the three outermost feathers plainly crossed with four white bands, the next more indistinctly, and the middle ones not at all barred; under surface of tail whitish, the bands very distinct ; lores rufescent ; throat and chest ashy grey; rest of the body white, minutely barred with ashy grey, scarcely less thickly on the under tail-coverts, but much fewer on the under wing-coverts, which are therefore purer white ; cere vermilion ; bill horn-black, vermilion at base; feet vermilion ; iris pale umber brown. Total length, 20-5 inches, culmen, 1-4; wing, 12°5; tail, 9; tarsus, 3°5. (Sharpe, Cat. B. p. 89.) Adult female.—A little larger than the male. Total length, 21 inches, wing 13°4. The immature bird resembles the young of M. canorus. Fig. Rippell, Neue Wirb. taf. 15. 16. MeLiERAxX GABAR. i Red-faced Goshawk. Examples of the present bird from South Africa are generally larger and more coarsely barred than those from the northern parts of the same continent, but after comparison of a large series the editor has been unable to separate them specifically. It is of general distribution in the colony, though not found near Cape Town, frequenting the wooded banks of rivers and kloofs in mountains, preying on small birds and reptiles. Victorin procured it in the Karroo, and we have a note from Dr. Exton, that it is found near Kanye in the Bechuana country. Mr. Ayres has shot this bird in the Transvaal, where, he says, it frequents the thick bush, and on the Zambesi, the late Dr. Dickerson procured speci- mens at Chibisa, while the British Museum also contains several examples shot by Dr. Kirk at Tete during the Livingstone expedition. Mr. Andersson observes that it is “common in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, as well as in the Lake-region. Partially migratory in Damara Land.” Sefor Anchieta has also met with the species at Humbe on the banks of the Cunene River. Mr. Atmore states that they whistle very much, and better than M. musieus. The nest is a cup made of sticks and lined with wool in the middle of a mimosa tree. Hggs dull white, axis 1’’ 8’’’ Diam. 2 20 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 1’ 31’, Le Vaillant found one white egg, and three young birds in a nest, in a mimosa tree, built of flexible twigs and thorns, lined with feathers. All the upper parts and head grey, darker on the mantle and occiput. Throat and breast blue-grey ; belly white, barred with grey. Large wing-feathers brown, the centre ones tipped with white. Upper and under tail-coverts white. Upper tail-feathers clear-brown, barred with dark-brown: lower feathers barred, black and white. Cere andlegs red. Iris, according to Mr. Atmore, bright crimson in adult, yellow in young bird. Length, 14” ; wing, 8” ; tail, 7’’ 6’’’. The plumage of the immature bird is brown as in the two pre- ceding species, but the pure white of the upper tail coverts is con- spicuous in all stages. Fig. Leyaill, Ois. d Afr. pl. 33. 17. Metierax NIGER. Black Goshawk. Sir Andrew Smith procured this species in South Africa, and his specimens are still im the British Museum, but he does not state the exact locality. Im Damara Land, Mr. Andersson says :—“ It is rather scarce ; I do not recollect having seen it in Great Namaqua Land, but it is found to the north as far as the Okavango, and eastward to the lake, though nowhere numerous.” Senor Anchieta has procured it in Mossamedes, at Gambos and Huilla. In the Zambesi country Dr. Dickerson found it at Magomero. Adult male.—General colour black ; tail-feathers each with three white spots above and four below. Primary quill-feathers greyish white, with small black and ashy-coloured spots. Total length, 11:3 inches; wing, 7°1; tarsus, 1°75. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but larger. Total length 13 inches; wing, 9'1; tarsus, 2°15. 18. AsruUR TACHIRO. African Goshawk. We have received specimens of the young bird from several of our correspondents, who tell us it is not uncommon in the forest dis- tricts ; birds in adult stages of plumage are, however, very scarce. Victorin procured it in the Karroo and in the Knysna, where it appears to be plentiful. It is not included in Mr, Rickard’s Fast ASTUR TACHIRO. 21 London list: but Mr. Ayres has procured it in Natal, whence we have seen many specimens. Mr. Ortlepp writes that it is by no means rare in the woods skirting the Orange River, and easy of ap- proach—feeding on small birds, beetles, &c. We believe it is gene- rally distributed over all the forest country, being essentially a tree- loving species. It seems to be much more plentiful in the eastern districts of South Africa, for it is pronounced to be “ common all along the Shiré Valley,” by Dr. Kirk, but Andersson states that it is very rare in Damara Land. One specimen has been procured by Senor Anchieta at Biballa in Mossamedes, which Professor Barbaza du Bocage refers to A. zonarius, but which the editor fancies must be the true A. tachiro, as the other species (or subspecies, for it is only a brighter and darker form of the South African bird) has never been known to oceur below Gaboon. An adult female in Norwich Museum, from the Zambesi, is re- markably pale and very large. Vide Ibis, 1868, p. 144. Mr. Ayres says that this species lives entirely in the bush, es- pecially frequenting the neighbourhood of wooded streams, and feeds on small birds, but he also met with remains of a frog in one specimen and of limpets in another. Le Vaillant, who first figured the young bird under the name of Le Tachiro, describes its eggs as white, blotched with red and three in number. His testimony on this point must be taken for what it is worth. Adult.—Above uniform ashy-brown; throat whitish, finely rayed transversely with brown; anterior part of neck, breast, and belly dull white, regularly rayed with transverse brown, or pale rufous bars ; ‘vent and under tail-coverts white, with some fine transverse brown lines; wing-feathers light brown, banded with dark brown, inner vanes marked with white towards the quills. Tail long, beneath ash- white, with transverse brown bands; above brown, with darker bands; tips white; iris light yellow in a female assuming adult dress. (Ayres). Length, 15’’; wing, 8’’ 3’; tail, 73’’. Young.—Above brown, each feather margined with rufous, and usually with white at the base; beneath pale isabella colour, with numerous large oval dark-brown blotches ; thighs transversely barred. Legs yellow. Ivis dark greenish brown. (Ayres.) Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 24 (juv.). Rupp. Neue Wirb. taf. 18 (ad.) 22 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 19. AsTUR POLYZONOIDES. Many-banded Goshawk. Of all the little Goshawks which are included as races or sub- species under the title of Astur badius, this is the most distinct, by reason of the number and narrowness of its breast-bands. It cannot be plentiful in the Cape Colony, for it is not included in Victorin’s Knysna list, and has not come under our notice from any part of the colony itself. Sir Andrew Smith originally discovered the species about lat. 26°S. In the Zambesi country, Dr. Dickerson procured it at Chibisa, but Mr. Ayres has not found it in Natal, though more recently he has met with it in the Transvaal. Mr. Andersson writes that it is “rather rare both in Damara and Great Namaqua Land. lt is migratory, arriving in Damara Land after the first rains have fallen, and retiring again on the approach of the dry season.” Dr. Smith says that it feeds on small birds and prefers the neighbour- hood of rivers. f Adult—Above pearl-grey, shaded with brown; throat speckled with light-brown ; all under parts of body white, closely banded with small wavy, brown bars; under tail-coverts white; back and upper sides of wings deep grey; inside of wings greyish-white, with small dark bars. Tail grey, with about six dark-brown bands ; tips of feathers white. Tail long, slightly rounded. Cere of bill and legs yellow. Iris orange in adult; yellow in immature bird, but sub- ject to much variation. (Vide Ayres, Ibis, 1869, p. 288.) Length, 113” ; wing, 7’’ 9'’’; tail, 6’’. ‘ig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8, Afr. Aves, pl. 11. 20. ACCIPITER RUFIVENTRIS. African Sparrow Hawk. This is the common Sparrow-hawk of South Africa, and is the representative of the European species, to which it bears a close affinity in form. It is found generally, though sparingly, throughout the colony, and was obtained by Victorin at the Knysna. Mr. An- dersson says it is common to the south of the Orange River, and in various parts of the Cape Colony, but is scarce in Damara and Great Namaqua Lands. In Natal Mr. Ayres found it rare, though not shy. It does not seem to occur as far north as the Zambesi, but is met with in North-Eastern Africa. Two eggs, said to be those of the present species, were forwarded to us from Tulbagy: they are of a dirty white colour, irregularly and obscurely blotched here and there with pale blood-coloured marks ; ACCIPITER MINULLUS. 23 axis, 1’’ 9'’’ ; diam., 1’ 5’’.. Mr. Henry Buckley, however, possesses less typical eggs, which are of a dirty white colour, and measure 1°72 inch long, and 1°44: inch broad. We have shot this species in the act of hovering like a Kestrel, and as it preys much on birds and small quadrupeds, particularly field- mice (Mus pwmilus), we do not so much wonder at this habit. At other times we have seen it glance like lightning through a copse, and whip off a bird from a branch in passing. It will also eat coleop- tera and white-ants. We saw a pair constructing a nest of sticks in a thick fir-tree. It was placed over an horizontal forked branch, cleverly supported by two large sticks across the foundation, but we were too early for the eggs. Mr. Grill, in his account of Victorin’s collection, mentions a Sparrow-hawk procured at the Knysna, which he refers to a variety of the European species. We are not aware that any further notes have been published on this specimen. In the adult bird the upper parts are brownish-blue, glossed with purple, chiefly on the head and neck, ear-coverts, and all the lower parts of the body and thighs, mottled with reddish orange and white. Tail above barred in shades of brown; all the feathers tipped with dull white ; under tail-coverts white. The plumage of the young bird is of a much browner tinge throughout. When folded, the wings reach to the middle of the tail. Iris and feet yellow, claws very long, slender, and curved. Female more rufous on the shoulders and back ; mottled on the breast. Length, 163’’; wing, 10’’; tail, 8’’. The male is smaller, being about 13’’ in length. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 93. 21. AccIPITER MINULLUs. Little Sparrow-Hawk. We have not procured this bird ourselves in South Africa, but Victorin shot it in the Knysna. Our esteemed correspondents, the Messrs. Atmore, procured a single specimen near George, and inform us that at one farm in Outeniqualand, three of them killed all the young ducks, striking them in the water-sluight. It has been found near Grahams Town, and like A. tachiro is a forest loving species. In the British Museum there is a specimen collected by Mr. T. C. Atmore, near Elands’ Post in S.E. Africa. Mr. Ayres has procured it in Natal, and Dr. Dickerson shot a specimen at Chibisa in the Zambesi. An unusually pale coloured adult ? from the Zambesi is 24 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. in the Norwich Museum, (Vide Ibis, 1868, p. 144.) Mr. Andersson writes :—“ To the best of my recollection I have never met with this bird either in Damara or Great Namaqua Land, though I have ob- served it sparingly in the lake-regions, and near the river Okavango.” It has not occurred to Sefor Anchieta in the Mossamedes country, but Mr. Monteiro procured a young male in Angola, which is now in the British Museum. Being immature, it is a difficult thing to deter- mine whether this should be referred to A. minullus or to A. ery- thropus, but from its pale colouration it seems to be the southern bird, which probably goes to Angola with Cossypha natalensis and other true South-African species. A. erythropus is confined to the Gold Coast, and is little more than a dark race of A. minullus, affording an analogous case to A. tachiro and A. macroscelides. According to Le Vaillant (who states that it inhabits the country between the Gamtoos River and Kaffraria), it is a bold and fearless little hawk, preying on small birds or insects, hunting in pairs, and breeding in trees. The eggs are five, spotted with brown at the ends. Mr. Andersson gives an instance of a daring attack made upon him by one of these little hawks; and Mr. T. C. Atmore sent with the young male bird which he shot at Elands’ Post, a specimen of Hyphantornis spilonotus which it had in its claws: this is a large quarry for so small a bird to capture. Young.—Upper parts dark-brown ; throat and chin white ; sparsely streaked with brown; under parts very much blotched with dark- brown; the markings here and there edged with rufous; thighs rufous-brown ; tail above brown, faintly barred with a darker shade, but below these bars show plainly on a grey ground. Length, 103” ; wing, 6’’ ; tail, 5’’. Adult male-—Aboye deep slaty black, the hind neck slightly mottled with white ; sides of face and neck uniform with the crown ; the upper tail-coverts white at base, the lower ones also conspicuously tipped with white ; tail blackish brown, tipped with white, with two faintly indicated bands of paler brown, the line of these cross bands being indicated by two large spots of white on the inner web ; under surface of tail paler brown, barred distinctly and tipped with white, the outermost feather entirely ashy white, with eight or nine bars of dark brown ; under surface of body white, the sides bright chestnut, the lower throat and under tail-coverts indistinctly but. the breast plainly though narrowly barred with rufous, most of the bars haying ACCIPITER MELANOLEUCUS. 27 a conterminous line of dark brown; under wing-coverts deep ochre, streaked or barred with dark brown; iris and legs yellow. ‘Total length 9°7 inches, culmen 0°7, wing 5:8, tail 4°6, tarsus 1-7. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but larger. Total length, 11°5 inches ; wing, 6°6; tarsus, 1°75. Fig. Levaill, Ois. d’Afr. pl. 34. 22. ACCIPITER MELANOLEUCUS. Black-and-white Sparrow-Hawk. Astur melanoleucus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 27 (1867). Among the many good things sent to the South African Museum by Mr. Jackson, of Nel’s Poort, appeared a young female individual of this rare bird. While staying with him during the month of December, 1863, we saw, just out of gunshot, a bird which we feel sare was an adult specimen. He also informed us that he had fre- quently seen a similar bird, but could never get within range of it. It has been obtained at “Table Farm” near Grahams’ Town, but it is a rare species in that neighbourhood. Mr. Atmore shot a pair near Blanco. In the Leyden Museum is a specimen from Sunday River. Captain Shelley’s collection contains a bird from the Knysna, and Victorin procured it at the same locality im the month of June. It is rare in Natal, according to Mr. Ayres, but more numerous from November to March than at other seasons; it has not been met with to the northward in the Zambesi country, nor did Andersson ever meet with it during his travels in Damara Land. It is found, however, on the Gold Coast and the Niger. Mr. Atmore tells us that his birds had proved very destructive to poultry in their neigh- bourhood. ‘Their nest, in a large tree, contained three young birds and an egg just hatching. The head, neck, and breast dark brownish-black; back pale-brown; shoulders much diversified with white ; body, tail, and thighs white ; tail-feathers equal, usually dashed with red, Length, 20’. (Sir A. Smith.) A fine pair of these hawks, male and female, shot by Mr. Atmore and his son George near Blanco, differ materially from the phases of plumage described by Dr. Smith. The male is throughout of a rich brown-black ; the chin and vent are white, with streaks and blotches of the prevailing colour. Length, 18’’; wing, 11’’ 5’; tail, 93’’. The male resembles the female on the upper side, but below she is 26 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. white, blotched with the prevailing colour on the sides of the chest ; two large patches of the same are over the head of thigh-bone, the thighs themselves being of the same colour, mottled with white. Her length is 21}’’; wing, 13’’ 9’’’ ; tail, 12’. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 18. Sub-fam. BUTEONINZ. 28. Burro JAKAL. Jackal Buzzard. This Buzzard is very common throughout the colony, and its well- marked colours are plainly distinguishable at a great distance; it is therefore easily recognized. Many specimens were procured by Vic- torin at the Knysna, and Mr. Rickard tells us itis very plentiful both at Hast London and Port Elizabeth. In Natal, according to Mr. Ayres, it is “shy, but not rare.” The following notes are from Mr. Andersson’s book :—‘To the best of my belief this Buzzard has never been observed in Damara Land ; and it is scarce in Great Namaqua Land, where, indeed, I have only occasionally seen it in the southern parts, usually in the neighbourhood of rocks.” It has not yet been found farther to the north either in the Zambesi country or in Benguela. It appears to capture its prey more by surprise and stealth than by hunting, sitting motionless on a bush, or tree, till some unsuspecting Jerboa or Sand-rat (Bathyergus) emerges from its hole, when down swoops the Buzzard, clutches the victim in its claws and bears it away, to be devoured at leisure. It is a heavy-flying bird, but sometimes ascends to great altitudes, wheeling in vast circles, and uttering a shrill, stridulous cry. An accomplished observer, whose name will often appear in these pages, writes as follows: “This bird, as you very justly observe in your book, is ‘common throughout the colony.’ It frequents rocky or partially wooded localities, and occurs always in pairs. It hunts by sight, hovering over rocky or grassy vallies, and poising itself in the air for a minute or two at a time, probably over some doubtful object, which it will either leave or pounce down upon with the greatest rapidity, or it will station itself upon some prominent rock or tree and there motionless will watch for hours together, waiting for ‘ something to turn up.’ The food of this Buzzard consists of rats, mice, rep- tiles and insects, and some assert that it preys also upon birds, such as the young of the partridge, pheasant, &c, but this 1 greatly doubt, BUTEO JAKAL. 27 for a tame one in our possession refused to eat birds that had been shot for it, and although the species is frequent around homesteads it has never been known to plunder the hen-wife of her chickens, or poultry of any description; but it destroys great numbers of reptiles, such as lizards and snakes of various kinds, especially of the last-named, for it will attack and kill the largest of our serpents. A neighbour of ours (Mr. Joseph Wilmot), saw one of these birds doing battie with a large snake. After watching this singular affray for some time he went up to the spot to see what snake the bird was fighting with, and found a large ‘ Ringtals,’ quite ‘hors de combat.’ Fearing that it might recover and creep away he dispatched it at once. After some time had elapsed the bird returned and carried the snake away to its nest on a neighbouring tree.” «The cry of this species is singularly like that of the common Jackal (Canis mesomelas) whence its name, and when its wings are expanded shewing the light colour, together with the reddish-brown breast-feathers, they greatly resemble the colours and markings of a jackal’s skin; moreover this bird occupies just about the same posi- tion in the tribe of rapacious birds as the jackal fills in that of rapa- cious animals, and its name is therefore a most appropriate one.” It builds in August or September on trees, or in thick, high bushes. The nest is composed of small sticks and moss, thickly lined with feathers and wool. Eggs two or three, rarely four, of a dirty white colour, coarse in texture, and very thickly spotted, at the obtuse end in particular, with dry-blood-coloured blotches and stains. Axis, 2’’ 5”; diam, 1’ 10’’’; specimens, however, vary much both in size and colour. Mr. Henry Buckley writes :—“The eggs are white, handsomely marked, generally all over, with large brown blotches. Those in my collection vary in length from 2°32 to 2:44 inches, and in width from 1°82 to 1:96, the average being 2°39x1:92 inches.” Its chief hues are red and brown-black, the latter preponderating om the head, neck, and mantle. The throat is enlivened by white, which gradually deepens to rust-red on the breast. Under-wing feathers nearly white ; under tail coverts black, mingled with red ; tail feathers deep red, each with a black spot towards the tip. Bill, cere, and legs yellow, irides ochreous grey. Length, 1’ 8'’; wing, 15’’ 8’”; tail, 9’’ 3’’’. Fig. Leyaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 16. 28 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 24, Burgo avaur. Augur Buzzard. The only claim that this species possesses to be inserted in the pre- sent work is the occurrence of two specimens in Mossamedes, where they were shot by Seftor Anchieta at Capangombe and Huilla. Ex- cepting these examples, which were kindly forwarded for inspection by Prof. Barboza du Bocage, we have never seen an example from any locality away from North-Eastern Africa, and the capture of these specimens so far south of their ordinary habitat is of great interest, when considered along with the occurrence of Melieraa poly- zonus in Damara Land. ‘The notice of this Buzzard will be found in Bocages’ fifth list of birds procured in the Portuguese possessions of Western Africa.—(Jorn. Lisb. 1871, p. 335.) As it is possible that this species may have occurred in South Africa more often than has been supposed, the editor has added the description of the plumages published by him in the British Museum “Catalogue of Birds.” Young.—Above uniform dark brown, the nape streaked with white; sides and hinder part of neck streaked with rufous buff; lores whitish, sides of face and under surface of body creamy-buff, much marked with brown on the throat and cheeks, forming a distinct moustachial indication on the latter; sides of breast and abdomen, as wellas under wing-coverts, distinctly marked with dark brown ; thighs uniform ochraceous buff; upper tail-coverts ashy-brown, tipped with rufous ; tail ashy brown, with a whitey brown tip, and crossed with twelve or thirteen bands of darker brown ; quills ashy brown, externally ashy near the base, and barred with dark brown, the inner web of quills white, the tips black both above and below, secondaries with more or less distinct bars of dark brown below ; iris umber-brown. Adult male.—Above black, pure white below and on sides of neck ; cheeks, ear-coverts, and throat black, the latter somewhat streaked with white, the flanks slightly marked with black ; upper tail-coverts rufous with black tips; tail bright tawny, with a blackish patch towards the tip of outer web; quills black at tip, ashy grey near the base, the secondaries paler and more silvery grey, all crossed with black bars; under wing-coverts white, as also the inner web of the quills; cere and feet yellow; iris yellowish brown. In the foregoing stage, which does not occur in the allied Buteo | BUTEO AUGURALIS. 29 jakal, the under tail-coverts always incline more or less to rufous, which sometimes extends halfway up these coverts. Although, through the progress to maturity, the plumages are so different, yet in the fully adult black dress it is almost impossible to distinguish the present bird from B. jakal; and the only difference we can see is, that in the latter species the silvery grey on the wing is lighter, while the tail is darker and more decided chestnut. B. jakal gene- rally has a rufous breast or ‘apron,’ but not always. The black markings on the tail of the latter never reach quite to the end but are always subterminal, and form a more or less perfect band. Old male.—Black, the base of the quills externally ashy grey with black bars; the tail rufous, with black markings near the tip. Total length, 20 inches; culmen, 1°55; wing, 16:3; tail, 7°5; tarsus, 3°6. Old female.—Similar to the male, but a little larger. Total length, 24°5 inches; wing, 18°75; tail, 9; tarsus, 3°6. Fig. Rupp. ie, tae taf. 16. 25. Burro AUGURALIS. Salvadori’s Buzzard. Specimens of this Buzzard have been procured in Mossamedes and the interior of Benguela by Anchieta and Freitas Branco. Neither the author nor the editor are personally acquainted with the species, and the latter has, therefore, deemed it advisable to translate the full descriptions given by Professor Barboza du Bocage.—(Jorn. Lisb. II. p. 336). Adult male.-—Above dusky blackish, with a white nape-spot, the feathers of the back and wings margined with brown; sides of head and a cervical collar varied with rufous; forehead, loral space, and throat white ; lower throat and breast uniform with back; flanks and abdomen white, with large cordiform spots and streaks of black ; under wing-coverts white spotted with black; quills dusky blackish, the inner webs white towards the base; primaries blackish at tip, secondaries banded with blackish; tail above rufous with a broad subterminal band of black, underneath greyish ; cere and feet yellow ; iris white. Young male.—Above dusky rufous, the feathers dusky, edge with rufous ; the hind neck more rufous, with a white but less conspicuous nape spot; underneath rufous white ; forehead white, streaked with dusky ; throat white ; a large patch on each side of the breast dusky rufous; flanks and belly with large cordiform spots and streaks of 30 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. blackish ; lower abdomen, vent, and under-tail coverts unspotted ; quills dusky greyish, the inner webs white towards the base ; tail above rufous, marked with eight transverse bands of black, under- neath greyish; bill blackish ; cere and feet yellow. Adult female—Above dusky, the feathers of the hind neck and of the back margined with rufous, the margins of the wing-coverts paler ; forehead white, streaked with black; nape spot white; below rufous white, the sides of the breast more decidedly rufous, and marked with large dusky spots; flanks streaked with dusky; tail above rufous, the terminal half obsoletely banded, the two bands before the tip more distinct, below greyish; bill blackish; cere and feet yellow. Since the above was written, Count Salvadori has kindly com- municated the following diagnosis of the species, which has, more- over, been recently figured in the work on the birds of Bogos by the Marquis Antinori and himself. Buteo B. auguri affinis, sed crassitie minori, capite supra ac dorso summo pulchré rufis, brunneo mixtis; area cervicali nigricante ; tectricibus alarum brunneis (nec nigris) ; pectore brunneo ; gula albi- cante ; abdomine pure albo, maculis subcordatis brunneo-nigris ornato, prorsus diversus. Fig. Antin. & Salvad. Viagg. Bogos, tay. I. 26. Burro DESERTORUM. Rufous Buzzard. This bird is not common in the Cape Colony, but appears to be widely distributed. It frequents open country dotted with jungle, and is found also in the forests about George and the Knysna. Victorin procured it in the latter district in August. It appears to be absent in the eastern districts, as neither Mr. Rickard met with it near Port Elizabeth nor has Mr. Ayres procured it in Natal. The late Mr. Andersson, however, states that it is not uncommon in Ondonga, and Senor Anchieta obtained it at Caconda in Benguela. A specimen from the province of Duque do Braganza in Angola was at first referred to this species by Prof. Barboza du Bocage, but has been more recently determined by him to belong to B. auguralis. The note of this bird is a weak stridulous scream. A specimen lived for some time in our taxidermist’s work-room, and would eagerly answer to his name when called, by day or night. He would come to the hand and take from our fingers the bodies of the birds BUTEO FEROX. 31 skinned for mounting, or pounce from his perch upon any stray mouse that ventured near him. This bird we afterwards sent home to the Zoological Society, and after its death it passed into the collection of the British Museum. Upper parts brown, each feather having pale edges and a black shaft. Head, pale fulvous, streaked with brown. Wing feathers dark-brown. ‘Tail feathers fulvous, inclined to rufous, and narrowly barred with brown; the broadest bar at the tip. Under parts, pale fulvous, almost white on the chin and throat, streaked on the two lattér, and blotched on the former with brown. Thighs rufous, faintly blotched with fulvous. Vent feathers pale fulvous. Length, 1’ 8’; wing, 14”; tail, 7”. Inides yellow. Fully adult birds become throughout of a deep rufous-brown, blotched with dark markings. In this stage they constitute Le Vaillant’s species, called Le Rougri, Ois. d’Af., Pl. 17.* It is a noteworthy fact however that Indian examples never put on the bright rufous phase of the African birds, nor are the young so white underneath. Mr. Hume (Rough Notes, II. p. 268,) in speaking of the Indian bird,.writes :—“ My own private belief is that ours is a larger bird.” Fig. Leyaill. (jun.) Expl. Sci. Alger. Ois. pl. 3: 27. BurTzo FEROX. Long-legged Buzzard. Prof. Schlegel, in his catalogue of the Leyden Museum, gives this species as an inhabitant of South Africa on the authority of a female specimen procured in Caffraria by Van Horstock. Although the validity of this determination has never been called in question, the editor thinks it possible that the example in question may ulti- mately turn out to be referable to B. jakal or B. desertorum, which greatly resemble B. ferox in some stages of plumage. * The late M. Jules Verreaux was of opinion that the “ Rougri” of Le Vaillant is the 2 of Cerchneis amurensis. Mr. Gray in his “ Hand List ” separates B. desertorum from B. capensis, but Mr. Gurney writes, ‘In my opinion there is no specific distinction between them: the birds are undistin- guishable when adult, but when young the Cape specimens have often more white underneath, and some are also a trifle smaller.” He has also expressed his opinion in the Birds of Damara Land that there is only one species to be recognised under the name of B. desertorwm, though he does not fail to notice some differences. 32 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. The following description is extracted from the British Museum Catalogue :— Adult male.—Above brown, all the feathers broadly margined with tawny rufous, except on the lower back and rump, where the feathers are uniform brown; entire head and neck tawny, with narrow brown streaks down the centres of the feathers, more distinct on the nape; sides of head and ear-coverts whitish, with narrow rufous shaft-lines; entire under surface rich tawny, deepening into chestnut on the abdomen and thighs, the throat and chest narrowly shafted with dark brown, alittle broader on the breast and decidedly more distinct on the thighs, where the centres to the feathers are also brown; under wing-coverts and axillaries rich tawny, the outer median ones externally, and the greater coverts brown; upper wing- coverts brown, edged with rufous like back, the least ones more broadly ; quills dark brown, the primaries externally shaded with silvery grey, the secondaries a little paler, especially the inner ones, which are light brown like the back, the primaries pure white for greater part of inner web, secondaries mottled and broadly barred with brown: upper tail-coverts brown, the external ones bright tawny; tail pale rufous, with white shafts, and inclining to whitish towards base of centre feathers, the two outer ones externally shaded with ashy grey, and marked near the end with an irregular spot of brown ; cere yellowish green; orbital ridge dusky greenish; bill brownish plumbeous, yellow at gape, tip black; feet grey, or pale lemon yellow; iris brownish yellow. ‘otal length 26 inches; culmen, 19; wing, 17°7; tail, 10°5; tarsus, 3°75. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but slightly larger. Total length, 26 inches; culmen, 1:6; wing, 18°4; tail, 10°5; tarsus, 3-5. Fig. Cretzschm. in Riipp. Atlas, taf. 27. Sub-fam. AQUILIN A. 28. _GYPAETUS OSSIFRAGUS. Southern Laemmergeier. This noble bird is locally distributed in the hilly parts of the colony. We have seen it often in Bain’s Kloof, near Wellington ; also in the high mountains round Mr. Jackson’s residence at Nel’s Port, near Beaufort, and at Swellendam. From this gentleman we have received sundry specimens, and he informs us that several pairs constantly breed in his neighbourhood; also that they will kill te AQUILA VERREAUXI. 33 lambs and sickly sheep. A pair of young birds was sent to the South African Museum from Graaff-Reinet by Mr. Ziervogel, the member - for that division, who tells us that it is a constant (though rare) resident there. Mr. Ayres writes :—“ Not at all plentiful in Natal. The only locality in which I have yet seen them, has been amongst the rocky hills of the Inanda location.” He has more recently obtained it in the Orange Free State on a range of hills near Hland’s River. ‘ Mr. H. Bowker, Commandant of the Frontier Armed and Mounted Police, writes in epistola: “Do you know the story of the ‘ Arend’ among the Dutch? It is supposed to be the Raven let out of the Ark, and it is considered very unlucky to do it any injury. Family sickness, insolvency, loss of cattle or sheep, are amongst the evils which will fall on the unfortunate wight who may interfere with them, so take care how you shoot one now that I have warned you!” Adult.—Top of head dirty white, bill black ; circle round the eyes, space between them and bill covered with black stiff hair, which extends on each side to the base of the lower mandible. A tuft of similar hair, of considerable length, projects outwards from under the bill. Back, wings, and tail dark blackish ash, each feather being light in the centre and darker on the edges, with white shafts and blotches. Shafts of wing and tail feathers white : tail wedge- shaped. Under parts white, tinged and coated with a reddish substance, which can be scraped off; iris pale yellow; sclerotic membrane blood red. Length, 3’ 10”; wing, 2’ 8”; tail, 1’ 9”. Young.—Quite different from the adult, being brown, the whole of the head blackish; quills and tail paler than the adult; iris very bright greyish brown. Fig. Riipp. Syst. Uebers, pl. 1. 29. AQUILA VERREAUXI. Verreaux’s Hacle. Oo Mr. Andersson found this Eagle nesting in Little Namaqua Land on lofty rocks, but he adds :—“ I cannot specify an instance of its occur- rence to the northward of the Orange River.” Although it is found in North Eastern Africa, the limit to its range in the southern part of that continent as above given by Mr. Andersson seems to hold good. Verreaux’s eagle is not uncommon throughout the colony, wher- . D His, 34 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. ever rocky precipitous mountains are to be found. In these it fixes its eyrie, sallying out daily at early dawn in quest of food, and returning in the evening. One pair had their haunt in some of the vocks of the “ Devil’s Hill,’ near Cape Town, and sailed over the “Camp Ground” to and fro, night and morning, with the regularity of clock-work, to their hunting grounds somewhere on the Cape flats. We have never ascended Table Mountain without encountering a pair near the gorge which opens on to the top, but they never suffered us to get within range. It is called ‘ Dassie Vanger” (Coney-eater) and “ Berghaan” (mountain-cock) by the colonists, from feeding principally on the coney, or rock-rabbit (Hyrax capensis). It also attacks the klip- springer antelope (A. oreotragus), darting at them when perched on pinnacles of the rocks (their favourite position), and hurling them headlong into the abyss below, into which they descend to feed on them at their leisure. They are also accused of killing lambs and sickly sheep, and carrying off the smaller antelopes from the low country. Mr. Atmore writes, July 21st, 1864: “Fancy my knowing of two nests of A. verreauxii, but in such inaccessible places that no one can get at them. Large nests in rocks about 1000 feet high, just on a ledge 300 or 400 feet from the top.” Messrs. H. Jackson and A. F. Ortlepp have both sent eggs of this fine eagle. The latter writes: ‘‘ These birds lay about the beginning of July, on ledges of steep precipices, though not always, as I have heard of their nests in § Paijbos’-bushes (Zthus lucida) along the Zeekoe river. Hegs two. For some time after leaving the shell, the young birds are quite white, more like balls of swan’s down than birds. All our * eagles are here called ‘ Lammerfangers.’ ” An egg brought to us by Mr. Hugo, of Fransch Hoek, is chalky white, mottled throughout, and especially at the obtuse end, with rust-coloured and light-coloured spots. Axis, 3’’ 5’; diam. 2’’ 4°", The title of Aquila verreauci must be retained for this Eagle in preference to the unsatisfactory one of vulturina of Daudin. The latter name was bestowed on the “ Caffre” of Levaillant. He appa- rently founded the “ Caffre” on the present bird, and enters into a long description of habits which the bird does not follow. In fact, he never obtained a specimen: only saw it at a distance; and invented his account. Had he secured one, he never could have stated that AQUILA RAPAX. 35 its talons were not fitted to carry away its prey: a single glimpse of the powerful, curved, sharp claws is enough to dispel this illusion. Adult.—Jet black, with half the back and rump white; legs feathered to the toes, which are bright yellow; claws black, very strong, and curved. Length, 2’ 9”; wing, 2’ 1”; tail, 13”. The young bird is fawn brown, inclining here and there to black, according to its age. Fig. Des Murs in Lefebvre, Voy. Abyss. Zool. pl. iv. 30. AQUILA RAPAX. Tawny Hagle. Aquila senegalla, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 10 (1867). This bird seems to be very common at Kuruman, Colesberg, Nel’s Poort, Beaufort, and the Karroo generally. Mr. Rickard notes it from Port Elizabeth, but Mr. Ayres says that it is rare in Natal; the same gentleman has met with it in the Transvaal territory. According to Mr. Andersson, it is not uncommon in Damara Land, and Great Namaqua Land, and Senor Anchieta has obtained numerous examples at Huilla in the Mossa- medes district. ‘I should fancy, from the behaviour of one which we kept for some time in confinement, and which went to the Zoological Gardens, Regent’s Park, that it would make a good hunting eagle. Mr. Arnot, of Colesberg, from whom it was received, tells us that it became quite as tame with him as with us. We have been informed by the Messrs. Jackson, of Nel’s Poort, that these birds constantly accom- pany persons in pursuit of game, and have been seen by them to carry off wounded Vaal Knoorhaans (Otis vigorsii) and hares. Their depredations on the flocks cause them to be killed on all occasions ; but they are still very numerous in the Karroo. We found a nest, evidently inhabited by young birds, in the month of January. It was a large mass of sticks in the top of a high, scraggy, and to us inaccessible tree, on the banks of the Dwass River, near Mr. Jack- son’s residence. Mr. H. Jackson subsequently took two eggs from this nest in the middle of June. They were of a rounded oval, white, more or less spotted and blotched with dry blood-coloured spots and patches. Axis, 2’’ 9’; Diam. 2’’ 1”. Mr. Henry Buckley writes: “‘ They vary from 2°82 x 2°17 inches to 2°70 x 1:52. In colour they are white, blotched with faint ashy grey.” One that D2 36 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. we killed near the same place had frogs and fish in his throat :; he was sitting by the river, close to the water’s edge, evidently fishing. Mr. Artlepp writes (July, 1868) : “A few weeks ago, a pair darted down on a flock of merino ewes and lambs, and only flew off after having despatched forty of the latter! At the time this happened, the sheep were in charge of a small bush-boy in a secluded kloof, far away from the homestead. They quite disregarded the boy, and were only put to flight when the unfortunate owner made his appearance with a gun.” General colour rufous-brown; tail and wing feathers dark-brown ; the former tipt with rufous. Eyebrow and hairs covering the space between the eye and the bill very dark brown, almost black ; from the angle of mouth on each side of chin, a dark rufous patch. Bill black ; cere and toes yellow; irides the same. Legs feathered to the toes. Length, 2’ 8”; wing, 1’ 11”; tail, 12}”. Mr. Gurney observes :—“The great peculiarity in the adult of this Eagle is that most of its feathers are parti-coloared—a portion of the feather being rich rufous and the remainder dark purplish brown. «This peculiarity does not exist in the plumage of the young bird, which is also much paler than that of the adult. Andersson says that the iris in adults is pale yellow freckled with brown, and in immature birds brown—a young specimen killed by Ayres had the iris light brown.” Fig. Lilford, Ibis, 1865, pl. 5. 31. AQUILA WAHLBERG. Wahlberg’s Eagle. This species was first discovered by Wahlberg in Caffraria, but only one example has ever fallen under our notice, having been obtained at Kuruman by our friend, Dr. Exton. Senor Anchieta has, however, met with it very plentifully at Huilla in Mossamedes, and also at Humbe, on the river Cunéné. Exton’s specimen was throughout of a dark coffee-brown, varie- gated on the crown of the head, with light brown, wing and tail feathers shot with purple; legs, feathered to the toes; head, with a slight occipital crest. Length, 24”; wing, 17”; tail, 10” 2’’’. Fig. Gurney, Trans, Zool. Soe. Vol. iv. pl. 77. NISAETUS PENNATUS. 8/7; 32. NIsAETUS PENNATUS. Booted Haele. Aquila pennata, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 10 (1867). Le Vaillant found this species only in the forests of Outeniqualand, perching on the summits of high trees, and shy and difficult of approach. Dr. Smith cites it as from near ‘‘ Heeren Logement,” in Clanwilliam. A young bird, shot by Mr. Jackson at Nel’s Poort, is entirely of a dark-brown colour, in some places inclining to black. He tells us he was attracted to it by its peculiar cry, and has never seen another. We have procured it at Saldanha Bay on the West Coast, and found it breeding on the Berg River in the month of Sep- tember. It has also been obtained near Grahams-town, but has not yet occurred to Mr. Ayres in Natal or the Transvaal, though Dr. Dickerson procured a single example at Chibisa in the Zambesi district. Mr. Gurney also states that Mr. Andersson’s last collection contained one of these Hagles obtained in Ondonga, Ovampo Land. The nests are placed in trees, very similar to those of Buteo jackal; the eggs are generally two, of a dirty white ground, more or less blotched and smeared with light reddish-brown ; axis, 2”5'’’; diam., 1” 10’’’.. Our son also found a nest containing a pair of eggs at Grootevaders-bosch, near Swellendam. The nests we examined all contained green leaves. Mr. Henry Buckley sends the accompanying note :—“ An egg of this species sent me by Layard from South Africa is white blotched with light brown, and measures 2°17 x 1:78. Eggs from Spain measure 2:03 to 2:24 long by 1:7 to 1°82 broad (Vide Ibis, 1866, p. 389). Hume (Scrap Book, p. 187) records an Indian egg measuring 2°13 x 1°78.” Above brown ; the shoulder feathers margined with white; ears and space behind the base of the lower mandible brown-black ; under parts white; the breast and anterior part of belly streaked with brown-black ; tail nearly even, black-brown, variegated with narrow, irregular, wavy bars of a darker tint, and all tipt with obscure white; legs feathered to the toes. Length, 20”; wing, 14”; tail, 8”. Fig. Dresser, B. of Eur. part xxxil. 38 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 33. NISAETUS SPILOGASTER. African Hawk-Eagle. Aquila bonellii, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 11 (1867). Spizactus spilogaster, id. t. c. p. 14. This species bears so close a resemblance to N. fasciatus of Europe, that it has on more than one occasion been confounded with it. According to recent determinations, however, that bird is not an inhabitant of South Africa, and it is probable that the young speci- men procured by Senor Anchieta at Biballa, and determined to be N. fasciatus, is really not that species but the present one. _ Only two examples are known from the Cape Colony. One was taken alive in the neighbourhood of Cape Town, probably wounded by a gun-shot. He lived a few days in our possession, and was remarkably bold and fearless. He eat everything thrown to hin— raw meat, birds, rats, and even fish. Another was shot at Wynberg, in Mr, Trotter’s garden, after having made considerable havoc among the fowls in two previous visits. Mr. Andersson procured several specimens, and informs us, in epistold :— Its flight is heavy, but when once risen to a certain height it soars powerfully. It perches on trees or rocks ; but to the best of my belief roosts only on the latter: its food consists of small quadrupeds.” Mr. Ayres met with it in Natal and further north Dr. Dicker- son obtained three specimens in the Zambesi region at Magomero and Chibisa. Mr. Andersson writes ;—*I have obtained examples of this Eagle at Objimbinque, the mouth of the Onanés River, Bull’s Port, the Omaruru River, and Ondonga.” More recently Senor Anchieta has procured it at Gambos, in Mossamedes, and at Humbe, on the river Cunéné. General colour above dark-brown, approaching to black, mottled throughout with white ; below white, blotched longitudinally on tho breast and belly with dark-brown ; vent white, tinged with chestnut, Tail ashy-grey with a broad black bar at tip. Legs white, feathered to the toes, Length, 2’; wing, 17”; tail, 11”. Irides yellow; cere and base of mandibles greenish-yellow ; anterior portion dark horn- colour. Young.—Differs from the adult in being browner, and is uniform tawny rufous underneath: tail-feathers ashy-grey with seven ill. defined blackish cross-bands. Fig. Mill. Beitr. Orn, Afr. taf. 1. Gurney, Ibis, 1862, pl. 4, SPIZAETUS CORONATUS. 39 34, SprmzaETUS CORONATUS, Crowned Hawk-Eagle. This is a rare bird in South Africa, and very few examples have come under our notice. One was trapped in the mountains near Fransch Hoek, about fifty miles from Cape Town, and another was shot at the Knysna by Mr. G. Rex, while the Grahams-town Museum contains a fine female, which we describe below. Mr. Ayres has procured it in Natal, but it never occurred in any of Mr. Andersson’s collections, though he believed that he saw it in Damara Land on at least two occasions. The Lisbon Museum contains a specimen from Angola, and it is known from various localities on the west coast as high as Senegal. Mr. W. Atmore writes :—“ This species prefers thickets of mimosa- trees, and is very destructive to geese and young lambs. It makes a large nest in a mimosa, and lays two large white eggs, much pointed at the small end.” One of these eagles, shot by Mr. Ayres had just killed a monkey (Cercopithecus lalandii). It is easily distinguished from 8. bellicosus, and the other more common species, by the comparative roundness and shortness of the wings, and great length of tail. A fine adult female in the Grahams-town Museum may be thus described :— General colour of upper surface a rich warm dark brown ap- proaching to black. Head crested—crest coloured like the upper parts; cheeks below the eye and sides of neck lighter brown ; below this a black collar ; chest rufous; belly and under tail-coverts white, transversely crossed by bold broken black bars. Legs feathered to the toes, profusely mottled black and white; on the inner sides the black spots are smaller in size than on the outer, where they assume the form of blotches. Inner surface of wing along the shoulders and ramus deep rufous edged with black followed by a broad band of brown; primaries greyish-white crossed by four bands of grey brown, the two nearest the quills more or less indistinct and broken, the next narrower but more defined, the outermost very broad and distinct; tips of feathers grey-brown. On the outer surface of the wing these bands appear black on a reddish, or greyish-brown, ground. Tail beneath greyish-white crossed by five black bars, that nearest the tip being the broadest; above the same but darker. Upper tail-coverts black tipped with white. 40 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Irides yellow ; bill and claws horn-colour ; toes yellow. Length, 3; wing, 1’ 9”; tail, 1’ 3”. Immature birds are much paler than the adults, and are almost entirely white underneath. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. S. Afr. pls. 40, 41. 35. SPIZAETUS BELLICOSUS. Martial Hawk-Eagle. This species is very scarce in the colony, only two specimens having fallen under onr notice. One was procured at the Knysna by Mr. George Rex, the other at Colesberg by Mr. Arnot. Mr. Gueinzius procured a specimen in Natal, which was shot with “a young goat in its talons,” and Mr. Rickard has obtained it at Port Elizabeth. The latter gentleman writes:—“Mr. Hallack informs me that a fine male was killed at Betheledorp in May, 1869.” Mr. Baines shot one between Mount Lubels and Mount N’guiba, twenty or twenty-five miles south of Lake N’gami. Regarding its occurrence in Damara Land, Mr. Andersson observes :—“I never identified but one pair, which I found close to Objimbinque and the female of which I killed.” It is of this species that Mr. Atmore writes, in epistold :—“ Just as we were leaving the Kuysna, we heard of an eagle’s nest in the forest, and under the tree the person who found it counted 95 heads of the little ‘ Blue Buck’ (Cephalophus cerula).” Mr. Tom Atmore informs us that the tree was an enormous “ yellow-wood,” quite in- accessible ; and the nest a huge mass of sticks impervious to a bullet. The Hon. Mr. Vigne informs us that one of these birds attacked his sheep-kraal and killed the lambs, It was ultimately caught in a steel trap placed near the kraal, Mr. Harford gives me the following description obtained from Mr. T, Ayres of the egg of this species :—‘“ Chalky white, faintly spotted and blotched with light reddish brown, shape roundish. Axis, 3,5;in.; diam. 2,%, in. The nest was taken in the Orange Free State, June 10th, 1870, placed in a large tree, old and gnarled, on the side of a rough pyramidal granite hill. It was about five feet in diameter, composed of the usual rough sticks, and lined with fresh green twigs. It contained one egg only, and that much incubated.” This egg and the old bird are now in the collection of Canon Tristram, LOPHOAETUS OCCIPITALIS. 41 Adult.—General colour above, chest and neck dark grey-brown ; beneath white, spotted with very dark-brown ; thighs barred with the same; large wing feathers, dark brown: the lesser ones and tail transversely barred with grey. Talons black, much curved and strong; legs feathered to the toes. Length, 2’ 7”; wing, 1’ 11”; tail, 12”. The young bird is pale brown, and is much lighter everywhere than the adult, the under surface being almost entirely white. Fig. Smith, Dll. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 42 (adult). Levaill. Ois. d’ Afr. pl. 1 (young). 36. LOPHOAETUS OCCIPITALIS. African Crested Eagle. Spizaetus occipitalis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 13 (1867). This beautiful Eagle is a bird of the eastern districts, being decidedly more common there than elsewhere. Victorin procured it at the Knysna in July, August, and October, and Mr. Atmore, to whom we are indebted for specimens, describes it as not uncommon in the neighbourhood of Traka. We saw it in some abundance in the forest country about the Kat- river, Kowie, Fish-river, &c. It did not appear to be shy, but allowed us to ride past it on several occasions. Dr. Atherstone notes it from the neighbourhood of Grahams- town, and Mr. T. C. Atmore procured it near Hlands’ Posh Mr. Rickard states that he got three specimens at Port Elizabeth, and found the bird very plentiful at Hast London. Mr. Ayres records it as common in Natal, and Dr. Kirk informs us that in the Zambesi country it “frequents the neighbourhood of rivers. It was not observed in the mountains, but was common in the Shiré and Zambesi Valleys.” It has not been recorded by Mr. Andersson from Damara Land, nor has Senor Anchieta met with it in Benguela, but a specimen from Angola is in the Lisbon Museum. Mr. Atmore writes :—“ The crested Eagle is a gentleman of low tastes. One was eating an owl (S. capensis) the other day. Tom could easily have shot him, but mistook him for a Buteo jackal. He is not uncommon about George, and not at all difficult to get at: sits for hours on a naked pole. I saw several during my survey, and might have bagged at least four, but had no gun with me.” Mn. 42 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. T. C. Rickard writes :—“In the stomach of one I found a full-grown rat, eleven young ones, and a mouse.” Dr. Atherstone remarks of a specimen which he had alive :—“ He used to walk up and down the river’s bed catching frogs, and after- wards was so mean as to kill our pet toads and lizards on our grass plat.” Le Vaillant says they build on lofty trees, and line their nests thickly with feathers and wool: lay two round eggs, blotched with brownish-red. Upper parts glossy-brown, approaching to black, darkest on extremities of wings and tail, and lightest on the shoulders and cheeks. Tail barred more or less faintly with white on the upper side, the wings with black. Head crested; crest-feathers very long, and nearly black; feathers of head minutely tipped with white. Under parts almost black; legs feathered to the toes, and nearly pure white; inside of quill feathers of wings and tail silvery-grey ; barred with deep-brown. Iris bright yellow. Length, 25”; wing, 16”; tail, 9”9’’’; length of crest, 5” 6”. Fig. Levaill, Ois. d’Afr. pl. 2. 37. ASTURINULA MONOGRAMMICA, African Buzzard Eagle. The appearance of this bird is of interest as connecting the Avifauna of Southern Africa with that of the more northern portions of the continent. Dr. Hartlaub has described the Angolan bird as distinct from the ordinary form of Western Africa and in his catalogue of the Accipitres (p. 277) the editor was inclined to recognise this fact and separated it as Asturinula meridionalis (Hartl.), but having recently examined a series along with Mr. Gurney, he has come to the conclusion that the difference may be sexual, as he found a closely- barred specimen from West Africa. We therefore extract from the above-mentioned work a description of the Gambian bird, remarking at the same time that A. meridionalis was separated from A. mono- grammica on account of its having the bars on the lower parts much broader and darker, especially on the thigh feathers, and the white band on the tail much narrower. These characters were maintained both in the typical specimen from Angola as well as in a Zambesi skin in Shelley’s collection. The African Buzzard Eagle only just enters the country treated of in the present work, and never seems to come as low as the Cape Colony or even into Natal, as far as we know at present. Captain Shelley possesses a Zambesi specimen, and here it would seem to be CIRSAETUS CINEREUS. 43 tolerably common, as Dr. Dickerson procured four specimens, at Quilimane, Magomero, and Chibisa: Dr. Kirk also states that it is found in the open forests of the Shiré Valley. On the western side it has been shot once in Damara Land by Andersson, who obtained a single example at Elephant Vley on the 26th of October, 1859. Senor Anchieta has likewise killed it at Capangombe in the interior of Mossamedes. The following description is from the British Museum Catalogue : Adult.—Above dark slaty grey, the head and sides of the face lighter, the wing-coverts also a little paler grey, the edge of the wing white, with which colour the outermost of the upper primary coverts is edged; quills blackish, all tipped, and the outermost edged, with white, the secondaries ashy grey like the back and more broadly tipped ; all the quills white at the base of the inner web, extending in notches for some distance up the feather; lower back and rump blackish ; the upper tail-coverts and immediate base of tail white, forming a broad band; .tail blackish, broadly tipped with white, and having one conspicuous white band across the centre; lores and feathers in front of the eye whitish; throat white, with a very broad streak of black down the centre; fore neck, sides of neck, and chest ashy grey; rest of under surface, including the flanks and axillaries, thickly barred with white and ashy brown; under wing- and tail- coverts white; cere, orbits, and base of lower mandible bright cinnabar-red; bill dark leaden horn-colour; feet vermilion ; iris umber-brown. Total length, 12 inches ; culmen, 1'1; wing, 8°9 ; tail, 5:8; tarsus, 1°95. Adult female.—A little larger than the male, Total length, 13°5 inches; culmen, 1°2; wing, 9°5; tarsus, 2°1. Fig. Swains, B, W. Afr. i., pl. 4. 28. CIRCAETUS CINEREUS. Black-breasted Harrier-Eagle. Circaetus thoracicus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 15 (1867). This fine Eagle is generally distributed in the Colony, although rather rare. Mr. H. Gird, M,L,A., obtained a noble pair on his farm, Oliphant’s Fontei, which are now mounted in the Museum at Cape Town. Victorin procured it in the Karroo, and Mr. Henry Jackson says that in this locality they are always found near water and not in the mountains. We ourselves found it breeding at the Berg river and we also saw it about Grahams-town and the Kowie mouth. 44 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Mr. Ayres states that it is not rare in Natal, but extremely wild, and he has also procured it in the Transvaal. One specimen was shot in the Zambesi country by Dr. Dickerson at Chibisa, and we saw several pairs on the East Coast of Africa, and shot two at Fazy, a native village within a degree and a half of the Line; here they seemed quite fearless and allowed an easy approach. Senor Anchieta has obtained it at Biballa and Huilla in Mossamedes, and also at Humbe on the River Cunéné. Mr. Andersson writes: ‘On March Ist, 1865, I observed an adult soaring very low, just in front of my window [probably at Objimbinque] and I have subsequently killed this bird in Damara Land.” In the colony it frequents mountain ravines clothed with timber, and keeps to the same spot for many successive years: shy and suspicious, it rarely falls to the gun. Mr. Ayres (Ibis, 1860, p. 203) says that the stomach of one he killed contained the remains of lizards and of a poisonous snake, which could not have been less than seven or eight feet in length. ‘This snake,” he adds, “is called by the Caffres ‘ Armaunbak.’ A favourite dog of ours, bitten last year by a snake of this species, died from the effects of the poison in less than an kour.” Mr. Henry Jackson has sent an egg of this fine bird from Nel’s Poort. He says that they nest in the top of a high tree and lay but one egg: the latter is pure white and its axis measures about 3-1 inches, the diameter being 2-4. At the Berg river we found that they bred yearly on the tops of dense bushes in the month of September. Some of the eggs procured by us and by Mr. J. Kotze were slightly spotted. Mr. Henry Buckley writes: “The ege of this species is pointed, white, and is 2°75 inches long by 2°27 broad.” Adult.—Head and neck blackish-brown, tinged with grey; back and shoulders of the same colour, each feather tipt with white. Throat black and white; breast brownish-black ; lower parts white ; tail grey, crossed with broad black bands, tipt with white. Length, 29 inches; wing, 21; tail, 11; tarsus, 3°85; iris pale straw-yellow; cere and gape olive-yellow ; bill blackish. Young.—Above brown; the feathers of the head and upper surface broadly margined with light tawny or pale fulvyous; quills blackish, the secondaries browner, all broadly margined and tipped with pale tawny, inner webs white below; the secondaries ashy grey towards their tips; tail brown, tipped with fulvous and crossed with three aaa GYPOHIERAX ANGOLENSIS, 45 indistinct bands of ashy grey ; head and neck tawny, with narrow central shaft-stripes of dark brown, much broader on hind neck; lores whitish; over the eye a narrow line of black feathers; ear- coverts a little browner than the head, washed with tawny and narrowly streaked with darker brown; under surface of body light orange tawny; the throat whitish and streaked with narrow shaft- lines of dark brown extending on to the chest, but absent on breast and abdomen, which are much varied with white bases and bars to the feathers ; the under tail-coverts white, with broad bars of tawny. The description of the young bird is from the Museum Catalogue. It should be noted that the adult form of this Harrier Hagle with the black breast-band and white under-surface has not yet been met with north of the Equator, and it is considered by some ornitholo- gists that two species are confounded under the name of C. cinereus. Fig. Riipp. Neue Wirb. pl. 14. 39. CrRCAETUS FASCIOLATUS. Banded Harrier-Hagle. This species, which is quite a distinct one, does not appear to come within the limits of the Cape Colony, and as far as we know at present is confined to Natal. Mr. Gurney, writing in 1868, says: “Tt appears to be very rare, and I have only seen three examples of it, which were all obtained in the Colony of Natal.” Mr. Ayres states that it inhabits the dense bush along the coast. Mr. Gueinzius found the stomach of one full of termites. General colour above brown ; below, throat and chest light brown ; chin white; belly, breast, and flanks white banded with brown; tail yellowish brown with four bands of dark brown, tip edged with white ; irides, legs and cere yellow. Total length, 25 inches; wing, 14-6; tail, 10°5; tarsus, 3:4. Fig. Gurney, Ibis, 1862, pl. 3. 40. GyPoHIERAX ANGOLENSIS. Vulturine Sea-Eagle. The occurrence of this bird below the River Quanza, which we have assigned as the northern limit of this work, compels us to include it here, but it is strictly a West African bird, and cannot be found in any numbers below the above-mentioned river. Neverthe- less, Heer Sala, a Dutch collector, obtained an example at Katten- bella in Benguela on the 10th of December, 1868. In recording this specimen in a paper on Angolan birds forwarded by Mr. 46 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Monteiro, the editor was induced to accept from Mr. Keulemans an apparently circumstantial account of its breeding in the Cape Verde Islands. Hearing from many reliable authorities that only the common Neophron perenopterus was found in these islands, the editor has repeated his enquiries of Mr. Keulemans as to his being sure of the identification of the species, and he has lately admitted that he believes the account of the breeding-habits refer to N. per- enopterus and not to G. angolensis. Much as he regrets the publi- cation of these notes, the editor believes that any one would have followed his example in accepting such a detailed account of the breeding of this rare species. The following description is from the Museum “ Catalogue.” Adult male.x—General colour white, the following parts black: scapulars except the very highest, which are mottled with white ; quills, the primaries for the most part white, excepting the tips which are black, and the outer web which is more or less mottled with black, the inner web less so; tail black with a very broad white tip forming a terminal band; all the rest of the body white; head slightly crested ; cere grey; bare skin of face flesh-colour ; feet rosy flesh-colour ; iris light yellow. Total length, 23 inches; culmen, 2°5 wing, 17:2; tail, 8°8; tarsus, 3°35. Adult female.—Similar to male, but larger. Total length, 24°5 inches; culmen, 2°7; wing, 17:0; tail, 9°5; tarsus, 3°5. The young bird is brown, resembling in general appearance the immature Egyptian Vulture. Fig. Wolf, Zool. Sketches, pl. 38. 40, HAattarrus vocirer. African Sea-EKagle. This fine Sea-Eagle is found generally in pairs, frequenting the embouchures of rivers, lakes, and other parts of the colony, where wood and water afford a congenial home. Le Vaillant procured it on the Orange River. Mr. Chapman brought it from the Zambesi, and we saw it as far North as Fazy. It is common at the Knysna, forming an enormous nest of sticks and rubbish. Victorin also appears to have met with it in great numbers at the latter place. Mr. Rickard notes it from East London where it is called the “ Rock-Eagle.” He writes: “A pair or two are generally seen near the mouth of the Buffalo: they are said to breed in the large Euphorbie on the river banks,” HALIAETUS VOCIFER. 47 In Natal, according to Mr. Ayres, it is found frequenting the bays and lakes along the coast, and the same gentleman has recently obtained specimens in the Transvaal. Dr. Kirk gives the following note: “On the lakes and rivers ; common among the mangrove creeks of the coast; on the Zambesi, above the great falls, and on Lake Nyassa; in fact, wherever the forest comes down to the shore, or high rocks overhang it.”? Mr. Andersson writes as follows: “It is not an inhabitant of either Damara or Great Namaqua Land, but is tolerably common in the Lake-region and its water-sheds, and also along the course of the Okavango.” Senor Anchieta has quite recently procured it at Humbe on the River Cunéné. This species feeds on fish, crabs, and reptiles, and will not refuse earrion sheep, &c. (Le Vaillant says he has found antelope bones in their nests), resorting usually to some bare rock or dead tree to devour its quarry. Mr. W. Atmore records that they destroy lambs, and while on a visit to Mr. John Van der Byl’s farm, Nacht-wacht in the Strand- Veldt, we found a young bird just shot. It was still in the immature brown plumage, but had committed terrible depredations on our friend’s young lambs, slaughtering one or two daily. He was shot in the act and we had him to skin. Le Vaillant says the eggs are white, and shaped like those of a turkey, only larger. . One was sent to us by Mr. A. F. Ortlepp taken from a nest in the head of an old pollard willow growing on an island in the Orange River. It was white, but not so pointed as the ege of a Turkey. Adult.—Head, breast, and top of back and tail pure white; wings and back nearly black, the larger feathers edged with white; upper parts of the wing reddish-brown. Belly and thighs deep-reddish brown. Cere and legs yellow. Irides yellow. Length, 2’ 8”; tail, 11”. Young.—Differs from the old bird principally in being more dingily coloured and in not showing the contrast of colours as in the adult; thus the whole of the head, neck, and breast are more or less brown in the young, though generally giving indications of approaching whiteness, especially about the ears and lower breast, the crown being the last to change; least wing-coverts blackish, with rufous margins, the rest dark brown, but the greater ones for the most part 48 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA, white, causing a large patch across the wing; lower parts of the belly brown, more or less varied with white, the thighs inclining to rufous ; tail ashy white, brown at the tip, and more or less brown on the rest of the feather; gape whitish yellow; orbits and cere dusky; bill dusky bluish; iris darker hazel than in the adult.— (Sharpe, Cat. i., p. 311). Fig. Des Murs, Iconogr. Orn. pl. 8. 42, HZLorarsus ECAUDATUS. Bateleur Eagle. This Eagle is not very common in this colony, single pairs frequenting high mountain ranges near Caledon, and a few other spots. We saw several along the Hast Coast of Africa, and obtained a living specimen from the Governor of Mozambique, which lived with us upwards of two years. It fed voraciously on carrion of all kinds, including fish, but never molested living things—indeed, we kept him for a long time in the fowl-house with the fowls, but had to turn him out, as he devoured the eggs as fast as they were laid by the hens. I have seen a specimen from Lake N’gami, procured by Mr. Chapman ; and Mr. Atmore killed another with a stick in a wood at the Knysna. He also found it about Blanco. He writes, May 25, 1864: “ We are going to lay wait for an ‘Arend’ to-morrow evening. He always sits on one particular yellow-wood tree in the forest ; but he examines the premises very closely before he perches. What a beautiful flight they have, sailing about without even flapping a wing; and when they stoop they come out of the sky like a lightning flash. There are several here, and we know of a nest; but they breed late, so no chance of eggs; but we will give it a look up on our return trip.” He further declares that it kills its own food and never, in the wild state, touches carrion, but Mr. Ayres states that it feeds on carrion, moles and snakes. The latter gentleman writes: “It is found in Natal and also in the Transvaal.” Mr, Gurney has seen two young birds of this species which were obtained from a nest situated in a lofty and rocky precipice by the side of a river, a few miles above the town of D’Urban. Dr. Kirk says it was frequent in the marshy lands of the River Shiré. Mr. Andersson observes that it is probably the most common Eagle in Damara and Great Namaqualand; it is usually found in_ MILVUS XGYPTIUS. 49 plains. Several pairs bred in the neighbourhood of my place at Objimbinque.” Senor Anchieta has obtained it at Gambos in Mossamedes and at Humbe on the river Cunénée. Adult.—Head, neck, and nearly the whole of the upper and under parts of the body black; back and tail deep-red; lesser wing- coverts rufous; head crested and frilled; cere deep-orange ; fect crimson. Length, 2’; wing, 164”; tail, 53”. Some specimens are found with a cream-coloured back (H. lewconotus), but whether this plumage indicates an adult H. ecav- datus, or a distinct species, it is difficult to say. A specimen of this light-backed race is in the British Museum from South Africa, so that it occurs along with the ordinary Bateleur in the southern part of the continent. Fig. Heuglin, Orn. N. O. Afr. pl. ii. 43. Muinvus meyprius. Yellow-Billed Kite. Although a rare bird within the colony, so much so that it does not occur in Victorin’s list, nor in the collections of our excellent correspondent, Mr. Rickard, this species is more plentiful in South Africa than the Black Kite. Mr. Ayres records it as common in Natal and Transvaal, and Dr. Kirk says that it “‘ arrives in the Zam- besi Valley from the north in August, and is very abundant along the river.” Mr. Andersson shot it at Ondonga, and notes that it is _ more common than the Black Kite in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, whence it migrates from the neighbourhood of the Equator.” (Cf. Gurney in Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p. 23.) Senor Anchieta has procured it in many localities during his travels in Mossamedes, viz., at Biballa, Quillengues, Caconda, and Ambaca, and more recently at Humbe, on the Cunéné River. Le Vaillant states that it inhabits Great Namaqua Land, builds amongst trees or rocks, but prefers marshy ground, where it makes its nest on some raised spot amongst the reeds. Hges four, white speckled with red. Itis a bold and hardy bird, pursuing its prey even in inhabited places. In November, 1863, we observed a single specimen flying over the village of Ceres, in the Cold Bokkeveld. We have also received it from Kuruman, and observed it along the Hast Coast as far as Fazy. A pair frequent the homestead of the Honourable T. H. Vigne, at Tyger Hoek, River “ Zonder End” (1865). The flight and habits of E 50 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. this species differ in no way from those of the Common Kite of India ; indeed, until we shot one, we did not discriminate that any difference existed. Eggs procured by Mr. J. Kotze and ourselves at the Berg River are dull white, sparsely spotted, blotched and streaked generally at the thick end with dry blood-coloured markings. Axis, 2” 3”’; Diam. 1” 9’’’. The whole of the upper parts tan-brown, each feather with a paler edge; breast tan-brown; top of head, neck, cheeks, and throat whitish or light brown; the centre of each feather being dark-brown inclining to black, gives a striped appearance. Lower part of body, thighs, and under part of tail cinnamon-colour. Wings very long and pointed, tail deeply forked. Legs and bill straw yellow in the adult bird, and dark yellowish-brown in immature specimens ; iris brown, cere yellow. Length, 21'’; wing, 17’’; tail, 10’’. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. 1, pl. 22. 44, Muitvus KorscHun. Black Kite. Milvus ater, Layard, B.S. Afr. p. 25 (1867). Although not migrating as far south as Cape Town itself, this Kite is by no means uncommon in Southern Africa. We first received it from Mr. Arnot, of Colesberg, who shot it in a street of that town. We have since had specimens from the Zambesi, brought down by Mr. J. C. Chapman. Mr. Andersson writes :—“‘ It appears in Damara and Great Namaqua Land with the first rains, or even before.” From Mr. Chapman’s descriptions, it appears to resemble in habits M. govinda of India and Ceylon, frequenting by preference the neighbourhood of native towns, near water, and feeding upon offal, particularly that of fish. It wheels round in large and easy circles, rising and falling, without flapping its wings, for an immense length of time. It catches up its food with its foot, and eats it in the air, bending the head down, and bringing up one or both feet to meet it. Eggs in our possession are of a dull white, with here and there coarse dry blood-coloured dots. Axis, 2’’ 2”; diam. 1” 9’’’. Mr. Ortlepp says this species has long been known in Colesberg, where it is called “ Kuikenduif” (chicken thief). Mr. H. Bowker says “it is probably so called from the fact that it has never been seen to touch one unless thrown away dead! While hunting near Bloemfontein in the Free State, I have suffered from their stealing - | “f MILVUS KORSCHUN. 51 the Biltong (dried flesh) and whatever they could get hold of from the waggon—in fact they will sweep down at the fireplace, and before you know where you are, carry off a piece of meat. One day we came home from hunting, and were getting our dinner at the fireplace—a fine wildebeest’s tongue was taken out of the pot and placed to cool on a flat stone about a yard from where we sat—down came a fellow, and though there was a rush and a scramble from the nearest man, it was too late, and the Kite carried off the prize to a koppie about 300 yards off and ate it at his leisure. On another occasion I saw one swoop down and take a piece of raw meat from a Kaffir girl’s head which she was carrying to her hut.” «The nest from which I took the eggs sent was in a large pollard willow on the banks of the Caledon river, made of dry willow-sticks, and lined on the inside with hair chiefly from the hairy exuvie of dogs and other animals. The old birds were very bold almost striking my hat off while at the nest. In blowing the eggs I found a considerable difference in the size of the young birds, that in the white egg being almost ready to hatch, the other in the egg slightly coloured next in size, while that in the deeply marked one was but just formed.” Dr. Exton writes :—* Milvus korschun is said by the Matabili to be the “ King’s bird,” andis respected by them. One of the King’s sons examining my specimen said that they never killed that bird. It does not seem very choice in its food, as the gizzards of those I examined contained both locusts and lizards, and I have seen family parties dining after the manner of Vultures off the putrid carcase of an ox. They breed about the time the locust larvae become developed, the young birds just taking wing when the “hoppers” are becoming strong on the ground. They then congregate in flocks and I have counted between eighty and ninety hovering over an army of infant locusts and have seen them in still greater numbers, some on the ground busily devouring the hoppers, and others perched on the neighbouring trees gorged with a full repast. The Matabili name is “ Mezwazwa.” Mr. Henry Buckley sends us the following measurements of Spanish eggs of the present species :—‘‘ They vary from 2°15 x 1:57 inches to 2°28 x 1:69, and in colour they are white, spotted or blotched with brown.” General colour deep hair-brown, tinged with rufous on the under E 2 | es 52 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. parts, particularly on the flanks, thighs, and under tail-coverts ; each feather has a black shaft. T'ail much forked, and barred with grey- brown. Bill black at allages. Iris brown. Length, 21'’; wing, 18’; tail, 10”’. 45, ELANus CZRULEUS. Black-shouldered Kite. Elanus melanopterus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 26 (1867). According to our own experience in South Africa this is a migra- tory species, appearing about Cape Town in the month of May. Victorin, however, procured it in the Karroo in January and Feb- ruary, and at the Knysna in April, May, July, August and December. Mr. Rickard states that it is common at East London, and Mr. Ayres records that it appears to be equally distributed throughout Natal and Transvaal. Dr. Kirk notes it as very common both on the Shiré and Zambesi. Mr. Andersson writes as follows: “ Rare in Damara Land, and is only found about the estuaries of some of the large periodical water- courses; but itis not uncommon at Lake N’gami and its watersheds.” Senor Anchicta has procured it in Mossamedes at Ambaca and Biballa, and Mr. Monteiro in Angola. According to Le Vaillant, it builds in the fork of a tree; the nest large, lined with feathers and moss. Eggs white; four or five in number. It perches on the tops of trees or bushes, and utters a frequent and very piercing cry, especially when in flight. Its food consists of insects. We have also found it devouring small birds and reptiles. It is a bold and fearless bird, and generally allows of approach within gunshot. It is migratory, appearing about Cape Town in the month of May. To a certain extent this species is gregarious: wo counted nine roosting in one tree at Eerste River, and several more were flying about close by: they had probably been attracted by an exodus of white ants which had taken place that afternoon. Mr. Atmore confirms Le Vaillant’s statement that it lays white eggs, and sent us one taken by himself. We fancy, however, that these must be exceptionable instances, for Mr. Kotzé and our- selves found them nesting in abundance at the Berg River in Sep- tember and October in trees and high bushes; the eggs varied, the ground colour ranging from white to dull red and the marking also being sometimes blotchy and smeared like those of the English Sine PERNIS APIVORUS. 53 Sparrow-hawk, at other times finely sprinkled on the surface. Axis, ee 5 Diam. 1’! 4/’72 Mr. Buckley writes: “The eggs vary from 1:46x1:16 inches to 168x 1:26. The ones in my collection agree in coloration with those described by Mr. Hume in ‘Stray Feathers,’ (p. 25), as received from Mr. Blewitt, but in my specimens I do not perceive the pale sea-green colour of the shell referred to by him. I agree with Hume that the eggs figured by Bree do not appear to belong to this. species.” Adult.—Upper parts bluish grey, under parts pure white. Fore- head whitish, Tail white on the upper side, slightly tinged with grey. Hye-brows black; shoulders black. Feet bright yellow. Eyes carmine in adult; bright-yellow in the young bird. Length, 12”; wing, 10” 9”; tail, 5” 6”. The young birds are more or less mottled with brown. Fig. Dresser, B. Eur. part xxxv. 46. PERNIS APIVORUs. European Pern. The ‘ Honey-Buzzard,’ as it is familiarly called, can be considered only a rare winter visitant to South Africa, having but twice been obtained in Natal by Mr. Ayres, though figured by Levaillant as ‘Le Tachard.’ It is, however, more often procured on the Gold Coast during the winter months, and probably does not always migrate to South Africa, Sir Andrew Smith procured a young specimen in Madagascar, which is still preserved in the British Museum. Tail with four broad and numerous small dusky bands; wings with two similar bands. Adult male with the anterior parts of the head brownish-grey, the upper parts deep-brown; the throat white, with longitudinal dark lines; the rest of the lower parts white, with broad bands and spots of brown. Female with the forehead bluish- grey; the upper parts deep-brown; the lower pale, yellowish red, with large reddish-brown spots. Length, 243”; wing, 16” 9’; tail, 113”. Fig. Gould, B. Eur. i, pl. 16. 54 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Fam, FALCONIDZ. 47. Baza Verreavuxu. Verreaux’s Cuckoo-Falcon. (Praze I.) Avicida verreauxii, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 24 (1867). The South African species of Baza is distinct from B. cuculoides of Western Africa and may be recognised by its lighter coloration, and paler grey breast, but more especially by the colour of the under wing-coverts which are uniform rufous in the West African bird. It is only known from the eastern parts of South Africa, not having at present been obtained out of Natal. Here, Mr. Ayres says, “it frequents the dense bush and is extremely shy.” Mr. Harford sent a fine female from Natal and writes as follows: ‘ They are very fond of settling on the ground. This specimen was shot in the act of settling on an ant-hill. This morning I had the luck to kill a pair, both of them females, at a right and left shot. Three of them have been in the habit of passing below the house for the last two weeks. Out of a specimen I killed the other day I took several legs and wings of grasshoppers and mantide.” Mr. Ayres likewise found in the stomach of one of these Hawks remains of a green Mantis, of locusts, and of a chameleon. The figures given in the accompanying plate represent an adult and young bird in the British Museum, and the following descrip- tions are taken from the “ Catalogue of Birds” (Vol. 1, p. 355):— Adult male. — Above dark ashy grey, somewhat shaded with brown, crown and occipital crest dark ashy; quills brown, tipped with whitish, externally shaded with ashy grey; under surface of wing white for the basal, and shading into greyish white for the apical half; primaries crossed by a few bars of brown above and below, more indistinct on the inner ones, the secondaries with a broad subterminal bar of dark brown; upper tail-coverts ashy grey at base, brown at tip, appearing slightly banded; tail slaty grey above, conspicuously tipped with white, crossed by four bars of black, the subterminal one very broad, under surface whitish, the basal bars more indistinct and represented on the outer feathers by a black patch on the outer web, extending a little across to the inner one; sides of the face, throat, and chest clear grey ; breast pure white, banded with pale rufous brown, a little broader on the Weare Nya} vy ' tee ay A vr Lahn Vou) Plate I. BAZA VERREAUXI. POLIOHIERAX SEMITORQUATUS. 55 sides of the body, and gradually decreasing in size towards the - flanks and under tail-coverts, the latter of which are entirely white ; under wing-coverts very thickly barred with pale rufous and fulvous ; cere and orbits light yellow; bill black, bluish at base of under mandible; feet yellow; iris lemon-yellow. Total length, 17 inches ; culmen, 1:05; wing, 12°7; tail, 7-9; tarsus, 1-4. Adult female.—A little browner than the male, and not so clear grey; bars on the breast broader and more rufous, being equally distinct on the flanks. Total length, 17 inches; culmen, 1°15; wing, 12°6; tail, 7°9; tarsus, 1-40. Young. — Brown above, the feathers narrowly margined with fulvous, much broader on the secondaries; quills and tail pale brown, banded with blackish brown, the latter tipped with fulvous, especially on the outer rectrix ; sides of head and neck rufous brown, with dark brown centres to the feathers, giving rather a streaked appearance; under surface of body whitish, streaked on the throat and banded on the breast with pale rufous, the inner face of the thighs also rufous; on the breast and flanks some feathers with dark brown oval spots, less distinct on the under tail-coverts ; crest less developed than in the adult and dark brown in colour ; iris very light brown. 48. PoLloHtHRAX SEMITORQUATUS. African Falconet. As duly stated by Sir A. Smith this species probably never reaches the latitude of the Colony and has never fallen under our notice. He writes as follows: ‘ Only three specimens of this elegant little Falcon were procured by the expedition party, and those nearly in the same spot among some large mimosa trees a little to the east- ward of Old Latakoo. None of them were ever observed soaring like other Falcons, and the few individuals that ‘were seen were either perched upon the lowest branches of the trees or in the act of flying from one tree to another. Considering that this bird was never afterwards procured or even seen more to the eastward, it is probable that the proper habitat of this species will be found in the opposite direction, which I am more inclined to believe, as one of our party declared he had seen it on the borders of the Kalahari desert during an excursion we made to the westward of New Latakoo. In the stomachs of two were found the remains of small 56 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. birds, and in the third portions of a lizard and different parts of coleopterous insects.” Mr. T. Vanzeller has lately procured a specimen in the Transvaal, and Mr. Andersson gives the following note on the species in Damara Land :— , “ This exquisite little Faleon may be regarded as very rare in both Great Namaqua Land and Damara Land, especially im the latter, where I have only seen it once or twice ; altogether I have probably not come across above cight individuals, three-fourths of which I have secured. “tis always met with in pairs and usually perches on bushes or on the lower and middle branches of small trees, though J have seen it on the topmost boughs of lofty trees. I never saw it soar like other Falcons; it is not shy, and when disturbed it never moves further than to the next conspicuous tree or bush. It feeds on small birds, mice, lizards, and coleopterous insects, the latter being, I apprehend, its chief food.” Adult male.—Above blueish-grey, the head darker, the hind neck and upper tail coverts pure white ; quills and tail brown, spotted on the outer and barred on the inner web with white, the secondaries and tail-feathers also tipped with white ; forehead, sides of face and underparts white ; under-wing coverts white with indistinct brown cross-bars on some of the lower ones; bill yellow, horn-coloured at tip; cere, orbits and feet yellow, claws horn brown. Total length 7°5 inches; culmen, 0°45; wing, 4°6; tail, 3:2 ; tarsus, 1-2. (Sharpe, Cat. B. i., p. 370.) Adult female.—Differs from the male in having the interscapulary regions and scapulars deep vinous chesnut. ‘Total length, 7.5 inches; culmen, 0°5; wing, 4°8; tail, 3°0; tarsus, 1°15. The immature male resembles the female. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 1, (male). Scelater, Ibis, 1861, pl. xii. (female). 49. Faco communis. Peregrine Falcon. Falco peregrinus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 19 (1867). Mr. Sclater quotes a single specimen as having been received from Natal ; we have not seen it from within the limits of the Cape Colony, where the next species seems to take its place. Mr. Garney tells us, however, that the Norwich Museum possesses a specimen from ee IR Ae EE A AEE A OO LI FALCO MINOR. 57 thence, as well as one from Natal, the latter being probably the same individual as that mentioned by Mr. Sclater. Prof. Barboza du Bocage states that it has been procured by Senor Anchieta on the Coroca River in Mossamedes, but he does not state whether it was the large Peregrine of Europe, or the small Faleo minor of southern Africa, which some ornithologists do not consider specifically distinct from the ordinary species. General colour above, deep blueish lead-colour, barred with black ; crown of the head and upper part of neck nearly black; greater wing-feathers dusky, with oval whitespots. Tail similar to the back, and much barred ; beneath each eye a patch of black. Under parts, from chin to bottom of the breast, yellowish white, a brownish streak down the shaft of each feather. Thighs and remainder of body dirty white, barred with deep-brown. Bill blue; cere yellow; iris brown. The description and measurement are taken from a fine Huropean female in the South African Museum. A young male is more rufous on the back, and the under parts more mottled with brown. It is likewise much smaller. Fig. Gould, B. Gt. Br. part 1. 50. Fanco minor. South African Peregrine Falcon. This Falcon seems to have a pretty general range over the colony, several specimens having reached us from different localities. We have likewise seen it on the wing several times near Cape Town, and purchased one in the flesh which was being carried through the town by ashooter. Mr. Atmore writes from Swellendam: “ It is notrare about here, but very difficult to get, except in the breeding time, when they come after the poultry.” Victorin notices it from Rondebosch and also from the Knysna. Dr. Atherstone records it from the neighbourhood of Grahams-town, and a specimen was obtained by Mr. Gueinzius in Natal. Mr. Andersson writes :—‘ I never observed but one individual of this Falcon, which I obtained at Objinere about two days journey from Objimbinque ;” but he subsequently obtained a specimen in Ondonga. Mr. J. Kotze found this species at the Berg River nesting in trees. The eggs generally three, are more or less spotted and stained with dry blood colour on a dirty cream coloured ground; they however vary very much. Axis, 1’’ 9’’’, Diam. 1” 4'"”, 58 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. The description given of I’. communis will suffice equally well for this species, with the exception that all the specimens that have fallen under our observation seem to be duller-coloured, and the transverse dark bars on the abdomen of the adult bird are also closer together than in F. communis, in which respect I’, minor resembles I’, melanogenys of Australia. Fig. Sharpe, Cat. B. i, pl. xii. 51. Fatco BIARMICcUS. South African Lanner. (Prats II.) The present species, though closely allied to F. tanypterus, which it represents in South Africa, differs from that species and from the true Lanner of Europe in being perfectly uniform and unspotted on the under surface when adult. It is scattered throughout the colony, but is not common anywhere. Mr. T. Atmore procured old and young birds near Hland’s Post. Both Mr. Ayres and Mr. T. E. Buckley have found this Falcon in Natal and the Transvaal, in both of which countries it is rare. Dr. Kirk did not meet with it in the Zambesi regions. Numerous specimens were contained in Mr, Andersson’s collections, and he says that it “is to be met with from the Cape Colony in the South, to the Okavango River in the north, and as far eastward as Lake N’gami; it is particularly numerous in Little Namaqua Land, and also in the neighbourhood of the Okavango, and is occasionally seen along the sea coast.” Senor Anchicta has met with it at Huilla in Mossamedes. It is very rapid on the wing, and a great scourge to poultry and game of all kinds. It will not hesitate to dash at a flock feeding close to the door of a dwelling and in the midst of people working on the werf. Mr. Ortlepp writes, ‘‘I procured two parent birds and five nestlings ready to fly. The female resembles the male+but she is larger (Length, 18’’; wing, 14’’; tail, 74’".) The nestlings were all mottled on the breast and belly. Found near Colesberg, feeding on small birds, reptiles and insects.” Adult male.—General colour above blueish ash; transversely barred with dark-grey ; head clear rufous, marked on the forehead, side and nape with black ; under parts clear vinaceous, marked on the thighs with a few black spots. Tail underneath grey and ash. Cere and legs yellow ; eye light brown. Length, 17” ; wing, 12}’’; tail, 7’’. ; FALCO BIARMICUS. PALCO CUVIERS. : 59 A fine female is more rufous-brown in the gencral appearance, and is much mottled on the breast and belly, the latter character being in both sexes of this species a mark of immaturity. 52. Fatco suBBUrEoO. Hobby. The Hobby appears to be only a winter visitant in Southern Africa. Several specimens of this Hawk have been received from | that locality, viz. :—a fine female from Swellendam; a pair, from Mr, / Jackson, at Nel’s Poort; one male purchased in the flesh in Cape “Town. A rich-coloured male also fell to our own gun on Cape Flats ; and Mr. Atmore has procured it near Blanco. Tt also occurs in Natal, as a specimen in the British Museum from that country is the Falco cuviert of Mr. Gray’s “ Hand-list.” Mr. Andersson states that it occasionally makes its appearance in Damara Land during the rainy season, and, as Mr. Gurney adds, it appears to occur in Ovampo Land as well as in Damara Land, a specimen from Ondonga being comprised in Mr. Andersson’s last collection. Senor Anchieta has procured it at Gambos in Mossamedes. Head and upper parts of neck dark blue-grey ; rest of upper parts pale-blue. Shafts of all the feathers black; over each eye a narrow rufous white stripe; below each eye a black crescent. Sides of neck, throat, breast, and belly tawny-white. On the two last parts are many black blotches. Under tail-coverts and thighs rufous. Outer vanes of wings hoary-blue; inner ‘vanes dull-brown, crossed with white bars. All margined and tipped with white. Tail slightly rounded, the two central feathers blue-grey only; the others blue- grey, banded with pale rufous, and tipped with white. Length, 14 inches; wing, 1U’’ 9’”; tail, 6’’2’’. Fig. Sharpe and Dresser, B. Hur. part iv. 53. Faco cuviert, African Hobby. This rare species is entirely confined to Africa, but it is only known from the Gold Coast and from the Cape Colony, in both of which places it appears to be somewhat scarce. Sir A. Smith, who described it, states that the typical specimen was obtained in Caffer- land near to the Kai River, where it was said to be not unfrequent. Tt has been more than once received in Europe from South Africa, | 60 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. but we have not been able to obtain any precise particulars of its capture ourselves. Adult male.—Above dark slaty grey, inclining to black on the interscapulary region, the scapulars and inner secondaries edged with paler grey; primaries dark brown; tail dark brown with a slight greyish shade above, barred with fulvous underneath on the inner web and tipped with pale rufous; forehead inclining to buffy white ; fore part of cheeks as well as a short malar stripe and a line under the eye along the upper ear-coverts greyish black ; rest of the cheeks and sides of neck and throat white washed with rufous; remainder of under surface rich rusty red, the thighs and under tail- coverts unspotted, the breast and sides marked with central streaks of black ; under wing-coverts buff, streaked with black; cere, orbits and feet orange; bill dark horn-blue, yellow at base of lower man- dible. Total length, 11 inches; culmen, 0:8; wing, 8°5; tail, 5:0; tarsus, 1°2. (Sharpe, Cat. B. i, p. 400.) Fig. Schl..N. T. D. i, pl. 5. 54, Fanco Rvricozuis. African Rufous-necked Falcon. The only specimen of this elegant little Hawk that has fallen under our notice was shot by Mr. A. V. Jackson, at Nel’s Poort, in the Beaufort division. Sir A. Smith procured it during the movements of the South African Expedition between the principal branches of the Orange River, and Mr. Ayres has met with it in the Transvaal, where he tells us it is not very common. It is not yet known from the Zambesi country, and, according to Mr. Andersson, it is rare in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, and in all other parts of South Africa which he traversed. General colour above and below light blueish-ash, much barred with brown-black ; tail tipt with white, and crossed near the end by a broad black band; head deep-rufous, with black eyebrows and moustache; chin white; throat and chest vinaceous; legs yellow; bill horn-coloured, yellow at base; iris dark brown. Length, 14’; wing, 92'’; tail, 7’’. Fig. Sw. B. W. Afr. pl. 2. 55. CERCHNEIS TINNUNCULUS. Common Kestrel. Only one specimen of the European Kestrel is known as yet to have been shot in South Africa, and is recorded by Mr. Gurney in ia CERCHNEIS TINNUNCULUS. 61 the following terms: ‘The only South African example of this Kestrel which has come under my notice is a female killed at Objimbinque, Damara Land, on the Ist of February, 1865, and com- prised in Mr. Andersson’s last collection. This specimen, which is preserved in the Norwich Museum, is of the ordinary European type.” As, however, the species may have been overlooked, a full description is here added, extracted from the Catalogue of Birds (I. p. 426). Adult male.— Upper parts brick red, with a few arrow-head markings of black, larger on the inner secondaries ; primary-coverts and quills dark brown, the former narrowly margined with rufous, the primaries notched white for about two-thirds of their length, the inner primaries and outer secondaries narrowly edged and tipped with buffy white; head and neck clear blue-grey with narrow black shaft stripes; forehead and narrow eyebrows buffy white; cheeks silvery grey, inclining to blackish below the eye and on the fore part of cheeks, forming a tolerably distinct moustache ; lower back, rump, upper tail-coverts and tail clear blue-grey, the latter tipped with ashy white, before which is a broad subterminal band of black; throat and under tail-coverts buff, unspotted ; remainder of under surface rufous fawn, the chest-feathers mesially streaked with black, these dark centres being larger and more oval in shape on the flank feathers, the thighs clear rufous, unspotted; under wing- coverts white, spotted with black ; bill blueish horn-colour, black at tip, yellowish at base; cere, orbits and feet yellow; iris brown. Total length, 12°5 inches; culmen, 1°75; wing, 9:2; tail, 6°7; tarsus, 1°6. Adult female.—Similar to the male underneath, but not so deeply coloured. Upper surface entirely rufous banded with black, with a faint blueish shade on the rump, the upper tail coverts inclining to buff; head rufous, streaked with black; tail rufous, banded with black, the bars not being strictly continuous, tipped with buffy white, before which is a conspicuous broad band of black; facial features and soft parts as in the male. Total length, 12°5 inches; culmen, 0°75; wing, 9:2; tail, 6:5; tarsus, 1°6. Young male.—Resembling the old female, but rather paler and more distinctly striped on the breast. The tail first changes, be- coming blue like that of the old male, and thus birds are often seen 62 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. in partial plumage, having the blue tail of the adult male, but retain- ing the rufous head of the old female dress. Fig. Sharpe and Dresser, B. Eur. part 2. 56. CiRcHNEIS RUPICOLA. South African Kestrel. Tinnunculus rupicolus, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 22 (1867). This little Hawk is common all over the country as far as we haye been. Victorin met with it in the Karroo in January, and at the Knysna in March, and Mr. Rickard informs us that it is common both at East London and Port Elizabeth. Mr. Ayres found it in Natal, where it is not rare and breeds, but he has not yet procured it in the Transvaal, where its place appears to be filled by C. rupico- loides. Indeed it seems to be a more western bird in its range, as it has not been found in the Zambesi region, but Mr. Andersson says that it is very common in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, where it “is one of the few Hawks which remain in Damara Land during the dry season.” Senor Anchieta has shot this Kestrel at Huilla in Mossamedes, and at Capangombe in the interior of the same country. It extends its range likewise into Angola proper, as Mr. Monteiro | procured it in the neighbourhood of Ambriz. | This species takes the place in this colony of the Windhover of Europe, which it resembles closely in all its habits, hovering in the : air over small birds, mice, &c., and falling suddenly from a consider- able height upon its quarry. It nests in trees (or the high bushes — which do duty for trees in this country), and its eggs, 3—5, are similar in colour to those of the European birds, having a reddish- brown ground, profusely spotted with very dark marks of various | sizes and shapes. They, however, vary extremely, even to being pale cream-colour, with the minutest possible spots of brown. In size they also vary, but the shape is pretty constant, being rather round. Axis, 1’ 7’; diam. 1” 4’... Mr. Henry Buckley observes :— “My eggs vary from 1°57 x 1:25 inches, to 1:7 x 1°35, and are white in colour, suffused all over with very pale brown. My specimens are very much paler than those of the English Kestrel.” Adult.—Head, back, and sides of neck dull blue grey: back, belly, and shoulders deep rufous, with irregular black spots. Breast rufous, with black lines. Primary wing-feathers black; secondaries blackish, crossed with irregular rufous bands. Tail blueish grey, banded with “Seal CERCHNEIS RUPICOLOIDES. 63 black, all its feathers broadly tipped with white, next to a broad black bar. Cere round eye bright-yellow; cere of bill and legs orange-yellow ; irides brown. Length of fresh-killed male, 11’’ (female, 14’’); wing, 10’; tail, 7’. This Kestrel is distinguished from C. tinnuneulus by its uniform blue side-face. Fig. Sharpe, P. Z. 8. 1874, pl. Ixvi. 57. CERCHNEIS RUPICOLOIDES. Large African Kestrel. Tinnunculus rupicoloides, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 25 (1867). This Kestrel is very rare near the colony, but becomes more com- mon towards the Zambesi, where Mr. Chapman procured it in some abundance. Mr. Andersson observes that it is ‘‘ very sparingly met with in Damara Land, but isa little more frequent as one approaches the Orange River; it is also found at Lake N’gami.” Mr. Ayres says that it is one of the commonest Falcons in the Transvaal, Sir A. Smith gives the West Coast of South Africa, near the Orange River, and the interior to the north of that, as the chief habitat of this species; and states that unlike its congener, C. rupicola, it never perches on rocks. Mr. Henry Jackson has sent it with its eggs, from Nel’s Poort. The eggs resemble those of the preceding, but are rather larger. The nest was found in a tree, and the parent bird shot from it. It appears to be not uncommon in the Karoo, Mr. Jackson having sent numerous eggs and specimens. He writes, “this Kestrel was very rare here until quite lately. It has now quite taken the place of CO. rupicola, which was formerly very plentiful, but is now seldom seen.” Dr. Exton says, “‘it inhabits the open Veldt, perching on isolated trees and stumps.” He found it in considerable numbers in the interior. Eggs in Mr. Henry Buckley’s collection are stated by him to measure 1:75 x 1°35 inches, and are white, blotched all over with pale brown. Head, neck, shoulders, and scapulars pale tawny, clouded with pale rufous; head and neck with black longitudinal stripes; back, shoulders, and scapulars have broad, brown transverse bars. Throat and under parts pale fawn; breast and belly striped brown ; quill- feathers brown, inner vanes banded pale rufous; tail brown, with about six white transverse bands ; tips of feathers white. Bill blueish black ; base of lower mandible yellow. Length, 16’’; wing, 12” ; tail, 8’. 64 '- BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Mr. Ayres gives the cere yellow ; tarsi and feet, dull yellow ; iris, tawny yellow. Fig. Smith, Til. Zool. §. Afr. pl. xcii. 58. CERCHNEIS NAUMANNI. Lesser Kestrel. Tinnunculus cenchris, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 22 (1867). Mr. Andersson says that this species is “rather scarce in Damara Land, and only makes its appearance during the rainy season.” It occasionally strays into the colony, following the locust swarms. On one of these occasions the pair now in the Cape Museum were obtained by Mr. Cairncross, of Swellendam, in 1860. He informed us that they were feeding on the locusts, and after gorging them- selves, perched on the summits of high trees, from which they were easily shot. On the 7th January, 1870, Mr. Cairncross wrote “ over the street (Swellendam), I to-day counted thirty-four of the little Kestrel drifting along westward about 200 feet over head. Locusts are plentiful this year.” Dr. Exton writes, ‘‘ North of Sechele’s I shot a pair of O. nawmanni out of a flock from which I also obtained C.rupicola. They were harrying a flight of locusts, taking them on the wing, striking them with their feet and then carrying them to their bills.” Mr. T. E. Buckley, during his journey to the Matabili, shot a young male on the Limpopo River, on the 14th of November, 1873. Adult male.—Head, shoulders, and tail ash-coloured ; back rufous ; under parts vinaceous, more or less spotted with dark-brown ; throat, and chin white ; wing-feathers brown-black ; tail tipped with white, and crossed at the end with a broad bar of black; legs and cere yellow ; iris yellow brown. Length, 12’’; wing, 93’’; tail, 6}’’. Adult female.—Dissimilar to the male. Above tawny rufous, transversely crossed by bars of blackish brown, narrower and more obscure on the lower back, ramp, and upper tail-coverts, the latter of which are strongly inclined to grey; tail rufous, barred with black, tipped with whitish, before which a broad subterminal band of black; head and neck rather pale rufous, the former broadly, the latter more narrowly, streaked with blackish shaft-stripes ; fore- head and a distinct eyebrow whitish, cheeks and ear-coverts silvery white, with narrow shaft-lines of black; primaries dark brown, barred on the inner web with rufous, secondaries coloured like the back, the outer ones narrowly margined with white at the tip; throat, vent, and under tail-coverts fulyous white, unspotted ; breast a CERCHNEIS VERPERTINUS. 65 inclining to rufous fawn-colour, all the feathers mesially streaked with blackish, these stripes being broader on the flanks, and very tiny on the thighs, which are also paler rufous. Total length, 12°5 inches ; culmen, 0°7; wing, 9°3; tail, 5-9; tarsus, 1:2. (Sharpe Cat. B. i. p. 436.) Young male.—Like the old female, but somewhat paler rufous. The blue tail is assumed by a moult, the blue head being, on the other hand, gained by a change of feather. Birds in intermediate stages are often thus seen. (id. ¢. c. p. 437.) Fig. Sharpe and Dresser, B. Eur. part 3. 59. CERCHNEIS VERPERTINA. Red-footed Kestrel. Although it has not yet been found within the limits of the colony, this species nevertheless visits certain portions of South Africa, along with the other insect-eating Falcons. According to Mr. Andersson it “ usually arrives in Damara and Great Namaqua Land about the rainy season, and again retires northward on the approach of the dry season; they arrive in enormous flocks of many thousand individuals.” Mr, Andersson also killed the species in Ovampo Land, and Senor Anchieta obtained numerous specimens at Huilla, in 1868. The following description is extracted from the ‘Catalogue of Birds,’ (I, p. 444). Adult male.—Above leaden grey, a little paler on the wing-coverts, the greater series of which are conspicuously silvery-grey ; primary- coverts and quills silvery-grey, the secondaries darker and approach- ing the colour of the back; tail brownish black; under surface blueish grey with faint indications of blackish shaft-stripes ; lower abdomen, vent, under tail-coverts and thighs rich chestnut; under wing-coverts leaden grey; inner lining of wing brownish black ; cere, orbits and feet bright brownish red; claws yellowish white, horn coloured at points; bill yellowish horn colour, blackish at tip ; iris light brown, (according to Andersson “dark brown”). Total length, 11°5 inches; culmen, 0°75; wing, 9°8; tail, 56; tarsus, 115, Adult female.—Different from the male. Above blueish grey, with transverse black bars on all the feathers, the interscapulary region a little darker and more ashy; tail also blueish grey, with narrow black bars, the subterminal one much broader, the tip a little iy 66 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. paler grey; quills brownish, externally ashy grey, barred on the inner web with whitish; head, hind neck and under parts rufous, inclining to buff on the under tail-coverts ; forehead whitish ; lores and feathers round the eye greyish black; sides of the face and neck, as well as the throat, yellowish white, with faint indications of a pale rufous moustachial streak; soft parts as in the male but less bright. Total length, 11 inches; culmen, 0°7; wing, 9°7; tail, 5°6; tarsus, 1°15. Young.—-In general colour similar to the adult female, having the tail barred with black. The fore part of the head is whitish, and there is a strong tinge of rufous on the edgings to the interscapulary region, the bases to the feathers being blackish; feathers round the eye and on the upper part of ear-coverts greyish black, with faint indications of a moustachial streak ; throat and sides of neck creamy white; under surface rufous, paler than in the old female, and streaked with blackish centres to the feathers, these developing into spots towards the end of the feather; cere, orbits, and feet reddish yellow, claws yellowish white, with dark grey tips. Tig. Sharpe and Dresser, B. Eur. part 1. Eastern Red-footed Kestrel. Eyen as in its breeding places this species has a more eastern habitat, so in its winter residence it appears not to go so far to the westward as C. vespertina. Only three specimens occurred to the late Mr. Andersson in Damara Land, the foregoing species being by far the more common bird there, as it is in Benguela. There are two specimens in the British Museum, obtained by Dr. Kirk on the Zambesi, and Mr. Gurney states that the Norwich collection contains a specimen from thence. The following remarks of Dr. Kirk refer to this species: ‘In February and March it is seen in numbers on the Shiré, where the bush vegetation and palm-forest come down to the 60. CrrcHNEIS AMURENSIS. river.” Mr. Ayres has procured this Kestrel in the Transvaal, and accord- ing to the same gentleman, in Natal, “ numbers may be seen during the summer months about the open downs in the neighbour- hood of Maritzburg,” Dr. Exton likewise shot a fine example in the Matabili country, and Mr. Andersson obtained one at the Knysna. Dr. Kuk gives the following account of its habits in the Zambesi CERCHNEIS ARDESIACA. 67 country :— This pretty little hawk is found near the river. It appears _ only at sunset and in the dusk, when, coming in great numbers from the shady forest or from among the fronds of the lofty Borassus-palm, it hoyers, swallow-like, over the plains and water, catching dragon- flies and locusts, which, with other insects caught on the wing, seem to constitute its chief or only food. In February and March it was seen in numbers on the Shiré, where the bush-vegetation and palm- forest come down to the river.” Adult male.—Above leaden black, a little paler on the lower back and secondaries, the greater wing-coverts and primaries clearly washed externally with silvery grey; tail greyish black above, paler beneath ; under surface of body pale grey ; lower abdomen, thighs, vent and under tail-coverts bright chestnut; under wing-coverts pure white ; cere and orbits orange; feet and tarsi dark orange, claws whitish ; bill dark orange, black at tip; iris hazel. Total length, 9°5 inches; culmen, 0°75; wing, 9°0; tail,5°3; tarsus, 1:15. (Sharpe, Cat. B. i, p. 445.) N.B.—The above particulars as to the soft parts are given by Ayres’ (Ibis, 1868, p. 41). Mr. Gurney observes that the female “differs materially from the female of C. vespertinus in the absence of rufous tints from all the upper portions of the plumage.”—See the accurate plate in the Ibis, loc. cit. Young.—Brownish, the feathers indistinctly margined at the tip with dull fulvous, the lower scapulars, inner secondaries, ramp and upper tail-coverts inclining to greyish, all tipped with fulvous and barred with dull black; tail grey, with distinct transverse bars of black ; sides of the face and throat white, the nape also mixed with white; the lores and feathers of the eye as well as the indistinct moustache brown; rest of under surface of body white, the breast thickly covered with blackish central streaks to the feathers, the thighs and under tail-coverts buffy white, the former tinged with rufous. Fig. Gurney, Ibis, 1868, pl. 2. 61. CrrcHNEIS ARDESIACA. Grey Kestrel. Only one specimen of this exclusively north-tropical species has occurred within our limits. According to Prof. Barboza du Bocage, a single specimen was procured at Humbe on the River Cunéné by F2 68 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Senor Anchiecta. Hitherto it had only been known from north- eastern Africa and Senegambia. Adult male.—Slaty-grey with dark shaft stripes to the feathers, especially distinct on the head and neck; quills dark brown, the inner secondaries slaty-grey like the back, the outer ones clearer grey towards the tips; tail slaty-grey, paler towards the tip, with whitish bands on the inner webs; under surface pale slaty-grey, with black shaft-stripes to the feathers, the throat and sides of the face whitish; cere, orbits, and feet yellow; bill dark leaden blue ; iris dark. Total length, 14 inches; culmen, 1:0; wing, 8-9; tail, 6-4; tarsus, 1:6. (Sharpe, Cat. B. i, p. 446.) Fig. Temm. Pl. col. i, pl. 330. 62. CERCHNEIS DICKERSONI. Dickerson’s Kestrel. This beautiful little hawk was discovered by the late Dr. Dickerson at Chibisa on the Shiré Valley, where also Dr. Kirk obtained a specimen. It has likewise occurred once to Senor Anchieta at Caconda in Benguela, on the south-western coast of Africa. Adult male.—Head and neck whitish ashy, with distinct blackish shaft-stripes to the feathers; rest of upper surface deep brown, inclining to black, the quills much darker brown, banded on the inner web with white; rump and upper tail-coverts white with a slight greyish shade ; tail banded alternately with black and greyish - white, the subterminal black bar being very broad, the tip white ; throat whitish; rest of under surface ashy brown with a slight greyish shade; under wing-coverts whitish ashy with distinct shaft- stripes; cere, orbits and feet yellow; bill blueish black, yellow at base of lower mandible; iris dark brown. ‘Total length, 11 inches; culmen, 0°95; wing, 8'°3; tail, 5-0; tarsus, 1:6. (Sharpe, Cat. B. i, p- 447.) Fig. Sclater, Ibis, 1864, pl. viii. SUB-ORDER PANDIONES. 63. PANDION HALIAETUS. Osprey. The Osprey appears to be confined to the eastern districts of South Africa. It has been found in Natal by Mr. Ayres, who says that it frequents the salt-water lakes near the sea. Dr. Dickerson sae i SCOTOPELIA PELI. 69 procured a specimen at Chibisa; but we have never seen it from the Cape Colony. Mr. T. C. Rickard writes that he believes he saw this species up the Buffalo river on the 24th May, 1870. Our description is taken from a Huropean specimen. ' Adult.—Above brown, most of the feathers with obsolete margins of palér brown, more distinct on the wing-coverts ; primaries black, secondaries brown like the back, the primaries pale, but uniform, whity brown below, the secondaries whitish on the inner web, with indistinct bars of ashy brown; tail almost uniform brown, tipped with whity brown, and shaded with ashy externally, the inner web obsoletely barred with ashy brown, a little more distinct below, ~ where the interspaces are whitish; head brown, with white bases to the feathers ; a broad white streak from behind the eye running down the sides of the neck; ear-coverts blackish brown; sides of neck uniform with the back; sides of face and entire underparts white, the breast varied with brown centres to the feathers of more or less extent, the chin and fore part of cheeks also slightly streaked with dark brown; axillaries and a few of the flank-feathers also marked with rufous brown like the breast; under wing-coverts _ buffy white, with dark brown centres, the outermost almost entirely brown, with whitish tips; cere blue; bill black; feet blue; iris yellow. Total length 24 inches ; culmen, 1°75 ; wing, 19°1; tail, 9'5 ; tarsus 2'4. (Sharpe, Cat. B. i, p. 450.) SUB-ORDER STRIGES. Fam. BUBONIDZ. 64, ScoropELIA PELI. Pel’s Owl. In Western Africa this beautiful species has been found in different localities from Senegambia to Gaboon, but in South Africa it has been met with only in the Zambesi. Dr. Kirk gives the following account of it:—“One of the rarest of the Raptores in the Zambesi region. I know of only three pairs having been seen, and of these five birds were secured. The pairs frequented the same locality every day, and from their colour, were extremely difficult to observe. Once started, they found more difficulty in again concealing them-~ selves, but remained exposed on some limb of a tree and might then be approached, They were observed living in single pairs ee = SS eee i ae mos . 25th May, 1855; it appeared to see perfectly well. Since we made 70 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. both in August before the rains and in March in the spring. All three were inhabitants of the river Shiré valley, one at the con- fluence, the others near the Murchison Rapids. The food of this Owl is said by the natives to be small animals and snakes.” The Rey. H. Waller, who obtained this species in the Zambesi district, informed Mr. Gurney that it feeds on wild Guinea fowls which it captures whilst roosting. In West Africa it has been observed to feed on fish. The following description is from a Zambesi specimen in the British Museum, and is copied from the editor’s “Catalogue of Birds.” Adult.—Above deep rufous bay, crossed with numerous irregular bars of black, fainter on the head, which is more fulvescent; wing- | coverts and entire wing bay, barred with black, exactly like the back, the under surface of the wing rufous and barred exactly like the upper surface; tail rufous fawn-colour, rather lighter than back, banded across with black; under surface of body light bay, with distinct cordiform bars of black, somewhat irregular in shape ; under wing-coverts rufous bay with a few black spots and bars, more distinct on the lower series, which are lighter and resemble the inner lining of the wing; cere blueish lead-colour; bill similar to cere but darker, excepting towards tip; tarsi dirty white, tinged with blueish» pink; talons light horn-colour with a tinge of dull blue ; iris extremely dark brown. Total length, 23-5 inches; culmen, 2°7; wing, 16°5; tail, 10°0; tarsus, 2°7. Fig. Gurney, Ibis, 1859, pl. 15. ; 65. Bupo capensis. Cape Eagle Owl. Its food consists of moles, rats, and small birds. Le Vaillant says it makes a nest in a rocky locality, of branches, dried leaves, and moss: eggs three. We shot a specimen on the Cape Flats in the day-time on the this old note in 1855, we have only obtained one other specimen ; the species must, therefore, be rare. The example alluded to above —{ was shot in broad daylight in the bright sun, and gave usalong chase, after being wounded at the first shot. He rose out of some rushes in the first instance, and then perched in several different places, but always keeping us well in yiew, and flying off on our >| BUBO LACTEUS. 71 approach. Two eggs were lately given to us as the “eggs of the large owl,” and probably belong to this bird: they were taken from a nest in the rocky sides of the Winterhoek Pass, by Mr. Short, the Superintendent of Convicts, to whom we are indebted for many good specimens. Eggs pure white, smooth, but not shining: axis, 2’; diam. 1’’ 9'’’; ends both alike rounded. Mr. Atmore says he once took a nest at Bufflejaghts river in a mimosa tree containing three eggs. The nest had been used (and probably constructed) by a crow the previous year. The bird is common in the Karroo but rare about George. We took two eges exactly agreeing with those given to us by Mr. Short, from a nest on an exposed bank along a wet ditch running by the side of a frequented road at the Berg river, on the 21st of September, 1869 ; it was about two feet in diameter and composed of * soft dry flags and rushes; the hen bird sat very closely for several days before we took the eggs and assimilated so closely with the dead flags and rubbish on the bank that she was almost invisible. Mr. Rickard writes us word that “ a very large owl with many rufous markings was shot on the hills close to the town of Port Elizabeth many years ago. I frequently saw it when stuffed and have but’ little doubt of its being this species.” Although confined to a limited district in South Africa, this Owl occurs in Abyssinia, for Mr. Gurney (P. Z. 8. 1871, p. 148) proclaims that the type of B. dilloni is referable to the present bird. General colour umber-brown, the under side being the lightest, variegated with irregular spots of dark rufous on the head and shoulders, and with bars and spots of deep orange on the rest of the body. Wings umber-brown, much varied by pale buff bars of irregular width ; each bar is spotted, or speckled brown. Feathers of tail yellowish-white, with narrow dark bars. Legs and toes ochreous- yellow ; collar brown; spot on the breast white. Facial disk yellow- brown, with white wiry feathers near the beak. Length, 23’’; wing, 167; tail, 97’. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 70. 66. Buzo Lacrevs. Verreaux’ Hagle Owl. Several specimens of this noble Owl have come to us from our correspondents. Mr. Jackson says it is not uncommon in the mountains near his residence at Nel’s Poort. Mr. Arnot has sent it 72 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. from Colesberg, and Mr. Atmore procured it at Blanco. Dr. Atherstone also has it from the Fish River. Mr. Ayres has recorded a specimen from the interior of Natal, and says :—“I observed this fine Owl sparsely scattered along the banks of the Limpopo during a recent journey through that district,” and the late Mr. Andersson gives the following note :— This is the largest Owl found in Dam- ara Land, It is of not unfrequent occurrence from the Okavango River northward, to the Cape Colony in the south, and it is also met with in the Lake regions.” Senor Anchieta has procured it at Quillengues and Caconda in Benguela. Mr, Atmore has sent us the following account of its habits :— “ Meirine’s Poort, June 19th, 1863.—I heave at last obtained the large Owl described to be as ‘big as a vulture. I send him herewith. Eyes black, with a narrow brick-red ring round the iris. He is very destructive to poultry, and judging from the capacity of its swallow, could take down a chicken at a gulp. The throat is of a peculiar construction, and I now regret I did not send it to you in spirits. The fat all round it was half an inch thick. His call-note is often mistaken for that of aleopard. One killeda dikkop (die- nemus maculosus) and left his skeleton close to the house, so it appears he victimises them as well as poultry. He throws up no quids.” Mr. Jackson corroborates Mr. Atmore’s statement of its being destructive to poultry. He had many hens sitting in boxes in a building with high walls, and closed doors, secure from every prow- ler but a winged one; but the window in the roof being left open, each night a hen disappeared. Mr. Jackson set a wire snare over each box, and soon had the satisfaction of noosing the robber, who, even with the wire round his leg, would not let go his prey, and was killed “ red-handed.” Mr. Ayres writes :—“ About sunrise individuals may be heard making a low hooting ‘ goo, goo,’ repeated at intervals. The stomach of the specimen sent from the Limpopo contained the remains of a Guinea - fowl, Nwmida coronata, a species which is exceedingly plentiful all along the Limpopo, and roosts at night on the trees by the side of the river.” Mr. Andersson states that its food consists of mice and other small quadrupeds, birds, lizards, and large beetles. Mr. T. E. Buckley observes :—‘ This fine Owl is very common from the Transvaal as far as the Matabili land, haunting the sides a PO ee a eee, ee ae a ee a Le ee ee BUBO MACULOSUS. as) of rivers, away from which localities I never saw it. These Owls generally go in pairs, but I once saw five together, out of which I procured my specimen; after the first disturbance they get more wary. I fancy they breed in old nests of other birds as I once saw an Owl sitting in one.” The following note is given by Dr. Kirk :— “The habits of this _ bird resemble those of Scotopelia peli. It is much more common, being rather plentiful among the mountains, and not unfrequently met with in the Zambesi and particularly the river Shiré valley.” Dr. Dickerson also procured examples at Magomero and Chibisa in the Zambesi country, and gives the iris as “dark russet brown.” General colour above and below brownish-grey, minutely variegated throughout. A white mark extends from the shoulder half-way down the back, and several white blotches appear on the wing-coverts. The facial disk is lightish grey ; a semicircle of black extends from each horn, under the chin, but they do not unite by several inches. The horns are dark rusty-brown. The stiff hairs, which project along the bill, are black along their shafts and at the tips. Cere, blucish grey ; bill, pale ash-colour; iris, very dark hazel; eyelid, a conspicuous pink. Length, 26”; wing, 183”; tail, 11; tarsus, 3 inches. ; Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. ii, pl. 4. 67. Buzo MAcuLosus. Spotted Eagle Owl. This is the commonest Owl in South Africa, and is found through- out the colony. Victorin procured it at the Knysna, in June and November, and Mr. Rickard informs us that it is plentiful both at Hast London and at Port Elizabeth. Mr. Ayres has collected it in Natal, where also Mr. R. 8. Fellows shot it, on the Tugela River. Mr. Ayres has found it breeding in the Transvaal. Dr. Dickerson procured it in the Zambesi country. Mr Andersson observes :—* This Owl is sparingly met with in Damara and Great Namaqua Land,” and Senor Anchieta has procured it at Humbe on the river Cunéné. Mr. Monteiro says it is abundant about Benguela, and Anchieta met with it at Huilla and Caconda. It frequents forests, open lands, bush-covered or cultivated places indiscriminately. We think it is subject to partial migrations, as on several occasions we have, while hunting for game, come upon little parties of eight or ten individuals, which kept together in their flight. Pointer-dogs will stand to them as staunchly as to game. Our lato Lyd ~ 74 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. lamented friend, the Rey. John Fry, of Rondebosch, a zealous observer of birds, informed us that they regularly frequented a grove of fir-trees in his garden at one season of the year. We have noted them in these trees in October. About twilight they begin to move, ascending to the highest branch, and uttering their loud ‘‘hoo, hoo” for a quarter of an hour together, and then sailing off to the Cape Flats in search of their prey, which consists of mice, rats, moles, and sometimes frogs. They lay two purely white eggs (axis, 2’’; diam., 1’’ 9’’’) inholes of rocks, and sometimes in an old termite’s heap, or even on the bare ground. Mr. Jackson says they make no nest with him, simply depositing their eggs on the sand or on a ledge in the river bank. Dr. Exton states that the Bechuanas hold the idea that they are birds of ill omen. Mr. Ayres gives the following note on the breeding of the present species in the Transvaal ;— «The only nest I ever found of this fine Owl was placed in a nook on the face of a precipitous rock, and contained one young bird, not long hatched, which was of a creamy, tawny-white colour, and one egg cracked and addled, the shell of which Isend. This I took in the month of October whilst on an exploring expedition to some very curious limestone caves of great extent, some of the galleries of which are exceedingly beautiful by torchlight, stalactites of all imagi- nable shapes hanging in every direction.” Above grey-brown, more or less variegated with light ochreous (or white) spots and blotches ; below, the ground colour is more ochreous, and the markings, chiefly fine wavy bars, with a few large blotches, are of the same brown as the back. A dark circle surrounds the facial disk, broken under the chin with rufous and white, imme- diately under which is a broad white collar; facial disk grey. Feet feathered to the toes, lightish-yellow or dirty-white, speckled with brown. Tail broadly barred with ochreous brown; iris yellow. Length, 19’’; wing, 13” ; tail, 73”. Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. ii, pl. 50. 68. Scops LEUCOTIS. White-faced Scops Owl. This species does not come into the colony, but we have received specimens from Mr. David Arnot procured in Mahura’s country. Mr. Ayres obtained it in Natal, where he found its nest containing two white eggs, and composed of afew coarse dry fig-leaves, in a SCOPS GAPENSIS. 75 small cavity on the top of the stump of a pollard Banyan fie-tree. More recently he writes :—“ I met with only one of these owls during my trip to the Limpopo, which was brought to me by a Caffre ina starving state ; it was a female, and measured in entire length 10°4 inches; the wing, 7}; tail, 4; and tarsus, 12. Another specimen was shot by my brother in the month of August, amongst some willows at Pochtefstroom.” Dr. Dickerson procured a single ex- ample at Magomero in the Zambesi district. : To the westward it appears more plentiful, and Mr. Andersson observes, that “‘ next to Athene perlata this is about the most com- mon Owl in Damara Land, and the parts adjacent to the northward ; it is also pretty frequent in the Lake regions, but is less frequently observed in Great Namaqua Land.” Senor Anchieta has procured it at Capangombe in Mossamedes, as well as at Ambaca in Angola proper, the Lisbon Museum likewise containing a specimen from the interior of the latter country, shot in Duque do Braganza. Dr. Exton found this species roosting in forest trees, and the con- tents of its stomach to be coleoptera. Mr. Andersson says :— It is always seen in pairs, and though strictly a night owl, its vision by day is by no means bad.” ‘The latter gentleman gives in his work on the birds of Damara Land, a good account of its nesting. General colour brownish grey, longitudinally striped with black. Egrets very long, more or less tipped with black. Under plumage with a deep black line down the centre of each feather. Legs white faintly mottled; iris golden yellow. Length, 11’’; wing, 8’; tail, 4", Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. ii, pl. 16. 69. Scors caPENsIs. Cape Scops Owl. Ephialtes senegalensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 41 (1867). This beautiful little Owl is rare in Southern Africa, and we do not know of a single specimen procured in the colony, though we saw a bird in the possession of the Count de Castelnau, said to have been procured at the Knysna, which was either this species or the common Damara Land Carine perlata. We could not, however, obtain a description of it at the time, and quote from memory. Mr. Ayres has only obtained one in Natal, but Mr. Andersson obtained several examples during his residence in Damara Land, and further to the northward it appears to be common, for Senor 76 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Anchieta has shot specimens at Biballa, Maconjo and Gambos, as well as at Huilla in Benguela, in which latter district Mr. Monteiro also procured it. The present species extends its range into Angola proper, having” been met with at Pungo Andongo by Anchieta and in Duque do Braganza by Senor Bayao. Mr. Gurney considers that the South African Scops owl is a distinct species both from Scops giw and Scops senegalensis, and some excellent remarks on this subject will be found from his pen in Andersson’s ‘‘ Birds of Damara Land,” (p. 39). This species is distinguished from the other South African Owls by its small size and mottled plumage, the general colour being a dark grey, finely pencilled with black cross-lines: it has distinct ear-tufts, and is slightly paler below with more white on the abdomen than onthe breast. Total length, 7-5; wing, 5:3; tail, 2°6; tarsus, 0°95. 70. SyRNIUM WoODFORDI. Woodford’s Owl. Not common, but has a wide range in the colony. Its food con- sists of small quadrupeds, birds, insects, &c. We have received two specimens from the Knysna, procured by the late Mr. Villet in that neighbourhood ; but know nothing of its habits. Victorin also met with it in the last mentioned locality in May and October, and one specimen was procured at Port Elizabeth by Mr. Browning. While in the Zambesi country a single example was shot by the late Dr. Dickerson at Chibisa, and Mr. Gurney has received two specimens from Natal. Male.—All the upper parts very dark reddish umber, variegated with white spots, and sienna-coloured and white bars. Wings generally yellowish brown, marked with dark bars, and yellowish, white blotches. Collar white, with brown bars. When lying smooth, the breast and belly appear alternately in bars of white and reddish pale brown. ‘Tail reddish brown, barred with pale brown. Female.—Everywhere of a much lighter colour. Length, 132’ ; wing, 9” ; tail, 6”. Tris “dark brown” as observed by Mr. Ayres—“ light brown” as noted by Dr. Dickerson—“ yellow” according to Sir A. Smith. Bill, cere and feet light yellow. (Ayres.) Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 71. te & CARINE CAPENSIS. Plate I. CARINE PERLATA. Ue 71. CARINE CAPENSIS. Barred Owlet. (Plate ITI.) Athene capensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 387. (1867.) The few specimens known to Dr. A. Smith were all killed in forests in the Cape Colony. Personally we have not met with it; neither does M. Victorin appear to have found it at the Knysna. Mr. Ortlepp writes : “I hear they are not uncommon in the woods which margin both banks of the Vaal River, where we procured one specimen on the Ist of May about noon. It was asleep on one of the topmost branches of a high tree, and looked more like a small ball of moss than a bird. Its stomach was filled with some soft stuff which looked like the soft rind of the ‘ wait-a-bit’ thorn-berry, and nume- rous small bones (quite entire and clean) of mice, upon which they commence to prey as soon as the twilight darkens into night. Inides light yellow.” Mr. Andersson observes as follows :—‘ This, I apprehend, is a very scarce bird in Damara Land, as I saw but very few specimens in all my travels. I have never observed it in Great Namaqua Land.” Mr. Gurney states that in Mr. Andersson’s last collection were a pair of birds from the Cunéné and another specimen from Ovampo Land. Dr. Kirk obtained it in the Shiré valley, opposite the village of Chibisa in October, and says it was ‘ not un- frequent in wooded country near the open plains.” Head and neck red chestnut-brown, with imperfect white bars ; from neck to end of tail umber brown, glossed with purple; some feathers have large white blotches, others yellowish bars; wings similarly coloured and variegated. Breast, of all these colours, but each paler. Belly white, with large brown blotches ; under part of tail pale-coloured ; legs white, faintly marked in brown. Length, 8}”’ ; wing, 5’’ 9'’’; tail, 33’’. The figure is taken from the type in the British Museum. 72. CARINE PERLATA. African Pearl-spotted Owlet. Athene licua, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 38. (1867.) This species is not plentiful in the Cape Colony, and when tho first edition was written had not fallen under our notice, but as will be seen below it is by no means uncommon in the interior of South Africa. Mr. Ortlepp obtained this pretty little Owl to the north of Colesberg, and Mr. T. C. Atmore procured a pair on the Vaal River. 78 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. in Griqualand in May, 1871, while Dr. Exton fell in with it near Kanye, and Mr. T. E. Buckley says it is common from the north of Pretoria into the Matabili country. The Lisbon Museum contains a specimen from the Transvaal, forwarded by F. Vanzeller, and Mr. Ayres in his list of birds from the above locality, writes as follows: —This little owl is tolerably common along most of the rivers in the Bush, and especially on the banks of the Limpopo.” According to Mr. Andersson it is the “ commonest Owl in Damara Land, Great Namaqua Land, and Ovampo Land,” and Senor Anchieta has met with it at Quillengues in Benguela as well as at Ambaca in Angola proper. For the following notes on the habits of the present species we are indebted to Dr. Exton :—“ The stomach and bill of one showed that it had been eating a specimen of Proteba melba, others contained only coleoptera. They hunt by day, and I saw one in the middle of the forenoon dart ona gryllus, which he still held firmly when I shot him. In the midday heat its favourite position seems to be a perch on a thick branch in the shade of the stem of the tree, and should it be detected by the smaller birds it is treated with the same insult and its presence as loudly protested against as is the common Bubo ma- culosus when he makes his appearance in the day time.” General colour above a warm brown approaching to rufous on the head, and with a rufous and white collar round the neck. The upper parts are throughout spotted with white, the spots being smallest and most numerous on the head. Wings with six rows of white spots. Tail greatly exceeding the wings, brown, crossed by seven imperfect rows of spots more or less large. Under parts, except the rufous collar, white, longitudinally striped with dark brown. Eye- brows and sides of chin white. Legs covered to the toes, which are hairy, with brown and white hair-like feathers. Iris yellow. Length, 7’’ 6'”’ ; wing, 4”; tail, 3'’ 3’’’. Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. ii, pl. 34. 73. ASIO CAPENSIS. African Short-eared Owl. Otus capensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 43. (1867.) This Owl is only found in marshy places, and is usually gregarious. It conceals itself during the day amongst long grass, or reeds, &c., and preys upon water-insects, mice, and lizards. Dr. Smith gives no loca- ASIO BRACHYOTUS. 79 lity for this bird ; but we have ascertained that it is pretty generally distributed, though nowhere very common: it frequents dry vleys, in the flags of which it lies concealed. We killed a couple in such a situ- ation at ‘ Naght waght,” near Bredasdorpin June. Mr. H. Trevelyan tells us that it is apparently common near Kingwilliamstown, where he flushed seven or eight from some long grass in October, 1874. Mr. Ayres has found it in Natal and also in the Transvaal Republic. He says:—‘‘ This owl occurs in the swamps near Potchefstroom, where I have occasionally come across its nest, whilst beating for snipes among the long grass and rushes. The nest is merely a small cavity in the ground, snugly situated under a clump of grass or rushes, with a few blades of dry rushes at the bottom. The bird flies from its nest in a great hurry at the near approach of danger. The eggs are two or three in number, pure white and slightly glossy; size about - 12 by 12 inches. I found a male bird sitting on a nest which con- tained three eggs a good deal incubated; this was in the month of April.” Dr. Kirk found it in the Zambesi district, where he observes that it is ‘‘a common owl in the clumps of trees bordering the valley, over the grass plains near which it hunts, during the dusk of the evening, in search of small animals.” It is probably owing to the more suitable country on the eastern and central portions of South Africa that this owl is more common there, for it is a scarce bird on the west coast, as Mr. Andersson only obtained it once in Ovampo Land (Cf. Gurney in Anderss. B. Damara Ld. p. 43), and Mr. Monteiro procured but a single specimen in Angola. Upper parts of head, neck, back, upper tail-coverts, breast, and lesser wing-coyerts reddish-brown, varied with a more yellow shade. Body and legs pale yellow-ochre, barred with brown. Wings chiefly brown, barred with yellow; most of the feathers with a much paler margin. Tail barred brown and yellowish-white. Facial disk pale, dull-yellow, marked with brown ; deep-brown round the eyes. Collar deep-brown. Iris, as observed by Mr. Ayres, “ light reddish- brown ;” as observed by the late Mr. Favier at Tangiers, “ blackish- brown.” Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 67. 74, AsIo BRACHYOTUS. Short-eared Owl. This species has been known to occur once in South Africa, as recorded by Mr. Gurney (Ibis, 1868, p. 150) :—“ The Zoological eee ee ee ae 1 CS Ds CC A. — I. oe ‘aa A OP TT Ped = Zz r 80 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Society has lately acquired from Natal a living bird of this widely- spread species. It is a dark-coloured example, but not more so than some English specimens that have come under my notice.” Adult male.—General colour above pale ochreous buff, deeper on the centre of the back, the centres of the feathers longitudinally dark brown, producing a broadly streaked appearance, the scapu- lars much paler on their outer margins, the brown markings more irregular and branching into bars, so that the interspaces represent large ovate spots of whitish buff; wing-coverts rather darker than the back and more of a reddish ochre, the central markings to the feathers dark brown as on the back, but more irregular and forming bars, on the median and greater series more confined to the inner web, the outer ones haying very large and distinct ovate whitish spots, which are very conspicuous on the wing; primary-coverts dark brown, with a few rufous ochre spots, principally near the base ; quills rufous ochre, with a whitish tip, inclining also to fulvous near the base of the outer primaries, all the feathers very plainly chequered with dark brown bars, which are much narrower on the inner webs; upper tail-coverts nearly uniform ochraceous, shaded slightly with brown near the tips ; tail-feathers ochraceous tipped with whitish and crossed with seyen brown continuous bars on the centre feathers, only five in number on the outer ones, where the bars are much narrower and disappear near the base; frontal plumes dark brown narrowly margined with ochraceous ; ruff whitish, slightly washed with ochre and minutely speckled with triangular spots of brown; facial aspect dull white, the lores shaded with brown, the ear-coverts with narrow blackish shaft-lines, all the feathers round the eye black ; ear-tufts 0°5 inches long, resembling the feathers of the crown; chin whitish; the ruff below extending upwards behind the ear-coverts ochraceous mottled with dark brown centres to the feathers ; rest of under surface buffy white, washed with golden buff on the breast and sides, the breast feathers streaked with brown down the centre, these streaks narrowing into linear shaft-lines on the lower breast and abdomen and disappearing entirely on the legs and under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts white, very faintly tinged with ochre, the outer greater coverts blackish, forming the charac- teristic spot, the rest of the wing-lining whitish, the secondaries with obsolete brownish bars, which are nearly absent on the prima- ries, these being blackish on tips and only slightly barred with STRIX CAPENSIS. 81 ochraceous, the outer feathers having a blackish mark about half way up. Total length, 14 inches; wing, 12:4; tail, 6°5; tarsus, 1:75. Adult female.—Of the same general appearances and markings as the male, but always much deeper colour, the under surface being of arich ochre. Bands on tail, six on the middle, and four or five on the outer feathers. Total length, 15°5 inches; wing, 12°5; tail, 6°7; tarsus, 1°85. Fig. Gould, B. Gt. Br. pl. xxxi. 75. STRIxX CAPENSIS. Sovth African Grass Owl. Sir A. Smith says that this Owl is found about Table Mountain, from which locality we have also obtained one pair ; but the species is rare, as but few other examples have occurred to us. Mr. Atmore writes: “Blanco, May 25th, 1864. A boy reports an Owl’s nest in a vley near this. It was the female of this nest pro- bably that Tom saw in the clutches of the Crested Eagle. May 26th: Have visited the Owl’s nest and shot the male, (Stria capensis) ; found three large young ones in the nest just getting quill-feathers, so they breed early. It is not a rare bird here, but difficult to raise. It inhabits the wide palmiet vleys.”’ Mr. Henry Bowker obtained this species at Masura in Moshesh’s country and Captain Shelley shot one near the Umgeni river. Mr. Ayres has also procured it in Natal, as well as in the Transvaal territory, where he has found them inhabit- ing the long rushes in the swamps surrounding Potchefstroom, but not plentifully. Mr. T. E. Buckley also procured a male in the Transvaal, on the 8th of June, 1873; it must therefore be widely distributed. Upper parts dark brown; on each feather a white spear-shaped spot, larger and more distinctly marked as they near the tail. Shoul- ders and inside of wings orange, spotted with brown. Sides of neck and under parts pale reddish-orange, each feather with a light brown, arrow-headed spot on its tip. Facial disk vinaceous, near the eye brownish-black, surrounded by a ring of white feathers, tipped with brown. Tail paler above, here and there barred with brown ; below, nearly white; “eye black,” (Ayres). Length, 17’’; wing, 13}’’ ; tail, 5’’. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. S. Afr. pl. 45. 82 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. : 76. SvRrx PLAMMEA, Barn Owl. Strix afinis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 43. (1867.) . This Owl is common all over the colony, breeding in the roof of nearly every farm-house that we have entered. Mr. Rickard records it from East London and Port Elizabeth. Mr. T. EL Buckley obtained a male in Bamangwato, and the British Museum contains a Transvaal specimen, presented by Mr. A. Foresman : but Mr. Ayres does not appear to have obtained it in Natal. Dr. Dicker- son shot it at Quilimane in the Zambesi country.. Mr. Andersson in his ‘ Birds of Damara Land’ writes :—“ South of the Orange River this Owl is exceedingly common, but north of that river it is a very scarce bird, though widely distributed over all the countries of which these notes treat.” Mr. Monteiro states that it is abundant about Benguela, and Anchieta has procured it at Gambos in the Mossa- medes district. In Angola the same traveller has obtained it at Ambaca, Toulson at Loanda, and Welwitsch at Bengo. In Mr. Fry’s fir-trees, a pair or two were to be found at any time. They occupy the same perch for days together, the ground below being covered with their pellets. On examining these, they will be found to consist almost entirely of the bones of mice—once only have we found the skull of a bird. Eggs, two to four in number, pure white, not shining : axis, 1’’ 7 ’s diam., 1’’ 4”’’.. These birds will continue laying in the same nest though it may be robbed many times in succession. We took three pair of eggs from a nest in Mr. Kotzé’s wine store at the Berg river in September. Mr. Thomas Atmore writes on 12th July, 1870, Strix poensis has already hatched in the F. A. M. Police Barracks, and the men have taken the young ones.” ’ Upper parts rather deep reddish-orange, profusely mottled with dark grey, and spotted with white. Tail with four bars of deep brown, variegated with grey. Under parts ochreous-yellow, spotted with small arrow-head-shaped marks of a dark brown: on the feet and half-way up the legs, short, stiff, yellowish hairs. Facial disk white, tinted with vinaceous, darkest at the inner angle of the eye, and surrounded with a circle of dark aie approaching to black, on the lower half. Length, 16” ; wing, 12”; tail, 5’’ 6'”’. 83 ORDER PICARLA. Fam. CAPRIMULGIDZ. 78. CAPRIMULGUS EUROPXUS. European Nightjar. Caprimulgus smithii, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 47. Caprimulgus infuscatus, Gurney, Ibis, 1859, p. 242, et 1868, p. 15]. Sir A. Smith was the first to figure the common Nightjar as a South African bird, but Prince Bonaparte considered it to be a different species, an opinion in which, until lately, we ourselves were disposed to endorse. We have, however, lately seen undoubted specimens of C. ewropeeus from the Cape Colony, and several are to be found in the national collection. According to Prof. Malmgren in the ‘ Ibis,’ for 1869, (p. 69) a typical European Goatsucker was procured at Port Natal on the 2nd of February, 1840: Mr. Ayres has also met with it there, and Captain Shelley during a recent visit to that colony “frequently met with it at Durban and Pinetown.” Mr. Atmore obtained an adult male in full plumage at Grahamstown, and we haye received it from Colesberg, Swellendam and other places in the Cape Colony, and have shot it ourselves in the neighbourhood of Cape Town. ‘The late Mr. Andersson also met with it at the Knysna, a specimen killed by him on the 12th of February, 1866, having the white-spotted tail-feathers just appearing. We have noticed that Goatsuckers are more abundant near Cape Town during the month of March, doubtless congregating together before their departure northwards. It is just possible that, like the European Bee-eater, the present species breeds during its sojourn in South Africa, as some eggs of whose parentage we are not quite | certain (though we know of no other South African species which could lay claim to them) probably belong to this bird. They are of a light cream colour, minutely freckled with purplish brown and grey. Axis, 12’’’; diam., 9’’’. As the Nightjars are all very similar in coloration, we purpose only to give such characters as may be of use in distinguishing the | different species found in South Africa. Thus the European Night- G 2 A | ' — —— ae os. — , - 84 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. jar may be told by its large size, the wing being about 7} inches in length. The male has white spots on the inner webs of the first three primaries ; the female has none of these white spots on the wing or tail, but the inner web of the quills is barred with rufous, these bars being narrow and at least eight in number. The only other South African Nightjar which could be mistaken for the female (. ewropeus is the female of Cosmetorius vewillarius (M. sperlingi, Sharpe), which is equally large, but has a very broad rufous collar and has only sia broad rufous bars on the inner web. Fig. Dresser, B. Eur. part xxxv [¢]: Smith, Hl. Zool. 8. Afr. lec?) 79, CaPRIMULGUS PECTORALIS. South-African Nightjar. Caprimulgus atrovarius, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 48. This species appears to be entirely confined to South Africa, and is found about Cape Town, frequenting gardens and orchards. It is common at Rondebosch and along the forest-clad eastern face of Table Mountain. The late Mr. Andersson procured it at the Knysna, where also Victorin found it in May, as well as from July to Sep- tember. Mr. H. Atmore has forwarded it from the neighbourhood of George, and Mr. T. C. Atmore from Eland’s Post. Mr. Rickard records it from Port Elizabeth. Like all its congeners, it flies abroad as soon as the twilight begins to darken, and often perches on the rails of garden-fences, sitting lengthways along them. It has the churring note of the other Goatsuckers, and lays two greyish, cream-coloured eggs, shaped much the same at each end, freckled and blotched with brown spots and patches. Mr. Henry Buckley tells us that the eggs in his col- lection measure 1:04 x 0°77 inch, and are of a creamy white colour, marked with faint purplish spots, and shaped alike at both ends. The nest is a mere depression in the soil, under the shelter of a large stone or bush. At Mr. Vigne’s farm, on the River Zonder End, a bird of this species has hatched her eggs, for several succes- sive years, in a flower-bed close to a well-used path. We saw her sitting in the beginning of November; she allowed us to approach within two or three feet of her, and never once moved from her nest, though we visited her daily. Her eyes were always closed to within a mere thread-like crack, out of which she watched every =~ Pc a Ae a = = -— - | i 1 I a few, CAPRIMULGUS RUFIGENA. 85 movement, and she generally rested her head on a small dead branch that lay beside the nest. This Nightjar is remarkable for its very black coloration and broad golden-buff collar. The length is about 9°5 inches; wing, 6°8. Both male and female have the white spots on the wing-feathers, the first four primaries being spotted. The two outer tail-feathers have a white termination, of exactly the same size in both, and occupying nearly the terminal half of the feather. Fig. Levaill, Ois. d’Afr. i, pl. 49. 80. CapRIMULGUS RUFIGENA, Rufous-cheeked Goatsucker. Sir A. Smith says that this Goatsucker ‘is chiefly found in the eastern districts of the colony, and, in common with the other Cape species, seeks its food generally in the dusk of the evening, and during the early part of the night.” We have seen it from the Karroo near Beaufort, and from Grahamstown. At Port Elizabeth it has been noted by Mr. Rickard. Dr. Exton met with it near Kanye in the Matabili country, and Mr. T, E. Buckley, in his account of his journey in the latter locality, observes :—< This is the only species of Goatsucker we obtained, and it was common from the Limpopo, where we only found it in the rainy season, far into the Matabili country.” Mr. Ayres has found it in the Transvaal, where he pro- cured the egg. Mr. Andersson writes:—‘I have found this bird tolerably common in the southern part of Damara Land, and it is also an inhabitant of Great Namaqua Land. It is met with singly or in pairs, and frequents moderately dense brushwood.” He thinks that they are partially migratory as they are “much more common in the rainy than during the dry season.” It is certain that the present species goes further to the north than Mr. Andersson tells us in the above notes, for he himself procured it subsequently in Ondonga. How far it extends on the eastern side of the continent has yet to be seen, but at present it has not been found even in the Zambesi, and so does not find a place in the “ Vogel Ostafrika’s” of Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub. Mr. H. Jackson found it breeding at Camfers Kraal, where he resides, and forwarded eggs: these are oval, of a dull salmon coloured ground, profusely blotched and clouded with greyish purple. exis, 12//’; diam., 9’/’, 86 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Dr. Exton also sent us an egg taken from the abdomen of a female shot by him, and he writes :—“I can give no assistance in the col- lecting of eggs. To the native mind there is something tangible in a young bird—all sorts of fledglings have been brought to me, Hawks, Owls, Hornbills, &e.—but the enquiry for eggs is generally looked upon as a mild form of lunacy, partly it may be arising from eggs (even those of poultry) not being admissible as food for men, and only under exceptional circumstances for women and children.” The habits of this bird seem exactly to resemble those of the common Nightjar, like which species, says Mr. Buckley, “ it has a jarring note, and is fond of settling in the paths: it roosts on the ground during the day.” The eggs, according to the same gentle- man, are pink, mottled all over with greyish brown. Canon Tristram describes the egg as of a rich cream-colour, with faint fawn-coloured cloudings all over it. This latter egg was sent by Mr. Ayres, who found it “laid on the bare ground, without the slightest pretence to a nest.” C. rufigenis is like a miniature C. europeus, being smaller, and having the under wing-coverts nearly uniform. Total length, 9°5 inches; wing, 6°35. our primaries are always spotted with white, and sometimes traces are apparent on the jifth. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 100. 81. Carrmuneus rervinus, Sharpe. Fiery-necked Nightjar. This new species, four specimens of which are in the British Museum, was obtained by the late Mr. Andersson in Damara Land, and has hitherto been confounded with C. rufigena. It is, however, to be distinguished from this species by the characters mentioned below, and, unless Mr. Andersson has erred in the sexing of the specimens, it differs from the above mentioned bird in haying the characteristic white spots present in both sexes. Two females were procured by him at Elephant Vley on the 5th and 28th of October, 1859, another female at Otjoro on the 50th of November, while the fourth was shot near Ovampo Land on the 2nd of February in the same year. This is the species identified by Messrs. Strickland and Sclater as C. pectoralis (Contr. Orn. 1852, p. 148) and is likewise the C. pec- toralis of Mr, Andersson’s work (p. 49). He writes concerning it: CAPRIMULGUS LENTIGINOSOS. 87 —“ This species is tolerably common in the north of Damara Land. It is usually found singly, and is partial to open roads and paths about dusk. Its food consists of beetles and other insects, their eggs, and small seeds.”” Mr. Gurney has correctly identified the C. damarensis of Strickland (J. c.) with O. rufigena, and the deter- mination of the other Damara Goatsuckers has been rendered easy to us by the kindness of Mr. Salvin, who allowed us to see all the Strickland specimens. This bird may be briefly described as being very closely allied to O. rufigena, but at once distinguishable by its uniform clear golden- buff cheeks; the latter in C. rufigena are black slightly streaked. with rufous. Totallength, 9°5 inches; wing, 6°7; tail, 4°8; tarsus, 0°7. $2, CAPRIMULGUS LENTIGINOSUS. Freckled Nightjar. We never personally fell in with this large Nightjar in the Colony, and Mr. Andersson says:—‘I am inclined to think that this is a scarce bird in South Africa, though, at the same time, somewhat widely diffused, as I have obtained specimens in every part traversed by myself.” The only example, however, of Mr. Andersson’s which we have seen, is one from the river Cunene, formerly in the editor’s collection and now in the British Museum. Sir Andrew Smith ori- ginally procured the species in Great Namaqua Land, where he got two specimens; “ the one, when it was shot, was seated on a high road, and the other was skimming around a pool of stagnant water, and occasionally darting from its general course as if to capture insects. Many other individuals, probably of the same species, were observed in the same country; but as they all kept so ex- tremely close to the edge of the brushwood, and never appeared till the dusk was about giving way to darkness, two specimens only - were obtained.” : This is a large-sized species, as well as a very variable one. Total length, 10°6 inches; wing, 7:2; tail, 5-4; tarsus, 0°8. Its large size prevents its being mistaken for any other South African Night- * ‘jar excepting O. ewropeus, but it may at once be distinguished from the latter bird by the small size of the white spots on the primaries, four of which have the white markings: on the tail-feathers there are no distinct white tips to the outer ones, only an indication of white being present. ' Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 101. > ae aa ye 88 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 83. CAPRIMULGUS NATALENSIS. Natal Nightjar. This small species was discovered by Sir Andrew Smith near Port Natal, and seems to be confined to that country, as, although recorded by Dr. Kirk from the Zambesi, we find that his specimens really belong to OC. mossambicus. It not unfrequently occurs in Natal collections. Mr. Ayres writes concerning it :—“ The stomach was full of large and hard beetles swallowed whole. These birds roost on the ground among the grass; if disturbed, they fly a short distance and alight again ; they feed only at night, and are fond of frequenting roads or any other bare grounds; they rise from the ground, and catch any beetle that passes, immediately alighting again. The flight of this Goatsucker is noiseless ; its note is extremely liquid and mellow; it builds its nest in the grass and lays two white eggs.” Mr. E. C. Buxton when travelling in Natal met with this bird just beyond the Bombo moun- tains. The Natal Nightjar is a small species, and may be distinguished by its having the terminal half of the outer tail-feather pure white, extending nearly to the base of the outer web. The male has four white spots on the primaries, which are otherwise uniform; in the female these spots are sandy buff, and near the base is a second large sandy coloured bar: the outer tail-feather also is brown barred with dull sandy. The coloration of this Nightjar is different from any other species known from South Africa, being a mixture of yellowish buff and black, the latter forming large spade-shaped spots on the scapulars. ‘Total length, 8:5 inches; wing, 63. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr., Aves, pl. 99. 84. CAPRIMULGUS MOSSAMBICUS. Mozambique Nightjar. Two specimens of this bird were procured by Dr. Kirk at Tete during the Zambesi expedition, and these are all that we have seen from South Africa. It is probably the species identified by Dr. Kark (Ibis, 1864, p. 31) as C. natalensis, “ obtained in the plains near the sea-coast ;” as his Zambesi collection contains no specimen of the Natal Nightjar. This species, as well as its near ally C, fossi, may be distinguished COSMETORNIS VEXILLARIUS. 89 from the other African Goatsuckers by the outer web of the last tail- feather being white for its whole extent, the white tip to the inner web being small: the secondaries all broadly tipped with white: five primaries spotted with white. Total length, 10 inches ; wing, 6-4. Fig. Finsch and Hartlaub, Vog. Ost.-Afr., taf. 1. 85. CoOSMETORNIS VEXILLARIUS. Standard-winged Nightjar. This remarkable Nightjar has not yet occurred in the Cape Colony, but is found a little further to the northward in Damara Land and across to the Zambesi. Mr. Andersson says :—“ I only observed this singular Nightjar in the large forests about one degree south of the river Okavango. I never saw many of them, and the few that were observed were all found within from twenty to one hundred yards of each other.” In the British Museum is a specimen pro- cured by Mr. Andersson at Elephant Vley on the 13th of October, 1859, being the example mentioned by Mr. Gurney as formerly in the editor’s private collection (cf. Gurney in Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p: 46). Senor Anchieta has procured it at Biballa in the Mossa- medes district of Angola, where he says it bears the native name of Pumbamba. Dr. Kirk writes:—‘ The Cosmetornis was first observed about 300 miles up the Zambesi, a little above Teté, on the Kebrabassa Rapids in November, 1858, and was there decidedly common. It was again met with on the western side of Lake Nyassa (lat. 12° to 18° S.) where, in September and October, it was very common, being seen in flocks of from fifteen to twenty. It was also common at Chibisa on the Shiré in lat. 16° S. It was only during the months from October until January that the singular prolongations of the wing-feathers were observed. These are peculiar to the males. Like other Nightjars the habits of the Cosmetornis are crepuscular. It catches insects on the wing, and frequents bushy lands and the vicinity of water. When started during the day-time from the ground where they always rest, they fly swiftly to a little distance, and again settle, but are exiremely difficult to follow with the eye. Not so the males when in full plumage; in their case there is no difficulty ; their flight is evidently retarded, and they become pro- minent objects from the long streamers waving behind them. A deviation from the usual habits of this bird was observed when cruising on the Nyassa. On two occasions being overtaken ina . 90 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. gale, and riding out a short but dangerous sea which set in and raised a surf on the shore, through which it was impossible to land, the male birds came off in flocks of about fifteen, and flew over the surface of the water. On no other occasion have I seen them take wing of their own accord, or keep on the wing during the day.” Mr. Andersson remarks :—“This bird, when seen on the wing at dusk, presents a most singular appearance, giving the idea of a large double-winged bat.” We are convinced that the bird recently described by the editor as Macrodipteryx sperlingi, the type of which was obtained at sea in the Bay of Malimba by the late Commander Sperling, is only the female of OC. vewillarius. A specimen agreeing in every particular with the type was shot by the late Mr. Andersson at Otjimbinque on the 13th of October, 1859, the very day on which he procured the male Oosmetornis mentioned above, so there can be but little doubt that our surmise is correct. The male in full breeding plumage is an unmistakeable bird, being easily recognized by its long streaming quill-feathers, which reach out far behind the bird’s body. The female can be told by the broad rufous bars, six in number, on the under surface of the quills, and by her broad rufous neck-collar: she has no long streamers, and looks like an ordinary Caprimulgus at first sight. Fig. Gould, Icones Avium, ii, pl. 3. Fam. CYPSELIDZ. 86. CypsELus arus. Common Swift. Cypselus barbatus, Gurney in Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p. 47. The supposition that the Swift of South Africa constitutes a dif- ferent species from the ordinary Swift of Europe, does not seem to us to be founded on fact, and we believe that when C. apus leaves Europe, its makes South Africa its winter home. It is extremely abundant about Cape Town during the South African summer, dis- appearing about the middle of April. Mr. Atmore however says this species sometimes remains with us all the year and did so at George in 1870. Mr. L. Layard also used to declare that he saw it all the year round at Swellendam, not every day, but frequently, at CYPSELUS APUS. 91 odd times. This is curious, but a similar thing happens with Cotyle © paludicola, which we ourselves saw in the depth of winter hawking over a river in the Strandveldt. The following is an extract from our diary with respect to the migration of the Swifts and Swallows :— We have this year (1861) kept a strict watch over their time of departure. The result has been as follows :— “April 9th. C. apus and C. caffer about in abundance. Hirundo eucullata come into town, the other swallows having left us. “ April 27th. Large flocks of C. apus flying at a great altitude, and screaming ; these were observed at night-fall—in fact just at dark. | “May 3rd, morning. C.apus and C. melba in the upper regions, trending to the northward. “May 30th. Several specimens of C. apus flying about the top of the ‘ Lion’s Rump,’ in company with a flock of Cotyle fuliqgula— three shot. After this they disappeared, with the exception of Cotyle fuligula, which remains with us all the year.” In 1867 the Swifts first arrived on the 3rd of August, and in 1868 they were noticed on the 28th of that month, about which time Mr. L. Layard also saw them at Swellendam. Victorin has recorded the species from the Karroo, and he shot it at the Knysna in August. Mr. Rickard has procured this Swift both at East London and Port Elizabeth, and in Natal Mr. Ayres says they ‘may be seen more or less all the year round, but are more plentiful in summer. They are generally in numbers, their flight being exceedingly rapid and mostly at a considerable height: their food consists of small insects.” According to Mr. Andersson, it is common in Damara and Great Namaqua Land during the rainy season. It has likewise been sent from the Rio Chimba in Mossamedes by Senor Anchieta. We have remarked that here they are not in the habit, as in Europe, of chasing each other round lofty buildings, uttering pierc- ing cries and throwing up their wings. This evolution is performed by C. caffer, and we are inclined to attribute it to some love-gambol, as C. caffer breeds here, and C. apus does not. The latter, however, constantly utters shrill screams when at a great altitude in the air; and our attention has thus often been called to flocks that would otherwise have escaped our notice. General colour black, with a greenish reflexion on the mantle and 92 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. back ; throat, white; bill, plack ;_ toes, dusky ; iris, dark hazel. Total length, 7°5 inches; wing, 7-4; tail, 3°5; tarsus, 0-5. Fg. Dresser, B. Eur. part xxxi. 87. CypsELUS PALLIDUS. Pallid Swift. This species is closely allied to the ordinary Swift, and was first dis- tinguished by Captain Shelley, who procured it in Egypt, and since then it has been obtained in Morocco and Southern Spain by Colonel Irby, and in Malta by Mr. C. A. Wright. It arrives in Europe before C. apus, and in South Africa, which is doubtless its winter home, it seems to occupy a different area to the last-named species, for, whereas C. apus goes right down to the Cape, C. pallidus has not yet been noticed further south than Damara Land. Mr. E. Cavendish Taylor possesses a specimen shot by the late Mr. Andersson at “ Nonnidas, Swakop River,” on the 11th of December, 1863, and the British Museum contains an example procured by Mr. Monteiro in Benguela, where, according to the latter gentleman, it is “ common, building its nest very commonly under the eaves of houses.” It should be noted that Mr. Monteiro’s specimen differs in being uniform above and below, though very pale in colour, and shews little or no throat- patch. Prof. Barboza du Bocage mentions a Swift from Loanda, which may possibly be the same as the Benguela bird; he was inclined to consider his specimen undescribed, but Dr. Finsch referred it to the Madeiran 0. wnicolor. It is, therefore, possible that a further supply of specimens may shew the existence of another species in 8. W. Africa, but be that as it may, Mr. Taylor’s bird is undoubtedly OC. pallidus, and this is sufficient warrant for our including it in the present work. His specimen measures :— Total length, 6°7 inches; wing, 6°8 ; tail, 3-0; tarsus,0°-45. ~ Tl C. pallidus may be described as being closely allied to OC. apus but smaller and paler, being pale brown or mouse-colour, with generally indications of whitish edgings to the feathers. | Fig. Dresser, B. Eur. part xxxv. 88. CyYPsELUS CAFFER. African white-ruamped Swift. This species can be easily distinguished from C. apus, even on the wing, by its smaller size and conspicuous white rump. It is con- CYPSELUS CAFFER. 93 stantly in company with it and C. melba; and indeed the former is rarely seen in any number without being mixed with it. It is more domestic than the other Swifts, breeding freely under the verandahs of houses in the city, and occupying almost every porch in the isolated farm-houses scattered over the country. It usually takes possession of the nests of Hirwndo cucullata, driving out the rightful owners. Its eggs, generally four or five in number, are pure white, and singularly shaped, the small end rounding off very suddenly, as if truncated. Axis, 1”; diam. 7’’’. It seems to be distributed over the whole of Sonth Africa, being found near Cape Town, where it arrives about the end of August. In 1870, Mr. Thomas Atmore noticed its arrival near Grahams- town at the end of August, and we observed it simultaneously at Cape Town. Victorin collected it in the Karroo in December and at the Knysna in March and April, and again in October. In the latter place Mr. Andersson also obtained the species. Specimens haye been sent to us from George by Mr. Harry Atmore, and his brother, Mr. Thomas Atmore, has forwarded it from Eland’s Post. Mr. Ayres writes concerning it in Natal, as follows:—‘I have not seen these Swifts on the coast, neither have I observed them inland during the winter months, but numbers were flying about Maritz- burg in December. . . . Their flight is not nearly as rapid as that of the Black Swift (C. apus).” Captain Shelley saw it occa- sionally in considerable numbers near Pinetown. It is apparently more plentiful in the interior, as Mr. Ayres writes :—“ I find these Swifts very numerous in the Transvaal, much more so than in Natal. In the town of Potchefstroom a pair have taken possession of a deserted Swallow’s nest in one church, and another pair have located themselves in a similar manner in another part of the town, but whether this is their usual method of finding suitable places to breed in I cannot say.” Mr. Gurney remarks:—“ The nidification of this Swift as described by Mr. Layard, and as also noticed in the Transvaal by Mr. Ayres, differs from its habits in this respect as observed in Senaar by Dr. Vierthaler and his companion, who found it breeding in holes about two feet in length and terminating in a basin. These holes were pierced in a steep river-bank; and in one of thema sitting-bird of this species was captured on her nest, which con- tained three white eggs.” 94. BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. The distinguishing characters of this species are its white rump and forked tail. The general colour is blucish-black, the wings and tail glossy brown, as also is the head, the forehead being still paler: throat white. Total length, 8°75 inches ; wing, 57; tail, 3:0. Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 460, fig. 1. 89. CypsELUS AFFINIs. White-rumped Swift. This is a well-known Indian species, and is found in North-Eastern and in Western Africa, being very plentiful on the Gold Coast, but it is only recently that it has been discovered in South Africa. Mr. Dresser in his account of the species mentions that it has “occurred as far south as the Cape of Good Hope, according to Dr. Sclater and Dr. Finsch,” but he does not appear to have seen a specimen. One is, however, duly recorded in the editor’s ‘ Catalogue of Birds’ (p. 2) on our authority, and is to be seen in the British Museum. This specimen was procured by our excellent correspondent, Mr. H. Jackson, of Nel’s Poort, to whom the credit of the rediscovery of this species in South Africa is due. He wrote to us saying that he had found an apparently new species of Swift, differing from C. caffer in their breeding habits and making their own nests in clusters, fixed to the rocks and composed of feathers agglutinated together. Of course a proceeding so different to the ordinary habits of 0. cajfer convinced us that it could not be that species, and the receipt of specimens proved it to be C. afjinis. The present bird may be described as similar to O. caffer and possessing a white rump like that species, but distinguishable at once by its square tail. Total length, 4°5 inches ; wing, 5:0; tail, 1:8. Trig. Dresser, B. Eur. part x xxiii. 90. CyYPpsELUS PARVUS. Little African Swift. Cotyle ambrosiacea, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 59. This little Swift is found all over Africa, being especially plentiful on the Gold. Coast: the specimens which we have seen from S. Africa were much lighter in colour than those from other localities. It may be distinguished from the other South African Swifts by its small size and long, forked, tail. We have never seen it from the Colony, but it was found to be “pretty common at Ondonga” by : ® i CYPSELUS MELBA. 95 Mr. Andersson, and has been sent from Angola by Senor Furtado d’Antas. Mr. Andersson writes :—“ At the end of February these Swifts appeared to be nesting, as they were seen in pairs and a male and female were both shot with feathers in their bills. The flight of this species is generally lofty.” The small size of the bird will tell it at a glance, the length of wing being under 54 inches, whereas C. pallidus, the only other South African Swift with which it could be confounded has the wing 6°8 inches. The general colour is greyish brown, the head and wings rather darker ; throat whitish ; tail very much forked and the outer feather elongated. According to Mr. Andersson the “ iris is dark brown, the legs and feet brown, the bill black.” Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 460, fig. 2. 91. CypsELUS MELBA. White-bellied Swift. Cypselus gutturalis, Gurney in Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p. 46. Aswith C. apus, the South African White-bellied Swifts have been supposed by Canon Tristram to belong to another species and referred to OC. gutturalis of Vieillot. The differences proposed, however, do not hold good in our opinion, and in this Mr. Dresser also concurs (B. Eur. part xxxi). It can, indeed, scarcely be doubted that the specimens seen in South Africa, only at the time when the species is absent from Europe, are emigrants from the latter continent. We must, however, add one peculiarity respecting the South African birds, and that is, that we never heard them utter any sound, whereas during a visit to Switzerland, in the summer of 1871, we were astonished to hear the stridulous cry uttered by the birds while circling around the cathedral of Berne. Can it be, therefore, that the note is only uttered during the nesting season, as the bird does not breed with us, as far as we know? Le Vaillant, indeed, says that it breeds in rocks, but we have never heard of their nests being found, though we have seen them flying into crevices of the rocky sides of Table Mountain. We have also watched several pairs flying in and out of the rocky face of the “ Ravine” at Simon’s Town, but had no means of ascertaining if the birds were in a breeding state, and the crevices were perfectly inaccessible. The great Alpine Swift is very abundant about Cape Town, where 96 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. we noticed its arrival in 1868, on the 2nd of August, and in 1870. on the 10th of the same month. We have seen it at the Knysna, and have received it from a valued correspondent at Swellendam, Mr. Wm. Cairncross, who has sent it with several other Swifts and Swallows killed in that neighbourhood. Victorin procured it in the Karroo, and also in the Knysna in May: here also Mr. Andersson shot it. Mr. Rickard says that it occurs at Port Elizabeth, where it is generally seen about Christmas, but does not stay. At East London the same gentleman has noticed — it on the 3lst of July. Captain Shelley writes:—“ Although I found this species plentiful in the Cape Colony, I did not observe it near Durban.” Mr. Ayres has, however, procured it in Natal. Mr. Andersson says :—“ On July 8th, 1866, I observed at Objimbinque a large flight of these Swifts, which to the best of my recollection were the first I ever saw in Damara Land, and particularly noted them as very numerous on the Omaru River on November 2nd.” Senor Anchieta has likewise met with the species at Huilla in Mos- samedes. C. melba appears’ to reside principally in the mountains, only occasionally descending into the plains when some particular food is to be found. On the top of Table Mountain we have seen it in great abundance. Once, after lighting a fire there, we found our- selves surrounded by hundreds of them, hawking after the flies which the fire drove up. ‘They dashed through the dense smoke and skimmed along the burning ground at the risk of singeing their wings. The large size of the Alpine Swift prevents its being mistaken for any other species known from South Africa, measuring, as it does, 8 inches in length, with a wing of 8 inches also. In addition to this it can always be told by its white belly. Fig. Dresser, B. Eur. part xxxi. Fam. MEROPIDZ. 92. Muerops APIASTER. European Bee-eater. The European Bee-eater, during its period of visitation, extends all over the Cape Colony, and we have generally noticed its arrival about August in company with the Quail. All the instances which ee ee” ee ee ee i — MEROPS SUPERCILIOSUS. 97 have been recorded with the actual-dates of capture, shew that it is only during the months when it is absent from Europe that it visits South Africa, and hence the fact of its breeding during its stay is of great interest. Victorin procured it in the Karroo in January; Dr. Exton shot a specimen at Kanye, and on the 24th of October, 1873, Mr. T. E. Buckley shot two specimens near the River Meathly in Bamangwato: It does not seem to have occurred to Mr. Ayres in Natal, but Mr. Andersson states that it is “ very common in Ondonga during the rainy season, when it is also not uncommon in Damara Land proper :” he considers it to be less abundant in Great Namaqua Land. Senor Anchieta has met with the species on the River Cunene, and also at Caconda in Benguela, while the British Museum contains an example from the Congo, without, however, any indication of the collector. It hawks after flies, uttering its cheerful, chirruping cry, and alighting on the summit of the highest bush in the neighbourhood. It breeds in the neighbourhood of Nel’s Poort, Mr. Henry Jackson having found several nests in holes in banks. The eggs are pure white: axis, 12’’’; diam. 10’. We also found it breeding in great abundance at the Berg river in September and October.. It does not always select a bank into which to bore the hole destined for its nest, for we found one flat piece of sandy ground perforated with numberless holes into which the birds were diving and scrambling like so many rats. This species is of large size: Total length, 11:5 inches; wing, 5:9; culmen, 1°4; tarsus, 0°45. It is distinguished from the other Bee- eaters of South Africa by its yellow forehead and throat, and by its straw-coloured scapulars. Fig. Gould, B, Gt. Brit. pl. 93. Mbrors supPERciLiosus. Blue-cheeked Bee-eater. Merops savignii and M. cegyptius, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 69. Notwithstanding the difference in the shades of blue and green which are to be found in a series of skins of this Bee-eater, we believe that but one species is represented: the brown head which is sometimes seen, more especially in Madagascar birds, is often to be noticed in specimens from other parts of Africa, and these brown- headed individuals occur along with green-headed specimens, so that they are probably nothing but immature birds. H 98 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Its range in the Cape Colony is not extensive, and not many — specimens have come under our notice from the colony itself. Mr. T. B. Bayley, of Wynberg, shot a specimen on the Cape Flats and — sent it to the Cape Town Museum, and Mr. Dumbleton, of the same town, assures us that these birds periodically visit a circumscribed — portion of the Flats in considerable numbers. On the 15th of Fe- — bruary, 1866, a specimen was sent to the Museum by Mr. Bishop, shot near Knil’s Riyer. In Natal, according to Mr. Ayres, they only inhabit the coast-lands, and are migratory, appearing only during the months of the South African summer. Dr. Kirk observed — them in the Zambesi district, where he says they were gregarious, but not found in any numbers during the wet season. Mr. Andersson first noticed them near the River Okavango, and afterwards obtained several specimens in Ondonga, on the 20th and 28th of November, 1866. Senor Anchicta met with the species on the Rio Coroca im Mossamedes, and it has also been sent from Benguela by Senor Furtado d’Antas. It also extends to Angola proper, haying been ~ obtained there by Mr. Monteiro, whose specimens are now in the British Museum. Dr. Kirk gives the following note on its habits in the Zambesi district :—‘ The nests are formed in the clay or sandy perpendicular banks of rivers, and consist of long passages about three inches in diameter, tunnelled in the face of the bank and generally about two feet apart. The colony occupies a space of about fifty yards in extent. In the heat of the day they are seen flying together near their settlements, catching flies on the wing.”” Mr. Ayres writes :— “These birds take their food on the wing, and their flight somewhat resembles that of the Swallows: they frequently alight on the trees and branches to rest: during flight they utter a harsh grating note.” This species is one of the larger Bee-eaters, measuring as follows : —Total length, 10 inches ; bill, 1°7; wing, 5°75; tail, 4°03; tarsus, 0°5; middle tail feathers, 6:2. The general colour is green both above and below, the forehead whitish, the ears black: both above and below the eye a more or less distinct bluish stripe; chin yellow, passing into chesnut, the latter forming a conspicuous gular patch. Fig. Shelley, B. Egypt, pl. vii. fig. 1. Plate IV) | I. MEROPS BULLOCKOIDES 2. ——— NUBICOIDES. MEROPS BULLOCKOIDES. 99 94. Merrors NUBICOIDEs. Carmine-throated Bee-eater. Plate IV, fig. 2. Merops nubicus, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 69. This is a species seldom met with in collections, and as far as we are aware, rarely occurring in the colony itself. M. Jules Verreaux, however, informs us that he procured a stray specimen at Genaden- hal, near Caledon. The KHditor’s collection contained a single specimen from Port Natal, and this is now in the British Museum. Mr. Ayres forwarded a specimen from the Transvaal to Mr. Gurney, “shot on the Pindais River. about 130 miles to the north of Pot- chefstroom, by Mr. Button, who states that there were many of them together.” Inthe Zambesi region, according to Dr. Kirk, they were rather local both in the Zambesi and Shire, but on the former river they were discovered in colonies, tunnelling their nests in the river-banks. Mr. Andersson writes :—“I have only once observed this species, when a specimen occurred a few days’ journey south of the river Okavango: its appearance on the wing was beautiful. I understood from the hunters that at certain seasons this Bee-eater is common on the Okavango, and breeds on the banks of that river.” Its large size and ruddy coloration ought to distinguish this species at a glance. Unfailing characters are its red tail and pink undersurface, in which no other South African Bee-eater resembles it. Total length, 13:7 inches; wing, 5°8; tail, 4:4; tarsus, 0°5; middle tail-feathers, 7°8. 95. Merrops BULLOCKOIDES. White-fronted Bee-eater. Plate IV, fig. 1. This species was originally obtained by Sir A. Smith in 25° §. lat., north of which it was not uncommon. “ When observed,” he says, “it was perched upon the tops of trees, along the immediate banks of rivers, or in the act of making short circuits through the air, apparently in chase of flying insects.” Mr. David Arnot, of Colesberg, has forwarded several examples to the South African Museum, all of which were obtained in the Orange Free State. Mr. T. E. Buckley found them breeding in the banks of the Limpopo, and in the Transvaal he also procured specimens on the 1st and 2nd of July ; and in the same district Mr. Ayres has noticed them. He u 2 100 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. writes :—“ These Bee-eaters I have usually found in flights on the banks of rivers, generally alighting on the tops of bushes and trees, or on any bare exposed twig’: their notes are harsh and short.” The same gentleman also procured specimens on the Monocusi River in Natal. According to Dr. Kirk it was met with in the Zambesi district, ‘‘ solitary in habits, frequenting the banks of streams.” It never seems to have occurred to Mr. Andersson in Damara Land, but Senor Anchieta fell in with the species on the River Cunene and also at Huilla in Mossamedes. , This species is of medium size, the chief characters being its straw-coloured nape and breast, the latter contrasting strongly with the deep blue under tail-coverts : it is also remarkable for its white chin and broad white moustache. Total length, 8°5 inches; culmen, — 1-4; wing, 4°6; tail, 4-0; tarsus, 0°5. | 96. Merrors PpusILLUs. Little Bee-eater. Merops erythropterus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 70. Although not yet recorded from within the boundaries of the Cape Colony, the present bird is by no means rare in collections from Natal and the Transvaal. Respecting its occurrence in the former province Mr. Ayres writes :— These Bee-eaters are particu- larly fond of frequenting reedy marshes and swamps, and are to be | found here in certain localities all the year round. ‘They are by no meaus so plentiful as the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, which is only here during the summer months. It is seldom that more than five or six are seen together, and generally not more than two. When feeding, their flight is not so prolonged as that of M. supercviliosus, neither is their note so loud and harsh.” Dr. Exton procured it at Kanye, in the Matabili country, and generally throughout Zulu Land during the winter months. “It flies low,” he writes to us, “and perches on twigs near the ground, from whence it launches after passing in- sects.” Mr. Ayres says that it is pretty common along the Limpopo, and Mr. T. E. Buckley noticed it on the same river, as wellas on _ the Samouqui River in the Matabili country. He says that they were “plentiful in comparatively open country in the north of the Trans- yaal.’ Dr. Kirk, who speaks of this species as M. variegatus, — mentions it as widely distributed in the Zambesi country in the vicinity of water. DICROCERCUS HIRUNDINACEUS. 101 Mr. Andersson observes:—“This exquisite and diminutive species is common on the banks of the Rivers Okavango, Teoughe, and Botletlé, as well as on the Lake-watersheds in general, and also about Lake N’gami itself, but I have never observed it as far south as Damara Land proper. It seems to be partial to the immediate neighbourhood of the reedy banks of rivers, and of swamps and morasses ; and I have never found it at any distance from water.” Senor Anchieta has recently procured it on the Cunene River, and Mr. Monteiro met with it both in Benguela and Angola proper. The small size of this Bee-eater ought always to distinguish it, but it may be briefly described as of a green colour on the upper surface, with a yellowish brown breast: throat yellow with a blue line across the lower part, followed by a black patch and shading off into chesnut: bill and feet black: iris crimson in adults, dark hazel in young. Total length, only 6 inches; culmen, 1:0; wing, 3-0; tail, 2°5-; tarsus, 0°3. The young bird is, as in other species, much greener than the adult: there is no yellow on the throat, which is, however, of a light straw-brown, resembling the rest of the under surface, the breast being marked with green. Fig. Levaillant, Hist. Nat. Guepiers, pls. 7, 17. 97. Dicrocercus HIRUNDINACEUS. Swallow-tailed Bee-eater. Merops hirundinaceus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 70. Leyaillant found this species in abundance near the Orange River, and Mr. Ortlepp, who has forwarded specimens from Colesberg, writes :—“ I found, in June, several hawking over the trees on the banks of the Orange River. As the season was so far advanced I conclude that they are not migratory like their congener, M. apiaster, which they much resemble in habits, only they do not fly so high when in search of food.” Mr. Andersson observes :— This is the commonest species of Bee-eater in Damara Land, and it is also found in Great Namaqua Land and in the Lake country. Chiefly visits Damara Land during the wet season. I took a nest of this Bee-eater on the Omaruru River on the 31st of October. It was situated in a soft sandy bank, some three feet deep horizontally: the entrance was not above two fingers wide, but the hole was slightly enlarged where the nest was found. The latter, which had no lining, 102 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. contained three beautifully white eggs.’’? The species has likewise occurred to Senor Anchieta on the Cunene River, and to Mr. Mon- teiro in Benguela. The strongly forked tail renders this Bee-eater an unmistakeable bird, no other South African species also having the tail-feathers tipped with white: iris, carmine-red: bill, black: tarsi and feet brownish. Total length, 8 inches; culmen, 1°3; wing, 3°9 ; tail, 4°2; tarsus, 0-4. The young bird differs in being all green, the yellow throat and blue gorget of the adult being absent, but it has the tail forked as in the full-grown bird. Fig. Swainson, B. W. Afr. pl. 10. Fam. CORACIADZ. 98. CoRACIAS GARRULA. European Roller. Coracias abyssinica, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 60. This Roller has not as yet been noticed in any numbers within the Cape Colony, and is doubtless only a winter visitant. We believe it to be the species noticed under the heading of C. abyssinica in the first edition, for it has been pointed out that CO. garrula is exactly similar to that species without the elongated tail-feathers, (Cf. Sharpe, Ibis, 1871, p. 201). We consider that C. abyssinica is confined to North-Eastern Africa and Western Africa and has not yet appeared in South Africa at all. The European Roller has been received from one or two places along the northern border of the colony, also from the neighbourhood of Spring-bok fountain in Namaqua Land. Mr. Rickard tells us that — he once saw a Roller, apparently of this species, near East London. It has been killed in Natal by Mr. Ayres, Mr. Mohr and other collectors, and Captain Shelley recently obtained a specimen from the neighbourhood of Pinetown, but it was considered to be by no means common in that locality. Mr, Ayres has lately forwarded a ' specimen from the Transvaal, which, he says, was killed amongst 7 some bushes about three miles from Potebefstroom in the month of December. Mr. Andersson writes :—“ This species is common in Ondonga, but is less so in Damara Land proper, than either CO. nevia or C. caudata. As far as I recollect, it is only seen during the rainy season.” Upper surface sandy brown; head and neck blue; forehead and 9 CORACIAS NAVIA. 103 chin whitish ; cheeks and throat pale blue with streaks of silvery- blue ; remainder of under surface pale greenish blue; least wing- coverts rich ultramarine, the rest greenish blue; primaries blackish, externally marked with ultramarine, secondaries externally greenish blue, the innermost sandy brown like the back ; upper tail-coverts greenish blue; middle tail-feathers dirty green, the other feathers blue, paler towards the tip, the two outer ones tipped with dull blue; bill black ; feet yellowish brown ; iris dirty brown. Total length, 12 inches; culmen, 1°3 ; wing, 7°6; tail, 4:4; tarsus, 0°7. The present species has not an elongated outer tail-feather, and therefore cannot be mistaken for O. abyssinica or OC. caudata, which it somewhat resembles in coloration. It approaches C. neevia in size and form of tail, but is differently coloured, and has no white nape patch. Fig. Sharpe and Dresser, B. Eur. part 1. 99. CoRACIAS N&VIA. White-naped Roller. Coracias nuchalis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 60. Le Vaillant procured this Roller in Caffraria. One specimen was shot near Middelburg on the eastern side of the colony, and sent to us by the late Mr. J. O’Reilly, magistrate of that place. Dr. Reid informs us that it is not unfrequent between Soutpans drift, Orange River, and Gricqua Town. Mr. Ayres says that in Natal it is “ not uncommon during summer, and it also occurs on the River Limpopo; it is generally found either solitary or in pairs:” Dr. Exton procured it at Kanye, and during his journey to the Matabili country, Mr. T. H. Buckley found the species fairly common. He obtained a specimen in the above locality in October, 1813, and again in the Transvaal in July. Mr. Ayres has also met with it in the last-named country. According to Mr. Andersson it is not uncommon throughout Damara Land and is also found in the Lake-regions. By Senor Anchieta it has been met with at Huilla and on the Rio Cunene. | Mr. Andersson gives the follow- ing excellent account of the habits :—“ It is usually met with in pairs, and is not particularly shy. It seldom extends its flight far, but occasionally rises suddenly to a considerable height, rocking violently to and fro, and descending in a similar manner, with a motion re- sembling that of a boy’s kite when falling to the ground on the guiding force being withdrawn. When on the wing it makes a great 104 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. noise, rapidly uttering harsh and discordant sounds: its notes are at times not unlike the sound produced by a broad-bladed knife passing through a tough piece of cork, but in a louder key. This species seeks much of its food on the ground ; but sometimes it watches from some elevated position, and, the moment its prey comes within sight, darts upon it with unerring certainty, its habit in this respect being very much like that of the Butcher-bird Shrikes. It is a most useful bird, feeding largely on centipedes, scorpions, tarantulas, and other insects, as well as on small snakes and lizards,” “This Roller is one of the earliest breeders in Damara Land, and makes its nest in the hollows of trees, usually such as have been pre- viously occupied by some Woodpecker ; the stems of these trees are mostly very tall and straight ; and in consequence of this and of the smallness of the apertures, the nests are very inaccessible. I have frequently seen such breeding-places without being able to reach them ; but I believe that the eggs are white and two in number, and that both parents assist in their incubation.’’_| General colour reddish-brown glossed with olive-green; under surface dull reddish-brown, streaked with white; wings dull rufous green, with purple reflexions; the primaries dark blue; tail ultra- marine, the middle feathers olive-green ; forehead and chin white, as well as a distinct patch on the nape; cheeks rusty red with white streaks to many of the feathers ; bill black; legs and tail greenish or yellowish brown ; iris varying from dark or hazel brown to oliva- ceous brown. ‘Total length, 13 inches; culmen, 1:5; wing, 7°4; tail, 5°6; tarsus, 0°8. Fig. Wevaillant, Rolliers, pl. 29. 100. CoractAs CAUDATA. Lilac-breasted Roller. This species inhabits the same localities as C. garrula, but like that species, it has not fallen under our personal observation. Mr. R. Moffat, jun. has forwarded several specimens from Kuruman, Ver- reaux from Kurrichaine, and Mr. Ayres has found it in Natal. The same gentleman has met with it on the River Limpopo. Mr. T. E. Buckley says that it was first observed by him a few days north of Pretoria and found far up into the Matabili country. “ This species,” he remarks, “was extremely shy and it was difficult to procure specimens. Just before the breeding-season they fly high up in the air, rolling about from side to side, and uttering a harsh note all the * GORACIAS CAUDATA. 105 time, settling afterwards on the very top of the nearest high tree. In the Matabili country this is a royal bird, and no one except the king is allowed to wear its feathers.” We are likewise indebted to Dr. Exton for the following account of the bird :—“ From Sechelés northward OC. caudata is commonly known as ‘ Mosilikatze’s bird, its liveliness and pugnacity perhaps having given rise to the old warrior’s interest in it. In his earlier career Mosilikatze claimed the feathers solely for royal adornment, and in his milder moods has been known to give an ox to the youth who had captured and presented one of these birds. It delights to perch on the topmost branch of a leafless tree, from which it gives out its note of challenge, and should a crow or a hawk approach its vicinity, it will make rapid darts at the intruder, and with sharp pecks and harsh screams drive off birds greatly superior to itself in size and strength. It has a habit when disturbed by the solitary hunter of flying directly towards him, but high . overhead, and after careful scrutiny, wheeling off uttering discordant screams. For so bright-plumaged a bird, it is noteworthy that there is no difference between male and female. Bechuana name ‘Le-cler-cler ;? Matabili name ‘ Fee-Fe.’ ” Mr. Buckley procured a male in the Transvaal on ae Ist of July, 1873, and he observes moreover that he has “ seen the young about November, evidently not long out of the nest, so the Rollers must be amongst the earliest breeders.” Dr. Kirk says it is a very common bird in the open woods and bush country near the Zambesi and other rivers, that the cry is harsh, and that the plumage varies con- siderably, being much less brilliant during the cold and dry seasons. Mr. Andersson writes :—‘‘This species is common in tha Lake- Regions, and is also pretty common in Damara Land, where, how- ever, I imagine that it must be partially migratory, as during the dry season comparatively few individuals are seen. It is more shy and difficult of approach than C. nevia, which it otherwise resembles as to food and habits.” On the River Cunene Senor Anchieta has recently met with it as well as at various places in the Mossamedes district. A long description of this bird is not necessary here, as it is easily distinguishable by the following characters—its forked tail with the outer feathers measuring 8°5 inches in length; white throat; blue abdomen ; and by its lilac-colowred throat and breast, the throat being streaked with white ; “ bill black; feet greenish yellow; iris yellow- 106 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. ish brown, the ring round the eyes greenish yellow, (Andersson,) iris dark hazel (Buckley). Total length, 15 inches ; wing, 7:0; tail, 5:5. Fig. Des Murs, Iconogr. Orn. pl. 28. - 101. Eorystomus arer. Cinnamon Roller. This small Roller was observed on the Zambesi by Dr. Kirk, who writes respecting it:—*‘ Local, and observed rarely near Teté. Fre- quent in the river-valley at Chibisa on the River Shiré. Its habits resemble those of Ooracias caudata.” In other parts of Africa the species is plentiful. General colour cinnamon brown, with a distinct lilac gloss: least wing-coverts bordering the edge of the wing, and the greater coverts deep ultramarine, the inner ones inclining to cobalt; quills black, externally washed with ultramarine, the outer web of the primaries inclining to cobalt; the under surface of the wing greyish black glossed with cobalt; upper tail-coverts dull cobalt; tail silvery cobalt, inclining to white on the inner web, the middle feathers brown washed with blue, the extremities of all the feathers banded with black, more narrowly on the outer ones; under tail-coverts cobalt: bill deep yellow: legs pale yellowish olive: iris olivaceous. Total length, 10 inches ; culmen, 0:95; wing, 6°95; tail, 4°3 ; tarsus, 0°65. The species is to be distinguished by its yellow bill, which is very stout, and as broad at base as it is long. Tig. evaillant, Rolliers, pl. 35. Fam. TROGONIDZ. 102. HapaLODERMA NARINA. Narina Trogon, Apaloderma narina, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 61. This brilliantly plumaged bird is found throughout the forests and wooded kloofs in all the eastern portions of the colony. About the Knysna it is scarce, but this was the only locality where the late Mr. Andersson procured the species, and Victorin also met with it there from September to November. Most of the specimens which we have seen have been from Natal, where, says Captain Shelley, “it is not uncommon in the thick woods about Durban and Pine Town.” Dr. Kirk writes :— In the Zambesi this is decidedly a i) ' ALCEDO SEMITORQUATA. 107 scarce bird: I know of only four specimens haying been seen; one in the Zambesi delta, the others at Chibisa, on the Shiré. It seems to frequent trees. Native name, ‘ M’voraio.’?” Bianconi procured it in South Mozambique. The Trogon seems never to have been met with in Damara Land by Andersson, but Mr. Monteiro obtained one specimen which he shot in a wood in Benguela, and more re- cently Senor Anchieta has procured a pair at Biballa in Mossamedes. Mr. Hamilton also shot a pair at Cazengo in the interior of Angola. Wherever found it exhibits the same shy, creeping habits. When apprehensive of discovery, it sits motionless on its branch until alarmed at same act of the fowler, when it precipitates itself head- long into the bush, and is instantly lost to view. It feeds on fruits and insects, and utters a loud moaning note, or, perhaps, more cor- rectly speaking, a hoot, which Mr. Atmore describes as “like the bark of a poodle with a bad cold.” Le Vaillant states that they nest in holes of trees, and lay four, nearly round, white eggs; but this requires confirmation. We have never met with any one who had seen their nest, though we made particular enquiries for them when at the Knysna. . Adult male.—Entire upper surface shining green as well as the throat and chest, the rest of the under surface crimson: wing- coverts grey, finely pencilled with black lines and slightly shaded with green: two centre tail-feathers green like the back, the three others more or less white on the outer web: bill yellow: feet black: iris red. Total length, 11°6 inches; wing, 5°3; tail, 7:0; tarsus, 0°65. Female.—Duller coloured than the male: the breast greyish washed with crimson. Fig. Gould, Monogr. Trogon. pl. Fam. ALCEDINIDZ. 103. AtLcEDO SEMITORQUATA. Half-collared Kingfisher. This Kingfisher, which is the representative of the Huropean species in Africa, and is strictly of the same type, is widely distri- buted throughout South Africa and appears at uncertain intervals, though it cannot be called migratory. Mr. L. Layard shot several on the Liesbeck River near Cape Town, and Mr. John Reid has also procured it on the Salt River. We have received it from Swellen- 108 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. dam, and we saw it ourselves near Graham’s-town, the Fish River, and Kowie. Specimens were in Major Bulger’s Windvogelberg — collection. Victorin obtained examples at the Knysna in April, July, and August, and Mr. Andersson also shot it at the same place. Mr. Rickard records it from Port Elizabeth and East London, where, he says, it frequents the beach as well as the rivers and feeds much on crabs: it has also been sent from Eland’s Post by Mr. T. C. Atmore. It appears to be scarcer in Natal than in Cape Colony, but Mr. Ayres says that it frequents both the coast and the interior. The specimens he procured were named at the time A. quadribrachys, a West-African species, and one which we do not consider an inha- bitant of South Africa, for, though the late Mr. Jules Verreaux assured us that he obtained it on the Buffalo River, no actual speci- mens are in existence from any part of South Africa, and we think it probable that in this instance his memory failed him. Mr. Ayres has also found the species in the Transvaal, but it was not met with in the Zambesi country by Dr. Kirk, although a specimen said to be from thence is in Mr. Dawson Rowley’s collection. On the western coast it has been procured by Anchieta at Capangombe. In habits the Half-collared Kingfisher resembles its European prototype, and may be seen perched for some time on a bough overhanging the water, into which it plunges after fish, &c. Its flight is strong, but is not so swift as that of its European congener. Mr. W. Atmore informs us that it nests in holes of banks, and that he took one at Kykoe, which contained three polished white eggs. General colour rich blue, the back brilliant cobalt, the head and nape banded with bright blue lines and a stripe on the sides of the neck white, as well as the throat; rest of under surface orange, the sides of the breast blue, somewhat converging so as to form a half collar; bill black; feet coral red; iris black.* Total length 7:5 inches ; bill, 1°8; wing, 3°2; tail, 1°8; tarsus, 0°25. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 7. 104. CoryrHORNIS CYANOSTIGMA. Malachite-crested Kingfisher. Alcedo cristata, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 65. This beautiful little Kingfisher is abundant throughout the colony, wherever a stream or marsh exists which can supply it with its * The descriptions of all the Kingfishers are derived from the editor's “ Monograph of the Alcedinide.” CORYTHORNIS CYANOSTIGMA. 109 necessary food. We have captured it even in Cape Town, two specimens which we sent to London having actually killed themselves by flying against a building in the town itself. Victorin procured it in the Karroo in January and February, and we have seen it in Mr. T. C. Atmore’s collections from Hland’s Post, as well as in Major Bulger’s from Windvogelberg. Mr. Rickard tells us that it is common at Port Elizabeth, but is not quite so numerous at Hast London. Mr. Ayres has procured it in Natal, where he says it frequents “‘ both the coast and interior streams.” Captain Shelley remarks that he found it, during his recent trip to the the same country, “ invariably frequenting the small streams and ditches close to Durban, where however, it is not very abundant.’”’ In the Transvaal Mr. Ayres has found it breeding, and according to Mr. T. EH. Buckley, it frequents pools and streams throughout the latter country, but always singly. According to Dr. Kirk it was universal “on all the waters of the Zambesi region, sitting on the reeds or bushes which overhang them, and darting on its prey.” Mr. Andersson writes :—“ Probably from want of permanently running rivers this exquisite little species is not found in Damara or Great Namaqua Land, but it is common on all the waters north of those countries.” Mr. Monteiro says it is abundant at the Lagoons near Benguela, but at present Senor Anchieta has not forwarded it from Mossamedes. It breeds in banks, and lays from four to six glistening white eggs, ‘so transparent that the yellow yoke shines plainly through the shell. Axis, 9’’’; diameter, 6’’ 6'”’. The nest consists of nothing but the bones of the delicate little fish upon which the bird habitually feeds, and is usually constructed, if the constantly accumulating mass of bones can be called a nest, at the end of a hole bored two or three feet into loose sandy soil, and situated in a chamber always elevated above the mouth of the hole; the drainage is thus perfect, the chamber being always dry. We found several nests along the Berg river in September. Mr. Ayres says that in Natal, “it feeds on fresh water shrimps and small fish, but principally the former, as well-as on beetles and insects, darting from a bough on to its prey.” The general colour of this little Kingfisher is of a rich ultramarine, the cheeks, ear-coverts and under surface rufous ; throat and a longi- tudinal patch along the sides of the neck white. It may be told, however, at a glance by its bright coral red bill and by its enormous 110 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. fan-like crest, which is of a malachite-green colour barred with black. Total length, 5:2 to 6 inches; bill, 13; wing, 2°3. Sonth African birds are rather larger than those from Western or North-Hastern Africa. Young birds have the bill blackish, the whole of the colouring duller than in the adults, and may further be told by the bars of light cobalt on the upper surface. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. xi. 105. Curyie rupis. Pied Kingfisher. This species is not uncommon, and is widely distributed. We have seen it about ‘Salt River,” near Cape Town, but in greater numbers about the rivers, lakes, and estuaries of the Knysna, and have received it from Kuruman, Colesberg, and Kaffraria. Mr. Chapman found it all the way to Lake N’gami. It hovers over the water while fishing, and plunges under the surface in pursuit of its prey. It breeds in holes hollowed by itself in sandy banks. We took a nest (Nov. 10th, 1865,) in a bank of Zoetendals Vley, which was placed at the extremity of a small hole, more than two yards deep. It was composed entirely of fish-bones and scales; and the eggs, six in number, were of a lovely shining white, almost similar in shape at each end: axis, 14’; diam., 11’’’.. At the time we took them, the young were nearly ready for exclusion. We also found them breeding in great numbers along the Berg River in September, and we there took thirty-nine eggs in one day. It must certainly be found plentifully at the Knysna, for Mr. Andersson’s collections contained many examples, and Victorin found it in the same locality from March to May, and in the months of July, September, and October. At Port Elizabeth it is extremely common, according to Mr. Rickard, but is not quite so plentiful at East London. Mr. Ayres states that in Natal it frequents the lakes and rivers near the coast, but is not found in the interior. Mr. T. KE, Buckley writes:—“This bird is pretty common in Natal, but much more so on the Limpopo, in the north of the Transvaal, where I found its nest in a hole of the bank, but as the ground was hard, I was unable to get the eggs. Its absence in the Matabili country is accounted for by the rivers being mostly sand-rivers in the part of the country I visited.’ Dr. Kirk says it is abundant on all rivers and lakes throughout the Zambesi region, | b i d —_ ST RE ET Oe —v 6 2 see: ° oi a — no ils 5 ej ‘CERYLE MAXIMA. 111 Mr. Andersson observes :—“ I do not remember to have seen this bird in Damara Land proper, but have occasionally met with it along the periodical watercourses and temporary rain-pools of Great Namaqua Land, and I have reason to think it may be found per- manently on the banks of the Great Fish River, where large pools of water, containing fish, exist at all times of the year.” Senor Anchieta has met with the species at Capangombe and Gambos in Mossamedes, on the Rio Coroca, and more recently on the Cunene River. It is also found in Angola, and indeed all over Africa. Adult male——Head crested, black, striped narrowly with white, plainer on the cheeks ; a broad superciliary line extending down- wards on to the sides of the neck, white; the rest of the body black varied with white, the latter colour predominating on the lower parts of the back and rump ; quills black, white at the base, the seconda- ries barred with white, the primaries externally white at the base, forming a large white patch ; tail feathers black, spotted and tipped with white; under surface of the body pure white with two black bands across the breast; a few black marks on the flanks, and some- times a few spots on the throat; bill and feet black; ims dark brown. Adult female.—Similar to the adult male, but has only one band across the breast. Young.—Similar to the adults, but the plumage above almost entirely black, and the breast marked with grey edgings to the fea- thers, giving a barred appearance, the band across the breast not complete. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 19. 106, Cryin Maxima. Great African Kingfisher. This is the largest of the South African Kingfishers, and is very widely distributed : it is not at all uncommon, but is migratory and we do not know anything of its nidification. It frequents the “Salt River,” and other small streams in the neighbourhood of Cape Town, perches on trees, and is wary and difficult of approach. It is very common at Zoetendals Vley and along the River Zonder End. Mr. Rickard reports it from Port Elizabeth, and informs us that it is common at Hast London, being very numerous in May; some stay all the year, frequenting both the beach and river, and feeding on 112 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. crabs. The late Mr. Andersson procured several specimens at the Knysna, where also Victorin found it in March and April. Mr. Ayres has procured the species in Natal and the Transvaal, it being found in the former country not far from the coast, where it fre- quents rivers and lakes. Captain Shelley says:—‘I met with a pair of these gigantic Kingfishers amongst the low bushes between Durban and the Conguella, and procured them both. They kept entirely to the small streams, and when disturbed flew only for a short distance, returning again to the same haunt as soon as they fancied they were out of danger.”” Dr. Kirk says that throughout the Zambesi region, it was observed on the courses of the rivers. According to Mr. Andersson it is occasionally found in Damara Land on the Teoughe River and also on the Okavango, but is every- where very shy. Senor Anchieta records it from Humbe on the Cunene River. It is not uncommon on the Quanza, where, we are informed by Mr. Monteiro, “it may be seen generally on the bare or dead branches of trees overhanging the river, sitting upright, with its head at nearly right angles with its body, and the crest is pro- minently exhibited.” On the Congo, however, it appears to be repre- sented by Ceryle sharpii. The food of this large Kingfisher consists of crabs, frogs, reptiles, and fish. Mr. Atmore writes:—“I once found one of these birds with his bill shattered, evidently from striking his prey in too shal- low water.” Adult male.-—Above slaty-black, darker on the head, which is crested ; most of the crest feathers with good sized white spots upon both webs, towards the nape some of the feathers in very old birds unspotted; back and scapularies clearer slaty-grey, a few shaft stripes very plainly developed, and all the feathers spotted with white, some of the spots being more longitudinal bars; the lesser wing-coverts slaty-grey with a heart-shaped spot of black in the centre of the feather; the rest of the wing coverts black, edged with slaty-grey and conspicuously spotted with white ; quills black- ish, the inner web white at the base and broadly edged with slaty- grey and spotted with white ; a small spot in front of the eye, throat and a line of feathers from the base of the lower mandible down the sides of the neck, pure white, the latter varied with longitudinal black marks; cheeks and a line of feathers below the last mentioned line of white and black feathers, black, the former narrowly, and the ISPIDINA NATALENSIS. 113 latter broadly varied with white ; lower part of the throat and chest rich rufous, the sides varied with slaty-grey, the feathers spotted with white; flanks white banded with slaty-grey; under wing and tail- coverts white with an occasional black spot ; centre of the abdomen and vent pure white ; bill black; feet dark olive brown; irides nearly black. ‘Total length, 14°8 inches; of bill from front, 3°5, from gape, 4:3; wing, 8:0; tail, 5-3; tarsus, 0°4; middle toe, 1:0; hind toe, 0:3. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but instead of the upper part of the chest being rufous, it is replaced by a broad slate-coloured band, each feather being banded with white; below this there is a white band, and the rest of the under surface of the body with the under wing and tail-coverts isrufous. Total length, 16°5 inches; of bill from front, 3°5; from gape, 4:5; wing, 8:0; tail, 4°75; tarsus, 0:4; middle toe, 1:0; hind toe, 0'3. Young female.—Similar to the adult female, but has the feathers of the band on the breast darker and edged with white the whole band tinged with rufous. Young male.—Similar to the young female, but has the abdomen and under wing and tail-coverts white. From an examination of several young males we are induced to believe that as the bird ad- yances in age the rufous colouring of the under wing-coverts becomes pure white as in the adult male; then the abdomen loses the rufous — colouring, the flanks and under tail-coverts becoming slaty-grey barred and spotted with white, the latter again in very old birds becoming pure white. At the same time the black feathers on the upper part of the breast disappear, being replaced by a rufous band. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 20, 107. IsPrpINA NATALENSIS. Natal Kingfisher. Haleyon cyanotis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 64. Alcedo natalensis, Layard, t. c. p. 66. Sir Andrew Smith, who first described this species, states that it ““imhabits the banks of rivers, &c., to the eastward of Cafferland.” The Leiden Museum also has it from Caffraria, but the greater num- ber of the specimens which we have seen have been from Natal, where, according to Captain Shelley, “it is rather more plentiful 1 114 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. than OC. cyanostigma, and occasionally met with in the woods away ; from water.’ Mr. Ayres also writes :—“'These birds feed entirely on butterflies and insects caught on the wing; they frequent the dense bush, and are often seen along the streams, but never catch fish.” Although not recorded by Dr. Kirk in his Essay on the — Birds of the Zambesi region, a specimen from that locality was in ~ the Editor’s collection, and it doubtless occurs there, as it has been found by Bianconi in Mozambique. Adult.—Crown of the head black, barred with rich ultramarine ; a line of feathers extending from the base of the nostrils backward over the eye, cheeks, sides and back of the head rich lilac rufous; a patch of feathers behind the ear rich ultramarine ; throat white; rest of the under surface of the body bright orange red; bill rich coral red ; feet red ; irides dark brown. ‘Total length, 4 inches; of bill from front, 0°9; from gape, 1:1; wing, 2°1; tail, 0-9; tarsus, 0:25 ; middle toe, 0°4; hind toe, 0°2. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 52. 108. Hatcyon sEMIC@RULEA. African white-headed Kingfisher. ; Haleyon Swainsonii, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 63. This species has the bill red, but may be told at once by its whitish head from the rest of its African congeners. Sir Andrew Smith stated that this Kingfisher was an inhabitant of the interior of South Africa, but there is every reason to believe that he described a West African skin. At all events no specimen of his collecting exists in any museum that we are aware of, and it remains to be rediscovered as an inhabitant of South Africa proper. Its only claim to a position in this book rests upon its occurrence in South Western Africa, a specimen having been obtained at Ondonga by the late Mr. Andersson, while Senor Anchieta has also procured it on the Cunene River and at Gambos in Mossamedes. Mr. Mon- teiro also collected a specimen in Benguela. Male.—Head and neck greyish white, purer on the latter, the head showing the shafts of the feathers rather strongly; back and scapulars and wing-coverts glossy black ; lower part of the back, rump and upper tail coverts rich glistening cobalt; primary coverts cobalt shaded with black ; quills black, the inner web white for more than half its length, the outer web, especially of the secondaries, broadly edged with brilliant cobalt, extending nearly the entire length of the -— pacheemmenenrnetnen i ee oe ee erm 5 oe A BR Rt Ee HALCYON ALBIVENTRIS. 115 latter, but confined to the base of the former, where it has a faint lilac tinge ; tail above brilliant cobalt, shading into black on the edge of the feathers, the underside deep black; cheeks, throat, and breast white ; rest of the body with the under wing and tail-coverts deep sienna; bill and feet sealing-wax red. Total length, 8:0 inches, of bill from front, 1°6 ; from gape, 1:95 ; wing, 43 ; tail, 1-4; tarsus, 0°45 ; middle toe, 0°7 ; hind toe, 0°3. Female.—Similar to the male, but the colours duller and the head more dusky, Young.—Similar to the adults, but the colours much more dingy, those parts being blackish-brown which in the adult are jet-black ; head uniform ashy; back of neck, cheeks and entire breast dirty white, thickly crossed with transverse brown vermiculations ; throat and abdomen white, flanks and under wing and tail-coverts tinged with sienna; the blue on the wings and back dull; bill dark red, black at the base. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 63. 109. Hatcyon aLBIvENTRIS. Brown-hooded Kingfisher. Haleyon fuscicapilla, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 63. Like the preceding bird this species has a red beak, blackish only at the tip, but may be further distinguished by its striped head and breast as well as by the black scapulars. Some specimens have the back brown, and we are not certain whether it is the young bird or the old female which exhibits this character. A pair of birds were collected in the Transvaal by Mr. Buckley and in this case the male had a black, and the female a brown back. This species is not found in the neighbourhood of Cape Town, but it is common on the Eastern frontier, and is plentiful both at Port Hlizabeth and Hast London, ac- cording to Mr. Rickard. Victorin procured it in the Karroo in Decem- ber and January, and again at the Knysna in April and December. Mr. H. Atmore has forwarded specimens from George, as also has his brother, Mr. T. C. Atmore, from Eland’s Post. Mr. Fellows noticed it at St. Lucia Bay, and Mr. Ayres has sent it from Natal, where, according to Captain Shelley, it is numerous about Durban and Pinetown. Mr. T. HE. Buckley found it breeding along the banks of Limpopo in November, and says that it was very common along the rivers north of Pretoria. In the Zambesi it seems to be replaced by the following species. I 2 . iy 116 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Mr. Atmore assures us that it is plentiful at Swellendam, and that — when he is digging in his garden, specimens may always be seen perched on the trees near him, from which they dart down on the worms, slugs, etc. which he turns up with his spade. Mr. Ayres writes :—“ These birds frequent the bush in Natal, generally perchmg on some dead or bare bough not far from the ground; they do not — take their prey on the wing, but take it from the ground. They have a loud chattering note, somewhat similar to the Laughing Jackass of South Australia, but do not laugh in the same ludicrous manner ; they have a dipping flight, seldom flying far at once.” Eggs sent by Mr. L. Layard and Mr. Harford were white but not so shiny as those of Ceryle rudis. Axis, 1:2, diam. 1:0. Adult.—Head dark brown, broadly striped with darker brown, becoming nearly black; scapularies and wing-coverts black ; lower part of the back and rump bright cobalt; quills brownish-black, the mner web pale orange at the base, the primaries at the base of, and the secondaries for the whole of the outer web, as well as the primary coverts, bright cobalt ; tail cobalt above, black beneath, the inner web of all but the two middle feathers more or less black at the edge; feathers from the base of the nostril extending backwards over the eye, cheeks and a collar round the neck pale yellowish- brown with distinct longitudinal bars; throat and abdomen white with faint lines marking the shaft of the feather; breast and flanks tinged with yellowish-brown and marked with very broad and dis- tinct longitudinal stripes ; under wing- and tail-coverts pale orange, lighter on the latter ; bill crimson, black towards the tip; eye dark brown ; feet dark red. Total length, 10 inches; of bill from front, 1:85; from gape, 2°3; wing, 4:2; tail, 2°7; tarsus, 0-5; middle toe, 0°6 ; hind toe, 0°3. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 65. 110. Hatcyon oRIENTALIS. Peters’ Kingfisher. This species is closely allied to Huleyon albiventris, and like it has a striped head, but is distinguished by its uniform whitish under- surface. } Although not included in Dr. Kirk’s Zambesi list, there is a specimen in Lord Walden’s collection from that locality, obtained, we believe, by the late Dr. Meller. It was originally discovered by Dr. Peters in Mozambique, and ranges as high as Mombas, where HALCYON CHELICUTENSIS. 117 Baron Von der Decken procured specimens. Curiously enough, it has recently been shot on the Loango Coast in Western Africa, by the German Exploring Expedition. Adult male.—Head light brown, striped with dark brown along the shaft of each feather ; rump and upper tail-coverts bright blue ; quills light brown, the inner web pale orange at the base, the outer web edged with bright blue, more especially on the secondaries ; tail greenish blue above, blackish beneath; a loral spot produced back- wards over the eye, sides of and a collar round the neck, and the entire under surface white, inclining to fulvous on the flanks, and purest on the throat and upper part of the breast; bill dusky-ver- milion ; feet orange. Total length, 8°5 inches; of bill from front, 165; from gape, 2°2; wing, 40; tail, 2°4; tarsus, 0°5; middle toe, 07; hind toe, 0°35. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 66. 111. Hatcyon cuexicurensis. Striped Kingfisher. Halycon striolata, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 64. This is a small species of the same peculiar African group as the two preceding ones. It has a red beak and a striped head, but it has the scapulars brown at all ages, and is further distinguished from them by its smaller size. This Kingfisher is found all over the von- tinent, but South African specimens are always larger than those from North Eastern or Western Africa: we do not, however, consider them specifically distinct. The late Mr. Jules Verreaux states that “it is everywhere common near Kurrichaine, Latakoo, and the Vaal River, and is also met with commonly in Natal.” If the species was plentiful in the latter country at the time of the writer’s sojourn in South Africa, it can- not be said to be so now, for Mr. Ayres has never met with it there, nor did it occur to Captain Shelley during his recent visit to the colony. Mr. Ayres has, however, procured it on the Limpopo, and Mr, T. E. Buckley shot a male bird in the Transvaal, in July, 1873. Tn the Zambesi region, Dr. Kirk informs us that it is widely distri- buted, being equally common on the sea coast among the mangroves, and near the rivers far in the interior as well as in the plains. Mr. Andersson writes :—‘‘ This Kingfisher is very sparingly met with in Damara Land and the parts adjacent to the northward ; it is partial - 118 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. to localities where the vegetation has been destroyed or partially in- jured by fire; and it selects, if possible, a low dry branch on an isolated tree, where it watches by the hour for its prey ; this, as far as I could ascertain, consists of insects, which it generally seizes on the wing. It utters loud, sharp, and shrill cries, and is always found singly or in pairs.”’ Senor Anchieta has procured this species at several of his collecting places in Mossamedes and Benguela, and it also extends into Angola. Dr. Kirk states that the food of this Kingfisher consists of insects. He also says that it is a sweet songster, both before and during the rains. Mr. Monteiro also refers to its note and observes as follows: —‘ All the birds belonging to this family that I have observed in Angola utter a very agreeable loud note or song, which produces a singular effect when, in going down a river in a canoe, in the breath- less mid-day sun, it is heard cool and clear, while all else is hushed and still in the glaring heat. They are found in the thick woods and bush in the vicinity of the rivers as much or more than on the very banks.” Adult.—Head brown, each feather longitudinally marked down the centre with a shaft-stripe of darker brown ; ear-coverts and back of the neck black; feathers in front of the eye at the base of the bill, cheeks and a collar round the back of the neck dirty white, marked with brown and slightly tinged with buff; upper portion of the back, scapulars and wing-coverts brown, the greater coverts narrowly edged with white, primary coverts dull green; quills dark brown, the inner web broadly white at the base, the outer web washed with dull green and narrowly edged with white towards the tip ; lower portion of the back, ramp and upper tail-coverts bright cobalt ; tail dull green above, greyish brown beneath; under sur- face of the body white, inclining to buff on the flanks and abdomen ; upper part of the breast and sides of the neck transversely crossed with narrow margins of brown, and each feather marked down the centre with a dark shaft-stripe; flanks longitudinally streaked with dark brown ; bill and feet red (Buckley). Mr. Andersson gives the following note on the soft parts:—‘The irides in this species are claret-coloured, the bill reddish-brown on the upper mandible, and — orange-red on the lower, the lores are dusky, the legs and toes yellowish.” Total length, 6-7 inches; culmen, 1°3; wing, 3°3; tail, 1:9; tarsus, 0-4, HALCYON SENEGALOIDES. 119 - Young.—Similar to the adult, but has the breast distinctly marked with transverse edging to the feathers. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 67. 112. Hatcyon sENEGALOIDES. Mangrove Kingfisher. The present bird, which is an inhabitant of Natal, belongs to a very different group of the genus Halcyon, and although it has a wholly red beak, which character allies it to H. albiventris, its affinities are nearer to H. senegalensis. It may be distinguished from the other red-beaked Kingfishers of South Africa by its uniform greyish breast, and ash-coloured head washed with blue. Sir Andrew Smith first discovered the species in Natal, where, he says, “like other members of the group, it resorts to thickets, and: feeds upon insects, especially crustacea and grylle.’ Mr. Ayres gives the following note on the species in the same country :— “These birds, as far as I know, are only found upon the mangroves which line the Bay: they feed principally on small crabs, though fish are some- times taken by them. They are generally seen singly or in pairs, and are only here in the winter months, leaving us on the approach of summer ; they are rather shy birds, and dive into the dense mangrove- bush when alarmed.” It has been procured as far west as the Buffalo River by Mr. Rickard. Head and nape cinereous, with a greenish blue lustre; back and scapularies thalassine-blue, very bright on the lower part of the back ; wing-coverts deep black ; wing feathers blackish, white at the base, the basal half of the outer web of the primaries, and nearly the whole of the outer web of the secondaries brilliant thalassine-blue ; tail above blue, beneath black; a stripe from the base of the beak ex- tending backwards over the eye, dusky cinereous : spot in front of the eye and ring of feathers round the eye black ; throat, abdomen, under wing and tail-coverts white, the latter washed with blue; cheeks, sides of the neck, breast and flanks cinereous with a greenish lustre and with transverse cinereous vermiculations ; bill coral red; feet dark reddish yellow ; eye dark brown. Total length, 9 inches ; of bill from front, 2; from gape, 2-4; wimg, 4°2; tail, 2°6; tarsus, 0°45; middle toe, 08; hind toe, 0°4. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 68, . OO a ead 5) i a ees ‘t,t > |? oe 120 BIRDS OF SOUTH APRICA: 113. Hancyon cyanoneuca. Angola Kingfisher. Halcyon senegalensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 62. This Kingfisher has the upper mandible red and the lower one black, and although very nearly related to the following bird, it may be distinguished by the blue wash on the head, which is thalassine- blue, and by the black streak through the eye produced to the upper part of the ear-coverts. From H. malimbica both this species and H. senegalensis may be recognized by their blue scapulars. ; In the colony it is scarce: Mr. Atmore procured a specimen at the Knysna in splendid plumage, and Dr. Exton found it in Mosilikatze’s country, while Mr. Ayres has collected it at the mouth of Monocust river in the north-east of Natal. Mr. T. E. Buckley obtained specimens on the Limpopo in November, 1873, and writes as follows :—‘ Very common during our journey down in the summer, but not seen in the winter. It is rather a shy bird, and continually utters a monotonous whistle. I did not meet withthis species except on the Limpopo, where these birds are most conspicuous objects when on the wing.” Specimens from the Zambesi are in Lord Walden’s collection. The following note on the species in South Western Africa is given by Mr. Andersson:—“This species is very abundant in Ondonga. It generally perches on or near the summit of lofty trees, from whence it sends forth a succession of rather pleasant thrilling or — whirring notes.” Senor Anchieta has also procured it on the River Cunene, and Mr. Monteiro in Benguela. Above beautiful thalassine-blue, showing a sea-green tint in some lights, especially bright on the rump and outer edge of the second- aries; a white stripe from the base of the nostrils extending back- wards over the eye; feathers at the base of the bill, encircling the eye and extending backwards over the ear-coverts deep black ; wing- coverts jet black, outer wing-coverts thalassine-blue ; quills black, the inner web white at the base ; tail thalassine-blue above, beneath black ; throat and under wing-coverts pure white; rest of the under surface of the body greyish white, with small transverse cinereous vermicula- tions, and washed in some lights with thalassine lustre ; upper man- dible vermilion, lower mandible black; feet black. Total length, 9 inches; of bill from front, 1:8; from gape, 2°3; wing, 4°4; tail, 2°5; tarsus, 0-4; middle toe, 0°7; hind toe, 0°35. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 69! — HALCYON MALIMBICA. 121 114. Hatcyon sENnGALENSIS. Senegal Kingfisher. A species with parti-coloured beak like the foregoing, from which it is separable by its plain ashy grey or brown head and by the absence of black behind theeye. Although most of the specimens of Halcyon which we have seen from South Africa have belonged to I. eyanoleuca, we have examined specimens of the true H. senegalensis from the River Quanza in Mr. Monteiro’s collection, and some un- doubted examples were forwarded from Katenbella in Benguela by Mr. Sala: this therefore warrants our including the species in the present work. No full description of the bird is necessary, as the above characters will serve to distinguish it. Total length, 8 inches ; bill, 1:9; wing,40. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced. pl. 70. 115. Hancyon marmeica. Ashy-fronted Kingfisher. Haleyon cinereifrons, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 64. This is altogether a larger species than the foregoing members of the genus Halcyon, and it may be distinguished at once by its black seapulars. Its occurrence in South Africa is at present not well authenticated. A specimen supposed to be from Natal exists in the Philadelphia Museum, and another was sold to the editor as from the Zambesi region. Its presence may be expected in South Western Africa, as Mr. Monteiro states that it is not uncommon in the thick woods near Bembe in the interior of Angola. Adult.—Entire head ashy-grey, becoming tinged with blue on the nape ; back, from the nape to the rump, rich cobalt; scapularies and wing-coverts jet-black ; quills black, the inner web white at the base, the basal half of the exterior web of the primaries, and nearly the entire outer web of the secondaries, brilliant cobalt; tail dark cobalt aboye, black beneath ; throat, and a narrow line over the eye, white ; space between the bill and the eye, feathers round the eye extending backwards over the ear-coverts, deep black ; cheeks, ear-coverts, sides of the neck and the breast, greenish cobalt ; abdomen and under tail-coverts, white ; flanks grey, with obscure vermiculations ; upper mandible vermilion, black at the base and towards the tip, lower mandible jet black ; feet red. Total length, 10 inches ; of bill from front, 2°3; from gape, 2°7; wing, 4°6; tail, 3:2; tarsus, 0°5; middle toe, 0°8 ; hind toe, 0°35. Fig. Sharpe, Monogr. Alced, pl. 72. See ee” ee 122 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA, Fam. BUCEROTIDZ. 116. Bucorax carer. South African Ground Hornbill. Professor Barboza du Bocage, following the idea of Professor Schlegel, has separated the Ground-Hornbill of South Africa from the other two species which inhabit Abyssinia and the west coast of the continent. In this he is apparently quite justified, the different shape of the casque being a good character. The “ Brom-vogel,” as it is called from the droning cry which it utters, is common on the Hastern frontier, where the birds associate in large flocks and devour vast quantities of grubs and locusts. The Fingoes seem to attach some superstitious veneration to them, and object to their being shot in the neighbourhood of their dwellings, lest they should lose their cattle by disease. We are indebted to several correspondents for notes upon this singular bird. From East London, Mr. T. C. Rickard writes :—‘ I had one alive for nearly two months; it ate rats, birds, snakes, rotten eggs, &c, also dry mealies; the latter did not digest. It tossed up its food, and caught it as it fell. They are said to breed in a hole ina ‘Krantz’ on the Buffalo River: my informant says that he has seen the eggs, which are large, and white. The Kaffirs have a super- stition that if one of these birds is killed, it will rain for a long time. I am told that in time of drought, it is their custom to take one alive, tie a stone to it, and then throw it into a ‘vley’; after this rain is supposed to follow. They avoid using the water in which this ceremony has been performed. When I had this one in my yard we were getting a good deal of rain, and I often heard the Kaffirs blame me for keeping the bird a prisoner. Kaflir name ‘ Insigees.’? ”’ ( Mr. H. Bowker writes :—“ There are many superstitions connected with the ‘ Brom-vogel’, the bird is held sacred by the Kaflirs, and is only killed in times of severe drought, when one is killed by order of the ‘rain doctor, and its body thrown into a pool ina river. The idea is, that the bird has so offensive a smell that it will ‘make the water sick,’ and that the only way of getting rid of this, is to wash it away to the sea, which can only be done by heavy rains, and flooding of the river. |The ground where they feed is considered good for cat- BUCORAX CAFER. 123 tle, and in settling in a new country, spots frequented by these birds are chosen by the wealthy people. Should the birds, however, by some chance fly over a cattle kraal, the kraal is moved to some other place. They are mostly found in groups of from 8 to 6, or 7, and build their nests in hollow trees, or in the hollow formed by three or four branches striking off, from the same spot; they roost in tall yellow wood trees, and commence calling about daylight. I never saw one eating carrion, as stated in your book, though I have frequently | seen them near the bones of dead cattle, picking up beetles and worms ; they will eat meat, mice, and small birds, and swallow them by throwing them suddenly up into the air, and letting them drop | down the throat in falling. I once had a tame one, and noticed this particularly. It is very weak on the wing, and when required by the ‘ doctor, the bird is caught by the men of a number of kraals turning out at the same time, and a particular bird is followed from one hill to another by those on the look out. After three or four flights it can be run down and caught by a good runner.” Mr. Ayres’ account of the species in Natal, though often referred to by other writers, is so excellent that no work treating of South African birds can omit it, and is therefore reproduced here inits entirety from the Ibis for 1861, (p. 133) :-{ In the stomach of the male were snakes, beetles, and other insects. These birds are gregarious and to be found here all the year round, but are not very plentiful, generally three or four, sometimes more, being found to- gether. They are very fond of hunting for their food on ground from which the grass has been burnt; with their strong bills they peck up the hard ground, and turn over lumps in search of insects, making the dust fly again ; haying found an insect or other food, they take it up, and giving their head a toss, the bill pointing upward, appear to let the food roll down their throat. They also kill large snakes|in the following manner, viz. :—On discovering a snake, three or four of the birds advance sideways towards it with their wings stretched out, and with their quills flap at and irritate the snake till he seizes them by the wing-feathers, when they immediately all close round and give him violent pecks with their long and sharp bills, quickly withdrawing again when the snake leaves his hold. This they repeat till the snake is dead. If the reptile advances on them they place both wings in front of them, completely covering their ) —— 124 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. heads and most vulnerable parts. Their call, which consists of but one note repeated, a deep and sonorous coo-coo, may be heard at a great distance; I have myself heard it, under favourable circumstances, at a distance of nearly two miles. ‘The call of the female is exactly the same coo-coo, only pitched one note higher than the male. The latter invariably calls first, the female immediately answering, and they continue this for perhaps five or ten minutes, every now and then, as they are feeding. Their flight is heavy, and when disturbed, although very shy, they seldom fly more than half a mile before they alight again. At a distance they would easily be mistaken for Turkeys, their body being deep and rather compressed, similarly to those birds, with the wings carried well on the back. ‘The little pouch on the throat they are able to fill with air at pleasure, the male bird sent by me to London doing this before he died. I think their principal range of country is on the coast, and from twenty to thirty miles inland. They roost on trees at night, but always feed on the ground.” In his essay on Transvaal ornithology the same gentleman con- tinues :—‘‘ There are two or three kinds of land-tortoise in the district of the river Limpopo which are eaten and much esteemed by the natives, and also fully appreciated by the large Hornbill, which attacks the tortoise and very neatly picks every atom of flesh from the unhappy reptile, eating also the legs and head and leaving the entire shell without damage. I could not at first imagine what it could be which thus destroyed the tortoises without injuring their shell ; but the Caffres assured me that it was the large Hornbill during the summer months, when the tortoises are out in numbers.” In the Zambesi region, Dr. Kirk says that it is “ widely spread, but nowhere plentiful, and difficult to obtain, being shy, feeding on the ground in the open plains or in a forest. Occurs singly, but more frequently in pairs or in flocks of five or six. A specimen is in Dr. Dickerson’s collection.” Mr. Andersson also found it common in Ondonga, but very wild, and he also observed it sparingly in the desert near the Okavango. He gives the following note on its habits :—“The ground seems to be the chief resort of these birds, and I have seen them running at a tremendous rate; but they also perch on trees when flushed. They utter at times an incessant kind of booming cry, which may EEE ILL LLL LEO LE AGE NE OO ETE LE ee ad BUCEROS BUCCINATOR. 125 be heard a long way off. They are generally seen in small flocks of from three to six individuals. “The Ovampos seem to have a superstition about this curious bird, which I cannot fathom. On asking Chijkongo, for instance, to get me the eggs, he said it was not to be done, as they were soft to the touch, and would fall in pieces on the least handling !’’ Senor Anchieta records it as plentiful at Humbe on the Cunene ’ River, where it is called ‘ Mucungungo’ by the natives. He has also sent it from Quillengues in Mossamedes. A very good account of the habits of the Ground Hornbill is given by Mr. Monteiro in his paper on the birds of Angola, (Ibis, 1862, p- 38.) This species is distinguished by its large size and compressed casque. Total length of wing about 19 inches. The colour is black all over, with the exception of the primaries, which are white. Mr. Ayres states that the iris is very light brown, the legs and the bill black, the bare skin of the neck and round the eye bright red; the female is said to have the bare parts blue. Senor Anchieta who has forwarded several specimens to the Lisbon Museum, gives the follow- ing account of the soft parts :—~ The region round the eye, the neck and pouch on the throat, are yellowish, more or less mixed with orange or red. One of the females has a large spot of blue-black on the gular pouch, and in two other birds of the same sex, there is plainly observable an elongated spot of dark blue on each side of the neck, below the angle of the lower mandible. The young bird has these parts of a yellowish red without any mixture of blue.” For figures of the heads of all the African Ground Hornbills see the paper by Professor Barbosa du Bocage (P. Z. 8. 1873, p. 698.) Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. pls. 230, 231, 232. 117. Buceros succrnator. Trumpeter Hornbill. By no means a common species in collections. Victorin met with it at the Knysna in June and July, and it has been forwarded to us by Mr. Henry Bowker, who procured it in the Transkei country. His sister, Mrs. Barber, informs me that it “is a very wild and shy bird, and difficult to shoot.” It has been procured in Natal by Mr. Gueinzius, and regarding its occurrence in the Zambesi, Dr. Kirk writes as follows :—“ Rather common both in the mountains and 2 126 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. plains, frequenting the forests, and living in small flocks. It returns every night to the same roosting-place, leaving in the day in search of fruits. It is very fond of a drupaceous species of Strychnos, (resembling the S. potatorwm of India,) the fruit of which is said to be poisonous to man. Its cry is loud and harsh.” Mr. D. G. Elliot who has given the best diagnoses of these large African Hornbills, characterizes the present species as follows :— “Crest slightly spotted ; secondaries black tipped with white; tail feathers, except the median ones, also white for about an inch and a half from the tip ; casque high and broadened on the ridge.” Total length, 25 inches; wing, 11°5; tail, 9°5 ; tarsus, 1°75. Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 284. 118. Bucrros cristratus. Crested Hornbill. This large species is an inhabitant of North Eastern Africa, and only claims a place in the present work from its occurrence in the Zambesi Region, where it was collected by Dr. Kirk during the Livingstone Expedition. We quote his account as follows:— ‘Native name, Kakomira, a local bird, not known to the natives from the interior ; frequent on the River Shiré. Year after year it returns to the same roosting-places, living in large flocks. During the breeding season, or after the rains have set in, these become scattered in the forest, where the natives say the female hatches the eggs in a hole under ground, in which she is plastered up by the male. The vessel being at anchor near one of the roosting-places, we had an opportunity of seeing their habits. Towards sunset, in the months of August and September, they come in from different quarters in pairs, the male always known by his large bill. On perching, they uttered a loud cry, heard far off, and hopped from one branch to another, always keeping in pairs. As night set in they became quiet, and roosted on the branches of the large trees. Early in the morning they were off again, an hour before sunrise, not to return until the evening. ‘The affection of these birds for one another seemed re- markable. On one occasion, as a large male passed suddenly, I fired and missed: but the bird fell from fear, and before it had fairly got on the wing again, was secured and taken to the ship. It began to get tame, and rather unwillingly took food; but the female came every morning, when the others had gone to the forest, and remained hovering about until 9 a.m., calling to its mate, which it saw on the e TOCKUS MELANOLEUCUS. tei deck, to follow; at last she went off, but came back in the evening to repeat the invitation. After five days the male became sulky, would eat nothing, and died. No injury was found, and, but for the female, there seemed no reason why it should not have lived.” The following characters are given by Mr. Elliot for the species: —Distinguished by its entirely black wings; tail black, except ex- treme base and an apical band, which are white; spotted crest and enormous casque. Total length, about 30 inches; wing, 14:5; tail, 11:6; tarsus, 2:2. Fig. Riippell, Atlas, taf. 1. 119. Tockus MELANOLEUCUS. Crowned Hornbill. Buceros melanoleucus. Layard, A. 8. Afr. p. 225. This Hornbill has a wide range, extending from the Knysna along the East Coast as far as Kisiludini, 5° south of the Line. How much farther it goes we do not know; but at this place we found it very abundant, flying in small flocks or families, and feeding on berries and fruits. At the Knysna, and in the Eastern province, it is also common. Mr. Atmore writes from Geneva-fontein, George, March 16th, 1869: —‘ My garden is now full of Hornbills, but as they eat nothing but locusts, I do not shoot them ; besides they are in bad plumage.” Mr. Ayres writes concerning it in Natal :—“TI shot this Hornbill whilst in the act of swallowing a large locust which it had taken from the bough of a low bush. This bird did not appear to throw the head back so much as I have noticed that some other species do. Its stomach was full of locusts and caterpillars. These Hornbills are generally found incompanies of from ten to twenty; they mostly frequent the coast districts, but occasionally during the winter months they wander more inland.” Dr. Kirk met with it in the River Shiré valley in open bush and low trees. Mr. Gurney states that a specimen was procured by Andersson in Ovampo Land, but no details as to its distribution in the Damara ‘country were given by that excellent collector. Mr. Chapman, how- ever, speaks of it as not very abundant there. Senor Anchieta has collected the species at Humbe on the Cunene River, where how- ever it was less common than J’. erythrorynchus. The same ornithologist has sent it from Catonda in Mossamedes, and from Biballa. The specimen from this former locality has been separated 128 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. by Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub as 7. pallidirostris,a species wecannot allow, for in the series sent by Mr. Sala from Galungo were examples with deep red and pale coloured bills, but belonging, as it seemed to ' us, to the true 7. melanoleucus. Whether this change in the colour — of this organ is due to age or season we do not know, but it was ; | probably one of the pale-billed birds which Mr. Andersson described as having the bill “ reddish-yellow.” He says that its food consists of lizards and beetles. : Le Vaillant states that the nest is made in a large hole in a tree; i and that the eggs, four in number, are white. | i Our friend Mrs. Barber thus writes of the singular habit which this bird exhibits, in common with other species of the genus, of blocking up the sitting female in her nest :—“ By the bye, do you know that our Hornbills build their nests of mud and sticks in old broken and hollow trees, or between the crowded stems of the tall Euphorbia in our forests; and while the process of incubation is going on the | male bird builds the female into the nest, closing up the entrance in such a manner that it is impossible for her to escape, leaving only a small hole for the purpose of feeding her during her long imprison- ment. I do not know how long she is kept in durance vile; but we have sometimes taken them out, and found them so cramped and weak that they were unable to fly. This peculiar habit may be a pre- cautionary measure to protect the female during the season of incuba- tion ; for it may be that during that time she is too weak and dull to fly away from any approaching danger. Depend upon it that it is not done in yain, and that there is a sufficient reason for this strange and curious habit. We self-willed and presumptuous human beings often act without reason or reflection; but the ‘birds of the air’ and the ‘lilies of the field’ are guided by a higher Power! And if we do not . : understand the wisdom of all their ways, it is because we have not studied them sufficiently.” Head grey, some of the feathers at the back rather elongated, and centred with white, giving the bird when in some positions the ap- pearance of having a white half circle at the back; back dark brown, each feather edged with lighter brown; wing-feathers very dark brown, edged with white ; tail same as wings, and broadly tipped with white, with the exception of the two centre feathers ; under side with the exception of the throat*and chin, dull white; bill large, slightly casqued, red, with a narrow yellow band along the base ; tats TOCKUS MONTEIRI. 129 eye-lashes very stiff and projecting; bill red; tarsi and feet black ; fris yellow. Total length, including bill, 22’; bill, 8’’; tail, 11’’; wing, 10” 6’. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. pls. 234, 2385. 120. ‘Tockus MONTEIRI. Monteiro’s Hornbill. This beautiful species was first discovered by the well-known naturalist, Mr. Joachim J. Monteiro, in Benguela, where he found it pretty abundant. Mr. Sala also shot a specimen at Katenbella on 31st December, 1869, but it does not appear to have been met with -by Senor Anchieta. Mr. Andersson’s account of the species is as follows :—“ This Hornbill is not very abundant in Damara Land; it is usually seen in pairs, but occasionally half a dozen individuals may be found in close proximity to one another. It is a shy and wary bird, and difficult to approach, except on hot days, when it appears to suffer a good deal from the heat. About 8 or9 o’clock in the morning it may often be observed quietly resting on the top of a tree ; and it will also perch in such situations at other times when alarmed, but takes its departure again on the least sign of danger. It seldom flies far at a time, but if closely pursued extends its flight each time it is dislodged, and thus soon distances its enemy. The flight of this and other Hornbills is not unlike that of a Woodpecker, dipping and rising alternately. The present species feeds on flowers, young shoots, berries, birds’ eggs, and insects; and, in fact, little comes amiss to it. J have found much gravel in its stomach, and have often flushed it from the ground, to which it resorts for the purpose of picking up sand as well as food.” Adult.—General colour above ashy brown; the lower back and rump darker and more blackish ; the wing-coverts spotted with white; these spots being relieved by a circular margin of black, the greater coverts broadly tipped with white; primary-coyerts and primaries black, the latter with two rows of spots, one at the tip of the outer web and the other at about one third of the distance from the base of the feather on the same web; innermost secondaries ashy-brown like the back, the others pure white, with a certain amount of black on the outer web of those nearest the primaries; four centre tail- _ feathers black, the rest of the feathers white, with a little black near the base of the outer web of the external rectrices; head and neck grey all round including the throat and the fore-neck, slightly spotted % K 130 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. on the sides of the head and face with clearer grey ; rest of under sur- face of body white, including the under wing- and tail-coverts; the inner lining of the quills black. Totallength, 23 inches; wing, 9°0; tail, 9°5; tarsus, 1°95. Mr. Andersson gives the accompanying note on the soft parts :— “The irides are nut-brown; the legs and toes brown horn-colour; the bill which is much longer, broader, and stronger in the male than in the female bird, is yellowish red, darkest towards the extremities of the mandibles, which are dark purple, that tint being also some- times apparent on other parts of the bill as well.” Fig. Hartlaub, P. Z. 8. 1865, pl. 5. 121. Tockus FLAVIROSTRIS. Yellow-billed Hornbill. Although specimens of this bird from South Africa were separated by Dr. Hartlaub under the title of 7’. elegans, we have been unable to find any difference between them and other examples from North Eastern Africa, and we believe that Dr Hartlaub now concurs in their specific identity. The Yellow-billed Hornbill, though not included in the first edition, occurs in Natal, as Captain Shelley, during his late visit to that colony, met with some very large flocks to the east of the Umgeni, but did not see it elsewhere. Mr. T. E. Buckley states that Hornbills were very common from the North of the Transvaal through the Bamangwato country, and a pair of the present species were collected by him in the Transvaal on the 7th July, 1873. Mr. Ayres also says that it is tolerably plentiful throughout the bush country of the Transvaal, being mostly found in small flocks. He states that it feeds principally on fruits. Mr. Andersson writes :—“ This species is the most common of the Horn- bills in the middle and southern parts of Damara Land. It is found — singly, or in pairs, and being a comparatively fearless bird, is easily — killed, especially during the heat of the day, when it invariably perches on or near the top of a lofty tree (where such are to be found,) and will remain for hours in this situation, keeping up, with short inter- missions, a kind of subdued chattering note of Toc Toe Tée Tocké — | Tocké Tocké Toc, in a tone not unlike the quick yelping of young — puppies, and accompanied at intervals by a flapping and raising of its wings and an alternate lowering and erecting of its head.” Anchieta | has procured it at Capangombe, and Mr. Monteiro met with it in~ Benguela. — at oe ee ee eee y TOCKUS ERYTHRORYNCHUS. 131 Adult.—Head grey, with a very broad white band extending over the eye from the lores and joining on the neck ; sides of face, throat and entire under parts white ; the ear-coverts slightly streaked with black, more distinctly on the fore-neck and chest, some of the feathers narrowly margined with greyish-black ; upper surface of the body blackish, the centre of the back white; all the wing-coverts spotted with white near the tip; quills black, glossed with green near the base of the primaries, which have each a white spot about the centre of their outer web, the outermost secondaries entirely white, marked with black near the base, the inner secondaries brown externally edged with white; four centre tail-feathers black, the rest black at base, white at tip, the white increasing in extent towards the outermost tail feather, where it occupies nearly two-thirds of its extent ; ‘Iris tawny-yellow, bare skin round the eye dark pink; bill bright yellow with brown margins” (Ayres) ; iris yellowish-white. (Buckley.) Mr, Andersson observes :—“ The irides are yellow; the legs and toes are very dark brown; the colour of the bill ap- _ proaches orange-yellow, with the exception of the edges, upper ridge and the tips of the mandibles, which are reddish-brown ; in the young bird the bill is sometimes very dark coloured.”: Total length about 16°5 inches; wing, 7°8; tail, 8:0; tarsus, 1°5. Fig. Hartlaub, P. Z. 8. 1865, pl. 4. 122. Tockus ERYTHRORYNCHUS. Red-billed Hornbill. Buceros erythrorhynchus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 227. Sundevall gives this species as an inhabitant of Kaffraria, but we haye not seen it ourselves from that locality, It was procured by Victorin at the Knysna in April. Mr. Buckley shot a female in the Matabili country on the 5th September, 1873, and Mr. Ayres has found it to be numerous about the River Limpopo. Dr. Kirk gives anote on the species in the Zambesi, where it is called by the natives ‘‘ Koppi :”—“In all open woodlands common, feeding on fruits and insects ; breeding in the hollows of trees during the season, the female being closed in during the time of incubation, when she moults her feathers, and is unable to fly.” Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—“ Common in Ondonga, at the Okavango River, and for some distance to the south of that stream ; and I have obtained specimens from Lake N’gami. I have also met with it in Damara Land proper, at Objimbinque and Schmelens Hope.” K 2 132 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Anchieta has forwarded specimens from the Cunene River (Humbe), where it is called Sunguiandondo, and he has also met with it at Huilla and Capangombe in Mossamedes. Of its habits, Mr. Andersson writes :—“ This Hornbill is frequently — seen searching for food upon the ground ; and the way in which it swallows some kinds of food is peculiar, raising its head and pitching the morsel into the air, receiving it again into its bill, and repeating the process several times, perhaps with the object of softening the food or reducing it to a pulp.” 1 Top of head grey; forehead, cheeks, a line half-way down tke middle of back, some spots upon the shoulders, some of the inner wing-feathers, more or less of the three outer tail-feathers, and all the under parts, white ; outer wing-feathers black, with some white markings; four inner tail-feathers and rump black ; iris light yellow; bill deep red, elongated, curved, sharply keeled above, not casqued, 3} inches long. Total length, 19’’; tail, 7”; wing, 7’’ 6'”’. Some specimens appear to have the cheeks grey. Mr. Gurney writes of a female from the Limpopo :—“ In the specimen sent the cheeks were dark bluish grey, not white, as described by Mr. Layard (B. 8S. Afr. p. 227.) I believe that both these variations of colour occur in South-African examples of this bird, but whether they are indicative of distinct races I am unable to say.” In a note to this species in Mr. Andersson’s work, Mr. Gurney further writes :—“ Two of these examples (a white cheeked bird from Objimbinque, and a grey cheeked one from Ovampo Land,) are preserved in the collection of Mr. R. B. Sharpe ; and as both of these were marked as males by Mr. Andersson (no doubt from dissection,) and as both of them from the character of their bills are evidently adult birds, it follows that the difference is not due either to age or to sex. Professor Sundevall, from his remarks at p. 130 of the ‘Ofversigt? for 1850, appears to consider the grey plumage of the cheeks to be especially characteris- tic of what he considers the Caffrarian race, for which he has pro= posed the specific name of ‘rufirostris’ On the other hand, Mr. Jules P. Verreaux informs us.that he considers that both birds are of one and the same species, and that the pure white on. the cheeks _ and the parts adjacent is a nuptial dress annually assumed and lost - by a double seasonal change.” Fig. Uevaill. Ois. d’Afr, pl. 238. - near Rustenburg. TOCKUS NASUTUS. 133 123. Tooxus NasuTus. African Grey Hornbill. Buceros pecilorhynchus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 226. Buceros nasutus, id. t. c. p. 227. This species does not appear to visit even the eastern districts of the colony, and in the western portions it has never yet been found. It has been stated by Dr. Hartlaub and Professor Schlegel to inhabit Caffraria, and a specimen is recorded in the Leiden Museum as having been procured by Wahlberg in the “ Makkalis Mountains.” Tn the Transvaal it is more frequent, and Mr. Ayres writes as fol- lows:—‘‘ This species is common along the Limpopo; and I have also received it from Megaliesberg, a range of wooded mountains about seven miles from Potchefstroom. Like T. flavirostris, this Hornbill is a great fruit-eater, lives in small companies and has a dipping flight. I was much surprised to find one of these birds, perched on the top of a small tree, singing very prettily with the voice of a Thrush. I could scarcely believe my ears, until I had watched the bird for a considerable time: at last he flew away, and the woods were silent.” Mr. F. Barratt has a specimen from Oliphants Nek, Mr. T. E. Buckley shot specimens in Bamangwato, and Dr. Exton observed the species at Kanye in the Matabili country. He says :— _ “They are generally found in the early morning feeding on the ground under trees. The stomachs of those I procured were filled with berries, seeds, and insects (sand-wasps).” Dr. Kirk mentions haying seen the species in the Shire Valley, but it appeared rather rare in the Zambesi. Mr. Andersson give the following account of it :-— This species does not occur in Great Namaqua Land, but is found in Southern Damara Land, where, however, it is far from common and excessively shy; in the northern parts of Damara Land it is less shy and very common ; and it is also to be met with in the Lake-regions. It is seen in small families rarely exceeding half a dozen individuals. It roosts on large trees if such be within reach, generally returning nightly toa fixed roosting-place ; it usually perches upon trees about halfway up, and, unlike 7. melanoleucus and T, flavirostris, rarely alights on the topmost boughs. In com- mon with the rest of the genus it appears to suffer very much from _ the heat during the most trying season of the year, when it may be found perched at noon in the shadiest part of the forest, gasping as 134 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. if for breath, and may then be approached and shot much more easily than at other times. When on the wing it occasionally utters short piercing cries. This Hornbill is almost omnivorous ; but its principal food consists of berries, young shoots, and insects.” Adult male.——Head and neck all round dark grey, with a tolerably broad white eyebrow produced to the nape, where the two join; rest of upper surface brown, mottled with white edgings to the feathers, especially down the centre of the mantle; the wing-coverts and secondaries brown, the primaries blacker, all broadly edged and tipped with buffy white ; tail black, broadly tipped with white, the two centre feathers more narrowly tipped and laterally rayed with brownish white ; under surface dull white, inclining to brown on the sides of the body and chest, the latter being narrowly striped with black shaft-lines; under wing-coverts ashy white, the quills dark brown below, inclining to white near the base of the inner web 3 bill black, with a white streak on the upper mandible; legs dark olive brown; iris dark hazel (Buckley). Total length, 19 inches; wing, 8°6; tail, 8:5; tarsus, 1°6. The female has the bill red, with a much larger yellowish patel on the upper mandible than in the male: the base of the lower mandible black. This sex has generally been separated as a distinct species, but independent observers in different parts of Africa have now determined that the sexes of this Hornbill differ in the colour of the bill. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. pls. 236, 237. Fam. UPUPIDZ. i 124. Upura AFRICANA. South African Hoopoe. * Upupa minor, Layard, B.S. Afr. p. 72. genus Upupa by its entirely black quills, not to mention its deep rufous coloration and the absence of white on the crest-feathers. Tt is not found to our knowledge within the Table Mountain |} peninsula: the nearest spot whence we have received it being Swel- ‘| lendam. At the latter place we saw them in considerable numbers, ~ UPUPA AFRICANA. 135 always feeding on the ground, into which they thrust their long bills in search of their insect food. Mr. L. Layard found several pairs at Grootevaders Bosch, breeding in the old Kraal walls: they made no nest, but just laid their eggs on the mud that had been used in cementing the stones in the rough wall: the eggs were very pale greenish blue, unequally smeared throughout with indistinct mark- ings of pale brown. It is certainly the “ill bird of the proverb” that fouls its own nest, for the filth is described to us as intolerable. It is very common in the Karroo towards Beaufort and Nel’s Poort, frequenting the thickets of mimosa trees which border all the rivers of that district. Its monotonous cry of ‘ hoop-poop ” resounds the entire day. It is shy and difficult of approach, search- ing for its insect prey about the rugged limbs of trees or crevices of rocks. Mr. Atmore writes :—‘‘ They are migratory ; we did not see them at Meiring’s Poort from February till June: they then came in, but were in bad plumage.” Mr. Rickard notices it from the neighbourhood of East London and Port Elizabeth ; and Mr. T. C. Atmore has sent several specimens from Hland’s Post. Mr. Ayres observes :—“ These birds are very scarce in Natal: when found they are generally solitary, and only very occasionally a pair are found together. I know little or nothing of their habits from personal observation : they often feed on the ground, and are very shy gene- rally.” During his journey to the Matabili country, Mr. T. EH. Buckley says it was common in the bush country north of Pre- toria, but he does not remember seeing it further than Bamangwato. He observes :—‘‘It is rather a shy bird, the note and the habits being the same as tlrose of U. epops.” In the Zambesi, writes Dr. Kirk, it is “‘ everywhere rather rare, but widely distributed ; found in the interior of the continent and near the coast. It is not injured by the natives, by some of whom it is named the ‘ Little Doctor,’ in connexion with some superstition.” The following account of the species is given by Mr. Andersson in his well-known work:—“This species is very abundant in Damara Land during the wet season, but gradually disappears with the return of the hot weather, though a few individuals remain through- out the year; it is also common at Lake N’gami. When it first arrives in Damara Land it is seen in straggling flocks, which soon, more or less, disperse ; yet a number of individuals are often found in close proximity, leading a person unacquainted with the habits of 136 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. the bird to believe that it is really gregarious; it is, however, most frequently found singly. This species, to some extent, seeks its food (which consists of insects) upon the ground ; but, like the Bee- eater, it will also watch for and pounce upon its prey from some commanding height. Besides frequenting the ground in search of food, it also loves to dust itself in the sand. When in a state of rest the crest of this bird is generally recumbent, but on the least excitement it is alternately elevated and depressed, not rapidly, but in a graceful manner, with deliberation and ease. In Damara Land the Hoopoe is not very difficult to approach within range ; yet there is some difficulty in obtaining specimens, as the bird, the moment it finds itself observed, flits about incessantly amongst the foliage, or is lost to view by gliding rapidly to the opposite side of a tree. Its flight is short, rising and dipping alternately.” Mr. Monteiro found the Hoopoe very plentiful in Benguela, and Senor Anchieta has forwarded specimens to the Lisbon Museum from Biballa in Mossamedes as well as from the Cunene River. Adult male.—General colour deep rufous above and below, the crest-feathers with broad tips of glossy black ; middle of back barred with black ; rump white ; upper tail-coverts black ; tail black, with a broad white bar across it at about a third of the distance from the base, extending higher up the outer feathers ; wings black, the least coverts rufous like the back, the greater coverts broadly barred with white, inclining to sandy rufous where they adjoin the scapulars, which are also barred with black and yufous; primaries entirely black, without any white spot at all; secondaries white, black ‘for the apical third with a subterminal white bar ; innermost seconda- ries black, rufescent at base and on the edge, and haying an oblique E broad bar of rufous extending up the feather; entire under surface of body rufous, the under tail-coverts slightly inclining to white; — “bill dusky, pale at base; tarsi and feet dusky brown; iris dusky = brown” (Ayres) : legs greenish black (Buckley). Total length, 9°8 inches ; culmen, 2:1; wing, 5:1; tail, 4:0 ; tarsus, 0-8. Female.—Differs from the male in being paler, and in having the — flanks broadly streaked with black. Total length, 9 inches; wing, ; 4 5:2; tail, 4-0; tarsus, 0°65. : Fig. Vieill. Ois. Dor. pl. 2. IRRISOR ERYTHRORHYNCHUS. 137 125. IrrisoR ERYTHRORHYNCHUS. Red-billed Wood-Hoopoe. This bird inhabits the forests of the Knysna, in which locality it was noticed by Victorin from July to November. It was found by Mr. Atmore on the head waters of the Gamtoos River in mimosa thickets, and it is abundant in the forest-clad eastern districts, being common at Port Elizabeth and Hast London, according to Mr. Rickard. Numerous specimens were forwarded to us from Eland’s Post by Mr. Atmore, who records it as plentiful in that locality. It is generally seen in small flocks of from six to eight individuals, frequenting high trees, about the topmost branches of which it hunts unceasingly for insects. Its voice is harsh and resounding, and has acquired for it the name of “ Kackela”? among the Dutch, which signifies the “ chatterer.” It is a difficult bird to shoot, being very shy and wary, and for ever whisking round on its perch, taking special care, however, of its long tail, by lifting it over the branches: its motions at these times reminded us very much of the habits of the Pheasant-Cuckoos (Centropus). We never saw or heard of one of these birds being observed on the ground. The residents'in the Knysna district informed us that they bred in hollow trees, and that their eggs were pure white and round. Mr. Ortlepp confirms this, and states that their nests have the same offensive smell as those of the Hoopoes. In Natal, Captain Shelley says it is migratory, but appears to be tolerably common about Durban some years. Mr. Ayres writes respecting its habits in the same country :—“ The food of these birds consists almost entirely of a species of cockroach, which they take from the crevices of rough-barked trees, and in search of which they ereep about the trunk and branches somewhat similarly to the Woodpeckers: in this manner their tail-feathers frequently become much worn. From four to eight of these birds are generally toge- ther, and frequent bushy country: they have a loud chattering note, and are extremely restless in their habits: they have a peculiarly powerful and disagreeable smell.” We have seen a specimen in Mr. F. Barratt’s collection, which he shot at Oliphants Nek on the Megalies Mountains. In the Zambesi country, writes Dr. Kirk, “ it is more local than I. cyanomelas, which it resembles in habits: near the head of the Lower Shire Valley we found it particularly abun- dant.” Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—‘‘ This species is not i= 188 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. uncommon in Damara Land, and the parts adjacent to the north and east, extending to Lake N’gami.” It lives in small flocks, probably consisting of entire families, which frequent trees, chiefly of the larger kinds, and examine them most assiduously in search of insects and their larve, which they extract from crevices in the wood and from beneath the bark. These birds climb like Wood- peckers ; and their long tails come into constant contact with the rough surface of the trees, by which the tail-feathers are much injured. When they have finished their examination of one tree— they move to the next convenient one, but not altogether, as a short interval generally elapses after the departure of each individual. The moment flight is decided on, they utter harsh discordant cries or chatterings, which are continued until they are all safely lodged in their new quarters. These harsh notes are also heard when they conceive themselves in danger from either man, beast, or bird; and they thus often betray their presence.” Senor Anchieta has forwarded this species from the Cunene River as well as from Huilla, Quillengues, and Capangombe in Mossamedes. Mr. Sala has also procured it on the Rio Dande in Angola, and it is found both in Western and North Eastern Africa. General colour black, glossed with green on the head, back, and under parts, and blue on the throat, purple on the wings and tail, and bronzed on the shoulders; tail lengthened and graduated; all — the feathers, except the two centre ones, spotted with white near the tips ; wings barred with white ; belly and vent dull black ; bill more or less curved, bright coral-red, as are also the legs; iris very dark brown. The bill differs in length and curvature with age and sex. Length to base of tail, 7 inches ; wing, 7°0; tail, 10-0. Fig. Levaill. Promer, pls. 1-3. 126. RuropomasTes cyANoMELAS. Scimitar-billed Wood-Hoopoe. The present bird is not found within the Colony, but it was brought from Kuruman by Mr. R. Moffat, and from Colesberg by Mr. Ortlepp, who writes :—“ They are found in pairs or small flocks in wooded places. They float gracefully with expanded tail and wings from bush to bush in search of their insect prey. Should a small grasshopper be espied on the ground they descend rapidly, secure it, and fly up to the nearest bush to devour it.” Mr. T. C. Atmore procured it in Griqua-land in April, 1871. Mr. Ayres RHINOPOMASTES CYANOMELAS. 139 observes :—‘‘ These Hoopoes are very scarce in Natal, mostly fre- quenting the inland thorn-bushes, though occasionally found near the coast. They are always found either singly or in pairs, not in families like I. erythrorhynchus, and may be seen creeping about the thorn-trees, picking beetles and other insects from the crevices of the rough bark. The hen bird sent by me to London was busily engaged upon a swarm of white ants, which had worked their way up on the surface of a tree.” Mr. F. A. Barratt has a specimen from the Marico district. Dr. Exton met with the species at Kanye, and Mr. T. E. Buckley says it was fairly common through the Bamangwato and Matabili countries ; Dr. Kirk also gives a note on its occurrence in the Zambesi :—“ A noisy chattering bird, found in bush-country and forest, commonly near rivers. In its flight it is peculiar, rising suddenly, and again descending more slowly while it flies along. Occurs in flocks of about twelve, which, on settling in a bush, run quickly up the branches and round the stem in search of insects.” Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—“ This species is sparingly found throughout Damara and Great Namaqua Land, but more rarely in the latter than in the former country; it is also met with on the Okavango and Teoughe Rivers and about Lake N’gami. It partakes much of the habits of the true Creepers, attaching itself to trees and examining them in a similar manner, but sometimes with this difference, that, after settling on a tree or stump (which it gene- rally does about half-way up), it carefully examines it in a downward direction, and with its head downwards, thus seeking for its usual food, which consists of ants and other insects with their larve ; having reached the base of the tree or stump, it moves onwards to another, in a similar manner to that adopted by the preceding species. These birds are usually observed in pairs ; but occasionally a solitary individual may be seen perched on the topmost bough of a lofty tree, uttering peculiar and plaintive notes.” According to Mr. Monteiro it is not uncommon in Benguela. Senor Anchieta has forwarded it from the Cunene River and from Capangombe in Mossamedes. Adult male—Above dull glossy violet with slight steel-blue reflexions, the forehead inclining to green, the upper tail-coverts also slightly greenish; wing-coverts violet, with very little steel-blue, the inner primary-coverts pure white, forming an alar spot; quills 140 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. green with a steel-blue reflexion externally, the secondaries shaded with violet on the outer web, more so than the primaries, all of which have the terminal third of the feather whitey-brown, and have a distinct white bar across the inner web of all the feathers, the fourth to the seventh primary having a white spot on the outer web also; tail violet, more or less inclining to steel-blue near the base, the outer feather with a white bar near the tip; ear-coverts oil- green; rest of under surface shining oily-green, blacker on the abdomen, the throat and fore-neck slightly washed with steel-blue ; under wing-coverts black, the edge of the wing greenish; “ bill dark brown, yellowish towards gape; legs and feet dusky black, with a brownish tint on the tarsi anteriorly and with the soles of the feet olive ; iris very dark brown” (Andersson). Total length, 10°8 inches; culmen, 1°95; wing, 4°25; tail, 5.8; tarsus, 0°85. Adult female.—Very similar to the male above, but is rusty brown below and on the.sides of the face and of the neck: three outer tail-feathers spotted with white. Total length, 10 inches ; culmen, 1°6 ; wing, 4°0; tail, 5-5; tarsus, 0°8. Young birds are brown below like the old females. Itis to be noted that the light endings to the primaries seem to disappear with age, so as to become wholly black, and the white spot on the first primary also becomes absorbed. Fig. Jardine, Zool. Journ. iv. pl. 1. 127. Scorrerus ATERRIMUS. Straight-billed Wood-Hoopoe. The authority for the occurrence of this northern species in South Africa is the ‘ Vogel Ostafrika’s’ of Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub, where a young specimen is said to have been examined from Damara Land. The Kuruman birds identified as R. cyanomelas by the author are also said to belong to I. aterrimus. We cannot but think that the doctors are in error with regard to the first, as they certainly are with the last occurrence, for the birds sent from Kuruman by Mr. Moffat were the true R. cyanomelas : all the Damara skins examined by us, including a good series in the British Museum, also belong to that species. Although we are thus unable to include the present bird as undoubtedly South African, we give a description of it taken from an Abyssinian skin, to assist in its future identification. [Cf. Gurney in Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p. 68.] Adult male-—Above violet, inclining to steel-blue on the head and more especially on the wings, the innermost secondaries being CORYTHAIX MUSOPHAGA. 141 violet and inclining to purple or steel-blue towards the middle ; eight primaries barred with white, extending across the outer web on all excepting the three outermost, on which it is confined to the inner web only ; inner primary coyerts pure white, forming a dis- tinct alar spot; tail-feathers steel-blue, more or less inclining to violet at the tips and on the margins, all of them waved under certain lights ; ear-coverts dull greenish black; rest of the under surface black glossed with violet, especially on the throat, which has also a steel-blue lustre; bill and feet blackish; iris dusky. Total length, 9°8 inches ; culmen, 1°2 ; wing, 4°05 ; tail, 5:3 ; tarsus, 0.7. Fam. MUSOPHAGIDA. 128. CorYTHAIX MUSOPHAGA. White-crested Plantain-Hater. Turacus persa, Layard, B.S. Afr. p. 223. This species is truly South African and is not found out of our limits: it is very common in the forest districts, especially about the Knysna, where it was procured by Victorin from March to July and again in October and November. Mr. Rickard records it from East London, and Mr. T. C. Atmore forwarded many examples from Hland’s Post. It ranges as high as Natal, whence we have seen _ several specimens. Captain Shelley writes, “A pair of these birds flew across my path while in the thick wood about twelve miles east of the Umgeni, when I procured one.” Mr. F. A. Barratt has shot specimens in the Lydenburg district, at the foot of the western slope of the Drakensberg. This Plantain-eater feeds on fruits and frequents the highest trees, rarely if ever descending to the ground, over which it can, however, travel with great rapidity if brought down by a shot. The motions of this species are very graceful and light, and performed with an ease and rapidity that delight the eye of the beholder. Strange to say, though we inquired carefully, we never could obtain any information respecting the nidification of this beautiful and common bird. Mr. Atmore, however, states that the eggs are white; but this must be from hearsay, as he writes: “ How difficult it is to find these forest birds’ nests. The Lories are breeding now: but for the life of me I cannot find a nest. The young ones go in troops, and are delicious eating : the old ones in pairs. We never shoot specimens out of a troop, except for the pot.” An old forester told him that the eggs were 142 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. ’ white, both the latter and the nests being like those of Pigeons. Mr. if Rickard says: “I once found an egg ina bird I shot at Hast London (Jan. 27th) : it was pure white, and the size of a tame Pigeon’s.” Mr. Bowker writes: ‘‘ I once found a Louri’s nest : it was just like a dove’s, built of sticks laid horizontally, and about the size of a large dinner plate, placed about ten feet from the ground in the centre of a round bush. The old bird flew out as I walked up ; I found five young birds in the nest; they were almost full grown, but their tails rather short and stumpy, crest just showing, but I cannot remember whether the red on the wing was showing or not. On my getting up to the nest they all flew out, and were killed by my dogs before I could come to the rescue. The bush was twenty or thirty yards from the edge of a large forest, and I was rather surprised to find this nest, as I had been told they built in hollow trees.” General colour, green, iridescent, with steel-blue on the wings and tail, and approaching to dull black, or rifle-green, on the thigh and vent; head much crested, each feather being tipped with white ; two white lines also extend from the corner of the bill, and passing on each side of the eye, reunite behind it. The wings when expanded display the most brilliant carmine, glossed with purple; bill orange- brown; legs black; iris brown. Length, 19 inches; wing, 1°5; tail, 9°9; tarsus, 1:9. Fig. Schlegel and Westerm. Toerak. pl. 11. 129. CoryTHaiIx PoRPHYREOLOPHA. Purple-crested Plantain-Eater. Turacus porphyreolophus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 224. This very beautiful bird has been found at the Knysna; but is there extremely scarce. It increases in numbers as the collector travels eastward, until at Natal, as we are informed, it is not un- common. Dr. Smith states that it inhabits thickets near the coast, feeding upon fruits, &c. The following note is extracted from Captain Shelley’s paper on the birds observed by him in South Africa :—‘ This handsome species is fairly plentiful about Durban, especially in the less frequented woods to the east of the Umgeni and at Pinetown, where its loud rough notes, somewhat resembling the word ‘ Tourakoo,’ repeated successively several times, may be frequently heard in the morning and evening. It resorts mostly to the larger trees, where I Te CORYTHAIX LIVINGSTONII. 143 have frequently watched three or four playing together, hopping from bough to bough, depressing and expanding their tails, and at intervals displaying the rich crimson on their wings. There are few more striking birds than the present one and some of the allied species as they fly gracefully across the path in front, or are watched during their quaint but pleasing gambols.” In the Zambesi regions, writes Dr. Kirk,—* this was the common species of the plains, but was not noticed high up in the mountains. They are found in pairs and in small flocks.” General colour, dark, iridescent green, with steel-blue reflections on the back, wings, and tail; head slightly crested, shining green and blue; under parts a dull green, with a reddish tinge on the breast; wings, when expanded, display the same brilliant carmine, glossed with purple, as seen in 0, musophaga; bill and legs black ; eyelids scarlet ; iris dark brown. Totallength, 17 inches ; wing, 7:0; tail, 8:0; tarsus, 1°6. Fig. Schlegel and Westerm. Toerak. pl. 3. 130. CoryYTHAIx LIVINGsToNI. Livingstone’s Plantain-Hater. This beautiful species was first discovered by the Zambesi Exploring Expedition. Dr. Kirk writes as follows: “ It is peculiar to the mountains south of Lake Nyanza, where it was seen by Dr. Livingstone and myself in 1859, when passing to Lake Shirwa. On that occasion we noticed it in the ravine at the foot of the hills within a few miles of the river, but on no subsequent occasion was it seen so lowdown. Itismost common near a hill called Sochi, and in the wooded river-banks of the region near the late Bishop Mackenzie’s mission-station.”” It likewise occurs in South Western Africa, where Monteiro discovered it in Benguela. He gives the following note concerning it: ‘ They are sometimes brought to Benguela for sale by the negroes from Bibé. Appears to be much rarer than the CU. erythrolopha. I have seen both pretty abundantly to the interior of Novo Redondo.” Senor Anchieta has also met with it in the same country, and at Capangombe and Biballa in Mossamedes. General colour, above green, with edgings of metallic darker green to most of the feathers, especially the wing-coverts; innermost secondaries green like the back, the primaries deep crimson, exter- 144 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. nally bordered with black, the outer secondaries green at base, red at tip; tail-feathers metallic green with somewhat of a steel-blue re- flexion ; head, neck and under surface of body rather lighter green, the abdomen, flanks and under tail-coverts dusky blackish; the head ornamented with a beautiful crest of white-tipped feathers, all the plumes of the nape also profusely tipped with white ; a loral spot and a streak under the eye, white; bill yellow, inclining to red on the culmen; feet blackish. Total length, 15 inches; wing, 7°4; tail, 8:0 ; tarsus, 1°85. Fig. Finsch and Hartl. Vog. Ostafr. taf. 1. 131. CoryTHAIX ERYTHROLOPHA. Red-crested Plantain-Hater. As will be seen in Mr. Monteiro’s observations on the preceding species, he notices the present bird as having been found near Noyo Redondo. It is often seen in collections from Angola, but has appa- rently not been yet procured by Anchieta south of the River Quanza. Adult.—General colour above grass-green, many of the feathers with a coppery lustre; back, rump and upper tail coverts deeper green, slightly shot with steel-blue, the tail also deep green; wings coloured like the back, the primaries deep crimson, edged and tipped with black, the outer secondaries green at base, the innermost entirely green ; head and nape dull crimson, the crest feathers tipped with white ; forehead washed with olive-green; sides of face, neck and under surface of body bright grass green; the abdomen, thighs and under tail-coverts ashy-black; undér wing-coverts dull ashy- brown, slightly washed with green; bill yellowish; feet black. Total length, 12 inches ; wing, 6°8; tail, 50; tarsus, 1°45. Fig. Schl. and Westerm. Toerak. pl. 6. 132. ScHiz@RHIs CONCOLOR. Grey Plantain-Eater. Sir Andrew Smith gives a good account of the habits of this species, which was originally described by him. He says :—“ It was upon reaching 25° 24’ south latitude, a point where the rivers began to flow to the eastward, and the country to acquire a partial clothing of dwarf trees and brushwood, that this species was first discovered.” Dr. Exton found it abundantly in Mosilikatze’s country, and Mr. JT’. E. Buckley says that it is ‘‘a very common species throughout the Transvaal and up to the Matabili country. They go about in age SCHIZORIS CONCOLOR. 145 small flocks; and their peculiar cry, something like the mewing of a cat, often betrays their presence. They often raise and lower the crest, and are not very easy to see by reason of their colour.” In the Zambesi it is, according to Dr. Kirk, “rather a common bird in wooded country at the foot of mountains; named by the natives, from its cry, ‘ Kwe-kwe,’ which it utters while perched on the top of some of the higher trees.” Mr. Andersson gives the following account of the species :—“ This is one of the commonest birds in Damara Land; and it is also found abundantly in the Lake-regions and at the River Okavango. It is partial to localities abounding in large trees ; and when prominently perched, with crest erect, it is not unlike a gigantic Coly ; it also climbs and flies like the Colies, which it strongly resembles in its general habits. It is usually found in small flocks and feeds on berries and seeds, especially that of a mistletoe and of other parasitical plants, and also on fruits, young shoots and insects. The Damaras call this species ‘ Ongoro-oroquena,’ from the extraordinary and almost human ery with which it frequently startles the traveller who is passing near its perch. It is sometimes very easy to approach these birds, whilst at other times they are so shy that they will.defy the utmost exertions which may be made to obtain them. On January 5th, 1867, I obtained three eggs of this species, of a dull bluish-white colour, at Omapju, from a boy, who told me that the nest which con- tained them was composed of sticks roughly put together, and situated in a tree at some distance from the ground; and, on March 1st, I met with a nest in Ondonga placed in a tree, but at no great elevation, which also contained three eggs, but much incubated.” According to Mr. Monteiro, the bird is also very abundant at Benguela and Mossamedes, and it has been procured by Anchieta in both these districts, particularly on the Rio Chimba and at Huilla in the latter country: at the last named place it is called ‘ Quele’ from its cry. It extends its range into Angola proper, whence specimens exist in the Lisbon Museum, and whence we have seen examples shot by Heer Sala at Galungo. The following letter was addressed to the author by Dr. Exton :— “T beg leave to call your attention to a question raised by Mr. P. L. Sclater, of the Zoological Society of London, relative to the crest of Schizorhis. In a paper by Mr. Sclater, in No. 1, of the L 146 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. second volume of the ‘Student and Intellectual Observer,’ on ‘Turacoes and their distribution,’ there occurs the following passage ; ‘ Although some of these birds—the false Twracoes (Schizorhis)—are provided with a crest, I dowbt whether that organ is ever erected and depressed after the manner of the true Turacoes.’? With regard to S. concolor, I have had frequent opportunity of noticing the elevation and depression of the crest as one of the most common habits of the bird. In travelling through the Bechuana country one often comes upon a party of five or six of these birds, hiding from the mid-day heats under the sheltered portions of denser foliage near the centre of a large tree. Whilst yet undisturbed, the crest’ lies flat on the head, and can only be seen as a tuft projecting from the occiput. But their first act on becoming aware of an intruder, is to run along the branches, either to the summit of the tree or to the extremity of a branch commanding a good look-out, where, with crest fully erected and well thrown forward, they keep up a constant reiteration of their note. If but little alarmed they move rapidly from branch to branch, frequently jerking up the crest,and assuming —__ an attitude of attention. Again, after flight from one tree to another, on alighting they first rest on a branch, with the body somewhat horizontal, and the tail drawn nearly to the perpendicular, as if assuring themselves of their equilibrium, and then raising the body, elongating their neck and at the same time elevating the crest, they seem to take an observation as to the security of their new position. So much is this a habit of the bird, that during the conversational difficulties of my earlier intercourse with the Bechuanas, when in- quiring for the nest of Schizorhis (the native name of which is ‘ Ma-quaai,’) as soon it dawned upon the mind of a native what bird I _ meant, he has imitated its note, accompanied by a sudden jerking up — of the hand, with his fingers extended to their utmost, as if at the same time to mimic the elevation of the crest. In the same paper © Mr. Sclater mentions that ‘ Mr. J. J. Monteiro, speaking of the grey False Turaco (S. concolor), as observed in Benguela, expressly states — that the crest feathers are always carried erect.’ In my own ex- perience, the observation of Schizorhis was an every-day occurrence ; and, as I have stated, when undisturbed (also when in flight), very little of the crest is to be seen; but it is invariably carried erect on — the least alarm. I may here mention a peculiar scream of S. concolor. I was one day walking along a low ridge of rocks, from which I CUCULUS CANORUS. 147 flushed an Owl, the common Bubo maculosus, that flew to some distance to a clump of trees. Presently I heard an agonized scream, such as is made by a young antelope when just seized by a dog; and so exact a repetition of the sound was it, that even my dogs were deceived by it, and rushed off in the direction whence it came. I also sent off a Kafir boy, and presently followed myself, when I dis- covered it was the frightful scream of Schizorhis, of which a party were collected around the Owl I had previously disturbed, and whoso presence appeared to be the exciting cause. At a later period I had a second opportunity of verifying this observation.” Forehead with a long crest, which, with the entire plumage, is greyish ; quill-feathers dark-brownish; tail very long, hoary grey, with a deep greenish gloss, particularly towards the tip ; legs purplish black; iris brown. Length, 19 inches; tail, 10; tarsus, 1:4; wing, 9. Fig. Schl. and Westerm. Monogr. Toerak, pl. 13. Fam. CUCULIDA. 133. CucuLUS CANORUS. European Cuckoo. The European Cuckoo visits Africa during the northern winter, but, as it has been more than once confounded with the ordinary Cuckoo of the Cape (0. gularis), we have not at present any specific details as to its range in the colony. It may be distinguished from the last named bird by having the upper mandible black as well as the nostrils, and by not having bars across the tip of the outer tail- feather. Mr. Ayres has shot it in Natal, but considers it very raro there. Our friend Mr. F. A. Barratt, has also killed it at a farm about sixteen miles north-east of Bloemfontein: elsewhere in South Africa it has not been recorded, but Mr. Andersson says it is occasionally observed in Damara Land. Specimens were in his last collection also from Ondonga, and Senor Anchieta has likewise pro- cured it at Biballa in Mossamedes. Adult Male.—Ahbove ashy grey, much darker on the back, where it is glossed slightly with greenish; the head, rump, and upper tail- coverts much paler grey ; wing-coverts dark grey, with scarcely any Lt 2 134, CucuLus GuLaRIs. South African Cuckoo. we 148 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. greenish gloss; quills brownish, the secondaries slightly glossed with | greenish in some lights, the inner web broadly and numerously barred with white, these white bars, however, not occupying more than two-thirds of the quill; tail blackish, tipped with white, the centre feathers showing an indication of atiny white spot along the shaft, a little plainer on the three outer ones, becoming larger towards the outermost, the four external feathers also minutely spotted with white on the inner web, these also increasing in size towards the outer feather, at the base of which they form irregular bars: sides of the face, entire throat, and fore neck pale blue-grey; rest of the under surface of the body white, transversely barred with rather narrow. lines of greyish black; vent and under tail-coverts whiter, indistinctly barred with blackish, the bars on the longer tail- coverts broader, but further apart ; under wing-coverts white, shading into greyish on the edge of the wing and lower coyerts; bill horn- black, with a little yellow at the gape and on the base of the lower mandible ; feet yellow, nails brownish ; iris and eyelid yellow. Total length, 13 inches; culmen, 1:15; wing, 8°8; tail, 7°5; tarsus, 0°9. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. v. pls. 202, 203. As mentioned on the preceding page the white bars on the outer tail-feather distinguish this Cuckoo, which is otherwise a close ally of CO. canorus; its yellow nostrils are also a good character. Itis rare near the sea-coast, but becomes more plentiful towards the interior — of South Africa. Le Vaillant records it from Caffraria. During his recent excursion to the Matabili country, Mr. T. E. Buckley only observed it once, on the River Meathly in Bamangwato, on the 24th of October, 1873, when he thinks it was on migration. He adds:— “Tt is shy and restless, continually flying from one tree to another, generally in the same line of flight. It flies like our common Cuckoo, but more deliberately ; its note, too, in the same manner, is more slowly uttered, the first syllable not being in such a high key.” i Mr. Andersson writes :—‘‘ This Cuckoo is pretty common in the _ rainy season throughout Damara Land, and in some parts of crt : Namaqua Land. Its flight is very rapid and zig-zag; but it does _ not move far at a time, usually taking refuge, after being disturbed, : I CUCULUS SOLITARIUS. 149 in the nearest convenient tree.” He also procured a specimen in Ondonga, and Anchieta has met with it at Humbe on the Cunene River. Adult male.—Above bluish grey, rather glossed with brownish on | the head and back, and decidedly clearer grey on the rump and ‘upper tail-coverts, the lateral feathers of the last-named being | transversely spotted and barred with white ; wing-coverts dark < greyish-brown, primary coverts and quills rather darker, especially ___ the secondaries, which are glossed with greyish, the inner webs very distinctly barred with white; tail ashy grey, the outer feathers . browner and all tipped with white, before which a distinct blackish __ bar crosses the end of the tail, this bemg much more distinct when viewed from underneath ; the centre feathers marked with longi- tudinal drops of white along the shaft, these increasing in extent towards the outer feathers, which are also notched or spotted with white on the inner web, until on the last they form more or i less perfect bars across the feather; sides of the face and entire _ throat bluish grey, rather lighter on the lores and fore part of the cheeks, the fore neck tinted with pale russet; remainder of under surface creamy white, transversely barred with greyish brown, these bars becoming more zig-zag in shape on the under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts white, with irregular cross markings of grey ; axillary plumes white, barred like the breast; bill yellow on the lower mandible and on the base of the upper one, including the _ nostrils, becoming blackish on the edge of the culmen and the tip of both mandibles; feet yellow. Total length, 12 inches; culmen, 1:0; wing, 8°5; tail, 6°5; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. v. pls. 200, 201. 135. -CucuLus sOLITARIUS. Red-chested Cuckoo. This Cuckoo, known among the colonists by the name of “ Pietinijn- vrouw,” from its call resembling these words, is a periodical visitant over the whole colony, extending even as far as the Cape peninsula. Mr. Atmore informs us that in 1870, the first specimen of this Cuckoo was observed at George, on the 13th September; in our experience they generally made their appearance near Cape Town from November up to Christmas time, and Victorin records it from the Knysna in October and November. It has been sent from Natal 150 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. by Mr. Ayres, but we are not aware of any other occurrence within our limits, excepting the specimens obtained by Mr. Monteiro at Novo Rodondo in Benguela, and by Senor Anchieta at Capangombe in Mossamedes. Their food consists of caterpillars and several species of Hymenoptera. Le Vaillant states that they deposit their eggs, which are of a pinkish colour, dotted with clear brown spots, in the nests of the “ Capoevogel,” “Jan Fredrik” (Cossypha caffra), and other small birds. Our friend, Mr. L. du Toit, confirms this statement as regards the “Jan Fredrik,” as also does Mr. Fred. Barber, who adds to the list the nest of the Cape Canary (Crithagra canicollis). He says the egg is of a dark brown colour. Adult.—Above greyish, with a slight gloss of oily green on the scapulars and secondary feathers, the rump and upper tail-coverts darker and inclining to cindery grey; quills brown, barred with white near the base of the inner web; tail purplish black, glossed with greenish near the base, tipped with white and marked with one or two white spots along the shafts of the feathers, the inner web also slightly marked with white on its edge; throat clear bluish- grey ; fore neck deep ferruginous, with slight indications of blackish cross bars; rest of under surface fulvous white, banded with blackish, inclining to clear fawn on the under tail-coverts, where the cross bars are narrower and more zig-zag in shape; bill horn-black, | yellowish at base of lower mandible and along basal edge of upper one; feet deep-orange, claws yellowish ; iris reddish hazel. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’ Afr. v. pl. 206, 186. CvucuLUs cLAMoSUS. Black Cuckoo. This Cuckoo, which is a true Cuculus with rounded and swollen nostrils, must not be confounded with Coccystes serratus, which has oval nostrils and a long occipital crest: its black colour will dis- tinguish it from every other species of Cuckoo found in South Africa, Le Vaillant states that the “noisy Cuckoo” is common about the — Sunday and Swartkop Rivers, and throughout Camdeboo, depositing its eggs in the nest of the “ Capocier” (Drymeca maculosa). It has also been found in the neighbourhood of Grahamstown and was sent by Mr. T. C. Atmore from Elands’ Post and the Katberg. Mr. Ayres has procured it in Natal and gives the following note :—“ This i . CUCULUS SMARAGDINEUS. 152i __ bird has a very loud, harsh note, and is more shy than the generality _ of Cuckoos ; it is active, remaining but a short time in the same spot ; it feeds on caterpillars ; it visits this part of the country periodically, disappearing during the winter months.” Mr. Buckley states that it was a common species throughout Bamangwato and the Transvaal, where he says that its note may be heard almost any time of the day or night. Mr. Andersson writes :—“I first observed this species in the neighbourhood of the River Okavango, but only very sparingly ; and the few individuals, which there came under my notice were so excessively wild and wary that I only succeeded in bagging some after an immense deal of trouble and smart shooting. They were invariably perched on lofty trees, where they uttered loud cries, which were my only guide to their whereabouts ; and before I got near they would leave their perches and dart with lightning speed through the neighbouring thickets. They were wild shots these! On a subse- quent occasion I observed a flock of fully a dozen of these Cuckoos creating a desperate hubbub, on the 21st of December, at Objimbin- que. I have also obtained specimens of this Cuckoo from Lake Ngami.” Senor Anchieta has also procured it at Biballa in Mossa- medes. ‘ . Adult male.—Above glossy greenish black, with a slight shade of dull indigo on the interscapulary region; quills brown, the pri- maries whitish near the base of the inner web, where there are re- mains of brownish bars, the innermost secondaries greenish black like the back; tail greenish black, tipped with white, all the feathers more or less inclining to brown on the inner webs ; under surface of body black, with a slight greenish gloss, not so glossy as the back, some of the under tail-coverts tipped with brownish white ; bill black ; feet yellow, claws black; iris dark brown. Total length, 12 inches; culmen, 0:95; wing, 7.2; tail, 6-2, tarsus, 0°75. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. v. pls. 204, 205. 138. CucuLUSs sMARAGDINEUS. Emerald Cuckoo. Chalcites smaragdineus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 251. The Emerald Cuckoo of Southern Africa has by many people been considered to be a distinct species from the bird inhabiting Western Africa, and was called C. splendidus by the late Mr. G. R. Gray, but Go 2A een? 6 152 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. after careful examination we have not been able to recognize the specific distinctness of the two birds, and as we know from the writings of Von Heuglin and Dohrn that the Emerald Cuckoo — migrates from Abyssinia and from Western Africa and only appears in South Africa during the summer months, it is more likely that — there is only one species throughout the Continent. The Emerald Cuckoo is abundant at the Knysna, and throughout all the forest regions to the eastward along the sea-coast. The males" are killed in a proportion of at least ten to one female, from their — habit of perching on the topmost branches of trees, and from thence uttering their loud call of love or defiance. This is easily imitated by a whistler, and the bird will answer the whistle, and remain on the look out for its supposed foe, until the shooter creeps up within range. Captain Shelley found them fairly plentiful about Durban and Pine- town, where they frequent the thick forest. Mr. Ayres also writes respecting the species in Natal:—‘‘ These splendid birds, though not by any means plentiful, are easily obtained in consequence of their loud call, which they make at short intervals. They will remain on the same tree, and nearly the same bough, for hours together ; they feed principally on caterpillars, but sometimes catch the winged females of the white ant as they rise from the ground, darting upon them similarly to the Flycatchers or Drongo Shrikes. It has a swift dipping flight, similar to that of the Wagtails, and when disturbed generally flies to a good distance. It frequents bushy country near the coast.” It has not occurred to Mr. Andersson in Damara Land (though he believes he saw it), nor to Senor Anchieta in South Western Africa, but is met with in the interior of Angola proper. Adult male.—Above brilliant metallic emerald-green, the plumage having somewhat of a scaly and velvety appearance ; wings and tail of the same metallic green as the head, this colour likewise extend- ing over the sides of the face and throat as far as the fore neck ; rest of under surface bright golden yellow, the under tail-coverts broadly barred with metallic green; the quills and tail glossed underneath with metallic green, the bases of the primaries whitish, the outer tail-feather also spotted on the outer web and tipped with white ; under wing-coverts golden yellow, the outer ones green ; bill greenish grey, blackish along the line of gape and at tip, malachite-green at eo . tive CHRYSOCOCCYX CUPREUS. 153 angle of mouth; feet and bare orbits lead-colour ; iris sometimes brown, sometimes greyish (Heuglin). Female.—Different from the male. Above metallic green, thickly barred with rufous, the quills similarly marked, excepting on the pri- maries, where the bars are more or less obsolete, leaving the ground- colour brown, the quills brown underneath, very distinctly notched with rufous or rufous white; under surface of body metallic green barred with white, a little more narrowly on the under wing-coverts ; tail brown, the middle feathers glossed with metallic green, and washed with rufous, the outer feathers white internally washed with rufous, and spotted near the tips and on the inner web with metallic coppery green. Fig. Vieill. et Oud. Gal. Ois. i. p. 33, pl. 42. 138. Curysococcyx cUPREUS. Golden Cuckoo. Chalcites auratus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 250. This is the commonest of the metallic Cuckoos, and it is to be dis- tinguished from C. smaragdineus by its white abdomen and banded flanks. In this respect it resembles O. klaasi, but is larger than that species and has the tail metallie greenish-blue, spotted with white. This beautiful little Cuckoo, known by the name of “ Didric,” from its oft-repeated mournful cry of “ Di-di-di-didric,” is extremely abundant throughout the Karroo. At Nel’s Poort, near Beaufort, we have frequently seen a dozen or more in a morning, while their loud notes were incessantly ringing in our ears; they are, however, so shy. that we only procured three specimens in as many months. When calling, they perch on the summit of some dead branch, ready to do battle with any male, or engage in an amorous chase after any female that comes within their ken. They pursue each other with great ardour, turning, twisting, and dashing about with much rapi- dity. The stomachs of those examined contained nothing but small _ insects chiefly swallowed whole. _ We also obtained specimens at the Knysna, and from still farther to the eastward. It appears in Mr. Chapman’s collection and has been sent from Colesberg. In Natal, Captain Shelley found it the rarest of the three metallic Cuckoos about Durban, where he only saw it in collections, Mr. 154 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Ayres writes:—“ I found these Cuckoos plentiful in December, among the low mimosa thorns and wood bordering the rivers and streams in the upper districts of the colony of Natal, and also among the fruit-trees in the scattered town of Potchefstroom. They are most fond of apple-trees, where, I think, they find the caterpillars suited to their taste and upon which they appear entirely to feed. Their note, which is loud and monotonous, is frequently uttered whilst they are flying high over head. Early in the morning they are par- ticularly fond of chasing each other, frequently so high as to be almost out of sight. They are often chased by the Sparrow and other birds, which appear at once to knowa stranger. Like most of our Cuckoos, they appear in summer and are away during the winter months.” Mr. Barratt has procured several specimens recently near Rustenburg. Mr. Buckley observes :—“ A common species during our return journey, from which it appears the bird is a summer visitant. I found it throughout the Bamangwato and North Transvaal districts.” In Dr. Kirk’s paper on the Birds of the Zambesi, he writes as fol- lows :— Rare; found at the foot of Moramballa Mountains and halfway up the Shiré, in a wood: it frequents forests. One speci- men is in Dr. Dickerson’s collection; probably from near the same locality.” The same gentleman has also found it higher up on the Eastern Coast at Zanzibar. Mr. Andersson writes :—‘ This beautiful species is by no means uncommon in Little Namaqua Land; but to the north of the Orange River I have only met with it in the neighbourhood of the River Okavango, where it is both scarce and shy, and near Otniovapa, where I observed two of these birds pairing on the 11th January.” Mr. Monteiro has shot this Cuckoo in Benguela, and Mr. Sala also shot specimens at Kattenbella in the same country, while Senor Anchieta has met with it at Gambos in Mossamedes and at Humbe on the river Cunene. Le Vaillant states that it lays a white egg, and gives an account of the manner in which it is carried in the mouth, to be placed in the nests of those birds which are selected as foster-mothers for its neglected offspring. Eggs sent to Canon Tristram from Natal by Mr. Ayres appear to be “ like some of the lighter coloured eggs of the British house-sparrow, and also very like the egg of the great reed- warbler (Calamoherpe arundinacea) from which, however, it may be | CUCULUS KLAASI. 155 distinguished by its rich gloss and by being slightly smaller and more elliptical.” (Cf. J. H. Gurney, Ibis, 1868, p. 163). Mrs. Barber says that they lay pure white eggs in the nests of Fringillaria vittata and all the Nectarinic and remain constantly in the neighbourhood of the nest watching over it safely. Mr. Jackson has found pure white eggs in the nests of Hyphantornis capitalis, which we suspect are the eggs of this Cuckoo, and we are inclined to think that Mr. Ayres is mistaken in his identification, and that his sparrow-like eggs belong to another species. Adult.—Above metallic green, changing to golden green, some- times with a coppery gloss, according to the light; a streak down the fore part of the head, and a distinct eyebrow, white ; ear-coverts coppery green; cheeks, sides of neck, and underparts white, the sides of the body as well as the under wing- and tail-coverts barred, the sides of vent streaked with dull metallic green; wings metallic green above, like the back, varying with the light, the inner greater wing-coverts and the quills externally spotted with white, the pri- maries more minutely ; under surface of quills ashy brown, with oval spots or bars of white on the inner web ; lateral upper tail-coverts externally white; tail metallic green, all except the two middle feathers tipped with white, the outermost spotted with white on both webs, vanishing towards the centre feathers ; “ bill dusky above, horny beneath ; legs dusky ; iris and orbit scarlet.” (Blanford.) Total length, 8°5 inches; culmen, 0°7; wing, 4°25; tail, 3:4; tar- sus, 0°65. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. v. p. 46, pls. 210, 211. 189. CucuLus KLAASI. Klaas’s Cuckoo. ' This is the smallest of the African metallic Cuckoos, and is dis- tinguished from C. cupreus by its smaller size and white tail, spotted with coppery-green. Klaas’s Cuckoo is not uncommon in most wooded parts of the ‘colony, extending even as far as the Cape peninsula. It is, however, not nearly so abundant as the foregoing, from which it is easily dis- tinguished by its cry. Mrs. Barber says, in its nesting and other habits it resembles the preceding species. Victorin met with it at the Knysna in Novem- ber and in the Karroo in January. Mr. T. C. Atmore has procured it near Elands’ Post, and according to Captain Shelley it was not 156 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. uncommon in the neighbourhood of Durban and Pinetown, at both of which places he shot specimens. Mr. Ayres also observes :— “These birds are more active than C. smaragdineus, not remaining so long in the same place; they also have the dipping flight of the Wagtails, but do not call so frequently, and their note is not so loud. They feed on caterpillars.” Only once did Mr. Andersson fall in with it, when he shot a single specimen on the Swakop River in Damara Land. Anchieta has procured it at Biballa in Mossamedes, and on the Cunene river. Adult male——Above metallic green, changing with the light to fiery bronze and golden green; the sides of the face and of the neck as well as the wings coloured like the back and subject to the same reflexions ; under surface of quills greyish brown, very numerously and distinctly notched on the inner web with white; four middle tail-feathers golden green, with a slight coppery reflexion, especially towards the tips, the other feathers white, with a spot of golden green near the tip of the outer web, and three or four of the same colour on the inner web ; under surface of body pure white, with a few broad longitudinal streaks of golden green on the upper thigh- feathers, the sides of the upper breast also bright golden-green, like the back ; “ bill dusky; legs pale ; feet brownish olive ; iris brown ; orbit very pale green” (Blanford). Total length, 7:0 inches ; culmen, 0°7; wing, 4°1; tail, 3:2 ; tarsus, 0°55. Female.—Above brown, the head uniform ; interscapulary region barred with dull rufous ; rest of the upper surface barred with dull rufous and metallic green, broader and more distinct on the wing- coverts, narrower and less plain on the lower back, rump, and upper _ tail-coverts; quills brown, the secondaries coloured like the back, the primaries notched externally with pale rufous; under surface of quills ashy brown, deeply notched with pale rufous on the inner web ; tail brown, with a subterminal spot of coppery green on the centre feathers, the next one glossed with copper-colour and notched exter- — nally with pale rufous, the three outermost white, with a conspicuous , spot of coppery green near the tip, and more or less remains of - pale rufous notches and brown bars on the inner webs; ear-coverts — brown like the head ; rest of under surface dull white, with narrow brown cross lines, the sides of the upper breast uniform brown; — thighs barred with pale rufous and metallic green, like the back ; under wing-coverts pale rufous, with brown cross lines. Fig. Levaill, Ois. d@’Afr. v. pl. 218. COCCYSTES GLANDARIUS. 157 140. CoccysTEs GLANDARIUS. Great Spotted Cuckoo. This bird, which can be told from the other species by its ashy- grey crest contrasting with the brown back, and by the white spots on the wings, is a migrant from Europe, and is of rare occurrence within the colony. We have seen three specimens from Caffraria and one was also contained in Captain Bulger’s Windyogelberg col- lection. The British Museum’ possesses an example from Port Elizabeth. Mr. Herbert Trevelyan of the 32nd Light Infantry pro- cured a single example at King William’s Town. Mr. Barratt has also shown us a specimen which he shot in November, 1874, among _ the mimosa bushes on Modder River: he says that they return there every year. Numerous specimens were collected by the late Mr. Andersson in Ondonga, and he says that it is not uncommon during the wet season in Damara Land, and also about the river Okavango. Anchieta has also forwarded it plentifully from Huilla and Capangombe in Mossamedes, as well as from the river Cunene. Adult male-——Above brown, somewhat. inclining to olive-brown, the scapulars slightly, the wing-coverts and inner secondaries more - conspicuously tipped with whitish; quills darker brown above, the inner primaries narrowly edged with whitish at the tips, the inner face of the quills whitish ; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts brown like the back, the outermost of the latter white on the outer web, the inner ones tipped with white; tail brown, broadly tipped with white ; crown of the head and crest bluish grey, with narrow blackish shaft-lines; sides of the face and hind neck rather darker brown, the ear-ccverts washed with grey ; throat and chest yellowish white, the former somewhat tinged with greyish, with indistinct hair-like blackish shaft-lines ; rest of under surface purer white, the flanks shaded with greyish; under wing-coverts yellowish, the outer ones and the axillaries white, the latter somewhat shaded with ashy ; bill brown, yellowish at base of lower mandible; feet bluish, shaded with brown ; iris pale brown. Total length, 15 inches ; culmen, 1:1 ; wing, 8°15 ; tail, 9; tarsus, 1.3. Adult female.—Generally similar to the male, but having a faint rufous tinge on the inner webs of the primaries. Fig. Dresser, B. Europe, pt. xxviii. 158 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. -~ 141. Coccysrzs cAFER. Levaillant’s Cuckoo. Oxylophus afer, Layard, B. 8S. Afr. p. 253. This large Crested Cuckoo is distinguished by its black-striped throat. It is not of frequent occurrence in South Africa, and we have only seen two specimens, from Swellendam, where they were procured by Mr. Cairncross. Wahlberg shot it on the Limpopo. © Like the rest of the Cuckoos found in Damara Land,” writes Mr. Andersson, “this species is only a periodical visitant during the rainy season, and takes its departure long before the return of the dry weather. I have heard its note on the river Okavango as early as September, but it is a scarce bird in that district, and very rare in Damara Land. It always appears in pairs, and is of a rather shy and retiring disposition.” Adult male.—Above shining greenish black, the head deeper black and ornamented with a long crest of lanceolate feathers; lores and ear-coverts dull black; quills brown, the inner webs white at the base, the primaries also externally white at the base, causing a large alar speculum, the inner secondaries greenish black like the back ; tail greenish black lke the rest of upper surface, broadly tipped with white, the inner webs showing somewhat of a purple tinge; under surface of body buffy white, the feathers of the throat, breast, and under tail-coverts, black in the centre, giving a thickly striped appearance, the flanks also somewhat mottled with black centres to the feathers; under wing-coverts white, streaked with black, the lower ones entirely black ; bill black; feet brown, tinged with lead- colour; iris dark olive. Total length, 15°5 inches ; culmen, 1°1; wing, 74; tail, 10°2 ; tarsus, 1-05. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. v. pl. 209. 142. CoccysTEs JACOBINUS. Black and White Cuckoo. — Oxylophus melanoleucus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 252. This species inhabits the same country as C. serratus, and was mistaken by Levaillant and Verreanx for the hen of that bird; it is | however quite another species. Like O. glandarius it has a whitish breast, but can be told by the absence of spots on the wing, and,by | 6 ee \ a COCCYSTES JACOBINUS. 159 its black upper surface. From O. cafer it is distinguished by its smaller size, and by the absence of black streaks on the throat and breast. In aletter to the author, Mr. H. Bowker observes: ‘“ There is another Cuckoo which I cannot quite make out from your book, but I think it is O. melanoleucus, very common in Albany and appearing early in October. It lays its eggs in the nest of the black forked tail Spreo (Dicrurus musicus), and also in that of the Woodpecker. It looks after its young to see that the foster parents are attentive to them. I once watched a Woodpecker’s nest, and when the nurses bry” g, food to the nest they were always followed by one of these > ~~ ifter the Woodpeckers left, always looked into the nest to 3 s right and then sat near until the return of the Wood- p ., wuen the same thing was repeated ; on examining the nest I found four fine young Cuckoos in it.” Mr. T. C. Atmore’s collections made near Elands’ Post included examples, and Mr. Ayres has procured it in Natal and the Transvaal. Mr. F. A. Barratt informs us that he has shot the bird near Pochef- stroom and also at Rustenburg in January, 1875. Mr. T. E. Buckley collected it on the Limpopo and in the Transvaal territory, where he found it abundant: as he only saw it on his way down from the Matabili he considers it to be a summer visitant. Mr. Andersson says :—‘ This is about the most common Cuckoo in Damara Land, the first to arrive with the rainy season ; I have also received specimens of it from Lake N’gami. I believe it breeds in Damara Land, having seen young birds barely able to fly. This species has a true Cuckoo’s note, and is very swift of flight and quick in its movements.” Anchieta has found it on the River Cunene, and at Huilla, Biballa and Gambos in Mossamedes. Adult.—Head, which is ornamented with a long crest, and entire upper surface glossy greenish black, the tail tipped with white; pri- maries brown, white at the base both internally and externally, forming a large white alar spot; sides of face black; under surface entirely dull white, with a yellowish tinge on the throat and breast ; under wing-coverts yellowish white, the lower ones greyish ; flanks shaded with dusky grey; bill and feet black; iris yellow. Total length, 13-6 inches ; culmen, | ; wing, 6°4; tail, 8 ; tarsus, 1°5. Young.—Brown, the quills paler; tail brown, tipped with white, the centre feathers glossed with greenish ; a white alar spot as in 160 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. adults ; under surface of body entirely yellowish white, the lower under wing-coverts brown ; bill horn-brown. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. v. pl. 208. 143. CoccysTES SERRATUS. Black Crested Cuckoo. This species can easily be told from any of the other Crested Cuckoos of South Africa by its entirely black colour both above and below. It is abundant in mimosa bushes throughout the Karroo and extends into the Cape peninsula, and has also been received fro2, all parts of the colony to the eastward. This bird Vv lgotis ont about the new year, whence the name of “ Nieuwejaai; 4 very rare? it has acquired among the colonists. It evidently lays at. aay gh as we took a mature egg from the body of one that was killed at Rondebosch. The egg was white, glossy, and rounded at each end: axis, 13’; diam., 11’. The stomach contained caterpillars, beetles, maggots, and flies, but the chief mass consisted of termites. We found them in considerable abundance at Nel’s Poort, usually in pairs, frequenting the trees along the river banks. Mr. Atmore writes that the “eggs are white, and usually deposited in the nest of the ‘ Geelgat’? (Pycnonotus capensis).” We saw it near Alice, at the farm of Barend Woests in March. Mr. H. Bowker writes: “It calls frequently during the night, particularly about nine or ten o’clock. I have found their eggs and young in the nests of Sigelus silens.” “Tn Natal,” writes Mr. Ayres, “these birds feed on cater- pillars, ants, and other insects, in search of which they hop about amongst the thick creepers, principally frequenting small, low, — isolated bushes. They are weak on the wing, and do not take long flights, but are migratory, arriving in October and leaving in March, The gizzard of this bird is most curious, the inner skin is lined with hair like the hair of a young mouse, and is quite separate from the flesh of the gizzard.’ Mr. Gurney comments on this as follows: “Tt will be recollected that a similar appearance of the stomach ~ being lined with hair frequently occurs in specimens of ‘Cuculus canorus, and that these hairs were ascertained by the late Mr. Thompson of Belfast to be those of the larve of the Tiger Moth, on ~ which the Cuckoo frequently feeds. (See P, Z. 8. 1834, p. 29.) 1. CEUTHMOCHARES AUSTRALIS FAEREUS —_ CEUTHMOCHARES AUSTRALIS. 161 _ Mr. Ayres says that it appears in Potchefstroom about November, and leaves again before the winter sets in. Although the occurrence of the bird in Damara Land proved to have been erroneously recorded, the present species is most probably found there, as Senor Anchieta has procured it at Biballa in Mossamedes. Adult male.—Above glossy greenish black, with a long crest of the same colour : under surface of body also greenish black, but a little duller than the back; quills brownish, the secondaries glossed with green like the back, the primaries white at the base of both webs, forming externally a very large alar speculum; tail greenish above, inclining to purplish brown underneath ; bill black; tarsi slate coloured ; iris nearly black. Total length, 12°5; culmen, 1:0; wing, 6°15; tail, 7°6; tarsus, 1:05. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d' Afr. v. p. 39, pl. 207. 144, CEUTHMOCHARES AUSTRALIS. South African Coucal. (Pirate V., fig. 1.) Zanclostomus aereus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 247. In a paper on the African Cuckoos, (P. Z. S. 1874, p. 509,) the editor pointed out that the Coucal of South Africa is a distinct species from C. aenews of Western Africa, (Plate V., fig. 2,) as will be seen by reference to the plate ; stead of having a purple tail, this organ is green in the southern bird. It is an inhabitant of Natal, where Mr. Ayres says that it “is rather a rare bird, and frequents the dense bush, where it creeps about like the Colies. Its habits resemble those of Centropus superciliosus, but it is not so active. It feeds on locusts and large grasshoppers.” Captain Shelley writes: ‘I shot two specimens at Durban, where they frequent the upper branches of the higher bush, rendering it very difficult to see through the thick foliage.” Captain Watson informs us that he found it rather common on the Umgeni River. Dr. Kirk states that it is found in the Zambesi, where it is a native of the plains. Adult,—Head and hinder part of neck ashy grey, with a slight wash of olive; back dull metallic olive-green, shading into oily green on the rump and upper tail-coverts; wing-coverts uniform - with the back, as also are the quills, the under surface of the wing being ‘ashy brown with a very faint shade of greenish; tail metallic M 162 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. oily green, the two middle feathers having a slight shade of bronze; _ sides of face, throat, and fore part of chest whitish, with a yellowish shade ; lower part of belly greyish, the under tail-coverts metallic green ; bill yellow, with brown mark at base of culmen ; iris beau- tiful dark red. Total length, 13-5 inches; culmen, 1:2; wing, 49; tail, 8; tarsus, 1°15. 145. CrnTROPUS SENEGALENSIS. Lark-heeled Cuckoo. Centropus burchelli, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 146. This Cuckoo is found all over Africa, and although specimens from the southern part of the Continent are brighter in colour than those from West Africa, we cannot see any real grounds for their separation. We have received several specimens of this lark-heeled Cuckoo. One was shot in “ Grootevadersbosch,” near Caledon, by _ the Hon. T. H. Vigne; another near Swellendam, by Mr. Cairn- cross. Specimens have also been shot near Graham’s Town and ~ other places. Mr. T. E. Buckley informs us: “It was first observed on the Crocodile River, but was also found in all suitable places as far into the Matabili as I went. Being fond of hiding itself, it is not often seen unless accidentally flushed, but its loud note betrays its presence. It inhabits the thick reeds and bushes wherever there is water, far from which it is never found.” Dr. Kirk says that it was very common in all the grassy borders ~ of rivers, but is looked upon by the natives with disgust, and never . eaten. The following note is given by Mr. Andersson: “This species is found abundantly at Lake N’gami, but I have observed it nowhere else. It occurs singly or in pairs, and perches on lofty trees—but also frequents reedy thickets, to the interior of which it usually retreats when alarmed or pursued. Its flight is heavy and clumsy. Its food consists of insects, and it is partial to locusts and grass- hoppers.” Le Vaillant states that he first met with this species near the Gamtoos River, and that it makes its nest in holes of trees, laying four eggs, of a reddish-white colour. Mr. Atmore says, “it inhabits + palmiet vleys and feeds on locusts and large insects of all kinds.” Mr. H. Bowker writes, “ The Vley Lourie builds its nest in the centre ey eeu iia CENTROPUS SUPERCILIOSUS. 163 of a thick bushy tree or amongst the shoots from a cut forest tree (Pollard?) It is about three feet in length by a foot in diameter with an opening in the middle cavity in the inside rather flat. The young may be perceived from the outside. I never saw but two nests, one with a single young bird in it, the other an old one made of small sticks. This bird is called the ‘ Rain bird’ by the Kaffirs, and is said to call before a change in the weather. N.B. Inside of nest daubed with mud.” His note contained a sketch of an oblong oval nest made of twigs with a flattened oval opening near the centre. Head dull black, with a greenish tinge when viewed from the light, the shafts glossy black ; interscapulary region, scapulars, and wing-coverts dull brownish rufous, the shafts glossy chestnut; greater coverts and quills bright rufous, with dusky tips, the inner secon- daries dull brownish rufous with an olivaceous gloss; lower back and rump dusky, minutely barred with dull ochre; upper tail- coverts and tail dull greenish, inclining to oily green, the former generally with obsolete bars of ochre; feathers under the eye and ear-coverts black, like the head ; entire sides of face and neck, as well as the under surface of body, more or less deep ochre, inclin- ing to white on the centre of abdomen, the shafts glossy fulvous, especially distinct on the throat and sides ‘of neck, the flanks with remains of dusky cross bars; under wing-coverts pale buff, inner surface of wing dull rufous ; bill and feet black. Young.—More dingy above and paler below than the adult; head dull brownish ; upper surface barred across with dusky black, with remains of dusky bars on the sides of the breast and flanks; upper tail-coverts and tail barred more or less distinctly with pale ochre ; beak horn-brown, the lower mandible yellowish. Fig. Levaill. Ois. d’Afr. v. p. 72, pl. 219. 146. Crnrropus sUPERCILIOSUS. White Eyebrowed Lark-heeled Cuckoo. By many people the present bird has been considered to be the young of O. senegalensis, but it may be distinguished at once by its broad white eyebrow. A fine specimen of this bird was sent to us in the flesh, during the winter months, from Swellendam by the Hon. R. Southey; its stomach contained insects. Mr. Rickard has ob- tained it both at Port Elizbabeth and Hast London: near the latter M2 A oo 164 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. place it is common. It has also been found in Natal by Mr. Ayres. He writes: “This bird frequents the dense bush, and principally lives amongst impenetrable creepers, where it hunts about in search of the insects which it feeds upon ; if disturbed, it flies but a short distance. The note is a loud, melancholy, cooing noise; they call most in wet weather ; they are fond of getting up into trees that are covered with creeping plants, and sunning themselves; they generally fly on to the lower part, and gradually hop upwards till they gain the top, but they can fly a very short distance at a time, and are easily caught if chased ont into the open grass, though they lie very close, and it requires a good dog to find them; if disturbed — they immediately fly to the thickest cover at hand, and commence running like the Rails. They feed on grasshoppers, caterpillars, and — other insects.” Mr. Rickard narrates that in the stomach of one he killed he found a Zosterops, in that of another a small snake, locusts, and caterpillars. Captain Shelley observes: “This is the common Centropus about Durban. I shot a few specimens ; but they were in such bad plumage, both in March and April, that I did not preserve them.” Mr. T. E. Buckley shot a male in the Transvaal on the 5th July, 1873, and says that its habits did not differ from those of C. senegal- ensis. Mr, Andersson does not appear to have procured it im Damara Land, but Senor Anchieta has found it on the Coroca and Chimba Rivers, as well as at Capangombe in Mossamedes. Mr. Sala sent several specimens from Kattenbella in Benguela, and according | . to Mr. Monteiro it is abundant everywhere in Angola ; Adult.—Head and hind neck blackish or brownish black, andl feathers under the eye and ear-coverts also black ; over the eye a broad stripe of yellowish white; all the feathers of the hind head and neck distinctly streaked down the centre with yellowish white ; centre of back and scapulars dull rufous brown, all the feathers mesially streaked with whitish, these stripes being further bordered with blackish on each side, causing them to stand out in bolder . relief; wings dull rufous above and below, the quills tipped with ~ dusky, the inner secondaries inclining to olive-brown, the least wing- | coverts streaked with whitish, like the scapulars ; lower back dusky , black, transversely barred with dull ochre; upper tail-coverts and tail greenish black, with somewhat of an oily-green gloss, the latter . narrowly tipped with white, the upper tail-coverts barred with dusky | ho CENTROPUS NIGRORUFUS. 165 ochre; under surface of body yellowish white, the feathers of the sides of the neck whitish in the centre, this streak margined on each side with black, giving a very distinctly striped appearance, the shafts of the breast feathers whitish, but without the black lines on them; sides of the body, flanks, and under tail-coverts narrowly barred with blackish ; under wing-coverts pale rufous, with obsolete streaks as on the sides of the neck; beak black; feet bluish slate- colour; iris bright crimson. Total length, 16°3 inches ; culmen, 1°35 ; wing, 6°25; tail, 8:3; tarsus, 1°55. Hig. Ripp. N. W. Vog. p. 56, t. 21, fig. 1. _ 147. Centropus MonacuHts. Purple-headed Lark-heeled Cuckoo. This fine Lark-heel is closely allied to the foregoing species, but is slightly larger and has the head purplish-blue instead of greenish- black. It is found in North Eastern and in Western Africa, and has been procured as low down as Mosambique on the Hast Coast. Senor Anchieta has collected specimens at Huilla’in Mossamedes and Caconda in Benguela, as well as at Ambaca in Angola. _ Adult.—Hntire head and neck black, with a brilliant purplish- blue gloss, the shafts glossy black; centre of the back and entire wings bright chestnut, the tips of the primaries and the inner _ secondaries olive-brown ; rump dusky black, glossed with purplish blue ; upper tail-coverts greenish ; tail brown with a dull greenish gloss; under surface of the body yellowish white, the flanks and abdomen inclining to ochre, the shafts rather distinct, especially on the throat ; under wing-coverts buff, the lower ones chestnut, like the inner face of the wing; bill and feet black; iris red. Total length, 15-4 inches; culmen, 1:25; wing, 7:2; tail, 9:3; tarsus, 1-9. Fig. Ripp. N. W. Vég. p. 57, Taf. 21. fig. 2. 148. Curnrrorus NIGRORUFUS. Natal Lark-heeled Cuckoo. Le Vaillant found this species near the Zwart River, and the description given below is from a Natal skin procured by the late Professor Wahlberg on the 28th November, 1840. It may be distin- guished from the other Lark-heels of South Africa by its black abdomen. Female——Head and neck all round, fore neck and chest deep black, the shafts to the feathers glossy black; rest of underparts also black, but the black shafts not so distinct ; interscapulary region ee 166 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. deep chestnut, with rufous shafts to the feathers; wing-coverts paler rufous, crossed with narrow blackish bars and very distinct fuivous shaft-stripes to the feathers, these characters being more decided on the lesser and greater coverts, nearly obsolete on the median ones; quills pale rufous, with dusky tips and rufous shafts, the inner secondaries crossed with alternate broad bars of black and rufous or fulvous, with distinct fulvous shafts; middle of the back pale rufous, minutely barred with black ; lower back, rump, and upper tail coverts glossy black ; tail black, the middle feathers barred with fulvous brown ; under wing coverts and entire under surface of wing rufous ; bill and feet black. Total length, 13 inches; culmen, 1-1; wing, 7°0; tail, 7-7; tarsus, 1°55. Fig. Wevaill. Ois. d’ Afr. v. p. 78, pl. 220. Fam. INDICATORIDZA. 149. InpIcAToR SPARRMANNI. Indicator albirostris, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 242. This species has only reached us from Swellendam, where it was shot both by Mr. Cairncross and Mr. Atmore: it is perhaps more abundant in the Hastern districts. Mr. W. Atmore writes that it is — found chiefly in the Ruggens, being more plentiful about Heidelburg than elsewhere. Mr. T. C. Atmore procured it at Eland’s Post, and Mr. T. E. Buckley met with the species from the north of the Trans- vaal into the Matabili country. On the western side it has been sent from Gambos in Mossamedes by Senor Anchieta. In north- eastern Africa and Senegambia the present species appears to be much more common than within our limits. Its habits resemble those of the other Honey-Guides. Mr. Buck- ley writes: “ Hxtremely pertinacious in its habit of following one in order to conduct to a bee’s nest, chattering incessantly until it gains its point, or is knocked over with the gun. The natives, however, strongly object to their being shot.” General colour brownish-grey, lightest on the breast, and fading to pure white on the belly, vent, and thighs, these latter marked with broad streaks of brown ; rump white, streaked in the same way; NE i sth Mil lh ae — e. White-eared Honey-Guide. ! eS INDICATOR VARIEGATUS. 167 outer margins of all the wing-feathers dirty yellowish-white, those of the secondaries being the most-marked ; ear-tufts white ; chin and upper part of throat black; the two middle tail-feathers entirely brown ; the next pair have the inner webs, with the exception of the tip, white, and the outer three are all white, except at the tips; the outer- most feather is in this, and I. major, considerably the shortest. Length, 7’ 6’’ ; wing, 4’’ 4’”’ ; tail, 8” 3/’’. The female wants the black throat of the male, but can always be distinguished by the brown stripes on its flanks, this character bemg the best to distinguish the species. Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 867. 150. Inprcaror VARIEGATUS. Scaly-throated Honey-Guide. We shot a solitary specimen of this Honey-Guide at the Knysna, as it was flittimg about some bushes in the forests. Victorin procured it in the same district, and Mr. H. Atmore has forwarded it to us from George. His brother, Mr. T. C. Atmore, also collected it at Beaufort. We know very little of the distribution of the present species, as it has not been recorded from any other place in South Africa, and the only other locality whence we have seen specimens is Mombas on the east coast. It must certainly occur in the intermediate localities, and has, perhaps, been mistaken for the female or young of one of the other species. Le Vaillant con- sidered it to be the hen of J. variegatus, an idea disposed of by Professor Sundevall, who received dissected specimens of male and female from Wahlberg. : General colour above dull olive-green, changing to yellow on the wings ; below dirty yellowish-white, immaculate on the centre of the belly and vent, but much variegated on the throat, breast, flanks, and thighs, with brown; forehead speckled with white. The tail consists of twelve feathers, thus marked: two innermost pair all brown ; one pair following white, with portion of inner web brown; three outer pair white, with brown tips; the outermost pair very short. Length, 7’’ 6’ ; wing, 4” 4’”’ ; tail, 3° 4’”". This species has no white rump, this part of the upper surface being uniform with the rest of the back. The flanks are streaked with dusky brown, and the abdomen is whitish, the mottled feathers not extending lower than the breast. 168 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 151. Inpicator masor. White-backed Honey-Guide. In November, 1865, while at Tygerhoek, on the River Zonder End, we shot a specimen clinging to the upright branch of a tree ‘like a Woodpecker. We subsequently saw a single bird at the entrance of Cogman’s Kloof in December, and fancy it is pretty generally distributed throughout the colony. Le Vaillant found this species and J. variegatus, which he mistook for the female, all along the South-Eastern Coast, as far as Kaffraria. We have received it from Messrs. Atmore and Gairncross, killed at Swellendam and George. Le Vaillant states they build in holes of trees, and lay four white eggs, and Mrs. Barber says that they place their eggs in the nests of Pogonorhynchus torquatus, which is common at Highlands. The same lady writes with respect to the alleged habit of the bird leading to a snake or a leopard :—‘ What I wrote to you in a former letter is the opinion of many old bee- hunters in this part of the country, who have no faith in the popular belief, that leading to the leopard is done on purpose. My nine brothers, who were all brought up in this country, were all of them great hunters, as well as sportsmen; and during all the years of their experience while they were living at Tharfield, where bees’ nests were exceedingly plentiful, and where they were constantly in the habit of following these birds, never once did the Honey-Guide ever lead them, purposely, to any noxious animal. Many times in following the bird through dense woods have they started various kinds of creatures; but if they did not neglect the bird for the purpose of hunting, she would continue her flight towards the bee’s nest, regardless of the startled animals. One of my brothers once, while following a Honey-Guide through a dense forest near the Kowie, passed directly through a drove of wild pigs. They were of course more frightened than he was, and rushed about in every direction ; but my brother knowing the popular belief, and wishing to test it, took not the slightest notice of the wild pigs, but passed on, keeping his eye on the bird, who went steadily on her way, until she arrived at the nest she intended to show, regardless of the pigs. a) “ T have other reasons for not believing the story. Why should the ° Honey-Guide waste her time in leading people to leopards, jackals, vee : INDICATOR MINOR. 169 wolves, and so forth? These creatures are not her natural enemies ; she would gain nothing by doing it—no advantage whatever; and I have ever found that in nature there is nothing done in vain, or in an empty purposeless manner. There is always a reason for the peculiar habits and actions of birds and animals of all kinds; and therefore why should a bird, which does not even rear her own young, and has not the-care of a nest, fear or care about these animals? Why should the Honey-Guide, unlike all animals, do this thing without any reason for doing it ? « And again, when the bird has arrived at the nest she intends to show, there is an alteration in the notes of her voice. An old bee- hunter knows this in an instant, and knows when he ought to commence searching for the nest. Now this alteration never takes place when animals of various kinds are startled in passing through the forest while following the bird. Hence I conclude that she does not intend to show where these creatures are, or the alteration in her voice would take place.” General colour above, brown, with a tinge of yellow on the fore- head ; ear-coverts whitish, and beneath them a dark-brown line; chin, throat, and neck, yellow, fading into white on the sides, belly, and vent; thighs immaculate. The tail, as in I. variegatus, consists of twelve feathers, thus marked: first centre pair all brown; second pair following, brown, with terminal half of the inner web white; the three outer pair, with the tip and outer lower portion of the outer web, brown; the outer pair very short. Size similar to that of I. variegatus. The white rump of this species renders it liable to be mistaken for I. sparrmanni, but it may be told at once by its uniform whitish flanks which have no brown streaks, by the yellow wash on the head, and by the absence of a yellow shoulder patch. Fig. Vieill. Gal. Ois. pl. 46. 152. InpicaTor MrvNor. Little Honey-Guide. This little species is by far the best known of the African Indicatoride. Victorin obtained his specimens in the Karroo in January, and at the Knysna in December. Le Vaillant gives the Swartkop and Sunday’s Rivers as other localities, and it probably extends all along the south-east coast. 170 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Mr. Atmore procured it at Blanco, and writes thus: “ May 26, 1864. I have had another good opportunity of watching the habits of I. minor. I used to wonder where they got all the bees-wax that is usually in their gizzards, and the other day I found out. ‘There was a male at a bee-hive as busy as possible catching bees. After watching him for some time, Tom shot him, and his gizzard was full of bees’ legs, with the wax on them. He is held in no repute here as an Indicator ; but I. major is, and he is scarce.” Mr. Atmore has mistaken the pollen of the bee for wax. The bird’s habit of capturing bees like a fly-catcher is interesting ; but his most singular statement follows. We had asked him for information upon certain points, and he writes: “I can’t answer your queries yet, but I can tell you that I. minor kills and eats small birds as savagely as Lanius collaris! The very first I shot was in the act of eating a sparrow that I saw him kill in flight: I suspect the others of similar propensities.” In another letter he writes: “Eggs white, in nests of Dendropicus menstruus and Pogonorhynchus leucomelas.’”” Mrs. Barber says that with them it lays in the nests of Barbatula pusilla. Mr. T. C. Atmore has sent it from Eland’s Post, and Captain Shelley and Mr. Ayres have both procured it in Natal. Dr. Kirk obtained it in the Zambesi district, and the late Mr. Andersson writes: “I have met with it sparingly in Damara Land throughout the year; and I also observed it in Great Namaqua Land.” Dr. Kirk gives the following note on the species as observed by him in the Zambesi. ‘The Honey-Guide is found in forests, and often far from water, even during the dry season. On observing a man, it comes fluttering from branch to branch in the neighbouring trees calling attention. If this be responded to, as the natives do by whistling and starting to their feet, the bird will go in a certain direction and remain at a little distance, hopping from one tree to another. On being followed, it goes further; and so it will guide the way to a nest of bees. When this is reached, it flies about, but no longer guides; and then some knowledge is needed to discover the nest, even when pointed out to within a few trees. I have known this bird, if the man after taking up the direction for a little then turns away, come back and offer to point out another nest in a different part. But if it do not know of two nests, it will remain behind. The difficulty is, that it will point to tame bees in a bark : PRODOTISCUS REGULUS. 171 hive as readily as to those in the forests. This is natural, as the bee is the same ; the bark hive, ‘ Musinga’ as it is named, being simply fastened up in a tree and left for the bees to come to. The object the bird has in view is clearly the young bees. It will guide to nests having no honey, and seems equally delighted if the comb containing the grubs be torn out, when it is seen pecking at it.” General colour above, yellowish-brown, the yellow brightest on the wing-feathers ; head ashy-brown; cheeks, chin, throat, breast, and belly, cinereous; vent white; thighs faintly maculated with brown; moustache blackish ; tail composed of twelve feathers, thus marked: two inner pair all brown, four outer pair white, with base and tips brown. In this species the outer pair are but very slightly shorter than thenext. Length, 5’ 9’” ; wing, 3’’ 7’’’; tail, 2’” 6”; tarsus, 10°6. Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 542, fig. 2. _ 158, Proporiscus reauwus. Brown Honey-Guide. This peculiar little bird was discovered by the late Prof. Wahl- berg in South-Eastern Africa, and one of the original specimens from Port Natal is in the editor’s collection, and will shortly be placed in the British Museum. Nothing is known of its habits, but it may be distinguished from all the other Honey-Guides by its thin bill and nearly uniform brown plumage. The description here given is taken from a paper on the Indica- toridz contributed by the editor to Mr. Dawson Rowley’s “ Ornitho- logical Miscellany.” Adult female—General colour earthy-brown, including the sides of the face and neck; a tuft of white feathers on each side of the lower back ; underneath rather more ashy-brown, the centre of the body and under tail-coverts yellowish-white, the latter with a few hair-like shaft-streaks ; under wing-coverts white, the feathers near the edge of the wings brown; wings brown, the quills darker, the secondaries edged with whity-brown; tail dark brown, the three outer feathers white on the outer web extending for more than half of the two outermost, but less extended on the third; bill and feet blackish. Total length, 5 inches; culmen, 0°5; wing, 3:0; tail, 2°15; tarsus, 0°45. ig. Sharpe in Rowley’s Orn. Mise. part iy. 2 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Fam. CAPITONIDA. 154. PoGonorHyNCHUS TORQUATUS. Black-collared Barbet. Laimodon nigrithorax, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 233. This Barbet is a bird of the eastern districts. Mr. Rickard says it is rather plentiful near Hast London, and it is not uncommon about Graham’s Town, and Mr. T. C. Atmore collected an abundant supply of specimens near Eland’s Post, where it was found feeding on fruit and berries. “Mr. F. A. Barratt observes: ‘I have noticed these birds near Pretoria and in Kaffraria. I shot several near Rustenberg, where they abound, especially about the fruit-gardens.”” Mr. Ayres has procured them in Natal, and Captain Shelley writes: “ Very common about Pinetown, but I never met with them nearer the coast : they were generally in pairs, frequenting the scattered trees or the edges of woods.” Mr. T. Ey Buckley obtained one specimen close to the Limpopo, near Pretoria, where he considers it must be rather a rare bird. Dr. Kirk states that it iscommon in open forests of the Zambesi valley, frequently to be found on fig-trees. It occurs also higher up the coast at Mombas, while Speke procured it at Uzaramo. On the western side of the continent it has been found by Anchieta at Huilla and Biballa in Mossamedes, and again at Pungo Andongo in Angola. Mr. Barratt says it has a harsh, disagreeable note. ‘Their food,” writes Mr. Ayres, “ appears principally to consist of small fruits and berries, which they swallow whole. ‘Their note is particularly loud; the syllables kook koroo, repeated eight or ten times would give a good idea of it ; frequently both male and female call at the same time, and when perched close together keep up a quick succession of bows to each other, bowing at the repetition of each note.” The genus Pogonorhynchus, to which the present species and the next belong, is characterised, according to the Messrs. Marshall, our best authorities on the family, by its strongly toothed bill. The coloration of the species is its best distinguishing character, and its large size. The ouly other South African species which has any- thing like a red head and black pectoral collar is Trachyphonus cafer, which is at once distinguished by its long black crest, black back, yellow rump, and crimson upper-tail-coverts. Top of head and front, sides of head, chin, throat, and gorget, i POGONORHYNCHUS LEUCOMELAS. 173 brilliant scarlet, all bounded by a band of glossy black, more or less broad ; back and shoulders yellowish brown; quill-feathers of wings and tail dark-brown, margined with bright-yellow, the latter very slightly so ; under parts ashy-white, marked with sulphur yellow; base of bill sparsely covered with long bristles; bill black; feet black (Buckley), brown (Ayres), slaty brown (Shelley) ; iris reddish brown (Ayres, Shelley), dark brown (Buckley). Fig. Marshall, Monogr. Capit. pl. x. 155. PogoNoRHYNCHUS LEUCOMELAS. The Pied Barbet. Laimodon leucomelas, Layard, B.S. Afr. p. 232. Laimodon unidentatus, id., t. c. p. 233. This Barbet is common in mimosa bush throughout the: Karroo, and has apparently a very wide range, having been received from Beaufort, Swellendam, Knysna, Kaffraria, Colesberg, Hopetown, Kuruman, and Damaraland. It does not occur, as far as we yet know, in Natal, and Mr. T. E. Buckley says that they were first seen by him about the trees in Pretoria; he also found them from the north of the Transvaal into the Matabili country. Mr. Barratt states that he has often seen this Barbet in the Transvaal, and has also received it from Marico. Mr. Buckley met with it as far north as the Tatti, but it has not been recorded from the Zambesi. On the western coast, however, it extends much further, and according to Mr. Andersson, it is ‘found from the northern border of Great Namaqua Land (south of which it was not observed), as far north as the river Okavango; and it also occurs at Lake N’gami. In the neighbourhood of Objimbinque it is rather abundant.” The same gentleman also procured specimens in Ondonga, while Anchieta has procured it on the Rio Coroca in Mossamedes. Mr. Monteiro col- lected several of this Barbet in Benguela, and it even ranges into Angola proper, from whence specimens have been forwarded to the Lisbon Museum. Mr. Andersson remarks that in Damara Land, it is “ found singly or in pairs, and is remarkable for its clear-ringing and far-sounding notes, which, though heard at all hours of the day, are most frequent in the early morning. It food consists chiefly of fruit and seeds; but it will to some extent accommodate itself as regards food to the 174 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. produce of the locality in which it happens to be located. It is rather a lively bird, and sometimes suspends itself below the fruit on which it is feeding, and makes its repast whilst hanging in that position.” According to our own experience, it is a solitary bird, never more than one pair being seen together, and that but seldom. Its call is similar to that of the Indian Xantholema hemacephala, viz. “ poo-poo-poop,” three syllables, constantly repeated. While uttering this cry, it remains stationary in some tree, but evidently expends much labour on its monotonous call, its body being jerked up and down the while. It feeds on fruits and berries, and is said to build in hollow trees; but we were not fortunate enough to obtain its nest. Mr. Atmore writes: ‘ Feeds on seeds and insects. I see them frequently feeding on the ground. I know of a tame one which roved about unconfined. It eat meat, bread, sugar, corn, in fact anything—appeared very much attached to its mistress, and came regularly into the house to be fed. It disappeared at the pairing season, so I suppose it got married! They nest in holes of trees, but don’t make the holes. Eggs spotted.” Mrs. Barber also says the latter are spotted, but Mr. H. Jackson sends us eggs of three species which are white, elongated and roughish. Axis, 11’’; diam. 8’’’. We found it common in the Albany division, and one evening took five out of the stem of an aloe at Talk Farm, whither they had retired to roost. We were assured by Mr. White, the owner of the farm, that they had bred there, making the hole themselves. From the other African tooth-billed Barbets the present species is distinguished, according to the Messrs. Marshall, by the following characters: small size, black bill, crimson forehead, and black occiput, throat and centre of the breast. General colour aboye, black, pencilled with yellow ; forehead deep crimson ; a stripe extends from the nostril, over the eye, to the back of the head; the first part of this is yellow, the last part white; a broad white line also extends from the corner of the bill down the side of the throat ; chin and gorget black ; belly dirty white, mixed with grey ; wing-secondaries and tail-feathers margined with yellow ; ** bill dark-brownish horn-colour ; feet and toes slaty-brown; iris umber-brown. (Andersson.)” Length, 6'’; wing, 3” 6'’’ ; tail, 2’’. Fig. Marsh. Monogr. Capit. pl. xii. BARBATULA PUSILLA. 175 156. BarpatuLa PUSILLA. Little Tinker Barbet. Megalema barbatula, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 234. The members of the genus Barbatula are distinguished from the Pogonorhynchi by the absence of the tooth in the bill, which is also sharp and pointed. They are all birds of small size, and the South African species can be divided into two sections, viz. those which have the back black streaked with white or yellow, and those which have the upper surface entirely black. The present species belongs to the yellow-streaked section, and is at once recognisable by its red crown. Mr. Rickard notes its occurrence at Hast London: it inhabits the euphorbia thickets of the eastern province, especially about Eland’s Post, where Mr. T. C. Atmore obtained a nice series of specimens. The note is often heard, but the bird itself is seldom seen, on account of its small size and creeping habits: they feed on berries. Mr. Ayres writes: ‘“‘ The note of this curious little bird so much resembles the tapping of a hammer on an anvil (having that peculiar metallic ring) that it is called in Natalthe Tinker Bird. It is silent during the winter months, commencing its monotonous cry in the spring, and continuing it throughout the summer. They are numerous, but not easily seen, in consequence of their small size, and their habit of sitting quietly on the tops of thick bushy trees. When in search of food, they climb and creep about the thick foliage of trees. They inhabit the coast-bush, being seldom found ten miles inland ; those which I have seen at that distance from the coasts were silent. The stomach of the specimen sent to England contained mulberries.” | It is found in North-eastern Africa, whence the birds run rather smaller. The following description is copied from Messrs. Marshall’s Monograph :—Sexes alike ; a narrow frontal band black ; top of the head bright red; upper plumage black, variegated longitudinally with sulphur-yellow ; upper tail-coverts entirely of that colour ; wings and tail earthy brown; lesser wing-coverts broadly bordered with golden ; greater wing-coverts and quills edged with the same colour, shading into creamy white on the tertiaries, inner webs at the base yellow; tail narrowly edged with sulphur-yellow; under surface greenish-yellow ; throat and under tail-coverts lemon-yellow; bill black ; legs and feet dark greenish; irides dark brown. Length, 4” 6; wing, 2’ 4; tail, 1’’ 2. ~ Fig. Marsh. Monogr. Capit. pl. xlviii. 176 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 157. BarsarvLa EXxTONI. Exton’s Yellow-headed Barbet. This pretty little species can be at once distinguished from the foregoing by its yellow crown. It is a larger form of the ordinary Yellow-headed Barbet of Western and North-eastern Africa (B. chry- socoma). The southern species was distinguished by the author in the ‘Ibis’ for 1871 (p. 226), and named after Dr. Exton, who procured the typical specimen at Kanye, a native town in the Bechuana country (lat. 24° 50’ S. long. 25° 40’ E.), midway between the Marico and the Kalahari desert. Another specimen, shot by the late Professor Wahlberg, in the Transvaal, is in the editor’s possession. Dr. Exton says that the stomachs of the three specimens procured by him contained the fruit of a species of mistletoe. Upper parts greyish-black, verging to pure black on the head, mottled with greenish-white spots, smallest and roundest on the back of the head and neck, longer and more elongated on the back ; rump greenish-yellow; lesser wing-coverts and primaries on the outer-edge bordered with orange-yellow ; tail-feathers narrowly edged with dirty-white ; a brilliant orange patch occupies the ante- rior portion of the vertex, separated from the bill by a broadish black bar, coalescing with the pure black of the head, and succeeded by a narrow white bar, which covers the nostrils and passes back- ward under the eye ; two short white bars proceed from the edge of this suborbital streak, and are divided by black bars from each other and from the greenish-yellow of the throat and chin ; eyebrow small and white. All the under parts dirty pale ashy, more or less tinged with green or greenish yellow. Total length, 4:6 inches; wing, 2°7; tail, 1°3; tarsus, 0°6. 158. BarpBaTuLa BILINEATA. Bridled Barbet. Megalaima bilineata, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 234, The present species has never been met with by collectors, since it was described by the late Professor Sunderall, in 1850, from specimens collected by Wahlberg, in “ Lower Caffraria.” Dr. Reiche- now has, indeed, lately recorded it from various localities on the West Coast of Africa, but we think the specimens referred to by him are B. subsulfwrea, a smaller species and otherwise different. The Bridled Barbet may be distinguished by its black back and P| Saas y SMILORHIS LEUCOTIS. Lig orange rump from the other South African species: it is the sole representative in the southern part of the continent of the black- backed section of the genus Barbatula. As we have not personally examined a specimen, we transcribe the description given by the Messrs. Marshall :—Sexes alike: upper plumage shining black, with a green tinge; a narrow frontal band, continued down the sides of the face, and one over the eye, down the side of the neck, white ; these two stripes separated by a broad black band, the latter from the throat, which is white, by a narrow black moustachial streak ; ‘rump golden yellow ; lesser wing-coverts broadly tipped with sulphur yellow ; greater coverts, wings, and tail brownish-black, edged on the outer web with the same colour; under surface pale yellow; flanks grey ; tail underneath grey ; bill, black ; legs and feet, brown- ish; wing, 2’ 5; tail, 1’’ 6. Fig. Marsh. Monogr. Capit. pl. 4, fig. 2. 159. SMILORHIS LEUCOTIS. White-eared Barbet. Megalaima leucotis, Layard, B. 8S. Afr. p. 234 (1867). _ This Barbet was discovered in Natal by the late Professor Wahl- berg, one of whose specimens is inthe Editor’s collection. It appears to be strictly a bird of Eastern Africa; having been found besides only in Mozambique by Professor Peters, and in Uzanga, by Baron Vonder Decken. Nothing has, as yet, been recorded respect- ing its habits and economy. For the description, we are again indebted to the work of Messrs. Marshall. Sexes alike: the head and neck are black, the shafts of the head feathers being stiff and shining, and elongated beyond the webs ; the rest of the upper plumage is dull brown. A broad line behind the eyes extending down the sides of the neck, the abdomen, and under wing and tail-coverts, snow white. The sides of the face, throat, and breast are brownish black, the shafts of the feathers of the throat being elongated into fine hair-like bristles; the flanks brown, broadly tipped with white. The rictal bristles of this species are not very strongly developed, The bill is plumbeous black; irides, yellow; legs and feet brown. Length, 8’’ ; wing 3”: 4 inches. Fig. Marshall, Monogr, Capitonide, pl. 52. 178 BIRDS OF SOUTH APRICA. 160. TRACHYPHONUS CAFER. Le Vaillant’s Barbet. Capito vaillantii, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 235. This singularly coloured bird is chiefly found in the interior of South-eastern Africa. It was procured at Kurrichaine by the late Sir Andrew Smith during his expedition into Central Africa, and was named by him Pollysticte quopopo, this being, as Dr. Exton informs us, the Bechuana name for “ Woodpecker.” It has also been recorded as having been obtained by the Mm. Verreaux in Mosili- — katze’s country, but Dr. Exton informs us again that this means the Marico or Mariqua district, on the borders of the Transvaal, from which Mosilikatze was formerly ejected by the Boers, and is not the present Matabilicountry. It is, however, found in the latter locality, as Dr. Exton obtained examples near Kanye. Mr. Ayres shot one specimen “ amongst the trees on the banks of the river Limpopo, where it was apparently a solitary bird: the stomach contained insects and fruits.” Mr. Buckley writes, “This species is very common north of Pretoria, all along the Limpopo river; but I did not observe it beyond Bamangwato. It creeps along the boughs of the trees like a Woodpecker, for which I often mistook it; it is by no means a shy bird.””? Mr. F. A. Barratt procured his specimens in the bush under the mountains at Rustenberg, and it certainly occurs in the Zambesi district as Dr. Kirk obtained specimens at Tete during the Livingstone expedition. It has also been found by Senor Anchieta at Huilla in Mossamedes. Dr. Exton writes, “The note of this bird is a continuous trill, somewhat resembling the quick ‘tap, tap, tap, of Dendrobates,’ when at work on a decayed tree. I obtained three specimens by following the sound from tree to tree. When calling, they usually perch on the uppermost twig, and their peculiar jerk of the body whilst producing the sound, can then be visibly distinguished. The female has the same note as the male. In a fresh specimen the bill is greenish-yellow, tipped with black: iris, reddish-brown ; gizzard contained berries, and shreds of leaves; that of the female only contained shreds of leaves.” The following good description of the bird is extracted from Messrs. Marshall’s Monograph, Al a ry, STACTOLEMA ANCHIETR. 179 Entire head brilliant chrome yellow, each feather edged with crimson at the tip, this latter colour predominating on the cheeks ; back of the head, nape, and a large occipital crest glossy blue-black ; a spot on the ear-coverts black tipped with white ; upper part of the back, scapulars and wing-coverts glossy blue-black banded with pure white; lower part of the back and rump black washed with rich chrome yellow, this colour alone showing on the rump; upper tail-coverts rich crimson; quills brownish black, grey at the base of inner web, the outer web spotted with white; tail black, in some lights appearing very distinctly barred, all the feathers broadly tipped and sparsely spotted with white ; chin, white ; throat, chrome tipped with crimson, and shading into beautiful lilac on the breast ; a band of black across the upper part of the breast with a few spots of lilac; rest of the breast white, passing on the lower part into chrome streaked with crimson; flanks and abdomen chrome ; legs and feet dull brown: orbital skin blackish. Fig. Marshall, Monogr. Capit. pl. 56. 161. SracroLZMA ANCHIETR. Yellow-faced Barbet. ' It was only as late as the year 1869, that this species was made known to naturalists, and as yet no other specimens have been recorded beyond those originally obtained by Anchieta. By him the bird was discovered at Caconda in Benguela, and it therefore must be regarded as a bird of Southern rather than of Western Africa. Nothing has as yet been recorded concerning the habits of this singular bird, and the description given below is taken from the well known work of the Messrs. Marshall. General plumage reddish-brown, forehead and sinciput, throat and _a spot at the base of the lower mandible sulphur-yellow; occiput, nape, and sides of the neck and breast shining black, the former covered with numerous small spots, and the latter with longitudinal streaks of sulphur-yellow ; superciliary eye-stripe, cheeks, and ear-coverts white; primaries and tail brownish-black, secondaries with the exterior web edged with greyish-white ; under wing-coverts, lower belly, and under tail-coverts white ; tail underneath ashy-grey ; irides reddish-brown ; bill, legs and feet black. Fig. Marshall, Monogr. Capitonide, pl. 73. 180 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Fam. PICIDA. 162. CaMPETHERA CAPRICORNI. Capricorn Woodpecker. As far as is yet known this species is only found in South-Western Africa, haying been first obtained by the late Mr. Andersson in Damara Land. He procured a male bird during his first trip there, and a female was afterwards obtained by him on the Cunene river. These are the only specimens of his collecting that we have seen. His notes are as follows :—“ I never met with this species in Great Namaqua Land ; and in Damara Land proper it is scarce. I do not remember to have seen it much south of Omanbondé; but on my journey to the Okavango I found it more frequent in the neighbour- hood of that river, though even there it was of comparatively rare occurrence. It appears to be a migratory bird, as I never saw it during the dry season.” Senor Anchieta has also met with the species at Capangombe and in Mossamedes. The following description is from one of Mr. Andersson’s speci- mens : the species may be told ata glance by its yellow rump slightly spotted with black. Adult female—Above olive brown, barred across with yellow and white, the bars of the latter colour being mostly concealed, the shafts white or at least brighter yellow, forming a distinct streak in the centre of the yellow bars; hinder neck entirely ashy brown; rump and upper tail-coverts bright yellow, with spots of brown in duplicate series or a single subterminal one ; tail dull olive, blackish at tip with bright yellow shafts, all the feathers crossed with bands of dark brown, very indistinct on the centre ones, but plainer on the outer feathers, which have about nine dark bars, the interspaces fulvous brown shading off into whitish on the outer web, the last small feather distinctly barred with white ; wings brown, strongly washed with olive-yellow, the least coverts minutely, but the median and greater series distinctly barred with white, the subterminal bar much plainer; primary-coverts brown narrowly edged with olive-yellow; quills brown with golden shafts, the primaries externally washed with olive yellow, and indistinctly notched with paler yellow on the outer web, these notches lighter on the secondaries, the innermost of which are barred across and broadly tipped with white; crown black, thickly clouded with round spots of CAMPETHERA BENNETTI. 181 white, the hinder part of the crown and nape crimson ; a loral streak running from the base of nostril to below the eye, and another just over the hind part of the eye, white; below the former a brown streak is drawn from above the base of the bill to the ear-coverts which are also brown, inclining to yellowish white on their hinder margin; feathers at base of lower mandible and cheeks yellowish white; sides of neck also yellowish white, most of the feathers spotted with black; from the hinder ear-coverts down the sides of the neck an indication of a blackish streak ; throat, brown; rest of under surface of body bright yellow, paling into sulphur yellow on the abdomen and thighs, the latter being mottled with brown bases ; sides of upper breast spotted or mottled with brown, most of the feathers being of this colour and barred across with white or yellow ; under wing-coverts yellow, the lower ones spotted with brown; quills brown below with yellow shafts and notched with yellow on the inner webs; “bill brown slate-colour; legs and toes lead- coloured ; iris, claret-coloured” (Andersson). Total length, 8:5 inches; culmen, 1°1; wing, 4°95; tail, 3°45; tarsus, 0°9. The male differs from the female by having the whole of the crown crimson as well as a broad moustache of the same colour: the brown stripe on the sides of the face and the brown throat are absent. Fig. Newton, Ibis, 1869, pl. ix. 163. CamPETHERA BENNETTI. Bennett’s Woodpecker. Like the preceding bird, Bennett’s Woodpecker differs much in the sexes, the female having a blackish-brown throat, as in C. capri- corm. The absence of the conspicuous yellow rump, however, distinguishes it from that species, this part of the body being banded across with yellow, as in all other South African Oampetheree. Sir A. Smith, whose typical specimens are in the British Museum, states that it inhabits the country about and beyond Kurrichaine. Mr. Ayres obtained a pair near the river Limpopo, and Professor Sundevall notes that Wahlberg procured several specimens in the Transvaal, in about 24° south lat. Dr. Exton fell in with the species near Kanye in the Matabili country. Adult male.—Above brown washed with olive-yellow and every- where barred across with yellow or white, the white bars predomi- 182 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. nating on the rump and upper tail-coverts, some of the bars on the latter being tinged with bright yellow; crown of head and nape crimson, a broad streak along the sides of the face, drawn from the base of the bill below the eye and including the ear-coverts, yellowish white, cheeks crimson, forming a broad moustache ; throat yellowish- — | white, unspotted; rest of under surface yellowish white, inclining to bright yellow on the breast, and to sulphur-yellow on the sides of the body and abdomen, all the under surface spotted with black, the sub-terminal marks very distinct, most of the plumes with an — additional concealed spot of black, except on the flanks, where all the feathers have several bars of greyish black; upper wing-coverts | dark brown, washed with olive-yellow and having a narrowly indi- | cated shaft-line of yellow, all of the feathers having a spot of white ' at the tip, the greater series with additional bars of whitish, irre-— gular in shape and extending generally a little more than half across * the feather; primary coverts uniform dark brown, externally shaded with olive; quills dark brown, with bright golden shafts, all the primaries externally washed with yellow and barred or notched on the outer web with whitish, the secondaries tipped and barred across * with white; tail dark brown, strongly shaded with yellow towards the tips which are black, the shafts golden, all the feathers barred across with obscure yellowish brown, these bars plainer and whiter on the small external feather. ‘otal length, 8 inches; culmen, 1:2; wings, 4°8; tail, 2°8; tarsus, 0°9. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but differing very much in facial features, as follows: crown of head black, thickly mottled with rounded spots of snow white, with an occipital band of crimson feathers; from the base of the bill below the eye runs a line of dark brown enclosing the lower ear-coverts ; cheeks greyish white, mottled with black bases to the feathers ; the throat chestnut brown, Fig. Malherbe, Monogr. Pic. ii. pl. 165, 164, CAMPETHERA ABINGTONI. Golden-tailed Woodpecker, Campethera chrysura, Layard, B.S, Afr. p. 238. This species has always been set down as an inhabitant of Western Africa, having been originally described by Swainson in his little work on the birds of that locality. Malherbe and Sundevall, however, who have both monographed the Woodpeckers, confess to al CAMPETHERA ABINGTONI. 183 their never having seen an example from the western side of the continent, nor have we ourselves been more fortunate. Swainson gives no exact locality for his species, and our impression is that it is a bird of South Africa alone. Sir A. Smith procured specimens near Port Natal, and as his description of C. abingtoni clearly refers to the present species, we have resuscitated the latter name pub- lished in 1836, over that of C. chrysuwra of Swainson, which was not-published before 1837. Mr. Gurney, in his early lists of Natal birds, identified specimens sent to him by Mr. Ayres as C. chrysura, but he afterwards (Ibis, 1862, p. 37) referred to the species as Dendromus smithii. The British Museum, however, possesses one of Mr. Ayres’ specimens collected about this time, and we believe that the first determination was right, and that there was no need to change the name. As far as we are at present aware, the species is confined to Natal, where, according to Mr. Ayres, it is found all the year round. The following notes are from his pen:— This Wood- pecker makes a hole, for the purposes of incubation, in the trunk of a decayed tree, just large enough at the opening for the bird to enter, but becoming wider inside, and reaching downwards to a depth of a foot or eighteen inches; ,it lays its eggs on the bare wood, without making any nests.” Later on he observes :— These Woodpeckers are to be found throughout the colony, wherever there is bush-land, singly or in pairs; their note is loud and harsh; they are very restless in their halits, constantly hunting for food as if they never obtained a sufficiency ; ants and other insects appear to be their usual food, which they search for and catch on the rough bark of trees; they also hammer away at dead boughs, from which they extract soft grubs, &c.; their flight is heavy and dipping.” We are indebted to Mr. Sydney Cuthbert for a specimen of this bird from Suazi Land. Adult male.—Above olive-green, the bases to the feathers lighter, all the dorsal plumes spotted with olive-yellow, the subterminal one being diamond-shaped ; lower back and rump barred across with white, the bars always pervaded more or less with an olive tinge, the upper tail-coverts somewhat shaded with golden brown and barred with darker brown, the shafts being yellowish; upper wing- coverts more distinctly olive-brown than the back, somewhat shaded with golden, all of them spotted with yellowish white, the shafts being also of the latter colour ; quills deep brown, externally shaded 184 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. with olive, the shafts yellowish brown, whity brown on, the pri- maries, all the feathers notched with yellowish white on the outer web, and largely indented with white on the inner one; tail dark brown, the shafts golden-yellow, paler below, all the tail feathers web, these half-bars being about six or seven in number; crown of head crimson, more clear on the nape, the frontal and vertical plumes showing the greyish bases to the feathers; sides of face yellowish white, including the lores, the ear-coverts minutely spotted with black, a mark of which appears on the upper edge of the ear- coverts behind the eyes; a very small malar stripe of crimson, much mottled with black; under surface of body pale sulphur yellow, the ! throat whitish, with only a few black specks, which on the chest and fore-neck are very broad, somewhat irregular in shape and on many feathers appearing like two spots joined together, these streaks becoming narrower on the breast, and again slightly dilating into spade-shaped spots on the flanks ; the abdomen yellow in the centre, the sides of it minutely spotted with black, these spots becoming larger on the under tail-coverts ; some of the flank feathers with a ' externally notched with pale brown, and with whitish on the inner | few indistinct greyish black bars; under wing-coverts yellowish F with a very few black spots, more frequent near the edge of the | wing, the lower series whitish with narrow dark brown transverse bars, the lower surface of the quills dark brown, largely notched with pale yellow on the inner webs; “iris light reddish brown; bill dark brown, the under mandible with a yellowish tinge; tarsi and feet very dull green” (Ayres). Total length, 7-5 inches; culmen, 1:0; wing, 4:2; tail, 2°95; tarsus, 0°8. Adult female-—In general similar to the male, but differing in | the coloration of the head, which is black, very minutely spotted | with white, the nape with a large crimson crest; no red malar stripe, this being replaced by a black one spotted with white. : Fig. Malherbe, Monogr. Picide, pl. 94. 1 165, CAMPETHERA SMITH. Smith’s Woodpecker. Ipagrus brucei, Gurney, in Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p, 221. Dendrobates striatus, Layard, Ibis, 1871, p. 227. q ‘The plumages of the present species are very little understood, and it will be necessary to procure a very large series of carefully Ai CAMPETHERA SMITHII. 185 collected specimens before we can hope to understand the sequence of changes through which this bird passes. After careful con- sideration, however, we have come to the conclusion that the bird first described by Malherbe as C. smithii is the same as the Wood- pecker subsequently described by him as C. brucei, and more recently still by the author of the present work as Dendrobates striatus. The latter title must in any case be suppressed, for re- examination of the subject shows us that the Matabili bird must be the true 0. brucei of Malherbe. Whether the Damara species is identical with the one from the Matabili country is at present rather difficult to say ; inasmuch ag all the specimens collected by the late Mr. Andersson show considerable difference when compared with other examples from South Eastern Africa. None of the latter, as yet examined by us, have shown the black cheeks and throat which appear to characterize the adult plumage of the Damara bird. The chief distinguishing mark of CO. brucei is perhaps its regularly banded mantle, which is numerously and distinctly barred across with yellow, or yellowish white: this however is, perhaps after all, a doubtful character, for it would seem as if there was a regular transition in a large series from spotted, to barred specimens. C. brucei was originally described by Malherbe from the Bechuana country, and Professor Sundevall records two specimens which he doubtfully separates from the above-named bird as C. smithii, as obtained by the late Professor Wahlberg on the Limpopo river on the 29th October and 11th November, 1843. Dr. Exton shot three specimens at Kanye in the Matabili country. Mr. Andersson says that it is not unfrequent in Damara Land, and he also shot it in Ondonga: one specimen, which we believe to be referable to this species, was obtained by Mr. Monteiro in Angola. Senor Anchieta has obtained it in Mossamedes at Capangombe, Biballa, and Gambos. Adult male——Above dusky greenish, everywhere barred across with greenish yellow or dull white, all the feathers having a terminal bar of the same, and lighter median spots of a diamond shape i in the centre of the bars: this spotted appearance is very distinct on the mantle, but is not seen on the lower back and rump, nor on the upper tail-coverts, where the cross bars are very regular; wings olive brown, the coverts minutely spotted with yellowish white, the greater series having a narrow yellowish shaft-line with indications of a few whitish bars on the inner web; primary coverts brown, 186 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. washed with olive and minutely spotted with yellowish white ; quills brown, externally golden olive and having golden shafts, all of them externally spotted with yellowish white, producing rather a barred appearance on the inner secondaries ; upper tail-coverts washed with golden yellow and barred across like the rump; tail dark brown, all the feathers with bright golden shafts and yellow tips, crossed with lighter bars of golden brown, the inner webs notched with whitish and the outer webs spotted with the latter colour also, especially the small spurious one, which is regularly barred across with whitish; crown greyish, the feathers tipped with crimson, the occipital crest bright crimson ; feathers round the eye blackish; nasal bristles, lores and a broad band below the eye embracing the ear-coverts white, the latter minutely spotted or streaked with black, especially near the upper margin; a short malar streak of crimson-tipped feathers not reaching much beyond the hinder line of the eye; hinder cheeks white, minutely spotted with black; throat and chest for the most part black, spotted with white, the plumes of the fore-neck with margins of yellowish white, more or less encroaching on the black centres, and in some instances forming a cross-bar; rest of under surface of body yellowish white, the breast distinctly streaked with black, the flanks barred with the same; under tail-coverts whitish with a few irregular spots or streaks of dull black; under wing- coverts yellowish white with very distinct rows of large blackish spots, forming bars on the greater series; quills brown below, with large yellow notches on the inner web, the shafts golden; “ bill bluish brown ; legs and toes greyish green; iris pink wine-colour” (Andersson). Total length, 9 inches; culmen, 1°25; wing, 48; tail, 3°1; tarsus, 0°9. Female.—Similar to the male, but apparently never so black on the throat, and having the crown black with tiny round spots of white, the occipital crest only crimson. Fig. Malherbe, Monogr. Pic. ii. pl. 93. 166. CAamPETHERA NoTATA. Knysna Woodpecker. Campethera nubica, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 238. This species is distinguished from the other South African Wood- peckers by its thickly spotted under-surface, which is covered with large black spots from the chin to the vent. We have received .| ¥ . : GEOCOLAPTES OLIVACEUS. 187 specimens from Mr. Henry Bowker from the Transkei, and from Mr. Arnott at Colesberg. Mr. H. Atmore has collected it at George, and Le Vaillant cites the George forests and the Gamtoos river as habitats for the species. Mr. Andersson also procured it at the Knysna ; it is found about Graham’s Town, and was sent to us by Mr. T. Atmore from Elands’ Post. Le Vaillant states that it lays four eggs marked with brown on a bluish ground, and Mrs. Barber informs us that it is the foster parent of Coccystes jacobinus. Adult male.—Olive-green above, with indistinct small transverse bars and a few diamond-shaped subterminal spots of paler olive yellow ; quills brown, externally olive near the base, the secondaries olive-brown, duller than the back, transversely barred with yellowish ' white, the primaries externally spotted with yellow, notched on the inner web with white, the shafts brown; tail olive-brown, shaded with greenish, and crossed with six bars of yellowish, the tips of the feathers dull golden, the shafts golden brown; head greyish black, all the feathers tipped with scarlet, the occipital crest entirely bright scarlet ; lores yellowish, minutely spotted with black; ear-coverts whitish, streaked with black ; fore part of cheeks scarlet, forming a small moustache, the rest of the sides of the face and sides of neck yellowish white, thickly mottled with black, the feathers being black with a narrow whitish edging; entire under surface of body yellowish, white on the throat, thickly spotted with black, the spots rounded and very large on the breast, rather more diamond- shaped on the abdomen, the flanks barred with dusky black ; under wing-coverts yellow spotted with black like the breast; iris hazel. Total length, 8°5 inches; culmen, 1:10; wing, 4°15; tail, 3-2; tarsus, 0°9. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but haying the head black minutely spotted with white, the occiput only scarlet. Fig. Malherbe, Monogr. Pic. ui. pl. 95. 167. GEocOLAPTES OLIVACEUS. Ground Woodpecker. Colaptes olivaceus, Layard, B.S. Afr. p. 239. [This singular bird presents a remarkable instance of the adapta- tion of creatures to the localities wherein their lot is cast. Though belonging to the Woodpecker family, it never pecks wood, but bores its way into the banks of rivers, sides of hills, or the walls of mud- buildings, in search of its prey, and for a home for its young. It 188 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. also seeks for food on the ground, in the same manner as the : Golden-winged Woodpecker of North America; its flight likewise struck me as very similar. | } It excavates a hole, sometimes several feet in depth, in which to deposit its eggs, which are pure white, and from three to five in : number: axis, 13’’’ ; diam., 11’’’. Families seem to keep in company until the arrival of breeding season separates them. They feed together, and roost together in some deserted hole, while their loud, harsh cries; as they call to each other, may be heard for a considerable distance. Major Bulger procured this species near Windvogelberg, and Mr. T. Atmore has sent us a pair from Colesberg. It seems to be pretty common throughout the colony, and extends to Natal. Wahlberg procured it in worn plumage near Port Natal in January, and Mr. Ayres has shot it on the Mooi river. Mr. Buckley gives the following note: “Common in Natal, frequenting the open hills and sitting among the stones. I never noticed it among trees. These birds generally go about in parties of six or seven, probably the old birds and their young.” qh General colour, brown, mottled with dirty yellow ; rump crimson ; breast and belly pale crimson, in the male, who has also an indistinct crimson moustache ; in the female these parts are brown; tail above, dark-brown, barred with yellow, the tip ridged, and golden-orange ; below brown, glossed with golden-yellow, the yellow bars also showing ; “ beak and legs black ; iris orange in male, dark- red in female” (Buckley). Length, 10”; wing, 5” 3”; tail, 3” 9”. Fig. Malh. Monogr. Pic. ii., pl. 111. 168. DeENpDROPICUS NAMAQUUS. Bearded Woodpecker. Denbrobates namaquus, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 236. This Woodpecker is apparently not found within the limits of the colony, though Le Vaillant states that he noticed it it Kaffraria. Mr. Ayres has procured it in the Transvaal, where also Mr. Buckley met with a pair, which were engaged in making their nest, on the 7th of July, 1873. Dr. Exton shot the species at Kanye, in the Matabili country, and Dr. Kirk obtained it at the Murchison Rapids on the river Shiré in March, but he says that it is a much rarer species in the Zambesi country than D. hartlawbi, and is, moreover, DENDROPICUS HARTLAUBI. 189 limited to certain localities. Mr. Andersson writes as follows: “I have scarcely ever seen this Woodpecker in Great Namaqua Land, but have found it (very sparingly) throughout Damara Land, and as far north as the river Okavango, where, and at the Lake N’gami, it is more numerous than in Damara Land, though no species of Woodpecker can be said to be common in any of the countries of South Western Africa.” Mr. Andersson also procured itin Ondonga, and Anchieta has forwarded this species from Huilla and the Chimba river in Mossamedes. Upper parts, dull-green, barred with dirty-yellow ; forehead black, each feather tipped with white; top of head crimson in the male (black in female) ; back, black; cheek, chin, and throat, white, the latter crossed by two black lines, one passing over the ear from the corner of the eye, the other extending from the base of the lower mandible to the shoulders; under parts greenish-grey, faintly barred with dirty-yellow ; shafts of wing and tail feathers, yellow, as are also the tips and underside of the latter, and the upper coverts. . “ Bill greenish-grey, legs and toes greyish-olive, iris of a red-wine colour.” (Andersson.) Length, 8” 6’’’ ; wing, 5”; tail, Bid 67! te : Fig. Malh. Monogr. Picide. I. pl. 42. 169. Denpropicus HARTLAUBI. Hartlaub’s Woodpecker. This little Woodpecker is very closely allied to D. cardinalis, from which it differs in the yellower tint of the under surface, and in the very distinct red tinge which pervades the upper tail-coyerts, and which, Professor Sundevall says, is found in the young birds as wellas the old. He gives its habitat as extending from Port Natal into the tropical districts of South Africa. Dr. Kirk says that it was frequent in all the woods in the Zambesi and Shiré valley. Mr. Andersson procured a specimen in Damara Land, and Professor Wahlberg also met with it at Walfish Bay on April 27th, 1854, The species differs only from D. cardinalis in the points above mentioned, which are not sufficiently strongly marked to render a detailed description necessary. According to Mr. Buckley, the bill is black, the legs greenish-grey, the iris dark-red. Total length, 5.8 inches ; culmen, 0.75 ; wing, 3.6; tail, 2.2 ; tarsus, 0.6. Fig. Malherbe, Monogr. Pic. I. pl. 44. 190 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 170. Dernproricus CARDINALIS. Cardinal Woodpecker, Dendrobates fulviscapus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 237. This little Woodpecker has a wide range over the colony. Victorin shot it in the Karroo in January, and we have received it from Rondebosch, Beaufort, Colesberg, and the Knysna. Mr. Atmore has procured it near Eland’s Post, but as yet we have seen no specimen from Natal. Mr. Buckley found it in the Transvaal and also in Bamangwato, while Dr. Exton brought specimens from Kanye. The following note is extracted from Mr. Andersson’s work :— “This pretty little Woodpecker, though it cannot be said to be abundant, is the commonest of all those found in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, and is also tolerably numerous at Lake N’gami. It is a comparatively tame species, and is sometimes found singly, but more often in pairs; it usually frequents trees of moderate size, situated in the more scanty woods or on the banks of periodical watercourses.” Senor Anchieta has obtained it also at Humbe on the Cunene river, and also at Caconda in Benguela; and Mr. Monteiro has recorded its occurrence at Little Fish Bay. It affects the dead stumps of Huphorbias and Aloes; and reminded us, from this peculiarity, of the Indian P. maharattensis, which con- stantly keeps to the “ Candelabra euphorbia” of Ceylon. Le Vaillant states that they lay from five to seven white eggs. A pair breed annually in an old apple tree on Mr. Melck’s farm, at the Berg river, and they had riddled the branches with their holes. We were too late for the eggs in September, as the nests then contained young birds. General colour above, sepia-brown, barred all over with dirty- yellow or white; forehead brown; top and back of head crimson; under parts grey, striped on the breast, and barred on the belly and vent with the colour of the back; shafts of the wing and tail feathers, and underside of the latter, golden-yellow. Female resembles the male, but has the crimson of head replaced by dark- brown, approaching to black; bill bluish-grey in male, black in female; iris dark red (Buckley); bill greenish-slaty; legs and toes green, tinged with slate-colour (Andersson). Length, 6”; wing, 3” 9""; tail, 2” 6”. Fig. Malh. Monogr, Pic. pl. 43, figs. 1, 2, 3. — YUNX PECTORALIS. 191 171. DenpRoPICUS MENSTRUUS. Red-vented Woodpecker. Dendrobates griseocephalus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 236. This is a strictly South African species, and is not uncommon in all wooded parts of the colony. Victorin found it at the Knysna from May to July, and again in October; and Mr. Andersson also procured specimens in the same locality. Mr. Atmore has sent examples from Hland’s Post, and Mr. Ayres remarks that in Natal it frequents the dense bush, both on the coast and inland, and it seems to occur on the Drakenberg mountains for their entire extent, as Mr. Barratt shot two individuals on their northern slope, near Macamac. Le Vaillant states that it breeds in holes of trees, and lays four white eggs. This we can confirm: they are white and shining, rather truncated at the obtuse end. Axis, 10”; diam. 7”. General colour above, rich olive-yellow ; crown of head, rump, and upper tail-coverts, brilliant crimson ; sides of head and upper parts cinereous. The female resembles the male in all except the crimson crown, which in the former is cinereous; irides reddish. Length, 7 6"; wing, 4” 6’”; tail, 3’’. Fig. Malh. Monogr. Pic, ii. pl. 62. _ Fam. YUNGIDZ. 172. YuNx PECTORALIS. Red-breasted Wry-neck. This very distinct species has been sent only from Natal and the eastern districts of the colony. Mr. Ayres seems to have found it not uncommon in the former country, and a very large series of specimens was procured by Mr. Atmore in the neighbourhood of Eland’s Post; it has also reached us from Butterworth, Transkei, whence a single specimen was sent by Mr. Henry Bowker. It occurs about Graham’s Town. Above, brown, profusely variegated with fine markings of black, and different shades of grey; a line of black feathers extends from the crown of the head down the neck, ending between the shoulders ; outside webs of the wing-feathers barred with rufous; tail barred with black ; centre of chin and throat, deep chestnut; belly and vent 192 AGAPORNIS ROSEICOLLIS. dirty-white; each feather with a dark-brown line down the shaft ; under tail-coverts rufous; iris ashy-hazel. Length, 6” 6’’’; wing, 3”’ 6’”’; tail, 2” 3”. Fig. Gray and Mitch. Gen. B. pl. 112. Fam. PSITTACIDZ. 173. AGAPORNIS ROSEICOLLIS. Rosy-faced Lovebird. This little Parrot is not known to occur within the limits of the colony, but it was found to be very plentiful on the Limpopo by Mr, Ortlepp, who says that they are great favourites with the Boers, who keep them as pets along with the little Nacht-apie (Galago moholi). It also probably occurs in the Zambesi region, as Dr. Kirk observes that a smaller species of Parrot, which he believes to be the present one, was found “‘in one spot, limited to about twenty miles, on the Shire, between Nyassa and the rapids. It was never seen elsewhere, ‘ but was found there on two occasions. It is gregarious.” Sir J, Alexander procured it in Namaqua Land, and{Mr. Andersson gives” the following good account of its habits in South-Western Africa :— | “This pretty little species is very generally distributed over _ Damara and Great Namaqua Land, and is also found on the Okayago and at Lake N’gami. It is always observed in small flocks, and seldom far from water, to which it resorts at least once in the day, and is consequently not a bad guide to a thirsty traveller; though if he be inexperienced, it would hardly avail him much, as it frequently happens that the drinking-places resorted to by this and other water-loving birds, are of but small compass and strangely situated. This species is very swift of flight, and the little flocks in which it is observed, seem to flash upon the sight as they change their feeding-grounds or pass to or from thei drinking-places; their flight, however, is only for a comparatively short distance at a time, They utter rapid and shrill notes when on the wing, or when suddenly disturbed or alarmed. Their food consists of berries and large berry-like seeds. This bird does not make any nest of its own, but takes possession of nests belonging to other birds, especially Phileterus socius and Plocepasser mahali. I cannot say whether it forcibly ejects the rightful owners of these nests, or | AGAPORNIS PULLARTA. 193 merely occupies such as they have abandoned; but in the case of the first-named species, I have seen the Parrots and the Grosbeaks incubating in about equal numbers under the shelter of the same friendly roof. The egg is pure white, not unlike a Woodpecker’s, but more elongated.” | Mr. Andersson also procured it in Ondonga, and Mr. Monteiro says that it is very abundant from Mossamedes to Novo Redondo. Senor Anchieta has sent specimens from Capangombe and the river Chimba in the same district, as well as from Humbe on the Cunene river as well as from Kattenbella in Benguela, where also Mr. Sala met with the bird: it probably occurs on the West Coast of Africa as far up as the Gaboon, as a specimen from the latter locality is in the editor’s collection. General colour pale green; forehead and eyebrows red; face and neck in front, rosy; lower wing-coverts, blue-green; rump and upper tail-coyerts, azure; tail scarlet, tipped with green, before which is a sub-terminal black band, the centre feathers entirely green, the outer webs edged with green, “ bill greenish-white; legs blue with the faintest tinge of green; iris intensely dark brown” (Andersson). Length, 6’’; wing, 4.0°77; tail, 2’’; tarsus, 0°5. Fig. Bourjot, Perrogq. pl. 91. 174, AGAPORNIS PULLARIA. West-African Lovebird. This species is included in the present work on the strength of a statement made by Dr. Reichenow in his account of the birds sent by the German expedition to West Africa, viz.—that many speci- mens of this small Parrot are exported from the Coast stations of Benguela as well as Loango. We can understand its occurrence in the latter locality, but we think that as A. roseicollis is the only Lovebird known as yet to inhabit Benguela, some confirmation is necessary before the present one can be received as a South African bird ; at the same time the Rosy-faced Lovebird certainly occurs in Western Africa, above the Quanza, and it is by no means impossible, therefore, that A. pullaria is also found both above and below this river. General colour grass-green, including the ear-coverts and sides of neck; under surface of the body brighter green than the back; frontal band, remainder of sides of face and throat, red; rump oO 194 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. azure-blue ; upper tail-coverts light green; tail scarlet tipped with light green, before which is a sub-terminal band of black; under wing-coverts greyish-black. Total length, 5 inches; wing, 3°1; tail, 1:8; tarsus, 0°35. Fig. Bourj. Perroq. pl. 90. 175. Psirracus RoBUSTUS. Le Vaillant’s Parrot. - These large African Parrots are divided by Dr. Finsch, our greatest authority on these birds, into two sections distinguished by their brown or yellow under wing-coverts. The present bird has them brown, and can therefore only be compared with the West- African P. fuscicollis. Professor Barboza du Bocage has recently diagnosed the two species very carefully, and he gives the following characters for P. robustus :—“ Brownish-green, the feathers of the back and wings blackish in the centre; lower back, rump and abdomen bright green; primaries, secondaries and tail obscure brown, narrowly bordered with olive; head, neck and breast rather bright yellowish-dusky colour ; forehead and cheeks, slightly reddish; bend of the wing and tibial region vermilion; bill dull white; feet black. Total length, 5 inches; wings, 8'’’; tail, 40°%5 tarsus, 0°7.” Le Vaillant’s Parrot is rather difficult to obtain, and the few specimens that have reached us have all been from the Knysna and the Eastern frontier seaboard. Mr. Atmore procured it near Eland’s— Post, and Captain Bulger at Windvogelberg. Dr. Kirk says that it is a much rarer species on the Zambesi than P. fuscicapillus. Le Vaillant states that they breed in hollow trees, and lay four white eggs, about the size of those of pigeons. According to Dr. Kirk the food consists of wild fruit and the kernels of nuts. We have not seen any specimens from Natal, and the only reference to its occurrence in that Colony is given by Mr. Gurney, who writes (Ibis, 1873, p. 255): “Mr. E. C. Buxton informs me that during a recent visit to Natal he saw two young Parrots in that colony which had — respectively been taken from nests at Cremer’s, Unyemi Falls: one | of these he identified as P. robustus: the other, which was of a | much smaller species, he was unable satisfactorily to identify in — consequence of the bad condition of its plumage.” Fig. We Vaill. Perrog. pl. 130. PSITTACUS MEYERI. 195 176. Psirracts FUSCICOLLIS. Brown-necked Parrot. Professor Barboza du Bocage gives the diagnosis of this species as follows: “ Olive-green; the secondaries uniform with the back; the primaries and tail brown, slightly bordered with olive-green; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts light yellowish-green; head, neck, and breast, olive grey; the forehead broadly, the cheeks obseurely red; bend of the wing and tibial region vermilion; iris chestnut; bill dull white; feet black.” Total length, 11:5 inches ; wing, 8:2; tail, 4:5; tarsus, 0°6. s Specimens which were obtained by Anchieta at Humbe on the Cunene river have been identified as belonging to this species by Professor Bocage, and he concludes that the examples obtained by Andersson in Ondonga and Damara Land belong to the present bird and not to P. robustus, to which they had been referred, and this we find on a re-examination of the specimens to be actually the case. Thus the following note of Mr. Andersson refers to P. fuscicollis and not to P. robustus: ‘I haye met with this Parrot in the country of Ovaquenyama, where it is very abundant, but very difficult to approach ; and in fact it is only to be obtained in the morning and evening, when it comes to the water during the dry season.” 177. Psirracus MEYERI. Meyer’s Parrot. This and the two following species have yellow under wing- coverts. None of them occur within the limits of the Cape Colony, but to the northward they are not rare, and are much prized as cage-birds. Mr. Ayres says that they occur near the Limpopo, and throughout the bush-veldt of the Transvaal. Mr. Ortlepp also found them plentiful on the above-named river. Dr. Exton found them frequent in the Matabili country,-generally keeping to high thorn bushes, and Mr. T. E. Buckley writes as follows: “This was the only Parrot seen during the journey. It is common from the north-west of the Transvaal to the Matabili country. These birds are seen either in pairs or small parties, and are not shy. Their cry is a yery shrill note, repeated several times, and generally uttered _ when flying ; their flight is extremely rapid, during which time the blue on the rump is very conspicuous.” Mr. F. A. Barratt says: “T shot one in the bush near Rustenberg, and saw a few more; I 02 196 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. have received them from Marico and from the northern parts of the Transvaal.” Mr. Andersson writes as follows:—‘ This Parrot is a rare bird in the middle portion of Damara Land ; but further north, at Okamabuté, it is common, and also in the Lake-regions ; with the occasional exception of a few ‘stray individuals, it does not occur further south than Omabondé, which may be said to constitute its usual southern limit. Its habits and notes closely resemble those of the succeeding species, P. rueppelli. Senor Anchieta has collected it at Biballa in Mossamedes, and at Caconda in Benguela.” General colour, dusky brown with a band of yellow across the crown (sometimes absent) ; small wing-coverts forming a shoulder- patch, edge of wing and under wing-coverts, bright yellow; lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts, bright greenish blue; under surface of body, dusky brown; the abdominal plumes edged with bright green; vent and under tail-coverts entirely of the latter colour ; thighs, yellowish, “bare skin surrounding the eye, black; bill, darkish horn colour, with a tinge of green; legs and toes, greenish black; iris, deep bright red orange” (Andersson). Total length, 8°5 inches; wing, 6:1; tail, 3°0; tarsus, 0°5. Fig. Riipp. Atl. Taf. 11. 178. Psrrracus RUEPPELLI. Riippell’s Parrot. ; Like P. meyeri this is a northern species, but is apparently plentiful in certain parts of Southern Africa, though not found so far south as the foregoing bird, nor does it occur in the eastern parts. — It is found in various localities of Western Africa, and was collected — by Mr. Monteiro in Benguela,where he observed it to be common from ; Novo Redondo to Mossamedes. Senor Anchieta has obtained it at — Capangombe in Mossamedes, and also at Humbe on the Cunene river. Mr. Andersson gives the following note :—“ This species is common in Damara Land, but is chiefly found in the middle and southern q parts of that country ; it is always met with in small flocks of about half-a-dozen individuals, and seems to prefer the larger kind of trees. It is rather shy, and when quietly perched amongst the branches is very difficult to perceive, until its presence is betrayed by the cries it utters as soon as it conceives itself to be in danger; these are at first shrill and isolated, but increase in strength and frequency till it leayes its perch, and are usually continued during PSITTACUS FUSCICAPILLUS. 197 its flight, which is generally short, but very rapid. It is rarely found far from water, which it usually frequents twice a day. It feeds on seeds and berries, sometimes also on the young shoots of trees and plants.” General colour both above and below smoky-brown, the wings and tail rather darker; sides of face greyish, the ear-coverts decidedly inclining to silvery-grey; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts, fine blue; smaller wing-coverts forming a shoulder patch, edge of wing, and under wing-coverts, yellow; thighs, yellow ; vent and under tail-coverts, washed with blue; bill and feet, dark horn colour ; iris, orange. Mr. Andersson gives the following remarks on the yariation of plumage in this bird :—“ Messrs. Strickland and Sclater state that the blue on the upper and under tail-coverts is wanting in the female; but I have now lying before me more than one individual of that sex in which this blue plumage is present. I have, however, examined others in which it was absent, but which, in all other respects, appeared to be adult ; whilst in other quite young specimens, I have found the rump and the upper tail-coverts nearly as blue as in the adult; and I have also specimens in which the blue is present both above and below, but which have none of the usual orange-yellow on the elbow or on the thigh, but only on the under wing-coverts. Whether or not these variations are merely accidental, I have been unable to decide.” Total length, 8°5 inches; wing, 5°6; tail, 3:1; tarsus, 0°5. Fig. Gray, P. Z. 8. 1848, pl. 5. 179. Psrrracus FUSCICAPILLUS. East African Parrot. This seems to be as Dr. Kirk remarks, the most common of the Parrot tribe in Eastern Tropical Africa, and it has been found at various places from Uzaramo southwards to the Zambesi region ; here Dr. Kirk says it is called “ Goe,” and he states that it is “ usually found in small flocks or in pairs; feeds on fruits, such as figs, &., but also eats native millet and maize. Its clear scream may be heard at a great distance ! ” - General colour, above dull green; the quills externally shaded with obscure bluish green ; lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts, bright green, the latter inclining to yellow; head and neck all round olive brown; the sides of the face, grey, inclining to hoary on the ear-coverts; lores, fore part of cheeks and feathers above 198 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. and below the eye, blackish-brown; rest of under surface of body bright green, marked with yellow on the flanks and vent; under wing-coverts bright yellow; thighs uniform with the abdomen. Total length, 7°5 inches ; wing, 5°8; tail, 1:8; tarsus, 0°5. Fig. Finsch & Hartl. Vog. Ostafr. taf. vii. ORDER PASSERES. Fam. TURDIDA. 180. TuRpDUS LITSITSIRUPA. South African Thrush. Turdus strepitans, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 127. We have received specimens of this Thrush from Kuruman and Colesberg. Sir A. Smith writes:—“ Immediately upon reaching Kurrichaine this Thrush began to appear in the thickets, and we continued to acquire occasionally a specimen even in the vicinity of the Tropic. It seeks its food upon the ground, and when so occupied its resort is readily discovered by the natives from the noise it makes in scratching the ground, or in displacing rubbish and decayed leaves which conceal the insects it is seeking.” It has not occurred to Mr. Ayres in Natal, but Captain Shelley saw a specimen which had been killed at Durban. Mr. T. E. Buckley remarks that it was not often seen by him during his journey to the Matabili country; ee 7 84S ee he procured a pair in the Transvaal, and Mr. Ayres obtained it on ~ the river Limpopo. In the Bechuana country, where Dr. Exton met with the species, it is called, “ Chu-chu-roo-foo.” Anchieta has obtained it at Humbe, on the Cunene river, and in Mossamedes at Huilla, Capangombe and Quillengues. We extract from Mr. Andersson’s work the following account of this Thrush in Damara Land. “ This Thrush is pretty abundant in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, especially the former ; it also occurs in the Lake Regions. It is partially migratory, only a few remaining in Damara Land throughout the year. It lives chiefly on insects, for which it searches at the roots of trees and amongst low bushes, old leaves, and decayed wood. It scratches somewhat after the manner of fowl, and is thence called by the Bechuanas, the ‘ Ground-scraper ;’ it also runs with great celerity. It lives singly or in pairs, and occasionally perches on the topmost branch of some > o. ] al a TURDUS LIBONYANUS. 199 lofty tree. It utters a plaintive half-song, half-call, just as if it were troubled with a bad cold. ‘This species breeds about Objimbinque ; and I took a nest containing three young on the 29th of October, it was built on a branch about ten feet from the ground, and was composed exteriorly of grass, the interior being lined with down and feathers.” Front and top of head, brownish-grey ; back of head, neck, back, and rump, ash-coloured ; under parts ochraceous-white, dotted all over with dark-brown spots ; under the eyes are two black bands, one semi-lunate, extending from the base of the bill to the back of the eye, the other downwards from the eye to this lunate band; bill, black, yellow at base (Buckley) ; upper mandible, horn colour ; lower mandible, yellowish (Andersson) ; legs, light greenish-yellow (Andersson) ; ochre in male, light brown in female (Buckley) ; iris, dark hazel (Buckley); double ringed, yellow and red (Ayres). Hength, 8” 6’; wing, 5” 2/’’; tail, 3’. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Birds, pl. 37. 181. Turpus LIBONYANUS. Kurrichaine Thrush. Sir A. Smith first procured specimens of this Thrush in the neigh- bourhood of Kurrichaine, actively engaged, in the thickets which occur on the banks of the river, scraping among the decaying leaves for its food. We have never seen a specimen from any part of the colony. Dr. Exton procured this rare species at Kanye. In December he writes, “At this season of the year they are in pairs, but their uncommonly shy habits and peculiar tactics make it most difficult to obtain a knowledge of their peculiarities. I thought Captain Harris never pursued the ‘Black Buck’ with more ardour than I have done this Thrush! I have never seen one on the ground as stated by Sir A. Smith. It seems very local, keeping to the same patch of bush or portion of forest, where I have seen and hunted the same pair on repeated visits. Its food consists of small berries and insects, chiefly Coleoptera.’ Dr. Kirk procured specimens in the Zambesi district. Mr. Andersson only obtained it at Ombongo, in Damara Land, and he observes, ‘‘ In all my wanderings north of the Orange River, I have but once met with this Thrush, which I then fell in with in the neighbourhood of the river Okavango.” Above, deep yellowish-grey; top of the head strongly shaded with brownish-red, margins of some of the feathers of the wing showing a pale buff-orange ; middle tail-feathers and outer webs of Bees) 1) oe oe 3 i ll il a 200 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. the rest, deep broccoli-brown; the inner webs, brownish-red, distinctly tipped with white ; throat white, tinged with ochre-yellow, and margined on each side by a series of small spots, of a dark brown, forming two longitudinal bands; breast, light yellowish-grey, with an orange tinge, which becomes brighter on the belly and inner surface of the shoulders; middle of belly and vent, white; bill, feet, and claws, yellow. Length, 9”; wing, 4” 6”; tail, 4”. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Birds, pl. 37. 182. Turpus Gurrarus. Natal Thrush. This Thrush seems to be entirely confined to Natal, where it was” first discovered by Sir Andrew Smith. The only specimens which we have seen were from this colony. Sir A. Smith states that “none were found beyond the forests which border upon Port Natal. Those which we have seen were found in damp retired situations, and when — discovered were actively employed, beneath the brushwood, in search of food.” Upper parts, rich yellowish-brown; eyebrows and sides of the -head dirty white; the latter with three umber-brown stripes ; under parts white, spotted with good-sized umber-brown spots ; two white bars across the wings when at rest ; tail, yellowish-brown ; the three lateral feathers on each side broadly tipped with white. Length, 9" 6’; wing, 4’’ 10'”; tail, 4’. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr. Birds, pl. 29. 183. TuRDUS OLIVACEUS. Olivaceous Thrush, Turdus obscurus et T’. olivaceus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 128. We do not now believe in the differences which are supposed to separate the two Thrushes of South Africa, as we did in the first edition. An examination of a large series shows that the Transvaal — bird cannot be separated from that of the colony, and we cannot , therefore admit Twrdus deckeni as an inhabitant of South Africa, ; believing as we do that the Transvaal birds referred to this species _ by Mr. Gurney are specifically the same as T. olivaceus. The. proportions of grey and orange on the breast vary exceedingly, and ; Sir A. Smith seems to have described as 1’. obscwrus a peculiarly | grey specimen, but we believe that it does not represent a distincb — form or even geographical race. At some seasons of the year, when fruit is ripe and apples and pears fall off the trees, and rot on the ground, this Thrush may be 5 found in great abundance in orchards about Rondebosch, It utters — “a TURDUS OLIVACEUS. 201 no song, but only a short hurried cry when alarmed, and flying upward to the topmost branches of the thickest trees, amid which it endeavours to conceal itself. Jf unsuccessful in this, it launches itself off and makes for the nearest thicket,—its voice and manner reminding the observer of the European blackbird. It breeds in thick bushes, making a nest like that of the blackbird, and lined with fibres and roots. The eggs, large for the size of the bird, are generally four in number, of a light verditer blue, mottled with irregular patches of brown, thickest on the obtuse end: axis, 15’’’; fisam., 11’"". Victorin did not seem to have collected specimens at the Knysna, but Mr, Andersson procured it here. Mr. Rickard has found it in the neighbourhood of East London and Port Elizabeth, and Mr. T. C. Atmore has sent it from Eland’s Post. In Natal, writes Mr. Ayres, “These Thrushes appear to be more numerous during the winter than the summer months. They frequent the bush range along the coast, and are tolerably plentiful. I sometimes find their claws much worn, as if employed in scratching for their food. They very seldom utter a note, and might well be called the ‘ Silent Thrush.’ ” We have also received specimens from the late Mr. R. Moffat, killed near Kuruman, and Sir Andrew Smith obtained his examples of the bird he named TZ’. obscurus towards Delagoa Bay. He says that “itis a solitary bird, inhabiting damp, secluded thickets and brush- wood skirting the banks of rivers, and is generally seen in such localities actively employed in displacing the decayed vegetation, which occurs upon the surface of the soil, covering the insects and worms on which it feeds.” Mr. Ayres also observes concerning the species in the Transvaal: ‘‘ These Thrushes.are common in Potchef- stroom all the year round, but are silent and retiring in their habits, frequenting thickets and dense hedgerows, and occasionally uttering a low short chuck, very similar to that of the Redwing of Europe.” Our friend, Mr. F. A. Barratt, shot several at Macamac in the Lydenburg district. Andersson gives the following note :— ‘Messrs. J. and H. Chapman brought away specimens of this Thrush from the Lake-regions: but I have never met with it to the west of the Lake-country. It is one of the commonest species in the Cape Colony, where it is partially migratory, being found most abundantly at the grape and fruit-season: it is fond of almost all kinds of fruit, but when these fail, it subsists on beetles and other insects,”” 902 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. All the upper parts very dark olive-brown; throat underneath dirty white, speckled with dark brown ; breast cinereous-brown ; belly and flanks deep rufous; vent dirty white; a few dark-brown spots are distributed on the chest, flank, and vent; upper mandible horn-colour; lower mandible and legs orange; bill yellow, the ridge of the upper mandible dark brown; feet pale yellow; iris, light ashy brown (Ayres). Length, 10’’; wing, 4’’ 9'’’; tail, 3’’ 9’”’. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pls. 98, 99. 184, TuRDUS GURNEYI. Gurney’: Thrush. Very little is known of this fine Thrush. Mr. Ayres observes concerning it: ‘ This bird I shot in the bush on a precipitous range of hills about six miles beyond Pieter-Maritzburg ; it is, I believe, the only one I have seen, and I know nothing of its habits.” It has occurred once in Abyssinia, but is represented on the west coast of Africa by the closely allied species, Twrdus crossleyi, Sharpe.* Above, olive-brown; spots between the eye and the bill, throat, chest, and flanks, cinnamon ; belly and under tail-coverts, pure white ; tail, coloured as the back; two rows of white spots across the wing, bill, dusky; iris, hazel; tarsi and feet, dusky (Ayres). Length, 6" 5’; wing, 4” 5/’’; tail, 3” 3’’’. ‘Fig. Gurney, Ibis, 1864, pl. 9. 185. TuRDUS VERREAUXI. Verreaux’ Thrush. This Thrush was discovered by Senor Anchieta at Caconda in Benguela, and the following is a translation of Professor Barboza du Bocage’s original description :— Of rather small size: above grey; the eyebrow fulvous white, the ear-coverts streaked with dusky; underneath whitish-buff ; the chin, throat, and breast, marked with dusty triangular spots; middle of the abdomen and vent, whitish; the sides of the body, pale buff, the feathers bordered with dusky at the tip ; under wing- coverts fulvous; quills, dusky brown, margined on the inner web with fulvous ; greater wing-coverts spotted at the tip with fulvous; tail greyish, obsoletely banded with dusky ; bill, horn-colour ; feet, pale; iris, brown. First primary very short, the second equal to the 5th. Total length, 8°8 inches ; wing, 5°0; tail, 3°55 ; tarsi, 1:1; bill, 1-05. * Mr. Gurney has just presented a second specimen to the British Museum: it was obtained by Mr. Ayres in the Macairac district,—R. B. 8. PHYLLASTREPHUS CAPENSIS. 203 186. CRINIGER FLAVIVENTRIS. Yellow-breasted Bulbul. Sir A. Smith discovered this species near Port Natal, where he found it entirely confined to thickets, amongst which it searches for insects, never descending to the ground; and Captain Shelley writes :—“ Another very common bird about Durban, where its loud notes may be constantly heard—and it is not unfrequently seen, as it does not hide itself so carefully as most of the other bush- birds.” Dr. Kirk obtained it in the Zambesi district. It also occurs in §.W. Africa, Mr. Andersson haying procured two specimens at Ovaquenyama in Damara Land. Senor Anchieta has also met with it at Humbe on the Cunene river, and at Biballa in Mossamedes. Upper parts of head, back, rump, and tail, olive-brown; outer yanes of some of the quill-feathers, slightly edged with green; chin and throat, pale straw-yellow; breast and flanks, greenish- yellow ; centre of belly and vent, yellow; “ bill, horn-colour, shghtly paler towards the base of the mandible; legs, leaden-grey ; iris, brown” (Shelley). Length from point of bill to tip of tail, 9”; wing, 4”; tail, 4” 2”. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. S. Afr. Birds, pl. 59. 187, PHYLLASTREPHUS CAPENSIS. Cape Bristle-necked Thrush. We found this species rather plentiful at Grootervadersbosch, near Swellendam ; itis also found in the Knysna district, where specimens were collected by Andersson and Victorin, the latter meeting with them from March to June, and again in September. It is not mentioned in Mr. Rickard’s East London list, nor did he find it near Port Elizabeth. To the eastward of Grahamstown it appears not uncommon, though from its retiring habits it is seldom procured. Captain Shelley observes :—“ This is the commonest bush-bird about Durban. If one waits in a likely spot for a short time, they rarely fail to make their presence known by their constant jarring notes, as they approach quite close, keeping, however, well hidden amongst the leafy parts near the ground. I always met with them in pairs or ‘in small family parties.” The Messrs. Chapman procured a specimen at Lake N’gami, and Anchieta has forwarded others from Humbe on the Cunene river, and Biballa and the Rio Chimba in Mossa- medas. Mr. Andersson states that they feed on seeds, and Mrs. Barber 204 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. sends us the following account of their habits, which we are able to confirm from our own personal observations :— Dwellers in woods, they love the deepest and most shady parts of the forest, where they are seldom noticed; they build their nests in low situations, amid the thick underwood that grows beneath the tall forest-trees, and seldom lay more than two eggs; if the female is disturbed, she utters one shrill note,as she flies away, letting her mate know danger is near. The notes of this bird are low and croaking, some- what resembling those of a frog; there is no perceptible difference between the male and female.” A nest forwarded by this lady is composed of coarse grass, moss, roots, and hair. The eggs are creamy white, densely blotched with purple-brown at the thick end, the blotches being confluent: axis, 11’’’; diam., 8’’’. General colour, dull olive-green ; chin, throat, and centre of belly, pure white; flanks, olive-green; shafts of wing and tail-feathers white. Length, 8’’; wing, 3’’ 8’; tail, 4’°. Mr. Andersson says that “‘the iris is yellow; the upper mandible, horn-colour; the lower bluish ; tarsus, bluish.” Captain Shelley, writing on specimens — shot by himself in Natal, notes as follows :—“ Beak, horn-colour, — inclining to white on the lower mandible; irides, hazel; legs, pale pinkish grey.” He adds, “They occasionally differ in size, two females measured respectively, 8°5 and 7:9 inches.” The above differences in the colour of the soft parts probably arises from difference of age or season. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 112, fig. 1. 188. ANDROPADUS IMPORTUNUS. Sombre Bulbul. Criniger importunus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 137. The “ Boschyogel,”’ as it is called, is not very rare in the neigh- | bourhood of Cape Town, and also occurs at the Knysna, whence we have seen a number of specimens obtained by the late Mr. C. J. Andersson, and Victorin procured it in the same district in April, May, and July. Le Vaillant states that he found it plentiful from _ Duivenbok’s River to Algoa Bay, and both Messrs. Atmore and Cairncross have forwarded it from Swellendam. According to Mr. Rickard it occurs both near East London and Port Elizabeth, and quite recently Lieut. Trevelyan has sent us a specimen captured in ANDROPADUS HYPOXANTHUS. 205 the neighbourhood of King William’s Town; it was also included in Mr. T. C. Atmore’s collections from Hland’s Post. _ Captain Shelley found it very common in the bush about Durban, and it occurs as high as Macamac and the Lydenberg district, where Mr. F. A. Barratt obtained several examples. Le Vaillant calls this bird “ L’Importun,” but we have not found it to manifest its presence by its importunity, as says that author. We have generally found it in thickets, moving ‘quietly about in search of insects, and darting upon them while at rest: we have sometimes, but rarely, seen it on the ground, scraping among dead leaves. Le Vaillant states that it builds on branches of large trees, and lays four or five eggs, marked with olive-colour; and Mr. Atmore informs us that it nests near the ground, the eggs being like those of Lanius collaris. This would agree with Le Vaillant’s statement that they are marked with olive-colour. Mr. Ayres observes :— “Tn Natal these birds are very destructive to fruit, but fortunately are not nearly so numerous as the Pycnonoti. They inhabit the dense brush generally. They are not easily seen in consequence of their sombre green plumage and their habits of hiding, to which they trust for safety, rather than to flight. Their note much resembles the ‘chisick’ of the House Sparrow at home, but is much louder ; they have also a short warbling song. Besides fruit, insects form a considerable portion of their food.” General colour uniform dull olive-green, lightest on the under side; feathers of the wings and tail edged with yellow; some thin, long, hair-like bristles protrude from the back of the head; bill black, with serrations near the tip of the upper mandible ; legs horn colour; iris ‘“‘very pale yellow” (Shelley), “ pale green” (Ayres). Tength, 7’ 9’” ; wing, 3” 9’; tail, 3’’ 9”. Fig. le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 106. 189. Anpropapus HyroxanTHus, Suarre. Yellow-breasted Bulbul, Two specimens of this new Andropadus were collected by Dr. Kirk, at Tette, in the Zambesi country, and were doubtfully referred to A. flavescens by the late Mr. Gray. The examination, however, of the true A. flavescens, shows that the Zambesi bird is not the same, as it differs in its brighter and more yellow colour above, and below it is of a brilliant yellow, without any of the dark olive brown 206 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. shading on the throat and sides of the body, the thighs and under wing-coverts in A. flavescens being tawny or slightly rufous yellow. Again, it shows a striking resemblance to Oriniger flaviventris, of which it is an almost literal copy, but independently of the serrated notches at the end of the bill, which show that the bird is an Andropadus, it may be also distinguished by its bright yellow lores and by its black bill and legs, these being brown in the Criniger. Adult.—Above olive-brown with a yellowish tinge, the wings and tail being of the same colour; lores light yellow, the forehead also slightly shaded with this colour; ear-coverts olive brown with faint stripes of yellow, the cheeks also yellowish like the under surface, the centre of the body, thighs, edge of the wing and under wing- coverts, yellow; lower margin of quills brown, yellow along the — edge of the inner web; bill and feet black. Total length, 7.8 inches; culmen, 0.7; wing, 3.7; tail, 3.8; tarsus, 0.85. 190. ANDROPADUS FLAVOSTRIATUS. Barratt’s Bulbul. The present bird was found by Mr. F. A. Barratt in the Lyden- burg district, and was described as new by the editor. The British Museum also contains a single example procured by Dr. Kirk on the river Shire. It is by no means a typical Andropadus like the other two South African ones, but has a very long thin bill like a true Oriniger, and may prove on a subsequent revision of the group, to belong to the latter genus. At present we have kept it as an Andropadus, as it bears evident affinity to some of the West African species, which are still included in the last-named genus. Adult female.—General colour, above olive-brown, with somewhat of a yellowish tinge ; head dusky grey, the lores and feathers round — the eye greyish white; ear-coverts grey, with narrow white shaft- streaks ; cheeks greyish white; throat pure white; rest of under surface whitish, the feathers edged with greenish yellow, causing the breast to appear streaked with that colour; sides of the body dull greenish olive, deepening on the lower flanks and under tail- coverts; thighs greenish olive; under wing-coverts dull yellow, marked with brown near the edge of the wing; scapulars and least wing-coverts coloured like the back; rest of the wing brown, all the feathers externally washed with olive, inclining to golden brown on al Le ha PYCNONOTUS CAPENSIS. 207 the outer webs of the secondaries ; upper tail-coverts and tail brown, strongly washed with olive-green ; ‘bill, tarsi, and feet, ash-colour ; iris, ashy hazel.” Total length, 7.4 inches ; culmen, .75 ; wing, 3.45; tail, 3.5; tarsus 1. 191. Pycnonorus cAPENsIS. Red-eyebrowed Bulbul. Considerable confusion has existed with regard to the Pyenonoti of Africa, and in 1871 the Editor, in criticising the conclusions of Drs. Finsch, Hartlaub, and Von Heuglin (P. Z. .S. 1871, p. 131) endeavoured to establish that in South Africa there were three species of yellow-vented Bulbuls, P. capensis, P. nigricans, and P. tricolor. More recently Dr. Reichenow has contended for the recognition of one only, P. capensis, and he believes that the dark plumaged bird is the young of the white-bellied species. As is the case with the other authors above mentioned, he has discarded the wattled eye-ring as an obscure character, but it is really of the first importance. In the first edition it was stated to be white in the present species, and so it isin the dried skin, but in life, Captain Shelley found it to be of a “dull dark red,” and therefore Le Vaillant’s figure of the “Brunoir,” which has hitherto been kept distinct on account of the red eye-rings drawn by him, if it can be recognised at all, must be intended for the present bird. Under these circumstances we admit only two species, but we shall be obliged for any information tending to elucidate the question in any way. P. capensis cannot, however, be the young stage of P. tricolor, for we owe to the kindness of Lieut. Trevelyan an immature bird of the latter, which is coloured exactly like the adult and has the same white breast, only the plumage is more fluffy, and the brown colour much paler and more rufescent, especially on the margins of the wings: the head is black, but not so intense as in the old bird. P. capensis has not a black head, but is brown both above and below, having only the centre of the abdomen white, gradually shaded with yellow as it approaches the under tail-coverts, which are bright yellow. The “ Kuif-Kop,” as it is called by the colonists, is found in great abundance in the neighbourhood of Cape Town, and indeed through- out the whole colony. They migrate according to the fruit season, and are especially partial to figs and grapes. They also feed largely , 208 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. on the berries of the “ Persian Lilac,” and when that tree is in fruit any number might be shot by a person lying in ambush near. When feeding, they keep up a continued chattering, and as they usually go in flocks of ten or fifteen in number, their presence is soon detected. These birds conceal their nests so skilfully, that they are rarely detected, notwithstanding their numbers. It is composed of rootlets, lined sometimes with hair and feathers, and is generally placed in the fork of a tree or large bush. The eggs, three or four in number, are a lovely pale pink, densely spotted and blotched with dark pink and pale purple, presenting a most beautiful appearance : axis, 11”; diam., 73’”. Victorin procured the present species at the Knysna, as did Andersson also. We have noticed that a specimen procured by Mr. H. Atmore, at George, was smaller than the ordinary Cape examples, measuring only 3°55 inches in the wing, and 0°8 inch in the tarsus, but whether this is a sexual difference or indicative of a small race, we do not know. The range of the species is certainly confined to the colony, and it probably does not extend beyond the neighbour- hood of East London and Port Elizabeth. Mr. Rickard records it as common near the former place, but not so plentiful at the latter as the next species. General colour, brown; the head a little deeper in colour, but not blackish; wings and tail, darker brown; under surface of body brown like the upper; the centre of the belly whitish, washed with yellow towards the vent; under tail-coverts bright yellow; “a dark red wattled eyelid”? (Shelley). Total length, 8°2 inches; wing, 3°8; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Dresser, B. Eur. part xxxix. 191, Pycnonorus TRICOLOR. Black-eyebrowed Bulbul, After the observations made in the foregoing paragraph it is not necessary for us to say more than that this, the second species of Pycnonotus, is to be told by the absence of a wattle round the eye, the eyelid being simply rather swollen and black, and by its white breast and belly, the brown chest ending in a tolerably well-defined line: it is likewise distinguished by its black cap. This Bulbul is more a bird of the Eastern districts, but we found it replacing P. capensis at Nel’s Poort. Major Bulger sent it from 1 , k PYCNONOTUS TRICOLOR. 209 Windvogelberg, and according to our correspondent, Mr. Rickard, it is common at Hast London. To Lieut. H. Trevelyan we are indebted for a very interesting young bird from King William’s Town, which we have referred to above. Mr. Moffat forwarded us a specimen from Kuruman, and Mr. Ortlepp informs us that it is plentiful near Colesberg, where it does great damage to ripe fruit, and especially figs. Captain Shelley found it very common about Durban and Pinetown, and a note on the species in Natal, by Mr. Ayres, is given below. Mr. H. C. Buxton also tells us that when in the last-named colony he procured it on the Mooi River. Mr. Ayres has collected specimens in the Transvaal and here also Mr. Buckley found it “common throughout the country.” It was in Dr. Exton’s Kanye collections, and also in Mr. F. A. Barratt’s from the Lydenberg district. Dr. Kirk says that it is one of the com- monest birds in the Zambesi country, and is “a good songster, though not equal to Orateropus kirkii.’ Mr. Andersson procured two specimens in South Western Africa, one at Ovvaquenyama in Damara Land, and the other at Ondonga, which may be referred to this species, and Anchieta has sent it from Humbe on the Rio Cunene, and from Capangombe in’ Mossamedes, as well as from several localities in Angola, whence the bird was first described by Dr. Hartlaub. It certainly ranges as high as the Congo on the western side, and as far as Mombas on the eastern coast. Mr. Ayres observes :—‘‘ These birds live entirely on fruits and berries, and are very destructive in our garden, devouring indis- criminately bananas, loquats, peaches, papaws, Cape gooseberries, and all other soft fruits. They are very numerous; they build generally in a fork of a tree, towards the top, and lay from three to five eggs. These birds often get intoxicated by eating fruit that is over-ripe and has undergone fermentation, more especially the Cape gooseberry ; and when in this drunken state are easily caught, as they can fly but a few yards at a time, and then not straight, soon tumbling to the ground. The berries of the Syringa trees have the same effect on them, as also the fruit of the Banyan fig. Other birds that live on these fruits become intoxicated in the same way. Tf a hawk, or other bird of ‘prey, makes its appearance, these Bulbuls begin to chatter at a furious rate; and if he settle, a lot of them will frequently mob him; but the hawk, I have observed, takes no notice of them.” 210 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Mr. Henry Jackson has sent us eggs of this species, precisely similar to those of P. capensis, and writes that “the nest is a cup, slightly formed, in a tree.” General colour, brown, slightly darker on the wing and tail feathers, the latter pale at the tips; head slightly crested, and black, as is also the chin and upper part of throat; lower parts brown, like the back, the breast and belly white, flanks brown; vent, brilliant citron-yellow; “bill and legs black; iris dark claret” (Buckley); ‘eyelids black, thick, but not wattled” (Shelley). Length, 7” 9”; wing, 3” 9”; tail, 3” 5”. Fig. Sharpe, P. Z. 8. 1871, pl. vii. fig. 2. N.B.—Although for the present admitting only two species of Pycnonotus in South Africa, we do not regard the matter as settled, for Mr. T. E. Buckley writes under the heading of P. nigricans (Ibis, 1874, p. 369) :—“ There seem to be two sorts, one with a flesh-coloured cere round the eye;”? and Mr. Andersson describes a bird as common in Damara Land which has the eyes “rather pale yellowish-redy and the skin round the eye bright orange” (Cf. Gurney in Andersson’s B. Dam. Ld. p. 119). The distribution of the species and their characters must be left, however, to the naturalists in South Africa to work out from personal observations, 193. CRaTEROPUS BICOLOR. Pied Babbling-Thrush. — Sir Andrew Smith procured this species between the Ky-Gariep and Kurrichaine. Lieut. H. Trevelyan has recently sent us a specimen procured not far from King William’s Town. I In the Transvaal Mr. Ayres has obtained it, and Mr. Buckley — writes as follows:—‘ Common throughout the north of the Transvaal into the Matabili country, and first met with at Eland’s river. The habits of this and of OC. jardinii are similar. They go in flocks from tree to tree, following each other almost in single file. When one commences its peculiar sort of chuckling note, it is followed by the others, the noise increasing until it is almost deafening. They creep about the bushes with wonderful care; and if a wounded one gets into a tree, it is extremely difficult to retrieve it. They have a skimming sort of flight.” Dr. Exton, who procured it in the Matabili country, also states that “its habits resemble those of C. jardinii, but it is more CRATEROPUS BICOLOR. 211 frequently found among low bushes on the dry plains, whilst the last-named species is rarely found away from vleys and rivers. The stomachs were full of black ants and small seeds.”” We have recently seen specimens of this Babbler from the Victoria Falls, Zambesi. The following interesting note is given by the late Mr. Andersson : —This species is common throughout Damara and Great Namaqua Land, and is also found in the Lake-regions; it always occurs in flocks of many individuals, and creeps and glides through the mazes of tangled wood and dense thickets with amazing ease and celerity. When alarmed, it flies slowly from tree to tree, its flight being feeble. It climbs excellently, and also seems equally at home upon the ground. I was fortunate enough to fall in witha nest of this species on the 15th of October, 1866 ; and, considering how common the bird is, I wonder that I have not met with more nests; this one contained three eges, in every way very similar to those of Orateropus melanops. ‘The nest was situated in a fork on the very top of a small anna tree, some ten or twelve feet from the ground; it was composed externally of fine twigs and coarse grasses, and was lined with somewhat finer grass; it was circular, deep, and very compact. Icould both see and hear the parent bird whilst we were robbing the nest; but it- did not come near or appear very solicitous. On the 11th of December, 1866, I observed a family of these birds, consisting of an old pair and their young, hopping about in an anna wood, almost as carelessly and fearlessly as Robins. One of them, evidently the female, led the way, followed by the young, which uttered a querulous, subdued note. In the young birds the tail and wings are of somewhat the same colouring as those of their parents ; but the body differs much from the colour of the adult bird, being grey or brownish-grey, instead of white.” General colour, white; with black wings and tail, bill, and legs; feathers of the back very thick and fluffy; tail rounded ; “bill and feet black: iris reddish-orange” (7. EH. Buckley). Length, 10”; wing, 5”; tail, 4” 7”. _ A second specimen killed by Mr. Buckley on the 31st of July, 1873, had the iris “light yellow.” The one with the orange iris was shot on the 16th of October of the same year, so that the colour of the eye varies, probably with age. Fig. Jard. Edinb. N. Phil. Journ. L. pl. 3. P2 212 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 194. CRATEROPUS JARDINII. Jardine’s Babbling-Thrush. The expedition under Sir Andrew Smith first obtained this bird in lat. 25° 24’ S. We have received a few specimens from Kuruman, and Dr. Exton found it common throughout the Bechuana and Matabili countries. Mr. Ayres has forwarded a specimen from Natal and writes as follows :—‘‘I found these birds inhabiting the bush near the Tugela: there was a family of eight or nine together, but I only succeeded in getting the specimen sent. They have aloud chattering note, and a rather heavy flight; the stomach of the bird sent contained caterpillars. I have never met with them on the coast, and believe they are entirely confined to the upper districts; they are, however, also found on the river Limpopo.” It also occurs in the Transvaal, where both Mr. T. E, Buckley and Mr. Ayres have obtained it. Mr. Buckley observes :— “The description of the habits of C. bicolor will answer equally for this species. I took a nest of this bird on the banks of the Limpopo, on the 23rd of November. It contained but one egg; but the parent bird was close to the nest, which was about the size of a Blackbird’s, deep and coarsely lined, and placed in a small but very thorny tree. The eggs were of a blue colour, like a Thrush’s, without spots.” It does not occur apparently in the Zambesi district, but is here replaced by the closely allied Crateropus kirkii. Mr. Andersson procured some individuals of this species on the Cunene river, on the 25th June, 1867, and Senor Anchieta has obtained it at Huilla in Mossamedes. Sir Andrew Smith gives the © following account of its habits :—‘ The first specimens of this bird — were obtained in latitude 25° 24’ S., and, as we have reason to believe, upon the extreme limit of its southern range. Where the — species was first discovered, only a few specimens were observed ; but, by the time we had reached a degree more to the northward, they occurred in great abundance. Spots covered with reeds, such as are seen along the margins of many of the rivers of the country _ they inhabit, appeared to form their favourite feeding places; and © though when disturbed, they would leave those for a time, and take up their abode among the brushwood with which the banks of the stream were more or less covered, they invariably returned to the haunts they had left when the cause which had led them to remove hhad ceased to exist. While lodged among the reeds they were ) | | . | ; ¢ : : ; 5 ) i ; CRATEROPUS KIRKIT. 213 almost incessantly in motion; and from their being generally associated in great numbers, the noise occasioned, partly by their flitting from one stem to another or climbing, and partly by the harsh cries they uttered, more especially on the appearance of danger, rendered even a temporary residence in the vicinity of their haunts quite disagreeable. Though they evidently preferred, as resorts, the situations described, yet, where reeds did not occur, they were occasionally found among the brushwood remote from rivers; and in these positions they also displayed an extremely restless disposition; scarcely were they observed to enter a bush or thicket before they were seen leaving it from the opposite side, for an adjacent one. Though such was their common practice, there were times when they appeared less disposed to hasty changes, and when they were to be noticed, not simply following a tortuous course, but even ascending and descending among the branches ; nay, even visiting the ground below and around the bushes. As far as we had opportunities of judging, they feed exclusively upon insects ; and those which were killed when among the reeds, seemed to have committed great havoc upon the larve of Gryllide, &c. while those obtained among the brushwood appeared principally to have fed upon coleopterous insects.”” Above, olive-brown ; feathers of the head dark brown, edged with greyish-white, imparting to the bird a scaled appearance; chin, throat, breast, and anterior portion of belly, ashy-brown, marked with elongated white spots; posterior portion of belly and vent, yellowish-grey, tail, dark-brown; centre pair of feathers strongly tinged with grey; all crossed by dark-brown bars, only visible if held in certain positions; “bill, black ; tarsi and feet, dusky ; iris, bright reddish-yellow” (Ayres) ; “bill and feet, black; iris, dark red” (Buckley). Length, 10’; wing, 4” 6”; tail, 4” 3”. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. S. Afr. Birds, pl. 6. 195. CRrareRoPus KIRKI, SHARPE. Kirk’s Babbling-Thrush. Dr. Kirk, who identified this species as Crateropus plebeius of Riippell, says that it was common in long grass near rivers in the Zambesi country. He writes as follows :— Found in flocks of five or six. A noisy bird in the reeds, buta fine songster when perched on the Borassus-palms in the early mornings during the rainy season.” ee ee ee — BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. This species may shortly be described as similar to C. jardinii, but much smaller and differing in having the region of the eye blackish, the cheeks uniform greyish-brown, and alk the feathe of the crown and neck tipped with grey. Total length, 7-8 inches. culmen, 0°8; wing, 3°85; tail, 3°85; tarsus, 1:25. 196. CrarTBRoPUsS HARTLAUBI. Hartlaub’s Babbling-Thrush, This species was discovered by Senor Anchieta at Huilla in Mossamedes and he has also procured it at Gambos in the same district and at Caconda in Benguela. Mr. Andersson met with it on the River Cunene, where he procured two specimens on the 25th of June, 1867. The present bird may be described as very similar to C. melanops, but easily recognisable from this and every other brown Babbling- Thrush of Southern Africa, by its white rump. Total length, 9°3 inches ; culmen, 0°85; wing, 4°5; tail, 4°5; tarsus, 1:5. 197. CRaTEROPUS MELANOPS. Dark-faced Babbling-Thrush. Mr. Andersson discovered this Babbling Thrush in Damara Land, and gives the following description of its habits :—‘‘I have — only met with this bird in the northern district of Damara Land, and in the parts adjacent towards the north and east; there it is common, and, when not too much disturbed, becomes quite familiar — with man. During my encampment in the desert, on my return from the Okavango, there was scarcely a day that a family of these birds did not pay me a visit, coming quite close to my tent, searching for insects amongst the débris, and especially attaching themselves to my cook’s establishment. The favourite resorts of this species are tangled brakes, where it restlessly hops about amongst the bushes, gradually descending to the ground, exploring on the way, and searching about the roots and amongst the fallen dry leayes for insects and their larve. It is gregarious in its. habits ; and several of its nests are frequently found on the same bush or in the immediate neighbourhood of each other. The nest is firmly constructed of fine twigs lmed with some softer materials. The eggs are of a greenish-blue colour, smooth at the extremities, but quite rough on the central parts, with numerous little tubereles.’”” NEOCICHLA GUTTURALIS. 215 General colour above brown, with obsolete lighter edgings to the feathers, the wings and tail much darker brown; the lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts inclining to sandy brown, the latter darker; crown of head, sides of face and throat hoary grey, the feathers tipped with the latter colour, the grey colour especially distinct over the eye and on the ear-coverts; lores and plumes below the eye black; plumes of the throat and fore-neck brown, margined with hoary grey; rest of under surface of body pale fulvous brown, inclining to white near the vent; thighs and under wing-coverts brown. Total length, 9°5 inches; culmen, 0:9; wing, 4:4; tail 4°7; tarsus, 1°4. « 198. AxrHocIcHLA GYMNOGENYS.* Bare-faced Babbling-Thrush. This handsome species was described by Dr. Hartlaub from a specimen obtained by Mr. Monteiro in Benguela, and Senor Anchieta has procured it at Capangombe in Benguela and in _ Mossamedes. Mr. Monteiro says that they were “ common at Novo Redondo and Benguela in the thick wood and under brush, flying in small flocks, and most discordantly noisy.” Adult.—Crown of head and nape white; hinder neck and the sides of the same tawny rufous; upper surface of body dark brown, with indistinct rufous-buff edgings to the feathers inclining to whitish on the outer wing-coverts; wings blackish brown; lower back greyish brown; rump white; upper tail-coverts brown with greyish tips; tail blackish brown; sides of face, region round the eye and ear-coverts, bare; cheeks and chin white; rest of under surface creamy white; the sides of the body, under wing-coverts, and inner webs of quills, tawny rufous; the throat and fore-neck with transverse bars of dusky brown. Total length, 9°3 inches; culmen, 0°9; wing, 4°2; tail, 4°3; tarsus, 1:25. 199. NuocicHLa GurTURALIS. Anchieta’s Babbling-Thrush. [The present bird was described by Professor Barboza du Bocage as a Crateropus, but he pointed out at the time that it was rather an * Although described as a Crateropus, it seems to me advisable to institute a distinct genus for this bird on account of its naked face, a most prominent character.— R. B. 8. 216 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. aberrant member of the genus. Having sent the type to England for the purpose of being figured in his new work, I enjoyed the opportunity of examining it, and I find that, although closely allied to Crateropus and to Cichladusa, it differs from both m the short- j ness of the first primary, which does not nearly equal the tarsus in ) length, whereas in both the above-named genera this quill is as long or even longer than the tarsus. Again the upper tail-coverts — are extremely long, falling short of the tip of the tail only by 14 times the length of the tarsus, whereas in the other two genera the distance between the tip of the upper tail-coverts and that of the — tail itself is more than double the length of the tarsus. I therefore — propose the name of Neocichla for it. R. B. S.J Only one specimen of this bird is known at present, the typical — one in the Lisbon Museum, procured by Senor Anchieta at Huilla — in Mossamedes. The following description is from that specimen. Adult female (type of species)—Head and neck grey; back and — scapulars brown, with “straw-coloured margins to the feathers ; } lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts ashy, somewhat inclining to creamy brown; wing-coverts brown glossed with purple, the outer ones purplish black; quills purplish black, shading off into © brown at the tips, the secondaries externally white, forming a broad 54 longitudinal bar down the wing, the innermost brown, edged with | fulvous inclining to white at the tip ; tail purplish black tipped with white, more broadly on the outer feathers, the two centre ones paler brown, a shade of this colour being also apparent on the inner webs — of most of the others; entire sides of face and throat light grey, — rather paler than on the crown and shading off into a black patch on — the fore-neck, the lower feathers of which are edged with fulvous; ‘ rest of under surface orange buff, inclining to white in the centre of — the abdomen and under tail-coverts; under wing-coverts like the breast ; bill black; iris, bright yellow. Total length, 8 imches; — culmen, 0°8; wing, 4:2; tail, 3°6; tarsus, 1-2. 200. Crmrors FRENATUS. Rufous-breasted Rock-Babbler. This bird is, as far as we yet know, peculiar to mountain ranges. We have seen it between Caledon and Swellendam, in How-Hoghte, and once in Bains Kloof on the Wellington side. Mr. W. Atmore, however, declares that it is more widely distributed, and is common Plate Vl ee CHATOPS AURANTIUS. . ” CHETOPS AURANTIUS. PALL?) on all the mountains that he has been up. He says that they nest in the crevices of the rocks, and that their eggs resemble those of the Cape Robin (Cossypha caffra) but are larger. It frequents the tops of the hills and high elevations on their stony sides, and seeks its food, consisting of insects, about stones and rocks. In habits it much resembles the Rock-Thrush, and, like it, is fond of perching on the summit of some conspicuous stone or ant-hill, from which it surveys the surrounding prospect, and seeks for safety by immediate flight on perceiving the approach of a foe. It progresses by a series of enormous hops, its powerful legs being well suited to this end; while its strong pointed claws enable it to traverse with ease the inclined surfaces of slippery rocks. It con- ceals itself readily in holes, and, if wounded, seeks such a retreat in which to die. It is generally found in small families of three or four individuals. Upper parts of head and back, ash-coloured, the centre of each feather being very dark ; rump, chest, and belly, bright red-brown ; yent and thighs ash-coloured; head with a white eyebrow and moustache ; throat and cheeks black ; wings black-brown, some of the feathers edged with rufous ash; secondaries tipped with white, causing the wing to appear crossed with a white bar; shoulders spotted with white, a few spots of the same colour between the white bar and the shoulder; tail-feathers, with the exception of the centre pair, tipped with white; legs, claws, and bill, black; eye bright-red ; plumage very lax and fluffy, particularly about the rump; on being raised on this spot, it will be found to be ash- coloured, like the back, the rufous tint being quite superficial. Length, 9”; wing, 3” 7’”; tail, 3” 7”; tarsus, 1” 7’". Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 385. 201. Cumrors avrantivs. Orange-breasted Rock-Babbler. (Pirate VI.) This species, which we characterised as distinct in our first edition, was at first identified by European ornithologists as C. fre- natus, but as we were at the time in possession of a series of both species, containing adult and young birds of both sexes, we affirmed the distinction of C. awrantius, and the information received since 218 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. that date has entirely confirmed the correctness of our supposition, C. aurantius appears to be a more eastern bird than O. frenatus, with a different range. Our first examples were sent to us by Mr, J. O'Reilly, from the neighbourhood of Graaf-Reinet, and Major Bulger obtained it near Windvogelberg. Mr. T.’C. Atmore also procured it near Eland’s Post, and Mr. Eyton’s collection contains a pair said to have been sent from the vicinity of Port Natal. Mr. O’Reilly writes as follows :—Graaf-Reinet, January 2nd, 1863. Inhabits rocks in high mountain ranges. Scarce; very shy and cunning, usually frequenting places assimilating to its plumage. Continually on the hop, and seldom takes wing; when it does so, flies but a short distance. Always on the watch, seldom showing much more than its head above the stones, Found about Graaf- Reinet all the year round, and in pairs. Food consists of small insects of any sort; drinks in the evening. Note, a sharp chirp, particularly when surprised. Breeds in December. Nest built of grass and rock-mosses, in crevices among rocks. Hggs, three to four, green, with brown speckles.” Head and shoulders above, ashy-grey, streaked with black; back and rump brick-red; tail graduated, black, each feather, with the exception of the two central, tipped with white; this colour extend- ing farther up each feather, until it attains its maximum in the short outside pair; throat jet-black, with a white band extending from the lower mandible to the breast; another smaller white line passes from the nostril over the eye, and terminates a little beyond it; breast and belly, a fine clear orange-rufous, or burnt sienna; wings black, each feather more or less edged with ashy-grey ; a white bar extends across the wing; the plumage very lax and decomposed, particularly over the rump. Length, 8” 9”; wing, 3” 7” ; tail, 4”; bill, 9” ; tarsus, 1’’ 8’’’. 202. CumtTors PYCNOPYGIUS. Damara Rock-Babbler. The original specimen of this bird was sent home by Mr. Andersson in 1852, and was described by Messrs. Strickland and Sclater as Sphenceacus pycnopygius. A second specimen shot by him on the Omaruru river was made the type of the editor’s species Chetops grayi. It was again described by Professor Bocage as Drymeca anchiete, so that for so rare a bird it has rather an MONTICOLA RUPESTRIS. 219 extensive synonymy. The last-named example was procured by Anchieta at Biballa in Mossamedes. Mr. Andersson’s notes on the species are herewith extracted from his “ Birds of Damara Land.” “The only places where I can recollect having caught a glimpse of this rarely seen Rock-Thrush are the Kaaru River, _ Ongari Ombo, near Jacongana, Okamaluté, and, lastly, the Omaruru River, where I obtained one specimen on October 30th, 1866, which I found hopping about amongst some stones thickly over- ' grown with bush and coarse grass, and strewn with decaying wood. _ As soon as the bird perceived that it was observed, it immediately slipped into the thickest part of this tangled bush, and for some time I thought I had lost it; but after pelting it with stones it flew out and settled on the lower branch of a small acacia. I found, _ when shot, that its bill was very dirty, from which I infer that it seeks much of its food on the ground; its stomach contained only small whitish ants (not termites) ; its flesh was light coloured, and excellently flavoured. The iris was dark brown; the upper man- dible, dark horn colour, the lower livid lead colour; the tarsi pale brown, the toes a shade or two darker; there was a space under the eye quite naked; the tail when closed was of equal breadth through- out, but was cuneated when expanded.” This species is distinguished at a glance from the other members of the genus by its small size and white throat and chest, the sides of the breast being spotted with black. Total length, 6°8 inches ; culmen, 0°7; wing, 2°8; tail, 3-0; tarsus, 0°85; middle toe, 0:7. Fig. Sharpe, P. Z. S. 1869, pl. 14. 203. MonricoLA RUPESTRIS. Cape Rock-Thrush. Petrocincla rupestris, Layard, B. 8. Afr., p. 129 (1867). This is the largest of the three South African Rock-Thrushes, and is to be distinguished not only by its greater dimensions, but by its brown back. We have seen it at Kalk and Simon’s Bays, and on Table Mountain, and have received it from Swellendam, Beaufort, Coles- berg, Graham’s Town and Eland’s Post. Victorin mentions his having obtained it in the Knysna district, in August, and Mr. Rickard has found it both at Port Elizabeth and Hast London. Mr. T. E. Buckley says that it was common in Natal, ‘“ where it may be 220 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. seen sitting on stones by the road-sides, in pairs or families. In its flight and habit of flirting its tail it resembles the Wheatear.” Mr, Ayres also writes :—‘‘ Frequents the same localities as the previous species (Saaicola pileata). The stomach of the specimen sent con- tained some of the Cape gooseberries, and some small stones.” In a previous communication to Mr. Gurney, he makes the following observation respecting a specimen forwarded by him :—* Stomach contained insects and berries. This specimen and two others were together: I did not see them settle on rocks or stones, but they alighted on trees and fed on the nectar of the blossom of a species of aloe. I found them on a hill called the Changa, between Pieter- Maritzburg and Durban, a very precipitous country, where aloes and low bushes are plentiful.” Mrs. Barber informs us that it breeds in holes under rocks, and sends a nest, composed of fine roots and hair. Eggs, 3—5, of a light buff or dirty white, minutely freckled throughout with pale rufous ; they are sometimes, however quite white; axis, 13”; diam., 9”. Of its habits, she writes :—‘“ The male sings a rather lively song; he does not commence early in the morning, at or before daylight, as the Robins do; but after the sun has warmed him he begins to pour forth his cheerful melody: his notes are clear, and rather pleasing, and he is fond of choosing a conspicuous situation whence he can be heard and seen to the best advantage.” The whole of the head and throat, dark ashy-blue; back and wings, dark-brown; the former with a deep rufous tinge, increasing towards the rump, which is entirely deep rufous; the tail is also rufous, with the exception of the two centre feathers ; all the under parts deep rufous, lightest towards the vent; the female wants the blue head, otherwise she is like the male; bill, black; the gape and mouth, yellow; tarsi and feet, dusky (Ayres); feet, black; iris, dark-hazel (Buckley). Total length, 8°4 inches; culmen, 1:05; wing, 4°35; tail, 3°3; tarsus, 1:1. Fig. Le Vaill., Ois. d’Afr., pls., 101, 102. 204. Monricona EXPLORATOR. ; Sentinel Rock-Thrush, Petrocincla explorator, Layard, B. 8. Afr., p. 130 (1867). Not very common, but widely distributed. We have seen it MONTICOLA BREVIPES. 221 principally in rocky places about Table Mountain, and the face of _ the hills overhanging Simon’s Bay and Kalk Bay. It appears to be a frequent species at Swellendam; and we have received it from _ Beaufort, Graham’s Town, and Colesberg. Mr. Rickard states that it is common at Port Elizabeth, where it is not at all shy and frequents the roofs of the houses. He writes:—“I have often heard them sing at S. Paul’s Church during service.” Mr. T. C. Atmore has procured it near Hope Town. In Natal, says Mr. Ayres, “these birds are found in the open country and are generally seen perched on some low hillock or stone. They are solitary and not at all plentiful. Their food consists of small insects.” According to our own experience, itis a shy and wary bird, keeping well out of gun-shot when pursued, flitting from rock to rock, running up their sloping surfaces, and keeping a good look-out from the extreme summit. It feeds on insects, but often takes a little vegetable food. In its nidification it resembles the preceding species and its eggs are also similar, as might have been expected. In size the present bird is smaller than M. rupestris, and has the back blue-grey instead of brown; on the lower surface the blue extends on to the fore- neck. r Head, neck, breast, throat, back, and shoulders, blue-grey ; rump, belly, and vent, orange-red, inclining to buff on the vent and thigh ; wing and outer tail-feathers deep brown, the former edged with light rufous; outer tail-feathers, orange-red, more or less marked with brown. Bill, tarsi, and feet, black ; iris, dark-hazel (Ayres). Total length, 7 inches; culmen, 0°85; wing, 3°75; tail, 2°5; tarsus, 1-3. Fig. le Vaill., Ois. d’Afr., pl. 103. 205. MontTicoLa BREVIPES. Short-footed Rock-Thrush. This Rock-Thrush, which was originally discovered by Sir J. Alexander during his expedition to Damara Land, occurred plenti- fully in the late Mr. Andersson’s collections from the same country. He writes:—“‘ Tis species is not uncommon throughout Great Namaqua Land and the southern parts of Damara Land ; and in one year I found it particularly abundant at Otjimbinque. In its habits and manners it resembles Sawicola monticola, and, like it, is partial to localities of a rocky nature, as also to abandoned “ werfts” and villages. It is rather a voracious feeder, preying on all kinds of - 7 ¥ ee, ie eh aw 222 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. insects, from the minutest beetle to the scorpion, of which I have found specimens in its stomach ; it also occasionally eats soft seeds.” — Senor Anchieta has procured it at Caconda in Benguela. The bird may be described as follows. Above, blue as in M, explorator, but having a white eyebrow and the head and mantle more or less inclining to white ; on the under surface the blue colour is restricted to the throat as in M. rupestris and not, as in M. eaplorator, occupying the chest also; bill, bluish-black, the base of the gape yellow; legs and toes, bluish-black; iris, reddish-brown. Total length, 6°5 inches; culmen, 0:95; wing, 4°15; tail, 2°65; tarsus, 1:05. 206. CossyPHA BICOLOR. Noisy Chat-Thrush. Bessonornis vociferans, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 130 (1867). This bird—which, from its singular cry, has acquired the name of “ Piet-Myn-Vrouw,” by which it is known to the colonists—is common in the Knysna and other forest districts, but is very difficult to procure, owing to its shy, retiring habits, and the thickets in which it lives. Its loud call may be heard on every side of the traveller, but not a single bird will show itself, and we only procured the few specimens which we did obtain, by remaining quiet in one spot and imitating their cry until one came within range; then the difficulty often was to avoid blowing ‘the bird to pieces, as the thickets are usually so dense, that the bird was almost within reach of the gun-barrel ere we saw it. It feeds upon worms and insects, and has the general habits of a Thrush. Le Vaillant says he found it also in Kaffraria. Mr. Rickard tells us that it occurs near East London, and we have seen ~ several specimens from Natal. Mr. Ayres says that in the latter colony they frequent the dense bush. ‘The food of these birds,” he writes, “consists of berries, small fruits, and insects. In their movements and attitudes they much resemble the English Red- breast, and they are particularly fond of chasing one another about.” Dr. Kirk met with the species in the Zambesi, and states that it was shot among the mango-trees at Shupanga. Mr. Andersson obtained a single example of this Chat-Thrush at Otjimbinque in Damara Land on the 11th of December, 1865, but it does not appear to have COSSYPHA NATALENSIS. 223 occurred to Senor Anchieta during his travels in South-Western Africa. Adult.—General colour above slaty-grey, shading off into orange on the rump, the upper tail-coverts bright orange; quills blackish, externally washed with grey, the wing-coverts washed with bluish grey ; two centre tail-feathers black, all the remainder bright orange, the external feathers blackish on the outer web, and some of the others with narrow blackish margins; lores, sides of face and ear-coverts, black; cheeks, sides of neck, and the entire under surface of body bright orange, the under wing-coverts uniform with the breast, the lower surface of the quills ashy-brown, inclining to greyish-white near the base of the inner web; “bill black; tarsi and feet light pinkish brown; iris very dark brown” (Ayres). Total length, 7°3 inches; culmen, 0°7; wing, 3°65; tail, 3:2; tarsus, 1°2. Fig. Le Vaill., Ois. d’Afr. pl. 104. 207. CossYPHA NATALENSIS. Natal Chat-Thrush. Bessonornis natalensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 181. A single specimen of this Chat-Thrush was obtained by Sir Andrew Smith near Port Natal, and the natives informed him that its habits were similar to those of C. bicolor of the Cape Colony. We have seen a few specimens from Natal, but it is not very common there. Captain Shelley met with it near Durban, amongst some scattered bushes in the more open country. It extends across the continent into South-western Africa, for it has been procured by Mr. Monteiro in Angola, and by Senor Anchieta at Biballa in Mossamedes. The latter observer states that it arrives from the interior like C. bocagii, and has the same name as that species, *€ Maxoxolo.” This species may be distinguished by the absence of an eyebrow, which makes it nearly allied to CO. bicolor, of which species Mr. Gurney has fancied it may be the immature bird. It is, however, quite distinct, being smaller than that species, and having the lores and cheeks bright orange instead of black. Adult.—Upper surface of body bluish grey, the mantle strongly washed with orange, the scapulars clearer grey; head and hind neck brownish orange, waved across with narrow greyish lines, 224 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. caused by the sudden appearance of the bases to the feathers ; lores, eyebrow, sides of face and entire under surface of body orange, rather paler on the abdomen; all the wing-coverts clear bluish grey, blackish on the inner web; quills dull brown, externally shaded with grey, the secondaries with a further external border of pale ~ orange as on the back; tail-feathers very pointed, the two centre ones dark brown, the others dull orange, the outermost broadly margined with brown on the outer web; bill horn brown; legs slate-coloured ; iris dark brown. ‘Total length, 6-4 inches; culmen, 1:7; wing, 3°25; tail, 3-0; tarsus, 1:0. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Birds, pl. 60. 208. CossyPHA CAFFRA. Cape Chat-Thrush. Bessonornis phenicurus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 131 (1807). Bessonornis caffra, id. t. c. p. 182. This is the Cape “ Robin,” and decidedly deserves the name. It is common in all the gardens, even in the midst of Cape Town, flitting along the gravel paths, scraping in the flower-beds, perching on the leafless summit of some deciduous tree, or the ridge of the house-top, and pouring out a short, robin-like song, which, when heard in the darkening twilight, reminds the listener of the familiar note of the ‘‘ household bird with the red stomacher.”” It breeds in August and September, and its nest is placed in much the same situations, and built of the same materials, the eggs equal in number and resemble in form, size, and shape, those of the Huropean bird, only rather less coloured, being of a dirty white or buff ground, more or less freckled with dull pale rufous; axis, 11” ; diam., 7”. Its food consists of insects, worms, &c.,and when it hops from place to place in search of it, it droops its wings and jerks its tail, just like the Robin at home. Victorin met with it at the Knysna in September and November, and it seems to occur all along the Southern part of the African continent to Natal, as Mr. Rickard records it as common both at Port Elizabeth and Hast London. Captain Shelley writes — Very abundant in Cape Colony, espe- cially in the pine-woods about Cape Town. In habits they are extremely lively, running swiftly when on the ground, at intervals spreading and erecting their fine rufous tails, and when on the EE ——EEOOOOOEOEOEOEOEOOOeeeeeeO COSSYPHA BOCAGII. 225 higher trees, constantly shifting their position.” We have received specimens from Mr. Moffat at Kuruman and from Mr. Atmore from Hopetown. We have also seen specimens of Mr. Ayres’ collecting both in Natal and the Transvaal. Mr. Barratt has recently met with it in the Lydenburg district. Mr. Andersson says :—‘“‘ This species is sparingly met with on the borders of the Orange River, whence it extends southwards to the Cape, where it is very numerous. It is of a most inquisitive nature, and seems to court the neighbourhood of man. It is very lively in its movements, either hopping and gliding amongst bushes and plants, or running along the ground with astonishing swiftness, generally accompanying all such movements by rapid expansions and depressions of its tail and wings. The male sings very pleasantly ; and his notes have been likened to the following differently intoned syllables, jan—fredric —dric — drie— fredric, whence its colonial name of ‘ Jan frédric.’ ” Above, cinereous brown, inclining to rufous on the back and shoulders; rump deep rufous; wings and two centre feathers of tail, dark-brown ; the rest deep rufous, more or less edged and tipped with dark-brown ; a white line extends from the forehead over the eye; space between the eye and the bill, and ears black ; throat, breast, and chin, orange; the rest of the under parts bluish- grey, inclining to white in the centre of the belly, and rufous on the vent ; bill and legs black ; iris dark hazel (Ayres). Length, 7”; wing, 3’ 9'’’; tail, 3” 3””. Fig. le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 111. 209. CossyPHA BOCAGII. Bocage’s Chat-Thrush. This species forms another of the many interesting novelties for which we are indebted to the discoveries of Senor Anchieta, who procured the original type at Biballa in Mossamedes, where it is called, along with C. natalensis, “ Maxoxolo.” He says that it arrives from the interior and it may, therefore, be looked for in the more northern portions of South-Hastern Africa. This bird will also be figured in the forthcoming work of Prof. Barborza du Bocage, to whom we are indebted for the loan of the original specimen, of which the following is a description. It has Q 226 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. to not a definite eyebrow, but has a white streak extending just over the fore part of the eye; the ear-coverts are orange; the tail orange, and the head, bluish-grey. Adult. (Type of species.)—General colour above, light yellowish- brown, shading off into orange on the rump and upper tail-coverts, the latter being bright orange; crown of head slaty-grey; the feathers in front of and over the fore part of the eye, white; lores, blackish ; cheeks, ear-coverts and entire under surface of body, bright orange; the centre of the abdomen, white; under wing- coverts, pale orange; wing-coverts coloured like the back and margined externally with orange ; quills, dark brown, the primaries externally washed with ashy-grey, the secondaries with yellowish- brown like the back; tail imperfect, the two feathers remaining bright orange; bill, black; feet, brown ; iris, brown. ‘Total length, 65 inches; culmen, 0°6; wing, 32; tail, 2°8; tarsus, 1:0. (Mus. Lisb.) 210. CossypPHA BARBATA. Bearded Chat-Thrush. This fine species, which has more the appearance of an Aedon than a Cossypha, was met with by Senor Anchieta at Caconda in Benguela and we are indebted to our friend Professor Barboza du Bocage for the loan of the type specimen, which will be figured in his forthcoming work on the birds of South-Western Africa. Like C. heuglini, the present species has a very distinct white eyebrow, but is distinguished by its white throat, in which it resembles (. humeralis. From the latter, however, it differs in its white wing-spot and rufous ear-coverts, besides many other minor particulars. The following is a detailed description of the type- specimen. Adult.—Above, ashy-brown; the rump and upper tail-coverts, pale orange-rufous; forehead slightly tinged with rufous; lores and a short eyebrow as well as a ring of feathers round the eye, white, with a narrow margin of black running above the white eyebrow; feathers in front of the eye, blackish; ear- coverts, dull sandy-rufous; cheeks and throat, white, with a long moustachial streak of dull grey, extending on each side of the throat for its whole length; breast and sides of the body, pale orange, inclining to buff on the centre of the chest and shading off COSSYPHA HEUGLINI. 227 into white on the lower abdomen and under tail-coverts ; thighs, white; under wing-coverts also white, the outermost spotted with black ; wings, above ashy-brown, inclining to grey on the coverts, the least series being streaked with white, the outermost broadly edged with the same; primaries externally margined with white, much broader near the base, which is entirely white on these quills, so as to form a speculum ; tail, black, tipped with white, forming a small triangular spot on the centre feathers and gradually increasing towards the outermost, the external rectrix being white for its apical half. Total length, 7 inches; culmen, 0°65; wing, 3:2; tail, 2°8; tarsus, 1:05. (Mus. Lisb.) 211. CossypHA HEUGLINI. Von Heuglin’s Chat-Thrush. The characters which distinguish this from all the other Chat- Thrushes of South Africa are the following, viz., a broad white eye- brow extending along the sides of the crown to the nape, accom- panied by an orange-coloured throat. We have seen two examples from Angola, and, according to Prof. Barboza du Bocage, it has also been procured by Anchieta at Caconda in Benguela. Adult.—General colour above, grey, strongly marked with olive brown on the back and scapulars and shading off into orange on the ‘rump and upper tail-coverts, the latter being bright orange; two centre tail-feathers, dark brown, the rest bright orange, the external one dark brown on the outer web; wings, dark brown, the feathers externally marked with grey, particularly distinct on the coverts ; crown of head, as well as the lores, feathers round the eye and the ear-coverts, black; over the eye a broad white stripe extending from the base of the bill to the sides of the nape; cheeks, sides of neck, and under surface of body, deep orange, paler on the abdomen ; round the hind-neck a faintly indicated orange collar. Total length, 7 inches; culmen, 0°75; wing, 3°45; tail, 3:0; tarsus, 1:2. Fig. Heugl. Orn. N. O. Afr. taf. 13. ro |? aw ae > 228 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 212. CossypHA HUMERALIS. White-shouldered Chat-Thrush. Bessonornis humeralis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 132 (1867). This is apparently the rarest of the South African Chat-Thrushes, and is found only in the interior. Sir Andrew Smith met with it on the banks of the Marico river, and procured it from about lat. 26° S. to the tropics. We have received it from Kuruman, but in very limited numbers. Dr. Exton procured it at Kanye in the Matabili country, and Mr. T. HE. Buckley shot a male near the Makalapse river in Bamangwato on the 25th of October, 1873. He writes :—‘ I observed a pair of these birds on a small stony hill, and procured the male. ‘They were not at all shy; but from the thickness of the cover it was difficult to get far enough off to shoot them without spoiling them. They flew and hopped about the bushes in search of food, but seemed to avoid the open ground.” Mr. Ayres obtained a specimen in the Transvaal, and observes as follows :—‘‘I shot this scarce bird among the thick scrub on the Limpopo; the stomach contained insects ; it was lively and restless in its actions.” Adult.—Head, mantle, and scapulars grey, with a slight tinge of olive on the back; rump and upper tail-coverts orange chestnut, deeper on the latter; tail also orange, with a broad terminal band of black, the outer feather also blackish on the outer web, and the two centre feathers entirely blackish ; wing-coverts black, with a broad longitudinal white patch formed of the inner lesser and median coverts, and the outer web or the whole of a few of the inner greater coverts; quills blackish, with a narrow external border of greyish buff; over the eye a narrow white line, extending from the base of the bill to the hinder ear-coverts; lores, cheeks, and entire side of face and of neck black; chin and a patch on the > sides of the upper breast also black ; sides of body, vent, and under tail-coverts pale orange-buff; under wing-coverts white, the edge of the wing black; bill black ; legs brownish-black; iris dark hazel. Total length, 6°5 inches; culmen, 0°6; wing, 2°95; tail, 29; tarsus, 1°15. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr, Birds, pl. 48. Vl ee CICHLADUSA ARCUATA, 229 213. CossYPHA SIGNATA. Brown Chat-Thrush. Bessonornis signatus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 181. This rare bird has never yet fallen under our notice personally, but specimens now in the British Museum were procured by the late Sir Andrew Smith, who, however, does not seem to have bestowed a name on the species. It was first described by Professor Sundevall from examples procured by Wahlberg in “ Lower Kaf- fraria.”” This locality is not British Kaffraria as at present under- stood, and the bird should probably be looked for in Natal. General colour above chocolate brown, shading off into lighter and more fulvous brown on the lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts; lores blackish, over the eye a distinct white eyebrow, surmounted by a narrow black line drawn from the lores to above the eye; round the eye a circlet of whitish feathers ; ear-coverts brown, darker below the eye; cheeks and sides of neck greyish with a slight indication of a darker malar stripe; under-surface of body white, the throat circumscribed by a band across the breast which is greyish-brown like the sides of the body; under wing- coverts white with brown bases, giving a mottled appearance to the edge of the wing ; upper wing-coverts greyish, the inner ones slightly edged with olive-brown, the edge of the wings slightly and the spurious quills broadly tipped with white ; primary-coverts blackish ; quills blackish-brown, the primaries edged with white, the second- aries with brown, the innermost resembling the back; primaries “white at the base of the outer web forming a conspicuous alar speculum ; two centre tail-feathers olive-brown, the others blackish, broadly tipped with white, and washed with olive-brown, especially near the base. ‘Total length, 7°3 inches; culmen, 0°85; wing, 3°25 ; tail, 3°2; tarsus, 1°15. 214. CicHLADUSA ARCUATA. Peters’ Chat-Thrush. Dr. Peters first discovered this interesting bird near Sena in the Zambesi country, and examples are contained in the British Museum collection, having been procured in the same region by Dr. Kirk, during the Livingstone expedition. It extends far up the east coast of Africa, having been met with by the late Captain Speke in Unyamesi; and it is said to have a very beautiful song. The 230 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. following description is taken from a Mosambique specimen in the British Museum :—Above fulvous brown, inclining to tawny, the least wing-coverts coloured like the back, the rest of the coverts chestnut edged with fulvous brown; quills chestnut, inclining to blackish brown for the terminal third ; tail entirely chestnut ; head chestnut brown, rather darker than the back; an eye-brow drawn to the hinder neck light grey; cheeks and ear-coyerts light ashy- brown; throat tawny-buff, surrounded by a narrow line of black, which runs as a moustachial streak from the lower mandible down the sides of the throat, and joins on the fore-neck; rest of under- surface of body tawny-buff, much deeper on the under wing-coverts ; upper breast greyish. Total length, 7°5 inches; culmen, 0°8; wing, 3°45; tail, 3°5; tarsus, 1°15. Fig. Heuglin, Ibis, 1868, pl. ix. fig. 1. 215. CicHLADUSA RUFICAUDA. Red-tailed Chat-Thrush. Originally described by M. Jules Verreaux from the Gaboon, the present bird is included in this work on account of its occurrence in Benguela. A single specimen is recorded by Professor Barboza du Bocage as having been obtained by Senor Anchieta in the latter country, where it is called by the natives “ Kitoni.” Never having seen a specimen of this bird, we translate the following description from Dr. Hartlaub’s “ Birds of Western Africa.” Above pale brownish-red ; the back more ashy ; head and wings browner; rump and tail bright red, the shafts of the tail feathers red; primaries dusky ; under wing-coverts isabelline colour; sides of the head and neck, eyebrow, breast, and sides of the abdomen ashy; middle of the abdomen, chin, and throat pale buff; under tail-coverts pale rufous; bill black; feet dusky. Total length, 7 inches; bill, 7” ; wing, 3” 3’”; tail, 24”; tarsus, 11”; middle toe, with claw, 84’”. 216. Pryarornis pLumosus, Sharpe.* | Sooty-brown Chat-Thrush. The British Museum contains the unique type of this curious bird, for which no name appears to have been proposed, and it is here designated as belonging to an undescribed genus and species. The single example yet known was contained in a collection from the * rivapoc, sordidus; 6prig, avis. MYRMECGCICHLA FORMICIVORA. 231 Victoria Falls, Zambesi, and was received at the Museum through Mr. Cutter. : It is very difficult to know where to place this new genus. It has the plumage of a dusky Chat, but in the form of its bill and feet it approaches Crateropus ; from this genus, however, it differs in the long loose plumage of the rump, and in the long upper tail-coverts which remind us of Bradypterus ; altogether it is a peculiar form which must be placed among the Thrushes, leading off from the Crateropi to the Chats and Warblers. Adult.—General colour above and below sooty-brown, a few of the frontal plumes, the lores, and the throat edged with greyish white; wings and tail darker than the body, and approaching to black, the primaries with a very large spot of white on the inner webs, and the three outer tail-feathers with a large spot of white at the tip; bills and legs black. Total length, 10:2 inches; culmen, 0°95; wing, 4:2; tail, 5°5; tarsus, 1:25. 217. MyrmucocicHia rormictvora. Southern Ant-eating Wheatear. Le Vaillant found this Wheatear near the Sunday and Zwartkop rivers, not far from Algoa Bay, where we also observed it in abun- dance during a flying visit to that locality. He says that it perches on high trees, but in this he is certainly wrong, as far as our own experience goes, for we have never seen them perch even on a bush, though Mr, Andersson says that they do so. Like S. pileata they habitually conceal themselves in rat-holes. Le Vaillant states that he found their nests in holes or under rocks, and that the eggs were white. We have received many specimens from the neighbourhood of Colesberg and Kuruman, and Mr. T. C. Atmore forwarded us a skin of one obtained by him at Burghendorp in May 1871. Mr. Rickard observes that it is common at Port Elizabeth, but is never met with away from ant-hills, in which he believes they roost and also breed. We found it to bea curiously local bird, and during our recent visit to the eastern frontier we would drive for the best part of a day without seeing a single specimen, and then suddenly we would come upon a spot where there were two or three families. Pass this spot as often as we would, there we always saw the birds ! There is one such place between Grahamstown and Table Farm, where we knew that we could always shoot a specimen, we might >. 232 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. almost say on one particular ant-hill. Mr. I. E. Buckley found them common in Natal as well as in the Transvaal, sitting about on the small ant-heaps, and resembling Sazxicola mionticola in their habits. Mr. Ayres writes :—I first met with this Chat near the Tugela river in the upper district of Natal, and found that it gradually became more plentiful over the Drakenberg, in the Free State and Transvaal Republic. These birds often rise a short distance in the air with a fluttering flight, but are mostly seen perched on the ant- heaps which abound in this country. They feed on insects.” Mr. Andersson has the following note :—‘I have met with this species, though only sparingly, in Damara Land, and in the parts adjacent to the north and east, but I do not recollect having seen it in Great Namaqua Land. It always occurs in pairs in open localities inter- spersed with bush, on which, or on ant-hills, it usually perches. It seeks its food on the ground, watching for insects from its elevated perch, and when these are observed, descending at once upon them and quickly returning to its post of observation. Its flight is straight, and it moves its short wings with extraordinary rapidity ; but it does not go far at a time, and I never found any difficulty in approaching it.” Generally of a sombre-brown colour, paler on the belly and under the tail; the throat clouded with reddish, the same colour bordering the feathers of the front of the neck and chest; a prominent white patch adorns the shoulders of the male; the wing-feathers have also white webs. The female wants the white shoulders, and is of a deeper brown. Length, 7” 6’”; wing, 4”; tail, 3’. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 186. 218. THAMNOBIA CINNAMOMEIVENTRIS. : Southern White-shouldered Bush-Chat. Saxicola rufiventer, and S. albiscapulata, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 106. Dr. Burchell met with this species during his travels in South Africa. We have only seen it from the eastern districts, and our first specimens were forwarded from “ Highlands,” near Grahams- town, by Mrs. Barber, at whose residence we saw it in some abun- dance in March and April. It is a lively bird, ever on the move, and feeds on insects of various kinds, which it catches in the bush. We have also received a large series of specimens from Mr. T. C, Atmore, all procured in the neighbourhood of Eland’s Post. Dr. SAXICOLA INFUSCATA. 233 Exton also met with it at Kanye in the Matabili county, and describes the stomach as being filled with black ants and various species of Heteroptera (Cimew, §c.). In Natal it is rare, according to Mr. Ayres, who gives the following anecdote in a letter to Mr. Gurney :—“ Passing a Dutch farmer’s one day, I saw this Chat hopping about upon a large stack of faggots some 200 yards from the house. Being a scarce bird, I shot it at once, when one of the farmer’s sons came running to me, exclaiming in tones of anguish, ‘What have you done? You have shot the Mock-bird’ He went on to tell me that it was a great favourite of theirs; that it came into the house every day to be fed, and was particularly fond of admiring itself in the parlour looking-glass; and that the bird had been with them for years. I expressed my sorrow for having been so unfortunate as to cause them such grief for the loss of their favourite, and offered to preserve the skin and send it to them ; but the young Dutchman said, ‘Of what use is the skin? The bird is dead: keep it.’ The specimen sent is the skin of this curious bird.” Male.—General plumage throughout glossy black; rump, belly, and vent deep rufous; shoulders white. Length, 81 inches ; wing, 44; tail, 4-7. The female wants the white patch on the shoulder, and is much greyer and duller in colour, Fig. afr. Mag. de Zool. 1836, pl. 56. 219. SaxiconA INFUSCATA. Great Fuscous Wheatear. Sir Andrew Smith considered this to be the rarest of the Chats met with by him in South Africa, and he says that it appeared to be “ principally, if not entirely, restricted to the districts between the Oliphant and Orange rivers,” seldom occurring far from the sea- coast. We know now, however, that it is rather a widely spread species in South Africa, but is everywhere a very wary bird. We found it abundantly at the Berg river, and have received specimens along with the nests and eggs from Mr. Jackson at Nel’s Poort. Mr. Atmore met with it sparsely at Traka, and it was also obtained by his son, Mr. T. C. Atmore, at Hopetown; we have also received it from Kuruman. Mr. Ayres writes:—“ I saw two specimens near the Vaal river, one of which I killed; its stomach contained a single locust, which it had swallowed nearly whole; it had all the appear- ance of a Flycatcher, as it sat upon the upper twigs of a low bush, 234 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. and somewhat of the Flycatcher’s wavering flight when it left the bush and settled on the ground close by, apparently in search of some insect.” According to the late Mr. Andersson’s notes this species is “ found abundantly in Great Namaqua Land, and also occurs ina few localities in Southern Damara Land; it is found singly or in pairs in open localities interspersed with low bush. It is extremely wary and difficult to approach; perched on the top of a conspicuous bush it quickly espies the hunter, and immediately takes its departure ; it does not fly far at a time, but always takes care to be beyond the range of the gun. It feeds on insects, which it catches on the wing or on the ground, but it never stays on the ground to search for them there.” Mr. Monteiro shot 4 specimen in Benguela. It places its well-made cup-shaped nest in the bottom of a dense bush; the eggs, three to five in number, well-marked and hand- some, are light verditer blue in colour, much speckled with rather large reddish-brown spots and blotches, sometimes forming a ring at the obtuse end. Axis, 11’’’; diam. 8’”. ' General colour, rusty brown; chin and throat of a dirty white; under parts grey, more or less tinted with yellowish-brown; wing and tail-feathers with a dash of umber-brown about them ; the latter and the wing-coverts are more or less edged with dirty-white; tail square; iris black. Length, 7” 6”’; wing, 4” 9” ; tail, 3’’ 6'’’. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pl. 28. a. Back in the males neither black nor cinereous. 220. SaxIcoLA GALTONI. Familiar Chat. Sazicola sperata, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 107. In the arrangement of the Chats in the present work, recourse has been had to a monographic essay by Messrs. Blanford and Dresser, published in the ‘ Proceedings ” of the Zoological Society for 1874. The present species belongs to the section of the genus Sazicola which have the interscapulary region similarly colowred to the wing-coverts, according to the classification of the above- named gentlemen. It is the bird usually known to naturalists as Saaicola familiaris or S. sperata, but for the reasons stated by the authors of the above-named paper, neither of these titles can be employed. ie SAXICOLA GALTONI. 235 The present species may be distinguished from the other members of the genus by its rufous upper tail-coverts and tail- feathers, which are conspicuous even in flight. We have found it during the summer months about stones in rocky places. It is abundant round the “ Lion’s Head,” at an elevation of about 1500 feet, nesting in crevices, and the young bird is speckled exactly like a young robin. They have a habit of perching on the summit of stones and rocks, opening and shutting their wings and tails. In flight they resemble the Wheatear, and flit from stone to stone. A pair or two frequent every farm-house in the colony, and are accused of picking the grease out of the cart-wheels ; hence their colonial name of “ Speckvreter.” They nest in old walls and banks, and under stones, laying a foundation of small stones and gravel, and lining with hair. The eggs, four in number, are undistinguish- able from those of the next species. Mr. Atmore writes that at the Oliphants river one made its nest in a hair broom standing in a bed- room, and brought off her brood ! We presume that this is the species recorded by Grill as 8S. sperata, procured by Victorin at the Knysna in April. We have received it from Hland’s Post from Mr. T. C. Atmore, and at Port Elizabeth Mr. Rickards says it is called the “‘ Day-breaker,”’ and is very common, frequenting roofs of houses in the town. Mr. T. E. Buckley procured a specimen in Natal on the 5th of June, 1873, and says that he observed it in the Matabili country, hopping about a cattle-kraal like a Robin. Mr. Andersson writes:—‘“ This is the most common Sawicola with which I am acquainted both in Damara and Namaqua Land, from whence it ranges southward along the west coast as far as Table Mountain. It is very familiar in its manners, and will fearlessly approach human habitations, which it not unfrequently enters by the doors and windows. It invariably perches on low bushes, whence it watches for passing insects, which it usually seizes on the wing, though it occasionally descends to the ground for a similar purpose. Like all the birds of this family it is very restless, now flapping its wings, then raising and expanding the tail or alternately raising and depressing its whole body. It makes its nest on the ground, laying three or four eggs, which are either greenish-grey spotted with brown, or nearly white spotted with brown and grey. The iris is very dark brown, and the bill, legs, and feet are ‘black.” Senor Anchieta has also procured this species in Benguela. 236 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 221. SaxicoLa sINuATA. Sickle-winged Chat. * Like the preceding species this Chat belongs to the plain-coloured group, but is distinguished from S. galtoni by the peculiar sickle- shaped emargination of the first long primary, and by the pale ashy brown colouring of the lower parts. The “ Klappertje,” as it is called by the Dutch colonists, is not uncommon at Nel’s Poort and to the eastward, having been received from Colesberg and Kuruman. We found it at the first-named place, breeding in November, in holes of buildings, and occupying the place of S. galtoni. It makes a nest of hair, roots, and feathers, and lays three to five eggs, of a light blue, speckled with rufous. These speckles generally assume the shape of a ring at the obtuse end. Axis, 10’’’; diam. 7”. In October 1868 we observed it for the first time abundantly at Groenfontein, near Cape Town, and we subsequently found it in February 1869 at Cape Point, at the extreme end of the promontory; it seems now permanently stationed in the western end of the colony. Mr. Rickard says that it is common at Port Elizabeth, but that its habits are very different from those of the preceding bird, being much more lively in its manners, and never being seen on houses. Mr. Ayres shot a specimen of this Chat on the open plains, some thirty miles from Potchefstroom. He writes:—“‘It was on stony ground; and I put it up twice or thrice, when it invariably settled on some small stone. The stomach contained insects.” 222. Saxicona LayarDI, Sharpe. Layard’s Chat. Only a single specimen of this apparently well characterised species has fallen under our notice. It is now in the British Museum, having been formerly in the editor’s collection, and is the individual mentioned by Messrs. Blanford and Dresser as being probably new to science in their paper on the genus Sawicola. Haying carefully compared it with a large series of South African Chats, we have no hesitation as to its distinctness, and before very long we shall doubtless hear of additional specimens being found by some of our friends in South Africa. The species is very similar to S. sinwata, but has not the emargi- nation in the primary which distinguishes that bird; the rump is - | Q SAXICOLA ALBICANS. 237 rufescent, the upper tail-coverts white, as also is the base of the tail. These characters bring the species in close relationship to S. albicans, but the general colour of the bird is different, being brown above, underneath isabelline brown, whiter on the throat and abdomen ; it is, however, to be distinguished at once by its rufous- brown ear-coyerts, these being white in S. albicans. Total length, 5°6 inches; culmen, 0°7; wing, 3°45; tail, 2°25; tarsus, 1°15. The typical specimen was sent by Mr. Layard some years ago labelled “ South Africa,” but the exact locality was not recorded. 223. SAXICOLA SCHLEGELI. Schlegel’s Chat. This species belongs to the section of the genus Sawicola, in which the species are of a pale isabelline colour, and have the inter- sc wpulary region uniform with the wing-coverts. The distinguishing characters of Schlegel’s Chat are the white under surface, and the emargination of the first long primary, which has a distinct inden- tation near the tip. The centre tail-feathers are black, white on the outer webs but not at the tip, the black going right down to the base of the feathers; the upper tail-coverts are white. Total length, 6 inches ; culmen, 0°65; wing, 3°75; tail, 2°75; tarsus, 1°25. - Itisan inhabitant of South-western Africa, and Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—‘ This species is very common in Great Namaqua and Damara Land, and frequents alike broken ground, low bush, and old abandoned ‘ werfts”; it seems to prefer low bushes for perching on, whence it descends to the ground in search of insects, and runs with great swiftness in pursuit of its prey. It is tolerably easy of approach. Specimens are frequent in Damara Land of a smaller size, and paler colour than the ordinary type, which, how- ever, they exactly resemble in habits and manners.” Fig. Blanford and Dresser, P. Z. 8. 1874, pl. xxxix. fig. 2. 224. SAXICOLA ALBICANS. Strickland’s Chat. Very similar to S. schlegeli, but distinguished at once by the base of the tail-feathers being white; the first long primary also is not emarginate at the tip; upper tail-coverts white like the base of the tail. Total length, 6 inches; wing, 3°6; tail, 2°3; tarsus, 1:25. Like its near ally it is only known at present from South-Western 238 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Africa, and Mr. Andersson’s observations on the species are here- with transcribed :—“I have only met with this bird in Damara Land, and that at no very great distance from the sea-coast; it is not uncommon on the extensive plains bordering on Walvisch Bay, and seems to be chiefly confined to such localities. It is of a very friendly, fearless disposition, almost rivalling Saaicola galtoni in its familiarity with man; it will approach a person to within a very short distance, and it is no uncommon thing to see it hopping about amongst the cooking utensils that may chance to be scattered .about a temporary encampment. It spends nearly all its time on the ground, along which it runs with great swiftness ; but now and then it may be seen perched on a stone raised a few feet above the level of the plain. Its flight is a kind of alternate dip and rise, and never extends far at a time. The food of this species consists of small insects; its eggs are laid on the ground in a small excavation sheltered by a stone or bush. Fig. (tail only), Blandford and Dresser, P. Z. 8S. 1874, p. 236, fig. 1. 225. SAXICOLA PILEATA. Capped Wheatear. The “ Schaapwachter” (lit. The Shepherd), as it is called by the colonists, is one of the most favoured and favourite birds of the colony, over the whole of which it extends. He is protected and petted on account of his own natural sweet notes, and for his great powers of imitation. Perched on a white ant’s nest, he pours out a flood of song, chaunting long into the darkening twilight, when other songsters are gone to rest; and the morning light scarcely suffices to enable you to see the musician, ere he again commences his mellow notes or imitations. He is a favourite with the farmer and the shepherd—the master and the man: the good-wife also casts a kindly eye on him, as he flirts his tail and wings on the mud wall of her little garden, and thumps her “young hopeful” who, unable to resist the tempting shot, is about to “‘shy a stone at him.” It breeds in the rat-holes, close to the houses, or out in the fields, in the month of September, and lays four white eggs tinged with a faint greenish colour, very large for the size of the bird. Axis 12’; diam. 9’’.. If wounded it retreats into the first hole it comes to. It runs along the ground with great rapidity, and seldom alights on bushes—scarcely ever on trees. If frightened SAXICOLA PILEATA. 239 from one stone, it flits to another, and in alighting opens his tail, so as to show the white patch on his rump. It is usually perched on an ant-hill, in most cases sees you before you see it, and acts accordingly ! Mr. T. E. Buckley shot this species near Newcastle, in Natal, where, he says, he found a good number of these birds one day, but those he procured were all males. It has not yet been recorded from the Transvaal by Mr. Ayres, but Dr. Kirk says that it was common among the rocks of the Murchison Rapids, but was not observed in other situations. Mr. Andersson says :—“ I have found this species common from Table Mountain in the south to the Okavango in the north, in the neighbourhood of which river it may be seen at all times of the year, though in Damara Land proper it only appears during the wet season, and again gradually retreats to more favoured regions as the dry season returns. In the Cape Colony it is one of the best known birds, and from its familiar habits and its being seen near cattle and sheep, the Dutch boors have given it the name of “‘ Schaap Wachter,” or Shepherd ; it has also the more local name of “ Nagtgaal” and “ Rossignol,” from a habit it is said to have of singing by night. It is a very tame bird, of a most inquisitive nature, and seems to seek the society of man. The male has a very pleasant and varied song during the breeding season, and is especially remarkable for its strange power of imitating sounds, such as the notes of other birds, the barking of a dog, the bleating of a goat, &c.” Anchieta has likewise procured the species at Humbe on tho - Cunene river, where it is called “ Utena” by the natives, and also at Dombe in Benguela, where the native name is “ Kissanbondongi.” According to the arrangement of Messrs. Blanford and Dresser this Chat belongs to the same section of Sawicola as the foregoing species, having the wing-coverts and interscapulary region of the same colour, but it may be distinguished by its white throat and black crown and breast. General colour above, rufous-brown ; feathers of the wings dark- brown, edged with the colour of the back; forehead white, this colour extending in a line over the eye; top of the head black; a _ stripe of the same colour extends from the corner of the bill down the sides of the neck, and forms a broad collar across the breast ; chin, throat, and belly white, the latter tinted with rufous, which = ~ ~~ 240 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. becomes stronger on the flanks and vent; centre tail-feathers all dark-brown, the basal half of the rest white. Length, 6” 9’”; tail, Oo Le Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 181. 926. SaxIcoLA BIFASCIATA. Buff-streaked Chat. The range of this bird is rather restricted, and it appears to be peculiar to South Africa. Mr. Ortlepp has procured it at Colesberg, and Captain Bulger at Windvogelberg, while our friend Mrs. Barber, as noted below, says that they are plentiful in high situations all over the eastern province. Mr. T. C. Atmore forwarded us a nice series of specimens from the neighbourhood of Eland’s Post and Queenstown, and we ourselves shot some near Grahamstown. Mr. Buckley writes :—‘ I saw several of these birds near the foot of the Drakenberg, where they were breeding. Their habits and haunts are like those of our Stonechat, as far as I had the opportunity of observing them.” Mr. Ayres states that he obtained this species near the Upper Mooi river in Natal, but found them more plentiful on the Drakenberg in the Transvaal Republic, frequenting rocky hills and feeding on insects. Mr, F. A. Barratt observes :—“I pro- cured a male ona journey from Potchefstroom to Lydenburg ; it was flitting about the stones on a hill-side near Wittewater Rand. I have since seen it between Potchefstroom and the Orange Free State, always on elevations, and never on the plains.” In a letter dated “‘ June 22nd, 1865,’ Mrs. Barber sends us the following account of the habits of this fine Chat :—“ These birds are dwellers amongst rocks, and frequent rocky mountains and hills, old stone-kraals, &e. They build their nest under shelving rocks, near or upon the ground, and sheltered by spreading ferns or long grass; and their eggs are usually three in number. The male is fond of placing himself on some high projecting rock, and of making himself conspicuous by chirping away in a cheerful voice, either to annoy a rival or amuse his mate: he is also fond of opening and shutting his wings, ‘bowing and scraping,’ &c., and I haye no doubt ‘thinks no end of himself.’ The female is a very quiet, retiring little body. These birds (the males) possess the power of mocking other birds and animals. When we were living in the district of Graaf-Reinet, I had a beautiful spotted Merecat, a tame SAXICOLA BIFASCIATA, 241 one: it was very fond of me, and was my companion in all my walks. These little animals have a peculiar bark, and produce a great variety of sounds with their pretty little voices: and these mocking-birds, would imitate all the sounds that my pet made very accurately. I have also heard them mocking robins and sugar-birds, but they seldom use this power. We will get you some more specimens. I was surprised to hear that they were new—very much so, for they are common all over the Eastern Province, excepting near the coast. They prefer high situations. There are always five or six of them here: they sit upon the garden wall and upon the top of our house. A few days ago there was one sitting upon the gable-end of our stable, making a terrible row : a quiet old rock-thrush that belongs to the place, feeling disgusted with his noise, went up to him, and gave him a smart peck, which sent him flymg!! We never shoot birds that take up their abode with us, so we see all their odd ways.” A nest sent by Mrs. Barber, taken from a hole in a Kraal, is a loose untidy structure of fine rootlets and hair. The eggs (four) are pale creamy-white rather profusely speckled, especially at the extreme obtuse end, with small elongated reddish-brown specks. Asis Ll?"s* Diam, 8'!*. Male.—Top of head dark —, mottled with black ; back and neck reddish-brown, mottled with black; rump clear yellowish- brown: the same colour prevails over the whole of the lower parts, except the throat, and a little way on the chest, where is a rich black patch extending to the head, and including the eye and ear; a yellowish-brown stripe passes from the nape of the neck on the one side, over the eyes and nostrils, to the nape of the neck on the other side ; tail and secondary wing-feathers black ; quill-feathers brown. Length, 7”; wing, 3” 6”; tail, 2” 6”. Irides black. Female—Wants the black markings, and is altogether less brilliant, the yellows being rufous, and the tail and wings dull- brown. The species may be told by its black wings and by having the feathers on the interscapulary region intermixed black and rufescent _ (Cf. Blanf. and Dresser, /. c. p. 217). Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 472. 242 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. B. Back in the males cinerous. - 227. SAXICOLA CINEREA. White-rumped Grey Wheat-ear, The next section of Chats, according to the arrangement of the above-named authors, contains four species inhabiting South Africa. The first three have the rump white, and of these Sawicola cinerea and 8. polluz have the second primary emarginate at the tip. Besides this character, Messrs. Blanford and Dresser give the following as distinguishing the present bird :—“ No black mark through the eye : throat and breast, pale cinereous ; rump and outer edges of all the tail-feathers except the central pair, white.” Le Vaillant found this Wheat-ear in the province of Outeniqua, perching on bushes, always on the move from one to another, and very wary. In flying they expanded the tail, exposing the white ~ mark ; they also had the habit of opening and closing the wing, so peculiar to the Wheat-ears. A male is in the British Museum from Great Namaqua Land. They build at the foot of bushes on the ground. The female lays four bluish-green eggs, minutely speckled with brown, the specks sometimes forming a ring at the obtuse end: axis, 11”; diam. 8”. We found them abundantly at Nel’s Poort, nesting in November. Mr. Atmore writes of them as follows :—‘‘ Blanco, Sept. 10th, 1864, The Rock-Chat (S. cinerea) is abundant in the Karroo;—and, by the way, how well this class of birds obeys the geology of the country: wherever there is karroo soil you find them. The same also with the ‘ Kalkoentje’ (Macronyx capensis), which is found in every patch of grass country, but never in karroo soil; for instance, they are plentiful here, and proceeding northwards they do not occur in the fifty miles of karroo you pass over on the way to Cango; but in that narrow valley they are again plentiful.” We transcribe the following description from the essay of Messrs. Blanford and Dresser :— Adult.—Upper parts to the rump brownish-cinereous; wings brown, the coverts and secondaries with pale edges; lower rump and upper tail-coverts white ; tail-feathers dark brown, the outer webs of all except the central pair, white, the quantity increasing on the outermost feathers; lower parts pale isabelline grey; chin whitish ; abdomen and under tail-coverts white; ear-coverts pale hair-brown. Culmen, 0°8; wing, 3°85; tail, 2°6; tarsus, 1°15. Fig. Le Vaili. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 184, fig. 1. SAXICOLA DILUTA. 243 228. SaxicoLA DILUTA. Pale-coloured Grey Wheat-ear. Messrs. Blanford and Dresser were apparently justified in con- sidering this to be a distinct bird; at all events it is difficult to assign it as the young of any of the South-African Chats. So much, however, remains to be discovered concerning the plumages of these variable birds that the number of species of these grey-backed species may yet be diminished on careful observation. The describers give the following diagnosis: “ upper parts to the rump pale cinereous ; rump and basal portion of all the tail-feathers, except the central pair, white ; shoulders white or whitish.’ Unlike S. cinerea, the second primary is not emarginate. This Wheat-ear is, as yet, only known from Damara Land, and the typical specimens are from Hykomkap and Oosop on the Swakop River. Some mistake has occurred in the paper of Messrs. Blanford and Dresser, where they state that they have “seen three specimens marked as males in Mr. Sharpe’s collection and two in the British Museum,” as there are only four specimens altogether in the collections named and the only two which have the sexes marked are determined by Mr. Andersson as females. We may add that by the latter gentleman the species was considered to be the young of Saxicola alpina” (his name for S. lewcomelena). They may yet turn out to be the immature birds of S. anderssonz, but we believe the young of S. leucomelceena to be wholly brown. The following is the original description of the above-named authors. Adult.—Upper parts to the rump, pale cinereous; shoulders, rump, and upper tail-coverts, white; central pair of rectrices blackish-brown ; outer rectrices white with black tips, the black usually running some distance up the external pair; sides of the head and underparts very pale cinereous, becoming whitish on the abdomen; under tail-coverts white and black mixed. In some specimens the head and nape are paler grey than the back, and the interscapulary feathers have dark shafts ; there are also dark shafts on some of the lesser wing-coverts near the carpus. Total length, about 5°5 inches: culmen, 0°8; wing, 4°1; tail, 2°55; tarsus, 1:22. Fig. Blanf. and Dresser, P. Z. 8. 1874, pl. xxxix. fig. 1. R2 < 244 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 229. SaxIcoLa CASTOR. Hartlaub’s Grey Wheat-ear, In this species the second primary is not emarginate, and it belongs to the same group as the two foregoing, as it has the rump white, but it is entirely cinereous underneath, in which respect it rather resembles S. pollua. It was procured at-Colesberg by Mr. Ortlepp. Messrs. Blanford and Dresser also give Eland’s Post as a locality, but on examining Mr. T. C. Atmore’s specimen in the British Museum we believe it to be referable to some other species, and the authors mentioned also appear to have changed their mind, as the name has been erased, and our original determination of its being S. monticola is restored: it is therefore doubtless by an accident that the locality has remained standing in their paper. They describe the species as follows :— Adult male——Upper parts dark ashy grey ; rump and upper tail- coverts white; wing and four central rectrices dusky black ; outer rectrices white at the base with a black tip, which is much broader in the fourth from the outside than in the others; underparts very little paler than the back, fading a little on the abdomen; axillaries and under wing-coverts of the same colour as the breast. Culmen, 0:9; wing, 4°3; tail, 3°05; tarsus, 1:3. Fig. Blanf. and Dresser, P. Z. 8. 1874, pl. xxxviii. fig. 2. 230. SAxIcoLA POLLUX. Sickle-winged Grey Wheat-ear. A very striking species, easily distinguishable by its emarginated second primary, as in S. sinwata, and by its uniform upper surface, the absence of the white rump being a remarkable characteristic. It was first procured by Mr. W. Atmore at Traka, and afterwards at Colesberg by Mr. Ortlepp. Messrs. Blanford and Dresser record specimens from Beaufort. General colour brownish-grey; chin, flanks, belly, and sides of rump whitish ; vent white; primary quills brown, secondaries the same edged with whitish ; tail-feathers nearly black, the outer webs of all, except the four centre feathers, more or less white; eyelids white ; bill and legs black. The female resembles the male. Length, 7” 8’’; wing, 4’’; tail, 2’” 9’”’, Fig. Blanf. and Dressery P. Z. S. 1874, pl. xxxviii. fig. 1. SAXICOLA ARNOTTI. 245 y: Back in the males black ; wing-coverts white.* N.B.—It is with regard to the species comprised in this section of the genus that we find ourselves at issue with the authors of the valuable paper to which we have been so much indebted in the course of the preceding pages, but in stating our views it must be admitted that the changes of plumage are so little understood that it is quite possible that our conclusions will require future modifi- cation. We propose, however, the followimg arrangement :— ee a. with the tail entirely black shelleyt (3. with white in the tail. a’. belly white monticola. leucomeleena. B’. belly black . é : - _ anderssont. 231. SaxrcoLA ARNOTTI. Arnott’s Wheat-ear. This large and beautiful new species of Chat was sent to us from the new country called Albania, by our friend, Mr. D. Arnott, in whose honour the species has been named by Canon Tristram. Professor Barboza du Bocage has also identified as belonging to this species a Chat procured by Anchieta at Caconda in Benguela, and this identification is probably correct, as the British Museum has a specimen collected in Benguela by Mr. Monteiro. Nothing is known as yet of its habits. General colour throughout black ; wing-coverts white, as is also a stripe extending from the nostrils over each eye to the side of the head, and a few confused spots on the hinder part of the crown. Total length, 7:2 inches; wing, 3:9; tail, 3. We do not consider the typical specimen of 8. arnotti to be in full plumage as regards its head; the male when adult has probably a pure white crown. Mr. Monteiro’s bird has the crown entirely black, with a white line in front of the eye. Fig. Tristram, Ibis, 1869, pl. vi. _ * Several ornithologists having described these Chats as haying white shoulders, it should be pointed out that the shoulder-patch is formed by the white wing-coverts; the scapulars, which are the true shoulders, are black, only a few of them externally white. 246 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 282. SaxIcoLA sHELLEYI, Sharpe. Shelley’s Wheat-ear. This species, which we consider to be new to science, was con- tained in the same collection as Pinarornis plumosus, viz. from the Victoria Falls. It has a totally black tail like Sawicola arnotti, but it differs in having the primary-coverts white, with only a narrow black tip, as well as the wing-coverts. We have already stated our belief that S. arnotti has in its full plumage a white cap, and our opinion is justified by the presence of a pure white crown in the present species, its near ally. The following is a brief description of 9. shelleyi :—Entirely black including the wings and tail; crown of head pure white; outer scapulars white at base; all the wing-coverts white, the primary and greater coverts with a narrow apical bar of black. Total length, 7°3 inches; culmen, 0°7; wing, 4°15; tail, 3°15; tarsus, 1:15. The bird described is probably the male, as accompanying it was another skin, rather browner in colour, and haying the cheeks, throat, fore-neck, and sides of neck white, here and there varied with brown tips to the feathers. This may possibly be the female, but in the absence of any correct dissection it is impossible to tell. This bird is named after our friend Mr. Edward Shelley, of Avington, one of the earliest of modern explorers in the Zambesi, and an old comrade of Livingstone’s. 233. SAXICOLA MONTICOLA. Mountain Wheat-ear. Le Vaillant found this bird inhabiting the mountains of Namaqua Land, and never descending into the plains, except compelled by great drought. He describes them as very shy and difficult of approach, hiding themselves in holes or inaccessible precipices. We have received a few specimens from Kuruman, and from Mr. Atmore, who procured them about Traka; and we also found it ourselves at Nel’s Poort. Le Vaillant’s account of their habits is substantially correct. We only found them among the rocky mountain sides, breeding in the holes and crevices. Mr. H. Jackson writes to us:—‘‘Among the eggs I now send are fourteen of S. monticola, all from the same pair of birds, our old friends of last year. This makes thirty-four of this sort, all or nearly all from one SAXICOLA LEUCOMELENA, 247 pair of birds: They build in my kraal walls, and no sooner are their eges taken than they set to work to make a new nest in a fresh place, finish it, and lay their eggs in a very short time.’ Eggs of this species are light bluish green, rather closely speckled with red- brown, chiefly at the obtuse end. Axis, 12”; diam. 8”. Mr. Ayres observes :—“ This bird I shot in the Free State of Transvaal, but I also saw one on the banks of a small stream near the Tugela in Natal. It appears to be solitary in its habits, frequenting the steep banks of rivers, and is very shy and scarce. The stomach of the one I obtained was well filled with insects.” Later he writes :— “These Chats are to be found in many localities in the open country of the Transvaal, frequenting rocky situations. Their nests are generally placed in crevices within a few feet of the ground; but at some of the farmhouses they may be seen having taken possession of an unfinished Swallow’s nest under the eaves, where, if not interfered with, they become exceedingly tame. Though sombre in colour, they immediately attract the sight by frequently spreading the tail, and showing its snow-white feathers. They are also frequently to be found amongst the ant-hills which are so. abundant in the Transvaal.” Mr. T. EH. Buckley found them very common in the *‘ High Veldt” portion of the Transvaal. As we have been unable to distinguish the sequence of plumages in this species, we copy the full description of the male given by Messrs. Blanford and Dresser :—“ Adult male. Shoulders, rump, abdomen, lower breast, upper tail-coverts, and the basal portion of all rectrices, except the central pair, white; a narrow streak from the base of the bill to above the eye grey, or mixed white and black; remainder of plumage black; quills and greater coverts brownish black, and the thigh-coverts the same, and some black is mixed with the white of the under tail-coverts. On the pair of rectrices next to the central pair the white extends about half-way from the bases ; on the other rectrices only the tip is black, but this colour extends on the outermost pair some distance up the outer web. Culmen, 0°9; wing, 4°25; tail, 2°85; tarsus, 1:25. Fig. We Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 184, fig. 2. 234. SAXICOLA LEUCOMELENA. Barchell’s Wheat-ear. Mr. Andersson writes concerning this species: — “This fin 248 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Sawicola is abundantly met with throughout Great Namaqua Land, and also in the south of Damara Land, especially in the valley of Swakop: it is partial to localities which abound in rocks, and is fcund throughout the year in the dreariest and most arid spots, but never at any great distance from the hills, to which it immediately resorts on the least approach of danger. Like the rest of its family, this Wheat-ear is constantly moving about, now fluttering its wings, then rapidly elevating and depressing its tail, and next all at once vibrating in every part of its body with frolic and excitement ; it perches on a dry branch, a bush, a stone, or any other spot from which it can obtain a clear view of surrounding objects. It usually seeks its food upon the ground, but will also seize insects on the wing as they happen to pass within its ken and reach; if not dis- ° turbed it will return times without number, after such excursions, to the same perch.” It also occurs in Benguela, where Senor Anchieta has met with it at Dombe; the same gentleman has also shot it on the Rio Coroca in Mossamedes. It likewise inhabits Natal, as Mr. T. E. Buckley shot a male specimen on the 22nd of May, 1873, during his journey through that province to the Matabili country. When adult, this Chat is a very recognisable species, having a pure white head and white belly, but the changes of plumage and the different garbs of the young and female birds are unknown. From a study of the large series in the British Museum we believe that the young bird is brown; in this stage it is Saxicola atmorii of Tristram. It moults from this plumage into the full dress, but at first with a greyish head; in this stage it is Sawicola griseiceps of Blanford and Dresser. Our impression is that Saxicola diluta of the same authors is the adult female of this bird, but we are unable to say so for certain. Professor Barboza du Bocage has very kindly sent us for examination the types of his Dromolea albipileata, which is the same species as S. lewcomelena, but both white-headed birds are sexed by Anchieta as females, while the males have black heads with a white eye-streak. Two of these latter are also for- warded, and in this plumage they would be S. equatorialis of Hartlaub, a species referred by Messrs. Blanford and Dresser to S. monticola. ven if the birds sent by Anchieta are really pairs, the sexes must probably be reversed, as the testimony of other observers is overwhelmingly in fayour of the white-headed birds SAXICOLA ANDERSSONI. 249 being the males. Bearing in mind the difference in plumage exhibited by S. shelleyi, it is possible that S. wquatorialis is the female of S. lewcomelena, but this seems to us unlikely, though Anchieta’s specimens were killed at the same place in the same month of the year; a larger series of birds is, however, requisite before we can finally decide on these questions. The following is a full description of an adult male of Burchell’s Wheat-ear. - * Adult male—Head and nape white, the latter very slightly washed with ashy; back and scapulars blue-black, the latter varied with white, some having the outer web only white, while others are edged with white on the inner and outer webs; feathers of the lower back black, white at the tips, where they adjoin the rump, which is pure white; upper tail-coverts also pure white, the centre ones however largely varied with black; lesser and median wing- coverts white, forming a large shoulder-patch; rest of the wing black; two centre tail-feathers black, the next two black with a white base to the inner webs; all the rest of the feathers white with irregular markings of black near the tips, not the same in shape in any two feathers, sometimes being a spot, sometimes an irregular marginal band; a narrow black line drawn from the base of the nostrils enclosing the eye, lores, sides of face, ear-coverts, and sides of neck, throat and breast, blue-black, as also the flanks and under wing-coyerts; whole of the lower breast, abdomen, and under tail-coverts pure white; thighs black, the feathers narrowly tipped with greyish-white; bill and legs black;. iris dark hazel. Total length, 6-4 inches; culmen, 0°8; wing, 4°53; tail, 3:1; tarsus, 1:2. Fig. Blanford and Dresser, P. Z. 8. 1874, pl. xxxvii. 235. SaxicoLa ANDERSSONI, Sharpe. Andersson’s Wheat-ear. This bird may be described as very similar to S. lewcomelena, but distinguished by the entire under surface being black. Total length, 7°6 inches; culmen, 0°85; wing, 4°6; tail, 3°3; tarsus, 1:3. The specimens before us are five in number, one from Colesberg, apparently young, with a dusky grey head, and two from Damara Land, one (a male) haying been killed at “The Reeds,’ Swakop 250 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. river on the 8th of December, 1860, and the other, also a male, at Koy’s Fountain, Great Namaqua Land, on the 18th of June, 1862. The latter is in winter plumage, and answers to the “ S. griseiceps” stage of S. leucomelena. The British Museum also possesses a pair ” of wholly grey birds (males) killed at Koy’s Fountain on the 18th and 21st of June, 1862, and marked by Mr. Andersson as the young of the same species. Lastly, there is in the same collection a speci- men with the plumage glossy black, and only a narrow white line on the head, from the beak to the fore-part of the eye instead of the white head. It bears a label, “ Male. Aamhoup, June 28, 1861,” and like all his other Chats, is referred by Mr. Andersson to “§. alpina.” This bird bears the same relation to the white- headed birds of S. anderssoni, that S. equatorialis does to S. leuco- meleena, but whether it is only a stage of plumage, or a different species, we must leave to future observers to discover; as in the case of Senor Anchieta’s black-headed birds, it is marked a male. 236. PRatINcOLA TORQUATA. South African Stone-chat. Pratincola pastor, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 111 (1867). The ‘ Bontrochie’ is abundant throughout the colony, occurring, as Captain Shelley remarks, commonly from the Cape to Durban. Victorin procured it at the Knysna in April and again from July to September, and Mr. Andersson also met with it there. Mr. Rickard notes it from Port Elizabeth and East London. In Natal both Captain Shelley and Mr. Ayres have recorded it, and the latter gentleman says that it is common throughout the Transvaal, breeding in walls and banks. Mr. F. A. Barratt likewise met with it at Macamac and we have seen a specimen said to have been shot in the Zambesi district, though it is not included in Dr. Kirk’s list. Mr. Andersson writes :— This bird is common in Little Namaqua Land: but, to the best of my recollection, I have never seen it either in Great Namaqua or in Damara Land, though it is not un- frequent at Lake N’gami:” from this latter locality we have examined skins collected by Mr. Chapman. Although not included in the Damara list, it occurs farther north, as Senor Anchieta has procured it at Huilla in Mossamedes and also at Caconda in Benguela. It inhabits open plains covered with low brushwood, generally AEDON CORYPH@A. 251 going in pairs, male and female. We found it breeding at the Berg River in September. The nest was like that of Motacilla capensis and was placed in a head of rank grass near the river-side. ' Eggs three, light verditer blue indistinctly clouded with faint reddish markings which coalesce and form a ring at the obtuse end: axis 9”. diam. 7”. Adult male.—Head and half way down the throat black, sprinkled with yellow; lower throat and breast rufous; sides of the neck, shoulders and rump white; belly and flanks pale rufous; eyes dark hazel. Female less brilliant in colour. Length 5” 6”; wing 3”; tail, 1” 9”. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 180. 237. AnDON CORYPH@A. Coryphée Warbler. Bradypterus coripheus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 100 (1867). This bird, which is called by the colonists ‘ Bosch-creeper,’ and ‘Katlachter’ (‘Slang verclicker’ of some), is common throughout the colony. Victorin procured it in the Karroo in December and January, and according to Mr. Rickard it is common at Port Eliza- beth. Mr. T. C. Atmore sent specimens from Hopetown. Mr. Andersson gives the following note :—“ I do not remember to have seen this species in Damara Land, but I first observed it in the central part of Great Namaqua Land, and from thence southward it became more abundant. It seems partial to low bushes, and may be seen running along the ground from one bush to another with wonderful rapidity ; it also usually adopts this mode of endeavouring to make its escape when pursued. The male has a very agreeable song during the breeding season; it is very brusque in its move- ments, and frequently utters a chirping noise, at the same time elevating and spreading its tail Peacock-fashion over its back. The food of this species consists of insects and berries.” It frequents bush-covered land, and well deserves its trivial colonial name, being always found running about the lower parts of the shrubs, very rarely flying over the tops of them. It nests also at the foot of a bush, forming a cup-shaped, rather flat structure, composed of hair, wool, and bents of dry grass. The eggs are a lovely verditer, irregularly blotched with brown and usually laid in September. Axis 9” ; diam, 6”. 252 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Captain Shelley also observes ;—“ In habits it is very lively, now flitting for a short distance along the path, then running fleetly through the stunted bush, stopping at intervals and erecting and expanding its tail, the white on the outer feathers contrasting well with the dark sombre hues of its general plumage.” General colour, cinereous, darkest on the crown of the head, and tinged with rufous on the lower part of the back, wings, and two centre tail-feathers; beneath paler, with belly, vent, and a broad stripe down the throat, white; a narrow white stripe extends over the eye ; tail-feathers black, broadly tipped with white; bill and legs black, iris dark brown. . Length, 6’; wing, 2” 9” ; tail, 2” 6”, Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 120. 238. AEDON LEUCOPHRYS. White-eyebrowed Warbler. Sir Andrew Smith states that this Warbler inhabits arid districts, thinly covered with dwarf trees. Le Vaillant writes that he found it on the borders of the Gamtoos, Sunday, and Swartkop Rivers, among the mimosa bushes that fringe these streams. The male has a moderate power of song, and the female deposits four or five light- green eges, spotted with brown, at the obtuse -end, in a nest which is placed in the midst of a thick bush. We have received it from Kuruman, and Mr. T. C. Atmore found it in some abundance at Eland’s Post inthe Hastern Province, and he says that “it has a fine mellow note or whistle, which it utters while perching on the summit of trees or shrubs.” Mr. Buckley states that it is one of the com- monest Warblers in the Bamangwato district, and in the Transvaal, writes Mr. Ayres, “these birds inhabit the bush, but appear to be rather scarce. Their food consists of insects; and I noticed one feeding on the ground. In habits they appear much to resemble the Warblers.” According to Mr. Andersson, “ This is a pretty common species in the middle and northern parts of Damara Land, and also further to the northward, being very common near Ombongo. During the pairing and breeding season it occasionally sings most exquisitely ; and it, moreover, has the power of imitating almost every other bird to be found in its vicinity. It forms its nest, in November and December, on the lower branches of small bushes, rarely more than one or two feet from the ground ; the nest is com- posed of rough grasses, and is lined with material of the same kind, but of a softer texture. The eggs are two in number.” PETE A AES C1 oD | eo ee AEDON P@NA. 253 Senor Anchieta has forwarded it from Humbe, on the Cunene river, where, he states, it is called by the natives “ Piria.” Brown above; posterior part of back and rump, deep reddish- orange; chin, middle of abdomen, and vent, pale cream-colour ; breast light sienna yellow, streaked with umber-brown ; wing feathers edged with greyish-white ; eyebrows pale cream-colour ; tail liver-brown, the feathers rusty at their.edges, and white at the tips, most visible on the outside feathers, all but obsolete on the two centre ones. Irides hazel. Length, 6’ 3” ; wing, 2’’ 9”’; tail, 3” 1””. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr, Aves, pl. 49. 239. AEDON P@NA. Sir Andrew Smith’s Warbler. Sir Andrew Smith, who discovered this species, does not indicate the locality where he procured it, but we have received it from Mr. Moffat at Kuruman. Mr. Ortlepp has also procured it near Coles- berg, and Mr. T. C. Atmore met with it in Griqua Land in May, 1871. Mr. Buckley observes :—* Common throughout the north of the Transvaal and in the Bamangwato district, where they may be found along the banks of the sand rivers; they are very tame.” We have recently received it from the neighbourhood of Potchefs- troom, through the kindness of Dr. Exton of Bloemfontein, who sent us four specimens. Mr. Ayres says that in the Transvaal they are “by no means plentiful; and the two I obtained were very shy and difficult to approach. Their stomachs contained insects. This species is found amongst thorn-trees and high grass, and when in motion constantly jerks the tail, showing to advantage the broad white tips of the feathers.” We extract the following note from Mr. Andersson’s work: “This bird is pretty generally distributed over Damara and Great Namaqua Land and the parts adjacent. Its habits are exactly like those of the preceding species ; and I know no birds which they both resemble so greatly in manner, habits, food, &c. as those of the genus Sawicola. The present species spends much of its time on the ground and amongst the roots of bushes; it runs with great swiftness, and raises and droops its tail in quick succession, but does not expand it; at times it stands quite vertically, with its whole body vibrating with excitement, whilst it rapidly utters a succession of harsh, jarring chirps. «Two nests of this species, taken on the 5th and 6th of January, contained two eggs each: the nests were composed of grass, and 254 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. lined with fine, soft tendrils; they were built in thorn-bushes, and placed from twelve to eighteen inches above the ground,” In a letter received from Mr. Ortlepp, that gentleman observes, “These birds have the habit of cocking up their tails for a second or two after settling on a branch, uttering a short lively note and danc- ing about very much like our common A. coryphea, which they resemble in general habits.” . Head brown; neck rusty-grey; anterior half of back ruddy- brown; hinder part of back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and the basal two-thirds of tail, clear reddish-orange ; last third of tail-feathers, liver-brown, edges rusty, four outer ones of each side broadly tipped with white; chin and throat dull white: breast, belly, and vent, pale cream-yellow. Length, 6”; wing, 2” 9"; tail, 2” 9”. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 50. a. with ten tail-feathers (Drymeca). 240. Dryma@ca FLAVICANS. Black-chested Grass-Warbler. Plate VIII. Drymoica pectoralis and D. pallida, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 86. The principal character which distinguishes this long-tailed Grass-Warbler is the yellow coloration of the under surface which exists at all ages: the tail-feathers also never have a subterminal blackish spot, which prevents the species being mistaken for D. afinis, or D. maculosa. The plate represents three of the plumages of this bird, but it has not yet been satisfactorily proved whether the black chest-band is a sign of age or is merely a seasonal plumage ; it seems certain, however, that the young birds never have it, and therefore it is probably peculiar to the adults, but by the gradual way in which it seems to be assumed, we conjecture that it is worn only during a certain season of the year. Sir Andrew Smith discovered the first specimens of this species near Latakoo. We have received it from Mr. T. C. Atmore from the neighbourhood of Hopetown, but as yet we have not seen a specimen from Natal, though Mr. Gurney recorded it as occurring in Mr. Ayres’ early collections. In the Transvaal, however, it is mnch more numerous, and our excellent friend, Dr. Exton, has just forwarded us several specimens procured in the vicinity of Potchef- stroom. Mr. Ayres writes: “This delicate little bird is common DRYMCECA FLAVICANS. Plate VIL DRYM@CA FLAVICANS. 255 about the hedgerows in Potchefstroom. Ground covered with dense masses of tall weeds is generally chosen by it for its breeding place. The nest is made of fine strips of green grass very curiously curled and twisted together, attached to weeds some two or three feet from the ground ; it is of oval shape, well closed in, with the exception of small opening on the upper side, and is lined with fine white down taken from grasses and plants. The eggs, which are from two to four in number, vary much in colour.” Numerous examples collected by Mr. Andersson are in the British Museum. He states that he obtained it in Damara Land and the neighbourhood of the Okavango, and we have seen specimens of his shooting from Walwisch Bay, Otjinbinque, Swakop River, Elephant Vley, and Ondonga. One example is from Great Namaqua Land, and Sir A. Smith also procured the original examples of D. pallida, which is not distinct from D. flavicans, in the same country “ about 300 miles north of Cape Town.” Mr. Andersson observes: “I have found the nests of these birds (usually containing three, but sometimes four, eggs) at various dates, extending from December 20th to April Ist. The nest is very light and graceful, composed of fine grass both externally and internally, and built on a low bush a few feet from the ground.” Adult.—General colour above pale brown, a little deeper on the crown, the feathers on the forehead above the eyebrow dark brown ; rump slightly more fulvous brown, the upper tail-coverts rather rufous brown; tail pale brown with dusky obsolete bars across it, very indistinct, no darker sub-terminal spots, the feathers having only rather lighter edges; wings dark brown, the coverts edged with ashy fulvous, the edge of the wing and the margins of the bastard-wing plumes whitish; quills externally edged with rufous brown, lighter towards their tips; lores and feathers over the eye dull white; cheeks and ear-coverts also dull white, the latter brownish on their hinder margins; throat white; across the breast a broad band of dark brown; rest of under surface pale yellow; thighs tawny ; under wing-coverts pale tawny buff, the quills ashy brown below, edged with rufous along the inner webs; “bill jet- black: legs and toes flesh-colour: iris brownish yellow” (Anders- son). Total length 5:7 inches, culmen 0°55, wing 2°05, tail 2°8, tarsus 0°8. The above is a supposed male. A dissected female from Ondonga r 256 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. measures as follows: Total length 4°8 inches, culmen 0°55, wing 2°05, tail 2°3, tarsus 0°85. 241. Dryma@ca suBSTRIATA. White-breasted Grass-Warbler. After much consideration we have come to the conclusion that this species is distinct, both from D. maculosa, and D. flavicans. It resembles the latter in wanting the sub-terminal black spot to the tail-feathers, but it differs from it in being white below with rufous flanks; the breast is very narrowly streaked with black. Sir Andrew Smith met with but few of these birds, and those only on the banks of the Oliphant River, about one hundred miles north of Cape Town. They were usually found in thickets composed of high brushwood or dwarf trees, in-which they were seen rapidly flitting from branch to branch, apparently in quest of insects, which con- stitute their food. Mr. Atmore procured this species, with its nest and eggs, at Traka; the latter are white, with the faintest tinge of green, marked with large blotches of dark and light-brown: axis 8’’’; diam, 51’”; We have also received it from Mr. Ortlepp at Colesberg. The following is a description of the typical specimen in the British Museum. Above light rufescent brown, more dusky on the forehead ; least and median wing-coverts washed with grey; rest of the coverts and secondaries externally of the same rufous brown as the back, the primaries dull brown with narrow margins of paler -brown; tail uniform brown; lores dull white; round the eye a distinct ring of white feathers; ear-coverts washed with light brown ; sides of neck greyish ; cheeks, throat, and under parts dull white, the sides of the body washed with fulvous, the lower flanks, thighs, and under tail-coverts tawny buff; the breast narrowly streaked with dark brown down the centre of each feather ; under wing-coverts dull white, as also the edge of the wing; quills ashy brown below, buffy whitish along the edge of the inner web; bill dark horn colour ; legs, toes, and claws pale buff-orange, the latter brown at the point. Total length 5°5 inches, culmen 0°5, wing 2°15, tail 3:1, tarsus 0°85. Fig. Smith, Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pl. 72, fig. 1. 242. Drym@ca OCULARIA. Rufous-eared Grass-Warbler. This.is one of the most distinct species of Drymeca, and it may DRYM@CA OCULARIA. 257 be distinguished by its rufous-brown back, broadly streaked with black, and by its bright chestnut eyebrow and ear-coverts. Sir Andrew Smith writes :—“ This bird has a rather extensive range in South Africa, being found, though sparingly, among the brushwood in the northern districts of the Cape Colony, and between those and the Tropic of Capricorn. It feeds upon insects; and, in quest of them, it is to be seen flitting from branch to branch in the most arid and barren situations.” Victorin procured it in the Karroo in January and February, and we have ourselves found it in one particular locality near Mr. Jackson’s residence at Nel’s Poort, Beaufort. Mr. Ortlepp says that it is plentiful on all the flats near Colesberg. We have received several specimens from Kurwman, and we observed it ourselves on the road between Grahams Town and Table Farm. Mr. T. C. Atmore has sent us specimens from Hope Town, and the following note is taken from Mr. Ayres’ paper on the birds of the Transvaal :—“ There is very little difference in plumage between the sexes ; but the rufous patch on the cheeks is much lighter in the female than in the male. I first met with this species amongst the low bushes on the banks of the Vaal river, and between that and the Hartz, where they were pretty plentiful, hopping briskly about amongst the thickets, with the active habits common to most birds of this genus.”—The Hditor possesses a pair of specimens obtained by the late Mr. Andersson on the Hountop River in Great Namaqua Land, and the same gentleman writes :—* This species is very sparingly found in Damara Land, but is more common in some parts of Great Namaqua Land. Itis generally met with singly or in pairs; and it is usual to find it amongst the most arid scenes, hopping slowly about amongst the branches of low bushes in search of insects.” In its method of flight and in its search after food it exactly resembles the common species D. maculosa. Its nest is also similar, and the eggs are pale blue unspotted: axis, 6’’’ ; diam., 5’’’. The following description is that of the type-specimen in the British Museum. Adult Male.—Above sandy brown, very distinctly striped with black on the back, less plainly so on the head, which is rather darker brown; wing-coverts dark brown margined with dull sandy, the * quills also dark brown narrowly margined in the same manner as the coverts ; rump and upper tail-coverts exactly the same as the back, the mesial streaks rather broader on the latter; tail deep brown, 8 258 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. waved with dusky cross-bars in certain lights, the centre tail-feathers edged with ashy fulvous, the onter ones with deep buff, more broadly on the external feathers; lores, eyebrows, feathers round the eye and ear-coverts bright chestnut-red; cheeks and entire throat white; across the chest a distinct collar of black; rest of under surface buffy white inclining to dull tawny buff on the sides of the body; thighs blackish; under tail-coverts dark brown, margined with ashy fulvous; on the sides of the body a few hair-like streaks of dark brown, a little broader on the flanks; under wing-coverts tawny buff; “bill black, legs and toes flesh-coloured, iris ochry- brown” (Andersson) ; iris reddish hazel (7. C. Atmore). Total length 5 inches; culmen,-.0°5; wing, 1:9; tail, 3°05; tarsus, 0°85. Adult Female—Similar to the male. Total length, 55 inches ; culmen, 0°5; wing, 2°05; tail, 3°05; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pl. 75, fig. 1. 243, Drym@ca AFFINIs. Tawny-flanked Grass-Warbler. Drymoica afivis et D. melanorhyncha, Layard, B. 8. Afr. pp. 89, 92. This species has a dark subterminal spot on the tail-feathers at all ages, and is always perfectly uniform on the under surface; the abdomen is whitish without any tinge of yellow, and the flanks are fulvous brown. In the breeding plumage it has a black bill, which has caused it to be confounded by some authors with D. melanorhyncha of Western Africa, but this black bill is not a specific character, as it is evidently gradually assumed. The young birds, and probably those in winter plumage have the bill browner: in winter the birds have distinct rufous edgings to the wing-coverts, and are otherwise browner in appearance. Sir Andrew Smith says that it “inhabits dry flats in the interior of South Africa, and flits to and fro, in search of insects, amongst the shrubs with which they are more or less coated.” We have not seen it from any locality south of Natal, where Mr. Ayres found it in 1860, building among stalks of high weeds. Mr. T. L. Ayres has forwarded several specimens to Captain Shelley from the neighbourhood of Pinetown ; these were all in warm breeding plumage and were killed in February and March. In the Transvaal, writes Mr. Thomas Ayres, “this species frequents weeds, high grass, and low bush, and is generally distributed over the country.” We have examined DRYMECA MACULOSA. 259 specimens in the British Museum, collected by the late Mr. Anders- son at Ovaquenyama, in May, 1867, and a young bird from Elephant Vley, shot on the 8th August, 1859. There is also a specimen of a Drymeca in the British Museum collected by Livingstone at Tete in the Zambesi district, which agrees with the description of Dr. Peters’ Drymeca bivittata. The latter we think must be a synonym of D. affinis, to which species the above-mentioned Zambesi skin certainly belongs. Adult in breeding plumage. —Above ashy brown; inclining rather to fulyous brown on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; wings brown, the coverts edged with ashy brown, the quills margined with dull rufous; tail light ashy-brown, tipped with white, with a distinct blackish subterminal bar on all but the two long centre tail- feathers ; lores and a broad eyebrow dull yellowish white; feathers in front of the eye and ear-coverts ashy-brown, the latter dull white on the lower parts, like the cheeks; under surface of body pale yellowish white, deepening into tawny buff on the sides of the body ; thighs and under wing-coverts tawny; sides of the upper breast washed with greyish; bill black; legs flesh colour; iris brown. Total length,4°9 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 1-9; tail,2°4; tarsus, 0°9. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 77, fig. 1. 244. Drym@ca MACULOSA. Cape Grass-Warbler. Drymoica capensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 92. Like the foregoing bird this species has a subterminal spot on the tail-feathers, but it always has a distinct wash of yellow on the under parts and on the breast, and is streaked with black at all ages. It is the common species of the Cape Colony, and Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—“I have reason to think that this bird is common in some of the southern parts of Great Namaqua Land ; further south, on the west coast and within the Cape Colony, I have frequently met with it; and in the neighbourhood of Cape Town it is exceed- ingly common, a pair or two inhabiting almost every garden. “Tt is found singly or in pairs ; and its whereabouts is easily dis- covered by the harsh querulous notes that it is in the habit of uttering almost incessantly. It builds in low bushes; and the nest is com- posed of moss, wool, and other soft material, which are artistically and strongly put together. This species feeds on insects, searching for them either on the ground or amongst the low bushes which s 2 md Trin’ =~. = 260 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. form its favourite resort; it runs with great rapidity along the ground, and steals through tangled foliage with equal celerity.” Victorin records this species from the Karroo in January, and from the Knysna in May and November. Mr. Andersson also pro- cured it at the latter place in January and February, and we have seen a specimen of his shooting, from Kugel Fountain, Little Namaqua Land, and bearing date August 6th, 1862. We have received it also from Colesberg and Swellendam, and it extends to Port Elizabeth, where Mr. Rickard procured it im May, 1868. Adult male—Above dull earthy brown, the wings a little darker than the back, with indistinct rufous-brown margins to the quills, the primaries narrowly edged with whity brown ; tail-feathers light brown with pale whitish tips and a subterminal bar of black ; lores yellowish white, as also a distinct eyebrow ; cheeks and sides of face pale yellowish with distinct triangular spots of black, obscuring the yellow of the ear-coverts which are also brown on their hinder margin ; under surface of body pale yellowish, with distinct longi- tudinal spots of black, larger on the breast and smaller on the throat and on the sides of the body, which are washed with pale tawny brown; the abdomen unstreaked, pale yellow; thighs dull tawny, the under tail coverts also pale tawny brown with indistinct darker centres ; wings light tawny buff, the lower series ashy brown at tips like the lower surface of the quills whieh are edged with pale rufous along the inner web; bill flesh-colour, shading into dark brown on the upper mandible and the tips of the lower one; legs flesh-colour ; iris brownish yellow. Total length, 5 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°0; tail, 2°75; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 76, fig. 1. 245. Drymaca nypoxantHa, Sharpe. Saffron-breasted Grass-Warbler. This new species, as we regard it, is the eastern representative of D. maculosa, and differs from it in the deep yellow colour of the throat and abdomen, and in the very narrow blackish streaks on the breast. We have received several specimens from Mr. T, C. Atmore killed in the neighbourhood of Eland’s Post in the Eastern Province, and Captain Shelley has also examples from the neighbourhood of Pinetown in Natal. We believe that it is this species of which Mr. Ayres speaks in his early papers on the ornithology of Natal, under the name of D. substriata. He writes as follows :— CISTICOLA NATALENSIS. - 261 “T found a family of this Drymoica in July (midwinter here) about forty miles inland, amongst some scrubby bush; also a solitary individual some time after, in some high sedgy grass. These birds seem much to resemble Drymoica subflava in habits and appearance. Their food consists of small insects.” Mr. Barratt procured a specimen at Macamac, and Mr. Gurney has recently presented to the British Museum two specimens obtained in the same district by Mr. Ayres on the 3rd December, 1874. Adult male.—Above brown, nearly uniform everywhere, the head indistinctly mottled with darker brown centres, the lower back and rump slightly washed with olive; wings brown, duller than the back, with paler edgings to the feathers, the primaries narrowly margined with whity brown; tail ight brown, waved across with dusky under certain lights, the feathers narrowly tipped with white, with a faint indication of a subterminal blackish bar; lores and a very distinct eyebrow, as well as a circlet of feathers round the eyes, pale yellow; a few plumes between the eye and the base of bill dusky brown, as also the upper margin of the ear-coverts ; rest of the sides of the face and throat, lemon yellow, entirely unspotted ; rest of under surface of body’yellow, unspotted on the abdomen, but distinctly streaked with black down the chest and on the sides of the body; flanks washed with yellowish brown; thighs and under tail- coverts tawny buff; under wing-coverts also tawny buff, the edge of the wing white ; quills brown below, the inner web edged with tawny rufous; bill black; legs flesh-colour; iris light brown. Total length, 5°3 inches ; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°1; tail, 2°7; tarsus, 0-9. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but smaller. Total length, 4:7 inches; culmen, 0°5; wing, 1:95; tail, 2°2; tarsus, 0°85. With twelve tail feathers (Cisticola). 246. CIsTICOLA NATALENSIS. Natal Fantail Warbler. Drymoica natalensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 87 (1867). Entirely confined to Natal and the surrounding districts, but as yet not known within the limits of the Cape Colony, nor to the eastward in the Transvaal. Its large size, stout bill and tawny colouring seem to be its most distinguishing characteristics. Sir Andrew Smith writes as follows :—“Inhabits the neighbour- hood of Port Natal, and the specimen described was shot upon reeds, among which it was flitting to and fro in search of insects, which, from the ingesta found in its stomach, appeared to have been 262 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. its sole food.” Mr. Thomas Ayres also observes :—“ This species frequents long coarse grass in the valleys and on the hill-sides; its flight is tolerably strong, and it does not attempt to hide when dis- turbed, but at once takes wing.” We have seen a considerable number of specimens from the neighbourhood of Pinetown collected by Mr. T. L. Ayres and now in Captain Shelley’s possession. Mr. T. E. Buckley shot a male near Pietermaritzburg on the 2nd of May, 1873, and writes :—“ I only observed this one specimen, which I shot among some small reeds by a small stream: it was rather shy.” During his recent excursion to south-eastern Africa he also procured two examples in Suaziland on the 19th of June, 1876. Adult male.—General colour clear tawny brown, with paler and more fulyous margins to the feathers of the back, all the upper sur- face broadly streaked with black down the centre of the feathers, these black streaks slightly shaded on each side with rufous; wing- coverts dark brown, externally fulvous, rather inclining to ashy buff on the median series; primaries dark brown, tipped with whitish and externally sandy rufous, the inner secondaries blackish in the centre, edged all round with broad margins of tawny buff; rump uniform ashy fulvous; upper tail-coverts tawny buff, mesially streaked with blackish; the tail-feathers dark brown with margins of clear tawny buff, the centre feathers paler at tip with a faintly- indicated subterminal bar of black: this subterminal bar very dis- tinct and broad on all the other feathers, which are conspicuously tipped with pale tawny-buff, the outermost feathers being externally edged with the latter colour and only having the black subterminal bar on the inner web; lores dull whitish; feathers round the eye light fulvous, as also a very faint eyebrow; cheeks and sides of face yellowish buff, with a shade of brown on the ear-coverts ; throat white, as also the centre of the abdomen; rest of under surface of body tawny yellow, browner on the sides of the upper breast; the under wing- and tail-coverts tawny, the edge of the wing whitish: quills ashy brown below, the inner web rufous from the base upwards; thighs deep tawny rufous; “bill yellow, the culmen black; legs light brown; iris dark hazel” (Buckley). Total length, 6°5 inches; culmen, 0°75; wing, 2°9; tail, 3°28; tarsus, 1-2. The female is smaller. Total length, 5°6 inches; culmen, 0°6;° wing, 2°45; tail, 2°7; tarsus, 1:05. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, Pl. 80. CISTICOLA CHLORIS. 263 247, CIsTICOLA CURVIROSTRIS. Brown Fantail Warbler. Drymoica eurvirostris, Layard, B.S. Adres p= 93: This species is a little smaller than the foregoing, which it resembles in its stout bill. We have only seen it from Natal, where it is one of the most recognisable of the Grass-Warblers on account of its brown coloration and large size. Mr. Thomas Ayres writes :— “These birds frequent long grass in the more open country ; their flight is comparatively strong; during the breeding season they are fond of mounting high in the air, uttering at the same time a very loud and harsh chucking note; their food appears to consist of crickets and other good-sized insects.” We have also seen several skins sent to Captain Shelley by Mr. T. L. Ayres from Durban and Pinetown. Adult male.—General colour above brown, all the feathers margined with ashy buff, giving a strikingly grey appearance to the upper surface, the head more or less uniform brown without dark _ mesial streaks; the feathers of the hinder neck slightly margined with sandy colour ; wing-coverts brown, the edgings to the majority clear grey, the least and some of the greater series margined with sandy; quills dark brown with indistinct light tips, the primaries edged with rufous sandy, the inner secondaries margined all round with light buff; rump and upper tail-coverts nearly uniform greyish, the latter with dark brown bases, or centres to the feathers, giving a streaked mottled appearance ; tail ashy brown, tipped with white and faintly margined with pale sandy; the white tips indistinct on the two centre feathers which have a plain subterminal bar of black, as also have all the other feathers ; lores yellowish white; eyebrow greyish; sides of face dull white, the ear-coverts washed with greyish brown and narrowly streaked with white down the shaft ; sides of neck greyish; throat and centre of the body white; the sides dull tawny yellow, the upper breast laterally ashy brown ; thighs deep tawny. ‘Total length 6 inches, culmen 0°65, wing 2°85, tail 2°4, tarsus 1°15. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but much smaller. Total length, 4°8 inches; culmen, 0.6; wing, 2.35; tail, 2°0; tarsus, 1-05. 248. CISTICOLA CHLORIS. Wahlberg’s Fantail Warbler. This species is unknown to us, and we do not know whether it should be included in the genus Cisticola or in Drymeca. Professor 264 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Sundeyvall (Ofv. K. Vet. Akad. Forh. Stockholm, 1850, p. 104), places it in the latter genus. Its habitat is said to be in “ Kaffraria,” where it was discovered by Wahlberg. The following is a trans- lation of the original description :— Adult male.—Belly unspotted, entirely yellow; back and head fulvous grey, narrowly spotted with blackish ; bill pale, strong, the culmen strongly arched as in D. curvirostris ; feet large, pale; quills margined with greyish-buff; tail-feathers dusky, with a broad black spot before the fulvous tip, the tips of the feathers sharpened, but soft in texture. Total length, 6 inches; wing, 2°7; tarsus, 1°15 ; tail, 2°5 ; bill from front, 0°55; height of latter, 0-2. 249. CISTICOLA FULVIFRONS. Buff-fronted Fantail Warbler. This is really a very distinct species of Fantail Warbler, and apparently one of the rarest in South Africa, as we have only seen three specimens of it, and all from Natal. The British Museum contains two of these and the third was shot by Captain Shelley, near Durban, on the 14th of April, 1874. Adult female ——Head pale-rufous, inclining to ashy-brown on the nape; the back and scapulars ashy-brown, especially the mantle, the rest broadly black in the centre of the feathers, some of which are edged with sandy-buff; lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts ashy grey, the latter rather more dusky with slightly paler edges ; wing-coverts ashy brown with black centres, the median series with rufous tips, the greater coverts tawny rufous with long black centres; quills dusky brown, externally edged with tawny rufous, paler towards the tips of the primaries, the inner secondaries edged all round ‘with ashy; quills dark brown, edged with ashy and broadly tipped with white, before which the brown deepens into a black bar, which is apparent on all but the two centre feathers, these having only a dusky subterminal spot, and no white tips; lores and a faint eyebrow buffy-white; ear-coverts very pale fulyous brown, clearer buff on the lower parts adjoining the cheeks, which are yellowish; throat and centre of abdomen, white; breast whitish, washed with pale yellow, the flanks slightly shaded with ashy-brown; thighs tawny; under wing-coverts whitish with a pale wash of fawn- colour; bill dusky; tarsi and feet pale; iris light reddish-brown. Total length, 5 inches; culmen, 0°85; wing, 2°1; tarsus, 0°95. The male is somewhat larger, measuring as follows :—Culmen, 0°6 ; wing, 2°35; tarsus, 1°(. CISTICOLA TINNIENS. 265 250. CistIcoLA TINNIENS. Le Vaillant’s Fantail Warbler. Drymoica levaillantii, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 90. This is one of the most wide-spread of the Warblers in South Africa. It is common near Cape Town. Sir Andrew Smith procured it some distance north of the Orange River, and we have likewise received it from Swellendam, Colesberg, and we found it breeding about the Berg River in September. Victorin procured it at the Knysna in May, September, and October. Lieut. H. Trevelyan has recently met with it near King- william’s Town, and we have seen specimens obtained near Hland’s Post, by Mr. IT. C. Atmore. It is not uncommon in Natal, and Mr. Thomas Ayres observes in a letter to Mr. Gurney :—“ Some of the notes of the pair sent were very loud, and exactly resembled those of Juida pheenicoptera, so much so, that I was astonished to hear, as I thought, one of the latter birds calling from the midst of a rushy swamp without a single tree in the vicinity.” Mr. T. E. Buckley met with it on the Buffalo River, on the 7th June, 1876, and again — in Suaziland on the 19th of the same month. The British Museum has recently received from Dr. Exton several specimens from the neighbourhood of Potchefstroom in the Transvaal, and it occurs as high up as Macamac, from whence Mr. Gurney lately received a skin shot in October, 1873. Respecting its breeding habits in the Transvaal, Mr. Thomas Ayres writes as follows :—“ The nest of this species is attached to the upper parts of tall weeds, amongst the leaves ; it is composed of very fine wool and spiders’ webs mixed with dry grass, rather roughly woven together; the inside is lined lightly with the feathery down of some sort of wild flowers. It is oval in shape, with the entrance on the upper side, and has altogether a white, light, and pretty appearance. ,The eggs vary much in colour, some being pure white with dark pink spots, others pinkish- white with very fine small spots of rather darker pink; others, again, are pale sky-blue, blotched and spotted with pale pinkish- brown.” Mr. Andersson observes :—“I found this bird by no means uncommon in the neighbourhood of the Okavango; its favourite haunts seem to be along the sedgy streams and amongst the rank vegetation of marshy localities. It flits quickly from reed to reed in quest of insects, and is a comparatively tame species.” 266 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. We have examined the typical specimen of Cisticola elegans of — Messrs. Hartlaub and Finsch, which we find to be only the female of C. tinniens. The following is a description of this identical specimen kindly lent to us by the Bremen Museum, Head and nape entirely rufous, with the exception of the centre of the crown, which is obscured by broad streaks of dull black ; back black, slightly streaked with pale ashy buff, some of the feathers edged with this colour; the wing-coverts also black, broadly edged with ashy fulvous slightly inclining to rufous; quills brown, broadly margined with dull rufous, so that the external aspect of the wing is of this colour, the inner secondaries black like the back, and margined in the same way with fulyous; lower back and upper tail-coverts black, with very broad margins of sandy or rufous buff ; tail-feathers brown in the centre broadly margined with dull rufous, all but the two centre feathers having a broad bar of blackish before a pale fulvescent tip, the outermost edged with pale fulvous ex- ternally ; lores and a very distinct eyebrow pale rufous buff; sides of face light fulvous, with a few whitish streaks on the ear-coverts, the hinder margin of which incline to rufous like the sides of the _ neck; throat and under parts generally fulvescent as also the cheeks, on the latter being a few indications of dusky tips to the feathers ; the chest and sides of the body darker and more ashy fulvous, the sides of the breast and flanks very broadly streaked with black, extremely pronounced on the flanks; under tail-coverts uniform ashy fulyous; thighs orange rufous; under wing-coverts pale tawny buff; “bill black, the lower mandible reddish, but black at the extremity ; legs pale flesh-colour; iris brown” (Andersson). Total length, 5 inches ; cuJmen, 0°45; wing, 1:95; tail, 2°15; tarsus, 0°8. The male is a little larger, and measures: total length, 5:4 inches ; wing, 2°15; tail, 2°55; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pl. 73, fig. 2. 251. CisTICcOLA SUBRUFICAPILLA. Small Grey-backed Fantail. Drymoica subruficapilla, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 91. This Warbler may be distinguished by its grey back and rufous head, both distinctly streaked with black down the centre of the feathers ; the sides of the body are grey. Its range is very restricted, as it seems to be confined to the CISTICOLA SUBRUFICAPILLA. 267 Cape Colony, not ranging higher north than Little Namaqua Land. It is not uncommon near Cape Town, and Mr. Andersson met with it at the Knysna. From George Mr. H. Atmore has for- warded it, and Mr. W. Atmore from Swellendam. We have our- selves seen it along the river Zonder End, and obtained it at the Berg River. Mr. Rickard possesses one shot by himself near Port Elizabeth, and another from near Hast London. The late Mr. Andersson also met with it in Little Namaqua Land. Mr. H. Jackson has sent its eggs from Nel’s Poort: the latter are white, faintly tinged with green, and dotted with small red-brown and purple spots, chiefly in the form of a ring at the obtuse end. Axis, 7” ; diam. 53”. Sir Andrew Smith writes :— This bird occurs in various districts of the Cape Colony, and is either found upon brushwood or among rushes or reeds. It feeds upon insects, and, like others of the genus, flits generally from branch to branch or from reed to reed in quest of its food.” The following description is taken from the type-specimen in the British Museum. Adult.—Above ashy brown, all the feathers of the back streaked down the centre with black, the head rufous with less distinct mesial streaks of black, becoming still more obscure on the hind neck, where the rufous shades off into the ashy grey of the back; wing- coverts dark brown, margined with the same ashy grey as the back, the greater series faintly washed with rufous; quills dull brown, externally edged with rufous, the inner secondaries margined all round with ashy grey; tail rufous brown, margined with fulvous, tipped with dull white or rufous, before which isa distinct bar of black on all except the two centre feathers; lores and a narrow eye-brow dull white; round the eye a tiny ring of buff feathers; sides of face dull white, browner on the ear-coverts ; entire under surface of body dirty white, the sides of the body and under tail-coverts ashy brown, the breast with a few small spots of brown; thighs tawny buff; under wing-coverts buffy white, the lower surface of the wing broadly edged with rufous along the inner web. Total length, 5 inches; culmen, 0°5; wing, 2°05; tail, 2:2; tarsus, 0-7. We have not had under our eyes a female of this species, but it will probably be smaller than the above measurements. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 76, fig. 1. ae Cis . Te ene 268 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 252. CisrrcoLA CHINIANA. Larger Grey-backed Fantail. Drymoica chiniana, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 91. We regard this species as a large form of C. subruficapilla, which it represents throughout 8. E. Africa, Natal, and the Transvaal into Damara Land. Sir Andrew Smith procured the first specimen near Kurrichaine, and Captain Shelley has recently received this bird from the neighbourhood of Durban, where it was procured by Mr. T. L. Ayres, and Mr. T. E. Buckley has brought back skins from Suaziland. The latter gentleman also met with it in Bamangwato in 1873, and in the Transvaal Mr. Ayres reports that it is common in many localities on the Limpopo. We have also seen specimens from Macamac. In Damara Land it cannot be rare, for Mr. Andersson’s collections contained plenty of examples, shot near Otjimbinque, Elephant Vley, on the Swakop River, &c. He also procured it in Ondonga, and Senor Anchieta has likewise met with it at Humbe on the Cunene river. The following description is from Mr. Buckley’s Bamangwato specimen, which seems to be in full breeding plumage. The winter dress is more mealy. Adult male.—Head and nape uniform rufous; back ashy brown, with dark brown centres to the feathers, the scapulars more grey ; wing-coverts coloured like the back with pale fulvous margins to the feathers; quills dark brown, externally margined with rafous, becoming paler towards the tips of the feathers, especially of the primaries, the innermost secondaries edged all round with ashy fulyous ; tail light brown, slightly rufescent, the two centre feathers darker brown with fulvous margins, and tipped with pale fulvous, the outer ones with white, all having a blackish subterminal bar ; lores yellowish buff, as also a ring of feathers round the eye; feathers over the eye fulyescent but not forming a very distinct eyebrow ; ear-coverts greyish brown with narrow whitish shaft-lines ; cheeks, throat, and under parts white, the flanks somewhat washed with fulvous grey, the sides of the upper breast greyish brown; thighs © tawny buff; under wing-coverts also pale tawny buff; lower surface of quills brown, the edge of the inner web pale rufous; bill brown, the lower mandible lighter; feet very light brown; iris light hazel. Total length, 5-6 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°6; tail, 2°7; tarsus, 0°9. Fig. Smith, I. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 79. CISTICOLA ISODACTYLA. 269 253. CISTICOLA RUFILATA. Rufous Grey-backed Fantail. We have examined the type-specimen of this bird, which was kindly shown to us by Dr. Finsch, and we are of opinion that it must for the present be kept apart from D. chiniana, which it resembles in general appearance, but is distinguished by its rafous and general foxy-red cast of colours, more especially on the head. Two specimens were procured by the late Mr. Andersson in Damara Land, and the following is the description of the type. Adult male.—Above sandy brown, the dorsal feathers mesially dark brown, giving a slightly streaked appearance, these streaks shaded with rufous on each side, imparting a rufous appearance to the back ; head and neck uniform light chestnut ; wing-coverts light brown, washed and tipped with ashy fulvous, the median series with obsolete indications of a rufescent streak near the tip; quills brown, externally edged with pale rufous, especially near the base of the primaries, the margins to the inner secondaries paler; rump uniform sandy brown; upper tail-coverts pale rufous with lighter buff mar- gins; tail light chestnut, all the feathers tipped with buffy white, before which is a blackish brown subterminal bar, the two centre feathers much more narrowly tipped, and the subterminal bar very indistinct ; lores and a very well marked eyebrow dull white; sides of face yellowish, the upper margin of the ear-coverts inclining to chest- nut; cheeks and throat dull white; rest of under surface of body yellowish ochre, darker on the sides and much lighter down the centre ; thighs pale chestnut ; under wing and tail-coverts yellowish ochre; inner lining of quills ashy brown, margined with rufous along the inner web; bill dark brown, the under mandible yellowish; feet yellowish. Total length, 5°7 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2:3; tail, 2°7; tarsus, 0°95. 254, CrIsTICOLA ISODACTYLA. Tawny Grey-backed Fantail. Under this title we believe that we have identified correctly a little Grass-Warbler, of which we have seen several specimens ob- tained by the late Mr. Andersson in Damara Land. The species was originally described by Dr. Peters from South Mozambique (J. f. O. 1868, p. 132), and more recently we received from the Rey. Mr. Wakefield a specimen from Membas, agreeing with Dr. Peters’ description. From this Mombas skin Mr. Andersson’s specimens are inseparable, and we therefore include C. isodactyla as a bird of 270 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. South Africa. It is very closely allied to C. subruficapilla, but has the head uniform pale tawny rufous, and the flanks are not grey as in the last-named bird. Mr. Andersson’s examples were obtained by him at Otjimbinque and near ‘Onani’s Mouth’ on the Swakop | River, as well as in Ondonga. We also identify a specimen procured by Dr. Kirk at Tete in the Zambesi district as belonging to the present species. The following description is that of a female bird (sex ascertained by Mr. Andersson by dissection), but we have not yet come across an authentic male. Adult female-——General colour above fulvous brown, almost tawny, with indistinct mesial streaks of darker brown on the back and scapulars, the upper tail-coverts and rump uniform; crown uniform tawny rufous, shading off into the brown of the back ; outer scapulars and least wing-coyerts shaded with grey, the centres of the feathers dark brown, the greater series and primary-coverts dark brown, broadly edged with fulvous; quills dark brown, exter- nally margined with rufous, the inner secondaries edged all round with fulvous; tail rufous brown, pale fulvous at the tip, with a sub- terminal bar of black, very distinct on all excepting the two centre feathers, where it is only obscurely indicated; lores and a faint line above the eye, yellowish white; round the eye a circlet of buff ; cheeks and sides of face yellowish white, the ear-coverts marked with brown, especially on the hinder margin ; under surface of body pale tawny yellow, deeper on the flanks, the sides of the upper breast washed with ashy brown ; the throat and centre of the belly whitish; thighs bright tawny ; under wing-coverts pale tawny, the lower series ashy-brown at tip, the lower surface of the quills brown, margined with rufous along the inner web; bill (in skin) horn brown, the lower mandible yellowish ; feet deep yellow in skin. Total length, 4:7 inches ; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2:1 ; tail, 2°15; tarsus, 0°85. 255, CIsTICOLA LAIS. Rufous-flanked Fantail Warbler. This little species is very closely allied to C. subrujicapilla, but is apparently specifically distinct from the last named bird: from which it differs in not having the grey back, so that the rufous head never appears in strong contrast. Its principal difference, however, consists in the tawny flanks, these being greyish-brown in C. sub- ruficapilla. We have seen several specimens from Natal, all of them being similarly coloured ; it is probably confined to this part CISTICOLA ABERRANS. 271 of South Africa, and is apparently not rare in the neighbourhood of Pinetown, whence Captain Shelley has received several specimens from Mr. T. L. Ayres. He also met with it himself in Natal, this being the species to which he alludes in the ‘ Ibis’ (1875, p. 71) as D. subruficapilla, when he writes :—“ Very common about Durban and Pinetown, usually in family parties, where I have frequently watched them threading their way along the edge of the bushes, constantly uttering a short note.” The following description is taken from the type-specimen kindly lent by Dr. Finsch. Adult.—Ahbove fulyous brown, very broadly streaked with black, the margins to the dorsal feathers rather rufescent; head and hinder neck more rufous than the back, the blackish stripes much less distinct and indeed almost obsolete on the nape and hinder neck ; rump uniform fulvous brown, the upper tail-coyverts also with very faint mesial streaks of blackish; wing-coverts ashy fulyous with dark brown centres, the greater series more shaded with rufous externally; quills dark brown, broadly edged with rufous externally so as to give a rufous aspect to the wings, the margins of the secondaries paler and more fulvescent; tail rufescent brown, lighter rufous on the margins: the two centre feathers without any subterminal black mark and irregularly waved across with dusky bars under certain lights, all the other feathers with a broad black subterminal bar, the tips being fulvescent, this pale ending being more distinct on the outer plumes and forming a margin to the last rectrix; lores and feathers round the eye yellowish buff forming a tolerably distinct eyebrow; sides of face also fulvous, the ear-coverts rather browner with obsolete dusky tips to the feathers; cheeks fulvyous; chin and centre of the body white, the throat and sides of the body tawny fulvous, clearer on the thighs, the flanks slightly shaded with brown; under wing- and tail-coverts tawny buff; bill brown, yellowish at the base of the under mandible; legs yellowish. Total length, 5 inches; culmen, 0°45 ; wing, 2°1; tail, 2°35 ; tarsus, 0°75. 256. CIsTICOLA ABERRANS. Smith’s Fantail Warbler. Drymoica aberrans, and D. ruficapilla, Layard, B. S. Afr. pp. 88, 90. This Warbler is easily recognized by its uniform upper surface, the head being rufous, the back dark grey. It was first called 272 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. by Sir Andrew Smith, Drymoica ruficapilla, but as this name had already been applied by Mr. Fraser, the late Prince Bonaparte pro- posed to call the bird Drymoica smithii after its discoverer. We find, however, from an examination of the types that C. smithii is only the female of C. aberrans, and consequently this name must stand. Most of the specimens which we have seen have been from Natal, where Captain Shelley records it as “not uncommon near Durban.” Mr. T. L. Ayres has likewise sent several specimens from Pinetown, and his father, Mr. Thomas Ayres, writes as follows :— “These warblers are generally found amongst the high grass, which forms a dense cover on the edges of the woods. When disturbed, they flit and hop about the twigs and boughs of the adjacent bushes, uttering at the same time a weeping note, which much resembles the distant bleating of a goat; they seem to be particularly fond of the eggs of moths and small insects. Their flight is but weak.” It also occurs in the Transvaal, and we are indebted to Dr. Exton for a specimen procured near Potchefstroom, in July, 1876. In this part of the country, Mr. Thomas Ayres states that the species inhabits low scrub. Mr. Andersson says that according to his experience it is not an inhabitant of either Great Namaqua or Damara Land. He first became acquainted with it on penetrating to the Okavango, but even there he does not remember to have seen much of it. All the specimens which have fallen under our notice from Mr. Andersson’s collections were obtained at Elephant Vley, in September and October, 1859. We give a detailed description of the typical specimen in the British Museum. Adult in breeding plumage.—Above nearly uniform brown, slightly washed with dull ochraceous and having obsolete darker centres to the feathers; rump and upper tail-coverts uniform dull ochraceous brown; least wing-coverts coloured like the back, the rest dark brown, externally margined with dull sandy rufous, paler towards the tips of the greater series; quills dark brown, externally edged with sandy rufous, lighter and more fulyous on the secondaries ; tail nearly uniform brown, with a few indications of wavy bars in certain lights, the feathers rather paler at tips but without subter- minal bars; head uniform chestnut; lores and a distinct eyebrow yellowish white ; ear coverts browner than the rest of the side face, the shaft-lines whitish; cheeks, throat, and under parts generally yellowish or yellowish white, deeper on the abdomen, the sides of CISTICOLA FASCIOLATA. 273 the body browner; thighs chestnut; under tail-coverts fulvous ; under wing-coverts tawny-buff ; upper mandible light orange brown, shaded with deep reddish brown; lower mandible straw yellow ; feet pale reddish yellow. Total length, 5°5 inches; culmen, 0°55 ; wing, 1°95; tail, 2°85; tarsus, 0°9. The female is smaller, measuring only 1:75 inch in the wing, and 0°75 in the tarsus. Winter birds are much more mealy in colour. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 73, fig. 1, and pl. 78. 257. CrsTicoLa sUBCINNAMOMEA. Cinnamon-breasted Fantail. Drymoica subcinnamomea, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 88 (1867). This peculiar little Warbler is so different in its colouration that some authors have considered it to be an Aedon. Sir Andrew Smith only procured one specimen of this bird, which was killed on the top of one of the mountains of the Kamiesberg, in Little Namaqualand. “ For some time before it was shot, it was beheld flitting from bush to bush, occasionally perching on their summits, at other times hop- ping rapidly to and fro among their branches, as if engaged in quest of insects, which were found to constitute its food.” Mr. Ortlepp has also procured it near Colesberg. Upper surface of head, neck, back, and shoulders, between oil- green and orange-brown; forehead tinted cinnamon-red; wing- feathers, light reddish-brown, with a tinge of green; the primaries edged narrowly towards their base with cinnamon-red ; rump ruddy ; tail rather long, and slightly rounded, deep brownish-red ; chin and neck inferiorly liver-brown, variegated with narrow white trans- verse bars; breast and fore part of belly cinnamon-red ; belly and vent coloured as the back. Length, 5’’ 8’’’; wing, 1’ 11’”’ ; tail, ONE (Seatelee Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 111, fig. 1. 258. CIsTICOLA FASCIOLATA. Barred-breasted Fantail. Drymoica fasciolata, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 86. Sir Andrew Smith first obtained this very distinct species on open flat plains to the north-east of Latakoo. He says that it “inhabits districts covered thinly with small underwood, and in such places is found moving from bush to bush in search of its food, which it appears to take partly from the top of the bushes and partly from the branches, among which it passes rapidly.” | 274 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Mr. T. E. Buckley obtained a specimen at Geoqui in Bamangwato, on the 16th October, 1873, and Mr. Ayres has procured it in the Transvaal. He observes :—“ These birds feed upon small insects. They inhabit low bush and scrub’; when disturbed they invariably fly and settle close to or on the stems of the bushes, and then work their way up. They appear to be solitary in their habits. In the living bird the speckled wings are more conspicuous than the barred breast.” Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—“ This species is common in the neighbourhood of Objimbinque ; and I have found a few individuals between that place and Rehoboth; it greatly reminds me of our Swedish Girdsmygg (the common Wren of England) in its habits, which are somewhat secluded. It frequents dense bush and occa- sionally trees, searching diligently amongst the branches for insects; it carries its tail erect when moving about. When disturbed it flies but a short distance at a time, and is easily distinguished by the bright brown on the rump.” Adult.—Above warm brown, rather rufescent, the rump and upper tail-coverts rather lighter and more tawny rufous; wings brown, the coverts edged with fulyous brown and all tipped with white or fulyous white ; quills brown, externally edged with rufous brown, the innermost secondaries margined with whitish at the tip; tail brown, the feathers edged with rufous brown and all tipped with fulyous, before which the colour darkens, but does not form a sub- terminal band; lores and sides of face greyish white waved with transverse bars of blackish-brown, the ear-coverts washed with brown with whitish shaft-stripes ; under surface of body dull white, the sides bright fulvous, deeper and more tawny on the thighs and under tail-coverts ; the throat very slightly, but the chest and sides’ of the body distinctly crossed with zig-zag or V-shaped bars of dark brown; under wing-coverts light buff, the lower surface of the quills ashy brown, edged with pale rufous along the inner web; “upper mandible dark liver-brown, the lower edge and’ the under mandible dark bluish or purple; legs pale flesh colour, toes the same, but a trifle darker; iris yellowish brown.” (Andersson.) Total length, 4°8 inches; culmen, 0°6; wing, 2°45; tail, 2°3; tarsus, 0:93 Fig. Smith, ll. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pl. 111, fig. 2. CISTICOLA CURSITANS. 275 259. CISTICOLA PROCERA. Zambesi Fantail Warbler. Dr. Peters obtained at Tete in the Zambesi a specimen of a Warbler which he describes under this name, (J. f. O. 1868, p. 132). Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub in the “ Vogel Ost.-Afrikas (p. 233), consider it to be a good species, and have given the following description of the type. ‘Obscure dull brown, by no means conspicuously varied with darker colour; head slightly rufescent ; an obscure subterminal dark spot on the tail feathers ; underneath dull whitish, the under wing-covers uniform; quills pale dusky brown; bill and feet pale. Total length, 5 inches; bill, 5”; wing, 2”; tail, 1” 5’’’; tarsus, 10”. 260. CrsTICcoLA OBSCURA. Dusky Fantail Warbler. We have been unable to identify this species, which was described by Professor Sundevall in 1850 (Oefy. K. Vet. Akad. Forh. Stockh. 1850, p. 103). It was obtained by Wahlberg in “ Kaffraria,” and the following is a translation of the original description :— Male. Back obscure grey, faintly spotted with dusky, the head slightly rufescent; the forehead brighter; the occiput obsoletely spotted with dusky ; the hind neck dusky brown; belly unspotted, dull whitish, greyish on the sides ; quills externally edged with dull dusky rufous; tail feathers above greyish rather pointed at the tip, which is whitish with a black subterminal spot; bill notched and rather pointed. Total length, 54 inches; wing, 2°5; tarsus, 1:0; tail, 2°4.; bill from front, 0°55; its height, 0:2. 261. CrsTicoLa CURSITANS. Common Fantail Warbler. Drymoica terrestris, and D. ayresti, Layard, B. 8. Afr., pp. 91, 94. We agree with Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub that the “ Kloppertjie” of Southern Africa is not specifically separable from the Fantail of Europe and India, and C. ayresti we believe will turn out to be the young bird in its first richly coloured plumage. Mr. W. Atmore says that it is a grass-loving species, and is found abundantly in the George District. He states that it “ constructs a nest on the ground, arched and domed, and lays from six to ten white eggs covered with pink spots mostly at the obtuse end.’’* * The previous account given in the first edition is erroneous, owing to a mistake in the numbering of a manuscript list kept by Mr. Atmore and the author. ; ; t 2 276 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Writing from Windvogelberg in September, 1873, Major Bulger sends us the following note :—“ There is a very tiny bird abundant on the Flats all around us here, which we call the ‘little grass-bird.’ It is Drymoica terrestris—the smallest feathered creature I have seen in the country, and something like a diminutive lark in appearance. When started it always rises with a whirr, and flies away emitting a snapping noise, and, occasionally, an alarm-note ; and, whilst on the ground, amongst the grass, where it is commonly met with, I fancy it not unfrequently makes the same snapping noise, for often, whilst I have been walking on the Flats, I have heard this sound, and presently, have flushed the ‘ little grass bird.’ It has seemed to us that this Drymoica possesses the power of ventriloquism, for I have remarked on many occasions that, although we have heard the peculiar sound produced by this bird around us in every direction, we have never succeeded in finding more than one or two, at the most, of these little creatures.” Lieut. H. Trevelyan has sent us a specimen from King William’s Town, and from Eland’s Post in the Eastern Province we have received several specimens collected by Mr. T. C. Atmore. In Natal it is by no means uncommon, to judge from the numerous specimens which have been sent from Pinetown and Durban, by Mr. T. L. Ayres ; and Mr. Thomas Ayres gives the following account of the species in that Colony :— « These birds are common in the open country, frequenting much shorter grass than that frequented by Drymeca curvirostris. Their nest is very beautifully constructed, amongst the fine stalks of grass, which are drawn together towards the top, a sort of purse or bag being made of the finest and whitest down and spider’s webs and attached at the sides to the~ grass which surrounds it, the opening being on the top. On any intruder approaching the nest, the birds generally mount overhead with a flitting eccentric flight, watching with anxiety the fate of their domicile. Their flight is tolerably strong; and when they have been disturbed once or twice, it is sometimes a difficult matter to get within shot of them.” Mr. T. E. Buckley says that he found it “ extremely common throughout Natal and the Transvaal, being among the long dead grass in the open veldt.” We are indebted to Dr, Exton and to Mr. Thomas Ayres for some beautiful specimens procured near Potchefstroon, and the latter gentleman writes :—* These little CISTICOLA CURSITANS. 277 birds live among the long grass, and appear to move most in the evening, about sunset, lying quiet in the heat of the day; they are generally to be seen three or four together.” The followmg admirable account of the species is extracted _ verbatim from Mr. Andersson’s well known work on the “ Birds of Damara Land.” ‘ This species came under my notice in Great Namaqua Land in about 24° or 25° S. lat.; I have also met with it abundantly in southern Damara Land, and have obtained it in Ondonga. Specimens from Damara Land are of a lighter tint than those from Ondonga, but I have no doubt they are identical. It is common at some large waters on the Omaruru River, but is most difficult to shoot ; it can generally only be shot on the wing as it rises ; and when shot it invariably falls in the reeds, where its diminutive size easily eludes the eye. It is, however, found in many other situations besides reedy localities, but chiefly among tall, coarse grasses growing about small periodical watercourses. When disturbed, it rises almost perpendicularly, descending nearly as abruptly, and either burying itself at once in the rank vegetation or first perching on a grass-stalk and gradually creeping out of view, and also out of reach ; for it is difficult to flush it again. “The food of this little bird consists of small insects. Its eggs, which are four or, rarely, five in number, are sometimes white, or more frequently white freely sprinkled with minute brown spots ; but occasionally they are tinged with green, whilst others are of a reddish colour. The nests also vary in form, material, and construc- tion; some are airy and fragile, like the home of a spider, whilst others are pretty compact and more or less pasted on the outside with decomposed grasses ; and it is a remarkable fact that the eggs in the spider-like nests are always whitish, spotted with brown, whilst those in the more complete nests are of a greenish tint but with the same spotting. The nests which are sometimes globular, are suspended to the stalks of long grasses about a foot above the ground, I have found them with eggs from the 18th of February to the 3lst of March.” Top of head and interscapulars, umber-brown, variegated with yellowish-brown; back of neck, back, and shoulders, clear yellowish- brown, with umber-brown streaks; rump umber-brown; chin and throat whitish; breast, belly, and vent, sienna-yellow ; tail mode- rately long, and slightly graduated; two middle-feathers broccoli- 278 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. brown, broadly margined and tipped with wood-brown ; the other feathers brownish-red, broadly tipped with white, with a large umber- brown blotch just before the white, seen, as in all the species, most plainly on the under side; irids light-brown. Length, 4” 3’; meek NL! petals A dd!’ Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves., pl. 74, fig. 2; Gurney, Ibis, 1863, pl. viii., fig. 2. 262. CursTICOLA CHERINA. Brown Fantail Warbler. Drymoica cherina, Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 89 (1869). We feel considerable compunction in retaining this species in the list of South African birds, for we find from an examination of the type-specimen, that it is identical with the Fantail Warbler of Mada- gascar, and the name of O. cherina will take precedence over the later published name of C. madagascariensis by which the species is generally known. Notwithstanding the account of the habits given by the late Sir Andrew Smith, we still think that some mistake has arisen, as in the case of Glareola ocularis, which was equally stated to occur in South Africa, but is now known to be a native of Madagascar. At the same time we notice that Grill records its occurrence at the Knysna in September from Victorin’s collection, and, if no mistake has occurred in this identification, the species may be common to South Africa and Madagascar: but we can only say that out of dozens of these Warblers sent to us by our correspondents we have never seen a skin approaching C. cherina in colour, whereas all the Madagascar examples agree exactly. We commend the subject therefore to the study of our friends in South Africa, and meanwhile we add a careful description of the typical specimen in the British Museum. Adult (type of species).—General colour above brown, with darker centres to the feathers, giving a slight appearance of streaks to the head, much more distinct on the back where the centres are black ; rump (damaged) apparently uniform fulyous brown, the upper tail- coverts with narrow blackish streaks; wing-coverts dark brown with ashy fulvous margins, especially distinct on the greater series ; quills dark brown also, the primaries margined with lighter brown, the secondaries with ashy fulvous exactly like the wing-coverts ; tail dark brown, with obsolete dusky bars under certain lights, the four centre feathers tipped with lighter brown, with an obsolete sub- blll ey Sea HEMIPIERYX TECTRIX. 279 terminal bar of blackish, all the other tail-feathers tipped with white, before which is a very distinct subterminal bar of black, the outer- most feather edged with whitish ; lores and an almost imperceptible eyebrow buffy white, the ear-coverts browner ; cheeks and throat dull white as also the centre of the body, the sides of which are clear brown, darker on the thighs; under wing-coverts fulvous. Total length, 4°1 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 1:9; tail, 1:7; tarsus, 0°8. Fig. Smith, Il. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pl. 77, fig. 2. 263, Huwipreryx TECTRIX. Pinc-pine Grass- Warbler. Drymoica tectriz, Layard, B. 8, Afr. p. 85. This little species, which is called ‘“ Ting-ting” by the Dutch ) colonists (“ Kloppertjie,”” of some), is very similar to Cisticola ter- restris, but is distinguished by its very short tail. It is abundant throughout the western end of the colony, and we have received it from Mr. Cairncross at Swellendam. Near Cape Town it is very common, frequenting open plains covered with low scrub, or marshy places in which reeds grow. It climbs about these im a very clever manner, apparently sliding up and down; when pursued, it drops to the tangled herbage at the foot of some bush, and cannot be induced to quit its hiding-place. It often hovers in the air at a moderate height over the bushes, uttering its ringing, metallic cry of ‘ pinc- pinc-pinc,” jerking about with rapid strokes of the wing, suddenly dropping into the bushes, and then remaining mute. Le Vaillant attributes to this little bird a nest which is very common about the ‘country, and is well known under the name of the “nest of the Kapokvogel,” but he is quite in error, the fabricator of this nest, the true “ Kapokvogel” (or cotton-bird), being the little Mgithalus minutus. The nest of D. tectrix is a domed structure, generally sup- ported between stems of grasses, sometimes placed on the ground. The eggs, 4—5, are white, sometimes light blue, spotted with minute reddish spots. Axis, 7’’’; diam. 6”. Upper parts of head and neck, interscapulars, back, and shoulders umber-brown, variegated with white and clear yellowish-brown ; sides of head and neck dirty yellowish-brown, with small umber blotches ; wing-feathers brownish-red, edged with pale wood-brown; chin and throat greyish white, indistinctly mottled with light umber- brown; breast and belly pale sienna-yellow, mottled with umber- brown spots; flanks and vent pale yellowish-brown, also spotted. 280 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. tail very short, and slightly graduated, two centre-feathers brownish- red, the rest umber-brown, all edged with wood-brown, and the three outermost broadly tipped with white. Length, 4”; wing, Wee"; tail; 171". Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 74, fig. 1. 264. Huemirreryx IMMACULATA. Bulger’s Grass- Warbler. This second species of “ Pinc-pinc” was discovered by Major Bulger, near Windvogelberg, and was described by Dr. Hartlaub, in the “ Proceedings of the Zoological Society for 1866” (p. 22). Itis very like H. tectriz, but differs in having the under parts unspotted. It has been subsequently described and figured under the name of Hemipteryx oligura by Dr. von Heuglin. (Ibis (2) v. p. 79, pl. iii.) Above, rufous-olivaceus, variegated with fuscous ; back of head, back and rump, more rufous. Below, spotless, fulvous ; throat and middle of abdomen whitish; tail feathers brownish-black, with a white terminal spot. Inner margin of webs pale. Under wing- coverts Isabella colour, feet and bill pale. Length 3’’ 10’’’; wing, ES 97/45) tail, 91". 265. SPHENGACUS AFRICANUS. Pointed-tailed Grass-W arbler. Drymoica africana, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 95 (1867). This curious warbler is distributed throughout the whole colony, preferring open country covered with low scrub or grass. Captain Shelley obtained it at the Paarl in Cape Colony, and both Andersson and Victorin shot it at the Knysna. Mr. Rickard procured it at Port Elizabeth, and one specimen also at East London. Captain Shelley shot it at Pinetown in Natal, and Mr. Ayres gives the follow- ing note on its habits as observed by himself in the last named colony :— This is also not a very common warbler; it frequents much the same cover as the preceding species, but has perhaps a rather greater partiality to bushy underwood on the edges of the dense bush ; its flight is very weak, and it is difficult to drive it from its hiding-places ; its food consists of insects.” Mr. T. E. Buckley has recently procured a male specimen during his trip to Suaziland: it was killed on the 16th of June, 1876. Captain Shelley says that “it frequents the high grass and is difficult to drive out of the thick covert it resorts to; when on the wing it flies low with a straight and even flight.” The wings in this species Eee Se t - APALIS THORACICA. 281 are very small and weak, hardly enabling the bird to fly fifty yards. Tf flushed more than once, it betakes itself to a clump of grass, or bush, and will suffer itself to be taken with the hand rather than rise again ; for this reason it has acquired the name of “ Idle Jack” and “ Lazy Dick.” Mrs. Barber sends nest and eggs of this curious bird. The former, usually constructed in the bottom of a bush, is a beautiful structure, lined with feathers and hair. The eggs white, more or less clouded (at the obtuse end chiefly) with very faint “ indian-ink” spots or blotches. Axis, 11”; diam. 7”. Upper parts rufous, deepest on the head and rump, inclining to grey on the fore part of the back, and everywhere marked with very dark-brown, broad streaks down the centre of the feathers : these are nearly obsolete on the head, but extend along the centre of the tail-feathers: under parts, uniform light Isabella-coloured, everywhere mottled with dark black-brown streaks, most evident on the flanks ; ‘beak grey, inclining to black towards the culmen ; legs grey; iris hazel’’ (Shelley). Length 8” 9”; wings, 3”; tail, 4”. Fig. le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 112, fig. 2. 266. APALIS THORACICA. Bar-throated Warbler. Drymoica thoracica, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 93. This warbler is generally distributed all over the colony. We procured specimens in considerable numbers at Plettenberg’s Bay (on the southern side of the colony), in the wooded ravines and deserted gardens in which the brushwood had sprung up. They hunted incessantly after insects, gliding about among the branches, peering up at the under sides of the leaves or thick branches, and darting up at the small insects which sought concealment in such situations. Swellendam has furnished us with several specimens; it is also abundant at Nel’s Poort, and all along the rivers in that part of the Karroo; and we likewise saw a pair which evidently were nesting in the rank herbage and scrub which line the crater of the minute volcano from which issue the hot springs of Caledon. Captain Shelley says that he met with several specimens creeping about the stunted bushes while on the way to Ceres. Victorin procured it at the Knysna from April to September, and Mr. Rickard has noted it from Port Elizabeth. Mr. Thomas Ayres gives 282 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. the following note on the species in Natal :—“These birds are generally seen in the thick bush, creeping about the stems and boughs of trees and shrubs in search of small insects on which they live; they are generally solitary, or in pairs, and very silent; their flight is weak. They build a very delicate nest; it is hung to a few fine twigs, in rather a horizontal position ; the outer layer is composed of mosses, lichens, cobwebs, and very fine pieces of grass, lined with thistledown ; the nest is deep and open at the top, and is somewhat the shape of those built by some of the Sun-birds; the eggs are elliptical in form, bluish-white, spotted pretty equally with brownish red, some of the spots being fainter than others.” Our friend Mr. T. A. Barratt writes :—“I have never seen this species elsewhere than at Macamac and Pilgrim’s Rest Gold-fields.” Le Vaillant found this bird in abundance after crossing the “River of Elephants” as far as the tropics; also on the bank of the Orange River, and in Kafirland. He states that they always went in couples, male and female, breeding in November and December. The nest is placed among grass or low bushes; the eggs are six in number, and of a reddish white. The male has an agreeable song. Mr. L. C. Layard discovered the nest at Grootevadersbosch ; he says it is domed and of the same shape as those of the Drymece. The eggs are white, spotted with various sized dark brownish-red spots chiefly at the obtuse end, and somewhat in the form of a ring. Axis, 7}'’’ ; diam., 6”. General colour above ashy-grey, tinted with olive-green, except on the tail; chin, throat, and under parts whitish, tinted with rufous- brown, deepest on the vent; a black collar extends across the chest, and a black mark from the bill to the eye; tail graduated, the outermost feather nearly all white, the second white at the tip, the third at the tip only ; two tufts of black hair-like feathers, from the basal half of the back of the head; eye light-yellow; tarsus flesh-coloured; claws brown; bill black. Length, 5” 3’’’; wing, 2”; tail, 2” 4’/’, Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 123. 267. MertocicHLA PYRRHOPS. Congo Warbler. Senor Anchieta has procured an example of this West African bird at Caconda in Boenguela. It is recorded by Professor Barboza ha oR mL te at ge Nl RMR A tN on ~ ban - - en a a 5 = . ve . ie A Sil Se - ae le 2 aug AT SF FOE ie RO OS NOE ae. ae CATRISCUS APICALIS. 283 du Bocage as Melocichla mentalis, but I believe that it will be the Congo species, M. pyrrhops of Cabanis (J. f. O. 1875, p. 236), which runs southward into Benguela. The Congo bird differs from the true M. mentalis of the Gold Coast in being greyish-white from the chin to the vent, whereas in the latter bird the breast is tawny like the flanks. : The following description is taken from an adult female bird shot by M. Louis Petit at Chinchonxo in the Congo district on the 8th of April, 1876. General colour above ashy brown, the rump gradually inclinmg to rufous brown ; forehead rufous, shading off into ashy brown on the hinder crown: lores dull white ; round the eye a ring of whitish feathers, and above the eye a very narrow line of white stiffened plumes, forming with a streak of buff above the ear-coverts a faintly- defined eyebrow; ear-coverts dull rufous with whitish shaft-lines ; cheeks white as also the throat; a narrow moustachial line of black ; rest of the under surface of body ashy white, with a slight tawny tinge on the sides of the neck; the sides of the body light tawny buff deepening on the lower flanks, thighs, and under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts ashy white, the lower ones washed with pale tawny buff; wings above dark brown, the least wing-coverts washed with ashy brown like the back, the greater coverts and quills externally edged with rufous; upper tail-coverts deep rufous ; tail © dark brown, obscurely waved under certain lights, the feathers externally washed with rufous, the outer feathers tipped with ashy fulvous ; bill black in skin, the edge of the upper mandible whitish, the lower mandible yellowish white, eyes dark brown; “ iris yellow with an outer ring of brown” (Petit). Total length, 7°8 inches ; culmen, 0°7; wing, 3°05; tail, 3°35; tarsus, 1°15. 268. CaTRIscUS APICALIS. Fan-tailed Reed- Warbler. This species although found in North Hastern Africa, is, as far as we yet know, confined to the Colony of Natal in the southern part of the Continent. Captain Shelley writes as follows :—“I saw several specimens of this bird in the sedge at Durban and Pinetown, where, owing to their creeping habits, and the thick vegetation they frequent, I was only able to shoot two. It is a very striking little bird as it flits out from amongst the thick rushes with a jerky flight, its heavy dark tail rather imclinmg downwards.’ He has also 284 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. received several specimens from the neighbourhood of Pinetown, where they were procured by Mr. T. L. Ayres. Mr. Thomas Ayres observes that in Natal ‘‘these Warblers, which are not so common as some other reed-birds, are found amongst the rank grass and rushes that grow in swampy places. When they have been once flushed, it is a difficult matter to put them up a second time, as they creep away with great swiftness amongst the stems of grass. Their notes are rather loud and somewhat harsh; their flight is weak, being seldom sustained for more than fifty yards. Their food appears to consist entirely of small insects.” Adult.—Above light tawny brown, rather darker on the head and inclining to ashy brown on the sides of the neck; wings brown, the least wing-coverts uniform with the back, the rest of the coverts and the quills externally margined with the same tawny brown as the back, becoming paler towards the tips of the primaries ; upper tail-coverts very long and broad, resembling the tail in texture, and of a deep brown colour like the middle tail-feathers, the remainder of the latter blackish, obscurely waved with dusky under certain lights, and tipped with dull whitish; lores and a faint eyebrow, ashy grey ; sides of face light brown with paler shaft-streaks to the ear-coverts ; throat and cheeks white, washed with yellowish on the hinder margin of the latter; rest of under surface of body white in the centre, the breast and sides as well as the flanks light tawny buff ; thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts light brown, the latter rather darker; under wing-coverts whitish, washed with buff; lower surface of quills pale ashy brown, with an almost imperceptible lighter edging along the inner web; upper mandible black, the lower one grey; legs flesh-colour; iris brown. Total length, 5°8 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°4; tail, 3°35; tarsus, 0°8. Obs. Mr. Ayres (Ibis, 1863, p. 323) gives the soft parts as follows :—“TIris light hazel; upper mandible of bill very dark ashy brown; under mandible light ash-colour; nostrils large and oval ; tarsi and feet palish brown.” Fig. Heuglin, Orn, N. O. Afr. taf. ix. 269. PHLEXIS VICTORINI. Victorin’s Reed- Warbler. Bradypterus layardi and B. victorini, Layard, B. 8. Afr. pp. 100, 101. The identity of P. layardi and P. victorini we consider to he —— SS a ae PHLEXIS VICTORINI. 285 beyond doubt. We have examined in the British Museum a specimen obtained by Mr. Andersson at the Knysna, and correctly identified by the late Mr. George Gray as P. victorini. This individual perfectly agrees with other specimens of the true P. layardi, obtained by Mr. Atmore and his son, Mr. H. Atmore, near George in the Knysna district. On comparing these specimens also with Sundevall’s origi- nal description, there can be no doubt as to their perfect identity. After the late Sir Andrew Smith’s death, there was discovered a little box among his effects, containing some bird-skins, some of which were marked by him as having been obtained during the old expedition into Central Africa. The birds contained in this box were handed over by his executors to the British Museum, and it is evident that the contents were skins of birds which he had been unable to identify, and which had been laid aside and forgotten. Among them was a specimen of P. victorini, along with several other birds which were not made known to science for twenty or thirty years after they had been discovered by him. We think that the present species may very fairly be kept generi- cally distinct from the other Bradypteri. The extreme development of the loose feathers on the lower back and rump, and the very short wings seem to separate it. Victorin obtained his original specimens at the Knysna in September and October, and the late Mr. Andersson also met with it in the same locality. Mr. W. Atmore writes to us :—* The habits of P. layardi are exactly like those of Sphenceacus africanus, but it is even more difficult to raise from its covert. The one now sent I got at Forest Hall, Pletten- berg’s Bay. I was looking for a surveying station, and she flew out of some dense scrub. In the scrub was a cup-shaped nest like that of S. africanus, not quite finished. I hunted in vain for the male, and never passed the spot without a search, as well as looking into every similar place, but this was all I saw. When raised, their flight is only a feeble flutter, like that of S. africanus or Porzana pygmeea.” Adult male-—Above rufescent brown; the head rather more ashy brown than the back; wings dark brown, the feathers edged with rufous brown like the back; tail rufous brown and consisting of twelve feathers; lores slightly tinged with rufous; feathers round the eye, and ear coverts dull greyish; cheeks and under surface of body rufous, paler on the abdomen ; the sides of the body rufous- a 286 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. brown ; under wing-coverts dull greyish-brown, like the quill lining. Total length, 5°8 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°15; tail, 3-4; tarsus, 0°9. ‘ Fig. Hartlaub, Ibis 1866, pl. vi. 270. Brapyprerus pracuyprerus. Stripe-throated Reed-Warbler. Bradypterus platyurus and B. sylvaticus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. This species is the ‘ Pavaneur’ of Le Vaillant, and is distinguished by the very distinct blackish streaks on the throat, the latter being white, and by the light fulvous edgings to the wing-coverts, these. being especially distinct on the primary-coverts. Le Vaillant states that he discovered this bird in the marshes which occur near Plettensberg Bay and throughout the whole of Outeni- qualand. It is common in the yleys about Worcester and Swel- lendam, and is also found near Wynberg, Cape Town, &. We obtained it ourselves at the Berg River, and we have received it from Mr. Moffat at Kuruman. Dr. Exton has lately sent us a pair from the neighbourhood of Potchefstroom, and, according to Mr. Thomas Ayres, it is common amongst the high grass and rushes of the swamps in the Transvaal. Adult male.—General colour dark rufous brown, the rufous slightly more pronounced on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; wings blackish-brown, the coverts conspicuously lighter edged with fulvous brown, especially distinct on the primary coverts and the outermost of the greater series; tail blackish-brown, all the feathers externally washed wish rufous brown, the outer ones haying con- spicuous lighter brown tips, the centre feathers more rufescent, all the rectrices obscurely waved under certain lights; lores dull whitish with a dusky spot in front of the eye; round the eye a ring of whitish feathers; ear-coverts greyish-brown with whitish shaft- streaks; cheeks buffy-white mottled with brown; sides of neck paler brown than the back; throat and centre of the body white ; the sides of the body rufescent brown, inclining to dull tawny on the thighs and under tail-coverts; lower throat with a few tiny longitudinal streaks of dusky brown; upper breast slightly washed — with brown; under wing-coverts whitish, the outermost mottled with brown bases to the feathers; the inner lining of the quills ashy-brown, with paler margins near the base of the inner webs; “pill dark slate colour; feet and legs pale; iris dusky hazel.” (MS. le Ee ee Se ae ee ee: BRADYPTERUS GRACILIROSTRIS. 287 ticket on specimen). Total length, 5-7 inches; culmen, 0°55 ; wing, 2:25-; tail, 2°6; tarsus, 0°85. Adult female.—Similar to the male. Total length, 5:5 inches; culmen, 0°6; wing, 2:2; tail, 2°55; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Le Vaillant, Ois. d’Afr. pl. 122. 271. Brapyprervus Graciuirostris. White-breasted Reed-Warbler. Calamodyta gracilirostris, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 98. Mr. L. C. Layard procured several specimens of this shy and retiring bird in rushes on the banks of the “‘ Diep River,” near the Observatory, Cape Town. He informs us that he was attracted to them by their babblings, which he at once detected as new to him: their stomachs contained the remains of minute Coleoptera and other insects. When staying with Mr. Kotze at the Berg River we found the eggs of this species. they were dirty white, spotted or blotched, chiefly at the obtuse end, with light brown and purple blotches: axis, 9’’’; diam. 63}’”.. The nest was similar in form and position to that of Acrocephalus beticatus. At the Berg river it was called ‘River Ting-ting.’ In Natal, Mr. Ayres says that ‘‘ these birds are less plentiful than most of the Warblers, but are generally dispersed throughout the colony. They are always found amongst the reeds and rushes which border the streams, rivers, and lagoons. Their notes are loud, clear, and pleasant. They fly with greater ease and swiftness than most of the Drymecas. Their food consists of small insects.” We have also seen specimens from the neigh- bourhood of Potchefstroom, for which we were indebted to the kindness of Dr. H. Exton. The late Mr. Chapman obtained a single specimen near Lake N’gami, and two specimens, procured in Damara Land by Mr. Andersson, are in the British Museum: they were obtained at Omanbondé.* The distinguishing characters of this species are its large size, long and acrocephalus-like bill and white under surface: there are * Mr. Gurney inserts in the ‘“ Birds of Damara Land” Acrocephalus arun- dinaceus, the Great Sedge-Warbler of Europe (p. 99). Mr, Andersson’s MSS. contained a note on a “ Reed-Warbler” procured by him near Omanbondé, which he compared to the British species, but found it larger. I believe he intended the Reed-Wren (A. streperus) for the specimens from Omanbondé now in the British Museum (of which two were recently discovered in an old collection of Mr. Andersson’s) are Bradypterus gracilirostris, which is smaller than A. arundinaceus. 288 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. no streaks on the breast, and the under tail-coverts are very pale fulvous, quite different to the dark brown under tail-coyerts of the other South African Bradypteri. Adult male—Crown of head and back dull brown, shading gradually off into fulvous brown on the lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts, which are much lighter than the rest of the back ; wings dark brown, all the feathers edged with fulyous brown ; tail dark brown, the tips pale fulyous brown, all the feathers obscurely waved under certain lights; lores conspicuously whitish, a dusky spot in front of the eye, and round the latter a ring of whitish feathers ; above the eye a slight indication of a whitish streak ; ear- coverts light brown; cheeks, and under surface of body white; the sides of the upper breast brown ; the flanks, thighs and under tail- coverts fulvous brown, the two latter much paler; under wing- coverts whitish, especially the edge of the wing which forms a conspicuous spot; under surface of quills ashy brown, with light fulyous margins along the inner webs of the quills ; bill horn brown (in skin); “‘legs and feet slate colour; iris hazel” (MS. note on specimen). Total length, 6-2 inches; culmen, 0.8; wing, 3:05; tail, 3°0; tarsus, 1°15. 272. BRrapypYERUS SYLVATICUS. Knysna Reed- Warbler. Up to the time of writing we have been unable satisfactorily to determine the above species, which was described by Prof. Sundevall from a specimen obtained by Victorin at the Knysna. As will be seen from the description which we transcribe below, it possesses several peculiarities, such as the absence of spots on the throat and the light edgings to the under tail-coverts. It cannot be B. brachypterus, because this always has distinct throat-stripes and, moreover, so good adescriber as Prof. Sundevall would not have overlooked the peculiar light-edged wing-coverts. It cannot be B. gracilirostris, which has no streaks or spots on the throat, on account of the discrepancy in size, and the differences of colouration are altogether too apparent. It is, therefore, closely allied to B. barratti: but in this species the strongly developed throat-stripes are one of the most distinguishing characters, so that altogether it is difficult to refer any of the specimens examined by us to the true B. sylvaticus. In the British Museum are two skins obtained by the late Sir Andrew Smith, and these agree tolerably well in size, but a 9 ACROCEPHALUS FULVOLATERALIS. 289 the brown edgings to the gular feathers cause a distinctly spotted appearance, and it can hardly be said of them, “macule nulle gutturis.”’ Then again Captain Shelley has lent us a skin from Durban which has the throat uniform, and the edgings very dis- tinctly indicated on the under tail-coverts. This may be a young B. barratti, and it remains to be proved whether B. sylvaticus is the young bird of the last-named species, in which case Sundevall’s name will have precedence. No mention is made in the description of the narrow white shaft-lines on the ear-coverts, which are seen in B. barratti, and it is probable that an examination of the type will be necessary before the question can be solved. Adult male—Above entirely obscure dusky brown with an obso- lete shade of rufous; underneath paler, the throat and the middle of the belly dull white; the sides of the body and of the head a little paler than the back; the feathers of the vent dusky with a paler tip; wings and tail uniform with the back; bill dusky, underneath pale; feet pale; no spots on the throat. Total length, about 5°5 inches ; wing, 2°4; tail, 2°3; tarsus, 0°8 (Swndevall). 273. ACROCEPHALUS FULVOLATERALIS; Sharpe. Tawny-sided Reed-Warbler. For many years the editor had in his collection the skin of a large Reed-Warbler from Natal, which he has shown to Dr. Finsch and other authorities on African birds, though at present without being able to obtain any clue to its identification. It is a true Acrocephalus with small attenuated first primary, but it differs from A. stentorius in its thicker and shorter bill, and much larger size. From A. arundinaceus and A. orientalis it equally differs in the want of any olive shade of colour on the upper surface, and by having such very distinct orange tawny flanks. Whether it will ultimately prove to be a described species time alone will show, but at present it is interesting to record such a large Acrocephalus as inhabiting South Africa. Our friend Dr. Finsch suggests that it may be Calamoherpe caffra of Lichstenstein (Nomencl. p. 29), a species of which no de- scription is extant. Our type is in the British Museum. Adult.—General colour above fulvous brown, a little darker on the head and inclining to rather clearer fulvous on the rump and upper __ tail-coverts; wings dark brown, the feathers margined with fulvous brown like the back, the quills externally edged with ashy brown, U 290 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. apparently the remains of worn plumage ; tail imperfect; the two feathers remaining narrowly margined with buffy white on the outer web; lores whitish buff extending backwards to a streak over the eye, and forming a rather narrow eyebrow; round the eye a ring of whitish buff feathers ; plumes in front of the eye dusky ; ear coverts brown like the head; throat white, slightly washed on the lower part with tawny buff; breast and sides of the body orange tawny, paler on the thighs and under tail-coverts; centre of abdomen white ; under wing-coverts dull orange tawny; lower surface of quills ashy brown, edged with pale tawny buff along the inner webs; bill very stout, dark horn-brown in skin, yellow at base of lower mandible ; feet fleshy brown in skin. Total length, 69 inches ; culmen, 0°75; wing, 3°65; tail, 2°8; tarsus, 1-1. 274. ACROCEPHALUS BHTICATUS. South-African Reed- Warbler. This Reed Warbler is extremely similar in coloration to the Reed Wren of Europe, but it is always more rufescent, and from this circumstance it received the name of rufescens from Keyserling and Blasius. We have no doubt, however, that it is Le Vaillant’s “Isabelle,” and it therefore must be called Acrocephalus beticatus Vieill. It may also be distinguished from its European ally by the proportions of the quills; the second primary being about equal to the seventh or eighth, and the third and fourth about equal. In A. streperus, the second primary is about equal to the fourth, and the third is longest of all. It is very common about the reed beds along the banks of rivers in the Karroo, and about Nel’s Poort. We have received it from Mr. Atmore from Swellendam, and haye found it ourselves at Zoetendal’s Vley, Graham’s Town, and other places. It is a noisy bird, continually uttering a stridulous cry of ‘ cur-cur- crak-crak.’? It forms a nest between reeds and rushes, of wool and straw, in the shape of a cone. The eggs, usually three, are white, spotted throughout, but chiefly at the obtuse end with various sized’ brown and light purple, irregular dots and blotches. Axis, 8” ; diam. 6”. Some eggs are more covered than others, and Le Vail- lant’s statement that the eggs are spotless, may perhaps be occa- sionally correct. Mr. H. Jackson writes us that he has found the nest in December. We took it in September. Mr. Ortlepp notices it at Colesberg, breeding in gardens in rose hedges, and along the river banks in reeds. ACROCEPHALUS PALUSTRIS. ~ 291 \The following account of the species in the Transvaal is given by- Mr. Thomas (Ayres : :—“ The nest of this species is a very extraordi- nary structure for so small a bird; it isa mass of seven or eight inches in depth, and four or five in diameter, with a small neat cup- shaped cavity at the top, an inch and a quarter across; it is com- posed principally of white feathers intermixed and bound together with pieces of cotton, wool, and grass; the tips of many of the feathers are allowed to stick out fancifully, which gives the nest an odd appearance as if expressly ornamented; the inside of the cup is very neatly lined with fine grassand horsehair. All nests are not as large as the one described; but all partake more or less of the same character. They are built generally amongst the fig-tree hedges common in the town of Potchefstroom. When insects are scarce the birds feed readily on the ripe figs, here very abundant in the autumn months. The eggs are generally two or three in num- ber. It seems to me that the birds add to their old nest each BpasOm, which will account for the structure being so extremely large.” / >) Mr. Andersson says that he has obtained this bird on a few occasions in Damara Land. Adult.—General colour, above fulyous brown, more dusky on the head and inclining to clearer fulvous on the rump and upper tail- coverts : quills dark brown, all the feathers edged with the same fulvous-brown as the back: tail brown with lighter-brown edges ; lores rufous buff, as also a few feathers over the eye, not, however, forming an eyebrow: round the eye a ring of buffy white feathers : ear-coverts fulyous-brown with slightly indicated lighter shaft- streaks : cheeks and under surface of body buffy white, the throat and centre of the abdomen purer white: sides of the body clear fulvous brown, deeper and more rufous on the sides of the breast and flanks: thighs dull fulvous brown: under tail-coverts buffy whitish : under wing-coverts light tawny buff. Total length, 5:2 inches; culmen, 0°55; wigg, 2°35; tail, 2°15; tarsus, 0°95. Fig. le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 121, fig. 2. 275. ACROCEPHALUS PALUSTRIS. Marsh- Warbler. Captain Shelley discovered this specimen in Natal during his expedition to Southern Africa. He writes (Ibis, 1875, p. 72) :—“I shot the only specimen I saw in the thick bush some 500 yards from the Benshy ground near Durban, on the 30th of March. I com- U2 292 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. pared it with a specimen in Mr. Dresser’s collection, with which it entirely agrees. This is no doubt the species mentioned by Mr. Gurney (Ibis, 1865, p. 266) as ‘0. arundinacea (Gm.)?’?” The notes given by Mr. T. Ayres on the last-named specimen are transcribed below, and we agree with Captain Shelley that the species there spoken of is A. palustris. Mr. Ayres observes :— “These birds frequent the sedgy pools and streams inland; they appear to be tolerably numerous; their habits are active, their notes loud and not unmusical. The specimen sent I shot in December: I did not notice any last winter (July) when I was shooting in the same locality, but still I think they must have been somewhere in the neighbourhood.” Whether A. palustris is a species distinct from A. streperus is a question not yet determined by ornithologists. As regards the occurrence of a second species of Reed Wren in South Africa it does not much matter, as the proportions of the quills are the same in both European species, and the birds should be looked for during the summer months in South Africa. The following description is taken from Captain Shelley’s specimen above mentioned. General colour above uniform olivaceous brown: wing-coverts uniform with the back: quills dark brown, externally edged with olivaceous brown, the edges to the secondaries rather more fulves- cent, all the primaries with a narrow whitish tip, confined in most cases to a slight terminal edging, which is almost obsolete in the secondaries: tail-feathers dark brown, slightly fulvescent at tip and washed on both webs with olivaceous brown: lores pale buff, extending backwards and forming a faint eyebrow: round the eye a ring of paie fulvous plumes: in front of the eye a dusky spot: ear- coverts brown, with indistinct light shaft-streaks: cheeks and under surface of body light tawny buff, paler on the centre of the abdomen: throat white: sides of the body somewhat shaded with brown: under wing-coverts white, some of the outermost shaded with pale tawny buff, as is also the edge of the wing: “beak flesh-colour, shading into brown on the culmen: legs flesh-colour with a slight livid shade : iris hazel” (G. H. Shelley). Total length, 5:5 inches ; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°75; tail, 2°3; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Gould, B. Gt. Br. part xxi. = ~s CAMAROPTERA OLIVACEA. 293 276. ACROCEPHALUS SCH@NOBANUS. European Sedge- Warbler. The Common Sedge Warbler of Europe has only as yet been met with in Damara Land as far as regards the limits of the present work. Mr. Andersson thus records the circumstances of its cap- ture :—“I obtained two specimens on December 22nd, 1866, at Otjimbinque in the bed of the river, amongst some ‘ cotton-plants,’ on which, and on the ground, they were hopping about in search of insects: they were new to me.” We have seen two specimens from the Congo district, obtained by M. Louis Petit, so that the line of migration probably lies along the west coast. The following description is from one of Mr. Andersson’s specimens. General colour above fulvous brown, streaked with dusky brown on the back, and with black on the head: rump tawny buff, the upper tail-coverts brown with dusky centres: wings dark brown, all the feathers edged with fulvous brown, the primaries with some- what ashy brown: tail-feathers dark brown with lighter fulvous brown edgings, the outer feathers lighter: lores and a distinct eye- brow yellowish buff: in front of the eye a dusky spot: ear-coverts brown washed with fulvous: cheeks and under surface of body yellowish buff inclining to tawny on the flanks and thighs, and to brown on the sides of the upper breast: throat and centre of abdomen buffy white: under wing-coverts ashy whitish washed with yellow on the edge of the wing: ‘‘upper mandible dark horn-colour, the lower brownish, but both yellowish at the edge: gape bright orange yellow : legs and toes livid brown: iris dark brown” (Anders- son). Total length, 4°5 inches; culmen, 0-55; wing, 2°53; tail, - 1°75 ; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Gould, B. Eur., pl. 110. 277. CAMAROPTERA OLIVACEA. Grey-backed Bush-Warbler. Calamodyta olivacea, Layard, B. S. Afr., p. 98. We have only seen this species ourselves from the neighbourhood of Graham’s Town, but it has also been found in Natal by Mr. T. Ayres, and the latter gentleman gives the following account of it in that colony :—“ The Caffres call this bird ‘ Imboos Ischlaty” (sig- nifying “bush goat”), from its curious notes when it sees an object of suspicion or dislike, which much resemble the bleating of a kid at a distance, although the tiny bird may be within a few feet of the 294 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. listener, hopping and creeping about the dense underwood, and peer ing through the crevices at its supposed enemy; the tail is then carried erect, like that of the English Wren, and the bird is in almost constant motion ; it has also a loud and oft repeated “ chucking” note, which it uses as a call to its mate during the breeding months. Its food consists entirely of small insects.” Mr. Andersson writes :—“ This species is pretty common in the neighbourhood of the Okavango River, and is also not uncommon in Damara Land proper; but I did not meet with it in Great Na- maqua Land. It is avery tame bird, and hunts slowly and with great care, examining alike, in quest of insects, both thickets and the largest trees ; it generally carries its wings slightly drooping when thus engaged, and its tail raised at an angle of 45°.” Senor Anchieta has met with it at Biballa in Mossamedes as well as at Humbe on the River Cunene. The following description is taken from a Latakoo specimen ob- tained by the late Sir Andrew Smith :— Adult.—Above ashy brown or greyish; wing-coverts olive yel- lowish, the quills brown, externally washed with the same olive- yellow as the coverts ; upper tail-coverts slightly washed with olive: tail ashy brown, with obscure dusky vermiculations under certain lights, the outer feathers slightly tipped with whitish: lores dusky white: feathers above the eye fulvous, scarcely forming an eyebrow : round the eye a ring of fulvous feathers: ear-coverts ashy brown with indistinct whitish shaft-lines: cheeks and under surface of body very pale tawny buff, whiter on the chin and centre of the abdomen: thighs tawny yellow: under wing-coverts and axillaries buffy white, washed with yellow, the edge of the wing bright yellow, ‘bill livid horn colour: legs, and toes brownish flesh colour, eyelids fleshy ; iris light brown” (Andersson). Total length, 4°8 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°25; tail, 1°9; tarsus, 0-9. 278. CAMAROPTERA BRACHYURA. Green-backed Bush-Warbler. Drymoica brachyura, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 95. Le Vaillant first described this bird as the ‘ Olivert’ from Outeni- qualand, and Victorin obtained it in the Karroo. Mr. W. Atmore has sent us specimens from Blanco, near George. Mr. Ortlepp has met with it near Colesberg, where he says the species is called ‘ Kers-oojie’ and ‘ Glass-eye’ by the colonists. He says that they HYPOLAIS ICTERINA. 295 are common about Colesberg, inhabiting large plains covered with tall shrubs, in which they construct their nests. About the latter they are very solicitous, often suffering themselves to be knocked over with a stick when the nest is approached. Mr. T. C. Atmore has sent us specimens from the vicinity of Grahamstown, and Mr. T. L. Ayres has forwarded to Captain Shelley sundry examples shot near Pinetown in Natal. We are indebted to Mr. Ortlepp for the nest and eggs of the present species. The former is a small cup of wool and wild cotton lined with a few grass stems, placed in a bush. The eggs, three in number, are pure white, minutely spotted over the whole of the obtuse end with red dots. Axis, 7” ; diam. 51”. The following description is taken from one of Sir Andrew Smith’s skins in the British Museum. The species may be distinguished from C. olivacea by its green back, wings and tail, and by the entirely white under-surface. Adult.—General colour dull olive-green, the forehead with some- what of a greyish shade: wing-coverts green like the back, but a little brighter and more yellow in tone; quills brown, externally washed with green like the back, brighter on the outer edge of the primaries: tail dull olive-green, with nearly obsolete remains of lighter tips: lores greyish white, as also a slightly indicated eye- brow: round the eye a ring of buffy white feathers: in front of the eye a dusky spot: ear-coverts ashy brown with faint whitish shaft-lines: cheeks and entire under surface of body dull white, the sides of the body washed with ashy grey: thighs dull tawny yellow : under wing-coverts and axillaries pale yellow, as also the outer edge of the wing, the greater series of coverts whitish : “ bill black, legs flesh-colour ; iris rich brown” (Z’. L. Ayres). Total length, 4°2 inches ; culmen, 0°55; wing, 2°05; tail, 1:7; tarsus, 0°8. Fig. le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. iii. pl. 125. 279. TH yYpoLais ICTERINA. Icterine Warbler, Sylvia obscura, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 102. Like the Willow Warbler, this European species appears to make South Africa its winter home. Sir A. Smith, who described it under the name of Sylvia obscwra, obtained a smgle specimen near Latakoo. Mr. Andersson, who is at present the only other naturalist who has met with the species in South Africa, writes as follows :— “T observed this Warbler sparingly in the neighbourhood of the 296 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Okavango and in Damara Land: it is migratory and amongst the earlier arrivals. It sings deliciously, and is found in small flocks hopping about industriously among the branches of the smaller trees, preferring such as have a thick tangled foliage, which it slowly examines for insects and larvee. Adult Male.—General colour above dull olivaceous rather greyer on the rump and upper tail-coverts: wings brown, the quills and coverts with lighter greyish edgings, apparently the remains of worn plumage: tail brown with paler edgings to the feathers: head clearer olivaceous and slightly more yellow than the back: lores and an indistinct superciliary line pale yellow: round the eye a ring of yellow feathers: ear-coverts olivaceous with narrow shaft-lines of yellowish white : cheeks and entire under surface of body pale yellow including the thighs and under tail-coverts : under wing-coverts and axillaries very pale yellow: inner lining of quills ashy brown, with whitish edgings along the inner web from the base upwards: “ upper mandible brownish, with yellowish tips and edges, the under mandible yellow tinged with flesh colour: ring round the eyes light yellow: gape melon-yellow: legs and toes slate-coloured: iris brown.” (Andersson). Total length, 5°4 inches; wing,3°0; tail,2°2; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Dresser, B. Eur. part xxviii. 280. PHYLLOSCOPUS TROCHILUS. European Willow Warbler. Sylvia trochilus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 102. The European ‘Willow Wren’ visits South Africa during its absence from Hurope and it seems to be very generally distributed. Mr. L. C. Layard shot several specimens along the banks of the Liesbeck River near Cape Town, and we have found it in the reeds bordering the Berg River and in the neighbouring vleys. We have also received it from Nel’s Poort near Beaufort and the late Mr. Andersson procured a specimen at the Knysna. Mr. T. C. Atmore found it not very uncommonly at Eland’s Post and in the vicinity of Grahamstown, while Mr. Ortlepp procured it during a journey near the Sunday’s River. Mr. T. Ayres has forwarded a single specimen from Natal to Mr. Gurney, and in Damara Land Mr. Andersson met with it, as well as in Ondonga. He writes :— “‘T have observed this species in the neighbourhood of the Okavango. It is rather lively in its habits, hopping incessantly among the fohage, and even suspending itself head downwards from the buds 7 y . pt } . EREMOMELA FLAVIVENTRIS. 297 and flowerets of the trees, almost every part of which it explores in search of the small insects which constitute its food.’’ The following is a description of a South African specimen in the British Museum : Adult.—General colour above olivaceous brown, more strongly washed with olivaceous on the lower back and rump and slightly on the head; wings brown, the coverts and the quills externally washed with olive greenish ; tail ashy brown, the feathers edged with olive- green; lores and a distinct eyebrow yellowish white ; in front of the eye a spot of dusky brown; ear-coverts dull brown, slightly washed with yellow; cheeks and under-surface of body whitish ; the chest distinctly washed with yellow, as also are the under tail- coverts; thighs greenish yellow ; sides of body brown, washed and streaked with yellow; under wing-coverts bright yellow, as also the edge of the wing; “bill brownish, lighter beneath and tinged with yellow ; legs and toes yellowish brown, but a narrow band at the back of the legs and the soles of the feet are orange-yellow; iris very dark-brown, almost black” (Andersson). Total length, 4°8 inches ; cuJmen, 0°4; wing, 2°5; tail, 2-2; tarsus, 0°8. Fig. Gould, B. Eur. pl. 181, fig 1. 281. EREMOMELA FLAVIVENTRIS. Yellow-bellied Bush Warbler. Drymoica brachyura, Layard, B.S. Afr. p. 95 (partim). =~ This species was discovered by Dr. Burchell. Wah’ ~g obtained it in ‘Upper Caffraria,” both in the plains and in the woods, and this locality is probably intended to indicate the Transvaal Republic, where Mr. T. Ayres has met with it. He says that in appearance and habits it resembles Zosterops virens. Mr. Andersson procured specimens at Walfisch Bay and at Otjimbinque, and he observes :— “This little bird is sparingly met with from the Okavango River on the north to the Orange River on the south, but, on account of its diminutive size and secluded habits, is probably often overlooked. It is found in small families amongst dwarf vegetation, where it diligently searches for small insects and their larve. It is very tame, and is often found in company with other small birds.” The following description is from a specimen obtained by Mr. Andersson in Damara Land :— Adult female.—General colour above light ash-colour, the rump lighter and slightly olivaceous; wings dark brown, the feathers 298 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. washed externally with ashy, inclining to whity-brown on the outer greater coverts and the primaries ; tail dark brown, externally edged with dull olivaceous ; lores dull white, extending over the eye and forming a narrow eyebrow; round the eye a narrow circlet of white feathers ; ear-coverts ash-coloured, with very narrow shaft-lines of white; in front of the eye a dusky spot; feathers below the eye white ; cheeks and under surface of body as far as the abdomen white; the sides of the upper breast light ash-colour; abdomen, flanks and under tail-coverts light yellow; thighs ash-colour ; under wing-coverts ashy whitish; “ bill dark horn-colour, yellow at the angle of the mouth, and livid flesh-colour on the basal part of the lower mandible ; iris dark brown” (Andersson). Total length, 3°5 inches; culmen, 0-4; wing, 2°1; tail, 1°5; tarsus, 0°65. 282. EREMOMELA USTICOLLIS. Brown-throated Bush-Warbler. This little-known species was obtained by the late Professor Wahl- berg in Upper Caffraria (25° S. lat.), according to Sundevall, who described it (Oefv. K. Vet. Akad. Forh. Stockh. 1850, p. 103). Since that time Mr. T. Ayres has met with it in the Transvaal, and he observes :—“ This species much resembles a Zosterops in its habits. It sings sweetly, but not loudly ; and when in a tree only a few feet overhead, its voice sounds as if it came from a distance. Its food consists of insects, for which it may generally be found searching actively amongst the upper branches and leaves of trees and bushes.”’ Mr. Andersson obtained several specimens near Otjimbinque, his first having been shot on the 7th July, 1866, “whilst hopping amongst the branches of a lofty tree.’’ Adult female——General colour above light grey ; the upper tail- coverts faintly tinged with olivaceous ; wing-coverts greyish, like the back, the bastard wing and primary-coverts blackish brown ; quills dark brown, externally edged with grey, the secondaries with greyish white ; tail-feathers ashy-brown washed with grey on the margins of the feathers which are all narrowly tipped with white ; lores whitish, as also a narrow streak running above the eye; round the eye a circlet of buff plumes ; cheeks white on the anterior part, dull chest- nut on the hinder part: ear-coverts tawny buff, greyish on the upper margin; throat buffy white ; rest of under surface rich buff, with a distinct spot of chestnut on the fore-neck, across which it almost forms a transverse bar; under wing-coverts light fulvous; lower DRYODROMAS FLAVIDA. 299 surface of quills ashy brown, edged along the inner web with whitish ; “upper mandible brown, the lower brownish flesh-colour ; legs yel- lowish flesh-colour; iris lemon-colour” (Andersson). Total length, 42 inches ; culmen, 0°45; wing, 2°05; tail, 1:6; tarsus, 0°8. 283. HREMOMELA scoToPs. Dusky-faced Bush- Warbler. The present species is unknown to us. It was described from Wahlberg’s collections by Professor Sundeyall (Oef. K. Vet. Akad. Forh. Stockh. 1850, p. 103), from Upper Caffraria (25°), and the following is a translation of the original description. Above grey, the head slightly greenish: underneath pale yellow, the throat brighter: lores dusky. There is no pale superciliary streak above the eye, whence the face appears dusky ; throat nearly white; bill entirely black; feet dusky; wings and tail dull ashy brown, narrowly margined with whitish (not with yellow) ; first primary equal to half the third; second equal to the seventh. Wing, 2°35; tarsus, 0°7. 284. DryopROMAS FLAVIDA. Black-breasted Bush-Warbler. Professor Sundevall has separated this little bird as the type of a distinct genus, Chlorodyta, but, until the necessary revision of these difficult Warblers has been undertaken by some competent zoologist, we prefer to keep it as a Dryodromas, in which genus it has been placed by Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub. We have received it from Mr. A. F. Ortlepp from Sunday’s River, and Mr. T. C. Atmore also procured a specimen at Eland’s Post. The present species was originally discovered by Mr. Anders- son. He writes as follows :—“It is only in the neighbourhood of the Okavango that I have found this pretty little species at all numerous, and I never saw it either in Damara or in Great Namaqua Land. I generally found it in small flocks, probably consisting of entire families. It resorts to the denser parts of the forests, and lives entirely on small insects.”” He also met with it at Ondonga. Adult male.—Above yellowish green, rather brighter yellow on the rump ; crown of head bluish grey shaded with yellow towards the nape; sides of face bluish grey like the head; cheeks bright yellow as also the under surface of the body; chin and centre of the body silky white; chest with a conspicuous spot of black ; 300 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. under tail-coverts and thighs yellow; under wing-coverts ~ pale yellow, the lower series silky white ; upper wing-coverts yellowish green like the wings; quills blackish, externally edged with yellowish green, the inner webs white towards their base ; tail-feathers dull olive-green, edged and slightly tipped with yellow, the outer feather entirely yellow; “bill almost black; tarsus flesh- coloured; iris yellowish brown.” (Andersson.) Total length, 4-4 inches ; culmen, 0°5; wing, 1:95; tail, 2.0; tarsus, 0°8. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but wants the black spot on the breast, which is entirely yellow. Total length, 4°6 inches; culmen, 0°5; wing, 1°9; tail, 2.15; tarsus, 0°85. 285. DryYopROMAS ALBIGULARIS. White-throated Bush-Warbler. Described by Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub (Vg. Ostafr. p. 240) from a specimen obtained by Mr. T. Ayres in Natal, and now in the Bremen Museum. We have seen one specimen of this species, from Namaqualand, in the British Museum, a full description of which is given below: it is from Sir A. Smith’s collection, The species was also found by Mr. W. Atmore at Traka. He says they inhabit the short Karroo bush in little flocks of three or four individuals, and are as affectionate as ‘“love-birds” If one is shot the others make a doleful lamentation. Their habits and nest resemble those of the White-eye (Zosterops), and the eggs procured on the 20th of August are pale blue, spotted at the obtuse end with small dark dry blood-coloured spots. Axis, 6” ; diam. 4}'’. Adult.—General colour above olive-brown, rather more dingy on the head, the ramp and upper tail-coverts dull olive-yellow; wings brown, the wing-coverts edged with the same olive-yellowish as the back, the quills also edged with the same colour but rather brighter ; » tail brown, all the feathers distinctly edged with olive-yellow ; lores and feathers over the eye dull grey ; ear-coverts ashy-brown ; cheeks and under surface of body dull white, the sides of the body light ashy brown, the upper breast laterally ashy grey; thighs ashy brown ; under tail-coverts yellow; under wing-coverts light ashy. Total length, 4-1 inches; culmen, 0-4 ; wing, 2°0; tail, 2°05; tarsus, 0°75. 286. Dryopromas DAMARENSIS.. “"% Damara Bush-Warbler. Very like EF. flaviventris but distinguished by its yellowish back, grey head, and especially by having the yellow on the lower parts DRYODROMAS FULVICAPILLUS. 301 confined to the under tail-coverts. Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—“TI only observed this diminutive species in one locality, a place called Oosoop, on the lower course of the Swakop River ; and even there it was very scarce, so that, though very tame, I have hunted for it whole days unsuccessfully. It is found in small families of from two to six individuals amongst the widely scattered dwarf vegetation ; it hops slowly and systematically amongst the branches, searching diligently for small insects, which constitute its sole food, and uttering all the while a low but distinct chirp.” Adult male-——Head and neck above grey, the back light olive - yellow, becoming brighter yellow on the upper tail-coverts: wings brown, the wing-coverts externally olive yellow, like the back, the quills asky brown, the outer webs washed with yellow and narrowly tipped with whitish: tail-feathers olive brown externally washed with olive yellow, all the feathers tipped narrowly with yellowish white, the external one light yellowish brown on the outer web, the penultimate one with a streak of the same colour near the tip; lores whitish, extending backwards over the eye, but scarcely forming an eyebrow: round the eye an indistinct circlet of dusky whitish plumes: ear-coverts ashy grey: cheeks and entire under surface of body white; the under tail-coverts yellow; under wing-coverts white: “upper mandible and tip of lower bluish black, remainder of lower mandible bluish brown; legs liver brown; iris bright yellow” (Andersson). Total length, 4-0 inches; culmen, 0°4; wing, 1:95; tail, 1:95; tarsus, 0°65. 287. DRyYoDROMAS FULVICAPILLUS. Tawny-headed Bush-Warbler. Drymoica fulvicapilla, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 94. Calamodyta natalensis, id. t.c. p. 98. Le Vaillant first described this bird as the “ Rousse-téte,” and according to him it inhabits the district of Cambeboo, Caffreland, and Namaqua Land. Victorin procured it at the Knysna in May, _ and also in September and October ; we have likewise seen specimens obtained by Mr. Andersson in the same locality. Mr. Atmore has _ forwarded specimens from George, ond Mr. Cairncross has met with it near Swellendam. In Natal it seems by no means rare, and we have seen many specimens from thence. Mr. Thomas Ayres writes from that colony: ‘“ These birds are plentiful, frequenting rough weeds and grass; their flightis tolerably strong; their food consists 302 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. of minute insects, eggs of moths, etc. During the summer months _ they may frequently be seen perched on the top of a low tree or bush, when they utter a monotonous weeping note fora length of time.” _ Adult male.—Above brown, faintly darker in the centre of the feathers, the upper tail-coverts somewhat washed with fulyous; sca- pulars slightly shaded with ashy, the lesser and median wing-coverts clearly edged with ashy grey, the greater coverts and the quills brown washed with reddish brown, the margins of the quills rufes- cent, inclining to whitish; tail-feathers brown waved with dusky cross lines, and margined with yellowish brown, without any dark _ subterminal bars to the feathers; head and nape uniform rufous ; lores buff extending backwards over the eye and forming a faint eyebrow ; sides of face grey shaded with fulvous on the upper and hinder margin of the ear-coverts ; entire under-surface of body ashy grey, whitish on the chin and malar line; centre of abdomen and vent also whitish, the under tail-coverts very pale yellowish ; under wing-coverts buffy whitish slightly washed with fulvous near the edge of the wing, the lower series ashy brown like the lower surface of the quills, which are edged with light rufous along the inner web; upper mandible brown, the lower flesh-colour ; legs flesh-colour ; iris light brown. Total length, 4°3 inches; culmen, 0°45; wings, 1:9; tail, 1°85; tarsus, 0°75. Adult female.—Similar to the male, but rather smaller, and not so brightly coloured. Total length, 3°5 inches; culmen, 0°4; wing, 1:7; tail, 1°5; tarsus, 0°75. Fig. Hartlaub, Ibis 1863, pl. vin, fig. 1. 288. PINDALUS RUFICAPILLUS. Yellow-browed Bush-Warbler. Muscicapa ruficapillus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 149. We have received this rare species from Mr. Cairncross at Swel- lendam, and from Mr. Atmore at Traka. The late Mr. Andersson also procured it at the Knysna. It was originally described from specimens procured by Wahlberg in “ Lower Caffraria,” and the . editor’s collection contained one example shot by the last-named traveller in Natal: this is now in the national collection. Here Mr. Ayres also obtained it, and he observes concerning it :— Rare in this locality ; frequents the bush and thick creepers. When in search of food is exceedingly active, flitting and hopping from twig to twig SYLVIETTA RUFESCENS. 303 with the greatest celerity, and catching the small beetles, gnats and flies, of which its food consists.” Mr. Barratt met with it at Macamac, and between this place and Pilgrim’s Rest gold-fields. Adult male—Head tawny rufous, becoming paler on the nape and hind neck ; back yellowish green, slightly shaded with rufous on ‘the mantle; rump dull grey ; upper tail-coverts yellowish green : tail feathers brown, all edged with yellowish green: wing-coverts green like the back ; the quills dark brown externally edged with yellowish green, lighter on the primaries, the inner secondaries much more broadly washed with the same green as the back: lores and a very distinct eye-brow bright yellow : in front of the eye a dusky spot, and round the latter a circlet of bright yellow feathers: sides of face also bright yellow, the ear-coverts slightly washed with rufous: throat and chest bright yellow, fading off gradually towards the abdomen, which is white: sides of body dull grey washed with yellow: thighs and under tail-coverts bright yellow: under wing-coverts yellow, the lower series white washed with yellow: ‘upper mandible dusky, lower chrome yellow : tarsi and feet pale dusky brown: iris dusky.’ (Ayres). Totallength, 4inches; culmen, 0:5; wing, 2.1; tail, 1°75; tarsus, 0°8. , 289. SyLVIETTA RUFESCENS. Short-tailed Bush-Warbler. Diccewm rufescens, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 84, This is the “ Stomp-stertje’ of the Dutch colonists, and the * Crombec” of Le Vaillant, who found the species about the banks of the Orange river in Great Namaqua Land among the mimosa trees, amid the branches of which it hops in search of insects. We have received specimens from Graaff-Reinet, Colesberg, Hope Town, and Swellendam ; and we ourselves found it at the Berg River. Victorin procured it in the Karroo in January. It is not common in Natal according to Mr. Ayres, but Mr. T. E. Buckley obtained a specimen at Palatzi in Bamangwato on the 20th October, 1873, and again in the Transvaal on the 1st July in the same year. Mr. T. Ayres has also met with it in the latter locality. A single specimen from Tete in the Zambesi was brought home by the Livingstone Expedition. Mr. Andersson writes :—‘“ I have found this species widely distributed in all parts which I have traversed, from the Okavango to Table Mountain, but nowhere very common. It frequents dwarf vegeta- tion, which it examines carefully as it hops and glides quickly onwards.’ Anchieta has procured it in Benguela, and also at 304 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Biballa in Mossamedes ; at the latter place it is called “ Kikuan- diata.”’ Mr. W. Atmore informs us that it is not uncommon near Swellen- dam, ‘creeping about the decaying fences like our English Hedge- sparrow.” Its actions in the trees and bushes reminded us of the European Wren: its flight is in short jerks and undulating. The - eggs are white, spotted and blotched with brown and faint purple, chiefly in the form of a ring at the obtuse end; axis 9’’’; diam. 6s Adult.—General colour above ashy grey, the wing-coverts uniform with the back: quills dark brown, externally edged with the same ashy grey as the back, the innermost secondaries entirely of the latter colour: tail ashy grey, slightly tipped with dull fulyous: lores and a tolerably distinct eyebrow light tawny buff: in front of the eye a dusky spot: ear-coverts tawny buff with narrow white shaft-lines : cheeks and rest of under surface tawny buff, paler on the throat and inclining to creamy buff on the centre of the abdomen: thighs deep tawny as also the under tail-coverts: under wing-coverts tawny buff: “irides yellowish brown ; upper mandible dusky, the under mandible a purplish flesh colour, as also are the legs and toes” (Andersson). Total length, 3°5 inches ; culmen, 0°6 ; wing, 2°45; tail, 1-0; tarsus, 0°75. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 135. 290. SyLVIA SALICARIA. Garden Warbler. The Garden Warbler of Europe appears to make its way, during its absence from that continent, to South-western Africa, for it has been obtained by Senor Anchieta at Biballa and Huilla in Mossa- medes. Mr. Andersson also procured it twice in Damara Land, and among the birds discovered after Sir Andrew Smith’s death at his house was a skin of a Garden Warbler, bearing the usual ticket attached by him to birds obtained during the “ Expedition.” The following is a description of the last-named specimen. General colour above ashy brown, including the wings and tail: lores and a ring of feathers round the eye buffy white: ear-coverts brown: cheeks and under surface of body dull whitish, the breast, sides of body and thighs brown: under wing-coyerts and axillaries light orange buff. Total length, 6 inches; culmen, 0°5 ; wings, 3:1; tail, 2°35; tarsus, 0°8. Trig. Dresser, B. Eur. part lit. ey 300 Fam. NECTARINIIDA. 291. Promenors CAPER. Cape Long-tailed Sun-bird. This is one of the South African Birds which is entirely confined to the Cape Colony, throughout the whole of which it appears to be distributed ; it is abundant near Cape Town, and Captain Shelley found it literally swarming on the Protea bushes at Mossel Bay. Victorin records it from the Knysna district, but it becomes gradually rarer as the eastern frontier of the colony is approached. Mr. Rickard has procured it at Port Elizabeth, where it breeds, but does not stay all the year; it is common when the red Protea is in flower. This honey-eater differs considerably in all its habits from the sun-birds with which it is associated. It is generally found in small parties, the members of which, though acting much in concert, still maintain their individuality. They follow one another to favourite bushes, chase each other, or feed amicably side by side, and if one is alarmed and flies off, the rest generally follow; yet they cannot be called gregarious in the strict sense of the word. They are fond of perching on the summit of high bushes, particularly Proteacea, from the flowets of which they extract their food, con- sisting of insects, and the limpid, saccharine juice which these plants supply plentifully, and which will often run in a copious stream from the bill of a fresh-killed specimen. Le Vaillant’s account of the nesting habits is erroneous ; Mr. L. C. Layard procured a nest, which he assured us belonged to this bird, cup-shaped, about three inches in diameter within, composed of rootlets, grasses, and the spicular leaves of firs, mingled with tho silky, dark-orange seeds of the Protea. The single egg contained in it instantly reminded us of that of the Bunting of England, being a pale dirty cream-colour, irregularly though sparingly marked with wavy tracery and hair-streaks, now and then inclining to blotches of a dark purple-brown, or a pale indistinct purple: axis, 11”; diam., 82”. Subsequent discoveries of nests and eggs confirm the truth of the above observations. We found that they bred in the months of May, June, and July. Mr. W. Atmore informs us that he has found many nests, always cup-shaped, and placed in the fork of a mimosa. A very good account of the habits of the present bird from his own personal observations will be found in Captain Shelley’s “ Monograph of the Sun-birds,” x Ty) oP =e eo 306 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Above, cincrous-brown, the shafts of the feathers darkest 5 greyish on the forehead, and rufous on the sides of the neck ; chin whitish, with a brown moustache; under parts mottled rufous, grey, and white ; rump greenish; venta fine yellow. Length, 19°5’’; wing, 4’’; tail of male often extending 14”. The female has generally a shorter tail, but Captain Shelley says that the length of this organ depends upon the age of the individual and on the season more than on the sex. He gives the measurements of a hen bird as follows :— Total length, 15°7 inches; culmen, 1:25; wing, 3°8; tail, 11; tarsus, 0°95. Fig. Shelley, Monogr. Cinnyride, part 1. 292, PRoMEROPS GURNEYI. Gurney’s Long-tailed Sun-bird. This species, described by the late Mr. Jules Verreaux (P. Z. §., 1871, p. 135) represents the foregoing in Natal, and the eastern part of the Transvaal, and differs from it im having the crown and breast chestnut. Mr. T. Ayres, who discovered it in Natal, states that in habits it much resembles Nectarinia natalensis, its food being also the same, viz., nectar and small insects, especially spiders. “Tt is very rare in this locality, and besides is more shy than most other species; I believe it is only to be found during the winter months.” Mr. T. A. Barratt procured several specimens between Pretoria and Lydenburg, and states that he found them exclusively - on the ‘ Zuikerbosch,” or sugar bush. Mr. T. Ayres likewise remarks that in the Lydenburg district the species is tolerably common, feeding on the nectar of the flowers of a scrubby tree, common on the sides and summits of the mountains. Fig. Verreaux, P. Z. §., 1871, pl. viii. 293. NECTARINIA FAMOSA. Malachite Sun-bird. Common throughout the colony, this Sun-bird abounds on the Cape Flats during the flowering of the Protea, from which it extracts the saccharine juice by means of its long brush-tipped tongue. Captain Shelley observed them near Cape Town, and we have found them plentiful up the ravines of Table Mountain, extending even to the top. Mr. Andersson states that it is “extremely abundant in Little Namaqua Land, and also occurs, though but rarely, in the southernmost part of Great Namaqua Land.” Victorin records it as found by him in the Karroo in NECTARINIA FAMOSA. 307 December, and at the Knysna from April to December. Here also Andersson obtained many specimens and Captain Shelley also found it in the neighbourhood of Mossel Bay. Farther to the eastward the latter gentleman obtained it at Port Elizabeth and Mr. Rickard at East London. Mr. T.C. Atmore sent us specimens from the vicinity of Grahamstown, but in Natal it is apparently rarer, and Captain Shelley believes it to be migratory there, as he did not observe it during February and March. Mr. Ayres states that it is found more in the inland part of the colony, and in the Transvaal ; here, according to the same naturalist, it is exceedingly scarce, a few only being found in the hills and open country adjacent to Potchefstroom. Mr. T. EH. Buckley procured some beautiful male specimens during his trip from Natal to the Matabili country, on the Drakensberg mountains. He writes as follows :—‘“‘ Only seen in this one place, but most likely only a summer visitant. About here I found several pairs living amongst the thick patches of bush along the small streams that run down the side of the Drakensberg. They were restless but not at all shy.” He has also recently met with it both in Natal and Suaziland. Mr. F. A. Barratt obtained several in the Macamac district near the Lydenburg Goldfields. In the latter district Mr. T. Ayres says that it is commoner than C. chalybea frequenting the same localities, but is more especially to be found about the sugar bushes with Prome- rops gurneyi. Approaching the Zambesi it appears to diminish in numbers. Dr. Kirk says that he only saw it once, during the rainy season, in a thick clump of trees near the river Shiré. An excellent account of the habits of this fine species is given by Captain Shelley in his “ Monograph of the Cinnyride,” which 7 leaves us little to add. It is very partial to the blossoms of the aloe, among which it finds an abundance of its insect food. It has a shrill, not unpleasing, but short song, and when pursuing a rival ___ utters a piercing scream. It is very combative, and if two males meet about the same bush, a fight is sure to ensue, to the great detriment of their beautiful tail-feathers. The males lose their beauty in the winter season; and the young birds are just like the females. It builds a domed nest of cobweb, lichens, dry leaves, and odds and ends of all kinds, usually suspended on the outside of a bush or from the branch of a tree. The eggs, two* in number, are * Two seems the normal number of eggs laid by all the Cape Wectarinie, and some observers affirm the preduce of these is always a male and female bird, x 2 308 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. of a dull greyish-brown colour, minutely mottled all over. Axis, 10” ; diam. 6’”. In Natal, writes Mr. Ayres, they frequent ‘the open country, feeding upon the nectar of the various kinds of aloes abounding in some localities and also on that of some species of lilies which are numerous in many of the valleys. When disturbed, they generally fly right away, unless their attention is attracted by some flower or by others of their own species.”” My. Andersson observes :—“ It is usually found permanently established where it has once taken up its abode. Its food consists of insects and the saccharine juices of flowers, in search of which it flits incessantly from one flowering tree to another, now settling and now hovering, but glittering all the while in the sunshine like some brilliant insect or precious gem. The male in addition to the beauty of its plumage possesses a very pleasant warble.” General colour, shining malachite green; wings and tail blackish ; pectoral tufts brilliant yellow; two centre tail-feathers prolonged three inches beyond the rest. Total length, 9’’ ; wing, 3’’; tail, 5” 5'’’. Female-—Above dull brown tinged with green, below greenish yellow, brightest on the belly and vent, mottled with brown on the throat and chest, under tail coverts whitish. Length, 6”; tail, 2”3’. The young male resembles the adult female. Fig. Shelley, Monogr. Cinnyride, part 1. 294. ANTHROBAPHES VIOLACEA. South African Wedge-tailed Sun-bird. Nectarinia violacea, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 78. Captain Shelley writes‘as follows :—* The South African Wedge- tailed Sun-bird forms, I consider, the connecting link between the African genus Nectarinia and the Oriental A?thopyga: to the former it is allied in the shape and length of its bill, and in not possessing the loose downy feathers on the middle of the back, which are so characteristic of the genus Athopyga, while to the latter it shows its affinities in the form of the tail. This last character, together with the metallic colouring of the least series of wing-coverts, and the orange yellow breast distinguish it from all the other members of the family.” This sun-bird appears to affect wild, uncultivated country and mountains, more than the other species, 0. chalybeus, 0. afer, or N. ee Ce ee CINNYRIS VERREAUXI. 809 famosa: indeed, we never observed it near habitations. It is plenti- ful on the top and about the sides of Table Mountain. At the Knysna, we found it in abundance among the uncultivated hill-sides, away from the timber. We saw a pair building a pendant, domed nest, with a projecting: portico over the entrance, at Cape Delgado, on the East Coast of Africa. The nest was hung at the extreme end of a drooping branch of a Caswarina, close to the sea heach; not far off was the nest of CO. gutturalis.. Mr. Andersson gives the following note:—“ BRADYORNIS MARIQUENSIS. 401 the throat ; entire back clear light ashy brown, many of the feathers shading off into whitish on their edges; wings dark brown, the coverts and quills very narrowly edged with lighter brown, the quills darker brown than the coverts; tail dark brown, the feathers with very narrow edgings of lighter brown; throat and entire breast white; abdomen and under tail-coverts light ashy brown, the thighs and under wing-coyerts rather darker ashy brown; “ bill blackish horn-colour ; legs and toes a livid brown; iris brown ” (Andersson). Total length, 9 inches; culmen, 0°8; wing, 5°35; tail, 4-4; tarsus 1:05. Adult female.—Similar to the male. Total length, 8°5 inches ; wing, 5°35; tail, 4°4; tarsus, 1. Young.—Much paler on the back than the adult; lores and anterior parts of cheeks very pale brown ; sides of neck white ; ear- coverts whitish and mottled with brown; under surface of body whitish, with a wash of pale brown on the abdomen and thichs. 383. BRADYORNIS MARIQUENSIS. Mariqua Wood-Shrike. Sazxicola mariquensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 209. Sir Andrew Smith discovered this species in the interior, where he found it seeking its food generally in dense thickets, and, when in quest of it, moving languidly from branch to branch. We have received a single specimen from Kuruman, and Mr. Ortlepp has found it at Colesberg. A single male was collected in Griqua- land by Mr. T. C. Atmore, when en route for the Diamond Fields, and Mr. Buckley met with it in the Transvaal and in Bamangwato. Mr. Ayres writes :—“I noticed two of these Flycatchers on my way to the Limpopo, and two others near the junction of that river with the Mariqua; they appeared to have much the habits of the common English Flycatcher.” According to Mr. Andersson “ this species is very common throughout Damara Land and Great Namaqua Land, and is very partial to burnt ground ; it usually watches for its prey from some elevated position, whence it pounces on any coming within reach. It appears to me a true Flycatcher in its habits, or a Butcher bird. Ihave met with its newly fledged young in March and April.” Senor Anchieta has met with it at Humbe, where it is called Katena. This species is easily recognized by its light brown upper surface ; the under surface is dull white, and the under wing-coverts are white. 2D 402 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Adult.—General colour above light brown, the scapulars and least wing-coverts like the back ; lesser and median coverts darker brown, edged with light brown like the back; primary-coverts and quills dark brown, externally edged with light fawn-colour, paler on the secondaries ; upper tail-coverts rather more rufescent than the back ; tail brown ; lores buffy white; in front of the eye a dusky spot, round the eye a ring of buffy white feathers, and above the ear- coverts a slight streak of whitish feathers ; ear-coverts light brown, with obsolete lighter shaft-streaks; cheeks and throat dull white, as also the rest of the under surface, the breast slightly washed with isabelline, the flanks rather browner; under wing-coverts whitish ; quills light brown, edged with fulvous along the inner web; “bill and legs black; iris dark hazel” (7. FE. Buckley). Total length, 6°9 inches; culmen, 0°5; wing, 3°35; tail, 3:15; tarsus, 0°9. Young.—Brown, mottled with longitudinal streaks down the feathers, widening into a rather broad spot at the tip, very distinct on the wing-coverts; under surface of the body dull whitish, the feathers mottled with brown edges. Fig. Smith, ll. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 113. 384. Brapyornis oaresn, Sharpe. Oates’ Wood-Shrike. Oates’ Wood-Shrike was discovered by the gentlemen whose name it bears in the Zambesi region, having been procured by him at Geruah and the first Makalaka Kraal. A specimen in the British Museum, from the Congo, also appears to belong to the same species, but being in worn plumage it is difficult to say for certain. Nothing has been recorded of its habits, but Mr. Oates found the stomach of one of his specimens to be full of ants. The characters by which Bradyornis oatesii may be distinguished are as follows :—The upper surface is ashy above, the throat is white, contrasting with the ashy under surface, and the under wing-coverts are like the breast. Total length, 7:5 inches ; culmen, 0°55; wing, 3°85 ; tail, 3°1; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Sharpe in Oates’ Matabele Land, App. pl. A. 385. Brapyornis patiipus, Von. Mill. Pale Wood-Shrike. ‘This species was met with by Senor Anchieta at Caconda, in Benguela, and was named B. murinus by Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub. Judging only from the characters given by these gentlemen, the bird ‘pina 226 ee EEE eee BRADYORNIS WOODWARDI. 403 ‘described by them will probably be found to be identical with Bradyornis pallidus, which inhabits Eastern and North-Eastern _ Africa, and occurs also on the west coast. It may be distin- guished by its uniform light brown colour, white throat, and fawn-coloured under wing-coverts. Adult male.—Above earthy brown or fawn greyish; wings dark brown, slightly edged with rufous brown along the outer web, for the basal half of the inner web clearer and broader reddish fawn ; secondary coverts externally edged with pale reddish fawn; from the base of the nostrils above the lores to the eye an indistinct reddish white streak, the eye surrounded with an ill-defined ring of the same; in front of the eye on the lores an obsolete dusky spot ; region of the ear fawn-reddish brown, like the sides of the neck, crop, breast, and sides ; under wing-coyerts clearer reddish isabelline fawn-colour ; chin, throat, lower part of the breast, vent, and under tail-coverts white, with a tinge of fawn colour; tail-feathers dark brown, externally and at the tips very slightly edged with pale reddish brown; bill and feet blackish horn-colour ; ‘‘iris chestnut-brown” (Anchieta). Total length, about 7 inches; wing, 3°9; tail, 2°10; bill, 6’; tarsus, 10’”. (Hartlaub and Finsch.) 3086. Brapyornis woopwarpi, Sharpe. Woodward’s Wood-Shrike. A single specimen of this interesting bird was forwarded by the Messrs. Woodward to the British Museum, having been obtained by them on the Berea Hills, near Durban. It may be distinguished by its olive brown colour; the throat, breast, and under wing-coverts being pale yellowish buff with the abdomen whitish. Adult.—General colour above olive brown, the wing-coverts resembling the back; greater wing-coverts and quills ashy brown, edged with the olivaceous colour of the back, the secondaries resembling the latter, and having paler tips; tail-feathers ashy brown, margined with olivaceous; lores and an indistinct eyebrow buffy whitish; round the eye a ring of buffy white feathers; ear- coyerts light fulvous brown ; sides of neck washed with clear grey ; cheeks and under surface of body yellowish buff, whiter on the centre of the abdomen, the flanks darker and more ochraceous brown; under tail-coverts white, with dusky brown centres; under wing-coverts yellowish buff; quills below ashy brown, the inner webs ashy whitish along their inner edge; bill brown, lighter at 202 alll 404 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. base of Jower mandible; feet brown (in skin). Total length, 5°8 inches ; culmen, 0°45; wing, 3°25; tail, 2-4; tarsus, 0°85. Fig. Sharpe, Brit. Mus. Cat. B. IIT, pl. 14. 387. Brapyornis siuens, Shaw. Pied Wood-Shrike. This species appears to be spread over the whole Cape Colony ; Victorin procured it at the Knysna, where we ourselves have found it common, as well as at Swellendam and Beaufort. Mr. Rickard procured it at Port Elizabeth, and we have received specimens from different parts of the eastern frontier. Mr. Ortlepp informs us that it is found about the Orange River, and we have likewise seen it from Natal. Mr, Ayres at first considered it scarce near Potchef- stroom, but he informs us that it has lately become more common. He says :—“ It frequents the hedgerows, and when perched on the outer twig of some hedge it much resembles in appearance Lanius collaris. They are inveterate bee-eaters, and I see a pair which frequent my garden catching the bees in the morning and evening as they fly from and to their homes.” Mr. Ortlepp says that its song is sweet and sustained, and that it has considerable powers of imitation. Le Vaillant states that it nests in trees, forming a beautiful structure of flexible twigs, lined with cotton, gathered from cotton-producing plants. Lays three or four eggs, of a pale green colour, daubed (barbouillés) with light red. This we can confirm. The axis is 10”’, diameter 72”. When at Nel’s, Poort, in December, we procured several young birds in their first phase of plumage, when they were spotted like a young Chat. Writing from the Transvaal, Mr. Ayres observes :—“ This species is tolerably plentiful about Rustenberg, and I may also mention that I took its nest and eggs, on the 26th of October, near Potchef- stroom. The nest was in my garden, placed about eight feet from the ground, on the top of a rough post, sheltered by grape-vines. It was cup-shaped and rough in structure, composed of dry grass, rags, and feathers, giving it a generally white appearance, with bits of wool, fluffy grass-seeds, and finer feathers inside. The eggs, three in number, were of a pale tawny or dingy white, faintly but uniformly marked with very pale brown. They varied slightly in colour and size, measuring respectively 14 of an inch by 43, BRADYORNIS ATER. 405 33 by 33, and 3% by x. Considering the size of the bird, the egg is small and delicate; it somewhat resembles that of Motacilla capensis. This Wood-Shrike is easily recognizable by its black upper surface and white under surface. Adult male.—General colour above glossy black, all the feathers with ashy grey bases; wing-coverts black hke the back; quills black, the inner primaries white at the base of both webs, forming a large alar speculum, the outer secondaries white along their outer margin, forming a longitudinal bar down the Wing; two centre tail- feathers black, all the other feathers white, with a black terminal band, the base of the inner web also dusky blackish; lores, sides of face, and sides of neck black ; cheeks and under surface of body dull white, the flanks greyish; under wing-coverts white, the quills black below, white at the base of the mner webs; “ bill and feet black ; iris dark hazel” (7. HE. Buckley). Total length, 7 inches; culmen, 0°55; wing, 3°6; tail, 3:2; tarsus, 0°95. Adult female.—Brown where the male is black, the alar speculum not so distinct, and the outer edges of the secondaries also not so broadly white, the white on the onter tail-feathers also not so extended ; under surface of body dull ashy white, the under wing- coverts whitish, with brown bases; greater series of under wing- coverts brown, edged with white. Total length, 6°5 inches; wing, 4-5; tail, 3-2; tarsus, 0°95. Fig. le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. II, pl. 74. 388. Brapyornis ATER, Sund. Southern Black Wood-Shrike. This species does not come further south than Natal, where Mr. Ayres believes that it breeds. It is also found in the Transvaal, where, however, it is not very common. Mr. Ayres has met with it near Rustenberg, and it extends to the Zambesi, as Dr. Kirk shot a specimen at Shupanga. In 1877 the editor separated the Damara Black Wood-Shrike from the present species under the name of Bradyornis diabolicus, chiefly on account of the ashy black aspect of the under surface of the wing, the inner webs of the quills being light ashy, whereas in the Natal bird the quills are deep black below. Since that time Mr. Gurney has carefully compared a Transyaal specimen with the type of B. diabolicus, and considers that they cannot be separated. ge 4.06 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. If this should turn out to be the case, the range of B,adyornis ater must be extended to Damara Land and even to Benguela; Senor Anchieta procured it at Caconda, as well as at Humbe on the Cunene River, where it is called Mungando. Adult male.—General colour above and below blue-black, with a dull gloss; quills and tail dark brown, the secondaries externally glossy black, the innermost entirely like the back; tail-feathers blackish brown, externally glossed with black; under wing-coverts like the breast ; quills ashy below, decidedly lighter grey towards the base of the inner webs. ‘otal length, 7°9 inches; culmen, 0°7; wing, 4°5; tail, 3°8; tarsus, U°9. 389. Prionops Tratacoma, Sinith. South African Helmet Shrike. Sir Andrew Smith first met with this species about 25° S. Lat., in flocks of six or eight individuals, frequenting low bushes, or hunting the ground for insects. It occurs throughout the Transvaal, and is sparingly found in small parties throughout the wooded parts of the Rustenberg district ; and Mr. Ayres, who has also procured it on the Limpopo, says they are extremely wild and difficult of approach after being shot at once or twice. Dr. Exton met with it in the Matabili country, and both Mr. T. E. Buckley and the late Mr. Frank Oates procured specimens at different places on their way to the Zambesi, where the species was also procured by Dr. Kirk during the Living- stone expedition. In Damara Land Mr. Andersson did not meet with it until he had passed Omanbonde in 20° 8. Lat., and Senor Anchieta has sent specimens from Humbe on the Cunene River, and from Capangombe and Huilla, while Sala met with it on the Rio Dande. It does not, however, according to Professor Barbosa du Bocage, occur north of the Congo. Mr. Andersson’s accounts of its habits are as follows :— It is always seen in flocks of from half a dozen to a dozen indi- viduals, which frequent secluded spots, where they restlessly hop from branch to branch on the bushes and the lower boughs of the trees, never remaining long on the same tree, but hunting most systematically for insects, which, with the occasional addition of young shoots and leaves, form their food. Whilst some individuals of the flock are examining a tree in search of insects, others keep moving slowly on, but rarely going further than the next tree. When the locality is open, those which first reach a tree fix their SIGMODUS TRICOLOR. 407 gaze intently on the ground, and, if any prey be in sight, pounce upon it with great celerity, their companions, whilst the successful foragers are devouring their booty, continuing to move on slowly as before.” Head light pearl-grey; cheeks white, margined behind by a black crescent; neck and under parts pure white; back and wines glossy, greenish-black, with a white strip along the latter; two outer tail-feathers pure white; all the tail-feathers broadly tipped with white; bill black; legs pale yellow. Length, 8’’; wing, 43’’; tail, 3’” 10°”. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 5. 390. Sramopus ar WAN: Z Retzius’ He'met Shrike. This species is easily recognized from the other South African Helmet Shrikes by the colouration of its back, which is ashy brown, contrasting with the head, which is black, as well as the frontal erest and hind neck. The whole under surface is black. It only occurs in the very northern parts of the South African sub-region. Mr. Andersson writes :—‘‘ When encamped in the desert, a few days’ journey south of the Okavango, I for the first and only time observed this fine Shrike. The flock consisted of six individuals, an adult male and female and four young birds of both sexes, all of which I secured after much running and dodging, as they were exceedingly wary and watchful, always perching on the loftiest and most exposed trees, in which respect they differed from the preced- ing species, though they resembled it in the manner in which they were feeding when I first saw them.” Senor Anchieta has met with ee ee ee the species at Caconda, Maconjo, and Humbe; it was very abundant in the latter locality, and was called by the natives Kanjuele and Banvo. 391. Siamopus TRIcoLor, Gray. Kirk’s Helmet Shrike. This species replaces the foregoing one in the Zambesi, where it was discovered by Dr. Kirk during the Livingstone expedition. It . tay be briefly described as resembling S. retzii, but is smaller, with | the wing 5 instead of 5°25 inches, and differs by having the back drab brown. Adult.—General colour above black, with a slight greenish gloss, the quills and tail uniform with the back, all the primaries with a 408 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. broad bar of white across the inner web; head pearly grey, with a slight gloss of lilac, the forehead and lores white, the grey colour occupying the chin and entire sides of the face, as well as the head ; throat black, forming a collar which runs round the neck and sepa- rates the head from the greenish black of the back; breast greyish white ; rest of under surface light chestnut or deep tawny ; under wing-coverts black; bill and feet red. Total length, 7-5 inches; culmen, 0°85; wing, 4°45; tail, 3:2; tarsus, 0°85. Fam. DICRURIDZ. 392. Bucnanea assimitis, Bechst. African Drongo. Dicrwrus musicus, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 154. This species is easily told by its entirely black colour and forked tail; it is very abundant in the forests of the Knysna, and extends to Swellendam, Beaufort, and the Karroo. We have also seen them near Grahamstown and the whole of the eastern frontier. Mr. Rickard records the species both from Port Elizabeth and East London; and it is very common near Kingwilliamstown, according to Lieut. Trevelyan. Mr. Ayres states that in Natal they are plentiful throughout the coast district, and he gives the following note:—‘They are generally found in pairs, excepting during the winter months, when they hasten from fire to fire as the grass is burnt, and take insects on the wing as they are driven out ; in fact, I have frequently seen them dart through the densest smoke in their eagerness to seize some coveted morsel. They are intrepid little birds, attacking without hesitation the largest Raptores ; and they are-especially fond of bullying any unlucky Owl or strange bird that attracts their notice, rising quickly and repeatedly in the air, and darting upon the back of, or making feints at, the object of their aversion, at the same time uttering loud and harsh notes of alarm or defiance, and spreading and shutting the tail very quickly, which has a curious appearance. Many small birds collect at once to add their voices to the hubbub, until they fairly worry their victim away. These Drongos appear par- ticularly fond of bees, feeding on scarcely anything else when these are plentiful; so that a few of them would soon clear a hive. They generally take up a position on a dead bough of any con- er ee ee ee ea ee ESD Te te BUCHANGA ASSIMILIS. 409 venient tree, and dart from thence upon insects as they pass. Their ordinary flight is of a dipping character. Mr. F. A. Barratt writes -—“‘ I observed this Drongo Shrike in great quantities in the bush near the Magaliesberg Mountains, on the Rhinoster River (Free State), im the bush about the Vaal, and in many other places in the Transvaal.” Mr. T. HE. Buckley procured a specimen in Bamangwato in August, and the late Mr. Frank Oates met with it at Tati in October, and afterwards on the Ramaqueban River, on his way to the Zambesi; in the latter district Dr. Kirk shot specimens at Tete. In South-Western Africa it is stated by Mr. Andersson to be common in all parts of Great Namaqua Land and the Damara country; he also found it plentiful m Ondonga, but it was there partially migratory. Senor Anchieta has procured it in different parts of Mossamedes and Benguela, and it may be said to occur in all other parts of Africa beyond our limits, with the excep- tion of the forest region on the west coast. It is a bold, fearless bird, darting about in the forest after imsects, or chasing another one from tree to tree, uttering loud cries, which to some ears are anything but musical. Le Vaillant says that they assemble in flocks, morning and evening, to catch the bees as they go out from, or return to, their hives. He says they make their nests in forks at the extremity of horizontal branches. They are composed of roots and flexible twigs, and of such a loose texture that the eggs are plainly visible from below. The number of eggs is generally four, sprinkled with black dots, nearly all of a square form. Mr. L. C. Layard found several nests at Grootevadersbosch, some of which resembled that figured by Le Vaillant, though not quite so open. He puzzled us by sending two very distinct types of eggs, but we afterwards ascertained that he was quite right in his identification. One set were of the palest pink, unevenly marked with spots of pale and dark purple, but not approaching to black, and not square, as Le Vaillant stated. Another set were of a deep, rich pink (nearly salmon colour), marked throughout with dark salmon-coloured spots, interspersed with purple blotches, chiefly in the form of a ring, at the thick end. The spots are large and coarse. Axis, 11}’"; diameter, 83”. The birds frequent cattle for the sake of picking off the ticks. As an instance of the bold character of the present species Mr. Ayres has published the following note:—‘I found a nest of these birds built on a horizontal bough of an acacia, overhanging 410 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. a pool of water, and about twenty feet above it. I sent a Caffre boy up the tree to saw the bough off. While he was thus engaged the old birds attacked him furiously, making repeated swoops and feints at his head, and uttering at the same time loud notes of anger.” Mr. T. E. Buckley writes:—“ Very common from the north of Pretoria into the Matabili country. This species is an early builder, as I found full-grown young ones ina nest on the 28th of November ; the nest was placed in the fork of a branch, and seemed very small for the young birds; the parents sat in the tree close to me while I was inspecting the nest. This bird sits on a branch of a tree, high up, on the look-out for insects, which it catches on the wing, and then returns to its perch. They are generally found in pairs.” This species measures: Total length, 9°5 inches; culmen, 0°95; wing, 5°55; tail, 4-1; tarsus, 0-9. The bill and feet are black, the iris red. Fig. Hemprich and Ehrenb. Symb. Phys. Aves, fol. s. pl. viii. fig. 3. 393. Duicrurvs Lupwicn, Smith. Small Drongo. The smaller size and sqnare tail distinguish the present species from the foregoing. Sir A. Smith first observed it in the forests about Natal in 1832. They were very shy, and only one specimen was procured. In habits they seemed to resemble others of the family, perching on dead trees, and performing rapid evolutions in the air in search of food. Dr. Exton procured this scarce species at Kanye, in the Matabili country, and the specimens sent by him exceed the measurements given by Sir A. Smith. They are: length, 8’; wing, 4” 3'’’; tail, 4”. He writes:—‘ Smith’s statement as to its shyness is certainly correct, D. ludwigii being as shy and unobtrusive as B. assimilis is noisy and bold. In regard to the migration of birds, it is note- worthy that I have not observed D. ludwigii prior to the 26th December, on which date I saw four and obtained two specimens, and that in a part of the Veldt, with which I was well acquainted, and which I had constantly visited during the previous three months, so that I could scarcely have overlooked its presence had it been there. From the number of species collected here, which have hitherto only been obtained in Damara Land and Natal, I conclude this would be an excellent place for further research.” Mr. T. Ayres says that in ; | ’ i) 7 ) ‘ ‘ = ORIOLUS GALBULA. 411 Natal this species “appears to frequent more dense bush than is the case with Buchanga assimilis, and is never seen (like its congener) to frequent the grass fires. It is a less plentiful species than the above-mentioned Drongo, and its notes are neither so harsh nor so loud.” Captain Shelley found them always in the thickest parts of the bush, where their loud, harsh cry “not uncommon near Durban, may be frequently heard.” He adds that they were very active and restless in their movements, and rarely failed to show their curiosity by approaching quite close to an intruder, but they seldom remained long in view. Adult.—General colour above greenish black, somewhat greyer on the ramp; wing-coverts and quills black, the coverts and the secon- daries narrowly edged with the same glossy green as the back; tail black, the feathers washed on their outer webs with glossy greenish black; lores and frontal feathers, as well as the sides of the face black, the latter with a shght gloss; under surface of body greyish black, with a slight greenish gloss on the breast-feathers ; ‘ bill and legs black; iris deep orange.” Total length, 7 inches; culmen, 0°8; wing, 39; tail, 3°7; tarsus, 0°7. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. pl. 34. Fam. ORIOLIDA. 894. ORIOLUS GALBULA. Golden Oriole. The Golden Oriole of Europe, when it leaves that continent, visits South Africa for its winter quarters, arriving probably by the east coast, as it has been shot at Mombas, but has never been seen on the west coast of Africa. The late Mr. Andersson met with it at the Knysna, whence a specimen of his collecting is in the British Museum. Mr. T. Ayres has procured it in Natal, and Mr. F. A. Barratt writes as follows :—‘“‘I observed several of these birds in the bush near Rustenberg ; and I think I saw them at Lydenburg Gold- fields. I also received a specimen from Marico. They are rather abundant, but at the same time so wary of approach that it was some time before I got a specimen.” A female was obtained by the late Mr. Frank Oates on the Marico River. Mr. Andersson also procured a specimen in Ovampo Land, and he observes :—“ The European Golden Oriole arrives in Damara Land with the return of the rainy season, but it is comparatively rare, and very few adult 412 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. birds are seen.” He found it, like Mr. Barratt, very shy and difficult of approach. Senor Anchieta has not yet met with it in Angola. Adult male.—Above rich golden yellow ; wing-coverts black, the cubital coverts with a narrow tip of yellow; primary coverts black, broadly edged with yellow, forming a conspicuous spot; quills black, lighter underneath, the secondaries edged towards the tip with yellow- ish white ; tail black, the middle feathers entirely of this colour, with a spot of yellow at the tip,all the other feathers black at the base, yellow towards the tip, the outer feathers having more yellow than black ; a spot between the base of the bill and the eye black ; entire under surface golden yellow ; bill dullreddish; feet leaden grey ; iris blood-red. Total length, 9 inches ; of bill from front 0°1, from gape 2:2; wing,59; tail, 3°1; tarsus, 0°8; middle toe, 0°7; hind toe, 0-4. Young.—Golden yellow above, tinged with olive green ; quills and wing-coverts brownish black, tinged with olive green; tail-feathers marked as in the adult, but the feathers olive green, blackish towards the tip; throat and breast grey, with black stripes; flanks bright yellow, with fainter stripes ; loral spot indistinct, dusky ; bill brownish red; feet black. Total length, 9 inches; of bill from front 1, from gape 1:2; wing, 5:2; tail, 3:3; tarsus, 0°8; middle toe, 0°7; hind toe, 0:4. Tig. Dresser, B. Europe, part 43. 892. OrtoLtus noratus, Peters. Andersson’s Oriole. It is just possible that Le Vaillant may have intended the present species when he spoke of his “ Loriodor ” being found in the forests of Kaffirland, but the bird figured by him is the West African Oriolus auratus, which never comesso far south, nor does the present bird, as far as we know, ever visit the countries he mentions, and therefore we must look upon the “ Loriodor” to be of doubtful authenticity as a South African bird. Andersson’s Oriole has been found on the east coast from Mombas to the Zambesi region, where it was discovered by Dr. Peters at Tete, and here Dr. Kirk also met with it. On the western side it has occurred to Senor Anchieta in Benguela at several places, and he also found it at Humbe on the Cunene River. Mr. Andersson obtained a specimen in Ovampo Land, and he gives the following note :— I only obtained the adult of this species in Damara Land on afew occasions, and that always during the rainy season; the young, ee | has gp Re eg ie egg 1 60S eee in ge Nas! Ma NY ORIOLUS LARVATUS. 413 however, are frequently met with, and at the Okavango River it is more common than in Damara Land proper. The young birds are easily obtained, but the old are excessively shy and difficult to procure, as they always perch on the most elevated and conspicuous trees, and retire into the densest parts of tangled brakes and thickets on the least approach of danger. The food of this Oriole consists of seeds, berries, and insects.” Like O. galbula the present species has the head entirely golden yellow, but has all the wing-coverts and the secondaries broadly margined with golden yellow. It has also the outer tail-feather entirely golden yellow without any black at the base at all. Total length, 8 inches; culmen, 1:1; wing, 5-4; tail, 3:1; tarsus, 0°8. Fig. Sharpe, Ibis. 1870, pl. vu. fig. 2. 396. OrroLus LArvatus, Licht. South African Black-headed Oriole. Oriolus capensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 134. This is the only species of Oriole that builds in South Africa, It is not uncommon in the forests of the Knysna, and along the south- east coast of the colony in general. Le Vaillant met with it in the same locality, and states that its nest is placed in very high trees and composed of twigs and fibres, covered with moss, and lined with feathers. Eges four, of a dirty white colour, with brown blotches. On the left bank of the Keurboom’s River, which falls into Plettenberg’s Bay, about half a mile from where the mountains narrow down to the river, there is a lovely kloof, which opens to the water’s edge, and stretches back inland for about a couple of miles. A clear running stream flows through the centre of it, and on each side rocky, inaccessible precipices hem in a splendid forest. In this lovely spot the silence was only broken by the babbling brook and the loud pipe of the Oriole, which frequented the summits of the gigantic yellowwood trees, whose mighty heads, hung with dense masses of a grey moss, seemed, like vegetable Titans, to watch over the solitude around them. Thinking this avery paradise fer birds and game we twice visited it ; but, with the exception of the Oriole, the little black swallow (P. holomelena), and the Loury (Corythaix leucolopha), not a creature was to be seen. Mr. Rickard tells us that this species is found both at East London and Port Elizabeth; and Mr. T. C. Atmore has forwarded some specimens from Eland’s Post. Capt. Trevelyan found it near King- 414 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. williamstown, and in Natal, Capt. Shelley says it was “ common at Durban and Pinetown, preferring the more open country, and always in pairs. They huve a loud call-note, which may be heard at a con- siderable distance.” Mr. Barratt procured a specimen about four miles west of Rustenberg. It has not been recorded from the Zambesi, nor did Mr. Andersson find it in the Damara country, but Anchieta has collected it at Humbe on the Cunene River, and at various places in Benguela, whence it ranges into Angola proper. It should be noted, however, that the birds brought by Mr. Monteiro from the latter country belonged to the small race called by Count Salvadori Oriolus rolleti. The present species is distinguished from the two other South African Orioles by its black head. Adult male-—Whole of the head deep glossy -black, extending down to the breast ; nape and sides of the neck rich golden yellow ; whole of the back and scapulars bright yellow, with a slight olive tinge on the latter, and brighter yellow on the rump ; wing-coverts black, but so broadly edged with yellow that the black does not show ; the outermost cubital coverts edged with grey; the primary- coverts black, tipped with white, forming a distinct speculum; quills black, the inner web paler, especially in the secondaries; the secondaries broadly edged with yellow on the outer web, those nearest the primaries having also a margin of white, which in the primaries themselves entirely takes the place of the yellow, so that these are edged and tipped with pure white; tail-feathers for the most part yellow, black at the base ; as they approach the middle feathers the black colour occupies the most part of the feather, being, however, strongly tinged with olive on those nearest the middle feathers, which are entirely olive-green ; under surface of the body brilliant golden yellow ; bill brownish red; feet black. Total length, 9 inches; bill from front 1:1, from gape 1°4; wing, 5-4; tail, 3°2; tarsus, 0°9; middle toe, 0-8; hind toe, 0-4. Young male.—Similar to the old male, but the colours not nearly so pure, with indistinct brown stripes on the feathers of the upper part of the body; head dusky brown; quills brown, edged exteriorly with lighter brown ; breast with black longitudinal markings ; tail darker olive-green. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 261. HETEROCORAX CAPENSIS. 415 Fam. CORVIDZA. 397. Hererocorax carensis (Licht). African Rook. Corvus segetum, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 168. This species never approaches Cape Town, but appears to be otherwise generally distributed. We have seen it in considerable numbers near Caledon and the Knysna, and have received it from Kuruman ; but it is not mentioned in Mr. Rickard’s lists from Port Elizabeth or East London. It is called by the colonists Koren- land Kraai, lit. “ Corn-land Crow,” and keeps more to the culti- vated land than do the other Crows; but it will not disdain to eat carrion when its natural food, which consists of grubs, is scarce. It breeds in trees, making a large nest of sticks, and laying from three to five eggs, of a light pink colour, spotted with dark brown pink: axis, 2'’ 2’’’; diam., 1’’ 2’’’. It has not been recorded from Natal. According to Mr. F. H. Guillemard, it is pretty abundant in the Free State. Mr. T. E. Buckley noticed it on his Matabili journey, but it was not so common as OC. scapulatus. Mr. Ayres has found it in Natal. Mr. Andersson gives the following account of its habits :— **T found this Crow very common in Ondonga, where it nests. In Damara Land it is very local and nowhere common ; but it is more frequent in Great Namaqua Land, especially towards the Orange River; and in the Cape Colony it abounds. In Damara Land, where, till lately, the natives never cultivated the ground, it is a shy bird, and I never saw it there near the native villages; but in the Cape Colony it is pretty sociable, frequenting the cultivated land, where it resorts to the vicinity of domestic buildings, and sometimes follows in the wake of the plough in search of insects and larve, which constitute its chief food, though it is said that it will also feast upon carrion, and will sometimes plunder the crops of maize. It is usually found in small flocks, and is a clamorous bird, uttering harsh choking sounds, just as though its crop were too full. The nests of this species, which I observed in Ondonga, were built on palm trees; the eggs have a buffy ground-colour, and are thickly sprinkled with spots, some of which are reddish and others brown, giving the entire egg more or less of a pinking hue.” Mr. Ortlepp says that they roost together in large flocks in a clump of willows 416 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. near his place at Colesberg, and are very destructive in the corn and mealie fields. Adult.—General colour dusky black, the gloss on the plumage having somewhat of a greyish brown shade; the back and wings glossed with purple, as also the under surface; quills externally dull greenish black ; “ bill, legs, and toes dark horn-colour; irides dark brown” (Andersson). Total length, 18 inches; culmen, 2°5 ; wing, 13°8 ; tail, 7°7; tarsus, 2°7 (Sharpe, Cat. B. iii. p. 12). Young.—Dusky brown where the adult is glossy black, nearly all the gloss being absent in the young bird; quills and tail as in adult; bill horn-coloured at top (Sharpe, J. a Fig. Le Vaill, Ois. d’Afr. II. pl. 52. 3898. Corvus ScapuLatus, Dand. White-bellied Crow. The Bonte Kraai (lit. Parti-coloured Crow) is the commonest of the Corvide in the western country, and is distributed over the whole colony. It is common near Colesberg, according to Mr. Ortlepp, as well as in the Queenstown division, as we are informed by Mr. Barber. Mr. Guillemard considers it more plentiful in the Cape Colony than in any other part of South Africa which he visited ; but we have received it from Zululand beyond Santa Lucia Bay. 7a Frank Oates shot a specimen on the Seruli River in October. also occurs in Damara Land and extends to Mossamedes and er and is distributed over the greater part of Africa. It is usually found about the high roads, seeking its food in the same manner as C. albicollis. In some districts, chiefly those where H. capensis is most common, it is rarely seen. It makes its nest in trees, or on rocks ; and its eggs, sometimes six in number, are light verditer blue, profusely spotted, chiefly at the obtuse end, with brown: axis, 1 Gia-idian., $17" * Adult male.—Above glossy purplish black, with a shade of Pa steel-blue under certain lights; the abdomen and under wing- coverts not quite so glossy ; feathers of the throat rather lanceolate but lax in texture, the plumes of the lower throat white at base ; hind neck, mantle, sides of neck, and entire breast from the fore neck to the abdomen pure white; under wing-coverts black, except in the innermost axillaries, which are white; bill and feet black ; “iris hazel-brown”’ (Andersson). Total length, 18 inches; culmen, 2-4; wing, 13°9; tail, 7-9 ; tarsus, 2°5, a 4 CORVULTUR ALBICOLLIS. 417 Adult female—Similar to the male. Total length, 17:5 inches ; culmen, 2°5; wing, 13°9; tail, 7-3; tarsus, 2°4. Young.—Similar to the adults, but more dusky, especially on the throat and abdomen; the neck white and breast dull white, with dusky edgings to a great many of the feathers. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. IT, pl. 53. 399. CorvuLTUR ALBICOLLIS, Lath. White-necked Raven. Corvus albicollis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 167. This large Raven, which goes by the name in the colony of the * Ring-hals”’ (Ring-neck), is abundant throughout the colony. It was procured by Victorin at the Kuysna, and we have seen specimens from different localities. On his journey through the Matabele country, Mr. T. HE. Buckley states that it was common, affecting the open places and neighbourhood of towns more than the bush country, and Dr. Exton procured it at Kanye. Beyond the places mentioned above, we have received specimens from Capt. Trevelyan at Kingwilliamstown, and it was met with by Mr. Rickard both at Port Elizabeth and East London. It is very partial to the sea-side, where it preys largely on the rejectamenta of the waves, especially on the animal of the Paper Nautilus (Argonauta argo) ; and we are informed that it is rare to get one of these shells perfect, unless it should happen to be thrown up at the very feet of the seeker, so keen is the appetite of these birds for them. It also frequents mountains not far from the sea. It is frequently seen about Table Mountain, descending from thence to the shores of the bay in the morning and returning at night, but always flying at a great height over the town. It is a constant visitor at the “ outspan” places along the “ hard- road,” and on the road itself, where it examines the droppings of the animals that pass along it, and picks the bones of those that die. lt will attack weakly lambs and young antelopes, and it is said to do much mischief in this manner. Of course, it shares with the Vultures in all their feasts, remaining to the last to pick up the small fragments that escape the notice of its larger confreres. It breeds in the most lonely precipices, and its eggs are very hard to get even if the nest is discovered. Mr. Atmore sends eggs, however, which are of the usual crow-egg colour, pale green profusely mottled with dark brownish-green blotches, somewhat confluent at the obtuse end. Axis 1” 11'”; diam, 1’’ 3’... Mr. Harford also sent us an egg 25 i 418 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. from Natal, with the following note: “ It was a great piece of luck my getting this nest, as they generally breed in such abominably out- of-the-way places. Mr. Ayres tells me he never has been able to get one. I got one on the ledge of a precipice on the ‘ Umhlalunan’ River about three or four miles from us. I found it while out shooting, but it was of course too high to get at, so I brought a ladder to the spot, and after piling up stones in the river, and adding long pieces of bush-wood to the end of the ladder, we ' managed to get at it. I found three eggs in the nest, all varying in size and colour. ‘The nest itself was formed of sticks on the outside and lined with wool, rags, goats’ hair, &c., and smelt most disgusting—like the monkey cages in the Zoological Gardens.” Adult.—General colour above and below glossy black, without any admixture of brown, excepting a slight shade on the inner second- aries ; head purplish brown-black; round the hinder neck a very broad white collar; throat and fore neck dull brown, contrasting with the rest of the under surface, from which it is separated by a concealed band of white, the feathers composing which are either edged with white or are pure white, sometimes with dark brown centres ; ‘bill very dark brown, the tips of the mandibles of a white horn-colour; legs and toes brownish black; iris hazel-brown” (Andersson). Total length, 18 inches; culmen, 2°95; wing, 15°7; tail,.7:1; tarsus, 2°06. Young.—More dusky brown than the adult, the lower feathers of the white neck-collar mesially streaked with brown; below with a very distinct white collar across the chest, all the feathers of which, however, are much mixed with brown. Fig. Le Vaill, Ois. d’Afr. pl, 50. Fam. STURNIDA. 400. Burnaaa arricana, L. African Ox-pecker. The present bird does not appear to enter within the limits of the Cape Colony, but Great Namaqua Land and the neighbourhood of the tropic seem to be its principal habitats. In its manners it resembles the Starlings, but from the peculiar structure of its bill for extracting “ bots,” and other parasitic insects feeding upon cattle, it is constantly found perching upon them, and clinging to them by means of its sharp and curved claws. We have no record of its capture in Natal, but in the Transvaal, according to Mr. Ayres, it is common from the Mariqua all along the Limpopo, but is not found BUPHAGA AFRICANA. 419 near Potchefstroom. Mr. T. EH. Buckley procured specimens in Matabele Land, and Dr. Exton found it not uncommon throughout the latter country, frequenting the Rhinoceros, and being called by the hunters the ‘‘ Rhinoceros Bird ”—the Matabele name, according to the last named observer, is ‘ Umblanda.’ The late Mr. Frank Oates procured it on the Semokwe River. Mr. Andersson says that he only observed this species in the middle districts of the Damara country. “Itis generally met with in small flocks, which visit the cattle in search of the larvz and ‘ticks’ with which their hides are often abundantly supplied; and indeed I never saw these birds, except when they were occupied in thus searching for insects, though Livingstone has recorded his having met with flocks of this species, and of its congener, B. erythrorhyncha, roosting on reeds in spots where neither tame nor wild animals were to be found.” Mr. Monteiro states that it is common all over Angola, and Senor Anchieta has found it at Humbe on the River Cunene, as well as at Capangombe in Benguela. It is a well-known species from both North-eastern Africa and Senegambia. Mr. Ayres writes:—“ Is not this bird rightly named Buphaqa ? [During our stay in the bush Ox-peckers appeared in numbers _ about our oxen, and actually ate large holes in the fleshy part of their backs, often one or two inches deep, and two or three inches in diameter, thus creating bad sores. They do this little by little, and day by day; and though it is annoying to the ox, I cannot say that it seems to feel it much. The birds attack just that part of the back where the ox cannot swish them off with its tail or " dislodge them with its horns, They especially infest those oxen Hy which have lost their tails by inoculation for the lung disease. I ; had previously thought that these birds only ate the parasitical insects common to cattle and game. This species is a pest to the | hunter, of whose approach it warns the Buffalo and Rhinoceros by | its loud harsh note, which is perfectly understood by its huge friends. I have not scen any holes picked by these birds in the | Buffalo or other game, but only in cattle.’ / | Mr. Andersson’s note does not give the Buphaga the bad character { assigned to it by Mr. Ayres, which, however, we have heard confirmed by many other South African travellers. He writes :— “‘The arrival of these birds is announced by a sharp cry; and the next moment they may be seen in a little flock descending fearlessly 252 420 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. on and amongst the cattle, which are at first alarmed, and run about in wild confusion just as they do when troubled with gadflies; but their apprehensions are soon dispelled and exchanged for sensations of evident pleasure as the Ox-peckers run over their backs, sides, and bellies, like Woodpeckers upon trees, except when an ox, by an occasional jerk or sudden twist, appears to indicate that the claws of the bird have caused something like pain by touching some spot where the skin of the animal happens to be tender.” Greyish-brown; rump, breast, and body beneath, pale fulvous ; lateral tail-feathers ferruginous, shafts strong, and somewhat rigid ; bill orange; tip red. Length, 93; wing, 4}. The iris in the male is deep orange, and in the female orange-yellow. Mr. Andersson mentions a specimen in which the iris was greyish-green, and the bill dark horn-colour. Fig. Le Vaill. Ois. d’Afr. pl. 97. 401. Buprwaca rrytarorurncna, Stanley. Red-billed Ox-pecker. Our friend the late Mr. Jules Verreaux was the first to affirm the occurrence of this bird in South Africa, having received it from Natal, where it was subsequently obtained by Mr. T. Ayres. Mr. R. 8. Fellowes procured the species at 8. Lucia Bay, where he found it not uncommon; its flight reminded him of that of the European Missel-thrush. Senor Anchieta has met with it at Katumbella in Benguela. Mr. Ayres has given the following note :—“ These are amongst the useful birds of Natal; their food consists entirely of Acari or ticks, which taey pick from the cattle. They run and climb all over an ox, much as a Woodpecker would about the stem of a tree. The cattle, for the most part, much enjoy the operation, and may be seen with tail partially extended, standing perfectly motionless whilst the birds are picking amongst the crevices of their ears, where the ticks generally adhere in the greatest numbers. These birds are mostly seen in small companies, varying from three to ten ; their flight is rather heavy; their notes are harsh, but not loud. The head is carried with the bill pointed upwards.” _) Above, grey-brown ; tail brown; the inner web of the external feathers rufescent; wing-feathers black; beneath, pale fulyous; throat grey; bill red. Length, 83; wing, 4” 5’". Irides reddish- orange with white outside ring. PESive-+— DILOPHUS CARUNCULATUS. 421 The colour of the bill distinguishes this species from B. africana. Fig. Ehrenb. Symb. Phys. taf. ix. 402. DitopHus caruncuLatus, Gmel. Wattled Starline. This well-known bird is found over the greater part of the African continent; in South Africa it frequents the same country as the Common Spreo, with which it is often found mingled; though it not unfrequently flies in large flocks composed wholly of individuals of its own species. Specimens with developed wattles are very scarce, and but one that we have ever seen had these appendages as enlarged as those figured by Le Vaillant (J. c.); this specimen is in the Grahams- town Museum. Perhaps in the country where it breeds it may acquire such during the nesting season. Mr. Schwartz, of Zoetendals Vley, informs us that he once found this species breeding in his neighbourhood. A large company formed their nests in a dense bush, reared their young, and departed. He never saw them nest at any other time. Mr. J. H. M. Weale found them breeding near Bedford in 1869, Dr. Exton in Mozelikatze’s country. The truth is, it follows the swarms of locusts and seems to know when the young ones will be developed. They breed in companies. We found them in September, 1869, at the Berg River; their nests filled many small bushes; they were cup-shaped, but built close together, and added to from time to time till they became almost a dense mass which filled the bush. The eggs, four or five in number, were of the very faintest blue, some of them minutely spotted with black. Mr. T. C. Rickard writes :—‘‘ An immense flock arrived at Hast London ; in a few days they broke up into smaller flocks and asso- ciated with A. morio. They were feeding on the locusts, which they took on the wing like a Fly-catcher, flying up a short distance and returning to the same nesting-place. The ground beneath the bushes on which they rested was strewn with the legs and wings of the insects.” Our observant correspondent, Mrs. Barber, makes the following remarks :—“ Some years ago, when large flights of locusts laid then eggs in the valleys of the ‘ Konappe’ and ‘ Chaka’ Rivers, they were followed as usual by the small locust birds. It was spring-time, and these birds filled the thorn trees (Acacia horrida) with their nests ; and some of the trees were so over-burdened with nests, which were 429 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. packed about, and around, and upon each other, that with the additional weight which a stormy wet day supplied, the trees gave way and fell to the earth, and an awful smash of eggs and young birds bore witness to the melancholy result. However, this ill wind proved to be a windfall for the ants, as they had a great feast upon the broken eggs and young ones. On another occasion these birds, for some reason or other, were too late in commencing their nests, and it so happened that before their young were fully fledged the locusts began to leave the neighbourhood, most of the ‘ voet gangers’ had thrown off their working jackets and resumed the ‘imago’ state. It was easy work for the birds to follow them at first and bring back a sufficient supply of food to their nests, but as the locusts day after day winged their flight towards the interior, they found the task a difficult one; still for some days they succeeded in keeping their young alive, but the winged swarms of locusts travelled so fast that the birds were beaten in this great struggle for life, and were compelled to abandon their nests, leaving the half- fledged young ones to their sad fate; and to save themselves from a similar one, flew after the locust swarms that were leaving the colony. It seems unnatural for any animal to desert its young, and Ihave frequently seen birds risk their lives for the sake of their nests, but in the above-mentioned case, no blame nor want of natural affection could be attached to the locust birds—they did all that they possibly could under the circumstances—for, excepting the locust swarms, no other source remained by which so great a multitude could be supplied with food.’’* “In the Transvaal,” writes Mr. Ayres, “they are only found at Potchefstroom during the winter months, from April to November, when they occur both singly and also in companies ranging in number from three up to a hundred or more.” Mr. T. E. Buckley shot a male in Bamangwato on the 28th of August, 1873, which was then beginning to get the bare throat; it was also obtained by the late Mr. Frank Oates on the Tati River, and as high as the Rama- queban. It extends all along the east coast of the continent into North-eastern Africa. In South-west Africa the Wattled Starlings appear in Damara * We have heard of a similar incident occurring with the other locust bird, Glareola nordmanni, when a whole hill-side covered with nests containing young birds was deserted. i as _ a OP ) tail, 1 9%, Fig. Temm. Pl. Col. 221, fig. 3. 445, HypocHeRA ULTRAMARINA (Gimel.) Ultramarine Finch, Amadina nitens, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 201. Mr. Ayres procured this species in Natal, and Mr, F. A. Barratt met with it near Rustenberg; it was also obtained by Dr. Kirk on the Zambesi, and Mr. Andersson’s last collection contained a single example from Ondonga. Shining bluish-black; wings and tail rather fuscous, with pale 3 458 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. edges ; under-wing white; bill red. Length, 4” 6’’’ ; wing, 2” 4”; tally 1720", Fig. Vieill. Ois. Chant. pl. 21. 446. QueLEa quer (Linn). Latham’s Weaver Bird. Ploceus lathamii, Layard, B.S. Afr. p. 186. This species, which was called Lowia lathamii by Sir Andrew Smith, was found by him inhabiting the country near to and beyond Kurrichane. It extends into the Transvaal, where Mr. Ayres says that it is “tolerably common in Potchefstroom and the neighbour- hood in summer, associating freely with the flights of Pyromelana oryx, which swarms here. It feeds with them on the open grassy plains and corn-fields, principally on small grass-seeds which they pick up from the ground.” Mr. Jameson met with a small flight of these Finches at Kooroomoorooi Pan on the 2nd of January. Mr. Andersson says that it ‘is a very common species in Damara Land, where it congregates in immense flocks after the breeding season; and it is also common in the Lake regions.” Senor Anchieta has found it at Humbe and at Capangombe. Above, brown: interscapulars and wing-coverts edged, and tipped with pale rufous or rusty white; chin, middle of belly, and vent, white; breast and sides of belly rusty-white, faintly clouded with brown. Length, 4’’. Mr. Andersson observes :—“ The iris is brown, the ring round the eyes reddish-orange ; the bill scarlet, merging into vermilion at the base and at the corner of the mouth; the legs and toes are flesh- coloured.” Fig. Vieil]l. Ois. Chant. pls. 22, 23, 24. 447, Cera progne (Bodd). Long-tailed Widow Bird. We have only procured this species from the eastern side of the colony; it is said to be very common in Kaffraria, and Captain ~ Trevelyan tells us it is very common near Kingwilliamstown. Mr. Arnott has also sent several specimens from Colesberg. According to Mr. Rickard it is common both at Port Elizabeth and Hast London. We have seen numbers of specimens from Natal and the Transvaal, and Mr. F. A. Barratt has published his experiences of the distribu- tion of the species as follows :—“ I first met with this. graceful bird in the district of Kingwilliamstown; thence I found it on my —— en erases fe ee ee ~ the i A Ai A a i i at a A ty ere eee are ee ne. ee ee CHERA PROGNE. 459 journey through Queenstown, Alliwal North, Basuto Land, Orange Free State, through the Transvaal, Potchefstroom, Pretoria, Lyden- burg, up to the Goldfields, near the Drakensberg Mountains, and at Rustenberg. Its favourite resorts are swampy ground, vleys, and the lone reeds about ponds. After a sharp shower of rain, or in a strong wind, they are scarcely able to fly, and can easily be knocked down; when flying they very gracefully arch the tail. They leave their nuptial district in the Transvaal about the end of April or the beginning of May.” It extends to South-western Africa, having been obtained at Caconda in Benguela by Senor Anchieta. We are informed that in the breeding season, when the male has assumed. his nuptial livery and long tail-feathers, his flight is so laboured that the children constantly run them down. They are quite unable to fly against the wind, and in rainy weather can hardly be got to move out of the thick bushes in which, knowing their help- lessness, they conceal themselves. The Kafir children stretch bird- limed lines across the fields of millet and Kafir corn, and snare great numbers of the males by their tales becoming entangled in the lines. Weare told that they breed among rushes and reeds, like Pyromelana orya. Mr. Henry Bowker writes :—“ This bird seldom interferes with our corn-lands, and is mostly found on the open flats: it builds its nest in long grass close to the ground, and the points of the grasses are drawn over and tied together at the top like the framework of a native hut. The tail of the male in the breeding season is not an inconvenience to him. He never, in fact, seems to enjoy himself so much as during a high wind, in which he shows off to advantage, spreading his tail out like a fan. I should say the average is ten or fifteen females to one male.” The following observations are from the author’s note-book :— “Riding once between Table Farm and Grahamstown with Dr, Atherstone, I saw what I took to be a black silk neckerchief drifting down to us in the strong wind from a house on a hill some 300 yards from our road. I called the attention of my companion to it, when, with a laugh, he told me it was a male Kafir fink. The deception was complete! as he came near, I saw he was drifting at a prodigious rate; his wings flapping round and round like mill sails, and his tail spread in a compact mass. He appeared quite 460 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. capable of guiding himself, for he took care never to let me get within shot of him, though I tried hard; but I shall never forget that queer black object. Harford says the Zulus set a high value on their tails. Doubtless they are used to decorate the heads of the warriors, as represented by Angas and other painters of Zulu battle- fields.” Mr. Ayres gives the following account of their breeding habits :— “ The nest of this species is placed close to the ground, in a tuft of long grass, to the blades and stalks of which it is roughly woven or joined ; it is rather a rough structure, composed of fine grass and lined with the seed-ends; the opening is at the side. The eggs are almost invariably four in number.” It is called by the colonists “Kaffir Fink,’ and Captain Harford says that the Zula name is ‘ Tsa-Kabuli.” Male. — General colour, glossy black; shoulders fulvous and brilliant crimson; tail enormously developed. Female, or young male: general colour, pale yellowish-brown, the centre of each feather being darker, approaching in some instances to black, give the bird a mottled appearance; wing-feathers black, with pale, yellowish-brown edges ; tail-feathers umber-brown, with light edges ; shoulders showing a bright orange patch. Length, 21” ; wing, 6’ ; tail, 16’’. Fig. Buff. Pl. Enl. 635. 448, PrNTHETRIA ALBoNoTATA, Cass. | White-spotted Widow Bird. Vidua albonotata, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 189. Said by the late M. Jules Verreaux to have occurred in Natal. Wahlberg met with it in the Transvaal, and a specimen of his collecting is now in the British Museum ; and the late Mr. Frank Oates procured it at Tamasetsie, in December, 1874, and again between the Pantamatenka River and the Zambesi, January 11th, while Dr. Kirk found it on the Shiré River. It extends across to the west coast, where it is found in Angola and the Congo region. Senor Anchieta has also procured it at Caconda in Benguela. General colour, shining black ; shoulders yellow ; base of the tail- feathers white ; wing-feathers tipped with white. Length, 6” 6’” ; wings, 3’. The iris is said by Mr. Oates to be hazel, the legs black, and the pill bluish or bluish-violet. PENTHETRIA HARTLAUBI. 461 449, Purnraerrta Axinnaris, Smith. Red-shouldered Widow Bird. Vidua azillaris, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 189, Sir Andrew Smith procured but one specimen of this bird, the male here described. When shot it was perched upon some bushes growing out of some marshy ground in Kafirland. Mr. T. Ayres obtained it in Natal, whence we have seen a number of specimens in Captain Shelley’s collection, obtained by Mr. Gordge in the neigh- bourhood of Durban. Captain Harford sends us a fine male with the eggs, the nest having been found close to the ground, in the standing grass, and bemg in. shape like the Roodebec’s (Ustrelda astrild). The eggs are light verditer, rather thickly spotted and blotched with brown of various shades. Axis 10’’; diam. 7’’’. Mr. Rickard found this species breeding near East London in October and November ; they were very shy in their habits. General colour, velvet-black; shoulders reddish-orange, with brilliant crimson epaulettes; feathers of wings and tail black, with a greenish gloss, the former narrowly edged with pale-brown on the outer side. Length, 6” 6’’’ ; wing, 3” 6’’’; tail, 3’” 2’”. The male in non-breeding plumage is variegated dark brown on a whitish-grey ground; wing and tail-feathers almost black; the soulder patches unchanged; under parts almost white, faintly streaked with brown ; bill very plain horn-coloured. Fig. Smith, Ill. Zool. 8. Afr. Aves, pl. 17. 450, Punruurria socacu (Sharpe). Orange-shouldered Widow Bird. This species replaces the foregoing in South-western Africa, where it was discovered by Senor Anchieta in Benguela. It may be briefly described as very similar to P. awillaris, but differing in having the shoulder patch orange instead of red. 451. PrENnTHETRIA HARTLAUBI, Bocage. Hartlaub’s Widow Bird. Of this Widow Bird, which Professor Barboza du Bocage described in 1878, Senor Anchieta has sent a few specimens from Caconda in Benguela. According to Professor Bocage it is the largest member of the genus Penthetria, but the bright orange colour of the shoulder- spot distinguishes it at a glance, though at first sight it recalls Chera progne. The following translation of the original description is appended :— Be 462 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Of large size, and entirely black; the lesser wing-coverts bright orange-yellow, the median series pale fawn-brown, the greater series black margined with fulvous; the under wing-coverts partly fawn- yellow, partly black ; tail long and graduated ; bill leaden, with the cutting edges whitish; iris dusky. Total length, 10°6 inches; bill, 0°75; wing, 4°35; tail, 6°3; tarsus, 1°05. 452, Pyrompiana oryx (Linn.) Red Bishop Bird. Ploceus ory#, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 185. The “ Red Caffre Fink,” though not an uncommon bird, is cer- tainly a very local one; that is, though distributed over the whole colony, it seems to be confined to narrow limits. About Cape Town, I only know of one place where it is to be found, and that is the swampy ground near the Royal Observatory. It breeds in September among the reeds growing in the river, supporting its nest on three or four stems, like its congener, P. capensis. In the winter time it congregates in flocks, and does much damage to the grain fields in the neighbourhood of its nesting-place, but never strays away from that locality. Nest like that of P. capensis. Eggs four or five; pure light blue; axis, 10’; diam., 7’’’. Builds in thousands about the swamps and river running out of Zoetendals Vley, also in the Boschjeveldt between Swellendam and Robertson (W. Atmore), but is not found about Grahamstown, according to Dr. Atherstone. Captain Trevelyan informs us that it is tolerably numerous at Peel- town, about six miles from Kingwilliamstown, but is very local; and we received it from Mr. T. C. Atmore at Eland’s Post. Mr. Ayres has found it in Natal, where he only saw it on the reedy banks of rivers near the coast, while Mr. Woodward observes that in that colony he found it only in the up-country districts, where it assembles in small flocks, suspending its nest, which is found of grass of a very fine texture, from the flags along the river. Mr. T. E. Buckley met with it in the Drakensberg, and also in the Transvaal, where Mr. Ayres has also found them breeding in large companies in many reedy vyleys and pools, and also in great abundance in the swamps ; they assemble in immense flocks both in winter and summer, but during the latter season the flocks appear to consist almost entirely of males in their gaudy red and black plumage. Mr. F. A. Barratt observes :— The ‘Red Caffre Fink’ breeds in reeds near gardens, and is plentiful about Bloemfontein, in the Free State, thence to the PYROMELANA CAPENSIS. 463 Vaal River, Kronstadt, near Rustenberg, Pretoria, and Potchefstroom. It is a very local bird; and I found it in only a few places along the Vaal near the diamond-fields; but I did not observe it flying every- ) ; H where, like Chera progne.”’ Mr. Frank Oates obtained a specimen ; at Hope Fountain, near Gubuleweyo, about the beginning of } December, 1873, and Dr. Kirk found it on the Zambesi. Mr. \ Andersson found the species abundant at Lake N’gami and in | Ondonga, and though rarer in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, it occurs in those countries also; it likewise extends into Benguela (Anchieta). A small race of the present species known to naturalists as Pyromelana sundevalli occurs in many parts of South Africa, some- times by itself in distinct localities, and sometimes mingling with the larger race. We have not thought it necessary to separate these two Bishop Birds specitically. | Male.—In breeding plumage: upper parts brilliant scarlet ; lower ; parts, with the exception of throat and vent, which are scarlet, deep velvety black; forehead, cheeks, and chin black; wings and tail brown. Length, 5’’; wing, 2’’ 9'’’; tail, 1’’ 10’’’, Female and male in non-breeding plumage, brown, the centre of each feather with a dark stripe. Mr. T. E. Buckley says that the bill is black, the legs light brown, and the iris hazel. Fig. Shaw’s Nat. Mise. pl. 240. 453. PyroMELANA carensis, Linn. Black and Yellow Bishop Bird. Ploceus capensis, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 184. As in the case of P. oryz there is both a large and a small race of the present bird found in South Africa, and the latter is generally known as P. aanthomeelas (Riipp.), but as they both occur in various parts of South Africa, and have not a distinctive range, we can only consider them as races of the same species. It is a very common bird throughout the colony, affecting indiscriminately the solitary vley (morass) in the midst of the veldt (open, uncultivated country), or the homestead of the farmer. During the breeding season it is seen about reeds, among which it breeds, placing its nest with great art, so as to include in its structure three or four of the firmest and most upright stems, which support it like pillars. The male generally perches on the topmost twigs of the bushes mingled with the reeds, or on the heads of the reeds them- ji 464. BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. selves ; and his brilliant yellow rump, contrasting with his otherwise intensely black plumage, render him peculiarly conspicuous. The female resembles the male in the winter dress, being a light brown, with a dark stripe down each feather. Victorin found the small form at the Knysna and in the Karroo. Colonel Bulger met with it near Windvogelberg, and we have received it from Mr. T.C. Atmore at Eland’s Post. Captain Trevelyan says that it is not a common bird about Kingwilliamstown, but he found it plentiful near Grahamstown. Mr. F. A. Barratt states that it was common in the Free State and in the Transvaal, and he found it breeding near Kronstadt in the Free State, and also about Potchefstroom and elsewhere in the Transvaal. At the same time it must be remarked that Mr. Ayres has only procured a single bird during his residence in the latter country, and we think there must be some mistake in Mr. Barratt’s identification. In Natal Mr. Ayres says that they frequent more particularly the hills fifteen or twenty miles inland; they are found in small companies in the open fields, and feed principally on grass seeds. Mr. T. E. Buckley shot the species on the Drakensberg, and again in the Matabele country ; both his specimens belong to the smaller form. Mr. Oates met with it on the Kaar Kloof Heights near Pictermaritzberg as well as at Inyati, the Semokwe River, and at Hope Fountain, near Gubuleweyo; and it was also procured in the Umyuli River by Mr. Jameson, and on the Zambesi River by Dr. Kirk. Mr. Andersson gives the following note :—‘‘ This is a comparatively scarce bird in Damara and Great Namaqua Land, but is very abundant at Lake N’gami; it sometimes occurs in large flocks in the open country, and is also found in small communities in the neighbourhood of water and in humid situations, where it breeds, constructing its nest of strong grasses and suspending it between the stalks of two or three reeds.” Senor Anchieta has met with the small race at Caconda. The following note on the species appeared in the author’s first edition :—‘‘ Having kept several in cages, I am enabled to describe the moult which takes place. The first thing which changes is the bill: the black commences to show at the tip of the lower mandible, which gradually darkens, from its usual horn-colour, to the deepest black ; before this is accomplished the upper mandible has begun to blacken, and a few black feathers are visible round the neck; the breast next shows a change, and a feather or two on the back ie | oe ee PYROMELANA TAHA. 465 darkens, and thus by degrees the whole bird changes to its splendid black. This transformation commences about July, and is complete in September, which is the nesting season. The moult back again begins in the same manner. ‘This species lives well in cages. I had one which had been about six years in confinement, and effected his escape after all, from the warping of his cage-bottom, owing to its being exposed to the sun after my pet had enjoyed his bath. He would come to the cage-bars whenever my wife approached them, his long legs drawn out to their full extent, his bright black eye glittering even in the midst of his deep black plumage, watching for his morsel of bread. On his being addressed as ‘ I'ink,’ he instantly replied, stretching his neck to the utmost, and uttering the most piercing, discordant shriek. We used to laugh, and say he would some day dislocate his neck in his attempts to sing, in rivalry to the canaries. After his bath, or when enraged, which was pretty often, he would erect the feathers of the back at right angles to his body, and then looked beautiful, the light shining through the brilliant yellow, setting it off to great advantage. The nest is constructed of grasses, and is domed, with an entrance near the centre. The eggs, four or five in number, are very pale verditer, thickly marked every- where with dark, greenish-brown blotches and spots: axis, 10’’’ ; diams,; 7 //?? General colour of male in breeding plumage, deep black; the feathers of the head and neck short, and so closely set as to resemble the richest velvet; rump and shoulders brilliant yellow; wings brown. Length, 53’’; wing, 3” 3'’’; tail, 2’’3'’’. “The iris in this species is dark brown; the legs and toes straw-brown; the upper mandible of the bill dark horn colour, the lower, in some speci- mens, of the same colour as the upper, in others of a yellowish- white horn colour” (Andersson). Fig. Buff. Pl. Enl. 629, fig. 1. 454, PyromEnana TAHA (Smith). Taha Bishop Bird. Ploceus taha, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 184. According to Sir Andrew Smith, this species does not extend south of the 26th degree, and is said to breed in the reeds which skirt the rivers north of that line; they congregate in large flocks and are very destructive to cornfields. Captain Harford sent it from Natal, and we have seen many other specimens obtained alive near 24 : = 466 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. Darban. Captain Shelley met with it near Pinetown, and Mr. F, A. Barratt writes :—“