LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN 590.5 FI V.5I cop. 3 SURVEY 5 FIELDIANA • ZOOLOGY 7 3 . Published by FIELD MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY Volume 51 November 13, 1967 No. 7 A Collection of Birds from the Ivory Coast Melvin a. Traylor liRNV W^^^*^' "*»^**Xmociatb Curator, Birds, Fiexd Museum op Natural History p^J^ 2^ VOQO Daniel Parelius Abidjan, Ivory Coast The avifauna of the Ivory Coast has been little studied, and therefore any opportunity to increase our knowledge is welcome. The collection of 339 birds that is the subject of the present report was made by the junior author in 1964 and 1965 while a student at the Lyc^ at Bouak^, Ivory Coast. Considering that he was never more appropriately armed than with a pellet gun, to which he was later able to add several mist nets, he made a collection that is sur- prisingly representative, containing 139 species of which 44 are new records for the country. In the following report, the field notes and general introduction are those of the junior author, and the taxonomic notes are those of the senior author. The earliest report on birds of the Ivory Coast was that of Bouet and Millet-Horsin (1916-1917) who made two extended visits to the country, in 1906-07 and 1913-14. They evidently traveled widely for they include localities from the coast north to Korhogo. Al- though apparently they collected some specimens, the great majority of their records are based on sight records. The first proper collection was made in 1922 by Willoughby Lowe for the British Museum. He collected primarily in B^oumi and Bandama, localities not far west of Bouak^. Due to an unfortunate accident to his compan- ion Hardy, Lowe's collecting was curtailed, but he managed to bring back some 345 specimens, representing 155 species. These were re- ported on by Bannerman (1923). Between 1923 and 1960 there were only a few short papers on Ivory Coast birds. Dekeyser (1947a) recorded two species taken at Mt. Tonkoui in the mountainous west. M. Jean Brunei, an ardent amateur ornithologist, made a small collection around Abidjan which Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 67-28269 jiUVLKIillV OF ILLINOt^ No. 1033 91 rcQ LIBRARY 92 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 he sent to the Paris Museum where it was studied by Berlioz (1954) . The following year, Brunei (1955) reported many of his own obser- vations in the Oiseau. The only other major collection was made by Pfeffer and Chauvancy who in 1959-1960 spent three months col- lecting in the forest zone at Kpapekou and Mama. Their collection numbered 460 specimens of 120 species and was reported on by Pfeffer (1961). Altogether, only 266 species are known from the Ivory Coast from actual specimens. To these may be added some 90 presumably valid sight records, but even 350 species is not much over half the total to be expected of a West African country with extensive forests and sa- vanna. There is still a fertile field for ornithological exploration here. General The Republic of Ivory Coast, on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea, is a small, almost square-shaped country measuring about 300^00 miles on a side. It is bordered by (clockwise from the ocean) Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Upper Volta and Ghana. Ghana is the best studied of these, and the avifauna of the Ivory Coast does not differ strik- ingly from it. Comparing these two in size, we find that the Ivory Coast is wider, but does not reach quite so far to the north. The vegetational zones also follow much the same pattern as in Ghana; a little mangrove on the coast, a broad belt of rain forest extending inland for 100 to 200 miles, a horizontal strip of intergrading savanna and forest, and the true savanna farther to the north. Important differences are the mountainous forest in the west of the Ivory Coast, in the area of the Mt. Nimba range, and the existence in the north- eastern corner of Ghana of a stretch of dryer savanna than is found in the Ivory Coast. Climate follows the same pattern also as Ghana, with, alternating rainy and dry seasons. In the extreme south there are two of each, the long rainy season occurring in late summer and autumn, the short one in late spring, and the long dry season occurring during the winter months, the short one between the two rainy seasons, about July and August. As one progresses toward the north these four sea- sons gradually merge into two, a rainy season in summer, and a dry season from about the end of November to April. Aspects of the Avifauna To date there are 266 species recorded from the Ivory Coast. According to the ranges given by Bannerman (1953), between 600 TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 93 and 700 species will probably be found. Due to the several ecological, regions a number of species may be found to have two representa- tive subspecies in the Ivory Coast. In the following instances, the subspecies found in Ghana is dif- ferent from that found in Liberia or Sierra Leone. SPECIES SUBSPECIES Ghana Sierra Leone/Liberia Francolinus hicalcaratus hicalcaratus thornei Psittacus erithacus erithacus timneh Tauraco persa persa buffoni Tropicranus albocristatus macrourus albocristatus Heliocorys modesta modesta nigrita Phyllanthus atripennis haynesi atripennis Trichastoma cleaveri cleaveri johnsoni Baeopogon indicator togoensis leucurus Diaphorophyia concreta concreta lomaensis Turdus olivaceus saturatus chiguancoides Cossypha albicapilla giffardi albicapilla Hirundo senegalensis saturatior senegalensis Nectarinia chloropygia chloropygia kempi Cyanomitra cyanolaema octaviae magnirostrata Estrilda astrild occidentalis kempi Of these fifteen species, five have been found in the Ivory Coast. Francolinus b. thornei at B^oumi and Bouak^ and Turdus o. chiguan- coides at Bouak^ prove to be the race of Liberia, but Tauraco p. persa at B^oumi and Kpap^kou is the race of Ghana. The race of Dia- phorophyia concreta at Mt. Tonkoui is still indeterminate. Dekeyser (1947a, p. 54) called it harterti, the race of Cameroon, but he had no material of any of the West African races and had to depend on written descriptions. There may actually be no difference between concreta and lomaensis, for the former is still known only from the faded type; White (1963, p. 32) unites them. Specimens of Necta- rinia chloropygia from Bouak^ and Abidjan are like those of Liberia and must be called kempi, but the extent to which they differ from Ghana birds is still not clear (see p. 110). The Ivory Coast, therefore, does seem to be a meeting ground for a few species with different races in Ghana and Liberia or Sierra Leone, but the total number of these species is small and they seem to have little zoogeographic significance. 94 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 Collecting Localities Bouaki Bouak^ is a town of some 50,000 inhabitants in the center of the Ivory Coast. Vegetation is mostly savanna type; the land is composed of low, rolling hills, with a few scattered granite out- crops. There are no large rivers, and consequently few marshes of any size, but small streams are to be found almost in every val- ley; some dry up completely in the dry season (from November to March) . Along these streams grows a surprising amount of gallery and fringing forest. A few large stands of primary forest occur, along with a great deal of secondary growth, Abidjan Abidjan is the capital and has a population of over 250,000. It is situated on the seacoast. All collecting was done in second growth near cultivated land. The humidity is always high. Rainy season is from April to June and August to October. Korhogo A large town in the north, Korhogo is in tjnpical savanna coun- try. It is interesting to note that nearly every village has a stand of primary growth nearby, which has been kept so for generations, and is used for "sacred forest" purposes, a mysterious part of tribal rites. This accounts for some of the birds of more sylvan habitat being found in the middle of the savanna. There are also a few gallery forests. Doropo A small village only nine kilometers from the Upper Volta bor- der, Doropo is in a dry region in the Sudanese savanna. There are more scattered dwarf trees and acacia than at Korhogo. Gazetteer The various localities mentioned in the text are listed below. All are less than 2,000 ft. above sea level, and altitude plays no part in the distribution of birds in the Ivory Coast. Only in the region of Mt. Tonkoui in the west can montane birds be expected. Abidjan 5° 21' N; 4° 02' W Bav^ 9" 34' N; 4° 09' W Bondoukou 8*' 03' N; 2° 48' W Bongouanou 6° 39' N; 4° 12' W Bouak^ T** 42' N; 5° 02' W Bouna 9" 17' N; 3° 00' W TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 95 Boundiali 9° 32' N Dabakala 8° 22' N Doropo 9'' 47' N Ferk^ss^dougou 9° 36' N F^t^kro 7° 49' N Foro-Foro 7* 59' N Goum^r^ 7" 54' N Groumania 7° 54' N Katiola 8" 09' N Kong 9*09'N Korhogo 9° 27' N Laoudi-Ba 8" 18' N Satama Sokoura 7** 54' N Sin^matiali 9** 35' N Toumodi 6° 33' N Varal^ 9° 39' N Wango-fitini 9° 24' N Yaoss^dougou 8° 14' N Acknowledgements 28' W 20' W 20' W 12' W 42' W 03' W 59' W 00' W 06' W 37' W 39' W 57' W 22' W 23' W 01' W 17' W 02' W 14' W The junior author wishes to express thanks to Mr. Jean Brunei, Director of the Compagnie Agricole et Industrielle des Tabacs Afri- quains, who took him on numerous field trips and whose ability and experience in identification aided him considerably; to Mr. Sop^na, Ing^nieur de la Service des Eaux et For§ts, and others of the Bouak^ Natural History Society; to the many missionaries who were helpful in various ways, particularly Rev. Lonnie Palmer of the Freewill, and Rev. Dennis Grudda and Rev. Donald Bigelow of the Conservative, Baptist Associations, who took time to help him procure specimens. Also, to the senior author of this paper, without whose interest, encouragement and monthly communications over a period of more than two years I should not be writing this, I am more deeply in- debted than I can say. Finally, my thanks and appreciation go to my father, who was unfailingly encouraging and unselfishly devoted much of his free time to planning field trips and helping to carry out my projects, and my mother, who suffered me to keep live hawks and vipers in my bedroom, and unprepared specimens in her refrigerator ! The senior author would particularly like to express his apprecia- tion to Mr. and Mrs. Rolf Parelius for the encouragement they gave their son in his natural history pursuits. This involved a consider- 96 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 able sacrifice of the peace and quiet of their home, which they cheer- fully made. SYSTEMATIC LIST The order of families within the present list is that of Wetmore, while within the families the order of the species is that of Peters' Check-list for those families that have been covered, and of White's Revised Check-list for the others. Those species marked with an asterisk are here recorded for the first time from the Ivory Coast. Common and widespread species for which no new information is available are omitted from this list. Butorides striatus atricapillus (Afzelius) 1 juv. cT, 1 9 , Korhogo, 8 June 1964. A rather uncommon heron. Two nests in June were placed in fringing forest, in Kassia trees, about 20 ft. up and were made of twigs. One contained two eggs, and the other had three chicks. The Juvenal male has just begun post-juvenal molt, and the adult female is in complete post-nuptial molt. Ardeola ibis ibis (Linnaeus) 2 9 , Bouak^, 15 and 25 Nov. 1964. These arrived in November and stayed during the dry season. They roosted in one large tree, and in the early morning before the cattle began to roam, many hunted insects for themselves. *Scopus umbretta umbretta Gmelin 1 unsexed, east of Bouak^, 17 Aug. 1964. This specimen was a gift of Rev. L. Palmer. This specimen with wing 320 mm. belongs to the larger nominate race, wing length (sexes combined) 280-333. The small race minor, wing 250-266, appears confined to the coastal mangroves from Sierra Leone to Nigeria; elsewhere in West Africa, inland from the coast, its place is taken by umbretta (cf. Dekeyser, 1947b, p. 372). Accipiter tachiro macroscelides (Hartlaub) Icf, Bouak^, 17 April 1965. Specimen taken in a mist net in the undergrowth of primary forest near a marshy stream. Although in adult plumage and already beginning molt into a sec- ond adult plumage, this bird still retains two worn juvenal secondaries. These must be 15-18 months old. TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 97 Butastur rufipennis (Sundevall) 1 9 , Bav^, 1 Jan. 1965; 1 9 , Dabakala, 25 Dec. 1964. A common hawk in the northern regions; it only appeared at Bouak^ at grass fires. Two captives were kept from January to June of 1965. Although Bannerman considers the species "absolutely mute" (1953, p. 282), and Chapin says also that it is "perfectly mute" (1932, p. 604), I recorded a loud cry of annoyance from the older of the two. Both captives were voluble when excessively handled, as might be expected. Within the confines of my room, I noticed a marked tendency on the part of the grasshopper buzzards and a black kite, Milvus migrans, to perch on the highest possible site. For both of the buzzards I had at first to cut raw meat into small chunks for them to eat. Whereas the older eventually took to tearing meat held beneath its feet, the younger did not; when I gave it a piece that was too large to swallow, it would take the piece out of its mouth with one foot, then seem at a loss as to what it should do. At first it would move sideways on the perch, looking very much confused, but soon learned to hold the foot up and peck the meat from between its toes. Francolinus bicalcaratus thornei O.-Grant 1 9 , Bouak^, 16 March 1964; IcT, Bouak^, 1 May 1964. This was by far the most common of the francolins in our area. It seemed to be just as common at Bouak^ as farther north. It is a well-known game bird. Its harsh call is heard often in the early morning, though not so early as the Ahanta Francolin. Flocks of two to a dozen birds are commonly seen in the maize and igname fields. Although essentially a ground bird, it does not hesitate to perch on low branches, and I once saw one perched about 60 or 70 ft. up on a dead trunk of a tree. On another occasion one landed near me while I was standing in an igname field and moved about only a few feet away quite freely. Although paler than typical thornei of Liberia, these specimens are nearer to that form than to the pale bicalcaratus of Ghana. *Lininocorax flavirostris (Swainson) 1 juv. &, Bouak^, 5 Feb. 1965. The black crake was quite common in a stretch of marsh and cul- tivated land, and toward evening its queer gurglings and wheezes could be heard. The birds themselves were very shy and came out in the open only when assured that nothing was stirring. It was also to be found along the shady backwaters where vegetation enabled it 98 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 to hop from place to place. Once I saw several in open, marshy land that had just been turned over for planting. The birds were presum- ably getting earthworms and grubs from the soil. It usually flew only when surprised away from cover, at which time it flew heavily, with legs dangling, back to the reeds. *Neoti8 cafra denhami (Children) 1 9 , Bondoukou, 19 Feb. 1965. Gift of Rev. L. Palmer. *Actophilornis africana (Gmelin) Icf, Foro-foro, 8 May 1965. Treron calva sharpei (Reichenow) 1 9 , Dabakala, 27 Dec. 1964. Taken in wooded savanna. The call of this pigeon begins with a clock-like "tock-tock lock took took,*' increasing in speed until a sudden switch is made to a whistled "whooooo-eee-ooo-eee-ooo," followed by a thrice-repeated grating note slightly reminiscent of the Bushfowl. The initial "tocking" is gen- erally too soft to be detected in the field, unless at extremely close quarters. I heard it only because I kept three of these for awhile. These three established a peck order. Very often a "bout" would take place between two of them, the combatants striking at each other alternately, but not actually making contact. *Treron waalia (Meyer) Icf, Kong, IJan. 1965. One of a band, taken in wooded savanna. Streptopelia vinacea vinacea (Gmelin) 2cr, 19, 1 unsexed, Bouak^, Doropo, Bouna, 12 Feb. 1964, 18-31 Dec. 1964. Common in the north, and present at Bouak^ during the dry season. *Streptopelia senegalensis senegalensis (Linnaeus) 1 9 , Korhogo, 16 June 1964; Icf , Doropo, 31 Dec. 1964. Common in the north ; I never saw this tame dove near Bouak^. Turtur afer kilimensis (Mearns) 2 d', 1 9 , 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 23 May 1964-18 March 1965; 1 im. cf, Abidjan, 23 June 1965. TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 99 Common but shy, and usually solitary. Rand (1949) has written the most recent review of the West Afri- can races of Turtur afer. He accepted the pale nominate race from Senegal and Portuguese Guinea and the more richly colored kilimen- sis, extending west to Cameroon. The population of Liberia he sep- arated as liberiensis, diagnosing this new race as darker than afer, and on the upper parts darker and less ruddy brown than kilimensis^ it also averaged smaller than the other races, wing of male measuring in afer, 113-115 (114.2); in kilimensis from Cameroon 109-114 (111.2); and in liberiensis, 102-112 (106.2). Our Ivory Coast specimens cannot be distinguished from recently collected Cameroon or East African specimens of kilimensis, and in size they are also comparable to that form, wing of males 111, 111, 114. Re-examination of Rand's Liberian specimens shows that the apparent color characters of liberiensis may have been due in part to post-mortem change. At the time of the original description, his Liberian material was very fresh, while the comparative material from Cameroon and East Africa was at least 20 years old. Sixteen years later the less ruddy tone of liberiensis is not so marked, partic- ularly when compared to Cameroon material of comparable age. The size difference, of course, is not changed. The Juvenal male from Abidjan is undergoing a complete post- ju venal molt. Body molt is complete except for a few barred feathers on back and underparts, and wing molt has proceeded to the seventh primary, which is growing. ♦Turtur abyssinica delicatula (Sharpe) 1 9 , Doropo, 29 Dec. 1964. This specimen was with a male near a puddle where they had been drinking. There was an egg ready for laying in the oviduct. Poicephalus senegalus versteri Finsch Icf , Korhogo, 8 June 1964. In flocks of about a dozen at Korhogo in June, and by couples at Doropo in December. I saw it eating the young buds of the Kassia tree at Korhogo. Clamator levaillantii (Swainson) IcT, Korhogo, 17 June 1964; 1 9 , Bouak^, 21 Jan. 1965. This species is rather rarer and more shy than the common coucal ; it was more common at Korhogo than at Bouak^. I found it mostly in second growth. 100 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 Both specimens are in full molt, although one was taken in mid- winter and the other in early summer. The Khorhogo male may be- long to the southern population which breeds south of the Zambesi from October to March and winters in the equatorial regions. Tyto alba affinis Blyth 2 9,1 unsexed, Bouak^, 12 and 15 May 1964, 9 March 1965. This was probably the most common owl at Bouak^. In June I saw five or six of them chasing and catching the flying termites that gathered under lights that lit our playing court. Since they are nocturnal, I doubt that they were in the habit of feeding on termites. Stresemann (in Wolff -Metternich, 1956, p. 286) had a single fe- male barn owl from Fernando Po. He was unable to distinguish it from mainland specimens and suggested that poensis Fraser (1843, Proc. Zool. Soc. London for 1842, p. 189) would prove to be an earlier name than affinis Blyth, 1862, for the barn owls of the whole of Africa. However, Amadon (1953, p. 418) who had two females from Fernando Po, found them darker below than mainland specimens and thought that poensis might be distinct from affinis. Rather than upset the well-established name affinis prematurely, we prefer to await more adequate series from Fernando Po. *Otus leucotis leucotis (Temminck) Icf , Bouak^, 11 Feb. 1964; 1 9 , Satama-Sokoura, 30 Nov. 1964. The second most common owl. Its call was a rather soft, two- note "kuh-cooo." *Bubo africanus cinerascens Gu^rin 1 unsexed, Katiola, 1 Jan. 1965. Ciccaba woodfordii nuchalis (Sharpe) 1 unsexed, Bongouanou, 13 Feb. 1965. Gift of Mr. Le Clerc of the C.A.I.T.A. ♦Caprimulgus ruficollis ruficoUis Temminck 1 unsexed, Katiola, 1 Jan. 1965. Killed at night on a dirt road. This species is evidently a rare but regular winter visitor to west Africa. Malzy (1962, p. 38) lists two recent records from Mali of birds taken in October, and one November record from Senegal. All of these were also nominate ruficollis. TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 101 *Capriniulgus inornatus inornatus Heuglin Icf, Bouak^, 19 May 1964. This bird was taken in thick second growth with tangled, thorny vines, in the daytime. After being flushed, it landed and sat length- wise on a branch. *Apus affinis affinis (Gray) 2 9 , Bouak4, 9 Dec. 1964. There was a small colony of 50-100 near us. Every morning they would fly out together and stay in a group for a few minutes screech- ing the while, after which they went their ways and hunted singly. The hottest hours they would spend in their nests, or at least in a group clinging to the nests, and come out again in the late afternoon. Halcyon senegalensis fuscopilea Reichenow Icf^, 2 9 , Bouak^, 4 Feb. and 30 May 1964. By far the most common kingfisher at Bouak^. The male, taken 4 February, has the crown about as dark as the darkest specimens of senegalensis, but the two females, one of them taken with the male, have the typical, sooty brown crown of fusco- pilea. This mixture of pale and dark crowned birds may be due to southerly movements of the pale crowned birds during the dry sea- son. All three birds are in the middle of wing molt, at approximately the same stage despite the difference in dates. Halcyon malimbicus forbesi Sharpe Icf , 1 9 , Bouak^, 15 Jan. and 16 April 1965. Much less common than H. senegalensis; never seen away from streams and gallery (or fringing) forest. It occurs in gallery forest as far north as Korhogo, although specimens were not obtained to determine the race. Merops albicoUis Vieillot Sd", Bouak^, 29 March 1964, 6 and 29 March 1965. Commonest and tamest of the bee-eaters at Bouak^, where it occurred during the dry season. Friedmann (1930, p. 361) states that post-nuptial molt in this species in East Africa is irregular, some birds molting on their breed- ing grounds, July to September, and others on their wintering grounds, from October to March. In West Africa molt is definitely regular. Of some 40 birds taken from Sierra Leone to Cameroon during the 102 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 winter months, all show evidence of winter molt. Early October arrivals are in worn plumage, and the first primaries are replaced probably in November. Molt is prolonged, and a few birds taken in early May are still in full molt replacing outer primaries. The young birds also undergo a complete molt at the same time as the adults, but usually starting somewhat later, and it may be that those birds still in molt in May are in their first year. As Friedmann noted, the situation in East Africa is not clear. However, on the basis of our material from Uganda and Kenya, it appears that those populations that breed locally and do not undergo a prolonged migration molt during the summer, July to September, while those that breed in the semi-arid zone further north, and mi- grate to East Africa for the winter, molt on their wintering grounds. We have both adults and juvenals in full molt taken in July and early August at Bugoma Forest, Uganda, and Elgeyu and Kendu Bay, Kenya, that must be locally breeding birds. On the other hand, from these and many other localities in East Africa we have numer- ous adults and young in full molt from October to March, and these are presumably wintering birds from farther north. *Coracias abyssinica Hermann Id^, Goum^r^, 27 Dec. 1964; Icf', Bondoukou, 27 Dec. 1964; 1 9 , Doropo, 30 Dec. 1964; 1 9 , Bouak^, Feb. 1965. Common in the north, but few wandered as far south as Bouak4. While riding from Bouak^ to Dabakala late in December 1963, 1 was surprised to find one of these in the middle of the road, although it was about 8:00 p.m. A few miles later, another was found in that same position, but it was not so quick to get away as the first, and we hit it in the wing. The only time these birds assemble in any number is at the grass fires. Tockus nasutus nasutus (Linnaeus) IcT, Yaoss^dougou, 26 Dec. 1964; 1 9 , Wango-fitini, 1 Jan. 1965. The bird from Yaoss^dougou was taken in park savanna, as was the one from Wango-fitini, where the latter was attending a grass fire. They were common mostly in the North, and came down to Bouak^ only during the dry season, never in any numbers. *Lybius dubius (Gmelin) 1 9 , Bouak^, 8 Sept. 1964; 1 9 , Doropo, 31 Dec. 1964. This bird is more common in the North than at Bouak^. At Bouak^ it was shot in second growth containing many Ficus bushes. TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 103 At Doropo and thereabouts it seemed to stay in the small groups of trees with dense undergrowth. *Canipethera nivosa subsp. Id^, Korhogo, 22 March 1965. This specimen was taken in heavy gallery forest a few kilometers southwest of Korhogo. I heard it making a loud rattle, but did not manage to see it until I was right under it, and was impressed with its lack of fear. It perched across the branch, not along it, as most woodpeckers do. This specimen has a remarkably long wing for this species, 98 mm., and, if typical of the population inhabiting the interior of the Ivory Coast, undoubtedly represents a new race. The maximum measure- ment given by Bannerman (1933, 3, p. 431) for C. n. nivosa is 93 mm., based on 30 specimens, and the maximum for efulensis is only 91 mm., based on 19 specimens. Among our own material of 5 nivosa and 22 efulensis, none exceeds these measurements. Mesopicos goertae agtnen Bates Icf, Bouak^, 28 Aug. 1964. Collected in a tree on a savanna hillside. Mirafra rufocinnamomea buckleyi (Shelley) 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 15 Sept. 1964. This is one of the clapper larks with a characteristic flight pattern as described by Bannerman (1953, p. 808) and with a characteristic sound, i.e., "prrrrp-prrrrp prrrrrrp," the third being the longest. Many times it can be heard in the sky flying so high that it is out of sight. They also are one of the first birds to waken in the morning, and it is startling to have one drum nearby on a misty morning at dawn. Mirafra nigricans erythropygia Strickland 1 9 , Fetekro, 17 Jan. 1965. This bird was taken while perching high in a bare-branched tree in park savanna. Hirundo rustica rustica Linnaeus Icf , 3 9 , 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 14 Sept. -10 April, 1964 and 1965. Often seen in large companies in fall and spring. The earliest sign of molt is in an immature male taken 28 Sep- tember which has shed its first primaries. An immature female taken 104 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 12 November is growing its first two primaries, while a female taken 10 April is in fine, fresh plumage. ♦Hirundo lucida lucida Verreaux 1 9 , Ferk^, 5 Aug. 1964. This one was taken in savanna, in a town where it was sitting on a wire with several others. It has begun post-nuptial molt, with the third primary growing in. *Hirundo leucosoma Swainson 1 cf , Bouak^, 9 June 1965. In June of 1964 I found a nest of this species placed about 15 ft. down in a well. Next month there was a new nest, about 20 ft. up, in a water tower right beside the well, and it might have been the same pair that built the two, for I never saw more than two birds at a time. The young birds excreted waste over the edge of the nest. At night one of the adult birds covered the young, even when they were quite well grown. *Hirundo abyssinica puella Temminck and Schlegel 1 cf , 1 9 , Bouak^, 4 May 1965; 1 cf , Korhogo, 11 June 1964. These were commonly seen on wires over streams, in savanna. The specimen from Korhogo was carrying mud for its nest. Nests at Bouak^ were in small colonies under culverts. *Dicrurus ludwigii sharpei Oustalet 1 9 , Bouak^, 16 May 1965. Conspicuous and common only in a small stand of primary forest near Bouak^. Their song is much more musical and loud than that of D. adsimilis. They cannot stay in the forest canopy all the time, for one was caught in a mist net in thick undergrowth just a few feet from the ground. Dicrurus adsimilis divaricatus (Lichtenstein) Icf, Bouak^, 30 Sept. 1964. This species was definitely more common at Korhogo and Doropo than at Bouak^. Dicrurus adsimilis atactus Oberholser 1 9 , Abidjan, 18 June 1965. The race atactus with darker, less glossy, back is evidently con- fined to the coastal forests of the Ivory Coast, and its place in the interior savanna is taken by the widespread divaricatus. TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 105 *Corvus albus Miiller Icf, Laoudi-Ba, 28 Dec. 1964. Common and much associated with man. *Turdoides plebeja platycircus Swainson 1 im. cT, Korhogo, 6 June 1964. This babbler was not recorded at Bouak^, although it was com- mon in little parties at both Korhogo and Doropo. This specimen is in post-juvenal molt, and breeding must have begun before the rains. Andropadus virens erythopterus Hartlaub 4cr, 2 9 , BouaH 15 Jan.-18 April 1965; 2c^, Abidjan, 19 and 21 June 1965. One of the most common birds of secondary forest, where it is much more frequently heard than seen. So well does it escape de- tection that I recognized its call for eight months before seeing one. *Andropadus latirostris congener Reichenow Icf, Abidjan, 22 June 1965. Taken in heavy undergrowth, secondary bush. *Chlorocichla flavicollis flavicollis (Swainson) Id', Sin^matiali, 23 March 1965. Taken in a large tree in gallery forest. It was with a small band of the same species. Phyllastrephus scandens scandens Swainson 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 16 May 1965; 1 9, Korhogo, 13 June 1964. Although Bannerman says that it is not found in dense under- growth, it was seen there more often than not. At Gawi on the Como6 River, in the savanna of the Bouna Reserve, it was extremely common. Its call is a peculiarly liquid babbling. They move around the forest in small bands, sometimes following single file. Nicator chloris (Valenciennes) 1 juv., 1 9 , Abidjan, 21 June 1965. Saxicola rubetra Linnaeus 26^, 4 9 , Bouak^, 2 Nov. 1964-31 Jan. 1965. A common migrant which appears during the long dry season. It is often to be seen perched on telegraph wires, from which it sallies 106 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 forth after insects. Although it rarely sings, at times I have heard a soft but beautiful song from this bird. It also has a metallic note, like a buzz mixed with a chirp, which is heard more often. Although the whinchat does not, as a rule, molt its flight feathers on its wintering grounds, one female, taken 12 January and marked "skull not ossified," has replaced the first primaries. *Turdus olivaceus chiguancoides Seebohm Icf , Doropo, 30 Dec. 1964; Icf , 1 9 , Bouak^, 22 May 1964 and 5 March 1965; 1 juv. 9, Bouak^, 28 Sept. 1964; 19, Korhogo, 11 June 1964. The Kurrichane thrush is not uncommon at Bouak^, where it seemed to favor gardens with plenty of vegetation. Its song is heard mostly in the early rains, at which times it perches rather conspicu- ously atop some tree. It has sweet notes, never repeated more than three times, which it sings incessantly with a great deal of variation in pattern. The young bird from Bouak^ has just begun post-juvenal molt. *Acrocephalus arundinaceus arundinaceus (Linnaeus) Id", 1 9 , Bouak^, 5 Feb. and 30 April 1965. These specimens were taken in rank marsh reeds, where this warbler seemed to be almost the only species of bird. Gisticola erythrops erythrops (Hartlaub) 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 15 Feb. 1964; Id", 1 9, Abidjan, 21 and 23 June 1965. Gisticola lateralis subsp. Icf , 1 9 , Bouak^, 15 March 1964, 9 April 1965; 1 juv. unsexed, Bouak^, 21 Sept. 1964. I agree with Rand (1951, p. 625) that the population of Cameroon can hardly be included in nominate lateralis. Rand had seven speci- mens from Cameroon that could be separated at a glance from nine topotypes of lateralis from Liberia, the latter being much darker and more sooty on the upper parts. We now have some 15 additional specimens from Cameroon, and they, too, can be told at a glance from the Liberian birds. Cameroon should be included in the range of the browner race antinorii of East Africa. The two Bouak^ adults are similar to Cameroon birds rather than to those of adjoining Liberia. However, until material from Ghana TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 107 and Nigeria is examined, and better series are forthcoming from the Ivory Coast, it would be rash to extend antinorii so far west. *Cisticola natalensis strangei (Fraser) 2^", 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 19 Sept. 1964-6 June 1965. Due to mistrust of my field identifications, I hesitate to note any observations about these grass-warblers. *Prinia erythroptera erythroptera (Jardine) 2 9,1 unsexed, Bouak^, 27 Aug. -18 Dec. 1964. This warbler is usually quite conspicuous, with a considerable variety of notes. Generally, two or three are found together, and they seemed at Bouak^ to prefer a thick, grassy habitat with small bushes. However, I once collected one from the branches of a large tree some 40-50 ft. up. This is a short, westerly extension of range for this species, which previously has been taken only west to Ghana. We agree with White (1962a, p. 688) that Heliolais should be submerged in Prinia. *Prinia subfiava subsp. 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 25 Aug. 1964; 1 juv. cf , Bouak^, 18 Dec. 1964. The unsexed adult, taken 25 August, is in breeding plumage with black bill and cannot be distinguished from the perennially-plumaged melanorhyncha. On the other hand, the juvenal male is molting into a first winter dress that is similar to the winter dress of nominate suhflava. If this first winter dress is similar to that of the adult, then the population of Bouak^ must be included in subfiava, which shows marked differences between the darker, grayer breeding plumage and the paler, browner winter plumage. *Hypergerus atriceps (Lesson) 26^, Bouak^, 25 April 1964, 16 May 1965. This bird seems to be among the more shy species. I found it usually in undergrowth of either primary or secondary forest, al- though it does not hesitate to fly in the open from place to place. It has a rather harsh note, and also a song which it gives from a tree and repeats over and over to the point of monotony, a whistled "wheee-oooo." It was usually in pairs, at least in the early rains. Camaroptera superciliaris willoughbyi Bannerman Icf, Bouak^, 19 March 1965. Taken in thick secondary forest; an uncommon species. 108 FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 Amadon (1953, p. 424) doubts the validity of willoughbyi and White (1962a, p. 712) recognizes no races. However, our specimen shows clearly the characters ascribed to willoughbyi. Compared to flavigularis it is brighter green above and more nearly white below. On the other hand, it would be difficult to separate it from some of the more brightly colored specimens of pulchra from northern Angola. ♦Camaroptera chloronota kelsalli Sclater 1 9 , Abidjan, 21 June 1965. Taken in dense undergrowth. Camaroptera brachyura tincta (Cassin) 2cf, 1 unsexed, Bouak^, 14 Jan. -25 May 1965. Probably the most common warbler, it usually stays in the under- growth of forests. In May one was chasing another through the trees and bushes of some primary forest with great abandon and vocalization. *Sylvietta denti hardyi Bannerman Icf, Abidjan, 20 June 1965. Taken in thorny thicket. Hylia prasina prasina (Cassin) 2cf , 1 9 , Bouak^, 3 Feb.-22 May 1965. White (1962a, p. 738) calls the populations from Portuguese Guinea to Ghana super ciliaris, characterizing them as darker above and below than the nominate form. When the Ivory Coast birds are compared to a series of fresh topotypical prasina from Gabon, there are no evident differences, and the former must be placed in prasina. Diaphorophyia blissetti Sharpe 2 9 , Abidjan, 24 June 1965. These two were taken in dense second growth, near an area of cultivated land. Serle (1957, p. 641) reports collecting blissetti and chalybea within a few miles of one another in the Kumba division of Cameroon, with no evidence of intergradation. We agree with him that they should be maintained as separate species. Terpsiphone viridis ferreti (Guerin) Icf, Bouak^, 12 Feb. 1965. Found occasionally in the tall trees of gallery forest at Bouak^. TRAYLOR AND PARELIUS: IVORY COAST BIRDS 109 In a gallery forest at Sin^matiali, near Korhogo in the north, it seemed quite common. This male is in the white phase, with back and tail wholly white except for a few black shaft streaks. This is by far the most common plumage phase in the Ivory Coast, and is characteristic of ferreti, which ranges across the Sudanese savanna from the Ivory Coast and Mali to Abyssinia. The white phase of speciosa of Lower Guinea is similar, but the outer rectrices are almost invariably black. White (1963, p. 40) was the first to recognize tha.t ferreti reached the Ivory Coast. *Macronyx croceus croceus (Vieillot) 2 9 , Bouak^, 1 Sept. and 24 Dec. 1964. This is a common bird and more conspicuous than most pipits because of its size and coloring. It is often flushed up from areas of short or no grass, and is usually seen in pairs, which are very devoted to each other. It has a characteristic flight, flapping and gliding with down-curved wings, and uttering its two-note call. It also has a rather pretty song. It perches often on small bushes, where its feet have difficulty gripping the perch, as evidenced by the constant jerk- ing and seeming loss of balance. Tchagra senegala senegala Neumann IcT, Doropo, 30 Dec. 1964; 1 9 , Boundiali, 20 June 1964. The specimen from Boundiali was taken in rather open bush. This species is often heard singing, but is not at all conspicuous. Dur- ing courtship it also has a variety of buzzes and clicks, uttered while flying up and down to impress the females. The Ivory Coast birds cannot be separated from topotypical sene- gala. White (1962b, p. 22) is probably correct in considering pallida of Ghana to be a synonjmi of senegala. *Laniarius ferrugineus major (Hartlaub) 2cr, Bouak^, 8 Sept. 1964 and 12 March 1965. A well-known songster, this bird is found in secondary forest, the thicker the better, where its secretive movements recalled the coucal. *Corvinella corvina togoensis Hartlaub 1 9 , Doropo, 31 Dec. 1964. Always gregarious and local at Bouak^ and at Korhogo and Do- ropo. We follow White (1962b, p. 39) in using togoensis for Ivory Coast birds. no FIELDIANA: ZOOLOGY, VOLUME 51 ♦Lamprotornis chalcurus chalcurus Nordmann 1 unsexed, Varal^, 28 Dec. 1964. Taken from a flock of some two score in kapok trees in open country. Varal^ is just a little south of Doropo. This specimen is aberrant in color, lacking the rich violet color on the tail that is characteristic of typical chalcurus, and actually ap- pearing more like the closely similar chalybeus which has a green tail. However, in other characters, particularly its short tail, it is typical chalcurus. Tail lengths of the two species are: cfcf 9 9 chalcurus 71 - 80 70 - 75 chalybeus 85 - 92 80 - 85 The unsexed Varal^ bird has a tail length of 74, within the limits of chalcurus, but smaller than even the smallest female chalybeus. In both species the ear coverts are dark blue, but those of chalcurus are darker and more sharply defined from the green head than those of chalybeus. In this character, also, the Varal^ bird is chalcurus. *Nectarinia venusta venusta (Shaw and Nodder) Icf , Bouak^, 10 Nov. 1964. This specimen is most peculiar. The iridescent green upperparts, when viewed directly from above, have a pinkish coppery wash that I am unable to find in any other specimen. Presumably, this is a mutant structural defect, for the pigmented areas of the bird are typical of nominate venusta. Nectarinia chloropygia kempi (O.-Grant) l