Superorder PALAEOGNATHAE 



Order STRUTHIONIFORMES 



Family STRUTHIONIDAE 



STRUTHIO CAMELUS MASSAICUS Neumann 



Struthio ma.ssaicus Neumann, Journ. f. Ornith., vol. 46. p. 243, 1898: Ukanaba, 

 Kenya Colony. 



" The ostriches around Juja Farm, Nairobi, and thence southwest 

 to the Loita Plains, in the Sotik District, south of the Southern 

 N'guasso Nyiro River were of this species." (E. A. Mearns.) 



The only definite records I find in Doctor Mearns' notes are to the 

 effect that 20 ostriches were seen near the Athi River, Kenj^a Colony, 

 on August 31, and two the following day near the Athi station of the 

 Uganda Railway. This paucity of records means little in this case as 

 ostriches are numerous all through the Athi-Kapiti district. I 

 saw great numbers of them there in 1925. 



STRUTHIO CAMELUS MOLYBDOPHANES Keichenow 



Struthio molybdopltanes Reichenow, Mitt. Orn. Ver. Wlen, p. 202, pi. S, 1883: 

 Somaliland. 



Specimeris collected : 



Fifteen miles south of Lake Rudolf, July 12, 1912, one feather from 

 an ostrich that was killed and eaten by a lion and lioness. 



In his manuscript notes Mearns wrote that the " * * * ostriches 

 seen by the Frick expedition from the region of the Abaya Lakes 

 south to the Northern Guaso Nyiro were probably of this species. 

 Only eggs and a fragment of a male bird that had been killed and 

 eaten by a pair of lions were taken by us in this region." On going 

 through his notebooks I find the following definite records, all 

 observational. 



Six ostriches were seen on June 23 at a village near Boran, Lower 

 Chaffa district, Ethiopia ; two were noted on July 11, 10 miles south- 

 east of Lake Rudolf, Kenya Colony ; fresh eggs were found near a 

 spring in the Indunumaro Mountains, Kenya Colony; an eggshell 

 (broken) on the Guaso Nyiro, July 31 to August 3; and several eggs 

 at Lekiundu River, Guaso Nyiro, August 4. 



The single feather collected seems to be of normal size (684 milli- 

 meters) although I have no comparative material. Doctor Van 



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