BIRDS OF ETHIOPIA AND KENYA COLONY 273 



bara Mountains, Mombasa, and Takaungu) stands ont as indicative 

 of the validity of that form as a racial aggregate. 



Percival "^^ writes that in the coastal district of northern Tan- 

 ganyika Territory and southern Kenya Colony (Moimt Kilimanjaro 

 to Mombasa and Takaungu) alhonotatus^ " * * * seems to visit 

 this part of Africa for about six weeks only in the year." If this 

 statement be corroborated by future investigations, and alhonotatus 

 be found not to breed during those six weeks (the two specimens 

 procured by Percival were collected in March), then the geographical 

 arguments for its recognition as a race might have to be discarded. 



Much more material and data are needed to settle this problem. 



In this connection it is worthy of note that adults from South 

 Africa have a tendency to show a very few white feathers here and 

 there on the sides of the throat and on the abdomen. 



However, as far as the present specimen is concerned, all this is not 

 particularly pertinent, as the Sagon Kiver bird is typical serratus in 

 size and coloration, Sclater *^° says that serratus is known from the 

 Cape Province and Natal, " * * * north to southern Transvaal 

 only, from October to March, when it breeds; winter quarters un- 

 known." Reichenow ^'^ in 1902 wrote that he had a specimen of 

 typical serratus from Lamu, a record that Sclater appears to have 

 overlooked. The matter is further complicated by the fact that the 

 Lamu bird was collected in October, but it probably was a belated 

 migrant, and not a resident. The present specimen collected by 

 Mearns on June 4 therefore appears to be the first definite " winter- 

 ing " bird yet known. It is molting into adult plumage from the im- 

 mature feathering, but is fully grown. Its measurements are as 

 follows : Wing, 150 ; tail, 170 ; culmen, 20 millimeters, while two 

 adults from South Africa present the following: Wing, 153-154; 

 tail, 184-185; culmen, 20.5-21.5 millimeters. The difference in the 

 length of the tail is to be accounted for by the fact that the middle 

 rectrices are broken in the Ethiopian bird. 



Nothing seems to be known of the immature plumage of this 

 cuckoo, and therefore the following notes maj^ be of interest. The 

 only old (immature) feathers left in the present specimen are some 

 of the remiges and rectrices, which are dull brownish. Another 

 specimen (from South Africa) is in adult plumage, but has numer- 

 ous dark brownish fuscous feathers mixed with the glossy black 

 ones on the breast and abdomen, the lores, auriculars, and nape. It 

 would appear, then, that the immature plumage of the black-crested 

 cuckoo is largely dull, dark brownish, lighter on the wings and tail. 

 Judging by the very abraded condition of the remiges and rectrices 



" Vog. Afr., vol. 2, 1902, p. 76. 



™ Syst. Avium Ethiop., 1024, p. 182. 



^ Quoted by Banncrinan, Ibis, 1910, p. 704. 



