BIRDS OF ETHIOPIA AND KENYA COLONY 305 



marcations cliificiilt. Apparently this owl is an exception to the rule 

 so characteristic of most of its relatives. Still, it should be noted that 

 according to Reichenow,"^ South African specimens average larger 

 than more northern ones. This notion is modified by Erlanger ^° who, 

 on the other hand, states that southern birds, particularly south- 

 Avestern ones (Damaraland, etc.), are generally lighter in color than 

 East African examples, but that the difference is very slight at best. 

 I can not see any difference between South and East African birds. 



This species is essentially a woodland bird and consequently is more 

 local in its distribution than Bubo afrlcanus. 



Little is known of the breeding season of this bird in north- 

 eastern Africa. Lynes " found two fluffy young, recently out of the 

 nest, with one parent bird on July 18 in Darfur, and writes that 

 there " * * * is likely to be a good deal of variation in breeding 

 period, for on January 18, 1914, we had a nest with two fresh eggs 

 at latitude 12° (AVhite Nile). These were in an old kite's nest, 25 feet 

 up an acacia tree." In the collections of the Museum of Compara- 

 tive Zoology there is an immature male, about three-quarters grown, 

 taken on March 27, 1926, at Dembecha, 95 miles south of Lake 

 Tsana, Ethiopia (Cheesman collection). This bird differs from the 

 adults in having all the upper and underparts (with the exception 

 of the remiges and rectrices) finely barred with grayish white and 

 dull grayish earth brown. The loreal bristles are black as in the 

 adults, the cheeks and auriculars broadly tipped with blackish. All 

 the remiges and rectrices are new and not fully grown, their bases 

 still encased within the sheaths. It appears, from the admittedly 

 inadequate material available, that the adult plumage succeeds the 

 Juvenal stage so that year-old birds are indistinguishable from older 

 ones. 



Aside from the specimens collected, this owl was observed as fol- 

 lows: Northern Guaso Nyiro River, July 31 to August 3, two seen; 

 Lekiundu River, August 4-8, four noted. 



Order CAPRIMULGIFORMES 

 Family CAPRIMULGIDAE 



CAPRIMULGUS STELLATUS STELLATUS Blundell and Lovat 



Caprimulgus stelJatus W. Blundetx and Lovat, Bull. Brit. Orn. CI., vol. 10, p. 

 xxi, 1898 : Kassim River, Southern Ethiopia. 



Speci7nens collected: 



Male and female, Iron Bridge, Hawash River, Ethiopia, February 

 5, 1912. 



»»VOg. Afr., vol. 1, p. 651. 

 ™Journ. f. Ornith., 1904, p. 227. 

 " Ibis, 1925, p. 389. 



