BIEDS OF ETHIOPIA AND KENYA COLONY 321 



would appear that the breeding season is probably in April and 

 May. 



Order COLIIFORMES 

 Family COLIIDAE 



COLIUS STRIATUS Gmelin 



While studying the 46 specimens of this mouse bird collected by 

 the Frick expedition I have taken the opportunity of investigating 

 the systematics of this species. All in all, over 200 specimens have 

 been examined representing all the races recognized below except 

 leucotis. To simplify matters, I may briefly compare the arrange- 

 ment arrived at here with that followed by Sclater -^ as the main 

 points of interest to students of African birds are the points of 

 difference between the two systems. 



1. The following races are recognized here, but not by Sclater — 

 viomhassicus^ kihuyueifisis^ and jebelenms. 



2. The form ugandae is recognized by Sclater, but as I shall show 

 a little further on, it is the same as jehelemis^ and the former name 

 is a synonym of the latter. 



3. The following names, which Sclater does not dispose of, are 

 considered as follows : 



C. s. cinerascens is a synonym of C. s. afjinis. 



G. s. viarsahit is a synonym of O. s. kikuyuensis. 



C. s. congicus is a synonym of C. s. heriepschl. 



C. s. kirhyi is a synonym of C. s. iiiinor. 



C . s. nigriscapalis is a synonym of C. s. nigncoUis. 



The races of the speckled coly recognized by me are as follows : 



{a) C. s. striatum. — Southern Cape Province, from Cape Town east 

 to King William's Town ; wing length 86-97 millimeters in the male, 

 92-97 millimeters in females. 



(6) C. s. 7?im6»r .^Southeastern Africa from the eastern Cape 

 Province (East London district) Pondoland, Natal, the Transvaal, 

 Basutoland, Zululand, Swaziland, and Mozambique to eastern Ma- 

 shonaland, Nyasaland, and the Rovuma River (southern boundary 

 of Tanganyika Territory). This form is similar to sfi'iahis, but has 

 the throat more blackish. The name minor is a poor one, as this 

 form is not smaller than the typical race; wing length 83-96 milli- 

 meters in the male, 83-93 millimeters in the female. 



{c) C. s. herlepschi. — Northwestern Nyasaland, northeastern 

 Northern Rhodesia, and southwestern Tanganyika Territory (north- 

 east to the Uliehc higlilands and Ujiji) and the Katanga north to 

 the southern limit of the Congo rain forest, west as far as the 



=«Syst. Avium Ethiop., 1924, pp. 265-266. 



