BIRDS OF ETHIOPIA AND KENYA COLONY 491 



breeding season apply to southern Italian Somaliland, and Heuglin's 

 notes on molt pertain to Shoa, yet it seems that the molting season 

 in southern Somaliland (as shown by his specimens) is in the 

 summer months just as in Shoa. 



The wing molt has a single center of origin — the carpal joint; 

 the caudal molt is centrifugal. 



The woodpecker was recorded as follows by Mearns : Gato River, 

 March 29 to May IT, 27 birds seen ; Bodessa and Sagon River, June 

 3-6, 12 seen; Tertale, June 7-12, 6 birds; Turturo, June 15-17, 6 

 noted; Wobok, June 18, 4 birds; near Saru, June 19, 2 seen; dry 

 river south of Hor, July 1-2, 1 bird; Guaso Nyiro River, July 31 

 to August 3, 10 birds seen. 



MESOPICOS GOERTAE SPODOCEPHALUS (Bonaparte) 



Dcndrohates spodocephahis Bonapakte, Consp. Av., vol. 1, p. 125, 1851 : Afr. 

 ccc.=Afr. or.; i. e., Shoa, ex Riippell (Y'Og. N. O. Afr. p. 8G). 



Specimens collected: 



Five males, one female, Arussi Plateau, Ethiopia, February 24-29, 

 1912. 

 One male, Malke, Ethiopia, March 3, 1912. 

 One male, near Aletta, Sidamo, Ethiopia, March 6, 1912. 



Inasmuch as the races of Mesopicos goertae have been reviewed 

 several times in the last 30 years,-** there is no need to go over the 

 subject again. 



I have examined a series of 34 specimens of all the forms except 

 hoenigi^ and my conclusions agree with the arrangement adopted by 

 Sclater." The only point that appears to be still somewdiat unset- 

 tled has to do with the validity of polcephalus and centralis. The 

 material available for study is limited, but it enables me to differ- 

 entiate between these two forms, the latter being darker than the 

 former. It may be that more extensive series would reverse this 

 conclusion, but until I see more material, I shall recognize both 

 races as valid. 



The geographic distribution of some of the races as given by 

 Sclater is incomplete and may be modified at this point. 



M. g. spodocephalus. — According to Sclater this form occurs in 

 southern Ethiopia, while M. g. abessinicus is said to inhabit north- 

 ern Ethiopia and the valley of the Blue Nile to Sennar. It should 

 be noted that Zedlitz -^ found that spodocephalus is the form of the 

 highlands of Ethiopia from Shoa to Eritrea, while ahessinicus is 



28 Reichenow (Orn. Monatsb., 1900, p. 58); Neumann (idem, 1903, p. 181); Neumann 

 (Jburn. f. Ornith., 1904, p. 396) ; Grant" (Ibis, 191.5, pp. 4G8-409) ; Sclater and Pracd 

 (Ibis, 1919, p. 631.') ; Ilartert (Nov. Zool., vol. 28, 1921, p. 103) ; Bannermon (Rev. Zool. 

 Afr., vol. 10, 1922, p. 92) 



" Syst. Avium Ethiop., 1924, p. 302. 



^Journ. f. Ornith., 1910, pp. 753-754. 



