BIRDS OF ETHIOPIA AND KENYA COLONY 89 



The bird from Adis Abeba and the majority of those from the 

 Arussi Plateau were in molt when shot, the ecdysis being particu- 

 larly noticeable in the rectrices. The immature bird was similarly 

 in molting condition. 



The only clue of which I know as to the breeding season of this 

 bird is a note by Neumami ^ to the effect that a female, taken by 

 him on December 27 at Abera in the Djamdjam district, had an 

 egg in the oviduct. It may be that the reason Mearns happened 

 to obtain only male specimens of this titmouse is that the females 

 were out of sight, incubating their eggs during January and 

 February. 



ANTHOSCOPUS CAROLI ROTHSCHILDI Neumann 



Anthoscopus rothschildi Neumann, Journ. fiir Orn., 1907, p. 597: Simba, Kenya 



Colony. 

 Specimens collected: 1 male, near Tana River east of Ithanga Hills, Kenya 



Colony, August 26, 1912. 



This specimen agrees with the description of rothschildi, which 

 form I have not otherwise seen. Van Someren * gives the wing 

 iengih of a male as 55 mm, of a female as 52 mm. The present 

 example is sexed as a male but has a wing measuring only 52.5 mm ; 

 it is in somewhat abraded plumage, but not enough to make more 

 than a half a millimeter difference in the wing length. 



The systematics of this little "cappoc-vogel" are in an unsatisfac- 

 tory state, owing to the absence of adequate series in any collection. 

 For example, Sclater ^ writes that A. sharpei is a synonym of A. car- 

 oli sylvieUa, while van Someren, who had seven specimens of the 

 former, suggests that it is racially distinct from the latter. 



Hellmayr *^ examined the type of sharpei and concluded it was not 

 distinct from sylmella. Hartert '^ synonymizes the two with a query, 

 adding that the identity of the two is still doubtful. 



The present specimen appears to constitute the westernmost record 

 for the race. According to Sclater, this subspecies occurs in the 

 "eastern districts of Kenya Colony: Simba and Kitui." The dis- 

 tance between Kitui and the Tana River east of Ithanga Hills is 

 not very great, however. 



Since the above was written, van Someren '^^ has recorded this race 

 from Simba, Kiu, Kitui, Fort Hall, and Thika. 



3 Journ. fur Orn., 1906, p. 261. 



< Nov. Zool., vol. 29, p. 203, 1922. 



" Systonia avium ^thiopicarum, pt. 2, pi. G45, 1930. 



* In Wytsman, Genera avium, pt. 18, p. 63, 1911. 



' Nov. Zool., vol. 27, p. 441, 1920. 



'■' Nov. Zool., vol. 37, p. 359, 1932. 



