82 BULLETIN 15 3, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



According to Neumann ^^ the breeding season in Shoa is in Feb- 

 ruary. Meinertzhagen ^- writes that the Corvidae have one annual 

 molt, which takes place late in summer and in autumn in the Northern 

 Hemisphere ; in other words, the postnuptial molt is the only complete 

 one. It would follow, then, if Neumann is correct in saying that 

 the breeding season is in February, that molting birds should be 

 found only after February. Yet one of the December specimens 

 is molting its remiges, a sure sign of a complete molt. The inference 

 is that there may be two breeding seasons in Ethiopia, a condition 

 by no means uncommon farther south in Kenya Colony. 



Besides the specimens collected, Mearns noted this bird almost 

 daily during his journey from southern Shoa to the Lekiundu River. 

 The following are the definite entries in his diary: Gidabo River, 

 March 15-17, 20 birds seen; Abaya Lakes, March 18-26, 180; between 

 the Abaya Lakes and Gardula, March 26-29, 25 noted; Gato River 

 near Gardula, March 29-May 17, 1000; Anole and Kormali villages, 

 May 17-18, 100; Bodessa, May 19-June 3, 200; Sagon River, June 

 3-6, 100 ; Tertale, June 7-12, 50 seen ; El Ade, June 12-13, 25 seen ; 

 Mar Mora, June 14, 20 birds; Turturo, June 15-17, 40 noted; Wobok, 

 June 18, 20 noted; near Saru, June 19, 4 seen; Lake Rudolf, July 

 5-10, 30 birds; southeast of Lake Rudolf, July 11-12, 8 observed; 

 Indunumara Mountains, July 14-18, 4 birds; Endoto Mountains, 

 July 19-24, 500; Er-re-re, July 25, 100; Le-se-dun, July 26, 100; 

 Malele and country to the south for 40 miles, July 27-30, 1250 

 birds; Northern Guaso Nyiro River, July 31-August 3, 600 seen; 

 Lekiundu River, August 4-8, 65 birds noted. He did not see it after 

 he left the Lekiundu River, an experience in keeping with that of 

 Lonnberg, who states ^^ that he "did not see it south of Guaso 

 Nyiro * * * and its occurrence there and not further is a good 

 example of the zoogeographical importance of this river as a south- 

 ern limit for many northeastern animals." 



Family PARIDAE, Titmice 



PARUS AFER FRICKI (Mearns) 



Melaniparus afer friclci Meabns, Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 61, no. 20, p. 5, 



1913: Dire Daoua, Ethiopia. 

 Specimens collected : 1 male, 1 female. Dire Daoua, Ethiopia, December 6-9, 



1911. 



Sclater ^* considers fricki a synonym of harahae; Zedlitz ^^ does 

 not mention fricki in his discussion of the races of this titmouse; 



81 Journ. fur Orn., 1905, p. 231. 



a-' Nov. Zool., vol. 33, p. 63, 1926. 



83 Kongl. Svenska Vet.-Akad. Handl., 1911, p. 93. 



** Systema avium ^T:thioplcarum, pt. 2, p. 640, 1930. 



» Journ. fiir Orn., 1916, pp. 80-82. 



