64 BULLETIN 15 3, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



top of the head and the upper back are dull fuscous-black, the lower 

 back slightly washed with brownish, and the feathers tipped with 

 brownish gray, giving a somewhat barred effect. The feathers of 

 the underparts are dark fuscous-black edged terminally with grayish, 

 the tail feathers and the two innermost pairs of secondaries are 

 black with a slight greenish-blue sheen; the other rectrices are 

 fuscous on the outer, and earth brown on the inner webs. Shelley ^^ 

 writes that the nestling is "browner than the adults, with broad 

 brownish white edges to the feathers of the forehead, front of crown, 

 scapulars." Out of about 20 young birds examined, only two have 

 light edges on the crown and forehead feathers. 



By the time the chin and upper throat are fully feathered, the 

 remiges and rectrices are about three-quarters full size. This stage 

 is shown by several specimens. Shelley distinguishes three plumage 

 stages — the nestling, the iimiiature, and the adult. The immature 

 plumage is like that of the adult but has whitish edges on some of 

 the feathers of the breast, under tail coverts, and under wing coverts. 

 From the extensive material available for study I find that this plum- 

 age is acquired by an incomplete postjuvenal molt, the old (juvenal) 

 rectrices and remiges being retained. The molt begins on the crown 

 and nape, then spreads to the upper back, then to the lower back, 

 the upper wing coverts, and the upper tail coverts, to the throat and 

 upper breast, and finally to the lower breast and abdomen. The 

 feathers of the latter region are tipped with white but are otherwise 

 black with a greenish-blue sheen (not dull fuscous-brown as in the 

 first pennaceous feathering). Occasionally some of the greater and 

 jniddle upper wing coverts are also tipped with whitish. 



The breeding season in Ethiopia is from March to June. Er- 

 lander *° found nests with eggs in northern Somaliland on March 1, 

 and at Arba, between Harrar and Adis Abeba, on June 8. Mearns 

 found fledged young still attended by the parents, at Gato Kiver, 

 from April 9 to May 11. 



The abundance of this drongo is reflected in the number of times 

 Mearns noted it in his diary, a transcript of which follows : At the 

 Gidabo Kiver, March 15-17, 10 birds were seen; Abaya Lakes, March 

 18-26, 180; between the Abaya Lakes and Gardula, March 26-29, 

 25 birds ; Gato River near Gardula, March 26-May 17, "abundant" ; 

 Anole and Kormali, May 17, 4 seen; Sagon River, May 19, 20 noted; 

 Bodessa, May 19-June 3, 50 birds; Sagon River, June 3--6, 200; 

 Tertale, June 7-12, 90; El Ade, June 12-13, 10 birds; Mar Mora, 

 June 14, 25; Turturo, June 15-17, 100 seen; Anole, June 17, 100 

 birds; Wobok, June 18, 100; near Saru, June 19, 100; Yebo, June 

 20, 50; Karsa Barecha, June 21, 100; Malata, June 22, 20 seen; then 



MThe birds of Africa, etc.. vol. 5, pt. 2, p. 173, 1912. 

 *«Journ. fiir Orn., 1905, pp. 703-704. 



