BIRDS OF ETHIOPIA AND KENYA COLONY 407 



Mearns found nesting colonies of this weaver at Lake Abaya on 

 March 22. The nests were on the lower branches of leguminous 

 trees growing near the lake. Erlanger" found this bird breeding 

 as early as January 10 in the valley of the Sagon Kiver. He also 

 collected nests and eggs during March, April, and May in Gurraland, 

 at Harrar, and at Chirru, between Harrar and Adis Abeba. 



Besides the specimens collected, Mearns recorded this bird as fol- 

 lows : The Abaya Lakes, March 24-26, 500 seen ; spring between the 

 Abaya Lakes and Gardula, March 26-29, 1,000 birds; Gate Kiver 

 crossing, May 17, 300; Anole, May 18, 300; Kormali, May 19, 100 

 seen; Bodessa, May 19-June 3, 100 seen; Sagon Kiver, June 3-6, 

 50 birds; Tertale, June 7-12, 45 birds seen; El Ade, June 12-13, 

 10 noted; Mar Mora, June 14-15, 10 birds. 



PLOCEUS RUBIGINOSUS RUBIGINOSUS Ruppell 



Ploceus ruhiffinostis Ruppell, Neue Wirbelthiere, zu der Fauna von Abyssinien 



gehorig, etc., Vogel, p. 93, pi. 33, fig. 1, 1840 : Abyssinia. 

 Specimens collected: 



1 male, Tertale, Ethiopia, June 9, 1912. 



14 males, 15 females, Mar Mora, Ethiopia, June 14-15, 1912. 



1 female, Anole, Ethiopia, June 17, 1912. 



1 male. Wobok, Ethiopia, June 18, 1912. 



2 females, Indunumara Mountains, Kenya Colony, July 14, 1912. 

 1 male, 4 females, Er-re-re, Kenya Colony, July 25, 1912. 



1 female, Le-se-dun, Kenya Colony, July 26, 1912. 



1 male, 3 females, Northern Guaso Nyiro River, Kenya Colony, August 1-2, 



1912. 

 1 female, Lekiundu River, Kenya Colony, August 8, 1912. 

 1 male, Guaso Mara River, Kenya Colony, August 9, 1912. 



1 male, 1 unsexed, 3 females. Tana River, Kenya Colony, August 14-19, 1912. 



2 females, junction of Tana and Thika Rivers, Kenya Colony, August 25, 

 1912. 



All these specimens are in winter plumage. 



The chestnut weaver ranges from Temben and Harrar and Shoa 

 south through southern Somaliland, Jubaland, and Kenya Colony, 

 to central Tanganyika Territory. According to Zedlitz ^^ it occa- 

 sionally occurs as far north as Eritrea. In southern Italian Somali- 

 land it is fairly abundant. In Gallaland it appears to be local. In 

 Kenya Colony the bird is found almost exclusively to the east of the 

 central highlands, although it has been taken at Nairobi. It gets 

 into extreme northeastern Uganda (Moroto) but appears to be 

 scarce there and in the Kendile area. In central and northern Tan- 

 ganyika Territory it is locally abundant. 



"Jouin. fur Orn., 1907, pp. 7-8. 

 "Journ. fur Orn., 1916, p. 14. 



