BIRDS OF ETHIOPIA AND KENYA COLONY 443 



Erlanger ^^ found this bird in Arussi-Gallaland, southern Italian 

 Somaliland, and Jubaland. He found four nests as follows: A nest 

 with four much incubated eggs at Damaso in Garre-Lewin district, 

 May 14; a nest with six fresh eggs, at Abrona, near Bardera, May 

 26; another with seven fresh eggs at Sarigo, Garre-Lewin country, 

 Ma}' 8 ; and one with five incubated eggs at Solole, southern Somali- 

 land, June 11. The nests are placed from 1 to 4 meters up in acacia 

 trees and are often built near wasps' nests. 



Mearns made no observations on the breeding habits or season, but 

 a study of the molt and plumage condition of his specimens does not 

 fit in very well with a notion of a very limited breeding season, 

 such as Erlanger's May and June nests would seem to indicate. 

 Birds taken in December at Dire Daoua are either in worn plumage 

 or in molt; those taken in February and May (Hawash River and 

 Reishat) are abraded; the Sagon River bird (June 5) is in fresh 

 plumage, as are also the July and August birds from farther south. 

 The two Juvenal birds are in worn plumage and show signs of molt. 



The Juvenal plumage is very different from the adult stage. The 

 head, back, and wings are uniform Saccardo's umber; the tail and 

 upper tail coverts dull reddish as in the adults; the underparts are 

 pale ashy buff, much suffused with pale Saccardo's umber on the chin, 

 throat, breast, sides, flanks, thighs, and under tail coverts; the bill is 

 all black. 



Since this paper was first written, van Someren ^^ has described 

 another subspecies of this weaver, P. m, jubaensis^ from Serenli, 

 Jubaland, based on 18 specimens. This form is said to be nearest to 

 icirki (which he recognizes), but intergrades toward helli. 



LAGONOSTICTA RUBRICATA RHODOPAREIA Heuglin 



Lagonosticta rhodopareia Heuglin, Journ. ftir Orn., 1868, p. 16: Keren. 

 Spexiimens coixexhted: 



8 adult males, 3 adult females, Gato River near Gardula, Ethiopia, April 



13-May 14, 1912. 

 2 adult males, 1 adult female ?, Bodessa, Ethiopia. May 25-29, 1912. 

 1 adult female, Sagon River, Ethiopia, June 6, 1912. 

 1 immature "male," Tertale, Ethiopia, June 11, 1912. 



Soft parts: Iris brown, eye rim pink; bill plumbeous tipped with 

 black; feet and claws plumbeous. 



This is the series on which Mearns based his form fricki;^^ one 

 of the males (U.S.N.M. no. 247543) is the type of frichi. When 

 describing the latter, Mearns merely wrote that "as pointed out by 



»• Joum. fUr Orn., 1007, p. 18. 



" Nov. Zool.. vol. 37, p. 326, 1932. 



»* Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol. 61, -lo. 14, p. 4, 1913 : Gato River near Gardula. 



