THE HONEY-GUIDES 181 



Uganda: Adult females in breeding condition reported (without 

 locality) between March 17 and July 5. 



Anglo-Egyptian Sudan: Kidepo River, 50 miles east of Torit, 

 female with greatly enlarged ovary, April 24. 



Ethiopia: "Said to be breeding" in April. 



Belgian Congo: Lukolela, female with soft egg in oviduct, Decem- 

 ber 12; Mahagi Port, egg. May 18; southeastern Belgian Congo, 

 breeds in October according to Alackworth-Praed and Grant (1952, 

 p. 743); Upemba Park, birds with enlarged gonads, March 18 and 

 June 3. 



Cameroons: Bitye, egg, late October; nestling, April 1. 



Nigeria: Owerri, females in breeding condition collected May 11, 

 August 3, and October 24; seen around colonies of Gymnobucco calvus 

 in all months but June. 



Gold Coast: Ejura and Mampong, males collected with testes 

 beginning to enlarge February 8, 11, suggesting breeding a few weeks 

 later. 



Liberia: About 35 miles from Monrovia, female with large ovarian 

 egg, September 30. 



Songs and Calls 



The "song," or, as it has been called, the "song-call" is a one-toned, 

 unmodified, repetitive, monotonous, faintly throaty kleeu or peew 

 note given in series of from 10 to 30 notes. The note is not loud 

 even when heard at close range, but, when once known, can be heard 

 and recognized at least 200 yards away. The interval between series 

 is from half a minute to two or even three minutes, usually nearer 

 the shorter than the longer time, and there is no appreciable varia- 

 tion in pitch, tempo, or intensity, no alteration in scale, and no 

 difference between notes except for the fact that the first note of a 

 series is often drawn out almost into two syllables, klee-eu or pe-ew. 

 I have heard it dozens of times and have never heard it except from 

 a bird perched in a call-site tree. A person not famUiar with the 

 sound would easily pass it by unheard, and would probably conclude 

 that the lesser honey-guide is a very silent bird. As the bird is apt 

 to sit in a sheltered place under the canopy of the foliage of a tall 

 tree, and as it blends in color with the olive shadows of the leaves, 

 it is quite inconspicuous and is undoubtedly overlooked by many 

 naturalists. Were its vocalisms more conspicuous and commanding 

 of attention the bird would be recorded much more frequently. 



It is not definitely known if this song-call is given only by the 

 male, or if the female may also "sing." According to information 

 from Pringle and Ranger, two birds collected after having been heard 

 singing from a call site day after day turned out to be males. Judg- 



