— 15 - 



average rainfall is about forty inches. The altitude varies con- 

 siderably. Eldoret itself is 6.842 feet, descending at the Nzola 

 River near the main bridge to 5.880 feet ("The Red Book", 1919). 



Around the township — through which the insignificant 

 River Socian flows — there are extensive grassplains, having a 

 rich bird -life. Penthetria laticauda suahelica, Estrilda astrild 

 nyansae, Macronyx croceus and Cisticola robusta amhigua were 

 the commonest occurrences. In the bushes and vegetation bor- 

 dering the banks of the above-mentioned river Nectarinia hili- 

 mensis and Cossypha caffra iolaema were common, and among 

 those occurring more sparingly may be mentioned Ces^icoZa tinniens 

 suhrufescens, Nectarinia famosa cupreonitens. 



The road from Eldoret to Soy passes through scrub-plains, 

 at about an average altitude of 6.200 feet and in these areas 

 we shot, among others, Lybius bidentatus acquatorialis, Strepio- 

 pelia capicola tropica, both of them quite common. Less common 

 were Lamprocolius splendidus, Cerchneis tinnunculus tinnunculus, 

 Bradornis pallidus murinus, and the bird newly described by 

 V. Someren, Serinus pseudobarbatus. 



By the numerous small rivers which we had to cross there 

 were generally larger or smaller wooded-patches and in these 1 

 met Musophaga violacea rossae, Lophoceros melanoleucos suahe- 

 licus and others. A day's march before Soy there is a shallow 

 little lake in the plains. Round the shores of this sheet of water 

 there grows a dense and tall reed-vegetation, and in the imme- 

 diate vicinity of the lake trees and bushes have united to form 

 a kind of wood. One of the commonest birds in this little lake 

 was Fulica cristata, and among ducks, Thalassiornis leuconotus 

 and Nyroca capensis occurred in fairly large numbers. The dense 

 reeds were frequented by Ixobrychus minutus payesi and innu- 

 merable other birds, while in the swampy, grass - clad areas 

 nearest the shores I met Ortygometra pusilla obscura. In the 

 bushes and thickets Dryoscopus gambensis nyansae and Halcyon 

 chelicuti chelicuti hid themselves and Ureginthus bengalus ugan- 

 dae was common here too, while Poicephalus meyeri saturatus 

 was often seen in small flocks. 



At Soy — about 35 miles from Eldoret, mid-way between that 

 place and Mount Elgon — Mirafra africana tropicalis was fairly 

 common and Corvultur albicoUis was found even in the town 

 itself. Here and there in the vicinity of human dwellings 

 Motacilla vidua also occurred and Cinnyris venustus falJcensteini 

 and Chalcomitra senegalensis aequaforialis appeared in the low 

 bushes along the small streams and rivers. 



During the last few days' march before reaching Elgon our 

 route lay chiefly through bush -plains, where Eurystomus afer 

 rufobuccalis and Corvinella corvina af finis, Lamprocolius splendi- 

 dus^ L. purpureus amethystinus and L. chalybaeus chalybaeus 

 were common. In the small groves sometimes found around the 



