— 163 — 



In youDger males in the transition to the full dress the 

 yellow band on the nape is scarcely indicated, tbut shades almost 

 imperceptibly into the olive-yellow colour of he back. 



Whether the size of the bill is, or can be, conclusive in 

 placing the two races, I cannot decide with certainty, as the 

 material I have had for examination has been too small. Still, 

 it seems to me to be unlikely. 



With reference to the colour of the females there are also 

 small differences. Thus, two have predominantly pale brownish 

 markings on the mantle, while the other two incline more to 

 grey. And one specimen (rather young) has the head a more 

 uniform olive -green and the dark streaks to the feathers are 

 not so conspicuous as in the others. 



There are also differences in the brownish wash of the 

 belly. 



When comparing my male specimens with the collection of 

 .^Weaver birds in the Berlin Museum I found that they agreed 

 perfectly with the specimens found there of fischeri Rchw. (type- 

 specimen also in Berlin) from Wadelai and other districts, and 

 also with two specimens in Stockholm from Rutschuru, East 

 Congo (vide Lonnberg: Arkiv. for Zool, Band 10, No. 24, 

 Stockholm 1917, p. 27). Thus, when v. Someren (Ibis 1916) 

 calls specimens procured from Uganda and East Africa dimi- 

 diatus, it seems remarkable that a North Abyssinian bird (type 

 from Kassala) should go so far south as Victoria Nyanza. 

 Ogilvie-Grant has, it is true (Zool. Res. Ruw. Exp., 1910, 

 p. 275), written that the latter bird occurs "from Wadelai in the 

 north to South Ruwenzori in the South and eastwards to En- 

 tebbe", but he seems to have overlooked the fact that dimidiatus 

 up to that time was known from North Abessynia and, according 

 toJagerskiold (Res. Swed. Zool. Exp. to Eygpt & White Nile 

 1901, Upsala 1903, p. 2) from Kaka in Shelluk on the White 

 Nile. Whether G rant's specimens are dimidiatus and not 

 fischeri is therefore doubtful. However, Sclater&M. -Praed 

 (Ibis 1918, p. 438) have remarked that dimidiatus "has never 

 been found between the type locality and the Lake District" and 

 that "it seems probable, therefore, that there was some mistake 

 about the type locality and the bird is not a Sudanese form at 

 all", ' The range of dimidiatus thus coincides with that of 

 fischeri. 



V. Someren, who has seen my specimens, shot on the 

 same spot as his, has also fixed them as dimidiatus. And jud- 

 ging from the description in "the Ibis" they agree perfectly. 

 But according to Reichenow (Vog. Afr. III. p. 69) dimidiatus 

 has the breast and belly chestnut, upperparts golden yellow (see 

 also plate III Ann. del Mus. Civ. Stor. Nat. Geneva, 1873), which 

 neither v. Someren's specimens nor mine have. They should 

 thus undoubtedly be named fischeri. 



11* 



