— 255 — 



On this account he styles both the East African and West African 

 specimens salax. This opinion is also shared by Lonnberg (Arkiv 

 for Zool., Band II, No. 3, 1917). 



With regard to the extent of the reddish-brown patch on 

 the fore-neck Reichenow finds no difference between East 

 and West Africans although H a r t e r t says that in salax it is 

 2 — 3 cm. wide, but in axillaris only 1 — IV* cm. In this I agree 

 with Reichenow. 



Ogilvic-Graut (Zool. Res. Ruw. Exp., 1910, pp. 375— 

 376) has already pointed out how this reddish brown band "varies 

 greatly in extent in different individuals, quite irrespective of 

 season", and the different instances he gives, along with a few 

 others, are represented in the present series of 16 cfcT (see 

 Plate). Lonnberg also mentions the same thing (op. cit.). 

 The most interesting are those which 0-G r an t correctly names 

 "quite young males in first plumage". In these the reddish 

 brown band is in some cases as wide as 15 cm. and besides, 

 the lower surface is more or less brown-spotted. Further, in 

 one of them the black feathers of the throat are tipped with 

 brown, as well as the feathers of the upper surface — from the 

 forehead to the upper wing-coverts. 



Even 99 ^ai^y somewhat. In general the fore-ueck is a 

 deeper reddish-brown than the rest of the lower surface, but in 

 some the whole of lower parts are of the same dark colour as 

 the fore-neck. 



That salax and axillaris are really two good forms, seems 

 to me doubtful. I have examined and measured 12 cfcT and 

 9 99 ^""om the collection at the Berlin iMuseum procured from 

 different parts of East Africa, and among these there are indi- 

 viduals with a white inner-web to the wings, others with brown, 

 and as the reddish-brown patch of the fore-neck is not of any 

 systematic value, I have, in the same manner as Re i c h e n o w. 

 Grote, Lonnberg, Ogilvie -Grant and others, called 

 my specimens salax. 



Wing, Tarsus, 



70, 74, 69, 70, 70, 7 1 , 68, 68 mm. 22 - 23 mm. cTcT ad. Ngong, Nai- 



washa, Kikuyu. 

 70, 71 mm. 22—23 mm. cfcT ad. Londiani. 



67, 68, 70, 70, 70, 72 mm. 22—23 mm. cTcT a. I. Eton. 

 67 mm. 22 mm. 9 'i<'- Kikuyu. 



69, 70, 71, 75 mm. 23 mm. 99 ^d. Londiani. 



66, 67, 67, 70 mm. 21—23 mm. 99 ad. Elgon. 



66, 67, 70, 70 mm. 22—24 mm. 99 juv. „ 



Those measured in the Berlin Museum vary between: cTcT 

 67-73; 99 66—71 mm. (The type from Gaboon, cT 63 mm.) 

 Of these before me only one cT attains 74 mm. and one 9 

 72 mm., the others fall within the figures of the Berlin specimens. 



