234 DICKTJRID^. 



Adult. General colour above greenish black, somewhat greyer oa 

 the rump ; wing-coverts and quills black, the coverts and the secon- 

 daries narrow!}' edged with the same glossy green as the hack ; tail 

 black, the feathers washed on their outer webs with glossy greenish 

 black ; lores and frontal feathers, as well as the sides of the face, 

 black, the latter with a slight gloss ; under surface of bod}' greyish 

 black, with a slight greenish gloss on the breast-feathers ; " bill and 

 legs black ; iris deep orange." Total length 7 inches, culmen 0-8, 

 wing 3-9, tail 3-7, tarsus 0-7. 



Tail of Dicrurus ludwigii. 



Hah. South-eastern Africa. 

 a. Ad. sk. Natal. R. B. Sharpe, Esq. 



2. CHIBIA. T^^ 



Chibia, Hoclgs. Lid. Review, i. p. 324 (1837) C. hottentotta. 



Cometes, Hodgs. J. A. S. B. x. p. 29 (1841) C. hottentotta. 



Trichometopus, Cab. Mus. Hein. Th. i. p. 112 (1850). . C. hottentotta. 



Range. India generally, ranging into Assam and Burmah. through 

 the Malayan peninsula to the Moluccas, being found in all the prin- 

 cipal groups of the Indo-Malayan and Austro-Malayan islands, and 

 extending to N. Australia. 



Key to the Species. 



a. Head ornamented with several long silky hairs 



springing from the forehead, and falling back- 



wai'ds over the nape hottentotta, p. 235. 



b. Silky hairs on the head either absent or only 



sUghtly developed. 

 a'. Tail not 7 inches long. 

 a". Silky plumes on the sides of the lower 

 back ashy whitish. 

 a'". MetalUc shade on neck-hackles and on 

 the spangles of the breast steel-green ; 

 loral plumes only moderately dense bracteata, p. 236. 

 b"'. Metallic shade on the neck-hackles and 

 spangles of breast purplish ; loral plumes 

 veiy full, and curved forwards in the 

 form of a small drooping crest (see 



fig. p. 237) bimaetisis, p. 237. 



b". Silky plumes on the sides of the lower 

 back blackish. 

 c"'. Metallic shade on neck-hackles purplish, 



