52 BUBOXID^. 



Total 



length. Wing. Tail. Tarsus. 



in. in. in. in. 



a. Ad. River Gambia (Rendall) . . 7-5 5-35 2-6 0-95 



h. Ad. "River Gambia (Rendall) . . 7-5 5-45 2-6 0-95 



c. Ad. M'bao, Senegal (3/wr/(<>) . . 7-5 5-35 2-7 1-0 



d. Ad. Damara (Andersson )...... 6o 5-0 2-6 0-9 



e. Ad. Bengiiela (Moiiteiro) 7-5 5-3 2-6 0-9o 



/. Ad. Cape of Good Hope 7-0 5-35 2-6 09 



^. Ad. Cape of Good Hope 7-o 54 2-8 0-9 



It will be seen by the above measurements that Dr. Finsch was 

 (juite right in his facts about the smaller size of the African bird ; 

 but the plumage of the Senegal iScops is not distinguishable from 

 that of European birds, and I cannot allow the distinctness of S. 

 senegalensis as constituting any thing more than a slighth^ smaller 

 race of S. giu. I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. Salvin for 

 submitting to me the type of Scojys senegalaisis of Swainson, which 

 is the first bird mentioned in the above table of measurements. 



The South-.ifrican birds, however, are different from S. ghi^ being 

 so extremely dark in colour, as well as of such a small size ; but 

 they can hardly be regarded as constituting more than a dark race, 

 though the characters appear pretty constant. The true S. capensis 

 occurs in X.E. Africa, as Lord ^Yalden has kindly lent me the 

 example collected by Mr. Jesse during the Abyssinian expedition, 

 and referred to by Dr. Finsch (/. c). Dr. von Heuglin also con- 

 siders that both forms occur in X.E. Africa, <S. giu being a winter 

 visitor to Egypt, while S. ccqyensis he believes to be a resident in 

 the warmer parts of X.E. Afi-ica (cf. Heugl. Orn. N.O.-Afr. i. 

 p. 118). 



Subsp. o. Scops capensis*. (Plate III. fig. 1.) 



Le Scops, Levaill. Ois. d'Afr. i. p. 1(32. 



Scops europteus, Smith, S.-Afr. Q. Joiirn. 2nd ser. no. 4, pt. 1, p. 314. 



Scops capensis, Smith, I. c. p. 314 ; Bp. Rev. et Mag. de ZooL 1854, 



p. 543; Socage, Jorn. Lish. ii. pp. 38, 338; Gray, Hand-l. B. i. p. 45; 



* Mr. Cassin described a Scops Owl from Western Africa, characterized as 

 follows : — 



Scops hen'dersoxi. 



Ephialtes hendersoni, Cass. Pr. Phil. Acad. 1852, p. 186. 



Scops hendersoni, Hartl. Om. W.-Afr. p. 20; Gray, Hand-l. B. i. p. 46. 



" Colours generally very similar to tliose of E. capensis (Smith) and E. senc- 

 galensis (Sw. ), but darker and with the fine lines and points of brown through- 

 out the plumage much more numerous and distinct. Entire plumage above 

 cinereous, mixed on the neck, back, and rump with bright fulvous, every feather 

 longitudinally striped and with numerous very irregular transverse lines and 

 points of brownish black, most distinct on the head and back ; frontal feathers 

 nearly white, tufts and face very pale cinereous, striped longitudinally and 

 minutely lined with dark brown ; plumage below variegated with white and 

 brown, with a tinge of fulvous, every feather having stripes and minute lines 

 and points, as on the back, but less numerous, with the white predominating 

 and nearly pure on the lower abdomen and under tail-coverls ; qiuUs brown, 



