2 LEPTOSOMATID.Ti;. 



Cuculii^ discolor, Ilerm. Tubl. Affiii. Anim. p. ISO (1777). 



African Cuckow cum var. A, 'Lath. Gen. Si/n. i. pt. 2, p. 532 



(1782). 

 Cuculiis ffineus, Bocld. Tahl. PI. Enl. p. 3G (1783). 

 Cuculus afer, Gm. S. N. i. p. 418 (1788). 

 Le Vourong Driou, Lcmill. Ois. v.^p. 24, pis. 22(3, 227 (1806); 



iSiuulev. Crit. out Levuill. p. 49 (1857). 

 Bucco africnnus, Steph. in S/iaw's Gen. Zool. ix. p. 25 (1815). 

 Leptosomus vourong-clriou, Dumont, Diet. 8ci. Nat. xi. p. 145 



(1818). 

 Leptosomus afer, Temm. Man. efOrn. p. Ixxiv (1820) ; Steph. Gen. 



Zool. xiv. p. 207 (1826) ; Bp. Con&p. p. 96 (1850) ; Hartl. Faun. 



Maday. p. 63 (1861) ; Rach ^- E. Newt. Ibis, 1863, p. 453. 

 Yourougdriou afer, Kuhl, Fig. Av. Col. Nom. Syst. p. 10 (1820\ 

 Leptosomus viridis, Vieill. N. Diet. d'Hist. Nat. xxxvi. p. 251 (1819) ; 



id. ^- Oudart, Gal. Ois. i. p. 20, pi. xl. (1825) ; Less. Traite, p. 134 



(1831) ; Swai?is. Clussif. B. ii. p. 333 (1837). 

 Leptosomus crombus, Less, Traite, p. 134 (1831). 

 Crombus madagascarieusis, lieiehenh. llandb., Merop. p. 52, tab. 435. 



fig. 3190 (18.52). 

 Leptosomus afer, B^). Consp. Volner. Zyyod. p. 13 (1854). 

 Leptosomus discolor. Cab. S,- Heine, Mas. Ilein. Tli. iv. p. 57 (1862) ; 



>M. Ibis, 1864, p. 299; Hartl. Voy. Maday. p. 255 (1877); 



Mihte-Edw. ^ Grand. Hist. Nat. Maday., Ois. i. p. 224, pis. Ixxxiii.- 



Ixxxviii. (1879) ; Milne-Edw. S,- Oustalet, N. Arch. Mus. (2) vi. 



p. 23S (1888). 

 Leptosoma discolor. Set. P. Z. S. 1865, p. 682 ; A. Newt. t. c. p. 834 ; 



Grandid. Per. et May. de Zool. 1867, p. 354; Schl. ^- Poll. Faun. 



Madaq., Ois. p. 157 (1868); Grat/, Haiid-l. B. i. p. 77, no. 912 



(1869); Sharpe. P. Z. 8. 1870, p. .398; id. Ibis, 1871, p. 285; 



Shelley, P. Z. S. 1879, p. 673 (pt.). 



Adult male. Crown of head, crested, dull plumbeous grey glossed 

 with metallic green and copper ; lores, cheeks, and a collar round 

 the back of the neck dark ashy grey ; entire back, scapulars, and 

 least wing-coverts glossy green, everywhere tinged with shining 

 coppery red ; greater wing-covcrts eniii'cly coppery red ; primary- 

 coverts dull stecl-grcen ; quills greyish black, the inner web white 

 at the base, the outer web glossed with green, as also the secondaries, 

 which have the outer web cop])ery red like the scapulars ; tail 

 greyish black, strongly glossed with metallic green and slightly with 

 coppery red ; entire under surface of body dark ashy grey, becoming 

 white on the abdomen and under wing- and tail-coverts : " hill dark 

 brown ; tarsus brown in front, orange behind ; soles orange ; iris 

 dark brown" (£". Newton). Total length 16 inches, culmen 1*7, 

 wing 10, tail 8, tarsus 1"15. 



Adult female. Different from the male. General colour above 

 rufous-brown, barred on the sides of the head and back of the 

 neck with glossy black ; crown of head for the most part black ; 

 entire back brown, spotted with fulvous, and everywhere glossed 

 with dull green and copperj--rcd shades: wiug-co verts black, spotted 

 with chestnut, glossed with coppery red ; quills greyish black, 

 white at the base of the inner web ; secondaries barred and mar- 



