3. MEROPS. 59 



♦ i*. Forehead, eyebrow, and cbeek- 



stripe white ; head brown, 

 contrasting with the green 



back supei-ciliosKs, p. 70. 



b'. Tail- blue, as well as upper tail- 

 coverts philippinus, p. 71. 



d*. A broad black patch on the fore 

 neck ; tail black, the centre 

 feathers washed or edged with 



greenish blue ornatus, p. 74. 



d'" . Throat without any yellow. 



ft'. No blackish terminal baud on the 



tail, but with black on the fore 



neck. 



c'. Throat white, followed by a 



broad band of black ; head 



black aWicollis, p. 76. 



J*. Throat green or blue, followed by 



a narrow line of black ; head 



green or reddish washed with 



green. 



c^. No blue on the forehead or 



eyebrow ; throat sometimes 



light blue, but more often 



green viridw, p. 78. 



d^. A narrow line of blue along 

 the base of the forehead and 



over the eye muscateiuls, p. 82. 



e^. A broad blue forehead and 



eyebrow cyanojjhri/s, p. 83. 



(/*. A blackish terminal band on the 

 tail ; head light chestnut : throat 



reddish fawn-colour boehmi, p. 83. 



b. Brea.st pink or rose-colour. 



c'. Back crimson-pink; head bluish gi-een; 

 lower back and rump bright cobalt, 

 c". Throat pink, like the rest of the under 



surface natalemis, p. 84. 



d". Tlu-oat bluish gi-een, conti-asting with 



pink breast nubicus, p. 85. 



d' . Back dark ashy; chin and cheeks white . maliinbicus, p. 86, 

 B. "With chestnut on the inner webs of the tail- 

 feathers underneath ; back green ; head and 

 throat black breiceri, p. 86. 



1. Merops muelleri *. 



Meropiscus muelleri, Casmi, Jouni. Philad. Acad. 1857, p. 37 ; Cab. 



^- Heine, Mus. Hein. Th. ii. p. 132, note (1860). 

 Merops muelleri, Hartl. Orn. W.-Afr. p. 262 (1857). 



* From the strong contrast of its colours and from its general appearance, 

 this species looks like a Mclittophagus, in ■which genus it bas been placed by 

 Mr. Dresser ; but if Melitt<rphagus is to be kept distinct from Merops, then 

 M. muelleri must be referred to the latter genus, as it has the central tail- 

 feathers elongated. 



