1. MicROPirs. 447 



There is a specimen from Beuguela iu which the chin is nearly 

 uniform in colour with the breast. 



Hah. From Madeira and the Canary Islands through Southern 

 Spain and some of the islands in the Mediterranean, the greater 

 part of Northern Africa to Egypt and Bogos-land, and as far east as 

 the Persian Gulf and Sindh. It M'anders to South Africa in winter, 

 where, however, it is not found further south than Damara-land. 



a, b. Ad. sk. Teiieriffe, ^\a\\ 28 (F. D. G.). Salviu-Godman Coll. 



c. (S ad. sk. Madeira, June 18 {F. D. G.). Salvin-Godman Coll. 



d. (5 ad. sk. Madeira. W.T.Carruthers,Esn. 



[P.l. 



e. S ad. sk. Gibraltar, April 21. Lt.-Col. Irby [P.]. 



f. S ad. ; g, h. Malaga [Saunders). Tweeddale Coll. 

 2 ad. sk. 



i. 2 ad. sk. Andalusia, May 7. Lt.-Col. Irby [P.]. 



k. Imm. sk. Malta. Adams Coll. 



/. 5 imm. sk. Crete, March 27. Capt. Verner [P.]. 



m. Ad. sk. Upper Egj'pt. Purchased. 



71. cS ad. sk. Egypt, Feb. 12. Shelley Coll. 



(Type of C. jxdlidus.) 

 o. (S ad. sk. Egypt. Shelley CoU. 



p. Ad. sk. Egypt, Nov. 26. J. H. Gurnev, Esq. 



[P.]. 

 q. Ad. sk. Cataracts of Nile. Gould Coll. 



>•. Ad. sk. Benguela. Monteiro Coll. 



s, t. Ad. sk. Fao, Persian Gulf. W. D. Cuming, Esq. 



[P-]- 

 %i, V. S ad. sk. Muscat, Feb. 23 [A. O. II.). Hume Coll. 



^) 'I'- d 2 ad. sk. Karachi, Siudh, Feb. 7. Hume Coll. 



4. Micropus barbatus. 



Cypselus apus, Guniey, Ibis, 1863, p. 320 ; id. Ibis, I860, p. 264 

 Finsch, Trans. Zool. Soc. vii. p. 213 (1870) (discuss.) ; Sharpe, ed. 

 LayarcPs B. S. Afr. p. UO, part. (1875). 



Cypselus barbatus, 6W. P. Z. iS. 1865, p. 599 (S. Afr. ; e.v Temm. MS.) ; 

 Tristr. P. Z. S. 1867, p. 887 ; Finsch, Trails. Zool. Soc. vii. p. 214 

 (1870) (discuss.) ; Gurney in Anderss. B. Damara-Ld. p. 47 (1872). 



Nearly allied to M. ajms, but larger, the feathers of the flanks 

 and abdomen with whitish edges, the dusky-white chin with well- 

 defined blackish-brown shaft-stripes, whereas in M. apus these are 

 only indicated and often hardly visible. General colour as dark as 

 in the darkest Western specimens of M. apus. Wing 7-1 to 7*4 

 inches, central rectrices 2'1, lateral 3-2. 



Hah. Known from the Cape Colony only. 



Although the majority of authorities have come to the conclusion 

 that there is no such species as M. harhatus, I cannot agree with 

 them. It is easily distinguished by the characters given above, 

 and I do not doubt that the whitish edges to the feathers of the 

 flanks and abdomen are a constant character, as the birds before 

 me appear to be fully adult. The greenish gloss is rather stron". 

 While M. harhatus is probably a resident in South Africa, the true 

 M, apus appears there as a migrant and in large numbers. 



