50 ANATIDiE. 



others on the sides of the rump ; sides of the head yellowish ; throat 

 white. 



Hah. Western Africa and across to the East, from Masai-land to 

 the Zamhesi. 



a. Ad. st. AMca. 



b. Imm. st. W. Africa. Capt. Sabine [P.]. 



c. Pull. St. W. Africa. Purchased. 



d. Imm. sk. Accra (J. Smith). Shelley Coll. 

 e,f. Imm. sk. R. Niger. Dr. Baikie [C.]. 



g. (S ad. sk. Cuueoe, Angola, AprU {An- Prof. Barboza du 



chieta). Bocage [P.]. 



^. r c? ?1 ad. sk.* Tai-eba, E. Air. (Massai-land) . H. C. V. Hunter, Esq. 



[P.]. 



i. 9 ad. sk. Lake Scherwa, Nyassa-land, H. H. Johnston, Esq. 



May. [P.]. 



k. (S pull. sk. Nyassa-land, May. H. H. Johnston, Esq. 



/. c? ad. sk.* River Shire. Sir J. Kirk [C.]. 



m. [ 2 ?] ad. sk. Zambesi. Sir J. Kirk [C.]. 



n. Skeleton (head fig. P. Z. S. 1860, p. 39, f. 1). 



o. Skeleton. Salvin-Godman Coll. 



3. Plectropterus niger. 



Plectropterus gambensis, part., G. H. Gr. List B. Brit. Mns. iii. 



p. 126, specim. d (Cape) (1844) ; Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 346 (descr. 



Zambesi; (1867) ; ? Chapm. Trav. in S. Afr., App. p. 422 (1868) ; 



Butl, Feild., ^- Eeid, Zooloy. 1882, p. 426 (Natal) ; Kolub, Beitr. 



Orn. SMafr. p. 310 (1882). 

 Anser gariepensis, Ecklon, MS. in Mus. Vindob., Jide Heuyl. Orn. 



N.O.-Afr. ii. p. 1277 (1873) (nom. nud.) ; Pek. Beitr. Orn. 



Sildafr. p. 321 (1882). 

 Plectropterus niger, Sclat. P. Z. S. 1877, p. 47, pi. \u. (Zanzibar !)t; 



Trimen, P. Z. S. 1879, p. 5 ; Sclat. P. Z. S. 1880, p. 498 (Zanzibar, 



coast of Africa) ; Rchmv. Voq. d. Zool. Giirt. p. 68 (1882) ; Sclat. 



List Vert. An. 8th ed. p. 4i6, n. 943 (E. Africa !) (1883) ; id. 



P. Z. S. 1893, p. 614 (Zool. Gard. Cologne). 



Similar to P. ruppelli and P. gamhensis, but has no prominent 

 frontal knob, and no bare spaces on the sides of the neck (?) ; no 

 white on the throat, which is black like the rest of the neck ; sides 

 of the body extensively black ; the white colour of the body in front 

 is confined to a small space in the mesial line of the lower abdomen ; 

 under tail-coverts mostly black : " bill bright red, with the tip 

 whitish ; the iris black ; the legs and feet of a duUer red '* (Sclater) ; 

 according to Ayres, " iris dark umber-brown ; bill bright crimson, 

 tip pale flesh-colour ; tarsus and feet dingy pale." Total length 

 about 38 inches, wing 20, tail 9, bill from gape 3*7, tarsus 5. 



* Both Bpecimens have the naked skin of the forehead furnished with 

 caruncles. 



i' As the type of P. niger agrees with specimens from Natal and Potchef- 

 stroom, I doubt whether it came from Zanzibar, especially as between this place 

 and Natal, in the Zambesi region, another species is found. 



