of North-Eastern Africa. 411 



ing are divided along the middle. The region below the eye is 

 covered with short, dense, downy feathers beneath the bristles. 

 The upper parts of the body are smoky grey ; the sides of the 

 forehead whitish ; the cilia black ; the uropygium and the upper 

 tail-coverts are dark coffee-brown, with white margins ; the 

 under parts greyish brown ; sides and middle of the belly with 

 white cross-lines and dots ; under tail-coverts and feathers of the 

 tarsi white, the latter with light-brown cross-lines, the former 

 with scattered broadened arrow-shaped spots of the same colour. 

 Wings above dark ash-grey ; below whitish, with broad brownish- 

 black tips and narrow well-marked dark cross-bands, on the pri- 

 maries from four to six, but increasing in number and breadth 

 on the secondaries. The inner webs of the primaries become 

 lighter towards the roots. The bend of the wing and under 

 wing-coverts are pure white, the latter with some brownish 

 transverse or arrow-shaped spots in younger birds : tail white, 

 with the base blackish, sometimes with a dirty greyish tinge 

 above, with two broad brownish-black cross-bands and a narrow 

 whitish extremity. Some wing-feathers, apparently quite re- 

 cently developed, show white margins. The fourth primary is 

 longest, extending nearly to the end of the tail; the third is 

 rather shorter; the first is nearly as long as the eighth. The 

 primaries from the third to the fifth are emarginated exteriorly, 

 and from the second to the sixth interiorly. The whole length 

 of an adult male is 19 in. 5 lin. : wing 14 in. 9 lin. : bill from 

 gape 1 in. 5^ lin. : tarsus 2 in. 7| lin. : tail 7 in. 9 lin. : middle 

 toe 1 in. 5 lin., claw of same 9jlin. : hind toe 9^ lin., claw of 

 same 10 lin. (French measurement). 



The plumage of the immature bird is of a more dirty brownish- 

 grey colour, the white transverse streaks on the belly are fainter, 

 and the scapularies have ferruginous margins. The male and 

 female are scarcely distinguishable in colour, and very little dif- 

 ferent in size. 



The iris is light brownish yellow; bill and cere pale yellow, 

 the former with horny-black extremity ; feet bright ochreous ; 

 nails horny black. 



I am sorry not to know anything about the habits of this 

 bird. 1 myself saw it only once, perched on a mimosa which 



