246 Capt. G. E. Shelley on a Collection of 



now and again in diflferent parts of the country ; but they do 

 not appear to be nearly so numerous as further south. 



I see Mr. Sharpe thinks I am mistaken as to the identifi- 

 cation of tlie eggs of this species ; but I am perfectly certain 

 that I am not. Perhaps the bird sometimes lays white eggs ; 

 but 1 have never found such to be the case. 



49. CoccYSTEs jAcoBiNus (Bodd.) . 



(145) ^ , MangwatOj 28th December. Iris dark umber ; 

 bill black ; tarsi and feet dark dusky ash-colour. 



Not uncommon at this time of the year in many parts of 

 the country. 



50. Centropus natalensis^ n. sp. 



\_AdHlt. Upper half of the head and neck^ including the 

 cheeks^ brownish black with a green gloss, and a partial 

 white eyebrow commencing at the nostril ; back and wings 

 rufous brown, Avith the mantle, inner secondaries, and ends of 

 the quills of a dark and more olive- brown shade, with narrow 

 pale shaft-stripes to the feathers of the hind neck and mantle, 

 some of which stripes fade into buff; rump, upper tail- 

 coverts, and basal portion of the tail narrowly barred with 

 buff'; tail-feathers narrowly tipped with white; underparts 

 buffj with broad glossy buff" shafts to the feathersof the throat 

 and chest; on the lower throat the feathers are partially 

 barred from the edges with brown, deepening into black 

 towards the sides of the neck, where the feathers have their 

 outer margins black, causing these parts to be distinctly 

 striped with black and buff; the sides of the body and the 

 under tail-coverts are narrowly barred with dusky black ; 

 bill black, with a pale portion towards the base of the lower 

 mandible; legs black; iris red. Total length 17 inches, 

 culmen 1-5, wing Q-7 , tail 8-6, tarsus 1*75. 



Hab. Natal and Transvaal, where it is very abundant. 



This species is, in some respects, intermediate between C. 

 senegalensh' and C. super ciliosiis. From the former it differs, 

 and assimilates to the latter, in having the rump, upper tail- 

 coverts, and basal portions of the tail barred, and in the white 

 tips to the tail-feathers, which I fancy would be always a 



