on Birds fron Shendi, Sudan. 15 



while. We never saw one make a flight of any length, 

 or rise more than a few feet from the ground. 



A nest containing four eggs was found on March 18th 

 in a dense acacia-bush some miles out in the desert. Ic 

 was a loosely built cup-shaped structure of small twigs and 

 dry grass. The eggs resemble those of other species of the 

 genus Argya, being of a beautiful glossy greenish blue and 

 measuring 24-3 by 17-5, 23-4 by 17-7, 23-5 by 17-6, and 24 

 by 17'7 mm. 



34. PvcNONOTUs ARSiNOE (Hcmpr. & Ehrenb.). 

 414 (sex ?). 



These Bulbuls were fairly common at Shendi and shewed a 

 strong partiality for the neighbourhood of man. In their 

 song and general behaviour they are not unlike the Black- 

 bird, sitting day after day in the same tree, sometimes 

 singing and sometimes driving away a swarm of too venture- 

 some Sparrows {Passer rufidorsalis) . 



A nest containing two young birds was found on March 7th. 

 It was a light cup-shaped structure of grass and was 

 slung in a climbing gourd-plant about eight feet above the 

 ground. 



35. Spiloptila clamans (Temm.). 



118 c?,206 S, 305 S, 119 ? , 138 ?, 284 ? , 304 ?, 

 306(?). 



We first saw this beautiful little bird on February 26th ; 

 towards the end of March the numbers seemed to have 

 increased considerably. They were sometimes to be seen 

 in pairs, but more often in parties of six or eight, flying 

 about in the desert from one bush to another, always swinging 

 their long tails from side to side, and constantly uttering 

 their loud call-note. On March 25th we observed a pair 

 building a nest in a low bush in the desert ; it was about 

 eighteen inches above the ground and was a domed egg- 

 shaped structure of fine grass, lined with a few feathers ; 

 there was a small round opening on either side. Unluckily, 

 however, no eggs had been laid when we left Shendi two 

 davs later. 



