12 Mr. C. H. B. Grant on a Collection of 



FrANCOLINUS SEPHiENA ICTEROPUS. 



Franco/inus icteropus Heugl. Sitzb. Ak. Wien, vol. xix, 

 1856, p. 303 : Simehu, N. Abyssinia, nom. mid. ; J. f. O. 

 1862, p. 412, 1st descrip. : wing given as 4'9" = 125 mm.; 

 id, Orn. N. O.-Afr. vol. iii. 1873^ p. 885: wing given as 

 5" 10" = 150 mm., and mentions that the original type, a 

 female, is in Vienna ; see also Hartl. P. Z. S. 1865, p. &QQ., 

 ])1. 39. fig. 2 (lower figure) from a drawing by Heuglin. 

 Of this I consider F. spilogaster Salvad. (Ann. Mus. Civ. 

 Gen. vol. vi. 1888, p. 541 : Harar, E. Abyssinia), wing given 

 as 170 mm., and F. schoanus Heugl. (Orn. N. O.-Afr. iii. 

 1873, p. 891 : Shoa, C. Abyssinia) must become synonyms. 



F. icteropus Heugl. has always been placed under the 

 synonymy of F. erckeli, but a careful examination of the de- 

 scrijttion and of the measurements given, and especially of 

 the plate in the P. Z. S. 1865, of which Heuglin himself says : 

 " The drawing was made from the freshly killed bird, several 

 specimens of F. erckeli and F. gutturalis being near me at 

 the time," convinces me that it is an excellent representa- 

 tion of a female of the striped bellied form of the " sephcena " 

 group of Francolins. 



A rather large race, having the wing in Abyssinian speci- 

 mens : S 154-147, ? 149-146 mm.; Somali: S 1^0- 

 150 mm. 



Range : Abyssinia and Somaliland. 



I have now only two other names to deal with : F. rovuma 

 ( ? part) Gray (List Gall. B. j\I. 1867, published Mar. 6, 

 p. 52 : llovuma River, P.E.A.-G.E.A. border), which pre- 

 occupies the F. kirkii Hartl. (P. Z. S. Nov. 14, 1867, p. 827 : 

 Zanzibar). 



F. rovuma of Gray, although founded on two different 

 birds, must go to the Rovuma River specimen by tauto- 

 nymy, and the type, which is in the British Museum and is 

 not sexed, is a bird with a striped belly. It is specimen " a " 

 of Gray's List. 



Hartlaub described his F. kirkii from a mutilated specimen, 

 and gave as one character the " arrow-shaped black spots of 

 upper tail-coverts," which points to an immature female, as 

 does the wing-measuremcut of 5". 



