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



trowner. A winter migrant to Africa. Seventeen specimens 

 in the British Museum collection measure : — from Tunis, 

 wing 165 ; Abyssinia, two cJ, 27 July, wings 173 & 165, one 

 young bird same date, no sex, wing 164, Ang. (J & ? , wings 

 173 & 167, Feb., ? in moult, and therefore wing only 158, 

 and another no date or sex, wing 170 ; British East Africa, two 

 ? in moult, wing 164 & 156 ; Matabeleland, Nov., ^ , wing 

 179; East Damaraland, Oct., (J, wing 167 ; Bechuanaland, 

 Jan., ^, wing 180, and three Feb., females, wings 174, 173, 

 & 171; Transvaal, Jan., (J & ? , wings 3 75 & 164 mm. 



Measurement of specimens from Pekin have the wing 

 in males 172; from Chefoo, S 177-168, ? 176-164; Tian 

 Shan, (^ 182 & 174 mm. ; thus giving a range of wing- 

 measurement for Chinese birds of 182-168 in males and in 

 females 174-164 mm. Swinhoe gives 7" = 177 mm. for 

 his type specimen, which was a male. 



According to Hartert op. cit. this Swift breeds in Persia, 

 Afglianistan, and south Siberia ; so that it seems feasible 

 that the birds that visit Africa during the northern winter 

 are those that have bred at the most western limits of its 

 range. 



The seventeen specimens enumerated above point to the 

 common line of migration being via the east coast, spreading 

 rather westward as the movement proceeds southwards, but 

 never occurring in west Africa proper. 



Tunis seems rather too far west to be strictly in the line 

 of migration of this bird, but certainly the single specimen 

 labelled from that locality does not differ from Chinese 

 birds. 



MiCBOPUS APUS SHELLEYI. 



Cypselus shelleyi Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civ. Gen. 1888, 

 p. 227 : Dembi, Shoa. 



A resident species in east Africa ; general colour very 

 similar to M. a. pekinensis, but mantle perhaps darker and 

 secondaries and coverts lighter. Size smaller, wing 160- 

 144 mm., type given as 157 mm. Eight specimens in the 

 British Museum collection ; from Abyssinia, ? , no date. 



