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



Centropus burchellii fasciipygialis. 



Ceniropus fasciipygialis Reichw. Orn. Monatsb. 1898, 

 p. 23 : Quilimane, Portuguese East Africa. 



In his original description Prof. Reichenow lias compared 

 this bird with C. senegalensis, but in the Vog. Afrikas, vol. ii. 

 1902, p. 61, he has placed it as a race of C. burchellii; in 

 this I agree with him. 



Young in first dress have the head, ear-coverts and nape 

 black., and the wing-feathers rather less banded than the 

 young of C. b. burchellii. 



The adult female has the head metallic blue-black, as in 

 the male ; the adult male not being distinguishable from 

 the adult male of C. b. burchellii. 



This race appears to go through the same stages of 

 plumage as does C. b. burchellii. 



Range. Beira and Zambesi Valley, northwards to southern 

 German East Africa and southern Nyasaland. 



Centropus superciliosus super ciliosus and its two races 

 appear to assume only one intermediate stage of dress 

 before the adult is reached ; this being identical with the 

 full adult but having the wing-feathers banded. 



Since the above has been written, my attention has been 

 drawn to Mr. Roberts' paper in the- Ann. Transv. Mus. 

 vol. iv. 1914, where on page 175 he has also come to the 

 conclusion that the records of C. superciliosus in southern 

 Africa are referable to the immature of C. burchellii. 



He has also described a new form allied to C. superciliosus 

 under the name Centropus pymi, the type-locality of which 

 is apparently given as Draaibosch, Kaftraria, though the 

 type is not designated. Burchell's specimen was probably 

 also secured very near this locality. 



On page 175 the bird is merely said to be larger than 

 C. superciliosus, but on page 177 a fuller description is given; 

 without seeing Mr. Roberts' specimens it would appear 

 from this description that C. pymi is one of the immature 

 dresses of C. burchellii ; also, the measurements given 

 in the table do nat differ appreciably from those of 

 C. burchellii. 



