490 Mr. G. H. Gurney on 



feet across ; the grass is completely trampled down except 

 for a tuft which is left standing in the middle. It is a most 

 extraordinary sight to see the males in full breeding- 

 plumage with a tail a foot long performing in these dancing- 

 grounds. They begin by scratching with their feet in the 

 ground, and make the earth fly out beneath their tails, 

 which they hold straight up, almost touching the back of 

 their heads ; in this position they have a ridiculous similarity 

 to little cocks ; they then spring into the air four or five 

 times with quivering wings and feathers much puffed out ; 

 after a short rest the whole performance is repeated. 



14. Pyromelana xanthomelana. Black-thighed Weaver- 

 Finch. 



Pyromelana xanthomelana (Riipp.). 



Iris dusky brown ; bill brown ; feet reddish-brown. 



We shot the Black-thighed Weaver-Finch on the hills 

 behind Theki ; it was not uncommon, but I did not observe 

 it anywhere else. 



15. Pyromelana capensis. Black-and-Yellow Weaver- 

 Finch. 



Pyromelana capensis Sharpe. 

 Iris dark brown ; bill whitish ; feet brown. 

 A single male of this species was shot at Naivasha on 

 February 23rd ; it was not obtained again. 



16. Ploceipasser melanorhynchus. Black-billed Weaver- 

 Finch. 



Ploceipasser melanorhynchus Riipp. 



Iris brown ; bill black ; legs brown. 



Black-billed Weaver-Finches were common at two or 

 three of our camps on the Athi River ; they were very noisy, 

 and at one place we found a large colony of their nests 

 hanging from branches of small acacia-trees ; these were 

 big untidy structures made of fine grass ; none of them 

 contained eggs, though the birds were observed haunting 

 the nests. 



