Birds from British East Africa. 503 



two or three pairs were always hopping about iu the bushes 

 close to our tents and were absurdly tame ; on one occasion 

 a little Warbler, which I think was of this species, flew to a 

 gauze cage in which were some small lizards, and, clinging 

 to the side, endeavoured to get at the flies which I had put 

 in for the lizards to feed on. They had, no doubt, seen 

 them from the bush close by. 



83. CisTicoLA sTRAXGii. Strauge's Fantail- Warbler. 

 Cisticola strangei Sharpe. 



Bill light brown; legs light brown. 

 Abundant everywhere. 



84. Cisticola hindii. Hinde's Fantail-Warbler. 

 Cisticola hindei Sharpe. 



Hinde's Fantail-Warbler was widespread and frequented 

 the long grass in the more open country. It has a fairly 

 strong flight and a very distinctive sharp note. 



85. Cisticola rufa. Fraser's Grass- Warbler. 

 Cisticola rufa (Hartl.). 



Fraser's Grass-Warbler was rather rare, and only two 

 examples were shot. 



86. Melocichla orientalis. Sharpens Large Grass- 

 Warbler. 



Melocichla orientalis Sharpe. 



I suspect that Sharpe's Large Grass-Warbler is commoner 

 than I thought, but I only identified it twice, and it is repre- 

 sented in the collection by a single example which was found 

 caught in one of my small mouse-traps at Theki. I was 

 seldom able to identify any of the smaller Warblers until I 

 returned to England, and it was difficult to take any notes 

 of the habits of a bird when I did not know whether I had 

 seen it previously or not, and equally difficult, when so many 

 species are much alike, to know whether I had got a specimen 

 before — as, owing to our being continually on the move, 

 every skin had to be packed up directly it was dried. 



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