94 



when the bird stands facing the setting sun, often 

 gives the throat and breast the appearance of a 

 glowing ember, so that the bird looks as if it was red- 

 breasted, although no sign of such colour is visible 

 under ordinary illumination. The rest of the under 

 surface is pure white with a pale greyish tinge towards 

 the sides. The lores, chin, a line through the eye and 

 the primary quills are black; the edge of the wing 

 white, its under surface blackish grey ; tail-feathers 

 blackish with a purple gloss above, except the two 

 centre ones, whicli are entirely purple ; below it is a 

 very dark grey. Some males have brown edges to 

 nearly all the purple feathers ; this one finds chiefly 

 in birds shot during the dry season. These may be 

 young birds, or on the other hand the full brilliant 

 plumage may only be attained in the rains (the breed- 

 ing season) by the shedding of these brown edges. 

 Both my birds were caught just before the rains, and 

 these two had no sign of brown edging. 



The female is very different from the male ; above 

 brown, mottled, most of the feathers having lighter 

 edges ; wings and tail darker; below whitish with an 

 indistinct rufous band across the chest. Length about 

 6J inches, that is rather larger than a Nightingale. 

 Irides bright yellow in the male, a paler yellow in the 

 female; bill and feet black in both sexes. 



In the first of the two volumes on West African 

 birds in the Naturalists' Library published as long ago 

 as 1843, Swainson describes both sexes of this species 

 and gives a plate of the male. The latter is accurate 

 as to shape and attitude, but does not give the least 

 idea of the natural colour, which in the plate is repre- 

 sented as a dark indigo instead of the lovely clear 



