54 CORACIID^ EUBYSTOMUS 



direction and through the East Indian Islands to Austraha in the 

 other. Out of three African species, one just enters our limits. 



404. Eurystomus afer. Cinnamon Roller. 



Coracias afra, Lath. Ind. Orn. i, p. 172 (1790). 



Eurystomus afra, Stephens, Genl. Zool. xiii, p. 97 (1826) ; Kirk, Ibis, 

 1864, p. 324 [Zambesi] ; Sharpe, Ibis, 1871, p. 274 ; id. ed. Layard's 

 B. S. Afr. pp. 106, 806 (1875-84); Ayres, Ibis, 1877, p. 342 [Potchef- 

 stroom] ; Oates, Matabeleland, p. 802 (1881) ; Shelley, Ibis, 1882, p. 

 243 [Umfuli River] ; Sharpe, Cat. B. M. xvii, p. 30 (1892) ; Dresser, 

 Monogr. Corac. p. 57, pi. 15 (1893) ; Shelley, B. Afr. i, p. 109 ; 

 Soiverby, Ibis, 1898, p. 571 [Ft. Chiquaqua] ; W. L. Sclater, Ibis, 

 1899, p. 112 [Inhambane] ; Alexander, Ibis, 1900 p. 94 [Zambesi] ; 

 Marshall, ibid. p. 247 [Umfuli River]. 



' Tcliegala " of Matabele (Oates). 



Fig. 21. — Eurystomus afer. x ^q. 



Description. — General colour cinnamon-brown, slightly tinged 

 with lilac above the eye ; coverts at the edge of the wing and all 

 the greater series ultramarine-blue, wing-quills also ultramarine-blue 

 becoming black at the tips and on the inner web ; rump and upper 

 tail-coverts a dull cobalt-blue ; central tail-feathers hke the rump 

 washed with black ; lateral feathers bright cobalt with ultramarine 

 tips shading into black ; under surface of the body including the 

 cheeks, ear-coverts, sides of the neck, and under wing-coverts a 

 bright somewhat metallic-lilac ; under surface of the inner webs 

 of the wing-quills, lower abdomen and under tail-coverts and thighs, 

 pale cobalt-blue. 



