2G Mhjvator^ Vh'itants to Kroonstad. 



the Capriimiloidse ;ij)])(>ar to have absented themselves entirely 

 troni this district, and I have not seen one, although I have 

 I'requented their old haunts during the evening. I do not 

 know the exact date when the}' leave on their migratory 

 inovements, as they are not easy to see, although I have some- 

 times caught sight of them in the daytime lying flat on the 

 branch of a willow ; their presence was only noticeable owing 

 to their bright eve catching and refli^ctino; the light. 



Another most interesting group here is the Cuculidse, of 

 which three visit us. The tirst to arrive is Chrt/sococci/x 

 aqweus (Didric Cuckoo), which a])pears in large numbers, 

 and is followed by Cocci/stes glamlarius (Great Spotted 

 Cuckoo), which is also common. Coccystes jacohinus (Ji\sLc\i- 

 and-White Cuckoo), the third, is rather rare. I had a young 

 specimen of the first named hatched out in a Sparrow^s nest 

 in the eaves of my house (q. v. ' Ibis,^ 1887, p. 328), and since 

 that date have found a young bird just ready to fly in the 

 nest of the C^ape Weaver-Bird {Sitagra capensis), which is 

 very common here and makes its nest on the branches of the 

 willows overhanging the water. It is rather a mystery how 

 the female Cuckoo can ])lace her egg into either of these 

 nests, as they both seem too small. The Didric arrives in 

 October and departs suddenly in April. C. glandarius is 

 ver}^ noisy and chattering and, if not seen, can usually be 

 heard. Although I have never been successful in finding a 

 young bird, I think it is probable that the species breeds here: 

 the males, which az-e easily distinguishable from the females 

 on the wing, chase each other vigorously from the time of 

 their arrival ; this habit becomes less marked in December 

 and ceases entirely l)y January: all have disappeared by the 

 end of March. C. jacolnmis is a regular visitor, but I have 

 never seen it before November, and then, as a rule, only two 

 or three pairs on the Yalsch liiver. Here they usually 

 frequent the same neighbourhood and are fond of the tops 

 of large mimosas. I have never seen them on the ground. 

 They are always in })airs and leave us early in March. 



