234 ZOOLOGICAL RESEARCHES 



with the exception that the white on the wing-coverts does 

 not exist. It is really caused by the white bases to the 

 primaries ! The young bird from the Niger is certainly an 

 immature G. megapoda , which has a rufous collar , when 

 adult." It is upon this authority that I apply the name 

 of Glareola megapoda to my Liberian Pratincoles. As this 

 species seems to have never been described — the above 

 cited list containing merely the name — I add here a 

 plain description of my adult specimens from Liberia. 



Upper surface, chin, throat, sides of head, breast, sides 

 of body and under wing-coverts brownish gray, slightly 

 tinged with shining olive; abdomen ashy white, upper 

 and under tail-coverts pure white, some of the longest of 

 the latter, even in fully adult birds, more or less largely 

 tipped with dark brown ; quills dark brown , primaries 

 with white bases to the inner webs in the males, without 

 any white in the females, basal half of the inner web of 

 the secondaries in both sexes white, also the tips of the 

 innermost under wing-coverts. An adult female, the ovary 

 of which contained fully developed eggs, has the gray 

 feathers on the edge of the wing mixed with a few pure 

 white ones. The slightly furcated tail is dark brown, 

 glossed with green , the innermost pairs occasionally tipped 

 with white; a large basal space of the tail-feathers white, 

 which color gradually increases in extent towards the ou- 

 termost pair , which is , except the tip and a narrow strip 

 on the edge of the outer web , entirely white. Lores black , 

 a broad collar round the nape rufous , continued , on each 

 side , by a white stripe , which runs above the ear-coverts 

 till behind the eye and from there below the eye to the gape. 



Iris dark brown , bill coral-red , point black , feet coral-red. 



No difference between male and female, except the 

 above mentioned one. Wing 13,7 — 14,4 cm.; tail: outer- 

 most pair 5,7, innermost 4,5; tarsus 1,8, middle toe 1,4, 

 bill (culmen) 1. 



While staying at Bavia, we found a great number of 

 these birds inhabiting the numerous bare , rocky islands 

 Pfotes from the Leyden IMuseutu , Vol. VII, 



