GYPS RUEPPELLI. 3 
promised fcr the national collection, so that the species will doubt- 
less soon be identified. 
General cclour fulyous ; head and neck covered with short dirty 
whitish hairs; lower part of cervix bare and bluish; lower part of 
throat and middle of breast covered with short grey-brown feathers : 
whitish down on the rest of throat, sides of neck and upper part of 
cervix ; a ruff of short white feathers on the back and lower part of 
neck; wing and tail feathers very dark-brown. Length, 3’ 9”; 
wing, 2’ 4”; tail, 12”. 
Fig. Sharpe, Cat. B. pl. 1. 
2. Gyps RUEPPELLI. Riippell’s Griffon Vulture. 
Gyps vulgaris, Layard, B. 8. Afr. p. 7 (1867). 
Mr. Jules Verreaux informs us that this Vulture is only found acci- 
dentally to the south of the Orange River, its head-quarters being 
to the northward. It is, however, undoubtedly a rare species in 
Southern Africa. The Norwich Museum contains a specimen from 
this locality, besides the example procured by Mr. Ayres in Natal. 
The late Mr. Andersson collected a single one shot at Ondonga, and 
these notices seem to include all the occurrences of Riippell’s Griffon 
Vulture within the region of which this work treats. 
The following description is from the British Museum ‘ Catalogue.’ 
Nearly adult. Down on head golden yellow ; ruff yellowish white ; 
interscapular and scapular feathers dark brown, with a conspicuous 
crescentic edging of fulvous white; wing-coverts creamy white, the 
brown bases showing plainly on the median and greater series, the 
latter conspicuously tipped with creamy white, as also are the inner 
secondaries ; quills black, primaries washed with chocolate-brown ; 
lower back and rump dark brown, narrowly edged with creamy 
white, the upper tail-coverts more broadly; tail black, shghtly 
shaded with chocolate-brown; crop-patch deep chocolate-brown ; 
under surface dull creamy buff, some of the flank-feathers showing 
the brown bases; under wing-coverts dark brown, with cream- 
coloured tips ; bill black ; cere black ; feet black ; iris nearly black.* 
Total length about 40 inches, culmen 3:8, wing 25:5, tail 11, tarsus 
about 4°7, middle toe 5:3. 
Fig. Cretzschm. in Riippell’s Atlas, taf. 32. 
* The iris varies much in colour, perhaps according to age. Cf. Guriey, Jb’s, 
1860, p. 207. 
B 2 
