24 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 
in the Norwich Museum, (Vide Ibis, 1868, p. 144.) Mr. Andersson 
writes :—“ To the best of my recollection I have never met with this 
bird either in Damara or Great Namaqua Land, though I have ob- 
served it sparingly in the lake-regions, and near the river Okavango.” 
It has not occurred to Sefor Anchieta in the Mossamedes country, 
but Mr. Monteiro procured a young male in Angola, which is now in 
the British Museum. Being immature, it is a difficult thing to deter- 
mine whether this should be referred to A. minullus or to A. ery- 
thropus, but from its pale colouration it seems to be the southern 
bird, which probably goes to Angola with Cossypha natalensis and 
other true South-African species. A. erythropus is confined to the 
Gold Coast, and is little more than a dark race of A. minullus, 
affording an analogous case to A. tachiro and A. macroscelides. 
According to Le Vaillant (who states that it inhabits the country 
between the Gamtoos River and Kaffraria), it is a bold and fearless 
little hawk, preying on small birds or insects, hunting in pairs, and 
breeding in trees. The eggs are five, spotted with brown at the 
ends. Mr. Andersson gives an instance of a daring attack made upon 
him by one of these little hawks; and Mr. T. C. Atmore sent with 
the young male bird which he shot at Elands’ Post, a specimen of 
Hyphantornis spilonotus which it had in its claws: this is a large 
quarry for so small a bird to capture. 
Young.—Upper parts dark-brown ; throat and chin white ; sparsely 
streaked with brown; under parts very much blotched with dark- 
brown; the markings here and there edged with rufous; thighs 
rufous-brown ; tail above brown, faintly barred with a darker shade, 
but below these bars show plainly on a grey ground. Length, 103” ; 
wing, 6’’ ; tail, 5’’. 
Adult male-—Aboye deep slaty black, the hind neck slightly 
mottled with white ; sides of face and neck uniform with the crown ; 
the upper tail-coverts white at base, the lower ones also conspicuously 
tipped with white ; tail blackish brown, tipped with white, with two 
faintly indicated bands of paler brown, the line of these cross bands 
being indicated by two large spots of white on the inner web ; under 
surface of tail paler brown, barred distinctly and tipped with white, 
the outermost feather entirely ashy white, with eight or nine bars of 
dark brown ; under surface of body white, the sides bright chestnut, 
the lower throat and under tail-coverts indistinctly but. the breast 
plainly though narrowly barred with rufous, most of the bars haying 
