140 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 
green with a steel-blue reflexion externally, the secondaries shaded 
with violet on the outer web, more so than the primaries, all of 
which have the terminal third of the feather whitey-brown, and have 
a distinct white bar across the inner web of all the feathers, the 
fourth to the seventh primary having a white spot on the outer web 
also; tail violet, more or less inclining to steel-blue near the base, 
the outer feather with a white bar near the tip; ear-coverts oil- 
green; rest of under surface shining oily-green, blacker on the 
abdomen, the throat and fore-neck slightly washed with steel-blue ; 
under wing-coverts black, the edge of the wing greenish; “ bill 
dark brown, yellowish towards gape; legs and feet dusky black, 
with a brownish tint on the tarsi anteriorly and with the soles of the 
feet olive ; iris very dark brown” (Andersson). Total length, 10°8 
inches; culmen, 1°95; wing, 4°25; tail, 5.8; tarsus, 0°85. 
Adult female.—Very similar to the male above, but is rusty brown 
below and on the.sides of the face and of the neck: three outer 
tail-feathers spotted with white. Total length, 10 inches ; culmen, 1°6 ; 
wing, 4°0; tail, 5-5; tarsus, 0°8. Young birds are brown below like 
the old females. Itis to be noted that the light endings to the 
primaries seem to disappear with age, so as to become wholly black, 
and the white spot on the first primary also becomes absorbed. 
Fig. Jardine, Zool. Journ. iv. pl. 1. 
127. Scorrerus ATERRIMUS. Straight-billed Wood-Hoopoe. 
The authority for the occurrence of this northern species in South 
Africa is the ‘ Vogel Ostafrika’s’ of Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub, where 
a young specimen is said to have been examined from Damara Land. 
The Kuruman birds identified as R. cyanomelas by the author are 
also said to belong to I. aterrimus. We cannot but think that the 
doctors are in error with regard to the first, as they certainly are 
with the last occurrence, for the birds sent from Kuruman by Mr. 
Moffat were the true R. cyanomelas : all the Damara skins examined 
by us, including a good series in the British Museum, also belong to 
that species. Although we are thus unable to include the present 
bird as undoubtedly South African, we give a description of it 
taken from an Abyssinian skin, to assist in its future identification. 
[Cf. Gurney in Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p. 68.] 
Adult male-—Above violet, inclining to steel-blue on the head 
and more especially on the wings, the innermost secondaries being 
