274 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 
Mr. T. E. Buckley obtained a specimen at Geoqui in Bamangwato, 
on the 16th October, 1873, and Mr. Ayres has procured it in the 
Transvaal. He observes :—“ These birds feed upon small insects. 
They inhabit low bush and scrub’; when disturbed they invariably 
fly and settle close to or on the stems of the bushes, and then work 
their way up. They appear to be solitary in their habits. In the 
living bird the speckled wings are more conspicuous than the barred 
breast.” 
Mr. Andersson writes as follows :—“ This species is common in the 
neighbourhood of Objimbinque ; and I have found a few individuals 
between that place and Rehoboth; it greatly reminds me of our 
Swedish Girdsmygg (the common Wren of England) in its habits, 
which are somewhat secluded. It frequents dense bush and occa- 
sionally trees, searching diligently amongst the branches for insects; 
it carries its tail erect when moving about. When disturbed it flies 
but a short distance at a time, and is easily distinguished by the 
bright brown on the rump.” 
Adult.—Above warm brown, rather rufescent, the rump and 
upper tail-coverts rather lighter and more tawny rufous; wings 
brown, the coverts edged with fulyous brown and all tipped with 
white or fulyous white ; quills brown, externally edged with rufous 
brown, the innermost secondaries margined with whitish at the tip; 
tail brown, the feathers edged with rufous brown and all tipped with 
fulyous, before which the colour darkens, but does not form a sub- 
terminal band; lores and sides of face greyish white waved with 
transverse bars of blackish-brown, the ear-coverts washed with 
brown with whitish shaft-stripes ; under surface of body dull white, 
the sides bright fulvous, deeper and more tawny on the thighs and 
under tail-coverts ; the throat very slightly, but the chest and sides’ 
of the body distinctly crossed with zig-zag or V-shaped bars of dark 
brown; under wing-coverts light buff, the lower surface of the 
quills ashy brown, edged with pale rufous along the inner web; 
“upper mandible dark liver-brown, the lower edge and’ the under 
mandible dark bluish or purple; legs pale flesh colour, toes the same, 
but a trifle darker; iris yellowish brown.” (Andersson.) Total 
length, 4°8 inches; culmen, 0°6; wing, 2°45; tail, 2°3; tarsus, 
0:93 
Fig. Smith, ll. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pl. 111, fig. 2. 
