Ty) oP =e eo 
306 BIRDS OF SOUTH AFRICA. 
Above, cincrous-brown, the shafts of the feathers darkest 5 greyish 
on the forehead, and rufous on the sides of the neck ; chin whitish, 
with a brown moustache; under parts mottled rufous, grey, and 
white ; rump greenish; venta fine yellow. Length, 19°5’’; wing, 
4’’; tail of male often extending 14”. The female has generally a 
shorter tail, but Captain Shelley says that the length of this organ 
depends upon the age of the individual and on the season more than 
on the sex. He gives the measurements of a hen bird as follows :— 
Total length, 15°7 inches; culmen, 1:25; wing, 3°8; tail, 11; 
tarsus, 0°95. 
Fig. Shelley, Monogr. Cinnyride, part 1. 
292, PRoMEROPS GURNEYI. Gurney’s Long-tailed Sun-bird. 
This species, described by the late Mr. Jules Verreaux (P. Z. §., 
1871, p. 135) represents the foregoing in Natal, and the eastern 
part of the Transvaal, and differs from it im having the crown and 
breast chestnut. Mr. T. Ayres, who discovered it in Natal, states 
that in habits it much resembles Nectarinia natalensis, its food 
being also the same, viz., nectar and small insects, especially spiders. 
“Tt is very rare in this locality, and besides is more shy than most 
other species; I believe it is only to be found during the winter 
months.” Mr. T. A. Barratt procured several specimens between 
Pretoria and Lydenburg, and states that he found them exclusively - 
on the ‘ Zuikerbosch,” or sugar bush. Mr. T. Ayres likewise 
remarks that in the Lydenburg district the species is tolerably 
common, feeding on the nectar of the flowers of a scrubby tree, 
common on the sides and summits of the mountains. 
Fig. Verreaux, P. Z. §., 1871, pl. viii. 
293. NECTARINIA FAMOSA. Malachite Sun-bird. 
Common throughout the colony, this Sun-bird abounds on the 
Cape Flats during the flowering of the Protea, from which it 
extracts the saccharine juice by means of its long brush-tipped 
tongue. Captain Shelley observed them near Cape Town, and we 
have found them plentiful up the ravines of Table Mountain, 
extending even to the top. Mr. Andersson states that it is 
“extremely abundant in Little Namaqua Land, and also occurs, 
though but rarely, in the southernmost part of Great Namaqua 
Land.” Victorin records it as found by him in the Karroo in 
