SCOPUS UMBRETTA. 725 
They were the only pair that fell under our notice. Senor 
Anchieta has also met with it at Humbe on the Cunene River, where 
it is rather common, and is known to the inhabitants by the name of 
Xicongo. 
General colour, above, dark cinereous, tinged with rufous on the 
shoulders, and slightly shot with green in the primaries ; between 
the shoulders a large black patch, becoming ashy on the rump; 
neck, bright rufous, variegated in front with a line of brown, more 
or less broken, which extends less conspicuously down the centre of 
the chest and belly, which is a confused ashy-rufous ; chin and patch 
behind the eye, white; the rest of the head black, with greenish 
reflections, crested ; tail below, ashy. Length, 1" 10’; wing, 11’; 
tail, 5”. 
Fam. SCOPIDZ. 
703. Scopus UMBRETTA. Hammer-head. 
The “ Hammerkop”’ (literally Hammer-head) is found throughout 
the colony, and all the way to the Zambesi, frequenting ponds, 
marshes, rivers, and lakes. It is a strange, weird bird, flitting 
about with great activity in the dusk of the evening, and preying 
upon frogs, small fish, &c. At times, when two or three are 
feeding in the same small pool, they will execute a singular dance, 
skipping round one another, opening and closing their wings, and 
performing strange antics. They breed on trees and on rocky 
ledges, forming a huge structure of sticks, some of them of consi- 
derable thickness. These nests are so solid that they will bear the 
weight of a large, heavy man on the domed roof without collapsing. 
The entrance is a small hole, generally placed in the most imacces- 
sible side. The eggs, three to five in number, are pure white. Axis, 
1’ 9’; diam., 1’ 4". On our late friend Jackson’s farm, at Nel’s 
Poort, there is a singular rocky glen between two hills. In this 
spot a beautiful permanent spring, called “Jackalsfontein,” takes 
its rise. Of course, in consequence there are a few wild almond and 
other trees, and the place is a little oasis amid the barren mountains. 
It is a favourite resort of wild animals, hyzenas, leopards, jackals, 
&e., and here Mr. Jackson has constructed one of his most 
successful hyzena traps. On the ledges of the rocks in this 
secluded spot a colony of Hammerkops have built for years. Some 
