LAMPROTORXIS CHALCURUS 77 



reddish violet shade on the upper tail-coverts and base of tail, 

 and this character being constant in both adults and j'oung I 

 treat it as a good species, although its range is mixed up 

 in that of L. chahjhcpus in West Africa, which looks as if 

 it mav be onlv a variet}-. 



The types of L. chahjhcEUS (Ehr.), L. cijannrenfris, Blyth, 

 L. ahijssinicHf:, Hartl., L. r/iiffrifiifi, Wiirt, and L. rijaiiorjruijs, 

 Sundev., all came from Ab3-ssinia ; L. cJiIoropfenis (Swains.) 

 from West Africa; L. .vjcohias, Peters, from Tete, and 

 L. massaiciis, Neum., from Masailand. For those who wish 

 to look more closely into the variation to which this species 

 is subject to, I may refer them to Blanford's " Geol. and 

 Zool., Abyss.," p. 395 (1870), and a note by Dr. Bowdler 

 Sharpe on the specimens collected by INIr. Jackson (Ibis, 

 1899, p. 594). 



Lamprotornis chalcurus. 



Lamprotornis chalcurus, Nordman in Erman's Eeis, Atlas, p. S (1835) 



Senegal. 

 Lamprocolius chalcurus, Sharpe, Cat. B. M. xiii. p. 179 (1890); Shelley, 



B. Afr. I. No. 60-2 (189f)) ; Reichen. Yo^'. Afr. ii. p. 691 (1903). 

 Lamprotornis cyanotis, Swains. B. W. Afr. i. p. 146 (18-37) TF. Africa. 

 Lamprocolius porpliyrurus, Hartl. Abhandl. Bremen, 1871, p. 60 Accra. 

 Lamprocolius chalcurus var. orientalis, Hartl. Abhandl. Bremen, 1881, 



p. 106 Fatico. 



Adult. Similar to that of L. chah/baus, but differs only in having a 

 bright reddish violet shade on tlie tail, strongest towards the Ijasal half of 

 the centre feathers. "Iris orange yellow" (Emin). Total length 7-8 

 inches, culmen 0-8, wing ol, tail 29, tarsus 1-2. Accra (Haynes), type 

 of L. iMrpkijrurus. 



Immature. Much duller and inclining to sooty brown, especially on the 

 head, neck and under parts owing to the less amount of gloss on the 

 feathers ; upper tail-coverts and tail mostly violet bronze shading into blue 

 on the penultimate feathers, and into green on the outer web of the tail. 

 " Iris grey " (Reichenow) ; wing 50. W. Africa (Brit. Mus.). 



