ANTHUS NICHOLSONI. 313 



Anthus erythroDotus (nee Steph.) Bocage, J. f. 0. 1876, p. 43 Ambaca ; 



Sousa, Jorn. Lisb. 1886, p. 165 Caconda. 

 ? A. sordidus (nee Eiipp.) Fisch. Zeitschr. 1884, p. 307 ; id. J. f. 0. 1885, 



137 Naiwasha ; Eeichen. J. f. O. 1887, p. 73 Shashi ; Hartl. 



Abhand. Brein. 1891, p. 17 Baguera; Eeichen. Vog. Deutsch O. 



Afr. p. 199 (1894) ; Neuni. J. f. 0. 1898, p. 233. 



Type. Upper parts brown with a slight rufous shade and tolerably dis- 

 tinct dark centres to most of the feathers of the crown and back ; wings and 

 tail dark brown with the edges of the feathers rufous buff inclining to white 

 on the first primary ; tail with the outer feather gradually fading into buff on 

 the outer web, and the end of the penultimate feather fringed with rufous buff 

 (generally increased to an angular patch in other specimens) ; eyebrow and 

 cheeks buff, ear-coverts brown ; under parts rufous shaded buff with dusky 

 shaft-stripes on the crop and front of chest ; chin nearly white ; under 

 surface of quills brown, broadly washed with tawny buff on the inner edges ; 

 under wing-coverts tawny buff. Bill dusky brown fading into pale brown 

 on the lower mandible ; iris dark brown ; legs pale brown. Total length 7 - 4 

 inches, culmen 06, wing 3-9, tail 3-4, tarsus 105, hind toe 04, hind claw 

 curved 035. Sigonell on Vaal E. S (Atmore). 



Nicholson's Pipit, I believe, is confined to the African 

 continent. It ranges over South Africa generally and north- 

 ward into Angola and Abyssinia. 



Anchieta procured specimens in Angola at Ambaca to the 

 north of the Quanza river, and in Benguela at Caconda, and 

 informs us that it is called by the natives " Karapala " at the 

 former place, and " Catemdebipanga " at the latter. 



From South Africa there are specimens in the British 

 Museum labelled Ondonga in Damaraland, Cape Town, King- 

 williamstown, Newcastle, Eland's Post, Vaal river, Potchef- 

 stroom, Rustenberg and the Hungani river in Mashonaland, 

 and this is all I know regarding it in South Africa. 



I cannot find anything more satisfactory regarding this 

 Pipit as we approach Abyssinia ; specimens from this portion 

 of the continent have been invariably referred to A. sordidus, 

 from which the present species differs in having a shorter and 

 stouter bill and a more rufous shade on the plumage. There- 

 fore it is as likely as not that Emin procured this Pipit at 



