46 MIRAFRA RUFIPILEA. 



The type of MegiilopJiouii>< nifocinnamomea came to the 

 Turin Museum from the Jardiii des Plantes, Paris, and accord- 

 ing to Heuglin was obtained by the missionary Calvi in 

 Abyssinia. There can, I think, be no doubt but that Alauda 

 elegantissirna, Heugl., and M. tnrrida, Shelley, both belong 

 to this species, as they all agree well in measurements, 

 general colouring, and especially in the peculiar colour and 

 pattern of the tail. 



The type of Alauda elegantissirna was procured in the 

 snow-clad highlands to the north of Lake Tana, where 

 Heuglin met with these birds perched on the rocks or hover- 

 ing in the aii', and he likens their song to that of the 

 Crested Lark. 



Mirafra rufipilea. 



Alauda rufipilea, Vieill. N. Diet. H. N. i. p. 345 (1816) S. Afr. 



Mirafra rufipilea (Vieill.) Shavpe, Cat. B. M. xiii. p. 597 (1890) Orange 



River Colony, Transvaal ; Shelley, B. Afr. I. No. 195 (1896) ; Stark, 



FauD. S. Afr. B. i. p. 218 (1900). 

 Brachonyx pyrrhonota, Smith, 111. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pi. 110, fig. 2 



(1847) S. Afr. 

 Alauda fasciolata, Sundev. CEfv. K. Vet. Ak. Forh. Stockh. 1850, p. 99. 



Adult. Above rufous slightly washed with ashy buff, the feathers with 

 a variable amouut of narrow black bars, and rarely any trace of shaft-stripes ; 

 upper tail-coverts, which reach quite three quarters of the way down the 

 tail, are crossed by six black bars, and have terminal buff fringes. Tail 

 with the two centre feathers barred and very like the upper tail-coverts ; 

 remainder of tail blackish brown, narrowly fringed at the end with buff ; 

 the shaft, outer web and end of the outer feather cinnamon buff, and a 

 narrow edge of that colour along the outer edge of the penultimate feather. 

 Wing with the coverts and inner secondaries coloured much like the back, 

 but with numerous partial bars which merge into each other towards the 

 edges of the feathers, and form more or less distinct submarginal black 

 lines, which are very characteristic of a few of the nearest allied species ; 

 the dark bars gradually disappear, and the rufous base increases towards the 

 primaries, which are uniform cinnamon with the ends and the entire bastard 

 primary dusky brown ; under surface of the wing pale cinnamon with the 



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