118 ALAUDA PERSONATA 



Alauda per sonata. 



Spizocorys personata, Sharpe, P. Z. S. 1895, p. 471 Somali; Shelley, 

 B. Afr. I. No. 190 (1896) ; Donaldson Smith, " Through Unknown 

 Afr." p. 126, fig. (1897). 



Aethocorys personata, Sharpe, Bull. B. 0. C. xii. p. 62 (1902). 



Ty2}e. Upper parts pale brown, with very narrow angular dark shaft- 

 stripes on the crown and much broader ones on the upper back ; lesser 

 wing-coverts uniform pale brown ; remainder of the v^ing-coverts and the 

 secondaries dark brown with broad edges of pale brown ; primaries more 

 uniform dark brown, with the outer web of the first long one white ; outer 

 tail-feather white with a large wedge-shaped dusky patch on the inner web ; 

 penultimate feather with nearly the whole of the outer web white, remainder 

 of tail blackish brown ; sides of head black, with an incomplete eyebrow and 

 fore part of cheeks and ear-coverts white ; remainder of ear-coverts and the 

 sides of the neck ashy brown ; chin and upper throat white ; lower throat, 

 crop and flanks pale ashy brown, blending into rufous buff on the remainder 

 of the breast and thighs ; abdomen and under tail-coverts slightly paler 

 rufous bufi' ; under surface of the wings dusky ash, the coverts shading into 

 rufous buff along the bend of the wing, and the inner margins of the quills 

 narrowly washed with that colour. Total length 5 inches, culmen 0-45, 

 wing 3-35, tail 2-0, tarsus 0-8. ^ , S. 8. 94. Sassabana (Dr. A. Donaldson 

 Smith). 



The Masked Sky-Lark inhabits Somahland. 



This species is known to me only from the type in the 

 British Musenm. It was discovered by Dr. Donaldson Smith 

 at Sassabana, on August 3, 1894. The specimen is not in full 

 plumage, bvit may be readily distinguished from all the 

 known Larks from Tropical Africa, of a similar size and 

 appearance, by its having a distinct small bastard primary. 



Genus XL PSEUDALJEMON. 



Bill long and stout ; culmen longer than the middle toe with claw ; 

 nostrils bidden. Wing of ten primaries; bastard primary small, scarcely 

 more than half the length of the culmen and shorter than the inner toe with 

 claw ; longest secondary reaching nearly to the tip of the wing ; no white 

 edge to the first long primary. Tail very short, not extending beyond the 

 upper tail-coverts by more than the length of the culmen. A black patch on 

 each side of the crop ; tarsi and feet pale ; toes and hind claw short. 



Type. 



Pseudalaemon, Lort Phillips, Ibis, 1898, p. 400 ... P. fremantlei. 



