UROLESTES MELANOLEUCUS 235 
cup-shaped, roughly constructed externally, principally of 
thorny twigs, and lined with fibrous roots and dry wiry bits of 
grass. It contained four somewhat incubated eggs, of a pale 
creamy brown colour, with a finely speckled zone of rich 
brown of various shades, from nearly black to pale brown, the 
rest of the surface more or less dotted all over with brown. 
They measured 1, by ? inch.” According to Stark and 
W. L. Sclater’s notes: “The eggs, three or four in number, 
are usually short ovals, with a glossy surface. The ground 
colour varies from cream colour to salmon pink, spotted all 
over, but most thickly in a zone round the big end with small 
dots, and a few short zigzag markings of rufous-brown, burnt 
sienna and slate grey.” ‘The birds are to be seen hunting 
through the bushes, among the tops of trees or flying down to 
capture insects on the ground. 
From Gazaland Mr. Swynnerton writes: “ Ishindawo 
name ‘ Uwhitshoriro.’ Of rare occurrence in the high veld 
proper, but is said to be comparatively common in the Sabi 
valley and on the lower Buzi. Its tail-feathers are worn by 
the Kaffirs.” 
It has not been recorded from the neighbourhood of the 
Zambesi between Mashonaland and Lake Nyasa, but Sir Alfred 
Sharpe has procured the species in North Nyasaland and 
M. Dubois records it as forming part of Storm’s collection from 
Lake Tanganyika, and it is apparently very generally distri- 
buted over German East Africa as far north as Kilimanjaro. 
Béhm observed these birds from January to May usually in 
parties, often congregating with other birds. They were 
breeding in February and were escorted by their young in 
March, and Béhm gives some interesting details regarding their 
habits (J. f. O. 1883, p. 188). Emin records it from Ugogo 
and collected specimens in the Uniamwesi country, where 
Speke met with it at Kazeh and in Bogue in small flocks. 
