A RAPTORIAL BIRD FROM DAMARA LAND. 47 



CHAPTER IV. 



ON A RAPTORIAL BIRD TRANSMITTED BY Mr. ANDERS- 

 SON FROM DAMARA LAND. 



By the late Mr. J. II. GURNEY. 



[Reprinted from the 'Transactions of the Zoological Society ' 

 for 1865 (p. 117).] 



The raptorial bird now exhibited has been recently sent to 

 me, with some other birds collected in Damara Land, by my 

 friend Mr. Charles J. Andersson, to whose exertions we have 

 already been frequently indebted for valuable contributions 

 to our knowledge of the ornithology of that part of South- 

 western Africa. 



Mr. Andersson remarks, with reference to the present 

 specimen, which was procured at Objimbinque, Damara Land, 

 on the 10th of March last, il I have only obtained this indi- 

 vidual, a female, shot by my servant, who observed another, 

 which was probably the male. I imagine I have once or 

 twice observed this species near my place (Objimbinque) 

 just before dusk. I strongly suspect that it is a nocturnal 

 or seminocturnal bird. 1 found only a Bat in the stomach 

 of the specimen sent, of which the description and measure- 

 ments are as follows : — 



" Irides bright lemon-yellow ; extremities of mandibles 

 black; basal parts and gape bluish lead-colour; tarsi and 

 toes bluish white ; claws bluish black. 



"Entire length 1 ft. 6-^ in.; length of wings when folded 



1 ft. ljtin.j length of tarsus %f% in.; length of middle 



toe 2^.> in. ; length of tail 7 f'.j in. ; length of bill from 



corner of gape to the tip of the mandible, straight, 



l&in." 



To the above remarks of Mr. Andersson I have to add the 



following : — The colours of the plumage are dark brown 



mingled with pure white, the tint of the brown being very 



similar to that of a dark specimen of Buteo vulgaris ; a very 



few feathers of a still darker tinge, however, are apparent on 



