882 FROCEEDTNCS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. vol. xxviu. 



HYPARGOS NIVEOGUTTATUS (Peters). 



S/i,riiii>/>li(nj<t iiirciH/itlhihi Pktkiis, .lourii. I'. Oniitli., IStiS, j>. l.'vJ ( Inhaiiihaiie, 

 riirtu<;n('S(' Ivist AlVica ). 



'I"(Mi s])(H'iiiuMis: four without lalu'ls; the rest from Mount Kili- 

 nmiijaro (5,000 f(>etj; Ta\eta; and Kahe, south of Kilimanjaro. In 

 none of these is the rNJujf crimson/' but it is brown, like the back, the 

 crimson beino- restricted to the upper tail-coverts. The adult females 

 difier from the males in their lig-htei' upper parts; the sides of the 

 head are brownish g'rav instead of crimson; the crimson on the breast, 

 throat, and sides of neck is paler and diluted with tawny; the chin is 

 tawny without anj^ crimson; and the black of the posterior lower sur- 

 face is re})laced l)y brownish slate. Ilie immature female resembles 

 the adult, but has less of crimson on throat, breast, and sides of neck. 

 A 3'oung male is in general like the adult female-, but is darker 

 throut>hout, ])articularly on the throat and l)reast; the abdomen is 

 also more blackish; and only a few of the crimson feathers of the 

 head and the anterior lower parts haye made their appearance. "Iris 

 (of adult male) dark brown; feet dark Hesh coloi"; Itare skin around 

 eyes light blue. Iris (of adult female) brown; bill blue, black at tip; 

 feet slate bine; bare skin around eyes lis^ht blue." 



SPERMESTES CUCULLATUS SCUTATUS ( Heuglin) . 



Spenneste.s scutatns HEcaLiN, .Tourn. f. Ornith., LSB8, p. 18 (Deiiil)ea, Al)yssinia). 



Two specimens: an adult female fi-om Mount Kilimanjai-o (5,000 

 feet), December 2!), 1889; and an innnature bird without data. "Bill 

 (of adult female) l)lack aboye, slate blue below." 



LEPIDOPYGIA NIGRICEPS (Cassin). 



Spermestes nigriceps Cassin, Prof. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1852, p. 185 (Zanzibar 

 East Africa). 



Four specimens, all adults: two without labels; the others from 

 Taveta, March 22, 1888. 



The genus Speriiu'.stes^'' as commonly constituted, contains two well 

 differentiated types of structure which are quite deserying of generic 

 separation. True Sperinedes should be restricted to Sj/erz/iesies eiicul- 

 /atu.s Swainson and SpeniieateH cucullatus scntatus (Heuglin), and the 

 other species be called Lepidopygla.''' The latter differs from Sper- 

 ineHtes in haying the second primary of about the same width as the 



«See Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mns., XIII, 1890, p. 274. 



''Swainson, Birds West Afr., I, 18:]7, p. 201 (type, Spermedes cucullata Swainson). 



^Rei(thenbaeh, SingV("igel, ISfi:}, p. 48 (type, Pi/rrhula nana Pucheran)- 



