918 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. vol. xxvm. 



Family OKIOLID.T^]. 



ORIOLUS LARVATUS ROLLETI (Salvador!). 



Oiiohis rulleti Saiaadoki, Atti Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat., VII, 1864, p. 161 (White Nile, 

 eastern Africa). 



Three males, two oi them adult, the other himiature, from Taveta, 

 seem to be typical of this form. Dr. Abbott writes that it was taken 

 also oil Mount Kilimanjaro, but no specimens were sent from this 

 locality. 



The characters separatino- (Jrlolux rnlletl from <>. Idrvdtus arc^ such 

 that a trinomial best expresses their relationship. 



ORIOLUS NOTATUS Peters. 



Orio'iift imtdliis ]*ETKKs, Jourii. f. Ornith., 1.S6S, p. VA2 (Tete, Portuguese East 

 Africa). 



Two spcciuHMis, adult male and female, from Taveta. 



ORIOLUS ORIOLUS Linnaeus. 



('(miriiiK (irlolm Linn-icits, Syst. Nat., 10th ed., I, 17r>,S, p. 107 (Europe and Asia). 



Two females, from the plains east of Mount Kilimanjaro, taken 

 October 3, 1888. "Iris red." 



If Linnjeus be taken at 1T58, the proper name for the present spe- 

 cies is (Jr'olnx nr/ol IIS, as abov(^ g-iyen, instead of the current Oriolus 

 yaJhula.^'^ 



Family DTCRURID.E. 



DICRURUS ADSIMILIS DIVARICATUS ( Lichtenstein). 



MuKcicdpn iJlvitriciita ijicHTKNSTEiN, Verz. Doiibl. Zool. Mus. Berlin, 182:'., j). 52 

 (Seneu;ani])ia, western Africa). 



Two specimens: one from Kidudwe, IXJ miles inland from Zanzil)ar, 

 December, 1887; the other from the plains east of Mount Kiliman- 

 jaro, October 6, 1888. " Iris red." 



There seem to l)e absolutely no trenchant structural characters b}^ 

 which the so-called genus /jV/^/c/^^///^/^^ can be separated from Dicrurus. 

 The chief, if indeed not the oidy. distinction daimed is the difference 

 in the emargination of the tail; but this is subject to such variation 

 in the different species, and withal presents so many intermediate 

 pha.ses, that its generic value is quite obliterated. 



In treating the present species Doctor Reichenow'' recognizes by 



«See Reitthenow, \'()gel Deutsch Ost-Afr., 1894, p. 168. 

 i Vogel Africas, II, 1!»0:5, j.p. 64()-t)50. 



