158 Mr. J. H. Gurney's Notes on 



nolcea albiscapulata (no. 196 of Mr. Layard's ' Catalogue'), the 

 species represented in Le Vaillant's first figure, and to which 

 the specimen in question belonged. This specimen was ascer- 

 tained by Mr. Ayres to be a female ; but it does not difi'er from 

 the ordinary plumage of the male bird, except by the presence of 

 two small black spots adjacent to each other, and situated a little 

 in front of the middle of the white shoulder-patch, very much 

 as they are represented in Le Vaillant's figure. 



The presence of the white shoulder-patch in the female bird 

 was relied on by Bonaparte in his ' Conspectus ' (i. p. 302) as 

 the ground for separating this species from T. cinnamomeiventris 

 (Lafr.) ; but after comparing the specimens sent to me from 

 Natal with those which are preserved in the British Museum, it 

 is my impression that neither the presence nor the absence of the 

 white shoulder-patch in the female is a constant specific charac- 

 ter, and that it more probably depends upon the age of the spe- 

 cimen. 1 therefore think that Mr. Layard is right in treating T. 

 cinnamomeiventris (under which name I have included the species 

 in my Natal list. Ibis, 1864, p. 349) as merely a synonym of T, 

 albiscapulata. 



The passage in ' The Ibis ' above mentioned contains a 

 curious account, supplied by Mr. Ayres, of a semidomesticated 

 individual of this species, an adult male bird, which was styled 

 a "mock-bird'' by its owner, from which I infer that it pos- 

 sessed imitative powers, probably similar to those of Saxicola 

 pileata and S. bifasciata. 



247. Bessornis natalensis (A. Smith). 



I retain the opinion which I formerly expressed (Ibis, 1862, 

 p. 152) that Sir Andrew Smith's Cossypha natalensis (111. Zool. 

 S. Aix.yAves, pi. 60) is merely the immatm-e plumage of B. vo- 

 ciferans (no. 245 of Mr. Layard's 'Catalogue'). 



Crateropus swainsoni, a. Smith. Swainson's Crateropus. 



This species is not included by Mr. Layard ; but Dr. Hart- 

 laub (P. Z. S. 1866, p. 436) mentions it as South-African, 

 though without giving any particular locality for it. 



298. Campephaga MELANOXANTHA (Licht.). Southern Yel- 

 low-shouldered Caterpillar-eater. 



