1919'] Buzzards of the Ethiopian Region. 255 



The wing of a male from Ruwenzori measures 330, of a 

 female about 340 mm. 



The examples from Ruwenzori were identified as the 

 immature stages of B. auguralis^ but there seems to be 

 little doubt that they are a distinct species confined to the 

 mountains. 



With this form I am now inclined to identify some 

 Buzzards from South Africa collected bj Claude Grant. 

 These I myself named Buteo desertorum (Ibis, 1912, p. 12), 

 but I felt uncertain about the identification at the time, 

 and I am now convinced that they are not Buteo buteo 

 rufiventer (i. e. desertorum) . 



They differ from the Ruwenzori birds in being slightly 

 lighter above, while below they are not nearly so heavily 

 spotted, and there is a tinge of rufous on the tail. 



It seems probable from Mr. C. Grant's field-notes that 

 they were Ijrecding, and the date when the Transvaal birds 

 were collected (May) shows that they were not hirds win- 

 tering in Soutli Africa. The wings of the males measure 

 315-330, and of the females 335-358 mm. 



I should be inclined to regard Buteo ore'^philus as a resident 

 race o{ B. h. rufiventer whicli has recently become established 

 in the mountains of Africa. 



Buteo menetriesi. 



Buteo menetriesi Bogdanow, Ois. Caucasus, 1879, p. 5 : 

 Caucasus [in Russian] ; vide J. f. O. 1880, p. 260, for 

 translation, also Seebohm, Ibis, 1883, p. 5. 



Distr. Caucasus region, apparently ranging into Africa. 

 There are examples in the British Museum from Abyssinia, 

 Nyasaland, and the Cape Province. 



This species, which llartert (Vog. pal. Faun. p. 1126) 

 regards as identical with B. b. anceps (= B. b. rufiventer), 

 is represented in the IMuseum by two specimens from 

 Lenkoran on the Caspian Sea from the Seebohm collection. 

 These ditl'er, however, from the true B. b. rufiventer in 

 having the plain-coloured unhanded red tail ; they are also 

 much more rufous above and below than the typical Steppe 



