652 Messrs. Sclater mid Mackworth-Praed on [Ibis, 



the same time we would point out that the dates of capture 

 of these birds are very remarkable if tliey were going to 

 breed in Europe that year. We rather Avonder therefore if 

 there is not a breeding race of Swift in the Sudan, corre- 

 sponding to the considerably smaller Abyssinian breeding 

 race, M. a. shelleyi. It is probable also that the browner 

 Asiatic race, M. a. pekinensis, also passes through the Sudan 

 in winter, though the only record of its occurrence that we 

 can find is one mentioned by Hartert from Gondokoro. 



Micropus apus shelleyi. 



Cypselus shelleyi Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civ, Gen. xxix. 1888, 

 p. 227 : Dembi, Shoa. 



Apus shelleyi (Salvad.) ; Reichw. V. A. ii. p. 373. 



Autinori is said to have obtained specimens of this small 

 Abyssinian race of Swift from Berber. He named it 

 C. dubius, but in his original description, Cat. coll. uccelli, 

 1864, p. 25, he says "equal in size to C. murai'ius " = M, a. 

 apus. We should require further confirmation therefore 

 before admitting it to the Sudanese list.' 



Micropus melba melba. 



Hi/undo melbn Linn. Syst. Nat. 10th ed. 1758, p. 192: 

 Straits of Gibraltar. 



Apus melba melba Hartert, Vog. pal. Faun. p. 834. 



[B. coll.] 1 Kajo Kaji Mch. 27, L.E. 



We are strongly inclined to assign this bird to the 

 European race and not to the African. If we are right, it 

 will then be the first record from what may be termed 

 " tropical " Africa. The only constant difl^erences we can 

 find between M. ni.. melba and M. m. africana, is that the 

 latter is usually darker and has a broader breast-band and a 

 smaller extent of white on the throat. The wing-measure- 

 ments do not ditt'er much. This specimen is a pale-coloured 

 bird with a narrow breast-band and a large amount of white 

 on the throat, and we caii in no way distinguish it from 

 European examples. Wing 213 mm. 



There is also in the Museum collection a bird from 



