1922.] tlie Near East and Tropical East Africa. 7 



ACROCEPIIALUS SCIRPACEUS. 



An examination of tlie series at Tring, together with -40 

 birds collected b}' me in Syria, Palestine, and East Africa, 

 sliow clearly the differences between the eastern and western 

 races of the Reed-Warbler. 



Acrocephalus s. scirpaceus (Hermann). 



Sylvia strepera Vieillot, 1817. 



A darker and richer red throughout. Wing of 32 males 

 64-68 mm., and of 19 females 63-66 mm. 



Breeds apparently in western Europe, east at least to 

 Switzerland and central Germany. Occurs on passage in 

 Rumania (Sept.), Italy (Oct.), central Pyrenees (Sept.), 

 at Madrid (Feb.), in southern France (Sept.), and Algerian 

 Sahara (May). Winters in tropical Africa — south-western 

 Uganda (Dec. and Jan.), on the Victoria Nyanza (Jan. and 

 Feb.), in Tanganyika Territory (2 birds Sept. and Jan.), 

 and on the Gambia. 



Acrocephalus s. crassirostris (Brehm), Vogelfang, p. 235, 

 1855: Egypt. 



A. s. macronyx (Severtzoff, 1873), Hartert, Vog. pal. 

 Faun. p. 561. 



I have examined the type of Calamoherpe crassirostris, a 

 male shot in Ujiper Egypt on 10. v., and I find it identical 

 with a male obtained at Siiuba in British East Africa on 

 19. xii. Brehm's bird is in very worn plumage and my 

 Simba bird has apparently missed its autumn moult. I have 

 also examined over 50 specimens of this [)ale form from 

 Transcaspia, southern Russia, Egypt, tro[)ical Africa, and 

 southern Araljia. I cannot separate these from Brehm's 

 type of crassirostris. Under these circumstances, however 

 distasteful, we must accept the older name, and macronyx 

 becomes a synonym. 



A paler race, closely resembling Acrocephahis paUistris in 

 colour, but nearly always browner on the back and rump. 

 The only other reliable test between this race and Acroce- 

 phalus pahtstris seems to be the notch on the inner web of 



