PURPLE-HEADED OR SCALY GRAKLE. 141 



of the great Namaqua country ; but they stay only 

 a short time, and finally return to the warmer and 

 more fruitful plains of Senegal, where, as Le Yail- 

 lant with much reason conjectures, they prohably 

 breed. 



It is clear that this, in fact, is the Couigmop of 

 the Ois. d' Afrique; but it is very questionable whe- 

 ther it is the Merula viridis Angolensis of Brisson, 

 from which Linnaeus made his Turdus nitens. Bris- 

 son, who was always remarkably exact, and whose 

 descriptions moreover are original, says nothing of 

 the peculiar frontal feathers, or of the black spots 

 on the wings. In the short notice given by Dr. 

 Leach of his Turdus splendens, he is equally silent 

 on the first of these characters, but lays stress upon 

 the second, that is, the black wing-spots ; not aware 

 that no less than four species of these shining 

 Grakles are thus marked. As it is quite impossible 

 to determine any thing from such descriptions, we 

 must leave them as they stand, contenting ourselves 

 with pointing out those characters by which the 

 species before us is truly distinguished, and which 

 are condensed in the foregoing specific character. 



The size is that of the missel thrush, and the 

 length almost ten inches. The whole plumage is rich 

 and glossy ; varying somewhat in its shades, but still 

 retaining the following decisive colours. The whole 

 of the head, neck, breast, and under parts, from the 

 chin to the tail-covers, are of a decided deep blue, 

 tinged with purple or lake, particularly on the head, 

 thighs, and under tail-covers, but without any green 



