80 BLUE-CHEEKED BEE-EATER. 



tufous patch just mentioned, the breast and all the 

 under parts become of a uniform green, brighter and 

 more inclined to blue than is the upper plumage. 

 In the wings there is nothing peculiar; the black tips 

 of the lesser quills are smaller than usual, and the 

 corner surface is rufous. The lateral tail-feathers 

 are perfectly even, strongly emarginate, and. entirely 

 grey beneath; the middle pair are lanceolate, and 

 project from two inches to two inches and a quarter 

 beyond the others ; their tips are blackish-green*. 



Total length, excluding the two long tail-feathers, 

 10^ inches; bill, from the front, 1 T 4 ; wings, 5^; 

 tail beyond, 1, from the base, 3f . 



BLUE-BELLIED BEE-EATER. 



Merops cyanoyaster, SWAINS. 



PLATE VIII. 



Green ; neck and body beneath glossed with ferrugineous ; 

 chin, black ; throat, crimson ; belly and under tail-covers, 

 shining blue. 



Le Gnepier a gorge rouge, Le Vaill. pi. 20. Merops Bullocki, 

 A uctorum. 



THE Blue-bellied Bee-eater is not only a particu- 

 larly splendid species, but one of such rarity that we 

 do not remember to have seen more than four 



* Since this has been written, I have visited the King's 

 Library in the British Museum, for the sole purpose of in- 

 specting Le Vaillant's work ; and whatever doubt may hang 

 over the bird figured at plate 6, I am clearly of opinion that 

 the one on plate 6 bis. is the Senegal species here described. 



