224 ALAUDID^ TEPHROCORYS 



Description. Adult in winter. (From Cat. B. Museum). 

 Similar to the winter plumage of T. cinerea, but very much paler 

 everywhere, the rufous of the crown, the rump, wing-coverts and 

 sides of chest being of a light cinnamon instead of deep ferruginous 

 or chestnut. 



Bill yellowish-brown; legs and toes brown (Andersson). 



Length 5-80; wing 3-60; tail 2-10 ; tarsus O80 ; culmen 0-55. 



Distribution. Northern Damaraland and Benguela. 



Habits. Like those of T. cinerea. 



128. Tephrocorys anderssoni. Andersson' s Lark. 



Megalophonus anderssoni, Tristram, Ibis, 1869, p. 434 ; 1870, p. 444 ; 



Gurney, in Andersson' s B. Damara Land, p. 198 (1872). 

 Tephrocorys anderssoni, Sharpe, Cat. B. M. xiii, p. 564 (1890) ; Shelley, 



B. Afr. i, p. 14 (1896). 



Description. Adult. Like T. cinerea, but the sides of the breast 

 and body, as well as the thighs and under tail-coverts, are bright 

 rufous, and the outer web of the external tail-feather is buff- 

 coloured. 



Length 5'65 ; wing 3-50 ; tail 2-10 ; tarsus 0-80 ; culmen 0-55. 



Distribution. Damaraland, in the neighbourhood of Otjim- 

 binque ; " type " March 13, 1865 (C. J. Andersson). 



Habits. Canon Tristram makes the following remarks on this 

 species in the " Ibis ", for 1869, page 435; " Megalophonus anders- 

 soni is nearly allied to M. cinereus in colouration, but differs in its 

 proportions, and bears a relation to it similar to that which M. 

 africanoides does to M. africanus and M. chenianus to M. sabota. 

 The rufous colour, however, is continuous, and not interrupted as in 

 M. cinereus, and the spots of brown-black on each side of the neck 

 are very distinct." 



"Mr. Andersson forwarded the nest and eggs along with the 

 skin. The eggs are very sparsely spotted, for a Lark's, with russet 

 on a greenish-white ground, and are smaller than those of any 

 other South African Lark. In their pale and sparse colouration 

 they resemble the eggs of Certhilauda africana." 



This Lark is closely allied to T. ruficeps of Abyssinia and North- 

 east Africa. 



