NECTARINIID^E CINNYRIS 279 



nests suspended from the outer twigs of bushes and trees, and rear 

 one or two broods in a season. The eggs are very dark in colour, 

 and invariably two in number in the South African species. 



Key to the Species (adult males). 



a. Entire head, neck and upper surface of body 



metallic-green or blue-green. 



a 1 . Without pectoral tufts C. mariquensis, p. 279. 



b\ With yellow pectoral tufts. 



a?. Breast and abdomen white, a narrow black 



pectoral band C. leucog aster, p. 281. 



b-. Abdomen ash-brown, a narrow collar of 

 steel-blue followed by a scarlet chest-band. 



a 3 . Chest-band scarlet, 0'75 wide C. afer, p. 282. 



6 3 . Chest-band lighter scarlet ; I'OO wide C. ludovicensis, p. 284. 



c 3 . Chest-band darker scarlet ; 0*50 wide ... C. chalybeus, p. 284. 



b. General plumage, above and below, soft velvety 



black or brown ; without pectoral tufts ; fore- 

 head and throat metallic. 

 c 1 . Lower throat and chest bright scarlet, the 



feathers with subterminal bars of blue C. c/ntturalis, p. 286. 



d 1 . Chest velvety black or brown like the abdo- 

 men. 

 c-. Upper tail-coverts metallic. 



d*. General plumage velvety black C.amcihystinns, 



p. 287 



e?. General plumage velvety brown C. bradshawi, p. 289. 



d-. Upper tail-coverts like the back and non- 

 metallic C. MrM, p. 289. 



r. Plumage above with a submetallic gloss. 



c 1 . Sexes dissimilar: male with orange-red pec- 

 toral tufts ; throat and breast black ; centre 



of abdomen and under tail-coverts white C. fuscus, p. 290. 



/'. Sexes similar. Entire under surface pale ash- 

 brown ; pectoral tufts scarlet C. verreauxi, p. 291. 



d. Sexes alike ; both without any trace of metallic 

 plumage ; above olive, below olive-yellow ; pec- 

 toral tufts yellow C. olivaceus, p. 292. 



Cs * 



. '^L^ / VC^*rt/> *ft-&Si,t 



158. Cinnyris mariquensis. Southern Bifasciated Sunbird. 



Cinnyris mariquensis, Smith, App. Rep. Exp. S. Afr. p. 53 (1836) 

 Shelley, Monogr. Cinnyridce, p. 211, pi. 65 (1877) ; id. B. Afr. i, p. 3 

 (1896) ; Gadoiv, Cat. B. M. ix, p. 44 (1884) ; Sharpe, ed. Layard's 

 B. S. Afr. pp. 319, 832 (1884). 



