204 CUCULID.E CENTROPUS 



Description. Adult. Crown, sides of the head and nape blue- 

 black with shiny shafts to the feathers; middle of the back and 

 wings rufous-brown, the primaries, except at their tips, rather more 

 rufous, sometimes a few white shafts to the scapulars ; rump and 

 upper tail-coverts mottled and barred, dark green and dull white ; 

 tail-feathers uniform dark green, except below the coverts where 

 they are barred with rufous, and narrowly tipped with white ; below, 

 and under tail-coverts buffy-white throughout, the thigh and under 

 tail-coverts sometimes showing traces of black bars, the shafts of 

 the feathers being shiny throughout. 



FIG. 67. Head of Centropus burchelli. x }. 



Iris red ; bill black ; legs and feet leaden-black. 



Length about 16-5 ; wing 6'4 ; tail 9*85 ; culmen 1-3 ; tarsus 1-6. 



The sexes are alike ; a young female has the crown dull black 

 with a few red shaft marks ; an obscure lighter eyebrow, the back 

 and wings rufous, mottled and banded with black ; the tail-feathers 

 are clearly barred with narrow bands of pale rufous for about half 

 their length ; the throat is washed with pale rufous and the thighs 

 and sides of the body are barred with black. 



Distribution. Burchell's Coucal is a widely- spread resident 

 over the greater part of South Africa, and appears to be confined 

 or almost confined to it, if, as is generally now considered to be the 

 case, it is distinct from the West African C. senegalensis. It is 

 common through Cape Colony from Swellendam eastwards, Natal, 

 the Transvaal and Mashonaland and has been obtained in 

 Nyasaland. 



The following are the principal localities : Cape Colony 

 Swellendam, Caledon, Peddie (S. A. Museum), Knysna (Marais), 



