On an apparently new Species of Ground-Hornhill. 171 



XXIII. — Description of an apparently new Species of Ground- 

 Hornhill. By D. G. Elliot, F.R.S.E. &c. 



Bucorvus pyrrhops. 



Bill black, with an orange-coloured plate on the side of the 

 maxilla near the base, as in B. abyssinicus. Casque rises 

 from base of maxilla, extends backwards over the eye, and then 

 curves forward, terminating in a round opening in front, simi- 

 lar to that of B. abyssinicus^ but smaller. Space all around 

 the eye, extending backward nearly to the occiput, bare of 

 feathers, and also the skin beneath the feathers on the top of 

 the head, at least upon the forehead, orange-red. Bare skin 

 of the sides of the neck, beneath this orange-red colour, and 

 throat dark blue ; the gular sac is orange in front, orange-red 

 behind ; and this latter colour runs up for a short distance on 

 the posterior side of the blue skin of the neck. Entire plumage 

 of body lustrous black ; the primaries pure white. Irides 

 pearly white. Length of bill from the angle of the mouth 17 

 centims. ; height of casque 2 centims. ; height of bill without 

 casque 5 centims. ; tail 29 centims. ; tarsus 14 centims. The 

 bird is fully adult. 



Hah. Region of the Congo, West Africa. 



The specimen from which the above description is taken is 

 now living in the Zoological Gardens at Rotterdam, and was 

 brought to my notice by Mr. Keulemans, who, when lately in 

 Holland, made a sketch of the head, which he sent to me. I 

 am indebted to the Directeur, Monsieur A. A. von Bemmelen, 

 for permission to describe it, as well as for the measurements, 

 which he kindly sent me, taken from the living bird. This 

 species seems to be most nearly allied to the B. abyssinicus ; 

 but, besides its smaller size, it can readily be distinguished from 

 that well-known bird by the totally different coloration of 

 the bare skin on the head and neck. From information which 

 I have received since the publication of the second part of my 

 Monograph of the Bucerotidse, I am led to believe that there 

 are probably four species at least of Ground-Hombills. Pro- 

 fessor Bocage writes me, in answer to a request for informa- 

 tion regarding the specimens he had received from M. Anchieta 

 from Angola, that without exception (and he had examined 

 more than a dozen of the birds) there was no trace lohatever of 

 the orange plate upon the maxilla. The coloration of the 

 bare skin of the head and neck is also very different, being 

 entirely yellow mixed with orange or red in the males, and 

 with a small lengthened dark blue spot at the angle of the 

 mandible. A female had ujx>n thr gular pouch a large spot 



