VII 



PLOCEIDAE 



577 



and falcate, and Ploceinae, peculiar to Africa and its islands 

 with the exception of the genera Ploceus and Ploceella of the Indian 

 Region in which it is larger. The former group includes the 

 long-tailed Widow-birds, the red-beaked Wax-bills, and so forth ; 

 the latter the more typical Weaver-birds ; Africa furnishing by far 

 the greatest number of species. The bill is normally strong and 

 conical, but is unusually long and slender in Emllema, and particu- 

 larly stout with ridged culmen in Amblyospiza ; the maxilla may 

 be toothed, as in Pyrenestes, or 

 festooned, as in Spermestes. The 

 metatarsus is moderate, and the 

 hind claw sometimes lengthened, 

 as in Icteropsis. The rounded 

 or pointed wings have very 

 long secondaries, and the tail 

 shews a slight fork ; while in 

 the breeding season the four 

 median rectrices in the males of 

 Vidua and several allied genera 

 are extraordinarily elongated, be- 

 ing then either broad or tapering, 

 and reduced to threads at the 

 extremity, or bare-shafted with 

 " racquet " tips. 1 Crests are un- 

 common, hair-like plumes on the 

 nape more . frequent, while Pyro- 

 melaena and Urobrachya have a neck-frill in summer. 



The coloration of these rather small birds is most striking, 

 though the females are usually much duller than the males, 

 which have in some cases a sober winter garb. Vidua princi- 

 palis is black and white ; Pentlietri-a ardens is black with scarlet 

 gorget ; Philetaerus socius is brown, buff, black, and white ; Zonae- 

 ginthus bellus is brown above, with transverse black lines and 

 crimson rump, but silver grey below with black bars ; Hypocliera 

 ultramarina is entirely purplish-blue ; Sporaegintlius amandava, 

 the Amadavat, is chiefly crimson with white dots ; Munia 

 oryzivora, the " Java Sparrow," is blue-grey and black with white 

 cheeks. M. punctulata, the Cowry- or Nutmeg-bird, is brown, 



For a full account of the tail-feathers of these remarkable birds, see Strickland, 

 Contrib. Ornith. 1850, pp. 88, 149 ; A. Newton, Diet. Birds, 1896, p. 1030. 

 VOL. IX 2 P 



FIG. 141. Weaver-bird. 



"< 



Pyromelaena 



