Birds of Southern Cameroon. 507 



Barbatula erythronota. [Omvek.] 



Reich. V. A. ii, p. 14(j. 



No. 3451. ? breeding. Bitye, R. Ja, Feb. 1909. 



No. 4360. S „ „ „ Aug. 1910. 



This is the most beautiful of the small Barbets and is not 

 common, for the two specimens mentioned above are the 

 only ones that I have procured. The first was brouglit alive, 

 imprisoned in its nesting hole in a section of a small soft- 

 wood stump. This hole was exactly like those of other 

 small Barbets^ and contained, besides the female bird, two 

 nestlings. 



Barbatula LEUcoLiEMA. [Omvek.] 



Sharpe, Ibis, 1904, p. 617; 1907, p. 44.2; Bates, Ibis, 

 1909, p. 18. 



I have recently procured a number of these Barbets 

 caught in their breeding-holes, which were like those ali-eady 

 described ("^ Ibis,^ 1909, p. 18) and are common in the tall 

 stumps left in clearings. Such birds are not always actually 

 breeding, though many of the holes contained eggs or 

 nestlings. These are to be found during most months of 

 the year, thus hardly confirming my first conclusion that 

 the small Barbets prefer the dry seasons for breeding. 



The nestlings were generally two in number, but once 

 three were found in one hole. They all had sharp-pointed 

 tubercles on the back of the tarsal joint. 



When eggs were found, they generally numbered two ; 

 in one instance three. These eggs vary in length from 

 15 to 18 mm., and in width from 1.2 to 13 mm, ; otherwise 

 they are as already described, 



Barbatula subsulphurea. [Omvek.] 



Sharpe, Ibis, 1904, p. 617; 1907, p. 441; Bates, Ibis, 

 1909, p. 18. 



A few nesting-holes of this species have been found, and 

 are exactly like those of B. leucoloemaj being placed in similar 

 situations. One contained two broken eggs when it reached 

 me, and two young birds were found in each of the others. 

 These had heel-pads, siuiilar to those described above. 



