Birds uf SoutJiern Ccuneroon. 545 



No. 4538, a y()uii<;^ male witli li^lit hill, has the })arts of 

 the plumage that are red in the adult, red and blaek mixed. 

 No. 3799, a female not quite adult (bill l)lack), has a few red 

 feathers on the throat and chest. It looks as if this young 

 female had had a plumage like that of the young male, hut 

 was becoming quite black like the adult females. 



Malimbus RUBRicoLLis, [Nga'a-Uiiukau.] 



Sharpe, Ibis, 1908, p. 351. 



Nos. 4028 & 4339. 



Young birds, both certainly females, shot at Bitye, have 

 red on the head, though of a duller hue than in adults; and 

 ti;is red colour includes the forehead ^ as in adidt males. In 

 adult females the forehead is black, 



Ploceus AMAUKOCEPiiALUS. [Nga'a-miukuu. ] (Plate IX. 

 fig. 16, egg.) 



Sycobrotus amaurocephalus Cab. J. f. 0. 1880, p. 349. 



Sycobroius bicolor Sharpe, Ibis, 1908, p. 31-9. 



Ploceus bicolor Bates, Ibis, 1909, p. 42. 



No. 3372, young, lias the head not so black and the hack 

 not so grey as adults. 



Another nest of this Weaver brought to me was like those 

 already described. Nests of this species differ from those^ 

 of P. cucullatus, P. ni(jerrimus, and P. nigricollis in being 

 rougher, and composed of stems and tendrils; while they 

 have not such a long entrance-tube as those of tlie different 

 species of Malimbus. 



With the nest mentioned was brought the sitting female 

 bird, which had been pierced by an arrow while in the nest. 

 There were three eggs (Nos. 337-339), measuring respectively 

 22-5 X IG, 22x lG-5, and 22 x 15-5 mm. 



[Eggs of a regular oval form, slightly glossy. Ground- 

 colour pale bluish-white, rather sparingly spotted and 

 blotched over the entire shell with various shades of pale 

 brown and lilac-grey. — O.-G.] 



[To lie contiuued.] 



