1865.] ON A COLLECTION OF ANIMALS FROM MADAGASCAR, 467 
rity. Now I understand it all, and send you this notice to commu- 
nicate to the Zoological Society at their next Meeting. 
“The Trochilus angele, in full dress, as described by Lesson in the 
‘Illustrations de Zoologie,’ pt. 5, has this full dress only during the 
months from October to January, which are the summer months 
here. In the beginning of February, or in some cases already at 
the end of January, the large blue-coloured feathers of the side 
of the neck fall out, and also the ruby-red feathers of the gorget, and 
white feathers with a black spot in the middle come out in their 
place. When this change is finished the bird becomes ‘la cola de 
tixera’ of Azara. I send you an individual which is in the middle 
of the change, killed in the middle of February. The female is in 
all seasons whitish green on the underside, with a shorter tail, and 
with white spots on the tips of the three external tail-feathers. 
These spots are generally lost by wearing off, and were therefore seen 
by Azara only on one feather. The young male before the first 
change of the plumage has the colour and dress of the female, differ- 
ing only in having yellow points on the feathers, which points are 
lost in the somewhat older individuals. In the same manner the 
colour of the underside is not whitish green, but yellow green. I 
send you a young male beginning to show the plumage of the full 
dress of the summer in some spots on the throat-feathers. 
‘In my notes in the ‘ Anales,’ before referred to, I have made an 
error in determining the ‘ Mas bello’ of Azara as Trochilus bicolor. 
It is a.different species, which Heine has named in Cabanis’s Journal 
Chlorostilbon phaéthon—the Trochilus phaéthon of Gould (sce 
Journal f. Orn. 1863, p. 197).” 
A paper was read by Professor Allman, F.R.S., on the characters 
and affinities of Potamogale, a genus of insectivorous mammals re- 
cently discovered in Western Africa. Professor Allman came to the 
conclusion that this singular form was more closely allied to Soleno- 
don than to any other known genus, but that it presented such 
striking peculiarities as would render it necessary to regard it as the 
type otf a new family of Insectivora, to which the name of Potamo- 
galide might be given. 
This paper will be published with illustrations in the Society’s 
‘ Transactions.’ 
The following papers were read :-— 
1. Report on 4 CoLLection oF ANIMALS FROM MADAGASCAR, 
TRANSMITTED TO THE Society By Mr. J. CALDWELL. By 
P. L. Scuater, M.A., Pa.D., F.R.S., Secretary To THE 
Society. 
(Plate XXVII.) 
Mr. J. Caldwell, of Port Louis, Mauritius, has recently transmitted 
to me a small collection of animals in spirits, collected in Madagas- 
car, in the vicinity of Antananarivo, which was alluded to in his letter 
