1880.] PROF. AGASSIZ ON THE SYNONYMY OF ECHINI. 33 



ultramarine-blue at the top succeeded by verditer-blue ; the last three 

 secondaries are uniform sandy-brown instead of fuscous and sandy- 

 brown shot with greenish ; in the tail the two middle feathers are 

 black instead of dusky bronze-grey, and the feathers next to them on 

 each side ultramarine glossed black instead of verditer-blue clouded 

 with blue-grey ; and the white forehead and eyebrows are very much 

 broader and more conspicuous. The under surface colouring is 

 deficient in the rich lilacine-purple which adorns the throat and 

 entire breast of C. caudaius, though it exhibits traces of a similar 

 hue on the sides. In comparison with C. abyssinicus, the upper 

 surface differs more markedly than it does from that of 0. caudatus, 

 for in C. abyssinicus the head and neck are greenish-blue sharply 

 separated from the uniform rufous-brown back ; but on the under 

 surface the coloration is the same, except that C. abyssinicus does 

 not present either the lilacine or brownish which vary the sides 

 of the face, throat, and breast in C. spatulatus. The tail-feathers 

 (with the exception of the two middle and two outermost) have their 

 colours just reversed in relative position, C. abyssinicus presenting 

 pale-blue feathers with dark-blue bases, and C. spatulatus feathers 

 pale blue at the base, but blue-black at their extremities. 



Dr. Bradjhaw informs me that C. spatulatus was not seen far from 

 the Zambesi except once or twice, when he noticed it at about 80 miles 

 distance to the south of the river. The species chiefly frequents the 

 so-called " Sand-veldt," a tract of heavy sand-ridges, keeping about 

 the tallest timber. In the winter months it makes its appearance in 

 small companies of from four to ten or a dozen, but is out of plumage 

 and very scarce during the rainy season, viz. from November to 

 April. In flight and action these birds resemble the other Rollers, 

 and are usually difficult to approach. They have a most peculiar 

 harsh cry, which differs from that of the other species, and when 

 once heard is easily recognized on repetition. The male specimen 

 brought down was shot on the 23rd May, 1878, on the western 

 boundary of the Leshumo valley, through the whole length of which 

 water only runs during heavy rains. All the specimens seen had the 

 extremities of the long tail-feathers expanded into the battledore form. 



I have never before seen any example of this Coracias in the 

 numerous collections made in the interior. The species is probably 

 limited in its range and may thus have escaped notice ; while it is not 

 unlikely that the less observant collectors may have passed it by 

 as C, caudatus. 



3. Note on some Points in the History of the Synonymy of 

 Echini. By Alexander Agassiz, F.M.Z.S. 



[Eeceived January 10, 1880.] 



The ' Proceedings ' of the Society for March, May, and June, 

 1879, contain three short articles on Echini, by Mr. F. J. Bell, of the 

 British Museum (see pp. 249, 436, and 655). As these articles are 



Proc. ZooL. Soc— 1880, No. III. 3 



