602 MR. R. B. SHARPE ON THE BIRDS OF CAMEROONS. [June 20, 



of a snag from the front of the base of the horns, which is three- 

 lobed at the end, two smaller lobes being directed forward and much 

 below the erect tip. 



The right horn resembles that of a much developed, but rather 

 irregularly divided form of those of a Roebuck, with very thick and 

 very deep longitudinal grooves, having high ridges, nodulous on 

 the' edges, occupying the whole length of the main beam to the burr, 

 just above which they are largest and deepest ; and it has on the 

 inner side of the first furcation a thick, short, recurved snag. 



The left horn is like the other, but much thicker at the base ; 

 the recurved snag on the inner side is much longer and more slender ; 

 but the usual anterior snag of this furcation is reduced to a very 

 small conical prominence ; and what seems to be equivalent to the 

 hinder lower snag of the other horn is a dilated flattened pro- 

 cess at the base, divided into two slender, unequal lobes at the top. 

 But the great peculiarity of this horn is the existence of a branch 

 springing from the front of the base of the main beam, about half as 

 large as the horn itself, and having two conical divergent snags on 

 the front part of the middle of its length. 



Daubenton, in Buffon's ' Nat. Hist.' vol. vi. p. 241, t. 36. f.2, 3,4, 

 figures three malformations of the horns of the Roebuck, but does 

 not represent any like the one described from the specimen in the 

 British Museum. 



10. On the Birds of Cameroons, Western Africa. 

 By R. B. Sharpe, F.L.S. &c, Librarian to the Society. 



[Eeceived June 6, 1871.] 

 (Plate XLVII.) 



After having quitted the field of his former labours in Madagas- 

 car, Mr. Crossley undertook an expedition to Cameroons, at the 

 instance of Mr. Ward, of Halifax, to whom ornithologists are greatly 

 indebted for having sent out such an indefatigable collector to so 

 interesting a locality. As in the case of all his former collections, 

 the specimens are admirably preserved by Mr. Crossley, who in 

 this respect does great credit to Mr. Cutter, his agent, who trained 

 him in preparing specimens of natural history. 



The avifauna of Cameroons always possessed great attractions 

 for me, inasmuch as I was anxious to obtain some idea of the birds 

 of this part of Africa, believing that, from the mountainous nature 

 of the country, some modification in the aspect of the ornithology 

 of Gaboon and Fantee, which so closely assimilate to each other, 

 might be expected. The result, however, proves that in its general 

 features the avifauna of Cameroons is precisely similar to that of the 

 two last-named countries. The proving of this fact is of great 

 interest, as previously we were totally unacquainted with the birds 



