606 



H 



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



sides of the neck white, mottled with hlack ; throat whitish, with 

 longitudinal black markings down the centre of each feather ; rest 

 of the under surface of the body dull golden yellow, the upper part 

 of the breast streaked with black, the rest of the belly and abdomen 

 thickly marked with brown transverse spots. Total length 7'4 inches, 

 culmen 1, wing 3 - 6, tail 2' I, tarsus *8. 



I am now, therefore, able to state that the immature bird figured 

 in the plate of Messrs. Marshalls' work is very nearly adult, the only 

 remains of young plumage being the whitish throat. 



17. Xylobucco duchaillui. 



Xylobucco duchaillui (Cass.) ; Sharpe, Cat. Afr. B. p. 15. 

 One specimen, shot on the 4th of February, 18/1. 



18. Gymnobucco pelt. 



Gymnobucco peli, Hartl. Orn. W. Afr. p. 1/5. 



One specimen, shot on the 4th of February, 1871. The Messrs. 

 Marshall in their ' Monograph ' have united G. peli to G. calvus. 

 But I am not quite satisfied about this identification ; for it must be 

 remembered that Dr. Hartlaub, in his original description of G.peli, di- 

 stinctly described both male and female as having the tufts on each side 

 of the forehead. The Messrs. Marshall, on the other hand, consider 

 that the female is to be distinguished from the male by the absence 

 of these tufts on the forehead. Having lately received from Fantee 

 a fine series of these Bald-headed Barbets, I must say that I am not 

 clear in my mind about the two birds being only sexes of one and 

 the same species ; for those birds supposed to be the female (i. e. 

 G. calvus) have much larger bills than the supposed males (G. peli). 

 The sketches which I now exhibit (figs. 2 & 3) show the differences 

 between the two species ; and it will be observed that in G. calvus 

 there is a conspicuous tuft of brush-like feathers on the chin, which 

 scarcely exists in G. peli. 



At present, therefore, I consider the two species to be distinct. 



Fig. 2. 



Fig. 3. 



Head of Gymnobucco peli. 



Head of Gymnobucco calvus. 



19. Trachyphonus purpuratus. 



Truchyphonus purpuratus, Verr. ; Marsh. Mouogr. Capit. p. xxxii. 



