FRANCOLINUS NATALENSIS.— (Smith.)* 



AvES. — Plate XIII. (Male.) 



F. capite supra brunnco, fusco-ta^niolato; fronte superciliis, capitis latoribusque albi.--, niaculis brunneis 

 notatis; cervice colli lateribusque brunneis albo-strigatis ; dorso humerisque flavo-brunneis, fusco 

 subocbreoque varicgatis ; mcnto albo, brunneo-notato ; gutture, pcctore, abdomincque nigro-brunneis ; 

 fasciis maculisquc albis atquc irregularibus variegatis, plumis albo-niarginatis. Cauda flavo-bruunea, 

 fusco-tainiolata ; rostro rubro-aurautio ; pedibus aurantiis ; oculis fuscis. 



LoNcaTUDo 13 unc. 



Colour, ike. — The upper surface of the head dark wood-brown, finely 

 barred with umber-brown ; the front, the eyebrows, and the sides of the head 

 white and closely speckled with umber-brown ; space immediately behind 

 each eye, and the ear-coverts light brown ; back and sides of the neck dark 

 umber-brown, and variegated with short white streaks, from most of the 

 feathers being edged with white : some of the featliers of these parts are 

 marked, besides, with one or more imperfect white bars, and many of them 

 have the shaft of a bright chesnut hue. Back and shoulders yellowish brown, 

 and freely variegated with umber-brown and sienna yellow markings : — the 

 umber-brown in the form of longitudinal stripes along the middle of the 

 feather, and of delicate, zig-zag bars across the vanes : — the sienna yellow, 

 between the bars, disposed in the form of small stripes and irregular blotches. 

 The under parts are mottled-white and blackish brown : on the chin and 

 upper part of the throat, white is the predominant colour, and the dark 

 markings consist of small oval spots, one near the centre of each feather: on 

 the breast and belly the light and dark colours are nearly in ef|ual propor- 

 tions, the central portion of each feather is black-brown, more or less 

 completely broken into angular bars by a series of irregular white spots 

 which occur on each side of the shaft, the margins and tips of all the feathers 

 white ; vent and under tail-coverts pale yellowisii brown, variegated with 

 imperfect rusty-white and umber-brown bars ; thighs rusty-white, irregularly 

 barred with pale brown. Primary quill coverts and the (piill-feathers 

 broccoli-brown : — the outer vanes of the former and of some of the primary 

 quill feathers finely freckled with pale cream-yellow ; the outer vanes of the 

 innermost primaries partially barred with light yellowisli brown, and the 

 inner vanes faintly and sparingly speckled with the same colour ; the 

 secondary and most of the tertiary quill feathers yellowish brown, each with 

 several broad umber-brown bars, the spaces between which are crossed by 

 numerous undulated lines of umber-brown. Tail light yellowish brown, 

 crossed with numerous fine zig-zag umber-brown lines. The culmen between 

 the nostrils, the membrane covering the latter, and the edges of the mandibles 



* South African Quarterly Journal, 2nd Series, Xo. I. Part ii. page 48. November, 1833. 



