9 [Vol. xvi. 



elusions were that the Avifauna of Cape Town and its 

 suburbs is rather poor in species^ as in individuals. I saw 

 examples of about 10 species only that I could certainly 

 recognize. These were : Sitagra capensis. Passer arcuatus, 

 Motacilla cajpensis, Zosterops capensis, Lanius collaris, 

 Laniarius gutturalis, Turdus oUvaceus, Cossypha caffra, 

 Turtur capicola and Turtur senegalensis. 



^ The commonest bird at Cape Town is certainly Turtur 

 capicola, the harsh and grating love-call of which C^' Ghuck- 

 Jcee-ivah ") is heard almost perpetually morning and evening 

 in the spring months. The other Dove [T. senegalensis) is 

 not quite so plentiful^ but has a pleasant laughing note. 

 The Sparrow [Passer arcuatus) is not so numerous as our 

 domestic bird^ but will, I trust, long succeed in main- 

 taining itself at Cape Town against the European invader, 

 which, however, I am told, is pressing it hard in other 

 parts of South Africa. 



" The '' Robin " of Cape Town is Cossypha caffra, easily 

 known by its red tail, and Turdus oUvaceus is the Thrush. 

 But the bird that interested me most was the Yellow 

 Weaver-bird, Sitagra capensis, which builds its round and 

 neatly-constructed nests in communities, in the most public 

 places. I exhibit some specimens of the nests taken from 

 a colony in an oak-tree in the Municipal G-ardens, which 

 are in the middle of the city close to Grovernment House 

 and the Houses of Parliament. 



" It is curious that out of the ten commonest birds of 

 Cape Town j'Eve belong to genera also found in England.'" 



Dr. ScLATBR announced that there were still copies in 

 hand of the "^ Becensio Gritica Automatica of the doctrine 

 of Bird Migration," by Otto Herman (which had been sent 

 by the author to the British Ornithologists' Union for dis- 

 tribution amongst the Members), and that he would be 

 happy to supply a copy to any Members who had not 

 already received one. 



Mr. E. G. B. Meade-Waldo made a statement regarding 



