DISTRIBUTION OF BARN-OWLS. 285 



Ahjssinia and adjacent countries. Von HeUglin states that it is " found 

 in the whole of North-eastern Africa, being more common in the mountains 

 of Abyssinia and the virgin forests, as also in Egypt and Nubia. The form 

 generally met with is white underneath, spotted with black. A male, shot 

 in Bogos, was remarkable for its small size and entirely black ruff. Vier- 

 thaler found it in December on the Blue Nile." Von Heuglin also adds 

 that he received a good many examples at the end of January 1854, collected 

 in the Belanian mountains and in Olibo (5° N. lat.) (cf. Orn. N.O.-Afr. 

 p. 124). Mr. Blanford does not appear to have fallen in with it ; but Mr. 

 Jesse shot a specimen in the mangroves on the shore of Annesley Bay (cf. 

 Finsch, Tr. Z. S. vii. p. 211). 



Z. This specimen, marked " Zoulla, March 12, 1868," is now in Lord 

 V\^alden's collection, and was kindly lent to me by him. It is very dark 

 grey, like the Senegambian bird collected by Marche, and mentioned below, 

 and is profusely spotted underneath, with here and there an indication of a 

 bar ; on the quills ^?;e bars, and the same number on the tail. Total length 

 12"5 inches, wing 12" 1, tail 4'8, tarsus 2*5, middle toe 1"2. 



N.B.— Most African birds resemble this Abyssinian specimen in being 

 thickly spotted below. It was doubtless this peculiarity that induced Brehm 

 (Naum. 1855, p. 270) to name the bird from N.E. Africa S. maculata. 



West Africa. 



Senegambia. Verreaux has received it from Casamanze (Hartl. Orn. W.- 

 Afr. p. 21); and more recently M. Marche has procured a specimen at 

 Ruffisque (cf. Bouvier, Cat. p. 8). 



A'. The last-named example is now in the British Museum. It is of small 

 size, and of a very rich dark grey above, with coarse mottlings and large ovate 

 spots of white ; the orange colour, where apparent, is also very rich. The 

 small appearance of the bird is perhaps apparent from the fact of the wing 

 not being fully grown. Bars on ju'imaries four, on tail four ; chest orange- 



2 Q 2 



