no. 2076. DESCRIPTIONS OF NEW AFRICAN BIRDS— ME ARNS. 391 



Africa, but slightly smaller, with throat and sides of head grayish 

 instead of being white. From Estrilda atricapilla atricapiUa Verreaux, 

 from Camaroon and Gaboon, it differs in being considerably paler 

 below, with the mantle brownish instead of grayish and much less 

 heavily cross-barred with black; and the black of the head includes 

 the eye. 



Description of adult male and female. — Top of head, including lores 

 and orbital region, black; mantle grayish brown, finely and some- 

 what obscurely cross-banded with black; rump and upper tail- 

 coverts pompeian red; wings brownish slate with outer wing-coverts 

 and inner secondaries cross-banded with black; tail slaty black, very 

 obscurely cross-banded with black; chest and upper abdomen neutral 

 gray, gradually deepening to black on lower abdomen and crissum, 

 and paling to pale neutral gray on throat and sides of head; sides 

 and flanks pompeian red; axillars, under wing-coverts, and inner 

 border of quills grayish white; bill, feet, and claws entirely black. 



Measurements of type (adult male). — Length of skin, 100; wing, 46; 

 tail, 48; culmen (chord), 8.5; tarsus, 15. 



Average measurements oj two adult males (including the type). — 

 Wing, 46; tail, 48; culmen (chord), 8.5; tarsus, 15. 



Average measurements oj two adult females. — Wing, 44; tail, 45.5; 

 culmen (chord), 8.5; tarsus, 15. 



Geographical range. — Aberdare and Kenia mountains, 8,000 to 8,500 

 feet, in British East Africa. 



Bemarks. — The range of Estrilda nonnula Hartlaub, described from 

 Kudurma, almost meets that of E. a. Iceniensis in western British 

 East Africa, having been collected by Mr. Edmund Heller at Kaimosi, 

 25 miles northeast of Kisumu. 



HALCYON SENEGALENSIS CINEREICAPILLUS, new subspecies. 



UPPER NILE KINGFISHER. 



Type-specimen. — Adult male, Cat. No. 216577, U.S.N.M.; collected 

 at Kisingo, between Kutwi and Kigomma, Uganda, Africa, December 

 29, 1909, by Edgar A. Mearns. (Original number, 17859.) 



Characters. — Most closely related to Halcyon senegalensis senegalen- 

 sis (Linnaeus) and H. s.fuscopileus Eeichenow, the former from Sene- 

 gal, the latter from Jaunde and Bipindi, in the Kamerun District. It 

 differs from senegalensis in being slightly larger, with paler (more 

 ashen) crown, and more whitish under parts; and from fusco'pileus it 

 differs in the much paler blue of the upper parts, the much paler and 

 less brownish pileum, the paler and more finely vermiculated under 

 parts, and also in its larger size. 



Description of type (adult male). — Upper side of head and neck 

 light neutral gray, sometimes washed with pale blue; lores and a 

 narrow ring around the eye black; a white superciliary band begins 



