2 
as follows:—“In the month of January 1838, this South-African bird was shot at Mount 
Beresford, three miles and a half from Waterford, by a lad while out shooting Blackbirds and 
Snipe. Considering it a hen of the former, he sold it to Dr. Robert Burkitt, who skinned 
and preserved it; the sex, however, was not noted. The specimen was exhibited by the late 
Mr. Thompson at the meeting of the British Association held at Cork in August 1843; and 
the brief notice in that part of the ‘Report’ of the Association for that year which contains 
the ‘Transactions of the Sections’ (p. 71) seems to be the first printed announcement of its 
occurrence. In May 1845 the same gentleman made known (Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. xv. p. 308, 
note) a few more particulars of the fact, as above given; and in January 1846 Dr. Burkitt pre- 
sented the skin to the Museum of Trinity College, Dublin, where, however, it is unfortunately 
not at the present time forthcoming.” By Thompson, Yarrell, and others this specimen was most 
erroneously referred to the “Cudor” of Levaillant; but fortunately their careful descriptions, 
together with a coloured drawing of the Waterford bird preserved by Dr. Burkitt, enabled 
Professor Newton to correct this mistake; and it is to be remarked that the ‘ Cudor” (P. 
aurigaster) is a species which inhabits Java. The present species has not been elsewhere met 
with in Europe, nor even in North Africa, it being a South-African species, apparently con- 
fined to the Cape colony. Levaillant (/. ¢.) says that it is ‘extremely common near the Cape 
of Good Hope, and especially in Swart Land, where it is called geet-gat, or yellow vent. It 
feeds on berries and insects, and is a very noisy bird.” Mr. HE. L. Layard, who met with it 
in South Africa, says (B. of 8. Afr. p. 138) that they ‘are found in great abundance in the 
neighbourhood of Cape-town, and indeed throughout the whole colony. ‘They migrate according 
to the fruit-season, and are especially partial to figs and grapes. They also feed largely on the 
berries of the ‘ Persian lilac;’ and when that tree is in fruit any number might be shot by a 
person lying in ambush near. When feeding they keep up a continued chattering; and as they 
usually go in flocks of ten or fifteen in number, their presence is soon detected.” 
I do not possess the eggs of this species, and have no other information respecting its 
nidification beyond that published by Mr. Layard, who writes as follows :—‘ These birds conceal 
their nests so skilfully that they are rarely detected, notwithstanding their numbers. It is com- 
posed of rootlets, lined sometimes with hair and feathers, and is generally placed in the fork of 
a tree or large bush. The eggs, three or four in number, are a lovely pale pink, densely spotted 
and blotched with dark pink and pale purple, presenting a most beautiful appearance: axis 11”, 
diameter 7}!".” 
The specimen described, and figured on the same Plate with P. xanthopygus, is one from 
the Cape of Good Hope, in my own collection. 
In the preparation of the above article I have examined the following specimens :— 
E Mus. H. E. Dresser. 
a. Cape of Good Hope, 1871 (Butler). 
E Mus. G. E. Shelley. 
a, b. Cape of Good Hope (Butler). c. Wellington, Cape colony, January 6th, 1874 (G. E. Shelley). 
