208 DR. O. FINSCH ON BIRDS FROM NORTH-EASTERN 
16. MELIERAX POLYzoNUS, Riipp. 
Melierax polyzonus, Riipp. Neue Wirbelth. t. 15; id. Syst. Uebers. p. 12. no. 43; Heugl. Syst. 
Uebers. no. 62; id. Fauna d. Roth. Meer. no.18; Finsch & Hartl. Vogel Ostafr. p. 90. no. 32. 
a. §. Between Amba and Waliko. August 4 (no. 1006). 
6. 3. Senafé. May 22nd (no. 1992). 
ce. g. Gelamet. August 11 (no. 7). 
d. @. Zoulla. June 8. 
[Iris brown, eyelid coral-red with tinge of orange; cere coral-colour tinged with 
orange; beak dark horn-colour; legs and feet coral, talons dark horn, nearly black. 
This bird, of which I obtained three adult and one immature specimens, I found 
widely distributed. My examples came from Zoulla, Amba, Gelamet, and Senafé; it 
was also procured on the Anseba in the Bogos country. This distribution was irre- 
spective of the time of year. Contents of stomach, lizards.—W. J.] 
17. Circus patiipus, Sykes. 
Strigiceps pallidus, Heugl. Syst. Ueber. no. 76; id. Fauna d. Roth. Meer. no. 23; Brehm, Habesch, 
p. 208. no. 17. 
3. Koomayli. March 23 (no. 194). 
3. Senafé. April 17 (no. 151). 
Long. al. Caud. Culm. Tars. Dig. med. 
1 gil qi gi gu gi 5M if gi 
14 7 10 7 2 7 13 
Both specimens are in full dress, identical with the old male figured by Naumann 
(t. 348. f. 1), having the under surface white, without rufous spots. No. 194 has 
some brownish feathers on the nape, being the remains of the immature plumage; 
and the dark bands on the tail feathers, five in number, are broader, and tinged with 
rufous on the outer web. In no. 161 the tail cross bands are more obsolete. Both 
specimens have the upper tail-coverts white, with broad greyish brown cross bands, 
three on each feather. There cannot be any doubt that both specimens belong to one 
and the same species, although there exists a considerable difference in the shape of 
the quills. As Professor Blasius has pointed out (Naumannia, 1857, p. 314), in C. pal- 
lidus the excision of the inner web of the first quill reaches to the end of the coverts 
of the primaries. This is the case in the specimen no. 151; but in no. 194 the excision 
of the first quill reaches nearly half an inch beyond the end of the first quill-coverts— 
this being a peculiar character of C. cineraceus, Mont. Another specific character, 
according to Blasius, peculiar to C. pallidus, is the third and fourth quill being equal 
in length. In that respect Mr. Jesse’s specimens differ also a little—in no. 151 the 
fourth quill being 3 lines, in no. 194 5 lines shorter than the third. I mention these 
