52 EINAR LÖNNBERG, BIRDS. 



and they found thein with the aid of dögs and put theni up. It lias been recorded from 

 Kikuyu before, thus not far from the localities mentioned above, and from Kenia by Dear- 

 born quite recently. 1 



Pternistes leucoscepus leucoscepus (G. R. Gr.). 



Rchw. I, ]). 454. 



Bare-throated Francolins shot in the thornbush country north of Guaso Nyiri, for 

 instance at Njoro, have broader white stripes on the upper parts than those shot further 

 south at Meru borna etc., and belong thus to the northern race. 



Pternistes leucoscepus infuscatus (Cab.). 



Rchw. I, p. 455. 



Conimon at Nairobi, Juja farm, Punda Melia, Kagio, Kutu, Meru borna and many 

 other places in shambas, bush-steppe and grass-covered land. On grass-covered land 

 about one days march north of Meru this Bare-throated Francolin 2 still was plentiful and 

 exhibited the same type as in the localities mentioned above, but seemed a little heavier. 

 On the acacia-steppe at Lekiundu river Bare-throated Francolins were very abundant, 

 and quite small youngs were taken there V2, as well as an egg. More than halfgrown 

 young birds were shot at Kutu 2 Vi, and fullgrown young at Nairobi Vi. Specimens 

 shot on the grassy plains north of Meru borna Va had swelled genital organs. The propa- 

 gation of the species is thus irregular and probably extended över a long period, if not 

 över the whole year. 



Already in the quite young chicks the whitish shaft streaks are very well developed. 

 The feathers of the back, the scapulars, and armquills irregularily barred with broad black- 

 ish and narrower buff bands. By means of the light shaft streaks the blackish transverse 

 bands of ten are divided so as to form pairs of spöts, of ten with a lighter buf f ish brown centre. 

 A broad black band occupies the middle of the head from above the anterior margin of 

 the eye, and backwards. It widens on the nape where its centre becomes reddish brown 

 edged with black. On either side of this central band there is a whitish band bordered 

 again on its outer side of a black longitudinal stripe which runs from the forehead to the 

 sides of the neck. It is separated by whitish ground colour from a blackish stripe which 

 surrounds the eye and then joins the just mentioned black stripe above the ear. Finally 

 there is a blackish loreal stripe extending backwards and downwards on the side of the 

 neck bordering the white throat. The feathers of the breast with pairs of dark spöts and 

 light shaft streaks. 



These birds are very noisy and have a lot of different notes. When we were camping 

 at Lekiundu river I had a termite hill not far from my tent and on that a Pternistes cock 

 ascended every morning just at sunrise, or a little earlier and made a lot of noise. My 



1 Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Ornith. Series, Vol. 1, No. 4, Chicago 1909, p. 145. 



2 It was commonly called »Spurfowl» by sportsmen in Nairobi. 



