72 



EINAR LÖNNBERG. BIRDS. 



the extremely slender body blends perfectly together with the numerous crossing branches 

 of the tree when the bird sits motionless. It appears also to be conscious about this and 

 does not move when it has alighted in one of these dense umbrella-shaped acacias. It 

 is really protective resemblance. I walked round such a tree in which I had seen a 

 Hornbill alight, and conld not detect it. Finally I believed that it had slipped away 

 withont my seeing it. But this was not so. My gunbearer saw it, and showed it to me, 

 and I shot it. When the same kind of Hornbill sat in a more open place it was too sus- 

 picious to allow me to come within range. In the acacias, however, I easily secured three 

 specimens. At the same time as they were wary they seemed possessed of a certain 

 curiosity. Single birds were seen flying from one tree to the other in the usual cnrves. 

 Suddenly 5 — 6 come together in the same tree where something has aroused their curio- 

 sity. Then they dispersed again. 



In a northwesterly direction this species has been foimdintheSukcountry, but the 

 locality mentioned above is situated further northeast than those recorded in Reichenow' s 

 »Vögel Afrikas» (conf. below). 



The male has a well developed ledge on top of the bill, although it does not form 

 such a casque as in Sundevall's type of epirhinus. The quills of the wing are tipped with 

 white except in one of the females. This characteristic has consequently no taxonomic 

 value. 



The Hornbills of this kind from North East Africa are counted by Reichenow as L. 

 nasutus nasutus, or eventually L. n. forskali. The latter should be distinguished by 

 longer wings, and very big bill. Specimens from Sennaar in the R. Nat. Hist. Museum 

 in Stockholm ha ve very large bilis and may belong to the race »forskali », if it is constant. 

 There appears to be a great variability among these birds. Even specimens from Eritrea 

 have a ledge on top of the bill, although not strongly developed, and appear to be very 

 similar to the specimens of this collection. 



Lophocerus flavirostris (Rtipp.). 



Rchw. II, p. 261. 



Since we had crossed Guaso Nyiri on our way north, and had followed it a day or 

 two towards the east from the Marsabit road the Yellow-billed Hornbill became rather 

 common in the thornbush country. It was, however, not so numerous as its red-billed 

 congener which also lived in the same country. I secured specimens of the yellow-billed 

 species at Njoro and at Guaso Nyiri below Chanler Falls. 



According to Reichenow this species has been found as far south as at Ndi in Taita 

 but it can withont doubt be counted to the genuine northeastern fauna. 



Lophoceros erythrorhynchus (Tem.). 



Rchw. II, p. 262. 



This Hornbill was common on the acacia-steppe on the southern side of Guaso Nyiri, 

 and still more so in the dry thornbush-country north of the river mentioned. In the latter 



