The Birds of Uambia. 
51 
all their food on llie wing, watching for it (like the common Flycatcher) 
from some selected perch, which as often as not is just above the water's 
edge, as a greater part of their prey seems to consist of water-haunting 
insects, which one may often see them snatch with a sudden graceful swoop 
from off the very surface of the water, without so much as wetting even the 
tips of their long sweeping tails. They are resident with us all the year 
round, though their numbers are undoubtedly increased by the arrival of 
others in May to breed here during the rains. 
The two species common here differ considerably in size, and are, I 
think, rr/sfdtd and riiflreiitrix, but of this I am not certain, as not only are 
the distinctions between the different species difficult to follow, but there is 
also great variation in the same species at different ages and seasons. The 
best way therefore out of the difficulty is to give a table of the differences 
between the species taken from the British Museum Catalogue, to which I 
may add that in the two species I have shot the irides were dark brown. 
Key to the Gambian species of Terpsipho7te. 
Tail white with more or less black margins. 
Under surface of body slaty-grey ; a metallic gloss on the throat, 
=cristata S (Length 14, tail 10 in.) 
Tail, chestnut like the back. 
Under tail-coverts orange or light rufous buff. 
Abdomen orange like the breast. 
Throat glossy black, rest of under surface orange. 
Crest elongated, passing nape and a metallic steel green in 
colour. 
^rufirentrh adult (L.12.8. Tail 8.5). 
Crest velvety, not elongated purplish black. 
=n/griceps adult (L.9.5. Tail Gin.) 
Abdomen grey like the breast. 
Throat glossed and blacker than the breast. 
=cristata (immature female). 
Throat uniform with breast, scarcely any gloss. 
=cristata (adult female). 
Under tail-coverts white. 
Throat glossy, like the crown. 
Head and neck chestnut like the back. 
=erythroptera (adult male) (Length 15.7 ; tail 12.1 inches) 
Throat grey (quills rufous at ends of inner webs). 
=erythroptera (adult female) (Length 7.5 ; tail 4 inches). 
Tail black. 
Under tail coverts grey like the abdomen and chest ; back chestnut ; 
head and throat glossy black ; secondaries edged with white. 
=cristata (immature male) (Length 8.3 ; tail 5 inches). 
Elmi/iia longicauda. 
Range. West Africa, Gold Coast to Congo ( H.L.) 
Although the range of this species as given in the Hand List does not 
extend as far north as the Gambia, it (or perhaps another closely allied 
species) does occur here as a rainy season visitor. I have twice seen blue 
