llie Birds of Gambia. 
143 
Melitlnphniris pii^illHs. DWARF HEE-1<:ATKR. 
Ratiije. West Africa, Senej,'iiml)ia to Camerooiis. ( ILL.) 
Very common everywhere. They are not nearly such haunters of the 
river's edge are most of our Bee-eaters, but with us are generally found in 
the dried uj) swani])s, where one often comes across flocks of lA) or more, 
flitting about and busily engaged in the capture of flies and other insects 
Just before sunset one often finds a patch of tall grass or reeds absolutely 
full of these pretty little birds hanging on to the dry yellow stems, against 
which they are most conspicuous either when their green backs or yellow 
black-marked under surfaces are towards one ; at intervals one or two will 
dart away a short distance to snap up passing insects and return immediately 
to their perches, or occasionally they will rise eii iiiaKnr to fiy round the ])atch 
once or twice, soon however to return and eventually after a little mild bick- 
ering to settle down for the night as the darkness comes on. They begin to 
breed about May (I had a half-tiedged youngster brought me one June), 
laying their eggs in holes burrowed out in colonies in sandy banks. 
The following description is taken from two shot in January, 1904 : — 
Above, including head, back, rump and upper tail coverts glossy 
emerald green, won<lerfully sheeny in life ; forehead tinged with olive ; lores, 
round and behind eye for a third of an inch black ; throat and cheeks yellow 
with a black patch at the junction of the throat and breast ; this patch 
shades into burnt-sienna below, which in turn merges into the reddish-tawny 
of the rest of the under parts, which extends to the under tail-coverts, hut 
gets paler towards that point. Wing-coverts green like the back ; primaries 
tawny-brown on outer webs, grey-brown on inner, ends of inner 
feathers black ; secondaries a redder shade of the primaries' colour and with 
larger black ends ; under surface of wings ochreous-tawny with black ti{)s to 
secondaries and inner primaries ; under wing-coverts like the belly. The 
two middle feathers of the upper tail-coverts are prolonged to equal the 
tail, they are green above, grey below ; each feather of tail red-tawny with 
a broad black band at end narrowly bordered with whitish ; below the same 
but duller. Bill and feet black ; iris crimson. Length fii inches ; bill 
fifteen-sixteenth inch. 
M. variegatuH. 
Ratiqe. West Africa, Senegambia to Congo ; Equatorial Africa. 
{H.L.) 
Like ptinillux except that the throat-band is blue not black. I may 
have seen this species, but if I have, have never distinguished it from its 
relative. 
.)/. biillorl.-i. BULLOCK'S BEE-EATER. 
Baiii/f. West Africa, Senegambia to Congo ; North-east Africa. (fLL.) 
This, a larger bird than the two preceding and e.isily distinguished 
even on the wing by its red throat, is common in the Gambia from about 
May to Novemljer. Whenever one travels up the river at this season, one 
sees numbers of them tiying about overhead or sitting on the tops of the 
trees that line the bank, but during the remainder of the year they are coiu 
' spicuous by their absence. Their colours are particularly bright and gleam 
like a cluster of varied jewels when the sun catches them, so that their poss- 
