Annals of the Transvaal Museum 
257 
as in Anomalanthus, and the hind claw is long and slender, but differs in 
the species. Members of this group have a distribution quite as extensive 
as that of Anomalanthus and I propose therefore to place them in another 
genus, Meganthus, type Anthus vaalensis Shelley. These species need 
careful revision, based upon material that is not in worn or moulting con- 
dition. So far as I can make out from material in the Transvaal Museum 
collection there are two distinct species, differing in the length of the hind 
claw and size, the larger having a shorter claw and being distributed over 
the western area and high veld, the smaller with a longer hind claw and 
distributed from East Africa on the escarpment and the eastern area as 
far as the southern region. The southern bird is commonly known by the 
name of Anthus leucophrys Vieillot, or A. pyrrhonotus (Vieillot), the latter 
founded upon Le Vaillant’s figure (Ois. d’Afriq. iv. 197) which is unrecog- 
nisable with certainty. In this species the hind claw is very long, measuring 
about 11-13 mm. in length, the wing in males 97-100 (rather less in females) , 
the back dark olive brown in colour ; in vaalensis the wing in males measures 
104-107 mm., the hind claw 9-10-5, and the upper parts are altogether 
lighter, more tawny olive; in daviesi the wing is even longer, measuring 
no to 1 12 mm. in length in males, but in other respects comes close to 
vaalensis, and is therefore to be regarded as only a subspecies for the 
present; daviesi was originally described from Matatiele, but there is also 
a specimen in the Transvaal Museum from Phillipstown, which would seem 
to indicate that it is widely distributed. In Meganthus leucophrys the 
outermost primary is usually equal to the next; but in the larger group 
the outermost primary is shorter than the penultimate as a rule, seeming 
to indicate that it is a more sedentary species than leucophrys, and if such 
is the case it will very likely have a number of local subspecies. Colonel 
Meinertzhagen has recently (This, 1921, pp. 658-661) given us an account 
of the species belonging to this genus, but omits to mention M. daviesi 
Rbts. {Ann. Transvaal Mus. iv. 172, 1914); he mentions that there is a 
specimen of “vaalensis” in the British Museum from Deelfontein, which is 
presumably referable to daviesi. Amongst the subspecies mentioned by 
him is Anthus leucophrys neumanni of Angola, of which there is a specimen 
in the Transvaal Museum collection from Okahandja which agrees fairly 
well with the description. The distinctions between these subspecies are 
finely drawn and can only refer to the mass, as the shade of colour 
changes to some extent according to the condition of wear of the 
plumage. 
Passing now to the typical African Pipits, there are three well-marked 
genera that are readily separated from the preceding. There is always a 
distinct emargination on the fifth primary and the graduation of the 
primaries is not marked by wide gaps between the tips, the wing being 
more rounded in shape. Of these, the species “Anthus” crenatus Finsch 
and Hartlaub is characterised by its uniform upper parts and indistinct 
stripes on the breast and even less distinct lines on the flanks; but the 
axillaries, the bend of the wing and the outer margins of the primaries are 
yellowish; the bill is uniform dark brown, differing in this respect from all 
Pipits ; the first four primaries are practically of equal length and the fifth 
is only a little shorter, the difference between the longest and shortest 
primaries much greater than the length of the culmen; the tail is about 
