252 
Annals of the Transvaal Museum. 
defined, and every naturalist probably has his own conception of what is 
meant by “ violet colour ” (Reichenow), “ purple ” (Grant), and “ bronze 
violet ” (mihi), colours which have been ascribed to the tail of this bird. 
I can, however, see a very distinct difference in the colour of the tail 
feathers of specimens from the Cape Province, from the Transvaal, and from 
the Zambesi valley, and as this is correlated with differences in size, I see 
no reason to consider those from the last two regions as synonymous 
merely because the extent of the white on the primary coverts is the same. 
Table of Measurements of Irrisor erythrorhynchus . 
Locality. 
Males. 
Females. 
Wing. 
Tail. 
Oil- 
men. 
Wing. 
Tail. 
Oil- 
men. 
Knysna 
131 
159 + 
43 
131 
i51 + 
41 
» 
132 
133+(m) 
41 
(not sexed) ] 30 
160 
39 
Grahamstown 
135 
187 
55 
132 
164 
47 

137 
153 + 
59 
135 
163 
44 
99 
139 
160 + 
52 
137 
169 
44 

140 
162 + 
55 
(sex ?) 137 
166 
43 
99 
(juv.) 129 
156 
? 
(juv.) 131 
157 + 
42 
Bediord, Cape Province 
134+(m) 
? 
57 
136 
164 
47 
Flagstaff 
139 
167 
52 
133 
146 + 
48 
Port St. Johns 
125 
146 
47 
— ■ 
■ — ■ 
— 
Redhill, Natal 
137 + 
171 
59 
— •' 
. — ' 
Louws Creek, Transvaal 
147 
202 + 
61 
141 
196 
44 
Hectorspruit 
145 
227 + 
61 
139 
160 + 
47 

153 
232 
62 
— 
— ■ 

146 
227 
56 
— 
— S 
— 
„ 
(sexed $) 150 
220 + 
60 
— 
— 
. — 
„ 
(sexed $) 145 
203 + (m) 
56 
— 1 
Thabina River. . 
156 
238 
58 
142 
170 + 
44 
Koedoes River 
150 
213 + 
54 
— 
■ — 
— ■ 
Klein Letaba 
151 
222 
56 
— 
>■ 
157 
197 + 
52 
— 
■ — ■ 
,■ i— rl l 
99 
151 
227 
52 
— 
— 
— • 
Goud River 
148 
222 + 
55 
142 
170+ 
44 

— 
— 
— . 
147 
220 + 
45 
Rietspruit 
— 
— - 
— ■ 
145 
216 
44 
Moorddrift 
159 
235 
59 
149 
220 + 
? 
Rustenburg 
159 
232 + 
57 
139 
221 + 
43 

158 
235 
53 
— 
■ — • 
— 
,, 
(sexed $) 148 
217 + 
56 
— 
— ■ 
— ■ 
„ 
(juv.) 149 
210 + 
50 
(juv.) 138 
■ ? 
40 
Warmbaths, Pretoria . . 
156 
232 
64 
— 
— ■ 
— 
» ” 
153 
177 + 
44 
— 
HR 
— 
Beira 
137 
225 
49 
(not sexed) 134 
214 
36 

— ; - 
— 
— . 
(not sexed) 132 
204 
37 
Bor or 
142 
200 + 
44 
127 
192 + 
38 
Note. — 'The specimens marked juvenile all have the bill black. These long-tailed 
birds soon wear down the tips of the tail feathers, and when worn I have added a + sign. 
Some of the specimens are in moult, and in such cases I have indicated this by the sign + (m). 
Some of the specimens I have put into the column other than that in which they would 
have been placed had the labels been trusted to entirely ; it is not unusual to observe errors 
in the sexing of specimens and to make allowance therefor, as, for instance. Grant has done 
so at pp. 239 and 242, 
