ILLUSTRATIONS OF ORNITHOLOGY. 
PLOCEUS PERSONATUS, Vieillot. 
This very pretty species of Ploceus was procured for us by the ex- 
ertions of Maxwell Hyslop, Esq. of Liverpool, and brought by the 
ships in the palm oil trade, preserved in spirits, from the vicinity 
of the Old Calabar river. From these we skinned and preserved 
our specimens of both sexes. And we mention this, that persons 
on a station, where time and opportunity are wanting to prepare 
specimens properly, may see that small birds, which .can be put 
in spirits with very little trouble, will not be much injured after- 
wards. We do not recommend this practice, at the same time, 
under some circumstances, very valuable specimens may often be 
thus saved. 
The figure most closely resembling our Calabar river specimens, 
is that in “ Vieillot' s gallerie but it is represented not nearly 
so pure or distinct in its colours. Malimbus aurantius, ci Vieillot 
Oiseauw chanteures ,” may probably bo the female. The birds we 
represent, were put into the same bottle as 6 and we have no 
reason to doubt the correctness of the tickets. We could not 
ascertain the sex upon dissection, the female, or perhaps males 
immature, and without the black head, were most abundant, pro- 
bably three or four to one. 
$— Forehead, checks and throat, deep velvet black ; crown, 
occiput, sides of the neck and breast, rich orange-yellow, shading 
into greenish-yellow on the back and upper parts, and into gam- 
boge-yellow on the low’cr breast and under parts ; wings and tail 
umber brown, margined with greenish-yellow ; bill black ; tarsi 
mid feet flesh colour. $ — Without the black head ; crown and 
upper parts brownish-yellow; under parts gamboge-yellow, paler 
und slightly tinted with olive on the vent ; wings and tail as in 
the <5 ; bill brownish-black ; tarsi and feet flesh colour . 
— Entire length, 4 ; bill to forehead, 4 ; to gape, 5| ; wing, 2.3 ; 
fail, i .'f ; tarsus, 8. ? — Nearly equal, slightly less. 
