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INTRODUCTION. 
South Africa : there are five species, two of which 
are found at the Cape. The wood-chat is precisely 
the same as ours ; but the singular genus prion'ops 
is peculiar to the western countries*. 
Senegal appears the chief metropolis of the widau 
finches, the males of which, during the breeding 
season, are decorated with very long feathers in 
their tail; out of this species, four are natives of 
this country, — while the splendid Lamprotorni or 
starling grakes, although dispersed as far as the 
Cape, appear to make Senegal their true place of 
residence. The sun-birds are certainly more abun- 
dant here than in the south, while their range 
appears not to extend so far as the Barbary coast : 
they represent the humming-buds of the New 
World, and seem, like them, to congregate most 
in those countries which are the hottest. The 
distribution of these charming birds in a longitudinal 
direction, extends only to the Cape, but is spread 
laterally to India and its islands; they disappear 
very suddenly tow'ards the limits of Northern Africa, 
since only one species appears to have been met 
with by Riippell. 
Western Africa, again, is almost the peculiar 
region of one of the most lovely and interesting 
families, small in the number of the species, but 
splendid in colouring and peculiarly interesting from 
their structure. We allude to the Musopkagidoe or 
plantain-eaters, in which group we comprehend also 
* Riippell describes a pjionops from Northern Africa.— 
Editor. 
