707 
by Mr . Claude Grant in South Africa. 
hours in any one locality. The cry is a single clear note, 
rather louder than that of M. superciliosus; the food consists 
of insects of various kinds, which are taken on the wing as 
described above. 
I find the following note in my diary with reference 
to the young male shot at Beira on Dec. 11th, 1906 :— 
“ The immature male of M. nubicus shot to-day is inter¬ 
esting, as it is assuming the adult colouring without a moult ” 
(see Bull. B. O. C. xxi. p. 66). 
The soft parts of the adult are :—Irides brown; bill, legs 
and toes black. Young similar.] 
409. Dicrocercus hirundineus. 
F. Coguno, Aug. (2). 
[On only two occasions have I seen this pretty Bee-eater; 
at Coguno, where the pair shot were observed, and again on 
the 9th May, 1907, when another pair were seen at Tambarara, 
Gorongoza district. It was noticed sitting on the tops of 
the trees hawking for insects after the manner of the larger 
Bee-eaters. It has a single clear call, somewhat different 
from that of the other Bee-eaters. 
The soft parts of the adult are :—Irides bright red; bill, 
legs and toes black.] 
410. Melittophagus meridionalis. 
N. Illovo, Nov. (2) ; Zk Jususie Valley, Dec. (2); 
Umfolosi Station, June, July, Aug. (6) ; Tv. Klein Letaba, 
July, Sept. (3) ; P. Coguno, Aug. (3 ); Masambeti, Oct., 
Nov. (2) ; Beira, Dec. (3); Tete, Aug., Sept. (2). 
Four eggs taken at Masambeti, Oct. 30. 
Three young birds taken at Beira on Dec. 9th are appa¬ 
rently just out of the nest, and are in an interesting state 
of plumage. They are green above, much as in the adult, 
while below, the breast is green, becoming yellow on the 
throat and cinnamon on the abdomen. The bill is very 
short. 
[This is a very common Bee-eater in all the lower bush- 
veld country in Eastern and East-Central South Africa. 
I have noted it from Natal and Zululand, the Eastern and 
