¿ H U
Mr. T. E. Buckley obtained a specimen at Geoqui in Bamangwato,
on the 16th October, 1873, and Mr. Ayres has procured it in the
Transvaal. He observes :—“ These birds feed upon small insects.
They inhabit low bush and scrub ; when disturbed they invariably
fly and settle close to or on the stems of the bushes, and then work
their way up. They appear to be solitary in their habits. In the
living bird the speckled wings are more conspicuous than the barred
breast.'1
Mr. Andersson writes as follows:—“ This species is common in the
neighbourhood of Objimbinque ; and I have found a few individuals
between that place and Behoboth; it greatly reminds me of our
Swedish Gardsmygg (the common Wren of England) in its habits,
which are somewhat secluded. It frequents dense bush and occasionally
trees, searching diligently amongst the branches for insects;
it carries its tail erect when moving about. When disturbed it flies
but a short distance at a time, and is easily distinguished by the
bright brown on the rump."
Adult.^-KhoYQ warm brown, rather rufescent, the rump and
upper tail-coverts rather lighter and more tawny rufous; wings
brown, the coverts edged with fulvous brown and all tipped with
white or fulvous white ; quills brown, externally edged with rufous
brown, the innermost secondaries margined with whitish at the tip ;
tail brown, the feathers edged with rufous brown and all tipped with
fulvous, before which the colour darkens, but does not form a sub-
terminal band; lores and sides of face greyish white waved with
transverse bars of blackish-brown, the ear-coverts washed with
brown with whitish shaft-stripes; under surface of body dull white,
the sides bright fulvous, deeper and more tawny on the thighs and
under tail-coverts ; the throat very slightly, but the chest and sides
of the body distinctly crossed with zig-zag or Y-shaped bars of dark
brown; under wing-coverts light buff, the lower surface of the
quills ashy brown, edged with pale rufous along the inner web;
“ upper mandible dark liver-brown, the lower edge and the under
mandible dark bluish or purple; legs pale flesh colour, toes the same,
but a trifle darker; iris yellowish brown." (Andersson.) Total
length, 4-8 inches; culmen, 0‘6 ; wing, 2’45 ; tail, 2 '3 ; tarsus,
0 -9 .
Fig. Smith, 111. Zool. S. Afr. Aves, pi. I l l , fig. 2.
2 5 9 . C is t ico la proc era . Zambesi Fantail Warbler.
Dr. Peters obtained at Tete in the Zambesi a specimen of a
Warbler which he describes under this name, (J. f. 0.1868, p. 132).
Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub in the “ Vogel Ost.-Afrikas (p. 283),
consider it to be a good species, and have given the following
description of the type. “ Obscure dull brown, by no means
conspicuously varied with darker colour; head slightly rufescent;
an obscure subterminal dark spot on the tail feathers; underneath
dull whitish, the under wing-covers uniform; quills pale dusky
brown; bill and feet pale. Total length, 5 inches; bill, 5"';
wing, 2"; tail, 1" 5"'; tarsus, 10"'.
260. C ist ico la o bscuea. Dusky Fantail Warbler.
We have been unable to identify this species, which was described
by Professor Sundevall in 1850 (Oefv. K. Yet. Akad. Forh. Stockh.
1850, p. 103). It was obtained by Wahlberg in “ Kaffraria," and
the following is a translation of the original description :—
Male. Back obscure grey, faintly spotted with dusky, the head
slightly rufescent; the forehead brighter; the occiput obsoletely
spotted with dusky; the hind neck dusky brown; belly unspotted,
dull whitish, greyish on the sides ; quills externally edged with dull
dusky rufous; tail feathers above greyish rather pointed at the tip,
which is whitish with a black subterminal spot; bill notched and
rather pointed. Total length, 5J; inches; wing, 2'5; tarsus, DO;
tail, 2'4 ; bill from front, 0'55 ; its height, 0'2.
261. Cist ico la cu r s ita n s . Common Fantail Warbler.
Drymoica terrestns, and D. ayresvi, Layard, B. S. Afr., pp. 91, 94.
We agree with Drs. Finsch and Hartlaub that the “ Kloppertjie" of
Southern Africa is not specifically separable from the Fantail of Europe
and India, and O. ayresvi we believe will turn out to be the young
bird in its first richly coloured plumage. Mr. W. Atmore says that
it is a grass-loving species, and is found abundantly in the George
District. He states that it “ constructs a nest on the ground, arched
and domed, and lays from six to ,ten white eggs covered with pink
spots mostly at the obtuse end."*
* The previous account given in the first edition is erroneous, owing to a
mistake in the numbering of a manuscript list kept by Mr. Atmore and the
author.
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