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THE PARADISE WHYDAH.
Stegamira paradiua, LiNN.
^^^LSO a much imported and easity obtainable bird, wliicli, according to Dr.
Sliarpe, inhabits " Senegambia, N.E. Africa below 17" N. lat. to Shoa and
the White-Nile region; East Africa from the Tana River to Zanzibar, and inland
to Lake Tanganj'ika; Mozambique, and the Zambesi sonth to the Transvaal, and
west from Lake Ngami to Damara-Land and Angola."
The male bird, when in colour, has the head and throat black; the back of
the neck with a broad belt of giossj' reddish mahogan}- which passes down the
sides of the neck and unites with the same colouring on the breast, but there it
passes gradualljr into the buff whitish colouring of the abdomen; back, shoulders,
wing-coverts, tail, thighs and under tail-coverts black; croup white; flight feathers
bro^"s^l ; tail-feathers barred with more intense black, visible in certain lights.
Length, exclusive of the long tail plumes (which varj? with age), sf inches.
Beak black, legs bro^Ti, iris dark bro-\vn.
The female above rustj- browmish mth black shaft-streaks to the feathers;
the top and sides of the head sandjr buff the crown slightl}' black-streaked; a
broad pale buff eye-brow; lores and feathers roimd the eye white; ear-coverts pale
sandjr buff margined broadly above vdth black; flights and tail-feathers blackish
brown ; wing-coverts brown, broadly margined externally with rust}- brown, the
upper coverts with narrow isabelline white edges; upper tail-coverts black with
isabelline white borders ; cheeks and throat buff-whitish; sides of neck
more ta-mij^ and streaked ^\dth black; throat and breast tawny buff,
abdomen white, tawny buff at the sides, qiiills below dusky with greyish inner
edges ; remainder of under surface white. Length 6 inches.
The male, w^hen out of colour, nearly resembles the female. The tail-plumes
decrease in breadth, but increase in length with age : thus a young male given
to me by Mr. Housden, after its death, showed broad plumes measuring only
about three inches in length (possibly they had not quite done growing). My
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