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Show 316 MR. R. B. SHARPE ON BIRDS FROM MADAGASCAR. [Apr. 18, Paris as the investment of the city was completed, and the cases were shut up during the whole of the siege. Luckily no injury was done to any of the specimens. Another example of this Swift only differs from the one described in having a few scarcely discernible edgings to the back-feathers, while the throat is distinctly mottled with black and white ; another, seemingly younger, has the edgings to the dorsal feathers very distinct, and the whole of the throat white varied with little black markings. I transcribe Dr. Sclater's description of C. parvus (from his paper in P. Z. S. 1865, p. 601) for the sake of comparison with that of the Madagascar bird. " Murino-fuscus, gutture albido fusco striolato : alis et cauda ceneo tinctis: cauda prof undissimefurcata: long, tota 7, alceb'caudce 1*4, rect. ext. 4, med. 1*4." Compared with the Madagascar skins these West-African examples are always very much paler in colour, rather stouter in form, and have the tail more conspicuously forked. Family CORACIID.E. Subfamily BRACHYPTERACIIN_E. 42. GEOBIASTES SOUAMIGERA. Geobiastes scjuamigera (Lafr.); Sharpe, Ibis, 1871, p. 186; id. Cat. Afr. B. p. 5 (1871). One specimen, the same mentioned in my paper on the African Coraciidee (Ibis, 1871, p. 184), and on which I founded the genus Geobiastes. Family TURDID^E. 43. COSSYPHA IMERINA. Cossypha imerina, Hartl. Faun. Madag. p. 43 (1861); Verr. in Vins. Voy. Madag. Ann. B. p. 2 (1865); Schl. & Poll. Faun. Madaj,. p. 158(1868). b Cossypha emerina, Grand. Rev. et Mag. de Zool. 1867, p. 359. "Saralalan, January 28, 1870, February 1, 1870. Nossi Vola, February 1, 1870. Native name Vorun poottat." In his well-known ' Ornithologischer Beitrag zur Fauna Madagascar,' Dr. Hartlaub first described this pretty species, from an example brought home by Professor Peters from St. Augustine's Bay, and preserved in spirits in the Berlin Museum. The birds which Mr. Crossley has forwarded agree in the main with the original description ; but as no mention is made of the colouring of the tail, which forms one of the most distinctive characters, I cannot guarantee the absolute correctness of my identification. For the better settlement of the matter, therefore, I subjoin a detailed description of old and young birds, examples of both of which are contained in Mr. Crossley's last consignment. I may mention that in his first collection an adult specimen was forwarded by him, which passed into the National collection. Mr. G. R. Gray was inclined to consider it |