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Show 586 MR. R. B. SHARPE ON THE CUCULIDAE [June 17, ex Levaill.) ; Bp. Consp. i. p. 102 (1850); id. Consp. Volucr. Zyg. p. 6 (1854); Cab. & Heine, Mus. Hein. iv. p. 36 (1862); Heugl. J. f. O. 1862, p. 35; Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 249 (1867); Gray, Hand-1. B. ii. p. 215 (1870); Heugl. Orn. N . O. Afr. p. 781 (1871) ; Sharpe, Cat. Afr. B. p. 12 (1871) ; Gurney ed. Anderss. B. Dam. Ld. p. 228 (1872). Cuculus capensis, Cuv. Regne An. i. p. 424 (1817, ex Levaill. nee Miill.). Cuculus lineatus, Sw. B. W . Afr. ii. p. 178, pl. xviii. (1837). Cuculus ruficollis, Heugl. Syst. Uebers. p. 49 (1856) ; id. J. f. O. 1864, p. 265. Cuculus leptodetus, Cab. & Heine, Mus. Hein. Th. iv. p. 34 (1862). Cuculus canorus (pt.), Schl. Mus. P. B. Cuculi, p. 6 (1864). Adult male. Above bluish grey, rather glossed with brownish on the head and back, and decidedly clearer grey on the rump and upper tail-coverts, the lateral feathers of the last named being transversely spotted and barred with white; wing-coverts dark greyish brown, primary coverts and quills rather darker, especially the secondaries, which are glossed with greyish, the inner webs very distinctly barred with white; tail ashy grey, the outer feathers browner and all tipped with white, before which a distinct blackish bar crosses the end of the tail, this being much more distinct when viewed from underneath; the centre feathers marked with longitudinal drops of white along the shaft, these increasing in extent towards the outer feathers, which are also notched or spotted with white on the inner web, until on the last feather they form more or less perfect bars across the feather; sides of the face and entire throat bluish grey, rather lighter on the lores and fore part of the cheeks, the fore neck tinted with pale russet; remainder of under surface creamy white, transversely barred with greyish brown, these bars becoming more zig-zag in shape on the under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts white, with irregular cross markings of grey ; axillary plumes white, barred like the breast; bill yellow on the lower mandible and on the base of the upper one, including the nostrils, becoming blackish on the edge of the culmen and the tip of both mandibles; feet yellow. Totallength 12 inches, culmen 1*0, wing 8*5, tail 6*5, tarsus 0*85. Hab. N.E. A F R I C A : White Nile and Sobat; mountains of Wola- Galla, in April; Bari Negro Land, in February and March ; Bongo, in August (Heuglin). S.W. A F R I C A : Damara Land and Ovampo (Andersson). S. A F R I C A : Caffraria (Levaillant) ; Natal (Ayres). The present species is the resident Cuckoo of a certain part of Africa, representing our Cuckoo so closely that in some instances it is difficult to distinguish between them. Mr. "John Henry Gurney, who examined m y series, has given (Ibis, 1871, p. 103) an account of the differences between the two species; and a prolonged revision of the specimens he examined enables me to confirm his views. The most constant character is to be found in the beak ; for whereas |