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NOVITATES ZOOLOGIGAE. Vol. YII., 1900.
NOVITATES ZOOLOGICAE
H Jouvnal of Eooloi3\>
IN CONNECTION WITH THE TRING MUSKl'M.
KDITED BY
The Hon. WALTEE EOTHSCHILD, Ph.D., EENST HAETEET, and Dr. K. JOEDAN.
Vol. VII., 1900.
(WITH TWELVE PLATES.)
Issued at the Zoological Museum, Thing.
TRIKTED BY HAZELL, W.iTSO>'. >t VINEY, Ld., LOSDOS" AND AYLES^BURY.
1900.
CONTENTS OF VOLUME VII.
GENERAL SUBJECTS.
(Cf. pp. 1, 12, 25, 54, 55, 244.)
MAMMALIA.
PAGES
1. On a New Race of Ibex. Walter Rothschild. (Plate II.) .... 277
2. On a New Species of Monkey (Cercocehm chri/soijaster). R. Lydekker.
(Plate III.) 279
3. The Red Flying Sijuirrel of the Natuna Islands. Oldfield Tikjmas . . 592
4. On two Mangaljey-like Monkeys. R. Ltdekker 593 — 59()
AVES.
1. The Birds of Ruk in the Central Carolines. Ekx.st IIarteut . . 1 — 11
2. The Birds of Dammer Lslaud in the Banda Sea. Ernst Hartekt . . 12 24
3. Another small Contribution to African Ornithology. Ernst IIarteht . 25 53
( vi )
PAGES
4. The Birds of Biiiu. Ernst Harteht. (rh.lelV.) 2:iG— 242
5. On Turacus chalcolophiis Neumann. Ernst Uartert. (Plato I.) . 278—270 C. On the Diids of Southern Arabui. W. K. Ooilvie-Grast. (Pkle X.) . 213—273 7 Additions to tho List of Ijirds of Southern Arabia. W. K. Ogilvie-Grant . 591
8. Miscellaneous Notes on Palaearctic Birds. Ernst IIartert , . . 325—534
9. Ueber die Gattung Polioptila. C. E. Hellmatr 535—538
10. On the Genus Scaeorhijachas. Ernst Hartert 548
11. List of a, Colleetion of Bii-ds from the Lingga Islands. Ernst Hartert. 549 — 550
12. The Birds of the Banda Islands. Ernst Hartert 551 — 554
LEPIDOPTERA.
1. Description of (he hitherto unknown Female of (Joielus mlrahilis. Walter
ROTHSCUILD 24
2. Description of New Species of Butterflies from Milne Bay, British New Guinea.
11. Grose-S.mitii 86 — 89
3. New (ienera and Species of 'I'hyrididae and Geometrukie from Africii.
W. Warren 90-97
4. New Genera and Species of Drcpamdldac, Thyrldidae, Epiplemid<ie and Geo-
melridae from the Indo- Australian and Palaearctic Regions. W. Warren
98-110
5. New Genera and Species of American Drepanulidae, Tltyrididue, Epipleinidae
and Geometridae. W. Warren ........ 117 — 225
G. On some New or recently described Lepidoptera. Walter Botiischild.
(Plate V.) 274—276
( vii )
PAGES
7. A Monograph of Charaxi>s ami the Allied Prionopterous Genera. (Plates VI.,
VII., \in., XI , XII.) (Continued from Vol. VI.) . . . 281—524
8. De.scriptions of New African Species of Aa-aeinae. II. Grose-Ssiitii . . 544 — 547
9. The Lepidoptera of Burn. W. J. Holland: —
Part I. Rhopalocora 54 — 85
Part II. Hetei-ocera 555—591
SIPHONAPTERA.
1. Notes on Pulex avium. N. C. PlOthschild. (Plate IX.) . . . 5.39 — 543
LIST OF PLATES IN VOLUME VII.
Plate T. Tiinicus c/iakohphns Neum. (African Plaintainoater. ITand-coloured plate from one of the typical specimens by J. G. Keulemans )
., II. Cap-a sibirica li/dekkeri riotliscli. (1 land-coloured plate from the type
specimen by J. Smit.)
III. Cercoceliux chri/sogaster Lyd. (A new mangabey-like Monkey. Hand- colonred plate from the typo by J. Smit.)
I^'. Hand-coloured plate by 3. G. Kculimans of three Birds, from the typo specimens : }[ij-,omela tdhl.yu.la Hart. J from Ecssel I. (cf. Nov. Zool. VI., p. 79); Knjthrmw/ias huruensis Hart. ^, and OeocicMa diimasi Eothsch. (J, from Burn. (The iinder-surface of the Erijlln-diiii/ias is, thi'ongh a fault of the <olourist, too yellowi>h in some copies of the plate!) ,, V. Seven species of J.epidoplera. (See explan.ation of Plate V. Hand-coloured
plate by W. Piirkiss.)
„ VI. .
'-Photocraphie plates of Cluirayes. (See explanation opposite to plates.) „ VJI. J
,. VIII. Genital armature of various forms of Clifi-mxes. K. Jordan del. (See explanation.)
„ IX. Morphological details of various species of Ceratophyllus. K. Jordan del. (See explanation.)
,, X. Lithographic map of Southern Araliia, showing tho routes taken by the
Pereival-Dodson expedition.
,, ^^ I. I Colour-typo plates of various I'/iuraxes. By Karl Jlcntschcl. (Photo- „ XII. J graphed from nature.)
NOVITATES ZOOLOGICAE.
Vol. Vn. MAECH, 1900. No. 1.
THE BIRDS OF EUK IN THE CENTRAL CAROLINES.
ERRATA.
Page 26, line 18, /w " Corythaeala " read Corythaeola.
35, line 7 from the top, for " Melitta " read MeUttophagiis. 41, line 3 from the bottom, /or " Lagonostica " read Lagonosticta. 339, line 3 from the top, fm- " Copsychus salamis " read Copsychus saularis. 357, line Vi, for " Philagnoma " read Fhiloguoma. 534, line 1 4, for " Lyons " read Lyon. 541, line 3 from the bottom, for " Columba oeneas " read Coloiuba oenas.
spoudent, Mr. Alan Owstou, in Yokohama, who collected so successfully on Guam and Saipan in the Marianne Islands,* proceeded to Rnk and' sent a large collection to Tring.
The most important feature of this collection is the new Tephras (No. 3), and the very fine series of nests and eggs of nearly all the species inhabiting the island.
The notes on the colours of the soft parts are all given from Ridgway's Nomenclature of Colours, and we may say that we have found them most accurate. The nests and eggs were also labelled with the greatest care and accuracy. Out of many hundreds of nests and eggs in the two collections we could not trace one error, and had only one doubtful egg of a Tern, which is not mentioned in either list.
To enable a reader of this article to inform himself of the entire bibliography on the species, I have to all the species added the no. and jtage of Wiglesworth's
* Cf. Nov. ZooL. V. p. 51.
1
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most accurate and useful work Acea Polf/ncsiae, in AUiamll. (f- lierii-hte Aftis. Dresden 1891.
The literature on the birds of Enk Island is tlins briefly summarized :—
1853 : Hombron and Jacquinot in V„!/. POle Su<l. Alla.^, Jacquinot & Paoh, Zonl. v. III.
1880 : Finsoh, P. Z. .S. pp. 574-77 (Birds of Ruk).
1891 : Wiglesworth, Avea Pnhjnesiae p. VII. (List of Caroline Birds).
1897 : Hartcrt, BnU. B. O. Club VII. p. 5 {Tephro.-: riil.i).
1899 : Nehrkorn, Kalalog d. Elers. (Descr. of some Eggs).
1. Myzomela rubratra (Less.) (Wiglesworth No. 131, ]). :il).
Evidently very nnmerons on Ruk Island. Its native name is " yite/mfjal." " Bill black (PI. II. fis. 1, Ridgway's Xo/nencl. Col.) ; iris bnrnt umber (Ridgway III. 8) ; legs and toes slate-grey (II. 5) ; claws black."
Nov. ZooL. V. p. ■>■), I have said thut females differ from the /mi/es not (inly ill size, but also in having olive-brown wings and greenish olive edges to the remiges. I find now, however, that these are characters of immature femoles only, and that the fully adult female differs from the male only in its smaller size, and generally in a somewhat more restricted extent of the red on the back iuid abdomen.
Many nests were found from the end of Jlay to Jnly, and (inc in JIarc.h. The nests and eggs are described in Nov. Zool. V. p. 56. On (inam they were collected in January, Febrnary, and March.
~. Zosterops semperi owstoni subsp. nov. (Wiglesworth No. 183, p. :iT, /w/-^m I).
The greenish Zosterops of Ruk, hitherto united with typical Z. semperi from the Pelew Islands, is, in fact, different. As all the land-birds of Ruk, except the widespread Mi/zomela riibrata, are more or less different from those of the Pelew Islands, this is not at all remarkable. The differences, however, are so slight, that I prefer to regard them as representative forms of one species, and to designate the Ruk form as above, as a compliment to Mr. Alan Owston, of Yokohama, who organized the collecting expedition to the Marianne nnd Cavoliiie Islands tor Mr. Rothschild.
Z. semperi owstoni differs from Z. semperi semperi in the following characters : The colonration of the upperside is less yellowish, but more green. The ear-coverts are more olive-greenish than in Z. semperi semperi, where they are paler and more yellowish. The spot on the lores and under the fore part of the eye, which is indistinct and dnsky, is pnre black and more distinct. The whitish edge on the inner web of the outer rectrices is less developed. The ujiper bill, which is horn-brown in Z. semperi semperi, is black. We have received a large series from Ruk, which I have compared with three Pelew specimens, kindly lent by the authorities of the Liverpool Museum, and two in the Tring Museum, collected by the late Mr. Kubary. The collectors have marked the up])er bill as " pure black, iris raw-sienna (Ridgway V. 2) ; feet pale slate colour." The native name is " Nikikitebu."
Nests with single eggs were found from May to July. They were j)laced in various heights, bnt generally between four and eight feet high, in various bushes and trees. They are very neatly woven of fine halms and fibres, and outside nicely ornamented with cobwebs and white cocoons or wool. Some lianu: in ihi' fork of a
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twig, exactly like an Oriole's nest. The eggs are pale blue, like all Zosterops eggs, and measure : 17-.5 : 12-8, 17-7 : 12-5, 18 : 12, 16-5 : 12, 170 : 13, 17 : 12-3 mm.
Zosterops conspicillata of Guam lays generally two and even three eggs. The fact that so many Passeres on the Pacific Islands lay only one egg is com- mented on by Wiglesworth in " Aves Polynesiae " p. V., where this noticeable fact is explained as a " remarkable preventative of a too rapid multiplication."
3. Tephras ruki Hart. {Bull. B.O. Club v. VII. p. ."), October 1807).
Entirely sepia-brown, a shade darker on the crown, the outer edges of the inner webs of the remiges and the under wiug-coverts paler, the former inclining to whitish ; the primaries darker, almost black, their outer webs bordered with the colour of the back. No complete white ring, bnt a narrow semi-ring round the eye, only visible in well-skinned specimens. Bill black, legs and feet light orange-rufous ; claws brown, iris poppy-red. Total length about 135 — 148 mm. ; wing 78 — 83, tail o2 — 53, bill 15—17, culmen from forehead 21, metatarsus 21. The sexes do not seem to differ, unless ih.e female is a little smaller than the male.
The native name is " Nikildon."
Only eight specimens were obtained in November and December. It is most peculiar that the late J. Kubary, who was an excellent collector, and who spent more than fourteen months on link, did not obtain this bird. It is probably not numerous, and occurs only on a certain secluded spot not visited by Kubary.
I have provisionally accepted Hartlanb's generic term Tephras, because I think this group may with advantage be separated from the host of Zosterops.
T. Jinschi, the type of Tephras, and T. ruki agree and differ from typical Zosterops in the following characters : — the first primary, which in typical Zosterops is quite reduced and not visible from below, is well developed and visible from below (7 mm. in T. Jin.ichi, 10 — 11 in T. ruki), the bill is longer, the feet (especially in T. ruki) very strong, the colouration almost uniform brown. I do not know if Zosterops cinerea and Z. poiuipensis belong to this same group, bnt I doubt it, because (judging from the figures) they have the typical Zosteropine bill, although in the style of colouration they are like Tephras.
T. Jinschi differs from T. ruki in its much smaller size and lighter under- surface.
4. Acrocephalus (Tatare of many authors') syrinx (Kittl.). (Wiglesworth No. 209, p. 41).
We have received a large number of specimens. Females do not differ from males, except in being slightly smaller : wings of males average 80 — 81 mm., of females 76 — 77 mm. Young birds do not differ from adults, except in being somewhat lighter and more yellowish. In November, especially in the latter half of this month, a good many were in moult. " Iris mars-brown (Ridgway III. 13) ; upper bill brownish slate-colour, lower cream-colour. Legs and toes dark grey. Length in the flesh about 6-7 inches."
Many nests, most of them containing one fresh egg, some two, were found from the end of May to the beginning of July. They stand on bread-fruit, cocoanut-palm, and ivory-palm trees, and in bushes, in a lieight from about 7 to 20 feet. The nests are strongly woven together and constructed of dry grass, fibres of cocoannt palms and other fibres, dry leaves and similar material.
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and form a very deep cnp, like nests of other Heed-warblers. They are, however, evidently Dot hanging up on reeds or twigs, like those of onr Acrocephali. The eggs are white, covered with darker and lighter brown patches and smaller spots, and underlying ashy grey or lavender-grey spots. These spots are generally thicker near the broad end, sometimes forming a loose ring, and they are some- times eqnallv spread over the whole surface. Four dozens measure: 24:15-7, 23:16, 25-2": 18, 21-5: 10-2, 22o : lo-9, 21-5: 16-2, 2]-5:10-l, 21-o : 15-7, 24:15, 22-5: 16-4, 23:16, 22:15-1, 22-5:15-7, 22:16, 23:16, 225 : 16-5, 22-5:16-6, 22-5: 15-5, 22:16, 205:17, 21:161, 22:16-1, 20-7:161, 23:15-6, 22:21-5, 23 : 16, 21-6 : 16.3 mm., and so on. Nehrkorn, Kat. Eiersamml., p. 33, gives 21 — 23 : 15 mm., and mentions the whitish (instead of greenish) ground-colour.
5. Metabolus rugensis Hombr. & Jacq.
(Wiglesworth No. 71, p. 19 ; Cat. B. Brit. Mus. IV. p. 238 ; Finsch, P.Z.S. 1880 p. 575.)
The extraordinary sexual dimorphism in the colouration of this bird, and the colour of their young has not been fully understood. In the Catalogue of Birds (IV. p. 238), the adult 7nale is correctly described as white with black throat and forehead, and partly blackish shafts to the rectrices and remiges. The adult female, however, is not correctly described in that work. What is described there as the adult female is evidently a young female changing to the adult dress.
The admixture of white on the abdomen and under tail-coverts in that description is somewhat peculiar, but the description is made from Hombron and .Jacquinot's figure, in which the white is accidental or an addition of the artist. The aAwM female is quite sooty black all over. This was evidently known to Dr. Finsch, for {P.Z.S. 1880 p. 575) he says : " Young females change from the cinnamon into the black garb." This same author, however, was of opinion that the adult male changes into a sooty black plumage in August, while in July they are still in full white dress. He says, after describing the adult male : " In August the same birds are of a uniform dull sooty black." Such is not the case, but the black birds are the adult females only, while young birds are of a cinnamon colour, paler and almost white below. E.Kamples changing from the cinnamon dress to both the white of the adult male and the black of the adult female, were obtained in December, bnt some also in November and January, and one in June.
The plumages of this bird may thus be briefly diagnosed :
White with black throat and forehead : cj ad.
Uniform sooty black : ? ad.
Cinnamon : S and ? juv.
Mixed cinnamon and white : S hab. trans.
Mixed cinnamon and black : ? hab. trans.
The birds in transitional plumages are remarkable in many ways. Although they are, of course, passing through a moult, there are males in evidently cleanly moulted jilnmage with a great amount of cinnamon to the feathers, especially their tips and outer webs. The question now arises, and cannot be settled by me at present, whether these individuals retain this cinnamon colour until the next moult, or whether it is lost before— in the latter case we would have to accept a change of colouration without moult. I may remark that the usual abrasion cannot produce this change, as there is too much cinnamon in the plumage. In
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an evident young female (though not sexed) the tail consists of some abraded old cinnamon feathers, and of the fresh sprouting feathers some are black, others side by side with the black, cinnamon, and some mixed black and cinnamon. This same specimen has mixed feathers on many parts of its body and wings, while sprouting remiges are sooty black.
Some of the adult males have the black tips to the wings more extended ^ while in others they are nearly quite absent. Two adult females have single tail-feathers pure white or irregularly marked with white, and one has a quite white chin, while most examples have only three to sis tiny chin-feathers white.
The adult male and female have the bill and feet slaty grey, the iris clove- brown. The young have the base of the lower bill yellowish. The local name is "Ouaf" or " Uaf," and from the natives having the same name for all the plumages it is evident that they are aware of their history.
The species is apparently only to be found on Ruk Island. Its song is strong and pleasant.
Two nests were found on June 1st and 4th, both twenty feet high, on bread- fruit trees. A third was taken on June 12th on a " Chiiya" tree. The nests are built of dry palms, of fibres and grass, with a few decomposed leaves and rootlets, and each contains one single egg only. According to Finsch (Proc. Zool. Soc, 1880, p. 57.5) Kubary found either one or two eggs. The eggs are cream-coloured, speckled with brownish red, more frequently and often very thickly on the large end, and with some deeper lying pale purplish grey patches, and one has some very fine black lines on the large end.
The eggs measure : 256 : 18-4, 26-5 : 18-6, and 26-i3 : 10-.5 mm. The shape is that of shrikes' eggs.
A very good figure of the egg is given on pi. I., fig. 5, in Nehrkorn's " Kataloij der Eiersammluny ^''
(j. Myiagra oceanica Jacq. & Pach. (AViglesworth No. 101 p. 2:5.) (Nehrkoru, Kat. Eiersamml. p. 30, Egg I)
Very numerous on Ruk Island. The female difi"ers from the adult incile in having the crown not steel-blue, but dark grey, with a faint steel-blue gloss, and in being very little smaller — the wing perhaps two or tliree millimetres shorter. " The iris is seal-brown (Ridgway pi. III. 1) ; the upper bill blue-black, with a pale plnmbeous streak near the cutting-edge ; lower bOl dark plumbeous ; legs and toes blackish slate-colour." Native name on Ruk " Koi-Koi."
A good many nests were found from March to July, but chiefly in June. They contained all one egg only, but one had two, of which, however, one was broken by the finder. The nests are neatly and strongly woven, beautifully round and somewhat flat. The bottom is thick, but the walls thiu. They are composed of fibres and rootlets, and outside are more or less ornamented, with pale greyish green lichens and cobwebs, some very beautifully. They are placed on l)read-frnit and other trees, about seven to twenty feet from the ground. The eggs are pale greenish or brownish white, not much pointed, generally marked with a wide belt round the middle, closely resembling many shrikes' eggs. The spotting is generally reddish brown, but sometimes of a paler brown, often spread all over the egg, and there is nearly always some lavender-grey or ashy grey colour in the form ot underlying patches and spots. Some eggs are white with only a few small brown
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spots. The eggs measure: 21:16, •>! : 15-8, 21:10, 21-5 : 15-G, 22-1 : 163, 21 : 16, 20 : 15, 2(Jo : 150, 20 : 15, 21 : 15-5, 21 : 16, 21 : 16-1, 20 : 15-6, 20 : 15-1, 21-5 : 10-1. 2(i-r) : 101, 20-5 : 14-8, 20 : 10-2. 2I>1 : 14"), 20 : 15-5, 21 : 10 mm.
T. Aplonis kittlitzi Fiuscli & Hartl. (Cf. Nov. ZoOL. V. p. 58.) (Wiglesworth No. 239 p. 44.)
Common. " Iris deep yellow ; bill aud feet black." The natives seem to believe that the striped, immature birds are belonging to a different species, aa they call — according to onr collectors — the uniform glossy black birds " Aga," the striped ones " Boei."
Numerous nests were found from May to July and one in March, all in holes of trees, in various heights from four to nearly twenty feet. The clutches consisted of one, two, and three eggs. The eggs vary much in size and shape, but are always similar to other spotted Starlings' eggs. Most of them are light bine, marked witli rufous brown and lavender-grey or purplish grey. One is very pale, almost white, aud is at the same time the smallest, measuring only 28'3 : 20-3 mm. The two largest eggs from Ruk measure: 31-5:22 and 33-5:22 mm.
8. Erjrthrura trichroa (Kittl.).
Fringilla trichroa, Kittlitz in Mem. Acad. Petersb. 1835. 8 pi. 10 ; Salvadori, Oni. Papvas. e Moluc.
n. p. 442 (1881) (parlim !) ; Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. XUI. p. 385 (^partim !) ; Wiglesworth
No. 220 p. 42 (Carolines only !). Erythrura glauca (sjiec. ix spirit !), Finsch in J. M. Godeffroy 1876, XII. p. 35.
We have received a large series from Kuk Island. The local name is "Lugopal." "Iris seal-brown (Ridgway III. 1); bill black; legs and toes wood- brown ; claws paler brown." Specimens shot in November are mostly in moult.
The somewhat remarkable distribution attributed to Enjthrura trichroa— •<r\z., Carolines, Northern Moluccas, New Guinea, and Solomon Islands— led Mr. Rothschild and me to study this species more closely, and wc found that it is separable into a number of geographical forms :
a. Erythrura trichroa trichroa (Kittl.).
Carolines : Kushai, Ponape, and Ruk. Wc have not been able to examine skins from Kushai, but those from Ponape aud Ruk are perfectly alike, aud the description and figure of the types from Kushai agree entirely with them.
These birds are of a dark green, the under wing-coverts are generally washed with greyish-brown, the wing does not exceed 60 mm. in length, being 56 — 60 mm. long.
h. Erythrura trichroa modesta Wall.
Wallace in Froc. Zool. Soc. Loyid. 1802 p. 351.
Moluccas : Batjan, Ternate, Halmahera. Specimens from the three islands iu the Tring Museum. Generally of a less deep and more yellowish green, especially on the underside. The under wing-coverts are clear buff, without the greyish wash so frequent in E. trichroa trichroa. The wing is always over 60 mm. long, reaching from 62 — 05 mm.
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c. Erythrura trichroa papuana subsp. nov.
Differs chiefly in its larger size. The beak is mach thicker than in the allied forms, the wing iu one male from Arfak is fnlly 07 mm. long. The colour is of a deep green. The bine on the head in the one male before us occupies practically the entire crown of the head, while in forms a and b it does not reach beyond the hinder margin of the eyelids in the middle of the crown. Salvadori, Oni. Papuas. c Mol. II. p. 442, has already mentioned the large size of an Arfak specimen, and the less intensely green colour of the Moluccan skins.
tl. Erythrura trichroa woodfordi subsp. nov.
Solomon Islands: iVola, on Guadalcanar. Sharpe (Cat. B. Biit. Mas. XIII. p. 380) has remarked that the bine frontal band is narrower, and that they are " otherwise identical with those from Ternate." They are indeed as yellowish green as Ternate ones, and the bill is not as thick as in those from Arfak. The wing of two females in the Tring Museum is 03—64 mm. long. This form is certainly not our form c, bnt very near to form h, from which it seems merely to difier in a narrower frontal band, and perhaps a somewhat longer wing.
e. Erythrura trichroa cyanifrons E. L. Layard.
Ann. and Mag. Xat. Hist. (5), I. p. 374 (l.s78) ; Wiglesworth No. 216 p. 42. New Hebrides : Tauna, Erromango. Differs in its much smaller size from forms a, b, c, d. In colouration it is like a ; wing 54 — 55 mm.
Kr. trichroa was frequently found nesting on Ruk Island in March, May, iiud June. The nests are large and very loose structures with a big opening on the side, so that the eggs are easily seen in the nest. The nests are placed on banana-trees and bushes. The eggs are three to five in number, of a glossless white, and measure : 17 : 13, 17-6 : 13, 15o : 12, 16-3 : 12-2, 16 : 13-5, 16-8 : 12-3, 10"1:12-1, 161 : 13-5 mm., and so on. Nehrkorn, Kat. Eiersammlitng, gives 17 : 13 mm.
0. Urodynamis taitiensis (Sparrm.) (Wiglesworth No. 47, p. 11).
Ruk, 1. 7. Is90. Local name: " Nikiyap." Only this one specimen was obtained.
10. Ptilinopus ponapensis Finsch. (Wiglesworth No. 261, p. 50).
Very common. Local name : " Ute-ute." " Colour of bill light apple-green ; iris between cadmium yellow and chrome yellow (Ridgway PI. VI. figures 6 and 8) ; feet light chrome-yellow ; claws blackish slate." The sexes of the adult bird are perfectly alike, only the female has the wing generally 2 or 3 mm. shorter. In the first plumage of the young bird the feathers of the upper and underside, and especially those of the wing-coverts, are tipped with yellow; head and neck uniform dark green. In the next stage the plumage is like that of the adult bird, except that the crown is still green and the hind-neck more greenish.
I have not seen sufficient material from Ponape to say with certainty that
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l)irds from Ruk and Ponap6 are entirely tlie suuu', but Finsch ami other antliorities inform us that they are the same.
Open nests on boughs of large trees were found in May and June. They contained two eggs, measuring 33 : ^3, 33-5 : 23-5, 33 : 23, 33-3 : 22, 33 : 232 mm- They are all remarkably pointed on one end, the narrowed point being very short.
1 1 . Carpophaga oceanica (Less.).
(Wiglesworth No. 206 p. .52 ; (jlobicera oceanica, Salvailori, (''at. B. Brit. Mas. XXI. p. 170).
Common on Rnk. Local name: " Muranoniloy." "Colour of bill blackish slate-colour ; iris carmine ; feet light rose-red, claws black." This species differs widely from C. pacijica in its chestnut abdomen and thighs. One specimen (adnlt male) has a wide light chestnut bar to the tip of the tail, and most of the feathers of the uj)perside tipped or edged or overspread with chestnut, some others show the same peculiarity in a lesser degree. A young bird {fcmaU) has the crown and hind-neck much darker than the adult ones, and the abdomen washed and spotted with blackish brown.
12. Phlegoenas kubaryi Finsch. (Wiglesworth No. 28-1 p. .55.)
■\Vhile we received a great number of the Ptili7ioptis, only eight of this fine pigeon were sent. The: female is a little smaller than the male. " Colour of bill blackish slate-colour ; iris seal-brown ; legs and toes dark ]>ink ; claws mouse- grey."' The local name is " Sleep."
I have no Ponapfi specimens to compare, but specimens fiom Rnk and Ponape are said to be alike.
Phlegoenas hiharyi differs at a glance from P. xanthonura (= pampiisan = tirgo, cf. Nov. Zool. V. p. CO) in having a slate-coloured hind-neck and posterior part of the crown, but, as young P. xanthonura also have a slaty brown hind-neck and posterior part of crown, the young of P. xanthonura is very near to a dull kubaryi, and the two forms might perhaps better be considered to be subspecies only.
13. Numenius phaeopus variegatus (Scop.). (Wiglesworth No. 333 p. 06.)
One pair shot ou Jlay 5th. {N. phaeopus of Finsch in Proc. Zool. Soc. 1880 p. 570.)
14. Limosa lapponica novaezealandiae (Gray). (Wiglesworth No. 332 p. 06). One male, October 18th.
15. Totanus incanus (Gm.) (Wiglesworth No. 32'J p. 65).
Obtained in February and October. One adnlt female shot June 15th, 18'J5, with a wing fully 181 mm. in length.
Hi. Heteropygia acuminata (Horsf) (Wiglesworth No. 327 p. 64.) Not rare in February and early in March. Local name : •' Klyn."
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IT. Charadrius Mvus (Gm.) (Wiglesworth No. 322 p. (33). Common on February Otli.
18. Aegialitis mongolus (Pall.). One female, February 8th, 18iHi. Local name: " Klyn." Not mentioned by Wiglesworth and Finsch.
19. Squatarola squatarola (L.) One /email', Rnk, January 20th, 1890. Not mentioned by Wiglesworth and Finsch.
20. Strepsilas interpres (L.) (Wiglesworth No. 320 p. G3.) Common in February and March.
21. Poliolimnas cinereus (Vieill.) (Wiglesworth No. 312 p. 01.)
Five specimens sent from Rnk. The local name is " Iliilinebon." (Nov- ZoOL. V. J). 64).
Two nests were found on the swampy ground among the reeds, one con- taining four, the other three eggs. The eggs are pale buff, or cream-colour, .speckled all over with brownish rufous, more frequently near the broad end. In some eggs these spots are larger, in others minute, and there are often some underlying pale purplish grey spots. If held against the light the eggs shine through very pale greenish yellow. They measure : 32 :22-8, 3M : 23.1, 33:23.5, 30-3 : 22-4, 30-2 : 235, 31 : 233 mm.
22. Micranous leucocapillus (Gould).
(Wiglesworth No. 3T0 p. 77, sub nomine sinous melanogenys .)
Haifa dozen specimens were shot in November. Local name, " Pohlicki."
23. Anous stolidus pileatus (Scop.) (.1. stolklus, Wiglesworth No. 375, p. 76).
Lepetit Fouquet des Philqqiiiies, Sonnerat, Voyage a hi Nouv. Guinee p. 125, pi. 85 (1776). Stemct pileaki, Scopoli, Dtl. Faiiii. el Flor. Insuhr. II. p. 92, no. 73, ex Sonnerat (178G). Stermi philippina, Latham, Iiul. Oni. II. p. 805, ex Sonnerat (1790). Annus rotis'ieaui, Hartl. Beitr. Oni, Madagoiicar, p. 8*i (1861). Amuxfmtei; Cones in Pmc. Acad. Philad. 1862 p. 558 (South Pacific). Anous stolidus rousscaui, Ridgway in Proc. U.S. Nat. Mns. XIX. pp. 645, 646.
Messrs. Cones and llidgway are perfectly correct in separating the Noddy of the Pacific from that of the Atlantic Ocean. The tail of A. s. pileatus is longer and more graduated than that of .1. 3. stolidus, the pileum more greyish and never so whitish, the general colouration more sooty and not so brown, the wing generally longer. There is, however, no donbt that Sterna pileata is the oldest term for this form, and that also Sterna pldlippina applies to it. Both these names are based on the ^' Petit Fouquet des Philippines" of Sonnerat, who distinctly describes (and figures rather badly) a white-crowned Noddy. The facts, that only Anous stolidus and not Micranous leucocapillus is known to frequent the Philippines, and that Sonnerat describes the size of his bird as twice that
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of Sterna anaetheta, and that he calls the bill curved, force ns to accept his name for the Pacific form of the Anons atolidns.
For waut of better knowledge 1 follow Kidgway iu uniting the form from Madagascar and the southern Indian Ocean with the Pacific one, but I agree with Ridgway that a furtlier subdivision may in fntnre be necessary, and I think specially that it is likely that the Red Sea bird {Anoiia plumbeigularis of Sharpe) may be found to differ, if a large series is studied.
Oar collectors found Anotis stolidm pileatus frequent on Rnk Island. Local name, " Pohlicki." Nests, containing one egg each, were found from March to July 1st " on ' Tako " trees, or on the roots of Mangrove bashes." The " Tako " is described as a " tall tree resembling the cocoanut palm."
24. Sterna bergii Licht. (Wiglesworth No. 304 p. 74). Ruk, December 5th, 1895, and May 7th, 1896. Local name " Nipawalne " or "Nipowalne."
25. Sterna melanauchen Temm. (Wiglesworth No. 367 p. 74). One specimen (? ?) was obtained on February 1890. It agrees fairly well with Saunders' description of the immature bird iu Cat. B. Brit. Mus. XXV. p. 128, but the wing-coverts are nearly white, the four outer pairs of rectrices are marked with black on the outer webs.
26. Gygis alba kittlitzi Hart. {Gygis alba Wiglesworth No. 381 p. 78).
Frequent and breeding on Ruk Island. Cf. Nov. ZooL. V. p. 67. Local name : " Arakal " and " Alakal," also " Ekigah."
The single egg was found in June iu the fork of branches and on the bare ground.
27. Phaethon lepturus Daud. (Wiglesworth No. 361 p. 73). J ad. 14. 0. 1896. Local name : " Uhk."
28. Puffinus obscurus obscurus (Gm.) (Wiglesworth No. 3bS p. 79).
Three males and one of doubtful sex were obtained on June 15th and 16th. Their local name is " Niffolo." " The colour of the bill is blackish : the iris seal-brown." The outer toe is blackish in skin, the inner and middle toe of a light colour.
See Nov. Zool. V. p. 194, where the subspecies of this species are dis- criminated.
A single egg, laid on a small heap of dry leaves, was found on June 16th in a hole about four feet deep on the side of a cliff. It is white, and measures 42 : 35-5 mm.
29. Nycticorax caledonicus (Gm.) (Wiglesworth No. 134 p. 68).
One male was shot on May 25th, 1896. Its local name is given as " Kao-Kao." It has a rather dark back and somewhat darker wings than other specimens of this species liefore me.
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30. Demiegretta sacra (Gm.) (Wiglesworth No. 337 p. 07).
Rather common. Local uame " Soppu " and " Kao-Kao." There are slate- coloured and white individuals, and many two-coloured ones. These do not change from a slate-coloured to a white or from a white to a slate-coloured dress, but have white and slaty feathers at the same time and get them again by moult.
31. Ardetta sinensis (Gm.) (VViglesworth No. 339 p. 68).
Rather common on Ruk Island (Cf. Nov. Zool. V. p. 65). Local name
" Lioh."
The nests, containing one and two eggs, were found in May and June, among reeds. The eggs are of the palest green, almost white, and measure 336 : 26, 38 : 24-8, 38-5 : 34-3, 308 : 245, 31 : 24-2, 35-5 : 25-5, 35 : 245, 34-3 : 24-3 mm.
Finsch, in his list of Ruk birds in the Froc. Zool. Soc. Lond., 1880, pp. 574-77, enumerates twenty-nine species, of which he had examined specimens of fifteen species, the others being inserted on the authority of Kubary. The following are uot in my list.
32. CoUocalia vanicorensis (= faciphaga Cat. B. Brit. Mas. XVI., p. 500). It is strange that our collectors did not come across this bird.
33. Phaethon rubricauda (Bodd.)
34. Tachypetes aquila (= Fregata aquila).
35. Dysporus sula (= Sula sula).
Thus we know thirty-five species of birds to occur on Ruk. We may with certainty suppose that no more land-birds are to be discovered, bnt that sea-birds will occasionally visit the islands, which were not hitherto observed. The only fact of first-rate interest yet to be discovered, is the breeding and the eggs of Tephras ruki, which were uot found this time. Poor as the ornis of Ruk is, the land-birds are of great interest. The beautiful Metabolus ruyensis, Myiagra oceanica, and Tephras ruki, are, as far as we know at present, only found on Ruk Island.
The absence of all Alcer/inic/cir, of which species are found on all the neigh- bouring groups of islands, the Pelew and Marianne Islands, and on the other Carolines, of hawks, owls and of Rhipiditrae on Rnk is remarkable.
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THE BIRDS OF DAMMER ISLAND IN THE BANDA SEA.
By ERNST IIARTERT.
DA3IMER, Dammar or Damiua, is a volcanic island in the Banda Sea, north of the line of the so-called '■ Serwatty Islands," which extend in an east-north- easteru direction from Timor. It is about half-way between Timor and Timorlaut. It is less than ten miles in length and about live miles wide. The island is one of the prettiest in the Eastern Archipelago, and almost entirely covered with dense forest and vegetation: only the top of the volcanic peak in the north, which is often emitting a stream of white smoke, and which rises to abont 4000 feet, is bare of forest growth. The forest is so dense, that it is very difficult to penetrate it for any distance. Many boiling hot springs and streamlets are found, which are utilized by the natives for cooking. The island is scantily inhabited by two races of Papuan and Malay type, who live in separate villages. They are all friendly and well disposed towards foreigners. They keep some pigs and fowls, and are most expert iishermen. Sago and cocoa-nut palms, enormous mango trees, jack-frnit (Artocarpus) and bread-fruit are found in abundance, as well as bananas and tobacco. Birds, lepidoptera and coleoptera are numerous. Messrs. J. AValker and Bassett-Smith, who visited Dammer on H.M. surveying ship Penguin in 1891, brought home one species of mammals (a form of Cuscns maciilatiis), ten species* of birds, unTaely M/iipidura ele.gantula, Rhipidura biittikoferi, Graucalus melanops, Zosterops bassetti, Stigmatops squatnata, Hirundo (jutturalis, Psitteiiteles euteles, Ptilinopus xantJiogaster, Carpophuqa rosacea and concinna, five species of reptiles, namely, Gecko ceiiicillatus, Calofes cristateUus, l.ijyosom'i striolatiim and fuscum, Ablepkarus boutonii furcata, ten mollusca, one hundred species of coleoptera, thirty of other insects and one freshwater crustacean. Besides this interesting, but fragmentary collection from Dammer, I am only aware that A. B. Meyer enumerates three species of birds : —
Urospizias torqiiatus = Astur polionoUis (No. 27).
Pitta brachyura = Pitta vigorsi (No. 20) and Carpopliaga concinna, which were sent to him by Mr. Riedel.t
The entire ornithological literature relating to Dammer Island is therefore : —
1884, A. B. Meyer, in Ahl>. " 7.*/.s," Dresden, p. 7 (three species).
1894, R. B. Sharpe, in Ami. <)• Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. (>, v. XIV. pp. 56-58 (ten species).
In connection with this last-named article a very interesting account of a visit to Dammer Island is given by Mr. .J. Walker, from which most of the foregoing notes are taken.
In 1899 our esteemed correspondent Heinrich K-iihn, to whom we owe already several other valuable collections from the Eastern Archipelago, made a trip to Dammer and sent us a large collection of birds and lepidoptera. Here follows the list of the birds collected by him. They are mostly collected at a place called Woeloer, some at Bebber and Hi.
• Mr. Walker says his party collected only nine, bnt Sharpe enumerates ten.
t Care must be taken not to mistake Dammer Island in the Banda Sea for the island south of Halmahera which is variously spelt D.ama. Damme, Dammar or Dammer. It is this latter island where Bernstein collected a few birtls (cf. Stigmatops Moris. Mi/zovi'la simjilex and others), not the Diimmer visited by Kiihn.
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1. Geocichla peronii audacis Hart.
{Bull B. 0. Club V. VIII. No. LXII., p. 43, April 1899).
This fine Thrush differs from 0. ]ieronii of Timor in having the upperside more uniform and of a much deeper chestnut-rufous colour. The chest and sides of the bod_v are much darker and more chestnut-rufous. The wing is shorter.
" Iris brown, feet pale flesh-colour, bill pale greyish-brown, paler below."
Wing 10 — 104 mm. (at least 110 in G. peronii peronii), tail about 75, tarsus 32—33, bill 19 mm.
This bird is named in honour of Mr. Kilhn {Imhn in German = audax in Latin).
2. Rhipidura elegantula Sharpe.
Sharpe in Notes Leydai Mus. 1879 p. 23 ; Biittikofer in Nutes Leyden Mus. 1893 (v. XV.) p. 76 ; Sharpe in Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. 1894, ser. 6, v. 14, p. 56.
Five specimens from Dammer seem to agree in ever}- respect with Rh. elegan- tula, described from a single specimen from Lettie. The comparison of a series from Lettie would be desirable.
" Iris very dark brown ; feet plumbeous black ; bill black."
3. Rhipidura setosa buttikoferi Sharpe.
Sharpe in Btdl B.O. Club v. 1, No. 4, p. 18 (1892) ; Ann. & Hay. Nat. Hist. 1894, ser. 6, v. 14, p. 56.
This interesting form belongs doubtless to the group oi Rk. .setosa. From typical setosa it differs in being much deeper brown above, in having sharply marked white spots on the chest, and in having much more white on the outer rectrices. The chest is marked with longitudinal narrow white shaft-stripes. In this respect it resembles Rh. setosa isura, but the spots are narrower and sharper, the chest and upper surface darker. Rh. hoeclti from Lettie is evidently very closely allied, but more greyish above. We know thus (cf. Nov. Zool. V. p. 625) :
Rh. setosa setosa, New Ireland and New Britain.
Rh. setosa gidaris. New Guinea.
Rh. setosa nigromentalis, Louisiade Islands.
Rh. setosa hoedti, Lettie.
Rh. setosa biittikoferi, Dammer.
Rh. setosa isura, Australia.
Rh. setosa assimilis. Key Islands. More to come !
" The iris of Rh. s. biittikoferi is deep brown, bill and feet blackish."
This form is common on Dammer Island.
4. Myiagra rufigula Wall. Woeloer, Bebber and Hi on Dammer. Only a few specimens received.
5. Monarcha trivirgata (Temm.). A good series from Woeloer.
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»'i. Monarcha inomatus kisserensis A. B. Meyer.
All thn specimens from Woeloer agree with Dr. Meyer's from Kisser (Sitzber. <f- Ab/t. " Iris," Dresden, 1884, p. 22) in;beiug very light whitish grey. The study of a sufficiently large material will probably enable ns to separate several more local forms. Specimens from the Snla Islands are almost equally pale as those from Dammer, while J/, inor/iati/g commutntm from Sangi is a darker form.
T. Heteranax mundus (Scl.).
(For synonymy see Salvadori, Orn. Papnas. e Molucc. Ayginn'e II., p. 75.) We have received a good series from Dammer, and we cannot find any differences from specimens of Timorlant. Only the adult male seems to be described. Tlie adult female does not differ from the adult male, except that it is a trifle smaller, the wings of the males measuring 80 to 85 mm., those of the females 77 to 78 mm. The 3-oung, in both sexes, differs considerably. It is above earthy brown, forehead whitish, cansed by the white bases to the feathers. Remiges deep brown, margined outwardly with rufous brown, inwardly with whitish. Rectriccs blackisli brown, margined with brown, the three outer pairs with wide buff tips, largest on the outer- most pair. Lores, sides of head and neck, and throat white, breast and abdomen cinnamon-buff, thighs grey. Under wing-coverts whitish buff. Adult: '' Iris dark brown. Feet slaty-grey. Bill bright ash-grey with blackish tip and whitish cutting- edges."
8. Dammeria henrici Harf.
In Bull. B. 0. dull, V. VIII., jip. LVII., LVIIL, I described this interesting flycatcher about as follows: —
Dammeria gen. uov. Muscicapidaram.
Remarkable for its strong, high, and arched beak, with large nostrils plainly to be seen in front of the stiff, short, frontal plumes, which are continued on the beak to the nostril. In the well-developed wing the fifth primary is the longest, the first a little more than half the length of the second. Tail composed of twelve feathers, rather more than two-thirds of the length of the wing; rectrices about equal in length, slightly pointed. Metatarsus long, longer than the middle toe with claw, covered in front with a lamina, which shows some two or three divisions near the toes. Sexes dissimilar in colouration.
Dammeria hetirici, 3 ad. Above dark slaty blue, lores and feathers of the forehead darker, nearly black. Above the lores, from eye to middle of forehead, a line of pure white feathers, similar to that found in many species of Brachi/ptcryx. Underside dark slaty blue, chin darker, almost black ; in the middle of the throat a white, sometimes concealed patch. Feathers of chest and breast with narrower or wider longitudinal white spots near the tips, those of the belly and sides of the rump tipped with white, under tail-coverts nearly black, with wliite patches. Remiges slaty black, brownish grey towards the bases of the inner webs ; under wing-coverts slate-colonr, partly tipped with white. " Iris brown, bill black, feet blackish plumbeous." Total length about 130 mm., wing 68 — fiO, tail 50, metatarsus 20, culmen about 15, bill from end of nostril to tip 7 mm.
? ad. Above olive-brown with a slaty wash, upper tail-coverts slaty-brown:
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a buff superciliary line from the forehead to above the eye. Remiges olive-brown, outer webs edged with rusty brown, pale brown towards the base of the inner webs. Ear-coverts with pale shaft-lines. Under surface rnsty buff, brighter on the throat and chest, and washed with olive on the sides and flanks; feathers of the chest with olive patches, producing a somewhat striped appearance. Feet pale flesh-colonr. Wing 64 — 0.5 mm.
(? immat. Resembles the adult female, bnt with the upper surface darker and the feathers with ferruginous tips, chest more streaked, superciliary stripe less developed.
Mr. Heinrich Kilhn sent nine specimens of this most interesting bird. The bird is named in commemoration of Mr. Kiihn's Christian name, Heinrich = Henricus.
9. Gerygone ktihni sp. uov.
J ad. Above rufous-brown, the head paler and more ashy brown. Sides of head pale ashy brown, lores with a whitish spot. Remiges dark sepia-brown, ont- wardly margined with olive-rnfous-brown, the inner secondaries with the colonr of the back, inwardly with whitish grey. Rectrices deep sepia, with a wide blackish bar and an ill-defined whitish auteapical patch on the margin of the inner webs. Chin, throat, chest, middle of breast and abdomen white, sides of breast and flanks rufous brown, almost chestnut, a little brighter than the back, and having very little white in the middle of the abdomen. Under wing- and under tail-coverts white with a rusty wash. " Iris burnt-sienna-red, feet plumbeous, bill black." Wing 5.5 — .57, tail about 43, tarsus 21, bill 11 mm.
? ad. Like the adult male, only a little smaller; wing 53 mm. Jnv. underside snlphur-yellow instead of white.
Named in honour of its discoverer.
This form is apparently nearest to G. keijensis Biittik ; described from a young bird in the Leyden Museum {Notes Leyden Miis. v. XV. 1893, p. 258), but it is much more rufous above and on the flanks, also smaller. It differs from (j. inormita and G. everetti in the markings of the tail, and the colour of the upperside. It seems to agree very nearly with G. kissercnsis Finsch {Notes Leyden Mas. v. XX., p. 133, 1898) in the markings of the tail, but it is not at all olive-brown, but rufous-brown on the upperside.
No doubt several of these forms will in future be treated merely as subspecies, but at present a satisfactory review cannot be given from the material in the Tring Museum.
10. Edoliosoma dispar Salvad.
A fine series from Dammer. Cumparing them with a series from Key and Banda, I found no constant difl"erences. The size is rather variable. S ad. : " Iris dark brown, feet and bill black." ? ad. : " Iris dark brown, bill brownish black, feet slaty grey."
11. Dicaeum salvadorii A. B. Meyer.
One single male from Woeloer, Dammcr, agrees fully with Dr. Meyer's descrip- tion of D. salmdoiii from a single male from Bebber. It diff'ers from I), mackloti in having a larger and wider bill, the red of the throat being more extended towards
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the breast ami a shade less bright, and the abdomen not pure white but buffy. "Its iris is dark brown, bill and feet black."
Comparison of a good series both from Bobber and Dammer would be of interest.
12. Anthus gustavi Swinh.
cJ, Woeloer, 9. 12. 1898. " Iris dark brown, feet pale flesh-colonr."
13. Motacilla boanila melanope Fall. Common in November and December.
14. Zosterops bassetti Sharpe.
In Ann. f Mag. Kat. Hist. 1894, ser. 6, vol. 14, p. 57, Dr. Sharpe described this form as follows :—" Similis Z. albivenfri, sed panllo major, loris et gatture aurantiacis nee sulphnreis, et corporis lateribus cinerascenti-brunneis nee isabellinis distiugnenda. Long. tot. 5-0 poll., culm. I>G, alae 2"4o, candae 1-75, tarsi 0-75." There is no donbt that this diagnosis refers to this Zosterops, of which I have before me eight skins sent by Mr. Ktihn from Dammer, even if I had not compared the typo; bnt I do not consider the comparison with Z. albirentris from the Torres Straits a very lucky one. In my opinion the nearest ally is Z. citrinella from the Timor group, from which Z. bassetti differs in having a larger beak, in being less yellowish and more olive above, in being much more brownish on the sides of the breast and flanks, and in having a longer wing. From Z. qrai/i of Key it differs in being much less bright yellowish, especially ou the wings and upper tail-coverts, and in being brownish, not ashy grey on the sides.
Mr. Kiihn describes the iris as " brown, feet ash-grey, bill dull greyish brown." The sexes do not differ, except that the female is perhaps a trifle smaller. There is no doubt that Z. i-itrinclla, bassetti, grayi, and others will ultimately be classified as subspecies of one form, bnt without an elaborate study of the whole group this is not to be done, and I should at present even hesitate to say how the species should be named. Therefore I leave this to a future time.
Zo.sterops lett/ensis Finsch in J^otes Lei/r/en Mits. v. XX. p. 13G (1898) seems fully to agree with Z. bassetti, except that it is slightly smaller. The comparison of a series from Lettie is desirable.
15. Stigmatops squamata Salvad.
A good series from Dammer. " Iris yellowish grey, sometimes more brownish, bill black, feet dark grey."
Dr. Sharpe {A)i)t. Mag. Mat. Uist. 1804, ser. (J, v. 14, p. 57) identifies the bird from Dammer with St. kebirensis A. B. Meyer, bat it is squamata. Mr. Rothschild and I have carefully compared eight adult Dammer skins with ten adult specimens from Khoor (or Koer), also collected by Herr Kiihn, and wo found them quite alike. Sharpe's Dammer bird is immature, and that is the reason for the less extended scaling on the under surface. We have no specimens from Bebber (or Kebir), but — unless all those examined from the latter island are immature — they seem to differ in several points, and to be similar to young squamata. Sharpe {I.e.) says that
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he fails to see tlie characters for separating Sf. salcadorii from Tirunrlant from St. squamata, but St. snlvadoiii is apparently a distinct form, being very much smaller, the wings abont 1 cm. shorter. We have fonr Timorlaut birds for comparison.
The female of St. squamata is a little smaller than the male; the young bird has the area behind and below the eye, which in the adult birds is covered with short scaly deep black feathers with silvery white tips, quite bare and of a light flesh-colour, and the breast is pale greenish grey without scales. Sharps {I.e. p. 57) questions the correctness of the occurrence of St. ckloris on Dammer, mentioned by Salvadori (Ora. Pap. II. p. 32G), but it is Dammer in the Moluccas, not our Dammer, where Bernstein collected this and other birds.
The nest of St. squamata is a neat structure, ornamented on the outside with white little cobwebs and wool and cotton, with a "tail" hanging down from the bottom, and an entrance hole on the side, which is sometimes overhung by a protecting leaf and with a little porch-like roof. The eggs (two in number) are white, finely speckled and punctated with a light-brownish red or bright brick-red. They measure : 17-5 : 13-2, 17-7 : 14, 18-5 : 12-9, and 18-6 : 12-5 mm.
16. Pachycephala melauura dammeriana subsp. nov. I have no doubt, that P. nirlnmirii, clio, burueiisis, iiiacrorhj/ncha, obiennix, everetti and several others will be treated as subspecies of one form, and I therefore do not hesitate to call the new form also merely a subspecies of inelanura. In the distribution of colours it agrees with the other forms. Chin and throat pure white, surrounded by a 5 to 10 mm. wide black collar. The yellow collar above well defined. The wing-coverts are olive-green with small black bases. Primary-coverts and bastard-wing black with olive-grey borders. Onter webs of remiges edged with greenish olive-grey. Bectrices black, outwardly edged with yellowish olive-green, broader towards base, very narrow near tip. All the rectrices tipjjed with olive for about 4 mm. The back is olive-green, less yellowish than in P. m. clio, breast and abdomen yellow, less bright and golden than in clio. This latter form is perhaps the most similar one to dammeriana, differing, however, in the much more extended black bases to the upper wing-coverts, uniform black primary-coverts, more golden upperside, deeper yellow underside, and an almost pure black tail with almost imperceptibly narrow olive tips. The female of P. m. dammeriana, of which, however, only one is received, seems not to differ from that of clio. The size is about that of clio.
17. Pachycephala arctitorquis Scl. A series from Dammer agrees with Timorlaut specimens in the British and Tring Museums.
18. Calornis circumscripta A. B. Meyer.
Caloniis gidaris (errore, non Gray), Cut. B. Brit. Mux. XIII. p. 141 ; C. circumscripta. A. B. Meyer in Sitzungsher. u. Ahh. Ges. Jsis 1884, 1 p. 49 (Timorlaut) ; C. cirmmscrijHa, Salvadori, Agy. II. Orn. Pap. e Mol. p. 141.
A series from Dammer (Woeloer) agrees so well with typical circumscripta from Timorlaut, that I cannot separate them. In some, but not in all, the bill is less high. The iris of C. circumscripta is vermilion, feet and bill black.
The name of gularis cannot be used for this species, because the bird from Morty is not distinguishable from C. metallica.
2
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I'l. Erythrura tricolor forbesi Sharpe.
I Lave compared a series from Uamraer with the single type of K. foiliesi in the British Mnsenm, and did not notice an\- ditiVreucos. The comparison of a series would, of course, he desirable. /-'. tricolor of Timor is, of course, closely allied, differing merely in the blue colour of the crown being spread over the mantle.
" Iris dark brown, feet pale flesh-colour, bill black.'"
The eggs are white, rather pointed on the narrow end, and measnro ITo : l:i, 17-0 : 13:2 and 17-8 : 13 mm.
20. Pitta vigorsi (iuuld.
A series from Dammer agrees iu every respect with a series from Buuda. '• The iris is brown, feet flesh-colour, bill black."
This beautiful Pitta inhabits Banda, Dammer and Timorlaut, whili' on Flores it is represented by the black-throated conciiuid (ionld, with a bi-culoured super- ciliary stripe, on Alor and Lomblen by the j)erfectly similar eceretti Hart., with a longer beak, on Timor by irena Temm., with a uniform superciliary stripe, on Sula Mangoli by the perfectly similar crassirostrix Wall., with a larger bill, on Djampea by virijinalis Hart., with a much broader stripe, on .Suraba by murin Hart., without black on the abdomen and with a narrow imiform supcreiliary line, iti North Queensland by the larger simillima Gould, with nearly the whole crown brown, in other parts of Australia by the still larger strepitans Temm. There can be no doubt that all these forms, representing each other on the various islands and agreeing in the pattern and general colouration as well as in structure, are all best treated as subspecies of one species, only the last two are more specialized and might be kept specifically distinct from the rest. Also Pitta hertue Salvad., which represents this type iu Borneo, is allied to this group, while moluccensis P. L. 8. Mull, stands much more apart, and occurs together with P. hertac on Borneo and on other islands of the Archipelago.
'i\. Collocalia neglecta Gray.
Five specimens from Woeloer. " Iris of the darkest brown, feet and bill black."
This swiftlet differs from (.'. esculenta only in being smaller, duller and less glossy above, and by some of the feathers of the mmj) and some of the npj)er tail- coverts having narrow whitish edges. The expression used in the Catalogue of Birds (v. Ifi, p. .310), "back, rump, and wing-coverts dark j)lumbeons grey," is far too strong, but I had then only four old skins, which were indeed very jiale, and might very well be called "dark plumbeous."
22. Eurystomus orientalis australis Swain.s.
Not rare on Dammer.
Young individuals have a brownish black bill and no blue ou the throat.
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23. Eos recticulata (S. Miill.).
Two adult ««/fA-, Bebbor, Dammcr, 3(». 12. 189S. " Iris with an outer bnrnt- sienna ring, followed by a sepia-coloured and an inner narrow yellowish grey ring. Feet black. Bill blood-red."
This species is only known from Timorlaut or Tenimber, but Mr. Kiibu has also sent us one shot on Little Key Island.
24. Psitteuteles euteles (Temm.) (? subsp.).
We have a good series of this bird from Dammer. Only one of them approaches typical euteles from Timor, while most of them have the head much more greenish, the abdomen shaded with green. As, however, immature eutele-n from Timor are similar, I must leave it to future research whether such yellow- headed individuals as on Timor are ever found on Dammer. If the characters stated above — which are those of immature birds on Timor — serve to distingnish the Dammer form subspeciKcally, then the Wetter-bird (judging from one example received in exchange from the Lej'den Museum) might belong to it, and those from Alor and Pantar would seem to be intermediate. '-The iris in the Dammer birds is orange, feet olive-grey, bill yellowish vermilion."
I have no doubt that Triclioglossus (dorensi.i, described as a new species from Alor by Finscli (yotes Lojdeii Museum, XX., p. 220), is the young of euteles. The differences given are the characteristics of the immature birds. The only peculiarity of them is the dark brown bill. As our immature individuals have a brown tip to the bill, I must believe that the very young birds have totally brown bills. It is most unlikely that two so closely allied species of Psitteuteles inhabit the small island of Alor.
25. Halcyon australasiae dammeriana subsp. nov.
Tlie specimens from Dammer, from where I have nine skins before me, differ from those from Timor, Lombok and Sumba, collected by Everett and Doherty, in having the crown of the head dark cinnamon with a dusky green i)atch in the middle, and some dusky green stripes on the forehead, wjiile the entiri' crown is green in //. a. australasiae, only striped with cinnamon on the forehead. One of the specimens from Dammer closely approaches the typical form, bnt there is still more cinnamon on the anterior part of the crown. The specimens with the greatest iimouut of cinnamon are females. In typical australasiae I find no difference in the sexes with regard to the extent of cinnamon on the crown. The young bird has cinnamon edges to thr upper wing-coverts, blackish ones to the feathers of the underside.
The iris of 7/. a. t/ammeriana is dark brown ; bill black, lower bill whitish with <lusky tip ; feet pale brownish black.
Another subsjiefies of //. australasiae, the minor of A. B. Meyer, inhabits Timorlaut.
20. Halcyon chloris (Bodd.) (? subsp.).
In the series from Dammer all the males are remarkably blue, the females more greenish. The ear-coverts are black with a bluish wash. I do not believe that they can ultimately be classed with typical chloris, but at present the time and
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material at my disposal are too limited to solve the (juestioii. I cauiiot think that .Shavpe is riglit in separating //. fitimii as a species, nor am I able to recognize all his races, bnt 1 do not either believe that ail the forms can finally be united as one race. One of the Dammer birds has the bill ciuiousiy Hat and nptnnud, very mnch like a Todirhamphii.i, and mnch like Shar]je's meyeri from Togian, whicli, however, is also an individual aberration.
27. Astur polionotus Salvud.
Three /ema^e.'? of a hawk from Dammer seem to be Salvadori's .1. /tolioxotus, described from Timorjaut. These birds are above of a Cdnsiderably darker grey than .1. albirentris from the Key Islands, and the rnfous collar is more developed than in most -1. albicentris. All the females {males are not in the collection) have very distinct cross-bars on the breast and abdomen, while the chest is miiform rufons. This rnfons colour is darker than in most albicentris. The throat is very jiale, wliitish rnfons, under wing-coverts white with narrow rosy-rnfons cross-bars, thighs of a pale rufous, with or without faint cross-bars. '-The iris is ochreous, feet ochreous, bill black."
Wing (?) 240—24.5 mm.
A series from Great Banda seems to belong to the same form, but tlie thighs are quite white (as they seem to be in the type of A. poUonotitx); only owe female has a faint red tinge and the faintest indication of cross-bars on the thighs. The male from Banda has a broad and distinct rufous collar, and the underside is uniform, only on the abdomen are faint indications of liars.
28. Baza subcristata reinwardti (Mill!. & Schleg.) Four skins of B(i:<i from Dammer differ enormously from each other in the colouration of the underside, two having dark rnfons, one ashy brown, one (a young example) narrow rufous brown zigzag bars.
I almost doubt the jiossibility of separating Daza subcristata and reinwardti even subspecifically ! The only diiference is in fact, as already shown by Salvadori, in his great " Ornithologia Papiiasia," the smaller size of B. reinwardti, the difierences in colouration, which Sharpe {Cat. B. v. I.) and others thought to be of specific value, being individual variations. While recognizing the generally smaller size of reinwardti, I find individuals (Djampea, Fergusson), which differ not from some Australian skins in size. If, however, reinwardti can be separated subspecifically (a specific separation is impossible), then 7>'. subcristata .mbcristata should be restricted to Australia, the birds from the Moluccas, Lesser Suuda Islands and New Guinea being all reinwardti.
Baza subcristata riifa from Batjan, Halmahera and Obi Major is a mere rufous closely allied form.
B. subcristata yurneyi from the Solomons seems to be fairly distinct, but B. subcristata hismarcki from New Britain and New Hanover does not seem to differ from gurneyi, except in having a longer bill.
B. subcristata timorhioen.iis from Timorlant is somewhnt doubtful, being based on a young binl, the adult of which is not yet known.
20. Cuculus canorus intermedius Yahl. ?, Kuwray, Dammei' Island, Novemlier 11th, l;?'.tis.
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30. Chrysococcyx rufomerus sp. nov.
The tiilult male diiFers from Chri/sococcijx malayanus as follows : — The crown of the head is not brownish or purplish brown, but deep metallic green with steel-blue and bronze reflections ; the back is darker ; the entire underside is widely barred with deep ,!j;reenish bronze, these bars bcinu' of a much deeper colour than in C malayanus ; the tail has no rufous colour whatever ; some of tbe greater upper wing-coverts have some edges and bars of white. The wings have very pale or no rufous colouration to the inner webs. "Iris dark vermilion, feet and bill blackish." The adult female seems to have a well-marked uniform white patch in the middle of the abdomen. The iris of the female is described on the label as " ochreous grey." Wing 05 — 99 mm.
The young of both sexes is above pale greyish bronze, below greyish brown, with more or less dark brownish bars on the flanks; the iris is " reddish grey." This new form is perfectly distinct from (\ inahiyamis, and all the other species of the genus known to me. It is probable that this and several others should only be treated as subspecies, but as yet their history and distribution are too little known to advance theories about their relationship. Future investigations will show, whether C. rufomerus is only found on Dammer Island, or also on other islands.
31. Ptilinopus xanthogaster (Wagl).
Not rare in different parts of the island, at Batoe Merah and AVulur. " Iris orange, feet greenish grey, bill sulphureous."
All the specimens from Dammer have the neck more or less washed with green, the green of the upi)erside somewhat yellowish, the foreneck rather greenish. In this they agree with specimens from Banda. Some specimens from the Key Islands are perfectly similar to those from Dammer, while the perfectly adult Key birds have the neck beautifully greyish-white, the breast and abdomen very bright, the back pure green. As, however, our Key series is selected from a larger collection, and shot at diflerent times of the year, while our six or eight birds from Banda and Dammer were all shot at the same time of the year, and as we know that the greenish neck is a sign of immaturity, I am not able to say that the Key birds are really different, and I am inclined to think that eiiually adult liirds from all the islands are perfectly alike. Meyer has separated the Timorlaut race as P.Jlavocirescens, but Salvadori seems to think that his characters are based on immature individuals. We have, at present, not suflScient material to decide this question.
32. Ptilinopus lettiensis Schleg.
A fine series from Dammer agrees with an adult male from Bebber (April 1898), received in exchange from the Leyden Museum. The yellow on the neck is, however, deeper in the Bebber specimen than in the eight from Dammer, but the depth of the yellow colour on the neck is not constantly alike in those from Dammer, which were all shot in November. Until, therefore, a large series from Lettie and Bebber are compared, the Dammer bird must stand as 1'. lettiensis. The iris of the Dammer birds is " burnt-sienna red, the bill yellow, slaty-green at base, feet bluish carmine."
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33. Carpophaga rosacea (Tomm.)
October and November. " Iris carmine. Bill dark grey with carminft no.strils. Feet bright carmine."
34. Carpophaga concinna Wall.
One male and two females were shut in November. Their iris was orange. They are typical cowiinia, and not a bit like C cowinna aepniata from the Key Islands.
:'>."i. Columba metallica Temm.
Fonud frequently in November and December. The specimens fnlly agree with those from Timor. The breast, neck, and mantle vary somewhat, the metallic gloss being sometimes beautifully i)urplish red, sometimes almost pure green. A yonng bird has the head and neck dull brown, the breast rufous brow-n. Adnlt birds have the "iris" orange, f<'et carmine, bill bright carmine, tip yellowish white. "The yotmg birds have the '■ iris pale brown, feet brown, bill brownish black."
oCp. Chalcophaps chrysochlora (Wagl.) Both sexes and young were shot in December.
37. Eallina tricolor Gray.
One female, 'Woeliier, 1. VI. 1898. "Iris brownish red, feet brown : bill light green. Eyelid ochreous."
This specimen-is rather small, measuring only as follows : wing 138, tarsus 43, bill 22 mm. Being somewhat out of its generally known area of distribution, it is quite possible that it belongs to a smaller subspecies, but it is not possibli' to decide about tliis from a single specimen.
38. Amauromis phoenicura (Furst. ) (? leucomelaena).
One (apparently adnlt) specimen. In this the sides of the head and iieck are lierfectly slat}--black, and there is no white on the forehead I This bird — a similar one is before me from Sumba— differs very much from young -I. phoenu-ura from India. I am therefore inelined to think that tliere is after all a Timorese s])ecies or subspecies, to be cviXXqA leucomelaena. (Cf. Sharpe, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. v. XXIII. p. 159, Mey. & Wigl., Birr/s of Celebes v. II. p. 708, Hart., Nov. ZooL. V. p. 47.% no. 74.)
39. Charadrius fulvus Gm.
9 Hi. If,. 11. is'.is.
40. Numenius phaeopus variegatus (Scop.) 9 Woeloer, 9. 12. 1898.
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41. Limosa lapponica novaezealandiae a my.
Wocloer, 0. 12. 1808.
4,'. Heteractitis bi-evipes (Vieill.) Woeloer, November auJ December.
43. Tringoides hypoleucus (L.) Not rare in December.
44. Glottis nebularius (Gunu.) ? Woeloer, Dammer, 9. 12. 1898.
45. Tringa crassirostris Temm. 6 juv. Kiimur, Dammer, 14. 11. 1898.
40. Bubulcus coromandus (Bodd.) <?, Woeloer, 12. 11. 1898.
47. Demiegretta sacra (Gm.)
<?, Woeloer, i». 12. 1898. Pare white, with a few small slaty-black spots ou the neck and wiug-coverts.
48. Sula sula (L.)
Oue adult bird, .se.x doubtful, Woeloer, Dammer, 5. 11. 1898.
49. Megapodius duperreyi Less, et Garn.
Common on Dammer Island. " Iris burnt-sienna rcl, feet yellowish vermilion, bill dirty yellow."
Thus Mr. Kiihn sent forty-nine species, of which ten were previously known to occur on Dammer, although three were not quite correctly identified before. Two birds mentioned by Dr. Sharpe were not procured by Kiihn: '' Graucalus melanops " and " Hirundo gutturalis.'" Of these the Hirundo is only a winter visitor, and might not be of regnlar and frequent occurrence, but it is strange that the very conspicuous and large Gvaid-alas was not obtained. As Dammer is quite within its range, 1 have no right to doubt its occurrence there, but it should be noticed that Sharpe names ten species of birds from Dammer, while AValker says nine only were collected.
It is remarkable that Dr. ISbarpe from the scauty material before him drew correct conclusions about the zoogeographical relations of Dammer, which he said were with Timorlaut on the one hand, and with Timor on the other, " while some species may be found peculiar to the Damma, Lettie, and Wetter groups of islands." From our larger material it is evident that the relations with Timorlaut are very obvious (cf Ileteranax tniuidi(s, Faclnjcepluila arctitorquis, Eos reticaluta).
Some forms are exactly the same as those found on the so-called Serwatty Islands (Lettie, Moa, Bebber, etc.), and those that are hitherto only known as Timor
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species will probably all be found to occur ou the Serwatty group as well, which is by no. means sufficiently oxploreil. It is remarkable that some forms are common to Timorlanf, Banila and Daramer, and apparently not to be found elsewhere (cf. Pitta cigorsi, Ast'ir jioUonotus).
The butterflies of Dammer seem to show a close relationship to those of Timorlaut.
The number of birds at present only known from Dammer is small, and we do not doubt that many of them may ultimately be found ou the Serwatty group of islands. One might therefore suppose that Dammer is not a very ancient island; and Mr. Dolierty, who visited me when I had just written this note, tells me that, on a hurried visit to Dammer some years ago, he had the impression that Dammer was such a recent volcanic island, that it would not be worth while for him to sacrifice time and money for a long stay to collect lepidoptera. Until the Serwatty Islands are thoroughly explored, all these theories, however, are mere suppositions.
DESCRIPTION OF THE HITHERTO UNKNOWN FEMALE OF OENETUS MIEABILIS ROTHSCH.
By HON. WALTER ROTHSCHILD, Ph.D.
? Wings, upperside : Ground colour of forewiug gamboge yellow, completely covered with a network of dull apple-green; the meshes of the network are hexagonal in shape, and at each point of the hexagon is a thickened spot, and in the centre of each mesh is an irregular spot or dash of the same green colour. On the costal area are a number of chocolate brown patches, first a small one, then three large ones reaching to, and sometimes beyond, the subcostal veins. These three large sjjots are followed by one or more smaller ones.
The forewiug is crossed transversely by a band of chocolate brown almost parallel to the outer margin and about one-third from the ajiex. This baud is forked from the costal margin to SC, and is traversed for its whole length by a chain of dull purple spots. Between this band and the outer margin is an irregular row of dull purple and brown spots each standing on the edge of a hexagon. Half way between the main transverse band and the base of the wing is another irregular and broken baud of spots, some chocolate and others dull purple. Between the nervures at outer margin is a row of dull purple spots.
Basal half of hindwing a most delicate salmon pink, outer half chrome ycljow, more or less reticulated with pink spots standing mostly along the nervures.
Undcrsidi' of I'oth wings chrome yellow, heavily washed with pink ou basal half, while outer half is spotted with pink; ou the costal margins of both wings is a row of pinkish brown patches.
Head, tliorax, end of abdomen and legs greenish wax yellow, metathorax and basal two-thirds of nj)perside of abdomen greenish pink. Underside of abdomen pinkish white.
Length of forewiug : 52 to 80 mm.
Breadth of forewiug : 25 to 38 mm.
Described from several hied females from Townsville,iNorth Queensland, where the collector obtained also a number of nmles.
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ANOTHER SMALL CONTRIBUTION TO AFRICAN
ORNITHOLOGY.
By ERNST HARTEET.
THE following article is based on collections made by Dr. W. J. Ansorge during his third stay in the African Continent. A list of the birds collected during his second stay in Africa is given by me in the ApiJendix to Dr. Ansorge's book " Under the African Sun," to which I have sometimes to refer in the following pages. Occasionally birds from other collections, specially some collected by Dr. Felix Roth at Warri, in the Niger Coast Protectorate, have been discussed.
Dr. Ansorge has this time crossed Africa from east to west, taking from Uganda about the same route as Mr. A. B. Lloyd. Most of the localities mentioned are therefore to be found in Lloyd's book " Li Dwarf Land and Cannibal Country " (London, J. Fisher Unwin, 1899).
From Mombasa Dr. Ansorge travelled to Uganda, collecting very interesting birds in the sandy plain of the Athi River and at Nairobe. From Uganda proper he marched westwards to Toro (or Torn, as Ansorge spells it), where a good number of birds were procured. Toro is the country east of Mount Ruweuzori, and a description and a map, showing some of the places where Ansorge collected, is given in Lloyd's book, p. 159. At Fort George, on Lake Albert Edward, the collector seems to have stayed for some time, then proceeded to " Karimia in Ussongora,* Congo Free State," hence northwards to Fort Mb(5ni, or Beni, on the lower course of the Semliki, or, as it is here called, Kakibi River ; then, entering the " Great African Forest," i.e., the enormous primeval forest, inhabited by a Pygmy race, he travelled in a north-westerly direction to the Ituri River, which at its lower portion is called the Aruwinii, and sailing down the Aruwimi and Congo, reached the west coast, where he found a Belgian steamer ready to sail. He thus accomplished the journey in the marvellously short time of seventy-nine days from Fort George to London. The collections that conld.be made on snch a record journey are of course very fragmentary, but they contain some highly interesting specimens. A box with probably some very good birds from East Africa is unfortunately lost, and has not been traced. A longer stay in the Great Forest would doubtlessly have yielded many wonderful things. On pp. 299—302 Mr. Lloyd has given some notes on the " animal life in the forest," but he is not a naturalist, and his description cannot be accurate, since " many species of gazelles, chimpanzee and gorilla " do not live there, or have not yet been identified, and we do not believe in hyaenas in the middle of the forest, although Mr. Lloyd mentions " leopards, panthers, wild cats, civets, hyaenas, and reptiles."
Of bird-life in the Great Forest Mr. Lloyd says : " Birds of every description and varied hue abound, parrots undoubtedly predominating, paraquets, swifts, owls, guinea-fowl, kingfishers, fish eagles, divers, kites, hornbills in great variety ; pigeons, doves, honej'-birds, and all kinds of night-birds. In the daytime it is delightful to sit and listen to the singing of the birds, their songs being so different from the bird-songs of Europe ; some with deep musical sounds like the tolling of a
• Spelt Ussogara by Dr. Ansorge, but on the maps I find Ussongora. This place must of course not be mistaken for the country of Usagara, in German East Africa. Ansorge's Karimia is the Karimi on the Isango, a continuation of the Semliki- Kakibi River, on Mr. Lloyd's and other maps.
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he]]. The black-;ui<l-wbite wagtail is so tame that ho will sit within a few yards and pour forth his beautiful notes. The tin}- honey-bird darts here, there, and everywhere, like streaks of light, issuing forth its twit, twit, as it lights npon some honey-bedewed blossom. Overhead the ungainly hornbill jdoiiglis its way above the tree-tops, calling to its mate, and the screaming of the parrots as in great flocks they make their flight along the river banks, or throngli the tangled mass of vege- tation overhead, is almost deafening. By the little streams are countless numbers of wonderful butterflies, some as large as swifts, and all (x/'r I) most gorgeously coloured. The insect life baffles description. . . ." E.xaggerati'd as this statement may perhaps be, it is of interest to hear it, since it seems to contradict tlie reports of the scarcity of bird-life in the Great Forest.
The birds collected by Dr. Ansorge belong to throe more or less faunistically different countries. In the Athi Plain and at Nairobe ho collected in the southern parts of the North-East African desert and steppe fauna, which reaches south at least to Masailand (cf Drepanoplectes jacksoni, MiraJ'ra africana o.tM, Pf/s.'ie/- difumis gongonensis and others); then the so-called East African fauna was touched; while soon afterwards, without a very sharp line of demarkation, the West African area was entered (cf Corythaeala cristntn, Cohonba nnicincla, and many others).
It may here be remarked that at present a general account of the birds of Africa is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, desideratum of ornithologists. The publications on African birds are so numerous, and especially in small contributions —often descriptions of one or two species or subspecies — and nearly all nations, as German, British, French, Swedish, Portuguese, Italian, American, Austrian, partake of the ornithological work in Africa, that it is most difficult, I think more difficult than in any other country, to be informed about all the literatni-e. It is therefore to be hoped that the works of Professor ISeichenow and ( 'aptain 8helley will soon appear.*
I am obliged to my friends Professor Reichenow, Dr. Sharpe, and Mr. Grant for comiJaring some of the specimens with the types and other examples in their collections, and thank them for their kindness.
1. Phalacrocorax africanus (Gm.) S ?. Ituri ]{iver, twenty-second day from Fort Mbeni, '20. h. 18'J9. " Iris golden-brown. Feet black. Upper jaw dark grey with yellow edge, lower yellow."
2. Fodiceps cristatus L. Lake Varangot, Fort Gerry, Torn, 13. 4. 1899.
3. Nettapus auritus (Bodd.)
? ad. Near Ripou Falls, Somerset Nile, 10. 3. 1899.
" Iris dark brown. Feet greenish black. Upper bill greenish grey with a greenish yellow patch on each side near the base. Lower bill pinkish grey with orange-yellow skin between rami."
4. Nettion capense (Gm.) ? ad. Lake Varangot, Torn, Uganda Protectorate, 10. 4. 1899. " Iris dark brown. Feet slate-blue ; bill slate-blnc witli dark central greenish grey streak."
* While this jaesed through the press Part I. of Vol. II. of Shelley's work hiis actually been issued.
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5. Oedicnemus vermiculatus Cab. 5 ad. Fort George, Lake Albert Edward, Tom, 26. 4. 18f»0.
0. Hoplopterus spinosus (L.) c? ?. Fort George, Lake Albert ; Edward, 26. 4. 1899, ?, Salt lake Kikorongo, one day's march from Lake Albert Edward, 25. 4. 1899. " Iris blood-red ; bill and feet black."
7. Chettusia melanoptera (Cretzscbm.) <? ?. Nairobe, British East Africa, 28. 1. 1809.
" Iris lemou-yellow ; red ring of bare skin round eyes, more developed in the male. Feet brownish-red, lighter on the thighs. Bill black."
8. Chettusia inornata (Swains.) ? ad. Lake Kikorongo, salt lake one day's march from Lake Albert Edward 2.'). 4. 1899.
" Iris lemon-yellow, inwardly shaded with greeuisli ; bill and feet black."
9. Ochthodromus asiaticus (Pall.) ? ?. Athi Plain, British East Africa, 2.j. 1. 1899. One of these shows beginning of moult on chest, the other not.
10. Glareola pratincola (L.)
Five males. Salt lake Kikorongo, Torn, 2.j. 4. 1899.
Only one has the throat qnite unspotted, and in that specimen it is rather deej) rusty buff. It would be interesting to investigate whether the Pratincole is really, as it is supposed to be, merely a migrant in Africa, or if a special darker race is resident in the Dark Continent.
11. Gralaclirysea nuchalis (Gray).
<? ad. Enguatuara on the Ituri River, 31. 5. 1899.
" Iris dark brown. Feet copper red. Bill black with red base." Tliis bird has the inner (not outer) webs of the secondaries white at base, its wing measures 6 inches I Cf Cat. B. Brit. Mus., v. XXIV. p. 64. Is G. emi/ii a different species ?
12. Otis melanogaster RUpp. <S ad. Nakabimba in Toru, Uganda Protectorate, 2. 4. 1899. "Iris brown ; feet yellowish grey, becoming brownish grey below the knee, dark grey on the toes, especially the middle one. Bill : upper jaw dark grey with yellowish grey edges, lower yellowish grey."
13. Fulica cristata Gm. Lake Varangot ;(Toru), Uganda Protectorate, 16. 4. 1899. " Iris blood-red ; feet slate-colour, darker on the joints and orange-red patches above the knees. Bill pale grey with a bluish tmge. Bare patch on forehead greyish white, terminating in two dark brown-red protuberances with orange-red tips."
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U. Grallinula chloropus (1^.) <??. in nuptial plnmage, Lake Varangot in .Torn, Uganda Protectorate, 13. 4. 1899.
IT). Limnocorax niger ((iiu.) (f. Lake Varangot, Torn, 13. 4. 1S99.
Ki. Pterocles exustus Temm.
cJ?. Campi-ya-Simba, British East Africa, 14. 1. 1^99. "In both sexes iris dark brown : feet bluish grey ; bill greyish white."
Temminck described his P. exusttts from West Africa and North-East Africa. The African Birds were therefore the " typical " ones, which means that they must be called /'. exustus exustus, if subspecies are distinguished, and there is no doubt, in my opinion, that this can be done.
I have not been able to compare a series of Abyssinian skins, but as several writers have declared that they are like those from North-Eastern Africa, and in view of the close relationship of the fauna of North-Eastern Africa and Senegambia, I must take their similarity for granted at present. The North-East African birds (Abyssinia, Egypt) and those from Eastern Tropical Africa (Kilimanjaro, Machakos, Campi-ya-Simba) do not seem to differ and are above rather dark olive-brown, while the greater wing-coverts are much more yellow, especially on the tips. This is evidently pigment, and not at all due to staining. Bogdanow's name P. ellioti {Bull. Ac. Sci. Petersb. v. XXVII., p. 167, 1881) is based on one (!) Abyssinian example collected nearly seventy years ago by Riippell. The differences lie mentions are evidently dne to the faded condition of this old veteran of a mounted specimen, and the white patch he describes is found in all adult males. P. ellioti is therefore, for the present, to be regarded as a synonym of P. exustus.
The wing of Central African adult males measures about 185 inm.
From this form differs the bird inhabiting the deserts of Somaliland, in being smaller, paler and more sandy isabelline on the upperside, chest and breast. The under tail-coverts in the one male at Tring are unspotted. The female is less thickly spotted on the foreneck, less blackish and more reddish on the upperside. The wings of two adult males and two females measure about 170 mm. This form might be termed
Pterocles exustus somalicus subsp. nov. (Type Donaldson (Smith coll. Milmil,
30. T. 1894.)
A third distinct form is the Indian bird, which is lighter above than P. exustus exustus, not so dark olive-brown, but not so bright yellowish isabelline as P. exusttts somalicus. The larger wing-coverts are paler and not so yellowish. The females show the same differences. This form might be named
P. exustus orientalis snbsp. nov.
We have thus, for the present : —
P. exustus exustus : West and N.E. Africa generally, south to the Masai- steppes, Kilimanjaro and Arnsha.
P. exustus somalicus : Somaliland.
P. exustus orientalis : India.
( 20 )
IT. Pterocles gutturalis saturatior subsp. uov.
(Type : Campi-ya-Simba, Britisli E. Africa, 23. 4. 189s.)
? ?. Athi Plain, British East Africa, 24. 1. 1899. " Iris chocolate-browii ; feet bluish grey ; bill bluish grey."
Males of P. gutturalis from British East Africa, the Kilimanjaro district and Bogosland have the rust-coloured extremities to the greater series of wing-coverts of a much deeper rufous colour, while those from Transvaal, Nyassaland and the Zambesi have them paler and somewhat more yellowish. The back and rump in the nortliern birds is also darker brown than in those from Southern Africa. The southern form being first described, the northern one requires a new subspecific name : P. gutturalis sataratior.
The females of the two forms are perhaps not distinguishable, unless those of P. gutturalis saturatior are more blackish above.
18. Hagedashia hagedash (Lath.)
? . Bomili on the Ituri River, Congo Free State, 30. 5. 1899. " Iris blood-red ; feet black with brick-red down the front of the toes and lower Iialf of metatarsus ; bill black with reddish brown tip, basal half of culmen bright red."
I think that the colour of the iris is given wrong, probably, the blood having broken out into the eyes, for the Hagedash has not red eyes.
I am inclined to believe that there are two subspecies of Hagedash, birds from N.E. and Eastern Africa being smaller and paler than those from the West African region, which have longer bills and darker breasts. Our material, however, is not sufficient to settle this question.
19. Phoyx purpurea (L.)
?. Yanga on the Ituri River, Congo Free State, 29. 5. 1899. " Iris lemon yellow."
211. Bubulcus ibis (L.)
? ad., twentieth day from Fort Beni in Great African Forest, 24. 5. 1899. " Iris lemon yellow ; bill lemon yellow."
21. Columba unicincta Cass.
An adult ? of this rare pigeon was shot at Diapanda, a Suaheli settlement in the Great African Forest, on the sixth day's march from Fort Bi^ni. " The iris is blood-red ; feet slate-blue ; bill slaty blue, with paler tip : each eyelid with narrow crimson ring, followed by a fleshy brown area, and finally a crimson outer patch."
Columba unicincta is described from Gaboon (Agobai), and recorded also from Liberia by Biittikofer, who figured it in the Notes of the Leyden Museum v. VIL pi. 6. The specimen from the Great African Forest agrees perfectly with the original description as well as with Biittikofer's figure.
Dr. Ansorge says these pigeons are very shy and diflicult to approach.
( 30 )
22. Tnrtur semitorquatus (nuiip.)- Nairobe, 5. 2. 1809.
2?. Chalcopelia afra (T..). Dwaiigiri (Singo), Uganda, 28. 3. 1800.
24. Tympanistria tympanistria (Temm.).
cJ ? Kikanja, Tom, 3. 4. 1899. "Iris brown : feet purple-red ; bill black with jinri)le tinge ; gape purple-red."
These specimens are darker on the back and smaller (wing S 11.5, ? llii) than Sonth African examples. There are probably two races.
2."). Vinago calva nudirostris (Swains.). Kiclinehn, Torn, Ti. 4. 1899.
2f). Pternistes cranchi (Leach).
Specimens of both sexes from the Mokia River in Torn agree jierfectly with typical y. craiiclii. Young birds have a good deal of white on the abdomen. An adult male from Ngombe on the Congo has the rufous-brown edges to the feathers of the abdomen deeper rnfons, but both Professor Reichenow and Mr. Grant are of opinion that this is not a subspecific character.
27. Numida reichenowi Grant.
c? ad. ('ampi-ya-Simba, British East Africa, 13. 1. 1898. "Iris dark grey; feet black ; upper jaw of bill dark grey-brown, lower bluish grey ; wattles blood- red, and a patch of similar colour on lower bill near the base, extendiuu' round the nostrils and over two-thirds of the helmet ; sides of throat bright blue, with black mottlings over the throat and neck."
28. Numida ptilorhyncha LicUt.
? Nakabimba, Torn, 2. 4. 1x00. " Iris golden brown : feet pale chocolate, brown scaling in front ; upper jaw red-brown, lower yellowish brown ; upper rim of nostrils, and a double carnncular ridge between them, orange-red : skin of chin and throat pale lilac ; the bine wattles have no speck of red ; skin round eyes lilac-blaok."
P Mokia River, Torn, 24. 4. 1809. " Iris dark brown : feet dark brown ; bill reddish brown, but horn-grey towards tip ; wattles very pale blue ; two whitish blue spots en upper eyelid ; all the blue marks are whitish blue or white ; throat greyish black ; neck black ; no red spot on wattles ; bristly wart between nostrils reddish brown."
<^? IIolulu River, tributary of Semliki River, Congo Free (State, C. 5. 1899. " Iris dark brown ; feet chocolate brown ; upper jaw dnll red-brown near base, rest of bill dull greenish grey; the bine marlsings are a mottling of dark and light blue : wattles with a dark edge."
(31 )
All tbcse specimens heave very sbort bristly tufts between the nostrils, and in the last-mentioned ? these tufts are entirely absent, although it doubtless belongs to this species. Probably all these Central African birds belong to an unnamed subspecies. 0. Neumann has separated several races of iV. ptilor/ii/iic/ni, but it must be said that Jesse's x\byssinian skins in the British Museum do not bear out Neumann's character of the long tufts in the Abyssinian form, as they have the bristly bunches rather short. The markings on the outer webs of the primaries .seem to vary considerably.
29. Buteo augur Rupp.
(S 6 ad. Fort Gerry and Lake Varangot (U hour from Fort Gerry), Torn. Uganda Protectorate, 12. and Ui. 4. 1699. "Iris dark brown ; feet lemon-yellow : cere lemon-yellow ; bill dark grey with bluish tinge near base of mandible ; skin round eyes greenish yellow."
30. Milvus aegyptius (Gm.). c? ad. Nairobe, British East Africa, 'Z. 2. 1899. " Bill lemun yellow."
31. Falco cuvieri Smith.
<$ ad. Nairobe, 31. 1. 1899. "Iris dark brown; feet and cere lemon-yellow; bill dark grey, shading off into greenish grey near base."
32. Poeocephalus aubryanus Souance.
? ad. Sukarumbi, one day from Fort Mbeui, Congo Free .State, 5. o. 1899. " Iris orange ; feet covered with small black scales with white edges ; upper jaw of bill horn-grey with black tip, lower black."
33. Turacus hartlaubi (Fischer & Reichen.)
(S ad. Nairobe, British East Africa, 5. 2. 1899. " Iris dark brown ; feet Idue- black ; bill reddish brown."'
34. Corythaeola cristata (Vieill.). ?. Great African Forest, tn-entieth day from Fort Mbeni.
35. Colius leucotis berlepschi Hart.
Specimens from Fort George on Lake Albert Edward and Kitagwetoa in Torn (April), as well as from Buaia (Bnsori), Uganda (March 1899), are all referable to C. I. berlepschi, as separated from C. leucotis leucof/s and ('. /. njlnis in Apjiendi.x p. 333 to Ausorge's " Under the African Sou " (London, 1899).
36. Coccystes afer (Licht.).
i ?. Karimia, Ussongora, Congo Free State, 1. 5. 1899. A uniform blue eg^^, cat out of the female's body, measures 20 by 20-5 mm.
( 32 )
37. Centropus superciliosus (lleiniir. & Elnb.). cf . Karimia, Ussongora, 1. 5. 1899. " Iris blood-red."
38. Chrysococcyx cupreus (Bodd.) ? !
An evidently yonng ? was .shot on the second day's march from Fort Mbfini. " Its iris was pinkish-brown ; the feet yellowish-green ; bill black." It differs from young of C. cupreus in the very narrow barring of the underside, each feather having fonr or five distinct i)ale whitish bnff and bronzy green bars. I am inclined to think that this bird is the yonng of an uudescribed form of Chrysococcyx nearest to cupreus.
39. Indicator indicator (Gm.).
Wemi River, Torn, 21. 4. 1899. "Iris ochre. The song of this bird is a constant ' wit-purr, wit-purr.' "
40. Tricholaema lachrymosum Cab.
(J ad. Kitagwetoa (Torn), 6. 4. 1899. " Iris orange-gold ; feet greenish grey; bill black." The spots on the sides of this male are round, not ovate as in the/emale recorded from Masongoleni in British East Africa (Ausorge's " Under the African Snn," p. 335).
41. Melanobucco bidentatus aequatorialis HheW.
¥ ad. Kichuchn, Torn, 5. 4. 1899. " Iris brown, bare ; skin around the eyes greenish yellow."
42. Barbatula subsulphurea (Fras.).
? . Kitima, Government station on the Ituri River, twenty-first day's march in Great African Forest from Fort Beni. " Iris brown ; feet deep grey ; bill black.j^
43. Melanobucco leucocephalus (Defil.). <J ad. Kikanja, Torn, 3. 4. 1899. " Iris brown."
44. lynx pectoralis Vig. Nairobe, British East Africa, 5. 2. and 27. 1. 1899.
45. Thripias namaquus (Licht.) (Pan snbsp.).
A 7nale from Ussongora, collected 17. 11. 1889 by Emin Pasha, has the wing longer than fonr South African males. The wing in the Ussongora bird is fully 5'5 in. long. In the Cat. B. Brit. Mas. v. XVIII. p. 307, 52 is given as the length of the wing, those before me measure 52 to 53 inches. The bars on the underside seem also to be narrower in the Ussongora bird.
( 33 )
4(5. Thripias namaquus schoensis (Hiiiip).
K female shot at Nairobe, 3. 1. 1899 by Dr. Ansorge. "Iris blood-red ; feet and bill greenish grey."
47. Dendropicus poecilolaemus Rchw.
?. Kinyomozi (Torn), 4. 4. 1S09. " Iris red-lirnwn ; fpft eireenish-grpy ; bill greenish alato."
48. Dendropicus tropicalis Rchw.
?. Kichnchu (Torn), 5. 4. 1899. "Iris red." ? Ngombe, Congo, Angnst Bohndorff coll.
49. Dendromus permistus Rchw.
cJ ? jnv. Sakarnmbi, one day's march from Fort B(5ni, 5. ;">. 1899. " Iris dark brown ; feet pale green ; bill grey with greenish bine tinge."
TiO. lyngipicus obsoletus iugens snbsp. nov.
One adnlt male from Xairobe ditiers from specimens from Senegambia and Gambaga in being considerably larger and darker brown. Not having specimens from N.E. Africa for comparison, I sent the bird to Prof Reichenow, who kindly writes : " Das Exemplar ist wesentlioh dnnkler im Ton derbrannen Gefiederfiirbnng, als Stiicke von Nordostafrika, auch grosser." Therefore, although I am not generally inclined to describe subspecies from the evidence of single specimens, I do not hesitate to separate tliis gigantic specimen under the name of ingois. The measurements of the type are : wing 90 mm. (3ii.j inches) ; tail 46 ; metatarsus 14: cnlmen 21 mm. " The iris is red-brown, feet greenish grey ; bill slate grey."
51. Coracias caudatus L.
(?. Nairolie, British East Africa, 2. '-i. 1899. Onter rectrices sjironting.
.02. Eurystomus afer (Lath.). S ad. Kilgnrma (Bneknlla), Uganda, 29. 3. 1899.
r)3. Eurystomus gularis (Vieiil.).
? ad. Kitima, Government station on tlie Itnri River, twenty-iirst day from Fort B6ni in Great African Forest.
54. Lophocerus erythrorhynchus (Temm.). cJ ad. Kinani, British East Africa, 2. o. 1898. " Iris light yellow."
55. Lophocerus melanoleucus (Licht.).
S ad. Kibwezi, Ukamba, British East Africa, 28. 4. 1898. " Iris wliitish yellow ; feet black ; bill red."
( :;i 1
•"'. Lophocerus fasciatus (Sliaw).
TambiiL', (i(ivcrijiiient statimi uii the Itiiri River, twenty-second day from Fort Hi'-ni, in (ireat African Forest. " Iris dark brown ; feet pnrplisli black ; bill straw- yellow, with deep red tip, line on npper jaw and nnder surface of lower jaw." This specimen is marked cf, bnt according; to tlie Catalogue of Birrh it is a ?.
",. Halcyon chelicuti (Stanley).
Kaboa (Bnckulla), I'ganda and Ilolnhi Kiver (tribntary to the Semliki). Congo Free State.
(ilanciug over onr series of //. rlnlicuti, it seems to be evident that Sontli African Birds (Transvaal and Natal) are larger and have longer bills, while being generally somewhat ])aler. Tlieir wings measure s-.^, s4, s."), sd, 87. sT mm. Specimens from Sencgambia and SoiualilaiKl are mncli smaller, the wings measuring only 7<'i. ?(!. T'.i. Ml mm., and their bills ;ire smaller. The former WduM be //. chrliciifi (li(ii>'iirii.tix Sfrickl., the hitter //. rlirUi-nti iheUoiti (Stanl.) Is:j4. The difficulty in separating these two forms is presented by the examples from Tropical Africa, ^^'est Africa to East Africa, which are intermediate, their wings measuring 7."i. 7il, 7^, sn. So, ,sl. s2, 83, S3, 83, 84, iso mm., but they have always much smaller bills. Thus it would seem, that all the forms from North-East Africa and Seuegambia to about the Zambesi cannot be separated at present, those from South Africa, however, being iV. chelicuti (lamirensi».
■■>s. Alcedo quadribrachys guentheri Sharpe.
S. I'anga, on the Aruwimi Kiver, 1. 6. 1809. "Iris dark brown ; bill black : feet coral red." This form, although easily distinguisliable from true quadnhmrluj!^. can hardly be hioked upon more than a subspecies of the latter, being only smaller and of a lighter green on the back, which is more like cobalt.
."^ifi. Merops persicus Pull. S ad. Kasesi (Torn), 2-2. 4. 1890.
110. Merops apiaster li
Xakabinibii (Torn), ■.'. 4. IsO'.i.
111. Melittophagus gularis australis lichw.
? ad. Kitinia, Government station on ilie Ituii liiver, twenty-first day fmni Fort Belli, in (Jrent .\frican ]''iirest, '2."i. -y l>0'.i. •■ Iris lilood-red, feet dark ]iurple- Mn, k : bill lihiek;
This specimen agrees in evc^ry respect wil;h another ( 'ongn skin, and both differ from twenty skins from Liberia, Sierra Leone, and (iold Coast in the following (•ll;lracter^ : — •
There are less bine featlu^rs on the forehead. The snpereiliaiy [i.ile cobalt-bine snp<'rciliary streak is ipiite indistinct, and no trace of it is cnutinned beyond the eyes, 'riiecobalt-l.lni' longirndinal spots on the breast are smaller, .-md the bliienn the rnm]i is generally darker.
.1/. //(//</)•(.? '•('^?^-«//.-! is therefore a very distinct sulis]ieeies. (Cf .lotini.f. i>ni. I^s;"), ]i. 22-2 : C'lt. II. rUit. .\f„.i. v. XVII. p. .■>!.)
( 3.i )
li-.'. Melittophagus cyauostictus (( 'alj.j.
Mubende (Bneknlla), Uganda, Nakabimba (Torn) and Fort George on Lake Albert Edward.
This Bee-eater lias been somewhat unfortunate with regard to its name. Cabanis first described it under the name of Merops cyanostictaa, as a donbtful variety of "Mcrops enjthropterus" in 1800 in v. d. Decken's Reisen in Ost-Afriha, v. 3, ji. 34, and elevated it to specific rank as Melitta cyanostictus in 1875, in Jonrn. f. (>ni. v. 2k, p. 340. There is not the slightest doubt from the description and distribution (Natal, Loango, and East Africa), given b}- Cabauis, that liis Af. cijnnostictKS is the bird which has been mixed up with M. minutu&=enjthroptenis=pusHlus by Finsoh and Hartlaub {y'dg. Osf-Aj'ril:as, pp. 1S8-91), Dresser (Moiwf/r. Mernp. p. Ill) and otliers, while SJiarpe (Cat. B. Jhit. Mii.'^. v. XVII. p. 43, 1802), who must have misunderstood ( 'abanis" description, renamed it M. mrr/i/ionalts, applying attlie same time the name ^f. cyanost ictus to a bird found in Shoa, Somaliland and the coast districts of East Africa to Mombasa, Dar-es-Salaam, Lamu, and Melindi southwards. This spi'iies, whicli is charafterized by a broad bine frontal band, connected with an I'Unally broad blue superciliary stripe, has apjiarcntly no name, and I linvc named it
<i '• Melittophagus sharpei,
in honour of our friend Dr. 81iarpc, who worked nut the Mi'iapidae for vol. XVII. of the Cdtnlocim of Birds (Type: S w\. The Hand, Somaliland, 'VI. T. I'^'.U, Donaldson >Smith coll.).
Witii regard to tlie synonymy of the MrliltOjihiKjux meiidionalis in tlie CdtiihHjKi- of Birch (recte : J/, cyanosticus Cab.), I may add that Mrrops nnyolrnsis (ex Brisson, (iw'picr (rAnfiola) is rightly quoted with a ? as a synonym, the description being (prite obscure. On the other iiand, Merops corieijafiis, Finsch and Hartlaub, Viiq. Ost-Afrif(/x, p. 191 , is not correctly quoted under this species, the description leaving no doubt that the autliors really described the true ^f. rririrf/cifi/s Vieillot's, wliile they mixed .]f. jinsilliis and eyavosf ictus Cab. under their JA. minntii.t.
'i4. Irrisor jacksoni iShariie.
? ad. Xairobe (B. K. A.). 2'.i. 1. l.s'.iii. "Iris dark brown, feet dark copper- red, bill blood-red, eyelid red."
The adult female dift'ers fioni tlie adult male only in the shorter and straighter bill (J 411, ¥ 3.3 mm.), and considerably smaller feet. The greater extension of the green on the head is not a character of the female sex, but jirobably due to immaturity, ((^f. '.'at. B. Brit. Mns. v. XVI. p. ;21).
Another specimen, adult J, was shot on the second day in the (ireat African Forest from Fort Mbeui, on May 0th, 189U. It agrees in every detail with i. Irrisor jacksoni, except that the bill is much higher at the base and 45 mm. long. It would be rash to establish a new subspecies without further evidence, but I hardly think that this is typical I. jucksoni.
*■);■). Hirundo senegalensis L. ? ad. Kabuka (Singo), Uganda, '-'T. 3. 1809. " Iris dark brown." ? ad. Great African Forest, fourth day from Fort Beui, 8. 5, 1899. $ ad. Itnri iJiver, twentieth dav from Fort Beni, 24. 5. 1899.
( :i'i )
It wtiuld 111' woith wliile to measure a series oi' Senogambiiiu skins and others, in ordei' to (iiul nut it' tliere are several snlispccies. AVe Lave only one bird from Moshi (Wagndngn) from those regions. This has a wing of 1m mm., althongh it is a ? Oar other e.xamples measure :
? Kabnka wing 141, ? African Forest 140, 6 Itm-i River 141, J Unyoro 141, ? Unyoro 145 mm. It also seems to me that the Moslii specimen is somewhat jialer on tin- rump.
CO. Hirundo rustica L.
Two specimens, witli the underside rather reddish, were shot at Xakabimba (Torn) on April 2iu\, 1S99. They were still both moulting their primaries.
OT. Hirundo nigrita Gray.
c? ad. and ? juv., Rafwazabangi, on the Itnri River, -IS. 5. 1890. Tlie young liird is dusky brown, and lias the white patch on the throat larger than the adnlt bird.
6*. Psalidoprocne nitens Cass. Kitima, on the Itnri Rivc^-, ",;."). ."i. IsU'.i.
Oil. Melaeuornis edolioides (Swains.). I'nrt (ieorgi- and Kikanja, iu Tom.
TO. Cassinia frazeri (Strickl.).
rf '.'linga (Siiaheli settlement in thi.' Great African Forest, eighth day from Fort Be'ni), \2. 5. 18911.
Tl. Bradyornis murinus F. & H. Karimia (Ussongora), Kichnchn (Torn), April and 'May.
T2. Tarsiger stellatus orientalis Fisch. & Rchw.
6 Xairobe, 30. 1. 1899. (Cf. App. to Ansorge's "Under the African Snii." p. ;!:1S).
73. Platystira cyanea (V. L. S. MiilU. Kichuchu, Tom. :<. 4. l>'.i'.i.
T4. Batis puella Rchw. Nairobe. I>v\-angiri in Uganda, Kinibngn in Torn.
:.">. Bias musicus (VieilL).
J ail. (ireat African Forest, Itnri liiver, twentietii day from l''ort Hriii, 24. 5. 1899. '■ Iris and feet lemon-vcllow, bill black,"
( •'57 )
76. Elminia lougicauda (8wiiius.).
1 'iaijuuda ou the Ituri, Uj,'auda and Uuyoro. Elminia fhcrcsHa does uot beeiu to difi'er at all. Neither Reicbeiiow uor I can see the supposed ditVorences.
T7. Artomyias fuliginosa J. & E. Veneaux.
S ? Diapauda, Suaheli settlement in the Great Forest, sixth daj's march from Fort Beui, 10. 5. 189U. " Iris greyish brown."
78. Alseonax pumila Kcliw.
? ad. and S pull., Nairobe, 5. 'i. 1899. " Iris dark brown, bill and feet black." Tlie pullus is above spotted (like all yonng flj'catchers) with rusty butf. and the t'catliers of the underside are fringed with blackish browu.
79. Muscicapa infulata Hartl. S ad. Lake Varan got in Torn, Hi. 4. 1809.
80. Muscicapa lugens (Hartl.).
¥ juv. Yauga on the Ituri River, 29. 6. 1899. Tips of wing-coverts rusty brown, edges of secondaries buff.
81. Muscicapa torueusis sp. nov.
? ad. Fort Gerry, Toru, 9. 4. 1899. Differs from M. caendescens, its nearest ally, in being mucli more and uniform grey, not so whitish ou the throat and middle of abdomen, in having grey, not white, nuder wing-coverts, and a larger bill. Muscicdjja Mji/u'tisis .Shelley from Nyassaland is much larger, whiter lieloA\-, and has the lores and foreliead white. The latter is almost a Iiioplrornia. AVing of .)/. tonccHsis Si, tail (50, eulmen from forehead to tip 17'.5, from nostrils to tiji li-.") mm. •• Iris dark brown, feet black, bill slate-colour witli black tip."
s2. " Dioptroruis " fischeri Kehw.
Nairobe, 28. 1. 1899. "Iris and feet chocolate-browu, bill bluish grey with dark grey tips." I do not consider that the genus Dioptronun deserves to be separated geuerically from Mtiscicopa, there being no structural ditfereuces of any importance.
S3. LaniariuB aethiopicus major (Hartl.j.
Kaboa (Buekulla) and Mondo in Uganda Proper, March and April 1899. " Iris reddish brown, feet slate-blue, bill black."
84. Laniarius erythrogaster (Cretiischm.)
c? Dwangiri (Siugo), Uganda, 28. 3. 1899. Lake Kikorongo (salt lake near Lake Albert Edward), 2-5. 4. 1809. '• Iris straw-yellow."
( ^8 ) So. Dryoscopus augoleusis Uiirtl. cui siibsp. ?)
Ouc nude from Ltiapiuula in the (iieat Forest, sixth dav IVoiu Furl ISciii,
lU. 5. IS'.i'.i, ditl'ers from typical 1'. amjoh hsU in the V>cv\\n and 15riti^li Museums,*
.in haviug the crown not so black, but more slate-colour, the back and \viug-covert>
darker, the roots of the rump-feathers white, not greyish. 1 cannot, from the single
specimen, venture to say whether this is a new form or not.
8(1. Telephonus senegalus (L.). Fort George, Mukia liiver, aud Kitagwetoa in Torn.
8T. Telephonus minutus llartl.
LaUe N'arangol and Kinyomuzi in Turn. •• iiis pinkish rod.""
^>. Laniiis excubitorius l''s .Ahus. Kiclnichu and Untili in Turn. April iMi'.i. •• lri> brown, feet and liill Idack.'"
>'■'. Lanius coUaris humeralis Stanley, r; ad. Nainibe, -,'(1. 1. 1>'.HI, rf? ? jnv. Nairube, -Jfi, 27, 2'.'. 1. ISD'.t, ? ad. Lakp Varangot, Hi. 4. l-'.i'.i.
/ w. Corviiltur albicoUis (l-aih.).
li ad. Fort Gerry, Torn, 14. 4. 18U0. •• iris dark brown." The feathers on head and neck are liver-brown, but some sprouting new feathers show that this colouration is merely due to the age of plumage
'■•1. Dicrurus afer (Licht. sen.). i S' Kikanja in 'fni-n. •• Iris bhjod-red."" The i is much ^mailer ihan l.he 6.
'•'2. Oriolus larvatiis Lich(.
J ad. and num. Kikanja (Turn), 3. 4. 1899. "Ins bloud-red." These are large birds aud apparently not distinguishable from iSouth African specimens. The wing is about 14i) mm. long. (). rolled is evidently merely a smaller northern race of 0. larvatus, with the wing not more than about 125—129 mm., bnt two Somali- land skins, collected by Dr. D. Smith, have the wiug.s 133 mm. long. The distribu- tion of the two forms, 0. larcatus larcatus and O. larcatas rolleti, must therefore be worked out in greater detail.
• The former — three from I'anicroons — conip.TJvd for me by I'rof. liL-ichenow : ilif latter -one single ?>[iecinien only — Viy nie.
( ■>'■> )
■^ 00. Oriolus laetior .Shaiiiu.
f^ ii<l. (ireiit African Foivsl, tliirtcciitli ilay's luarcli tVoiii Fort Huiii, 'i'^. o. l.s'j'.i. " Ifis blood-red, feet bluish grey, bill pinkish red." This oriole has been mixed up with 0. bmchi/rhi/tirhus for a long time. It differs from the latter, of wliieh I kuow K])ecimeus from Sierra Leone aud Liberia ouly, iu the followiu;;- ejiaraeters : — The back is lighter yellowish green ; the yellow collar wider and more spread over the back, the lesser upper wing-coverts are golden-yellow, not olive-green as iu O. bnirlnjHiiinrhus; the tail aud wings are lighter aud less tinged with olive. 8harpe (in Hull. B. O. Club, uo. 4s, November 1897) described this form as dirteriug from (). brarkijilqinchus "in being smaller, aud liaving a conspicuous yellow collar, the yellow also being spread over the mantle." Tlie smaller size, however, attributed to this form, is uot apparent iu the specimens before me. O. brachjrhi/iirhus has also a yellow collar, but it is less clear aud narrower. Oriolus laetior differs from <>. If r cat K s a,ud 0. larmtm rolU'ti m being smaller, having a smaller white alar speculum, the conspicuous golden yellow shoulder, and iu liaving the outer edges of the secondaries and greater wing-coverts grey. The presence of an alar speculum (the tips of the primary coverts being white), the yellow least wiug-coverts and grey edges on the wing, sejmrate U. laetior also at once from 0. ^/igripenin.'s.
'J4. Lamprocolius glaucovirens Elliot.
J ad. Great African Forest, seventh day's march from Fort Beni, 11. .j. ISVt'.i. " Jris almost white with faint yellow tinge : bill and feet black." The head in this species is not steel-blue iu any Congo s])ecimen before me, nor on fig. 'Z ]j1. Vll Vat. B. Brit. Mus. v. XIIL These figures are not very accurate, and do uot fully agree with nature, nor .with the descriptions (pp. 172, 173). L. ijlaiwocircns is very closely allied to the Senegambian L. splendidus, aud perhaps only snbspecifically separable.
05. Lamprocolius chalybeus Elir.
J ad. Nairobe, v;s. ]. ISiil). " Iris light yellow."
'Hi. Lamprotornis purpiu'opterus liiipii. Ihvaiigiri (Sinud) in Ugand;i, l\aiinii;i in LTssongura. Congo Free Slate.
'•K. Pholidauges verreauxi Docage.
■ '~ ad. Jl.■^arosaro, U.tiaiulii., 1 I. ".. IS'.i'.i.
'IS. Bupliaga crythrorhyncha Stanley.
i ¥ Luba's (Usoga), Uganda rrotoclorale, '•). :). IsljO.
The four skins before me agree fully with the description, except thai theycwff/'o- do uot differ from the males except in their smaller size, the wing being aboul 5 mm. shorter. The birds described as the females by Reicheuow (with a whitish belly and under tail-coverts) may possibly be immature. Dr. Ausorge's birds are l)robably not sexed wrongly, such mistakes occurring very seldom in his collections, and their smaller size makes an error iui{)robable.
( 40)
00. Sitagra ocularia crocata (Hartl.) S ad. Kilagweloa iii Torn, fi. -t. 1800. " Iris: iuucr circle grcyi^h-wLite, uuter pale yellow. Feet pale slate-blue, bill black."
lM(i. Melanopteryx uigerrima (Vieill.) Bafwazabangi, ou the Ituri River, :J*. 5. IbW. " Iris bright lemon-yellow."
im. Hyphantoruis fischeri (Ruhw.) Fort George, 2(3. 4. 1800. " Iris dark browu."
lux'. H3rphantornis xanthops Hurt I. Kitagwetoa aud Kinyomozi iu Torn, April l^O'.i. •• Iris pale golden yellow, i'eet pale bruwu, bill black."
It to. Hyphantoruis castanops (Shelley).
Kichuchu, Kinyomozi and Bntiti in Torn, April IbO'.i. " Iris golden yellow, bill black, t'ect pale brown."
1m4. Hyphantornis abyssinicus (Gm.)
Typical males, not differing from Abyssinian specimens, were procured at Kahungi in Torn, and near Fort George ou the Albert Edward Lake. Une from Kam))ala in Uganda has the black slightly more extended towards the nape, aud was therelbre recoriled Ijy me as 77. bohndorJ]l Rchw. in Ausorge's " Under the African Sun," p. 343). However, I am now of ojjinion, that those from Uganda and Unyoro must be called ahyssinkm, while males from Stanley Falls (type or typical specimens before me) have the black of the crown extended iu the middle for about 4 to 8 mm. more backwards. They were named bohiulorjfi, but are merely a slight subspecies of 77. ubijssinicus. JIales from Bafwazabangi and other places on the Ituri River are rather more like typical abi/ssiitirus, but one or two liavc the black intermediate in extension between the two forms. This is, of course, not very easy to observe, if the skins are uot first-rate: and those before me are not so.
loo. ■• Ploceus anomalus ' Rchw.
This interesting form is described from a single young bird by Reicheuow iu the Joarn. f. Orn. 1887, p. 214. Three young birds, collected by the late BIr. Bonny in the camp of the notorious " Rear-column " at Yambuga, on the Aruwimi River, have been examined by Prof. Reicheuow and found to be the same as his Ploceus anonifdus. All three are evidently immature, two have no black feathers on the throat, while the third, very mutilated one, has a black throat. The first primary is in length between that of a Ihjphanloniis and a Pijromelana, and the tail resembles more i\x^ioi^ Pip- omelana. Unfortunately the adult male is not yet known.
lOf'i. Icteropsis pelzelni (Hartl.).
?. Fort George, 27. 4. 18f>9. " Iris brown."
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lor. Drepanoplectes jacksoni Sharpe.
A good series of this tine bird, described aud beantifiili}- ligiired in the Ibi.^, 1S91, p. 246, pi. 5, was obtained at Nairobc on January :51st, IsOO. The adult malen have the " iris dark brown ; ieet mauve-black ; bill light greenish with black near gape aud along the edges of the lower bill."' ? " Iris dark brown ; feet light brown ; lower brownish grey."
\/ los. Penthetria eques (Hartl).
Holuln River (tributary of the «emliki), Congo Free State, 2. 5. 1809. t? ad. : " Iris dark brown ; feet black ; bill slate-blue."
ln'.i. Urobrachya phoenicea (Heugl.).
Bauda ((Jhagwe), in Uganda Proper: Kikanjii, in Torn: Hululu River, in the Congo Free f>tate.
'^ llii. Pyromelana uigrifrons Bohm.
SS. Kasesi, in Torn, and Fort George. ''Iris dark brown : feet pale brown ; bill black." In both these specimens the chin shows irregular black spots.
111. Plocepasser melanorhynchus Riipp.
S ad. and nestling, Campi-ya-Simba, 13. 1. 1899. <? ad. : "Iris red-brown," nestling, " Iris dark grey." Colour and markings of the nestling are exactly as in the adult male !
112. Philetaerus arnaudi Bp. t 'ampi-ya-Simba, IT. 1. 1899. " Iris red-brown."
113. Spennestes stigmatophorus Kchw.
Tambuc, Government station on ferry across Ituri River, twenty-second Jay m Great African Forest from Fort Be'ni.
114. Spei-mestes friugilloides (Lafr.).
From various places on the Ituri River.
The difference in size between various individuals is remarkable, but it does not seem to be geographically limited. Some specimens from Liberia before me look much darker on the back, but they have been in spirits, although this is not said on the labels.
llo. Lagonostica brunneiceps Sharpe.
Mondo, in Uganda Proper. (See Ansorge's "Under the .\frican Sun," Appendix, p. 345.)
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/ lltt. Pytelia ansorgei Hart.
Oiiu iii'ilf ill a wretcLt'd couditiou — the head siuasLed — wiis >hol ou tin- Wouji Itiver, in Torn, on Ajiril ".'Ist, I'^'.i'J. The bill is slate-lilue, bhickish grey towards the tip. The crowu (aud aiijiareiitly the head all round; deep black. Jliiid-iieck. breast, abdomen, thighs, aud under tail-coverts slatj' or ashy grey ; back riimp aud ujjjier tail-coverts golden olive. Quills and upper wing-coverts black with broad edges ol" greenish olive, thus outwardly appearing greeuish olive. Sides of chest golden olive. Under wing-coverts aud inner quill-lining white. Tail black, outer rectrices more slate-colour. '• Iris and feet dark brown."' Wing ol, tail 411, metatarsus 12, bill 0 mm. {Bull. IJ. 0. Clcb, December Is'.i'.i).
lit. Nigrita canicapilla sparsimgiittata Kchw.
Kichuchu, in Torn, o. 4. IsU'J. " Iris oehro-yellow."
Tills form. ditJ'ering from S.cank-apilla (■ardrai>illii only liy I lie lesser number of spots on the wing, which are restricted to the smaller series of wing-coverts, can only be regarded as a geographical race of the latter.
11>. Symplectes reichenowi Fisclier.
i ? ad. Nairobe, :V\ 1. 1809. " Iris in both sexes yellow : feet light brown ; bill black."
V lift. Symplectes stuhlmanui Reliw. {Om. MoifiK^hfr. v. 1. p. :.".• (Imi:;;.
Kawelli (Buekulla), in Uganda ; Kitagwetoa, in Tom ; Masiudi, in Unyoro. " Iris in the male ochre, in the female light yellow ; bill slaty black ; feet pale brown."
1'2". Passer motitensis mfocinctus Fisch. & Rchw.
$ ?. Nairobe, ".'T. I. IS'.iii. ''Iris straw-yellow : feet dark grey with a slaty tinge, bill deep grey, almost black."
It is evident that /-". rufocinctcs aud shelln'/l are only geographieal tipnn> ol the same group as motltetnii'. They may be coniiiareil as follows : —
". Passer motitensis motitensis .\. Smith.
1849, A. bmitb, lUristr. Zool. 8. Ajr. pi. Ill ; 1888, SbiU'pu, Ciii. A". /(/■-(, Mm. v. XVl. p. Mi.
Larger, wing 8n mm., bill very thick and high, about IL' mm. Imig, sides of head almost white (S. Africa).
h. Passer motitensis mfocinctus Fisch. I'v: Kchw.
1884, Jouin.r. Oni. p. 50 ; 1891, Sharpe, IbU p. 256.
A little smaller, wing TS mm., bill ei|iially Imig. but much less high, sides of head grey (.Masailaudj.
( 43 ) '•. Passer motitensis shelleyi Sluiriu'.
IM'.il, //.<5 p. li.ii; : /'. iiwlHeHsis Heugliii and Brehm (nou ymitli !).
Smaller and paler than forms a aud 6, wiug 74 mm. ; bill short aud thick, about IM mm. loug ; sides of head white as in /'. motUcHsis motiteiiisis. The black patch behind the ear-coverts is present, more or less, in all the three forms, but it is more conspicuous aud larger in F. m. shelleyi. Kordofau (^lelpesz, Brehm. coU.j aud Lado (Emin coll.).
1-1. Seriuus ;"/' //ofn(.s ('litlifMjvn) albifrons Sharpe.
ISyi. Ibis pp. 118, 'IIm.
i. Nairobe, :'>i». I, lM)'.i. " Iris aud feet light brown : bill brownish grey ; lower bill greyish white." This specimen agrees wiili Dr. Sharpe's description, but it has live white feathers on the crown.
l^J. Fringillaria tahapisi (A. Smith). i ?. Fort George, on Lake Albert Edward, '.i't. 4. Isii',). •• Iris dark bn
123. Passer diflFusus g'oug'onensis Onst.
i^airobe. " Iris sepia ; feet pale brown : bill black."
This is a distinct subspecies of Passer <l(//'usus, nearest fo the form to be called /'. diffusus swainsoni. It is best diagnosed as follows :
Formae " Passer rliffusus swainsoiii''' uomiuaudae colore simillimus, sed ditfert magnitndiue iugeute, rostro altiorc, alls longioribus. Altit. rostr. 10 — 11 mm., al. 00— '.to mm.
Hob. Gongoni, Witu, Lamu, Nairobe, in Africa orieutali. In 1890 Dr. Oustalet described this form as the representative of a new genus in the XaticrUste, calling it Pseuilostrutkus i/o»gonensis. He diagnosed the genus and species as follows :
'" Pseuilostratlius, nocum (/enus e.r finmlia Ploeeidnrum, rostro crassiore a i/eiieri Plocelpusseniiii d/ceisum."
" Pseiiilostrutlius yonyoneitsis, noca. speeies Passeri dijl'iisu coloriOi'.s siiiiillhnns, srd rostro inulto crassiore alisquc lonyiorilms talde dicersa."
A detailed des(tri2)tiiin is then added, which leaves no doulit, that this form is meant.
While (Justalct created a new genus ol' the family Ploccidae for this sparrow, which, it must be said again, does not agree with Passer dij'tmis, but with sicai/iso?ii, Berlepsch enumerated it as P. swainsoni in the list of Witu aud Lamu birds in Ahhandl. Senckenb. Xat. Lies. vol. XXL pp. 481, 483, calling, however, attention to the euormous size of these specimens, and British ornithologists have not separated it from P. d. swainsoni. Although 1 am decidedly of the opinion that this form must be separated from P. d. swainsoni, I cannot consider it to be more than a subspecies or geographical race of the latter, and I regard it as most unfortunate tliat in ornithology the larger size and higher culmen of a bird is ever thought to be sufficient for a new genus, while the entire similarity in cidours is deliberateh' disregarded.
( 44 )
I am grateful to my friend Dr. SliuriJC, wbu called my alteutiuu to Professor Onsitalet's descrijitiou of l'xru(l()i<tr"t/(iis, or 1 would most likely have j,'iveii a now >uljsijecitic name to this large form of Afrieau sparrows.
I mnst add that I'assi'r swaiiisoxi, ditferiug oul}- in its dark ashy grey sides of the head and crown, its rather grey underside and less whitish throat and abdomen from (Hjf'itsHs, mnst be united with the (Ujf'ttsius grouj), and kept as a subspecies of the latter. For those who make bold to separate swainsoni and (lifusui specifically, I'usser goMjonemis will also bo a species in their sense, being the most distinct of all these forms.
124. Passer diflPusus ugandae Kchw.
i Kaboa (iJuekulIa), Uganda, 6 ? Fort George, Torn, end iii Ai>ril, Kitima, (ioverument station on the Ituri River, twenty-first day from Fort Bdni, iu Great African Forest, 2a. u. IsO'.i, S Bafwazabangi, on the Ituri River, 2.j. 5. \WM. All these specimens seem to belong to exactly the same form, and, if separable from typical P. (lijf'iaiis. mnst be called /'. (lijf'usus lujumhie Rchw. This form lias been separated by Professor Ueicheuow iu Om. Moimtsbcr., v. YII. \<. I'.iU (December 1899), on account of its red-brown back wliich approaches the colouration of the rumj), and its very long wings ; measurements of the latter are not given. The length of the wing I cannot fully ajipreciate. The wings of sixteen skins from Uganda, Uuyoro, Torn, and the Upper Congo region have the wings 78 to 8o in length : six from Natal about 80 to 82 ; one from Nyassalaud 8(3 mm. The more reddish brown back, however, of the Central African birds is distinctly visible, if eom]iared with the (typical) South African birds.
On the same page Professor lleichenow names the specimens from Maugu in the Togo Hinterland Passer diffnsus thierr>/i, in honour of the energetic collector, Lieutenant Thierry. He informs us tliat they are strikingly pale on the uppersidc. This I find to be the case in some Senegambian skins in the Tring Museum, and they seem also to be smaller, the wings measuring only 79 to f>l mm. The fauna of Senegambia agreeing with the Maugu fauna, the Senegambiau (and Manga) form must, I think, bear the name Passer (Hffa^Ks i/ida/'/s Lesson, 1839. It remain^ to Ije found out whether tiiere is again a darker-coloured race iu (he forest region of West Africa. I have before me, in the Tring Museum, a imde brouglit to Jjuglaud by a palm-oU ship from the West Coast, and one collected by Ussbcr iu Fautee. Both have the wings long (.S3 and S-t mm.), and the former appears very deej) red on the back. Perhaps the sjiarrow collected by me at Loko on the Beiiue, and a series of Niger skins, can throw a light on this ijuestion. if they are dirt'ereut they would have to bear the name occidentalis of Shelley, under which 1 recorded them in the Journ. f. Orit. for 1886 p. 58^.
We would llien Lave in Africa the following forms of sjiarrows of (hi., group :-
1. Passer (liffusus dij'usus : South Africa. Back rather ashy brown, in sharp contrast to the rump. Generally large.
2. P.diffmii.s ugandae: Central Africa (Uganda to Congo). Back rufous, not iu such a sharp contrast to the rump (? smaller than No. 1).
3. P. diffuses occidcHtalis : West African forest region. Deep rufous brown above. Wings rather long. This form is possibly not separable from /'. d. •igrindae, which then would have to be called on-identalis.
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4. F. (lljf'ii.<:us (iHlariii : Senps;am1)iaii region to Niger, as far as tlie " Stejipeu- gebiet " roaches, and Lado (Emiu). Paler above, wiug rather short. (Syuon5'm P. d. thiernji.)
5. P. (lijfusus sivainsoni : North-East Africa. Darker grev ou the underside ; throat and abdomen less whitish. Rather large.
0. P. dijfttsus gongonenxis : Gongoni, Witn, Lamn, Xairobe, in East Africa. Like P. (I. swninsoni, bnt with enormous liill and long wings.
l-'-'i. Anthus pyrrhonotus fVieill.). ? ad. Fort George, Torn, 28. 4. ISOO. (Cf. Cut. B. Brit. M>i.-<. X. p. .").")."i.)
Vl(\. Anthus rufulus cinnamomeus Rnjip.
Xairobe and Fort George, common.
I have named this bird as above, since I am not fully convinced that tlie Indian and African forms are quite the same. The latter seems to be more brownish above nnd the legs lighter (yellowish brown according to Dr. Ansorge's labels). I am convinced that Vieillofs name rufidtts refers to the Indian form of this jiipit, and that the name nifulns therefore cannot stand for the Crrtlnl(ui//,i, tn which it is likewise ajiplied in the Cat. B. Brit. Mus. This latter will have to be called C-rthilaiida fdljofaariatK Lafr. (Of. Cat. B. X. p. .''.74 and XIII. p. .'M.'i.)
12T. Motacilla flava Ij.
6 ad. Luba"s (Fsoga), Uganda Protectorate, '.i. 3. l.sOO, ? Fort (Jerrv, lo. 4. ISOO.
'\-l><. Mirafra africana (A. Smith).
This lark must be divided into four geographical representative forms, accordins; to the present state of my knowledge.
". Mirafra africana africana (A. Smith).
South Africa, evidently soutii of the great mountain range. Wing in males 00 — 102, females 04 mm. Colouration as described in detail by Sharpe in Cat. B. Brif. .Wis. XIII. p. 008.
'''. Mirafra africana transvaalensis subsp. nov.
Transvaal. Wing in males 00—08, females 87 mm. Bill and feet smaller, colouration more rufous, the rufous colour on the crown not contiiied to tlie nape, but reaching almost to the forehead. (Cf. Cat. B. Brit. Mus. XIII. p. OOS note.) (Ty]ie from Rnstenburg).
'■■ Mirafra africana tropicalis snlisp. miv.
Tropical East Africa to Lake districts an<l Uganda. Size of J/, u. q/'rictaiii, bnt the markings bolder, the black centres to the feathers larger and moi'c defined, generally more rufous brown and less asliy.
I am unacrinainted with specimens from tiie West Coast, where .1/. ufririiini is said to occur from Cnnene River to Gaboon.
C 4fi )
'/. Mirafi-a africana athi .su1js]i. imv.
Athi Waiu, Britisli East Africa, ~4. and ,'•">. 1. ISii'.i. Tbis luaguiliceiil ionu is mncli more distinct than forms b and c, and most ornithologists would probably call it a " good s.i)ecies." It difi'crs at a glance from the other forms by its mnch paler and more greyish general apj)oarance. The wing-coverts are not rufous, but greyish-brown with black ante-apical patches. The feathers of the uppcrside are black with wide whitish-brown borders, the head much lighter than in the allied forms, the nape not conspicuously rufons, the superciliary stripe almost white and very conspicuous, the throat white, the size perhaps a little smaller : wing in one male 10], in the females 05 — 06 mm. Under wing-coverts and wing-liuir.g much jialir than in tlie other forms, the under tail-coverts very pale isabelliue, nearly white. " Iris orange golden, feet flesh-colour, upper bill dark grey, lower yellowisli grey."
A young bird, Nairobe, :'>!. 1. IS'.iii, evidently belongs to this same form. It is mucli more blackish, the crown of the head almost black, the feathers of tlie upper- side and wing-coverts are blackish brown with sharply limited whitish edges. The spots on the cro]i-region are larger tlian in the adult bird, the rectrices, as usual in- yonng larks, are narrower and somewhat pointed. -'Tlie iris was brown, feet light brown."'
I-"-'. Mirafra fischeri (Rchw.)
cJ ad. Kitagwetoa in Torn, 0. 4. Is'.i'.i. " Iris dark brown, feet pale brown, upper bill dark, lower pale grey." Specimens of this lark are in the Tring Museum now from Ussambiro, Fadjuli (Emin Pasha coll.), Dar-es-Salaam (collector un- known), Mombasa (Kretschmer coll.), and Samburu, four days from ^Mombasa (Ansorge coll.).
1311. Mirafra rufocinnamoinea (Salvad.) (an torrida?)
J ad. L'ampi-ya-Siniba, 11. 1. 1890. " Iris sepia, feet liglit brown. Ujiper bill dark grey, lower ligiit grey."'
Rharpe has identified Shelley's Mirafrn torrida from Ugogo with Salvadori"s .1/. riifocwrtiimomcii from Aliyssinia, and Professor Reichenow has kindly named the specimen in question as .1/. nifocinnamomea, thus evidently agreeing with Dr. Sliarpc. It is, of course, quite jiossible that both forms cannot be sejiarated. but a series from the various jilaces shoidd be compared. As it is, the rufous foi'in liefore me i> .apparently only a rufons subspecies of .1/. p'schrri, from which it differs only in the very much more rufous colouration everywhere. In the description of the type by Henglin I do not see the cross-markings mentioned which are so characteristic to the uppcrside o^ M. fischer! t'xclieri audits rufous subspecies. The latter is probably the desert form. (( T. P. Z. .S. 1sn2 pi. XVII. (very bad figure), (>//. [I. lirit. .Uus. XIII. p. OlMI.)
131. Mirafra intercedens Rchw.
Shot at ( 'amjji-ya-Simba on the same day as tlie jireceding species, and was therefore on the label marked as the female of the larter. This, however, is erro- neous, the two species being jjerfectiy distinct, (.'olour of iris sepia, feet and bill as in the preceding species.
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l:i-. Tephrocorys cinerea (Gm.).
1 am not a little puzzled by two males of a lark shot in tlie Athi Plain, British East Africa, on January 25th, 1800, and which, as far as I can see, do not differ from Sonth African T. cinerea, of which I have a good series to compare. It may be that the patch on the sides of the neck is rather dark. The wings measure 03 and 04 mm.
This species consists, in my opinion, of a number of races, or geographical representatives.*
". Tephrocorys cinerea cinerea (Gm.).
Sonth Africa. (Two from Athi Plain apparently not separable I ?) Outer web of two onter rectrices margined with white. Nape not sharply streaked witli black.
ij. Tephrocorys cinerea spleniata (Strickl. X. n.'iniaralnnil U\ Bengnola. Like a, but paler.
'•. Tephrocorys cinerea anderssoni (Tristr.)
Hamuralaiid. Like n, but more rnfons on the sides, outer web of outermost rectrix fulvcscent, that of second not different from the rest.
<•/. Tephrocorys cinerea ruficeps (rfiip)).)
N.E. Africa. Spots on sides of neck blackish, sides and tail as in c ; nape sharply streaked with black.
13P). Pycnonotus nigricans minor Hengl.
Kimbugu, Kinyomozi, (ireat African Forest, nineteenth day from Fort Ht'ni, 23. r.. 1800, and P.afwazabangi, on tlie Ituri Kiver, 28. o. 1890.
134. Andropadus gracilis Cab.
¥ Kitima, Government station on the Ituri liiver, twenty-first day's march from Fort IVni. In tlie Cat. B. Brit. Jtfi/s. v. VI. p. 11.") this species is placed in Clilornrteldii in Shelley's list of African birds under Criniger. I fail to see generic differences from Andro/tddii^. and I doubt tlie generic distinctness of several of these gonern. " Iris red."
13.j. Andropadus eugenius Uiliw. i'i).
One iiiiilc, sjiot in (ireat African Forest mi the fifth day's march from Fort Beni, agrees with a specimen from Eldoma Ravine ( ? ), e.Kcept that the middle of the abdomen is light jellow, the sides of the throat still more brilliant yellow, the wing a little shorter (83 mm.\ The specimen has not the appearance of a young bird, but Dr. Ansorge has marked it : " c? young. Iris dark grey ; feet yellowish- brown ; bill dark greenish-brown." More specimens are necessary to decide whether this bird is exactly the same as -1. enf/e/tias or not.
• C't, Cat. B. Brit. Mm. XIII. p. 561 (Sharpe).
C 48 )
l:iU. Andropadus virens ((^ass.)
$. Great African Forest, fifth day's march from Fort BtJui, 0. 5. 1899. (?. Great African Forest, Kitima, Government station on the Itnri Biver. " Iris dark grey."
137. Criniger flavigula (Cab.)
6 ?. Kiclinclin in Torn, Ti. 4. 1899. t?. "Iris old gold, feet greenish brown, bill black." ?."lris lirown-nchre on inner circle, grey-brown on (infer. Fivt "reenish-grey : bill blackisli." Tlic ? is mncli smaller than tlic mn/i:
138. Criniger tricolor (Cass.)
(S. Great African Forest, eleventh day's march from Fort Beni, 15. ;"). 1899. " Iris ochre-grey."
139. Xenocichla hypoxantha Sliaijie. J ad. Fort (ierry. Torn, U. 4. 1899.
140. Phyllostrephus flaviveutris monibasae Shell.
J ad. Makindos River, 4 11. 1890, agrees fnlly with typical momhame, except that the wing is slightly longer, measuring 113 mm.
141. Turdinus albipectiis Rchw.
5 ?. Fourth and eighth day in Groat African Forest, Jlay 8th and 12th, 1899. " Iris i red-brown, ? greyish-ochre ; feet bluish-grey ; upper bill slate-colour, lower pale blnish-grey.'" S wing 74 mm., ? wing 68 mm.
142. Bradypterus apicalis (Cab.)
6 6. Kaboa in Uganda, Kikanja in Torn. " Iris pale ochre."
143. Cisticola rufopileata TJchw.
S- Warri, Lower Niger, 11. h). 1897. " Iris light brown : feet whitish ; bill black." (Felix Roth. coll.). This is the bird erroneously called ('. nijicapilld in Cat. B. VII. p. 248. If, however, the rufons outer aspect of the quills is the only difference lietween C. cinernscrns and «". rxfopileafa, and their areas are not separate, I cannot help doubting their specific distinctness.
144 Cisticola chubbi Sharpe. cJ. Kitagwetoa in Torn, (i. 4. ISiiO. " Iris pale ochre ; feet flesh-colour."
14."). Cisticola cinerascens Hengl.
Karimia, 1. 5. 1899. "Iris gold-brown; feet pale brown; njiper bill dark blackish-grey, lower light grey, darker towards the cntting-edge."
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140. Cisticola strangei (Fras.) S ad. Galabi in Uganda, Kasesi in Torn, March and April 1899. " Iris ochre."
147. Cisticola erythrogenys Riipp. Nairobe, January 1899. " Iris reddish brown."
148. Cisticola hindei Sharpe.
A series from Nairobe, shot in the last days of January and the first days of February 1899, are much lighter and paler, and the rump and npper tail-coverts are more heavily patched with black, than in C. cisticola. They agree fully with the types of C. hindei. This form is evidently a light form of C. cisticola. The plate of €. hindei in the Ibis for 1898 does not give an idea of its pale colouration.
149. Erythropygia hai'tlaubi Rchw.
Fort Gerry and Nakabimba in Torn, April 1899. " Iris dark brown; feet slate- grey." The nestling is above deep brown, spotted with pale rufous brown, each feather being pale rufous brown, widely edged with blackish brown.
159. Euprinodes (? an potius Apalis) flavocincta Sharpe. ? ad. Nairobe, 5. 2. 1899.
lul. Camaroptera griseoviridis (v. Miill.)
$ ad. River Lubilia (one day's march westward from Lake Albert Edward), Ussongora 30. 4. 1899. " Iris of the colour of old gold; feet 'yellowish-brown ; bill dark grey."
152. Crateropus kirki Sharpe.
SS ad. Karimia (Ussongora), 1.5. 1899. "Iris orange-yellow, shading into lemon-yellow towards inner edge ; feet steel-grey ; bill black."
153. Crateropus sharpei Rchw.
? ad. Kitagwetoa in Torn, 6. 4. 1890. "Iris: inner circle whitish-yellow, shading into whitish-grey towards the outer circle ; feet dark grey with a faint purple tinge ; bill black."
154. Zosterops stuhlmanni Rchw.
? ?. Kikanja in Torn, 3. 4. 1899. "Iris pale ochre." These two specimens have been compared by Professor Reichenow with the type of the species.
155. Nectarinia kilimensis Shelley.
Kampala in Uganda ; Butiti, Lubona, and Kahangi in Torn, March and April 1899. " Iris dark brown ; bill and feet black." 2^. filiola Hartl. is the same. The supposed more reddish sheen of one of these supposed forms is quite variable. Specimens of N. hilimensis m the British Museum and some named for me by Reichenow, do not differ from the typical series of X. filiola collected by Emin Pasha.
4
( •'"' )
ITiO. Cinuyris erythroceria (^Hniil).
Fort George and Fort Gerry, in Torn. '• Iris dark brown." Adiilt males with central rectrices fnlly 20 mm. longer.
157. Cinnyris cuprea (Shaw).
Kawolli and Mnbende in BneUnlla : Galabi ia Singo, Uganda. '• Iris dark browTi."
158. Cinnyris verticalis viridisplendens itcliw.
Kaboa (BuekuIIa), I. 4. ISOO, Fort (Jerry, Torn. '-K 4. Ix'.t'.V The f.-niale has the wing T mm. shorter than th'.' adult male.
159. Cinnyris eboensis f-Iard.).
1^4.'?, N'-cliinnkt ehnfihtis, Jardine, in Xiilniiilisls /.ibrari/, v. xvi. Swilinl^' \t. 244 ; ibUhm pi. iUt and p. 25 f. under the name of .V. udfllifrli : 1889, Oimn/ris rasUnieiniiliis. Madarasz in Omit T. V. p. 149, pi.
The male diflers from ('. adidbi rti as follows : The wing-eoverts are uniform deep olive-browu, not rnfons fawn-colour ; the abdomen is choe.olate-brown or very nearly " burnt umber," not chestnut. The hindneck and back are not so l)lack ; the throat is paler ; the crown is of a slightly more bluish, not so yellowish grten.
The type of Nertarinia edoe/isin is still in the British JIusenm, where it was apparently not noticed by the author of vol. IX. of the Cat. II Brit. .!///.<. This 18 the sole representative of the S2)ecies in the British Musenui. A friend of mine suggested (in litt.) that both (\ atlrlbi'rti and <'. t'/jor /?.■</'.■< might have been found by 8helley on the Gold Coast, as that ornithologist mentions specimens with light and dark wings; but I have e.xamined these specimens iind found them all to be typical ('. adelberti in more or less faded and worn plumage. We have thus two sj)ecios of subspecies : ('. addherti from the Gambia to the Gold Ck)ast, (\ eboen»i.i from the Niger to the Congo. I have e.xamined forty specimens of C. adelberti and seven of C eboensis, sent by Dr. Felix Hoth from Warri in the Niger Coast Protectorate, while Prof Reichenow tells me that he has it from the Congo. It is strange that Dr. von Jladarasz redesrribed r. ,•/)w/'.^•/.•^. without even referring to the name eboensis.
100. Cinnyris acik aequatorialis Kchw.
According to the measurements given by Reichenow (in Om. Moid/er. \ii\V.i p. 171) the specimens from Kitagwetoa (Torn), Bntiti (Torn), Fort George (Torn), Kahaugi (Torn), and those recorded from Masindi, in Unyoro, in Ansorge's Under the African Sun p. 351, would all belong to the subspecies which he describes as a species (!) from Bnkoba and the Sesse Islands. This form cannot be con- sidered to be more than a subspecies, the dilFerenees in the size of the wings, tail and bill not amounting to more than 3 or 4 mm., and other differences not being apparent, and the two forms rejilaeing each other.
On the same page (171) Prof lieicheuow also separates the southern (larger)
• It is carioaa that this work, which should be coirectly cim.ted as above, is persis-tently riuole 1 a.i Monograph «/ Svnhiiilx. a title which iloos not exist.
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aucl tie nortbeni (smaller — East African) forms of C. guttitralis, calling that from East Africa C. ;/utt//ralis, that from Damaraland C. gutturalis (/amarensin. The difference in the size of these two forms is apjiarently larger than that of V. acik acik and ('. a. aeqiiatorialis, the wing being 75 — 58 in the southern, ''I — "2 in the northern form. Prof. Ileichenow's name damarensis, however, cannot be nsed, as I have alread}- (Ansorge's Under the Afr. Sun p. 351) named the East African small form ('. giitttiralis inaestimata, restricting the name gutfiiralis to the large southern form. As Linnaeus did not give the exact locality, his species being taken from Bvhsona'Gri.mpereaH noirastre de Bresil, and this name being afterwards used for southern birds, I, as the first author, who discussed the forms, had the right to restrict the first name t/'ittitralis to any one of them, and it seemed to me more natural to apply it to the southern larger form.
A third closely allied form is C. giitt. safnrafior Rchw. from Angola.
Kil. Cinnyris chloropygia orphogaster Rchw.
S ad. Mohalla and Kitima, Great African Forest, on the Ituri River, 12th «nd 21 st day from Fort Beni.
In no. 1- <if vol. VII (18'.)9) Orn. Movber. Prof. Reichenow has published the results of a careful study of the forms of Cinm/ris cliloroypgin auct., as far as material was available to him. Mr. Rothschild and I have gone over the series in the Tring Museum, and we found that it fully bears out the conclusions arrived at by Prof. Reichenow. We have the following specimens of the three forms recognized by Prof Reichenow.
". Cinnyris chloropygia chloropygia -Tard. Liberia (Robertsport), Demery coll., :! d , 'i ? ; Warri in the Niger (_'oast Protectorate, Felix Roth coll., 5 c?, 3 ? ; Sierra Leone (Clements and Hogg coll.), 8 i. Reichenow says : Gold Coast, Niger.
/'. Cinnyris chloropygia orphogaster Rchw.
Djanda and Uvamba (Emin Pasha coll.), 2 S ; Ituri River (Ansorge coll.), 2 S . Reichenow says : Mittel-Afriea (Bnkoba, Soweh I., Sessc Is., Sotik). (The Kitima specimen seems to ajiproach ('. c. Inhderi a little.)
'■. Cinnyris chloropygia luhderi Rchw.
L6opoldville and iStanley Falls, C'ongo (Bohndortlcoll.); Aruwimi River (Camp uf Rear-Column), Bonny coll. Reichenow says : Kamerun, Gabun, Loango.
The differences stated by Reichenow are easily recognizable, especially the tyjiical form with its very short wing and pale abdomen is very distinct. There is, however, a mistake in Reichenow's " key," the measurements of the two groups under no. 2 being given as over 50 and under 50 mm., while it should clearly be — as evident from the measurements given under no. 3 — over and under 5fi or CO mm.
1G2. Farus niger Bonn, k Vieili.
Karimia, 1. 5. 1899. "Iris dark l)rown."
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1(13. Cossypha heuglini llartl.
<J a<l. Kitagwetoa in Torn, 6. 4. IsnO. " Iris diocolate-brown. Feet purplisb brown. Bill black." This s]>ecimen bas a wliite frontal band of 3 to 4 mm. 1 have not found this in any specimen in Triug and London.
1G4. Cossypha subrufescens Boo.
Nairobe, 5. 2. 1899. " Iris dark lirown, feet and bill black." I follow Sharpe, Reichenow, and Shelley in identifying the East African birds with C. subrufescens of Bocage, but I have not been able to compare specimens.
1(5.5. Myrmecocichla nigra (Vieill.)
5 ad. Kiclinchu in Torn, ."). 4. 1>)99. "Iris dark brown." The birds without white on throat and crown — black all over with only a large white shoulder-patch — mnst be called by Vieillot's name nit/ra, based on Levaillant's Traquet f'om- mandenr. J/, arnofti is a totally different species.
Professor Reichenow considers the totally blackish birds without white shonlder- ]iatch also to be ^f. nigra. AVe have got some from Uganda and Karimia. If tliey really are M. nigra, then it is cnrious that they are all brownish, not pure black, while those with the white shoulders are all deep glossy black. The latter are in fresh jjlnmage, while the brown ones — although shot in the same month — are worn, but it is strange that this state of plumage is the same in all of tliem, and that in our good series there are no transitional examples.
1(5(!. Myrmecocichla cryptoleuca Sharpe. (?(? Nairobe, 1.2. 1899. " Iris brown."
1()T. Myrmecocichla subrufipennis Rihw.
6 ad. Kinyomozi in Torn, 4. 4. 1899. " Iris brown. Bill and feet black."
108. Saxicola pleschanka (Lepech.) Nairobe, 27, 29, 30. 1. 1899.
109. Saxicola isabellina Cretzschm. Nairobe, 29. 1. 1899. Campi-ya-Simba, 11. 1. 1899.
ITtJ. Pratincola rubetra (L.) Uganda Projier, JIarch 1899.
ITl. Pratincola axillaris Shelley.
From Kiwalogoma (Chagwe), Lake Varangot in Torn, and Fort Gerry in Toru, we have received specimens which fully agree with the typical series of Pratincola emmae Hartlanb, bnt Professor Reichenow unites P. axillaris and P. e/nmae.
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172. Turdus pelios saturatus (Cab.)
Saint Emma (Bnsiro) in Uganda, 23. 3. 1899; Kabangi and Bntiti in Torn, 7 and 8. 4. 1899 ; Fort George on Lake Albert Edward, 29. 4. 1899.
I believe that tliese four TLrnslies arc satiirati/s, and that also the si)ecimeus from Unyoro which I recorded as Tiuy/iik hocagei in the Appendix to Ansorge's " Under the African Sua," p. 354, belong to saturatus. They seem to difl'iT very little from typical T. pelios from North-East Africa, but the wings are said to be shorter, and it seems that the riist-coJour on the sides is less extended, while the chest and npperside are equally dark or darker. If tliis form is separable it can only stand as a subspecies. We have thus : —
1. 2\ir(Ius jjelios pelios. Large, with much rust-colour on the sides, brownish chest : N.E. Africa.
2. T. pelios saturatus (Cab.) A little smaller, the rnst-colour less extended, at least as dark or darker above and un the chest ; W. African forest-region to Uganda.
3. T. pelios chiguancoiiles Seeb. Without or with very little rnst-colour on the sides, chest paler. Senegambia, jirobably to Niger district, but birds from there are perhaps slightly intermediate.
4. T. pelios hocagei (Cab.). A little larger than 2 and 3, as large as 1, chest more or less rnfous. Angola (cf. Cah. J. f. 0. 1882 p. 320, Sharpe in Seebohm's Monagr. TurcUdae, part VII.).
A series of Thrushes of this grouj) in the Tring Museum from Grand Cape Mount, Liberia, labelled by Dr. Biittikofer, diti'er remarkably in their deep coloura- tion and a very different rufous rust-colour under the wings. No one would hesitate to separate this form (which by the extent of rnst-colour is clearly chiguancoides^, on account of its singular colouration as a new subspecies, if it was not for the fact that they have been in spirits and are skinned in Leyden. No remark to this eft'ect, however, is on the labels ! Unfortunately many hundreds of such skins which have been in spirits have been sold to various Museums in Europe, where they were accepted in good faith, withont an idea that they had been in alcohol. The greatest caution must therefore be used with regard to all Liberian skins in judging their colour, and it is to be feared that Xenoricliln. hartcrti lieichenow (Nov. Zool. IS'.i."), p. 60) is the first and probably not the last mistake which resulted from such specimens. It is well that every ornithologist should be aware of the historr of these Liberian skins.
( -i-l )
THE LEPIDOPTERA OF 13URU.
PART \.— i;iior.\T.och:E.\.
By W. J. J10LLANI1, Ph.D., Lh.D., F.Z.S., F.E.S., etc., Clianeellor of llie M'fslrrii Unhfrsili/ of Penttsylrama, unit Dirfctor of the Cariinjie
^funeuiii, Pittslntftjh.
ri~^)lE iskuil of Biini (>5ouroii, Bouro, Boeroe) is situated .aiijiroximatolv ii> J- lat. :r LV to :i 5iJ' S. and loii.i;-. 120° to 1'..'7 15' E., reckoned from (ireeiiwicb. According to von Carnbei- it lias an area of 348T square miles, covering tbereibre an area about three-lnnrtlis the size of tlie state of Connecticut. It belongs to the Dutch Residency of Ainl)oyna, and is divided into twelve regencies subject to tlie general control of a deputy appointed by the Resident of Aniboyna. The deputy has his residence at Cajeli (=Kajeli = Kayeli) on tlie eastern coast. The ]iort of Cajeli in 1804 was declared free to the shi])s of all nations.
Tiie island is mountainous in the interior, the highest i)eak, Tomahoe, rising to an elevation of 8029 feet above the level of the sea. The seaboard districts are alluvial and marshy in many jjarts. The island is traversed by a multitude of small streams, having a short but rapid course from the interior to the sea> very few of them being worthy of being designated as rivers, except the Cajeli, or AVai Apoe, whicli is navigable for a short distance. In the western portion of the island is a large sheet of water, Lake AVakoholo. with a circumference of thirty-seven miles and a width of two miles, which appears to occujiy the crater of an extinct volcano, at an elevation of I'.iUO feet above sea level. Jlnch of the island is covered with scattering forests, and the lowlands with tall marsh grasses. The si)il where cleared is fertile. (Joffee and cacao are extensively cultivated. Trojiical fruits abound. The principal artiide of export is cajeput oil, distilled iVom the leaves of Jlejalenca cajapnti, which is extensively used as a ])anacea throughout the lands of the Malays, and ])0ssesses valne as an anti-spasmodic and sudorific, and is reputed to be a specific in rheuraati<; affections, when a])plied externally.
The flora of the island is very rich. Tlie mammalian fiiuna is not extensive, but interesting. The avifauna, on the other hand, is of considerable extent^ and includes a number of sj)ecies p<'culiar to the island. Tlie natural history of Burn has received attention from a number of travellers and explorers ; Forbes and Wallace being the only ones who have written at any great length npoii tiic subject. Very little, has been written upon the \Lfjtit/ojjf<-i(i. Boisduval in tlie \'o'/age <li- L' Astrolabe mentions a number of sjiecies found upon the i.sland. Wallace in several papers describes species of his collecting as new to science, and in the jiapers of a number of other authors' there are occasional references t(i species found here. The entire literature of the subject does not, however, furnish a hundred references to species distinctly known lo belong to the fauna of Bnni. Mr. Wallace a])])arently did not do very well in his collecting upon the island excejit among the I'ieridac, Kiihu failed almost entirely, and Forbea did not accomplish much. It was left to Mr. William Doherty, the intrepid naturalist explorer of the Malay Arcliiiielago, to make the first considerable collection which lia^i ever been made niiou the island. U])on this collection, which was gathered iu December of 18iil and January c;l' is'.jj, the following paper is based.
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With the exee])tiitii of the Tin-tricidw, 'rin:i<la.<!, auJ Pterophorida', which were sent to Lord A\'alsingham, the entire collection made at this time came into iiiv possession. At intervals of leisure I have devoted to it my best eftbrts, and tliink that I have sncceeded in working it out with reasonable certainty. 1 am es])ecially iudobteil to Sir (4eorge F Hampsou for invaluable assistanci! rendered me iu the determination of the m)tli:^, whie'i formed a very large part of the collection.
A letter sent me by Mr. Doherty at the time he sent me the collection contains some facts wliicli are of interest in regard to localities on the island, which he visited. He says : " Bnru is assuredly a liard nut to crack. . . . Kajeli, the chief j>ort, is a hopeless place for insects. I collec:ted a little at Labuan Barat, not far from ^\■allace's place, Waipnti. But most of my work was done mncli farther iin, on both sides of C!ape Saruma, the south-eastern point of the island, at Hat (especially), Kusu-Kusu, Poli, and Wailawa. We collected up to about -Oijit feet on Mount Lumara, at the liack of Hat. From Kajeli to Hat, my headipiarters, it is two nights by ' prau.' We spent the intervening day at Labuan 15arat. The weather was stormy, and the voyage most dangerous and exhausting : otherwise we had a rather pleasant though fatiguing time, and did not lose a single day's collecting. Our health was good during the whole time. The great objection to this coast is that it is all high virgin forest, wholly witliout paths. Pieridae are therefore scarce. The long walks were very hard on us. Generally in the morning we plodded through the loose sand of the beach, jnmjiiug the streams, till wo came to some big one which we ascended for miles (each taking his own). H raiued every day at ',' p.m., so that in coming back the streams were generally in flood, and we had to cross them waist-deep. Then the tide would probably be up, and we would have to walk long distances in the water. Ou the whole, I think, i)utting moths against butterflies, we did about as well as we could have in the dry season. I doubt whether any locality in Burn is better than Hat, except the Wakoholoctuntry, which is practically inaccessible, except for a few days' trip in light marching order, on account of the want of coolies. The people of the country I visited ar>; Alfnros — lieathen, very friendly, honest folk. They came down to the coast only a generation ago, and the interior is now quite uninhabited excejjt at Wakoholo and on the Waijafo liiver (where there is absolutely no forest). At the back of Hat is Jlount Lumara, some six thousand feet high, covered with unbroken forests. Over much of this country there are island-like masses, ridges of metamorphic limestone, jiierced by thousand of caves, much as in Timor or the Malay Peninsula. Ajiart from this the usual surface rock is micaceous sandstone, overlaying great beds of true mica-schist exactly like that in the Alps. There is coal in the west, and Mount Tomahoe is said to be volcanic." ..." The moths were all taken Viy beating, or at light. Baits failed. When you thiuk that Dr. Platen only got eighty odd species in fourteen months in Palawan, Hibbe and Kiiha one hundred and fifty in Aru in twelve months, and Ribbe eighty odd in tieram in over four months, yon can see tliat I am sending yon something quite out of the common order."
It remains to be said that the species taken by Jlr. Doherty reveal a very close affinity between the fauna of Burn and Amboyna. Hi the determination of species much assistance has therefore been derived from the very thorough and important papers which have ajipeared from time to time upon the lepidoptera of the latter island from the pen of Dr. Arnold Pagenstecher, and also from the various papers of the distingnished Dutch naturalist, P. (". T. Snellen of Rotterdam.
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RHOPALOC'ERA.
Family NYMPHALIDAE Swainson.
Subfamily DANAINAE Bates.
Genvs HESTIA Hiibner.
1. Hestia aza (Boisduval), Voyage de V Astrolabe, Lepidoptcra p. 106 (lbi32). The collection contains a very large series of this species, represented bj- both sexes.
Genus RADENA Moore. 2. Radena buruensis sp. nov.
This species is veiy closely allied to R. luzonica Moore, but may be at once distinguished from it by the prevalently small size of the light spots upon the wings and the consequent enlargement of the black areas in the discal and outer marginal areas of both the primaries and the secondaries. Compared with a series of R. luzonica, this feature is well marked and constant, and permits of an instant discrimination of the two forms.
The collection contains a series of fifteen examples, which show almost no variation whatever in the markings.
Genus TIRUMALA Moore.
3. Tirumala hamata (Macleay), in King's Australia II. p. 4(il (1827) ; Bloore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Land. p. 232 (1883).
This species is represented by three males.
Genus NASUMA Moore.
4. Nasuma ismare (Cramer), Pap. Exot. III. t. 279. f. E. F (1782); Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. p. 233 (1883).
Mr. Doherty captured two males and two/emales of this species during his stay ou the island.
Genus ANOSIA Hiibner.
5. Anosia plexippus (L.), S//st. j\'at. ed. X. p. 471 (1758).
(For synonym} see Moore, Monograph of Limnaina and Euploeina, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. (1883), and Scndder, Butterjties of New England.)
The collection contains several specimens of this species in nowise differing from examples captured dnring the past autumn in Pennsylvania. The tendency to melanism shown in the form erippus, which is commonly received from the tropical jwrtions of the American Continent, is not displayed by these specimens. They arc bright in colour, like the form prevalent in the United States, and this is also true of specimens which I have received from other islands of the Eastern Archipelago and from Australia, in which the species has only recently become domiciled. This fact seems to point to the introduction of the species into the
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oriental fauna by <a process of emigration proceeding from the more northern portions of the American Continent. If the tendency to melanism, which is so apparent in the great majority of South American specimens, is due to climatic and specifically thermal influences, as is probable, the conformity of the specimens from tlie hot tropical regions of the Australian and Indo-malayan regions to the nearctic type reveals that a sufficient length of time has not yet elapsed to bring about the dusky colouration found in specimens coining from the tropical regions of the New World.
Genus LIMNAS Hiibner.
(). Limnas petilia (Stoll), Cramer, Pa}). Exot. Snppl. t. 28. f. 3 (1790) ; Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Loud. p. 239 (1883).
Only two specimens of this species are contained in the collection.
Genus SALATURA Moore.
T. Salatura philene (Cramer), Pap. Exot. IV. t. 375. f. A. B (1782) ; Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. LoiuL p. 242 (1883).
One male and iwo femcdes.
Genus RAVADEBA Moore.
8. Ravadeba lutescens (Butler), Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. p. 172. f. 3 (18G6) ; Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Land. p. 245 (1883).
The species seems to be very common, and I received an enormous series. There is considerable variation in the extent of the light spots in the cell of the primaries, and in some specimens they tend to obsolescence. This is especially true of the males, but less so in the case of the females. The light colour of the u])por surface of the wings is not so bright a yellow as is found in specimens fromBatchian contained in my collection.
Genus VADEBRA Moore.
9. V. dohertjri sj). nov.
(S . The wings on the upperside are deep blaelc shading on the outer margins into warm brown, more particularly upon the secondaries. On the underside the wings are paler, the dark tint being ahnost wholly confined to the region of the cell, and the primaries on the inner margin being pale testaceous, or even white. The primaries are marked by four spots : one in the cell near its end, one just beyond the cell between the third median and the radial nervnles, and two below this in the inner end of the interspaces on either side of the second median nervnle. Of these three spots thus located beyond the end of the cell the lower one is oblong and the largest of the series. They are bluish white in colour. The secondaries have a small roundish spot at the end of the cell, and just beyond the end of the cell a curved series of tive or six oblong spots in the interspaces. There is a double marginal row of spots extending from the outer angle toward the inner angle, which they do not however reach, generally terminating before the first median nervule. The outermost series of these spots shows a marked tendency to obsolescence, and in some specimens is entirely wanting.
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?. 'the/emale is like the Male in colour niion the uppersiJc, except that the light colour of the enter margins invades the inner surface of the wing to a greater (k'i)lh. The ]irimavios on tlic underside are marked as in the malt', but the spots are geuenilly a little larger, and there are two white linear streaks near the inner margin, below the first median uervule. The secondaries liave the same sjwts as in the male, but the two submarginal series of spots in many specimens are either jiartially or now and then wholly obliterated. The discal sjiots are always found, tliinigh sometimes they are ijuite small, ami at other times abnormally large.
Expanse : 6 and ? To to 85 mm. Descritud from 29 S d and 17 ? ?.
This insect has occasioned me not a little difficulty, as I natnrally am reluctant to iidd another to the list of species in this group. At first I was inclined to identify it with Kuplofa lapfi/roi'iici Boisd., one or two of the females in my possession<-tallyiMg exactly witli the description given by Boisdnval in the Vo'juge de IJAstrolabi . 1 tlien discovered that Mr. Moore has referred E. lape>/rousei to his genus t'liirom. (ine of the characters of which is a broad sericeous band on the ni)])erside of the primaries, and states ex])licitly that " the type specimen of this species is much like C. jiierveti, excepting that the sericeons Mtreah is nnrrower auil longer." As the insect before me is without the sexual brand on the primaries, it cannot be therefore identified as the insect de.scribed by Boisdnval, whose types, now in the possession of Mons. Charles Oberthiir, were consulted by both Dr. Bntler and Di'. Moore in their preparation of their monographs of the Eup/oeiiiae. Accepting the entire accuracy of the figure of Vadehra melina given by Dr. Butler in the I'loe. Zool. 8oc. Lond. 1S66, p. 282, the insect before me cannot be well referred to this species, although Dr. Boisdnval states that E. melina occurs in Burn. I likewisn cannot bring myself to refer the form before me to the species named and figured as Eiiploea dimcAia by Cramer, and made tlie tyjie of the genus Vadebro by Moore. While the Cramerian figures are none of the best, tliere is too great a discrejiancy between the figure and the insects under consideration to permit me to assume their identity. 1 liave therefore ventured to name the butterfly after its discoverer.
(^ENus GAMATOBA Moore. III. G. spiculifera Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. j). 263 (1883). The collection contains a small series of this fine species.
Genus BETANGA Moore.
11. CO B. duponcheli (Boisd.), Toy. .\strol., I.ep. p. 97 (1832).
This is another case in which the exceedingly brief description given by Boisdnval leaves us in doubt. Mons. Oberthiir, in his Ijcpidoptere.t tManiens, ]i. 35, intimates that the insect ticketed as Kaploen duponekeli by Dr. Boisdnval, and standing in his collection, does not agree at all with the published descrii)tion. He assumes that the insect labelled in the British Musenm as K. duponcheli is correctly determined. Boisdnval gives Burn as the habitat of the insect. I have before me about eighty specimens evidently belonging to the same species, vnile.<< &n<\ femakii. Among the females I find several which agree very well with Boisdnval's descrij)tion except in one particular, which 1 shall point out presently.
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The description given in the Voijage, <le L' Astrolabe is as follows : '• Ailes d'un bruu noir, pins pale a rextremite, sans taehes ; dessons des quatres avec deux raiigs de points marginaux violatres ; les sni)drienres ayant en ontre qnatre points, et les inferieures six points discoidaux violatres. Elle se tronve a Bonrou." The ])oint of discrepancy which most puzzles me is found in the entire absence on the underside of the primaries of all my specimens, both mih'. xmA j'i:iii'il>>, of the outermost row of marginal spots (/joints marglniuu-). They are found ou the secondaries according to the description above cited, but not on tlie primaries, where there is but one row, with only a faint suggestion in one or two s])ecimens of the outer or strictly marginal scries. Beginning witli specimens which thus accord in the main with the description of Dr. Boisduval, I am able to trace a series of forms regularly intergrading until I arrive at forms in which the description given by Boisduval does not at all apply. The maculation of the underside of the wings advances stej) by step until we have specimens the undersides of the wings of which are covered with small white spots arranged as follows : Ou the primaries near the outer angle a few marginal spots, a submarginal series of s])ots extending from the first median interspace to the costa, three spots before the end of the cell at the inner end of the interspaces, the lowermost spot large and oblong, a round spot in the cell near its end, and a moderately large costal spot beyond the middle of the costa. On the secondaries there are three curved series of spots, a marginal and submarginal not reaching the inner angle, and a curved series of seven discal spots just beyond the cell, one on each interspace from vein 1 to vein 8, a roundish spot in the cell at its extremity, and four or five minute white spots at the base of the wing. These spots also reappear more or less (especially those of the submarginal series) upon the upperside of the wing, and thus nullify the words of Dr. Boisduval's description, which declares that the upper surface is devoid of markings. In spite of these numerous and apparently great discrepancies between the description and some of the specimens, I am inclined to think that I am right in identifying the forms before me as belonging to B. ilupoiii-heli. At all events no other species from Burn seems to accord more nearly with Boisduval's description.
Genus EUPLOEA Fabricius.
12. E. semicirculus Butler, Proc. Znol. Sac. Loud. p. '-itiO (l^iiS).
There is a small series of this species in which the specimens are considerably larger than specimens I have received from Batchiau through Dr. Staudinger, and in which the submarginal bine spots are considerably larger and more con- spicuous. Otherwise there is no difference, and the insects agree well with the figures and descriptions which have been given.
Genus CALLIPLOEA Butler.
13. C. infantilis Butler, Proc. /.ool. Soc. Loml p. 766. t. 77. f. 3 (1876).
There is one male specimen of this species which was originally described
from New Guinea. It does not differ from specimens received by me from
Batchian, except that the spots on the underside of the wings are a trifle
smaller.
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Geni's salpinx Hubiier.
14. S. bouruana Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. p. 302 (1883).
This is the local race! of S. nemertes Hiibner, which is apparently not at all
niicommon upon the island. There is a large series of specimens, both malt', and
J'eiH'ile, \n wliich there is yreat diversity in size as well as in raaculation. Some
small miles, apparently starvelings, are one-third smaller than others. Some of
the females also greatly exceed others in expanse of wing. The snbmarginal spots
on the upperside of the wing, and the conspicuous blue spot between veins 1
and 2 on the primaries, vary very much in some specimens, revealing a strong
tendency to become snffnsed with white and to spread.
Genus STICTOPLOEA Bntler.
15. S. watsoni Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Loud. p. 322 (1883).
There is a small series of this fine insect. The female is much like the male in her markings, only varying structurally.
Genus HAMAURYAS Boisduval.
15. Hamadryas assarica (Cramer), Pap. Exot. IV. t. 363. f A. B (1781). Moore, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. p. 250 (1883).
Moore in his monographic revision of the Enploeina, which is cited above, states distinctly tiiat this genns is without a " sexual mark," or scent-producing organ on the forewing of the male. With this I am compelled to disagree. In the species before me, and in fact in all the other species accessible to me in my collection, //. zoilas (Fabr.), //. aequirincta Salv. & Godm., and //. nedusia (Hiibn.), the males are cliaracterized by the presence on the inner half of the wing of a large tract of a modified scales, having well-defined limits and visible to the naked eye as lighter-coloured areas. These patches of modified scales extend from the inner margin to below the cell, and outwardly towards the external margin, which they never, however, reach. Under the microscope these tracts reveal that the scales upon them are elongated, and dift'er from the scales upon the rest of the wing, which are ])revalently more or less orbicular. The figure given by Cramer of this sjjecies is undoubtedly that of a female. The males are not only characterized, as I have just i)ointod out, by the broad patch of androconia on the primaries, bnt by the much smaller size of the snbajiical spot on the primaries, which is not simply less in area than in the case of the female, but tends to translucency, giving the wing a duller colour than is the case in the opposite sex, in which the clear white contrasts boldly with the deep black of the rest of the surface.
The collection contains a large series of specimens, for tlie most part in good condition.
" Hamadryas turned out to be an Ithomiid, as I expected." — Dohcrty in lift.
Subfamily SATYRINAE Bates. Genus LETHE Hiibner. i:. L. europa arete (Cramer), Pap. Kx. IV. t. 313. f. E. F (1782). This collection contains several males and one damaged /ensate.
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Genus MELANITIS Fabricias.
18. M. leda bouruana snbsp. nov.
The si)ecimens of this species which lie before me are remarkable ou accouut of the very red cast of the upper surface of the wings in the male, and the wide expanse of the yellow apical tract in the female sex. The outer margin of the primaries in the case of the male is also peculiar on account of the entire obsoles- cence of the subapical tooth-like projection, which is only discernible in one specimen as a very slight outward bend in the otherwise straight margin. Mr. Uoherty tells me in his letters that this form extends to Timor and Flores. He is inclined to think it a distinct species. It is at all events fairly entitled to a snbspecific name, and the brief notes I have given will easily, I think, enable students to discriminate it. Both the ?nales and the females are highly fragrant, when first taken.
19. M. constantia (Cramer), Pap. Ex. II. t. 133. f. A. B (1779).
The figure given by Cramer is that of a female specimen. The males exist in numerous varietal forms, characterized by the greater or less prominence of the broad yellow subapical band, which in occasional specimens is almost obliterated. The subajiical ocelli are also very variable in size, and tend to become obsolete. In one XiiXg^t female in the collection they have been replaced by small white points on the unusually broad yellow subapical band. This species, like the preceding, is very fragrant.
2i). M. amabilis (Boisduval), Voyage cle U Astrolabe, Lep. p. 140. t. 2.
f 1. 2 (1832).
There is a good set of this species. The figure given by Boisduval is that of a, female, in which the subapical band is white. It is yellow in the case of the males. Boisduval's figure is also too small, apparently representing a dwarfed specimen. The examples in the collection before me are likewise redder upon the upper surface than represented in the plate in the Voyage de U Astrolabe.
21. M. ribbei Staudinger, Iris I. p. 192. f. 1. 2 (1887).
There are a few very large males of this species, which is probably merely a variety of M. relutina Feldor, cliaracterized by its larger size, and the darker upper surface of the wings, which in the examples before me are black.
Genus MYCJALESIS Hubner.
22. M. perseus (Fabricias), Sgst. Ent. p. 488 (1775).
Only a single specimen of this widely distributed species was contained in the collection.
23. M. medus (Fabricius), Syst. Ent. p. 488 (1775). There are four specimens of this species in the collection.
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24. M. remulia (Cramer), Pap. /•>. III. t. 237. f. V. G (ITk^). Nnraerons examiiles.
25. M. sirius (Fabricins), I.e.
Satyrm manipa Boisd., Vo>/. AstroL, Lep. p. 150 (1832).
A good series of this species, includiag two /finales, which are mnch larger and brighter in colour than the males, and in which the ocelli are also laro^er and mnch more distinct.
Subfamily ELYMNIINAE Herr.-Schiiff. Genus ELYMNIAS Hiibner. 26. E. viminalis Wallace, Trans. Enf. Soc. Lond. p. 328 (180!t). The specimens which I refer to the species named as above by Mr. Wallace agree qnite well with his description, if based upon a female type. Tlie luteous band on the margins of the wings, of which he speaks in loc. c/'t., are conspicuous features in that se.x, but not so mnch so in the case of the male, which is prevalently mnch darker than the female. The maculation on the underside of the wings is much less than in the case of E. titelliu (Cramer), and is almost wholly restricted in the case of the males to the spots at the ends of the cell on both wings, and the curved discal series of spots, which succeed these. There are a number of males and %ex^X2\ females in the collection.
Subfamily MORPHINAE Butler. Genus TENARIS Hubner. 27. T. urania (Linnaeus), Mm. Lud. Ulr. p. 225 (1764). There are a few jioor males and one torn female belonging to this species.
28. T. buruensis Forbes, A NaUmilist's Wanderings in the Eastern Archipelago p. 411 (1883).
There are a number of this species, mostly females, in the collection. The description given by Forbes applies to the female, and apparently was founded upon a specimen of that sex. The males have narrow wings, prevalently light fawn-colonr.
Subfamily NYMPHALINAE Bates.
Genus CETHOSIA Fabricins.
29. C. cydippe (Linnaeus), Syst. Nat. I. 2. p. 776 (1767).
Papilio ino Cramer, Pap. Ex. I. t. 62. f. A. B (1779).
Apparently not very common. The specimens show a tendency to melanism, and agree in this more nearly with the figure given by Cramer than with that given by Clerck.
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30. C. buruana sp. nov.
This is the form of C. hihlis which appears to predomiimte on tiie island of Bum. It is characterized by a marked tendency to mehiiiism. h\ the malr sex the red on the upperside of the primaries is restricted to a semicircular tract on the inner margin of the wing reaching very little if at all iibove the first median nervnle just at its origin. The marginal, submarginal and discal lunules are almost suppressed in the majority of specimens, with the single exception of the white hastate spot between the second and third median nervnles, which in all specimens is large and distinct, standing out conspicuously upon tlie darker ground surrounding it. The uj)perside of the secondaries is brighter red than the primaries. The margin is broadly black, the interspaces being adorned with the usual marginal lunules. Just after the broad black margin there is a narrow dark submarginal line. The red area of the primaries is marked by three black spots, two on the first and one on the second median interspace. The underside is much as in C. biblis (Drury). The females are darker and larger than the males, the red tint of the npperside of the wings being replaced in this se.x by a dark shade of olivaceous brown, having a very distinct greenish cast in certain lights.
The species seems to be quite constant, and is easily discriminated by its facies from other allied forms, inasmuch as a specific name has been given to insular varieties of this insect from numerous other localities, it has appeared to me that this form is well worthy of being treated in like manner.
The collection contains a couple of males and several females, the latter mostly in poor condition.
Genus CYNTHIA Fabricias.
">1. C. deione Erichson, Nov. Act. Ac. Nat. Car. XVI. Sup[il. t. .Vi.
f. 2. 2a (1833).
A large number of specimens, mostly males.
Genus MESSARAS Doubleday.
32. M. lampetia (Linnaeus), Mtis. Lad. Ulr. p. 2S(i (17fi4).
A large series of specimens showing great variability in ^'w.e, some examples being only half as great in expanse of wing as others.
Genus ATELLA Doubleday. 33. A. egista (Cramer), Pap. Ex. Ill, t. 2S1. f C. D (ITS2). Apparently q^nite common.
Genus SYMBHENTHIA Hiibner. 34. S. hippoclus (Cramer), Pap. /•>. III. t. 220. f C. D (i;is2). Only a couple of worn specimens.
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Genus JUNONIA Hiibner. 35. J. erigone (Cramer), Pap. Ex. I. t. 62. f. E. F (1779). A few good examples.
3C. J. atlites (Linnaens), Amoen. Acad. VI. p. 407. n. 72 (1764). Two specimens.
Genus PRECIS Hiibner. 37. P. hellanis Felder, Reise Noc, Lep. III. ]). 4o2 (\i<(u). A good series.
Genus YOMA Doberty.
38. Y. sabina (( 'ramer), Pap. Ex. IV. t. 2sy. f. A— D (1782). A large series of specimens, varying as nsnal.
Genus DOLESCHALLIA Felder.
39. D. bisaltide (Cramer), Pap. Ex. II. t. 102. f. C. D (1779). A conple of specimens in poor case.
40. D. melaua Staudinger, Exot. Schmett. I. p. 104 (15
Tbis is a very true species. The female is somewhat larger than the male, and the line of demarcation between the red basal portion of the primaries and the dark outer part of these wings is in this sex not quite as sharply defined as in the male, in which the dividing line is quite straight, as is pointed out by Staudinger in his description. The species is most nearly allied to D. sciron Salv. & Godm., bnt is abundantly distinct.
There is a small suite of specimens contained in tlie collection.
Genus CYRESTIS Boisdnval. 41. C. thyonneus (Cramer), Pap. Ex. III. t. 220. f. E. F (1782). This species appears to be exceedingly common.
42. C. paulinus Felder, Wien Ent. Mon. IV. p. 247 (1860). Only one specimen turned up.
Genus HYPOLIMNAS Hiibner.
43. H. bolina (Linnaeus), Mus. Lud. Ulr. p. 295 (1764).
The collection contains a good series of males and two rather poor females of the form named iphigenia by Cramer {Pap. Ex. 1. 1. 67. f. D. E). De Nicdville, in his synonymy of the species, does not quote this reference to Cramer among the known synonyms, though it is properly cited by Kirby, immediately after the citation of the following species, which, however, I cannot bring myself to regard as properly placed in the synonymy of 11. bolina.
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44. H. lasinassa (Cramer), Pap. Ex. HI. t. 20.5. f. A. B (1782).
There is a set of males and females of this species, which, when compared with the large series of //. holina captured at the same time and in the same locality, leads me to disagree with the view of Kirby, that //. lasinassa is a mere synonym for H. holina. In the first place the male, which superficially resembles bolina, differs widely from any specimens of bolina which 1 have ever seen both in size and in markings of the nndersido of the wiugs; and the vastly larger size of i\\e: females, and the corresponding difference in markings, all go, to my mind, to show that we are dealing with a valid form.
The expanse of the females of the form iphii/enia of holina taken by Doherty in Burn does not much exceed TD mm. ; the expanse of ih&J'emales of //. lasinas-ia is in some cases loS mm. and never less than 95 mm. The males are all much larger than the largest male of II. bolina in the collection. The markings are diiferent. In both sexes there is an entire absence of the white transverse median band on the underside of the primaries and secondaries, which is characteristic of H. holina. The outer margins do not have the white markings on the fringe, which are characteristic of H. bolina. The marginal row of spots on the underside of the secondaries, which is geminated in //. bolina, is single in H. lasinassa. The blue discal spots on the upperside of the wings of the males are not centred with white, as in H. bolina, but are uniformly a deep purplish blue. If the two forms are sjjrung from the same insects, and are merely seasonal or dimorphic variations, we are confronted with one of the most remarkable facts in natural history. That they spring from one common ancestry I am quite willing to believe, and an examination of them must convince of this, but I cannot bring myself to believe that one brood of eggs will produce these two forms at the same time. They are as widely separate, for instance, as any two species of Arg>jn7iis, which are now recognized by naturalists as valid. Doubtless most existing species have had at some time a common ancestry, and the student of phylogeny is able often to tell where lie the lines of relationship, but relationship is not identity either in the case of individuals or species.
4.J. H. alimena (Linnaeus), Mas. Liul. Ulr. p. 2'..»1 (1T64).
There is a very large series of this species. The males are constant, but the females vary considerably. Some of the females are coloured upon the upperside like the males, others have the outer third of the secondaries laved with rufous, and still others are more or less strongly marked with white upon the secondaries.
40. H. pandora (Wallace;, Trans. Ent. Soc. bond. p. 261 (1S69). There is a small set of males a,nd females of this fine species.
47. H. antilope (Cramer), Faj,. E.r. II. t. 183. f. E. F (1779). A small series of this species, representing both se.xes.
Genus PARTHENOS Hiibuer.
48, P. nodrica (Boisdnval), Voy. Astrol., Lep. p. 126 (1832). A good set of this distinctly marked species.
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(jENVs >'E1T1S Faliiiius. 4'.i. N. heliodora (Cramer), /'«/'• ^■•'- ^^^ '• -I -'• t'- •■- ^' (l'*2j. A lew gootl speinmeiis.
."id. N. venilia (Ijiiniacns), Mux. Ut.r. p. 25*0 (i:tJ4). A large series.
•M. N. neriphoides «p. nov.
Closely allied to .V. iwriplais Hew., from which it may be distinguished by its mncli sniiiller si/.e, and by the fact that the snbniiirs^inal brown line on the j)riniaries \% not divided, as in iii'rijthnx, into two j)arts cnrving inwardly at their npper I'Xtreniities, but is continuous, only showing a little jag or offset on the third median nervnle. Furthermore, the red linear band running the length of the cell is not serrated on its npper margin as in .V. neriphun, and the subai)ical spots are not divided by flie subeostal nervures as in Howitson's species, but are fused into a curved subajiie.il biind, not very much indented internally. The general tone of the underside of both wings is decidedly lighter than in ,V. Hcriplinif. There are two s])ecimens of this species, both females. I have another specimen in my collection coming from the sonthern peninsula of Celebes, a male, which is also referable to this species, anil has long stood in ray collection unnamed. 7y/jc from Bnru.
Expanse 4:! mm.
Ck.\us ATHYMA Westwood. • iJ. A. eulimene (Godart), Km:. ifetl<. IX. ji. 42!" (In-,':}). l'"our malf.i.
(iKNis SYMFHAEDHA Hiibner. .^:i. S. aeropus (Linnaeus), .1///.S-. J.url. L'lr. p. 'Joii (1704). Several mnlix and one fe.iiiale.
Gekus DlCHOHRAdlA Butler. •")4. D. ninus (Felder), Wicn E„f. Mn„. III. p. 18."i (ISoO). One damaged uwlf.
(iEsrs AFATUHINA Herrich-Schaetler. •">•). A. erminia (Cramer), Pap. Ex. III. t. 1!»6. f. A. B (1780). A fairly good series of the malf.i of this species.
Genus EULEPIS Jlocne. • It;. E. pyrrhus buruanus Rothschild, Nov. /ooi.. V. j). osv. f. ','(; (I89'.i). A nntubei' of ju lies and one damaged female.
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Genus MYNES Boisduval. 5:. M. dohertyi Holland, Enf. News IV. p. 337. t. IS. f. 2. 3 (1894). The collection contaius four specimens, none absolutely perfect, of this species.
Family LEMOmiDAE Kiiby.
Si'BFAMiLY LIBYTHAEINAE Bate.?.
Genus LIBYTHEA Fabricins.
.")^. L. narina Oodart, Enc Metk. IX. p. ITl (I81U).
Two specimens.
Family !.)'< AENfDAE Stephens. Genus GEHYDUS Boisduval. oi). G. leos ((iueiin), I '<?//. CoqaiUe. t. 18. f. 8. (1829). A large species of specimens. The species seems to be very common.
')<!. G. buruensis sp. nov.
S. The male on the ni)persidc very closely resembles Parayerijdus horsJldJi (Moore). The colour of the wings on this side is uniform fuscous, with a narrow streak of paler colour on the middle of the jjrimaries. The resemblance in colour and size to this well-known Javanese species is so close that at first sight it is almost impossible to distinguish the two. On the underside the wiugs are marked much as in G. chinensis Felder, but the submarginal row of spots on the pi-imaries is continuous along the border and docs not merely extend from the costa to the third median nervule as in that sjiecies.
? . The female is darker upon the upper surface thaii the male, and the usual differences in the form of the wing are observable in this sex. The streak of pale ochraceons found upon the primaries of the male is replaced in the ease of the female by a small subtriangular spot of jiure white.
I at first thought that this insect might be the form described by Ribbe as cei-d mensis, Iris II. p. 247, but I have finally changed my opinion, and I am also quite clear from the figure given by Staudinger, Iris II. t. 1. f 2, that it is not the species named liy him as Miletus, /il/llippus., though some of the parts of his description might apply to it. I have therefore ventured to describe it as a new species.
Genus SPALGIS Moore.
(11. S. epius AVestwood, in Doubl. Westw. k Hew., Gi-n. Dhtm., Le//. II. j). .502.
r. 70. f. .-) (1852). There are several specimens in fair condition, and a number which are very poor. I cannot distinguish them from sj)eciraens coming from India and Barmah and contained in my collection. I confess that I am somewhat sceptical as to the validity of the species named S. plwrmis Feld., of which I possess specimens, l)elieved to be accurately determined, from Amboyna. Except for the reduced size, or occasional absence of the light spot on the upperside of the primaries, this form iloes not ai)i)ear to me to differ greatly from V epim Westwood. The markings of the underside appear to me to be identical.
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Genus HOLOCHILA Felder.
62. H. ilias (Felder), Sitzber. Ak. Wissensc^. Wien, Math. JSat. CI. XL.
p. 454 (1860). Apparently not common.
Genus HYFOC'HRYSOPS Felder. r.3. H. anacletus Felder, I.e. Only ihre^ females were received. They were considerably smaller than the figure given iiy Felder in the Novara Eeise, and a little larger than a snite of specimens coming from Amboyna, which I purchased liomc years ago from Dr. Standinger, and to which I added a series obtained from Messrs. Watkins & Doncaster.
Genus PITHECOPS Horslield. 04. P. dionisius (Boisduval), Voy. AstroL, Le.p. p. 82 (1832). Apparently quite common. The crucial test between the genus Pithecops and the genns Nefljjithecops is said by Distant to be furnished by the anastomosis of the first subcostal with the costal uervure. Tried by this test, dionisius comes very plainly under Ilorsfield's genus.
Genus MEGISBA Moore. 6.5. M. malaya (Horsfield), Cat. Lep. E.I.C. p. To (1828).
Lycaena strongi/le Felder, Reise Nocara, Lep. j). 278. t. 34. f. 32. 33 (1865).
Apparently common, though few of the specimens sent were in good case. I think there can be no donbt of the identification made by Dr. Semper of Felder's species with that described by Horsfield. I have a large series of M. malaya coming from various parts of India and the Malay Peninsula. Comparing these closely with the specimens before me, which agree absolutely with Felder's figure, I am certain that so far as the underside of the wings is concerned there is no difference whatever. The only difference discernible to me is that specimens from the Asiatic mainland are all a little larger, and the white spot on the disc of the primaries is relatively a little smaller, and not quite so sharply defined as in the specimens from Burn and Amboyna in my collection. There is therefore a slight difference in facies, so far as the upperside of the wings is concerned. This is all, and not enough to warrant the specific separation of the two forms.
Genus (JYANIUIS Daliuan.
6(1. C. cagaya (Felder), Reise Nomra, Lep. p. 278. t. 34. f 11—13 (1805).
There are several males and one or two females, which, after much delibera- tion, I am led to assign to this sjiecies, though the specimens do not agree with absolute exactness with the figures given by those who have represented the species. They are very close to C. puspa Horsf , but differ from that species in the absence in the male sex of the dark border of the primaries, which is greatly reduced, and in some cases almost altogether wanting. There is also very little, if any, white npon the disc of the primaries in this sex. Cagaya is evidently the more southern race of C. puspa.
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67. C. philippina Semper, Ta,//. riiiUpp. p. 168. t. 32. f. 14—18 (1889). '
There is a good suite of 7Hah's of a species, which appears to me to be the foregoing. At all events, though I could wish to be a little more certain upon this point, I can find no description of any species of Cyaniris which applies better to the specimens before me. Semper relies apparently more ivpon his plates than upon the letterpress of his work, and the few remarks he make^ about this species do not throw much light upon certain points, upon which his plates fail equally to give information. The specimens before me all have a little white upon the disc of the primaries and on the costa of the secondaries. Semper says nothing about this in his description, which is, however, so meagre as to hardly merit to be called such ; and the plates, which are made by a photographic process, also fail to tell us anything about this point. Blue surfaces in photography often take lighter than white surfaces. On the underside Semper's figures agree with my specimens, spot for spot, though the markings in some of the examples before me are heavier and more pronounced than they appear in the plates in the Butterflies of the Philippine Islands.
Genus ZIZERA Moore.
68. Z. gaika (Trimen), Trans. Eiit. Soc. Loud. (3). I. p. 403 (1862).
A large number of specimens of both sexes of this widely distributed form.
69. Z. subcoerulea sp. uov.
tj. The body is fuscous on the upperside, and is clothed with bluish hairs. The underside of the body is pale whitish grey. Tlie legs are also whitish grey, marked with darker grey upon the outer edges of the tibiae, and on the tarsi. The palpi are white, edged below with blackish hairs. The antennae are black above, and below are ringed with white. The wings on the upperside are pale purplish blue, almost of the same tint as light-coloured specimens of Cafochri/sops strabo, but without the sheen of that species. On the costa near the base most specimens in certain lights show a white lustre. Both wings are marked by a fine blackish marginal line, within which on each interspace along the border are small Innular markings, those of the primaries diffuse, and pale ashen greenish, paler than the body of the wing, rarely fuscous ; those of the secondaries pale fuscous, marked inwardly and outwardly by paler grey. The fringes are grey, lighter on the secondaries than on the primaries, and distinctly interrupted at the end of each nervnle by darker fuscous. On the underside both wings are pale cool grey. Both are ornamented by spots of pale brown, only a shade darker than the body of the wings, and uniformly surrounded by light whitish lines and markings. These markings are as follows : On the primaries there is a longitudinal transverse mark at the end of the cell, a discal series of spots crossing the wing from the costa to the inner margin about two-thirds of the distance from the base, one spot on each interspace, the whole series being conformed in a regular curve to the line of the outer margin. This series of spots is succeeded near the margin by a double series" of Innules, the spots composing the inner series being larger than those of the outer series. Both sets of lunules are margined on both sides by pale grey, but in the case of the inner series this pale grey colour is extended diffusely inwardly almost as-
far m the series of discal spots, jriviui; to tiic wiii<f tlie ajipeaiaiice fit first sight of bciug crossed liy a transverse whitisli Imnil. TLe margin is indicated by a fine dark line. The fringes are j)aler tlian on tlie iipperside. The same markings which are fonud upon the primaries are coiitinned upon the secondaries, and quite as evenly, except that the discal series above vein fl is broken, by having the two upper epots nearest the costa shoved inwardly towai-d the base, being located one above the other a little before and above the end of tlie cell. In addition to the spots conijosing the three outer series there is a longitudinal transverse mark at the end of the cell, a round spot aliont the middle of the cell, and another small spot above it near the costa.
?. The /'ei/Ki/i- on tlie underside is marked exactly like the i/'n/f. but the primaries on the npperside are broadly dark fuscons on the costal and outer marginal areas. There is a single /fmn/t' of this sjiecies in the collection in which the entire upper surface of both wings is dark fuscons.
Expanse : cJ and ? 20 — 25 mm.
When 1 originally undertook to wurk up the collection 1 provisionally referred this species to Z. otis (Fabr.), bnt a closer study has revealed the incorrectness of this procednre, and after a lengthy study of the entire subject I am compelled to believe that we are dealing here with an nndescribed species. It is in size much like Z. mafia, and suggests that species by its colouration, but the markings of the under- side are wholly diflerent. The markings do not agree with those of any other species of the genus which I have seen (and almost all of them are represented iu my collection), nor with the descriptions given by authors. The pale whitish space between the discal series of spots, and the inner marginal row of lunules, and the absence of dark markings on the edge of the primaries of the Male sex, are easily seen characteristics. The insect belongs to the second group of the genus indicated by De Niceville, which lack the inner spot in the cell of the primaries.
Gexus LYCAENE.STHES Moore.
70. L. lycaenoides (Folder), SiL-ber. AL W'issai.ic/t. M'ie/i, Math. Xat. CI. XI. p. 4.54 (18G')j ; 'i Fseudodipsas Ijcaenoides, Felder, lieise Xocara, U'.p. p. 258. t. 30. f 25. cJ (1865).
De Niceville, Butt. India III. p. 128, sinks /yw<';;o/(/('.< Felder, as a synonym of LycacvcstlH'» cinolux (Godt.) = tjinigaleiisis Moore, following, with evident reluctance, the example of Hewitsou. 1 cannot at all concur in this course. With an abundance tif specimens of L. emulu.t = beixjdk'ii.v.'i Moore, in both sexes before me from various parts of India and Burmah, and with the figure of Felder, and a large suite of specimens of i. lycaenoules Felder coming from Amboyna and Burn, it is impossible to accord the correctness of Mr. Hewitson's opinion. I am also constrained to believe that the insect, which Hewitsou figured as /-. lijcaenoidex Felder, evidently », female, llluitr. Diuin., Lef. p. 219. t. 02. f 3'J, is not Felder's insect. The/onales in my possession differ too widely from the figure of Hewitsou to allow of their identification with the butterfly he depicts, though his figure is evidently very carelessly executed. If it represents the /ivwo'^e of Felder's species it must be set down as a rather unfortunate attempt to follow nature.
The difference between L. b/cacnoidcs Feld. and L. cmoliis (Godt.), accepting the identification of L. bcngalensis Moore with the latter species as established, i.s
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I'evealed first of all in tlu' character of tlio Iiroad sut)marjj;iii!i! baml on the primarifs. lu L. emoliis tliis baml is well (h'scriiied by Moore as lieing " chain-like," whereas ill /,. li/ctienoltli's FelJ. the baml is more continuous, that is to say, the ligiit lines defining it on both sides are straighter, and the baud consequently presents more even margins both externally and internally, a feature brought out in Felder's figure. Secondly, the underside of tlic secondaries in Felder's species has tlie lines and strigae soniewtiat differently arranged, as well as more numerous than in emolus. They are, moreover, as well as the whole outer margin of the wing, lighter in colour than in fiiiohm, so that the wing has ipiite a different cast. The female is very different, and as no full description of this sex lias apparently been given I herewitli append one : —
?. The jiriraaries on the npperside have the costal and outer marginal arciis very broadly blackish. Tlie middle and basal areas of tlie wing along the inner margin are blue, darkest at the ])ase. The blue colour extends a little upon the lower edge i>f the cell, and becomes lighter just beyond the lower angle of the cell. The secondaries are blue shading into brown at the base, and with the veins some- what broadly brown. There is a submarginal and a marginal row of light lunules, the inner series fainter in colour than the outer series. The space between these two rows of lunules is fuscous. The outer row of lunules is accented externally by a corresponding series of dark 'triangular spaces, which toward the anal angle become a deep black. The margin is indicated by a fine white marginal line. The fringes are bl.ack, tipj)ed with light brown, and at the extremities of veins 1, ,, and :( are produced as short tails, tipped with wiiite, tiie tail at the end of vein 2 being the longest. On the underside both wings are greyish fawn, a trifle darker at tlie base of the wings : the primaries at tlie end of the cell have a transverse short baud of darker drab extending from the costa to the lower outer angle of the cell, and defined inwardly and outwardly by fine whitish lines, of which the one on the outer margin of the spot is extended upward to the costa. Beyond this spot and extend- ing from the costa to the inner margin is a broad, rather even submarginal baud of the same drab colonr, bordered on both sides by fine whitisli lines. There is a marginal series of <'onfluent dark lunules, one on each intersjiace. These lunules, like the inner bands, are marj;ined on either side by fine whitish lines. The margin is indicatiHl by an exceedingly fine wliito line. The fringes are brown, as on tiie upperside. The fringes of the secondaries are dark brown tipped with lighter brown. The margin is indicated on the secondaries, as on the primaries, by a fine but very distinct white line. The luarginal series of confluent lunules appearing uiion the primaries reappears npou the secondaries, the triangular external spaces being darker than upon the primaries. Between veins ■,' and '^ there is a conspicuous black ocellus, surmonuted with a lunule of orange nil and sprinkled with a few bluish scales. The middle and liasal areas of the secondaries are marked by a number of short lines or strigae arranged in a very intricate manner, scarcely .admitting of accm'ate description.
Tl. L. pegobates si' nov. ?. The body on the upperside is fuscous, clothed more or h-ss with l>lue hairs, particularly upon tJie thorax. The lowerside of tlu' body is yellowish white. The legs are white, with the tibiae edged externally with grey and the tarsi ringed with the same colour. The first and second joints of the palpi are white, tiie third black. On the up])erside the primaries are broadly dark fuscous on the costal
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and outer marginal areas. The Imsal aven from flic inner margin as far as the middle of tjie cell is dark smalt bine, jiassing into jiale blnish white beyond the lower outer angle of the cell. The secondaries are pale fnscons, with the basal area in the region of the cell shot with smalt blue. This wing is crossed by a broad rather regular fuscous band running from the costa before tiie outer angle toward the anal angle, which it does not quite reacli. The margin is indicated by two fine bluish white lines, separated by a narrow dark line. Tiie fringes are dark fuscous, as on the jirimaries, but are edged with jialer fuscous, and produced at the extremities of veins 1, 2, and 3 as short tails, of which the one at the end of Vein 2 is the longest. All of these tails are tijiped narrowly with white.
On the underside both wings are pale fawn. There is a short transverse band of slightly ilarker fown running from the costa to the lower angle of the cell margined by narrow white lines. This is succeeded by a broad dark band running from the costa and retracted a short distance along the inner margin, and edged on either side with white lines. A fine white line runs from the costa toward the inner margin, bending outwardly about the middle of the wing, and coalescing with the white line which defines the broad outer band before the inner margin is reached. Beyond this line we still have two other fine white lines along the margin, separated by a narrow dark line. The fringes are uniformly fnscous. The lines and bands' of the outer marginal area of the primaries are produced upon the secondaries. There is a very small and obscure ocellns between veins 2 and 3, having a black centre, surmounted by orange red. The discal and basal portion of this wing is marked by numerous tine white lines arranged in intricate'patterus.
E.Kpanse : 30 mm.
Type unique.
This species is closely allied to the preceding, but the pattern and direction of the transverse lines and bands on both sides of the wings are very different. No tendency to the breaking up of the lines and bands of the margins into lunnles is revealed, and the entire facies is different. Unfortunately there does not appear to be any male, to which I can refer this specimen — a fact for which I must express deej) regret.
Genus TALK'ADA Moore.
72. T. buruana sp. nov.
This species is closely allied to 1. arruanu Feld., from which it is easily dis- tinguished by the fact that the miles are very light blue on the upperside of the wings, and not dark blue as in Felder's species. Furthermore, there is an entire absence in both sexes of the dark red marking near the anal angle of the secondaries, which are characteristic of T. arruanu. The fomnli> is dark fnscous on the upper- side of the primaries and secondaries, with the wings shot near the base with silvery binisli white. This may be regarded as the Baruan form of Felder's species.
Gesus EVERES Httbner.
73. E. argiades CPallas), Reise I. App. p. 472(1771). ( For synonymy compare De Niceville, Butt. Im/ia III. p. 137.)
There are a few of this species in both se.xes.
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Genus NACADUBA Mooie.
T4. N. ardates (Moore), Proe. Zool. Soc. Load. p. 574. t. 67. f. 1 (1874).
The collection contains a number of males, of which all but one are of the tailless form.
76. (?) N. aluta (Druce), Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. p. 349. t. 32. f. 0 (1873) ; id., I.e., p. .378. t. 32. f. 13. 14 (1895).
It is with some donbt that I refer two specimens in the collection to this species. They are smaller than they ought to be to agree with the account of the species given by Mr. H. H. Druce, and are darker bine on the npperside than represented in his figure.
76. N. ancyra (Felder), Reise Nocara, Lep. p. 276. t. 34. f. 5 (186.5). A few males of this species.
77. N. beroe (Felder), Reise Nomra, Lep. p. 275. t. 34. f. 36 (186.")).
A large number of 7nales and three t^ot females, which I refer to this species.
78. N. albofasciatus (liober), Iris I. p. 65. t. 4. f. 21. c? (1885). Rober describes and figures the male. The collection before me contains no male specimens, but two females, which agree so closely on the underside with the figure given by Ruber that I am constrained to refer them to this species. They are unlike any other insect in the genus known to me, and I believe my determination to be correct.
79. N. cladara sp. nov.
cJ. The body is fuscous, more or less clothed with blue hairs on the npperside. The thorax and legs are quite dark, the abdomen on the underside is pale grey. The palpi are black. The antennae are black, slightly ringed with white on the underside. Tiie wings on the npperside are pale morpho-blue, somewhat clouded in certain lights with pale brown at the base. Both are margined with a fine black line, and the i)rimaries are very lightly edged in addition with fuscous on the margin, most noticeably near the apex. There is a minute black spot near the anal angle. On the underside the wings are sordid brown, becoming darker toward the base, where they are almost black. The primaries have a transverse band on the middle of the cell produced beyond it as far as the first median nervnle, another similar band closing the end of the cell, and beyond this running from the costa to the submedian nerve a catenulate band bent outwardly opposite the cell. All of these bands are margined with fine whitish lines, and are a shade darker than the adjacent parts of the wing. In addition, there is on the primaries a double row of marginal lunules, also bordered on either side by pale diffuse lines. The secondaries on the underside are furnished with a subbasal curved series of spots like those on the primaries, running from the costa to the inner margm. The cell is closed by a fine whitish line, defined externally by a darker band of the same length, which is followed by an irregularly curved series of dark markings, the spots opposite the end of the cell being thrust outwardly and the pale lines
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(lefiiiiiig tlieiu Cdiilesciiig with a >eries of lines runniiii; from the ontor aagle tcS the third median iiervulo. The double series of luaules appearing on the primaries is produced upon the secondaries, but between veins 2 and '^ is interrupted by a conspicuous black ocellns, suimonutcd with a. red lunnlo, and liaving' a few iridescent bluish green scales on its outer margin ; there are also two similar, but much smaller, black sjwts at the anal angle, likewise ornamented with bluish green scales.
E.xpanse : t.'.") mm.
Descrilied from three male specimens.
80. N. poecilta sp. nov.
cT. The npperside of the body is dark fascons, clothed with pale bine hairs ; the lowerside of the body and the legs are blackish. Tlie abdomen on the lower- side is narrowly marked with pale grey. The palj)i are black. Tiie antennae are black, ringed with white on the lowerside. Both wings are very pale violet-blue, in certain lights having a pale brown cast, especially about the base. The margin of both wings is defined by a very fine black line. The fringes are white, checked with fuscous at the ends of the nervules. At the end of vein "-' on the secondaries there is a short tail, fuscous, tipped with white. On either side of the c.Ktremity of the same vein are two small dark spots, narrowly edged outwardly by fine white lines. On the underside the wings have the outer margin pale grey, almost white, with the discal and basal areas broadly suftused with dark mouse-grey. The primaries are marked by three transverse bands of dark blackish brown, defined inwardly and outwardly by light lines, which on the <osta are represented by small very distinct white spots. These bands are : 1st, a snbbasal band extending from the costa across the cell to the submedian nerve ; 2nd, a discocellular baud, covering the end of the cell : and :^rd, a catenulate discal band, running from the costa to the submedian nerve. In the latter band the three spots, which are opposite the cell, are somewhat dislocated, and pushed forth in the direction of the outer margin. There is a double series of pale grey lunnles along the margin, irregnlar in size, the upper one of the outer series at the ape.x being the largest and quite conspieuons, those about the middle of the margin tend to become obsolete. The secondaries on the nnderside are crossed by a basal ciu'ved catenulate band, by a discocellular bar, followed closely by an irregularly curved discal catenulate band. All of these bands are dark blackish brown, and the maculae composing them are edged with lighter colour. There is a double row of rather irregular marginal Innules, grey in colour, edged with white. Between veins 2 and 3 there is a conspicuous ocellus, surmounted with an orange-red lunnle, its deeji velvety black central spot marked externally by a very fine lunette of bluish green. Another very small ocellus is situated at the anal angle. Expanse : 20 mm.
There is a single specimen of this species in tlie cnllection, marked by Mr. Doherty " Nacaduba, species incerta." I have another specimen in my collection coming from Amboyua, and purchased by me several years ago in a lot of Amboynese material. In the Amboynese example the ground colour is somewhat paler, and the outer margins are broadly whitish. In consequence the transverse markings stand forth much more conspicuonsly in this specimen. This thing I at one time thought was the hitherto undeseribed and unfignred male of N. palmi/ny Feld, the words in Felder's description {Sitrher. Ah. Wisx. Wim, Math. Kit. t'f.
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XL. p. 458), " ((lis ca)i(l((tis, ciliis albis, fiisco intersectis" seeming to furuisli a clue. So far as my observation goes, the only Nacadt'ha to whidi these wordh apply is the species beft>re me. 1 do not know N. palmyra Feld., save by his description and the figure, which is that of a female, and wholly unlike the insect aliove described, if the text and plate are safe guides.
si. N. glenis sp. nov.
? . The body ou the upperside is black, more or less clothed with bluish hairs ; on t!ie underside the body is pale grey. The legs are whitish, streaked and ringed with grey. The first and second joints of the palpi are white, the third joint is black. The front is white. The antennae arc black, ringed below with white. The wings on the upperside are dark fuscous, shading on the costa of the primaries and the outer margins of both wings into black. Both wings at the base arc shot with ro3-al purple, only vi.sible in certain lights. On tlie underside both wings are broadly yellowish ochraceous. The primaries have a discocellnlar brown bar, edj^ed on both sides by fine pale yellow lines ; a discal catcnulate transverse l)and, bowed out before the end of the cell, and running from the costa to the snbmedian nerve, the spots composing it colom'cd and defined as the bar at the end of the cell. In addition there is a double series of submargivial fuscous markings defined on both sides by light poorly defined lines. The inner row of these markings is very uniform in size, more or less quadrate, and larger than those composing the outer row, which are small and distinctly lunulate. The fringes are dark fuscous. The secondaries on the underside have a snbbasal series of three subqnadrate spots, a discocellnlar bar, and a discal curved scries of spots, all of which are defined more or less sharply on both sides by pale yellow lines. The double series of marginal markings of the primaries is continued upon the secondaries. The inner row is strongly accentuated on the side toward the base by broad, pale yellowish transverse lines or bands, the outer row of lunnles is composed of spots gradually increasing in size from the outer angle, until they culminate in a large ocellus, between veins 2 and 3. The two spots antecedent to this ocellus are distinctly occlliforni. The large ocellus is black, ringed with yellowish, and without any blue-green scales. There arc two minute black lunular markings at the anal angle.
Expanse 25 mm.
Type unique.
There is no male in the collection corresponding to this insect, and. so far as I know, there is nothing jnst like it which has hitherto been described or figured. The broadly yellowish ochraceous tint of tlie underside is very characteristic.
Genus JAM IDES Hubner.
8'i. J. astraptes (Felder), Sitzber. Ah. Wissensch. \Vie», Mifh. Nat. CI. XL.
p. 450 (1860).
A large series of males and/etnales. Apparently very common.
83. J. porphyris sp. nov.
(J. The primaries on the upperside have the outer margin somewhat narrowly edged with black ; the secondaries have the costal, outer and inner margins very
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broadl.v margiued with black ; the remainder of the upjtcr surface of the wings is very deep ro^val ])uii)le, with little or no sheen. On the underside I am unable to distinguish the markings of this s])ecies from those of J. astraptes and those of ./. boclius, except that the ground colour of the wing is a jjaler whitish grey.
?. The ye/«n/(' is marked on the underside like the »(«/<■. On the upperside the wings are very broadly black-, being merely shot lightly at the base with royal purple. The secondaries have the outer margin defined more or less distinctly toward the anal angle by a fine white line, above which are tliree or four small spots, darker than the adjacent parts of the wing.
Expanse S 18 — 25 mm., ? 28 mm.
Described from numerous males, onQ/emale.
Genus LAMPIDES Hiibner. 84. L. hylas (Cramer), Pap. Exot. IV. t. 3(J3. f. E. F (1782). Apparently very common.
8.j. L. celeno (Cramer), I.e. I. t. 31. f C. D (1775). A few specimens.
8(). L. aratus (Cramer), l.,-. IV. t. 3G9. f A. B (1782). Apparently not uncommon.
87. L. callinicus (Ruber), his I. p. 58. t. 4. f. 15 (1884).
What I take to be this species is represented in the collection by a few males and more nwoi&roxi& females.
88. (?) L. nemea Felder, Sit^ber. A/t. Wiss. Wien. XL. j). 455 (1860).
It is with some doubt that I refer the two specimens before me to this species.
89. L. bumana sp. nov.
tJ. The ynale on the upperside has much the appearance of L. aratus Cram., but the wings on the upperside of the primaries in particular are overshot with a deeper blue iridescence, the outer margin of the primaries is more heavily edged with dark fuscons, and the subbasal dark band of the underside shows through upon the upperside as a pale dark band parallel to the outer margin. The secondaries on the upperside have the margin distinctly defined by a black line, followed by a row of marginal lunules, surrounded with white, the one between veins 2 and 3 being distinctly ocelliform. This row of lunules is succeeded inwardly by a sub- marginal row of dark fuscous spots, more or less quadrate in form. On the under- side the wings are pale fawn crossed by white lines, the arrangement of which is simpler than in L. aratus, the most striking difference being the fact that on the primaries the two lines at the end of the cell are continued directly as parallel lines to the sabmedian nerve. These lines are succeeded by two parallel curved subapical
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lines, the innermost reaching' to the second median nervule and the ontermost to the third median nervule. There is a broad submarginal band of quadrate dark spots, and a marginal series of lanules, both bordered inwardly quite broadly with white, the margin is indicated by a fine white line followed externally by a fine but very distinct black line. The fringes are fuscous, tipped with white. The second- aries have the marginal markings of the primaries continued upon them, the series of luuules being interrupted by a large ocellus, between veins 2 and 3, deep black, surmounted by a lunule of orange-red, and irrorated with bluish green scales. The discal and basal areas are crossed by five transverse lines, broken on vein 0, and all tending to unite by their lower extremities at a point about the middle of vein 2. On the inner margin there are three parallel short lines running from vein 2 upwardly in the direction of the insertion of the wing.
? . Ihejemale is much like the )/iale, but all the markings are heavier and more distinct, and the upper surface of tlie wings lacks the bluish sheen of the male, being more milky white. Furthermore the apical area of the primaries on the upperside is somewhat broadly laved with dark fuscous.
Expanse c? 28 — 32 mm,, ? 25 — 33 mm. Described from six males and six females.
I reluct at describing another species in this genus, in which the differences are often found to reside merely in a shade of colour, or the arrangement of a few lines in the underside of the wing, but in this case the specimens before me are so constant in their markings and are so totally distinct in their facies from any other species known to me, that I am compelled to regard them as, if not a distinct species, at least representing a well-defined local race. There is nothing exactly like them so far as 1 can see which has been described or figured elsewhere.
Genus CATOCHRYSOPS Boisduval.
90. C. strabo (Fabricius), Ent. S>/st. III. 1. p. 287. n. 101 (1793).
Apparently common. The specimens are all relatively small, much less in expanse of wings, than the specimens of the following species, which I think is surely only a dimorphic form of the male, but which I still allow to stand until we shall have this surmise proved by the experiment of breeding.
91. C. lithargyria (Moore), Ami. Mag. Nat. Hist. (4). XX. p. 340. (1877).
This is certainly not specifically distinct from the foregoing species, and will no doubt turn mit, when the test of breeding is applied, to be the dimorphic male of C. strabo.
Very common. The females are not separable from those of C. strabo, if the females enclosed iu the same envelopes with Uthargifria are certainly the females of this form, which I believe that they are.
92. C. cnejus (Fabricius), Ent. Syst. Suppl. p. 430 (1798). Not at all scarce.
Genus AMBLYPODIA Horsfield. 93. A. anna Standinger,' Exot. lagf. I. p. 282 (1888). The collection contains two males and three females of this species, not all quite perfect.
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Genis AHllOFAl.A Boisdnval. '•■1. A. Carolina sp. uov.
rT. This species belongs to tlie anthore group, and comes in some respects quite near A. politn Riiber, but may at once be ilistingnished from that species by tbe arrangement of tbe spots on the underside of the secondaries, which instead of beinft more or less rotund, as in .1. poUtu, are elongated transversely, giving the wing a barred appearance.
S . The /t;»««fe is like tlie iiiale, but lacking much of the purple gloss on tbe costal and ajiical tracts of tlie primaries, which are margined wirli jilain black, broadly on the margin at tlie apex, the black band narrowing gradually until it vanishes at the outer angle.
Expanse S and ? about 40 miu. Described from five wiA'.* aud ow J'rmnlr'.
'■<■>. A. fulla Hewits.in, I'nf. l.;/c. II. .1/. p. lo. t. tl. p, r,:. os (lsC2).
Hewitsoii clescribes and figures tlie M'f/e. The femulr is exactly like it on the underside, but is distinguished upon the upjierside by having the costae of both wings as well as the apex of the primaries broadly dull black, and the outer margins of both wings of the same colour.
The collection contains a large number of utolr'!^, but only two J'emales.
'Mi. A- buruensis sp. nov.
<S. The upperside of both wings is uniformly dark jnirplish blue, with tbe external border of the primaries quite narrowly bordered with black-fuscous. On the underside both wings are ochraceous-fuscous crossed with darker spots and bands, which are bordered narrowly, es])ecially on the secondaries, with fine lighter lines. These spots and bau<ls are very little darker than