Part 178

MINDANAO BLUE FANTAIL.

Hypothymis superciliaris Sharpe, Trans. Linn. Soc. Zool. 2d. ser. (1877), 1, 236; Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1879), 4, 278; Hand-List (1901), 3, 248; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 73.

Basilan (Steere, Everett, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Mindanao (Steere Exp., Platen, Bourns & Worcester, Goodfellow, Celestino).

Male.--Above dark verditer-blue, top of head darker; forehead and a line over each eye silvery cobalt; wings and tail black, the exposed portions of webs mostly bright cobalt; chin, throat, breast, and thighs dull smoky blue; lower breast and abdomen white, washed with blue-gray. Bill, legs, and nails black; iris brown. Length, about 165; wing, 78; tail, 78; culmen from base, 15; bill from nostril, 9; tarsus, 14.5.

Female.--Similar to the male, but with the blue lighter and more verditer. Wing, 72; tail, 79; bill from nostril, 8.5.

"Very common in the forests of Basilan; a strictly deep woods form. Seven males average: Length, 164; wing, 78; tail, 82; culmen, 15; tarsus, 15; middle toe with claw, 14. Two females, length, 151; wing, 76; tail, 75; tarsus, 15; middle toe with claw, 14. Iris dark brown; bill black; legs, feet, and nails nearly black. Breeding in August in Mindanao and Basilan." (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

417. RHIPIDURA SAMARENSIS (Steere).

SAMAR BLUE FANTAIL.

Hypothymis samarensis Steere, List Birds and Mams. Steere Exped. (1890), 16; Sharpe, Hand-List (1901), 3, 249; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 73. Rhipidura samarensis Whitehead, Ibis (1899), 107 (generic position).

Bohol (McGregor); Leyte (Steere Exp., Whitehead); Samar (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Whitehead).

Male and female.--Similar to Rhipidura superciliaris, but upper parts more verditer-blue; crown much darker, almost black.

"Fairly common in Samar. Found in deep forest in company with other flycatchers. Four males average 119 in length; wing, 61; tail, 38; culmen, 15; tarsus, 20; middle toe with claw, 18. Iris, legs, feet, and nails dark brown; bill almost black. Breeding in July and August." (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

418. RHIPIDURA ALBIVENTRIS (Sharpe).

WHITE-BELLIED FANTAIL.

Philentoma albiventris Sharpe, Trans. Linn. Soc. 2d. ser. Zool. (1877), 1, 325. Rhipidura albiventris Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1879), 4, 324; Hand-List (1901), 3, 257; Whitehead, Ibis (1899), 107; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 74.

Guimaras (Steere, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Masbate (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Negros (Everett, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Panay (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor).

Adult (sexes similar).--Head, neck, and upper back grayish blue, streaked with lighter blue on head; back, rump, and upper tail-coverts dark chestnut or bay; chin, throat, breast, and entire sides of head and neck grayish blue, many of the feathers with white shafts; abdomen white; under tail-coverts light chestnut; feathers of thighs with dusky bases; primaries and secondaries blackish, the latter edged with chestnut, this color covering the entire web of two or three innermost secondaries; wing-coverts mostly grayish blue like the neck, but some of the inner ones chestnut; rectrices chestnut except innermost pair and inner webs of next pair which are blackish. Iris dark brown; bill black; legs and nails dark lead-color. Length of a male, 165; wing, 84; tail, 92; culmen from base, 14.5; bill from nostril, 9; tarsus, 18.

"A very showy bird. Common in the forests of the islands where it occurs. Like R. cyaniceps, it makes the most of itself. It is bold and easily killed. It is particularly abundant in Negros. Five males average 176 in length; wing, 79; tail, 88; culmen, 16; tarsus, 17; middle toe with claw, 15. Four females, length, 152; wing, 75; tail, 82; culmen, 16; tarsus, 18; middle toe with claw, 15." (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

419. RHIPIDURA CYANICEPS (Cassin).

RUFOUS-BELLIED FANTAIL.

Muscipeta cyaniceps Cassin, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. (1855), 438; Ornith. Wilkes Exped. (1858), 145, pl. 9, fig. 1. Philentoma cyaniceps Walden, Trans. Zool. Soc. (1875), 9, 182, pl. 32, fig. 1. Rhipidura cyaniceps Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1879), 4, 323; Hand-List (1901), 3, 257; Grant and Whitehead, Ibis (1898), 236 (eggs); Whitehead, Ibis (1899), 107 (habits, nest); Oates and Reid, Cat. Birds' Eggs (1903), 3, 276, pl. 8, fig. 17 (egg); McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 74.

U-li-li-su, Benguet, Luzon.

Luzon (Meyer, Everett, Whitehead, Steere Exp., McGregor).

Adult (sexes alike).--Very similar to R. albiventris, but abdomen, flanks, and thighs cinnamon-rufous. A male measures: Wing, 75; tail, 86; culmen from base, 12; bill from nostril, 8; tarsus, 18. A female, wing, 74; tail, 81; culmen from base, 12; tarsus, 17.

Whitehead collected a nest and two eggs of this species at Cape Engaño, Luzon, April 29, 1895, which are described as follows:

"Shape ovate. Ground-color rich cream-color. A zone of spots and small blotches round the larger end; the under-markings pale slate-gray, the over-markings darker cream-color. Measurements 19 mm. by 14 mm.

"Nest of the usual cup-shaped type made by all the species of Rhipidura, and placed on a dead bough in an open pathway in a conspicuous position." (Grant and Whitehead.)

"Sharpe mentions a specimen of R. cyaniceps in the British Museum collected in Mindanao by Cuming. It seems to us extremely unlikely that such a bird could have been overlooked by the numerous collectors who have since visited that island, and we do not believe it exists there. Cuming does not seem to have been over particular about recording exact localities in the case of his Philippine collections, and it is not at all improbable that this record is an error." (Bourns and Worcester MS.)