Part 300

Sharpe, Hand-List (1901), 3, 276, assigns the species C. nigrorum and C. olivacea to Abrornis. Oates says: "Abrornis resembles Cryptolopha in everything except the tail, which has ten feathers instead of twelve." As the species mentioned above have twelve rectrices I have put them in Cryptolopha.

Cf. footnote under Cryptolopha olivacea, p. 474.

Whitehead's diagnosis is as follows: "Similis C. montis sed rostro crassiore et uropygio sulphureo destinguenda."

There is some doubt as to the species of Artamides found in Libagao, but it is in all probability A. mindorensis.

Sharpe's diagnosis reads:

"Mas a mari E. morionis ex insula Celebensi vix diversus. Foem. tamen gastraeo toto cinereo concolore facile distinguenda." Sharpe should have compared the male with E. mindanense as well as with E. morio.

This key can be used with adult birds only.

No specimen of L. melanoleuca was collected on Semirara but "a bird, probably of this species, was seen."

Cf. Sharpe, Hand-List (1901), 3, 309. I find no record of this Irena having been taken in Balabac.

Mearns gives the following characters for this subspecies: "Similar to the Luzon guava bulbul (Pycnonotus goiavier goiavier), but smaller, with relatively shorter tail, broader supraorbital white stripes, and a paler auricular patch." The comparative measurements given by Mearns are not convincing and I am not prepared to admit the validity of this subspecies.

Leonardina (p. 537) probably belongs near Mixornis and Macronous; I have not seen it.

The original description of Mixornis (=Zosterornis) plateni follows:

"Mixornis plateni, bedeutend kleiner als M. capitalis, mit welcher Form die Art, besonders von der Oberseite gesehen, eine gewisse Aehnlichkeit in der Färbung besitzt.

"Oberseite olivenbraun, Bürzel und Schwanzdeckfedern mehr rostfarben, am Vorderrücken weisse Schaftstriche. Ganzer Kopf, oben und an den Seiten, Nacken und Brust rothbraun mit feinen weissen Schaftstrichen. Kinn und Kehle mehr schwärzlich mit breiteren weissen Schaftflecken. Schwanzfedern einfarbig braun, an der Aussenfahne olivenfarben verwaschen. Ebenso die schwanz federn oberseits und die oberen Flügeldeckfedern. Untere Flügeldeckfedern und Achselfedern weisslich. Masse: [female] Long. tot. 12 cm. Ala 5.5 cm. Caud. 4.7 cm. Culmen 1.0 cm. Tarsus 1.5 cm. Type: Museum Brunsvicense."

The original description of Macronous kettlewelli follows: "Brunneus; dorsi plumis filiformibus, elongatis, versus basin nigricantibus; rachide, et partibus plumæ rachidi adjacentibus, albidis; alis fulvescenti-brunneis, exterius pallidioribus; supracaudalibus caudaque pallide castaneis; pileo dorso concolori, rachidibus plumarum albidis; fronte nigricante, magis distincte striata; superciliis, loris et regione parotica nigricantibus, albo lineatis; genis et corpore toto subtus pallide cervinis; hypochondriis brunnescentibus; gula summa et abdomine medio albicantibus; gutture et corporis lateribus vix albido lineatis; subalaribus pectori concoloribus; iride smaragdinea; rostro et pedibus brunneis. Long. tot. circa 0.140 m; al. 0.063 m; caud. 0.070 m; rostr. 0.015 m; tars. 0.024 m." (Guillemard.)

For detailed characters of the Turdidæ the reader is referred to Seebohm, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1881), 5, 2; and to Birds of North and Middle America, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus. Washington (1907), 50, pt. 4, 1 to 4.

This key to the Philippine species of Planesticus is taken from a paper by Mearns, Phil. Journ. Sci. (1907), 2, sec. A, 359.

Birds of the genus Planesticus are called "blackbirds" in Europe and "robins" in the United States; as both of these names are in common use for birds of entirely different genera I have employed the name "black thrush" for the Philippine species of Planesticus.

I use Forster's name for this rock thrush on the recommendation of Dr. C. W. Richmond.

Cf. Grant, Ibis (1896), 117.

I follow Sharpe in alloting Lanius validirostris and L. nasutus to Cephalophoneus. The type of this genus is said to be Lanius bucephalus, a species resembling Lanius validirostris in length of tail and turgidity of bill. These two species appear to be congeneric. In L. nasutus, however, the tail is much longer; the rectrices are more strongly graduated and relatively narrower. Possibly another genus should be recognized for nasutus and suluensis.

Philippine specimens of this genus have usually been referred to Lanius (Otomela) lucionensis, but both O. cristata and O. superciliosa are credited to the Philippines in Sharpe's Hand-List and for this reason they are included here. Having no specimens of undoubted identity I am unable to determine many of the specimens of shrikes in the Bureau of Science collection. Of the last two species mentioned I give the distribution and short descriptions on the authority of Dresser.

The following paragraphs may be of use in distinguishing the three species.

"L. superciliosus Latham * * * has the entire upper surface very bright uniform rufous, a very broad frontal band, a very broad superciliary stripe, and the throat pure white; the inner webs of the basal parts of the primaries white underneath, which shows through on the upper surface of the quills at their insertion, almost forming a white, yet concealed alar bar; shoulder-edge and under shoulder-coverts pure white.

"L. cristatus Linnæus has the head, nape, rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail rufous, but less bright and browner than in L. superciliosus. The back is colored with the same tint, but paler or less rufous. The chin and upper part of the throat are white; but the tawny hue of the breast extends higher up than in either L. superciliosus or in L. lucionensis; and all the throat is usually washed with tawny.

"The white frontal band is narrow and ill-defined; and the white supercilium is much less prominent than in L. superciliosus. The quills at their insertions show indications, although slight, of a rudimentary alar bar. The shoulder-edge and under shoulder-coverts are tawny. The female is colored as the male, but has the subocular stripe brown and not black and the sides of the breast and flanks more or less striated and freckled with faint brown marks.

"L. lucionensis Linnæus has the forehead and crown delicate pale pearl-gray, no pure white whatever on the forehead. A narrow white supercilium commences above the eye, becoming somewhat broader behind, and shading off into the gray of the head. The occiput, nape, and back are ashy liver-brown. The rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail are washed with rufous, most marked on the upper tail-coverts; the chin and throat pure white, as in L. superciliosus; shoulder-edge and under shoulder-coverts pure white; indications of a concealed white alar bar, as in L. cristatus; and the female has the sexual distinguishing characters of that species. The almost entire absence of rufous in the plumage of the adult Philippine species suffices to distinguish it at a glance from L. cristatus and L. superciliosus." Walden, Trans. Zool. Soc. (1875), 9, 171, 172.

"Adult male.--Similar to typical Hyloterpe apoensis, but paler throughout, with crown brownish instead of grayish; under parts canary-yellow instead of lemon-yellow; slightly smaller. Wing, 78; tail, 67; culmen, 14; bill from nostril, 9.2; tarsus, 17.5. 'Iris brown. Bill black.'