La-pay, Ticao.

Bohol (McGregor); Calamianes (Bourns & Worcester); Catanduanes (Whitehead); Leyte (Steere Exp.); Luzon (Meyen, Whitehead, McGregor); Marinduque (Steere Exp.); Mindoro (Bourns & Worcester); Negros (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Whitehead); Palawan (Bourns & Worcester); Panay (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Romblon (McGregor); Samar (Whitehead); Sibuyan (McGregor); Tablas (Bourns & Worcester); Tawi Tawi (Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor). Celebes, Indian and Malay Peninsulas, Ceylon, China, Greater Sunda Islands.

Adult male.—“Forehead, crown, long occipital crest, a streak down back of neck, one on each side of neck, and another on each side from gape to nape slaty black; chin and throat white, rest of head and neck ferruginous red, paler and buff on sides of head and middle of fore neck; long feathers overhanging upper breast buffy white, streaked with black and chestnut; lower hind neck, back, rump, and upper tail-coverts, wings and tail slaty gray, back darker; quills and tail-feathers blackish; scapulars with long pointed rufous ends; middle of breast and abdomen and lower tail-coverts slaty black; sides of breast rich chestnut; flanks ashy gray; thigh-coverts cinnamon; wing-lining mostly ferruginous. Length, 965; tail, 19; wing, 368; tarsus 140; bill from gape, 152.” (Blanford.)

“Upper mandible dark brown, the margins dusky yellow as far back as the nostrils, produced to the eye; margins from nostrils to gape dark brown; anterior half of lower mandible clear yellow; the posterior half dull yellow; gape and facial skin greenish yellow; edges of the eyelids yellow; feet and toes yellowish; the front of the tarsus and toes glossy brown; claws dark horn-color; iris yellow.” (Oates.)

“Adult female.—Similar to the male, but not quite so bright, and the black crest plumes not quite so long.

“‘Nestling.—Crown of head, quills, and tail lavender-brown; throat and chin pure white; sides of head and upper neck rufous; lower neck rufous-gray, the feathers on the sides being centered with brown; lower plumage rufescent, each feather more or less dark-centered; thighs plain rufous; upper plumage brown, each feather edged with rufescent, more especially on the scapulars and tertiaries; upper and lower wing-coverts bluish brown, each feather broadly edged with rufous.’ (Oates.)” (Sharpe.)

“Young birds have neither crest nor lengthened plumes on scapulars or breast; upper parts brownish gray, with broad rufous edges to the feathers; crown partly gray; neck rufous, fore neck with black streaks; lower surface a mixture of buff and gray.” (Blanford.)

This species is the commonest of the large herons and may easily be identified by means of the preceding excellent descriptions. In a fine-plumaged male from Anao, Tarlac Province, Luzon, the upper mandible was dusky; lower mandible yellow, greenish toward base; upper part of legs light yellowish green, lower parts brown. Length, 1,000; wing, 375; tail, 133; tarsus, 124; culmen from frontal feathers, 136; middle toe with claw, 135; hind toe with claw, 80.

Guimaras (Steere Exp.). Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia.

“Adult in breeding plumage.—General color above light ashy gray, scapular plumes, parapteral feathers, and innermost secondaries elongated and forming narrow drooping plumes of pearly gray or white; the wing-coverts gray like back, the outer ones pearly gray or white, the greater series dark ashy, outer webs entirely white; alula, primary-coverts, and quills purplish black, secondaries shaded with gray externally, inner secondaries like back; tail-feathers entirely gray; crown of head crested, white in the center, with a broad band of purplish black on each side, ending in a crest on occiput, and having two elongated nuchal plumes; entire sides of face, neck all round, and under surface of body white, with a creamy lilac shade on each side of fore neck and chest, which have drooping plumes of narrow, elongated, white feathers; the whole of the lower throat and fore neck varied with elongated black stripes, differing in breadth and situated on one side of the feather; on each side of the crop is a large patch of drooping plumes of purplish black, and continued along the sides of the body even as far as the vent; sides of body light ashy gray; thighs and under tail-coverts white; under wing-coverts ashy gray. ‘Bill yellow, with the ridge of the upper mandible brown towards the end; feet dull green; tibia yellow; claws black; iris yellow; bare space between the bill and the eye green.’ (Macgillivray.) Length, 762; culmen, 129; wing, 457; tail, 183; tarsus, 173.

“Adult female.—Similar to the male and equally beautifully colored, but the black crest-plumes not so long, and the black markings on the chest not quite so pronounced. Length, about 762; culmen, 124; wing, 452; tail, 170; tarsus, 162.

“Young.—Differs from the adult in being darker and not so pure gray; head dark slate-color, with a small nuchal crest of purplish black, neck rather lighter ashy; sides of face and ear-coverts also ashy gray; cheeks and throat white; neck dark slaty gray, as also the sides of the body, under wing-coverts, and axillars; lower throat, fore neck, and chest very broadly streaked with black, the black very thickly developed on throat, sparsely on fore neck, and represented by a few black streaks on sides of body; on each side of chest the black patch of the adult is represented by a dusky patch of feathers, relieved by several broad white streaks; on bend of wing a tinge of rust-color, which also pervades the black-streaked feathers of throat and fore neck.” (Sharpe.)

“Rare. Not met with by us on our second visit to the Islands.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

The common heron is rare in the Philippines but may be recognized by the pale gray head and neck, set off by the black crest, line on side of head, and broken line on throat. A very much damaged specimen in the Bureau of Science collection has unfortunately no data as to its source but it was probably killed in Luzon.

Bantayan (McGregor); Basilan (McGregor); Bohol (McGregor); Mindoro (Porter); Negros (Keay); Palawan (Platen, Whitehead, Celestino, White). Australia, Malay Peninsula, Sunda Islands, Celebes, Aracan, Tenasserim.

“Adult male.—Above dull slaty gray, lower back and rump paler gray; upper tail-coverts more dusky; scapulars with elongated plumes, pearly white at the ends; wing-coverts and quills dark slaty gray, with a slight greenish gloss on some of them; innermost secondaries elongated and tipped with pearly white, like scapulars; tail-feathers dark slate-color, slightly glossed with green; crown of head slaty gray and crested, crest-feathers with dusky margins, and with some long drooping plumes on nape, which are pearly white at the ends; sides of face and hinder cheeks pale vinaceous-brown; fore part of cheeks and upper throat white; neck all round slaty brown, the feathers mostly elongated, and with a mesial streak of white towards the ends; plumes on the fore neck similarly colored, but very much elongated; remainder of under surface slaty gray, paler on abdomen with longitudinal white centers to the feathers, these being indistinct upon abdomen and under tail-coverts; on each side of upper breast a large patch of slaty gray feathers, very slightly streaked with white; under wing-coverts and axillars slaty gray with white streaks; marginal feathers round bend of wing white. ‘Bill black, lower mandible yellowish white at base; legs and feet black, soles faded yellow; iris pale orange.’ (H. O. Forbes.) Length, about 1,143; culmen, 173; wing, 465; tail, 155; tarsus, 170.

“Young.—Differs from the adult in having no elongated plumes, and being everywhere browner; feathers of the upper surface tipped with a rufous or sandy-buff spot; feathers of neck and under parts vinaceous-rufous with mesial streaks of white, the whole under surface very thickly streaked.” (Sharpe.)

This is the very largest of Philippine herons and it may be known at once by its almost uniform slate-gray color. In a male from Bohol the iris was red; bill black, with some yellow on lower mandible; legs and nails blackish brown. Wing, 440; tail, 170; culmen from frontal feathers, 180; tarsus, 164; middle toe with claw, 126; hind toe with claw, 77.

Bohol (Steere Exp.); Calayan (McGregor); Mindanao (Everett); Mindoro (Bourns & Worcester); Palawan (Whitehead); Samar (Steere Exp.). Indian Peninsula, Malayan Archipelago, China, Japan.

“Adult male in breeding plumage.—Pure white above and below; the head crested, but having no drooping plumes; long ornamental plumes of back immensely developed, being 430 mm. in length; feathers on the fore neck beautifully developed, 200 mm. long, the webs entirely broken up; bare part of tibia entirely black like the tarsi and toes. ‘Bill black, facial skin green; iris yellow; feet and toes black.’ (Oates.) Length, about 208; culmen, 74; wing, 317; tail, 137; tarsus, 114; middle toe with claw, 99.

“Adult female.—Similar to the male, but the ornamental plumes not so much developed.

“Adults in winter plumage.—Pure white, but losing the ornamental plumes altogether. ‘Bill yellow, with blackish tip.’ (Oates.)

“Young.—Entirely like the adults in winter plumage; the texture of the plumage soft and downy, and devoid of ornamental plumes.” (Sharpe.)

“Comparatively rare and very shy. Fairly abundant about the Laguna de Naujan in Mindoro.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

Luzon (McGregor); Mindanao (Mearns). Northern China and Japan to Australia.

Adult male in breeding plumage.—“Entirely pure white; a bunch of elongated plumes on the back scarcely reaching beyond the tail. ‘Bill beautiful orange; naked space before and behind the eye fine greenish yellow; legs above the knee pale dull yellow, this color continued down the center of the inner part of the tarsi; remainder of tarsi and feet black.’ (Gould.) Length, 762; culmen, 112; wing, 381; tail, 160; tarsus, 132 to 162.” (Sharpe.)

The following data are from the Luzon specimen which I have recorded: Killed on the Laguna de Bay, Luzon, March 16, 1906. Sexed by the taxidermist as a male. Entire legs and feet black; bill yellow. Dorsal plumes reaching little beyond base of tail, the bird being in rather poor plumage. Tarsus, 159; bill from gape, 140; culmen from frontal feathers, 114. This species is the largest as well as the rarest of the pure white herons known from the Philippine Islands.

Ta-ling-daó, Cagayancillo.

Basilan (McGregor); Bohol (Everett, McGregor); Cagayancillo (McGregor); Cebu (McGregor); Leyte (Everett); Lubang (McGregor); Luzon (Jagor, Everett, Heriot, Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Mindanao (Steere Exp., Goodfellow); Mindoro (Porter); Negros (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Keay); Panay (Bourns & Worcester); Romblon (McGregor); Siquijor (Bourns & Worcester). Africa, southern Europe to central Asia, China, Japan, Indian Peninsula, Malay Peninsula and Archipelago.

“Adult male in breeding plumage.—Everywhere snowy white, with two elongated plumes depending from nape; dorsal plumes enormously elongated into a beautiful tuft of feathers, which reach a little beyond the tail and are recurved at the ends; on the fore neck some elongated narrow plumes. ‘Bill black; bare skin about the eye and base of bill, whitish fulvescent; tarsi and shanks black, feet greenish yellow, joints of toes spotted with black on the upper surface; iris pale ashy yellow, with an outer circle of brownish red.’ (T. Ayres.) Length, about 508; culmen, 84; wing, 267; tail, 70; tarsus, 94.

“Adult female.—Similar to the male, but the ornamental plumes not quite so much developed. Length, 571; culmen, 88; wing, 287; tail, 99; tarsus, 95; middle toe with claw, 93.

“Adult in winter plumage.—Differs from that of the summer plumage in the want of all the ornamental plumes.

“Young.—Resembling the winter plumage of the adult.” (Sharpe.)

The lesser and little white egrets are birds of wide distribution, usually found singly along sandy shores or in the vicinity of mangrove swamps.

Ta-lá-bon, Ticao.

Balabac (Steere Exp., Everett); Bantayan (McGregor); Batan (McGregor); Bohol (Steere Exp., McGregor); Bongao (Everett); Cagayancillo (McGregor); Cagayan Sulu (Guillemard); Calayan (McGregor); Cebu (Murray, McGregor); Cuyo (McGregor); Fuga (McGregor); Lubang (McGregor); Luzon (Bourns & Worcester, Whitehead); Marinduque (Steere Exp.); Masbate (Bourns & Worcester); Mindanao (Bourns & Worcester, Mearns); Mindoro (Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Negros (Bourns & Worcester, Keay); Panay (Bourns & Worcester); Pata (Mearns); Romblon (Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Semirara (Worcester); Sibuyan (Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Siquijor (Bourns & Worcester); Sulu (Guillemard); Tablas (Bourns & Worcester); Tawi Tawi (Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor). Coast of Bay of Bengal to Australia and Oceania, north to Japan and Korea.

“Adult male in breeding plumage.—General color deep blackish slate; head almost black; feathers of upper breast elongated like those of the middle of the back, some of the latter decomposed; the elongated feathers of a paler slaty gray, and those of back reaching to end of tail; head crested and of the same color as the back; abdomen and vent-feathers tinged with ashy; a pure white streak down the center of the throat. Length, 584; culmen, 71; wing, 254; tail, 79; tarsus, 74.

“Adult female in breeding plumage.—Similar to the male, but the ornamental plumes slightly less developed. Length, 533; wing, 259.

“Young.—Paler and more sooty brown than the adults, and bleaching often to a slight earthy brown. No ornamental plumes on head, back, and chest.

“Adult birds, either in winter plumage or perhaps in the second year, are blacker than in the summer plumage. Some of these black-plumage birds have ornamental feathers which looks as if they were fully adult, and therefore they may be birds of the second year, as it is quite evident that the grayer plumaged ones are very old and perfect in livery.

“The white streak down the throat is often absent or reduced to a few spots. It appears to be absent equally in quite young birds and in old ones also, and it may be the result of inherent melanism in the species.

“The white form is exactly similar in size to the gray form, and, when adult, has the same ornamental plumes. In the Pacific islands the two forms appear to interbreed, and produce white young ones mottled or streaked with slaty gray. I have been unable to recognize any of the many forms into which the reef heron has been subdivided by naturalists. Some birds are larger, as will be seen by the measurements of the tarsi given in detail below, and these larger birds have a slightly longer wing and a heavier bill, but no specific distinctions can be founded on these variations, which are very slight.” (Sharpe.)

“The color of the soft parts is excessively variable. In the adult the bare portion of the tibia varies from dark grass-green to greenish plumbeous; the back and sides of the tarsus and the greater part of the toes are generally pea-green, sometimes duller, sometimes yellower; the front of the tarsus and the first joint of the mid toe black, but sometimes these parts are green, only patched or mottled with black, and sometimes the black extends along the ridges of all the toes; the color of the bill and bare skin in front of the eye varies from sienna-brown to chocolate; sometimes the bill is a sort of light mahogany color, and the bare skin a sort of greenish brown; usually the bills are yellowish at the tips; the lower mandible is generally lighter, sometimes brownish horny, sometimes yellowish horny; and in the breeding-plumage the whole lower mandible becomes apparently a very decided, though dull, yellow; the irides vary from bright to deep yellow. I suspect, though we have not been able to work it out, that these differences in color are due both to age and to season.” (Hume.)

“Quite common along the reefs. The young were met with on various occasions far inland along fresh-water streams, but we never found fully mature birds in such localities.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

So far as observed, this species is solitary and found only on rocky shores, usually where coral flats are exposed at low tide.

Common Night Heron.

• Ardea nycticorax Linnæus, Syst. Nat. ed. 10 (1758), 1, 142.
• Nycticorax nycticorax Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1898), 26, 146; Hand-List (1899), 1, 198; Oates, Cat. Birds’ Eggs (1902), 2, 123; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 33.
• Nycticorax griseus Blanford, Fauna Brit. Ind. Bds. (1898), 4, 397, fig. 96.

Calayan (McGregor); Luzon (Meyen, Steere Exp., McGregor); Mindanao (Everett). Africa, central and southern Europe to Indian Peninsula, Malay Peninsula, China and Japan; Greater Sunda Islands to Celebes.

“Adult male in breeding plumage.—Black above, glossed with dark green, and with a slight shade of slaty gray on the mantle; upper scapulars like the back, lower ones light ashy gray; wings entirely light ashy gray or dove-color, with a slight shade of dull oily green on secondaries; lower back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail clear gray or dove-color; head crested, black, and with a dark green gloss, and having two long white nuchal plumes; base of forehead white, extending above eye to behind the latter; feathers below the eye, cheeks, throat, and under parts pure white; ear-coverts and sides of neck delicate isabelline gray, extending in a collar round hind neck, and to sides of body; thighs and under tail-coverts white; under wing-coverts and axillars very pale ashy. Length, about 457; culmen, 76; wing, 267; tail, 102; tarsus, 71.

“Adult female in breeding plumage.—Similar to the male in color and having the same long white plumes on the nape. Upper mandible slaty black with a whitish streak near the edges, central portion of lower mandible flesh-color, greenish towards base; skin round the eye pale green; tarsi and feet pale yellow; iris crimson.” (T. Ayres.)

“Adults in winter plumage.—Similar to the breeding plumage, but much greener on head and back, and not having the drooping white plumes on the nape.

“Young.—Brown above, varied with longitudinal triangular centers of rufous or buff to the feathers of back and wing-coverts; quills and tail-feathers tipped with white; head blackish, crest-feathers centered with rufous; sides of face and under surface of body fulvescent, streaked with dusky black, with which the feathers are margined; thighs, under wing-coverts, and axillars streaked like the sides of body; throat whitish.

“The full-grown young bird is similarly marked to the nestling described, but all the streaks and spots are much paler, the throat and under surface of the body being white, with a few dusky streaks. Judging from a specimen in the Tweeddale Collection from Canton, the adult plumage is assumed during the next breeding season, and even the white nape-plumes are put on, but the coloring of the head and back is not so bright as in older birds.” (Sharpe.)

The common night heron in abundant in parts of Luzon but is not so widely distributed in the smaller islands as is the next species.

Cuak-cuak, Bohol.

Bantayan (McGregor); Basilan (Everett); Bohol (McGregor); Caluya (Porter); Camiguin N. (McGregor); Catanduanes (Whitehead); Cebu (Everett, Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Leyte (Everett); Luzon (Lindsay, Cuming, Whitehead); Marinduque (Steere Exp.); Masbate (Bourns & Worcester); Mindanao (Platen, Steere Exp.); Mindoro (McGregor); Negros (Everett, Bourns & Worcester, Keay); Panay (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Samar (Bourns & Worcester); Sibuyan (Bourns & Worcester); Siquijor (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Celestino); Tablas (Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor). Western Celebes and northern Borneo.

Adult (sexes similar).—Above deep maroon; crown and crest greenish black; long nuchal plumes whitish except at base and tip; a narrow eyebrow stripe light chestnut mixed with whitish; below white, throat more or less pervaded with chestnut; sides of face neck and breast chestnut; under wing-coverts, axillars, and thighs light chestnut mixed with white. Bill black; skin around eye dark green; legs yellow, nails black. “Bill black; feet pale ocherous-white, brown in front and upper part of toes; orbital skin yellowish green; iris golden yellow.” (Everett.)

Male.—Length, 635; culmen, 70; wing, 317; tail, 117; tarsus, 79.

Adult female.—Similar to the male in color. Length, 559; culmen, 76; wing, 381; tail, 123; tarsus, 81.

“Young.—Wings conspicuously chestnut; spots and streaks on upper surface deep rufous or light chestnut; breast very broadly streaked with black. ‘Bill brown, lower mandible dirty yellowish; legs light greenish yellow, claws gray; iris golden yellow.’ (Everett).” (Sharpe.)

“Quite common, but very local in its habits. Feeds at night. Roosts during the day in lofty trees, frequently choosing trees which stand out in the open.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

Oates records two eggs of the Manila night heron which were collected by the Steere Expedition in Siquijor, February 15, and two eggs taken by Moseley in May. The measurements are respectively: 56.3 by 36.8; 49.7 by 36.3; 60.9 by 37.5; 50.8 by 33.7.

Balabac (Everett); Basilan (Mearns); Cebu (Bourns & Worcester); Guimaras (Steere Exp.); Luzon (Heriot); Masbate (Bourns & Worcester); Mindanao (Steere, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Palawan (Platen, Whitehead, White); Samar (Whitehead); Siquijor (Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor). Ceylon, southern India, Assam to Hainan, Greater Sunda Islands, Formosa south to Malay Peninsula.

“Adult male.—Above uniform cinnamon-rufous, wing-coverts and mantle with a slight ashy shade and with a certain amount of indistinct freckling; alula-feathers black or slightly mottled with rufous and having broad white tips; outer primary-coverts black, broadly tipped with white and rufous at the base; remainder of primary-coverts cinnamon-rufous slightly tipped with white; quills black, externally shaded with gray, broadly tipped with cinnamon-rufous, narrowly fringed with white at the ends; outer primaries with a large white terminal spot; inner secondaries like back; upper tail-coverts and tail dark slate-color, with a slight rufescent tinge at the ends of inner web; crown and long nuchal crest-feathers slaty gray or black; a narrow line of feathers over eye vinous-cinnamon, broadening out above ear-coverts and occupying the sides of crown, sides of neck, and sides of face; chin and center of throat pale isabelline brown, streaked with black down the center of throat, the black markings on the feathers being lateral and somewhat irregular in shape, the inner webs paler and cream-colored, imparting a rather broadly streaked appearance to the fore neck; center of breast and abdomen white or creamy buff, the feathers notched and barred with dusky, more distinct on the sides; abdomen fulvescent and under tail-coverts white, both of them scarcely spotted at all; under wing-coverts white, regularly spotted and barred with dusky; axillars regularly banded with black and white; quills ashy gray below, with the same rufous and white tips as on the upper surface. Culmen black, sides of the upper mandible and the lower one fleshy; legs and feet greenish, washed with brown on the front of the tarsus and toes. ‘Iris golden yellow, frosted or stippled with olive at the exterior; gape, orbital and loral skin greenish and slaty.’ (W. V. Legge.) Length, 508; culmen, 51; wing, 269; tail, 102; tarsus, 68.

“Adult female.—Similar to the male.

“The sequence of plumages in these night herons is not very easy to follow, but the nestling from Mindanao clearly proves that the first plumage is spotted with white and that the quills have broad white tips. Both G. melanolophus and G. goisagi occur on Mindanao, but the latter is doubtless only a winter visitor, while the former bird is resident. The same thing occurs in the Island of Formosa, as has been duly pointed out by Mr. Seebohm, in his ‘Birds of the Japanese Empire,’ where the difference between the two species has been correctly given.

“In the Hume collection there are several rufous-colored birds, which have not yet entirely divested themselves of the wavy immature plumage, while a female from Dibrughur is beginning to put on rufous plumage, though it is still for the most part in the mottled dress of the young. The birds from the Nicobars are decidedly smaller and darker than birds from the mainland, and the wing does not exceed 240 mm.

“Young.—Entirely different from the adult, being brown above, thickly mottled and freckled with dusky blackish, and with longitudinal ochraceous shaft-streaks to the feathers of upper surface; wings like the back; primary-coverts for the most part rufous, freckled with dusky, quills black, tipped with white; primaries with a subterminal shade of rufous; tail-feathers slaty black; crown and nape crested, the feathers black, with arrow-shaped spots or bars of white; sides of face and sides of neck regularly barred with ocherous brown and black, with mesial white spots on the feathers on the sides of the neck; chin and upper throat uniform white; the center of the lower throat and fore neck generally pale vinaceous-buff, varied with black streaks and black mottling or bars, the feathers being browner laterally; sides of the body like the breast, similarly mottled and streaked with white; under tail-coverts white, with scarcely any black markings; under wing-coverts white mottled with dusky; axillars barred with black and white.” (Sharpe.)

“Comparatively rare. Met with about the fish-pens of the natives, especially just at dusk.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

“The eggs of the Malay bittern in the collection are of a pale bluish-white color. Two specimens measure respectively: 45.7 by 35.5; 48.2 by 35.5.” (Oates.)

The above-described eggs were collected in Palawan, June 27, by Whitehead.

Luzon (Heriot); Mindanao (Steere Exp.). Japan and Formosa.

“Adult.—Differs from G. melanolophus in its deep vinous-chestnut head, which has a little shade of blackish on the forehead only; the mantle is browner, and the upper surface generally never seems to be free from dusky vermiculations; axillars black and rufous instead of black and white, and no white tips to the outer primaries. Length, 457; culmen, 39; wing, 259; tail, 94; tarsus, 63.

“Young.—Differs from the adult in being browner and more uniform on upper mantle and back, but with the wings much freckled with rufous-buff; crown dusky blackish, inclining to dark vinous on the neck. The young bird differs from the young of G. melanolophus by the rufous tips to the primaries.

“The description of the young bird is taken from a bird procured by Mr. Ringer at Nagasaki, which still retains some of the nestling down on the head. Full-grown birds, exactly similar in plumage, are in the collection from Luzon and Ayala in Mindanao. ‘Bill green, culmen black; legs and feet green; iris yellow.’ (Moseley.)” (Sharpe.)

Ba-caú i-tim′, Manila.

Bongao (Everett); Cagayancillo (McGregor); Calamianes (Bourns & Worcester); Cebu (Everett, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Cuyo (McGregor); Dinagat (Everett); Guimaras (Steere Exp.); Leyte (Everett); Lubang (McGregor); Luzon (Jagor, Everett, Bourns & Worcester, Whitehead, McGregor); Marinduque (Steere Exp.); Masbate (Bourns & Worcester); Mindanao (Everett, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, Goodfellow, Celestino); Mindoro (Bourns & Worcester, Everett, McGregor); Negros (Layard, Steere, Bourns & Worcester, Keay); Nipa (Everett); Palawan (Platen, Whitehead, Bourns & Worcester); Panay (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Romblon (McGregor); Samar (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Semirara (Worcester); Sibuyan (Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Siquijor (Bourns & Worcester); Sulu (Guillemard); Tablas (Bourns & Worcester); Tawi Tawi (Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor). Southern China, Malay and Indian Peninsulas, Celebes, Ceylon, Mascarene and Greater Sunda Islands.

“Adult male.—Above light slaty gray, feathers of back with hoary, white shaft-lines; long scapular-feathers green, or green with gray tips; wing-coverts and quills dark green with ocherous-buff margins, inclining to white on the edges of the greater-coverts and secondaries, most of the quills being fringed with white at the ends; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts dull green, more or less powdered with gray; tail dull green; crown dark glossy green, with the nape feathers produced into a point; hind neck and sides of neck gray, extending over the sides of face and ear-coverts; below the eye a streak of greenish black extending along the ear-coverts, along the upper part of which runs a whitish streak from behind the eye to the level of the nape; another streak of white from the base of the lower mandible along the cheeks; throat, fore neck, and abdomen white; sides of body and flanks, including the overhanging feathers on the sides of the upper breast, slaty gray like the sides of the neck, leaving the center of throat and fore neck white, slightly varied with dingy brown markings, these markings being on the edges of the throat-feathers; axillars and under wing-coverts gray, like the quill-lining. ‘Upper mandible black, with a longitudinal yellow streak along the margin below the nostrils; grape greenish brown; lower mandible greenish yellow, more or less black along the edges; facial skin green; legs and toes green, front of tarsus and toes dusky, soles orange, and claws horn-color; iris yellow.’ (Oates.) Length, 483; culmen, 70; wing, 178; tail, 63; tarsus, 51; middle toe with claw, 53.

“Adult female.—Exactly like the male, but a trifle more dingy, especially in the throat markings, where the brown is a little more distinct on the margins of the feathers. Length, 457; culmen, 61; wing, 173; tail, 70; tarsus, 46; middle toe with claw, 51.

“Winter plumage.—Duller than in summer and much greener above, without any gray shading; the head green.

“Young.—Brown above; the wing-coverts with triangular whitish or sandy-buff spots at their ends; head black, streaked with ocherous-buff shaft-lines; sides of face and under surface of body whitish, strongly streaked with dusky-blackish margins to the feathers.

“The young bird is browner than the adults, with white mesial streaks on the wing-coverts; crown of head dusky black; under surface of body less gray and washed with brown.” (Sharpe.)

“Extremely common. Found both along the seashore and about fresh-water streams and lakes.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

Calayan (McGregor); Cebu (Everett, McGregor); Luzon (Whitehead); Palawan (Everett); Samar (Steere). Greater Sunda Islands, China, Japan, Celebes, Amurland.

Although in color this species seems to be exactly like B. javanica it is much larger; the length of wing is particularly noticeable and the bill is longer, and deeper. A male collected by Major Mearns measures: Wing, 210; tail, 73; culmen from frontal feathers, 66; depth of bill at posterior border of nostril, 15; tarsus, 54; middle toe with claw, 62.

A female from Calayan measures: Wing, 197; tail, 69; culmen from frontal feathers, 64; depth of bill at posterior border of nostril, 13; tarsus, 52; middle toe with claw, 54.

Some of the records for B. javanica probably refer to the present species but it is impossible to disentangle them.

Palawan (Mearns). Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

“Adult.—Similar to B. javanica, but darker gray on the under surface, which is of a sooty-slate color with a slight tinge of rusty on the abdomen, cheeks and ear-coverts uniform slate-color. It much resembles B. stagnatilis, especially the birds from Flores, but it is not so dingy underneath and has a less shade of rusty on the abdomen. ‘Bill black, lower portion of lower mandible, from base to tip, edged pale horny; front of tarsus, toes, and claws brownish green, bare portion of tibia and back of tarsus dirty greenish yellow; naked skin round eye dull green, tinged with yellow in front; eyelids deep green.’ (Hume.) Length, 445; culmen, 60; wing, 193; tail, 53; tarsus, 43.” (Sharpe.)

This species differs from both B. javanica and amurensis in its much darker color, particularly of the under parts which are nearly uniform slate-gray; the white of chin and throat is much restricted and on the fore breast is reduced to a few shaft-lines; all of the wing-coverts are edged with dull rusty buff. The specimen collected by Mearns near Palawan measures: Wing, 165; tail, 58; culmen from frontal feathers, 60; tarsus, 47; middle toe with claw, 50.

Ta-gac′ cal-a-bau, Manila; la-guac′, Calayan; tá-bon, Bohol.

Balabac (Steere Exp., Everett); Basilan (McGregor); Batan (McGregor); Bohol (Everett, McGregor); Bongao (Everett); Calayan (McGregor); Catanduanes (Whitehead); Cebu (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Cuyo (McGregor); Guimaras (Steere Exp.); Lubang (McGregor); Luzon (Jagor, Bourns & Worcester, McGregor); Masbate (Bourns & Worcester); Mindanao (Steere Exp., Goodfellow); Mindoro (McGregor); Negros (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Palawan (Steere, Everett, Whitehead, Platen, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester, White); Panay (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Siquijor (Celestino); Sulu (Platen); Tablas (Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor). Eastern Siberia, Korea, China, Indian Peninsula, Ceylon; Indo-Chinese countries to Celebes and Moluccas.

Adult in breeding plumage.—White; head, neck, and fore breast golden buff; long decomposed dorsal plumes delicate vinaceous-pink, washed with brown; ends of the plumes on fore breast also vinaceous-pink. Iris light lemon-yellow; bill and bare skin around eye chrome-yellow; legs and nails black. A male from Mariveles, Luzon, measures: Length, 540; wing, 265; tail, 98; exposed culmen, 63; tarsus, 95; middle toe with claw, 89.

Young.—Pure white, without any ornamental plumes but with an orange tinge on the crown.

Winter plumage.—Pure white, without any ornamental plumes.

This bird is often seen in large flocks and individuals alight fearlessly on the backs of cattle; they often feed in plowed fields. Several hundreds of cattle egrets nested in a patch of giant grass near Guindulman, Bohol. Eggs obtained in June vary in length from 40 to 50 mm. and in width from 30 to 35. They are pale blue in color.

Ba-caú bin͠g-ey, Manila; rat, Calayan.

Calayan (McGregor); Luzon (Heriot, Whitehead, McGregor); Mindanao (Mearns, Goodfellow); Mindoro (Bourns & Worcester); Sulu (Guillemard); Tablas (Bourns & Worcester). Japan, China, Korea, Indo-Chinese countries; Indian Peninsula; Malay Peninsula and islands to Australia in winter.

“Adult male.—Above earthy brown, slightly tinged with rufous, more especially on the scapulars; wing-coverts clay-brown, greater series rather paler on the edges; edge of wing white; alula, primary-coverts, and quills black, slightly shaded with ashy; inner secondaries brown, tinged with rufous; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts ashy gray, the last somewhat darker; tail-feathers black; crown and nape black; sides of face, ear-coverts, and sides of neck vinous, becoming chestnut on the long frill-like feathers of the latter; throat white, mesially streaked with yellowish buff, like the rest of under surface; thighs more tawny-rufous; lower abdomen and under tail-coverts white; on each side of upper breast a patch of dependent feathers, of a blackish ground with yellowish-buff margins; under wing-coverts and axillars pure white; quills slaty below, with paler gray at the ends. ‘Eyelids and facial skin green; upper mandible dark brown on the culmen, and pinkish brown on the margins; lower mandible pinkish brown, turning to green towards the tip; the toes and tibio-tarsal joint pale yellow; tarsus dull flesh-color; claws horn-color; iris yellow.’ (Oates). Length, 394; culmen, 51; wing, 124; tail, 38; tarsus, 44.

“Adult female.—Differs from the male in being more rufous above, the feathers of the upper surface being rufous-brown with yellowish-buff margins; the crown is black as in the male, the ear-coverts and sides of the face are yellowish buff, and the neck-frill is also washed with the latter color; the under surface of the body the same as that of the male, but having the mesial lines more strongly indicated by tawny-buff centers to the feathers of the throat and fore neck. ‘Upper mandible dark brown, lower one greenish yellow; feet greenish yellow.’ (Butler.) Length, 394; culmen, 53; wing, 132; tail, 41; tarsus, 51.

“Young.—Similar to the old female and streaked in the same manner, but distinguished by having wing-coverts broadly centered with dark brown; crown streaked instead of being uniform; feathers black with yellowish buff margins, and under surface of body much more distinctly streaked, centers of the feathers being dark brown on throat and fore neck; flank-feathers also streaked with brown.” (Sharpe.)

“Extremely abundant about Lake Naujan, in Mindoro. It comes out on the mud flats to feed, but promptly takes refuge among the reeds if disturbed.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

CINNAMON BITTERN.16

• Ardea cinnamomea Gmelin, Syst. Nat. (1788), 1, pt. 2, 643.
• Ardetta cinnamomea Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1898), 26, 236; Hand-List (1899), 1, 203; Blanford, Fauna Brit. Ind. Bds. (1898), 4, 402, fig. 98 (head); Oates, Cat. Birds’ Eggs (1902), 2, 132; McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 35.

Ba-caú ca-né-lo, Manila.

Bohol (McGregor); Catanduanes (Whitehead); Cebu (Bourns & Worcester); Guimaras (Steere Exp.); Leyte (Everett); Luzon (Everett, Whitehead, McGregor); Marinduque (Steere Exp.); Mindanao (Everett, Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Mindoro (Steere Exp., Everett, Bourns & Worcester, McGregor, Porter); Palawan (Bourns & Worcester); Panay (Steere Exp., Bourns & Worcester); Samar (Whitehead); Sibuyan (McGregor); Tablas (Bourns & Worcester); Tawi Tawi (Bourns & Worcester); Ticao (McGregor). China, Eastern Siberia, Indian Peninsula, Indo-Malayan subregion; Celebes in winter.

“Adult male.—Entirely cinnamon-rufous above, including wings and tail; sides of face and ear-coverts cinnamon-rufous; cheeks a little lighter rufous; throat ashy white, with a median streak of tawny-rufous, which extends down throat and fore neck, being streaked with blackish longitudinal marks on the outer webs of the feathers; lower throat, fore neck, breast, sides of body, and thighs tawny-rufous; abdomen white; under tail-coverts tawny-buff; on sides of upper breast a patch of dependent feathers, having black centers with tawny-buff or rufous margins; under wing-coverts tawny-buff; axillars and under surface of quills pale chestnut. ‘Eyelids and facial skin reddish purple; bill nearly all yellow, the culmen alone being dark brown; legs and toes yellowish green; claws brown; iris yellow to pale red.’ (Oates.) Length, 279; culmen, 46; wing, 140; tail, 41; tarsus, 48.

“Adult males in winter appear to be a little more dingy on the upper parts than in summer, the head and back being shaded with grayish brown.

“Adult female.—Mantle and back uniform dark brown; wing-coverts dingy brown, but mottled with sandy-buff margins and checkered notches, which appear also on scapulars and inner secondaries, and have also subterminal markings of darker brown on many of the coverts; greater coverts, primary-coverts, and quills chestnut, with a good deal of dusky at base and on the inner webs, primary-coverts also dusky towards the ends; tail-feathers dull chestnut; crown and nape dusky brown; frilled feathers on the sides of neck brown in the center, with yellowish margins; sides of face yellowish buff, streaked with brown; whole of the under surface yellowish buff, very thickly streaked with dark brown, sides of throat whiter, feathers composing the broad mesial streak down the middle of throat and fore neck having a distinct rufous shade; on each side of the upper breast a patch of dependent plumes, black in the center with yellowish-buff margins; thighs chestnut; under wing-coverts yellowish buff like the chest; axillars and quill-lining dull chestnut, the feathers with a good deal of gray in them. ‘Facial skin, margins of upper mandible, and nearly the whole of the lower mandible yellow, remainder of bill black; back of tarsus and soles yellow; claws yellowish brown; iris yellow.’ (Oates.) Length, 330; culmen, 51; wing, 136; tail, 43; tarsus, 44.

“The young birds are very like the female, as determined by Mr. Oates and myself, but the whole back is variegated with yellowish-buff spots and markings, as well as the wings, so that the uniform brown mantle is a sign of the adult female, and the spotted mantle of a young bird. Mr. Everett gives the soft parts of a young female as follows: ‘Legs and feet bright olive-green; bill greenish yellow at base, the culmen of a dark olive-brown tint; iris golden yellow.’

“Considerable variation in the tint of the cinnamon plumage of this species is observable in a series, and specimens from more southern localities are decidedly the darker and richer in color.” (Sharpe.)

Mindanao (Bourns & Worcester); Negros (Keay). Eastern Siberia, China, Japan, Borneo, Celebes.

“Adult male.—Above chestnut-brown; lesser wing-coverts and feathers round bend of wing also chestnut-brown; alula-feathers chestnut, outer ones blackish internally, with white on the outer margins; remainder of wing-coverts olive-clay-color, ashy near the ends of the feathers, innermost greater-coverts chestnut like scapulars; innermost secondaries also washed with chestnut, remainder of quills and primary-coverts ashy brown, paler at the tips, which are fringed with whitish, the first primary margined with ocherous; tail dark brown; crown and nape dusky brown; sides of face, ear-coverts, and neck-frill maroon; a broad band of white running from the middle of the cheeks down the sides of the neck; fore part of cheeks, throat, and under surface of body ocherous-buff; under tail-coverts, under wing-coverts, and axillars white; on the throat some slight indications of longitudinal dusky spots; feathers of the fore neck elongated; on each side of chest a patch of black feathers with ocherous margins. ‘Bill blackish brown on culmen, yellowish brown on the rest, darker on the sides of upper mandible near tomia, light on sides of lower and on gonys; cere and bare skin round eye purplish flesh-color, ringed with green; legs and toes grass-green, yellow near the tarso-tibial joint and on the under surface of the tarsus; soles clay-colored; claws light yellowish brown; iris straw-color.’ (Swinhoe.) Length, 305; culmen, 50; wing, 150; tail, 39; tarsus, 51.

“Adult female.—Different from the male. Dusky reddish brown, spotted all over with ocherous-buff, the feathers externally spotted or notched with this color; wing-coverts like the back, but largely edged and spotted with ocherous; head like the back; sides of face dull chestnut, with a band of white from the hinder cheeks down the sides of the neck; under surface of body ocherous-buff, plentifully streaked with blackish brown, tinged with rufous; the lower abdomen and under tail-coverts whiter; under wing-coverts deep ocherous, with ashy bases; a patch of brown feathers at the sides of the breast, all edged with ocherous. Length, 305; culmen, 49; wing, 140; tail, 29; tarsus, 48.

“Young.—Like the old female, but blackish brown above, the wing-coverts maroon-chestnut, and all the upper parts spotted with white instead of ocherous. ‘Bill bright yellow, tinged with green; culmen black; feet yellowish green; iris golden yellow.’ (Everett.)” (Sharpe.)

“A single specimen secured by us while with the Steere Expedition has been identified by Grant as Ardetta eurythma.” (Bourns and Worcester MS.)

Cebu (Bourns & Worcester); Luzon (Heriot); Marinduque (Steere Exp.); Mindanao (Everett, Steere Exp., Goodfellow); Negros (Keay). Celebes, Ceylon, Malay and Indian Peninsulas, Indo-Chinese countries, Greater Sunda Islands, southern and central China.

“Adult male.—Above dark slaty gray, feathers of back and scapulars somewhat pointed and with a slight hoary gloss; wings and tail blackish, glossed with slate-color on the coverts, and with green on some of the latter and on the quills; crown and crest-plumes slaty gray; sides of face and cheeks black, the latter slightly mottled with rufous; from the hinder part of the cheeks a band of golden straw-color runs down the sides of the neck, the lower feathers being elongated; throat and fore neck prettily variegated with chestnut, black, and white, the chestnut predominating on the outer webs of the feathers and the white on the inner webs, with a longitudinal streak of black at the end of the latter, the long overlapping feathers on the sides of the chest being slaty gray with white margins, so that the general appearance of the throat and chest is streaked; remainder of under surface of body slaty gray, including the under wing-coverts, axillars, and quill-lining. ‘Bill dusky reddish brown, lighter below; facial skin purplish brown; eyelids bluish; feet dark brown; claws dark horn-color; iris golden brown or pale red.’ (Oates). Length, 508; culmen, 84; wing, 203; tail, 63; tarsus, 67; middle toe with claw, 76.

“Adult female.—Does not differ from the male. Length, 508; culmen, 31; wing, 203; tail, 68; tarsus, 66; middle toe with claw, 74.

“The slaty gray shade in the plumage appears to be a sign of the breeding season, as some of the winter specimens are black with a greenish gloss on the upper surface.

“Young birds are much browner than the adults, and can immediately be recognized by their more freckled appearance, the feathers of the upper surface having ochraceous margins. The mottling of the rufous on the neck is much as in the adult birds but there is more white and less rufous, and the chest-feathers are much more broadly edged with white; the breast is dusky brown as well as the sides of the body; the abdomen is white; the sides of the face and ear-coverts are chestnut, with a little streak of white at the base of the mandible.

“Nestling.—Similar in color to the young bird described above, but very much shaded with rufous, and having a great deal of rufous on the sides of the face; the crown covered with down of an ocherous color, the throat and chest very rufous.” (Sharpe.)

Luzon (Babbitt). Temperate Palaearctic region, northwestern India, Burma, China.

“Adult male.—Above tawny-yellow and black, the latter predominating and occupying the center of the feathers, the sides of which are tawny-buff, freckled and irregularly barred with black; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts pale tawny-buff, mottled with bars or cross-lines of dusky brown; marginal wing-coverts rufous, regularly barred across with black; median and greater coverts tawny-buff, with irregular bars or arrow-shaped markings of blackish brown, much less pronounced on the greater coverts, all of which have a rufescent tinge near the base; alula, primary-coverts, and quills blackish, barred with rufous, the bars somewhat broken up on the inner webs of the quills, which are also paler; the inner secondaries like the scapulars, being tawny-buff on their edges and mottled in a similar manner; tail-feathers tawny-buff, irregularly mottled with black bars or cross-markings, more pronounced on the middle of the feathers; crown of head uniform black, with a frill of erectile plumes on the nape, these being tipped with tawny-buff, and the pale tips crossed with lines of black; eyebrow, sides of face, and sides of the neck tawny-buff, the eyebrow uniform except on the under edge, where the feathers are barred with black; ear-coverts scarcely marked at all, but the plumes of the sides of the neck narrowly barred with black, and elongated into a frill which covers the hind neck, the latter being clothed in dense down of a tawny-buff-color; the feathers below the eye, and a streak along the cheeks and down the sides of the neck, black; malar line of feathers and throat creamy white, with a central line of reddish buff feathers slightly mottled with black bases; the lower throat also creamy white, with four or five tolerably defined broad lines of tawny-buff and black-mottled feathers; the lower part of the ruff on the fore neck with narrow wavy lines of black; the breast covered with down of a tawny-buff-color, and hidden by a large patch of loose plumes on each side of the chest, which are mostly black with tawny-buff margins; remainder of under surface creamy white, streaked with black centers to the feathers, the black markings slightly broken up with mottlings of tawny-buff; thighs and under tail-coverts with scarcely any markings whatever; under wing-coverts and axillars tawny-buff, the former narrowly lined with blackish, the axillars more distinctly barred with dusky blackish. ‘Bill greenish yellow; legs and feet yellowish green; claws dark brown; iris yellow; bare space before the eye yellowish green.’ (Seebohm.) Length, about 610; culmen, 69; wing, 330; tail 112; tarsus, 96.

“Two of the three specimens collected by Mr. Robert Bergman at Yokohama are apparently young birds and have the primary-coverts and quills almost uniform, with a certain amount of rufous mottlings confined to the inner webs; in this state of plumage B. stellaris has a great resemblance to B. pœciloptilus but is always to be distinguished from the last-named bird by the tawny-colored frill on the sides of the neck, instead of the smoky brown one peculiar to the Australian bird.” (Sharpe.)