888 Philippine Journal of Science 1920 
swamps, and also because of the soft mud forming the sub- 
stratum. At the upper limits of the mangrove there may be 
a fringe of the nipa palm, Nipa fruticans Wurmb, and this 
palm is inclined to form extensive thickets on low land along 
streams where the water is only slightly brackish.* 
BIRDS OF THE MANGROVE FOREST 
Few if any species of birds are characteristic of the mangrove 
forest. I have spent much time among these curious trees in 
fruitless efforts to discover something startling in birds, but 
nothing was ever found that could not have been collected 
elsewhere. Several species of kingfishers, the ever-present fly- 
catcher Rhipidura nigritorquis Vigors, the little migratory war- 
bler Acanthopneuste borealis (Blasius), and the migratory star- 
ling Sturnia philippensis (Forster) are among the land birds 
that can be found in mangroves. The curious little muscicapine 
species Gerygone simplex Cabanis seems to have a predilection 
for rhizophoraceous trees, but I have found it in other stations 
as well; for example, in bamboo thickets on the borders of Lake 
Bay. Near Puerto Princesa, Palawan, I collected specimens of 
the exquisite, endemic sunbird Athopyga shelleyi Sharpe in 
mangroves, but they were attracted there by the flowers and are 
not ordinarily found in this type of forest. 
BEACH TYPE OF FOREST 
Sandy beaches above the limits of high tide usually have been 
cleared and are occupied by towns or are planted to coconuts. 
Where this has not occurred there is a distinct type of forest in 
which the following trees are found: 
Terminalia catappa Linn. Thespesia populnea Corr. 
Erythrina indica Lam. Heritiera littoralis Dry. 
Barringtonia speciosa Forst. Calophyllum inophyllum Linn. 
Hibiscus tiliaceus Linn. Casuarina equisetifolia Linn. 
Pongamia pinnata Merr. Pemphis acidula Forst. 
Some of these species, for example, the Barringtonia and the 
Casuarina, may occur in more or less extensive pure stands as 
a result of favorable soil and other conditions, while some of 
the more valuable timber trees of other types, such as ipil, 
narra, and bansalaguin, may be mixed in the beach type. 
BIRDS OF THE BEACH FOREST 
In most islands much of the beach type of forest has been 
cleared away, and coconut groves are more or less mixed with 
* See also Brown, W. H., and Fischer, A. F., Bull. P. I. Bur. Forestry 
17 (1918). [Published in 1919.] 
