194 bulletin: museum of comparative zoology. 



The species does not seem to have been recorded from the Cook 

 Islands before and though it is known from the Paumotu Islands 

 apparently none have been collected previously on Rangiroa. Careful 

 comparison of the series from the three localities represented reveals 

 no differences in coloration but there are some slight diiTerences 

 evident in size. Two males from Aitutake average smaller than 

 males from Bora Bora, Society Islands. Males from Rangiroa are 

 likewise smaller than those from Bora Bora. From the present series 

 however, it does not appear that these differences merit distinction 

 by name. 



Average measurements are as follows (in millimeters) : — 



4 cT^cf Rangiroa 109.7 68.3 10.2 14.3 



. Females are represented from Aitutaki only. Four have the average 

 wing measurement 104.9, tail 65.4, culmen from cere 9.4 and tarsus 

 14.6. 



CUCULIDAE. 

 45. Urodynamis taitensis taitensis (Sparrman). 



Cuculus taitensis Sparrman, Mus. Carlson., fasc. 2, 1787, 32, pi. 32. (Tahiti). 



An adult (sex not determined) was shot on Funafuti in the EUice 

 Group, 24 December. This cuckoo is said to be resident in both 

 the Ellice and Gilbert Islands. In the latter group there are no other 

 land birds, and in the Ellice Islands a pigeon is the only land bird 

 known other than the cuckoo, so that there has been considerable 

 speculation as to in what way this species practiced its parasitic habit 

 of foisting its eggs upon other species for incubation and the rearing 

 of its young. Concerning this the following observations by Mr. 

 Swayne are of interest: — "In August last year I was at the Island of 

 Niu, in the Ellice Group, and while walking through the island along 

 with the local trader we passed a clump of ' buka ' trees, in which, as 

 is common throughout the Ellice Islands, there were numbers of the 

 Noddies {Anous , stolid us) nesting. I noticed that in one tree the birds 

 were much disturbed and apparently frightened. The trader explained 



