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ON THE BIRDS FROM SOUTH CELEBES. 



Our frieud ^Ir. Everett, of whose unlucky journey to the Philippines I reported 

 in this journal, Vol. II., pp. 64, 486 fif., left Labuan again on August iJlst for Celebes, 

 and arrived at Makassar on September 16th. After some short stay in that town, he 

 determined to work the Bonthain Peak, an enormous mountain of nearly 10,000 feet 

 in the south of the Southern Peninsula of Celebes. He proceeded to Bidekomba, on 

 the south coast ; but the mountain being evidently inaccessible from the west and 

 south, he went round to Balang Nipa, and travelled thence to liikeroe, and on as far 

 as Indrtdu'iiMii, a place which is situated at aljout 2300 feet on the foot-hills of the 

 Peak, about a short day's walk from the mountain itself. He arrived there on 

 September 28th, and then despatched his assistant in various directions in order to 

 ascertain the best route for ascending the mountain, with the result that he sent him 

 to Tasoso, the highest village in the district, with three of his Borneo men and full 

 instructions as to what and where they were to collect. ;\Ir. Everett remained himself 

 at Inclrulaina/n, where he collected every species of bird that was observed, with the 

 exception of one Caprimulgus. His assistant returned on November 1st, having 

 succeeded in reaching the most elevated portion of the summit on October 13th. 

 A few days before his return, the Messrs. Sarasin came to Tasoso from jMakassar, and 

 they also ascended to the highest point of the Peak. It is known from Messrs. 

 Meyer & Wiglesworth's article in the Abh. unci Ber. Mus. Dresden how successfully 

 they collected there. As their specimens reached Europe long before those of 

 Mr. Everett, and as thev fell into the able hands of our colleagues in Dresden, it 

 was natural that they were described first, and that in this way Messrs. Sarasin's 

 birds anticipated several of the most interesting discoveries, such as Zosteraps 

 anomcda, Cryptolopha sarasinoricin, Pachycephaln bunihaina, and others. Never- 

 theless there remained much to reward jNIr. Everett's efforts, as can be seen from 

 the discoyeries'oi the Androphilus everetti, C'hlorocharis sq!iMtHiceps,eLiid Cataponera, 

 as well as from many other valuable things, dilated on in the following pages. 

 The following extracts from Mr. Everett's letters will be of interest : — 

 " My men worked altogether for twenty-three days on the Peak, collecting for 

 the most part between 6000 and 7000 feet, and not at all below 5600 feet. No 

 doubt a collector remaining several months on the mountain, and changing his 

 station several times, would make large additions to its fauna, especially if working 

 immediately after the wet season. The Peak seems to represent an ancient volcanic 

 vent, being composed of a number of summits and ridges forming the walls of a 

 crater, the eastern of which would seem to have been blown away. The country 

 between Balang Nipa and the mountain is wholly composed of old volcanic rocks 

 and disjectamenta, and neither on the eastern side nor in travelling to liulekomba 

 did I see any sedimentar}' rock whatever. Of the remaining walls the highest is 

 a ridge called locally Lanipo Batang, the next in altitude being the peak known as 

 Buah Kraiing. The former is a little below 10,000 feet, and the latter, according to 

 Messrs. Sarasin, aliout 9000 feet. The Buah Kraiing was found by my assistant 

 covered with arboreal \'egetation to its very top, but the trees were very stunted and 

 thickly clothed with mosses. He found the temperature 'at midday' on Buah 

 Kraiing to be only 19" F. At Indrulaman 60° was the lowest temperature noticed. 



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