( M ) 



ON THE BIRDS OF THE MARIANNE ISLANDS. 



By EENST HARTERT. 



THE following article has a little history. Abont three years ago the Tring 

 Museum received several excellent collections from the islands of Guam and 

 Saipan. They were brought together by two Japanese collectors, sent to those 

 islands by our correspondent, Mr. Alan Owston, of Yokohama, at the request of 

 Mr. Walter Rothschild. Soon after they were in onr iiands I had prepared the 

 following article in a much more complete and more detailed form ; but, when it 

 was ready to be printed. Professor M. E. Oustalet's long and excellent article " Les 

 Mammif^res et les Oiseaux des lies Mariannes " appeared in Vol. VII. of the third 

 series of the Noucelles Archives du Museum cPIIistoire yaturelle da Paris, late in 

 189.5, followed by the concluding second part iu LS96. Under these circumstances 

 I first thought of destroying the whole article ; but, finding afterwards that it 

 would be, after all, of some interest to give some account of our collection, which 

 was accompanied by many nests and eggs, and seeing that, with all respect and 

 admiration due to Mons. Oustalet's excellent work, I had to differ from him in a 

 few points, and had to correct an oological and some other mistakes, I altered the 

 form of the article, shortened and adajited it to the circumstances, and hope it will 

 thus stni be of some service to ornithologists. 



With regard to the notes on the colour of the soft parts, I may mention that 

 the collectors were provided with Bidgway's Nomenclature of Colours, and cjuoted 

 plates and figures on the label of every bird. All nests and eggs were accompanied 

 by the parent bird, numbered corresjiondiugly. The " sexes " are evidently quite 

 trustworthy, in fact more so than those given by many European collectors. 



For convenience I adojit Oustalet's old-fashioned classification. 



1. Astur sharpei Oust. (Oust. I. p. 161). 



Only a single specimen, brought home by the collectors of the Astrolabe 

 expedition " des Mariannes " is known. The island where it was shot is not 

 mentioned. 



Our collectors did not see nor hear of any hawk on the islands, nor did 

 Mons. Marche find it. From the alfinities of this remarkable hawk one is tempted 

 to doubt the correctness of the locality, especially since it is not very exact. 



2. Accipiter nisoides Blyth (Oust. I. p. 166). 



A single male is said to have been shot by Marche on the island of Guam. 

 Our Japanese collectors did not come across it. It is probably of accidental 

 occurrence only in the Marianne Islands. 



'i. Asio accipitrinus (Pall.) (Oust. I. p. 168). 



Said by Messrs. Freycinet, Quoy et Gaimard to be found on the Marianne 

 Islands, but specimens from there are not with certainty to be found iu the Paris 

 Museum. Our collectors did not send any specimens either. 



