1887.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 

 IV. — Platalea leucorodia. 



281 



Platalea minor Temm. & Schl. 

 Formosan Spoonbill. 

 1849. — 'i Platalea minor Temmixck & Schlegel, Fauna Japou., Aves (p. 120, pi. 



Isxvi). — Savixiioe, Ibis, 1864, p. 368. — Blakist. & Pryer, Ibis, 1878, p. 



223. 

 1SQ\.— Platalea major Swixhoe, Ibis, 1864, p. 368 {nee Temji. & Sciileg.). — 



Schlegel, Mus. P.-B., Cicon., p. 21 (1865) (part). 

 1882. — Platalea lencofodia Seebohm, Ibis, 1882, p. 370 (part ; 7iec Linn.). 

 1884. — Platalea reg'ia Seeboh.m, Brit. B. Eggs. II, p. 515 {nee Gould). 



The claim of the present species to a place in the Japanese avifauna 

 rests on the type specimen in the Leyden Museum, Holland, which was 

 collected by Dr. Burger in " Japan," and described and figured in 

 "Fauna Japonica," and on a specimen collected by Mr. Petersen at 

 Nagasaki. 



From the dimensions given by Schlegel (?. c.) and the description by 

 Bonaparte (Consp. Av., II, p. 148 ; unfortunately I cannot consult the 

 original description and plate in Fauna Japonica), I conclude that the 

 type is a very young bird. It is a curious peculiarity of the Spoonbills 

 (at least of the European species) that the very youngest birds have the 

 face more denuded of feathers than the older ones. Bonaparte describes 

 P. minor as follows : " Frontis parte plumosa antice emarginata ultra 

 oculum vix producta ; orbitis nudis ; genarum parte plumosa marginem 

 oculi hand attingeute : gulte [sc. parte plumosa] antice valde protracta 

 acuminatim." This description of the outline of the feathering suits 

 exactly a very young European specimen before me (U. S. Xat. Mus. 

 Xo. 57033) with the exception of the last sentence ; for in the latter the 

 gular feathering does not extend further forwards than that of the 

 cheeks, and is cut squarely across anteriorly, not accuminated. That 

 the type of P. minor is not so young as the young P. leucorodia }\\9.t re- 

 ferred to, is plain from the size of the bill, and also from an inspection of 

 Reichenbach's otherwise very indifferent reproduction of the original 

 figure (Yollst. Xaturg., Grallat., pi. ccclxi, fig. 2829). This anterior pro- 

 trusion of the feathered apex of the chin is, I think, by itself alone suflS- 

 cieut to prove P. minor specifically distinct from P. major. The type o& 

 the former exhibits another peculiarity in the proportions, which, if the 

 measurements given by Schlegel are correct, is very remarkable, for the 



