398 BIRDS OF THE LIU KIU ISLANDS. 



An appareutlj' more adult specimen from Malacca (CJ. S. jSTat. Mus. 

 No. 1559G) has the abdomen strongly suffused with rufous, the margins 

 to the scapulars brighter tawny, and the wing-patch deeper, nearly 

 typical " bay." 



The present species is common in India and throughout Burmah, 

 Teuasserim, &c,, Malacca ; it is also found in Java, but, curiously 

 enough, has not yet been recorded from China, Formosa, or the Philip- 

 pine Islands. 



The species known from the latter archipelago is D. arciiata, or per- 

 haps more correctly 7>. arcuata vcujans^ easily distinguished by its supe- 

 rior size, the blackish liiuules on the feathers of the neck and breast, 

 and the pale bulfy upi)er tail-coverts. 



Nycticorax nycticorax (Lix.). 



Mr. Xamiye collected a female at Tomigusuku, Liu Kiu, on March 

 26, ISSG. Total length, oGO™'" ; stretch of wing, 1 meter. 



This specimen difiers greatly from the female from Tokio, collected 

 by Mr. Jouy, in being much lighter, in fact, nearlj' as light as the 

 lightest European specimen in our collection, showing that but little 

 reliance can be placed in the intensity of the gray color in these birds. 

 There are two occipital plumes, a little over lOO-^™ long, and tipped 

 with blackish for a distance of about 8™™. Of. antca^ p. 296. 



Janthoenas jouyi Ste.ineger. 



1837. — Carpjphaga ianthina SeeboHxM, Ibis., 1687, p. 179 {part). — Jav.ihanas i. Stejne- 



GER, Zeitscb. Ges. Orn., 1837, p. — . 

 1837. — Jatithoenas jouyi Stejneger, Amer. Natural., June, 1837, p. 583. 



Description. — Ad. ( ToMo Educational Museum. Coll. in nortliern part 

 of Liu Kiu, February 3, 1837. Presented by Mr. G. Tasalci. Type of spe- 

 cies). — Ground color of the entire bird dark slate gray, with various metal- 

 lic reflections, except the lower portion of the hind neck and the anterior 

 part of the iuterscapilium, which are of a dead white, forming a large 

 rhomboidal patch ; remiges and rectrices blackish slate without metal- 

 lic reflections ; the reflections on the head are a delicate rose-purple, 

 exactly as in J. jantliina ; those on the neck metallic green, especially 

 bright on the hind portion, less glossy and mixed with rose-purple on 

 the sides and front part; lower portion of fore neck with no metallic 

 reflections, merely shaded with a dull oily green gloss mixed with rose- 

 purple next to the white interscapular patch ; back, rump, scapulars, 

 smaller upper wing-coverts, and tertiaries, glossed with a delicate bronze 

 green, the feathers just behind the white patch suffused with rosepur- 

 ple, and the rnrap-feathers as well as some of the scapulars more or less 

 margined with a coppery gloss; flanks with a hardly perceptible violet 

 gloss. 



At the first glance one would be tempted to regard this bird as a mere 

 individual variation of the true J.janthina from Japan proper, but there 

 are several other characters than the white interscapular patch, viz, 



