THE BIRDS OF NORTHERN THAILAND 43 



second visit, 1935-1937, I never once recorded it. A specimen taken 

 near Chiang Mai, November 24, 1931, was probably a late straggler. 

 The only other northern locality from which the species is known 

 is Ban Huai Horn, where Gyldenstolpe collected a male beside a 

 small pool, March 25, 1912. 



This bittern has nocturnal habits and, during the day, conceals 

 itself in dense growths of reeds, unless the sky be dark and clouded. 

 I usually saw it when it flew across the marsh after being frightened 

 by the report of a gun, or when I waded waist-deep in water through 

 the thick vegetation. One of my specimens had a fish, 4*^ inches long, 

 in its stomach. No Chiang Mai bird showed evidence of breeding. 



A male from Chiang Mai had the irides red-brown; the eyelids 

 plumbeous ; the orbital skin and lores pinkish brown ; the rictus and 

 skin of the throat rose ; the bill purplish brown, darker on the culmen, 

 lighter on the underside of the mandible, and whitish toward the tip; 

 the feet and toes dark brown; the claws black. An adult female 

 differed chiefty in having the irides golden-j'ellow, while an immature 

 female had them golden-yellow, mottled with dull brown. 



Adults have the upperparts entirely slaty black with a bluish sheen ; 

 the sides of the neck bright buff; the foreneck and breast streaked 

 slaty black, chestnut, and white. Immature birds have the upperparts 

 dark brown, with light rufous edgings to the feathers. The bluish 

 cast of the upperparts of old birds is very evident in the field. 



BOTAURUS STELLARIS STELLARIS (Linnaeus) 



Eurasian Great Bittern 



[Ardea] stellaris Linnaeus, Systema naturae, ed. 10, vol. 1, 1758, p. 144 (Europe; 



type locality restricted to Sweden, apud Hartert). 

 Botaurus stellaris stellaris, Deignan, Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. Hist. Suppl., 1931, 



p. 174 (Chiang Mai). 

 Botaurus stellaris, Deignan, Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. Hist. Suppl., 1936, p. 74 



(Chiang Mai). 



The great bittern is a rare, but doubtless regular, winter visitor 

 to North Thailand. I collected one, February 14, 1931, at a small 

 marsh near Chiang Mai, and at a similar place nearby saw another 

 on several occasions between January 14 and February 14, 1936. The 

 only other northern record is based upon a bird taken by me at Ban 

 Mae Sai, near Chiang Saen, January 21, 1937. 



These birds were found only by chance when frightened from the 

 heavy stands of rushes in which they were hiding. The Chiang Mai 

 specimen had the remains of fish in its stomach. 



A female had the irides yellow ; the orbital skin mixed olive-green 

 and lavender; the lores dark brown; the culmen dark brown, becom- 



583136—45 4 



