BIRDS FEOM SIAM AND THE MALAY PENINSULA 27 



ARDEOLA GRAYII (Sykes) 

 Ardea grayii Sykes, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1832, 157 (Deccan). 



One female, Nong Preng, January 29, 1927; one female, Bangkok, 

 December 12, 1925; one female, Lomsak, Pasak Valley, February 16, 

 1934; one female, Bandon, January 4, 1927. 



I have been unable to find any reliable character to separate winter 

 and immature specimens of grayii and bacchus. This is partly due 

 to the inadequate series of the former at my command. The problem 

 might be worked out in some museum having an adequate series of 

 grayii and bacchus from regions where only one or the other occurs. 

 As a rule grayii has a slenderer and less robust bill, but this varies in 

 bacchus greatly with the age of the specimen and is uncertain. All 

 winter records from Siam of the two species are open to question, and 

 for that reason they are not cited. 



One adult male of grayii from Lower Pegu measures: Wing, 210; 

 culmen, 65; depth of bill at posterior border of nostril, 14; tarsus, 59; 

 middle toe and nail, 60 mm. 



The four females measure: Wing, 200-210 (207); culmen, 55-59 

 (57.7); depth of bill at posterior border of nostril, 12.5-13 (12.8); 

 tarsus, 54-60 (56.5); middle toe and nail, 59-60 (59.5). 



The four females from Siam were taken in winter. They average 

 Ughter above than specimens of bacchus of the same age, but the 

 latter vary greatly in nonbreeding and immature plumages. 



The range of A. grayii extends from the Persian Gulf east to India, 

 Burma, Siam, and the Malay Peninsula. 



Herbert °^ reports it breeding at Paknam, Ban Yang, Samkok, 

 Ayuthia, and many other places in May, June, and July; Deignan*^ 

 gives it as resident at Chiengmai, and it seems to be regarded as the 

 common resident species in suitable localities all over over Siam and 

 in the Malay Peninsula. 



ARDEOLA BACCHUS (Bonaparte) 



Buphus bacchus Bonaparte, Conspectus generum avium, vol. 2, p. 127, 1855 



(Malay Peninsula). 



One male (in breeding plumage), Muek Lek, April 17, 1933; one 

 female, Bangkok, September 19, 1924; one unsexed, Koh Tao, off 

 Bandon, September 24, 1928. 



Dr. W. L. Abbott collected a female at Tanjong Badak, Tenasserim, 

 March 25, 1904. 



The two September specimens from Siam still have some of the 

 breeding plumage remaining on the neck. The Tenasserim female 

 is still in winter plumage, but there are one or two small red feathers 

 coming in on the upper neck. 



M Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. IILst. Suppl.. vol. 6, p. 352, 1920. 

 M Journ. Siam Soc. Nat. Hist. Suppl., vol. 8, p. 173, 1931. 



