BIRDS FROM SI AM AND THE MALAY PENINSULA 19 



publication by the two men mentioned of a 4-volume work on the 

 birds of the country ,^^ with numerous colored plates. Many forms of 

 eastern Siam extend into Cambodia and western Laos, probably many 

 more than are laiown to do so at present. 



Since the present paper was first written, F. N. Chasen ^^ has 

 published a "Handlist of Malaysian Birds," a systematic account of 

 the birds of the Malay Peninsula from the Isthmus of Kra to and 

 including the Malay States, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, and the adjacent 

 small islands. 



In the present treatment I have tried to avoid controversial ques- 

 tions and to condense the technical remarks as nmcli as possible. I 

 have listed all the birds collected by Drs. Smith and Abbott and have 

 given the data on eggs, but a thorough list of all the birds of Siam 

 can not be given until all the data upon their occurrence in the country 

 is upon record, which will not be for many years to come. The 

 nomenclature is in need of review, but this is a matter that needs time 

 and research and usually goes through a period of evolution and so 

 has not been attempted. Another subject that needs attention in the 

 country is that of migration. Since m.any lists, even some quite 

 modern, fail to give dates of occurrence, it is often difficult with the 

 data at hand to judge whether a bird is a migrant, a winter resident, 

 or a resident. 



The breeding habits and life histories of the resident birds also need 

 to be studied. E. G. Herbert ^* has made an excellent begmning, 

 treating 108 forms, but more work along these lines is much to be 

 desired. Observations should be made by a trained observer, who is 

 thoroughly familiar with the bird observed, or who should collect a 

 specimen for future identification by a competent specialist. 



Of the rarer birds of Siam, I have given all the references of occur- 

 rence in the country known to me, but of the commoner forms, of 

 which Drs. Smith or Abbott took adequate series, the references have 

 been selected to furnish additional data. 



Undoubtedly many birds remain to be added to the avifauna of 

 Siam. The present paper has been written from the distributional 

 standpoint, to furnish data for a more thorough work by some future 

 author. In the catalog to follow, Dr. Smith's birds are listed first, 

 then those of Dr. Abbott. 



" Oiseaux I'Indochine Franfaise, 1931. 

 n Bull Raffles Mus. 11, xx+389 pp., 1935. 



" Journ. Nat. Hist. Soc. Siam, vol. 6, pp. 81-123, 215-222, 1923; pp. 293-311, 1924; and Journ. Siam Soc. 

 Nat. Hist. Suppl., 192G, pp. 323-326. 



