192 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. vol.52. 



MICROTARSUS CHALCOCEPHALUS BAWEANUS (Finsch). 



Brachjpodius haweanus Finsch, Notes Leyden Mus., vol. 22, March, 1901, p. 209 

 (Bawean Island). 



Eight specimens — ^tliree females and five males — of this interesting 

 bird wore collected by Doctor Abbott. 



In pattern of coloration this species is practically identical with 

 Microtarsus atriceps, but the olive and yellow colors of the latter are 

 everyvN^here replaced by gray and white. In the females, as compared 

 with the males, the upper surface is of a darker, duller gray; the gray of 

 the inferior parts is somewhat darker, and the abdomen and crissum 

 more washed with gray. One of the males (No. 181558, U.S.N.M.) 

 has a streak of oUve yellow on the outer web of one of the secondaries, 

 one of the tertials, and one of the rectrices, which may be Ungering 

 indications of immaturity. Several of the secondaries of one of the 

 females (No. 181551, U.S.N.M.) show the same thing. The labels 

 state that in both males and females the iris is blue, the bill and feet 

 black. Nearly all of our specimens exhibit evidences of molt among 

 the contour feathers, particularly about the head and neck; but only 

 one (No. 181557, U.S.N.M.) is changing either remiges or rectrices, 

 and this one is molting both. 



Om- series proves that Microtarsus haweanus is a subspecies of 

 Microtarsus chalcocephalus of Java; for while the characters given by 

 Finsch^ to separate it from the latter wiU serve to diagnose it, indi- 

 vidual variation practically bridges the difference between the two. 

 Both the upper and lower parts, while normally much paler in Micro- 

 tarsus haweanus, are in some of our specimens almost as dark as in 

 Microtarsus clialcoceplialus; the base of the tail, while almost white 

 in some examples, is in others nearly as dark as in Microtarsus chal- 

 cocephalus; the subterminal black band on the rectrices, though 

 sometimes broken or even reduced to spots, is in other specimens as 

 wide as in the Javan bird; and the terminal white bar on the tail 

 shows also much variation in width. Measurements are as follows : 



I Notes Leyden Museum, vol. 22, 1901, p. 209. 



