204 RALLID.I,. 



the breast, and with a much more uniform blue chest, which, though 

 differing from the colour of the breast, is not cobalt-blue as in 

 P. calvus, but is of a more greyish hue ; it is. in fact, a small race 

 of the Australian P. belhis. Total length 15 inches, culmen with 

 frontal shield 2-7, wing 9-3, tail 3-5, tarsus 3, middle toe and claw 3'8. 



I cannot see any material differences between specimens from the 

 localities recorded below, and they seem to belong to one species ; 

 but though the bird from Levuka cannot be separated from those 

 from ^^ew Guinea, those from Ovalau and some other Fijian 

 examples in the collection are somew^hat browner on the back and 

 show some approach to P. samoen.sis. 



Hah. Noi'thern Celebes. Throughout the Moluccas to New 

 Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Xew Britain, New Hebrides, New 

 Caledonia, the Fiji and Friendly Islands. 



11. Porphyrio samoensis. 



Porphvrio samoensis, Peak, U.S. E.vpl. E.ip., Birds, p. 220, pi. 62. 

 fig. i (1848) ; Hartl.Arch. Nat. 1852, p. 118 ; Gray, Cat. B. Trop. 

 Isl. Pacific Ocean, p. 53 (1859) ; id. ILand-l. B. iii. p. 65, no. 10482 

 (1871) ; Finsch, J.f. 0. 1872, pp. 33, 55 (Savai, Upolu) ; Wiglesw. 

 Abhandl. k. Zool. Mas. Dresden, no. 6, p. 62 (1892 ). 



Porphyrio indicus (wee Horsf.), Cass. U.S. E:vpl. E.rp., Birds, p. 308 

 (1858) ; Finsch k Hartl. Fann. Centralpolyn. p. 170, Taf. sii. fig. 2 

 (1867, pt.) ; Whitmee, Ibis, 1875, p. 446 (Samoa). 



Adult. Similar to P. smaragdinvs, but -with the back brown ; 

 Avings also brown: "bill and shield crimson; feet yellow, dashed 

 with crimson " (Pcale). Total length 13"5 inches, culmen and frontal 

 shield 2'3, wing 8, tail 2-8, tarsus 2-9, middle toe and claw 3-7. 



I have already drawn attention to the way in which this brown- 



1 



