314 Lord Tweeddale on Birds from 



Drongo ? Sumatra, Borneo, and Malacca are the only three 

 areas, so far as is now known, which are inhabited by full- 

 plumaged birds devoid of a frontal crest ; but Sonnerat figured 

 and described a species of Dissemurus without a crest from the 

 Malabar coast (Voy. Indes, ii. p. 195, t. 111). On this Scopoli 

 founded the title of Muscicapa malabarica (Del. Fl. Faun. In- 

 subr. ii. p. 96, 1786), and later on Latham tbe title of Lanius 

 malabaricus (Ind. Om. i.p. 66, 1790) . It has consequently been 

 contended by some authors that Sonnerat described from and 

 figured a Malaccan bird, and that therefore the title of mala- 

 baricns does not belong to the Malabar bird; by others {e.g. 

 Temmiuck, /. c), that the Malabar bird belonged to the same 

 species as the Javan and Sumatran ; and as the title of mala- 

 baricus was inappropriate, Temminck altered the name to 

 retifer (lege setifer) , a title restricted by recent authors to the 

 Javan crested bird. Sonnerat^s figure, from whatever species 

 it may have been taken, is, without doubt, most inaccurate ; 

 and Le Vaillant {I. c.) severely criticised it ; but Sonnerat dis- 

 tinctly leaves it to be understood that his type was from the 

 Malabar coast ; and Buftbn (Hist. Nat. iv.) alludes to Sonne- 

 rat having sent him the bird from the coast of Malabar, Son- 

 nerat (/. c.) stating that the bird he describes and figures is the 

 one he sent to Buffon. The crest in adult Malabar birds is 

 not largely developed ; and it is quite possible that Sonnerat 

 figured a young bird, or else that he overlooked the short im- 

 pending nasal plumes. Le Vaillant [I.e.) was the next author 

 who wrote on a species of Racket-tail Drongo ; and he gave a 

 description and plate of a crestless species of Dissemurus. The 

 origin of his type it is now impossible to discover; for he merely 

 tells us that it came from the collection of a Mons. Dorcy. The 

 description and plate most accurately represent the Malaccan 

 and Sumatran form ; and as Vieillot founded his title ofpla- 

 turus {I. c.) on Le Vaillant^s description and plate, I adopt it 

 for that species. It could not well have been taken from a 

 Javan ; for that race is crested, and great care is exhibited in 

 the drawing. 



The only other crestless form inhabits Borneo, and was 

 separated by Temminck under the title of brachyphorus (Bp. 



