1860.] ON BIRDS FROM TENASSERIM, 15 



tarsus moderately long, longer than the hallux. Toes moderate, inner toe shorter than the outer, 

 middle toe equal to the tarsus, claws moderately strong, that of the middle toe bulged internally, 

 of the hallux very strong, curved and sharp. Wings moderate, almost pointed. First quill 

 short, second' shorter than the third, fifth and sixth equal and longest. Tail long, square, of 

 twelve feathers. 



1866. 



Notes on Birds collected in Tenasserim and in the Andaman Islands. By Arthur, Viscount P.Z.s. 186G, 

 Walden, F.L.S., F.Z.S. [From the ' Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London,' ^' ^^^' 

 November 22, 1866.] 



Dr. Sclater has placed in my hands for publication the ornithological portion of a zoological 

 collection which Captain Beavan is engaged in making in Tenasserim, and the firstfruits of which 

 he has recently transmitted to this country. With the exception of six species obtained in 

 the Andaman Islands, the specimens sent were collected in the neighbourhood of Moulmein and 

 in the valley of the lower course of the Salween River. The collection is accompanied by some 

 interesting notes of observations made by the collector, most of which, if, indeed, not all, convey 

 new information. These notes I have transcribed in full ; and it is to be hoped that during his 

 stay in the Tenasserim provinces Captain Beavan will continue the useful practice of recording 

 such observations as it is only within the power of the field-naturalist to make. An exhaustive 

 catalogue of the Avifauna of the Tenasserim provinces has yet to be compiled. The identity of 

 rarer species with the types from the neighbouring countries has in the majority of cases yet to 

 be determined ; and where differences occur, the degree and nature of the variation have in 

 many instances still to be made known. In nearly all the species the exact limits of their areas 

 of distribution remain a desideratum ; and it is only by means of local collections, such as the 

 one Captain Beavan is now engaged in making, that any progress in these branches of knowledge 

 can become possible. Mr. Blyth, it is true, has amassed a large number of facts bearing on these 

 subjects ; but they are scattered through so many papers and different periodicals, that, until 

 they are brought together and systematically arranged, much time will have to be spent by the 

 student before full benefit can be derived from their undoubted value. In Europe little has 

 been done, chiefly in consequence of the want of authentic specimens from different localities, 

 and sufficiently large series of the specimens sent. As a result of this paucity of local specimens 

 in our museums, or rather in one and the same collection, many species inhabiting the continent 

 of India, for instance, remain still bearing titles originally bestowed on forms foreign to that 

 country ; and an absolute identity, as far as these species are concerned, is thus assumed to exist 



