Introduction: Geographical Distribution. 



123 



its nearest affinities in Celebes, one {Eudynamis mindanensis sangirensis) in the 

 Philippines, and three [Calornis panaj/ensis sangirensis, Ptilopiis xanthorrhous, Mega- 

 podiiis sangirensis) in Celebes and the Philippines alike. Consequently it might 

 be claimed that the Philippines are known at present to have 9 forms in Talaut, 

 and Celebes only 8 forms; but as the avifauna of Sangi presents the strongest 

 agreement with Talaut, and Sangi belongs to Celebes, it is convenient to include 

 Talaut with Sangi in the Celebesian area. 



The peculiar birds of the Sangi and Talaut Islands seem to be of com- 

 paratively recent origin; there is not a form among them which can be termed 

 an ancient type. There is not a single peculiar genus, and all, or almost all, 

 the endemic species are geographical races of forms in the lands lying near at 

 hand to north, south, east or west. Moreover, ill-flying birds, such as the 

 Bucerotidae and Phoenicophainae, are absent, or at least not known as yet. Every- 

 thing points to the recent colonisation of these islands, and their highly volcanic 

 or coral character and the deep sea around them are suggestive of their recent 

 upheaval ') . 



As has been pointed out elsewhere, almost all of the peculiar species of 

 Sangi and Talaut have increased in size (see p. 58). 



List of the Birds of the Peling Group. 



Name of species 



Name of species 



*1. Spilomis rufipeetus <C sulaensis 



2. Accipiter sulaensis (Schl.) 



3. Haliaetus leueogastcr (Gm.) 



4. PoHoaetus humilis (Miill. Schl.) (typical) . 



5. Haliastur indiis — girrenrra 



6. Perms celebensis (Wall.) 



7. Baxa celebensis Schl . . 



8. Tinnunculus 7noluee. orientalis — occidentalis . 



9. Pandion haliaetus leucoeephalus J. Gd. . 



10. Trickoglossus ornatus (L.) 



11. Prioniiurus platurus (Vieill.) 



12. Tanygnathvs vmelleri (MUll. Schl.) (typical) 



*13. Loriculus selateri ruber M. &Wg. . . 



14. Aprosmieius sulaensis Rchw 



15. Cacomantis virescens fBriigg.) . . 



16. Eudynamis inelanorliyncha S. Miill. 



17. Merops ornatus Lath 



18. Alccdo moluecana (Less.) 



19. Alccdo meninting Horsf. 



*20. Pelargopsis dichrorhyncha M. &Wg. 



21. Balcyon coromamla rufa (AVall.i . 



22. Halcyon chloris (Bodd.; itypical) . . 



23. Halcyon sa?icta V. & H 



24. Eurystomus orientalis (L.) .... 



') Such a change need call for no surprise; Worcester shows (Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1898, 581) that such has 

 evidently been the case with Siquijor, an island, with an area of about 90 sq. miles, to the north of Mindanao. 

 "There is a tradition among the natives to the effect that the island has been thrown up from beneath the 

 sea within a comparatively short time, and there is abundant geological evidence that this tradition is founded 

 on fact. Every stone cracked open by the hammer shows evident signs of its coral origin. The tops of the 

 highest hills, which rise a thousand feet above sea level, are strewn with the sheUs of the very same moUusks 

 which to-day live along the shores. The hills themselves are mere masses of coral rag, to which a few trees 

 cling with difficulty, as the soQ washes down into the valleys almost as fast as it is formed. The fresh-water 

 streams are without fish." Our native coUectors sent 16 species in a small collection from Ruang, a volcano 

 rising out of the sea close to Tagulandang in the Sangi Islands, and it is pretty certain that these species 

 must" have settled there since the eruptions of 1870 and 1871, which destroyed the vegetation (see p. 634 of text). 



