314 MANUAL OF PHILIPPINE BIRDS. 
278. CEYX EUERYTHRA Sharpe. 
RED-BACKED KINGFISHER, 
Ceyx euerythra SHARPE, Cat. om. Brit. Mus. (1892), 17, 179; Hand-List 
(1900), 2, 53; BourNns and WorcestTER, Minnesota Acad. Nat. Sci. 
Occ. Papers (1894), 1, 45; McGrecor and WorcEsTER, Hand-List 
(1906), 53. 
Balabac (Hverett) ; Bongao (Everett); Calamianes (Bourns & Worcester) ; 
Mindoro (Bourns & Worcester, Schmacker, McGregor); Palawan (Lempriere, 
Platen, Steere Exp., Whitehead, Bourns € Worcester, Celestino, White); Tawi 
Tawi (Bourns &€ Worcester, Everett). Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo. 
Adult.—Above red, washed with lilac, heaviest on head and rump; 
below deep yellow, strongest across the breast; chin and upper throat 
white, washed with yellow; wing-coverts like the back; primaries and 
secondaries black; first primary and the secondaries edged with rufous; 
wing-lining yellow. “Iris dark brown; bill and feet red.” (Celestino.) 
Male, length, 140; wing, 58; tail, 23; culmen from base, 40. Female, 
length, 140; wing, 58; tail, 24; culmen from base, 40. 
“We have fourteen specimens from Tawi Tawi, Palawan, and the Cala- 
mianes Islands and they show some interesting plumage changes which 
were for some time a puzzle to us. 
“An adult pair in high plumage from the Calamianes have entire 
upper surface of body red, washed with lilac, most heavily on head and 
rump. Wing-coverts and scapulars like back. Secondaries rufous with 
broad black shaft-stripes. Primaries black, the first rufous for entire 
length of outer web and most of the others showing a small amount of 
rufous at their tips. Under surface of primaries washed with rufous on 
inner webs. Chin and throat white faintly tinged with lemon-yellow. 
Remainder of under surface deep golden-yellow, darkest on sides of breast 
and flanks. A yellowish white patch behind ear. Under tail-coverts 
golden yellow, tipped with rufous. ‘Tail uniform bright rufous above and 
below. Under wing-coverts and axillars golden yellow. Bend of wing 
rufous. 
“This plumage we take to be typical for fully adult birds in fine feather. 
Two females from Palawan agree with this description except that in 
one the secondaries show rufous only on under surface of inner webs, 
and that the primaries show no rufous except on basal half of outer web 
of first. The under wing-coverts, axillars, and bend of wing are light 
rufous instead of yellow. 
“Sharpe, Ibis (1894), 246, reports an adult male of this species from 
Bongao and a female from Tawi Tawi. We note certain differences 
shown by our Tawi Tawi specimens, of which we have twelve. Of these 
four agree with the Calamianes birds except that the scapulars show more 
or less black at their bases and that the secondaries show more of black. 
Among the remaining specimens, however, there are some curious 
variations. 
