﻿NO. 
  1134. 
  PHILIPPINE 
  OENITHOLOGY—WOBCESTER 
  AND 
  BOURNS. 
  581 
  

  

  Although 
  the 
  distance 
  from 
  Bohol 
  to 
  Leyte 
  is 
  slightly 
  greater 
  than 
  

   that 
  to 
  Cebu, 
  the 
  water 
  between 
  Bohol 
  and 
  Leyte 
  is 
  very 
  shallow, 
  the 
  

   deepest 
  sounding 
  being 
  but 
  22 
  fathoms, 
  while 
  soundings 
  varying 
  from 
  

   91 
  to 
  105 
  fathoms 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  in 
  the 
  channel 
  between 
  Bohol 
  and 
  

   Cebu 
  without 
  getting 
  bottom. 
  

  

  If 
  a 
  bit 
  of 
  forest 
  remains 
  on 
  this 
  island 
  it 
  would 
  richlj^ 
  rei)ay 
  a 
  visit. 
  

   From 
  the 
  evidence 
  at 
  hand 
  I 
  can 
  only 
  conclude 
  that 
  the 
  island 
  should 
  

   be 
  grouped 
  with 
  Leyte 
  rather 
  than 
  with 
  Cebu. 
  

  

  SIQUIJOR. 
  

  

  Siquijor 
  is 
  a 
  small 
  island, 
  with 
  an 
  area 
  of 
  about 
  90 
  square 
  miles. 
  It 
  

   lies 
  some 
  12 
  miles 
  southeast 
  of 
  the 
  southern 
  extremity 
  of 
  IS^egros. 
  Tlnu^e 
  

   is 
  a 
  tradition 
  among 
  the 
  natives 
  to 
  the 
  ellect 
  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 
  oi)en 
  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 
  shells 
  of 
  tlie 
  very 
  same 
  mol- 
  

   lusks 
  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 
  soil 
  washes 
  down 
  into 
  the 
  valleys 
  almost 
  as 
  fast 
  as 
  it 
  is 
  formed. 
  

   The 
  fresh-water 
  streams 
  are 
  without 
  tish. 
  

  

  The 
  birds 
  of 
  Siquijor 
  form 
  a 
  somewhat 
  miscellaneous 
  assemblage. 
  

   Ten 
  or 
  12 
  miles 
  of 
  water 
  may 
  seem 
  a 
  small 
  matter 
  to 
  us 
  here 
  in 
  Amer- 
  

   ica, 
  where 
  our 
  change 
  of 
  seasons 
  drives 
  many 
  of 
  our 
  birds 
  from 
  north 
  

   to 
  south 
  and 
  back 
  again, 
  but 
  in 
  the 
  Tropics, 
  where 
  birds 
  may 
  be 
  born, 
  

   grow 
  old, 
  and 
  die 
  within 
  the 
  limits 
  of 
  a 
  single 
  grove, 
  and 
  never 
  sutler 
  

   want 
  of 
  food 
  or 
  shelter, 
  the 
  effect 
  of 
  a 
  barrier 
  of 
  these 
  dimensions 
  is 
  

   far 
  iiKU-e 
  noteworthy. 
  In 
  the 
  present 
  instance 
  numerous 
  species 
  of 
  

   birds 
  have 
  either 
  utterly 
  failed 
  to 
  cross 
  from 
  the 
  neighboring 
  islands, 
  or 
  

   having 
  reached 
  the 
  island 
  have 
  been 
  unable 
  to 
  live 
  and 
  multiply 
  there. 
  

  

  So 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  know 
  the 
  only 
  work 
  ever 
  done 
  on 
  the 
  birds 
  of 
  Siquijor 
  

   has 
  been 
  that 
  of 
  Mateo 
  Francisco, 
  Bourns, 
  and 
  myself 
  By 
  diligent 
  

   search, 
  carried 
  on 
  for 
  weeks 
  on 
  two 
  different 
  occasions, 
  we 
  were 
  able 
  

   to 
  raise 
  the 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  species 
  of 
  birds 
  recorded 
  to 
  80. 
  But 
  34 
  of 
  

   these 
  are 
  Philippine 
  species, 
  and, 
  as 
  was 
  perhaps 
  to 
  be 
  anticipated, 
  

   nearly 
  all 
  of 
  the 
  34 
  are 
  species 
  which 
  range 
  widely 
  throughout 
  the 
  

   archipelago. 
  

  

  Not 
  a 
  single 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  characteristic 
  of 
  the 
  central 
  islands 
  

   was 
  found 
  in 
  Siquijor. 
  Phabofreron 
  brevirostris, 
  Ceyx 
  bonrnsi, 
  HaJcyon 
  

   irinchelli, 
  and 
  Hyhterpe 
  phUippinensis 
  have 
  probably 
  come 
  in 
  from 
  

   Mindanao, 
  though 
  they 
  might 
  ])ossibly 
  have 
  worked 
  through 
  from 
  Leyte 
  

   by 
  way 
  of 
  Bohol. 
  

  

  To 
  me, 
  however, 
  the 
  most 
  interesting 
  feature 
  of 
  the 
  avifauna 
  of 
  this 
  

   little 
  island 
  is 
  the 
  occurrence 
  of 
  three 
  well-marl^ed 
  representative 
  species 
  

   of 
  birds. 
  These 
  are 
  Dicaewn 
  besti, 
  Loriculus 
  siquijorensis, 
  and 
  lole 
  

   siqnijorensis. 
  

  

  