﻿N0.1134. 
  PHILIPPINE 
  ORNITHOLOGY— 
  WORCESTER 
  AND 
  BOURNS. 
  593 
  

  

  nectioii 
  between 
  Luzon 
  and 
  Mindanao, 
  the 
  ditterences 
  between 
  the 
  birds 
  

   in 
  the 
  various 
  localities 
  where 
  collections 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  might 
  not 
  be 
  

   nearly 
  as 
  great 
  as 
  under 
  existing 
  conditions. 
  

  

  At 
  all 
  events, 
  the 
  practical 
  identity 
  of 
  the 
  families 
  represented 
  in 
  the 
  

   eastern 
  chain 
  of 
  islands, 
  the 
  occurrence 
  in 
  it 
  of 
  the 
  genera 
  above 
  enu- 
  

   merated, 
  which 
  in 
  the 
  Philippines 
  are 
  nearly 
  or 
  quite 
  confined 
  to 
  it, 
  as 
  

   well 
  as 
  the 
  overlapping 
  of 
  species 
  at 
  each 
  of 
  the 
  breaks 
  in 
  it, 
  seem 
  to 
  

   me 
  to 
  be 
  indicative 
  of 
  a 
  much 
  closer 
  relationship 
  between 
  the 
  islands 
  

   composing 
  it 
  than 
  exists 
  between 
  any 
  of 
  them 
  and 
  other 
  islands 
  of 
  the 
  

   Philippine 
  group. 
  

  

  MINDANAO 
  AND 
  BASILAN. 
  

  

  Mindanao 
  is, 
  next 
  to 
  Luzon, 
  the 
  largest 
  island 
  in 
  the 
  Philippines. 
  

   It 
  extends 
  250 
  miles 
  north 
  and 
  south 
  by 
  270 
  east 
  and 
  west. 
  Its 
  rivers, 
  

   lakes, 
  forests, 
  and 
  mountains 
  are 
  quite 
  e(iual 
  to 
  those 
  of 
  Luzon, 
  and 
  

   afibrd 
  the 
  most 
  tempting 
  collecting 
  grounds 
  remaining 
  in 
  the 
  Philip- 
  

   pines. 
  There 
  is, 
  however, 
  a 
  decided 
  drawback 
  to 
  ornithological 
  inves- 
  

   tigation 
  in 
  this 
  island 
  in 
  the 
  fanatically 
  hostile 
  Mohammedan 
  tribes 
  

   which 
  populate 
  its 
  interior. 
  

  

  Neither 
  the 
  Steere 
  nor 
  the 
  Menage 
  expeditions 
  attempted 
  any 
  seri- 
  

   ous 
  ornithological 
  work 
  iiere, 
  our 
  time 
  in 
  each 
  instance 
  being 
  chiefly 
  

   given 
  to 
  the 
  collection 
  of 
  coral, 
  while 
  native 
  hunters 
  were 
  sent 
  to 
  the 
  

   woods 
  for 
  birds. 
  The 
  best 
  work 
  in 
  Mindanao 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  by 
  Everett. 
  

   Platen 
  and 
  his 
  wife 
  were 
  for 
  a 
  long 
  time 
  at 
  Davao, 
  but 
  with 
  a 
  single 
  

   exception 
  all 
  their 
  novelties 
  were 
  described 
  by 
  Steere 
  from 
  specimens 
  

   obtained 
  by 
  the 
  Steere 
  Expedition 
  before 
  Blasius, 
  into 
  whose 
  hands 
  

   Platen's 
  material 
  fell, 
  was 
  ready 
  to 
  publish. 
  

  

  Although 
  207 
  species 
  of 
  birds 
  are 
  known 
  from 
  Mindanao, 
  it 
  is 
  cer- 
  

   tain 
  that 
  many 
  interesting 
  forms 
  remain 
  undiscovered, 
  especially 
  in 
  the 
  

   highlands, 
  which 
  are 
  as 
  yet 
  entirely 
  unknown. 
  Mount 
  Apo 
  is 
  so 
  con- 
  

   veniently 
  near 
  Davao 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  hoped 
  some 
  adventurous 
  collector 
  

   will 
  soon 
  give 
  us 
  some 
  knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  upland 
  avifauna 
  of 
  this 
  great 
  

   island. 
  

  

  Basilan 
  is 
  a 
  small 
  island 
  distant 
  about 
  8 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  peninsula 
  in 
  

   which 
  Mindanao 
  extends 
  to 
  the 
  southwest. 
  It 
  is 
  connected 
  with 
  this 
  

   peninsula 
  by 
  a 
  line 
  of 
  soundings 
  so 
  shallow 
  as 
  to 
  suggest 
  a 
  former 
  

   actual 
  laud 
  connection. 
  Basilan 
  is 
  well 
  watered 
  and 
  well 
  wooded. 
  Its 
  

   surface 
  is 
  broken, 
  but 
  it 
  has 
  no 
  very 
  high 
  mountains. 
  Hunting 
  is 
  safe 
  

   enough 
  near 
  Isabella, 
  the 
  capital, 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  dangerous 
  in 
  the 
  interior 
  on 
  

   acconnt 
  of 
  the 
  hostility 
  of 
  the 
  natives. 
  

  

  The 
  flrst 
  collections 
  on 
  the 
  island 
  were 
  made 
  by 
  Steere, 
  who 
  was 
  fol- 
  

   lowed 
  by 
  Everett. 
  Later 
  the 
  Steere 
  and 
  Menage 
  expeditious 
  worked 
  

   there. 
  The 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  species 
  of 
  birds 
  recorded 
  is 
  119. 
  One 
  hun- 
  

   died 
  and 
  nine 
  of 
  the 
  Mindanao 
  and 
  80 
  of 
  the 
  Basilan 
  species 
  are 
  Phil- 
  

   ippine, 
  and 
  they 
  afford 
  an 
  interesting 
  study. 
  

  

  Steere 
  has 
  classed 
  Mindanao 
  and 
  Basilan 
  together, 
  making 
  them 
  

   constitute 
  a 
  subprovince, 
  the 
  "Southern 
  PhUippines," 
  and 
  their 
  bird 
  

   Proc. 
  iS^. 
  M. 
  vol. 
  XX 
  38 
  

  

  