Dr. E. Coues on Quiscalus major. 367 



thought the Hainan bird peculiar; but on looking through my 

 Amoy series, I find that the adult in winter plumage, while 

 it has the crown and lores mottled, has a black patch from the 

 rictus to the ear-coverts. In a bird shot in March, with a bill 

 much deeper red, this black has nearly disappeared, and the 

 crown is much blacker ; and, lastly, in another in full nuptial 

 dress the white has returned to the space from the nostril back- 

 wards, as in a European specimen, kindly lent me for comparison 

 by Mr. Cooke. This settles my doubt as to my supposed 

 novelty, and adds a little information as regards the change of 

 plumage in the true -S. caspia. 



170. Sterna melanauchen, Temm. 

 On the rocks near Hoehow. 



171. SULA FUSCA, L. 



On the 15th of February, up the main river near Tinggan 

 city, I watched a Gannet soaring overhead. It was a clear sunny 

 day, and I could see plainly that the bird was of this species, 



172. Graculus carbo (L.). 



On the 28th of March, at Haosuy (W. Hainan), we saw a 

 large party of Cormorants fly past. They looked like the 

 ordinary species, which is the commonest one during winter in 

 South China. Mr. Gould has shown me one of the same in full 

 plumage received from Siam. 



From the above list it will be seen that the avifauna of 

 Hainan resembles more that of South China than one might 

 expect in so low a latitude. It has, however, a close affinity to 

 that of the Tenasserim countries; and only a few species seem 

 to connect it with Formosa. I originally intended to discuss 

 this subject in detail ; but my materials ai-e, perhaps, too scanty. 



XXV. — The Natural History o/ Quiscalus major. 

 By Elliott Coues, M.D., United-States' Army. 



Although this bird is very abundant in some parts of the 

 United States, its habits seem not to have been sufficiently in- 



N. S. VOL. VI. 2 D 



