On some Birds of Palawan. 607 



XXIX. — Some Birds of Palawan, Philippine Islands. 

 By WiLLOUGHBY P. LowE, M.B.O.U. 



On April 13, 1907, I accepted a pressing invitation to visit 

 a cousin, Colonel White, who had charge of the Philippine 

 penal colony at Iwahig, Palawan. Being himself much 

 interested in natural history, and ornithology in particular, 

 though having little leisure to collect, he was anxious that 

 I should join him and make a collection of birds. I accord- 

 ingly left London by P. & O. mail-boat for Hongkong, via 

 Colombo. At Hongkong I travelled by a small steamer to 

 Manila. On my arrival there, on May 21, I found there 

 was no boat leaving for Puerta Princessa until June 4, so I 

 decided to visit the great sulphur spring and baths at Sibul, 

 Luzon, where I arrived on May 24. Here I found birds to 

 be plentiful, and I spent such time as was at my disposal 

 collecting. Of these birds and a few others collected subse- 

 quently on my return at Antipolo and Montalban before 

 returning home I do not intend to include in this paper. 



Leaving Manila on June 4 in a small gun-boat — the 

 'Panay^ — I duly arrived at Puerta Princessa three days 

 later. Here I was met by Col. White with a launch, and 

 proceeded up the beautiful Iwahig River to the penal 

 settlement, where there were roughly 1000 prisoners 

 engaged in every kind of work. The island is very fertile, 

 and for the most part covered with virgin forest \\ Inch 

 cannot be penetrated. However, there are a good many 

 spaces that have been cleared by convict labour, and 

 wonderful crops are grown. It is in these clearings that 

 most of the birds resort, as they like the fresh air and 

 sunshine, where there is more insect-life. Certain species, 

 however, prefer the forest, where grow giant trees of 

 incredible size covered with all sorts of parasitic plants and 

 entwined with a tangle of vines and creepers, and the trunks 

 of these trees are covered with minute snails. Here is the 

 home of the lovely Palawan Peacock-Pheasant, which never 



