Dr. W. L. Buller on Harpa novse-zealandiae. 453 



May ; not observed during the autumn migration. Ten 

 specimens, in full breeding-plumage, have the wing 3'3 to 3*7 

 inches, and tail 2"6 to 3"1 ; minor wing-coverts green, edge 

 of wing and axillaries sulphur-yellow. 



122. Anthus blakistoni, Swinhoe. 



Common from the middle of October to the beginning of 

 April. In the males the wings vary in length from 3*4 to 

 3*7 inches, and the tails from 2"75 to 2*9 j in females the 

 wings measure 3*25 to 3*45, and the tails from 2*5 to 2*9. 

 Birds shot in Gilgit in November agree perfectly with Mr. 

 Swinhoe^s type of Anthus blakistoni from Amoy, with which 

 I have compared them. 



[To be continued.] 



XXXVI. — Note on Harpa novse-zealandise. By Walter 

 L. BuLLER, C.M.G., Sc.D., F.R.S. 



Through some miscarriage, I have only lately received my 

 copy of "The Ibis ^ for October 1879, which contains a 

 pajjer by Professor Hutton on Harpa novcB-zealandice. Not 

 having seen it before, I wish now to offer a few observations 

 in reply. 



Prof. Hutton^s argument against the recognition of two 

 species, although supported by a table of measurements, rests 

 on too many bare assumptions to be of much value in deter- 

 mining this vexed question. For example, he assumes that 

 since the publication of ' The Birds of New Zealand ' I 

 have examined only the two specimens mentioned in the 

 seventh volume of the ' Transactions of the New-Zealand 

 Institute.'' He assumes that Mr. Sharpe "doubts the accuracy 

 of the labels attached to the British-Museum specimens" 

 simply because Mr. Sharpe, in his ' Catalogue of Birds,^ has 

 quoted the dimensions of the sexes from my Avork. He 

 assumes (with Mr. Potts) that Dr. von Haast was ''^mis- 

 taken in supposing that he got his bird from the nest and 

 determined its sex '' and that he only " guessed at its sex.''"' 

 He assumes that Mr. Fuller, the taxidermist, was wrong in his 



SER. IV. VOL. V. 2 I 



