Birds of Palaivan. 53 



Steere really applies to the adult male only, so I take it 

 that they were wrongly sexed. 



Adult female. Head greenish black, slightly greener on 

 throat ; a pale yellow collar at the back of the neck ; back 

 olive-green, slightly grey on the rump. Upper tail-coverts 

 greenish black ; tail brownish black, tipped and marked as 

 in the male, but to a very much less degree. Wings dark 

 brown, marked as in the male, but not nearly so pronounced ; 

 primaries externally washed with greenish yellow, but quills 

 not tipped with white ; rest of the under surface slightly 

 duller than in the male. 



The young are brown above, more greenish on the lower 

 back, with a distinct yellow collar, as in the female ; beneath 

 pale yellow, with a slightly greyish tinge on the throat. 

 Some young males have the adult plumage on the throat and 

 breast, but the back is much mingled with immature feathers, 

 which have faded into rusty brown. The white spots on 

 the wings and tail often become worn off. 



94. Dendrophila frontalis. M. (but not Bornean). 

 This Nuthatch is fairly common in the more open country, 



especially amongst the dead trees, which are left standing, 

 often in numbers, in the rice-fields. This, curiously enough, 

 is not the Bornean species, D. corallipes (which has bright- 

 red legs, and is of a richer colour in plumage), but is the 

 true D. frontalis of Java, Sumatra, and other islands. Thus 

 it is doubtful whether Dendrophila frontalis reached Palawan 

 via Borneo. D. cenochlamys of the Philippines is more like 

 the Bornean species, both being more brightly coloured than 

 D. frontalis, but the Philippine bird is brown-legged like 

 D. frontalis. The orbital skin of the typical D. frontalis is 

 lemon-yellow, that of the Palawan D. frontalis grey. 



Sulu, " Baltelik." 



Eye straw-yellow ; bill vermilion ; orbital skin grey ; legs 

 light brown. 



95. MYZANTHE PYGMiEA. P. 



Scarce, feeding on small fruits and berries. 



