\ of the Loo-choo Islands. 288 



Hypsipctes prpjeri, Stejneger, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. 18813^ 

 p. 642. 



Hypsipetes amaurotis, Seebohra, Ibis, 1887, p. 174. 



Mr. Pryer has sent an interesting series of this bird from 

 the Loo-clioo Islands. They resemble the Bonin-Island 

 form in having the breast and flanks chestnut-brown, instead 

 of dark grey, as in the typical race from Japan, but they 

 agree with the latter in size. The length of wing from the 

 carpal joint varies from 4^ to 5 inches. I have an example 

 from Bonin Island (the only one I have seen), which is 

 slightly larger ; but until a larger series from that island has 

 been measured, it is premature to regard the Loo-choo form 

 as even subspecifically distinct from it. My example from 

 Bonin Island measures 135 millimetres, and is exceeded by 

 an example from Hakodadi, the measurement of which is 

 given by Dr. Stejueger as 186 millimetres. 



Erithacus namiyei. 



IcotuTus namiyei, Stejneger, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1886, 

 p. 645. 



It is very difficult to say whether the bird described by 

 Dr. Stejneger is a stage of plumage of ^. komadori^ or a local 

 race of that curious bird. I only know of three examples of 

 E. komadori in Europe — the male and female in the Leyden 

 Museum, and a male (a cage-bird from Japan) in my own 

 collection, which agrees with the type and not with Dr. Stej- 

 neger^s description, I entirely disagree with this vvriter^s 

 conclusions that this bird is not congeneric with E. akahige 

 and E. rubecula. The wing is not more concave, nor are the 

 nostrils removed from the frontal covering. When Dr. Stej- 

 neger lays stress upon the strong superficial resemblance 

 between his Icoturi and some of the Formicariidse, remarking 

 that "' should colour count for more than structure, then 

 Icoiurus Avould come very close to Mynneciza lomjipes from 

 Panama,^' he must surely forget that the Formicariidse are 

 known to have a different form of larynx and a different 

 arrangement of its muscles. The Loo-choo E. namiyei is 

 said to differ from its Corean ally in three points ; the flanks 



SER. V. VOL. vx. ft 



