176 MANUAL OF PHILIPPINE BIRDS. 



"The young bird is browner than the adults, with white mesial streaks 

 on the wing-coverts; crown of head dusky black; under surface of body 

 less gray and washed with brown." (Sharpe.) 



"Extremely common. Found both along the seashore and about fresh- 

 water streams and lakes." (Bourns and Worcester MS.) 



146. BUTORIDES AMURENSIS (Schrenck). 

 AMUR GREEN HERON. 



Ardea virescens var. amurensis SCHRENCK, Reis. Amurl. (1860), 1, 437. 



Butorides amurensis SHAEPE, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1898), 26, 181; Hand- 

 List (1899), 1, 200; MCGREGOR and WORCESTER, Hand-List (1906), 

 34. 



Calayan (McGregor) ; Cebu (Everett, McGregor); Luzon (Whitehead) ; Pa- 

 lawan (Everett) ; Samar (Steere). Greater Sunda Islands, China, Japan, Celebes, 

 Amurland. 



Although in color this species seems to be exactly like B. javanica it is 

 much larger; the length of wing is particularly noticeable and the bill 

 is longer, and deeper. A male collected by Major Mearns measures: 

 Wing, 210; tail, 73; culmen from frontal feathers, 66; depth of bill at 

 posterior border of nostril, 15; tarsus, 54; middle toe with claw, 62. 



A female from Calayan measures : Wing, 197 ; tail,' 69 ; culmen from 

 frontal feathers, 64; depth of bill at posterior border of nostril, 13 ; tarsus, 

 52; middle toe with claw, 54. 



Some of the records for B. javanica probably refer to the present species 

 but it is impossible to disentangle them. 



147. BUTORIDES SPODIOGASTER Sharpe. 

 NICOBAR GREEN HEROH, 



Butorides spodiogaster SHARPE, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club (1894 1 ), 3, 17; Cat. 

 Birds Brit. Mus. (1898), 26, 182, pi. 2; Hand-List (1899), 1, 200; 

 MEARNS, Phil. Jour. Sci. ( 1907 ) , 2, sec. A, 353. 



Palawan (M earns). Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 



"Adult. Similar to B. javanica, but darker gray on the under surface, 

 which is of a sooty-slate color with a slight tinge of rusty on the abdomen, 

 cheeks and ear-coverts uniform slate-color. It much resembles B. stag- 

 natilis, especially the birds from Floree, but it is not so dingy under- 

 neath and has a less shade of rusty on the abdomen. 'Bill black, lower 

 portion of lower mandible, from base to tip, edged pale horny; front 

 of tarsus, toes, and claws brownish green, bare portion of tibia and back 

 of tarsus dirty greenish yellow; naked skin round eye dull green, tinged 

 with yellow in front; eyelids deep green.' (Hume.) Length, 445; 

 culmen, 60 ; wing, 193 ; tail, 53 ; tarsus, 43." (Sharpe.) 



This species differs from both B. javanica and amurensis in its much 

 darker color, particularly of the under parts which are nearly uniform 



