i.ii . II. C. Robinson: Birds from Pnlatt Langkawi. 143 



There seems little doubt thai Raffle-' description of 

 sumatrana applies to a young bird, little more than a nestling, 

 of this species and that his name will therefore have to 

 displace the generally used S. melana 



>b. Thalasseus bkkgii pelecanoides (King). 



Sterna pelecanoides. King, Survey Intern,, 

 Western Coasts Australia, 11. p. 4^ -2 (1827). 



Sterna beryii, Saunders. Cut. Birds Brit. Mus. xxv, p. 

 89 (1896) ; Robinson & Kloss p. n. 



Thalasseus betgii edwardsi, Mathews, Oberholser 

 Proc. I'. S. Nat. Mus. 49. p. 520 (1915). 



Thalasseus bergii pelecanoides. Oberholser, loc. at. p. 



523- 



Sterna bergii pelecanoides, Robinson, antea. p. 70. 



a-c. 1 hiem. Pulau Langkawi. February 



and March. 

 d-e. 2<J aest. Pulau Terutau, March. 



The specimens dated February and March, which are in 

 full or incipient breeding plumage have the mantle decidedly 

 darker grey than the others or than any of a considerable 

 series in the I 7 . M.S. Museums from the Straits of Malacca 

 southwards to Singapore and from Tioman on the Fast coast 

 of the Peninsula. The wing in the live specimens ranges from 

 328 — 355 mm. and the exposed culmen from 59 — 61, but the 

 shorter winged birds as is so frequently the rase in terns have 

 the tips of the primaries abraded. 



The majority of the more southerly specimens, notably 

 those from Tioman, appear to have a larger bill. 61 — 64 mm. 

 though two are smaller than any of the above specimen- from 

 Langkawi etc. measuring 56 mm. 



I have in part followed Stresemann (Nov. Zool. XXI) in 

 not admitting the validity of T. b. edwardsi, Mathews itvpes 

 from Ceylon) regarding it on the strength of the above 

 specimens from Langkawi merely as a transitional form 

 between T. b. velox (Cretzsm.) from the Red sea. and T. b. 

 pelecanoides (King) from Australian Seas and not worthy of 

 even a subspecific name. In any event I think that the speci- 

 mens from the extreme south of rennasserim listed asedwardsi 

 by Oberholser would in all probability be referable to T. b. 

 cristatits from China if that form is to be kept distinct from J'. 

 b. pelecanoides. which is extremely doubtful. 



J7. NlNOX SCUTULATA SCUTl LATA (F 



Xinox scutulata <part. Robinson and Kloss, p. 31; 

 Gyldenstolpe, p. ui. 



Xinox scutulata scutulata (Raffles) Hartert, I. . 

 Palaarkt. Faun. II. p. 992 (1912). 



a. ?. Pulau Dayang Bunting, Langkawi, 8th De- 

 cember, 1916 [No. 3605.] 



