chap, xiii.] THE AUSTRALIAN REGION. 433 



gascar bird, and with Buphaga, an African genus ; but the pecu- 

 liar beak and nostrils approximate more to Crarticus and its 

 allies, of the Australian region, which should probably form a 

 distinct family. Ceycopsis is undoubtedly intermediate between 

 the Malayan Ccyx and the African Ispidina, and is therefore es- 

 pecially interesting. Meropogon is a remarkable form of bee- 

 eater, allied to the Indo-Malayan Nydiornis. Prioniturus (the 

 raquet-tailed parrots) of which two species inhabit Celebes, and 

 one the Philippines, appears to be allied to the Austro-Malayan 

 Geoffroyus. 



We must finally notice a few genera found in Celebes, whose 

 nearest allies are not in the surrounding islands, and which thus 

 afford illustrations of discontinuous distribution. The most re- 

 markable, perhaps, is Coracias, of which a fine species inhabits 

 Celebes ; while the genus is quite unknown in the Indo-Malay 

 sub-region, and does not appear again till we reach Burmah and 

 India ; and the species has no closer affinity for Indian than for 

 African forms. Myialestes, a small yellow flycatcher, is another 

 exmple; its nearest ally (M. cinereocapilla) being a common Indian 

 bird, but unknown in the Malay islands. The Celebesian bird 

 described by me as Prionochilus aureolimbatus, is probably a 

 third case of discontinuous distribution, if (as a more careful 

 examination seems to show) it is not a Prionochilus, but con- 

 generic with Pachyglossa, a bird only found in the Himalayas. 

 The fine pigeon, Carpophaga forsteni, belongs to a group found in 

 the Philippines, Australia, and New Zealand ; but the Celebes 

 species is very distinct from all the others, and seems, if any- 

 thing, more allied to that of New Zealand. 



The Sula islands (Sula-mangola, Sula-taliabo, and Sula-besi) 

 lie midway between Celebes and the Moluccas, being 80 miles 

 from the nearest part of Celebes, with several intervening 

 islands, and 40 miles from Bouru, all open sea. Their birds 

 show, as might be expected, a blending of the two faunas, but 

 with a decided preponderance of that of Celebes. Out of 43 

 land birds which have been collected in these islands, we may 

 deduct 6 as of wide range and no significance. Of the 37 re- 

 maining, 21 are Celebesian species, and 4 are new species but 



