1874.] DR. MURIE ON FREG1LUPUS VARIUS. 4/1) 



study of the bird in skin, placed it among the Sturnidae along- 

 side of Hartlaubia. Schlegel * has indorsed the latter position 

 in his ornithological contribution to MM. Pollen and Van Dam's 

 work on ' The Fauna of Madagascar and Dependencies ; ' and I find 

 him stating, in an earlier popular treatisef, that it is a kind of 

 Starling. In the ' Genera of Birds,' G. R. Gray allows that the Fre- 

 yilupus of Lesson may be a Upupa ; but in his later ' Hand-list ' he 

 has totally altered this opinion, and made it come last in the sub- 

 family Juidinae, the Icteridse having successive proximity. Lastly, 

 and anew, Sundevall acquiesces in its Pastorine affinities, but in the 

 light of an old friend with a new garb. 



With reference to the Cambridge skeleton, I may here insert a 

 note concerning it from Prof. Newton, to whom I had transmitted 

 my drawings with the name Fregilupus madag ascariensis upon them. 

 He writes me : — " I am afraid I have led you astray as to the specific 

 name of the bird. There is no doubt, I think, of its being the Upupa 

 varia of Boddaert, whose specific name has accordingly priority of 



superioribus subrufescentibus ; rostro longiusculo, gracili, subarcuato, acuto, 

 pedibus et orbitis flavis, unguibus fuscis. Long, circa 10", rostr. 1" 8'", al. 5" 5'", 

 caud. 3" 9'", tars. 1" 6'", dig. med. 9'"." 



Then follows synonymy. " Hah. Madagascar, Bourbon, Isle of Prance." 



He further observes: — "In collections it is always of the greatest rarity. 

 Wanting, for example, in the rich Museums of Vienna, Berlin, and Dresden. In 

 Leyden, old and poor. Very beautiful and fresh in Florence and Pisa: three 

 examples from Madagascar. Also in Stockholm. The assertion of Bowdich, 

 that ' Upupa capensis ' has been got at Porto Santo, arises naturally from a mistake 

 (Excurs. Port. Sant. & Madeira, p. 93). [Here it may be stated that there is 

 also a specimen in the Museum at Port Louis, Mauritius. — Newton. ] 



"I measured a beautiful new specimen in the Paris Museum from Bourbon. 

 Entire length 11 J", beak 13$"', wing 5" T", tail 4" 10"', tarsus 1" 5£"'. The only 

 true systematic place of this bird is that long ago adjudged to it by Temminck 

 and Wagler [that is, among the Pastors, though Hartlaub is wrong in quoting 

 Temminck as an authority. See footnote p. 487]. 



" In this place I call attention to the known matter of fact, that the Indian 

 Acridotkercs tristis [Common Mynah] lias, a long time since, been introduced 

 into Mauritius and become domesticated. This species there also proves itself 

 an indefatigable extirpator of grasshoppers &c." — Ornith. Beitrlige z. Fauna 

 Madag. pp. 53 & 54. 



* Professor Schlegel's memorandum bears intrinsic value, being almost the 

 last, certainly the most authoritative, testimony following Hartlaub, as bearing 

 witness to the extreme rarity, if not total extermination, of the bird in question. 

 My quotation is that contained in Pollen and Van Dam's volume, p. 104 : — 



" Fregilupus madag ascariensis. — " Cette espece est devenu tellement rare a la 

 Reunion qu'on n'en a pas entendu parler depuis une dizaine d'annees. Elle a 

 ete detruite dans toutes les parties du littoral, meme dans celles des montagnes 

 peu eloignees de la cote. Des personnes dignes de foi m'ont cependant assure 

 q'elle doit encore exister dans les forets de l'interieur pres de Saint-Joseph. 

 Les vieux Creoles que j'ai consultes a ce sujet me disaient que, dans Jeur jeu- 

 nesse, ces oiseaux etaient encore communs et qu'ils etaient tellement stupides 

 qu'on les pouvait tuer a coup de baton. Les Creoles de l'ilo donnent le nom de 

 Huppe. Cen'est done pas a tort qu'un habitant distingue de File de la Reunion, 

 M. A. Legras, s'exprimait sur cet oiseau dans les termes suivants : — ' La Huppe 

 est devenue tellement rare qu'a peine nous en avons vu une douzaine dans nos 

 peregrinations a la decouverte des oiseaux ; nous avons meme eu la douleur d'en 

 chercher vainement un specimen dans notre Musee.' " 



t Handleidung der Dierkunde (1857), p. 338. 



