1873.] DISTRIBUTION OF ASIATIC BIRDS. 681 



sharp criticism from Lord Walden, adds largely to our knowledge of 

 their distribution. 



Dr. Cantor has also given an extensive catalogue of birds collected 

 by him in this Society's 'Proceedings' for 1855 ; and Mr. Blyth, 

 both in the pages of the J. A. S. B. and in his ' Catalogue of Birds in 

 the Museum of the Asiatic Society,' has described and enumerated 

 numerous species. The general fades of the Malacca birds is un- 

 doubtedly very similar to those of Borneo, Java, and Sumatra ; and 

 though the facts as at present known are not sufficient to justify Dr. 

 Stoliczka's statement that more than half the species are absolutely 

 the same, yet probably at least twenty-five per cent, of them are 

 common to the four countries, and as many more wanting only in 

 Java or Borneo. 



A good many Indian or Chinese species, as well as some migrants 

 from the north, which do not seem to extend to the islands, are noted 

 from the Malay peninsula ; and though the total number of birds is 

 probably higher than in any of the islands, the proportion of peculiar 

 species is smaller. 



The following analysis of the birds of the Indo-Malay subregion 

 may be taken for what it is worth ; it will at any rate give some idea 

 of the component parts of the avifauna. 



Omitting the five families mentioned before, there are in Java 

 about 200 species, Sumatra 185, Malacca 2 10, and Borneo 1 70. In the 

 four islands together 400, of which are 



per cent. 



Peculiar to Java 45 11 



„ Sumatra 24 6 



„ Borneo 32 8 



„ Malacca 16 4 



Found in all the islands and Malacca, about .48 12 



,, Malacca, Sumatra, Borneo 28 7 (pro- 



bably many more). 



,, Java, Sumatra, Malacca 24 6 



„ Malacca, Sumatra 20 5 



Indian or Chinese species only found in Ma- 

 lacca ." 24 6 



About two-thirds of the birds are thus accounted for ; the remainder 

 are either birds of very wide distribution, or are only recorded from 

 one or two of the divisions, though probably found elsewhere, or are 

 birds of which so little is known that they cannot be positively 

 assigned to any of the heads. 



An analysis of the genera gives the following results, and shows how 

 distinct the subregion is from the Indo-Malayan one : — 



per cent. 

 Of very wide distribution 3fi 16 



Confined to the Indo-Malay region 98 44 



)> „ Malay subregion, or only repre- 

 sented by one species in India or Burmah . . 58 26 



Found also in tropical Africa 20 9 



Characteristic of the Austro-Malay region .... 8 4 



