588 MR. R. B. SHARPE ON THE GENUS CEYX. [NoV. 26, 



(1) those species having the head and rump lilac-rufous, and (2) 

 those of which the heads are black, spotted or banded with blue. 

 The latter section may again be divided into species which have 

 the beak red, and those which have it black. The following 

 synoptic table will, I think, satisfactorily set forth the distinctive 

 characters of each species : — 



A. Capite et uropygio lilacinis : rostro corallino. 



a. Macula ad latera colli casriilea nulla. 



a'. Scapularibus lilacino-rufls 1. C.rufidorsa. 



b'. Scapularibus nigris cseruleo lavatis 2. C.dillwynni. 



b. Macula ad latera colli ca>rulea. 



a'. Major : capite lilacino obscuriore maculate : 

 interscapulio et scapularibus rufis : pectore 

 pulchre violaceo lavato 3. C. melanura. 



b'. Minor : interscapulio et scapularibus nigris 



cyaneo maculatis : subtus flava 4. C. tridactyla. 



B. Capite nigro, creruleo aut cyaneo maculato : dorso pos- 



tico et uropygio cyaneis, ultramarinis, aut ar- 

 genteo-cwruleis. 



a. Eostro corallino. 



a'. Kostro breviore : genis et regione paretics 

 nigris : dorso postico et uropygio argenteo- 



cseruleis 5. C. cajeli. 



b'. Rostro longiore: genis et regione parotica 

 cyaneo aut cseruleo maculatis : dorso pos- 

 tico et uropygio cyaneis aut ultramarinis. 

 a". Scapularibus nigris: dorso postico 



et uropygio Ltte cyaneis 6. C. wallacii. 



b". Scapularibus cieruleo lavatis: dorso 

 postico ultramarino ; lu'opygio cy- 

 anescente. 

 a'". Major: rostro robustiore: ma- 

 culis loralibus majoribus: ca- 

 pitis summi maculis et inter- 

 scapulio casrulescentioribus... 7. C.lepida. 

 b'". Minor: subtus intense aurantia : 



uropygio laete argentescente.. 8. C. uropT/gialis. 



b. Eostro nigro : capite cyaneo fasciato. 



a'. Major : pectore et abdomine intense rufis ... 9. C. philippinensis. 

 b', Minor : pectore et abdomine flavis : gula alba 10. C. solitaria. 



There are in the Indian Region two rufous-headed species of 

 Ceyx, one of which has the whole back lilac-rufous, while the other 

 has the middle of the back and scapularies black washed with blue ; 

 T propose to call them, for the sake of illustration, the rufous- backed 

 and the blue-backed species respectively. These two birds are 

 sufficiently distinct, but nevertheless they were placed together by 

 all the old writers as being sexes or varieties of one species. The 

 first description and figure of these birds we find in an old Dutch 

 work, by Vosmaer, printed at Amsterdam in 1768. The Zoological 

 Society have just acquired for their library arcopy of this rare work, 

 and we find therein the following paper : — " Beschryving van twee 

 zeer fraaie, kortstaartige oost-Indische Ys-vogeltjes," accompanied 

 by a full description and a coloured plate. The upper figure in 

 this plate represents the blue-backed, and the lower figure the red- 

 backed species. 



