1882.] MR. II. B. SlIARPK ON STRIX OUSTALK II. 335 



green, a narrow line of this appearing at tlie angle of the mouth 

 when the jaws are closed. When the beak is open, the beautiful 

 green of the moutli and tongue is very conspicuous, and, contrasting 

 with the bright red eye and dark velvety plumage of the head, adds 

 greatly to the general appearance of the bird. 



It would he interesting to know whether the females of Seleucides 

 also have their mouth thus coloured, or whether it is a peculiarity 

 of the male, developed as a sexual ornament'. 



3. A Note on Strix oustaleti, Hartlaub. By R. Bowdler 

 SharpEj F.L.S., F.Z.S., k,c., Department of Zoology, 

 British Museum. 



[Eeceived March 9, 1882.] 



In the ' Proceedings' of this Society for 18/9, Dr. Hartlaub de- 

 scribed a Barn-Owl from the island of Vitu-Levu, which he called 

 Strix oustaleti. I have recently had a pair of Owls submitted to me 

 by Professor J. F. Blake of the University College, Nottingham — ■ 

 to the Museum of which they had been presented bv Mr. Fillingham 

 Parr, who procured them in the Fiji Islands. 



I recognized, as I thought, Strix oustaleti ; and on comparing the 

 birds with Dr. Hartlaub's description I found there could be no 

 doubt on the subject ; but I could see at the same time that the bird 

 was no true Barn-Owl, but a Grass- Owl, in fact our old friend Strix 

 Candida, probably occurring in Fiji on one of its migrations, which 

 have proved so disastrous to the simplicity of its nomenclature. 



As long as this O.vl remained in India its synonymy consisted 

 simply of two names — the original one of Candida of Tickell, and 

 longimembris of Jerdon ; but on a Philippine specimen being dis- 

 covered, it was named S. amauronota by Dr. Cabauis ; and in the 

 same year (1866) Mr. Swinhoe found it in Formosa and called it S. 

 pithecops. Shortly after, it turned up in Queensland, only to be 

 named Strix walleri by Mr. Diggles ; and now its last appearance, in 

 the Fiji islands, has gained it the additional cognomen of 8. oustaleti. 



Dr. Hartlaub caimot, I think, have got in the Bremen Museum 

 a specimen of a Grrass-Owl, or he could not have failed to see 

 that S. oustaleti belonged to the Strix Candida section ; for of course, 

 if compared with Strix delicatula and S. personata &c., the Fiji 

 Grass-Owl comes out distinct enough. I do not think, from the 

 absence of reference on Dr. Hartlaub's part to my ' Catalogue,' that 

 he has done me the honour of consulting my work, published four 

 years before his paper. On looking at the ' Key to the Species ' of 

 the genus Strix as given by me (Cat. B. Brit. Mus. ii. p. 290), I had 

 not any difficulty in recognizing Strix oustaleti under the name of 

 Strix Candida. 



1 P.S. (Api'il 7). — A young male Eifle-bird (P;* (Yo/'/^s /jararZism) now living 

 iu the Society's Grardens has, it is interesting to observe, its mouth and tongue 

 similarly brightly coloured, though of a lemon-yellnw colour instead of green. 



Proc. Zool. Soc.~1882, No. XXI fl. 23 



