294 ASTOLA, A SUMMER CRUISE 



Now this description which is the sole foundation of ohscurus, 

 Gmelin, might apply to many species, and indeed it has been, as 

 we have seen, erroneously applied by some writers, in fact, many 

 European writers, to a small, slender-billed species, but to our 

 species it cannot apply. 



In the first place the length (taken from the skin, as Mr. 

 Blanford remarks, so that the fresh bird must have been 14} 

 is too great. In the second place the bill 1*5 is also much too 

 large. Whatever species Latham's and Gmelin's oh scums really 

 is, it was as much larger than our bird, as Temminck's and 

 Yarrell's was smaller. 



Lastly, the edges of the middle wing coverts are not whitish. 



Every other part of the description would do for half a 

 dozen different species ; in those sole points in which it is possible 

 to test the description, this latter differs from our species. 



That somebody may have called specimens of pe?'sicus, oh- 

 scurus, I will not for a moment dispute, but I submit that it is 

 neither the true ohscurus of Latham aud Gmelin, nor the small- 

 er ohscurus of Temminck, Yarrell, &c. — A. O. H.] 



977.— -Stercorarius asiaticus, Hume. 



I observed the Skua, referred to by Mr. Hume, S. F.> 

 Vol., I. 268, on several occasions, but was unable to 

 procure specimens. I only saw about a dozen in all, and those 

 were along the Mekran Coast between Pusnee and Gwadar. 

 They seemed very wild, aud would not allow the steamer to 

 approach within 200 yards of them, so that I had no opportunity 

 of making notes of the species. 



[Mr. Howard Saunders, in his recent excellent paper on the 

 STERCORARHNiE (P. Z. S. 1876, 327), positively and without any 

 note of interrogation, or indication of doubt, identifies my Sterco- 

 rarius asiaticus (S. F., L, 269, 1873), with Richardson's Skua, 

 (S. crepklatus, Banks, Gm. &c, apud Mr. Saunders). 



I think it is to be regretted that some European ornitho- 

 logists should so confidently assign names given by others to 

 supposed distinct forms, to species already well known, without 

 ever even seeing, let alone carefully examining the said sup- 

 posed distinct forms. 



In the present instauce Mr. Saunders is, there seem good 

 reasons to believe, by no means happy in his identification. 



I have now five specimens of Richardson's Skua before me. 



Two young in the mingled brown and pale rufous buff plu- 

 mage, and with the yellow legs and half feet, the terminal half 

 of each foot being black or blackish. One from the coast of 

 Norway, the other that of Belgium (E. Mus. Howard Saund- 

 ers) ; neither are sexed. They measure ;—- Wings, 124, 125; 



