Dr. O. Finsch’s Ornithological Letter. 329 
and recently in the possession of M. Boucard, was noted by 
the collector as having the iris dark grey. 
Léotaud, in his article on this species, to which I have 
already referred, says, “Cire, iris et pattes d’un jaune clair ; 
bec noir.”’ 
In Professor Sumichrast’s notes on the ‘ Birds of South- 
Western Mexico,’ published by Mr. Lawrence, he says of 
this species, at p. 42, ‘‘iris brown; upper mandible black, 
the lower, cere, lores, eyelids, and feet bluish ash, the cere 
spotted with black.” 
Professor Schlegel, in his article on this species, which I 
have already quoted, says, “Serres, iris de cil, angle de la 
bouche et moitié postérieure de la mandibule inférieure d’un 
jaune orange; freins et paupiére supérieure d’un jaune clair.” 
Judging from the skins which I have examined, I believe 
that the base of the lower mandible is yellow in the young 
birds only, and not in the adult. 
[To be continued. | 
XXXI.— Ornithological Letters from the Pacific. No, I11.* 
By Orro Finscu, Ph.D., H.M.B.O.U., &c. 
Taluit (Bonham), Marshall Islands, 
November 15, 1879. 
Since I wrote you my last letter (dated September 20th) I 
have made a trip in a small schooner of 80 tons to the eastern 
(Ratak) chain of this group of islands, without doing much 
as regards ornithology. Sea-birds were generally as rare as 
they were on the voyage down the Pacific from Honolulu. 
In fact, we passed days when not one single bird was seen, 
and 'Tropic-birds (Phaeton flavirostris and P. ethereus) and 
a single species of Shearwater were almost the only ornitho- 
logical appearances at all. The latter was dark brown all 
over; but the birds were always too far out to recognize the 
species. Once only I noticed a Procellaria, dark, with a 
white rump. Frigate-birds (Tachypetes) I only observed 
twice, high in the air, but easily recognizable by their forked 
* For No. II, see ‘Ibis,’ 1880, p. 218. 
