468 



Birds of Celebes: Nectariniidae. 



coverts; tail-feathers edged with steel-blue (Manado [cf], III. 71; Meyer 



Nr. 8520). 



Ueasurements. 



a. (C 12211) [a') ad. Lotta, 12. V. 93 . . . . 



b. (C 12214) [cf] ad. Lotta, V. 93 



c. (C 312) [cf] ad. Manado, IH. 71 



d. (Nr. 6335) [cf] ad. Celebes 



e. (C 12213) [cfl ad. Banka Id. 11. V. 93 . . . 



f. (C 12212) [(f i ad. Manado tiia Id., 14. W. 93 



g. (Nr. 8520) [(^] juv. Manado, III. 71 . . . . 

 h. (Nr. 8519) [§ ?] juv. Manado 



BiU from 

 forehead 



Skeleton. 



Length of tarso-metatarsus . 

 Length of digitus I . . . 

 Length of digitus 11 . . . 

 Length of digitus ELI 

 Length of digitus IV . • 

 Length of sternum 

 Greatest breadth of sternimi 

 Height of crista sterni . . 

 Length of coracoideum . 

 Length of scajjula . . . 

 Length of clavicula 

 Length of jjelvis .... 

 Greatest breadth of pelvis . 



(Wallace n 1, Meyer c 5, etc.); 



16 

 15.5 



15.5 

 15 



16 



14.0 mm 



9.0 " 



8.5 > 



10.9 » 



9.0 > 



15.0 > 



10.0 ■' 



5.5 . 



11.7 » 



14.0 . 



11.5 



16.0 ' 



11.0 



Banka and 



Manado tua Is. (Nat. Coll. in Dresd. Mus.) 



This Sun-bird ajjpears to be a local species, having its affinities with H. 

 porphyrolaema of South Celebes from which it differs by its red back and breast. 

 In the countries to the west it is most nearly related to NectarophUa hasselti (T.) 

 which ranges from Burmah to Sumatra, Borneo and Java, a species with a red 

 breast, but black back and mantle. For convenience' sake we draw the line 

 of generic sejjaration as Salvadori and others have done between Hermotimia 

 grayi and Nectarophila hasselti, though the points of distinction are very small 

 indeed: Hermotimia has the bill straighter and the ridge of the culmen sharper, 

 Nectarophila has the bill more decurved for the terminal half and the culmen 

 more rounded. To speak of Hermotimia as a Papuan genus in Celebes would 

 be likely to convey a wrong impression. 



The Cinnyridae afford striking cases of sexual differences of coloration, 

 though less remarkable than what is seen in the Paradiseidae and Gallinae. The 

 bright colouring of the males causes them to be shot by collectors in much 

 larger numbers than the females, and the latter are generally scantily represented 

 in Museums. Whilst the males have become differentiated into a number of 

 striking types of coloration, a curious sameness runs through the females. Of 



