Birds of Celebes: Nectariniidae. 



473 



The typical Anthreptes malaccensis: Teuasserim , Malacca, Sumatra, Borneo, 



Java as far as (?) Flores. 

 Anthreptes malaccensis celebensis (Shelley): Celebes and (£cle Shelley) Sula. 

 Anthreptes malaccensis chlorigaster (Sharp e): Negros, with the birds of which 



locality those of Sangi (fide Shelley) are identical. 



Perhaps the way in which these forms intergrade may be best shown by 

 the following key to the adult males in the Dresden Museum: 



The typical 

 A. malaccensis 



A. malaccensis 

 — cJilorigastei' 



a. Under surface yellower. 



a'. Head above and mantle greener metallic bottle-green: Borneo, Nr.6368. 

 b'. Head above and mantle bluer metallic bottle-green. 

 b". Throat drab: Java, Nr. 6364. 

 c". Throat more rufous: Java, C 5504. 

 n' — b'. Intel-mediate specimen: Sumatra, C 10262. 

 h. Under surface more oUvaceous. 



d'. Size small: wing 66 — 71 mm, Hke that of the typical A. iTiakiccensis. 

 d". Head and mantle bluer; under surface yellower, less olivaceous; 

 flanks yellower. 

 d'". Head and mantle as d": Mindanao, C 9909. 

 e'". Head and mantle still bluer: Palawan, C 13747. 

 Head and mantle greener; under surface more ohvaceous; flanks 



A. malaccensis 

 celebensis 



e . 



tinged vnth s 



rey. 



A. malaccensis 

 chlm~igaster 



f". Breast shghtly less ohvaceous: Banka Id. off Celebes, 



C 12221 and 12224. 

 g'". Breast shghtly more ohvaceous: Mantehage Id., C 12222 



and 12223. 

 h'". Breast still more ohvaceous, throat tinged with russet: 



Macassar, Nr. 8571 (type of celebensis). 

 f" — g'" — h'". Intermediate unclassifiable specimens: Manado 

 tua C 12225, Minahassa Nr. 8575, Tom- 

 buku, E. Celebes Nr. 8576. 

 Size large: wing 70 — 77 mm. 

 i". Sides more olivaceous yellow; mantle bluer metalhc bottle-green: 



Great Sangi, old ad. cf Nr. 8562. 

 j". Sides yellower; mantle greener: Siao, Nr. 8565. 

 i" — /. intermediate: Great Sangi Nr.8561, C 12710; Siao Nr.8566. 



An additional select series of 6 adidt males from East Celebes vary on the imder sur- 

 face from the much yellower tone of the form chlorigaster to an olivaceous tint darker than 

 is usual in Celebes sldns. Two fi'om Banggai Island are dark below, but less dark than the 

 latter specimen. 



The largest specimens of A. malaccensis celebensis exceed the smallest of A. 

 malaccensis chlorigaster of Sangi in size, and in colour there is no appreciable 

 difference between Sangi specimens and those of Banka except the tinge of 

 olive-grey on the flanks of the latter. Though the present species seems to be 

 of a not exceptionably variable character in one and the same locality and some 

 of the points of difference shown in the key above may be ascribed to differ- 



••r ,t Wigleswortli, Birils of Celebes fN»v. Oili, 1597 



60 



