Birds of Celebes: Ploceidae. 549 



Measurements. Wiug 48 — 52 mm; tail c. 42; tarsus 14; middle toe and claw 18; bill from 



nostril 8. 

 Distribution. Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, BaU (fide Sharpe 3], Lombok (Vorderman, 



and Doherty, fide Hartert, Nov. Zool. 1896, 559), Sumba (Doherty ib. 582), 



Flores and Timor (Wallace 5), Timorlaut (H. O. Forbes 5); Celebes. 



In Celebes — Macassar (Wallace 1, 2, 3, P.& F. Sarasin 4), Pare Pare, S. Cel. 



(iid.), Central Celebes (iid.j. 



There is a single specimen of this species in the Wallace Collection in 

 the British Museum labelled "Macassar". It is mentioned by Lord Walden (1), 

 by Prof. W. Blasius (2) and by Dr. Sharpe (3). M. nisoria had not been re- 

 corded from Celebes by any earlier or subsequent traveller, and neither the 

 Leyden Museum (Biittik., Notes Leyd. Mus. 1892, XIV, 202), nor the Dresden, 

 nor any other, so far as we are aware, possessed examples so labelled, until it 

 was rediscovered in South and Central Celebes in 1895 by the Sarasins, whose 

 collection contains four specimens. Blyth's remark (Ibis- 1870, 172) that the 

 race of M. nisoria, "from Celebes, has no pale shafts to the feathers of the 

 upper parts" is incorrect. According to Dr Sharpe, M. nisoria is one of five 

 subspecies of which M. piinctulata (Linn.^ of the Indian countries is the type. 

 Mr. Biittikofer (1. c.) makes the interesting statement that six specimens in the 

 Leyden Museum from the island of Bouibon — where, as Dr. Hartlaub says 

 (Vog. Madag. 1877, 403), the species has been introduced — ■ "agree entirely with 

 31. nisoria of Java, with the exception of the upper tail-coverts and centre tail- 

 feathers, which are not ashy grey but sensibly tinged with pale olive-green, in 

 which character they agree with M. topela. They are, however, undoubtedly to 

 be united with M.nisoria". The example serves to illustrate our postulate (s. p. 102) 

 that colonists become changed more than stayers-at-home. 



-J 



229. MUNIA MOLUCCA (L.). 



Moluccan Munia. 



This species, which inhabits the Moluccas, the Celebesian area and the 

 Lesser Sunda Islands, has developed differences, as shown by Dr. Sharpe (c 1, e 1) 

 and afterwards by Mr. Biittikofer (f 1) in the Moluccas and in the Lesser 

 Sunda Islands, while birds from Celebes are intermediate. The Lesser Sunda 

 race has been separated, as a subspecies, p)^opiiiqua, by Dr. Sharpe, who includes 

 the Celebes birds under this title, while Mr. Biittikofer places the latter under 

 M.molucca typical. Dr. Vorderman has separated the Kangean Munia sub- 

 specifically. We prefer, in want of a better method, to group them as follows: 



1. The typical Munia molucca. 



a. Loxia molucca (1) Linn., S.N. 1766, I, 302. 



b. Munia molucca (1) Salvad., Orn. Pap. U, 1881, 434 (nee Celebes, Flores); (2J W. Bias. 



& Xehrk., Verb. z.-b. Ges. Wien 1882, 427; (3) Pleske, Bull. Ac. Sc. Petersb. 1884, 

 129; (4) Salvad., Om. Pap. Agg. 1890, 139. 



