554 Birds of Celebes: Sturnidae. 



Distribution. "The gi'eater part of Eiu'ope, local in many places; eastward to Siberia, to 

 Japan and Cliina; N. E. Africa; Central Asia, Persia, and Afghanistan; the Himalaya 

 Mountains eastward to Assam, Burmah, and thi-ough Tenasserim and the Malay 

 Peninsula to Java" (Sharpe 3). 



In the East Indies: Singapore (Davison 5); Sumatra (Hagen); Java (Vorder- 

 man 1, 2); South Celebes — Macassar (P. & F. Sarasin 9); Pliihpjiines — Luzon 

 (Steere a 1), Cebu (Bourns & Worcester 8). 



The first record of the occurrence of the Tree Sparrow in Celebes is due 

 to the Sarasins, who obtained two males in the town of Macassar in July, 

 1895. The bill of these specimens is entirely black, whereas in European 

 examples it is yellow at the base. In Europe the Tree Sparrow breeds in holes 

 in trees and resorts to the open country ; in the East it is partial to the towns 

 and makes its nest by preference in holes in houses, so rei^lacing the House 

 Sparrow in these parts. At Batavia, according to Dr. Vorderman, it is the 

 commonest bird, and does much harm there by pecking holes in the plaster 

 walls of houses, owing to which and to the heavy rains he has even seen houses 

 reduced to ruins. 



FAMILY STURNIDAE. 



The Starling-family may be distinguished from the Timeliidae by the com- 

 paratively long wing; from the Corvidae by the absence of projecting bristles 

 covering the nostrils (though the nostrils are sometimes hidden by the pro- 

 jecting frontal plumes) and generally by their smaller size; from the Turdidae 

 by the tarsus scutellated anteriorly from top to bottom. The first primary is 

 minute, the second reaches nearly or quite to the tip of the wing. Many of 

 the species are gregarious, noisy, of excellent fijing-powers; sometimes migratory. 



GENUS CALORNIS G. R. Gray. 



Plumage with a strong metallic gloss, sexes similar; young streaked below 

 and not metallic. Arboreal; gregarious. Culmen about as long as the cranium, 

 its keel high, decurved; nostril small, roundish, exposed; wing long, the second- 

 aries about ^/a its length, P' primary minute, tip of wing formed by 2'"^ — 4"'. 

 Tarsus short, shorter than middle toe and claw, like the feet black in colour. 

 Tail rounded or graduated, varying much in length according to the species. 

 The genus belongs to the Indo- Australian area. 



231. CALORNIS PANAYENSIS (Seop.). 



Philippine Glossy Starling. 



Of this species five races have been recognised by Dr. Sharpe (Cat. B. 

 XIII, 1890, 143 — 148), who, however, wrongly takes the form found from Java 



