328 Birds of Celebes: Ardeidae. 



The Black-billed Egret has not yet been recorded as breeding in Celebes, 

 but it occurs there in summer as well as in winter, and we have it in almost 

 perfect breeding plumage. In China it is a partial migrant, but its movements 

 seem to be of a somewhat local character; in South Japan it is, according to 

 Seebohm, a resident. In some portions of India it is described as a resident, 

 in others it is not stationary. From Dresser's investigations it appears to be 

 a summer visitor to most of the places in South Europe where it is found, but 

 it is known to winter in Albania and Epirus; in Northern Africa it is generally 

 a resident, though only a spring and autumn bird of passage in some jiarts. 

 According to Schlegel (a 3) this Egret is a trifle smaller in tropical Asia than 

 in Europe, the toes and claws are blackish and the base of the bill often 

 yellowish. The last is a sign of non-breeding; as to size it appears from the 

 measurements of Dresser compared with those given above that the tarsus is 

 on an average slightly shorter in the East than in the West. The birds of Java, 

 Borneo and Celebes received the name Ardea nignpes from Temminck. 



Dr. Sharpe (1 1) admits H. nignpes as a good species, drawing the line of 

 geographical separation between it and H. garzetta at Celebes and Java as the 

 furthest boimds of the former species, and the Philippines, Borneo and Sumatra 

 as the furthest of H. garzetta. Without denying that the bird tends to get blacker 

 feet in the direction of Australia, we are unable to follow Dr. Sharpe in drawing 

 this clear line of geographical demarkation and think it better to treat of all 

 indi\iduals as belonging to one species. But if two "species" be made of them, 

 the geographical dividing line may certainly be as well fixed where Dr. Sharpe 

 has di'awn it, as anywhere else. 



In America this Egret is represented by H. candidissima (Gm.', in which 

 the two crest-feathers of H. garzetta are replaced by a number of long decom- 

 posed fibrous feathers, and the lanceolate jugular feathers are similarly replaced 

 by decomposed ones. For this reason Dr. Sharpe (Ibis 1894, 432) separates 

 the American bii"d generically (Leiicophoya') ; and again he allows H. garzetta to 

 stand as a genus Garzetta distinct from Herodias on account of its longer and 

 slenderer bill, which exceeds the length of the middle toe and claw. Few orni- 

 thologists will admit that a slight modification of some of the decorative feathers 

 of a Heron (which are cast off after the breeding season) should warrant its 

 exclusion from the old genus, and we cannot cease to regard the American 

 Little Egret as a brother — in truth a little more highly differentiated — - of 

 the Old World form. As to Herodias it would appear from Dr. Sharpe' s re- 

 marks that its bill does not exceed the middle toe and claw in length, but just 

 the opjjosite is the case in aU specimens of Herodias alba (with its Eastern form 

 :orra) which we have examined. We fail to see what end is served by con- 

 cealing the affinities of allied forms, such as these white Egrets prove to be, 

 under separate generic appellations; at the most the name Garzetta should be 

 employed for H. garzetta as a subgeneric term not for common use, its differences 



