Birds of Celebes: Ardeidae. ^45 



Specimen b seems to be in complete plumage; c is acquiring new primaries, 

 a has the crest-plumes not fully grown out. 



Nest and eggs. Undescribed. 



Distribution. Philippine Islands — Luzon, Cebu, Leyte, Negros, Malamaui, Catanduanes, 

 Siquijor, Marinduque, Samar, Tablas, Sibuyan, Panay, Masbate, Basilan, Mindanao, 

 Tawi Tawi (Gevers b 1, Everett 17, 18, Steere 24, Platen 23, Bourns & 

 Worcester 28, Whitehead 29); N. Borneo (Everett 27); Labuan (id. 32); N. Ce- 

 lebes — Minahassa (P. & F. Sarasin el, 30); Pelew Islands') (Kubary, etc. 25); 

 Caroline Islands — Ruk (Kubary 25). 



The Philippine Night Heron was first recorded by us from Celebes after 

 examples from Drs. P. and F. Sarasin, who in 1892 obtained three specimens, 

 two young, and the third an adult male characterised by a blackish slate-coloured 

 back; it was named by us N. mmahassae. Two more specimens, which the tra- 

 vellers soon afterwards added to their collection, afforded transitions to Nycticorax 

 manilensis, consequently we united (30) mmahassae with that species ; at the same 

 time the differences between Celebesian specimens of Nycticorax caledomcus and 

 manilensis are almost bridged over. While N. caledonicus has the fore-neck white, 

 N. manilensis has only a white parting down it; also the crest -plumes of 

 caledonicus are not tipped with black as in manilensis, and the back of the former 

 is of a lighter rufous, wanting a slaty purple tinge on the mantle. Moreover, 

 N. manilensis apjjears to be a variable species, as regards colour, and that inde- 

 pendently of age, sex, and season. The type of A^. minahassae may, perhaps, 

 be correctly termed a melanistic variety of N. manilensis. But it is not certain 

 whether the Celebesian birds are quite the same as A^. manilensis of Luzon, the 

 type of which is said to have the fore-neck rufous (no mention being made of 

 a white parting dow n it) ; other descriptions, however, seem to show that the bird 

 is subject to considerable variation in the Philippines, as well as in Celebes. 

 Another possibility is that N. caledonicus and N. manilensis interbreed in North 

 Celebes, and that we have to do with a mixed race. According to Sharpe (32) 

 there is an adult and a young example of Nycticorax caledonicus from Celebes in the 

 Tweeddale Collection in the British Museum, but none of manilensis. 



^359. NYCTICORAX GRISEUS (L.). 



Common Night Heron. 



'o*^ 



a. Ardea nycticorax (1) Linn., S.N. 1766, I, 235; (11) Naum., Vog. Deutschl. 1838, IX, 



139, t. 225; (3) Schl., Mus. P.-B., Ardeae, 1863, 56. 



b. Ardea grisea [Briss. Om. 1760, V, 412, pi. 36]; (1) Linn., S. N. 1766, I, 239. 



c. Ardea naevia (1) Bodd., Tabl. PI. Enl. 1783, 56. 



d. Nycticorax europaeus (Ij Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. 1819, XI, 609. 



e. Nycticorax nycticorax (1) Boie, Isis 1822, 560; (2) Seeb., Ibis 1887, 181; (3) Stejn., 



Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. 1887, X, 295; (4) Seeb., B. Japan 1890, 222; (5) Buttik., Zool. 



') Nycticorax caledonicus, according to Sharpe. 



