Ave atque vale.



305 .



AVE ATQUE VALE: VILLERS-

BRETONNEUX.*


By a misfortune without parallel in the history of aviculture,

Lieut. Delacour’s collection at Villers-Bretonneux has been utterly

destroyed. The Editor feels that no words of his can adequately

describe this tragic episode, involving the loss of what was practically

an entire zoological garden of birds. A short account of the catas¬

trophe was published in our August issue. The following list speaks

eloquently for itself:



List of the Birds lost at Villers-Bretonneux (April, 1918).



Ostriches .


White Bheas

Sarus Cranes

European Cranes

Crowned Cranes

Stanley Cranes .

Demoiselle Cranes

Great Egrets

Lesser Egrets .


Night Heron

White Ibis


Senegal Porphyrios .

Blue Porphyrios

Black Swan

Cereopsis Geese

Upland Geese .

Barheaded Geese

Buddy-headed Geese .

Maned Geese

White-faced Tree Ducks

Eyton’s Tree Duck

Sarcidiornis carunculata

Tadorna tadorna

Summer Ducks .

Mandarin Ducks

Anas clyqteata

Falcated Ducks .

Australian Wild Ducks

Pintails



U ? <? 9


. 1 1 Chiloe Pintails . . .11


. 1 1 Bahama Pintails . .11


. 1 1 Bosy-billed Ducks . .11


. 1 1 Scaup (milounian) . . 1 -


. 1 1 Tufted Ducks (moullons) . 2 1


. 1 1 Fuligula ferina (miloun) . 3 1


. - 1 Wigeons . . . .21


. 1 1 Chiloe Wigeons . . .32


. 1 2 Teal . . . . .21


. 1 - Summer Teal . . . 2 -


. 1 - Formosan Teal (E.formosa) 1 1


. 1 1 Hooded Gulls . . .21


. 1 2 Cinereous Gulls . . .21


. - 1 Common Peafowl . .22


. 1 1 Black-shouldered Peafowl. 4 6


. 1 1 White Peafowl . . .32


. 1 1 Spicifer Peafowl . .13


. 1 1 Germain’s Peacock Pheasant 1 -


. 1 1 Manchurian Crossoptilons . 1 1


. 1 2 Son nerat’s Jungle Fowls . 2 1


. 1 - Mikado Pheasant . . 1 -


. 1 2 Soemmerring’s Pheasant . 1 1


. 2 1 White-crested Kaleege . 1 1


. 3 4 Vulturine Guinea-fowl . - 1


. 3 2 Crested Guinea-fowl . . 1 -


. 2 1 Hildebrandt’s Francolins . 1 1


. 3 1 Sclater’s Curassow . . 1 -


. 2 3 Prince Albert’s Curassow . 1 2


. 3 2 Wattled Curasso’w . . 1 -



* Ave atque vale = “ Hail and Farewell.”



