238 



8 



Hume states that a female from Otago, New Zealand, examined by him, measured — bill 4 - 5, 

 wing 15-2, tail 6*8, tarsus 5 - 5, bare tibia 3 - 99. 



Ardea egretta, the American Great White Egret, differs from Ardea alba in being smaller in 

 size and in having the bill yellow at all seasons of the year, with occasionally a little brown 

 coloration at the tip. I have measured the series of examples from Central and South America 

 in the collection of Messrs. Salvin and Godman, and find the variation in size as follows — 

 gape 4-8-5-7, wing 14 , 2-15 , 6, tarsus 5-5-6-3, bare tibia 3-6-4-6. A larger form is stated by 

 Baird to inhabit the coast of Southern California, and probably the Rio Grande of Texas, which 

 he refers to under the name of Herodias egretta, var. calif ornica, and gives the measurements as 

 — wing 17*0, tarsus 6-7, bill 5 - 0. I doubt, however, if this large form inhabits Southern Texas, 

 as a specimen I obtained near San Antonio, in that State, measures — gape 5-0, wing 14-0, 

 tail, 5-5, tarsus 5"6, bare tibia 3T. 



Ardea intermedia, Wagler (Isis, 1829, p. 659), which inhabits South Africa, India, China, 

 and the Malay archipelago, comes very close to Ardea egretta ; and it is uncertain whether these 

 two species should not be united. Like Ardea egretta it is said to have the bill yellow, tipped 

 with blackish brown, at all seasons of the year, but is smaller than that species. Hume gives 

 the measurements as follows, viz.: — from Continental India, bill 2-68-3-09, wing 11-15-12-91, 

 tail 5-0-5-9, tarsus 4-1-4-66, bare tibia 2-35-3-1; 'and from the Andamans, bill 2-81-3-18, 

 wing 11-15-12-0, tail 4-5-5-2, tarsus 4-35-4-5, bare tibia 2-4-2-8. 



Two specimens from China in Mr. Seebohm's collection measure — culmen 2-85, wing 11-7 

 and 12-2, tail 5 - l and 5-2, tarsus 4 - 3 and 4-4, bare tibia 2-6 and 2 - 7 ; and one, a female, from 

 Java, measures — culmen 3-0, wing 1T7, tail 4 - 8, tarsus 4 - 0, bare tibia 2-4. 



I have not examined a specimen from South Africa ; but Mr. Ayres gives (Ibis, 1877, p. 349) 

 the measurements of a female from the Transvaal as — gape 3 - 5, wing 11-75, tail 5'5, tarsus 4-5. 



The specimens of Ardea alba figured are the adult birds in summer and in winter dress 

 above described, and are in my own collection. 



In the preparation of the above article I have examined the following specimens : — 



E Mus. H. E. Dresser. 



a, Sad. Lower Volga, summer (Stader). b, <$ ad. Caspian Sea. c, ad. Butrinto, winter of 1869 {Hanbury- 

 Barclay) . 



a. Syria (Hemprich fy Ehrenberg). 



a, ad. Pagani river, Africa (Dr. Kirk) . 



E Mus. Berol. 



E Mus. G. E. Shelley. 



E Mus. H. Seebohm. 



a, 3 ad. Canton, China, April 1860. b, d 1 . Formosa, c, $ . Hongkong, April 1860. d. Amoy, November 

 1866. e. Hainan, February 1868. f,<$. Ningpo, August 1872. g. Hankow, winter (R. Swinhoe). 

 h. Shanghai, February 24th, 1874 {A. Michie). 



