174 HALCYONES. 



Captain Blakiston at Hakodadi (Blakiston and Pryer, Ibis, 1878, 

 p. 230) ; and in the Pryer collection there are two examples from 

 Yokohama, and three from the central gronp of the Loo-Choo Islands 

 (Seebohm, Ibis, 1887, p. 176). It has also occurred in the southern 

 group of the Loo-Choo Islands (Stejneger, Proc. United States Nat. 

 Mus. 1887, p. 403). 



The Euddy Kingfisher has a wide range. It occurs in Nepal and 

 Sikkim, the Andaman Islands, Burma and the Malay Peninsula, 

 Sumatra and Java, Borneo and Celebes, and in the Philippine Islands 

 and Formosa. The fact that it has not been recorded from the con- 

 tinent of China is presuna^ptive evidence that it found its way to 

 Japan vid the Loo-Choo Islands and Formosa. 



Japanese examples vary in length of wing from 5"l to 4'6 inches, 

 and may possibly be on an average slightly larger than Indian skins, 

 but scarcely suflBciently so to be regarded as subspecifically distinct. 

 The alleged variations in colour and in the wing-formula do not 

 appear to have any geographical significance. 



155. CERTLE GUTTATA. 

 (ORIENTAL SPOTTED KINGFISHER.) 



Alcedo ffuttatus, Vigors, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1830, p. 22. 



The Oriental Spotted Kingfisher is the largest representative of 

 its suborder, not only in Japan, but in the Asiatic continent. It 

 has been asserted that Japanese examples are larger than Indian 

 ones, but this is an error. In both countries the variation is the 

 same (wing from carpal joint 7 to 7^ inches). In the male the 

 breast and the sides of the neck are suffused with chestnut-bufi', and 

 the axillaries and under wing-coverts are white ; and the dark spots 

 across the breast are few and far between. In the female exactly 

 the opposite is the case ; the breast and the sides of the neck are 

 white, profusely spotted with black, but the axillaries and under 

 wing-coverts are chestnut-bufE. 



Figures : Temminck and Schlegel, Fauna Japonica, Aves, pi. 38 b ; 

 Sharpe, Alcedinidae, pi. 18. 



The Oriental Spotted Kingfisher is a resident in the southern 

 islands of Japan ; but in Yezzo it is said to be a partial migrant. 

 There are two examples in the Swinhoe collection obtained at Hako- 



