1895.] ON Å MELANISTIC PHASE OF URIA GRYLLE. 9 
No. 27. Individu au plumage d'un noir enfumé absolument 
uniforme, Groénland, acquis en 1859, un des types de PUria 
unicolor de Faber.* 
- Stejneger is right in thinking — as he states in his before- 
mentioned paper — that Schlegels's last remark is probably 
misleading. Faber can scarcely have had more than the one 
type-specimen at his disposal, and when Schlegel states, that 
the Leyden Museum received this specimen in 1859, it may 
possibly be a misprint for 1839 (cf. his first statement in 1844: 
Nous venons d'en recevoir*, etc.). 
Dr. Biittikofer, the curator of the Leyden Museum, en- 
lightens us on this subject in the communication which I have 
just received. 
I am quite unable to say upon what reason Prof. S. de: 
clared the specimen in question to be one of the types of U. 
umicolor of Faber. On the bottom of the stand is only men- 
tioned that the specimen was obtained in 1859 from Conradsen, 
a dealer in Copenhagen; but in the letters from that dealer, 
which are still present, this bird is not mentioned. But not- 
withstanding this lack of evidence, we are not entitled to dis- 
believe Schlegel's statements, unless we might find the evidence 
that the type or types are all found elsewhere*. 
It would thus seem that the type-specimen of U. motzfeldi 
can no longer be pointed out with certainty, although it is not 
improbable that it is the one which is preserved at Leyden. | 
The investigation must therefore chiefly concern the 3 spe- 
cimens of this form or species, hitherto preserved in museums. 
With regard to Size, it is stated concerning the original 
specimen of U. motzfeldi, that it was of the size of å young 
Alea torda, but no special measurements are given. There is 
thus no guide except the given measurement of the length of 
the bill, and two or three giving the length of the head, and 
