Birds of Celebes: Cuculidae. 
199 
The first notice of the occurence of a Cacomantis in Celebes was made by 
Walden, in reference to three specimens obtained by Meyer in 1871, though 
in the British Museum there is a specimen of earlier date killed by Wallace 
at Manado. The cry of the bird, according to Meyer, is til, tii, tutiitti, like 
a flute. It has recently been sent from various parts of Celebes and from 
Banggai by other collectors. Feeds on insects. 
The nest referred to by Meyer as that of this species must doubtless be 
that of some other bird, very possibly that of one into whose care its eggs are 
usually given. The parasitical habits of the genus Cacomantis have been established 
in the case of at least three species — C. passerinus (Vahl), C. flahelliformis 
(Lath.) and C. pallidus (Lath.) and, apparently, C. merulinus cop.) ^ cf. Oates, 
Hume’s Nests and Eggs Ind. B. H, 385; North, Nests and Eggs B. Austr. 
1889, 243, 244; Baldamus, Leben europ. Kuckucke, 1892, 134 — 138. 
^ 66. CACOMANTIS MEKULINUS (Scop.). 
Buff-bellied Cuckoo. 
a. Cuculus merulinus (1) Scop., Del. Elor. & Faun. Insubr. 1786, 89. 
Cacomantis merulinus (1) Cab. & Hein., Mus. Hein. IV, I, 1863, 21; (2) Salvad., Cat. 
Ucc. Borneo 1874, 64; (3) Sbelley, Cat. B. XIX, 1891, 268 pt; (4) Blittik, 
Zool. Erg. Weber’s Beise in Ost-Ind. 1893, HI, 276; (5) Hose, Ibis 1893, 414; (6) 
Styan, ib. 433; (7) Sbarpe, Ibis 1894, 247, 258; (8) Grant, ib. 520; (9) id.. 
Ibis 1895, 262, 466; (10) Blanf., Fann. Br. Ind. B. LH, 1895, 218; (11) M. & Wg., 
Abb. Mus. Dresden 1896, Nr. 1, p. 8; (12) Grant, Ibis 1896, 474, 560; (13) 
Hartert, Nov. Zool. 1896, 551, 586; (14) Kuscliel, Orn. Mb. 1895, 156; (15) 
Hartert, Nov. Zool. 1897, 164. 
h. Cacomantis lanceolatus (S. Mull.), (1) Wald., Tr. Z. S. 1872, V Hi, 53; (2) Meyer, 
Ibis 1879, 146. 
Descriptions. Sbelley 5; Blanford 10\ etc. 
Adult. Ijike tbe foregoing species, C. vireseens (Briigg.), but paler above, tbe grey of tlie 
tlu’oat spreading over tbe breast; remaining under parts buff, not cinnamon-rufous; 
tail-featbers regularly barred with wliite on tbe inner webs, whereas in C. vireseens 
tbe bars are reduced to inconspicuous notebes Macassar, 10. July 95: P. & 
F. Sara sin). 
‘Tris orange-red; bill red-brown; feet yellow”; wing 104 mm; tail 105 (Platen 
in Mus. Nebrkorn — Nr. 1759 — Palawan). 
Young. Above cinnamon, with broad stripes of dusky on bead and neck, talcing tbe form 
of bars on back and innermost remiges; on the other remiges and tbe tail-feathers 
tbe cinnamon develops into deep notebes, extending as bars across tbe outer 
tail-feathers; under parts paler cinnamon, striped with dusky on throat and breast, 
taldng the form of sagittate bars lower down and on under wing- coverts ; remiges 
below notched on tbe inner webs (slightly so on tbe outer ones) with cinnamon, 
becoming uniform cinnamon-buff on the basal part of tbe feathers (Q, Macassar, 
19. July 95: P. & F. Sarasin). 
Immature (assuming adult dress). Head, neck, and throat chiefly clothed with tbe grey 
plumage of tbe adult, but with cinnamon feathers with dark centre - stripes of tbe 
young intermixed; wings and tail barred with cinnamon and dusky as iu tbe young, 
