14 
AVES. 
are especially brilliant ; behind the ears is a patch of yellowisli 
white. 
Below, reddish yellow and Avhite ; chin white. 
Wings, scapulars dusky black, tipped with deep blue ; covers 
rufous ; quills dusky black, edged with rufous on the inner webs ; 
the outer quill is also edged with this colour on the outer web. 
Tail, rufous, tipped w ith dusky black. 
Total length, 5| inches. 
Length of bill, from gape, 1-| inch. 
„ of bill, from front, 1 inch 3 lines. 
Width of bill, at gape, | an inch. 
„ of bill, at nostrils, 4 lines. 
• Length of wings, 2 ^ inches. 
„ of tail, 1 inch. 
„ of tarsus, 4 lines. 
„ of toe, 7 lines. 
„ of hallux, 4 lines. 
We have only met With one specimen of this bird in Labnaii. 
Family Meropida3. 
Sub-fam. Meropinae. 
Gen. Merops. 
Meropa badius (Bon. Cons, Ay.). 
„ castaneus (Latbam). 
Above, head, neck, and upper back rich chesnut ; lower back 
green, passing into light blue at the tail-covers. 
Below, chin blue, passing into grass-green at the upper throat ; 
tills green continues to the tail-covers, which are very light blue ; 
the blue of the chin is separated from the chesnut of the crovyn by a 
stripe of dusky black which passes under the eyes. 
Wings, quills, below dusky black broadly margined on the inner 
webs with rufous, above green tipped with black and edged with 
rufous on the inner webs ; covers green. 
Tail blue green above j brownish black below. 
Length, to the end of tail, 8| inches. 
„ to the end of the two middle tail-feathers, 11;| inches. 
„ of bill, from gape, If inches. 
,, of bill, from front, 1 inch 7 lines, 
,, of wungs, 4 inches, 
„ of tail (without the two centre feathers) 3 inches. 
,, of tarsus, 5 lines. 
„ of middle toe, 9 lines. 
„ of hallux, 4 lines. 
These birds only come to Labuaii to breed, which they do 
in deep holes dug in the sand ; they all leave when the rains 
begin : they principally haunt those places where there is a 
