494 
Birds of Celebes: Zosteropidae. 
When this is done, but not before, it will be possible to obtain a ready 
and sound grasp of the sort of facts which the 125 “species” of the genus 
Zosterops really place before us. At present they are 125 disconnected items, 
with which no one with a smaller amount of material before him than that in 
the British Museum can safely meddle. 
*198. ZOSTEKOPS ANOMALA M.&Wg. 
Anomalous White-eye. 
Plate XXX. 
Zosterops anomala (1) M.&Wg., Abli. Mus. Dresd. 1896, Nr. 1, p. 12; (2) Hart., Nov. 
Zool. 1896, 149, 153; (3) id., ib. 1897, 157. 
Diagnosis. Like Z. sai'asinorum, but without the white jjeriocular ring; a space of bare dark 
skin round the eye, enclosed by an incomplete ring (not meeting posteriorly) of black 
feathers, the body below greyish white, not washed with yellow. 
Adult. Above yellowish olive-green, laughter on the rump and head; base of forehead and 
supraloral region yellowish; feather- ring round the naked periocular ring 
black, the white ring characteristic of the genus wanting, indicated only by a few 
minute, wliite points; chin, throat, and under tail-coverts lemon-yellow with a 
slight tinge of ochre most ]:)ronounced on the under tail-coverts; remaining under 
parts silky white, with a shade of smoke-grey most pronounced on the breast and 
sides; thighs whitish; flanks greenish, passing into the yellow of the under tail- 
coverts; metacarpal edge yellow; under wing-coverts whitish: "iris pale brown; 
feet pale bluish grey; beak black, base of mandible pale” — Doherty (q^, type. 
Macassar, 21. YII. 95: Sarasin Coll.). 
Female. Does not differ from the male in coloration {Q, Loka, S. Cel, 9. X. 95, P. & F. S.). 
Measurements. Wing 56 — 57 mm; tail 45 — 47; tarsus 16.5; exposed culmen 11.5 — 12, from 
nostril 8. 
Distribution. South and S. W. Central Celebes: Macassar (P. & F. Sarasin 1), Mt. Bouthain 
neighbourhood up to 4000 ft. (P. &F. S., Everett 2, Doherty 5), Marangka, Maros 
Peak (P. &F. S. 7), Enrekang and Mount Loko near Bungi, S. W. Central Celebes 
(P. &F. S. 1). An example, believed by the Drs. Sarasin to belong to this species, 
was obtained by them at Kendari in S. E. Celebes, but unfortunately was lost. 
This little bird is a true White-eye in every respect except that it wants 
the very character from which its fellows take their name — the ring of small 
white feathers round the eye. It belongs to the same group as Z. sarasinorum, 
of which the Indian Z. palpeh'osa may be regarded as the type, in which the chin 
and throat are yellow and the body below greyish or whitish. A ring of minute 
whitish points (obviously undeveloped feathers) is to be made out in most 
specimens of Z. anomala in the ring of featherless blackish skin round the eye. 
It is hardly to be doubted that they are the vestiges of the usual white eye-ring 
of the Zosteropidae. 
