572 
Birds of Celebes: Sturnidae. 
feathers. The bill is whitish, about as long as the head, with a pendant tip 
or hook. Wing large, 2"‘‘ — 4^** quills the longest. Tail moderate, 12 feathers, 
rounded or slightly graduated. Feet and tarsus yellow, large; tarsus longer than 
the culmen. Plumage metallic. Three species are known from Celebes, Banggai, 
and Ceram. 
* 239. BASILEORNIS CELEBENSIS G.R.Gray. 
Celebes King Starling. 
a. Basilornis corythaix (1) Bp. (nec. Wagl.), Consp. J850, I, 420; (2) Cab., Mas. Heiii. I, 
1851, 207, note; (3) Schl, Handl. Dierk. 1857, 342. 
h. Basilornis celebensis [Temm. in Leyden Mu.s.] , (I) Gray, P. Z. S. 1861, 184, fig.; (II) 
Sclat. &Wall., Ibis 1861, 284, pi. IX, fig 2; (3) Finsch, Xeii Guinea 1865, 174; 
(4) Wall., Malay Arcliip. 1869, I, 430; (5) Gray, HL. II, 1870, 19, Nr. 6279; 
(6) Meyer, Ibis 1879, 133; (7) W. Bias., J. f. O. 1883, 138; (8) id., ib. 1885, 403; 
(IX) id., Ztscbr. ges. Orn. 1885, 298, fig.; (10) Tristram, Cat. Coll. B. 1889, 251; 
Heine & Rcliw., Nomencl. Mus. Hein. 1890, 110; Hartert, Kat. Senckenb. 
Mns. 1891, 77. 
Basileornis celebensis (1) Wald., Tr. Z. S. I'Hi, 1872, 77; (2) Briigg. , Abb. Ver. Bremen 
1876, V, 77; (3) Guillem., P. Z. S. 1885, 555; (4) Sharpe, Cat. B. XIH, 1890, 
95; (5) Meyer, Abb. u. Ber. Dresden Mus. 1894, Nr. 2, 1; (6) M. & Wg. , ib. 
1895, Nr. 8, p. 14; (7) iid., ib. 1896, Nr. 1, p. 14; (8) iid., ib. 1896, Nr. 2, p. 18; 
(9) Hart., Nov. Zool. 1896, 154. 
Basilornis eelensis (err.) , (1) Rosenb., Malay. Arcliip. 1878, 273. 
“Radja sie” (Kuig of the Glossy Starlings) , Malay, Minahassa, Meyer b 6, Guillem. 3, 
Nat. Coll. 
“Pokakang”, bbnabassa, Nat. Coll. 
“Biruro”, Tjamba Distr., Platen b IX. 
“Tlwenta”, Tonlcean, E. Celebes, Nat. Coll. 
Figures and descriptions. Sclater & Wallace b II\ Gray b /; W. Blasius b IX; Scblegel 
a 3; Sharpe 4; Meyer 5. 
Adult male. Black, glossed on the head and neck with violet steel-blue, on the back, upper 
tail- and wing-coverts, throat and under-parts ivdth dark metallic green; quills 
blackish brown; tail black, slightly glossed on the outer webs; a patch on the 
ear-coverts white, bounded behind by tawny-tipped feathers; a large patch on 
the sides of the jugulum bufliy white; under wing-coverts glossy greenish black; 
quills below drab-grey, almost white where they rest upon the body, duslder towards 
the ends; a long compressed ridge-crest reaching from in front of the nostrils to 
above the occiput; a few short white hair-feathers here and thei’e, chiefly on the 
throat; ai’ound and behind the eye a small space of bare skin, apparently blue-black 
in life. “Eye-lashes black; bill whitish blue-grey; feet lemon-yellow” — Platen 9 
(cf ad. Kema, N. Celebes, 1. X. 93: P. & F. Sarasin). Wing 138 mm; tail 88; 
tarsus 29; bill from nostril 16. 
Female. Similar to the male, but the crest-feathers shorter (11 mm as against 14 mm) and 
less glossy. “Iris brown-red” — also in male (Q ad. Kalibangkere, S. Celebes, 
20. HI. 78: Platen — C 13414, W. Bias, h IX). 
Immature. Above glossy green-black, like the adult; head black with a small crest-ridge; 
chin, throat and malar region and sides of breast pale brown with dark centres to 
the feathers; ear- and chest-patch huffy white; remaining under-parts dull brownish 
