Birds of Celebes; Ardeidae. 
837 
plumes of which extend to the end of the tail and beyond it; in other respects white, 
as when not breeding; “tibia, yellow” (Legge); tarsus pale, becoming black towards 
the foot; bill as in winter (ad. Lake Tondano, Aug.— Sept. 92: Nat. Coll. — 0 10975). 
Female. Appears to be smaller than the male. 
Measurements (12 apparently adult birds from the Celebesian area). Wing 232—205 mm; 
tail c. 80—100; tarsus 79 — 90; middle toe with claw c. 75 — 83; exposed cuhnen 
56—62. 
Eggs. “The East-Indian eggs of my collection are paler than the ordinary Heron eggs and 
measure 45x 35 mm” (Nehrkorn MS.). 
Hume finds them distinguishable as a body from all the other Indian Herons’ 
eggs by their very pale colour: white, with a faint blue or green tinge ; varying much 
in” size and shape, but typically rather broad ovals, somewhat pointed towards 
one end (32). 
Nest. Of sticks, built in trees, often in company with those of other White Egrets ( 32). In 
Celebes they nest in the reeds, laying two or three eggs (Meyer 6). 
Distribution. South Japan (Fryer, etc. d 8); Formosa (Swinhoe e 2); S. B. Siberia — Ussuri- 
land (Kalinowski 3ff}; Central and South China (Swinhoe, David, etc. e 7, 5, 33, 
36); West Cliina or Tibet (Bonvalot & D’Orleans d 9); Caspian Sea (fide 
Scl. & Sauiid. 7 S); India (Jerdon, etc. e 3, 7, 32); Ceylon (Legge, etc. 7); Burmah 
(Oates 73); Tenasserim (Davison e 4); Cochin China (Giglioli 17, Oates 73); Danger 
Id. off Siam (Conrad d 3); Andamans (Davison 4); Malay Penins. — Salanga and 
Perak (Hartert 25]\ Sumatra (Bock .9, H. O. Forbes, etc. 72, 20, 31, 55); Java 
(Horsfield, S. Muller, etc. .9, d 2, 75); Sumba (Riedel 5 - 7, 37); Timor (Wallace 9); 
Borneo (Doria & Beccari, etc. 3, 24, 28)\ PhiHppine Is. (Jagor, etc. 8, 9, 21, 22, 
24, 29, 40, 42)\ Talaut Is. — Kabruang (Nat. Coll. 77); Sangi Is. — Ot. Sangi 
(Meyer 14, 22); Celebes: — Minahassa (Meyer, etc. 2 , 6, d 4, 45), Gorontalo 
(v. Rosenb. 6, 7), S. Peninsula — Tjamba and Maros Waterfall (Platen 75), Tanette 
(Weber 38), Bulekomba (Everett 45); Saleyer (id.); Buru, Ternate, Batcliian (fide 
Salvad 9, 34)-, ? Italy (Giglioli 77); Shoa in Abyssinia (Traversi 23'‘‘% 
The Cattle Egret is to be seen in flocks in North Celebes, where, as else- 
where, it is remarkable for its habit of perching on the hacks of horses and 
cattle (6). To these it is a welcome guest, for the ticks, which infest their 
hides, together with flies, maggots, etc., form part of its food. Legge remarks, 
however, that its position on the backs of the animals seems to be one of rest, 
for he has never seen it take anything when so seated, though he has ob- 
served it at other times, picking ticks from the animals’ legs. Besides the 
food above mentioned Legge adds that it devours grasshoppers, beetles, ^ bugs 
(Hemiptera), locusts, frogs, Crustacea; it feeds “but, rarely, 1 think, on fish”. A 
great difference between it and the White Egrets, which it so much resembles 
in general appearance, is to be seen in its food and habits. 
Its numbers in Celebes are probably much increased by migiation fiom 
the north during the winter. 
Although the proper range of this species seems to be India and China 
down to Timor and the Moluccas, it has been recorded by Sclater & Saunders 
from the shores of the Caspian Sea (collector’s name not mentioned), and by 
Giglioli from Abyssinia, and even from Italy. 
