THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
breeding-bird was a well-differentiated subspecies. In the recent Hand-List 
of British Birds, by Hartert, Jourdain, Ticehurst, and Witherby, p. 192, 1912, 
I note : — 
Sterna nilotica nilotica Gm. The Gull-billed Tern. 
Breeds in Europe in a few small colonies . . . Asia Minor, on Black and Caspian 
Seas, and north-west Africa . . . Across temperate Asia to Mongolia, but breeds in Persia 
and the Pimjab (India). In winter, ranges all over Africa and tropical Asia. Also breeds 
in North and in South America, and winters in eastern South America. Represented by 
closely allied race in Australia, and probably other forms are separable. 
Examination of long series confirms the latter suggestion, and it seems 
strange that North American ornithologists should have lumped their form. 
When Coues wrote the Review of the Sternince {Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad. 
1862, p. 536) he lumped ; but admitted, “ I have not a sufficient number of 
skins before me for a perfectly satisfactory comparison,” after noting that 
the American form had been commonly known as G. aranea. It would appear 
that little has been done since then, as I find that, as usual, the birds are 
constant when series from different localities are studied. 
Thus, accepting Europe as the type-locality, as the Egyptian birds are 
wanderers from more northern breeding-haunts, I at once note that American 
birds from Corpus Christi appear to differ in their shorter bills ; South 
American birds have longer bills than the preceding, while Chinese birds have 
as short bills as North American, but in this case they are stouter. Australian 
birds differ in the size of the bill, the length of the tarsus, and in coloration. 
The European bird appears to have had a large number of names bestowed 
upon it, while the Chinese and South American races have not yet received any 
recognition. I would recommend adoption of the following nomenclature : — 
Gelochelidon nilotica nilotica (Gmelin) ; 
Europe (breeding) ; North Africa (winter). 
In the synonymy of this form would be cited 8. anglica Montagu ; 8. risoria 
Brehm, 8. meridionalis Brehm, G. halthica Brehm, G. agraria Brehm, and 
G. palustris Macgillivray. Measurements of series give average of culmen 
39-41 mm., wing 310-320. 
Gelochelidon nilotica aranea (Wilson) ; North America (breeding). 
The only synonym appears to be 8. nuttalii Nuttall. Measurements of series 
give culmen 34-37 mm., wing under 305. There seems no reason whatever 
why this subspecies should not be recognised ; it is quite well marked. 
Gelochelidon nilotica affinis (Horsfield) ; Java (winter) ; ? India (breeding). 
This name may, pro tern., be used for Indian birds which may straggle to Java ; 
these have as long wings as the typical form, but have shorter bills, averaging 
about 36 mm. Their upper coloration is also lighter. 
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