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[From the PRocEEDINGS oF THE ZooLoGicAL SocrEry or Lonpoy,
February 6, 1872.)
On a new Species of Green Woodpecker from Southern —
Europe. By Howarp Saunprers, F.Z.8. &c. Cm
When my friends Messrs. Sharpe and Dresser were describing the
Green Woodpecker (Gecinus viridis) in the ‘ Birds of Europe,’ I
lent them a specimen from Granada, Spain, which Mr. Sharpe at
once perceived was not true G. viridis, But for the time, and in the
absence of a series, we were disposed to refer it to G. vadllantu
(Malherbe, Picid. vol. ii. p. 122, iv. pl. 82). I immediately exerted
myself to obtain specimens of this bird from different parts of Spain ;
and I have now before me a series from four very distinct localities,
all, however, south of the Sierra de la Guadarrama, which will pro-
bably prove to be in this case, as in several others, the dividing line
between the northern and southern resident avifauna*.
These specimens, agreeing amongst themselves, differ so strikingly
from both G. viridis and G. vaillantii that there can be little doubt
of their belonging te a new and hitherto undescribed species, which
I propose to call |
GECINUS SHARPEI, Sp. nov.,
after my friend Mr. R. B. Sharpe, to whom the credit of discrimi-
nating it is entirely due.
3. G. viridi sumillimus, sed facie lateralt cinerea, fascia mysta-
calt omnino coccinea, et uropygio flavo facile distinguendus.
Q. Mari similis, sed gutture magis cinereo: fascia mystacali
nigra.
Obs. A G. vaillantii (Malh.) heec species fascia mystacali maris
coccinea et pileo feminino toto coccineo distinguenda est.
This species is principally distinguishable from G. viridis by the
grey face and by the absence of the black streak over the eye in
both sexes. Minor points of difference are the brilliant crimson
moustache in the adult male, instead of lake on a black ground as
in G. viridis, and the deep chrome-yellow on the rump in both
* In confirmation of this I may observe that I have lately examined a Green
Woodpecker from the Pyrenees which is true G, viridis, as are all the French
specimens which haye come under my notice.
[1]
sd
ANIL ricuhies
GMI eUhig m~
LIBRARIES
154 MR. HOWARD SAUNDERS ON A NEW WOODPECEER. [ Feb. 6.
sexes. In G. vaillantit the moustache of the male is black and never
red, according to Malherbe (op. cit.) ; and in the female the crimson
does not extend beyond the occiput, whereas in the present species
it pervades the whole of the crown.
[2]
[ From the PROCEEDINGS OF THE ZOOLOGICAL Society oF LonpdoN,
March 5, 1872. |
On the Occurrence of Falco barbarus and Cypselus pallidus
on the Continent of Europe. By Howarp Saunpers,
F.Z.S.
In the excellent account of Falco barbarus given by Mr. O.
Salvin in ‘ The Ibis,’ 1859, p. 184 e¢ seg., he recommends that a look-
out should be kept for it in Spain; and I have now great pleasure in
exhibiting an example of this miniature Peregrine obtained near
Granada, Spain, in January 1871. It appears to be a bird of the
year, and proved to be afemale on dissection. As Messrs. Salvin
and Brodrick observe in their ‘ Falconry in the British Isles,’ p. 101,
‘although smaller by nearly one fourth than the true Peregrine,
it has the organs of destruction, such as the beak, feet, and talons,
fully as large.’ Indeed in the present specimen the middle toe is
very nearly as long as that of a magnificent adult female Peregrine,
and rather longer than that of an adult male, her mate, shot near
Seville, and rivalling in size the largest northern specimens. As
Mr. Salvin remarks, the small stature, powerful feet and claws, and
ruddy under plumage of Falco barbarus are its best characteristics.
In ‘ The Ibis,’ 1870, p. 445, Capt. G. E. Shelley described Cyp-
selus pallidus as new, from a specimen he had obtained in Egypt,
where it would appear to take the place of Cypselus apus. He sub-
sequently identified with this species specimens brought by Major
Irby from Tangiers; and that gentleman further remarked that he
had seen it in Spain. I am not aware that he has hitherto been
successful in obtaining specimens in the Peninsula, and have there-
fore great pleasure in exhibiting a solitary specimen obtained at
Granada on the 28th May, 1870, and sent to me along with a number
of the common species, from which it may be distinguished by its
lighter colour, white throat, and lighter forehead. From the date,
it was probably breeding.
On the Introduction of Anser albatus of Cassin to the
British Avifauna. By Howarp Saunnpers, F.Z.S.
On the 9th November last my attention was called to two Geese
in Leadenhall Market; and subsequently I purchased them, one for
Mr. R. B. Sharpe, and the other for myself. They had both been
recently shot, the blood and slime being still moist in the wounds,
bill, and nostrils. The vendor, with whom I have dealt for some years,
did not pretend to know any thing about the locality where they were
obtained, but referred me to the wholesale dealer from whom he had
purchased them. This dealer, Mr. Miller, at once showed me the
invoice, specifying so many head of poultry and “two birds”’ for-
warded to him three days previously by a poultry-dealer named Ellen
Neill, of the Faythe, Wexford, Ireland. The Faythe is a suburb
where the wild-fowl-shooters reside; and as it was certain that the
birds had not been frozen, or even sent over in ice, there seemed to
be no reason to doubt that they had really been killed in that district.
Of course I at once wrote for particulars ; but failed to elicit any di-
rect reply. I subsequently gave the necessary details to Sir Victor
Brooke, who kindly took a great interest in the matter, and, on the
occasion of my reading this paper, has put into my hand a letter
just received, and I am thus enabled to quote in its proper place this
most valuable corroborative evidence.
‘Wexford, March 14th, 1872.
“I have succeeded in tracing the Geese referred to. They were
shot by a boy on the lake of Tacumshaune, on the south coast of this
county, and were the only ones which appeared there; but there was
a third one subsequently shot in Wexford Harbour. So far as I have
been able to learn, no others like them have been seen here; but I
shall try and find out more about this. They had been swimming
about on the lake (or lough) for sorne days before they were shot ;
and the lake adjoins the sea, from which it is only separated by a
narrow ridge of sand, and it would probably be one of the first places
birds would make if coming from seaward. I am sorry for the delay
in replying to your letters ; but it was only to day I was able to do so,
as Mrs. Neill is only a poultry-dealer, and not particular in inquiring
where the birds she buys come from. oS ame, Cue.
* (Signed) Sim Littier.”
The stomachs of these birds contained nothing but a little grit,
some of which I have preserved. On dissection they proved to be
male and female, and from their plumage are evidently birds of the
year The sternum of each, and the trachea of the female, have been
carefully preserved, the trachea of the male having been shattered by
shot.
The following is the description taken before the birds were
[1]
520 MR. HOWARD SAUNDERS ON ANSER ALBATUS. [Mar. 19,
skinned :—General colour of the upper surface greyish brown; the
feathers white at the base, then brownish grey with whitish edge ;
forehead and sides of face whitish; wing-coverts grey in centre of
feather edged with white; quills black; shafts white, shading off
into brown towards tips, the secondaries with a narrow whitish bor-
der; rump and tail-coverts pure white; tail white, with a tinge of
grey round the shaft of the middle feathers; under surface of the
body white, slightly tinged with grey on the neck; under wing-
coverts and axillaries white; bill nearly black, with a reddish tinge,
especially on the lower mandible; tarsi and feet lead-colour, running
into yellowish red, especially on the webs close to the toes.
We supposed, at the time, that these were Anser hyperboreus,
Pallas, of which the occurrence in Europe has already been recorded ;
but on comparing them with specimens in the British Museum, they
appeared to be nearly as much too small for that species as they were
too large for A. rossit, Baird. Besides the latter is still further
distinguished by the caruncles at the base of the bill; which have in-
duced Mr. D. G. Elliot to give it the new generic name of Ezan-
themops. Mr. Elliot having enjoyed the advantage of examining
the type specimen of Anser albatus, Cassin, which he has figured
in his ‘ Birds of North America,’ vol. ii. p. 42, his suggestion that
these birds might prove to be young of that species carried with it
great weight; and subsequent careful and detailed examination and
comparison with specimens kindly lent me by Professor Newton,
out of the Hepburn Collection, Cambridge University Museum,
have convinced’ me not only that these two birds are A. albatus,
but that three of those from the Hepburn Collection also belong to
that species, and not to 4. hyperboreus.
In the original description given by Mr. John Cassin, ‘ Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sc. Phil.’ 1856, p. 41, he gives the habitat of 4. albaius as
«Western and Northern America, Oregon, rare on the Atlantic. A
single specimen from Oregon is in the collection of the Exploring
Expedition in the ‘ Vincennes’ and ‘ Peacock ;’ and four specimens,
which occurred in pairs, have come under my notice in the market
in Philadelphia in the course of twenty years. These five specimens
are all that I have seen of this species ; and it is very probably of rare
occurrence on the coast of the Atlantic. The four specimens alluded
to, which are a pair of adults and a pair of young, are now in the
collection of the Philadelphia Academy.”
It may be remarked as, at least, a coincidence, that the two young
referred to above are also a pair.
As the difference between dnser hyperboreus and Anser albatus is,
after all, principally that of size, I have tabulated the more impor-
tant measurements of the two species, heading the list with Cassin’s
dimensions of each, followed by those of the specimens I have exa-
mined in the order of age as indicated by the plumage. Cassin’s
measurements are avowedly taken from males; he states that the
female in each species is a trifle smaller ; and whenever the sexes have
been ascertained, this is fully borne out in the present table.
[2]
1872.] MR. HOWARD SAUNDERS ON ANSER ALBATUS. 521
Bill, along
| culmen,
Wing ae from tip
~~ | to frontal
feather.
in. in. in.
Anser hyperboreus $, Cassin ....++..08.. 184 | 32 2h
Pa aa ©, coll. H. Saunders ..| 17 3% Ee Adult.
ms a coll. Hepburn. ....) 17 3oL* 23% -
AQUSGP (EGOS Ee, (CAEENIN S500 60 s400b040 aC 153] 38 2 +
Bs » No. 463, Hepburn coll. ....) 15 24 2 Prob. spring.
50 » No. 1438, a ....[| 15d] 22 2 me
” ” No. 1437, ” 153 25 25 ”
‘3 a 6, coll. Sharpe and Dresser. 154 | 25 24 November.
a ss @, coll. H. Saunders ...... 15 24 2 of
These measurements have been taken by Mr. Sharpe and myself
with the greatest exactness, at first dependently, and afterwards
by carefully remeasuring whenever there appeared the minutest dis-
crepancy.
Since Cassin first considered that there was sufficient difference in
these dimensions to warrant a specific distinction, evidence strongly
comfirming his views has been received from Mr Bernard H. Ross,
who, in his paper on the Fauna of the Mackenzie-River District
(Nat. Hist. Rev. 1862, p. 286), writes as follows:—‘‘ There can be
little doubt of the existence of three species of Snow-Geese (exclusive
of the Blue Wavey of Hudson’s Bay), as the Slave-Lake Indians have
a different name for each kind. The first which arrives is the middle-
sized species, which I believe to be the 4. albatus; next comes the
smallest sort, the 4. rossi, and lastly the 4. hyperboreus, which
arrives when the trees are in leaf, and is called the Yellow Wavey by
the Indians.” It may be objected that savages and uneducated
people generally (though the failing is not confined to that class)
are great species-makers ; to this I would reply that, in the present
case, the Indians are clearly right about two out of the three species,
and the odds are therefore two to one in favour of their being correct
as to the third.
The very fact of these birds having visited the milder climate of
the shore washed by the Gulf-stream is an additional evidence of its
distinctness as a species. Cassin lays especial stress upon the fact of
its habitat being confined to the extreme north-western portion of
the American continent; and we know that on that coast the winter
set in last year so early, and with such unexampled severity, that of
the thirty or forty whalers which frequent Behring’s Straits, only
three managed to eseape from the ice; while, on the other hand, I
am not aware that the more central and eastern portions have ex-
perienced a winter of any unusual rigour.
* Colour red.
[From the PROCEEDINGS oF THE ZOOLOGICAL Society or Lonpox,
March 19, 1872. ]
4
[From the PROCEEDINGS OF THE ZOOLOGICAL SoctETY OF Lonvon,
May 5, 1874. |]
Remarks on the Grey-capped Gulls and on the Species
with which they have been confounded. By Howarp
SAUNDERS, F.Z.S.
In anticipation of a Monograph of the Laride, upon which I
have for some time been engaged, I offer a few remarks with the
object of clearing up the confusion which exists respecting the
Grey-capped Gulls for which Bonaparte formed the subgenus Czr-
rhocephalus (Naumannia, 1854, Heft iv. p. 213).
There are two closely allied species, which during the breeding-
season, and, as I believe, throughout a considerable portion of the
year, bear a hood of a pale French grey, slightly darker at the
margins, round the nape and throat, viz. :—
LARUS PHHOCEPHALUS, Sw. B. W. Afr. u. p. 245, pl. 29
(originally written L. potocephalus), a native of West Africa and the
interior up to Lake Ngami; and
LaRUS CIRRHOCEPHALUS, Vieillot, N. D. xxi. p. 500; Gal. Ois.
ii. p. 223, pl. 289; the Gaviota cenicienta of Azara, found in Brazil
and the States of La Plata.
In their general appearance these Gulls closely resemble each
other; and both Blasius and Schlegel have considered them to be
(1)
292 MR.-H. SAUNDERS ON THE GREY-CAPPED GULLS. [May 5,
identical—an opinion the value of which is somewhat impaired by
the fact of their having confounded one or both of these species
with others from which they are most certainly distinct. This has
doubtless arisen from the want of a sufficient series in which the
localities have been duly recorded ; for specimens of the birds in
question, and of those with which they have been confounded, are
extremely rare in collections; and it is only recently that I have
been able to obtain such a series as would justify my speaking with
some confidence on the subject.
First, as regards the distinctness of the African and the American
forms, I have before me the following specimens :—
LARUS PHZOCEPHALUS.
Senegambia, Swainson’s coll., Cambridge Mus. Believed to be
the type: ad.
Walvisch Bay (Andersson), probably in October. Ad. ; full hood.
Lake Ngami (Chapman, May 1863). Hood slightly imperfect.
Wing 12°5, tar. 1:8—2, middle toe and nail 1°7, bill 1-4. Colour
of legs and bill orange-red.
LARUS CIRRHOCEPHALUS.
Buenos Ayres, 6 & 9 ad., several specimens, those killed in April
and November having the grey cap equally defined; also immature
specimens obtained in April, and in which the grey hood is appearing,
although the dark bar to the tail and the brown feathers on the
shoulders still remain.
© . Chorillos, near Lima, lat. 12° 10'S.; the first recorded instance
of its occurrence on the Pacific coast. This was shot by a friend
resident at Lima, whom I had asked to collect Gulls &e.
Wing 13-13°5, tar. 2°2-2°4, middle toe and nail 2, bill 6-te
Bill legs, and feet lake-red ; in a very old male of the brightest
crimson.
The same description would apply to either: the hood pale grey
with a dark margin; the wings and mantle rather darker than the
hood, but much lighter than the ender wing-coverts, which are of a
deep smoke-grey; wnaderparts and tail pure white. But it will be
observed that there is a considerable difference both in the size and
in the coloration of the soft parts of the two species; and this is
much more noticeable on handling the different specimens than can
be gathered from any mere description. It must be admitted that
Swainson in his original description states that the bill and feet of
* the African bird are ‘‘ deep crimson ;”’ but, with every allowance for
fading, I cannot imagine the colour in those I have examined to
have ever been more than ‘‘ orange-red,” very different from the
livid red or brilliant lake-colour of the American specimens. Of
course I am now alluding to adults only; but, as regards size, a
glance at the coarser and stronger feet even in the immature
American birds would enable me to distinguish them from the
African form. Without, however, insisting too strongly upon the
value of these differences, I consider that the two forms are at least
[2]
1874.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE GREY-CAPPED GULLS. 293
as much entitled to specific distinction as Z. glaucus and L. leuco-
pterus, or L. marinus and L. fuscus, to say nothing of the species
which surround ZL. argentatus. This conclusion is in no way
influenced by the fact of the two species being found in different
continents; for I am at the present moment unable to separate the
Saddle-backed Gulls which, under the titles of L. dominicanus, vetula,
and antipodum, with other synonyms, inhabit both the Atlantic and
Pacific coasts of South America, the south coast of Africa, New
Zealand, and many of the intervening islands. It would seem that
these Grey-capped Gulls are representative species on either side of
the South Atlantic, in the same way that LZ. heermanni on the west
coast of America replaces L. crassirostris, Vieill. (ZL. melanurus,
Temm.), in the Japan and China seas—not to quote other instances
which are not quite so evident.
But the question of the distinctness of these two forms is a mere
trifle to the maze of confusion in which both these and two totally
different species have been involved, and which I will do my best to
unravel. To do this it will be better to take them separately.
L. pheocephalus is identified by Bruch (J. f. O. 1855, p. 290)
with L. ridibundus ; but he could never have seen a true specimen.
Finsch and Hartlaub (Vog. Ost.-Afr. p. 825) describe the real bird
from Bissao with a grey head, but are probably wrong as regards the
specimen with a white head from the Cape of Good Hope, received
through Verreaux. Blasius again (J. f. O. 1865, p. 376) may pos-
sibly have had a specimen of the Grey-capped Gull in immature
plumage before him; but he goes on to confound it with L. hart-
laubi, Bruch, a species which that author places in his genus Gavia,
close to Gelastes. ‘This latter species has a certain superficial re-
semblance to the former, and it also has the under wing-coverts of a
smoke-grey ; but it is altogether a smaller bird than L. pheocephalus,
the wing being only 11 inches and the tarsus 1°7 in length; besides
which, it never has a hood. It is a coast resident, and breeds near
the Cape of Good Hope; it is, in fact, a member of the same group
as L. scopulinus, Forst., of New Zealand, L. nove hollandia, L.
jamesoni, and perhaps L. pomare, into whose specific distinctness
it is not my present intention to enter. Another point which di-
stinguishes it from 1. pheocephalus exists in the seventh primary,
which has a broad dusky bar right across it and is altogether darker
in the grey-capped bird, whilst in LZ. hartlaubi it is uniform grey,
just fringed with smoke-colour on the inner web; the colour of the
legs and bill is also deep lake-red. Blasius says (loc. cit.) that, as
a tule, L. pheocephalus, Sw., figures as L. hartlaubi in collections ;
but according to my experience the reverse is the case ; and, with one
solitary exception in the British Museum, all the specimens which
I have examined marked “ L. pheocephalus”’ are really L. hart-
laubi. Layard (B. S. A. p. 368) has also confounded these two
species, having obtained both.
When we turn to L. cirrhocephalus of South America we find a
different element of confusion, owing to the presence there of a
species which certainly has a hood, although in this case it is a
(3]
294 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE GREY-CAPPED GULLS. [May 5.
brown one, similar to that of our European Z. ridibundus. Prince
Max. v. Wied first noticed its occurrence amongst the grey-capped
species (Beit. iv. p. 854), and was inclined to refer it to LZ. redi-
bundus; but it is undoubtedly LZ. glaucodes, Meyen, Obs. Zool.
p. 115—L. albipennis, Licht., Gavia roseiventris, Gould (1 only
give the principal synonyms)—a species which ranges from the
south of Brazil down to the Falkland Islands, throughout Pata-
gonia, and for some distance up the coast of Chili. This is the
species of whose breeding near Buenos Ayres Mr. W. H. Hudson
(P. Z. 8. 1871, p.4) has given an interesting account ; but although
he distinctly calls it (P. Z. 8. 1870, p. 802, and 1871, p. 258) the
black-headed gull, the very name we apply to our L. ridibundus,
yet he identifies it with ZL. cirrhocephalus, whose head, as I have
repeatedly remarked, is of a pale grey, and nothing approaching
either to black or brown. Excepting that to a casual observer
all Gulls of nearly the same size are much alike, it is difficult
to understand how the two species can have been confounded even
in immature plumage; for the smoke-colour of the under wing-
coverts so noticeable in L. cirrhocephalus is entirely absent in L.
glaucodes, to say nothing of the markings of the primaries, which
differ even in very young birds. That LZ. glaucodes itself should
have been subdivided is not at all surprising; for it requires a large
series to show how the primaries, which in the early stages have
merely a patch of white near the apex, gradually become barred
with black and white (in which stage the brown head of maturity
is assumed) and gradually lose all but a streak of black on the
outside of the inner web, so that the principal primaries appear to
be entirely white. JL. maculipennis of 2 WEASEL however, is L.
cirrhocephalus.
The sum of my observations is briefly this—that L. pheocephalus,
Sw., and Z. cirrhocephalus, V., are fairly separable, that L. pheo-
cephalus is totally distinct aon L. hartlaubi, Bruch, which never
has a hood of any colour whatever, and that L. cirrhocephalus has
been unnecessarily confounded with ZL. glaucodes. My warmest
thanks are due to Professor Burmeister, of Buenos Ayres, for
promptly furnishing me with sexed and dated specimens of both the
South-American species, and to Professor Newton for the loan of
Swainson’s (supposed) type of L. pheocephalus from the Cambridge
Museum.
[47
[From the ANNALS AND MaGazine or Natura History for
August 1874. |
ON
SEXUAL VARIATIONS
IN THE
NESTLING-PLUMAGE
OF THE
BOOTED EAGLE (NISAETUS PENNATUS).
BY
HOWARD SAUNDERS, F.ZS. &.
136 Mr. Howard Saunders on Sexual Variations in
THE ordinary adult plumage of the Booted Eagle is so well
known that it is unnecessary to do more than remark that the
upper parts in general are of an umber-brown, whilst the
underparts are of a buff or creamy white, sometimes deepening
into fawn-colour, and with striations more or less distinct down
the shafts of the feathers of the throat, breast, abdomen, and
flanks. That this plumage is common to both sexes has
been abundantly proved by numerous carefully sexed speci-
mens obtained of late years from various localities between
Spain on the west and India on the east. But with regard
to the plumage of the immature bird there has existed some
difference of opinion, although most naturalists have stated
that it has the underparts of a dark colour. Mr. R. Bowdler
Sharpe, in his recently published ‘Catalogue of the Accipitres
in the British Museum,’ p. 254, describes the underparts of the
young as “entirely dull brown ;” but, on the other hand, Dr.
Jerdon, in his ‘ Birds of India,’ vol. i. p. 64, has described
an immature bird as having alight breast. Herr A. v. Pelzeln,
again (‘ Ibis,’ 1868, p. 305), mentions a young bird just able
to fly as ‘underneath brown :” and subsequently Dr. Jerdon
(‘Ibis, 1871, p. 246) was inclined to modify his former
opinion ; but as the specimens there alluded to are the ones I
am about to describe, it is needless to recapitulate his views.
Mr. Hume, however (‘Rough Notes,’ p. 184), hazarded the
opinion that the dark plumage was the adult stage (!), ap-
parently basing this upon an instance of a female in the
the Nestling-Plumage of the Booted Eagle. 137
brown plumage having been shot from her nest. Previously,
however, to the publication of his brochure, MM. Amédée
Alléon and Jules Vian (‘ Rev. et Mag. Zool.’ p. 342 et seq.)
had pointed out that in two instances they had found an adult
male mated with a female in immature plumage. If any of
these naturalists had thought of leaving the eggs for the time,
and revisiting the nests when the young birds were nearly
fledged, they would probably have solved the question of the
immature plumage of this species.
Of the numerous specimens of both sexes which had come
into my possession, many of them shot from the nest, all had
exhibited light-coloured underparts, with merely slight varia-
tions in the intensity of the striations; until in 1870 my col-
lector at Granada sent to me a pair of Booted Eagles, and the
two nestlings which they were in the act of feeding when shot
from the nest, on the 20th of June, at Soto de Roma, the
Duke of Wellington’s estate. The male was in the usual
adult plumage; but the whole of the underparts of the female
were of a deep coffee-brown, with darker striations down the
shafts of the feathers. This was an interesting stage, and
one which I had not hitherto possessed ; but-so far it merely
confirmed what MM. Alléon and Vian had already made
known as to the female breeding in immature livery. But the
plumage of the young birds, which were fully feathered ex-
cept that the outer primaries were still in the quill, was most
remarkable. The larger of the two had the whole of the
underparts of a dark brown, of a somewhat deeper hue than
those of the female parent, whilst the smaller nestling had the
underparts of a creamy buff, with the usual striations down
the shafts of the feathers covering the breast. It would have
been more than human virtue, especially in a Spaniard, if my
collector had tried to ascertain the sexes of these nestlings by
actual dissection and with the help of a microscope ; but from
the size there can be no reasonable doubt that the dark brown
nestling is the female, and the light-breasted nestling is the
male.
This variation in the nestlings clears up at once the ap-
parent discrepancies in the descriptions of the young. Dr.
Jerdon’s young bird was doubtless a male; and the British-
Museum bird is a female. In further corroboration of this
view, it should be noticed that whilst we have abundant
and independent testimony of various females being obtained
in this dark plumage, yet there is not on record a single
instance of a carefully sexed male with dark brown underparts.
The male evidently starts from the nestling stage with light-
coloured underparts, and with a plumage almost identical with
138 On the Nestling-Plumage of the Booted Eagle.
his adult livery; whilst the female does not assume the white
breast &c. until after one or, perhaps, several moults. It is
generally supposed that most.eagles m a wild state assume
their adult plumage after the third change; but, from the
comparative rarity of specimens in the brown plumage, it is
possible that. the female Nisaétus pennatus may assume the
adult livery at the first moult.
“With regard to the male, as I have said, there is little altera-
tion from the nestling-plumage beyond a gradual change to a
paler cream-colour on the abdomen and flanks, and a gradual
narrowing of the striations.. These last, however, are by no
means a safe guide to the age of a.specimen; for some indi-
viduals of the same sex are less streaked than others. The
very lightest-coloured male in my series, and lighter also than
any: breeding female, is pronounced to be a remarkably clean
young bird which has never moulted, by Col. Delmé-Radeliffe,
who is probably the ASS living authority upon raptorial
birds.
I am not writing the hhetiors of the Booted Eagle, and it is
therefore unnecessary to say more upon the subject; but the
fact. of the plumage of the two sexes being different in the
nestling stage, and subsequently becoming the same, is, so
far as | am aware, unparalleled in any other raptorial bird ;
and I have consequently deemed it worthy of bemg placed on
record,
Note.-—Iam well aware that nestlings of Archibuteo sancti-
johannis are subject to considerable variation; but it has
never been shown that these variations are either sexual or
constant.
Mr. R. B. Sharpe’s Catalogue of Accipitres. 483
gatus; and the two species also differ in their markings and
coloration.
I have lately remeasured ten specimens of A. stevensoni in
the Norwich Museum; and although the dimensions of some
of them have been already given in ‘The Ibis’ for 1863, I
think it convenient, for the purpose of comparison, here to
insert the following particulars :—
Wing from Middle
carpal joint. Tarsus. toe, 8. u.
in. 1n. 1n.
Presumed males:
MromaPekin see. aides sce ce Sls 6:55 M97 1
IPO WAKO Gono udoabudocabw 6:8 1:8 1:05
Ascertained male:
rom Ohetoonmn wares cece 6°65 18 11
Presumed females:
From China (exact locality un-
DOW) e SMe tesa aeots ateeies CT 1:9 1:2
rom SING AWOLes WAey.5).f/eose este ots 7:25 2 115
Ascertained females :
roms Wanohal yc. eeleiaito ene TTS 2:05 1:2
EOWA AVA hays: Sie er shel shcraie ese) « 74 2 115
The last-named specimen was obtained by the late Dr.
Bernstein, who appears, by the ticket which is attached to it,
to have recognized it as distinct from A. virgatus, of which
he also obtained specimens whilst resident in Java.
I have not had an opportunity of examining this species in
the dress which it wears on first leaving the nest; but the
specimen from Singapore above referred to retains some por-
tions of this plumage, showing that it is characterized by the
feathers of the breast exhibiting a long brown mark down
the centre of each feather, whilst the sides of the feather are
a pure white. As the bird advances in age these longitudinal
marks are exchanged throughout the breast, sides, abdomen,
and thighs for alternate transverse bars of pure white and
dark brown, the white bars being intersected on the upper
portion of the breast by dark shaft-marks; these are also
apparent on the throat, which, with that exception, is white.
So far as I have observed, the female undergoes no further
change; but in the male all. these markings, except the nar-
484. Mr. H. Saunders on the Immature
row shaft-marks on the throat and some of the white trans-
verse bars on the abdomen, gradually disappear and leave the
entire remainder of the undersurface of a fawn-colour, which,
however, is hardly so dark as is represented in pl. ii. of ‘ The
Ibis’ for 1863.
The three remaining species of the group are A. rhodo-
gaster, A. sulaensis, and A. madagascariensis. The mea-
surements of the first of these, as given by Mr. Sharpe, ap-
pear to have been taken from a male bird; and I may there-
fore mention that the detailed dimensions of two females are
given by Lord Walden at page 110 of the 8th volume of the
Zoological Society’s ‘ Transactions.’
In the case of the nearly allied Accipiter sulaensis, Mr.
Sharpe gives the measurements of the type specimen, a fe-
male in the Leyden Museum, which I believe is the only
specimen of this Hawk at present existmg in any European
collection.
The specific name of madagascariensis, which has been long
used to denote Scelopizias francisce, has been proved, by Mr.
Sharpe’s discovery of the type specimen in the British Mu-
seum, to be really applicable to the much scarcer Madagascar
Hawk which has hitherto been usually known by the name
of Accipiter lantzii, and which is fully described in Mr.
Sharpe’s volume under its prior appellation of madagas-
cariensis.
[To be continued. |
XLV.—On the Immature Plumage of Rhodostethia rosea.
By Howarp Saunpers, F.L.S., F.Z.8.
WHEN visiting the collection of Laridz formed by the late
Herr Briich in the Museum of Mayence, I was already aware
that amongst its principal attractions were specimens of the
rare Cuneate-tailed Gull, Rhodostethia rosea, Macgill. Of
this interesting species all the examples hitherto examined
have been adults, and, with one exception, in summer plu-
mage, as marked by the black collar ; my surprise and delight
Plumage of Rhodostethia rosea. 485
may therefore be imagined when, on proceeding to the case
containing the Laride, I saw before me two specimens of
this rare bird in immature plumage. Not being aware of any
account of this interesting stage, and presuming that it will
be equally new to most ornithologists, I do not hesitate to
give a description of it.
Bill black, feathered to base of nostril, thence to tip ‘6 in. ;
from gape to tip 1:2 in.
Head white; a few dark hairlike feathers round the eye of
one specimen, and beneath the eye of the other; black col-
lar shghtly developed on the one, distinct in the other, espe-
cially on nape.
Breast pure white, with a pink tinge on the lower part and
on the abdomen.
Mantle to rump grey, lighter on shoulders.
Wing: length (underneath measurement) 9:4—9°5 inches.
Primaries, Ist, 2nd, and 3rd smoke-brown cn outer web and
shaft, this colour running round the tip and some way up
the inner web, the remainder of which is white; on the 4th
and 5th the white portion increases, but the shaft continues
dark, although successively becoming lighter, till on the 10th
it is pure white; in the 6th the dark marking on the webs
becomes a brown bar, which gradually decreases until it is
nearly lost in the 9th, and totally so in the 10th primary,
which is entirely white. These dark tips give a very pretty
barred appearance to the wings. Secondaries pearl-grey,
passing into white, thus forming a white band. Carpals and
upper wing-coverts smoke-brown, faintly tipped with white ;
lower wing-coverts grey, like the mantle, but tertials smoke-
brown.
Tail consisting of twelve feathers, pure white in one spe-
cimen; in the other the 3rd and 4th feathers on each side
are barred with smoke-brown ; the 4th projects beyond them
a trifle, the 5th decidedly, whilst the central feathers extend
‘75 in, beyond the 5th, making total projection about one
inch. Total length of tail 4°5 inch; wings in stuffed speci-
men reach a trifle beyond tip.
Tarsus 1:15-1:2 in., middle toe 1:2 in., outer toe 1-1 in,
486 On the Immature Plumage of Rhodostethia rosea.
-Inner toe ‘95 in.; hind toe and nail well developed; nails
black. Colour of legs and feet (evidently much faded) yel-
lowish clay.
I am inclined to think that these are birds of a trifle more
than a year old, just beginning to lose the black collar which
they assumed for the first time in the spring of the year in
which they were obtained ; but considering the utter want of
trustworthy data respecting the time occupied in acquiring
the successive stages of plumage, this is mere conjecture and
given for what it is worth.
The history of these specimens is not very satisfactory.
They were purchased some years ago from the Maison Ver-
reaux, and were stated to have come from Kamtchatka. When
the late M. Jules Verreaux was staying with me in 1870, I had
a good deal of conversation with him about Laridz and the
Briich collection, and I remember his expatiating upon the
beauty, and especially the lovely rose-tint, of two specimens
which he had sent to the Mayence Museum; he also per-
sisted that they really did come from Kamtchatka, and that
he had had them from a Pole who had been there. It
was impossible to contradict him; but for various reasons,
upon which I need not enlarge, I was sceptical as to the
locality, and continue to be so. It is true that another
arctic species (Xema sabiniz) has been found breeding in both
continents; but then its range can be traced from Green-
land right across the American continent, and it is quite na-
tural that it should pass into Siberia; whereas the Americans,
with all their energy and research, have hitherto failed to
acquire a single specimen of Rhodostethia rosea, either in
their own Alaska possessions, or in those portions of Kamt-
chatka visited by the United-States-Telegraph Surveying Ex-
pedition, which was accompanied by most able naturalists.
In fact, what little we do know about this Gull tends to show
that its habitat is extremely restricted ; but upon this point it
is needless to say more, as our Arctic expedition will, we
trust, give us some further account of it.
It may be as well to give a revised list of the specimens of
this rare Gull existing in collections.
On some new Central-Asiatic Birds. 487
One in the Derby Museum, Liverpool, which may be the
type, obtained at Alagnak, 694° N. lat., Melville Peninsula,
23rd June 1823.
One in the Edinburgh University Museum, marked ¢,
Igloflik, Melville Peninsula, 27th June, 1823.
One in the University Museum, Cambridge, from Green
Island, Disco Bay.
Tiree in the Copenhagen Museum, from Disco Bay.
One from Ferée Islands (Suderée), in Herr Benzon’s col-
lection.
One from Heligoland, Herr Gaetke’s collection.
Two in Mayence Museum, Kamtchatka ?
One in Sir William Milner’s collection, said to have been
killed in Yorkshire. This one has no black collar.
Total eleven.
Besides these there is said to be another in Copenhagen,
obtained by Holboll.
XLVI.—WNotes on some new Central-Asiatic Birds.
By Dr. N. Srevertzov.
PicUs LEPTORHYNCHUS, Sev.
This species, though closely allied to P. major, which it
represents in the evergreen-tree groves of the lower Tian-
shan, in the Turkestan gardens, and the saxaul (Haloxylon
ammodendron) forests of the desert, yet shows a constant
difference, which I have verified by an examination of about
forty specimens of each species. The comparative diagnoses
of the two are as follows :—
Picus leptorhynchus: Bill slender; hinder wing-coverts, on
the humero-cubital articulation, white to the smallest upper
ones inclusively ; secondary quills with but three (only two
uncovered by the larger tectrices) very broad white mark-
ings on each web, and a continued white outside edge, at least
on the tertiary quills, sometimes also on most secondaries ;
primaries also with broad white markings, and, though the
488 : Dr. N. Severtzov on some
ground-colour along the shafts of all quills is black, yet this
black occupies on the feather less space than the white. Tail-
feathers black, only the two outermost with larger fulvous
markings on the terminal half, the third with a very small ful-
vous tip only ; these light markings are somewhat individually
variable in shape, but always hghter fulvous, and occupying
less space on the feather than those of P. major. The under-
parts almost pure white, slightly tinged with straw-yellow ;
the abdominal red reaches to the upper half of the sternum ;
the 3rd quill shorter than 6th, the Ist quill abortive, about
as long as its coverts, longest 4th =5th > 6th >3rd >7th> 2nd
>8th, &e. The white cheeks are separated by a black trans-
verse bar from the white sides of the neck; the scapulars are
white, as in P. major, to which, except in the above particu-
lars, this bird has a strong resemblance in general colouring
and sexual difference, the adult male having also a red bar
across the nape, the female none, and the young male a red
patch on the crown. ‘The size is generally smaller.
Males :—length 10-10°7 inches, expanse 15°8-16°4, wing
5:1, tail 4°2, bill 1:2-1-3 long from forehead, and 0°25 high
at the forehead. 'The female is somewhat smaller, and has a
shorter bill, only 1:1 long and 0°25 thick at front; general
length 93-10, expanse 15-153, wing 4:7, tail 3°7. Old spe-
cimens of both sexes, but the females more rarely, have some-
times some slight indications of a narrow light vermilton band
across the breast, between the ends of the black neck-bands.
B. Var. leucoptera: Resembles the typical P. leptorhynchus,
but has more white on the wing, especially on the secondary
quills, which are sometimes almost completely white, with a
sinuated black band, or even a series of black central spots
along the shafts, as shown in the following cuts (p. 489).
I have observed many intermediate quill-colourings between
figs. 2 and 3, but never between figs. 2 and 1; and therefore
the var. leucoptera of P. leptorhynchus is only a variety, not a
species, though it widely differs in wing-colour (but nothing
else) from the typical P. leptorhynchus.
P. major, it may be remembered, has a stout bill, fowr small
white markings on the edge on each web of the secondaries,
gover “fet CCAP Aer YZ
[From the PROCEEDINGS OF THE ZOOLOGICAL Sociuty oF Lonpon,
March 21, 1876. ]
On the Stercorariine or Skua Gulls.
By Howarp Saunpzrs, F.L.8. &c.
(Plate XXIV.)
In the following remarks upon the well-marked subfamily of the
Larida, known as the Lestridine, or, more correctly as regards prio-
rity of nomenclature, as the Stercorariina, I shall pass over as briefly
as possible the points which are already known to most ornithologists,
and direct my observations to the synonymy and range of the mem-
bers of the group, with incidental remarks upon their progressive
stages of plumage. My principal predecessor in this work is Dr.
Elliott Coues, who published in the ‘ Proceedings of the Academy of
Natural Sciences of Philadelphia,’ 1863, an elaborate “Review of the
Lestridinze,’’ with the primary object of showing that the true ‘‘ Lestris
richardsonit’’ of Swainson, described in the ‘ Fauna Boreali-A mericana,’
p- 433, was a distinct species from the light-breasted form with which
most naturalists had united it; but in his recently published ‘ Birds
of the North-West’ (Washington, 1874) he retracts this opinion, in
accordance with the views derived from more extended experience.
He still, however, adheres to his original plan of dividing the family
into two subgenera, Buphagus of Moehring for S. catarrhactes
and S. antarcticus, and Stercorarius for the remaining species ;
and he continues to employ both the generic and the specific names
given by writers previous to the date of the | 2th edition of Linnzeus’s
‘Systema Nature’ (1766), preferring to make the 10th edition the
starting-point of his system of nomenclature. Argument on this
subject would be futile ; there is nothing to prevent any American
naturalist from making his own rules; but British ornithologists
have a recognized code of laws in the Rules of the British Association
for 1842, drawn up and signed by the principal naturalists of that
day, and generally adopted up to the present time both here and on
the continent. In these it is agreed that the principle of priority
ought not to be carried back beyond the 12th edition of Linneus,
a solitary exception being made in favour of those genera of Brisson
which are additional to those of Linneeus’s 12th edition. My excuse
[1]
318 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINZ. [Mar. 21,
for recapitulating these axioms is, that in consequence of them it is
necessary to reject several names given by Briinnich in his ‘Orni-
thologia Borealis,’ 1764, which antedates our starting-point by
two years—a fact of which some ornithologists, who have probably
not examined the date of publication, do not seem to be aware.
Under these circumstances, it is needless to discuss the subgenus
Buphagus of Moebring (1752); nor do there appear to be any suffi-
cient structural differences to warrant the generic separation of the
Great Skuas from the other species, the Pomatorhine Skua forming
such a connecting link between the heavy and the elegant forms as
to preclude any consistent separation, unless Reichenbach’s genus
Coprotheres be also accepted for the Pomatorhine. For myself I
prefer to retain all the known species of Skua in the same genus,
viz. Stercorarius of Brisson (1760), the type of which is the species
whose rightful name is, in my opinion, Stercorarius crepidatus
(Gm.), but which I will for the present, to avoid any ambiguity,
distinguish by the vernacular name of Richardson's Skua. I am, of
course, aware that this name was originally applied solely to a
dark form of a well-known species; but it has since been generally
adopted; and as having been applied to no other, its use precludes
the possibility of a misunderstanding.
The genera are as follows :—
Larus (part), Linneeus, 1766. L. catarractes=Great Skua, L.
parasiticus= Long-tailed or Buffon’s Skua.
Stercorarius, Brisson, 1760. Type‘ Lestercoraire” =8.crepidatus
(Richardson’s Skua).
Labbus, Rafinesque, 1815; Predatriv, Vieillot, Analyse, 1816.
Based on ‘‘le Labbe,’ of Buffon, which is Richardson's Skua.
Lestris, Dliger, Prod. 1811. ‘LZ. parasiticus, L. crepidatus, L.
catharractes.”
Oceanus, Koch, 1816. ‘‘ O. parasiticus, O. crepitatus” (sic).
Cataractes, Fleming, Phil. Zool. 1822. ‘ Cataractes vulgaris.”
Coprotheres, Reichenbach, 1552. S. pomaterhinus.
Megalestris, Bonap. 1856. WS. catarrhactes, 8. antarcticus.
The generic name, variously spelt Cataractes, Cataracta, or Ca-
tarr acta, the two latter adopted by Retzius and Leach from Briiunich,
had been previously applied to a subgenus of the Uriine ; and under
the name of Catarrhactes antiquus, Prof. Marsh has described some
bones found in the Tertiary deposits of N. Carolina (Am. J. Se.
1870, p. 213). I mention this because these applications of generic
names to widely different birds are very confusing, and might lead to
the supposition that the fossil remains of a Skua had been discovered.
Those who persist in separating the Skuas must therefore adopt
Megalestris tor the large torms, as the small pointed-tailed species
are the types of all the other genera. It is certainly unfortunate
that the earliest available name Stercorarius tends to perpetuate a
popular fallacy, although one of universal distribution ; but a pre-
cisely parallel case occurs in the signification of the word Caprimulgus,
and other instances might be adduced. _ Illiger’s generic name Lestris
[2]
1876. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIIN &. 319
(or robber) is undoubtedly far preferable, so far as its meaning goes,
and it has been very freely adopted ; but the laws of priority compel
us to reject it, if we would avoid perpetuating confusion.
J have deemed it advisable on the whole to give the references to
those pree-Linneean authors upon whose descriptions those of writers
subsequent to 1766 are based, marking by a line the division between
them and the available nomenclature. ‘The synonyms are given in
order of date; and I have also inserted those references which appeared
to me to have any real value. It is impossible to avoid some errors;
but at least I have taken every precaution, and with some few
exceptions, where the original works were not accessibie, I have
personally verified every reference.
STERCORARIUS CATARRHACTES.
Larus fuscus, Briss. Orn. vi. p. 165 (1760).
Catharacta skua, Briinn. Orn. Bor. p. 33 (1764).
Larus catarractes, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 226 (1766), ex Briinn.
Larus catarrhactes, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. i. p. 603 (1788).
Cataracta skua, Retz. F. Suec. p. 161 (1800).
Lestris catharractes, Illiger, Prodromus, p. 273 (1811).
Lestris catarractes(L.), Tem. Man. d’Orn. p. 511 (1815); Faber,
Prod. Island. Orn. p. 102 (1822); Macgill. Brit. Birds, v. p. 479
(1852).
Catarracta fusca, Leach, 8. Cat. M. & B. Brit. Mus. p. 40
(1816).
Stercorarius catarrhactes, Vieillot, N. Dict. H. Nat. xxxil. p. 154
(1819); Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 653 (1849); Dresser, B. of Eur.
pt. xli. (Sept. 1875).
Cataractes vulgaris, Fleming, Hist. Brit. An. p. 137 (1828); Sele
Il. Brit. Orn. ii. p. 514 (1832).
Lestris cataractes et Lestris skua, C. L. Brehm, Vog. Deutsch.
p. 715 (1831).
INLereor anes anianie. Vieillot, Gal. Ois. p. 220, pl. 288 (1834),
fig. excell. (!)
” Lestris cataractes, Naum. Vog. Deutsch. x. p. 471, pl. 270
(1840).
Stercorarius cataractes, De Selys-L. Fne. Belg. p. 155 (1842).
Megalestris catarrhactes, Bp. Cat. Parzudaki, - pela a(ls56).
Stercorarius catarractes, Bp. Consp. Av. il. p. 206 (1857);
Laurence, Ann. Lye. Nat. H. N. York, 1853, p. 7; Baird’s B. N.
Am. p. 838 (1860); B. Ross, Nat. Hist. Rev. 1862, p. 289;
Feilden, ‘ Zoologist,’ 1872, p. 3290.
Buphagus skua, Coues, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phil. 1863, p. 125,
B. of N. W. Am. p. 604 (1874).
There was no particular variation observable in the plumage of
sixteen specimens from the Faroe Islands, and in many others sent
to me from time to time for examination; the older the bird the
wider are the chestnut markings which occupy the centre of the
feathers on the upper parts, and the longer and the more yellow
[3]
320 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIIN#. [Mar. 21,
become the filamentous feathers of the neck. The under wing:
coverts and the avzillaries are always sooty, with, at most, but very
few and ill-defined russet markings. JI have examined the in-
teresting melanism belonging to Mr. J. H. Gurney, jun., figured by
Mr. Dresser in his ‘ Birds of Europe ;’ it was obtained in October,
and the first primary on each wing has not yet attained its full
length. From the ecrescentic edges to the dorsal feathers, seen on
holding it to a side light, from the absence of acuminate feathers
on the neck, and from the weak bill (which is much thinner than m
Mr. Dresser’s plate), I have little doubt of this example being a
bird of the year ; this impression is confirmed by the satin-like ap-
pearance of the primaries and upper parts, which is very different
from any thing I have ever observed in birds whose plumage has
undergone any wear.
The range of this species is the most restricted of any member of
the family which breeds in the northern hemisphere. It has not
been observed in Spitzbergen ; aud its most northern breeding-place
within the Arctic circle is at the Lofoten Islands, off the coast of
Norway; thence it is found nesting west and southwards to Iceland,
the Faroes and the Shetland Islands. It is not recorded from the
Baltic, or from the White Sea. Seebohm and Harvie Brown did
not observe it in their recent expedition to the mouth of the
Petchora ; nor did Middendorf find it in N. Siberia, where the other
three European species breed. Von Baer’s identification of this
bird in Novaya Zemlya may well be doubted, as none of the many
subsequent explorers have observed it there. Pallas (Z. Ros.-As. ii.
p- 309) supposed that this might have been the bird recorded by
Steller, as observed in 58° N. lat., on the Pacific coast, feeding on
the carcass of a whale; but as it had a ‘yellowish bill”’ it was
more probably a Fulmar Petrel. It has not been recorded as yet
from the Pribilov Islands, the Aleutians, or Alaska; but it probably
occurs along that coast, as a single specimen is described by Mr.
Lawrence as having been obtained off Monterey, in California. Mr.
Bernard Ross found it at the mouth of the Mackenzie river,
and about Great Slave Lake, uorth of which it is very rare; it
also appears to range throughout the Hudson’s-Bay territory, and
is clearly, as far as dimensions go, the “JZ. keeask”’ cf Latham,
mixed up with the Pomatorhine Skua, as shown by the description
of the particoloured feet ; the Esquimaux name of the latter species
also happens to be “ Keeask,”’ according to Richardson, who does
not mention S. cafarrhactes. There is no authentic record of its
occurrence on the Atlantic sea-board of the United States; and in
South Greenland it was only twice observed by Holbdll. From its
breeding-stations it passes southwards in autumn along the western
shores of Europe as far as the Straits of Gibraltar and N. Morocco,
beyond which there is, as yet, no trace of it. As a mere straggler,
of course, it has been found in Germany; and it was recorded by
Mr. C. A. Wright as having been obtained at Malta (Ibis, 1864,
p- 150); but the specimen has subsequently proved to be S. poma-
torhinus. Mr. Godman does not enumerate it amongst the birds of
[4]
1876.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINE,. 321
the Azores, Madeira, or the Canaries; but future observations may
probably show a somewhat more extended range than I have been
able to trace.
As a species it is nowhere abundant, and of late years its numbers
in the Faroes and Shetland Islands have so seriously diminished
as to render its speedy extermination there extremely probable.
Although, like the rest of the family, it is essentially a “ robber
gui,” yet it is by no means entirely parasitic ; for it feeds to a great
extent upon flesh, and especially upon the Kattiwake gall, of whose
feathers and bones all the castings were composed which Capt.
Feilden examined at the Faroe Islands, whilst the stomachs of
those he shot were full of flesh. This purely maritime Gull is the
only one which can be plundered with impunity that is found in any
great numbers in the haunts of the Great Skua; for the Herring- and
Great Black-backed Gulls would not tamely yield their prey; and it
is worthy of note that the winter range of S. catarrhactes extends
no further south than that of the Kittiwake. We shall see that the
heat of the tropics proves no barrier to other northern species
which, from their superior swiftness of flight, require less specialized
conditions for their existence.
STERCORARIUS ANTARCTICUS.
Lestris catarractes, Quoy and Gaimard, Voy. ‘ Uranie,’ p. 137,
Atlas, pl. 38 (1824) (Falkland Islands); Gould, B. of Aust. vii. pl.
21 (1848); Hutton, Ibis, 1872, p. 248 (Chatham Islands).
Lestris antarcticus, Lesson, Traité d’Orn. p. 616 (1831); Sel.
and Salvin, P. Z.S. 1871, p. 579 (part).
Megalestris antarctica, Gould, P. Z.S. 1859, p. 98.
Lestris antarctica, Sclater, P.Z.S. 1860, p. 390; Abbott, Ibis,
1861, p. 165 (Falkland Islands).
Lestris fuscus, Ellman, Zoologist, 1861, p. 7472.
Buphagus antarcticus, Coues, Proc. Phil. Ac. 1863, p. 127; B.
N.W. Am. p. 604 (i874).
Lestris catarrhactes, Hutton, Ibis, 1867, p. 185.
Stercorarius antarcticus (et madagascarensis?), Bp. Consp. Av.
li. p. 207 (1857); Von Pelzeln, Novara-Reise, Vogel, p. 150 (1865)
(Sé¢. Pauls I.) ; Buller, B. New Zealand, p. 267 (1873).
Stercorurius catarractes (6), Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. p. 47 (1865) ;
Layard, B. S. Africa, p. 366 (1867) ; Sharpe, Zool. ‘ Erebus and
Terror,’ 1. App. p. 32 (1875).
Buphagus skua antarcticus, Coues, in Bull. U.S. N. M. no. 2
p- 9 (1875) (Kerguelen Island)*.
Quite irrespective of the enormous gap which, so far as we know,
at present separates the geographical range of S. catarrhactes from
* Since writing the present article I have read the very interesting ac-
count of the habits of this species as observed at Kerguelen’s Island by Dr.
Kidder, Naturalist to the American Expedition to observe the Transit of Venus.
It would appear that it avoids the water, and preys principally upon other
birds; there are also other modifications of the usual habits of birds of this
genus, to which space will not allow me to allude,
[5]
322 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINZ. [Mar. 21,
that of the Antarctic Skua, it seems to me that only the want of a
sufficient series of both species for comparison can ever have led to
their being united; for undoubtedly the distinctness of many other
_ birds as species is unhesitatingly acknowledged on much slighter
grounds. In the examination of a large series I have never met
with any northern Skua with the stout deep bill with its well-
marked angle at the gonys which invariably characterizes the
southern bird; and if mere colour is taken into consideration, the
total absence of rufous both on the underparts, the axillaries, and
the under wing-coverts serves-to distinguish the Antarctic Skua at a
glance. But whilst perfectly distinguishable from S. catarrhactes,
it presents three interesting variations in the course of its range,
which I have been enabled {o trace by the aid of a fine series in the
British Museum. From Campbell’s Island in 54° S., 168° E., up
to Norfolk Island, in 29° 8. (its most northern Anown range), past
Kerguelen’s Island, the Crozets, and up to the Cape of Good Hope,
where Layard observed it in April, the specimens all agree in their
remarkable uniformity of sooty-brown plumage, there being few, if
any, striations even upon the feathers of the neck, whilst the size of
some of the examples is enormous, the primaries ‘measuring 16 and
- 17 inches from carpal joint to tips of primaries. The Falkland-Island
Skuas, locally known as “‘ Cape-Egmont Hens” and “ Sea-Hens,”’
are decidedly smaller, and the acuminate feathers of the neck and
shoulders are distinctly streaked with yellowish white, although the
general sooty appearance is preserved. But in three specimens eb-
tained during the voyage of the ‘ Erebus’ and ‘ Terror,’ on the edge
of the pack-ice, the upper parts are somewhat less dusky than in the
Falkland-Island birds, and the tips of the feathers of the breast are
tinted with yellowish, though the underparts of the feathers retain
their sooty hue, whilst the acuminate feathers of the neck form a
complete ring of yellow verging upon golden, and, by contrast with
the darker colour of the crown, giving somewhat the appearance of a
hood. In general dimensions this form is somewhat smaller than
the preceding, and the bill is even more short and stout in propor-
tion ; but the general characters of resemblance are preserved through-
out, the under wing-coverts and axillaries being dark smoke-coloured,
whilst the hghter hue of the underparts extends no further than the
tips of the feathers, and may. be due to climatic influences. In their
somewhat bleached appearance and the closer texture of the feathers
about the base of the bill, these three birds have the appearance of
permanent inhabitants of inhospitable circumpolar regions, whilst
the Falkland-Island birds seem to be a connecting link between this
and the larger form, whose range is principally within more tempe-
rate climates, where the conditions of existence are easier.
It is most probable that Bonaparte’s S. madagascarensis belongs
to this species, as the late Commander Spurling saw what he supposed
to be a Great Skua off the Comoro Islands, and this would bring its
extreme range up to about 12° S., leaving even then an interval of
more than 40° of latitude between it and the most southerly known
range of S. catarrhactes. Neither has true S. antarcticus been
[6]
1876. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINZ. 323
found, so far as I am aware, on the western side of the Straits of
Magellan, or on the coasts of Chili or Peru, where its place is taken
by a bird which I consider fully entitled to specific rank, and which,
strange to say, has all its affinities with the northern Skua, S. catar-
rhactes.
STERCORARIUS CHILENSIS (Plate XXIV.).
Lestris antarcticus, var. b. chilensis, Bp. Consp. Av. il. p. 207
(1857); (Mus. berol. ex Am. Merid. Rostro vix breviore quam in
Europeo, potius graciliore quam robustiore).
Lestris antarctica, Scl. & Salvin, Lbis, 1869, p. 284 (Santa Mag-
dalena, Straits of Magellan—Ounningham).
S. supra fuliginoso-nigricans, pileo summo fere concolori; corpore
reliquo superiore maculis longitudinalibus rufescentibus versus
apicem angustioribus plus minusve dilatatis variegato ; collo pos-
tico albicante vix rufescente longitudinaliter striato ; alis dorso con-
coloribus, remigum scapis albis, tectricibus alarum minimis dorso
concoloribus et in eodem more rufo maculatis : primariis vie al-
bido, secundariis maculis magnis rufescentibus terminatis ; supra-
caudalibus rufo marmoratis et subterminaliter maculatis ; cauda
nigra, pallidius terminata; loris et plumis subocularibus fuligi-
nosis pileo concoloribus, his rufo lavatis ; genis, regione parotica,
et corpore subtus toto cinnamomeo-rufis ; axillaribus et tectricibus
subalaribus castaneo-rufis, his et pectoris lateribus paullo fuligi-
noso striatis; colli lateribus dorso concoloribus ; ala subtus ni-
gricante, primariis basin versus albis ; rostro nigro ; pedibus nigris.
Affinis 8. catarrhacti, sed rostro graciliore, corpore subtus con-
spicue cinnamomeo-rufescente, et subalaribus et axillaribus casta-
neis distinguendus.
Professor Peters, of Berlin, to whom I wrote on the subject, has
courteously informed me that the type specimen in that museum has
all the above characteristics. It is a slightly immature bird, and
came from Chill.
Through the kindness of Mr. G. Fanshawe, F.Z.8., I have lately
become possessed of four specimens of a Skua shot by his nephew,
Mr. J. R. Denison, at Mejillones, on the little strip of coast which
belongs to Bolivia, in lat. 23° 5’S., at the end of February or be-
ginning of March. Three of these birds are adults; the fourth is
evidently immature, as shown by the brown crescentic tips to the dor-
sal feathers; and the rufous of the underparts is less strongly marked
than in the adults, showing that the ruddy colour increases with age.
But even the young bird is ruddier than any S. catarrhactes I ever
saw. In the museum at Cambridge is a similar immature specimen
obtained by Dr. Cunningham, late of H.M.S. ‘ Nassau,’ in the Straits.
of Magellan, in April; and Mr. Gervase Mathew, R.N., writes to me
that he observed this chestnut-breasted bird at Valparaiso in January,
and a month later at Coquimbo, when in H.M.S. ‘ Resolute.’ More
than this is not known to me at present; and in the absence of any
reliable information as to its breeding-haunts it would be rash to in-
dulge in any speculations as to whether they are to the north or ta
[7].
324 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINE. [ Mar. 21,
the south of the Equator. The affinities of this well-defined form are
decidedly with S. catarrhactes, and not with S. antarcticus ; it is,
indeed, a somewhat slighter bird than the former, and remarkable
for its rich cinnamon-coloured underparts, wing-coverts and axil-
laries. The presence of this species on the shores of the South Pacific
may be accounted for by the cool stream of water, about 300 miles
wide, and knownas Humboldt’s current, which runs northwards from
the Straits of Magellan, along the coasts of Chili and Peru. ‘This
cool band abounds in fish; and in consequence of these altered con-
ditions we find there at least six species of Gull, some of them nu-
merically abundant; whereas on the east coast of America there is a
noticeable scarcity of Gulls within the tropics. Where Gulls are
found, the stout heavy forms of Skua can pick up a living; their
more lightly formed congeners can rob the Terns, and the two long-
tailed species are more than a match in flight for the Arctic Tern; but
against that family the Great Skuas would have little chance; and
hence, probably, their more restricted range. If this species should
prove to have its breeding-places in the North Pacific, it is somewhat
singular that it should never have been observed north of the Equator,
and that the only specimen of a great Skua recorded from the north-
west coast, namely at Monterey, California, lat. 44° N., is clearly
from the description given, S. catarrhactes. If, on the other hand,
it should prove to be a denizen of the southern hemisphere, it is still
more remarkable that we should find in such close proximity to S.
antarcticus a form whose affinities are with S. catorrhactes. In
order of arrangement it should follow the latter species, although in
the present case I have taken it last for couvenience of treatment.
STERCORARIUS FOMATORHINUS.
Stercorarius striatus, Brisson, Orn. vi. p. 152, pl. 13. fig. 2 (juv.),
1760.
Larus keeask (part.), Latham, Ind. Orn. p. 818 (1790).
Larus parasiticus, Meyer & Wolf, Tasch. D. Vég. ii. p. 490,
descrip. p. 492 (1810), nec auctorum.
Catarracta parasita, var. camtschatica, Pallas, Zoogr. Rosso-As.
p. 312 (1811).
Lestris pomarinus, Temm. Man. d’Orn. p. 514 (1815) ; Audubon,
B. Am. vi. p. 186, pl. 451 (1844); Ross, in Parry’s 4th Voy. App.
p- 196 (1828), fide Newton.
Stercorarius pomarinus, Vieillot, N. Dict. Hist. Nat. xxxii. p. 158
(1819) ; De Selys-L. F., Belg. p. 155 (1842); Gray, Gen. of B. iii.
p- 653 (1849); Coues, Proc. Phil. Ac. 1863, p. 129; B. Ross, Nat.
Hist. Rev. 1562, p. 259 (Gt. Slave Lake, very rare); Wright, Ibis,
1864, p. 151 (Malta); Gurney, Andersson’s B. of Damara Land,
p. 857 (1872).
Cataractes pomarina, Steph. in Shaw’s G. Zool. xiii. p. 216 (1826).
Cataractes pomarinus, Selby, Ill. Brit. Orn. ii. p. 517 (1832).
Lestris spheriuros, Brehm, Vog. Deutsch. p. 718 (1831).
Lestris striatus, Eyton, C. Brit. Birds, p. 51 (1836).
Lestris pomarina, Faber, Prod. Island. Orn. p. 104 (1822); Sw. &
[8]
1876.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIIN&. 325
Rich. F. Bor.-Am. p. 429 (1831); Naumann, Vog. Deutsch. x.
p- 487, pl. 271 (1840); Temm. Man. d’Orn. p. 495, ed. 1840;
Middendorf, Sib. Reise, p. 240, tav. xxiv. fig. 1 (egg) (1853).
Coprotheres pomarinus, Reich. Nat. Syst. Vog. p. v (1852).
Catarracta pomarina (Tem.), Blyth, J. As. S. Bengal, xxviii.
p. 406 (1859) (Moulmein).
Lestris pomerinus (Tem.), Newton, P. Z. S. 1861, p. 401, pl. xxix.
fig. 3 (egg).
” Lestris pomarhinus, Preyer, R. n. Island (1862).
Lestris pomatorhinus, Sclater, Ibis, 1862, p. 297.
Stercorarius pomarhinus, Malmgren, Spitzbergens Fogl. p. 411
1864).
: ee pomatorhinus, Newton, Ibis, 1865, p. 509 ; Gillett,
Ibis, 1870, p. 307; Coues, in Elliot’s Prybilov Is. (1874); Coues,
B. of N.W. Am. p. 607 (1874); Eaton, Zoologist, 1874, p. 3812
(Spitzbergen) ; Newton, B. Greenland, p. 107 (1875).
Lestris pomatorhina, Th. v. Heuglin, Ibis, 1872, p. 65.
The description and figure given by Brisson of his Stercorarius
striatus clearly show that he had before him an immature specimen
of this species, the representation of the strong heavy feet garnished
with large claws being highly characteristic. Although Brisson’s
name cannot be retained, yet, if it had been adopted by any naturalist
subsequent to the 12th ed. of Linneeus, it must necessarily have ante-
dated the well-known name given by Temminck ; but this change has
fortunately been spared us. With regard to Gmelin’s name of crepz-
datus, which Dr. Coues was inclined to refer to this species, I trust
to be able to show that it can only belong to that which I call for
the present Richardson’s Skua. ‘Temminck’s name is therefore re-
tained, subject to the emendation proposed by Mr. P. L. Sclater
(Ibis, 1862, p. 297), where he showed that the classical spelling
should be pomatorhinus, being derived from twa (operculum) and
piv (nasus), a view which has since been generally adopted by
ornithologists. There can be no doubt from the description,
especially of the tail-feathers, given by Pallas that this is the species
called by him C. parasitica, var. camtschatica.
In plumage this species does not exhibit any remarkable variation,
although some immature birds are decidedly less marked with sooty
striations on the underparts than others. In the adults the
acuminate feathers on the neck assume a beautiful golden tinge ; and
the dark pectoral band evidently becomes narrower with increasing
age until it is totally lost and the bird is pure white from the chin
to the abdomen. I have only seen one example of this extreme
plumage, in the Rouen Museum, which boasts of nineteen picked
specimens of Pomatorhine Skuas, none of which, unfortunately, bears
any label indicating either date or locality.
The most northern locality recorded for this species is lat. 82° N.,
where a specimen was observed by Ross flying past the boats on
Parry’s fourth voyage. It has been found on the coast of Spitz-
bergen, and in Novaya Zemlya; and south of these points it ranges
throughout the whole of the arctic and subarctic regions. Von
Middendorf found it breeding on the “ barrens”’ of the Taimyr and
[9]
326 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINE. [Mar. 21,
the Boganida, in Siberia, and was the first to give a figure of the
ege; and it is said to breed in societies from Bjornenas, north of
Egedesminde, to the northward (Newton, B. of Greenland). There
must, however, be many other breeding-places within the arctic circle;
for the species is abundant in the north, and is not uncommon on
our coasts, principally on the west, in autumn. Passing along the
coasts of Western Hurope, it occurs as a straggler in the interior
of the continent, and visits the Mediterranean as far east as Sicily
and Malta; goes down the west coast of Africa, where Capt. Shelley
obtained it off Fantee; crosses the equator, and reaches Walwich
Bay in lat. 23° S., where Andersson shot two specimens, one of
which, a bird of the year, is in my collection. With this proof of
its traversing the tropics it is no longer remarkable that it should
have been obtained at Moulmein, on the coast of Tenasserim, in
lat. 16° 22' N., by Major Tickell, as recorded by Mr. Blyth; the
singular thing was, that the specimen in question should prove to be
an adult and not a bird of the year, like all the other visitors to the
south which I have examined*. There isa specimen in the plumage
of the first year in the collection of Messrs. Salvin and Godman,
obtained by Mr. Cockerell off Cape York, the northern extremity of
Australia. On the east coast of America it occurs from Labrador
as far south as New York and Pennsylvania, beyond which it bas
not yet been traced. On the west coast there is no positive record
beyond two instances on the Prybilov Islands; but Mr. Gervase
Mathew’s description of a Skua observed by him at Valparaiso and
Coquimbo seems to refer to this species, respecting whose winter
range we must wait for further details.
STERCORARIUS CREPIDATUS. (Richardson’s Skua.)
Stercorarius (Le Stercoraire), Brisson, type of genus Sterco-
rarius.
Catharacta cepphus, Briinn. Orn. Bor. p. 36 (1764).
Catharacta coprotheres, Brinn. Orn. Bor. p. 36 (1764), dark form.
The Black-toed Gull, Pennant’s Brit. Zool. ii. p. 419, tab. 2
(1768).
Larus crepidatus, Banks, Hawkesworth’s Voy. i. p. 15 (1773) ;
Gmelin, Syst. Nat. p. 602 (1788); aii Ind. Orn. p. 319 (1790);
Meyer & W. Tasch. deutsch. Vi dg. 1. p. 493 (1810); Scoresby,
Arctic Reg. 1. p. 534 (1820).
“Larus parasiticus, Linn.’’ Boddaert, T. des Pl. Kul. no. 991 (nec
Linn.).
Lestris crepidatus, Tem. Man. d’Orn. p. 515 (1815).
Stercorarius crepidatus, Vieillot, N. Dict. Hist. Nat. xxxil. p. 155
(1819).
Lestris parasitica, F. Faber, Prodr. Is. Orn. p. 105 (1822); Brehm
* Since writing the above I have had the opportunity of referring to Major
Tickell’s coloured drawing of this identical specimen, which proves it to be an -
immature bird after all! Mr. Blyth’s error in stating it to be an adult was
doubtless owing to the want of any specimens for comparison at that time.
[10]
1876.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINZ. 327
& 8S. Beitr. Vogelk. iii. 853 (1822); Naum. Vog. Deutsch. x.
p-. 506, pl. 272, 273 (1840).
Cataractes parasiticus, Fleming, Brit. An. p. 138 (1828); Selby,
Ill. Brit. Zool. 1. p. 520 (1832).
Lestris richardsonii, Swain., Sw. & Rich. F. Bor.-Am. p. 433,
pl. 73 (1831); Macgill. Brit. B. v. p. 492 (1852); Audubon, B.
Am. vii. 190, pl. 452 (1844); Gould, B. of Eur. v. pl. 441 (1837);
Meyer, Ill. Brit. B. vii. p. 177 (1857).
Lestris parasita, Keys. & Bl. Wirb. Kur. p. 240 (1840); Midd.
Sib. Reise, p. 241 (1853).
Stercorarius parasiticus, Schaeff. Mus. Orn. p. 62, pl. 37 (1789) ;
De Selys-L. Fn. Belg. p. 155 (1842); G. R. Gray, List B. Br. Mus.
ili. p. 167 (1844); Gray, Gen. Birds, i. p. 653 (1849); Lawr.
Baird’s B. N. Am. 839 (1858); Blakiston (B. N.W. A.), Ibis,
1863, p. 152; Degl. & G. Orn. Eur, il. p. 397 (1867); B. Ross:
Nat.-Hist. Rev. 1862, p. 289; Coues, Pr. Phil) Ac. 1S63;\p. 132);
Newton, Ibis, 1865, p.510(S8 pitzbergen); Andersson, B. of Damara
Land, p. 357 (1872); Gould, B. G. Brit. v. p. 80 (187 ); Hume,
Stray Feathers, p. 268 (1873) (Sindh); Buller, B. New Zealand,
p. 268 (1875); Coues, Rep. Prybilov Is. no. 541 (1874) ; Sharpe,
Voy. ‘ Erebus and Terror,’ i. App. p. 32 (1875), Newton, B. Green-
land, p. 107, Arct. Man. (1875).
Besiealp a asinieus Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 208 (1857).
Lestris parasiticus, var. coprotheres, Bp. Consp. Av. il. p. 209.
Lestris thuliaca, Preyer, Reise n. Island (1862).
Lestris parasitus, Th. v. Heuglin, Ibis, 1872, p. 65.
Lestris spinicaudus, Hardy, Rev. et Mag. Zool. 1854, p. 657.
Stercorarius spinicauda, Layard, B.S. Af. p. 366 (1867).
Stercorarius parasitica, Dall & Bannister, Tr. Chic. Ac. i. p. 303
(1869) (Alaska).
Stercorarius asiaticus, Hume, Stray Feathers, p. 269 (1873)
(Sindh).
Lestris boji, schleepii, benickii, Brehm, and Stercorarius tephras,
Malmgren, are believed to be this, whilst Lestris brachyrhynchus
and L. microrhynchus, Brehm, are ascribed to the next ; but it would
be a mere waste of time to verify Brehm’s supposed species.
Dr. Coues follows those authors who have chosen to divert
Linnzeus’s name of ZL. parasiticus to this species—a supposition
utterly negatived by the description in the Syst. Nat. p. 226, which
is based upon that in his ‘ Fauna Suecica,’ p. 55, No. 156. Nothing
could well be clearer than his statement :—‘‘ rectricibus duabus inter-
mediis longissimis,’ which can only apply to the Buffon’s or Long-
tailed Skua; but, as if to make assurance doubly sure, Linnaeus
adds “‘remiges nigree, rachi 1. 2. nivea.”’ ‘The natural inference
from drawing especial attention to the fact that the shafts of the
first and second primaries are white, is clearly that those of the
other primaries are not white. Now the particular characteristic
by which ‘“Richardson’s Skua,” may be distinguished at any age
beyond that of the nestling, is that the shafts of the other primaries
are conspicuously lighter than in those of Buffon’s Skua, in which
[11]
328 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINZ. [Mar. 21,
only those of the first and second primaries are white, those of the
third and successive primaries being dark. I am indebted to Mr.
R. Collett, of Christiania, for pointing out to me, some years since,
this excellent distinction. The L. parasiticus of Linnezeus is there-
fore not S. crepidatus, but the ‘ Buffon’s Skua;” and so is,
according to my view, Catharacta parasiticus of Brinnich ; but
it is needless to discuss the latter name, as it is out of date.
Dr. Coues considers that the Larus crepidatus of Gmelin is
in all probability based upon the young of the Pomatorhine Skua,
to which Brisson gave the name of Stercorarius striatus. It is true
that Gmelin (who translated from Latham) identifies S. striatus of
Brisson with his L. erepidatus; but although S. striatus is certainly
a young Pomatorhine, it was by no means easily recognizable by
the naturalists of that day; and, moreover, Gmelin correctly cites
in the first place Catharacta cepphus, Brinn., which is certainly this
species, and in the third line refers to ‘‘ Le Labbe ou Stercoraire”’ of
Buffon, whose figure (‘Planches Enluminées,’ No. 991) is an ex-
cellent one, besides giving an accurate description of the tail-feathers
(‘‘ rectricibus duabus intermediis longoribus ’’) ; he also refers it to the
“« Black-toed Gull” of the ‘ Brit. Zool.,’ which is clearly this species.
This would be quite sufficient to impose Gmelin’s name of L. crepidatus
upon ‘ Richardson’s Skua ;”’ but the name did not actually originate
with Gmelin. On referring to Hawkesworth’s ‘ Voyages’ (1773), vol.
iil. p. 15 (not vol. i. p. 15, as erroneously cited by Latham, and of
course duly copied by Gmelin, without reference), we find in the
narrative of Lieut. Cook’s voyage in the ‘ Endeavour’ that “on the
8th October 1768 (when a little to the south of the Cape-Verd
Islands) Mr. Banks [afterwards Sir Joseph Banks] shot the Black-
toed Gull not yet described according to Linnzus’s system; he gave
it the name of Larus crepidatus.’ The Black-toed Gull is described
in Pennant’s ‘ British Zoology,’ vol. 1. p. 419 (1768); and plate 2
is an excellent representation of a ‘‘ Richardson’s Skua”’ of the
year, the feet of this species at that age having the upper part of the
webs yellowish, and the posterior portion black, giving the bird the
appearance of being ‘‘ shod” or ‘ sandalled,’’ whence Banks’s some-
what quaint Latin rendering. I think it probable that the bird was
identified from Pennant’s description and figure; for in the MS. in
the British Museum of Solander, who was also in the ‘ Endeavour,’
there is indirect evidence of that work having been on board ; but
as Banks gave no description, it is perhaps safest to cite Gmelin as
the authority for the name.
It is now well known that there are two very distinct plumages to be
found in birds of this species, even in the same breeding-places—an
entirely sooty form, and one with light underparts,—and that white-
breasted birds pair with whoie-coloured birds as well as with those
of their respective varieties. If this species is “dimorphic,” the
offspring of one particoloured and one whole-coloured bird ought to
resemble one or other of their parents without reference to sex ; my
examination of upwards of a hundred specimens from widely different
localities and in all stages inclines me to the belief that this is not
the case, and that the young of such union will be intermediate,
[12]
1876.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIIN&. 329
whilst the offspring of two similar parents will “breed true.” This
point can only be solved by some ornithologist who will devote his
attention to a colony during the breeding-season, observing the pro-
duce of all these unions, and, if possible, marking the nestlings before
they take wing; perhaps some of our Scotch friends will take the
hint.
That the sooty plumage is not merely a sign of immaturity is
shown by the long tail-feathers, and by the burnished tinge of the
acuminate ones on the nape.
It is worthy of notice that in Spitzbergen, its most northern
breeding-ground, neither Dr. Malmgren nor Professor Newton found
a single example of the dark whole-coloured form; all those which
Admiral Collinson’s and Dr. Rae’s Expeditions brought home from
the far north are also white-breasted specimens, which looks as if
the dark form was a more exclusively southern one.
In the white-breasted birds the striations on the underparts
decrease with age until little more than a pectoral band remains ;
this, again, becomes narrower until in some specimens it entirely
disappears and the bird is white from the chin to the abdomen.
This species has the most extended range of any member of the
family. Parry found it up to lat. 82° 2! N.; and it breeds throughout
the arctic and subarctic regions, as far south as the islands of the
north of Scotland ; and Thompson records it as having nested near
Achil Island on the west of Ireland. I should not be surprised to
learn that there is some beeeding-place along the western shores of
France ; for both old and also very young birds occur at Malaga
early in August. Some go higher up the Mediterranean ; but others,
principally the young, continue their course along the west coast of
Africa, to Walwich Bay and as far as the Cape of Good Hope; and
in those waters they pass the months of what is our winter, compel-
ling the Terns and the small Gull (L. hartlaudii) to disgorge their
prey. From the altered appearance which they present in their
progressive stages of plumage at a time when European naturalists
have lost sight of them, an individual from the vicinity of St. Helena
received the name of S. spinicauda. Careful examination of a series
of specimens from the Cape of Good Hope, where Mr. E. L. Layard
only observed them from December to February, showed that all
were in the act of losing and renewing the central tail-feathers and
the outer primaries, whieh are the lest to be moulted ; and although
at the first glance the birds have a somewhat distinct Nols yet hese
can be no doubt whatever of their being our northern species.
Most that I have seen are birds of less than a year old, although
this immaturity is less noticeable in the dark-plumaged birds than
in the lighter ones; in none, however, are the central tail-feathers
fully developed, and most are still partially in the quill-sheath. One
specimen, evidently obtained just before the northward migration, is
absolutely the same as a bird of only two months older from the
Faroes. It is to be presumed that S. crepidatus goes up the east
coast of Africa, as Mr. Allan Hume obtained it (naming it S. asia-
ticus), and observed many along the coast of Sindh, the Gulf of Oman,
and between Guader and Bombay.
| [13]
330 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINE. [Mar. 21,
Returning to the Atlantic, we find it along the North-American
coast; and Solander, in his MS., describes, under the names of L.
Suliginosus and L. nigricans, two specimens of this species obtained
in the harbour of Rio de Janeiro on December 4, 1768, thus giving
it a claim to be included in the list of the Neotropical Laride so
ably worked out by Messrs. Sclater and Salvin (P. Z. S. 1871,
p- 564). South of Rio there is no record of its occurrence on the
east coast of America; but I can only refer to this species the
example obtained by Mr. Buller at Horowhenua in the Province of
Wellington, New Zealand, on April 30, 1864. His general descrip-
tion suits S. erepidatus; and he expressly states that the shafts of
the primaries are white, the characteristic which particularly serves
to distinguish it from Buffon’s Skua, with which he has identified it.
At the time that I examined the specimen in question [ was not
aware of this distinctive feature: the skin also had been badly pre-
served; and, to make matters worse, the plumage was so worn and
abraded that it is a marvel that the bird was able to fly at all.
On the west coast of America it is only recorded as occurring at
the Prybilov Islands and in Alaska; but Mr. Gervase Mathew, R.N.,
informs me that when at Callao in April 1873, in H.M.S. ‘ Reso-
lute,’ he observed many small Skuas in various states of plumage,
and attributed them (correctly no doubt) to this species, which he
had often observed previously on the English coast.
STERCORARIUS PARASITICUS. (Long-tailed or Buffon’s Skua.)
Le Stercoraire a longue queue, Buffon, Pl. Enlum. 762.
Stercorarius longicaudus, Brisson, vi. p. 155 (1760).
Catharacta parasitica, Briinn. Orn. Bor. p. 37 (1764).
Larus parasiticus, Linn. Syst. Nat. p. 226 (1766), Fauna Suec.
55. no. 156 (“‘rectricibus duabus intermediis longissimis.”’); % Mil-
ler, Zool. Dan. Prod. 166 (1774); Phipps, Voy. N. Pole, p. 187
(1774); Gm. Syst. Nat. p. 601 (1788); Scoresby, Arctic Regions,
i. p. 534 (1820).
Catharacta parasitica, O. Fab. F. G. p. 103 (1780).
Catarracta parasitica, Retz. F. Suec. p. 160 (1800).
Catarractes parasita, Pallas, Z. Ros.-As. p. 310 (1811).
Lestris parasitica, Illiger, Prod. p. 273 (1811); Sw. & Rich.
F. Bor.-Am. p. 430 (1831) ; Maegill. Brit. B. v. p. 503 (1852).
Lestris parasiticus, Temm. M. d’Orn. p. 512 (ed. 1815), p. 796
(ed. 1820), p. 501 (ed. 1840); Jenyns, Brit. Vert. An. p. 283 (1835) ;
Gould, B. of Eur. v. pl. 442 (1837); Audubon, B. Am. vu. 192,
pl. 452 (1844) ; Meyer, Ill. Brit. Orn. vii. p. 174, pl. 314 (1857).
Stercorarius longicaudus, Vieill. N. Dict. Hist. Nat. xxxii. p. 157
(1819); Newton, Ibis, 1865, p. 511 (Spitzbergen); Degl. & Gerbe,
Orn. Eur. ii. p. 399 (1867).
Lestris crepidata, Brehm & S. Beitrage z. Végelkunde, iii. p. 861
(1822); Naum. Vog. Deutsch. x. p. 534, pl. 274 (1840).
Testris buffonii, Boie, Meyer & W. Tasch. iii. p. 212 (1822);
Middendorff, Sib. Reise, ii. p. 241, taf. xxiv. fig. 2 (1853).
[14]
1876. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINZ. 331
Stercorarius cepphus, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. pt. i. p.
211, pl. 23 (fig. nec descrip.) (1826) ; B. Ross, Nat.-Hist. Rev.
1862, p. 289, Blakiston, Ibis, 1863, p. 152 (Mackenzie River).
Lestris lessoni, Degl. Mém. Ac. R. Lille, p. (1838); Schinz, Eur.
F. p. 392 (1840).
Lestris cephus, Keys. & Blas. Wirb. Eur. p. 240 (1840); Bp.
Consp. Av. ii. p. 209 (1857).
Stercorarius longicaudatus, De Selys-L. F. Belg. p. 156 (1842) ;
Degl. Orn. Eur. ii. p. 298 (1849); Newton, B. Greenland, p. 107
1875).
! a cephus, Gray, Gen. Birds, li. 1849, p. 653 ; Schlegel,
Mus. P.-B. Lari, p. 49 (1863); Gray, Hand-List, in. p. 110 (1871).
“ Lestris longicaudatus, Briss.,’’ Thomps. Nat. Hist. Ireland, iii.
399 (1851).
Lestris hardyi, Bonap. Tabl. d. longipen. Compt. Rend. xli. 1856,
p. 770; Consp. Av. ul. p. 210 (1857).
Stercorarius huffoni, Coues, Proc. Phil. Acad. 1863, p. 166; Dall
& Bann. Tr. Chic. Ac. i. p. 304 (1869) (Alaska) ; Coues, Prybilov
Isl. (1874); Irby, Orn. Str. Gibraltar, p. 216 (1875).
Lestris longicaudata, T. v. Heuglin, Ibis, 1872, p. 65 (Novaya
Zemlya).
In treating of the preceding species I have already shown that
Linneeus’s description of his £. parasiticus can only apply to this
species, which may always be distinguished by its very long central
tail-feathers and by having, even in immature plumage, the shafts of
only the first and second primaries white, those of the others being
dusky. In its adult state, the Long-tailed Skua has also the under
tail-coverts, abdomen, and flanks of a sooty brown; the tarsi also are
yellowish olive, whilst in adult S. erepidatus the legs are black. I
have seen but few immature specimens, all birds of the year, obtained
on their autumnal migration; they are of a nearly uniform sooty
colour, with the usual pale edgings to the feathers characteristic of the
first plumage. This species is found from Novaya Zemlya to Spitz-
bergen, and, south of these points, throughout the whole circuit of the
arctic regions. Von Middendorff first discovered its breeding-places
on the Taimyr and Bogonida, in Siberia; the late John Wolley found
it nesting on the Lapland fells; Sir John Richardson obtained nestlings
in Melville Peninsula; Mr. Bernard Ross observed it at the mouth
of the Mackenzie River; it occurs in the Prybilov Islands; and Dall
and Bannister found it in Alaska, the extent of its recorded range on
the Pacific coast. By far the rarest of the family as an autumnal
visitant, it ranges along our shores and those of Western Europe as
far south on the Straits of Gibraltar and Morocco, beyond which
there is no trace of it, whilst on the east coast of America it does not
seem to go south of lat. 40° N. I have already pointed out that Mr.
Buller’s supposed example of this species from New Zealand must be
referred to S. erepidatus. Professor Peters, of Berlin, has kindly in-
formed me that the type specimen in that Museum of Lestris hardyi,
Bonaparte, has the shafts of all except the first two primaries dusky ;
and on that ground I presume it to be a young bird of this species.
[15]
332 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERCORARIINE. [Mar.31.
The specimen in question is said to have been obtained “ between
the Philippines and Sandwich Islands’’—a considerable extension
to the range of the species so far as it is at present known.
In concluding my remarks on a family whose members are princi-
pally Arctic in their habitat, it would be a great omission if I failed to
acknowledge my indebtedness to Professor Newton’s comprehensive
remarks on the Arctic fauna in these ‘ Proceedings,’ in ‘ The Ibis,’
and in the ‘Arctic Manual.’ The whole available information respect-
ing the northern range of the Skuas is given in a condensed form, ac-
companied by most important references; and to these originals,
especially to the paper on the Birds of Spitsbergen in ‘The Ibis,’ 1865,
I would refer those who require more details than I have thought it
necessary to give in the present article.
[16]
4
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RCORARIUS CHILENSIS
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ON THE
STHERNINA, OR TERNS,
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WITH
DESCRIPTIONS OF THREE NEW SPECIES.
BY
HOWARD SAUNDERS, F.L.S., F.Z.S.
[From the PROCEEDINGS OF THE ZooLoGicaL Society oF Lonpon,
June 20, 1876. }
i]
638 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN. [June 20,
(Plate LXI.)
Having recently had opportunities of examining some interesting
types of various real and supposed species of the subfamily Sternine,
I propose to anticipate to a certain extent the monograph of the
Laride upon which I have been for some time engaged, and to give
the result of my observations in the following review of the species
at present known to me, with general remarks upon their geo-
graphical distribution.
The principal writers who have hitherto treated of the Ster-
nine are:—Prof. Schlegel, in the Mus. d’Hist. Nat. Pays-Bas,
Sterne, 1863; Prof. Blasius, in Journ. fur Orn. 1866, p. 73; Dr.
Elliott Coues, in Proc. Phil. Acad. 1862, and monographically, as re-
gards the North-American species, in his ‘ Birds of the North West ’
1874; and Messrs. Sclater and Salvin (Neotropical Laride, P. Z.S8.
1871). And from the works of these able authors I have derived
much assistance, especially from the last, owing to the care with
which the synonymy and the geographical distribution have been
worked out. Indeed as regards America I might well have been
content to wait until the completion of my monograph; but as there
are a good many species in other parts of the globe which have not
been so recently noticed, there may be room for a few remarks.
It is almost needless to say that, owing to the general similarity in
colour, the Sterning are a troublesome subfamily to handle, the ques-
tion of what constitutes specific distinctness being here more than
usually perplexing. The individual differences in size of bill, length
of wing, &c. are often considerable; added to which there are subtile
gradations in the various shades of plumage, which render it impos-
sible to accord specific rank to forms which, when judged by their
extremes alone, seem totally distinct. Under these circumstances it is
not surprising that a species should sometimes be based upon what
may appear at the first glance to be a very slight distinction ; for the
alternative is to unite under one head some forms which are clearly
different ; and considering the general tendency that there is towards
blending, the systematist must be glad to avail himself of the smallest
permanent characteristic. The young are often very much alike ; and
indeed in several cases they are as yet undistinguishable with the
limited material at present available; but larger series of authentic
specimens will doubtless clear up several points. The coloration
of the soft parts presents considerable difficulties, owing to the
changes which take place at different ages and seasons, it frequently
happening that the bill and legs in quite young birds increase in
intensity of colour up to a certain time in autumn, and then become
dark, the brighter colour not being resumed until the following
spring: this is notably the case with the Common and the Arctic
Terns, in which the bills become dark very suddenly between the
[2]
1876. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN E. 639
first and second weeks in October. At this season, too, the grey tint
on the rump and tail-coverts which is also assumed by some species is
apt to lead to confusion. Of the difficulties presented by the wear-
ing-away of the grey frosty surface ou the primaries, giving an ab-
normal appearance to their pattern, it is not necessary to say any-
thing beyond drawing attention to their existence.
After careful examination of the representatives of all the genera
- into which this subfamily has been divided, I am unable to discover
any satisfactory reasons for the adoption of more than five, viz.
Sterna, Hydrochelidon, Nenia, Gygis, and Anous. It is true that
in many forms there appears to be considerable departure from what
we have been accustomed to consider typical Sterna; and this was
especially evident to these systematists who treated principally of
European or North-American species ; but when the various species
of the whole world are examined, so many connecting links and gra-
dations will be found to exist, as to reduce the structural distinctions
to a minimum, and to preclude the possibility of adopting with any
degree of consistency several genera which at first glance seemed
valid enough. For example, the Sooty Terns (S. fuliginosa, S. anes-
theta, and S. lunata) have had no less than three genera erected for
one of their number by Wagler alone, viz. Onychoprion, Haliplana,
and Planeézs, the definitions of which will hardly bear analysis ; but
even if any one of them were based upon genuine structural cha-
racters (which is not the ease), there exists a far more important
difference between the foot in S. fuliginosa and in that of S. anes-
theta, than there is between S. fuliginosa and any typical Sterna,
such as 8. fluviatilis. It would strike any one as absurd to separate
these two Sooty Terns generically, seeing that their resemblance is so
close that for some time even their specific characteristics were by
no means well known; yet, unless this is done, it is fully as incon-
sistent to separate them from true Sterr@. It is, however, unneces-
sary to say more upen this particular subject, as it will be noticed
when treating of the species in question. The result of the mania
which at one time prevailed for the manufacture ef genera may be
seen in the fact that whereas the members of the subfamily Sterninze
are about 50 in number, the genera erected for their reception are
upwards of 30. It is true that many of these are merely vain repe-
titions of previously existing genera, the names of which did not
happen to suit the fancy of the respective systematists, and that by
discarding these synonyms the burden might be endured if the dis-
crepancies of opinion as to the genera in which the various species
should be located were not hopelessly irreconcilable, a single species
being sometimes assigned to 7 or 8 different genera. Dismissing all
but those which are based upon structural characters, independent
investigations have led me to adopt substantially the genera accepted
by the late G. R. Gray (Gen. Birds iti. p. 658), with the exception
of Phetusa, which I put back under Sterna; whilst Nenia, which
he puts with Anous, I consider valid; several species also which he
assigned to Hydrochelidun are now restored to Sterna. Of the dis-
carded genera even the best seem to be based upon the size and shape
[3]
640 ‘MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&. [June 20,
of the bill—a very variable character in Terns, and one which, when
taken alone, does not seem to be of so much value in this family as
in many others. t
All things considered, the following arrangement of the various
species seems to me to be the most natural; but, as is well known to
all naturalists who have undertaken a similar task, it is impossible
to attain to absolute consistency in locating the various members
of a family in an ascending or descending scale; for the aberrant
forms which frequently present themselves would destroy the best
scheme that ever could be invented.
_ Genus HyprocHeE pon, Boie.
This genus, originally instituted by Boie (Isis 1822, p. 563) for
H. nigra and H. leucoptera, H. hybrida being left by him with
Sterna, was, indeed, principally based upon coloration; but it has
‘since been well defined and generally accepted as including the Marsh-
Terns—-of which the most characteristic distinctions are the short
rounded tail, and the long slender toes connected by deeply incised
webs. There is a general resemblance between the species which
compose this very natural genus, the members of which agree in
their habits, being gregarious at the breeding-season, and making
their nests in the midst of marshy places. For convenience of
treatment I commence with
HyDROCHELIDON HYBRIDA (Pall.).
Sterna hybrida, Pall. Zoogr. Rosso-As. ii. p. 338 (1811); Schlegel,
Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 33 (1863).
Sterna leucopareia, Natterer, in Temm. Man. d’Orn. p.746 (1820).
Sterna javanica, Horsfield, Trans. Linn. S. xiii. p. 198 (1820) (type
examined in E. I. Mus., H.S.); Gray & Hardw. Ill. Ind. Zool.i.pl. 70.
fig. 1 (1832).
Sterna grisea, Horsfield, Trans. L. 8. xiii. p. 199 (1820) (type ex-
amined in E. I. Mus., H. S.).
Viralva indica et V.leucopareia, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii.
p- 171 & 169 (1825).
Sterna delamottei, Vieillot, Faun. Fr. p. 402 (1828).
Pelodes leucopareia, Kaup, Nat. Syst. p. 107 (1829).
Sterna similis, Gray & Hardw. Ill. Ind. Zool. i. pl. 70, fig. 2 (1832)
(type examined in E. I. Mus., H. S8.).
Hydrochelidon fluviatilis, Gould, P. Z. S. 1842, p. 140; Gould,
B. Australia, vil. pl. 31 (1848).
Hydrochelidon hybrida, G. R. Gray, Gen. B. iii. p. 660 (1846) ;
Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 82; Degl. & Gerbe, Orn. Eur. ii. p- 468
(1867); Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 421 (Formosa).
Hydrochelidon delalandii, Bp. Compt. Rend. xiii. (1856), p. 773
(type examined, H. S.).
Hydrochelidon indica, Jerdon, B of India, iii. p. 837 (1864).
Hydrochelidon leucopareia, Gould, Handbook to B. Australia, ii.
p- 406 (1865).
[4]
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINAE, 641
Sterna innotata, Beavan, Ibis, 1868, p. 404 (imm.).
Pelodes delalandii, Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 122 (1871).
Pelodes indica et P. fluviatilis, Gray, Hand-list, ii. pp. 121, 122
(1871).
Gelochelidon innotata, Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 119 (1871).
Pelodes hybrida, Gurney, Andersson’s B. of Damaraland, p. 362
(1872); Gray, Hand-list, i. p. 121 (1871).
“‘ Sterna leucoptera’’ (in error), Buckley, Ibis, 1874, p. 391
(Transvaal).
After examining a very large series, 1 am unable to detect any
constant difference between Kuropean, Indian, and Australian speci-
mens. Examples in breeding-plumage are absolutely identical ;
and it is much if a trifling inferiority in size can be remarked in
the Indian, and a slightly paler tint in the coloration of the upper
parts of Australianexamples. ‘The general range of the species may
therefore be described as from the extreme west of Europe to the
coasts of China and the island of Formosa and throughout the
Malayan region down to Australia, principally the Queeasland por-
tion. It occurs in South Africa abundantly in winter, and probably
breeds there, as Andersson obtained it in full plumage in April. In
the British Museum there is a mounted specimen marked as obtained
at Barbadoes and presented by Sir Robert Schomburgk, who was for
some time Governor of that West-Indian colony ; but there does not
appear to be any other record of its occurrence so far west, even as a
straggler.
HypROCHELIDON LEUCOPTERA, Meisn. & Schinz.
Sterna fissipes et S. nevia, Pallas, Zoogr. Rosso-As. il. pp. 337-8
(1811), nec Linn.
Sterna leucoptera, Meisner & Schinz, V6g. Schweiz, p. 264
(1815); Temm. Man. d’Orn. p. 483 (1815).
Hydrochelidon leucoptera, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563; Buller, B.
New Zealand, p. 287 (1873) ; Dresser, B. of Europe, pt. xlv. (Nov.
1875).
Viralva leucoptera, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xii. p. 170 (1826).
Hydrochelidon leucopterum, Bp. Comp. List, p. 61 (1838).
Hydrochelidon nigra, G. R. Gray, Gen. Birds, ii. p. 660 (nec
Linn.) (1849); Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 82; Swinhoe, Ibis, 1863,
p- 97, P. Z.S. 1863, p. 28, P. Z. 8. 1871, p. 421 (China); Gurney,
Andersson’s B. Damara-land, p. 363 (1872); G. R. Gray, Hand-
list, ili. p. 121 (1871); Cones, B. N.W. America, p. 709 (1874).
Hydrochelidon subleucoptera, C. L. Brehm, Vogelfang, p. 350
(1855).
A eh eins oak Swinhoe, Ibis, 1860, p. 68, 1861, p. 345
(nec Horsfield).
Sterna nigra, Schlegel. M. P.-B. Sterne, p. 31 (1863).
Hydrochelidon niger, Severtzoff, Turk. Jevotnie, p. 70 (1873),
fide Dresser.
The description of this species was given by Meisner and Schinz,
[5]
642 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. [June 20,
and also by Temminck, under date of the same year; the former,
however, give a coloured plate, and their claim to the earliest dis-
crimination of its distinctness seems to be generally acknowledged.
It is to be regretted that Mr. G. R. Gray and others should subse-
quently have identified it with Sterna nigra of Linnzeus, for which
there does not appear to have been any reasonable ground; for, as I
trust to show when treating of the Black Tern, Linnzeus’s deserip-
tlon can only apply to that species.
By its longer and more slender toes and claws, and deéply incised
webs, this species may be distinguished from H. nigra at all ages ;
whilst its generally smaller dimensions serve to separate the young
from that of H. hydrida. In the immature plumage also the upper
tail-coverts are whiter than in H. xigra, in which the grey of the back
continues over the rump and throughout the tail; but the above white
band is somewhat dependent upon the make of the skin, and is not
an unfailing guide with such speeimens as the one Mr. J. H. Gurney
had before him (which is now in my collection) when he identified it as
Sterna fissipes. On raising the feathers on the rump, however, it
will be seen that there is much more white at the base of those of
HT. leucoptera than in those of H. xigra; and in properly preserved
skins the white band on the rump is elearly defined even in very
young birds. The adults in summer ean hardly be mistaken even
on the wing, the b/ack under wing-coverts being very conspicuous,
(whereas in H. nigra they are pale grey); in winter and immature
plumage the under wing-coverts are white.
A straggler to northern Europe, this Tern becomes abundant in
the south and south-east, ranges throughout Siberia and China, and
reaches to the Transvaal and Damaraland and to Abyssinia, whence I
have several specimens, all in immature plumage; there is, however,
little doubt that it breeds there. It has also been obtained in
Australia and New Zealand, and is recorded by Dr. E. Coues as
having been captured in Wisconsin, U.S., on 5th July 1873, in full
breeding-plumage.
HyDROCHELIDON NréRa (Linn.).
Sterna nigra, Linn. 8.N. i. p. 227 (1766), F.S. p. 159; Meyer
& Wolf, Tasch. Deutsch. Vog. ti. p.461 (1819); Temm. M. @’Orn.
p. 484 (1815).
Sterna nevia, Linn. 8. N. 1. p. 228 (1766), ex Brisson (jr.).
Sterna fissipes, Linn. 8. N.i. p. 228 (1766); Schlegel, Mus. P.-B.
Sterne, p. 29 (1863).
Larus pails Scop. Ann. i. Hist. Nat. p. 81 (1769).
Sterna surinamensis, Gm. 8. N. 1. p. 604 (1788).
Sterna plumbea, Wilson, Am. Orn. vii. p. 83, pl. 60 (1813).
Hydrochelidon nigra, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563.
Vir alva nigra, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. p. 167 (1824).
Anous plumbea, Stephens, in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. pt. i. p. 142
(1826); (ex Wilson).
Hydrochelidon fissip e C R. Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 660 (1849) ;
Sas f. Orn. 1866, p. 82; Degl. & G. Orn. Eur. ii. p. 465 (1567) ;
6 | |
1876. } MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&, 643
Scl. & Salvin, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 573; Coues, Proc. Phil. Acad.
(1862), p. 554; G. R. Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 121 (1871)..
Hydrochelidon plumbea, Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 864 (1858); et
al. auct. Am.
Pelodes surinamensis, Gray, Hand-list, iti. p. 122 (1871).
Hydrochelidon lariformis, Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 704 (1874).
* Sterna cesia, Linn.’ Gundlach, J. f. Orn. 1875, p. 393, (? error
for S. nevia).
Sterna nigra of Linneeus (Syst. Nat. p. 227, 1766) is based upon
his Sterna 159 of the ‘ Fauna Suecica’ ed. 1761, in which he accu-
rately describes the Black Tern, adding that “it is found on the
small reedy islands about Upsala.’ This can only refer to the
present species, as the White-winged Black Tern is one of the rarest
of stragglers to any part of Sweden. Lainneeus also refers to Albin’s
plate and description, Av. ii. p. 82, pls. 89 & 90, which are unmis-
takable. There is therefore no warranty whatever for identifying
his S. n7gra with the south-eastern species. I have gone carefully
into the question; and any one who is willing to take the trouble
of examining the matter for himself will, I have no doubt, share
my opinion.
In almost all the adult American specimens which I have ex-
amined, about a dozen in number, the black of the underparts is of
a deeper and more sooty brown tint than in any European examples
out of upwards of a hundred from various localities, the black being
as dark as in H. leucoptera, an intensity of hue which our form
never possesses. In two or three examples, however, all females, the
lightest-coloured American birds approach more closely to very dark
specimens from Europe; and in the young and winter plumage the
two forms are absolutely undistinguishable; so that any specific
separation is out of the question. ‘This species is found throughout
Europe, Palestine, and N. Africa to the Nile; to S. Africa it appears
to go only as a winter and somewhat rare visitant, as I only know
of one example, obtained 4th Jan. 1871 at the Cameroons (the
birds collected by Mr. Ayres and others being H. leucoptera in
immature plumage); nor do I know of its occurrence in India. In
America it ranges throughout and across the northern continent,
visiting the West Indies and Spanish main on the one side, and
going as far south as Peru and Chili on the Pacific coast in winter.
Genus STERNA, Linn. (part).
STERNA MAGNIROsTRIS, Licht.
Sterna magnirostris, Licht. Verzeichniss Doubl. p. 81 (1823)
(type in Berlin Mus. ; examined, H. S.); Max. v. Wied, Beit. iv.
p- 861 (1833); Tschudi, F. Per. Aves, p. 305 (1846) ; Schlegel,
Mus. P.-Bas, Sterne, p. 12 (1863).
‘¢ Sterna speculifera, Temm.,” Lesson, T. d’Orn. p. 622 (1831) ;
Pucheran, Rev. Zool. 1850, p. 544.
“‘ Sterna albifrons, Cuv.,” Lesson, Tr. d Orn. p. 622 (1831) (sp.
in Paris Mus. examined, H. S.). =
7
644 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINEE. [June 20,
Phaétusa magnirostris, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1224 (type of genus
Phaétusa) ; Scl. & Salvin, P.Z.S. 1871, p. 567; Gray, Hand-
list, i. p. 120 (1871).
Sylochelidon magnirostris, Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 82.
This large-billed Tern with a slightly forked tail, but with amply
webbed feet, is found far up the great rivers and along the coasts of
tropical America from the equator down to about 35° S. Its eggs,
which are deposited on the sandbanks, are similar in character to
those of S. anglica ; and taking all its characters into consideration,
without relying only on the shape of the bill, it is difficult to allow its
generie distinction without admitting a host of other and confusing
genera.
STERNA ANGLICA, Mont.
Sterna anglica, Mont. Orn. Dict. Suppl. (1813) (type im Brit.
Mus.); Schlegel, Mus. P.-Bas, Sterne, p. 34 (1863); Deg]. & Gerbe,
Orn. Eur. ii. p. 450 (1867).
Sterna aranea, Wilson, Am. Orn. viil. p. 143, pl. 72. fig. 6 (1814).
Sterna affinis, Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. 1820, xiii. p. 199 (type
examined in E. I. Mus., H. S.).
Thalasseus anglicus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p: 563.
Viralva anglica, Steph. inShaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. pt.i. p. 174 (1826).
Gelochelidon balthica, Brehm, H. Vog. Deutsch. p. 772 (1831).
Gelochelidon meridionalis, Brehm. H. Vég. Deutsch. p. 774 (1831)
type of genus Gelochelidon.
Laropis anglica, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1225 (type of Laropis).
Sterna macrotarsa, Gould, P. Z. 8. 1837, p. 26.
Gelochelidon anglica, Coues, Proc. Phil. Ac. 1862, p. 536; Jerdon,
B. India, iii. p. 836 (1864); Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 82; Sel. &
Salvin, P. Z. S. 187], p. 572; Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 664 (1874).
Gelochelidon macrotarsa, Gould, B. Austr. Suppl. pl. 81 (1869),
Handbk. B. Austr. i. p. 403 (1865); Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 119
1871).
‘ Gelochelidon nilotica, Gray, Hand-list, i. p. 119 (1871).
Gelochelidon aranea, Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 119 (1871).
In this case also, in spite of its stout bill, the short and somewhat
rounded lateral feathers of the tail, and the long hind toe, [ do not
think we can consistently allow a generic distinction without admit-
ting anumber of indifferent genera. In its habits this bird appears to
partake rather of the nature of the Sea-, than of the Marsh- or River-
Terns, and although the shape of the tail is somewhat rounded as in
Hydrochelidon, it must be remembered that S. caspza bas a similar
tail, and that both these species have the strong and fully webbed
feet of the Sea-Terns. On the whole it would seem advisable to avoid
undue multiplication of genera by retaining this species amongst the
Sterne.
It is now generally admitted that the American S. aranea is
identical with the European bird; and I ean see no ground for con-
sidering Mr. Gould’s Sterna macrotarsa from Australia to be spe-
cifically distinct. The range of the species is therefore from
(5)
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. 645
Western Europe to the China seas, throughout India, Ceylon, and
the Malay region down to Australia, and along the east coast of
America as far as Patagonia; on the Pacific side it has only been
observed in Guatemala(Salvin). It does not appear to have been re-
corded from South Africa, which is somewhat remarkable.
Mr. G. R. Gray chose to identify this species with Hasselquist’s
S. nilotica ; but there is nothing in his description to prove that this
was the bird referred to; and in any case the name would not be
available, as it antedates the 12th ed. of Linneeus’s ‘ Systema
Nature.’
STERNA SEENA, Sykes.
Sterna seena, Sykes, P. Z. 8. 1832, 1. p. 171. no. 231.
Sterna aurantia, Gray & Hardw. Ill. Ind. Zool. i. pl. 69. fig. 2
(1832).
ae brevirostris, Gray & Hardw. Ill. Ind. Zool. i. pl. 69. fig. 1.
juv. (1532).
Sterna roseata, Hodgson, Gray’s Zool. Mise. p. 86 (1844).
Seena aurantia, Blyth, Cat. Birds Mus. As. 8. B. p. 291. no. 1706
(1849) (type of subgenus Seena) ; Jerdon, B. India, iii. p. 838
(1864) ; Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 73.
Although the stout curved bill of this species is somewhat pecu-
har, this seems to be hardly sufficient to warrant its elevation to the
rank of a subgenus. The webs of the toes are of moderate extent
and not much excised; the tail is long and forked, as in typical
Sterna.
This Tern breeds on the sandbanks of the Indian rivers; and the
eggs are in appearance intermediate between those of S. anglica and
the large-billed River-Tern of South America, S. magnirostris. It
appears to be confined to the Indian region.
The names seena and aurantia are contemporaneous; but I adopt
the former, because it is properly described; S. aurantia is unde-
scribed, and merely based upon a bad plate.
STERNA MELANOGASTRA, Temm.
Sterna melanogaster (sic), Temm. PI. Col. vol. v. pl. 434 (1838) ;
Gould, B. Asia, pt. xix. pl. (1867).
Sterna javanica, Horsfield, in Zool. Res. (but not in Tr. Linn.
Soc. 1820, xii.) ; Jerdon, B. India, iii. p. 840 (1864) ; Irby, Ibis,
1861, p. 247.
Sterna acuticauda, Gray & Hardw. Ill. Ind. Zool. pl. 70. fig. 3
(1832).
Sterna melanogastra, Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 21 (1863);
Schl. & Poll. Rech. Madagase. p. 147 (1868).
Hydrochelidon melanogastra, Bonap.
Sternula melanogastra, Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 74.
“ Sternula minuta”’ et ‘‘ Sternula jerdoni,” Beavan, Ibis, 1868,
p. 403 (clearly immature birds of this species).
Pelodes javanica, Gray, Hand-l. i. p. 122 (1871).
Owing to its somewhat excised webs, and perhaps to its super-
[9]
646 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&E. [June 20,
ficial resemblance in the dark coloration of the lower parts to H.
hybrida, this species has been placed by Bonaparte and others in
the genus Hydrochelidon; but its long, straight bill, and long,
pointed tail show that its position is rather with the true Sterne.
It is an abundant species on most of the Indian rivers, in Ceylon,
Burma, &c.; and in its manner of nesting on sandbauks, and in the
character of its eggs, of which I have specimens before me, it differs
from the Marsh-Terns.
As this species is constantly cited as “ Sterna javanica, Horsfield,”
I may be excused for repeating that I have examined Horsfield’s
type specimen of ‘Sterna javanica”’ in the Indian Museum, and
that it is undoubtedly Hydrochelidon hybrida (Pallas). As a
straggler S. melanogastra has occurred during a tempest at the Island
of Réunion.
STERNA ANTARCTICA, Wagler.
Sterna antarctica, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1223 (ex J. R. Forster,
MS.); J. R. Forster, Desc. Anim. p. 107 (ed. 1844); Buller,
B. New Zealand, p. 283 (1873).
Hydrochelidon albostriata, G. R. Gray, Voy. Erebus & Terror,
Birds, p. 19, pl. 21 (1844).
Sternula antarctica, Bonap. C. R. xlii. p. 773 (1856).
Hydrochelidon albistriata, Bonap. C. R. xhi. p. 773 (1856).
Sterna cinerea, Ellman, Zoologist, 1861, p. 7473.
Hydrochelidon hybrida, Finsch, J. f. O. 1867, p. 347.
Pelodes albistriata, Gray, Hand-list, iil. p. 122 (1871).
This species, of a nearly uniform smoke-grey colour, appears to
be confined to New Zealand, and principally to the South Island,
where it deposits its eggs on the bare ground, making no nest, and
having in general the habits of a coast- or estuary-frequenting Tern.
The foot is moderately stout, and the webs are but slightly scalloped ;
the upper mandible, which is slightly curved towards the tip, is
quite different from that of Hydrochelidon, in which genus there
seems to be no good reason for placing it. It is closely allied to the
next species—a somewhat specialized form, found only, up to the
present time, at Kerguelen Island.
STERNA vIRGATA, Cab.
Sterna virgata, Cabanis, J. f. Orn. 1875, p. 449.
‘Sterna vittata, Gm.,” Coues, in Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus. p. 17,
1875 (nec Gm. nec Von Pelzeln).
There are three specimens of this Tern in the British Museum,
all from Kerguelen Island: two are in immature plumage; and one
is a fine adult. The bill is rich blood-red, and the feet are red,
whereas in S. antarctica those parts are yellow, or, at most, orange ;
the bill, also, in the Kerguelen bird is much straighter than in the
New-Zealand form ; and the tail is more deeply forked. It is, in
fact, a more thoroughly Sea-Tern than its predecessor ; in its nesting
it is also peculiar, the sizgle egg being deposited upon somewhat
high and broken ground and on the slope of the hill-side (Kidder).
[10]
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINZ. 647
The egg is of the ordinary Tern-like character, with a trifle more
olive-green in the ground-colour than is usual in eggs of S. fluviatilis,
but which is not rare in a series of those of S. macrura. Dr. Kidder,
Naturalist to the American Expedition to observe the Transit of
Venus, describes the birds as very bold, swooping at the head of any
one who approaches their breeding-grounds, and actually scaring
the Skuas by their impetuous attacks. There can be no doubt that
this was the species obtained by the Americans; but Dr. Coues is
mistaken in identifying it with S. vittata, Gm., of which he can
hardly have examined a genuine specimen, or he would never have
confounded two such perfectly distinct species.
STERNA VITTATA, Gm.
Sterna vittata, Gm. S. Nat. i. p. 609 (1788) (founded on La-
tham’s Wreathed Tern, from Christmas Island) ; Pelzeln, Novara-
Reise, Vogel, p. 152 (1865) (full description).
Gmelin’s description, founded on Latham, fairly suits this species,
although I am inclined to doubt the correctness of the locality as-
signed, viz. Christmas Island, especially as there is no mention in
Cook’s Voyages of any Tern being found there, except the Sooty
Tern, of which there is a full description. However, it has not
been applied to any other bird; and in the Ornithology of the
‘Voyage of the Novara,’ Herr von Pelzeln adopted the name for the
present species, obtained at St. Paul’s Island, about 700 miles to the
north of Kerguelen Island, giving a full description, both in Latin
and German; so that the name may fairly be accepted. The British
Museum possesses both adult (in breeding-plumage) and immature
specimens obtained at St. Paul’s Island in January 1853, and also a
specimen from Kerguelen Island; there is another, taken on board
H.M.S. ‘Rattlesnake,’ in 38° 22’ S., 0° 25’ W., on 27th February
1847; and I have a specimen, also captured on board ship, near the
island of St. Helena, in April, for which I am indebted to my friend
Mr. EK. Hargitt. In general appearance this Tern much resembles S.
hirundinacea, Lesson (S. cassini, Scl.); but it is decidedly smaller,
and more generally washed with grey below; the bill, which is
red, is rather weak, and tapers very suddenly from the angle to
the tip. In the adult the tail is long, forked, and very white. It is
interesting to find a species which apparently has its head quarters
at St. Paul’s Island, reaching down on the one hand to Kerguelen
Island, where it meets with another species closely allied to S. an-
tarctica of New Zealand, and then stretching away to the west of
our meridian and approaching the limits of the South-American
species, with which its affinities are undoubtedly strongest, and thus
connecting South America with New Zealand by way of the islands
of the South Atlantic Ocean.
STERNA HIRUNDINACEA, Less.
Sterna hirundinacea, Lesson, Tr. d’Orn. p. 621 (1831); Pucheran,
Rev. Zool. 1850, p. 539 (Santa Catharina, Brazil; type in Paris
Mus. examined, H, S.).
[11]
648 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. [June 20,
Sterna hirundo, Max. v. W. Beitr. iv. p. 865 (1833).
Sterna antarctica, Peale (nec Lesson, nec Wagler, nec Forst.),
U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 280 (1848); Ph. & Landbeck, Cat. Av. Chi-
lenas, p. 49.
Sterna meridionalis, Cassin (nec Brehm), U.S. Expl. Exp.
p- 385 (1858) ; Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 15 (1863).
Sterna wilsoni, Burm. Syst. Ueb. iu. p. 451.
Sterna cassinii, Sclater, P. Z. S. 1860, p. 391; Abbott, Ibis, 1861,
p- 166; v. Pelzeln, Novara-Reise, Vog. p. 153 (1865) ; Sel. & Salv.
P. Z. 8. 1871, p. 570; Gray, Hand-l. iii. p. 118 (1871).
“Sterna meridionalis, Peale,’ Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 74
(nec Peale).
The range of this species, as defined by Messrs. Sclater and
Salvin, is from Rio de Janeiro southwards to the Falkland Islands,
and up the west coast of Chili as far north as Valdivia. Since then
I have received specimens from Colchagua, in about 35°S. lat. ; and
it may naturally be looked for even further north. It is the largest
and the lightest in colour of the medium-sized Sea-Terns ; and the
entire bill (which is long and powerful) is bright red in the adult.
It is with regret that I do not adopt Mr. Sclater’s name S. cassiniz ;
but the examination of the type of S. hirundinacea shows that it is
undoubtedly this species.
STERNA ALBIGENA, Reich.
Sterna albigena, Licht. Nomenclator, 1854 (descr. nulla) ; Reich.
Schwimmvog. Suppl. xi. pl. xxi. fig. 816.
Hydrochelidon albigena, Bonap. Compt. Rend. 1856, 1. p. 773.
“ Sterna senegalensis, Sw.,’ Heugl. Ibis, 1859, p. 351; Kénig-
Warth. Ibis, 1860, pp. 125, 432.
Sterna albigena, Heugl. Faun. Roth. Meeres, no. 307, p. 32
(deser.) ; Schlegel. Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 20 (1863); Blasius, Journ.
f. Ornith. 1866, p. 75; Finsch & Hartl. Vog. Ost-Afr. iv. p. 834,
tab. x. fig. 2 (1870).
Pelodes albigena, Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 122 (1871).
In order to show the connexion between the three preceding
species, it was necessary to pass over the present, which is a local
and smoke-coloured form of typical Sterna, having no real affinity
with Hydrochelidon. The tail is long and pointed, the bill narrow
and straight; the feet are amply webbed; and it is, in a word, a small,
slender, Cominon Tern, of a general smoky hue, the rump and tail
being as dark as the mantle. I cannot understand how Finsch and
Hartlaub fail to identify Reichenbach’s figure in the ‘ Schwimmvogel ’
with this species; for his illustration, though coarse, is decidedly
far more recognizable than theirs in the ‘ Vog. Ost-Afrika’s.’ Itisa
very distinct form, which appears to have its head quarters in the
Red Sea, south of the tropic of Cancer; and an interesting account
of its breeding in the Dahalak archipelago is to be found in ‘ The Ibis,’
1861, p. 125. The eggs, two in number, are laid in July and
August, on the flat coral reef, close to the beach, and resemble those
of typical Sterna. Whilst writing this, Lord Walden has sent me
[12]
1876. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&. 649
two fine specimens, obtained near Bombay, a considerable extension
of its range as hitherto known to us. There is no example of this
Tern in the British Museum ; but the collections at Leyden, Frank-
fort, Mayence, and Berlin are more fortunate in this respect.
STERNA FLUVIATILIS, Naum.
Sterna hirundo (in part), Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 227 (1766), and of
most authors.
Larus bicolor, Larus sterna et Larus columbinus, Scop. Ann. i.
Hist. Nat. p. 82, 1769 (nos. 110 & 112 im., 113 juv.).
Sterna fluviatilis, Naum. Isis, 1819, p. 1847-48 ; Gray, Hand-
list, iii. p. 118 (1871) ; Sharpe & Dresser, B. Europe, pt. xi. (1872).
Sterna senegalensis, Sw. B.W. Af. ii. p. 250 (1837); Schl. Mus.
P.-Bas, Sterne, pp. 16 & 17 (1863) (sp. no. 2 examined by
H.S.).
ee wilsont, Bp. List, p. 61 (1838), et auct. American. ;
Gray, Hand-list, i. p. 118 (1871).
Sterna macrodactyla et macroptera, Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866,
pp. 75, 76; Gray, Hand-list, i. p. 118 (1871).
Sterna dougalli, Layard, B.S. Af. p. 369 (1867).
This well-known species is found throughout Temperate Europe,
Asia, and America, except on the Pacific coast. In winter it visits
the coast of Africa as far south as the Cape of Good Hope, and has
occurred as far to the south-east as Ceylon, specimens having been
sent to me by Capt. Vincent Legge, R.A. Northwards it goes as
far as Pekin (Swinhoe) ; but in ‘Tibet and part of Siberia it is re-
placed by a form which I consider to be distinct, and for which I
propose the name of
STERNA TIBETANA, Sp. nov.
S. semilis S. fluviatili sed ubsque saturatior ; supra schistaceo-
cinerea; subtus pectore clare vinaceo facile distinguenda.
(From a specimen in Lord Walden’s collection.)
Four adult specimens from Tibet and several from Lake Baikal
ascribed to S. longipennis differ from the latter in having the bill
and feet coloured as in S. fluviatilis, from which in turn they differ
in having the sides of the neck, shoulders, and flanks of a clear grey,
which assumes a darker and more vinous tint on the breast and
abdomen; the mantle and wings are also much darker. The bill
aud feet are smaller than in average S. fluviatilis, and of an orange-
red, the former tipped with horn. It is possibly this species which
Mr. Hume mentions as breeding near Yarkand. The examples re-
ferred to above are all in breeding-plumage ; but I believe S. fuvia-
tilis is a rare bird even in Lower India, and only found there during
the winter months.
STERNA LONGIPENNIS, Nordm.
Sterna longipennis, Nordm. in Erman’s Verz. v. Th. u. Pf.
p- 17 (1835); Middendorff, Reise, Zool. p. 246, tab. 25. fig. 4
(1851); Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 23 (1863) (as regards
[13]
650 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE SIERNINZ&. [June 20,
Middendorff’s specimens only, H. S.); Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 59;
Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 118 (1871).
In its slender shape and grey-tinted underparts this species seems
to connect the preceding with S. macrura; the feet, however, are
6rown ;, and the dz// is black in the breeding-season, and probably at
other times. But authentic specimens in immature plumage are still
desiderata, although I can refer to no other species a specimen ob-
tained by Mr. Wallace in New Guinea. Lord Walden’s collection
contains a specimen from Yeso, the most northern of the Japanese
islands; and thence it reaches as far west as Lake Baikal, where,
as before observed, S. ¢ébetana is also found; indeed many of the
specimens sold by the Paris dealers as S. longipennis are really the
latter species.
STERNA MACRURA, Naum.
Sterna hirundo (in part), Linn. Syst. Nat. p. 227 (1766), id.
F. S.p. 55. no. 158; Gray, Hand-list, iil. p. 118 (1871) ; Sharpe &
Dresser, B. Europe, xii. (1872).
Sterna macrura, Naum. Isis, 1819, p. 1847; Coues, P. Phil.
Acad. 1862, p. 549; id. B. N.W. Am. p. 685 (1874).
Sterna arctica, Temm. Man. d’Orn. ii. p. 742 (1820).
Sterna brachypus, Swainson, B. W. Afr. i. p. 152 (1837); Gray,
Hand-list, iii. p. 118 (1871).
Sterna pikei, Lawr. Aun. Lyc. N. Y. vi. p. 3 (1853); id. Baird’s
B. N. Am. p. 853, pl. 95 (1858); Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 118
(1871).
Sterna paradisea, Briinn., Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 15
(1863) ; Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 74.
“Sterna senegalensis, Sw.,” Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 16
(1863) (no. 1 sp. examined, H. S.).
Sterna portlandica, Ridg. Am. Nat. viil. p. 433 (1874); Coues,
B. N.W. Am. p. 691 (1874). (Other unimportant synonyms are
intentionally omitted).
It is true that the mere description of Sterna hirundo given by
Linnezeus suits the Arctic Tern as regards the colour of the bill,
which is properly described as ‘‘ rubrum,” and as “ coccineum” in
the ‘ Faun. Suec.,’ whereas in the Common Tern the red bill is some-
what tipped with horn-colour. In the references to former authors
and in the context, especially where he says “habitat ubique ad
lacus et stagna,” there is, on the other hand, a stronger probability
of Linneus’s bird being the Common Tern, a species abundant in
Sweden, and which is far more in the habit of frequenting inland
waters than the Arctic Tern. Since the time when the two species
were discriminated, first by Naumann, and in the following year by
Temminck, the names of S. macrura and S. arctica Have been
generally adopted for the Arctic Tern, the latter being, perhaps, the
more widely recognized, until the late Mr. G. R. Gray, and after-
wards Messrs. Sharpe and Dresser, in one of the early Parts of the
‘Birds of Evrope,’ on which they were then jointly engaged, con-
sidered it advisable to shift the time-sanctioned name of S. hirundo
[14]
1876. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN 2. 651
from the Common to the Arctic Tern. There could be no objection
to their discarding S. hirundo for the former and adopting S. fluvia-
tilis; but these violent transfers must always be productive of con-
fusion even when justifiable; and in this case it seems to me that
the original description is so ambiguous that they would have done
better to discard S. Airundo altogether, and to adopt the first name
about which there could be no mistake—a step which, much as [
dislike to differ from such high authorities upon nomenclature, I
feel compelled to take.
This species is the S. paradisea of Briinnich (Orn. Bor. p. 42
(1764)—a pre-Linnean name, which is not available. I notice it,
however, because this name has frequently been employed for the
Roseate Tern (S. dougalli), a bird with which Briinmnich was unac-
quainted. From the plate and description I always imagined that
S. piket was an immature bird of this species, and am glad to have
this opinion confirmed by Dr. Elliott Coues, who has lately reex-
amined the type.
With regard to S. portlandica, Mr. W. Brewer’s investigations
and the latest information from American sources leave little doubt
that it is only an immature example of this species.
The Arctic Tern ranges along the coasts of northern Europe, Asia,
and America; in winter it visits the African coast, descending as far
as Walwich Bay; and I have an example obtained by Wucherer off
Bahia, the only instance known of its occurrence so far south on the
American side; it is possible, however, that the bird mentioned by
Philippi and Landbeck, Cat. Av. Chilenas, 49 (1869), may be this
species.
STERNA FORSTERI, Nutt.
Sterna hirundo, Sw. & Rich. F. Bor.-Am. p. 412 (1831), nec
auct. (Saskatchewan River).
Sterna forstert, Nuttall, Man. Orn. il. p. 274, note (1834) ;
Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 862 (1858); Coues, P. Phil. Acad. 1862,
p- 544; Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 74; Scl. & Salv. P.Z.S. 187],
p- 569; Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 118 (1871) ; Coues, B. N.W. Am.
p- 676 (1874). «
Sterna havelli, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. (1839) p. 122, pl. 409. fig. 1,
and of Lawr. &c. (fide Coues); Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 118 (1871).
A rather stouter and larger species than S. fluviatilis, this species
may always be distinguished by its having the outer webs of the
long tail-streamers white, whereas in the allied species they are
dusky. In the ‘Birds of the North West’ (/. s. c.) Dr. Coues
gives the differential diagnoses of S. forster2, fluviatilis, and macrura ;
and to these I have nothing to add.
In summer this Tern breeds in the interior of British America and in
Wisconsin; but at other seasons it is generally distributed throughout
the United States, and goes down as far as Guatemala, on both the Pa-
cific and Atlantic side, and even to the latitude of Pernambuco, Brazil,
thus nearly impinging upon the northern limits of S. ¢rudeauz, a species
to which, in winter plumage only, it bears a superficial resemblance.
[15]
652 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. [June 20,
STERNA DOUGALLI, Mont.
Sterna dougalli, Mont. Orn. Dict. Suppl. (1813) ; Vieillot, N. D.
H. N. xxxii. p. 174 (1819), Gal. Ois. ti. p. 225; Steph. in Shaw’s
Gen. Zool. xiii. pt.i. p. 153 (1825) ; Sel. & Salv. P.Z.S. 1871, p.571;
Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 688 (1874).
Sterna paradisea, Keys. & Blas. Wirb. Eur. p. 247. no. 484
(1840) (nec Briinn.); Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 863 (1858); Coues, Proc.
Phil. Acad. 1862, p. 551; Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 119 (1871);
Walden, Ibis, 1874, p. 149 (Andaman Is.).
Sterna gracilis, Gould, P.Z.S. 1847, p. 222, B. Australia, vii.
pl. 27 (1848), Handbook B. Austr. ii. p. 399 (1865); Gray, Hand-
list, iii. p. 119 (1871).
* Sterna douglasii, Mont.,” Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 24
1863).
\ “ Sterna douglasi, Mont., ” Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 80.
? Larus polo-candor, Sparrm. Mus. Carl. ii. fase. 4, no. 83 (1788).
(‘‘ Habitat ins. Polo-candor, mari Chinensi.’”’) The plate represents
avery young Tern, apparently of this species. Bonaparte says (in his
‘* Notes sur les Larides,” in the Rev. et M. de Zool, 1854) that he has
proved it to be a young Rissa! but any thing more unlike a Kitti-
wake it would be difficult to imagine.
Apart from its light and elegant shape and its proportionally short
wings, this species may always be recognized by the white inner
margins of the primaries, extending quite round the tips of the
feathers as far as the outer webs; the rump and tail-coverts are
washed with gray. The coloration of the bill varies considerably
with age and seasons; in some specimens it is black almost to the
base, whilst in others the red or orange extends far in front of the
angle. In American specimens the bill is, perhaps, a trifle stouter
than in British examples, which are in this respect identical with
birds from Africa and the Indian Islands. In these the red colour
‘gradually encroaches upon the black, until, in two specimens from
the Andaman Islands, in Lord Walden’s collection, the black at the
tip of the bill has almost disappeared, in which state it becomes the
Se gracilis of Mr. Gould, whose typical specimen in the British
Museum is in “every other respect ‘identical with S. dougalli from
any part of the world; indeed, in his original description (in P. Z. S.
1847, p. 222) Mr. Gould calls it “a very elegant species, closely
allied to S. dougallit of the British Islands,” although he omits that
remark in the ‘Birds of Australia.’ In view of these gradual
changes in the amount of black in the bill, as exemplified by a series
of upwards of fifty specimens from various localities, I must consider
S. gracilis merely a form of S. dougalli with more red in its bill
than is usual in northern specimens.
I do not find authentic records of the occurrence of this bird
beyond 57°N. lat., south of which it ranges in scanty numbers
along the British and European coasts, and goes up the Mediter-
ranean at least as far as the Balearic Islands, whence Canon Tris-
tram possesses an adult obtained in May. I have not seen any
specimens from the west coast of Africa, all those so marked
[16]
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE, 653
from Damaraland being really S. fluviatilis in winter dress; but
there are specimens in the British Museum from the Cape of Good
Hope, and I have several examples from Natal. It is found off
Rodriguez, and breeds at the Andaman Islands, where the eggs,
sent with the parent birds by Capt. Wimberley, are far handsomer
in markings than any American specimens; and quite recently I
have received from Capt. Vincent Legge, R.A., a lovely rose-tinted
specimen from Ceylon, shot in May, with but little black on the
mandibles. Capt. Legge writes that a month later the red in the
bills of the birds still on the coast had almost disappeared, showing
what a changeable and untrustworthy character the colour of the bill
is. From Ceylon this species is found throughout the Malayan islands
down to Houtmann’s Abrolhos, on the west coast of Australia.
In North America, where it is far more abundant than in Europe,
it breeds from Massachusetts to Florida and at the Bermudas; also
in Central America, and visits various West-Indian islands. In the
British Museum is a skin registered as obtained at Taboga ; and, the
only place I know of that name being an island off Panama, this is
a considerable extension of its range, if the locality can be trusted.
STERNA CANTIACA, Gm.
Sterna cantiaca, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 606 (1788); Schi. Mus.
P. B. Sterne, p. 5 (1863); Layard, B. S. Africa, p. 370 (1867) ;
Scl. & Salvin, P. Z.S. 1871, p. 569; Coues, B. N.W. Am.
p. 673 (1874).
Sterna africana, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 605 (1788), jr.
Sterna boysii, Lath. Ind. Orn. u. p. 804 (1790).
Sterna canescens, Meyer & Wolf, Tasch. deutsch. Vog. ii. p. 458
1810).
( Hees cantiacus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563; Blas. J. f. Orn.
1866, p. 81.
Actochelidon cantiacus, Kaup, Sk. Entw. Eur. Thier. p. 31 (1829),
type of Actochelidon.
Thalasseus canescens et candicans, Brehm, Vog. Deutsch. pp. 776,
777 (1831).
Sterna acuflavida, Cabot, Pr. Bost. Soe. ii. p. 257 (1847) ; Lawr.
Birds B. N. Am. p. 860 (1858).
Thalasseus acuflavidus, Coues, Pr. Phil. Ac. 1862, p. 540.
Actochelidon cantiaca, Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 119 (1871).
It is now generally admitted that the European and American
birds are identical. The range of this species may therefore be
broadly described as from Northern Europe to the Cape of Good
Hope and the Bay of Bengal in winter, and along the Atlantic
coast of North America to the West-Indian Islands, Honduras
(probably its southern breeding-limit), and Brazil, at least as far as
Bahia, whence I have a specimen.
STERNA ELEGANS, Gamb.
Sterna elegans, Gambel, Pr. Phil. Ac. iv. 1848, p. 129 (Ma-
zatlan); Lawr. Birds N. A. p. 860 (1858).
[17]
654 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&. [June 20,
Thalasseus elegans, Gamb. Journ. Phil. Acad. ser. 2, vol. i. p. 228
(1849); Coues, Pr. Phil. Acad. 1862, p. 540; Ibis, 1864, p. 389
(San Salvador); Salvin, Ibis, 1866, p. 198 (Fonseca Bay).
Sterna comata, Phil. & Landb. Wieg. Arch. 1863, pt. 1, p. 126.
Sterna galericulata (part.), Scl. & Salv. P. Z.S. 1871, p. 569;
Coues, Key, p. 319 (1872), B. N.W. Am. p. 671 (1874).
A recent examination of Lichtenstein’s type of S. galericulata has
shown it to be identical with the Cayenne Tern, S. maxima, Bodd. ;
so that Gambel’s name must be restored. It occurs on the Pacific
side of America, from the Gulf of California to the coasts of Peru
and Chili; but I consider that the bird found on the Atlantic coast
is distinct, although closely allied. Three specimens which I have
examined in Mr. Salvin’s collection, from the Pacifie side, and two
others in the British Museum, from Chili or Bolivia, all agree in
having a longer foot and tarsus.{-2 inch) than the Atlantic bird ;
but the principal, distinction is in the bill; the angle of the lower
mandible being well in advance of the front portion of the nostril
(‘5 inch diagonally) in the Pacific birdsy whereas the angle is
almost directly under the nostril in the Atlantic form; the colour
of the bill also is red or orange in the former and yellow in the
latter, even in tolerably fresh specimens, which still preserve the
beautiful roseate tint of the underparts. It is perhaps as well to
mention that these remarks are founded upon perfectly well-made
skins, the tips of the mandibles being in their proper relative pesi-
tions ; otherwise it might be supposed that the under. mandible had
been unduly drawn back; the difference, however, on comparison, is
very striking, as will be seen by the annexed woodcut.
Riggs
Fiead of Sterna ewrygnatha.
As the Atlantic bird has not hitherto been distinguished, I pro-
pose to call it
STERNA EURYGNATHA, sp. nov.
S. stmilis Sterne eleganti, sed rostro flavo et mandibule angulo
sub narium apertura antica posito distinguenda.
[18]
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. 655
Similar to S. elegans, but a trifle smaller; bill less robust and
yellow,(whereas in S. elegans it is orange-red,)the angle of the lower
mandible almost immediately below the front of the nostril.
Sterna elegans, Leotaud, Ois. Trinidad, p. 542 (1866).
2 “ Sterna cayanensis, Gmel.,” v. Pelzeln, Orn. Brasil. p. 323
(1871).
Range, from Santa Catharina, S. Brazil (Rogers), to the island of
Trinidad, Leotaud’s bird being most probably this species.
Sterna MeEpiA, Horsfield.
Sterna media, Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. 1820, xiii. p. 198
(type in E. I. Mus., examined, 7. S.) ; Finsch & Hartl., Orn. Ost-
Afr. iv. p. 830 (1870) ; Irby, Orn. Str. Gibraltar, p. 209 (1875).
Sterna affinis, Riipp. (nee Horsf.) Atlas, p. 23. tav. 14 (1826)
(Red Sea); Temm. Man. d’Orn. iv. p. 454 (1840) (Sicily) ; Schlegel,
Mus. P.-Bas, Sterne, p. 6 (1863); Degl. & Gerb. Orn. Eur. ii.
p. 454 (1867).
Sterna bengalensis, Lesson, Tr. d’Orn. p. 621 (1851) ; Pucheran,
Rev. Zool. 1850, p. 542; Jerdon, B. India, iii. p. 843 (1864).
Thalasseus torresii, Gould, P. Z. 8S. 1842, p. 140, B. Australia,
vii. pl. 25 (1848).
Thalasseus bengalensis, Gould, Handbk. B. Australia, ii. p. 397
(1865).
Thalasseus affinis, Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 82.
Actochelidon affinis, Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 119 (1871).
This species may be considered an eastern representative of the
preceding ; but it is slightly smaller, the mandibular angle more ad-
vanced, and can always be distinguished by its pearl-grey rump and
tail. It ranges from the Straits of Gibraltar, along the Mediter-
ranean, down the Red Sea to Madagascar, and eastwards along the
Indian coast and islands, throughout the Malay archipelago, the
Aru Islands, down to Torres Straits and Port Essington.
STERNA MAXIMA, Bodd.
Grande Hirondelle de Mer de Cayenne, Buffon, Ois. viii. p. 346.
Sterna maxima, Boddaert, Tabl. des P. Enl. p. 58. no. 988 (1783) ;
Scl. & Salv. P. Z. S. 1871, p. 567 (Neotrop. Larid.).
Sterna cayennensis, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. 1788, 1. p. 604; Leot. Ois.
de Trinidad p. 535 (1866).
Sterna cayana, Latham, Ind. Orn. p. 804. no. 2 (1790); Steph.
in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xii. p. 155 (1825).
Sterna galericulata, Licht. Verz. Doubl. p. 81 (1823) (type
in Berlin Mus., examined, H. S.); Pelzeln, Orn. Bras. p. 324
(1871) ; Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p. 7 (1863).
Sterna erythrorynchos, Wied, Beitr. iv. p. 857 (1833) ; Tschudi,
F. Per., Aves, p. 305 (1846).
Sterna cristata, Swains. B. W. Africa, i. p. 247, pl. xxx. (1837)
(type in Camb. Mus. examined, H. S.).
Thalausseus cayanus, Bp. List, 1838, p. 61; Gosse, B. Jamaica,
p. 431 (1847).
[19]
656 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. [June 20,
Sterna regia, Gambel, Proc. Phil. Acad. iv. 1848, p. 228; Lawr.
B. N..Am. p. 859 (1858) ; Coues, Key, p. 319 (1872), B. N.W.
Am. p. 669 (1874).
Thalasseus regius, Gamb. J. Phil, Ac. i. 1849, p. 228; Coues,
Proc. Phil. Ac. 1862, p. 539.
Phetusa regia, Bp. Compt. Rend. p. 772 (1856).
Thalasseus galericulatus, Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 82.
Thalasseus cayennensis, Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 120 (1871) ;
Shelley, Ibis, 1872, p. 293.
Sterna bergii, Irby, Orn. Str. Gib. p. 209 (1875) (coll. Lilford ;
sp. examined, H. S.).
I fully agree with Messrs. Sclater & Salvin that Buffon’s plate on
which Sterna maxima of Boddaert is founded, represents this species.
Mr. Salvin and myself have also carefully compared Lichtenstein’s type
specimen of S. galericulata with our respective series of American spe-
cimens, and find them identical ; I have also compared a good many
specimens from the Gold Coast, all in winter plumage, and mostly
obtained in the early spring. The specimen in Lord Lilford’s col-
lection, which was obtained by the late M. Favier in the Straits of
Gibraltar, and was purchased from his successor by Col. Irby, un-
doubtedly belongs to this species.
Some North-American examples are a trifle more robust in the
bill than either Brazilian or African specimens ; but there is no con-
stant difference, even in this particular.
On examining Lichtenstein’s type of S. galericulata, the outer pri-
maries proved to be partially in the sheath, and about two inches
shorter than their natural length, explaining the original descrip-
tion of ‘‘the tail being 2 inches longer than the wings” which had
previously been a great puzzle, there being no Tern of this size known
in which the proportions were such. ‘This species has’a somewhat
wide range, as it is found on the Pacific coast from California to Peru,
whilst on the Atlantic sea-board it has once occurred as far north as
Massachusetts ; it breeds on the coast of Florida, and on some of the
cays of the West-Indian Islands, and visits South Brazil. Its oceur-
rencé on the African coast has already been noticed; but at present
there is no record of its breeding there.
STERNA CASPIA, Pall.
Sterna caspia, Pall. Nov. Comm. Petrop. xiv. p. 582 (1769-70) ;
Pall. Zoog. Rosso-As. p. 332 (1811).
Sterna tschegrava, Lepechin, Nov. Comm. Petrop. xiv. p. 500
(1769-70).
Sterna caspica, Sparrm. Mus. Carl. ii. fase. 3, no. 72 (1788) ;
Kirk, Ibis, 1864, p. 337 (mouth of Zambesi, breeding).
Sterna megarhynchos, Meyer & W. Tasch. deutsch. Vog. ii.
p. 457 (1810).
Thalasseus caspius, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563; Coues, Proe. Phil.
Acad. 1862, p. 538, and 7. imperator in text; Gray, Hand-list, iii.
p. 120 (i871).
eon caspica, Kaup, Sk. Entw. eur. Thier. p. 91 (1829).
20
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&. 657
Sylochelidon caspia, Brehm, Voz. Weise p- 770 (1831), type
of Sylochelidon ; Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 82 peconlal Handbk. B.
Austr. ii. p. 392 (1865).
Sylochelidon balthica et S. schillingii, Brehm, Vogel Deutsch.
p- 769, 770 (1831).
Helopus caspius, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1224 (type of Helopus).
Thalassites melanotis, Swain. B. W. Af. il. p. 253 (1837) (type in
Camb. Mus. examined, H. S.).
Sylochelidon strenuus, Gould, P. Z. 8. 1846, p. 21; Gould, B.
Austr. vii. pl. 22 (1848).
Sylochelidon melanotis, Bp. Compt. Rend. 1856, p. 772.
Sterna melanotis, Wartl. Orn. West-Afr. p. 254 (1857).
Sterna mgor, Ellman, Zool. 1861, p. 7472.
This large and well-known Tern is found from Northern Europe
to New Zealand, and in America from Labrador, where it breeds,
down to New Jersey. Mr. Bernard Ross also found it as far west
as Great Slave Lake and the Mackenzie river.
It is now generally conceded that there is but one species.
With regard to the name, Dr. Elliott Coues very justly remarks
that it is undesirable to adopt Lepechin’s cacophonous name, in
place of the well-known one given by Pallas, merely on the score of
a priority of 82 pages.
STERNA BERNSTEINI, Schlegel.
Sterna bernsteini, Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterne, p.9 (1863) (d,
winter E. coast of Halmahera; type in Leyden Mus. examined,
aS):
Thalasseus bernsteini, Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 81.
This large and very light-coloured species, the mantle being even
paler than in S. cantiaca or S. maxima, is classed by Prof. Schlegel
amongst the group which has the white frontlet band in the breeding-
plumage. This may be the case; but I can discern no proof of it
in the type and only specimen in the Leyden Museum, nor in two
others from the Island of Rodriguez in the British Museum, nor in
two others from Round Island and Ile de la Baleine, in the collection
of Messrs. A. & E. Newton; for all these, the only ones I have ever
seen, are equally in winter dress. The bill is yellow; but the
black at the apex in the type is probably an individual peculiarity.
This Tern is closely allied to S. mawima; and, until we obtain a
specimen in full plumage, its place seems to be next to it in order.
The dimensions are:—Wing 12°5 to 13 inches; tarsus 1:1; foot,
including middle claw, 1°15; bill 1°8.
STERNA BERGII, Licht.
Sterna bergii, Licht. Verzeich. p. 80 (1823), South Africa (type
in Berlin M. examined, H. S.); Schlegel, Mus. P.-Bas, Sterne,
p- 11 (1863); Finsch & Hartl. Vo6g. Ost-Afr. p. 828 (1870);
Shelley, B. of Egypt, p. 298 (1872).
Sterna cristata, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. pt. 1. p. 146
(1825) (nec Swainson) ; Swinhoe, Ibis, 1860, p. 68, 1863, p. 30.
658 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN. {June 20,
Sterna velox, Rupp. Atlas, p. 21, t. 13 (1826), Red Sea (type
zt Frankfort examined, H. S.); Thomson, Nat. Hist. Ireland, in.
p- 226 (1847), “between Dublin and Howth, end of Dec. 1846, in
full breeding-plumage”’ (!); Swinhoe, Ibis, 1860, p. 429, 1861,
p- 345, 1866, p. 134; Kirk, Ibis, 1864, p. 339 (breeding at mouth
of Zambesi).
Sterna pelecanoides, King, Surv. Int. Austr. li. p. 422 (1826).
Sterna longirostris, Lesson, Traité d’Orn. p. 621 (1831); Puche-
ran, Rev. Zool. 1850, p. 635; Boie, Isis, 1844, p. 181.
Pelecanopus pelecanoides, Wagler, Isis, 1832, pp. 277 & 1225,
type of Pelecanopus.
Thalasseus pelecanoides, Gould, B. Austr. vii. pl. 23 (1848) ;
Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 658 ; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 422.
Thalasseus poliocercus, Gould, B. Austr. vii. pl. 24 (1848), Hand-
bk. B. Austr. i. p. 396 (1805).
Sterna rectirostris, Peale, Zool. U.S. Expl. Exped. p. 281 (1848).
Sylochelidon polyocerea, G. R. Gray, List of Anseres, Brit. Mus.
lio:
i Sterna nove-hollandie (Mus. Paris.), Pucheran, Rev. Zool. 1850,
p- 545 (type in Paris Mus. examined, H. S.)
Pelecanopus velox, P. bergii, et P. poliocercus, Bonap. Compt.
Rend. xhi. p. 772 (1856).
Sterna poliocerca, Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Sterne, p. 12 (1863) ;
G. R. Gray, Ibis, 1862, p. 249.
Thalasseus cristatus, Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1863, p. 329; Jerdon, B.
of India, ii. p. 842 (1864); Gould, Handbk. B. Austr. ii. p. 394
(1865).
Thalasseus bergii, Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 81.
“ Phetusa astrolabe, Bp.” in Paris Mus. from Tonga-tabu, Voy.
of Quoy & Gaimard. Another specimen so marked=N. frontalis—
EES:
The distinguishing character of this large Sea-Tern is the white
band of feathers across the base of the bill. In the adult plumage,
and even in winter plumage, there is no other species of its size in
which the mautle and tail are of so dark a grey ; but it must be ad-
mitted that between extreme individuals from different localities
there is a considerable difference in intensity of coloration. In a
series, however, they blend so gradually as to make it impossible to
draw a line; whilst with regard to the smaller race, which has re-
ceived the name of S. poliocerce, there are similar imperceptible
gradations in size. The types, of S. dergit from the Cape of Good
Hope and of S. velox from the Red Sea, are identical in size and
colour, and are not perceptibly lighter in colour than ‘‘S. pele-
canoides ;*? but in Madagascar specimens, and also in some from
Damara-land, the mantle is of a lighter shade. Locality does not
assist In separating them; for it is clear that the light- and the
dark-backed birds cross each other’s line at Madagascar.
From the Cape of Good Hope and from the Red Sea (with the
exception of Madagascar), throughout the Indian Seas, Ceylon, the
Malay archipelago, the China seas, down to Australia and the Fiji
29
a
1876. ] MR. H, SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN., 659
group, we find a uniformly dark mantle and tail; but at Ceylon we
begin to meet with a race which differs in no respect but that of size,
and this by imperceptible gradations. I must therefore follow Messrs.
Finsch & Hartlaub, and unite these three varieties under one head.
Before coming to this conclusion, I have examined about 70 speci-
mens, and must especially acknowledge the great assistance I have
received from the fine series of sexed and dated specimens sent to
me from Ceylon by Capt. V. Legge, R.A. It is at Ceylon that the
two races seem to unite, large and small examples occurring through-
out the year in the same locality and flocks; and the difference thus
becomes reduced to one of mere individual peculiarity. A series of
measurements show that in length of wing (14 inches) and geueral
dimensions, some Australian specimens are fully equal to the largest
African ones; Polynesian examples are somewhat smaller, and there
is less of a brown tinge in the colour of the back. This Tern appears
to range as far as the Sandwich Jslands; but I have not seen
specimens,
The description given by Thompson, in the ‘ Birds of Ireland,’ of
the bird killed between Howth and Dublin undoubtedly applies to
this species; but it is to be regretted that he did not see it ix the
flesh, as the fact of the specimen having the black head and white
frontlet baud (the mark of the fullest dreeding-plumage) at the end
of December, is somewhat remarkable. I learn from Mr. A. G.
More, of the Dublin Museum, that this specimen is no longer in
existence, having been burned with the rest of Mr. Walter’s collec-
tion many years ago.
STERNA FRONTALIS, Gray.
! Sterna striata, se Syst. Nat. 1. p. 609 (1788): Striated
Tern, Lath. Syn. iii. 2, p. 358, pl. 98— New Zealand (from a drawing
by Sir J. Banks), jr.
Sterna velox, Gould (nec Riipp.), P. Z. 8. 1842, p. 140.
Sterna frontalis, Gray, Voy. Erebus & Terror, p. 19 (1844) ;
Hand-list, ii. p. 118 (1871); Buller, B. New Zealand, p. 281
(1873).
ee albifrons, Peale, U.S. Expl. Exp. Birds, p. 279 (1848).
Sterna melanorhyncha, Gould, B. Australia, vii. pl. 26 (1848)—
Van Diemen’s Land ; id. Handbk. B. Australia, il. p. 398 (1865) ;
v. Pelzeln, Orn. Novara-Reise, p. 154 (1865); Gray, Hand-list, ii.
p. 118 (1871).
Sterna atripes, Ellman, Zoologist, 1861, p. 7473.
Sterna longipennis, Finsch (nec Naum.), J. f. Orn. 1867, p. 339.
“ Phetusa astrolabe, Bp.,” specimen in the Paris Mus. from
Tongatabu, Quoy & Gaimard’s Voy., is a young bird; but another
bird from same locality and similarly named=S. bergii!—H. S.
After comparing an immature specimen of this species with
Latham’s plate of the Striated Tern from New Zealand, I have no
doubt in my own mind that this was the bird he figured ; but it must
be admitted that the drawing and description would almost equally
suit the young of the Sandwich Tern; and S. sériata, Gm., has in con-
[23]
660 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&E. [June 20,
sequeuce been generally referred to that species. On the other hand
there can be no possible doubt as to the identity of Gray’s deserip-
tion, accompanied as it is by a plate of the adult bird. I think,
therefore, that it is desirable to retain the name of S. frontalis, m
preference to making a change which might be considered arbitrary,
aud would certainly be productive of temporary confusion.
In the white border to the inner webs of the primaries this Tern
resembles S. dougalli, as remarked by Mr. Gould; it is, however,
larger than that species, although not equal in size to S. cantiaca ;
and the white frontal band and black bill will always serve to di-
stinguish it.
It appears to be a true Sea-Tern, breeding, according to Mr.
Buller, in large colonies, and depositing its single egg on the bare
rock, close to high-water mark. I have not seen specimens of the
eges; but, from the description, they seem to approach those of S.
cantiaca in their general character.
Under the name of S. melanorhyncha, Mr. Gould records the oc-
currence on the coast of Tasmania of a Tern which appears to be
identical with this species; but with that exception it does not seem
to leave the shores of New Zealand.
SrERNA TRUDEAUII, Audubon.
Sterna trudeauii, Aud. Orn. Biog. v. p. 125; id. B. Am. vit. p. 105
(1844) ; Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 861 (1860) ; Schl. Mus. P.-B. Sterne,
p- 29 (1863) ; Gray, Hand-list, in. p. 118 (1871); Scl. & Salv. P.
Z. S. 1871, p. 570 (Neotrop. Lar.) ; Landb. An. Univ. Chile,
1872, p. 515; Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 675 (1874).
Phetusa trudeauii, Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 73.
Sterna frobeenit, Ph. & Landb. Wieg. Arch. 1863, p. 125; Cat.
Av. Chil. p. 49 (fide Sel. & Salv.); Landbeck, An. Univ. Chile,
1872, p. 515; Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 118 (1871).
This well-marked species is similar in size, shape of bill, and
general plumage to S. forsteri in winter dress; but, unlike the ma-
jority of Terns, it never has the crest black, the crown being pure
white, with only a transocular line on each side of the head; the
mantle, wings, and tail are light grey ; the rump white, and the feet
yellow. It occurs along the coast of South Brazil and the Argentine
provinces, and also on that of Chili; but of its breeding-places and
eges nothing is yet known; indeed, until lately, even skins were
extremely rare in collections.
Messrs. Sclater & Salvin and Dr. E. Coues are doubtful as to
the type of this species having been really obtained on the coast of
New Jersey—a doubt in which I share; but there is now no means
of disproving Audubon’s statement. With regard to S. frobeeni,
which Messrs. Sclater and Salvin identified with this species, Mr.
L. Landbeck, in the ‘ Anales de la Universidad de Chile,’ maintains
their distinctness, and gives an elaborate comparative description
of each, the result of which is, to my mind, to show more clearly
than ever that his 8. frobeeni is merely the present bird in immature
plumage.
[34]
1876.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINZE, 661
STERNA MELANAUCHEN, Temm.
Sterna melanauchen, Temm. Pl. Col. v. pl. 427 (18387) ; Gould,
B. Austr. vii. pl. 28 (1848) ; Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Sterna, p. 28
(1863) ; Finsch & Hartl. B. Central Polyn. p. 224 (1867).
Onychoprion melanauchen, Blyth, Cat. Birds Mus. As. Soe. p. 293
(1849) ; Jerdon, B. India, i. p. 844; Swinhoe, Ibis, 1867, p. 230;
id. P. Z.S. 1871, p. 422 (Amoy); Walden, Ibis, 1874, p. 149.
Sternula melanauchen, Bp. Compt. Rend. xli.; Blasius, J. f. Orn.
1866, p. 74; Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 121 (1871).
Sterna marginata, Blyth (fide Jerdon), juv.
Gygis, sp? et Gygis decorata, Hartlaub, Ibis, 1864, p. 232;
Godeffroy’s Cat. i. (1864) p. 5.
{n this species the feet are strong and fully webbed; but I see no
reason for separating it from true Sterna. It ranges from the Anda-
man and Nicobar Islands, throughout the Malay archipelago, and
up the China coast to Amoy, down to the northern coasts of Aus-
tralia, New Caledonia, and as far asthe Fyi group. The eggs, speci-
mens of which I owe to the kindness of Capt. Wimberley stationed
at the Andaman Islands, are two in number, and are of a clay-white
ground-colour, minutely spotted with brown of various shades ; in
some varieties the ground-colour is nearly pure white.
We now come to a group for which, making S. minuta his type,
Boie proposed the genus Sternula—one which I regret to be unable to
adopt, owing to the absence of any structural distinctions ; for in some
respects it isavery convenient subdivision, and the name explains itself.
There are four forms of small ‘Tern with white forehead and black
lores, the distinguishing features of which have frequently been
overlooked, and various species thereby confounded. It is difficult to
give the exact range of each; for the young are not always to be
recognized with facility. But the characters of the adults may be
briefly enumerated.
STERNA MINUTA, Linn.
Sterna minuta, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 228 (1766), et auct.
Sternula minuta, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 564, type of Sternula.
Other synonyms are unimportant and need not be given here.
This Tern, which has dark shafts to the outer primaries, and the
rump and tail white, ranges throughout temperate Europe to India,
occurs in winter on coast of West Africa as far as the Cape of Good
Hope, whence there is a specimen in the British Museum.
STERNA ANTILLARUM, Less.
Sterna antillarum, Lesson, Desc. Mamm. et Ois. p. 256 (1848);
Coues, Proc. Phil. Acad. 1862, p. 552; Scl. & Salv. P.Z.S. 1871,
p- 57/1.
Sterna argentea, Nutt. Man. ii. p. 280 (1834); Léotaud, Ois.
Trinidad, p. 545; Wied, Beit. iv. p. 871 (1833); Burm. Syst.
Uebers. ili. 542; Pelz. Orn. Bras. p. 325.
Sterna frenata, Gamb. Proc. Phil. Ac. 1848, p. 128.
662 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. [June 20,
Sterna superciliaris, Cab. J. f. Orn. vy. 232; Coues, Key, p. 332
1872).
: ee superciliaris, var. antillarum, Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 692
(1874).
Similar to the above, and has also dark shafts to primaries; but
the rump and tail-coverts are pearl-grey like the mantle, and there is
but little black at tip of bill.
Ranges throughout temperate America, on both coasts, and down
to the Antilles, Trinidad, lat. 10° N.
STERNA SUPERCILIARIS, Vieill.
Sterna superciliaris, Vieillot, N. D. xxxi. p. 126 (1819), based
on the Hati ceja blanca of Azara; Scl. & Salv. P.Z.S. 1871,
p- 571; Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 692 (1874), in part.
Back, rump, and tail slightly darker than in the above; bill stouter
and entirely yellow ; the legs and feet also are of an olivaceous colour
in my Amazon specimens, very different from the bright yellow of
those parts in the two foregoing *.
Is found on all the large South-American rivers from the Parana
upwards, is plentiful on the Amazons and the Ucayali, and I found
it abundant on the river Huallaga still further west.
STERNA SINENSIS, Gm.
Sterna sinensis, Gm. Syst. Nat. 1. p. 608 (1788), based on the
Chinese Tern of Latham.
Sterna minuta, Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc. 1820, xii. p. 198.
Sternula sinensis, Swinhoe, Ibis, 1863, p. 430; id. P. Z.S. 1863,
. 329.
‘ Sternula minuta, Swinhoe, P. Z.S. 1871, p. 422 (Formosa and
China).
Sternula placens, Gould, Ann. Nat. Hist. vii. p. 192 (1871);
id. B. New Guinea, pt. iii. pl. 7 (May 1876).
Like S. minuta, but shafts of outer primaries white; as a rule
also the bird is a trifle larger and stouter, and has a longer develop-
ment of lateral tail-feathers than S. minuta.
Ranges from Ceylon, where it breeds, to the China seas, to
Queensland, and down the Australian coast; how far I cannot say,
as I have no specimens from there with trustworthy localities.
From Ceylon Capt. Vincent Legge, R.A., has sent me a fine series,
with the eggs, which are, as might naturally be expected, like those
of S. menuta, Te also sent me a nestling with the outer quill-
feathers only partially developed; and on comparing it with a
* Dr. Coues (B. of N.W. Am. p. 694) distinguishes 8. antillarum from §.minuta
by its grey rump and smaller bill with little black at the tip; but he goes on to
argue that because it has sometimes no black at all on the bill, as is the case with
S. superciliaris, which has, in its turn, a bill as stout or stouter than S. minuta,
therefore S. superciliaris and S. antillarum are to be united. I fail to see how
he can consistently do this without putting a// the small Terns under one head ;
for the stout bill, especially so from the angle to the tip, and the abrupt pro-
longation of the outer tail-feathers in S. swperciliarts, to say nothing of coloration,
suffice to distinguish it from any other member of the group.
[26]
1876. |} MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINA. 663
S. minuta of the same age, the difference in the colour of the shafts
of the primaries was very apparent. There is often a grey tint on
the rump and tail-coverts of winter-killed and immature specimens.
STERNA SUMATRANA, Raff.
Sterna sumatrana, Raffles, Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. (1822) p. 329.
Sterna pusilla, 8. Muller (fide Gray )—Timor and Java.
Bill smaller and more slender than even in S. antillarum, but
with much black between the angle and tip ;_tail-coverts and tail grey
as in the back; shafts of primaries 6lack.
Captain V. Legge has sent me a nearly adult specimen of this
Tern from Ceylon; and the fact of two such different forms as
this and the preceding being met with there is somewhat remark-
able; a similar specimen is in my collection, from the coast of
Fantee. Lord Walden has a specimen from Zoulla, Red Sea,
obtained by Mr. W. Jesse; and that is all I know about this
small dark form of the group, which is even darker than S. antil-
farum on the rump and tail, and has also a good deal more black
on the bill. I have adopted Raffles’s name for it, because the de-
scription and locality seem to fit it fairly ; and, in default of a larger
series, I do not wish to incur the odium of making species upon
slight grounds.
STERNA NEREIS (Gould).
Sternula nereis, Gould, P. Z.8. 1842, p. 140, B. Australia, vii.
pl. 29 (1848)—Bass’s Straits and West Australia.
Sterna parva, Ellman, Zoologist, 1861, p. 7473.
Sterna nereis, Pelzeln, Verh. zool.-bot. Gesellsch. Wien, xxii.
p- 318 (1867); Buller, B. New Zeal. p. 285 (1873).
Sterna minuta, Finsch, J. f. Orn. 1867, pp. 337, 347.
Sterna alba, Potts, Trans. N.Z. Inst. 1870, p. 106.
This species, which appears to be confined to Australia and New
Zealand, may be distinguished from the other small Terns by its
somewhat larger size, the paler grey of the mantle and especially of the
primaries, and by its having no black lores, but only a dark spot in
front of the eye. In the young the distinction is not so easy ; but
the primaries are always lighter than in S. minuta or S. sinensis.
STERNA EXILIS, T'sch.
Sterna exilis, Tschudi, F. Per., Aves, p. 306 (1846); Sclater,
P.Z.S. 1867, pp. 336 & 344; Scl. & Salv. P.Z.8. 1871, p. 572.
Sterna lorata, Ph. & Landb. Wieg. Arch. 1863, pt. i. p. 124.
Sternula loricata (!), Gray, Hand-list, i. p. 121 (1871).
The general smoke-grey of the under as well as the upper parts,
and the large amount of black on the bill, will always serve to
distinguish this species, of which I have only seen two specimens—
one in Messrs. Salvin and Godman’s collection, and one in the
British Museum. Both these are from the coast of Peru and Chili ;
but of its breeding-places we know nothing at present.
664 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. [June 20,
STERNA BALZNARUM (Strickl.).
Sternula balenarum, Strickl. Contr. Orn. 1852, p. 160; Gurney,
Andersson’s B. Damar. p. 363 (1872).
In this species there is no white frontlet, the black feathers coming
down to the base of the bill, which is slender and black, except at
the gape; the tail is grey like the mantle ; and the tarsi and feet
are the smallest of those of the group. The shafts of the primaries
are white.
Walwich Bay to the Cape of Good Hope is its range, so far as is
known.
STERNA ALEUTICA, Baird.
Sterna aleutica, Baird, Tr. Chicago Acad. 1869, 321, pl. 31.
fig. 1 (Alaska); Dall & Bann. ib. p. 307; Coues, Key to N.-Am.
B. p. 322 (1872), B. of N.W. Am. p. 696 (1874) ; Gray, Hand-list,
ill. p. 118 (1871).
After a careful examination of Pallas’s description of Sterna
camtschatica, I fully agree with Dr. E. Cones that Dr. O. Finsch has
no sufficient reason for identifying it with this species (Abh. nat. Ver.
Bremen, ill. p. 85). It is needless to repeat here the excellent descrip-
tions given by the above American authors, the last of whom informs
us that since the acquisition of the type three more specimens have
been obtained. With its head-markings similar to those of the
Sooty Tern (Sterna fuliginosa), from which, again, it differs in having
a white rump and tail, it certainly presents a most interesting link
in coloration between the Sooty and the typical Terns, groups which
I cannot separate generically for want of well-defined structural dif-
erences. Indeed Dr. Coues seems inclined to give up Haliplanaas a
genus; and as the only distinction appears to be in the coloration, it
is not easy to see how it can be retained according to the modern
definition of a genus. The type was obtained at Kadiak, Alaska, in
June, with the egg; so that it was in full breeding-plumage; but of
the immature stages we have as yet no description. -
STERNA ANZESTHETA (Scop.).
Sterna anethetus (sic), Scop. Del. Faun. et Flor. Ins. i. p. 92.
no. 72 (1786), ex Sonn. Voy. p. 125, pl. 84.
Sterna panayensis, Gm. 8. N. 11. p. 607 (1788).
Sterna oahuensis, Bloxham, Voy. ‘ Blonde,’ p. 251 (1826).
Haliplana panayensis, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1224 ; Salvin, Ibis,
1864, p. 381, 1866, p. 199; Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 80.
** Sterna antarctica, Cuv.,’ Lesson, T. d’Orn. p. 621 (1831);
Pucheran, Rey. Zool. 1850, p. 541. (Admitted to be S. panayensis.)
Onychoprion panaya, Gould, B. Austr. vi. pl. 33 (1848).
Sterna infuscata, Heugl. Ibis, 1859, p. 351; id. F. Roth. Meeres,
. 32.
' Sterna panaya, Heugl. F. Roth. Meeres, p. 31; Finsch & Hartl.
Vog. Ost-Afr. p. 833 (1870).
woes panayensis, Scl. & Salv. P. Z.8. 1871, p. 572.
[28
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN £. 665
Haliplana discolor, Coues, Ibis, 1864, p. 392; Elliot, B. N. Am.
i. pl. 57 (1869).
? Hydrochelidon somalensis, Heugl. Orn. N.O.-Afr. p. 1458,
p- cevii (1873).
Haliplana anosthetus, Gray, Hand-list, ili. p. 122 (1871).
Sterna melanoptera, Swainson, B. W. Afr. il. p. 249 (1837)
(type in Camb. Mus. examined, H. S.).
This species, originally described from the Philippine Islands, is
somewhat smaller than S. fuliginosa ; the colour of the mantle is
also less intensely dark. But the principal distinction is found in
the feet, in which the webbing, instead of coming down to the claws
between the outer and middle toe as in S. fuliginosa, only descends
to the last joint, showing a more important structural difference
between two such closely allied species than there is between Ony-
choprion and typical Sterna—an additional reason for discarding the
former genus and its synonyms. The drawings show the shape of
the feet ia both species.
Fig. 2. Fig. 3.
Fig. 2. Foot of Sterna fuliginosa. Fig. 3. Foot of Sterna anestheta.
In the young of the present species the underparts are light-
coloured on emerging from the downy stage, whereas in S. fuliginosa
they remain dark for some time.
Its range appears to be nearly identical with that of S. fuligincsa,
and is noticed under that head.
STERNA LUNATA, Peale.
Sterna lunata, Peale, U.S. Expl. Exp., Birds, p. 277 (1848) ;
Cassin, U.S. Expl. Exp., Birds, p. 382 (1858) ; Schlegel, Mus. P-.-
[29]
666 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&. | June 20,
B. Sterne, p. 27 (1863); Finsch & Hartl. F. Centralpolyn. p. 231,
pl. xiii. fig. 3 (1867).
Haliplana lunata, Blas. J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 80; Gray, Hand-list,
iil. p. 122 (1871).
This species is rather larger than the preceding ; but the webs of
the toes are similarly incised; the general colour is much greyer.
Its range appears to be somewhat restricted, extendmg from the
Moluccas to the Phenix and the Paumatu groups of the Polynesian
Islands. There are no specimens in the British Museum; but I
have examined those at Leyden, and find it a well marked species.
STERNA FULIGINOSA, Gm.
Sterna fuliginosa, Gm. Syst. Nat.1. p.605 (1788); Aud. B.N. Am.
vil. p. 90, pl. 432 (1840); Temm. & Schl. Fauna Japonica, p. 133,
p]. 89 (1842); Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 861 (1858) ; Cassin, Orn. U.S.
Expl. Exp. p. 386 (1858); Finsch & Hartl. Orn. Centralpolyn. p. 225
(1867), Vog. Ost-Afr. p. 831 (1870) ; Harting, Brit. Birds, p. 169
(1872).
Onychoprion fuliginosus, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 277 (type of
genus Onychoprion, based on S. serrata of J. R. Forster’s MS. Deser.
An. p. 276, ed. Licht. 1844); Gould, B. Australia, vii. pl. 32
(1848) ; Sclater, P. Z.S. 1856, p. 144 (I. Ascension); Scl. & Salv.
P. Z.S. 1871, p. 573.
Planetis guttatus, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1222 (type of genus
Planetis, based on S. guttata of J. Kt. Forster’s MS. Desc. An.
p- 211, ed. Licht. 1844).
Haliplana fuliginosa, Wag). Isis, 1832, p. 1224 (type of genus
Haliplana); Bp. Compt. Rend. 1856, p. 772; Coues, Pr. Phil.
Acad. 1862, p. 556; id. B. N. W. Am. p. 698 (1874); Gray, Hand-
list, 1. p. 122 (1871).
Sterna infuscata, Licht. Verz. Doubl. p. 81 (1823) (type in
Berlin Mus. examined, H. S.).
Anous V herminieri, Lesson, Desc. Mamm. et Ois. p. 255 (1847).
Sterna gouldit, Reichenbach, Schwimmvog. Supp. xii. fig. 829.
Sterna luctuosa, Phil. & Landb. Wiegm. Arch. p. 126 (1866).
Thalassipora infuscata, Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 122 (1871).
“ Haliplana fuliginosa, var. crissalis, Baird,’ Lawr. (Grayson)
Proc. Bost. N.H. S. 1871, p. 285.
It will be observed that Wagler has based no less than three genera
upon this single species—the first, Onychoprion, depending upon
a supposed serration of the claw, evidently due to natural causes in
the specimen he had before him, while the other two genera are based
upon the slightest of structural differences. I confess I cannot see any
good reason for erecting it into a genus, especially in view of the
connecting-link formed by the preceding species.
Both this species and S. anestheta range throughout the whole
of the warmer portions of the world, there being no perceptible dif-
ference between individuals from the most widely separated locali-
ties. It is said that at Ascension Island the Sooty Terns, or
[30 |]
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&,. 667
** Wideawakes,”’ come every eight months to breed ; if true, this is
somewhat remarkable. The foot of this species is webbed to the
extremity of the toes, as shown in the drawing (p. 665). The young
are dark on the underparts.
Genus Nata, Boie.
Nant 1ncA (Lesson).
Sterna inca, Lesson, Voy. ‘Coquille,’ i. p. 731. no. 145, atlas
pl. 47 (1826).
Anous inca, Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 661 (1849); Blas. J. f. Orn.
1866, p. 83.
Nenia inca, Boie, Isis, 1849, p. 189 (type of genus Nenia) ;
Bp. Compt. Rend. xli. p. 773 (1856); Sel. and Salv. P. Z.S. 1871,
p- 567 (Neotrop. Laridz); Gray, Hand-list, ni. p. 123 (1871).
Larosterna inca, Blyth, Cat. Mus. As. 8. p. 293 (1849), type of
Larosterna.
Inca mystacalis, Jard. Contrib. Orn. 1850, p. 32; Cassin, U.S.
Exp]. Exp. p. 391 (1858).
Anous inca, Gray, Gen. Birds, ii. p. 661 (1849)
Inca mysticalis, Jardine, Contr. Orn. 1850, p. 32; Cassin, U.S.
Expl. Exped. p. 391 (1858)—Callao.
This well-marked form seems fairly entitled to generic distinction,
the white drooping plumes beneath the eye, and the wattled gape
being found in no other species: the hallux is also connected with
the foot by a rudimentary web ; the tail, however, is forked as in
typical Sterne, removing it from any close relationship to Anous
where some have placed it. It appears to be arock-breeding species
confined to the coasts of Peru and Chili.
Genus Gyais, Wagler.
GyGIs CANDIDA (Gm.).
? Sterna alba, Sparr. Mus. Carls. ii. fasc. i. No. 11 (1786); Gm.
Syst. Nat. i. 2, p. 607 (1788); J. R. Forster, Deser. An. p. 179, ed.
Licht. (1844).
Sterna candida, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. 2, p. 607 (1788).
Gygis candida, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1223, ex J. R. Forster,
MS. (type of Gygis); Gray, Gen. Birds, ui. p. 660 (1849); Gould,
B. Australia, vii. pl. 30 (1848).
Gygis alba (Sparr.), Cassin, U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 389 (1858) ;
Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1866, p. 73; Finsch & Hartl. Faun. Centralpolynes.
p- 232 (1867); Gray, Hand-list, ii. p. 122 (1871).
This beautiful and peculiar species is characterized by long slender
toes with very deeply incised webs, and a graduated tail, approaching
in shape that of the next genus, dnous. The shape of the bill is also
peculiar, being broad at the base, aud slightly tapering upwards in front
of the mandibular angle. To this form have belonged all the examples
which I have examined, or the descriptions of which I have com-
pared, from Madagascar and throughout Polynesia until we reach the
[31]
668 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINE. [June 20,
Marquesas. From that group, apparently the outpost of the species,
I have examined three specimens, which differ so remarkably from
Fig. 4.
Head of Gygis candida.
all others that I cannot consider them mere varieties, and propose
for them the name of
Gycis MICRORHYNCHA, Sp. Nov.
Alba: similis G. candid, sed minor, rostro multo minore tenuiore,
rectricum scapis albis nec nigris, distinguenda.
In Jength of wing it is nearly an inch shorter than G. candida ;
the tail-feathers are more rounded, and the 3rd is the longest,
whereas the 2nd is the longest in the larger species: the shafts of
the first three primaries are merely clay-coloured, and the rest are pure
white, whereas in G. candida they are all nearly black ; and barel
a trace of colour is to be observed on those of the tail. The bill is
Rigs.
Head of Gygis microrhyncha.
slender at the base, and quite different in shape from that of G. can-
dida (as shown in the accompanying drawings).
Sparrman’s figure and description are both very bad; but
Gmelin’s, based upon Latham, distinctly points out the character-
istics of the larger and black-shafted species ; so I have adopted his
name for it. On the other hand I cannot identify Sparrman’s bird
[32]
1876. } MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINA. 669
with the smaller species, of which, moreover, I have never seen a
specimen except from the Marquesas; and I have therefore been
compelled to give aname toit. The larger species is also found at
the Marquesas.
The nesting of Gygis is peculiar, the single egg of clay-white mottled
with brown being placed on the cavity of the branch of a tree, or ina
fork of two branches, and on the points of the coral reefs—anywhere,
in fact, where it willlie. In these habits Gygis shows another athinity
with Anous, of which it seems to be a highly specialized offshoot.
« Sterna nivea”’ of F. D. Bennett (Whaling Voy.i. p. 370, 1840),
from the Caroline Islands, might be either of these species; and I
can find no description of ‘‘ Gygis napoleonis,”’ Bp.
Genus Anous, Leach.
ANoUS sTroLibus, Linn.
Sterna stolida, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 227 (1766); id. Ameen,
. Acad. iv. p. 240; Gmelin, S. N. 1. 2, p. 605 (1783).
Sterna fuscata, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 228 (1766), ex Brisson, vi.
p- 220, t. 20. fig. 1; Gmel. S. N. p. 605 (1788), juv.
Sterna pileata, Scop. Del. Faun. et Flor. Insubr. 1. p. 92. no. 723,
ex Sonn. Voy. p. 125, pl. 85 (1786).
Sterna senez, Leach, in Tuckey’s Exped. to the Congo, App.
p. 408 (1818), obtained by Cranch.
Anous niger, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. i. p. 140, pl. 17
(1825)—type of Anous, Leach (adult).
Anous fuscatus, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. i. p. 140
(1825), juv.
Anous spadicea, Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. i. p. 143
(1825), juv.
Megalopterus stolidus, Boie, Isis, 1826, p. 980.
Sterna unicolor, Nordm. in Erm. Verz. v. Thier. & PA. Daly,
(1835).
Anous stolidus, Gray, List Gen. Birds, p. 100 (1841); Blyth, Cat.
B. A. S. Bengal, p. 293; Gould, B. Australia, vii. pl. 33 (1848);
Cassin, U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 391 (1858); Finsch & Hartl. Faun.
Centralpolyn. p. 234 (1867), Vog. Ost-Afrika’s, p. 835 (1870);
Sel. & Salv. P.Z.S. 1871, p. 566 (Neotrop. Laride) ; Coues, B.
N.W. Am. p. 710 (1874).
Anous rousseaui, Hartl. Beitr. Orn. Madagasce. p. 86 (1860).
This well-known species, a straggler to the British seas, ranges from
the Gulf-coast of North America to the shores of Australia, through-
out Polynesia, and occurs, in fact, in all tropical waters. There
appears to be no constant difference between individuals from the
most distant localities; and this similarity applies to its habits and
breeding, its single egg being deposited on a nest of sea-weed placed
on mangrove bushes, in the fork of a tree, or even on the bare rock.
In the British Museum there is a specimen from Dalrymple Rock,
Chatham Island, one of the Galapagos group, which is of a uniform
sooty brown. It is evidently an immature bird; and IU am therefore
[33]
670 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN&. [June 20,
unwilling to give it specific rank; but it would be somewhat remark-
able if subsequent research should show that the Galapagos Islands
possess a fuliginous Noddy in addition to their Larus fuliginosus and
other peculiar forms of bird-life.
ANOUS TENUIROSTRIS (Temm.). (Plate LXI. fig. 1.)
Sterna tenuirostris, Temm. Pl. Col. 202 (1838).
Megalopterus tenuirostris (Temm.), Boie, Isis, (1526), p. 980,
type of genus Megalopterus.
Anous melanops, Gould, P. Z.S. xiii. p. 103 (1845); id. B. Aus-
tralia, vii. pl. 34 (1848); Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 123 (1871).
Under this name two species appear to have been confounded.
Temminck figures a bird with a light head and neck and pale grey
lores. But the bird which is far more abundant in collections under
this title is the species which has the lores deep black, figured in
Gray’s ‘Genera of Birds’ under the name of dA. melanogenys.
Temminck’s type came from Senegal ; and the only specimens like it
which I have been able to examine as yet are two in the British
Museum from the island of Rodriguez (from one of which the figure
is taken), and one in Lord Walden’s collection from Mauritius. In
the absence of any detailed description it is impossible to say to
which species the ‘8. fenuirostris”’ of various writers, from the Red
Sea, belongs. Beyond the above localities it occurs at Houtmann’s
Abrolhos, on the west coast of Australia, whence Mr. Gould described
and figured it under the name of Anous melanops. Mr. Gould’s bird,
however, appears to me to be identical with Temminck’s, in spite of
the stress laid upon the supposed absence of a black spot by the eye
in Temminck’s figure, which spot is conspicuously present in the
plate of A. melanops. It seems to be a somewhat rare species, at
least in collections. Besides the different coloration of the feathers
between the base of the bill and the eye, it appears to be a some-
what smaller bird than 4. melanogenys, the wing being nearly an
inch shorter; the bill also, in the specimen I have seen, is relatively
shorter between the angle and the tip; but a much larger series must
be examined before attaching much importance to that peculiarity.
ANOUS MELANOGENYS, Gray. (Plate LXI. fig. 2.)
Anous melanogenys, G. R. Gray, Gen. Birds, ii. p. 661, pl. 182
(1849); id. Hand-list, ii. p. 123 (1871).
Anous tenuirostris, Scl. & Salv. Neotrop. Lar., P. Z. 8. 1871,
p. 566.
Respecting this black-faced species (see Plate LXI. fig. 2, taken
from a specimen in my own collection) I can only repeat that it is
generally found usurping the name of Anous tenuirostris in collections.
It is apparently a widely distributed form, occurring on the coasts of
Central America, Africa, Australia, and throughout Polynesia.
ANOUS LEUCOCAPILLUS, Gould. (Plate LXI. fig. 3.)
Anous leucocapillus, Gould, P. Z.S. pt. xii. (1845) p. 103; id.
B. Aust. vii. pl. 35 (1848) ; Cassin, U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 393 (1858) ;
[34]
1876. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNINZE. 671
Finsch & Hartl. F. Centralpolynesiens, p. 237 (1867); Gray,
Hand-list, iti. p. 123 (1871).
Sterna leucocapilla, Schlegel, M. Pays-Bas, Sterne, p. 37 (1863).
This form is apparently less widely diffused than some of its con-
geners. Mr. Gould’s specimens were obtained at Raines Islet, Aus-
tralia, where it is said to be very abundant. There is a specimen
in the British Museum, from Bristow Island, south coast of New
Guinea (from which the figure Plate LXI. fig. 3, is taken); and
the United-States Exploring Expedition found it breeding at Pau-
motu Island, where its single egg was deposited upon the bare
ground instead of in a nest. There is no grey about the head or
cheeks, but, with the exception of the white crown, the whole
plumage is of a sooty brown-black ; the foot is perhaps a trifle more
slender in A. tenuirostris or A. melanogenys ; but it is difficult to
judge from dried skins.
ANOUS C&RULEUS (Bennett).
Sterna cerulea, F. D. Bennett, Narr. Whaling-Voy. round Globe,
ii. App. p. 248 (1840)—Christmas Island and other coral forma-
tions of the Pacific.
“« Sterne cendré,’ Neboux, Rev. Zool. Oct. 1840, p. 291.
Sterna teretirostris, Lafresnaye, Rev. Zool. 1849, p. 242.
Procelsterna tereticollis, Lafresnaye, Rev. Zool. 1842, pl. 29 (type
of Procelsterna).
Stolida cinerea, Néboux, Voy. Vénus, Atlas, pl. 9 (1846).
Anous cinereus, Gould, P. Z.S. 1845, p. 104; id. B. Australia, vii.
pl. 46 (1848)—Norfolk I. and N.E. coast, Australia; Prévost &
Des Murs, Voy. Vénus, v. p. 276 (1855); Finsch & Hartlaub, F.
Centralpolynesiens, p. 239 (1867).
Anous parvulus, Gould, P. Z.S. xiii. (1845) p. 104; Cassin, U.S.
Expl. Exp., Birds, p. 393 (1858)—Paumotu group.
Pelecanopus pelecanoides |, G. R. Gray, List. of Birds in Brit. Mus.
pt. i. p. 180 (fide Gould, ut supra).
Megalopterus plumbeus, Peale, U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 285 (1848).
Procelsterna albivitta, Bp. Compt. Rend. 1856, p. 773; Gould,
Hand-b. B. Austr. ii. p. 420 (1865); Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 123
(1871).
Sterna cinerea, Schlegel, M. P.-B. Sterne, p. 38 (1863).
Procelsterna cinerea, Gray, Hand-list, iii. p. 123 (1871).
I have much pleasure in restoring to this well-defined species the
name originally given to it by Mr. F. Debell Bennett, whose speci-
men from Christmas Island is described by Mr. Gould in P. Z.S.
xiii. (1845) p. 104, under the name of Anous parvulus, in ignorance,
no doubt, of the fact that Mr. Bennett had already given it a name
accompanied by an excellent description. It may always be recog-
nized by its pale grey head, neck, and underparts, and somewhat
darker upper parts, the colour becoming deeper on the tail; the
primaries are the darkest part; and the secondaries are broadly
tipped with white, forming a distinct band. Neboux’s figure is too
dark ; and, in spite of the yellow-coloured webs to the feet peculiar
(39 |
672 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE STERNIN#. [June 20.
to this species, I was for some time in doubt, until I observed
depicted in his plate a characteristic which distinguishes this species
from all other members of the group, viz. that the second tail-feather
is distinctly the longest on each side, whereas in other: Noddies
the third is the longest, the fourth being often but a trifle shorter.
In this arrangement of the tail-feathers Anous ceruleus comes next
to Gygis, and indeed is only placed here for convenience of treatment.
In its range it is probably the most restricted of the family, being
only found on the N.E. coast of Australia and throughout the coral
formations of the Pacific as far as Christmas Island, a little to the
north of the Equator. It was found breeding at Honden Island, in
the Paumotu group, on August 21st, depositing a single egg in the
concavities of the coral rock (Peale and Cassin) ; and we are told
that it does not wander far from coral islands.
It is unnecessary in this paper to take notice of mere names, given
by Bonaparte and others, to which no description is attached; but
there are two supposed species which were unknown to Messrs.
Sclater and Salvin when writing the “ List of Neotropical Laridz,”’ and
upon which the subsequent five years have thrown no light. In hope
of clearing up the subject, I give the names and a brief description :-—
Sterna atrofusciata, described by Philippi and Landbeck in
*Wiegmann’s Archiv,’ 1863, pt. i. p. 202, is an immature example
of a small species, the wing being 9 inches long, the bill 1 inch long,
black, red at the gape, fhe farsus 7 lines, dull red, the mantle anil
wings dark ash-grey, and the underparts and rump white. This
description does not apply to any known species; and it may prove
to be a good one. ‘The solitary specimen was shot at Llico, Col-
chagua, Chili, in December 1861, near the outlet of the great salt
lake of Vichuquen.
S. acutirostris, Tsch. F. Peru. Aves, p. 304 (1846), is described
as 10 inches long, bill nearly 2 inches, wing 6:6, tars. °75; pure
white below, pale grey above; bill black, with a red band in the
middle, and tip horn-colour. It is found in the lakes of the Cor-
dilleras, where Larus serranus breeds. A Tern with a bill nearly
a third as long as the wing is certainly remarkable; but as, in de-
scribing S. ewilis, Tschudi states that the total length is 7 inches,
and the wing alone 7 inches 3 lines (!), his measurements are some-
what incomprehensible, and it is advisable to wait further in-
formation.
In concluding this revision I wish to acknowledge the assistance
that I have at all times received in the Zoological Department of
the British Museum, the Leyden Museum, from Prof. Peters of
Berlin, M. Bouvier of Paris, and also from many friends who have
placed their collections at my disposal. My thanks are especially due
to Mr. Osbert Salvin, whose fine series of American Sternine has
always been available, and whose practical experience has, at times,
been of great assistance in intricate questions of synonymy and
doubtful nomenclature.
[36]
JS del. et
mit | ltl
et hth
hoes
a
[From the PROCEEDINGS OF THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF
Lonpon, February 5, 1878. |
ON THE
Leal LN Ay OR 6G, Us Eabes,
BY
HOWARD SAUNDERS, F.L.S., F.Z.S.
A revision of the Laring is a more difficult task than that of the
Sternine, the members of the present subfamily being subject to far
greater variations in plumage on their passage from youth to age
than is customary with the Terns. The latter, although offering
differences in individual size and graduation of tint which are often
extremely puzzling, may be said to have only two, or at most three,
stages of plumage, viz. the immature, the winter-, and the adult
[1]
156 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. (Rebs 5;
breeding-state, in the last of which the majority assume a black head
or crest; but with the Gulls these conditions are more complex.
Even in those species which are destitute of hood at all seasons there
is a seemingly endless variation in the pattern of the primaries, the
general tendency being to an increase in the lighter and a diminution
in the darker portions of the webs with the advancing age of the indi-
vidual—a rule which also holds good with many of those species the
adults of which bear a hood in the breeding-season, whilst, on the
other hand, there are others which exhibit the apparent anomaly of
having a hood in the immature stage, and losing it in the adult plu-
mage. ‘The individual variations in size are even greater than in the
Terns; and the range of the Gulls being, as a rule, less extensive,
there are to be found several remarkable isolated and specialized
forms, side by side with others, which are little more than climatic
varieties of a general type. These circumstances have led to the
establishment of a multiplicity of genera and of species, many of
them exceedingly ill defined; and it was not until 1 had examined
a considerable series of specimens here, and had visited the Museums
of Paris, Leiden, Mainz, Berlin, and Copenhagen, for the purpose
of identifying the types with the descriptions, that I could hope to
clear up some of the more obscure questions.
The literature of this group has been rendered especially intricate
through the perverted ingenuity of two systematists who have
undertaken its revision. Boie and Brehm are not guiltless in the
matter of genera- and species-making; but their labours were
chiefly confined to sorting the European Gulls backwards and for-
wards into fanciful groups, and to splitting up each species into
three or four, which can, for the most part, be easily referred back
to their origin. But when Bonaparte and Bruch undertook the
revision of the Larine of the whole world, they speedily enveloped
the question in a perfect fog of synonymy, their only object being,
apparently, to make as many genera and species as possible. Even dis-
tinct genera were erected for one and the same species in different plu-
mages; the most closely allied forms were placed far apart, and widely
divergent ones were united; whilst it seemed to be accepted as an
axiom that a different geographical habitat was sufficient to constitute
a species. Revision followed revision; and to the work of the declining
days of both these authors we owe at least half of the synonymy
which encumbers these pages. It was their intention to perform
a similar office for the Terns; but death cut their plans short,
and to this is owing the comparative simplicity of the synonymy of
the Sternine.
The result of their labours appears in Bonaparte’s last completed
list (for that in the ‘Conspectus Avium’ was never finished), in the
‘Comptes Rendus,’ xl. p. 770 (1856), in which he makes 68
‘“‘undoubted”’ species and 22 genera of Larine alone, besides 5
more species which he considered doubtful—with justice, as re-
gards four of them, two being his own, one Bruch’s, and one
Wagler’s, whilst the fifth, Larus fuliginosus, is an excellent species
with which he was evidently unacquainted. To this succeeded the
[2]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN &. 197
reaction of common sense in the shape of one of Professor Schlegel’s
admirable Catalogues raisonnés of the Mus. d’ Hist. Nat. des Pays-
Bas, a monographical review which, in the words of Prof. Blasius,
‘‘is destined to be the foundation of all true Gull-knowledge for
those whose ideas of what really constitutes a species are not sacri-
ficed to an arbitrary whim or a geographical sport.” The remarks
which I have thus translated are to be found in a critical review of
great merit in the J. f. Orn. (1865, p. 369, and 1866, p. 73). In
this Blasius reduces Bonaparte’s species to 35—a diminution which
to some degree falls into the other extreme, partly owing to the fact
that the author was then unacquainted with several perfectly good
species, of which series have since become available, and also to his
having united some closely allied forms which, in my opinion, are
more conveniently treated by giving them specific rank.
As regards the North-American Larine, Dr. Elliott Coues has
contributed two important reviews (Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Philad. 1862,
p- 291, and ‘ Birds of the North-west’ (1874); and these, coupled
with the excellent Revised List of the Neotropical Larid@ by Messrs.
Sclater and Salvin (P. Z.S. 1871, p. 564), make us better acquainted
with the American species than with those of any other great divi-
sion of the globe. But although there are probably no undiscovered
forms, there still remain many details to be learned respecting the
haunts, nidification, and various plumages of the American Larine,
especially those of the Pacific-coast islands; and, indeed, there are
two from the Galapagos Islands so rare that the one, Z. fuliginosus,
is only to be found in three or four collections, whilst of the other,
Xema furcatum, only two examples are known to exist, the one in
the Paris, the other in the British Museum.
With regard to several of the Old-World species there are also
some important gaps to be filled up ; but with one solitary exception,
viz. Rhodostethia rosea, the least-known species and the most
interesting forms are those which are found on the shores and islands
cf the Pacific, on both the Asiatic and American sides. These will
be noticed under their respective heads ; and I will now pass on to
consider the genera and subgenera amongst which the species have
been divided. Most of these have been based upon colour, geogra-
phical distribution, or upon the mere caprice of the systematist—upon
any thing in short ewcept those structural differences which afford
a valid reason for their employment; but as many of these genera
are either used erroneously or in a perverted sense by those who
have not studied the question, I will give a full synopsis of them with
remarks. Those genera which appear worthy of retention are printed
in small capitals.
GENERA.
Larus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 224 (1766).
For all Gulls.
Xuma, Leach; J. Ross, App. i, Ross’s Voy. p. 57 (1819).
the generic characters are given as defined by Leach; these
$ g y ;
[3]
158 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [Bebeay
are afterwards stated more fully by Stephens in Shaw’s Gen. Zool.
xiii. p. 176 (1825). Type and sole representative then known, X.
sabinit. Principal characteristic, the forked tail.
Xema, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563.
For the European hooded Gulls; but
Xema, Boie, Isis, 1844, p. 192,
Includes all those Gulls, either with or without hoods, which he
has not otherwise located under Gavia or Larus.
(N. B. Gavia, Moehring, 1752, Gen. Av. is prior to the 12th ed.
Linn., and need not be considered ; and Gavia, Brisson, is undefined.)
Gavia, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563.
No description, but is applied to two such structurally different
species as L. eburneus and L. tridactylus.
Gavia, Boie, Isis, 1826, p. 980,
Is limited to LZ. eburneus only.
Gavia, Boie, Isis, 1844, p. 191,
Contains the two former and L. audouini.
Gavia, Kaup, Nat. Syst. Eur. Thierw. pp. 99, 196 (1829).
For L. ridibundus and “ L. capistratus.”
Gavia, Macgill. Man. Brit. Ornith. p. 239 (1842).
For all the hooded Gulls, including Xema sabinii.
Gavia, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106.
For the small grey-mantled Gulls without hoods.
Rissa, Leach, Stephens in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. pt. i. p. 180
(1825). )
Type, R. brunnichii=L. tridactylus. Character—hind toe absent
or rudimentary.
Cheimonea, Kaup, Nat. Syst. Eur. Thierw. pp. 84, 196 (1829).
Type, A. tridactyla.
PaGoruita, Kaup, op. cit. pp. 69, 186 (1829).
Type, Larus eburneus.
LTeucus, misprint Lencus, Kaup, op. cit. pp. 86, 196 (1829).
For L. marinus, glaucus, and fuscus ; but
“Leucus, ex Kaup,”’ Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 215 (1857),
Omits the black-mantled species and includes the larger grey-
backed Gulls.
[4]
1878. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. 149
Hydrocoleus, Kaup, op. cit. pp. 113, 196 (1829).
For L. minutus and “ZL. plumbiceps,” “ Gulls with black heads
and white eye-streak.”’
Ichthyaétus, Kaup, op. cit. pp. 102, 196 (1829).
Type and sole representative, L. ichthyaétus.
Laroides, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 738 (1831).
Includes most of the European hoodless Gulls.
Chroicocephalus, Eyton, Brit. Birds, p. 53 (1836).
Based upon the coloured hood, small size, and more naked tibia.
The latter characteristic only holds good with regard to a limited
number of hooded Gulls, and is by no means confined to them ;
whilst none of the other peculiarities adduced seem to be sufficient
for generic distinction.
The spelling of this word has been altered to
Krotcocephalus, Jameson, Journ. Asiatic. Soe. vill. p. 243 (1829),
Chroiocephalus, Reichenbach, Nat. Syst. Vg. p. v.,
Chreecocephalus, Strickl. Ann. Nat. Hist. p. 40 (1841),
and tu
Chroocephalus, Sel. & Salv. P. Z.S. 1871, p. 576 (note)".
Rossia, Bonap. Comp. List B. Bur. & N. Am. p. 62 (1838).
For LZ. roseus. No description of generic character ; and the name
had already been employed otherwise by Owen.
Ruopostetuta, Macgill. Man. Brit. Orn. pt. ii. p. 252 (1842).
Type, L. voseus. Generic character described.
Cetosparactes, Macgill. Man. Brit. Orn. pt. ii. p. 251 (1842).
Type, Pagophila eburnea. Generic character described. Name
altered to
Catosparactes, Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 655, note (1845).
“Plautus, Klein,” Reichenbach, Nat. Syst. Vog. Longip. p. 5
(1852).
(WV. B. Klein’s Hist. Av. Prodromus, pp. 146-148 (1750), is out
of date; and his Plautus includes Auks, Gulls, and Petrels.)
Glaucus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 101.
For the large and medium-sized grey-mantled species.
“Gabianus, Bp.,” Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100 (description) ;
Bonap. Naumannia, 1854, pp. 211, 215; Consp. Av. il. p. 212 (1857)
Type, L. pacificus.
1 Whilst these sheets are passing through the press, Mr. H. T. Wharton
(‘Zoologist, March 1878, p. 105) has pointed out the existence of an adjective,
Xoewikos, meaning coloured ; so that Byton’s error (if any) appears to have been
merely the omission of the marks of diaresis over the second vowel.—H. 8.
[5]
160 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [Feb. 5,
Gavina, Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 212.
For Z. canus and allies, and LZ. audouini; but in -
Gavina, Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 222 (1857),
the type and sole representative is L. audouzni.
Dominicanus, Bruch, J.f. Orn. 1853, p. 100; id. op. ett. 1855, p. 280.
For the large dark-mantled Gulls, including the author’s idea of
what L. cachinnans of Pallas should be.
** Leucophaus, Bp.,’ Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 108 (deserip-
tion).
Type and sole representative, L. scoresbi ; but
Leucopheus, Bonap. Naumannia, 1854, p. 211,
also includes £. heermanni; and in
Leucopheus, Bp. Consp. Av. i. p. 231 (1857),
are substituted for the latter L. fuliginosus and L. belcheri.
* Blasipus, Bp.,” Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 108 (description).
Type and sole representative, L. modestus, Tsch.; but
Blasipus, Bonap. Naumannia, 1854, p. 211,
also includes L. crassirostris, Vieill., and, in the Consp. Av., further
includes L. heermannt.
“ddelarus, Bp.,”’ Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106, “Hdelmowen.”
For those species which have both a dark mantle and a hood.
Gelastes, Bonap. Naumannia, 1854, p. 212 (descr. nulla).
For L. gelastes and the small uxhooded southern Gulls.
Atricilla, Bonap. Naumannia, 1854, p. 212.
For L. atricilla and the three other pretended species evolved
from it.
Creagrus, Bonap. Naumannia, 1854, p. 213 (descript. nulla) ;
Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 292 (descr.).
Type, L. furcatus.
Subgen. Melagavia :
Cae En en | | ieee Bong, Nanas
Cirrhocephala ied ee 2
For certain hooded Gulls.
Cirrhocephalus, Bruch,
For a species which had a grey hood!
Bruchigavia, Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 228.
A genus playfully made, because Bruch’s Gavie were not the
[6]
1878. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. 161
same as the author’s Gavie! Its only claim to remembrance is its
adoption by Mr. W. L. Buller as a genus for a New-Zealand species.
Procellarus et Epitelarus, Bonap. Naumannia, 1854, pp. 211,
PM Sie
Genus defined. Type and sole representative, P. neglectus, which
is an immature L. scoresbii. This species the author had already
located in the genus Leucopheus.
Clupeilarus, Bonap. Consp. Av. ii. p. 220 (1857).
For L. fuscus, cachinnans, and verreaurti. This genus has not
even the merit of consistency ; for it contains such different species
as above, whilst it omits Z. dominicunus (of which ZL. verreauvi is
only the African form) and LZ. marinus.
Of the rejected genera one of the best is Gabtanus, Bp., of which
the sole representative, L. pacificus, has a remarkably deep, strong
bill. But it differs in no other structural point from other typical
species of Larus, whilst even in the form of the bill it is at times
closely approached by old males of L. dominicanus ; so that I think its
adoption would beinexpedient. Lewcopheus, Bp., has been confused
between the author and Bruch until it includes species which Bona-
parte himself has almost simultaneously located in two other genera ;
and I can see no structural difference sufficiently marked to make it
desirable to employ either it or Blasipus, which, according to Bona-
parte’s latest view, includes two species differing considerably in the
form of the bill. ddelarus, Bp., appears to be the result of an attempt
to Latinize the compound word ‘‘ Kdelmowen,”’ and should rank with
his Bruchigavia and kindred genera.
The arrangement of the species of Larus is matter of considerable
difficulty. The plan adopted by Schlegel of dividing the Gulls into
Lari marini, for wnhooded species, and Lari cucullati, for those which
at one time or another bear a hood, will not stand the test of later
experience,—almost all of those which have a hood in their immature
stage being emphatically Sea-gulls, as are also a few of those which
have a hood in the breeding-season; whilst at least two of the un-
hooded species are partial to inland waters, aud present, in conse-
quence, the slight modifications of form shown by many of the
hooded marsh-breeding Gulls. Under these circumstances any
ascending or descending arrangement must necessarily be artificial ;
but I have endeavoured to group the species in the most natural
manner which seemed to me to be practicable.
It may be as well to observe that by an ‘‘adult” bird I mean one
which has lost the mottlings, barred tail, and other signs of imma-
turity ; but an “old” bird is often subject to important alterations
in the coloration or “pattern” of the webs of the primaries, although
the general plumage may undergo no material change. The distine-
tion between the age (in years) of the individual and the age (in
months) of the primary and other feathers should also be held in
[7]
162 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. [ Feb. &,
mind, to prevent confusion, although I have endeavoured to avoid
any ambiguity on this point.
Genus Pasopuina.
The short stout bill, coarse rough feet with serrated membranes,
much excised webs, and strong curved claws appear to entitle this
species to generic separation. The hallux is connected on the inside
of the foot by a serrated membrane with the imner toe, a peculiarity .
which I do not recollect seeing noticed elsewhere. The name has
been in use for nearly half a century, and is of general acceptance.
1. PaGopHILA EBURNEA (Phipps).
Larus eburneus, Phipps, Voy. N. Pole, App. p. 187 (1774) ; Gm.
Syst. Nat. i. p. 596 (1788); Scoresby, Arct. Voy. i. p. 535 (1820)
(Spitzbergen) ; Schl. Mus. P.-Bas, Lavi, p. 6 (1868).
Larus candidus, Miller, Prodromus, p. viii. (1776); O. Fabr.
Faun. Green. p. 108 (1780).
Larus niveus, Bodd. T. des Pl. Enl. p. 58, no. 994 (1783) (nee
Pallas).
Larus albus, Schatf. Mus. Orn. p. 65, tab. 42 (1789).
Gavia eburneus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563; Brehm, Vog. Deutseh.
p- 765 (1831).
Pagophila eburnea, Kaup, Nat. Syst. eur. Th. pp. 69, 196 (1829);
Gray, Gen. Birds, iii. p. 655 (1849) ; Newton, Ibis, 1865, p. 507
(Spitzbergen, breeding); P. Wright, Ibis, 1866, p. 217 (Polynia
Island, breeding); Dresser, B. of Eur. pts. lix. lx. May 1877.
Gavia nivea, Brehm, V6g. Deutsch. p. 766 (1831).
Cetosparactes eburneus, Macgill. Man. Brit. Orn. pt. i. p. 252
(1842); Brit. Birds, vol. v.
Larus brachytarsus, Holb. Fn. Greenl. p. 52 (1846).
Pagophila eburneus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106.
Pagophila brachytarsa, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106; Lawr. B.
N. Am. p. 856 (1858); vzde Reinht. Ibis, 1861, p. 18.
Pagophila nivea, Bp. Compt. Rend. xlii. p. 771 (1856); Consp.
Ay. ii. p. 230 (1857).
Larus (Pagophila) eburnea, Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 648 (1874).
Hab. Arctic regions, from Novaya Zemlya to Baffin’s Bay, and
the eastern portion of Arctic America, but not as yet found in the
North Pacific. Straggles down the western coast of Europe and
Eastern America in winter. I can see no reason for considering
Holboll’s L. brachytarsus to be a distinct species.
Genus Rissa.
The principal characteristic assigned to this genus by Leach is
the rudimentary character, or absence, of the hind toe. As this
is not always constant, and as certain rare individuals from
the North Pacific out of many hundreds, are occasionally to be
found with a visible hind claw, and even with a nail, it has been
urged by some systematists that it is not a valid genus. The
[8]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. 163
strongest evidence against it is that brought by Dr. Coues in his
‘Birds of the North-West,’ p. 646, where he says that whereas “a
part of the Kittiwakes from the North Pacific are not distinguishable
in any way from the North-Atlantic bird, others have the hind toe as
perfectly formed and proportionately as large as in any species of
Larus! And there is a gradation between them.’ He goes on to
cite an extreme example from Plover Bay, with a hallux, including
the nail -2 in., with a perfect claw. Whilst writing this paper I have
received, through the kindness of the authorities of the Smithsonian
Institution at Washington, a similar extreme form with a hallux and
nail *2 in., the claw being well formed and curved, although the whole
is certainly but small for the size of the bird, as may be seen by a com-
parison with a species of about the same size, Z. canus, in which the
hallux and nail measure *5 in. Mr. O. Salvin has also lent me two
specimens, both, as well as my own, from Alaska, in the one of
which the nail is somewhat less developed, whilst in the other it
is absent, as in the Atlantic bird. It is probable that this ex-
treme form is both rare and local; at least I have never been able to
find any but these two examples amongst the many Kittiwakes,
Pacific and others, which I have examined. However, there it is; and
if the genus Rissa depended solely upon the absence of the hind toe,
it would have to be given up. There are, however, other structural
characteristics, which, when united, seem to me to have weight. The
tarsus is remarkably short, bemg only 1:2 against 1-9 in. in length
of middle toe and claw, proportions unknown in any other group of
Gulls; the shape of the curved bill is also peculiar ; the ¢az/ is visibly
although not deeply, forked; whilst these structural differences are
supplemented by such minor characteristics as the peculiar livery of
the immature bird, totally unlike that of the adult, or of the young
of any other species, and by its exclusively crag-nesting habits. Bear-
ing all these points in mind, I think that, although it is no longer
absolutely correct to say that the genus Rissa depends upon the
absence of the hallux, yet it is advisable to retain it as, on the whole,
a valid natural division, sanctioned, moreover, by general use during
upwards of half a century.
2. Rissa TRrpacryLa (Linn.).
Larus rissa, Linn. Syst. Nat. 1. p. 224 (1766); Phipps, Voy.
N. Pole, App. p. 187 (1774); Leach, Syst. Cat. Brit. Mus. p. 40
(1816); Scoresby, Arct. Voy. i. p. 534 (1820).
Larus tridactylus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 224 (1766); O. Fabr.
F. Greenl. p. 98 (1780); Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 595 (1788); Schl.
M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 31 (1863); Godman, Ibis, 1872, p. 222 (Ca-
naries).
Larus albus, P. L. 8. Miller, Natursystem, p. 108 (1776) (based
on Buffon’s Mouette cendrée tachetée).
“Larus cinerarius, Linn.” O. Fabr. F. Greenl. p. 101 (1780), nee
Linn. (winter-plumage, from description).
Larus riga (mispr.), Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 594 (1788).
Larus nevius, Schaff. Mus. Orn. p. 64 (1789).
[9]
164 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. [Feb. 5,
Larus torquatus et Larus gavia, Pallas, Zoogr. Rosso-As. ii. pp.
328, 329 (1811).
Gavia tridactylus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563.
Rissa brunnichii, Stephens, ex Leach, in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii.
pt. i. p. 181, pl. 21 (1825), type of genus Rissa.
Cheimonea tridactylus, Kaup, Nat. Syst. eur. Th. pp. 84, 196
(1829), type of genus Cheimonea.
Larotdes tridactylus, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 754 (1831).
Laroides rissa, id., op. cit. p. 755 (1831).
Laroides minor, id., op. cit. p. 756 (1831).
Rissa cinerea, Kyton, Cat. Brit. B. p. 52 (1836).
Rissa tridactyla, Macgill. Man. Brit. B. ii. p. 249 (1842); Hist.
Brit. B. v. p. 515; Gray, Gen. Birds, ii. p. 655 (1849); Bruch, J.
f. Orn. p. 103 (1853) ; Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 225 (1857).
“Rissa brachyrhynchus (Gould), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 103,
nec Gould.
Rissa borealis et gregaria, Brehm, Naum. 1855, p. 294.
“‘ Rissa niveus (Pall.),” Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 285, nec Pallas.
Rissa kotzebui, Bp. Consp. Av. il. p. 226 (1857).
Larus (Rissa) tridactylus, Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 644 (1874).
Larus tridactylus, var. kotzebui (Bp.), ibid. p. 646 (1874).
Hab. Arctic region, and along the sea-coasts of the subarctic
region, down to about 40° N. lat., breeding perhaps even in the
Canaries (Godman); in winter it is abundant about the Azores,
Canaries, and opposite coast of Africa. In America it is found on
both Atlantic and Pacific coasts, but does not seem to extend far
down the latter, nor to Japan or China even in winter.
In treating of the genus, I have already noticed that examples
are occasionally found about Alaska and the Aleutian Islands with
a minute but tolerably developed hind toe, and, at times, with a
visible nail, a variation which is rare and not always equal in extent,
even on both feet of the same individual. I have therefore treated
var. kotzebui as a synonym, there being no other difference between
this and the ordinary Kittiwake, and a gradation between them
existing.
3. Rissa BREVIROSTRIS, Brandt.
Larus brachyrhynchus, Gould, P. Z.S. 1843, p. 106; Zool. Voy.
of ‘Sulphur,’ p. 50, pl. 34 (1844), nee Richardson (1831).
*‘ Rissa nivea (Pall.),’’ Gray, Gen. Birds, ill. p. 655 (1849), nec
Pallas; Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 855; Elliot, B. N. Am. pl. 54.
“Rissa brevirostris, Brandt,’? Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 103;
id. 1855, p. 285; Dall and Bann. Tr. Chic. Ac. i. 1869, p. 305.
“Gavina citrirostris, Schimper,” Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 284
(Kamtschatka).
Rissa brachyrhyncha, Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 226 (1857); Coues,
P. Ac. N. Se. Philad. 1862, p. 306.
Larus warnecki, Coinde, Rev. et M. Zool. 1860, p. 401 (Aleutian
Islands).
[10]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN &. 165
Larus brevirostris, Coues, Key Am. B. p. 315 (1872); Elliot’s
Prybilov Is. Birds, no. 543.
Larus (Rissa) brevirostris, Brandt; Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 646
(1874).
Hab. The North Pacific, between Alaska and Kamtschatka,
where it is very abundant, breeding in thousands on the Prybilov
Islands.
This is a very distinct species, and may at once be recognized by
its very short stout bill, on ange-red legs and feet, and dark mantle ;
the ground-colour of the primaries is also dark grey. I am indebted
to the liberality of the authorities of the Smithsonian Institution for
a fine specimen of this species, which is as yet rare in collections.
A variation in the hind toe and nail, similar to that in R. tridac-
tyla, although in a smaller degree, is observable in this species. My
own specimen has no claw on the right hind toe, and only a minute
black speck on the left ; of two others, from Alaska (e Mus. Salvin
& Godman), the one has no hind nail whatever, whilst the other has
small black nails, unequal in size, on both hind toes.
Genus Larus.
4. Larus Guaucus, Fabr.
Larus glaucus, O. Fabricius, Faun. Greenl. p. 100 (1780, ex
Brinn.) ; Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 600 (1788) ; No ac Arct. Voy. 1.
p- 535 (1820) ; Middendorff, Sib. Reise, i. p. 241 (1858); Newton,
Ibis, 1865, p. 509 ; Schlegel, Mus. P.-Bas, hoe p. 4 (1863) ; Coues,
B. N.W. Am. p. 620 (1874) ; Swinhoe, Ibis, 1874, p. 165 (Japan) ;
Seebohm & H. Brown, ibis, 1876, p. 453 (Lower Petchora) ; Dresser,
B. of Europe, pts. lix., Ix. (1877).
“Larus giganteus, Temm,” Benicke, Ann. Wetterau. Gesellsch.
ul. p. 140 (1814).
Larus leuceretes, Schleep, N. Ann. Wetterau. G.i. p. 314 (i819).
Larus consul, Boie, Wiedemann’s Zool. Mag. p. 126.
Larus islandicus, Edmonst. Mem. Wern. Soe. iv. (1822) p. 185
(nec Edmonst. op. cit. p. 506=L. leucopterus).
Larus glacialis, Macgill. Mem. Wern. Soc. v. pl. i. p. 270 (1824).
Leucus glaucus, Kaup, Natiirl. Syst. p. 86 (1829).
** Larus glacialis, Benicke,” Brehm, Vég. Deutschl. p. 732 (1831).
Larus hutchinsii, Richards. F. Bor.-Am. i. p. 419, note (1831) ;
Cassin, P. Philad. Ac. 1862, p. 290; Coues, ibid. p. 294; Elhot,
B.N. Am. ii. pl. 53; Dall. & Bann. Tr. Chic. Ac. p. 304 (1869).
Plautus glaucus, Reich. Nat. Syst. Av. Longip. p. 5 (1852); Ie.
Av. pl 47. fig. 316-313, pl. 50. fig. 2640.
Glaucus consul (Boie), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 101.
Laroides glaucus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 281.
Hab. Arctic regions; seldom breeding much to the south of the
arctic circle. In winter it goes southwards, and has been known to
stragele as far as the Mediterranean, to Long Island on the Atlantic
coast of America, also on to the coasts of Japan, whence I have seen
specimens obtained at Hakodadi by Capt. Blakiston.
[11]
166 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN#. ([Peba5;
L. hutchinsii I consider to be an immature L. glaucus in the stage
where the mottled brown of immature plumage has passed away, and
the pearl-grey mantle has not yet begun to show. This stage lasts
but a short time, which will account for the fact that this supposed
species has so rarely been obtained; but I have always observed in
young specimens in captivity that at this stage they are nearly, and
sometimes quite, white. A fine example in this state, cbtained off
Japan by Capt. St. John, H.M.S. ‘Sylvia,’ is in the Marquis of
Tweeddale’s collection. Mr. Collett obtained one in Norway in
September 1871; and several have been recorded from America.
The feet and legs in adults of this Gull are bright flesh-pink, and
not lemon-yellow as depicted by an extraordinary freak of the
colourist in Mr. Dresser’s ‘ Birds of Europe.’
5. LARUS LEUCOPTERUS, Faber.
Larus argentatus, KE. Sabine, Tr. Linn. Soc. xii. p. 546 (nec
auctt.).
Larus leucopterus, Faber, Prod. Isl. Orn. p. 91 (1822); Sw. &
Rich. F. Bor.-Am. ii. p. 418 (1831) ; Schl. Mus. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 5
(1863); Dall. & Bann. Tr. Chic. Ac. i. 1869, p. 304 (Alaska and
Lower Yukon); Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 622 (1874); Dresser, B.
of Europe, pt. xlix (1876).
“Larus glaucoides, Temm.’”’ Meyer, Taschenb. iii. p. 197 (1822);
Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 562.
Larus glaucoides, Temm. Pl. Col. 77° livr. Introd. Larus (1828).
Larus islandicus, Edmonst. Mem. W ern. Soc. iv. p. 506 (1823)
(nec Edmonst. op. cit. p- 185).
Larus arcticus, Macgill. Mem. Werner. Soc. v. no. xiii. p. 268
(1824) (large specimen).
Larus minor, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 736 (1831).
Laroides glaucoides, Brehm, op. cit. p. 744.
Laroides leucopterus, Brehm, op. cit. p. 745; Bruch, J. f. Orn.
1855, p. 281.
Laroides subleucopterus, Brehm, op. cit. p. 746.
Glaucus leucopterus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 101.
Glaucus glacialis, Bruch, op. cit. p. 101.
Larus chaleopterus, Licht. Nomencl. Av. Mus. Berol. p. 99
(1854), sine descr. (type examined, H.S.).
? Laroides chalcopterus (Licht.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p.22
Laroides glacialis, Bruch, op. cit. 1855, p. 282.
Leucus chalcopterus, Bp. Consp. Av. i. p. 216 (1857).
Leucus arcticus, Bp. op. cit. p. 216.
Leucus leucopterus, Bp. op. cit. p. 217.
Hab. Even more thoroughly arctic, during the breeding-season,
than L. glaucus; straggling southward in winter as far as the coast
of France. It is not even authenticated as breeding in Iceland or
Spitzbergen ; but it does so within the arctic circle from Greenland
to Behring’s Straits, It also breeds in Alaska ; and I have examined
a specimen which was obtained in Japan by Capt. Blakiston.
(12)
1878. } MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. 167
6. Larus GLAUCESCENS, Licht.
Glaucus glaucescens (Licht.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 101 (type
examined, H. S8.).
“Glaucus glaucopterus, Kittlitz,’ Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p.
101.
Larus glaucopterus, Licht. Nomencl. Av. Mus. Berol. p. 99, sine
descr. (1854), Behring’s Straits, Chamisso (type examined, H. §.).
Laroides glaucescens, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 281.
Leucus glaucescens, Bp. Compt. Rend. xlii. (1856) p. 770; Consp.
Av. ii. p. 216 (1857).
Larus glaucescens, Licht.; Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 842 (1858); Coues,
Proc. Philad. Ac. 1862, p. 295; id. B. N.W. Am. p. 622; Swinhoe,
Ibis, 1874, p. 165 (Japan).
Larus chaleopterus, Lawr. B. of N. Am.p. 843, 1860; Coues, Proc.
Philad. Ac. 1862, p. 295 (nee Licht. ).
Hab. Pacific coast of North America up to Behring’s Straits, and,
on the Asiatic side, Kamtschatka, and as far south as Hakodadi,
Japan, whence I have seen a specimen obtained by Capt. Blakiston.
This apparent link between the large Gulls with white primaries
and those with barred primaries may be roughly described as a
Herring-Gull with the black portion of the primary-pattern nearly
washed out. It is quite unmistakable. The changes of plumage in
its progress to maturity show, however, that its relationship to ZL.
giaucus is closer than to L. argentatus.
7. LARUS ARGENTATUS, Gm.
Larus fuscus, Penn. Brit. Zool. ii. p. 131 (1768), nec Linn.; Mont.
Orn. Dict. i. (1802).
Larus argentatus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 600 (1788), ex Brunn. ;
Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 16 (includes allies) ; Gundlach, J. f. Orn.
1857, p. 236 (Cuba) ; B. du Bocage, Jorn. Soc. Lisb. 1868, pp. 149,
330 (Angola) ; Hartlaub, Syst. Orn. W.-Afrik. p. 251 (1857),
Senegal; Dresser, B. of Europe, pt. xxii. (Oct. 1873); Coues, B.
N.W. Am. p. 625, 1874.
Larus marinus, var. 3, Latham, Ind. Orn. ii. p. p. 814 (1790).
Larus glaucus, Retzius, F. Suec, i. p. 156 (1800), nec Brinn. ;
Meyer & W. Taschenb. ii. p. 471 (1810).
Larus cinereus, Leach, Syst. Cat. Brit. Mus. p. 40. (1816).
Larus argentatoides, Brehm, Beitr. Vogelkunde, i. pp. 791, 799
» 822).
Larus argenteus, Macgill. Mem. Wern. Soc. v. p. 264 (1824).
“Larus argentatoides (Bonap.),’ Sw. & Richards. F. Bor.-Am.
Birds, p. 417 (1831), nec Brehm, nec Bonap.
Laroides major, argentatus, argenteus, argentatoides, et argenta-
ceus, Brehm, Voée. Deutschl. pp. 738-743 (1831).
Glaucus argentatus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 101.
Glaucus aryentatoides, Bruch, op. cit. p. 101.
Larus marinus, Gundl. J. F. Orn. 1857, p. 236; Lembeye, Aves,
de Cuba, p. 122 (1850), ef. Gundl. J. f. Orn. 1871, p. ae
13]
168 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZE. [Feb. 5,
Larus smithsonianus, Coues, Pr. Ac. N. Se. Philad. 1862, p. 296
(North America).
In this species the amount of white on the primaries increases with
the age of the individual. Mr. Dresser (B. of Europe, xxu. LZ. ar-
gentatus, p. 3) describes an adult male from the Orkneys in summer,
in my collection, as having “the outermost primary almost entirely
blacki-h, white towards the tip, and crossed by a subapical black
band; the next two grey at the base, black towards the tip, being
finally terminated by a large white spot.’ ‘his is correct, so far
as any breeding bird with unspotted pearl-grey mantle may be termed
adult; but the example in question is far from being an old bird.
Bearing in mind that the evtreme white tip diminishes by abrasion
with the age of the feather, the following are the patterns of the
outer primaries with the increasing age of the bird :—On the outer
primary the white spot, or “ mirror,” absorbs the black bar till the
latter wholly disappears, leaving the primary pure white from the
tip to more than two inches upwards; whilst from above, a grey
“ wedge’ along the inner web gradually eats into the black portion,
reducing the width of the black along the inner web to only two
inches. In the second primary a white “mirror”’ appears, which
also increases with the age of the bird; but in this feather, so far
as I have vet seen, it does not wholly absorb the black bar and
unite with the white tip ; what it does, however, is to eat round the
hlack above it, so as to cut off the black from the inner web, and
thus unites with the grey wedge, which has been gradually increasing
its dimensions downwards. It is needless to give a minute description
of the remaining primaries ; it will suffice to say that, as a rule, the
encroachment of the light portions upon the dark ones increases with
the age of the bird, and there may easily be stages of further pro-
gression with which I am not yet acquainted. This grey ‘‘ wedge”
on the upper portions of the primaries should be borne in mind, as
it is an important distinction between some closely allied species.
These observations equally apply to the Yellow-legged Herring-Gull
(L. cachinnans) and to the American bird which Dr. Coues formerly
distinguished as L. smithsonianus. Dr. Coues, although he has
given it up as a species, even now maintaias (B. of N.W. Am. p. 628)
that if a subapical spot (or ‘‘ mirror’’) is present on the second pri-
mary of the American bird, it is small; but in two examples before
me, of the correctness of whose locality I am well assured, the one
from Grand Manan, in June, has it well developed, whilst in another,
from Long Island, the mirror extends right across the feather, and
on the inner web has nearly eaten through the black and effected a
junction with the grey wedge above. Indeed only one European
bird in my collection has the mirror still more developed. The
average of American may possibly be a little larger than the average
Old-World specimens ; but I have not examined a sufficient series of
the former to speak with the same confidence upon this point that Dr.
Coues does ; at any rate that difference is admittedly unworthy of
specific distinction. The mantle in the true adult L. argentatus is,
as every one knows, pearl-grey, the legs and feet bemg flesh-
coloured ; and the ring outside the eye is of a pale yellow. Taking
LI]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. 169
these as the characteristics to distinguish it from its congeners, its
range may be defined as the north-west of Europe from the Varanger
Fiord, the Baltic, the western coasts down to North Africa, the
Azores (where it breeds), Madeira, and the Canaries (Godian\. To
Greenland it is a very rare straggler; but it was obtained at Winter
Islands, near Melville Peninsula, occurs in Hudson’s-Bay territory
as far as the Mackenzie River, and probably reaches right across to
the Pacific coast, where it certainly occurs, a specimen from Kodiak,
collected by Wosnesensky, in the St.-Petersburg Museum, being, as
Mr. Seebohm informs me, much lighter in the mantle than Z. ea-
chinnans; and several specimens from the west coast of Mexico are in
my collection. Dall and Bannister also record what seems to be this
species from Alaska and from the Upper Yukon. There can be no
doubt that examples from northern latitudes have a somewhat lighter
mantle than those from more temperate regions, although the trans-
ition is very gradual; and this light form has received the name of
LL. argentatoides. From Labrador this species ranges down the coast
aud along the great rivers and inland lakes as far as Texas; it also
visits Cuba and Bermudas. Prof. Barboza du Bocage, in his “ List
of Birds in the Lisbon Museum” (J. f. Orn. 1876, p. 291),
cites an example cbtained on the Angola coast, and another at Porto
Alexandre, Benguela, more than 15° south of the equator, and in
the latitude of the island of St. Helena. ‘this is indeed an exten-
sion of its range, provided there is no error in the identification of
the specimens.
8. Larus CACHINNANS, Pall.
Larus cachinnans, Pallas, Zoogr. Ross.-As. i. p. 318 (1811).
Larus argentatus, Bp. tconogr. F. Ital. Uccelli, Introd. (1832-41);
Middend. Sib. Reise 11. p. 242 (part.), (1853); Schlegel, Mus.
Pays-Bas, Lari, p. 17 (part.), 1863; Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1565, p. 380
(part.) ; Hume, Yarkand Exp. Zool. p. 299 (1873), Kashmir; id.
Stray Feath. i. p. 270 (1873), Seinde.
Larus cachinnans, Pall.; v. der Mithle, Orn. Griechenl. p. 143
(1842).
Glaucus leucopheus, (Licht.) Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. LOL (Red
Sea).
Glaucus michahellesii, Bruch, tom. cit. p. 101.
“ Glaucus borealis, Brandt,” Bruch, tom. cit. p. 101.
Laroides michahellesit, Bruch, op. cit. 1855, p. 282.
Laroides cachinnans, (Pall.), Bruch, tom. cit. p. 282.
“« Laroides borealis, (Brandt)”’ Bruch, tom. cit. p. 282.
Larus epargyrus, Licht. Nomencl. Av. Mus. Berol. p. 99 (1854),
sine descr. (type examined, H. 8.).
Larus leucopheus, Licht. Nomencl. Av. Mus. Berol. p. 99 (1854),
descr. nulla (type examined, H.8.); Salvadori, Cat. Uce. Sard. p.
129 (1864) ; Finsch & Hartl. Vog. Ost-Afrik. p. 818 (1870) ;
Dresser, B. of Europe, pt. xxil. (Oct. 1873).
Larowdes leucopheus, Bp. Naumannia, 1854, p. 212; id. Consp. ii.
p. 219 (1857).
[15]
170 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [Feb. 5,
Larus fuscescens, Sclater, P. Z. S. 1867, p. 315, et Rev. List of
Vert. (1872), p. 316.
? Larus fuscescens, Licht.; Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100,
(part.). One of the two specimens so labelled in the Berlin
Museum is of this species ; the other is a L. fuseus.
After much consideration and the examination of a very large
series of specimens from various localities, I have come to the con-
clusion that this form, or species, is sufficiently distinct to be treated
apart from L. argentatus. The distinguishing characteristics of L.
cachinnans are the darker mantle, yellow legs and feet, and the deep
orange-red ring round the outside of the eye. These colours are
naturally much more apparent in life than in dried skins; but the
colour of the mantle is enough to enable any one with an ordinary
perception of shades to separate the two birds ata glance. In the
pattern of the primaries, and in the individual variations in size both
are alike. With regard to the name which I have adopted, it seems
to me that there cannot be the slightest doubt as to the species
Pallas meant by his Larus cachinnans from the Caspian and the
Steppes: he describes it fully ; and, to avoid any ambiguity as to the
shade of colour of the mantle, he uses precisely the same term that
he does for the mantle of L. achthyaétus, which exactly suits this
species, whilst it is too dark for L. argentatus, and too light for L.
affinis. Yet more, my friend Mr. Seebohm, on his return from
Siberia, examined the Larine in the St.-Petersburg Museum; and,
thanks to him, I am able to state from absolute comparison that L.
cachinnans, and L. leucopheus of the Mediterranean are the same,
Pallas’s name having the priority.
It appears, indeed, to be a form which, whether from living in a
more brilliant atmosphere, or from frequenting inland seas as dis-
tinct from great oceans, or from other causes with which we are not
acquainted, has acquired a greater intensity of coloration than its
congener ; but it is not altogether easy to indicate its precise range.
The most northern example that I have examined is from Havre,
an adult male, the oldest, to judge by the primaries, of any grey-
backed gull in my collection ; so that it appears to straggle up the
French coast. I[t is not, however, till the Mediterranean is reached
that L. cachinnans replaces L. argentatus; thence it ranges through-
out that inland sea, breeding on its shores and islands ; goes up the
Black Sea, across the steppes and the low-lying marshy and salt-
lake districts of Russia from the mouths of the Volga and the shores
of the Caspian, as far as Vologda, across the Ural river and the
Kirgish steppes, to the Irtich and as far as Lake Baikal. The above
seems to be, roughly, its breeding-range ; for Meves’s description of
the ‘‘L. cachinnans’’ obtained at Cholmogory on the Dwina applies
better to the next species: it was so dark in the mantle that he at
first took it to be ZL. fuscus. The species found in Kashmir by the
Yarkand expedition was probably L. cachinnans. It goes down the
Red Sea, and in winter visits the Persian Gulf, and the Mekran coast
as far as Kurrachee. It is also found along the coasts of China and
Japan in winter, and is the species recorded by Swinhoe under the
[16]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. 171
names of LZ. cachinnans and L. occidentalis ; but his birds are most
decidedly not the true LZ. occidentalis of Audubon, which has never
as yet been obtained anywhere on the Asiatic shores. All Asiatic
birds show very distinctly the grey wedge in the outer primaries,
which L. occidentalis never does: besides, their mantles are not
nearly dark enough for that species. I possess, or have examined,
a large series of specimens from almost all the localities I have
indicated, and have taken very little from descriptions ; indeed it
is necessary to rely in this matter on one’s own observations, as the
confusion respecting this group is inconceivable to any one who has
not studied the question. In Japanese and Chinese specimens, all
obtained in winter, my collection is especially rich, owing to the
efforts of Capt. St. John, of H.M.S. ‘Sylvia,’ and Lieut. Stanley
Muggeridge, of H.M.S. ‘ Kestrel ;? Professor Taczanowski has sent
me specimens from Lake Baikal, and Mr. W. Muloch and Mr.
Blanford examples from Kurrachee and the Mekran coast, whilst
as regards Russia and the Mediterranean Mr. Seebobm’s and other
collections have been available. I may observe that I think it quite
possible that in individuals from more northern localities the feet may
not be so distinctly yellow as in examples breeding in the Mediter-
ranean, believing, as I do, that certain atmospheric conditions exercise
a considerable effect upon coloration.
9. Larus AFFINIS, Reinh.
Larus affinis, Reinhardt, Vidensk. Meddel. 1853, p. 78, et Ibis,
1861, p. 17 (type examined, H. S.); Seebohm and H. Brown, Ibis,
1876, p. 452.
Larus argentatus (partim), Midd. Sib. Reise, ii. p. 242. (The
description of the bird from Sea of Okhotsk clearly applies to this
species. )
Larus cachinnans, Licht. Nomencl. Av. Mus. Berol. p. 99, nec
Pallas (specimens examined, H. 8.).
Larus fuscus, Jerdon, B. of India, ii. p. 830 (1864).
Larus cachinnans, Meves, Ofv. k. Vetensk. Ak. Férh. 1871, p. 786
(Cholmogory) ; Heugl. Orn. N.O.-Afr. Bd. 2. Abth. ii. p. 1392 (nec
Pallas).
Larus, sp.? No. 39, Heuglin (nec Pallas), Ibis, 1872, p. 65
(Novaya Zemlia and Waigats): description can only apply to this
species.
its occidentalis, Hume, Stray Feath. 1873, p. 273 (uee
Audub.).
Larus heuglini, Bree, B. Eur. 2nd ed. v. p. 58 (1876).
Professor J. Reinhardt, of Copenhagen, was the first to discrimi-
nate and to confer a name upon an individual of this species which
had straggled to Greenland; but for a knowledge of its habitat and
distribution we are indebted to Messrs. Seebohm and Harvie Brown,
who found it breeding upon the Petchora, where, however, it only
comes about 11th May, and retires southward on the approach of
winter. ‘The series of specimens brought home by these energetic
naturalists threw a light upon many points which had hitherto been
obseure, and showed the real position of numerous specimens from
[17]
172 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINE. [Feb. 5,
the Red Sea and the Beloochistan coast, which had formerly been a
great trouble, most of them being in immature plumage, and not
suiting either LZ. cachinnans or L. fuscus.
Mr. Hume’s description of the pattern of the primaries of the birds
found in winter about Kurrachee (Stray Feathers, 1873, p. 273)
shows clearly that his LZ. occidentalis is this species, and by no
means the true American bird, the occurrence of which, as I
have said before, has never yet been authenticated on the coasts of
Asia.
Heuglin’s dark-mantled bird from Novaya Zemlia is clearly L.
affinis ; and Middendorff’s description of a variety of L. argentatus
found round the southern shores of the Sea of Okhotsk also applies
to this species.
It may appear strange at first sight that this species should have
been first described from Greenland; but that is merely due to the
unusually careful attention which the fauna of that country has
received from Dr. Reinhardt, whose watchful eyes not even a straggler
could escape. I have examined the type, and am satisfied that it is
of this species. It connects with L. fuscus rather closely (although
quite distinct) in the length of its foot as compared with that of the
tarsus, it having a proportionally smaller foot than either LZ. argen-
tatus, L. cachinnans, or L. occidentalis, but larger than L. fuscus.
From the last it may also be distinguished by its larger size and the
distinct ‘‘pattern’’ of the outer primaries, the grey wedge being
quite marked in this species, whilst it is absent in the outer feather
of L. fuscus. ‘The mirror on the second primary is moreover only
to be found in very old birds (not one of thirteen breeding-birds
obtained on the Petchora had it); whilst in old LZ. fuscus this
mirror is always present. ‘The present species is in fact a Herring-
Gull which passes the whole of the year in a brilliant atmosphere ;
and I cannot help thinking that to this, and to other conditions of
existence with which we are as yet unacquainted, its intensity of
coloration is mainly attributable.
10. Larus occCIDENTALIS, Audubon.
Larus occidentalis, Aud. Orn. Biogr. v. p. 320 (1839); Lawr. B.
of N. Am. p. 845 (1858) ; Elliot, B. N. Am. il. pl. hi.; Cowes,
P. Ac. N.S. Philad. 1862, p. 296; Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 15
(1863).
Giaucus occidentalis, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 101.
Laroides occidentalis, id. op. cit. 1855, p. 282; Bp. Consp. Av. ii.
p- 219 (1857).
Larus argentatus, var. occidentalis, Coues, Key N. Am. Birds,
p. 312 (1872); id. B. of N.W. Am. p. 633 (1874).
Larus fuscus?, Saund. P. Z.S. 1875, p. 158 (Lower California).
Hab. Pacific coast of North America down to Magdalena Bay,
Lower California.
It seems to me that this is a very recognizable form, and fully
deserving of consideration as a species. Its nearest ally is, on the
whole, L. afinis; but in the wing-pattern the grey wedge is absent in
[18]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN/. 173
the two outer primaries; and their ground-colour is rather darker
than in most examples of LZ. fuscus. In the colour of the mantle
many specimens are quite as dark as L. fuscus, especially those
from Southern California, one of which I should have referred to
that species but for its long coarse foot ; for at that time I had only
northern specimens of L. occidentalis available, and these are con-
siderably lighter on the mantle and in general tint. Since then [
have had the opportunity of inspecting more examples and of knowing
the species better ; and it seems to me that its large deep bill will
generally, and its large coarse foot, longer than the tarsus, will
always, suffice to separate it from L. fuscus, which has a delicate
foot, much shorter than the tarsus. Asa rule L. occidentalis is a
stouter bird; but some males of Z. fuscus from the south of Europe
run very long in the wing and as large in the bill, whilst on the other
hand the Magdalena-Bay ZL. occidentalis is a female, and has an
unusually slender bill. In one example I have found a tiny sub-
apical spot on the second primary on one side, but not on the other ;
so that it is probably a mark of extreme age; but in fully adult
L. fuscus this is common. Although I have laid stress upon the
characters which distinguish this Gull from L. fuscus, yet it is rather
more closely related to the Herring-Gull group, as shown by its
generally larger size, stout bill, and large feet, which are flesh-coloured
in this species, although, as in many other cases, they are sometimes
rather yellow when dried.
11. Larus ruscus, Linn.
Larus fuscus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 225 (1766); Scop. Ann.
Hist. Nat. p. 80 (1769); Gmel. ce Nat. i. p- 599 (1788) ; Tak
Ind, Orn. p. 815 (1790); ‘Temm. Man. d’Orn. p. 496 (1815); Sehl.
M. Pays-Bas, Lari, p. 15 (1863); Finsch & Hartl. Vog. Ost-Afr.
p- 820 (1870) ; Sharpe and Wrestce B. of Europe, pt. xvi. (Feb-
ruary 1873).
Larus flavipes, Meyer, Tasch. Vog. Deutschl. i. p. 469, pl. front.
(1810).
Larus cinereus, Leach, Syst. Cat. Mamm. &c., Brit. Mus. p. 401
(1816).
anes argentatus, Mont.” Bewick, Brit. B. Supp. p. 39 (1821).
Leucus fuscus, Kaup, Natiirl. Syst. pp. 86 and 196 (1829).
Laroides melanotos, harengorum et fuscus, Brehm, Vég. Deutschl.
pp. 747-749 (1831).
Dominicanus fuscescens (Licht.) partim, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853,
p- 100. Lichtenstein’s example from Arabia is this species; the
other bearing this name is L. cachinnans (specimens examined, H. S.).
Dominicanus fuscus (Linn.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100; id.
op. cit. 1855, p. 281, including his L. fuscescens of 1853.
Clupeilurus fuscus, Bonap. Consp. Av. il. p. 220 (1857).
“‘ Larus medius, Hempr. & Ehr.” in Mus. Berol. ‘‘Gumfudde.”’
An immature specimen of this species, H. S.
Hab. The north of Europe, the Faroes, the Baltic, Russia as far
east as Archangel, the British Islands, the French coast, and the
[19]
174 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [ Feb. 5,
Canaries (probably its south-west breeding-limit, although it is
known to go as far south as Senegal, whence [ have examined spe-
cimens obtained in May). It visits the Portuguese and Spanish coasts,
goes up the Mediterranean to the Black Sea, ascends the Nile to
Nubia, and is found throughout the Nile country, whilst on the Red
Sea, as far as Aden, it is stated to be sedentary (insch § Hartlaub).
Jerdon’s solitary immature specimen procured at Jaulna, in the
Deccan, was probably L. affinis, the length of the wing (18 to 19
inches) being greater than that of any L. fuscus I ever saw, 173
inches being the very extreme for an old and fresh-moulted bird;
and, indeed, Mr. Dresser gives only 15°7! Mr. Dresser states that
Dybowski found it in Dauria ; but Prof. Taczanowski, in his “ Faune
de la Sibérie Orientale”’ (Bull. Soc. Zool. de France, i.) does not
mention it amongst that traveller’s collection; and with regard to
the quotation by the above author of Mr. Swinhoe’s authority for its
occurrence on the coast of China, a reference to the revised “ List
of the Birds of China,” P. Z.S. 1871, p. 421. no. 656, shows that
the species referred to (‘Ibis,’ 1860, p. 68) as L. fuscus was really
LL. crassirostris, Vieill. (L. melanurus, Temm.), thus considerably
circumscribing the eastern range attributed toit. As regards America,
Dr. Coues considers that there is no good evidence of its occurrence
on the coasts of the United States.
The distinguishing characteristics of the adult of this species are
its dark slate-coloured mantle, chrome-yellow legs and feet, and the
shortness of the foot as compared with the tarsus. The outer pri-
maries are very dark, and may be termed black, with a subapical
patch or mirror on the first; and in old birds there is a small
mirror on the second primary ; but even in these there is xo sign of
the grey wedge on the upper part of the inner web of the outermost,
scarcely so on the second, and but rarely even on the third—a
marked difference from the LZ. argentatus group. In L. fuscus the
inner web merely fades into a lighter shade towards the edge; and
this dark ground of the primaries, and the absence of distinct
“‘ pattern,’ coupled with its average smaller size, and especially the
smaller foot, will generally be sufficient to distinguish it from either
L. affinis or L. occidentalis. But for the large coarse foot, I should
have assigned a specimen of L. occidentalis, from Magdalena Bay,
California, to this species ; for at the time I had never seen so dark a
form of the American bird. In shade of mantle there is much
variation, some being in this respect quite as light as L. afinis, whilst
the blackest are Egyptian specimens, in which the yellow feet are
also brightest, probably due to climatic influences. ‘These very dark
birds when old have certainly a white subapical spot on the second
primary, although Blasius imagined that this was confined to northern
and lighter-mantled birds. The examples which run closest to L.
affinis are some from Malaga and Tangiers, two of which I have with
the subapical spot on the second primary, showing considerable age ;
but even with these the difference between them and L. affinis is very
marked, LZ. afinis having the grey wedge so much more defined.
The adults, therefore, are quite distinguishable; but some years ago,
[20]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINE. 175
before Messrs. Seebohm and Harvie Brown’s explorations on the
Petchora had made me acquainted with a series of L. affinis, | was
much puzzled by Mr. W. Blanford’s immature birds from the
Baluchistan coast, obtained in December 1871 to January 1872, and
I led him into the error of ascribing them to L. fuscus. By my
note-book of specimens examined I find that I was in much doubt
even at that time, owing to their size and the relative dimensions of
the feet and tarsi; but according to my lights I could then ascribe
them to nothing else. I now consider them to have been ZL.
affinis. :
12. Larus caLirornicus, Lawr.
? Larus niveus, Pall. Zoogr. Rosso-As. i. p. 320, pl. 86 (1811),
(Kamtschatka), nee Bodd. T. Pl. Enl. 994 (1783).
? Laroides americanus, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 743 (1831).
Larus californicus, Lawr. Ann. Lye. New York, vi. 1854, p. 79 ;
id. Birds N. Am. p. 846 (1858) ; Coues, Pr. Ac. N. S. Phil. 1862,
p. 300; id. B. of N.W. Am. p. 634 (1874).
Laroides californicus, Bp. Consp. Av. il. p. 220 (1857).
Larus delawarensis, var. californicus, Coues, Key N.-Am. B.
p. 313 (1872).
Hab. Pacific coast of North America from Vancouver's Island to
Lower California, and the interior as far as the vicinity of Great
Slave Lake; also Japan coast, whence I have examined an adult
specimen in the Marquis of Tweeddale’s collection, obtained by Capt.
St. John, H.M.S. ‘Sylvia,’ off Kali, Japan, in January 1872.
The name L. niveus, Pallas, is not available, having been previously
employed by Boddaert for Pagophila eburnea; but I have long been
of opinion that the bird described by Pallas under that name was
really this species—a conviction strengthened by the sight of an un-
doubted example from Japan, proving that it does cross the North
Pacific. It has generally been supposed to apply to a larger race of
ZL. canus; but Pallas knew ZL. canus perfectly well, and he describes
his LZ. niveus as a somewhat scarce visitor to the northern and
Kamtschatkan seas, and not in the habit of going far up the rivers,
also as “‘magnitudo corvi coracis.””. Now the largest LZ. canus could
hardly be described as of the size of a Raven ; and, except in the wing,
which is proportionally long in that Gull, the other measurements
are too large for it; but they exactly suit LZ. californicus, and
Pallas’s figure is a perfect portrait of a specimen recently sent to me
through the kindness of the authorities of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion. Perhaps these remarks may assist in laying the ghost of that
Larus niveus which for nearly a century has been haunting the lists
of systematists.
Dr. Coues inserts with a ? LZ. argentatoides, Bonap. Synopsis,
Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist. New York, p. 360 (1828), as the earliest name
for this species, whilst disavowing any desire to supersede Lawrence’s
title ; but as the name had already been applied by Brehm in 1822
for L. argentatus, it could not be used for this species, even if correct.
But Bonaparte says of his species: —‘‘ Common near New York and
(21)
176 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINE. [ Feb. 5,
Philadelphia ; we have also shot it on the southern coasts of Eng-
land.’ Now I am not aware of this species having been found within
2000 miles of New York ; and the description and measurement (20
inches in length) suit L. delawarensis, the length of which Dr. Coues
gives as 19°75 inches, better than any other. Dr. Coues goes on
to identify LZ. argentatoides of Richardson with Bonaparte’s species :
but this cannot be ; for Richardson’s birds were from 23 to 25 inches
in length, with a mantle of the same shade as the Iceland Gull—both
too large and too light for L. californicus. Richardson got his bird at
Melville Peninsula, and speaks of it as found at Hudson’s Bay. Dr.
Coues says the Smithsonian Institution possesses specimens ‘‘ from lo-
calities not far distant from those of Richardson ;’ but it seems to me
that Great Slave Lake is a very considerable distance from Melville
Peninsula, although nearer to it than to New York. Dr. Coues gives
the length of L. ealifornicus as 20 inches; and as Richardson’s 23
to 25 inches do not suit him, he quite gratuitously suggests that
Richardson drew up his measurements from the largest specimens ;
whilst as for the colour of the legs, which are described as “ flesh-
coloured,” whereas in L. californicus they are olivaceous, his assamp-
tion is that Richardson described them from dried skins! There can
be very little doubt that Richardson’s birds were examples of L. ar-
gentatus; for his measurements and descriptions suit that species
better than any other.
I am glad to see that Dr. Coues, in his ‘Birds of North-West
America,’ has reconsidered his previous hasty determination that this
species was merely a large variety of LZ. delawarensis. 'To judge
from the examples I have examined, L. californicus, although cer-
tainly the connecting-link between the L. argentatus and the L. eanus
group, is perfectly distinct from either. In the pattern of the
primaries it rather goes with LZ. argentatus, in the colour of the soft
parts with Z. delawarensis ; in the colour of the mantle it is much
darker than either, though not so dark as L. occidentalis.
13. Larus DELAWARENSIS, Ord.
Larus delawarensis, Ord, Guthrie’s Geogr., 2nd Am. ed., ii. p. 319
(1815) fide Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 846 (1858); Coues, B. of North-
West Am. p. 636 (1874); Wheeler, Rep. Exp. and Surv. W. of
100th Mer. p. 485 (1876); Reid, Zoologist, 1877, p. 489 (Ber-
mudas).
Larus canus, Bp. Specchio Comp. p. 69 (1827), nec auctt.
? “ Larus argentatoides, Brehm,’’ Bp. Synopsis, p. 360 (1828),
nec Brehm.
Larus zonorhynchus, Richardson, F. Bor.-Am. ii. p. 421 (1831) ;
Audubon, B. Am. viii. p. 35, pl. 446 (1839) ; Schlegel, Mus. P.-
Bas, Lavi, vi. p. 22 (1863); Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 380; Bp.
Consp. Av. il. p. 224 (1857); Gundlach, J. f. Orn. 1857, p. 236
(Cuba).
Glaucus zonorhynchus (Rich.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 102.
*“Glaucus occidentalis (Audub.),”’ Bruch, J. f. Qrn. 1853, p. 101,
taf. i. fig. 20, nee Audubon.
[22]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. 177
Gavina zonorhynchus (Richards.), Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 212;
Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 282.
Gavina bruchi, Bp. Naumann. 1854, p. 212; Bruch, J. f. Orn.
1855, p. 283.
“Laroides occidentalis (Audub.),”” Brauch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 282,
nec Audubon
Larus zonorhynchus, var. mewicanus et var. bruchi, Bp. Consp. Av.
li. p. 224 (1857).
Hab. Interior and coasts of North America from the Saskatche-
wan and Labrador to Great Salt Lake (breeding), and in winter to
the middle and southern States, Cuba, and the Bermudas. An im-
mature bird in my collection obtained by Mr. H. Whitely at Hako-
dadi, Japan, 14th December, 1864, seems from its size and stout
barred bill to belong to this species.
The adult is easily distinguished from ZL. canus by its larger size,
stout, double-zoned bill, and lighter mantle; it is smaller than ZL.
californicus, its wing-pattern is different, and the mantle is much
lighter.
14. Larus canus, Linn.
Larus canus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 224 (1766); Gm. Syst. Nat.
1. p. 996 (1788); Schl. Mus. P.-Bas. Lari, p. 23 (1863) ; Sharpe
& Dresser, B. of Eur. pt. xvii. (1873); David & Oust. Ois. de la
Chine, p. 517 (1877).
Larus cinereus, Scop. Ann. i. Hist. Nat. p. 80 (1769).
Larus hybernus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 596 (1788).
Larus procellosus, Bechst. Orn. Tasch. p. 373 (1802).
Larus cyanorhynchus, Meyer, Tasch. Vog. Deutschl. ii. p. 480
(1810).
Laroides procellosus et L. canescens, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl.
pp- 790-753 (1831).
Larus canus, var. major, Middendorff, Sib. Reise, ii. p. 243 (1853).
Larus heinei, Homeyer, Naumannia, 1853, p. 129.
Glaucus canus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 102.
“Glaucus lacrymosus (Licht.),” Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 102,
nec Licht.
Gavina kamtschatchensis, Bp. Naumanuia, 1854, p. 212.
Gavina heinei, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 283.
Gavina canus, id. op. cit. p. 284.
? Rissa nivea, Bp. Cat. Parzudaki, p. 11 (1855).
“Larus niveus, Pall,’ Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 224 (1857); Swinhoe,
P.Z.S8. 1871, p. 420; David & Oust. Ois. de la Chine, p. 518,
1877, nec Pallas.
Larus delawarensis, Coues, Pr. Ac. N. Sc. Phil. 1861, p. 246.
Larus canus major, Schl. Mus. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 26 (1863).
“Larus suckleyi, Lawr.” Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 27 (1863), nec
Lawr. (Japan).
Larus audouini, Tristram, Ibis, 1868, p. 330, nec Payr.
Hab. Throughout the Palearctic region, but very rare in Ice-
land ; once in Labrador.
[23]
178 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [Feb. 5,
A specimen bearing the label of the Labrador Expedition of Dr.
E. Coues and Mr. J. W. Dodge in 1860, obtained at Henley Harbour
on the 2Ist August, and marked ZL. delawarensis, came into my
hands indirectly from Mr. Krider, of Philadelphia. I have very little
doubt as to its being really Z. canus; but the American naturalists
will have an opportunity of disputing or confirming my view, as I
have sent it to the Smithsonian Institution.
Few species differ so much in individual size as LZ. canus; and I
cannot admit the specific validity of the large race found throughout
Northern Russia and Siberia. Off Japan all sizes are found; andthe
colour of the mantle is also very variable, being lightest in Scotch
breeding-birds. It appears to be a species which attains its greatest
development in the north and east, and deteriorates in size as it
ranges south and west. I have already pointed out that I consider
I. niveus of Pallas to be really the earliest name of L. californicus,
Lawr.
15. LARus BRACHYRHYNCHUS, Rich.
Larus canus, Richardson, F. Bor.-Am. ii. p. 420 (1831), nec Linn.
nec auctt. (adult).
Larus brachyrhynchus, Rich. F. Bor.-Am. ii. p. 421 (1831), juv.
(nee Gould, P. Z. 8. 1843), type described, Great Bear Lake, May
23rd, 1826; Coues, P. Ac. N.S. Philad. 1862, p. 302; Elliot, B.
N. Am. ii. pl. 53; Dall & Bann. Tr. Ch. Ac. 1869, p. 305.
Larus suckleyi, Lawr. Ann. Lye. New York, 1854, p. 264; id.
B. N. Am. p. 847 (1858) ; Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 27 (1863).
Rissa septentrionalis, Lawr. Ann. Lyc. New York, 1854, p. 266;
id. B. N. Am. p. 854 (1858).
Larus canus, var. brachyrhynchus, Coues, Key N. Am. B. p. 313
(1872); id. B. N. W. Am. p. 638 (1874).
Hab. North-Pacific coast of America, from Sitka downwards, and
the interior to Great Bear Lake.
_ I can refer to no other species the specimens obtained by the late
Mr. Hepburn at San Mateo, California, and one very old and fresh-
moulted bird in the Copenhagen Museum from Sitka. They are
certainly not L. delawarensis ; and they are smaller than any L. canus
in my collection except one, a quite abnormally small female from
Orkney. The bill is slender and weak ; and the foot with the middle
toe and nail is nearly as long as the tarsus, which in Z. canus is con-
siderably longer. The bill is olive-green to mandible, in front of
which it is yellow, the former colour being much more predominant
than in old ZL. canus. There is much more grey from the base of
the primaries downwards than in Z. canus ; and on the third primary
the wedge descends to the level of the tip of the fifth primary, whilst
there is a broad subapical mirror on the third primary, which, again,
is seldom, if ever, the case in ZL. canus; also the ends of the prima-
ries are much more broadly tipped with white.
So far, I think, I am in accord with Dr. Coues, who has had the
advantage of examining Richardson’s type, which, however, is a
young bird; but as regards the adult, of which he has seen far more
[24]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. 179
examples than I have, there is a slight discrepancy to be explained.
He says that the colour of the mantle of L. brachyrhynchus is rather
lighter than in L. canus; my specimens are certainly rather darker
than the darkest LZ. canus. Perhaps this is a slip of the pen, or an
inversion of his reference; otherwise I cannot understand it. I
retain this species as it has already been described, because the
specimens before me have a general appearance so different from L.
canus that they are distinguishable at a glance, although it is rather
difficult to define the differences on paper ; but I expect that a larger
series will throw light upon the subject. Schlegel’s bird from
Japan assigned to this species seems to me to be merely a large L.
canus,
16. Larus aupovuint, Payr.
? Larus quadricolor, Scop. Ann. i. Hist. Nat. p. 81. no. 109 (1769).
Larus audouini, Payraudeau, Ann. Sc. Nat. viii. p. 462 (1826) ;
Temm. PI. Col. livr. 81, pl. 480 (1826); Gould, B. Europe, v.
pl. 438 (1837) ; Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 22 (1863); Degl. & Gerbe,
Orn. Europ. ii. p. 420 (1867) ; Lilford, Ibis, 1875, p. 31.
Larus payraudei, Vieill. Faun. Frang. Ois. p. 396 (1828), fide
Deg. & Gerbe, loc. cit.
Gavia audouinii (Payr.), Boie, Isis, 1844, p. 191.
Glaucus audouini (Payr.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 102.
Gavina audouini (Payr.), Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 212; Consp. Av.
li. p. 222 (1857).
Laroides audouini (Payr.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 282 ; Brehm,
Naum. 1855, p. 294.
Hab. Mediterranean, especially about Corsica and Sardinia, and
the neighbouring coasts of Italy, the Balearic Islands, and North
Afriea. Mr. Gould quotes Natterer (tv litt.) as having shot three
specimens outside the Straits of Gibraltar, between that place and
Tarifa. Lord Lilford found it breeding on the island of Toro, off
Sardinia. Canon Tristram’s reputed LZ. audouini from Palestine are
all LZ. canus.
This Gull is one of the most unmistakable species, owing to its
length of wing, dark primaries, lead-coloured or black legs, and, when
adult, its cherry-red double-zoned bill. From the description given
by Scopoli of his Z. guadricolor it is probable that it is this species ;
but in the absence of certainty it is undesirable to use that name.
17. Larus marinus, Linn.
Larus marinus, Linn. Syst. Nat. 1. p. 225 (1766); O. Fabr.
Faun. Greenl. p. 102 (1780); Meyer, Tasch. Vég. Deutschl. pl. 1.
p.- 465; Temm. Man. d’Orn. p. 490 (1815); Macgill. M. Wern.
Soc. vol. v. p. 255 (1824); Schlegel, M. Pays-Bas, Larz, p. 10
(1863); Sharpe and Dresser, B. of Kur. pt. xv. (1872); Coues, B.
of North-West (America), p. 624 (1874); Swinhoe, Ibis, 1874,
p- 165 (Japan) ; Reid, Zoologist, 1877, p. 489 (Bermudas).
Larus nevius, Linn. Syst. Nat. p. 225 (1766).
" [25]
180 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&E. [Feb. 5,
Larus maculatus, Bodd. Tab. Pl. Enl. p. 16 (1783).
Larus maximus, Leach, Syst. Cat. Brit. Mus. p. 40 (1816); Brehm,
Vog. Deutschl. p. 728 (1831).
Leucus marinus, Kaup, Natiirl. Syst. pp. 86, 196 (1829).
Larus miilleri, Brehm, op. cit. p. 729 (1831).
Larus fabricii, id. op. cit. p. 730 (1831).
Dominicanus marinus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p.100; id.ib. 1855,
p: 280.
Larus albus, P. L. 8. Miller, Natursystem, p. 108 (1776), has
generally been quoted by copyists as a synonym of this species; but
investigation shows that it is based upon Buffon’s ‘‘ Mouette cendrée
tachetée”’ (vol. vii. p. 424; Pl. Enl. 387), which represents a young
Rissa tridactyla.
Hab. Northern and temperate Europe and Iceland (breeding) ;
visiting the Mediterranean in winter, as far as Greece; the Canaries,
and probably the Azores. In Northern Greenland Prof. Reinhardt
assures me that it is very rare ; it breeds in Labrador, occurs on the
great lakes of North America, and visits Florida in winter. Lem-
beye’s specimen, recorded from Cuba, turned out to be L. argen-
tatus (vide J. f. Orn. 1871, p. 290); but it has occurred at the Ber-
mudas (Reid). No record from the American side of the Pacific;
but I have examined undoubted specimens from Japan collected by
Capt. Blakiston. This is a very great extension of its previously
known range.
18. Larus pominicanus, Licht.
Larus dominicanus, Licht. Verz. Doubl. p. 82 (1823); Darwin,
Zool. ‘ Beagle,” Birds, p. 142 (1841); Cassin, Orn. U.S. Expl.
Exp. p. 377 (1858), Callao?; Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 12
(1863); Layard, B. 8. Africa, p. 367 (1867) ; Durnford, Ibis, 1877,
p. 45 (Chuput, Patagonia); id. tom. cit. p. 201 (prov. B. Ayres).
Larus littoreus, Forster, Descr. Anim. p. 46 (1844), Cape of
Good Hope.
Larus antipodus, Gray, Cat. Anseres Brit. Mus. p. 169 (1844),
New Zealand.
Dominicanus antipodus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100.
“Dominicanus pelagicus Anglor.,” Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100
(India and Oceania) ; id. op. cit. 1855, p. 280; Bp. Consp. Av. ii.
p- 214 (1857).
Dominicanus vetula, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100, 1855, p.
281 (Cape Good Hope); Bp. Consp. Av. ii. 214 (1857).
“ Dominicanus vociferus Anglor.,”’ Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100,
1855, p. 281 (South America).
Dominicanus antipodum, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p- 281; Bp.
Consp. Av. ii. p. 214 (1857).
Dominicanus fritzei, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 281 (Straits of
Sunda, near Java?) (type inWiesbaden Mus. examined, H.S.); Bp.
Consp. Av. ii. p. 214 (1857).
Larus vociferus, Burm. Syst. Uebers. Th. Bras. p. 448 (1856) ;
id. La Plata-Reise, ii. p. 518 (1861).
[26]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. 181
Clupeilarus antipodum, Bp. Compt. Rend. xlii. p. 770 (1856).
Larus verreauxii, Bp. Rev. et Mag. Zool. vii. 1855, p. 16.
Dominicanus verreauxii, Bp.; Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p.281(Chili).
Dominicanus azare (Less.), Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 214 (1857).
Lestris antarcticus (!), Ellman, Zool. 186], p. 7472.
Lestris fuscus, id. Zool. 1861, p. 7472.
Larus vetula, Gurney, Andersson’s B. Damara Land, p. 357
(1872) ; Shelley, Ibis, 1875, p. 86 (Natal).
Hab. New Zealand, Kerguelen Island, and the other islands
between it and Cape of Good Hope, African coast to 22°S. lat., the
opposite coast of South America, the Falkland Islands, Patagonia,
the coast of Chili, and the island of Juan Fernandez. Iam sceptical
as to the locality assigned to L. fritzec, whilst equally unable to
accept Bonaparte’s version of Sunda being a mistake for Sund[{ Lund? |
in Sweden !
In a large series of specimens from the above localities I can detect
no specific differences, individuals from the same localities often
varying quite as much in the dimensions of the bill as do those
from widely remote places. The absence or presence of the white
mirror near the tip of the first primary is of no specific value what-
ever, being entirely dependent upon the age of the individual; it
does not appear till after the bird has assumed the full black mantle,
and increases in size with age.
The deep drown-black of the mantle, as distinct from the slate-
black of Z. fuscus, and its strong bill and larger size, will distin-
guish LZ. dominicanus from that species; it is smaller than LZ. ma-
rinus, has a different pattern of primaries, and has olivaceous-coloured
legs and feet.
Messrs. Sclater and Salvin state (P. Z. S. 1871, p. 576) that the
examples then living in the Society’s gardens had flesh-coloured
legs and feet ; but this is either a slip of the pen, or else they must
have been looking at a L. marinus, the only ‘‘ Black-back ” which
when adult has those parts of that colour.
19. Larus paciricus, Latham.
Larus pacificus, Latham, Suppl. Ind. Orn. p. 68 (1891); Gould,
B. of Austral. vol. vii. pl. 19; Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Zari, p. 7
(1863).
Larus frontalis, Vieillot, in Nouv. Dict. H. Nat. 2nd ed. t. xxi.
p- 505 (1818), im. ad. (Tasmania).
Larus leucomelas, Vieillot, N. Dict. H. Nat. 2nd ed. t. xxi. p. 509
(1818), adult (Tasmania).
Larus bathyrinchus (sic), Macgill. Mem. Wern. Soe. v. (1823-4),
. 253.
: Larus georgii, King, Surv. Intertrop. Australia, ti. p. 423 (1826)
(King George’s Sound, S.W. Australia).
Gabianus pacificus (Lath.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 100, et
1855, p. 280; Bonap. J. f. Orn, 1854, p. 211; Rev. et Mag. Zool.
1855, p. 13; Consp. Av. 11. p. 212 (1857).
[27]
182 MR H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZE. [Feb. 5,
Gabianus bathyrhynchus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 280; Bp.
Consp. Av. ii. p. 212 (1857).
Gabianus georgit (King), Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 213 (1857).
Hab. South-west portions of Australia, Bass’s Straits, and Tas-
mania; not included by Mr. Buller in his ‘ Birds of New Zealand,’
but there are three specimens labelled from that locality in the British
Museum, obtained by the Antarctic Expedition.
Mr. Gould’s plate hardly gives a correct idea of the dimensions and
great depth of bill in this fine species, which may easily be distin-
guished by this feature in all stages. In the adult the tail is
crossed by a black band; and this peculiarity in the plumage, coupled
with the stout bill, seems to place this species midway between the
typical Gulls and those of the next group. ‘The value of Gadbcanus
as a genus for this species has been already discussed.
20. Larus BeLCHERI, Vigors.
Larus belcheri, Vigors, Zool. Journ. iv. p. 358 (1829); id. Zool.
Beecher’s Voy. ‘‘ Blossom,” p. 39; Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Zari, p. 9
(1863), excl. syns.; Scl. & Salv. P. Z.S. 1871, p. 575.
Adelarus belcheri, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 107; id. 1855,
p- 279; Bp. Naum. p. 212 (1854).
Leucopheus belcheri, Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 232 (1857).
“ Larus fuliginosus, Gould,’ Cassin, U.S. Expl. Exp. Orn. p. 378
(1858), nec Gould (Cape Horn to Callao).
Larus frobeenii, Phil. & Land. Wiegm. Archiv, 1861, p. 292.
Larus frobeni, iid. Cat. Aves Chil. An. Univ. Chil. tom. xxxi.
p- 288.
Hab. West coast of S. America, from Callao southwards to Chili,
the western portions of the Straits of Magellan, and down to Cape
Horn.
I have the fully adult bird with pure white head and underparts
from Chorillos, near Callao, Peru; but I observed the immature birds
with dark hoods in far greater numbers. Although several of these
Pacific Gulls have a hood in the immature stage, which is lost in the
adult, in none of them is the change so remarkable as in this species.
I confess that I cannot see any adequate reason for giving it generic
rank ; but Bonaparte thought differently, for he made it the type of
his genus Procellarus, being quite unaware that it was absolutely
the same species as the bird which he had already located in the
genera Leucopheus and Adelarus!
Dr. Coues, in a general notice of American Gulls, under the head
of L. heermanni (B. of N.W. p. 642), says that L. belcheri is “not
a white-headed Gull at all,’’ though he afterwards says that he
should not be surprised if, in the adult state, it lost its hood. In
this last surmise he is quite right; the adult L. belcheri isa perfectly
white-headed Gull, at the first glance being like a stout L. fuscus
with a black band on its tail.
21. LARUS HEERMANNY, Cassin.
Larus heermanni, Cassin, Proc. Ac. Nat. Se. Philad. vi. p-. 187
[28]
1878.] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. 183
(1852) ; id. B. Californ. p. 28, pl. 5; Sel. & Salv. P.Z.S. 1871,
p- 574; iid. Nomencl. Av. Neotrop. p. 148.
Adelarus heermanni, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 107, et 1855,
~ 279.
i Leucopheus heermanni, Bp. Naumannia, 1854, p. 211.
Blasipus heermanni, Bp. Cousp. Av. ii. p. 211 (1857).
Larus (Blasipus) heermanni, Coues, B. N.W. Am. p. 641(1874).
Hab. Pacific coast, from Vancouver’s Island and California (breed-
ing), down to Panama in winter.
The nearest ally of this species is perhaps Z. crassirostris of the
opposite Asiatic coast and islands; but its red bill and the lead-
coloured neck and underparts will always serve to distinguish the
adult; in LZ. crassirostris the neck and underparts are white.
22. Larus crassirostris, Vieill.
Larus crassirostris, Vieill. N. Dict. H. Nat. 2nd ed. p. 508 (1819),
ex Krusenstern (Nagasaki, Japan); Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 8
(1863); Swinh. P.Z.S. 1871, p. 421; David & Oust. Ois. de la
Chine, p. 518 (1877).
Larus melanurus, Temm. Pl. Col. 77™ liv. pl. 459 (1828); Temm.
& Schl. Faun. Japon. Aves, p. 132, pl. 88 (1850); Taczan. Bull.
Soe. Zool. France, i. p. 264 (1876).
Adelarus melanurus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 107, et 1855,
p: 279.
Blasipus crassirostris, Bp. Naumannia, 1854, p. 211; id. Consp.
Av. ii. p. 212 (1857).
Larus fuseus, Swinhoe, Ibis, 1860, p. 68 (nec Linn.).
Hab. Coasts of Japan and China, and large lakes and rivers of
latter; breeding in colonies, generally on islands.
_ [have already pointed out roughly the distinctions between this
species and L. heermanni; superficially the present bird is not unlike
the adult of LZ. belcheri ; but the mantle is much lighter, and the tail
is white with a black bar, whereas in LZ. belcheri the greater portion
of the tail is black.
23. Larus mopestus, Tsch.
Larus modestus, Tschudi, Wiegm. Arch. 1843, pt. i. p. 389; id.
Fauna Peruana, Aves, p. 306 (1845-6), pl. 35; Scl. & Salv. P. Z.S.
1871, p. 573; id. Nomenel. Av. Neotrop. p. 148 (1873).
Larus bridgesi, Fraser, P. Z. 8. 1845, p. 16; id. Zool. Typ. t. 69
(1849), type in Brit. Mus.
Blasipus bridgesi (Fraser), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 108, et
1855, p. 280; Bp. Rev. Zool. 1855, p. 21; Consp. Av. ii. p. 212.
*‘ Blasipus polios (Natt.),’ Bp. Hev. Zool. 1855, p. 21; Consp.
Av. ii. p. 212 (1857).
Leucophaius modestus, G. R. Gray, Hand-l. Birds, ii. p. 116
(1871).
Hab. Pacific coast of South America, from Callao to Valparaiso,
and probably further south.
This species, which in its immature plumage bears an indication
[29]
184 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. [Feb. 5
of a dusky hood, has been confused with L. fuliginosus of the Gala-
pagos Islands; but its much slenderer bill, tarsi, and feet will
at once distinguish it from the latter, even in youth; whilst in
the adult the clear grey of the underparts and the white blending
into grey of the forehead and head, distinguish it from any other
known species of Gull. Mr. Fraser’s plate above cited gives a very
fair idea of the adult; but very old birds are much lighter about the
upper parts than his example.
24. Larus FruLieinosvs, Gould.
Larus fuliginosus, Gould, Zool. “ Beagle,”’ iii. p. 141 (1841) ;
Sc]. & Salv. P. Z.S. 1871, p. 573; Salvin, Trans. Zool. S. ix. p.
505, pl. Ixxxvii.
Leucopheus fuliginosus et Adelarus neptunus, Bp. Rev. Zool.
1855, p. 20; et Consp. Av. ii. p. 232 (1857).
Proceilarus heermanni! (part.), G. R. Gray, Hand-l. Birds, in.
p- 116 (1871).
Hab. Galapagos Islands,
This stoutly built and well-marked species appears to be restricted
to the Galapagos group. Mr. Salvin’s illustration above cited will
probably prevent further confusion between this bird and ZL. mo-
destus ; but it is most extraordinary that the late Mr. G. R. Gray
should have confounded it with LZ. heermanni, when he had the
type of the present species before him. Specimens are exceedingly
rare in collections ; and of the eggs and nestlings no examples are
known.
Although this species differs from the preceding ones in having
a hood in its adult plumage, yet its other affinities seem to indicate
that its proper place is here and not with the ordinary hooded
Gulls.
25. Larus scoressBu, Trail.
Larus scoresbii, Trail, Mem. Wern. Soc. iv. p. 514 (1823), (New
South Shetland Islands) ; Pelzeln, Orn. Novara Exp. p. 151; Abbott,
Ibis, 1861, p. 165 (Falkland Islands).
Larus hematorhynchus, Vigors, in lett. King’s Zool. Journ. iv
p- 103 (1828-9); Jard. & Selby, Hl. Orn. ii. pl. 106 ; Gould, Zool.
‘* Beagle,” Birds, p. 142.
Leucopheus hematorhynchus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 108,
et 1855, p. 287; Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 211.
Procellarus neglectus, sive Epitelarus neglectus, Bp. Naumann.
1854, pp. 211, 213; id. Rev. et Mag. Zool. p. 13 (1855); id. Consp.
Av. il. p. 211 (1857), type and sole representative of Procellarus.
Leucopheus scoresbii, Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 231 (1857); Blasius,
J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 378; Scl. & Salv. P. Z. S. 1871, p. 579; iid.
Nomencl. Av. Neotrop. p. 148.
Larus scoresbyi, Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari. p. 33 (1863).
Hab. Patagonia, east coast, south of about 45° S. lat., down to
New South Shetland Islands, in about 63° S.; the Falkland Islands,
the Straits of Magellan, and up the coast of Chili as far as Chiloe.
[30]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. 185
In spite of the somewhat peculiar shape of the bill in this species
I hardly think it desirable to place it on that account in a distinct
genus, especially as Bonaparte’s genus Leucopheus also includes
such dissimilar species as the present and L. heermanni of North
America. His Procellarus is founded on a young bird of the same
species! Larus scoresbii, however, is a very well-marked species,
from its short, stout, crimson bill, and coarse legs and feet, the webs
of the latter being a good deal incised. In the immature stage this
bird has a sooty hood; but in the adult the upper parts are grey.
26. LARUS NOVEZ-HOLLANDIA, Steph. (Fig. 1.)
Larus nove-hollandie, Stephens, Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. pt. i.
p- 196 (1826), ex Latham.
Larus scopulinus, var. major, Forst. Descr. Anim. p. 106 (1844).
Figs
le 2. 3.
Three outer primaries of L. nove-hollandia, jr. (from the type of Gavia
pomarre, Bruch, of 1853, not of 1855).
Larus jamesonii, Wilson, Ml. Zool. pl. xxiii. (1831).
Xema samesonii, Gould, Birds of Australia, vol. vii. pl. xx (1848).
Gavia jamesonii, Wils. Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, Pe LOZ E855:
p. 285.
[31]
186 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [Feb. 5,
Gavia andersonii, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 102, et 1855, p. 285
(type examined, H. S.).
Gavia pomarre, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 103, not Gavia pomare
of 1855, p. 285, which is LZ. bullert (type in Mainz Mus. examined,
H.S.), Society Islands.
Gelastes gouldi, Bp. Naumann. 1854, p. 216.
Gelastes corallinus, Bp. Naumann. 1854, pp. 212, 216 (type in
Paris M. examined, H. S.).
Gelastes andersonii, Bp. tom. cit. p. 212.
Gavia gouldii, Bp. Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 285.
Fig.2;
1. 2. 3.
Three outer primaries of L. xove-hollandie, ad. (from the type of Gavia
andersonti, Bruch).
Bruchigavia gouldi, Bp. Consp. Av. il. p. 228 (1857).
Bruchigavia pomare, Bp. tom. cit. p. 229.
Bruchigavia jamesonii, Bp. tom. cit. p. 228 (1857); Gould, Handb.
B. Austral. ii. p. 387 (1865).
Bruchigavia corallinus, Bp. op. cit. p. 228 (1857).
Larus scopulinus major, Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 29 (1863).
Hab. Australia from Raine Island, Torres Straits, to Bass’s Straits,
and Tasmania ; also New Caledonia, and perhaps the Society Islands.
[32]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. 187
Although very close to L. scopulinus of New Zealand, I think
this species may fairly be distinguished by its larger size throughout,
and by the greater amount of white mirror in the pattern of the
three outer primaries. In old birds of L. nove-hollandie there is
always a mirror on the third primary as well as on the first and
second; in a large series of LZ. scopulinus 1 have never found this.
The amount of white is also greater in the Australian bird, and the
shape of the mirror is different, as is shown in the accompanying
fignres. JL. corallinus of Bonaparte has been supposed to be L. macu-
lipennis, Licht., on the strength of the assertion in the Conspect. Av.
that the type was obtained in Brazil by Castelnau. I have examined
the type, which bears no indication of locality, nor do I for a moment
Fig. 3.
1. 2,
Three outer primaries of L. nove-hollandie, old.
believe that it ever was killed in Brazil; itis, however, of this species,
and a large-billed example.
To make matters plainer, I have had figures prepared of the three
outer primaries in three different specimens of this species. In
fig. 1 (p. 185) is given the pattern in a young bird, taken from a
drawing by Dr. O. Finsch of the type of Gavia pomarre of Bruch,
1853 (but not his G. pomare of 1855, which latter =Z. dulleri), in
the Mainz Museum. Fig. 2 (p. 186) represents the primaries of
Bruch’s G. andersonii, from the same source. Fig. 3 (p. 187)
[33]
188 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINE. [Feb. 5,
shows the pattern of an old L. nove-hollandie, obtained in Tasmania
by Capt. V. Legge, R.A., and, if compared with fig. 4 (p. 188), will
show the difference between this species and old L. scopulinus.
27. Larus scoputinus, Forst. (Fig. 4.)
Larus scopulinus, Forster, Desecr. Anim. p. 106 (1844), New
Zealand ; Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 28 (1863); Finsch, J. f.
Orn. 1870, p. 360; Buller, B. of N. Zeal. p. 273 (1873).
Fig. 4.
1.
Three first primaries of L. scopulinus, old.
Larus nove-hollandiea, Gray, Voy. Ereb. & Terr. Birds, p. 18
(1844), New Zealand (nec Stephens).
Lestris scopulinus, Ellman, Zoologist, 1861, p. 7472.
Hab. New Zealand.
Under the head of the preceding species I have pointed out the
differences which seem to me to separate this form from L. nove-
hollandie ; but the drawing (p. 188) of the first primaries of an old
bird will show the principal point of distinction better than any
description.
28. Larus HARTLAUBI (Bruch). | (Fig. 5.)
Gavia hartlaubi, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, 102, et 1855, p. 268,
Cape G. Hope (type examined, H. S.).
[34]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZE. 189
‘“‘ Larus poiocephalus, Sw.,’ Layard, B. S. Africa, p. 368 (1867),
nec Sw.
Larus hartlaubi, Saunders, P. Z.8. 1874, p. 293.
Hab. Southern coast of Africa, especially about Table Bay, Cape
of Good Hope, where Mr. Layard obtained many specimens and also
egos, some of which he presented to me.
For along time this species was supposed to be the winter or
hoodless dress of the grey-capped L. pheocephalus, Sw.; but, as I
have already pointed out (P. Z.S. 1874, p. 293), the present species
Fig. 5.
i. 2: 3.
Three first primaries of L. hartlaubi, ad.
never has a hood at all. It is quite distinct from its close allies L.
scopulinus and L. nove-hollandia, and may be recognized by its
smaller size, proportionally longer and slenderer bill, which is of a
rich crimson, and by the more sooty colour of the under wing-
coverts, especially along the carpal joint. There is a small elongated
mirror on the first and second primaries ; but the remaining portions
of those feathers are black almost to the roots. The drawing (fig. 5)
shows the pattern of the primaries.
[35]
190 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [Feb. 5,
29. Larus BuLLERI, Hutton. (Figs. 6 & 7.)
Gavia pomare, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 285 (not of 1853,
which = L. nove-hollandie).
Bruchigavia melanorhynchus, Buller, Ibis 1869, p. 43 (nec L.
melanorhynchus, 'Temm.).
Larus (Bruchigavia) melanorhynchus, Finsch, Ibis, 1869, p. 381 ;
Travers, Trans. N.Z. Inst. 1871, p. 209.
Larus bulleri, Hutton, Cat. Birds New Zeal. 1871, p. 41; Potts,
Ibis, 1872, p. 38; Buller, B. New Zeal. p. 276, et fig.
Hab. This species appears to be restricted to New Zealand, and
perhaps to the South Island.
I have examined the type of Bruch’s LZ. pomare of 1855; anid it is
undoubtedly of this species ; but the type of his L. pomarre of 1853
Fig. 6.
a
LZ
LLL
Three outer primaries of L. bulleri, old, from the type.
is as certainly L. nove-hollandie; and it is to the latter that Mr.
Buller alludes as having been examined by him previous to the pub-
lication of his ‘ Birds of New Zealand.’ The third specimen entitled
L. pomare in the Mainz collection is a young L. ridibundus! Bruch’s
name, therefore, cannot be employed, having been previously applied
to another species; and this species must stand as Larus bulleri,
[36]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. 191
Hutton. It is very distinct from Z. seopulinus, and appears to fre-
quent inland lakes and river-beds in preference to the sea-shore.
The drawings (pp. 190, 191) showing the distinctive markings of the
three outer primaries will be better than any description.
Fig. 7.
Three outer primaries of L. dulleri, nearly ad., from the type of Gavia
pomare, Bruch, of 1855.
During my recent visit to Bremen I went into the question of this
and the three preceding species wita Dr. Finsch, who had previously
studied the subject and had made numerous and careful drawings of
the primaries of Bruch’s types of LZ. pomare in the Mainz Museum,
and of many other specimens. These drawings he most generously
placed at my disposal; and, thanks to his liberality, I am enabled to
figure the primaries of two of Bruch’s types, bearing the same name,
but belonging to two totally distinct species.
39. Larus Grvasrss, Licht. (Fig. 8.)
Larus gelastes, Licht. in Thienem. Fortpflanz. Vog. Eur. pt. v.
p. 22 (1838), type in Berlin Mus.; Keys. & Blas. Syst. Verzeichn.
Europ. Saug. p. 95 (1840); Degl. Orn. Europ. ii. p. 318 (1849) ;
Bree, B. Eur. 2nd ed. v. p. 72 (1876); Blanford, East Persia, i.
p- 291 (Makran coast).
‘“* Larus leucocephalus, Boissonneau,”’ fide Keys. & Blas. op. cit.
p. 22.
[37]
192 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZ. [Feb. 5,
Larus genet, De Bréme, Rev. Zool. i. (1839) p. 321.
Larus tenuirostris, Temm. Man. d’Orn. 2nd ed. pt. iv. p. 478, pl.
(1840); Crespon, Faune Mérid. ii. p. 126 (1844).
Xema lambruschinii, Bp. Icon. Faun. Ital. i. Uce. p. 135, pl. (livr.
xxvii. 1840).
Xema gelastes (Licht.), Boie, Isis 1844, p. 192.
Xema genet (De Bréme), id. loc. cit.
Gavia gelastes, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 102, et 1855, p. 286.
Larus columbinus, Golowatschow, Bull. Soc. Imp. Nat. Mose.
1854, t. i. p. 435.
“‘ Gelastes rubriventris (Vieill.),’ Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 216.
Fig. 8.
Three outer primaries of L. gelastes, juv.
Gelastes lambruschini, Bp. Cat. Parzud. p. 11 (1855) ; id. Consp.
Av. il. p. 227.
Larus subroseus et Larus brehmii, Heugl. Syst. U. Vog. N.O.-
Afr. Sitz. Ak. Wiss. Wien, 1856, p. 321; cf. Heugl. Orn. N.O.-Afr.
ii. Abth., Band 2, p. 1412.
Gelastes columbinus. Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 227 (1857).
“* Gelastes leucocephalus, Brisson,” Bp. Consp. Av. ii. p. 227
(syn.).
[33]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINE. 193
Larus lambruschini, Bp., Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 28 (1863) ;
Hume, Stray Feath. i. p. 274 (1873).
Chroicocephalus gelastes, Licht. Nomencl. Av. M. Berolst. p. 98.
* Larus arabicus, Hemp. & Ehr.,” Mus. Berolst. (fide H. S8.).
Hab. South coast of Spain, the Mediterranean and Black Sea
(breeding); the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, and the coasts as far as
Kurrachi; also West Africa to Senegal, whence there is a specimen
in the Paris Museum.
This species seems to have no very near allies. It never hasa hood ;
yet its structure and wing-pattern remind us of LZ. ridibundus. In
appearance it is like L. scopudinus; but its wings are very long, its
bill is slender, its flight is Tern-like, and its eggs are singularly like
those of Sterna cantiaca and S. media. I locate it here because I
do not know of any better position for it.
31. Larus LEUCOPHTHALMUS, Licht.
Larus leucophthalmus, Licht.; Temm. PI. Col. liv. 62, pl. 366
(1825); id. Man. d’Orn. 4™° pt. p. 486 (1840); Heugl. Ibis, 1859,
p- 349; Konig-Warth. Ibis, 1860, p. 129; Finsch & Hartl. Vog.
Ostafr. p. 821; Finsch, Trans. Zool. Soc. vii. pt. vi. p. 302; Schl.
M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 32.
Iris (mispr.) leucophthalmus, Lesson, Tr. d’Orn. p. 618 (1831).
Xema lecophthalmum, Bp. Ucc. Kur. p. 78 (1842).
Xema leucophthalma, Gray, Brit.-M. List, Anseres, p. 171 (1844).
Adelarus leucophthalmus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106, et 1855,
p- 278; Bp. Compt. Rend. xli. p. 771 (1856) ; Blasius, J. f. Orn.
1865, p. 378.
Chroicocephalus leucophthalmus, Brehm, Naumannia, 1855, p. 290.
Larus masauanus, Heugl. Peterm. Geogr. Mittheil. 1861, p. 31.
Hab. Temminck states that this species visits Greece and the
shores of the Bosphorus; but no recent travellers in those parts
have ever met with it; and although two energetic naturalists, Dr.
Kriuper and M. Alléon, have for years been resident in the neighbour-
hood and have thoroughly explored the Greek Archipelago and the
Bosphorus, they have never met with it, either there or in the Eubcean
channel, which Lindermayer (V6g. Griech. p. 177) so particularly
indicates. Even in the Red Sea it is, according to Von Heuglin,
very scarce north of the tropic, though frequent more to the south ;
it does not, however, appear to go beyond the Gulf of Aden and the
Somali coast ; for neither Blanford nor Hume mention it as occurring
along the Mekran coast ; and its range is therefore much less exten-
sive than that of the allied species L. hempricht.
32. Larus HEMPRICHI (Bp.).
Xema crassirostris (Licht.), Boie, Isis. 1844, p. 192.
Larus crassirostris, Licht. Nomencel. p. 99 (1854) (nec Vieill.),
Mus. Berolst.
Adelarus hemprichii, Bp.; Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106 (deser.),
et 1855, p. 278; Bonap. Naum. 1854, p. 212; Blasius, J. f. Orn.
1865, p. 378.
[39]
194 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [| Feb:15;
Larus hemprichi, Heug}. Ibis, 1859, p. 350 ; Konig-Warth. Ibis,
1860, p. 129 (nidif.) ; Schleg. Mus. P.-Bas; Lari i, p. 32; Finsch,
Trans. Zool. 8. vii. pt. vi. p. 302, pl. xxvii.; Finsch & Hartl.
Vog. Ostafr. p. 823; Blanford, Abyssinia, p. 441 (Red Sea) ;
Hume, Stray Feath. i p- 279; Blanford, East Persia, 1. p. 292
(Aden to Kurrachee harbour) ; Hume, Stray F. 1876, p. 414; Butler,
op. cit. 1877, p. 296.
Hab. This Gull appears to have a wider range than its congener L.
leucophthalmus, as it is not confined to the Red Sea south of the
tropic, but also frequents the Persian Gulf and the coast eastward as
far as Bombay. Von Heuglin and Baron Konig von Warthausen
(/oc. cit.) have given an excellent account of the habits and nidifi-
cation of both these species; and more recently in ‘Stray Feathers’
Capt. Butler has given a description of the great colony on the island
of Astola.
In the Bulletin de la Société Zoologique de France, 1*° partie, 1877,
p. 32, M. Jules Vian gives an account of two immature specimens,
one of L. leucophthalmus and one of L. hemprichi, which were
supposed to have been obtained on the coast of Nice. M. Vian
showed me these specimens when I was last in Paris; and they are
undoubtedly genuine examples cf the respective species. M. Vian
thinks that the opening of the Suez Canal may have caused their
appearance upon the shores of France ; I cannot prove the contrary,
but, from the make-up of the skins, I must confess I am very sceptical
as to their having got so far as Nice alive. They had passed through
at least one, if not two dealers’ hands before M. Vian saw them.
33. Larus arrictiua, Linn.
Larus atricilla, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 225 (1766), nec Pallas (ex
Catesby) ; Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 600 (1788); Temm. Man. d’Orn.
ed. 2, pt. li. p. 779 (Mediterranean, in error); Montagu, Orn.
Dict. Rennie’s ed. p. 259 (1833) (Winchelsea) ; Schl. M. P.-Bas,
Lari, p. 44 (1863); Scl. & Salv. P. Z. 8S. 1871, p. 576; Coues,
B. N.-West Am. p. 650 (1874); Reid, Zoologist, 1877, p. 489
(Bermudas).
Larus ridibundus, Wilson, Am. Orn. ix. p. 89, pl. 74. fig. 4
(1814), nec Linn. ; Léotaud, Ois. de Trinidad, p. 532.
Xema atricilla, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563; Cab. in Schomb.
Guiana, iii. p. 761.
Gavia atricilla, Macgill. Man. Brit. Orn. ii. p. 240 (1842).
Chroicocephalus atricilla, Bruch, J.f. Orn. 1853, p. 106; Lawr.
B. N. Am. p. 850 (1858).
Chroicocephalus serranus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106 (nee
Tschudi).
Atricilla catesbyi, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, P- 287.
*‘Atricilla megalopterus,” Bp.; Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 287.
*“Atricilla micropierus,’ Bp.; Bruch, tom. cit. p. 288.
Hab. America, from Maine, on the east coast, down to the mouth
of the Amazons and to the West-Indian Islands; on the west coast,
140]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA, 195
California, Mexico, Guatemala, and as far south as Tumbez, the
northern frontier of Peru (Jelski). Ouce obtained by Col. Montagu
at Winchelsea, Sussex. The specimeninthe British Museum, from
his collection, is undoubtedly of this species ; but there seems to be
no warrant for its reputed occurrence in Southern Europe and the
Mediterranean.
This species may always be known by its black primaries.
34. LARUS FRANKLIiNI, Sw. & Rich.
Larus atricilla, J. Sabine, App. Franklin’s Polar Sea, p. 695
(1823), nec Linn. nec auctt. (the description clearly applies to this
species).
Larus franklini, Sw. & Rich. F. Bor.-Am., Birds, p. 424, pl. Ixxi.
(1831); Sehlegel, Mus. Pays-Bas, Lari, p. 36 (1863); Scl. & Salv.
P. Z. 8. 1871, p. 577; Newton, P. ZS. 187), p.57, pl. iv. fig. 4,
ege (Manitoba) ; Coues, B. N.-West Am. p. 653 (1874).
Larus cucullatus, Licht. MSS. (Mexico), type in Berlin Mus.
(examined, H. 8.).
Larus pipiacan, Wagler, Isis, 1831, p. 515.
Xema franklini, Bp. Comp. L. B. Eur. & N. Am. p. 62 (1838) ;
Boie, Isis, 1844, p. 194.
Xema pipixcan, Boie, loc. s. cit.
Chroicocephalus franklini, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 104, et 1855,
p. 289; Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 851 (1858).
Chroicocephalus cucullatus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 104, et 1855,
p. 290; Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 851 (1858) ; Coues, Proc. Phil. Ac.
1862, p. 309.
Chroicocephalus kitlitzii, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 104 (described
from a drawing), nec Swinhoe, P. Z. 8. 1860, which=Z. saundersi.
Chroicocephalus schimperi, Bruch, J. t. Orn. 1853, p..104 (nec
Schlegel, 1863, which = LZ. saunders’).
Larus cinereo-caudatus, Ph. et Landb. Wiegm. Arch. 1861, p. 293.
Hab. Interior of North America, west of the Mississippi; breeds
in Manitoba; seldom visits the Atlantic coast, but has once occurred
at St. Bartholomew’s, West Indies (Sund.); goes down the Pacific
coast as far as Chili, whence I have a fully adult example with partial
hood, collected by Mr. E. Reid, of Santiago, and also one from
Callao, Peru.
The primaries of this species undergo much alteration with the
age of the bird ; and in time the subapical mirror on the first extends
over the greater part of the webs.
From the description there can be little or no doubt that Bruch’s
L. kithitzi and L. schimperi are referable to this species. Both
were suppressed in his second review (1855), when he corrected a
few of his more glaring errors; and all trace of the second name has
vanished from the Mainz Museum, where J especially looked for it, as
Schlegel had adopted it for a totally different Chinese species. The
type was said to have come from New Zealand, had a bright red bill,
dark hood, and black primaries with white tips.
[41]
196 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN. Feb. 5,
35. Larus serRANUS, Tsch. (Fig. 9.)
Larus serranus, Tschudi, Wiegm. Arch. 1844, pt. i. p. 314;
Fauna Peruana, Aves, p. 307 (1845-6) ; Scl. & Salv. P. Z.S. 1871,
p: 977.
Chroicocephalus personatus (Natt.), Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 104,
et 1855, p. 289.
Xema cirrhocephalum, Peale; Cassin, U.S. Expl. Exp. Orn. p. 381
(1858).
Larus glaucotis, Cassin, 7. c. p. 381 (1858).
Gavia serrana, Bp. Rev. Zool. 1855, p. 19.
Larus personatus, Natt.; Schl. M. Pays-Bas, Lari, p.35 (1863).
Gavia personata, Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 372.
Larus bonapartii, Scl. & Salty. P. Z. 8. 1868, p. 178.
Hab. This fine black-hooded species is found throughout the Cor-
dillera and the Andes of Northern Chili, Bolivia, Peru, and as far
north as Ecuador, whence Mr. Salvin has a specimen. It breeds
Fig: 9:
Three outer primaries of L. serranus, ad.
in colonies on the shores of mountain-lakes, and is well known to
5 5 : : ”
the Quichua-speaking Indians under the name of “ Quiulla,” doubt-
less an imitation of its ery. During the bad weather it descends to
the west coast. The eggs and nestlings are as yet unknown to me.
[42]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&, 197
Messrs. Sclater and Salvin (P. Z. 8S. 1871, p. 577) quote Bur-
meister as an authority for the occurrence of this species near Mendoza
in the Argentine Republic; but the deseription which he gives
clearly applies to L. maculipennis; indeed the dimensions cited
being smaller than those of Ais L. maculipennis, Licht. (which,
again, is not that species, but ZL. cirrhocephalus, Vieill.), show
clearly that his bird cannot possibly be the real LZ. serranus, which
is the largest of the group of the true Hooded Gulls in America.
On the other hand, the dimensions assigned by Peale and Cassin to
their respective X. cirrhocephalum and L. glaucotis (18 inches long),
and the descriptions of the markings of the primaries, go to prove that
those names must be referred to this species. The figure (p. 196)
shows the pattern of the primaries in an adult and tolerably old bird.
36. LARUS BRUNNEICEPHALUS, Jerdon. (Fig. 10.)
Larus brunneicephalus, Jerdon, Madras Journ. xii. p. 225 (1840) ;
Schl. Mus. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 35 (1863).
Fig. 10.
Three outer primaries of Z. brunneicephabus, ad.
Xema brunnicephala, Gray, List of B. in Brit. Mus. im. p. 172
(1844); Jerdon, B. of India, iii. p. 832 (1864); Holdsworth, P. Z. 8
1872, p. 480 (Ceylon).
[43]
198 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. © [Feb. 5,
Chroicocephalus brunnicephalus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105.
Chroicocephalus brunniceps, Cabanis, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105
(note); Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 291.
Chroicocephalus brunneicephalus, Bp. Compt. Rend. Ac. Se. xli.
p. 73 (1856) ; Swinhoe, P. Z.S. 1871, p. 421; Dav. et Qust. O. de
la Chine, p. 521.
Xema brunneicephalum, A. David, N. Arch. Mus., Bull. vii. no.
460 (1871).
Larus lacrymosus, Licht. (Bengal, imm.), type in Berlin Mus.
(examined, H. S.).
Gavina lacrymosus (Licht.); Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 212.
Gavia brunnicephalus (Jard.); Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 213.
Chroicocephalus tibetanus, Gould, P. Z.S. 1864, p. 54. [Tibet,
Major Hay. |
Xema brunneicephala, Hume, Yarkand Exp. Orn. p. 300, pl.
xxxil. (1873); Blyth, J. A. 8. B. 1875, pt. ii. p. 162 (Burma).
Hab. Henderson found this Gull very abundant in full breeding-
plumage in July, at an elevation of 15,000 feet, near the Pangong
Jake; and in winter it occurs both on the inland waters and along the
coast of India, as far west as Sind. Eastward it oecurs in Burma and
visits Ceylon, where it is abundant. David obtained it abundantly im
Mongolia and China, apparently as near to the sea-board as Pekin.
Taczanowski, however, does not cite it amongst the species found in
any part of Siberia; and it is therefore doubtful if it can be
Middendorff’s L. ridibundus, var. major. As regards its reported
occurrence in Japan, Cassin’s bird obtained in Parry’s expedition is
clearly Z. ridibundus.
37. LARUS ICHTHYAETUS, Pall.
Larus ichthyaétus, Pallas, It. ii. App. no. 27 (1776), Caspian ;
Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 599 (1788); Pallas, Zoogr. Ros.-As. ii. p. 322
(1811); Rupp. Reise N. Afr. Atlas, p. 27, pl. 17 (1826), Red Sea ;
Cassin, Perry’s Exp. Japan, ii. p. 232 (1856) (?); Tristram, Ibis,
1868, p. 330, Palestine ; Shelley, B. of Egypt, p. 307, pl. 13
(1872); Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 34 (1863) ; Dresser, B. of
Europe, pt. xvii. (June 1873).
Ichthyaétus, Kaup, Natiirl. Syst. pp.102,169 (1829), type of genus
Ichthyaétus.
Xema ichthyaetum, Bp. B. Eur. & N. Am. p. 62 (1838).
Larus kroicocephalus, Jameson, Journ. As. Soe. viii. p. 242 (1839).
Krotkocephalus ichthyetus, Jerdon, B. of India, iii. p. 831
(1864).
Chroicocephalus icthyaétus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 104;
Swinhoe, P.Z. S. 1863, p. 327.
Larus ichthyaétus minor, Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lavi, p. 34 (1863).
Hab. Caspian Sea and inland lakes, Lake of Galilee (Tristram),
Mediterranean coast of Egypt and up to Nubia, the Red Sea, thence
to Bombay and down the coast to Madras, and on the lakes and
large rivers of Northern India. As a straggler, in the Black Sea and
the Greek Archipelago, and once at the mouth of the Exe, in Eng-
[44]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. 199
land — Cassin states that Perry’s expedition obtained two specimens
in Yedo Bay, Japan, where it is described as abundant ; but both the
supposed examples were young birds without a trace of a hood, only
striated on the head; and the other points of the description would
equally apply to young Herring-Gulls, which I am inclined to think
they were. At all events the reported occurrence of this Gull in
Japanese waters remains unconfirmed; Capt. Blakiston has never
met with it; and Capt. St. John, H.M.S. ‘Sylvia,’ during the years
he was surveying those coasts, never saw it.
38. Larus MELANOCEPHALUS, Natt. (Fig. 11.)
Larus melanocephalus, Natt. Isis, 1818, p. 816; id. in Temm.
Man. d’Orn. 2nd ed. ii. p. 777 (1820); Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari,
Fig. 11.
lke 2. 3.
Three outer primaries of L. melanocephalus, jy.
p. 43 (1863); Degl. & Gerbe, Orn. Europ. ii. p. 437 (1867) ;
Bree, B. of E. 2nd ed. v. p. 81 (breeding in Black Sea) ; Saund. Ibis,
1872, p. 79 (Thames).
Xema melanocephalus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 365.
Xema melanocephalon, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 757 (1831).
[45]
200 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINE. [ Feb. 5,
AXema caniceps, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p 758.
Chroicocephalus melanocephalus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 104.
Melagavia melanocephalus, Bp. Naum. 1854, p. 213.
Gavia melanocephala, Bp. Compt. Rend. 1856, xi. p. 771.
Hiab. Mediterranean and Black Sea; outside the Straits of Gib-
raltar I observed it, apparently breeding, in the marshes of Huelva;
and it regularly ascends the west coast of the Iberian peninsula and of
France as far as Bordeaux, as is proved by the specimens annually ob-
tained there. It is therefore not at all astonishing that an immature
specimen should have been shot out of a flock of L. ridibundus at
Barking Creek in January 1866. This example is in the British
Museum.
In old birds the primaries are white, excepting a very black streak
down the outer web of the first primary only ; but it is not unusual
to find birds with the full black hood and white tail indicative of
matutity, but with a good deal of black on both the outer and inner
webs of the outer five primaries, the black crossing both webs near
their extremities and forming a subapical bar. ‘The drawings (fig.
11, p. 199, and fig. 12, p. 201) show the differences between the
pattern of the three outer primaries of a bird of the year, shot in
March, and that of a L. ridibundus of about the same age.
39. Larus ripiBuNDUS, Linn. (Tig. 12.)
? Larus cinerarius, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 224 (1766).
Larus ridibundus, Linn. Syst. Nat. 1. p. 225 (1766) ; Schl. M. P.-
Bas, Lari, p. 37 (1863).
Larus erythropus, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 597 (1788).
Larus cinerarius, Schaff. Mus. Orn. p. 63 (1789); Pall. Z.
Rosso-As. ii. p. 326.
Larus canescens, Bechst. Orn. Tash. p. 370 (1802).
Larus atricilla, Pallas, Zoogr. Rosso-As. il. p. 324 (1811), nee
Linn.
Larus nevius, id. tom. cit. p. 327.
Larus capistratus, Temm. Man. d’Orn. 2nd ed. pt. il. p. 785
(1820).
Xema ridibundus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563.
NXema capistratus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 563, et 1844, p. 192.
Xema ridibundum, Brehm, Vog. Deutsch. p. 760 (1831).
Xema pileatum, id. op. cit. p. 761.
Xema capistratum, id. op. cit. p. 762.
Chroicocephalus capistratus, Eyton, Hist. Rarer Brit. B. p. 63
(1836); Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105.
Chroicocephalus ridibundus, Eyton, Cat. Brit. Birds, p. 53 (1836) ;
Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105; Swinhoe, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 421;
David & Oust. Ois. de la Chine, p. 520 (1877).
Gavia ridibundus, Bp. Naumannia, 1854, p. 213.
Gavia capistratus, Bp. op. cit. p. 213.
Chroicocephalus pileatus, Brehm, Naum. 1855, p. 295.
Larus brunneicephalus?, Cassin, Perry’s Exp. Japan, ii. p. 233
(1856), clearly this species in winter dress.
[46]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. 201
Larus cahirinus, Wemp. & E., Syria,” Mus. Berolst (fide 1. 8.).
Larus cahiricus, “Why. Arabia,” id. (fide HL. S.).
Hab. Northern and temperate Europe, breeding; the Mediter-
ranean coast to Egypt and Asia Minor, the Ked Sea, Arabian coast,
and the coast, interior waters, and rivers of India; ascending for 500
miles up the Burrampootra (Godwin-dAusten), Burma, China, and
Fig. 12.
Three outer primaries of L. rédibundus, jr.
Japan in winter; also throughout the more temperate portious of
Siberia (breeding). It is said by Schlegel to visit ‘South Africa ;”
but I remain rather suspicious of the accuracy of the collectors who
are responsible for that somewhat vague locality, so long as this state-
ment is unconfirmed from other sources.
40. Larus macutipennis, Licht. (Fig. 18.)
. Larus maculipennis, Licht. Verz. Doubl. p. 83 (1823), Monte
Video (type examined, H. S.); Sel. & Salv. Nom. Av. Neotrop. p.
148 (1873); Durnford, Ibis, 1877, p. 43 (Chuput valley, Patagonia) ;
id. tom. cit. p. 202 (prov. B. Ayres).
Xema cirrhocephalum, Gould, Zool. Beagle, iii. p. 142 (1841),
partim.
[47]
202 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [ Feb. 5,
Xema cirrhocephala?, Gray, List Birds Brit. Mus. iii. p. 173 (1844),
partim (Kast Patagonia).
Chroicocephalus maculipennis, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105.
Gavia maculipennis, Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 374.
‘* Larus serranus, Tsch.,’ Burmeister, La Plata-Reise, ii. p. 519
(1861), nee Tschudi (Entre Rios, Mendoza).
Larus cirrhocephalus, Hudson, P. Z.S. 1870, p. 802; id. P. Z.S.
1871, p.4, nec Vieillot.
Larus glaucodes, Saunders, P. Z. S. 1874, p. 294 (partim).
Hab. Chuput valley, North-east Patagonia (breeding), up to the
La Plata, the Argentine Provinces, Mendoza, Entre Rios, Uruguay,
and the south coast of Brazil.
Fig. 13.
ile 2. 3.
Three outer primaries of L. maculipennis, old.
Burmeister’s description of the bird which he calls L. serranus
clearly applies to this species; the dimensions (length 12 in., wing
11 in., tarsus 2 in.) exactly suit it, whilst the wing of true L. serranus
is over 14 in. long.
The distinction between this species and the next, L. glaucodes,
seems to rest upon the patterns of the primaries, as shown in the
drawings (figs. 13 and 14). In L. maculipennis the black forms a
bar; in L. glaucodes it is a mere border: and this is perfectly constant.
[48]
1878. | MR, H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINAE. 203
T have selected the primary of the oldest L. maculipennis 1 could
find as presenting the least amount of black, and therefore closest to
L. glaucodes ; but, in spite of that, the difference is quite recognizable.
41. Larus Guaucopes, Meyen. (Fig. 14.)
Larus glaucodes, Meyen, Obs. Zool. p. 115, pl. xxiv. ; id. Beitr.
Zool. p. 239, pl. xxxiv. (1834); Gay, Faun. Chil. Aves, i. p. 480
(1847); Cassin, Birds U.S. Astronom. Exp. p. 204 (1855); Scl. &
Salv. Nom. Av. Neotrop. p. 148 (1873).
Larus glaucotes, Cabanis, Ibis, 1861, p. 312.
Larus glaucotis, Schlegel, Mus. P.-B. Lari, p. 42 (1863).
Xema cirrhocephalum, Gould, Zool. Beagle, 1. p. 142 (1841),
part., nec Vieill. :
Xema cirrocephala, Gray, List Birds Brit. Mus. 1. p. 173 (1844).
Fig. 14.
Three outer primaries of L. g/aucodes, old.
Xema glaucodes, Boie, Isis, 1844, p. 192 ?
Larus albipennis, Peale, Zool. U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 288 (1848) ;
fide Cassin, in Orn. U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 379 (1858) ; Chili.
Larus albipennis, Licht. M.S.; Gray, List B. Brit. M. p. 173
(1844), type in Berlin Mus. (examined, H. S.).
Chroicocephalus glaucotes, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105, et 1855
parcel.
[49]
204 -MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN#. [ Feb. 5,
Gavia roseiventris, Gould, P. Z. 8. 1859, p. 97 (Falkland
Islands).
Larus roseiventris, Sclater, P. Z. S. 1860, p. 391; Abbott, Ibis,
1861, p. 166 (Falkland Islands).
Gavia glaucotis, Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 374.
Chroicocephalus glaucodes, G. R. Gray, Hand-l. Birds, ui. p. 114.
Hab. Falkland Islands, Straits of Magellan, Western Patagonia,
and coast of Chili. I caunot find any evidence of its occurrence in
Eastern Patagonia; and certainly at the Chuput river, lat. 43° S., its
place is taken by ib, maculipennis.
Specimens from the Falklands seem to be smaller on the average
than Chilian examples; but there is no other point of difference.
42. LAaRuUS CIRRHOCEPHALUS, Vieill.
Larus cirrhocephalus, Vieillot, in 2nd ed. Nouv. Dict. Hist. Nat.
t. xxi. p. 502 (1818), Brazil; id. Gal. des Ois. ii. p. 223, pl. 289
(1834); Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 37 (1863); Scl. & Salv. P. Z.S.
1871, p. 578; iid. Nom. Av. Neotrop. p. 148 (1873) ; Saunders, P.
Z.S. 1874, p. 292; Durnford, Ibis, 1877, Pp. 201.
Larus poliocephalus, Temm. M. d’Orn. ii. p. 780 (1820); Max.
v. Wied, Beitr. iv. p. 854 ; vide Salv. Ibis 1874, p. 320.
Chroicocephalus cirrhocephalus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106.
Cirrhocephalus plumbiceps, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 288.
“Larus maculipennis, Licht.,’’? Burm. Syst. Ueb. Th. Brasil. ii. p.
448 (1856), nee Licht. (Brazil coast, especially the small islands) ;
id. La Plata-Reise, ii. p. 518. no. 256 (1861) (R. Parana).
Gavia cirrhocephala (part.), Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 376.
Hab. Coast of Brazil, bays and lakes, down to Rio de la Plata,
and up the Parana. Mr. Durnford did not observe it south of Buenos
Ayres. On the Pacific coast it occurs near Callao, one specimen
from Chorillos being in my own collection, and another, obtained by
M. Gree of Lima at the Chinchas Islands in 1855, being in the
Bordeaux Museum.
43. LARUS PH ZOCEPHALUS, Sw.
Larus poiocephalus (sic), Swains. B. W. Afr. ii. p. 245, pl. 29
(1837) : ad. ex. believed to be the type, in Cambr. Mus. from Sene-
gambia, examined, H. 8.
Xema pheocephala, Strickl. & Scl. B. of Damar., Contrib. Orn.
1852, p. 160.
Gavia cirrhocephala (part.), Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 376.
Larus potocephalus, Swains., Layard, B. S. Afr. p. 368 (1867),
partim ; Barboza du Bocage, J. f. Orn. 1876, p. 293 (Cunene, Ben-
guela).
Larus pheocephalus, Hartl. Orn. W.-Afr. p. 252 (1857); id. J.f.
Orn. 1861, p. 273; Finsch & Hartl. Vég. Ost-Afr. p. 825 (1870) ;
Saunders, P. Z.S. 1874, pa2g2:
Cirrhocephalus poiocephalus, Gurney, Anderss. B. Damaral. p. 358
(1872),
Hab. West Coast of Africa from the Gambia down to Walviseh
[50]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN#. 205
Bay, Damaraland, and at Lake Ngami (Chapman). I possess or
have examined specimens from the above localities. The species may
extend as far as the Cape of Good Hope and to the south-east coast ;
but of this I have no positive information.
This species is very closely allied to L. cirrhocephalus; but it is
smaller, and the bill and feet are orange-red, whilst in the larger
American species those soft parts are of a deep lake-colour ; and the
feathers in this species do not come down so close to the base of the
nostrils—differences which are quite sufficient to separate the two
forms. The African species was long confounded with L. hartlaubi
of the Cape of Good Hope, a bird belonging to a totally distinct
group, and which never has a hood at all.
44. Larus sAunpErRst (Swinhoe). (Fig. 15.)
‘Gavia kittlitziit, Bruch,” Swinhoe, Ibis, 1560, p. 68 (not of
Bruch, which is described from a drawing and is L. franklini).
Larus schimperi, Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 40, 1863 (not of
Bruch, 1853, nor of Bp., which =Z. franklini).
Bie. 15.
Three outer primaries of L. sawnders?, ad.
Chroicocephalus hkittlitzii, Swinh. Ibis, 1863, p. 428, et P.Z.S.
p. 328. ‘
Xema khittlitzii, David, N. Arch. Mus. Bull. vi. 1871, no. 461.
Chroicocephalus saundersi, Swinhoe, P. Z. 8. 1871, pp. 273, 421,
pl. 22; David & Oustalet, Ois. de la Chine, p. 523 (1877).
Hab. The coasts of China, especially about Amoy, in winter
[51]
206 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN. [ Feb. 5,
(Swinhoe), and the interior waters, and those of Mongolia (David).
Nidification unknown.
This well-defined species, with which my friend the late R. Swinhoe
did me the honour to associate my name, is, to judge by the struc-
ture of its feet, an inland species or river-Gull during a great part
of the year. The tarsi are slender, the hind toe elevated and long,
and the webs of the feet are much scalloped; indeed the foot is
almost that of a Marsh-Tern. Had Bonaparte or Bruch been
acquainted with it, they would doubtless have created a genus for it.
The bill is very stout and corvine-looking; the hood, in breeding-
plumage, is of a deep metallic black; and the pattern of the pri-
maries (see fig. 15, p. 205) is also peculiar, these being principally
white with a black bar near the tip, and a biack border to the edge
of the inner web.
45. Larus MInuTUS, Pallas.
Larus albus, Scop. Ann. i. Hist. Nat. p. 80. no. 106 (1769).
Larus minutus, Pallas, Reise Russ. Reichs, ii. p. 702, App. no.
35 (1776); Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 595 (1788); Pallas, Zoogr. Rosso-
As. ii. p. 331 (1811); Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 42 (1863) ;
Sharpe and Dress. B. of Eur. pt. iv. (1871).
Larus atricilloides, Falk. Itin. iii. p. 355, t. 24, fide Gm. Syst.
Nat. 1. p. 60] (1788).
Xema minutus, Boie, Isis, 1822, p. 365.
Larus @ orbignyi, Audouin, Hist. Nat. de Egypte, pl. 9. fig. 3,
Expl. p. 271 (1825).
HHydrocoleus minutus, Kaup, Nat. Syst. p. 113 (1829).
Larus ngrotis, Lesson, Tr. d’Orn. p. 619 (1831).
Chroicocephalus minutus, Eyton, Hist. R. Brit. B. p. 61 (1836) ;
Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105.
Gavia minuta, Macgill. Hist. Brit. B. v. p. 613 (1852).
Hab. European coasts and occasionally inland (on passage and in
winter); breeding in the marshes of Russia, and formerly in Gottland.
Middendorff obtained it in May on the Lena, to the south of Jakusk,
and as far east as the sea of Okotsk. Once in north India (Irby) ;
North Africa to Egypt in winter.
Scopoli’s description of Z. albus applies fairly to this species, but
it is not sufficiently precise to enforce the adoption of that name to
the prejudice of a long accepted one like that of Pallas.
46. Larus PHILADELPHI (Ord). (Fig. 16.)
Sterna philadelphia, Ord, Guthrie’s Geogr. 2nd Am. ed. ii. p. 319
(1815), fide Lawr., B. N. Am. p. 252.
Larus minutus, J. Sabine, App. Franklin’s Polar Sea, p. 696
(1823); Sw. & Rich. F. Bor.-Am. Birds, p. 426 (1831), nee Pallas.
“Larus capistratus, Temm.,”’ Bp. Speech. Comp. p. 69 (1828),
nec Temm.
Larus melanorhynchus, Temm. Pl. Col. livr. 85, tab. 504 (1830),
Chili?
Larus bonapartii, Sw. & Rich. F. Bor.-Am., Birds, p. 423, pl. 72
[52]
1578. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. 207
(1831); Thempson, B. of Ireland, ii. p. 317 (1851), near Belfast ;
Schlegel, Mus. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 41 (1863).
Xema bonapartii, Bp. Birds of Eur. and N. Am. p. 62 (1838).
Chroicocephalus bonaparti, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 105, et
1855, p. 292.
Chroicocephalus subulirostris, Bp.; Bruch, J.f. Orn. 1853, p. 105
(type in Mainz Mus. examined, H. 8.).
Gavia bonapartii, Bp. Naumannia, 1854, p. 213.
Gavia subulirostris, id. tom. cit. p. 213.
Fig. 16.
1 2. 3.
Three outer primaries of L. philadelphie, jr.
Chroicocephalus philadelphia, Lawr. B. N. Am. p. 852 (1858);
Dall & Bann. Tr. Chicago Ac. 1869, p. 305 (Alaska) ; Newton,
P. Z. S. 1871, p. 57, pl. iv. fig. 6, egg (Arctic America).
Gavia bonapartei, Blasius, J. f. Orn. 1865, p. 371.
Larus philadelphia, Allen, Am. Nat. iii. p. 643 (Salt Lake) ;
Harting, Handbk. Brit. B. p. 172 (1872); Reid, Zoologist, 1877,
p. 489 (Bermudas).
fab. British North America and Alaska (in summer), breeding
on the Yukon and neighbouring localities. In autumn it descends
the coasts of America, as far as California on the west and North
Carolina on the east; as a straggler it has visited the Bermudas and
also the British Islands.
The drawing (fig. 16) of the outer primaries in the young shows
wherein the pattern differs from those of allied species. Inthe adult
the distinctions are yet more marked.
[53]
208 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINAE. ebaae
Genus Ruopostetuia, Macgill.
The distinguishing characteristic of this genus is the cuneate tail,
in which respect the sole representative species is unlike every other.
On account of this elongation of the central feathers of the tail,
some systematists have placed it next to the Stercorariine; but it
should not be inferred from this solitary point of resemblance that
the two genera are at all closely related, their representatives being
in other respects far apart. It is much to be desired that the ster-
num of the next specimen obtained should be preserved, as I believe
this part of its structure has never been critically examined.
47. Ruopostetuia rose, Macgill.
Larus roseus, Macgill. Wern. Soc. Trans. v. no. xiii. p. 249 (1824),
descr. of sp. from Melville Peninsula; Jard. & Selby, ill. Orn. vol. i.
pl. xiv.
Larus rossii, Richards. App. Parry’s 2nd Voy. p. 359 (1825),
Melville Peninsula; J. C. Ross, App. Ross’s 2nd Voy., Nat. Hist.
p- 36 (1835), Felix Harbour, Boothia; Sw. & Rich. F. Bor.-Am. ii.
Birds, p. 427 (1831); J.C. Ross, App. Parry’s Narr. p. 195 (1828).
Rossia rosea (Macgill.), Bp. Comp. List, p. 62 (1838).
Rhodostethia rossi, Macgill. Man. Brit. Orn. pt. 11. p. 253 (1842).
Rhodostethia rossii, id. Brit. Birds, v. p. 618.
fhodostethia roseus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 106.
Rhodostethia rosea, Saunders, Ibis, 1875, p. 484 (jr.) ; Payer,
Austrian Exp. ii. p. 91 (English transl.) ; Dresser, B. of Eur. pt.
lixix. fp S72)
“ Larus collaris,’’ MS., Schreibers, in Mus. Vindob.
Haé. Melville Peninsula, 693° N. lat., and Boothia, straggling to
Greenland, once to the Faroes, once to Heligoland, and (on very
questionable authority) once to England. This last specimen, which
I have examined, has every appearance of having been mounted from
a skin and not from the flesh. Ross and Parry state that it was
seen to the north of Spitzbergen in about 82° N. lat.; but they did
not obtain specimens, and no subsequent visitors to that district have
observed it; more recently Lieut. Payer says that it was obtained
about Franz-Josef Land.
There can be no doubt of the prior claim of Macgillivray’s name
for this species; but its imposition, in anticipation of that which
Richardson intended to bestow on it, gave rise to a good deal of bad
feeling at the time.
In ‘The Ibis,’ 1875, p. 484-487, I gave a description of the im-
mature plumage of this Gull from two specimens in the Mainz
Museum, and enumerated the eleven examples known to exist; to
these may be added one more in Copenhagen, and one, of which Mr.
O. Salvin has recently informed me, in the museum of Vienna: total
thirteen specimens.
In reply to inquiries respecting the Vienna example, Hr. von
Pelzeln informs me that it formed part of the collection made by
Giesecké during his seven years’ residence in Greenland, and came
[54]
1878. | MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINA. 209
into the possession of the Imperial Museum in 1818, when it re-
ceived from Professor Schreibers the MS. and unpublished name
of Larus collaris. In the interval between the publication of
the 4to edition of Ross’s ‘ Voyage to Baffin’s Bay’ and the later
8vo edition (both of which bear the date of 1819), Ross, or Leach
(for, although under Ross’s name, Leach was probably the real
authority) heard of Schreibers’s name, and, jumping at the con-
clusion that Schreibers’s bird was LZ. sabini, inserted the synonym
of X. collaris (Schr.) for that species in the 8vo edition. Had
Schreibers’s description been published, his name would have con-
siderably antedated the present one.
Genus Xema, Leach.
The real distinguishing character of this genus, as instituted by
Leach, is the forked tail; but the name has been improperly
employed by Boie and others for many other species. Leach,
however, defined it most clearly ; and a generic name should never
be used in any other sense than that of the founder.
48. XemA SABINi (Sabine).
Larus sabini, J. Sabine, Tr. Linn. Soc. xii. p. 520, pl. 29 (1818);
J. Wilson, Ill. Ornith. pl. iii. (1831).
“Xema sabini, Leach,” J. Ross, App. Ross’s Voy. Baff. Bay, p. 57
(1819), 4to ed. ; Steph. in Shaw’s Gen. Zool. xiii. pt. i. p. 177, pl. 20
(1826); Kyton, Rarer Brit. B. p. 54 (1836).
“Xema collaris (Schreibers),”’ Ross in App. Ross’s Voy. Baf.
Bay, li. p. 164 (1819). 8vo ed. (not in 4to ed.), nec Schreibers.
Gavia sabini, Macgill. Man. Brit. Orn. ii. p. 241 (1842).
Larus sabini, J.C. Ross, App. Ross’s 2nd Voy. p. 37 (1835).
Larus sabinii, Richardson, App. Parry’s 2nd Voy. p. 360 (1825) ;
Sw. & Richs. F. Bor.-Am., Birds, p. 428 (1831); Middendorff, Sib.
Reis., Zool. ii. p. 244, pl. xxiv. fig. 5, xxv. fig. 1 (young and egg),
(1853).
Xema sabinii, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1855, p. 292; Lawr. B. of N.
Am. p. 856 (1860); Newton, P. Z. S. 1871, p. 57, pl. iv. fig. 5
(egg); Dresser, B. Kurope, pt. xxxi. August 1874.
Larus sabinei, Schl. M. P.-Bas, Lari, p. 44 (1863).
Xema sabinei, Coues, B. of N.W. Am. p. 660 (1874-5) ; Reid,
Zoologist, 1877, p. 4¢0 (Bermudas).
Hab. Arctic America, breeding to the north of Upernavik, in
Greenland, and then across to the west, breeding in Alaska (Dal) ;
not rare in Plover Bay, Eastern Siberia (Dall), and breeding on the
tundras of the Taimyr, north of 74° (Middendorf?). In autumn it
migrates southward ; and many specimens have from time to time
been obtained on the British coasts and those of the continent, as
far east as Holstein, and on the French coasts. Most of these are
birds of the year; but Dr. L. Bureau has an adult, with full black
hood, captured on the coast of Brittany on August 25th, 1872. In
America its southern range, as until now recorded, was down to New
York on the east, and to Great Salt Lake, Utah, on the west—
= >
155 |
210 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINZE. [Feb. 5,
roughly speaking, as far as 40° N. lat.; but Messrs. Sclater and Salvin
have recently shown me a specimen from Prof. Steere’s collection’,
Mus. University of Michigan, labelled “ Macabi, September 1872,”
and on the card-label ‘“‘ Tumbez,”’ Macabi Island being a little to the
north of Huanchacho on the coast of Peru, in nearly 8°S. lat.—an
enormous extension of its previously known limits. It is in adult
plumage, with the exception of some dusky feathers on the nape;
the forehead and head are white and devoid of the hood, which it
was reasonable to suppose would only be worn during the breeding-
season, although this is the first absolute proof I have had of this;
the bill as in adults; the tail white and well-forked; feet rather
faded. I imagine this to be a bird of the second year. This species
has once occurred at the Bermudas.
The name of X. collaris was applied to this species as a synonym
in the 8vo edition of Ross’s ‘ Voyage’ (1819), under the erroneous
impression that this was the Z. collaris to which Prof. Schreibers,
then Director of the Vienna Museum, had given that MS. and un-
published name; but as a matter of fact that name belongs to an
example of Rhodostethia rosea. For the elucidation of this point I
am indebted to the kindness of Herr A. von Pelzeln, who also in-
forms me that the Vienna Museum is the possessor of what is pro-
bably the oldest specimen of this species in any European collection,
it having been received, without any published name or description,
from the Ornithological Institution of that city about 1806.
49. XemMaA FuRCcATUM (Neboux).
Mouette a queue fourchue, Neboux, Rev. Zocl. 1840, p. 290.
Larus furcatus (Neboux), Voy. ‘ Vénus,’ Atlas, pl. x. (1846);
Prévost & Des Murs, Voy. ‘ Vénus,’ v. Ois. p. 277 (1855).
Aema furcatus, Bruch, J. f. Orn. 1853, p. 103.
Creagrus furcatus, Bp. Naumannia, 1854, p. 213; Bruch, J. f.
Orn. 1855, p. 292; Salvin, Tr. Zool. S. ix. p. 506 (Galapagos).
Hab. The type of this species in the museum of Paris is said to
have been obtained at Monterey, California, in November, by Dr.
Neboux of the French frigate ‘Vénus.’ The only other specimen
known to exist is in the British Museum, and was cbtained during the
voyage of H.M.S.’s ‘ Herald’ and ‘ Pandora,’ at Dalrymple Rock,
Chatham Island, Galapagos group. The ‘ Herald’ appears to have
visited Chatham Island between the 11th and 16th January, a date
which is worth bearing in inind, as the British-Museum specimen
seems to be in fully adult plumage ; the grey tint which pervades the
lower part of the neck and breast in the Paris specimen, and which is
probably a sign of comparative immaturity, having disappeared, leaving
the hood well defined. But for the absence of the distinct collar at
the bottom of the hood, and the narrow white band of feathers at
the base of the upper mandible, this bird might be briefly described
as a gigantic Sabine’s Gull, the tail being rather more forked in
proportion than in that species. It is certainly remarkable that, in
spite of the researches of the American naturalists, no other speci-
' See abore, p. 141.
1878. ] MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARINE, 211
men of this Gull should ever have been obtained in any part of
California ; and Mr. Salvin inclines to think the Californian locality
an erroneous one, in view of similar mistakes known to have been
made with the birds collected during the voyage of the ‘Vénus.’ It
is on the other hand somewhat strange that if the head quarters of
this Gull, of which the appearance is sufficiently striking to attract
attention, are in the Galapagos group, none of the other visitors or
naturalists should have brought any news of it.
Creagrus is one of Bonaparte’s arbitrary aud undefined genera ; and
there seems to be no structural difference to warrant the generic
separation of this species from Xema sabinit.
In this paper I have from time to time acknowledged with much
pleasure the assistance I have received from my friends and cor-
respondents ; and I have now to render my especial thanks to the
authorities of the British and Cambridge Museums, and of the
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, and to Dr. Brewer of Boston,
to Professor Peters of Berlin, Professor Reinhardt of Copenhagen,
M. Oustalet, M. Bouvier, Mr. O. Salvin, Mr. H. Seebohm, Mr.
Harvie-Brown, Mr. Gervase Matthew, R.N., and Mr. E. Hargitt,
for the opportunities they have severally afforded me of examining
examples of rare species and also series of specimens.
P.S. (April Ist).—I take this opportunity of correcting an error
in my paper on the Sternine (P. Z.S. 1876, p. 671) where two
species are united under the name of Anous c@ruleus. At that
time I had not seen a specimen of the real A. ceruleus, Bennett ;
and that species and J. cinereus, Gould, are so very much alike
that, until examples were available for comparison, the descriptions
and plates might easily have been taken to refer to the same species
in different stages of plumage. Seen by the light of further expe-
rience they appear to be distinct; and the following is their synonymy
and habitat :—
ANOUS CH%RULEUS (Bennett).
Sterna cerulea, F. D. Bennett, Narr. Whaling-Voy. round Globe,
ii. App. p. 248 (1840), Christmas Island, Pacific.
“Sterne cendré,’ Neboux, Rev. Zool. Oct. 1840, p. 291, et
Stolida cinerea. id. Voy. ‘ Vénus,’ Atlas, pl. 9 (1846); nec Anous
cinereus, Gould, P. Z.S. 1845 (Pacific, N. of Equator).
Sterna teretirostris, Lafresnaye, Rev. Zool. 1840, p. 242, et
Procelsterna tereticollis, id. Mag. de Zool. 1842, pl. 29: no lo-
cality ; both described from a single specimen purchased from a
dealer at Havre.
Anous parvulus, Gould, P. Z. 8. 1845, p. 104 (described from a
specimen obtained by Bennett at Christmas Island); Cassin, U.S.
Expl. Exp., Birds, p. 393 (Honden Island, Low archip. 14° S.,
138° W.).
Megalopterus plumbeus, Peale, U.S. Expl. Exp. p. 285 (1848),
Honden Island.
ees]
| o/ |
212 MR. H. SAUNDERS ON THE LARIN&. [Feb. 5.
Anous cinereus (Neb.), Finsch and Hartl. F. Central- Polynesiens,
p: 239 (1867), Phoenix group, 8° 8’S., 171° W., nee Gould.
Hab. Pacific, from alittle north of the Equator; Christmas Island;
the Ellice group, 9° S., 179° E., whence there are two specimens in,
the British Museum recently obtained by the Rev. S. J. Whitmee ;
the Phoenix group; and Honden Island, Low archipelago.
ANOUS CINEREUS, Gould.
Pelecanopus pelecanoides, G. R. Gray, L. Birds Brit. M. iii. p. 180
(Australia, presented by Sir T. Mitchell).
Anous cinereus, Gould, P. Z.S. 1845, p. 104 (N.E. Australia) ;
id. B. Australia, vii. pl. 76 (1848), Norfolk I. and N.E. coast Aus-
tralia.
Procelsterna albivitta, Bp. Compt. Rend. xlii. 1856, p. 773 ; Gould,
ieee B. Austr. ii. p. 420 (1865); Gray, Hand-l. ii. p. 123
(1871).
Sterna cinerea, Schlegel, M. P.-Bas, Sterne, p. 38 (1863), Aus-
tralia.
Anous albivittatus, Finsch, P. Z.S8. 1877, p. 776 (Eua, Friendly
group).
Hab. Norfolk Island; N.E. Australia and the Tonga or Friendly
group, in about 22°S., 175° W. It is presumably the species
observed by Mr. E. L. Layard i in the Fiji group.
The range of these two species appears to be nearly parallel, that
of A. ceruleus being the more northerly. A. ce@ruleus is smaller
than A. cinereus, Gould, and is darker all over, especially on the
underparts, which are blue-grey, whereas in A. cinereus they are
nearly white. ‘The differences are too great to be explained away as
being due to age, and I admit the distinctness of the two species;
but they are very closely allied. The fact of their being found in
such close proximity within so limited an area is very remarkable.
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