REVIEW OP JAPANESE BIRDS.BV LEOIVIIARD STEJIVEO?R.II.?TITS AXD NUTHATCHES.The present essay has the same aim aud scope as the oue treatingof rhe Japanese Woodpeckers and published a short time ago in theseProceedings (see mitea pp. 99-124). It embraces the family Paridcv, withwhich I associate the Nuthatches as a subfamily only. The introduc-tory remarks accompanying the former article api^ly as well to thisand the succeeding papers of the present series, which, I may repeat,is only a kind of a prodromus of a more extensive work, in order to callattention to doubtful points ; to instigate investigation by others whopossess material not accessible to me; in short, to ask information fromfellow-ornithologists, which is hereby earnestly solicited, and for whichdue credit will be given.SYNOPSIS OF THE JAPANESE GENERA OF PABIDJi.
a'. Bill short, from mouth augle to tip storter thau tarsus.I. Paring :ft'. Culmeu and gouys ciu'ved (paries).c'. Tail scarcely lon??i- thau body; outer pair of tail-feathers more thau five-sixths the leugth of the longest Parus.c*. Tail uearly twice as long as the body ; outer pair of tail-feathers less thauhalf the length of the longest ^githalos.i\ Culmeu and gouys perfectly straight (remize^) Remiza.a*. Bill long, from mouth angle to tip longer than tarsus.II. Sitting Sitta.PARUS Linn.1758.?Pflj-Ms Linn., S. N., 10 ed., i, p. 189.1829.
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Cyauistes Kaup, Entw. Eur. Thierw., p. 99 (type P.cyaneus).1829. PoBcile Kaup, Entw. Eur. Thierw., p. 114 (type P.paluatris) (nee Poedlus Bon.,1813).1850. Poccila Bonaparte, Consp. Av., i, p. 230 (emend.).18.50. Penthestes Eeichenbach, Av. Syst. Nat. Trepidat., pi. Isii (tyyie P.Iugubris).1862.?Poikilis Blasius, List B. Eur., p. 8 (emend.).1872. Pcecilift Taczanowski, .Jouru. f. Oru., 1872, p. 443 (emend.) (nee Bloch-Schn.,1801; uec Schrank, 1802; nee Hein.,1870).1884. Sitfipariis Selys-Longchamps, Bull. Soc. Zool. France, 1834 (p. 70) (type P.varius).1884.?Peri2)arits Selys-Longchamps, Bull. Soc. Zool. France, 1884 (p. 76) (type P.ater).374
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 375SYXOPSIS OF THE JAPANESE SPECIES OF THE GENUS PARTIS.
a^. Forehead browuisb white, orowu black* (sittipakus).6'. Larger; a hirge triangular rufous ^spot on the iuterscapilium P. variua.i^. Smaller; oulyanairow edge of rufous to the black of the uape.. P. caateweoreHtris.a^. Forehead black, like the crown.ft'. Outer pair of tail-feathers to the greater extent pure white, the outer edge beingblack from the base (parus) P. minor.b^. Outer pair of tail-feathers uniform dark gray, like the rest, with or withoutwhitish margins,c^ With a whitish nuchal spot; great wing-coverts with white lips, forming twowiug bauds (periparus) P. ater subsp. ?c^. Upper neck without a light-colored spot ; wing-coverts without white tips(pcecile).d'. Crown dull brownish black ; longest tail-feathers averaging 52'"?P. borealis.#. Crown deep black with bluish gloss; lougest tail-feathers averaging GO?"'.P. brevirostris.Subgenus SITTIPARUS Selys.(218) Parus varius Temm. & Schl.Japan Tit. Yama-gara.1849.
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Parus varius Temm. & Schleg., Faun. Jap. Av. (p. 71, pi. xxsv).
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Blakist.,Ibis, 1863, p. 99.-1(1, Chrysanth., 1883, Febr., p. ?.?Id., Am. List B. Jap.,p. 15 (1884).?SwiNHOE, Ibis, 1874, p. 155.?Blakist. & Fryer, Ibis, 1878,p. 2:i5.?lid, Tr. As. Soc. Jap., viii, 1880, p. 918.?ZM., ibid., x, 1882, p. 151.?Seebohm. Ibis, 1879, p. 33.?Jouy, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., vi, 1883, p. 286.1862.?Pflr?<s rubidus Blakiston, Ibis, 1862, p. 321.I am not aware that the young of this species has been described.The only reference to the young I can find is the remark by Messrs.Blakiston and Pryer (Ibis, 1878, p. 235) to the effect that it is "ratherdifferent from the adult, but does not otherwise vary " (?). Specimensof young in their first plumage are, therefore, a special desideratum.Parus castaneoventris Gould.Formosa Tit.1862. Parus castaneoventris Gould, P. Z. S., 1862, p. 280.li^63.^Par?8 castaneiventris Swinhoe, Ibis, 1863, p. 295.
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Id., P. Z. S., 1871, p. 361.1883. Parus castaneiventer Gadow, Cat. B. Brit. Mus., viii, p. 37.This species has recently been collected by Mr. M. Namiye, on Oki-nawa Shima (Liu Kiu), a discovery which will be treated of in detail in aspecial paper. It is smaller, and the chestnut mark behind the whitenape spot is nearly absent.
*Parus {Cyanistes) cwruJeus Linn, with white forehead, azure-blue crown, and awhite superciliary stripe, together with its couspecies and subspecies, is confined tothe western portion of the Paliearctic Region. In Temmiuck's Manuel d'Oruithologie,2d ed., Ill, p. 210 (1835), it is said to occur in Japan, probably on the authority ofsome drawing; but this is evidently a mistake. "Formosa," referred to under thisspecies in Horstield and Moore's Catalogue, is a place in England.
376 REVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.
Subsenns PARUS.(217) Parus minor Temm. & Schl.Lesser Tit. Slii-jiu-kara.1835.?ParHS major Temm., Mjui. d'Ora., 2 ed., ill, p. 209 (part) (nee Lln.).1849.?Pnriis minor Temm. & Schleg., Fauna Jap. Aves (p. 70, pi. xxxiii).?Cassin,Pr. Phila. Acad.. 18.58, p. 192.?Whitely, Ibis, 1867, p. 198.?SwiNiiOE, Ibis,1874, p. 1.56.? Blakist.,& Pryer, Ibis, 1878, p. 2:55.
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lid., Tr. As. Soc. Jap.,VIII, 1880, p. 217.?/(d., ibid., x, 1882, p. 150.?Seebohm, Ibis, 1879, p. 33.?Blakist., ChrysauHi., 1833, Jan., p. 30.?/rf., ibid., 1883, Febr., p. ?.?Id.,Am. List B. Jap., p. 15 (1884).?JoUY, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., Vi, 1883, p. 286.This may finally turn out to be so closely connected with Parits cine-reus ViEiLL.* by intermediate links tbat the specific validity cannotbe maintained, in which case the Japan bird would have to stand asFarias cinereus minor [or eventually P. nipalensis minor]. Dr. Gadow(Cat. B. Brit. Mns., viii, p. 17), under P. cinereus, takes pains to showtbat the two forms are specifically distinct, although two pages earlierhe states in regard to P. minor, that in China " it gradually changesinto P. cinereus.^'' The intermediate specimens from China have beencalled, by Swiuhoe, Parus commixtus (Ibis, 18G8, p. 63). These are theeastern, somewhat faded, representatives of Parus major of Europe,which is quite like P. minor above, but has the white of the lower sur-^ce replaced by vivid yellow. It is interesting in this connection tonote, that a brighter colored representative, P. monticolus Vigors, isfound in the mountains of Southeastern Asia, an apparent race of which,Parus monticolus insperatus,i was discovered by Mr. Swinhoe in south-ern Formosa.Mr. Jouy discovered the joung of P. minor in the first })lumage atFuji-Yama in the beginning of July. It is very interesting, inasmuchas iJ is distinguished from the young of P. major in the correspondingplumage by the same characters which separate the adults: it is smaller,and the under side is whiter.S jur., first plumage (U. S. Nat. Mus. No. 88642; coll. P. L. Jouy, No. 383; Fuji-Yama, Hondo, July 2, 1882). Distribution of colors as iu the adult, but the whitishnuchal spot apparently larger, : nd the dark throat patch smaller, an(\ connected withthe dark color on the upper neck by a narrow and scarcely continuous streak ; onthe breast only au indication of the dark middle streak, and none on the abdomen;the green of the back is very dull, and the ashy gray of the rump slightly suffusedwith olive; all the dark parts on head and neck are of a dull slate color slightly suf-fused with olive ; the whit? portions are washed with a pale creamy yellow.
* Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat., sx, p. 316 (1818).?Parj/s atriceps Horsfield, Tr. Linn.Soc. xiii (p. 160) (1821).
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Parus nipalensis Hodgson, Ind. Rev., 1838 (p. 31). I maymention here, however, that not all authors agree in uniting the Javan bird (truecinereus) with the Indian and Chinese representative {nipalensis). The former is saidto have the white nuchal spot entirely surrounded by black, while in the latter it isonly bordered in frsut and on the sides by that color. All the specimens of the latterwhich I have t-xamined have the white spot immediately adjoining the gray of theback ; but without typical specimens oi cinereus I cannot decide.
'!Parm itisperatnx Swixmoe, Ibis, 1866, p. 308.?Zrf., P. Z. S., 1871, p. 361.
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 377SubgeDUS PERIPARUS Selys.(215) Parus ater subsp. ?Coal Tit. ? Hi-j^ara.1758.?Parus ater Linn., S. N. 10 ed., i. p. 190.?Id., S. N., 12 ed., i, p. 341 (17(i(i).?Temm., Man. d'Oni., 2 ed.. in, p. 209 (1835).?Temm. & Schl., Fauna Jap.Av. (p. 70) (1841)).?Blakist., Ibis, 1862, p. 321.?/<?., Chrysanth., 1882, p.522.?/fZ., iUd., Jan., 1883, p. 30.? Id., ibid., Feb., 1883, ]).?.?Id., Amend,List B. Jap., pp. 15,50 (1884).?Whitely. Ibis. 1867. p. 1!I8.?Swinhoe,Ibis, 1870, p. 154.?M, ibid., 1874, p. 155.?Blakist. & Pryer, Ibis, 1878,p. 235.?lid., Tr. As. Soc. Jap., viii, 1880, p. 217.
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Inl, ibid., x, 1882, p.149.?Seebohm, Ibis, 1879, p! 31.?Id., ibid., 1884, p. 37.?JouY, Pr. U. S.Nat. Mus., VI, 1893, 285.The Coal Tit of Japan is usually given as Parus ater., some authorsasserting, however, that specimens occur in Japan which are inter-mediate between the typical form and Parus peMnensis David* fromChina, the chief character of which is said to be the elongation of theoccipital feathers into a distinct crest.I have been considerably jiuzzled about this species, but have con-cluded to establish no new name in view of the insufficiency of mymaterial, and shall, therefore, simply state what I have found in ex-amining the si)ecimens in the U. S. National Museum. As to P. peMn-ensis proper I shall express no opinion, having seen no specimen. Imay state in regard to the alleged occurrence of that form in Japan,that none of the specimens before me exhibit the character by whicli itis said to differ from ater, viz, the elongation of the posterior blackfeathers of the crown into a crest.tSpeaking of the Japanese specimens before me in a general way, itmay be said that they resemble typical P. ater on tbe upper surface,while underneath they agree with the English form, P. ater britannicus,except that the colors are purer and clearer. However, a specimenfrom the Vosges, France (U. S. Nat. Mus. No. 106405), agrees verywell in color with the Japan birds, both above and beneath.The two autumnal males from Tate Yama, Hondo, are nearly iden'i-cal, except that No. 91347 has the ochraceous wash on the rump a littlestronger. Compared with typical P. ater, from the continent of Europe,the gray of the back is of a somewhat different and more decided bluishhue. It appears to me that the black on the hind neck goes farther back,(though this may be caused by the make of the skin) but differs cer-tainly in one point from that of the European specimens 1 have seen inentirely encircling the white nuchal spot and distinctly separating itfrom the gray of the back. It also looks as if the black of the throat
* Ibis, 1870, p. 155.t A Japanese drawing, excellent and true to na'^ure in every other respect, and bytar superior to tbe excruciating figure accompanying the description of /*. pekinensis(Nonv. Arch. Mus., vili, pi. 5, fig. 1), shows a crest fully as long and pointed as thatoP-the latter. But whether it is drawn from a Chinese or a Japanese specimen I can-not say.
378 EEVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.goes farther dowu on the breast, especially on the sides of the latter,but, as above, the make of the skin may be the reason of it.A female, collected by Jouy at Fuji, Jnne 30, 1882, consequently inthe height of the breeding season, is in an extremely worn plumage.The brownish buff tinge on the uiuler side is considerably faded, but therelative extent of black and white is the same in this specimen as inthe above ones, the white nape patch being very broadly limited behind by black, and the latter color extending far down on the sidesof the breast?about lO?'" farther than in the middle.A female from Sapporo, Yesso, in the autumnal dress corresponding tothat of the two specimens first mentioned, agrees very well with them,but the l)lack on the breast apparently does not extend so far as in theHondo specimens. On the hind neck the white patch is closed behindby black.Whether this character is of any value can only be determined by alarger series of birds from both Euroi)e and Japan than at present atmy command. I may point to the fact, however, that a similar differenceis said to obtain between Partis cinereus from Java and its representativeform on the continent.In regard to the measurements as given in the appended table, I mayremark that they agree very well with those of P. hritmmicus, beingconsiderably inferior to those of Central European specimens beforeme. But also in this respect the series must be considered insufBcient.Measurements.2
1.36. J PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 379have yet arrived at a conclusion satisfactory to all concerned. It is,therefore, less to be wondered at that the eastern forms are still in astate of considerable confusion. In this group extensive series of speci-mens are indispensable, and as my material is quite scanty I can throw
?only little light on the subject; but, so far as it goes, it has some bear-ings ; and, as for the rest, I can only formulate the questions and askmy fellow-workers to furnish me with more material.1 have four birds from Japan before me. Two of these are Octoberbirds collected by Mr. Jouy in Hondo?consequently, south of " Blakis.ton's Line" ; the other two are from the island north of it, one au Octo-ber specimen from Sapporo, Yesso, the other from " the Kurils," andprobably collected somewhat earlier.The two birds composing each set are identical inter se, but thebirds of the north differ from those of the south in the following par-ticulars :The northern birds are slightly larger, The southern birds are slightly smaller,but the bill aud feet are of the same size but bill and feet are equal in size to theas in the southern birds. coiTesponding parts in the northern birds.The tail is proportionately longer aud The tail is proportionately shorter andmore rounded; the middle pair of rec- less rounded; the middle pair of rectricestrices is longer than that following. perceptibly shorter than that following.The black of the cap does not extend The black of the head extends farther80 far backwards as iu the southern birds, back between the shoulders, being of aand is of a deep black, strongly glossed rather dull brownish black, without anywith blue. bluish gloss whatever.The margins of the remiges aud rec- The margins of the remiges and rec-trices are broader aud lighter. trices narrower and duller.The under side is slightly w^ashed with The under side pure white, the flankspale brownish buif, the flauks and abdo- washed with pale brownish buff a shademen scarcely contrasted. deeper than iu the northern birds andpretty well contrasted with the purewhite of the middle portion.*It should be noted here, that Messrs. Blakiston and Pryer havealready pointed to the difference of the black cap in specimens fromthe Main Island and Yesso (Tr. As. Soc. Jap., x, 1882, p. 150). This,they say, may be attributable to season. Such is hardly the case, how-ever, since the specimens compared above are of nearly exactly thesame date; and, as they are quite adult, no argument can be derivedfrom difference in age, the more so since it would be very strange thatonly young birds should have been collected in Yesso, and old ones inHondo. Moreover, we know that a similar difference exists betweenPariis boreaUs and P. palusfris in Europe.By now comparing the Japanese birds with others, I find that thesouthern birds are nearly identical with typical sj)ecimeas of P. horcalis,both iu size, color, and i)roportions, aud with the present material, at
* Since the above was set in type I have received another Hondo specimen (U. S.Nat. Mus. No. 109355), the dimensions of which have been incorp )rated iu tiie tablebelow. It agrees with the other southern specimens in every particular.
380 REVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.least, I should resrard it very unwise to apply any other name to theHondo form.Mr. Seebohm, who in 1879 named a Marsh-tit P. palnstris japonicuSjhas determined the very two specimens from Yesso and the Kurils, men-tioned above, as P. palustris brevirostris (Ibis, 1884, p. 37). Withouthaving typical examples of the latter, I cannot deny nor verify thisdetermination; but, judging from the literature, I believe he is right,though, if such be the case, his prior diagnosis of brevirostris (Brit.Birds and Eggs, I, p. 477) is completely misleading, since the tails ofthe specimens in question are very strongly rounded, and not "nearlyeven," as in the diagnostic table alluded to. I shall, however, adopt hisnomenclature, at least provisionally, and call the two Japanese formsof the Marsh- tit, Parus borealis and Parus brevirostris.Mr. Jouy, in July, 1882, collected two young,* though fully grown^birds at Fuji Yama. They agree pretty well with the autumnal speci-mens from Tate Yama, and I think there is but little danger in refer-ring them to the same form, though their bills are perceptibly larger.This is said with some reserve, however. The dimensions will be foundin the table below.To which of the two Japanese forms Seebohm's P. japonicns shouldbe referred is impossible to say without comparison of the typical speci-mens. The probability that he based the name upon Blakiston's andWhitely's specimens from Hakodate does not necessarily indicate thatit is a synonym of brevirostris, since we know that two forms of Marsh-tits may occur in the same locality, at certain seasons of the year atleast. On the contrary, if the measurements which he gives as diag-nostic of P. japonicus are taken from the typical specimens (Br. B. Eggs,T, p. 477), his japoniciis most probably belongs to the form which we havehere called borealisAThe indications are, however, that borealis breeds south of "Blaki-ston's Line," brevirostris north of it, a distribution corresponding tothp relative range of the two forms in other countries.It has been observed in Scandinavia, where two forms occur together,that they present considerable difference in their habits and in their
* In Jouy's paper (Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., VI, 1883, p. 286) these specimens are referredto as adults, but that is certainly a mistake, as they show every sign of immaturity.tit should be remarked, however, that the name Farus japonicus is preoccupied.It was given by Stephens, in 1817 (Shaw's Gen. Zool., X, i, p. 55), to a bird originallydescribed by Latham as a variety of the Marsh -tit from specimens in Sir JosephBank's collection, said to have been taken otf the coast of Japan. A correct identifi-cation is now hardly possible, inasmuch as Latham seems to have had two difterentspecies, neither of which are described sufficiently to allow recognition, and, besides,the description by Stephens differs radically from that of Latham. The latter hadevidently no idea of the true relation of P. ater and palustris, for he suspected thelatter of being the female, or only a variety of the former, and the reference of thespecimens here in question, which he describes as having light nuchal spot, to theMarsh-tit, does, therefore, not prevent their greater resemblance to P. ater, or to P.
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. o81
voice. It would, therefore, be a verj' iuterestiug question for Japan-ese field-ornitbologists to solve, whetlier something similar takes placein the two forms considered in the present paper.Measiwements.
91349913508864488643109355
Collector andnumber.
Jouy, 690Jouy, 791Jouj', 545Jouy, 609
Locality. Bate.
cT art. I? ad.cf.iun. ]cfjun.c/ad.
Tate Yama, Hondo . . Oct. 9, 1882do ' Oct. 17,1882Fuji, Hondo I July 18, 1882do i .July 27,1882Musashi, Hondo ; Nov. 18, 1883
min.6259596160
-trmi.5352515351
mm.87 mm.445 mm.1616Distance between longest and shortest tail-feathers.(216 part.) ^ Parus brevirostris (Taczan.).Lono-tailed Marsh-tif.. Ko-gara.1856.
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Parus kamtschatkensis Cassin, Pr. Acad. Phila., 1858, p. 193 (uec Bp.).?Blakist., Ibis, 1862, p. 3-21 {nee Bp.).?Whitely. Ibis, 1867, p. 198.1872. 1 PcBciUa fcrenrosij-is TaczanowsKi, Joiiru. f. Orn., 1872, p. 444.
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Parush. See-BOHM, Brit. B. Ejjgs, i, p. 477.1874. Parus horealis Swinhoe, Ibis, 1?74, p. 156 {nee Selys).?Blakist. &l Pryer,Ibis, 1878, p. 234.1879. Parus pahisfris subsp. Japonicus Seebohm, Ibis, 1879, j). 32 (nee P. japonieusSteph., 1817).?Blakist. & Pryer, Tr. As. Soc. Jap., x, 1882, p. 150 (part).?Blakist., Chrysanth., 1882, p. 522.?/(?., ibid., 1883, p. SO.?Id., Am. List B.Jap., p. 50 (1884).1880.?Porws pahisMs Blakist. & Pryer, Tr. As. Soc. Jap., viii, 1880, p. 217 (part)(?ec LiN.).
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Seebohm, Ibis, 1884, p. 37.1881. Par i.sjaponieus Wallace, Island Life, p. 63.1884. Parus palustris var. brevirostris Seebohm, Ibis, 1884, p. 37.It is a very difficult task to locate properly the different quotationspertaining to the Japanese Marsh-tits, without access to the specimensupon which they are based. The above synonymies, therefore, do notclaim to be absolutely correct, and may in time require to be consider-
minor, for that matter. LatLiam (Syuops. II, ii, p. 542) describes his birds as " ?o<having a Mack chin, all the under parts btiug \yhite. One st'X had the whole headblack, with a baud of white across the hind head; in the other, only the fop of thehead was black, and the nape yellowish." The Latin description in the subsequent"Index Ornith." (II, p. 566) is substantially to the same effect. Stephens, on -heother hand (7. c), in his diagnosis of Parus japonieus, says : " Titmouse with a hlaekhearl and throat," and in the description: "differs chiefly in having a hlaek chin andcolored nape; all the rest of the under parts of the body white." Had Stephens's de-scription been based upon the specimens themselves, there might have been reasonsfor supposing the bird to be P. minor; but as it appears that he has only made a slipin rendering Latham's description, the name must remain unidentified.At any rate, Seebohm's Parus japonieus will have to be renamed, should it lateron be found necessary to keep the bird, separated by him, apart from the true borealis.
382 KEVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.ably moflified. In preparing them, I have had to suppose that allreferences to Marsh- tits from Yesso belong to brevirostris, and thosefrom Hondo to boreaUs, but it is quite probable that both forms may befound together in both islands, though the distribution of the greatbulk of each form may be as indicated. The uncertainty is caused bythe following circumstances
:
When Seebohm, in 1879, named P. japonicus, I believe that he hadonly Yesso specimens before him. If only the long-tailed form occurson that island, P. japonicus is only a synonym of P. brevirostris. Butin another place (Brit. B. Eggs, i, p. 477) the same author speaks ofhis P. japonicus as differing from brevirostris in having a shorter tail.Measurements.i
1886. T PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 383
ains of Switzerlaud, as ''Pipra f europcea, Nobis," aud after having-stated the structural characters, he says : "Si novum geuus mereatur,AegitlialoH vocari poterit," i. e. : If deserving to form a new genus, it maybe called Aegiihalos. 1 have seen no attemj^t to identify this ^^Fipra feuropcea.,^'' which may be considered rather strange, since the nameevidently belongs to a European bird, but there can be no doubt, in mymind, that his specimen was a Long-tailed Tit of the form usually calledAcndula rosea or Mecistura vagans, which, therefore, in the futureshould stand as Aegiihalos europams.The following is the essential part of his diagnosis and description intranslation: "Blact, crown of hend and underneath white, tail forked{forficata), with the lateral rect rices shorter, their outer margin white.The bill is neither that of a Friugilla, nor that of a Motacilla, nor in-deed that of a Parus, but agrees more with that of a Pipra. Not so,however, the feet, which are not gressorial. The tail is forked {for-ficata), the outer rectrix very short, the following short, the third longer,these three with the outer margin white, but more obscurely so in thethird. Size of a Motacilla [Phyllopseustes] trocMlus. Feet somewhathigh Also the anterior [exterior] margin of the secondaries iswhite, the broader and clearer so the farther behind and nearer the back.'^The description of the tail is an exact description of that of the Long-tailed Tit. It sounds like a contradiction when he describes it as forked,saying at the sanje time that the three outer pairs are graduated, but heevidently only means to say, that the middle pair is shorter than thefollowing, and it is just the peculiarity of the tail of this species,that it is, so to speak, forked and graduated at the same time (see theaccompanying cut). He also mentions the peculiar shape of the bill,
91552
and the comparatively great length of the tarsus. The coloration ofthe wings is accurately described, aud so is that of the body, though hedoes not mention the red of the shoulders, it being therefore probablethat the specimen he described was <i young bird in which this color isabsent. To verify the identification it is only necessary to com])are itwith fig. 6, taf. 95 of Naumauu's " Naturgeschichte der Yogel Deutsch-lands," Vol. IV, and there cannot be the slightest doubt as to the accu-racy aud applicability of Hermann's description.
384 REVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.(219) Aegithalos trivirgatus (Temin. & Schl.).Japanese Long-tailed Tit. 0-uaga,1835.
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Farm caudaius Temm., Mau. d'Oru. 2 ed., iii, p. 214 {nee Lix.).1849.?Parus irivirgaius Temm. & Schl., Faiiua Jap. Av., (p. 60, pi. xxxiv).
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O.trivirgatus SwiNHOE, Ibis, 1874, p. 15().
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AcreduJa trivirgata Blakist. &Fryer, Ibis, 1878, p. 235.?JkZ., Tr. As. Soc. Jap., viii, 1880, p. 218.?lid.,iUd., X, 1882, p. 151.?Blakist., Cbrysauth., 1883, Feb., p. ? . ? JouY, Pr.U.S.Nat. Mus., VI, 1883, p. 285.1883. Acredula rosea a trivirgata Gadow, Cat. B. Brit. Mus., viii, pp. ix + 62.
?
Blakist., Amend. List B.Jap., p. 50 (1884).1884. Acredula rosea Seebohm, Ibis, 1884, p. 37.It is hardly correct to say that " the ouly claim of ^^. trivirgatus torank as a distinct species rests on the fact that in the majority of skins,though not in all, the black siipercilium passes across the lores to thebase of the bill,"* for there are other differences, which, in the case ofspecimens like that quoted by Mr. Seebohm (Ibis, 1884, p. 37), mostlikely would show them to be true ^E". trivirgatus. A glance at thetables of measurements appended below shows tbat the Japanese birdhas a comparatively shorter tail and a longer bill than the West Euro-pean ^githalos europmus (HERM.)t; the bill is also perceptibly thickerand stouter. In regard to colors, those of the Japanese bird are purerand clearer, and the vinous tinge on the under parts perceptibly lighter;the white edges of the tertiaries and inner secondaries are purer audbroader in ^. trivirgatus than in ^. europcetts, and hardly differingfrom some specimens of true ^. catidatus ; the superciliary stripe ismore solid and more intensive and shining black, besides, as alreadyremarked by earlier writers, as a general rule exteudiug to the bill. Ason the loral region the blacldsh color seems restricted to the tips of thefeathers it wears off easily, and as some British specimens have theloral feathers similarly, though less extensively, tipped with dusky, thischaracter alone may not always be sufficient for distinguisliing speci-mens from the extreme west or east of the Eurasian Continent. Inview of the many other characters sei>arating the two forms, which havenot been mentioned by the authors claiming to have examined inter-mediate specimens, I refuse to use a triuominal designation for theJapanese Bottle-tit.The present species is restricted to the Japanese Islands south of
" Blakiston's Line," north of which ^. caudatus is found. The adultsof the two species are very easily distingnished, inasmuch as the formerhas a very distinct and broad black superciliary stripe \^hich poste-riorly is connected with the black of the back, thus encircling the white
* Cf. Seebohm, Brit. B. Eggs., i, p. 487.tl804.
?
Plpraf europcm Hermann, Obs. Zool., p. 214.1816. Mecistura ragaiis Leach, Syst. Cat. Mam. B. Br. Mus., p. 17 {nom. nud.).1836. Mecistura rosea Blyth, ed. White's Nat. Hist. Selborne (p. 111).1839. Mecistura longicaudata MacgilliVray, Hist. Brit. B., ii, p. 454.
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 385crown and nape, wiile in the northern bird the whole head is pure anduniform white.*The young ones, on the other hand, may be rather difficult to distin-guish, even more so than the young ones of the corresponding Europeanspecies, since in the two Japanese forms the amount of white on thetertiaries and secondaries is about the same. Having only a very fadedspecimen of a young European ^. caudatus, I am unable to point outwith certainty any character beyond the relative size ; but as seen fi-omthe tables, the difference in that respect between the adults is appar-ently very slim, and an attempt to determine a young bird by means ofthe comparative measurements would probably prove futile. I am in-clined to think, however, that the very distinct black spot above theeye, as distinguished from the brownish color of the rest of the super-ciliary stripe, shown in the three specimens of young JE. trivirgatusbefore me, may be a distinctive character, to which I, therefore, call theattention of Japanese ornithologists.The young of JEJ. trivirgatus may be described as follows
:
^ jui: {U. S. Xat.Mus. No. 86647 ; Fuji, July 11, 1882; coll P. L. Jouy, No. 487.)Wings and tail as in the adults ; back, dark sepia with a slight vinaceoiis tinge ; hindneck, ear coverts, and superciliary stripe similar, but lighter and more brownish
;
above the eye a distinct deep black spot in the superciliary stripe ; cheeks, chin, andthroat pure white, the rest of the under parts, top of head, and scapulars white, theends of the feathers faintly soiled with a dusky wash, which behind the throat is sopronounced as to form a rather distinct but narrow band across the breast ; crissumand under tail-coverts fawn-colored, slightly suffused with vinaceous. According toJouy (Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus. vi, 1883, p. 285) the iris of the young birds is *' black," andthe eyelids of a "brilliant orange color."
Measurements of -^GiTHALOS tkivirgatus.
1
386 REVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.In order to facilitate comparison tlie following table of measurementsof the true ^githalos europwus in the collection of the museum has beenprepared. Measurements of jEgithaxos europ^us.S
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 387in order to be enabled to establish the difference, if any, between theyoung ones of the two Japanese species.The following table is com])iled from Captain Blakiston's manuscriptnotes, and is especially valuable for the measurements of the totallength
:
Measurements hy Capt. Th. Blakiston.
Museumand No. Collector andnumber.
Hak.M., 295Hak.M., 296Hat.M., 299Hak.M., 300
TJ. S., 96147
Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,Blakiston,
1122.2163.2164.21G.5.2314.2380.2381.2382.3133.3206.
Locality.
Hakodadi, Tesso.
...do
...do
...dodoSapporo, Tesso .
.
. . do .
.. do
...do
...do
Date.
Feb.Feb.Feb.Feb.Apr.MayApr.Oct.Oct.Oct.
3, 187312, 187712, 187712, 187711, 18775, 187721, 187728, 187712, 188223, 1882Average measurements of ten specimens .
388 REVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.1870.?^githalus covsohiwns Swinhoe, P. Z. S., 1870, p. 133.?Seebohm, Ibis, 1879,p. 33.
?
Id., ibid., 1884, p. 37.
?
Blakist. & Pryer, Tr, As. Soc. Jap., viii,1860, p. 2li:.?Id., ibid., x, 18S2, p. 15'2.?Blakist., Amend. List B. Jap.,pp. 26 and 51.The only birds of this species yet taken in Japan, so far as I amaware, are the tbree specimens which were collected by Mr. F. Eingerat Nagasaki, in February, 1877, two of which are now before me, viz,the same two, to which Seebohm's remarks, in Ibis, 1884, p. 37, refer..*In regard to the third one, we have the assurance that it is a male,
"identical" with the male of our collection (cf. Biakiston, Ibis, 1879,p. 33), and " that it agrees exactly with the type [of JE. consobrinus] inthe Swinhoe collection from China" (Seebohm, /. c). This specimen isnow, probabh", in Mr. Seebohm's collection.The history of the present species is yet involved in considerabledoubt. It was originally described by Swinhoe, in 1870, from Chineseexamples. Seebohm, in 1879, doubted not only its specific validity,but even its subspecific distinctness, and was inclined to pronounce theskin from Jg^pan and Swinhoe's type of ^. consobrinus to be females,or not fully adult males, of ^. pendulinus, "as thej' are scarcely to bedistinguished from a skin of a female in my collection from Asia Minor,and another from Piedmont, in Dresser's collection ; " Dr. Gadow, in1883 (Cat. B. Brit. Mus., viii, p. 67), makes it an unconditional synonymof B, pendnlinaj but, in 1881, Mr. Seebohm recedes from his formerposition, after having seen the specimens now before me, and states thatthey "appear to prove that this species * * ? is a good one."The Penduline Tit has a winter plumage considerably different fromthe summer dress, but, like the other members of the family, the moltis simple, taking place during the autumn. The different appearance ofthe breeding plumage, therefore, is caused by the buff-colored margins ofthe autumnal dress dropping off", thereby exposing the more basal por-tion of the feather ; consequently, if this portion is colored differentlyfrom the margins, the plumage will change color accordingly.When, therefore, in the European species, the buffy margins drop offin spring, the whole upper side of the head becomes nearly pure white,the whole upper back changes to a rich rusty chestnut brown, and thebreast becomes marked with chestnut. In the eastern birds the changeswill be less, because the feathers of the back, except a narrow chestnutcollar, and those of the breast, are uniformly colored, the former darker,the latter lighter, ochraceous, and as the centers of the feathers coveringthe crown and hind neck are ashy gray, these parts in spring will as-sume the last-mentioned color.If Swinhoe's Chinese type and Blakiston's two males are correctlysexed, the eastern birds are still more different from the European species,for the black ear-patch is much smaller, the black frontal baud much nar-rower, the chestnut spot on the forehead quite absent; the superciliaof iJ.
* These are also the same birds to which Messrs. Biakiston and Pryer refer (Tr. As.Soc. Jap., X, 1832, p. 152) as being in the Hakodadi Museum.
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 389
consobrina are pure white in marked contrast with the gray of the crown,and without a trace of black, and a distinct white mustachial stripe sep-arates the black of the cheeks and ears from the ochraceous of thechin and throat. The females from China and Japan may be correctlysexed, but are probably birds of the year, since their general style ofcoloration is that of the young B. penduUna, and it would hardly bejustifiable to presume that the adult female of the eastern speciesshould differ from the male in having no black ear- patch, while the twosexes of the European species in that respect are nearly alike.In regard to size B. consobrina seems to be somewhat smaller thanits European cousin, for three specimens of the latter in very abradedplumage average, wing 56pare the following: "i"', and tail-feathers 47??, with which com-Meaaurementa of Remiza consobrina.
390 EEVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.particularly their smaller and slenderer bill, and the greater straight-ness of the culmen. The eastern species he divides into three differentforms
:
(1) Sitta laicalcnsis Taczan., similar in coloration to S. europcea, having the flanksstronglj' marked with deep chestnut brown ; from the surroundings of Irkutsk,Lake Baikal, and Dauria.(2) Sitta amuremsis Swinh., distinguished from the foregoing form by the ochraceouscolor occupying the whole surface of the abdomen in strong contrast with thepure and silky white of the breast and fore neck ; it occni s from Amur through-out Ussuri aud Northern China.(3) Sitta albifrons Taczan., characterized by a white forehead, a broad white superciliary stripe, a white band across the wing ; by the flanks being pure whitewith hardly any trace of chestnut ; and by the greater extent of tiie white spoton the tail ; this form inhabits the peninsula of Kamtschatka.As already intimated, the Hondo Nuthatch agrees with typical iS.amurensis. The Yesso bird, on the other hand, does not agree with ;8^.haicalensis, nor with S. albifrons. It lacks the chestnut flanks of theformer, but has instead a faint ochraceous tinge on the abdomen andflanks, and there are only faint i^idicatious of the positive charactersdistinctive of its Kamtschatkan relative. 1 have, therefore, concludedto give it a separate name, in order to better keep these nearly allied formsapart. Finally, I have before me a specimen from the "Kuril Islands,"which in all essential features is a pretty typical S. albifrons Taczan.Further remarks are to be found later on under the heading of eachsei^arate form. Those occurring in Japan may be distinguished by thefollowing SYNOPSIS.a^ Flanks tinged with buff.6' Flanks rufescent buff with a strongly marked chestnut patch ; buff extending tothe lower breast S. amurensis.1)^ Flanks pale creamy buff, without a distinct chestnut patch : buff' not extending
1 eyond the abdomen 5. a. clara.a^ Flanks white S. a. albifrons.From the measurements to be given further on, it will be seen thatthe three Japanese forms do not differ materially inter se. Anothercharacter which they seem to possess in common is that all the superfi-cial frontal feathers which are directed forward and conceal the nostrilsare white, even in the southern examples.(222 jja;/.) Sitta amurensis Swinh.Hondo Nuthatch. Ki-mawari.1850.?f f Sitta roseilia Bonaparte, Consp. Av., i, p. 227.1871.
?
Sitta amurensis Swiniioe, P. Z. S., 1871, p. 350.?Seebohm, Brit. B. Eggs, i, p.525 (1883).? Blakist., Amend. List B. Jap., ]> 5i (^1884).1878. Sitta europa'a Blakiston & Pryer, Ibis, 1878, p. iSa (part) (wee Linn.).?lid.Tr. As. Soc. Jap., viii, 1880, p. 219 (/jarO-?Blakist., Curysanth., Feb.,1883, p. ?.?JouY, Pr. U. S. Nat. Mus., vi, 1883, p. 287.1882, Sitia, europa'a subsp, uralensis Blakiston & Pryer, Tr, As. Soc. Jap., x,1882, p. 152 (part).?Blakist., Am. List B, Jap., p. 51 (jyart) (1884).Tliis Ibrm may, or may not, be Bonaparte's Sitta roseilia. He onlygives the following description: '' S. roseilia., Bp. ex Japonia. iSubtus
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 391
alba,lateribus crissoque pulchre castaneo-roseis I"" As be iudicates nospecimen the probability is, that he has only named the Sitta mentionedin Temminck and Sclilegel's Fauna Japonica, which was inserted uponthe authority of a native drawing. The name may safely be passedover as absolutely indeterminable; in fact, so far as the description isconcerned, it iits better Taczanowski's^>S'. haicalensis.As already remarked, there seems to be no reason to doubt this birdbeing identical with true S. amurensis. 1 may mention, however, thata specimen from Amur (TJ. S. Nat. Mus. No. 98.131), the only one at mycommand, has the nasal feathers entirely black, and no trace of a whitishedge to the tips of tbe greater wing-coverts, while in the Japanesebirds, the superficial nasal plumes are pure white, and a narrow whitestreak runs across the wing. As the Amur specimen, however, is ina somewhat abraded plumage these difference.'* may be insignificant,but I should like to get information as to these features in typicalbirds in fresh plumage. The siieciraen mentioned agrees very well withthe Japanese birds in regard to dimensions.Measurements.
? * Collector and orig-inal number.
961.51 Pryer; B.,91355: Jouy, 63391356 Jouy, 66391357 Jouy, 67191358 Jouy, 745109358'
Locality.
ad.(/ad.
cf ad.c/ad.cf ad.*jd ad. I109359] I cf ad. |
Nikto, HondoChiusenji Lake,Hondo.dodoTata Tama, Hondo.
.
Suruga, Hondodo
Date.
AugAug.Sept.Sept.OctNov.Nov.
, 187929, 1882
4, 18826, 188231, 188221, 188423, 1884Average measurements of seven specimens 80
-3 a 5fe
mm.
392 EEVIEW OF JAPANESE BIEDS.(222 ^ar<.) Sitta amurensis clara Bubsp. nov.Tesso Nuthatcli. Ki-mawari.1858.
?
Sitta sibirica Cassin, Pr. Pbilada. Acad., 1858, p. 195 (nee Brehm, 1855).1862.?Sitta roseilia Blakiston, Ibis, 1862, p. 322 (nee Bonap., 1850 ?).?Jd., ibid., 1863,p. 99.1863. Sitta nralensis Blakiston, Ibis, 1863, p. 89 (nee Light., 1834).1867. Sitta europwa Whitely, Ibis, 1867, p. 196 (nee Linn.).?Swinhoe, Ibis, 1874, p.152.?Blakist.&Pryer, Ibis, 1878, p. 2m(part).?Iid., Tr. As. Soc. Jap.,viii,1880, p. 218 (part).?Seebohm, Ibis, 1879, p. 34.
?
Blakist., Chrysanth., Jan.,1883, p. 30.1882. Sitta europwa svibsp. uralensis Blakiston & Pryer, Tr. As. Soc. Jap., x, 1882, p.152 (jpar*).?Blakist., Chrysanth., Oct., 1882, p. 522.?Id., Am. List. B. Jap.,p. 51 (part) (1884).DiAGN.?Similar to Sitta ainurensis, hnt with the whole breast white, and the abdo-men and flanks only faintly suffused with a creamy buff.Hab.?Yesso, Japan.Type.?U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 91547.The specimens before me are apparently all females, and male birdsfrom Yesso are, therefore, very desirable. In addition to the characterindicated in the diagnosis these females are noteworthy for the nearlycomplete absence of chestnut on the flanks and the paleness of thebrown edges of the- under tail-coverts. Probably, the males will showmore of the chestnut color, but judging from analogy I think it safe tosay that the amount will be perceptibly less than in the Hondo birds.This, of course, is only a slight northern modification of 8. amurensis,the white color of which has increased to a perceptible extent. In con-sequence the trace of white at the frontal line, the white superciliaryline, the white line across the wing formed by the ends of the greatcoverts, and the white band across the external tail-feathers, are moredistinct or broader, features still more pronounced in the next form.
Measurements.
m
CO
1886.] PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 393The following table is compiled from Captain Blakiston's notes andgives the total length of 17 specimens as measured by him.Measurements by Captain Blakiston.1o
"a11s
oy4 REVIEW OF JAPANESE BIRDS.APPENDIX TO THE MARSH-TITS (see autea, pp. 378-382).Since the above was written and transmitted for publicatioa I havehad an opportunity of examining- some additional and very valuablematerial, which Mr. Henry Seebohm has had the kindness to send me forinspection, a courtesy for which I hereby render my sincere thanks.Besides two specimens of Parus songarns Seveez., which present theap])earance of a very marked species^ and a specimen of a Marshtit fromPekin, collected by Mr. R. Swinhoe, which is very much like the Eu-roj^ean forms P. palustris and dresseri, though lighter a!id clearer thanboth, and differing from them in about the same degree as does P. baica-lensis from P. horealis, the collection sent by Mr. Seebohm contains twotypical P. horealis, two P. baicalensis from Krasnoyarsk, two P. brevi-rostris from Amur, and two specimens from Yesso, which appear to bethe types upon which, in 1879, Mr. Seebohm based his P. japonicus.One of these is Whitely's No. 97a, the other Blakiston's No. 1121.These two specimens confirm the opinion expressed by me, that thename P. japonicus belongs to the Yesso bird. They agree in every re-spect with the two northern specimens in the National Museum (Nos.96144 aud 9014:5) not only in coloration, but also in the size of billaud tail. The two P. brevirostris of Mr. Seebohm's collection ( S and9 , collected in April; without numbers) differ only in having a muchshorter bill; in other respects they are identical with the Yesso birds;but from our experience with the European forms we are not inclined tolay much stress upon this apparent difference, and unless large seriesof specimens from the two countries should prove the size of the billsto be a feature generally separating them, the Japanese form will haveto stand as Parus brevirostris.The Japanese birds agree with P. baicalensis in regard to the size ofthe bill, but the latter is considerably grayer on the back, and the blackcap is more brownish.I take the opportunity to present a new table of measurements ofParus brevirostris including Seebohm's specimens from Yesso and Amur,
Measure7nents.
Museum
and
number.