X

The Land and Fresh-Water Birds of Micronesia¹

THE zoogeographer includes under Micronesia the islands from Palau and the Marianas in the west to the Carolines, Marshalls, and Gilbert Islands in the east. In this enormous area with an cast-west extension of almost 3000 miles, there are only few islands large enough to be the home of land birds. The number of species of native birds recorded from these islands is as follows: Palau 32, Marianas 21, Ponape 18, Kusaie 10, Marshall Islands 3. The total number of species of land birds is 48, to which would have to be added 5 species that were introduced on Guam and other islands.

A special problem is posed by migrant visitors from Asia. Every autumn numerous Japanese and Asiatic birds are carried out to the Marianas and even more of them reach Palau. Thirty such species have so far been recorded for Micronesia, many of them only a single time. At least twice that many species will be added to this list if a resident observer keeps a sharp lookout for migrants. The present handbook is not the place to give the identification marks and descriptions of all these species. Lack of space prevents me from giving more than a list. (See end of this chapter).

The bird fauna of Micronesia is a mixture of various elements. The genera Ixobrychus, Gallinula, Asio, Otus, Caprimulgus, and Acrocephdus were derived from Asia. The Micronesian forms of the genera Pandion, Megapodius, Rallus, Redlina, Caloenas, Halcyon chloris, Edolisoma, Colluricincla, and Artamus came from the Papuan region, either directly or via the Philippine Islands. The Polynesian element is conspicuous in the genera Ptilinopus, Ducula, Aplonis, and Myzomela. Remarkable is the almost complete absence of parrots and honey-eaters, the small number of pigeons and the absence of such widespread genera as Lai age, Turdus, and Pachycephala. Five genera are endemic: Aphanolimnas (Kusaie), Psamathia (Palau), Metabolus (Truk), Cleptornis (Marianas), and Ruhia (Micronesia).

All species and genera marked with an asterisk are treated in more detail in the systematic section (Chapter 3, "The Land and Fresh-Water Birds of the Southwest Pacific") of Part I.

CORMORANTS

*LittIe Pied Cormorant (Phalacrocorax m. melanoleucus Vicillot): Palau Isls. and (? as straggler) Marianas.

HERONS

*Reef Heron (Demigretta s. sacra Gmelin): Found throughout the area, including Marshall, and Gilbert Isls. The mottled phase is rare; about two-thirds of the birds are gray.

*Rufous Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus): The sub-species pelewensis Mathews 1926 is dull maroon above; the occipital plumes may be entirely white. Palau Isls. and Truk group (Carolines).

Chinese Least Bittern (Ixobrychus sinensis Gmelin): A very small (12) heron. Adult male. Buff (sand color) below. Top of head black; hind-neck rufous. Back brown; tail black. Wing-tip (i.e. outer half of wing) black, inner half of wing pale clay color. Immature and female. Streaked with pale brown below; mottled brown and sandy above. Tail and wing-tips black. Iris yellow; bill yellowish green, black above; feet greenish yellow.

Japan, eastern China, Marianas, Palau, Carolines (Yap, Truk), and island belt from the Indian Ocean to New Guinea and the Bismarek archipelago (New Britain). Nests in parts of Micronesia, but apparently only a winter visitor to the Papuan region. No well-defined subspecies. In marshes, rice paddies, occasionally in the mangroves. Mostly nocturnal. Food principally insects. Call kaka-kakak.

DUCKS

Marianas Mallard (Anas oustaleti Salvadori): Large (20). Dark brown above; lighter and more rufous below. Top of head black with an indistinct buff eye-stripe. Cheeks and throat buff, finely streaked with black. Wing plain gray brown; speculum bluish green, bordered with black and white. Iris brown; bill olive gray; feet reddish. Differs from superciliosa by larger size, lack of a clearly defined eye-stripe, and the color of the wing, particularly the broad white hands along the black borders of the speculum.

Endemic on the Marianas, Now nearly exterminated. Habits probably similar to those of the common Mallard, of the Northern Hemisphere. Nests among reedy swamps and along streams.

*Australian Gray Duck (Anas superciliosa pelewensis Hartlaub and Finsch): See Plate 1: 7. Medium (17). Occurs in the Palau Isls. and Carolines (Truk).

OSPREYS

*Osprey (Pandion haliaetus melvillensis Mathews): Recorded (apparently breeding) from Palau. The only other hawks that have been recorded from Micronesia are winter visitors from Asia.

MEGAPODES

Incubator Bird (Megapodius laperouse): Large (w). Uniformly dark slaty brown. Face and upper throat scantily feathered, bare skin red. Iris brown; bill yellow with a blue-black base; legs and feet dirty yellow; toes partly black. Two subspecies, laperouse Gaimard (Marianas) with crest and top of head dark ash gray, senex Hartlaub (Palau) with crest and top of head light pearl gray, strongly contrasting with the back. Partial to the smaller offshore coral islets. Species possibly near extermination. Habits typical of the genus.*

QUAILS AND PHEASANTS

*Domestic Fowl (Gallus gallus): Feral fowl are found in the Marianas, Palau Isls., and Carolines.

Pigmy Quail: (Excalfactoria chinensii): Cf. Figure 5. Very small (5). Brown above, with buffy white streaks and a mottling of black. Males blue gray below; middle of chest and abdomen chestnut. Face and throat with a pretty pattern of black and white. Females buffy below, barred with blackish. The subspecies lineata Scopoli has been introduced on Guam from the Philippines. It lives in the grass and has typical quail habits.

RAILS

The rails, with 7 native species, are particularly well represented in Micronesia. This includes one endemic genus (Aphanolimnas) and one endemic species (Rallus owstoni), Most of the other species have been recorded only from Palau or the Marianas.

*Banded Rail (Rallus philippensis): The subspecies pelewensis Mayr 1933 is restricted to Palau. It is a rather dark race, with the rufous breast band usually present.

Guam Rail (Rallus owstoni Rothschild): Large (11). Upper-parts brown. A gray superciliary stripe from the bill to the hind-neck. A brown stripe through the eye. Throat ash gray. Breast, abdomen, and part of wings barred black and white. Iris red; bill dark brown; legs gray. Restricted to Guam (Marianas). In grasslands and second growth. Call note not yet described.

Malay Banded Crake (Rallina fasciata Raffles); Small (8). Rufous brown above. Head, throat, and breast rufous. Abdomen white, coarsely barred with black. Wings brown, barred with buff. Iris red; bill brown; legs red. This seems to be a true swamp rail. Malay archipelago and Palau Isls. Native name: Olaratta.

Kusaie Rail (Aphanolimnas monasa Kittlitz): Small (7). All sooty black; middle of throat lighter, more slate gray. Underwing and undertail with a few inconspicuous white bars. Iris and feet red; bill black(?). Endemic on Kusaie Isl. In shady places of the humid forest. Calls frequently. Not taken for more than 50 years and probably extinct.

*White-browed Rail (Poliolimnas cineretis): Reported from Palau, Marianas (Guam), Carolines (Yap, Truk), and Marshall Isls. (Bikini). Micronesian birds seem to belong to collingwoodi Mathews 1926.

Moorhen or Gallinule (Gallinula chloropus): Large (12-13). Sooty slate color. Under tail-coverts, lower belly, and a line along the flanks white. Iris red; bill red with a yellow tip; legs and feet olive green. Forehead covered by a horny red shield, a continuation of the bill. Found throughout the. Marianas (guami Hartert 1917). In swamps and taro fields.

*Purple Swamphen (Porphyrio porphyria): See Plate 1: 10. The subspecies pelewensis Hartlaub and Finsch is restricted to the Palau group.

PIGEONS AND DOVES

Marianas Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus roseicapillus Lesson): Small (8½). Upperparts green; top of head dark red. Underparts many-colored. Middle of upper throat whitish; sides of neck gray; breast grayish green. Flanks and under tail-coverts peach color; lower belly yellow. A purple spot in middle of lower breast. Tip of tail grayish. Iris yellow; bill dark green; legs dark red.

Marianas. The only fruit dove on this island group. With the habits of the genus.* Call: toot, toot, toot-toot-toot, toot, toot, increasing and then decreasing in volume and rapidity.

*Crimson-crowned Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus porphyraceus): Three subspecies in Micronesia, similar to the Samoan race: hernsheimi Finsch (Kusaie) with broad tail-tip yellow; portapensis Finsch (Truk, Ponapc) with the whole plumage washed with greenish yellow, under tail-coverts orange; pelewensis Hartlaub and Finsch (Palau) with a purple patch in the middle of the gray throat. Upper abdomen orange, lower abdomen yellow; under tail-coverts purplish red. Unmistakable. The only fruit dove of the islands mentioned.

Micronesian Pigeon (Ducula oceanica): Large (16). Similar to D. pacifica (see Plate 2: 13), but gray throat and breast contrasting with chestnut belly. Top of head and upper back light or dark gray. Back, wings, and tail dark glossy green. Bill and knob black; feet dark purplish red.

Five races: monacha Momiyama 1922 (Palau, Yap) and teraokai Momyiama 1922 (Truk) with crown and upper back pale gray; townsendi Wetmore 1919 (Ponape) and oceanica Lesson and Garnot (Kusaie, Carolines; Jaluit and Elmore Isls., Marshalls; ?Gilbert Isls.) with crown and upper back blackish gray; ratakensis Takatsukasa and Yamashina 1932 (Arno and Wotje, Marshall Isls.) smaller.

Habits like those of all big Ducula. Persecution has driven the species to the remote interior on most islands.

Philippine Turtle Dove (Streptopelia bitorquata dusumieri Temminck): Medium (11). Head vinaceous gray. Back light brown; wings and tail more grayish. A slate-gray nuchal collar. Throat and breast vinaceous (ashy pink); lower belly white. Tip and edge of outermost tail-feathers white. Iris orange; bill dark slate; feet cherry red.

This pale, long-tailed turtle dove was introduced on the Marianas, Is now abundant. Feeds on the ground; partial to grasslands, rice fields, or other open country. Lives in pairs or small flocks.

White-throated Ground Dove (Gallicolumba xanthonura): Small (10). Forehead, throat, and breast white; belly black. Mantle glossy purple. Two very distinct subspecies: xanthonura Temminck (Marianas, Yap) with the female brown; back with a slight greenish gloss; tail rufous with a black subterminal bar; male with the entire head and upper back white, top of head and nape washed with pale cinnamon; kubaryi Finsch (Truk, Ponape) with male and female nearly alike; forehead and eyebrow white; nape and ear region blackish; female paler than male, lower back and rump with an olive-green gloss.

With the habits of the genus.* Lives in the deep forest. Call a deep, low moan.

Palau Ground Dove (Gallicolumba canifrons Hartlaub and Finsch): Small (834). Forehead, face, and sides of neck ash gray, changing to pinkish buff on lower throat and breast. Abdomen dark chocolate brown. Occiput and upper back cinnamon. Remainder of upperparts glossy bronze olive. Shoulders (lesser upper wing-coverts) glossy purple. A rufous patch on the wings. Iris dark brown; bill black; feet bright red. Restricted to Palau. Rare. Favors uninhabited coral islets.

*Nicobar Pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica): Restricted to the uninhabited coral islets of southern Palau (pelewensis Finsch). Nearly extinct.

PARROTS

Red Lory (Trichoglossus rubiginosus Bonaparte): Medium (9). Dark purplish red with indistinct blackish bars, particularly on the underparts. Wing-feathers dull olive; tail olive with yellowish tip. Iris grayish; bill orange; feet blackish. Endemic on Ponape. Habits apparently similar to T. haematodus.* Coast and inland. Very noisy.

OWLS

Palau Scops Owl (Otus podarginus Hartlaub and Finsch): Small (9). Cinnamon or rufous brown; lighter below and with irregular white spots or bars. No conspicuous "ears." Endemic on Palau. Its note is probably the usual too-whoo-too-whit of scops owls. Tends to change its perch after calling for 3 minutes. Forest. Nests in hollow trees, February-March. Not uncommon near villages.

Short-eared Owl (Asio flammcus): Large (14). Dark brown above with buff streaks. Buff below with broad, dark brown streaks on the breast, with narrow streaks on the abdomen. Wing and tail dark brown, barred with buff. Iris yellow; bill dark slate.

The subspecies ponapensis Mayr 1933 is endemic on Ponape. Hunts over grasslands. It nests in the grass on the ground. The Asiatic flammcus Pontoppidan seems to reach the Marianas occasionally on migration.

NIGHTJARS

Jungle Nightjar (Caprimulgus indicus): Small (9½). Long-tailed, with the usual concealing coloration of night birds— brown with black streaks and spots, and with a mottling of rufous and buff. A white spot on either side of throat. Male with a white wing-bar and with a subterminal white bar across the tail. Iris, bill, and feet dark. Restricted to Palau Isl. (phalaena Hartlaub and Finsch). Call note probably an accelerating chuck-chuck ("hammer-beat-like call") when perched. In flight a karump farump-like call. Man-groves and edge of lowland forest.

SWIFTS

Carolines Swiftlet (Collocalia inquieta): Small (4½). Black above; smoky gray below. Three similar subspecies: rukensis Kuroda 1915 (Yap, Truk); ponapensis Mayr 1935 (Ponape); inquieta Kittlitz (Kusaie). With the habits of C. vanikorensis.*

Edible Nest Swiftlet (Collocalia inexpectata): Small (4). Sooty black above; rump slightly paler. Smoky gray below. Two subspecies in Micronesia: pelewensis Mayr 1935 (Palau), bartschi Mearns (Marianas). Nests in caves; most active at dawn and dusk.

KINGFISHERS

Two species of kingfishers overlap on Palau. On all other islands the locality assures correct identification. On Palau H. chloris has the top of the head blackish olive and lives more on the beach, in coconut groves, and in villages; H. cinnamomina has the top of the head cinnamon and lives in the forest.

Micronesian Kingfisher (Halcyon cinnamomina): Under-parts white or orange cinnamon. Top of head cinnamon; back, wings, and tail dark greenish blue.

Three very distinct subspecies: cinnamomina Swainson (Guam), large (9½), throat of female and entire underparts of male orange cinnamon; pelewensis Wiglesworth (Palau) small (8), underparts white; reichenbachii Hartlaub (Ponape) large (9), white underneath, immature males cinnamon. Substage of the forest, also near villages. Habits those of H. chloris. Voice and food similar.

*White-collared Kingfisher (Halcyon chloris): Cf. Plate 2:22. Four subspecies, all white below, with back, wings, and tail bluish: teraokai Kuroda 1915 (Palau) and orii Takatsukasa and Yamashina 1931 (Rota) with the top of head greenish blue; albicilla Dumont (Saipan, Tinian) with the entire head white; owstoni Rothschild (Almagan, Pagan, Agrigan, Assuncion) intermediate, forehead white.

CUCKOO-SHRIKES

*Cicada Bird (Edolisoma tenuirostre): Three subspecies, strongly marked in the female plumage. Male of all 3 dark blue gray. Female: monacha Hardaub and Finsch (Palau) pale ocher below, loosely barred with black; crown dark blue gray; back dull fuscous brown; nesiotis Hartlaub and Finsch (Yap) similar, barred only on sides of breast, wings and upperparts deeper rufous; a rufous eye-stripe; insperata Finsch (Ponape) crown and sides of head gray, remainder of plumage deep rufous, darker above; no barring. Iris brown. Call: too-too-wee, too~too-wec. Lives in Micronesia in the dark forest.

WARBLERS

Palau Warbler (Psamathia annae Hartlaub and Finsch): Medium (6). Rather long bill and tail. Brownish olive above; dull yellowish olive below. Iris brown; legs and base of bill yellow. Very similar to Rufya palaucrisis, but legs long and yellow. Bill slender.

Palau. Common in secondary scrub and grasslands. Lives in low bushes, often feeding on the ground. Tame; frequently near human habitations. Call: "a shrill whistle, usually breaks off into a rather beautiful song."

Nightingale Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus luscinia): A group of very distinct, but closely related forms. Pale buffy yellow below; rufous brown or grayish olive brown above. A. I, luscinia Quoy and Gaimard (Guam, Agrigan, Saipan, Almagan) large (8), bill over an inch long, curved; yamashinae Takatsukasa 1931 (Pagan) with a shorter bill and warmer brown above; syrinx Kittlitz (throughout the Carolines) small (7), bill shorter than head, back cinnamon; rehsei Finsch (Nawodo or Pleasant Isl.) smaller (6).

A beautiful singer. Mostly in reed beds, on some islands also in second-growth vegetation and in gardens. Nearly extinct in the southern Marianas.

FLYCATCHERS

Rufous-fronted Fantail (Rhipidura rufifrons group): See Plate 3:27. See also Solomon Isls. The 5 Micronesian forms of this group may all be considered subspecies of rufifrons, or lepida and kubaryi may be called distinct species.

lepida Hartlaub and Finsch (Palau). Upperparts bright rufous, wings brown, tail brown tipped with rufous. Upper throat and middle of breast white. Sides of face and a broad band across lower throat black; flanks and abdomen rufous.

uraniae Oustalet (Guam) and saipanensis Hartert (Saipan, Tinian, Rota). Upperparts and wings brown. Forehead and rump rufous. Upper throat black; flanks rufous; versicolor Hartlaub and Finsch (Yap), rump browner.

kubaryi Finsch (Ponape). Dark brown gray above. Forehead, cheeks, abdomen, and tips of tail-feathers white. Throat black.

Truk Monarch (Metabolus rugensis Hombron and Jacquinot): Large (7½-8½). Extremely variable. With or without a black face and throat. Either all white, or whitish with rufous-cinnamon upperparts, wings, and tail, or all a sooty slate-color. Long blue-gray bill.

Endemic on Truk (Caroline Isls.). Habits probably those of all monarchs.*

Yap Island Monarch (Monarcha godeffroyi Hartlaub): Medium (6½). Either white with head, upper throat, wings, and tail black, or black with a broad white ring (collar) around the neck, or grayish ocher above, pale ocher below. Endemic on Yap Isl.

Tinian Island Monarch (Monurcha takatsukasae Yamashina 1931): Small (6). Male and female alike. Tawny ocher below; vent white. Face and sides of head ocher. Back olive brown; wings and tail black. Two white or buff wing-bars. Rump and tips of tail-feathers white. Iris dark brown. Endemic on Tinian Isl. (Marianas).

Micronesian Broadbill (Myiagra occanica): The 4 races of this species are so distinct that they might also be considered 4 different species. All 4 have the typical habits of broad-billed flycatchers.*

erythrops Hartlaub and Finsch (Palau). Small (5). Gray brown above, with a rufous face. Tawny below, with a white vent.

freycineti Oustalet (Guam). Female similar to erythrops, male blue gray above, white below; breast may be slightly buff.

oceanica Pucheran (Truk). Similar to erythrops, but face blue gray, like top of head. Upper throat and abdomen whitish; breast ochraceous. Medium (5½).

pluto Finsch (Ponape). All blackish slate; head with blue gloss. Medium (6).

On each of the 4 islands there is no similar bird that could be mistaken for a broadbill. The call is a thrice-repeated whistle like peter-peter-peter, or here-here-here. Birds lift feathers of head to a crest when excited.

WHISTLERS

Morning Bird (Colluricincla tenebrosa Hartlaub and Finsch): Medium (7½). Plain brown throughout; upperparts darker, cap almost blackish. Iris yellow; bill and feet dark. No light marks on wing or tail.

Palau only. Lives in the rain forest, either on the ground or in low bushes. The best songster of the Palau Isls., most active before sunrise. More common on the outlying islands. Native name Tu tau.

WOOD-SWALLOWS

*White-breasted Wood-Swallow (Artamus leucorhynchus): Cf, Plate 3: 31. The subspecies pelewensis Finsch is endemic on Palau.

STARLINGS

Micronesian Starling (Aplonis opacus): Large (8½-9). Bill heavy, well curved. Adults black with a slight greenish or blue-green gloss. Immatures duller and somewhat streaky underneath; on Guam whitish with numerous black streaks. Iris yellow, dull in immatures.

Seven poorly defined races: aencus Takatsukasa and Yamashina 1931 (Agrigan, Pagan, Almagan, northern Marianas); guami Momyiama 1922 (Guam, Rota, Tinian, Saipan, southern Marianas); orii T. and Y. 1931 (Palau); kurodai Momyiama 1921 (Yap); angus Momyiama 1922 (Truk and western Carolines); ponapensis T. and Y. 1931 (Ponape); and opacus Kittlitz (Kusaie). Habits those of A. tabuensis (see Samoa).

Ponape Mountain Starling (Aplonis pelzelni Finsch): Small (7½). Dark brownish slate color; immatures lighter and more brownish, not streaky. Differs from opacus by small size, brown, not yellow, iris, plain color (no gloss), more slender bill, and by living in the mountains (above 1400 feet). A bird of the forest. Rather quiet. Endemic on Ponape.

Kusaie Mountain Starling (Aplonis corvinus Kittlitz): Very large (?10). All glossy black with a long tail and a long, curved bill. Iris red. Formerly on Kusaie. Apparently extinct.

CROWS

Guam Crow (Corvtis kuharyi Reichenow): Small (15). All glossy black. Iris brown. Bill rather slender. Restricted to Guam and Rota (Marianas).

HONEY-EATERS

Golden Honey-eater (Cleptornis marchei Oustalet): Small (6). Head, rump, and underparts deep yellow with a golden-bronze tone. Back, wings, and tail golden olive. Bill and feet orange. Endemic on Saipan.

*Cardinal Honey-eater (Myzomela cardinalis): Cf. Plate 3: 36. The 6 Micronesian races (the rubratra group) are very similar to each other. Small (5½). Adult male all scarlet, but wings, tail, and stripe from eye to bill black. Female similar, but with less scarlet: top of head partly (Palau) or entirely black (Ponape), tail sometimes olivaceous (Guam, Palau). M. c. saftordi Wetmore 1917 (all Marianas), kobayashii Momyiama 1922 (Palau), kurodai Momyiama 1922 (Yap), major Bonaparte (Truk), dichromata Wetmore 1919 (Ponape), and rubratra Lesson (Kusaie). Small size and partly scarlet coloration are diagnostic.

WHITE-EYES

The number of white-eyes in Micronesia seems to be bewildering. The latest list enumerates no less than 10, species with 14 subspecies. Actually the family is represented by only 3 groups of geographically representative species, all 3 of them occurring together on Ponape and Palau. None of the other islands has more than 2 species of white-eyes. The 3 groups are a small green white-eye (conspicillata), a small gray or brownish white-eye (cinerea), and a large white-eye (Rukia).

Bridled White-eye (Zosterops conspicillata): Small (4). Yellowish below; greenish above. Forehead yellow or whitish. White eye-ring usually narrow. Iris yellow or whitish; upper mandible brown, lower yellow; legs blue gray.

Seven subspecies: conspicillata Kittlitz (Guam) and saipani Dubois (Saipan, Tinian) with broad white eye-ring„ forehead white, underparts whitish yellow, back and sides. of neck grayish green; rotensis Takatsukasa and Yamashina 1931 (Rota), semperi Hartlaub and Finsch (Palau), hypolais Hartlaub and Finsch (Yap), owstoni Hartert (Truk), and takatsukasai Momyiama 1922 (Ponape) more yellow, white eye-ring narrow.

Common in gardens and along edge of forest. Call note: chip-chip. Also a melodious short song. Often in flocks. Feeds on small berries; also found on flowering bushes and trees.

Gray-brown White-eye (Zosterops cinerea): Small to medium (4-4½). No green in plumage. No white eye-ring. Iris bright brown. Bill and legs dark.

Three subspecies: cinerea Kittlitz (Kusaie) ash gray above, pale gray below; ponapensis Finsch (Ponape) umber brown above, forehead and underparts pale ash gray, flanks brownish; finschi Hartlaub (Palau) similar but face also brownish.

The large Micronesian white-eyes (Genus Rukia): Each of the islands of Palau, Yap, Truk, and Ponape has an endemic species of large white-eye. They are so distinct that each has been put in a separate monotypic genus: Megazosterops (Palau), Kubaryum (Yap), Rukia (Truk), Rhamphozosterops (Ponape), but it seems more convenient to combine these related species in a single genus (Rufya). The habits, so far as known, seem similar in all 4 species.

Large Palau White-eye (Rukia palauensis Reichenow 1915): Large (5½). Fulvous olive; dark above, pale below. Indistinct eye-ring, car-coverts dark with irregular pale yellow mottling. Iris grayish; bill yellow (light brown above); legs and feet tan. Restricted to Peliliul Isl. (Palau). Might be confused with Psamathia (see above). Differs from Colluricincla by the olive color and from the 2 species of Zosterops by much larger size.

Large Yap White-eye (Rukia oleaginea Hartlaub and Finsch): Large (5). Similar to palauensis, eye-ring satin white, ears blackish. Iris reddish white. Yap Isl, Differs from Zosterops conspicillata by being larger, darker, and more brownish olive.

Large Truk White-eye (Rukia ruki Hartert): Large (5¾). Dark brownish olive above and below. Eye-ring invisible. Iris reddish; bill black; legs orange. Endemic on Truk. Differs from Acrocephalus by the dark underparts and from Z, conspicillata by the brownish olive color, orange legs, and lack of eye-ring.

Large Ponape White-eye (Rukia sanfordi Mayr 1931): Large (5¼). Back buffy olive, brighter on rump. Underparts much lighter, buffy. Upper throat pale yellowish. No visible eyering. Iris and bill brown; feet yellowish. Bill long, thin, and curved, like that of a honey-eater.

Differs from Acrocephalus by the grayish green throat, greenish upperparts, and pale legs, from Zosterops by the long curved bill, large size, and yellowish legs. Endemic in the mountains of Ponape (above 1800 feet). Feeds among flowers of a gum tree. Voice: "a musical, deep-throated sibilation" (Coultas). Rare.

WEAVER-FINCHES

Black-breasted Weaver-Finch (Lonchura nigerrima): Small (3½). All black, top of head and nape whitish, rump and tail golden chestnut. A subspecies (minor Yamashina 1931) has been described from the grasslands of Ponape. (?Also Truk.)

*Blue-faced Parrot-Finch (Erythrura trichroa): Three similar subspecies in Micronesia: pelewensis Kuroda 1922 (Palau); clara Takatsukasa and Yamashina 1931 (Truk, Ponape); and trichroa Kittlitz (Kusaic). Feeds in the grasslands, but spends much time in the adjoining forest.

MIGRANT VISITORS TO MICRONESIA

Egretta i. intermedia, Bubulcus ibis coromandus, Butorides striates amurensis (Palau); Nycticorax n. nycticorax (Marianas, Yap); Gorsakius goisagi, Gorsafyus m. melanolophus (Palau); Dupetor f. flavicollis (Guam); Ixobrychus eurythmus (Palau); Anas crecca, Anas penelope, Anas acuta, Anas clypeata, Nyroca fuligula (throughout); Falco peregrin's subsp. (Palau, Yap); Accipiter soloensis (Yap); Accipiter virgatus gularis (Marianas); Rallina eurizonoides subsp. (Palau); Fulice a. atra (Marianas); Cuculus canorus telephonus, Cuculus saturates horsfieldi (Palau); Eudynamis taitensis (throughout); Caprimulgus indicus jotaJ(a, Eurystomus orientalis pacific us, Hirundo rustica gutturalis, Turdus 0, obscurus, Monticola ph. philippensis, Luscinia c. calliope, Muscicapa n. nareissina, Muscicapa griseisticta, and Sturnus philippensis Forster (Palau).

Footnote

1 Finsch, O. 1875. "the Vogel der Palau Gruppe." Jour. Mut. Godeffroy, 3:133-83. Hartert, E. 1900. "The Birds of Ruk in the Central Carolines. "Novitates Zoologicae, 7:1-11. Kuroda, N., et al. 1932. "List of the Birds of Micronesia." In A Hand List of Japanese Birds, p. 169-98. Tokyo: Orn. Soc. Japan. Oustalet, E. 1895-96. "Les Mammiferes et les Oiseaux des lies Mariannes." Nouv. arch. Mas. d'Hist. Nat., 7:141-228; 8:25-74.