There Are
Species Of Coracias In Europe, Asia, And Africa, But None In The
Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Or Borneo.
The present species
seems therefore quite out of place; and what is still more
curious is the fact that it is not at all like any of the
Asiatic species, but seems more to resemble those of Africa.
In the next family, the Bee-eaters, is another equally isolated
bird, Meropogon forsteni, which combines the characters of
African and Indian Bee-eaters, and whose only near ally,
Meropogon breweri, was discovered by M. Du Chaillu in West
Africa!
The two Celebes Hornbills have no close allies in those which
abound in the surrounding countries. The only Thrush, Geocichla
erythronota, is most nearly allied to a species peculiar to
Timor. Two of the Flycatchers are closely allied to Indian
species, which are not found in the Malay islands. Two genera
somewhat allied to the Magpies (Streptocitta and Charitornis),
but whose affinities are so doubtful that Professor Schlegel
places them among the Starlings, are entirely confined to
Celebes. They are beautiful long-tailed birds, with black and
white plumage, and with the feathers of the head somewhat rigid
and scale-like.
Doubtfully allied to the Starlings are two other very isolated
and beautiful birds. One, Enodes erythrophrys, has ashy and
yellow plumage, but is ornamented with broad stripes of orange-
red above the eyes. The other, Basilornis celebensis, is a blue-
black bird with a white patch on each side of the breast, and the
head ornamented with a beautiful compressed scaly crest of
feathers, resembling in form that of the well-known Cock-of-the-
rock of South America.
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