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Notes and Comments
With the duck and tern nesting on this small island in such numbers it is very easy to conceive of the fishermen gathering baskets of eggs when the island is visited late in the month of May.
It is interesting to note that the Oystercatcher does not frequent Islands any considerable distance from the mainland or from Haitang Island which is the central island of the group. Two pairs of Black-napped Tern were found on an island one mile off the eastern tip of Haitang.
Four pairs of Oystercatcher were found nesting on three smaller islands only a few hundred yards off shore.
Until some ornithologist finds time and opportunity to spend con- siderable time among the islands off the southern China coast it is going to be impossible to determine with any degree of certainty what birds do nest in this region. We have seen both Shearwater and Petrel over Haitang waters in May. On the fourth of May we saw flocks of Mallard (Anas p. platyrhyncha) in the waters along the Futsing coast. This certainly is after duck of this species are supposed to have followed the teal, pintail, etc., on the northward migration.
HARRY R. CALDWELL,
Futsing, Fukien.
The island of Haitang is situated to the E.S.E. of Futsing and S.E. of Foochow roughly Long. 119° 45′ and Lat. 25° 35′ N.—Ed.
THE DUSKY AND THE RUFOUS-BACKED SHRIKES.
In H.K.N. V, p. 227 mention is made of a nest of the Dusky Shrike found at Tsun Wan last year in which case both parents and all young were dusky.
Having during the past few years seen numerous nests of the Rufous- backed Shrike, where, in every case the young were similar to their parents, I jumped to the conclusion that the Dusky Shrike is, and can only be, the offspring of parents which are beth dusky.
This nesting season the theory I so fondly cherished was very rudely exploded.
On the 22nd of June a nest of the Rufous-backed Shrike was located. Imagine my surprise when, on examining the contents, I found that of the three young birds two were Rufous-backed and the third Dusky. Scarcely believing my eyes I had another good look at the parents which were but a few yards away protesting loudly against the intrusion, but they were both without doubt typical Lanius s. schach. With the object of being doubly sure I retreated and waited for a couple of hours and during this interval both birds were observed to descend to the nest to tend the young.
The three young birds were taken home and brought to the University where they were examined by Dr. G. A. C. Herklots and proved to be as stated one Dusky, two Rufous-backed.
Accerding to La Touche, the Dusky Shrike (Lanius fuscatus) and the Rufous-backed Shrike (Lanius s. schach) are separate species and I was, until the last find, of the same opinion. Stressemann, Rothschild and
The Hong Kong Naturalist.
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