Brachyurus propinquus Sharpe,
Trans. Linn. Soc. 2d. ser. Zool. (1877), 1, 330.
Pitta propinqua Sclater, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus. (1888), 14, 433;
Everett, Ibis (1895), 28; Sharpe, Hand-List (1901), 3, 182;
McGregor and Worcester, Hand-List (1906), 68.
Balabac (Steere, Everett); Palawan (Whitehead, Platen, Bourns &
Worcester, Everett).
Adult.--"Back entirely cobalt, including the scapulars; only the middle
of the back green washed with blue, forming a band across the back;
throat entirely brownish black, becoming jet-black on the fore neck;
chest bright blue, the sides only greenish; under wing-coverts dull
blue." (Sharpe.)
"Dr. Sharpe founded his Brachyurus propinquus on an adult male bird
obtained by Dr. Steere in Balabac. Dr. Steere obtained a second
specimen of a red-bellied pitta, also a male, but in very immature
plumage, at Dumalon, near Zamboanga, in Mindanao, and this bird
Dr. Sharpe assigned also to be B. propinquus, though not without
hesitation. Owing to the meager material available, the validity of
this species has always been open to question; and hence I made a
point of securing a series of these red-bellied pittas from Balabac
and Palawan, with the result that it has at length become possible
to compare adult birds from Balabac with adult birds from Luzon,
Mindanao, and Palawan.
"The characters relied upon by Dr. Sharpe as distinguishing
P. propinqua from typical P. erythrogastra were: (1) Back entirely
cobalt, including the scapulars; only the middle of the back green,
washed with blue, forming a band across the back. (2) Throat entirely
brownish black, becoming jet-black on the fore neck. (3) Chest bright
blue, the sides only greenish. (4) Under wing-coverts dull blue,
instead of grayish brown.
"Of these characters the last three appear to be of no value, as
birds from Luzon and Mindanao present them in greater or less degree,
and I have come to the conclusion that they belong to the fully-adult
birds, from whatever locality. But on viewing the upper surfaces of
a series of Balabac-Palawan specimens side by side with a series of
Luzon-Mindanao birds, the first mentioned character is at once seen
to be a good one, the green tract on the back of the former series
forming a comparatively narrow band, whereas in the latter series
it extends nearly to the rump. It is noticeable, further, that the
cobalt and green hues are much brighter than in any of the specimens
from Luzon or Mindanao, though it is no doubt very possible that this
may be owing to the freshness of the Balabac-Palawan skins.
"I have, therefore, no longer any doubt that P. propinqua differs
sufficiently from P. erythrogastra to make it necessary that it
should be separated from the latter by the appropriate appellation
which Dr. Sharpe originally bestowed upon it. And in this case it
will follow that the locality 'Mindanao' given in the 'Catalogue of
Birds' will require correction, as, indeed, it would in any case,
for the type was described from Balabac." (Everett.) [51]