New record of Egretta eulophotes from Japan

Abstract

According to "A Hand-list of the Japanese Birds, " (first edition 1922) only Tsushima (with question mark) is known as a habitat of the Chinese Egret (Egretta eulophotes) in Japan. This information is quoted in many other books published later.The above information seems to have originated in "Hartert: -Die Vogel der Palaarktischen Fauna" (Vol. II, 1920). Here he described "Nach Jouy auch auf Tsuschima order in Korea vorgekommen." However Clark informs that only "A male of this species was secured at Fusan, Korea, on April 25, 1886 by Mr. Jouy" in his "Report on a collection of Birds, made by Pierre Louis Jouy in Korea" (Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., Vol. 38-1911). Accordingly Hartert's information can be considered wrong. Besides the above, there is no specimen record in any other reports written by Japanese as well as foreign ornithologists. The Chinese Egret, thus, should have been omitted from Japanese fauna.However, in 1956. during the later part of April and the later part of June, I could often observe this species in Osaka Bay and, luckily enough, collected an adult female. This is the first record of this species from Japan and a new addition for our avifauna.