I THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA BY GREGORY M. MATHEWS F.R.S.E. MEMBER OF THE ROYAL AUSTRALASIAN ORNITHOLOGISTS’ UNION AND THE BRITISH ORNITHOLOGISTS’ UNION CORRESPONDING FELLOW OF THE AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGISTS’ UNION WITH HAND-COLOURED PLATES VOLUME XI. H4 H. F. & G. WITHERBY 826 HIGH HOLBORN LONDON 1923 — 1924 mmrazs wmmemyec3 jffv 'JLGNDOK' CONTENTS AND LIST OF PLATES. I o I C 1 I Order PASSERIFORMES ( continued ) Family FALCUNCULID.E PAGE Genus FALCUNCULUS . 1 No. 602. Yellow-bellied Shrike-Tit, Falcunculus frontatus . 2 Plate 491 (bottom figures) lettered Falcunculus frontatus, to face 2 No. 603. White-bellied Shrike-Tit, Falcunculus leucogaster . 13 Plate 491 (top figures) lettered Falcunculus leucog aster, to face 2 Genus OREOICA .......... No. 604. Crested Bell-Bird, Oreoica gutturalis Plate 492 lettered Oreoica gutturalis, to face Family SPHENOSTOMID/E Genus APHELOCEPHALA . . No. 605. Whiteface, Aphelocephala leucopsis .... Plate 493 lettered Aphelocephala leucopsis, to face No. 606. Chestnut-breasted Whiteface, Aphelocephala pectoralis Plate 494 (upper figures) lettered Aphelocephala pectoralis, to face .... •••••• No. 607. Black-banded Whiteface, Aphelocephala nigricincta Plate 494 (lower figure) lettered Aphelocephala nigricincta, to face Genus SPHENOSTOMA . No. 608. Wedge- bill, Sphenostoma cristatum . . . . Plate 495 lettered Sphenostoma cristatum, to face 17 18 18 28 29 29 37 37 42 37 46 47 47 v. THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. PAGE Family SITTIDZE Genus NEOSITTA .......... 53 No. 609. Orange-winged Treerunner, Neositta chrysoptera . 55 Plate 496 (two bottom figures) lettered Neositta chrysoptera , to face .......... 55 No. 610. White-headed Treerunner, Neositta, leucocephala . 60 Plate 496 (top left-hand figure) lettered Neositta, leucocephala , to face . 55 No. 611. Pied Treerunner, Neositta albata .... 62 Plate 496 (top right-hand figure) lettered Neositta albata, to face 55 No. 612. Black-capped Treerunner, Neositta pileata . . 64 Plate 497 (right-hand figure) lettered Neositta pileata, to face . 64 No. 613. White-winged Treerunner, Neositta leucoptera . 71 Plate 497 (left-hand and bottom figures) lettered Neositta leucoptera, to face ....... 64 No. 614. Striated Treerunner, Neosittella striata ... 77 Plate 497 (two top figures) lettered Neosittella striata, to face . 64 Family CLIMACTERIDZE Genus CLIMACTERIS . 82 No. 615. Brown Treecreeper, Climacteris picumnus . . 85 Plate 498 lettered Climacteris picumnus, to face ... 85 No. 616. Rufous Treecreeper, Climacteris rufa ... 93 Plates 499 (lower figures) and 504 (lower figure) lettered Climacteris rufa, to face . 93 and 130 No. 617. Black-backed Treecreeper, Climacteris melanota . 100 Plate 499 (upper figures) lettered Climacteris melanota, to face . 93 Genus CORMOBATES . . . . . . . . .103 No. 618. White-throated Treecreeper, Cormobates leucopheea 104 Plate 500 lettered Cormobates leucopheea, to face . . .104 No. 619. Little White-throated Treecreeper, Cormobates minor .......... 113 Plate 501 lettered Cormobates minor, to face . . . 113 No. 620. Red-browed Treecreeper, Cormobates erythrops . 117 Plate 502 (bottom figures) lettered Cormobates erythrops, to face 117 No. 621. White-browed Treecreeper, Cormobates affinis . 121 Plate 502 (top figures) lettered Cormobates affinis, to face. . 117 vi. CONTENTS. I* AGE Genus WHITLOCKA . 127 No. 622. Black-tailed Treecreeper, Whitlocka melanura . 128 Plates 503 (top and bottom figures) and 504 (middle figure) lettered Whitlocka melanura, to face . . .128 and 130 - Allied Black-tailed Treecreeper, Whitlocka wellsi . 128 Plates 503 (middle figure) and 504 (top figure) lettered Whitlocka wellsi, to face ........ 130 Family ZOSTEROPID/E Genus ZOSTEROPS . . . . . . . .134 No. 623. White-eye, Zosterops lateralis ..... 136 Plate 505 lettered Zosterops lateralis, to face . . .136 No. 624. Greek-backed White-eye, Zosterops australasice . 156 Plate 506 (top figure) lettered Zosterops australasice, to face . 156 No. 625. Pale-bellied White-eye, Zosterops albiventris . . 161 Plate 506 (middle figure) lettered Zosterops albiventris, to face . 156 No. 626. Yellow White-eye, Zosterops lutea . . . .164 Plate 506 (lower figure) lettered Zosterops lutea, to face . 156 Family DIC^ID/E Genus MICROCHELIDON . . No. 627. Flowerpecker, or Mistletoe-Bird, Microchelidon hirundinaeea . . . . . . .173 Plate 507 (top figures) lettered Austrodicceum hirun dinaceu m, to fece . . Family PARDALOTIDiE Genus PARDALOTUS ...... Ig2 No. 628. Spotted Pardalote (Diamond -Bird), Pardalotus punctatus ........ igg Plate 507 (lower figures) lettered Pardalotus punctatus, to face 173 Genus PARDALOTINUS . . No. 629. Striated Pardalote, Pardalotinus striatus . . 195 Plate 508 lettered Pardalotinus striatus, to face . . . 195 No. 630. Black-headed Pardalote, Pardalotimis melanocephalus 210 Plate 509 (top figures) lettered Pardalotus melanocephalus, to face . 210 vii. THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. PAGE Genus DIPARDALOTUS 218 No. 631. Red-browed Pardalote, Dipardalotus rubricatus . 219 Plate 509 (lower figures) lettered Pardalotus rubricatus, to face . 210 Genus NESOPARDALOTUS . 226 No. 632. Forty-spotted Pardalote, Nesopardalotus quadragintus 227 Plate 510 (upper figure) lettered Nesopardalotus quadragintus, to face ......... 227 Family NECTARINIIDiE Genus CYRTOSTOMUS . 229 No. 633. Sun-Bird, Cyrtostomus frenatus ..... 231 Plate 510 (lower figures) lettered Cyrtostomus frenatus, to face 227 Family MELITHREPTIDiE Genus MELITHREPTUS . 239 No. 634. White-naped Honey-eater, Melithreptus lunatus . 241 Plate 511 (lower figures) lettered Melithreptus lunatus, to face 241 No. 635. Black-chinned Honey-eater, Melithreptus gularis . 256 Plate 512 (middle figure) lettered Melithreptus gularis . . 256 No. 636. Golden-backed Honey-eater, Melithreptus Icetior . 262 Plate 512 (top figure) lettered Melithreptus Icetior, to face . 556 No. 637. Strong-billed Honey-eater, Melithreptus validirostris 268 Plate 512 (lower figure) lettered Melithreptus validirostris, to face 256 No. 638. Brown-headed Honey-eater, Melithreptus atricapillus 272 Plate 511 (upper figure) lettered Melithreptus atricapillus, to face 241 No. 639. Black-headed Honey-eater, Melithreptus ajfinis . 283 Plate 513 (upper figure) lettered Melithreptus affinis, to face . 283 Genus ENTOMYZON . 288 No. 640. Blue-faced Honey-eater, Entomyzon cyanotis . . 289 Plate 514 lettered Entomyzon cyanotis ..... 289 Genus PLECTORHAMPHUS . 298 No. 641. Striped Honey-eater, Plectorhamphus lanceolatus . 299 Plate 513 (lower figure) lettered Plectorhamphus lanceolatus to face viii. 283 CONTENTS. PAGE Genus MYZOMELA . 304 No. 642. Sanguineous Honey-eater, Myzomela sanguineolenta . 305 Plate 515 (lower figures) lettered Myzomela sanguineolenta, to face ......... 305 No. 643. Red-headed Honey-eater, Myzomela erytkrocephala . 311 Plate 515 (top figures) lettered Myzomela erythrocephala, to face 305 Genus CISSOMELA . 316 No. 644. Banded Honey-eater, Gissomela pectoralis . . 317 Plate 516 (top figures) lettered Gissomela pectoralis, to face . 317 Genus SI 'GOMEL . 322 No. 645. Black Honey-eater, Sugomel niger .... 323 Plate 516 (lower figures) lettered Sugomel niger, to face . 317 Genus MELOMYZA . 329 No. 646. Dusky Honey-eater, Melomyza obscura . . . 330 Plate 517 lettered Melomyza obscura, to face . . . 333 Genus ACANTHORHYNCHUS . 335 No. 647 Spinebill, Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris . . . 337 Plate 518 lettered Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris, to face . 337 No. 648. White-browed Spinebill, Acanthorhynchus superciliosus 346 Plate 519 (top figure) lettered Acanthorhynchus superciliosus, to face ......... 346 Genus GLICIPHILA . 349 No. 649. Tawny-fronted Honey-eater, Gliciphila mdanops . 350 Plate 519 (lower figure) lettered Gliciphila melanops, to face 346 Genus PURNELLA . 357 No. 650. White-fronted Honey-eater, Purnella albifrons . 358 Plate 520 lettered Purnella albifrons, to face . . . 358 Genus RAMSAY ORNIS . 364 No. 651. Brown-backed Honey-eater, Ramsayornis modestus . 366 Plate 521 (top figure) lettered Ramsayornis modestus, to face 366 No. 652. White-breasted Honey-eater, Ramsayornis fasciatus 370 Plate 521 (lower figure) lettered Ramsayornis fasciatus, to face 366 ix. THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Genus GRANTIELLA . No. 653. Painted Honey-eater, Grantiella picta Plate 522 (lower figures) lettered Grantiella picta, to face Genus LACUSTROICA . No. 654. Inconspicuous Honey-eater, Lacustroica whitei . Plate 522 (top figure) lettered Lacustroica whitei, to face Genus CONOPOPHILA . No. 655. Rufous-breasted Honey-eater, Conopophila albogularis Plate 523 (lower figure) lettered Conopophila albogularis, to face .......... No. 656. Red-throated Honey-eater, Conopophila rufogularis Plate 523 (top figures) lettered Conopophila rufogularis, to face Genus CERTHIONYX . No. 657. Pied Honey-eater, Certhionyx variegatus . Plate 524 lettered Certhionyx variegatus , to face Genus ZANTHOMIZA . No. 658. Regent Honey-eater, Zanthomiza phrygia Plate 525 lettered Zanthomiza phrygia, to face Genus GLYCICHJSRA . No. 659. Puff-backed Honey-eater, Glycichcera claudi Plate 526 lettered Glychichcera claudi, to face Additions ........... Genus LICHMERA . No. 660. Least Honey-eater, Lichmera indistincta . Plate 527 lettered Lichmera indistincta, to face Note : Lichmera albo-auricularis ....... Genus PTILOTINA . No. 661. Yellow-fronted Honey-eater, Ptilotina analoga Plate 528 (lower figure) lettered Ptilotina analoga, to face Genus MICROPTILOTIS . No. 662. Little Yellow-spotted Honey-eater, Microptilotis gracilis . Plate 528 (top figure) lettered Microptilotis gracilis, to face . PAGE 375 376 376 382 383 376 387 388 388 391 388 396 397 397 403 404 404 410 411 411 413 417 419 419 428 429 430 430 433 434 430 x. CONTENTS. PAGE Genus PARAPTILOTIS . 437 No. 663. Fuscous Honey-eater, Paraptilotis fusca . . . 438 Plate 529 (top figure) lettered Paraptilotis fusca, to face . 438 No. 664. Yellow-faced Honey-eater, Paraptilotis chrysops . 442 Plate 529 (lower figure) lettered Paraptilotis chrysops, to face 438 Genus DOROTHINA . 447 No. 665. Yellow-eared Honey-eater, Dorothina lewinii . 451 Plate 530 (lower figure) lettered Dorothina lewinii, to face . 451 No. 666. White-stripe Honey-eater, Dorothina albilineata . 457 Plate 530 (top figure) lettered Dorothina' albilineata, to face . 457 No. 667. Singing Honey-eater, Dorothina virescens . . 458 Plate 531 lettered Dorothina virescens, to face . . . 458 No. 668. Varied Honey-eater, Dorothina versicolor . . 470 Plate 532 (lower figure) lettered Dorothina versicolor , to face 470 No. 669. Scaly-throated Honey-eater, Dorothina fasciogularis 473 Plate 532 (top figure) lettered Dorothina fasciogularis, to face 470 Additions .......... 476, 477 No. 670. Bridled Honey-eater, Dorothina frenata . . . 478 Plate 533 (top figure) lettered Dorothina frenata, to face . 478 Genus CALOPTILOTIS ......... 480 No. 671. Yellow-streaked Honey-eater, Caloptilotis madeayana 481 Plate 533 (lower figure) lettered Caloptilotis madeayana, to face 478 Genus NESOPTILOTIS ......... 483 No. 672. Yellow-throated Honey-eater, Nesoptilotis flavicollis 484 Plate 534 (lower figure) lettered Nesojrtilotis flavicollis, to face . 4S4 No. 673. White-eared Honey-eater, Nesoptilotis leucotis . 489 Plate 534 (top figure) lettered Nesoptilotis leucotis, to face . 484 Genus HEMIPTILOTIS . 496 No. 674. White-streaked Honey-eater, Hemiptilotis cockerelli. 498 Plate 535 lettered Hemiptilotis cockerelli, to face . . . 498 xi. THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. PAGE \ Genus LOPHOPTILOTIS . . . .502 No. 675. Helmeted Honey-eater, Lophoptilotis cassidix . . 503 Plate 536 (lower figure) lettered Lophoptilotis cassidix, to face 503 No. 676. Yellow-tufted Honey-eater, Lophoptilotis melanops . 507 Plate 536 (top figure) lettered Lophop>tilotis melanops, to face 503 Genus LICHENOSTOMUS . .514 •V \ No. 677. Wattle-cheeked Honey-eater, Lichenostomus cratitius 515 Plate 537 lettered Lichenostomus cratitius, to face . . 515 Genus SACRAMELA ......... 523 No. 678. Grey-headed Honey-eater, Sa ramela keartlandi . 524 Plate 538 (top figure) lettered Sacramela keartlavdi, to face . 524 No. 679. Yellow-plumed Honey-eater, Sacramela omatq . 530 Plate 538 (lower figures) lettered Sacramela ornata, to face . 524 No. 680. Plumed Honey-eater, Sacramela plumula . . 537 Plate 539 (top figures) lettered Sacramela plumula, to face . 537 Genus PTILOTULA . 543 No. 681. Yellow-tinted Honey-eater, Ptilotula flavescens . 544 Plate 539 (lower figures) lettered Ptilotula flavescens, to face . 537 No. 682. White-plumed Honey-eater, Ptilotula penicillata . 548 Plate 540 lettered Ptilotula penicillata, , to face . . . 548 Genus BROADBENTIA . 561 No. 683. Yellow Honey-eater, Broadbentia flava . . . 562 Plate 541 (left-hand figure) lettered Broadbentia flava, to face . 562 Genus STOMIOPERA ....... 564 No. 684. White-gaped Honey-eater, Stomiopera unicolor . 565 Plate 541 (right-hand figure) lettered Stomiopera unicolor, to face . 562 xu. PREFACE. TN bringing this volume to an end, we are now starting on the last stage of the work, that is to say, that the next volume will end the series. Tliis volume contains 145 figures, the greatest number so far, and 609 pages. It became difficult to know where to divide the Honey-eaters. I should have preferred them all in one volume, but this would have made it too cumbersome, so I decided that the genus Stomiopera should end it. Again, I wish to thank all those who have helped me by their contributions. It is only with the assistance of the Field Naturalists that the life history of any bird can be completed. GREGORY M. MATHEWS. Foulis Court, Fair Oars, Hants. December \ st, 1924. ERRATA. p. 228, line 2 from bottom, for Nesopardalotus quadraginthus quadraginthus read Nesopardalotus quadraginthus rex. p. 274, line 27, for palliceps read pallidiceps. p. 337, line 2 from bottom, for Acnathorhynchus read Acanthorhynchus. p. 403, line 3, for pyhrygius read phrygius. p. 415, line 5, for supercillosis read super ciliosus. p. 451, line 29, for Meilphaga read Meliphaga. xiii. Family — FALCUNCULIDiE. Genus— FALCUNCULUS. Falcunculus Vieillot, Analyse nouv. Omith., p. 40, April 14th, 1816. Type (by monotypy) . . Lanius frontatus Latham. As the relatives of this group are entirely unknown at present, but may be the Pachycephalids, I have constituted a family for them. The head is crested, the bill short, stout, very strongly laterally compressed and tip hooked, medium wings, long square tail with very short legs and stout feet. The bill is very strongly laterally compressed, very deep at the base, culmen strongly arched, tip sharply hooked with a strong posterior notch and a slight succeeding sinuation, then edge straight, the culmen ridge keeled, depth of upper mandible alone equal to breadth of bill at base ; the under mandible very stout, nearly as deep as upper ; small trianguler interram al feathered space only about one-third the mandible, the gonys keeled and strongly ascending to the notched and hooked tip ; the bill is shorter than the head ; the nostrils show as ovals in a depression, scarcely a groove, and there is no operculum ; a projecting bunch of feathers hide the nostrils and two or three nasal bristles are present ; rictal bristles obsolete and few. The immature bill shows the nostrils placed in a groove with a horny operculum. The wing is rounded, the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth forming the tip, the third longer than the sixth, but shorter than the fifth, which is subequal with the fourth and longest ; the second is less than the eighth primary but longer than the secondaries ; the first primary short, less than half the length of the second. The tail is long and straight. The legs are short and stout ; strongly scutellate in front with four scutes, bilaminate posteriorly, but this is a false bilamination as seen in many other similar Australian forms, the outer side plate being composed of scutes which fuse, and these are obsoletely seen in many specimens in this genus, six scutes being counted. The toes are long and stout, the hind-toe longest, equal to the middle toe but stouter with a longer claw, the inner and outer toes are subequal with claws each exceeding middle toe alone ; claws sharp and slender. Key to the species. Lower abdomen and vent white Lower abdomen and vent yellow . . . . F. leucogaster. . . F. frontatus. VOL. XI. 1 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family FALCUN CULIDIE. No. 602. FALCUNCULUS FRONTATUS. YELLOW-BELLIED SHRIKE-TIT. (Plate 491.) Lanius frontatus Latham, Index Ornith. Suppl., p. xviii., after May, 1801 : New South Wales. Lanius frontatus Latham, Index Ornith. Suppl., p. xviii., 1801. Frontal Shrike, Latham, Gen. Synops. Birds, Suppl. II., p. 75, pi. cxxir., 1801. Falcunculus frontatus* Vieillot, Analyse nouv. Ornith., p. 40, 1816 ; Gould, Birds Austr.,pt. v. (Vol. II., pi. 79), Dec. 1st, 1841 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Yol. I., p. 228, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 181, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 173, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 5, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 32, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., 308, 1901 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. IV., p. 112, 1905 (Vic.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 36, 1906 ; Batey, Emu, Vol. VII., p. 8, 1907 (Vic.) ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 84, 1908 ; Cleland, Emu, Vol. TX., p. 223, 1910 (Food) ; Broadbent, ib., Vol. X., p. 236 (N.Q.) ; Mattingley, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 63, 1914 (Vic.) ; Cheney, ib., p. 208, 1915 (Vic.) ; Ramsay, ib., Vol. XV., p. 48, pi. on p. 49, 1915 (N.S.W.) ; Chisholm, ib., p. 78, 1915 (Vic.) ; Ashby, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 233, 1917 (S.A.) ; Campbell and Barnard, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 23, 1917 (N.Q.) ; Le Souef and Macpherson, ib., Vol. XX., p. 86, 1920 (N.S.W.). Falcunculus flavigulus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., App., p. 2, April 1838 ; “ Australia ”=New South Wales ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 144, Dec. 1838; Ala thews, Emu, Vol. XI., p. 105, 1911 ; Witmer Stone, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., pts. 6-7, p. 169, 1913. Falcunculus gouldi Bonaparte, Consp. Gen. Av., Vol. I., p. 365, 1850 (before Feb. 1851), ex Cabanis MS. : “ ex Austr. m. or ”=Newr South Wales ; Cabanus, Mus. Heine, Vol. I., p. 66 (after Oct. 23rd), 1851. Falcunculus whitei Campbell, Emu, Vol. X., pt. 3, p. 167, Dec. 1st, 1910 : Napier Broome Bay, North-west Australia ; Hill, ib., p. 281 ; Barnard, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 47, 1914 (N.T.) ; H. L. White, ib., p. 58. Falcunculus frontatus frontatus Mathews, Emu, Vol. XI., p. 105, 1911 ; id., Nov. Zoo!., Vol. XVIII., p. 375, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 244, 1913. * Sometimes mis-spelt frontalis. 2 491 FAL CUNCULUS LEUCOGASTER. ( WHITE -BELLIED £ If BIKE - TIT) FAL CUNCULUS FRONTATUS. SHRIKE - TIT). 491 1 ( YELLOW-BELLIED SHRIKE-TIT. Falcunculus jrontalus whitei Mathews, Emu, Vol. XI., p. 105, pi. d, 1911 ; id., Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 376, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 245, 1913. Falcunculus jrontalus gouldi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 376, 1912. Falcuncidus jrontalus herbcrtoni Mathews ; ib., Jan. 31st, 1912 : Horberton, Queensland; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 245, 1913. Falcunculus jrontalus iredalei Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 47, April 2nd, 1912 : Ringwood, Victoria. Falcunculus jrontalus lumhollzi Mathews, ib., pt. 5, p. 119, Dec. 24tli, 1912 : Minnie Downs, Queensland ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 245, 1913. Falcunculus jrontalus jlavigulus Mathews, ib. ; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 308, 1914. Falcunculus jrontalus territori Mathews, Bull. Brit. Orn Club, Vol. XXXVI., p. 91, July 7th, 1916 : McArthur River, Northern Territory. j Distribution. Apparently throughout Australia except in south-west. Exact distribution unascertained. Not Tasmania. A dull male. Crown of head, upper portion of eyelid, nuchal crest, a narrow line from the gape below the eye which joins the ear-coverts black ; forehead, lores, fore- and hind-part of eyelid, and sides of hinder-crown white ; cheeks also white with black hair-like tips to the feathers ; chin and throat black with black hair-like tips to the feathers ; back, scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts yellowish-green ; upper wing-coverts ash-grey tinged with yellowish-green, the greater series, bastard- wing, and primary-coverts blackish fringed with grey or grevish-white ; flight- quills hair-brown margined with greyish-white on both wTebs ; middle tail-feathers grey with dark shafts, the lateral ones pale brown fringed with white on both webs — the brown pattern almost entirely fades to white on the outermost feather on each side ; breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts bright yellow like the axillaries ; marginal under wing-coverts grey, the remainder white ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish-brow n margined with white ; lower aspect of tail pale greyish-brown tipped with white. Total length 183 mm. ; culmen 14, wing 95, tail 82, tarsus 20. Figured. Collected on Minnie Downs, Central Queensland, on the 23rd of August, 1881, and is the type of F. j. lumhollzi. Male. Crown of head and a nuchal crest black, as also a narrow line below’ the eye widening out behind the latter and extending on to the sides of the neck ; lores and base of forehead white as also a broad eyebrow which is continued on to the sides of the nape ; cheeks and ear-coverts also white ; throat black, tinged with grey on the chin and green on the throat ; back, wings and scapulars olive-yellow ; bastard- wing and primary-coverts dark brown fringed with olive-yellow; major-coverts, primary and secondary quills dark brown fringed with olive-yellow and whitish on the outer primary-quills, inner webs of quills fringed with white towards the base ; tail blackish-brown fringed with yellow on the outer webs, the outer pair of tail- feathers white on the outer webs and at the tips, inner webs pale brown fringed with white near the tips ; breast, abdomen, sides of body and under tail-coverts canary-yellow like the axillaries ; under wing-coverts silky-white tinged with yellow'. Bill black, tomium light horn-colour ; iris umber-brown ; tarsi french- grey. Collected at the Mission Station, Napier Broome Bay, North-west Australia, on the 5th of March, 1910, and is the type of Falcunculus whitei Campbell. Adult male. Crown of head, nape, a portion of the eye, hinder-face, and sides of neck black ; base of fore-head, nasal plumes, lores, and sides of face white ; back, scapulars, rump, upper tail-coverts, upper wing-coverts, and outer aspect of flight- quills yellowish-green ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, centres of the median 3 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. and greater upper coverts and innermost secondaries blackish-brown ; inner-webs of flight-quills similar with whitish margins ; tail blackish with yellowish-green fringes and white tips to some of the feathers, the outermost feather on each side much paler and having the outer web entirely white ; chin and throat black, many of the feathers on the former have hair-like tips ; breast, abdomen, sides of body axillaries, thighs, and under tail-coverts bright yellow ; under wing-coverts white tinged with yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with whitish margins; lower aspect of tail blackish-browrn with white margins to the feathers. Eyes brown feet grey, bill black. Total length 156 mm. ; culinen 15, wing 85, tail 55, tarsus 21 Collected at Borroloola, McArthur River, Gulf of Carpentaria, Northern Territory, on the 16th of June, 1913. Adult female . Crown of head, a portion of the eve-ring and nape black like the narrow line below the eye, wdiich widens out behind the eye and extends to the sides of the neck ; sides of ci'own and sides of nape wdiite like the feather’s behind the nostrils, lores, cheeks, and sides of neck ; back and scapulars olive-green, becoming paler and inclining to yellowish-green on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; outer aspect of wings dark lead-grey with pale grey margins to the feather’s ; bastard-wing and primary-coverts blackish ; inner-webs of flight-quills dark brown margined with white on the basal portion ; tail lead-grey with whitish fringes to the feathers, the outermost feathers much paler than the central ones ; chin and throat bronze-green, many of the feather’s on the former have black hair-like tips ; breast, abdomen, axillaries, sides of body', thighs, and under tail-coverts pale yellow' ; under win?- coverts silky-white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with whitish margins ; lower aspect of tail greyrish-browrn with wdiite shafts. Ey'es dull brown, bill black, feet grey. Total length 163 mm. ; culinen 13, wing 90, tail 60, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected near Herberton, North Queensland, on the 6th of November, 1910. Male juvenile . Crowni of head and nape black, as is also a line from below the eye on to the sides of the neck ; lores and feathers behind the nostrils yellowish ; sides of crown and cheeks wdiite ; back, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts smoke-brown ; bastard-wdng and primary coverts blackish, with grey' or greenish-grey margins to the feathers ; flight-quills blackish-brown edged with white on the outer webs of the primaries and with grey or yrellowish-green on the secondaries ; rump and upper tail- coverts yellow ; tail-feathers blackish fringed with white, the outermost feather almost entirely white ; tln'oat, breast, abdomen, sides of body* and under tail-coverts canary-yrellowr ; edge of wing below buSy-wdiite ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish-brown, lowrer aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill dark greyish- green, gape and mouth chrome-orange ; eyres brown ; feet greydsk-blue. Collected at Blackburn, Victoria, on the 5tli of December, 1908. Eggs. Clutch, two to three eggs, oval in shape, ground-colour white, marked with very minute spots of veryr dark olive, and much paler markings of grey. Surface of shell smooth and rather glossyr. A clutch of three measures 21-23 mm. by 17. N est. Is a beautiful, deep, cup-sliaped structure, composed of strips of bark, completely and neatly matted together with a mass of cobwrebs. Lined inside with grass, or very thin strips of bark. Measurements — across over all — generally about 3 inches, depth 3£ to 4 inches. Egg cavity* across 2 inches, by 2 to 2£ inches deep. The nest is generally placed near the top of the tallest upright branches of a sapling or tree, a Eucalyptus being frequently selected. Height of nest varies from 20 to 50 feet or more, and as a rule in forest country. Eggs. In the North-western form the clutch is two, shape round oval ; texture of shell, colour and markings similar to those of the southern bird, but size smaller. They measure 20 mm. by 16. 4 YELLOW-BELLIED SHRIKE-TIT. Nest. Placed in the topmost twigs of a tall, stringy bark ( Eucalyptus ) sapling. It is deep and cup-shaped, constructed of shreds of stringy-bark held together with cobwebs ; lined with very fine stringy-bark and grass. Outside measurements : depth, 4 inches ; width, 3 inches ; inside depth, II inches ; width, If inches. Breeding-season. August to January or February. This very distinct form was described and figured by Latham from the collection of General Davies and was of course immediately recognised. Vigors and Horsfield included it in their Essay but without any notes, so that Gould’s account is the first written, thus : “ I had many opportunities of observing this bird, both in New South Wales and South Australia, over both of which countries it is very generally, although not numerously, dispersed. It alike inhabits the thick brushes as well as the trees of the open plains. Its chief food is insects, which are either obtained among the foliage or under the bark of the larger branches and trunks of the tree ; in procuring these it displays great dexterity, stripping off the bark in the most determined manner, for which purpose its powerful bill is admirably adapted. It is very animated and sprightly in its actions, and in many of its habits bears a striking resemblance to the Tits, particularly in the manner in which it clings to and climbs among the branches in search of food. While thus employed it frequently erects its crest and assumes many pert and lively positions ; no bird of its size with which I am acquainted possesses greater strength in its mandibles, or is capable of inflicting severer wounds, as I experienced on handling one I had previously winged, and which fastened on my hand in the most ferocious manner. As far as I am aware (this bird) is not distinguished by any powers of song, for I only heard it utter a few low piping notes. The stomachs of the specimens I dissected were filled with the larvae of insects and berries.” Mr. J. W. Mellor has written me : “ This bird is by no means plentiful anywhere, being seen only in pairs, or more often only singly, but when its brood is off it may be seen searching about amongst the leaves of the eucalypts, getting insects, grubs, etc., upon which to feed them. In the way of eating insects it is very useful indeed, its strong short thickset bill enabling it to get at many injurious insects that would otherwise be missed by more slender billed birds. I have often heard it hi the trees about our estate as it prises off a piece of bark from the tree, making quite a loud snapping sound in pecking away a small portion of the edge of the bark, preparatory to pushing its little thick bill beneath, and forcing the lump off ; it is generally behind these presumably secure places that many bisect pests rest. I have also seen it tearing open the large tough cocoons that are bound together so well that no other small bird has a chance of getting them open.” 5 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Mr. A. G. Campbell wrote about the same thing : “ Builds its nest invariably in topmost twigs of some gum tree or sapling, and narrows in the top edge of the nest so that the sitting bird may have a good purchase in time of storm. The Shrike-Tit is the only bird that has the ability to tear open the tough stick-protected cases of the Lictor case-moth. This case-moth and other of its relations are very plentiful about gum-tree tops. It is chiefly in the winter when the case with its hibernating larva is sealed up to a twig, and when other food is scarce, that the Shrike-Tit adds this to its menu.” Mr. Tom Tregallas also wrote : “Is a very interesting bird and one I regard as one of the ‘ twelve best birds ’ to the community. Armed with a very powerful beak it breaks open many of the chrysalis containing cocoons that are found in the bush and that are not molested by birds of gentler beak. It is most pertinacious in its search for food, and may be seen assiduously pecking and hammering away at dead or decaying wood in which insects may be found, and the noise it creates in so doing may be heard for a consider¬ able distance. In the long pendant draperies of shed bark that hang from our eucalypts in autumn many varieties of spiders and beetles take refuge, but they are not safe from the attacks of this bird with its powerful beak. Not only does he eat this variety of food but he partakes largely of fungus and other parasitic growths that infest our orchards and gardens, working all the year through and destroying an immense amount of insect pests. When the young are hatched the parents show a great deal of anxiety at the intrusion of any stranger into their domain, and continually cry out ‘ Think of it too,’ so it sounds. After the season is over they go back to a peculiar whistle when feeding in the tree tops, this whistle alternating with a low chirp from the female. They are not numerous anywhere, rarely more than a pair or two being found in any particular district. I think they should be absolutely protected.” Mr. L. G. Chander’s notes read : “ Having located a grub in a notch of wood, a bird will attack the spot vigorously and work with untiring energy until it has secured its prey. I have watched them hard at work for over ten minutes ; if disturbed they soon return and resume operations. Pieces of hanging bark are tapped and carefully searched for spiders and other insects. They are fond of the Cicada and quickly consume a large specimen bit by bit, rejecting the wings and head.” Mr. F. E. Howe has written : “ The ‘ knock-at-the-door,’ ‘ knock-at- the-door ’ call of this pretty bird is frequently heard in the timber bordering the creeks. They are also heard to utter a sweet and high-pitched note. Although we have never been fortunate enough to find the nest, we have observed the young at Ringwood about November, and at Femtree Gully 6 YELLOW-BELLIED SHRIKE-TIT. well fledged young wei’e being fed as late as January. On October 13th we sat watching a pair of these birds in the top of a sapling and it was amazing to see the number and size of the branchlets that were nipped off. This appears to be done in sheer wantonness and not for the sake of food, although that is obtained in the tree tops. In the summer months they consume great numbers of the cockchafer beetle and the rapidity with which they sever the body from its casing is marvellous.” Captain S. A. White has written me : “ The Shrike-Tit is nowhere a common bird, but is generally met with moving about in the timbered country in small family parties of four or five, or else in pairs. They are very useful birds in the forest, for they break open the galls upon the leaves and stems and devour the grubs which cause the swellings. The noise caused b}r these birds pulling off the bark from the trees when in search of insects can be heard quite a distance away. They have a great habit of swinging their bodies from side to side and calling loudly while doing this ; they are nearly always on the move and very restless. Their call has many notes, some very monot¬ onous. The nest is generally placed at the top of a tapering sapling, and at times they strip off all the surrounding leaves, but in my experience this is rarely done. The nest is cup-shaped, deep, composed of cobwebs, fibres, grass and rootlets strongly cemented with cobwebs. Nesting season. Sept., Oct. and Nov.” Mattingley has written : “ Recently, the pleasant, self-satisfied two- syllable note of some Yellow-bellied Shrike-Tits directed my attention to a wattle tree, and, on glancing upwards, I observed a pair of these dainty birds busily engaged devouring cotton scab which infested the wattle tree, and was slowly destroying it. The birds worked from the outer twigs, along the branches, inwards to the main trunk of the tree, and cleaned off the scale in a workmanlike manner, uttering as they proceeded along the boughs, notes of pleasure, and raising and lowering their large crests. For two days I observed ‘ Nature’s tree-sprayers ’ and estimated that the work performed daily by each bird, when compared to that of a man, was worth to the community at least 9d. Approximately, the value of the work performed by each Yellow-bellied Shrike-Tit is £14 per annum to the Commonwealth.” Chisholm contributed a good account of this bird, chiefly dealing with the nesting habits, and from which I quote : “ Shrike-Tits are constant to a favourable locality. . . The bird did contribute to the locating of the nest by the utterance, while building, of a melancholy montone. . . At times this note would be emitted just once, very softly, and again the Tit would become more loquacious, and continuously express satisfaction with the world 7 S THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. in general, and its mate in particular. . . The average period from the start of the nest to the departure of the young I found to be about six weeks. Building operations are usually completed in little more than a week ; incuba¬ tion takes about 20 days ; and the young grow to the flight stage in, roughly, three weeks. When this period is closing, signs of restlessness in the nest may be observed from below. The flapping of little wings shows that the little chicles are eager to be abroad, and a shaking of the nesting tree at once starts them. Then commotion reigns. With crests erect and tails spread wide, the parents flit anxiously about, rapidly uttering a harsh, chiding ‘Charr- charr,’ and now and again breaking into the piping whistle. Fired with a spirit of emulation, the young birds do their best to swell the medley, and chime in with a ‘ Ta-ta-ta,’ * Choo-choo-choo.’ In colour they are, of course, more subdued than their parents, especially about the throat, where the only darkness is at the base of the feathers. The crest is developed early, and seems to afford its owner unlimited satisfaction. As with the nest building, so with the hatching — the female does the greater part of the work. One pair I observed, however, relieved each other at regular intervals during a hot spell. Each bird would hunt for food for a few minutes. . . Of the utility of Shrike-Tits there can be only one opinion. Unquestionably they are among our most valuable birds. The quantity of insects they eat must be enormous, for no part of a tree — from bole to the uppermost leaves— is unvisited by them. Accordingly they are acrobats of the first order, and, in displaying their resemblance to the true Tits of Europe, they assume some very graceful attitudes. By reason of its bark-hunting proclivities the hammering and tearing sounds at once call attention to a Shrike-Tit’s presence in a tree. These birds are sometimes locally known as Bark-Tits, but the name of ‘ Yellow-Hammer ’ will not easily be suppressed. In the non-nesting months Shrike-Tits often visit the towns and do great service among the codlin moths in the orchards and various pests in the flower gardens. In 1914 a pair was in the habit of visiting the Maryborough fire-station yard, and the keeper was entertained in watching two Sparrow’s dancing attention on them as they foraged in some eucalypts. When the strong-billed native birds ripped off bark the Sparrows dashed in to share the feast revealed, and got away again quickly.” Mr. Ashby says : “I have found this species common in the timbered country of South Australia and Victoria, except I did not note it in that part of Gippsland where the big trees grow, ranging from 200 ft. to 300 ft., but it may be there. In the Adelaide Hills my attention has often been first called to the bird by hearing pieces of bark falling to the ground ; on looking up I have discovered the bird wrenching off the bark from the red or blue gums 8 YELLOW-BELLIED SHRIKE-TIT. {Eucalyptus rostratus and leucoxylon), and quicldy seizing the insects that shelter behind these loose pieces of bark. This explains the development of the exceptionally strong beak. I have watched them clearing scale off a small tree and generally working over the twigs of the saplings, but more often it is searching under the bark of larger timber for its food. The crest is erected from time to time and a low whistling note (sometimes mistaken for a boy’s whistle) emitted fairly often. As the young keep with their parents for a long time the birds are seen usually in a small flock. I believe the oft repeated low whistle is the call note to keep the birds in touch with one another. Besides this note a whirring or chattering note is very charac¬ teristic of the species. Their habit of placing their nest in twigs or higher branches of a rather lofty tree makes their eggs somewhat rare in collections. All the nests I have seen have had numerous twigs surrounding the nest bitten off. This habit certainly gives the sitting bird a less impeded outlook, but also makes the nest more conspicuous to any bird of prey flying overhead. I cannot suggest any reasonable explanation accounting for this peculiar habit, possibly it is a survival of a habit once serving a useful purpose but no longer doing so.” When Campbell described F. whitei from Napier Broome Bay, North¬ west Australia, Hill published a field note reading : “ My first introduction to this species was on 31/12/09, when I saw a pair near the Mission Station. Feeling certain that they were of a new species, I devoted a good deal of time during the next month to watching their movements, but at the outset it was evident that they did not intend nesting, for each time I saw them they were travelling slowly towards the south-east and getting further away from my camp, so I decided to shoot them on the first opportunity — which did not occur until 5/3/10, when I secured both birds. I saw no more until 9/6 10, when I noticed another pah- in some lightly timbered country, 11 miles south¬ east of Napier Broome Bay. This pair appeared to be nesting, but as our party was returning after a long trip on short rations, a brief search only could be made, which failed to reveal the nest. In their habits they closely resemble F. frontatus, though they are more difficult to locate on account of their subdued notes. Measurements : A* Ip yv **** AP HELOCE PHAL A L E UCOP SIS ( WHITE FACE ). Order PASSERIFORMES. Family SPHENOSTOMIDJS. No- 605. APHELOCEPHALA LEUCOPSIS. WHITE FACE. (Plate 493.) Xerophila letjcopsis Gould, Proo. Zool. Soc. (Loud.), 1840, p. 175, July 1S41 : Adelaide, South Australia. Xerophila leucopsis Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1840, p. 175, 1841 ; id. , Birds Austr., pt. xv. (Vol. HI., pi. 67), June 1st, 1844 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 382, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 186, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 73, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 9, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 30, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 287, 1901 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. II., p. 13, 1902 (Vic.) ; H. E. Hill, ih., Vol. VI., p. 179, 1907 (Vic.) ; Stone, ib., Vol. XII., p. 115, 1912 (Vic.) ; S. A. White, ib., p. 125 (S.A.). Sphenostoma leucopsis Gray, Genera Birds, Vol. I., p. 194, 1847. Aphelocephala leucopsis Oberholser, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad., 1899, p. 214 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. I., p. 291, 1904 ; Mathews, Hand! Birds Austral., p. 87, 1908 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 128, 1910 (S.A.) ; Howe, ib., p. 233 (Vic.) ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. X., p. 91, 1910 (N.S.W.) ; Cleland, ib., Vol. XI., p. 88, 1911 (Food) ; id., ib., Vol. XII., p. 14, 1912 (Food) ; Wilson, ib., p. 37 (Vic.) ; S. A. White, ib., p. 184, 1913 (S.A.) ; Mellor, Emu, Vol. XII., p. 186, 1913 (S.A.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 30, 1913 (S.A.) ; id., ib., p. 128, 1914 (S.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. XV., p. 161, 1916 (S.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. XVIII., pp. 23-198, 1918-19 (S.A.) ; Le Souef, ib., Vol. XX., p. 144, 1921 (S.A.) ; Whitlock, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 177, 1922 (W.A.) ; McGilp., ib., Vol. XXII., p. 285, 1913. Xerophila caslaneiventris Milligan, Emu, Vol. III., pt. 2, p. 70, July 1st, 1903 : Day Dawn, Murchison, West Australia ; Campbell, ib., p. 120, 1903 (eggs) ; Milligan, ib., Vol. IV., p. 154, 1905 ; id., ib., p. 185, pi. xm. ; Gibson, ib., Vol. IX., p. 74, 1909. Aphelocephala castaneiventris Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 87, 1908 ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 207, 1910 ; Hill, ib., Vol. XII., p. 245, 1913. Aphelocephala leucopsis pallida Mathews, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, Vol. XXVII., p. 62, March 3rd, 1911 : Leigh’s Creek, South Australia ; id., Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 377, 1912; id., List Birds Austr., p. 246, 1913; id., Emu, Vol. XVI., p. 35, 1916. Aphelocephala leucopsis leucopsis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 377, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 246, 1913 ; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 310, 1914. 29 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Aphelocephala leucopsis missa Mathews, No v. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 377. Jan, 31st, 1912* (Narandera) New South Wales ; id ., Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912, Aphelocephala pectoralis castaneiventris Mathews, ib .. p. 378; id ., List Birds Austr., p. 247, 1913, Aphelocephala castaneiventris vjhitei Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. II., pt. 5, p. loo, Sept. 24th, 1914: Jay Waterhole, MacDonnell Range, Central Australia; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 189, 1915 ; id Trans. Roy. Soc. S.A., Vol. XXXIX., p. 755, 1915 ; H. L. White, Emu, Vol. XV., p. 36, 1915. Aphelocephala leucopsis castaneiventris Mathews, Emu, Vol. XVI., p. 35, 1916. Aphelocephala leucopsis whitei Mathews, ib ; S. A. White, ib ., Vol. XXI., p. 94, 1921. Aphelocephala castaneiventris minilya Mathews, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, Vol. XL., p. 75, Jan. 30th, 1920 : Minilya River, Mid-west Australia ; Carter, Ibis, 1921, p. 65. Distribution. Extra-tropical Southern Australia from East to West through Central Australia. Not Tasmania. Adult . General colour of the upper-surface mouse-brown including the top of the head, back, long upper tail-coverts, scapulars and wings, the fore-part of the head somewhat darker than the back with an indication of dark centres to the feathers ; short upper tail-coverts tipped with cinnamon ; flight-quills hair-brown with pale fringes both on the outer and inner webs ; middle tail-feathers dark brown, the outer ones inclining to black on the apical portion, which are tipped with white; base of fore-head, lores, and fore-part of face white ; hinder-face and sides of neck like tire back ; nasal bristles black ; chin white with blackish bases to the feathers some of which have hair-like tips ; breast greyish- wliite, becoming darker on the sides; abdomen cream-white; thighs dusky; flanks and under tail-coverts chestnut; axillaries and under wing-coverts white, becoming dusky-brown on the greater series of the latter ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with huffy-white margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes pale buff, feet and bill slate- black. Total length 108 mm. ; culrnen 7, wing 59, tail 45, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected on Crookedine Lake, Southern Cross, South-west Australia, on the 23rd of July, 1905, and is castaneiventris (middle figure). The sexes are alike. Adult . General colour of the upper-surface sepia-brown, including the top of the head, ear-coverts, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts ; bastard- wing also blackish-brown ; flight-quills dark hair-brown with whitish margins ; tail-feathers dark brown, becoming blackish towards the tips which have pale margins ; a dark narrow band across the fore-head from eye to eye ; nasal bristles black; base of fore-head, lores, chin, throat, fore-neck, breast, abdomen, and under tail-coverts cream-wriiite, some of the feathers on the chin have hair¬ like tips ; sides of breast greyish ; flanks cinnamon ; thighs dusky ; axillaries and lesser under wring-coverts buffy-white, the greater series inclining to grey; under-surface of flight-quills glossy hair- brown with cream-white margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes creamy- wriiite, feet and bill black. Total length 102 mm. ; culmen 8, wring 58, tail 40, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected on Coongra Creek, Central Australia, on the 4th of July, 1914, and is the connecting link between leucopsis and castaneiventris (top figure). Adult female . General colour of the upper-surface rust-brown, including the top of the head, liind-face, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and outer aspect of wrings ; bastard-wing blackish-brown narrowly edged with whitish ; inner-webs of flight-quills darker than the back with pale inner margins ; middle tail-feathers dark browrn with pale tips, becoming blackish on the lateral 30 WHITEFACE. ones which are tipped with white, chiefly on the inner webs ; the feathers on the fore-part of the head blackish at the base, which forms a dark narrow line extending on to the eye-ring, which is otherwise whitish ; base of fore-head and lores white ; rictal-bristles black ; the feathers on the chin have hair-like tips ; cheeks and throat buffy-white with dark bases to the feathers ; middle of breast similar, becoming pale olive-brown on the sides ; flanks smoke-brown ; abdomen and under tail- coverts cream-colour ; axillaries and under wing-coverts similar, tipped with hair- brown ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Total length 115 mm. ; culmen 7, wing 63, tail 43, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected on Narandra, New South Wales, in May 1892, and is leucopsis. Immature . Similar to the adult. Eggs. Three to five eggs form the clutch ; but usually four are met with. They are sub¬ ject to much variation in shape, size, general colouring and markings. A rather typical clutch of five eggs taken at Lake Boga, 205 miles N.W. of Melbourne, Victoria, on the 22nd of October, 1913, is of a very pale pinkish-white ground-colour, well spotted and blotched with markings of reddish-brown and purplish-grey, particularly at the larger end of each egg, where well-defined zones are formed. Rather rounded ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and rather glossy. 17-18 mm. by 13-14. Another clutch of four eggs, taken at Buckiinguy, Marra Creek, New South Wales, on the 6th of September, 1896, is of a pale buff-white ground-colour, finely spotted and speckled all over with very pale reddish-brown and purplish- grey, becoming confluent towards the larger end of each egg. Long ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and rather glossy. Another clutch of three eggs, taken in the Riverina district, New South Wales, on the 10th of September, 1897, is of a pale pinkish-white ground-colour, spotted and blotched with reddish-brown and purplish-grey, the markings being nearly all confined to a well-defined zone at the larger end of each egg. Very swollen and rounded ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and rather glossy. Nest. Domed-shaped or covered over structure, with entrance on side ; composed of dry grass, sheep’s wool, thin strips of bark, etc., and lined with sheep’s wool, thistle¬ down and feathers, and usually placed near the ground in a small bush, or opening on the side of an old post, tree, or tree-stump ; and often as lowT down as within three or four feet of the ground. Breeding-months vary according to the wet and dry seasons, but most usual months are July to December, Eggs. In the form Aphelocephala leucopsis castaneiventris tliree to four eggs form the clutch, and are subject to rather great variation in shape, size, general colouring and markings. A rather typical clutch of four eggs taken at Yalgoo Goldfield, Western Australia , on the 3rd of Sept ember, 1903, is of a pinkish-white ground-colour, well spotted and blotched with reddish-brown and purplish-grey, forming a large and dark zone of markings at the larger end of each egg. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. Another clutch of three eggs, taken at Lake Way, East Murchison, Western Australia, on the 15th of August, 1909, are very much smaller specimens, and are of a rich buff-white ground-colour, minutely speckled all over with pale reddish-brown and purplish-grey. Ovals in shape ; surface of shell very smooth and glossy. 16 mm. by 12 mm. Nest. A loose domed or covered over structure of grass, soft bark, hair, feathers, and other soft material, and warmly lined with feathers ; and usually placed in a small cavity in a hollow stump within a few feet of the ground. Breeding-months. August, September and October. 31 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. This species and genus was discovered by Gould, who “ first saw it in the streets of Adelaide, where it was hopping about and presenting the appearance of the Sparrow in London.” Gould later wrote : “I found this species tolerably abundant in all parts of the colony of South Australia that I visited, both in the interior and in the neighbourhood of the coast. It was generally met with in small flocks of from six to sixteen in number, and more frequently on the ground than among the trees. It hops over the surface very quickly and appears a busy little bird, prying among the herbage for its food, which principally consists of the seeds of the grasses and small annuals which abound on the plains and low' hills of South Australia, In disposition it is so remarkably tame that it will allow" of a very near approach before it will rise, and then it merely flies to the nearest bush or low tree. The male offers no external difference by which it can be distinguished from the female, neither do the young exhibit any contrast to the adults in their plumage ; it has in fact little to recommend it to the notice of the general observer either in its colouring or in the quality of its song.” At the present time Captain S. A. White writes : “ This was once a common bird on the Adelaide plains but has practically disappeared. It is still to be met with in numbers along the coast line ; from 200 to 300 miles inland a much lighter form takes its place which is distributed all over the interior.” Mr. J. W. Mellor has written me : “ The range of this little Titmouse is veiT great as I have seen it in several of the States, but in South Australia I have had the most opportunity" of studying its habits and watching it in its various moods. It loves the more open land, where the trees are not too thick, and here it may be seen hopping over the ground in small lots of ten or a dozen, pecking up the small insects found amongst the short grass ; it is also seen in small bushy" trees and shrubs, peering into the foliage for insects which form the greater part of its food, but it is probable that it will also eat a few grass seeds when these are softened by the rain or heavy" dew. I noticed these birds very plentifully" distributed through the far north-west in the Tarcoola and Wilgene districts ; they had a slightly ashy" tinge over the plumage, being duo to the presence of the red clay" earth and dust in all directions met with, the young being especially rusty in coloration, but other than this they were identical with the southern examples about the Adelaide districts. I saw large young in the Wilgene district in May", showing that they must lay just when a little rain comes, as they had had a small downpour in the previous March, the first for two years, and these little birds had bred at once, although but few birds had followed suit, as the weather had again set in dry and hot.” 32 WHITEFACE. Mr. Sandland states : “ Absolutely the commonest bird at Bahah, South Australia, even more so than the crows.” Mr. Edwin Ashby wrote : “ Very numerous a few miles North of Adelaide and throughout the lower North of South Australia.” Mr. A. G. Campbell noted : “ Homely and fond of the haunts of men as Acanthiza chrysorrhoa is, it is outshone in the northern districts of Victoria by this species. Its chubby little form and cheerful song are to be noticed about every homestead. It nests with unconcern under eaves, in thatches, in hollow posts and spouts, and in garden and other bushes. It reals four, sometimes five, young at a time. Mr. Thos. P. Austin’s note reads : “ In the open forests and ring-barked country, this is undoubtedly the commonest bird of the district, Cobbora, New South Wales ; mostly met with in small flocks of from three to eight, feeding upon the ground. It is extremely tame and often takes up its abode about dwellings, but I have never seen them in thick scrub. When disturbed they take a very short flight, only to settle upon the ground again, or the nearest tree and often a fence. They nest in a great variety of situations, much the same as a Sparrow ( Passer domesticus). In Victoria I noticed most of them placed their nests in the underneath part of a Magpie’s nest, but in tills district they mostly build in hollows in dead trees, but about my house they nest in creepers growing on my verandah, in hedges, and between rafters and the roofs of sheds and out-buildings. The clutch is usually three, often four, and they rear two or three broods in a season, using the same nest each time. I have examined nests containing eggs from the last week in July till the end of October.” Whitlock, writing about the birds of the Nullarbor Plains, states : “ The Whiteface I saw was Aphelocephala leucopsis, and that not till I got to Naretha. It was nesting in a variety of situations, and showed its usual fearlessness of man. At Haig it was nesting in thick blue bushes for the most part. Four eggs seem to be a full clutch. The nests, though very bulky, are far from neat, and have a spout-like entrance. At Naretha some were placed in the lowest forks of dead bushes and without the slightest concealment. The eggs were often embedded in rabbit fur.” Captain White, writing of the Birds of Lake Victoria and Murray River, recorded: “Fairly numerous round Lake Victoria. One specimen taken at that place, 6/10/17. $ iris white ; bill and feet black ; length 110 mm. ; spread 180 mm. This bird approaches somewhat A. 1. whitei, and is of a much more ruddy coloration when compared with the form found lower down the river, and is smaller,” and of the Central Australian A. 1. whitei later wrote, “ Numbers of these birds were seen along our route (to the Finke River). They VOL. XI. 33 THE BIRDS OE AUSTRALIA. have a very much more consistent rufous coloration on upper surface and flanks in comparison with A. leucopsis.” Milligan gave a complete technical diagnosis when he proposed this new species X. castaneiventris , and added the field-notes of Mr. Lawson: “The cinnamon flanks are a consistent feature. The call-note is musical, though rather plaintive. They love rocky places and are ground feeders. Usually I find the species in company with Sericornis brunnea and Acanthiza pyrrho- pygialis (sic). They are fairly common, but I have been leaving them until in good feather. They are a fluky plumaged bird, and the loss of a few feathers about the head is always perceptible and an eyesore.” Then Milligan, in his notes on a trip to Yandanooka District, wrote : “ I was, indeed, pleased to meet with this new species. The birds were in great numbers. They associate in small companies, and for the most part keep to the prickly bushes before mentioned. They appear to feed on the ground under these bushes, and when alarmed rise into them. They are very sprightly in their movements, and their song is composed of two or three plaintive but musical notes. Their loosely constructed nests are built in the prickly bushes. The plumage of one bird that I shot was wholly tinged with warm chestnut.” Later, when the bird was figured in the Emu, was added : “ This species was first discovered by Mr. J. T. Tunney at Pindar in the Murchison district. The birds associate in small companies and prefer the red soils. They are ground feeders.” Gibson, commenting on birds observed between Kalgoorlie and Eucla. wrote : “ Common in the mulga country only7 ; is not found east of the big spinifex and mallee belt or on it ; is the western variety of X. leucopsis, which is only found on the east side of the spinifex belt, i.e., on the plain country.” Whitlock writing about the birds of East Murchison : “ Found fairly common around Lake Way. It was perhaps most numerous in the neighbour¬ hood of Wiluna and the mining belt of the south. I found a number of nests, all of which were built in hollow trunks at no great height from the ground,” and suggested previous accounts of nesting of this species were incorrect. Mr. Tom Carter wrote : “ The Murchison Wliiteface was seen, rather numerously7-, feeding on ground, below scrub about Mullewa, sixty miles east of Geraldston in March, 1901.” Captain S. A. White recorded under the name : “ Aphelocephala leucopsis subsp. (?) Murchison Wliiteface. Distributed very generally over the central regions. We collected specimens soon after leaving the head of the line and up to the MacDonnell Ranges. They7 were often found in company with A. nigricincta. I quite agree with others that A. leucopsis is not found in the 34 WHITEFACE. central regions ; evidently this bird was mistaken by the Horn Expedition for it.” He otherwise referred to it as resembling “ both A. leucopsis and A. p. castaneiventris He sent me specimens and I described them as A. castaneiventris whitei and he further wrote : “ This subspecies was plentiful all through the Musgrave and Everard Ranges, but none were met with between the Cooper and Strzelecki Creeks, their place being taken by A. leucopsis .” Carter has recently written : “ Several small parties of Murchison White- face were seen in mid-September, 1916, in scrubby country between the Lower Gascoyne and Minilya rivers, where I had never previously seen any of these birds ; but I had obtained specimens in 1904 at Mullewa, three hundred miles to the south. Shortridge found them ‘ fairly numerous as far north as the Upper Gascoyne River (Clifton Downs Station) ’ in 1908 ; so, at present, the locality where my specimens were obtained is the most northerly record, being sixty miles farther north, and about one hundred nearer to the coast (west¬ wards) than Clifton Downs. The birds were tame, feeding on the ground below short scrub, into which they took shelter when disturbed. . . The Minalya birds are more rufous on the mantle than any of the others (specimens in the Brit. Mus.), which were mostly obtained in localities to the south-east — as Laverton, 600 miles south-east from the Minilya, and Day Dawn, about 300 miles to the south-east. . . The specimens from Day Dawn are almost white on the whole of the under-surface and can be separated easily from any of the others.” Milligan’s diagnosis reads X. castaneiventris “may be distinguished from (a) X. leucopsis by the presence of a thicker bill and of deep dull chestnut, rump, flanks, and sides, and a chestnut and white abdomen, and white chin,, throat, and chest, and of the absence of the faint subterminal cross bars on the breast ; ( b ) from X. pectoralis principally by the absence of the chestnut- brown back and the well defined pectoral band of cinnamon-brown and the chestnut and white flanks, which in the new species are almost uniform chestnut ; and (c) from X. nigricincta by the absence of the narrow black pectoral band and the cinnamon back which distinguish that species. The: new species appears to occupy an intermediate position between X. pectoralis; and X. nigricincta.” This species was accepted as valid, and when I prepared my “ Reference' List ” in 1912 from Gould’s description I regarded it as the western represen¬ tative of A. pectoralis, and this was continued in my 1913 “ List.” Captain White’s discovery of a Central Australian bird which resembled both A. pectoralis and castaneiventris complicated matters and I described this as Aphelocephala castaneiventris whitei. 35 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. “ Differs from A. c. castaneiventris in being darker above and in having the flanks very much paler. Jay Waterhole, MacDonnell Ranges, Central Australia.” A later consideration in connection with true A. pectoralis re-discovered by Captain White led me to the erroneous conclusion that North’s A. nigricincta was the adult of A. pectoralis, but also to the probably correct conclusion that A. castaneiventris was only the western form of A. leucopsis, a view published by Gibson some years before. Previously I had described two subspecies of A. leucopsis, a pallid form from Leigh’s Creek, South Australia, as A. 1. pallida, writing : “ Differs from typical A. leucopsis Gould in being much paler in colour, both above and below,” and Aphelocepliala leucopsis missa. “ Differs from A. 1. leucopsis in its browner coloration above and yellower below, and especially in its pale head. (Narandera) New South Wales.” At present only a few subspecies are admitted in comparison with the number indicated. Aphelocepliala leucopsis leucopsis (Gould), South Australia, limits of range unknown. Aphelocepliala leucopsis missa Mathews, New South Wales, Northern Victoria. Aphelocepliala leucopsis pallida Mathews, Leigh’s Creek, Interior of South Australia, Aphelocepliala leucopsis whitei Mathew's. MacDonnell Ranges, Central Australia. Aphelocepliala leucopsis castaneiventris Milligan. Mid-west Australia. Aphelocephala leucopsis minilya Mathews. North Mid-west Australia. 3G * APHELOCEPHALA PE CT ORALIS. (CHE <3 TNUT -BREASTED WHI TEFA CEj. APHELOCEPHALA NIGRICINCTA. ( BE A CK-BAH.DED WHITE FA CEj. Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 606. Family SPHENOSTOMID M. APHELOCEPHALA PECTORALIS. CHESTNUT-BREASTED WHITEFACE. (Plate 494.) Xerophila PECTORALIS Gould, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. IV., Vol. VIII., p. 192, Sept. 1st, 1871 : Port Augusta, South Australia, error = Wanta Pilla Swamps, Central Australia. Xerophila peetoralis Gould, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. IV., Vol. VIII., p. 192, 1871 ; id., Birds New Guinea, pt. i. (Vol. III., pi. 27), Dec. 1st, 1875 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 186, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 74, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 9, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 30, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 289, 1901. Aphelocephala pecloralis Oberholser, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad., 1899, p. 214; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 87, 1908; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 99, 1914; id., South Austr. Ornith., Vol. I., pt. 4, p. 26, 1914 ; id., Trans. Roy. Soc. South Austr., Vol. XXXIX., p. 756, 1915. Aphelocephala peetoralis pecloralis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 378, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 246, 1913; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 189, 1915. Aphelocephala peetoralis todmordeni Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 35, Feb. 21st, 1923 : Todmorden, Central Australia. Distribution. Central Australia, near Oodnadatta. Adult male. Top of head and nape rust-grey with dark centres to the feathers ; fore-head black, minutely speclded with white, base of fore-head and lores cream-white ; sides of face dusky-brown speckled with whitish ; upper back and scapulars walnut-brown, inclining to chestnut on the rump where the base of the feathers are white ; lesser and median upper wing-coverts rust-brown with dark centres to the last ; bastard¬ wing blacldsh ; primary-coverts and greater upper wing-coverts dark brown with pale margins ; flight-quills hair-brown with buffy-white inner margins, the innermost secondaries darker and the buff margins wider ; upper tail-coverts rust-brown ; tail-feathers dark brown with pale edges, the outer ones black tipped with white ; chin white with hair-like tips to some of the feathers ; throat and fore-neck white with blackish bases to the feathers ; breast and sides of breast hazel ; abdomen and imder tail-coverts cream-white ; sides of body also white blotched with chestnut ; thighs cinnamon ; axillaries creain-w'hite ; under wing-coverts grey tinged with cinnamon and having dark bars on the outer edge ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with buff inner margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes white, bill and feet black. Total length 105 mm. ; culmen 7, wing 58, tail 39, tarsus 20. Figured. Collected at Todmorden, 60 miles west of Oodnadatta, 37 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Central Australia, on the 2nd of July, 1914, and is the type of A. p. todmordeni (middle figure). The sexes are alike. Adult male. Crown of head and nape rust-grey with dark centres to the feathers of the former ; a narrow band of black across the fore-head, some of the feathers minutely tipped with white ; lores, base of fore-head, and fore part of cheeks buff ; sides of face rust-grey speckled with whitish ; upper-back and scapulars hazel ; lower back and rump dark chestnut where the feathers are white subapically; upper wing-coverts dark brown with buff margins to the feathers ; bastard- wing darker and° inclining to blackish ; flight-quills hair-brown with whitish margins on the inner webs, the innermost secondaries blackish-brown broadly margined with bufi ; upper tail-coverts rust-brown ; tail blackish, the outer feathers tipped with white, which extends along the outer web of the outermost feather ; nasal-bristles bufiy- white ; chin white with hair-like tips to some of the feathers ; throat also white with blackish bases to the feather's ; upper breast hazel which becomes darker on the lower breast where the feathers are barred subapically with black ; abdomen and under tail-coverts white ; thighs rust-brown ; sides of body white heavily blotched with chestnut ; under wing-coverts cinnamon becoming grey on the greater series; under-surface of flight -quills hair-brown with pale bufi margins; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes dull white, bill and feet black. Total length 100 mm. ; cuhnen 7, wing 57, tail 40, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected at Wantra Pilla Swamp, Central Australia, on the 9th of July, 1914. (Top figure.) Immature. Crown of head earth-brown with dark centres to the feathers, darker and inclining to black on the fore-head ; nape, sides of face, and sides of neck similar but more uniform in colour ; back and scapulars chestnut ; upper wing-coverts dark brown with pale margins to the feathers ; flight-quills hair-brown broadly margined with fulvous on the inner secondaries ; tail missing ; base of fore-head and lores cream- white ; elfin and throat white with dark bases to the feathers ; breast dull chestnut ; abdomen white ; thighs rust-brown ; sides of body also white with chestnut tips to the feathers, axillaries white tinged with pale chestnut ; under wing-coverts grey tinged with cinnamon ; under-surface of flight-quills hair- brown margined with buffy-white. Eyes white, feet and bill black. Collected at Todmorden, 60 miles west of Oodnadatta, Central Australia, on the 2nd of July, 1919. Immature. Top of head, hind-neck, and mantle earth-brown with a ferruginous tinge; sides of face similar but paler ; a slight indication of a whitish superciliary line above and behind the eye ; back and scapulars chestnut ; upper wing-coverts earth- brown ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and flight-quills hair-brown, the inner secondaries broadly margined with fulvous ; the feathers on the lower rump whitish ; upper tail-coverts rust-brown ; tail blackish with smoke-brown or white tips to the feathers ; the outermost feather on each side edged with white on the outer web ; base of fore-head and lores cream-white ; chin whitish becoming ash-grey on the throat ; breast fawn-colour becoming darker where it joins the white of the abdomen ; abdomen and under tail-coverts white ; sides of body and axillaries white tipped with chestnut ; thighs rust-colour ; under wTing-coverts grey tinged with cinnamon ; under-surface of flight-quills pale hair-brown with bufiy-white margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes white, feet ashy- grey7, bill brown. Collected at Wantna Pilla Swamp, Central Australia, on the 18th of August, 1914. Immature male. Crown of head, nape, hind-neck, sides of neck, and sides of face earth- brown with minute pale shaft-streaks to the last ; back pale chestnut like the margins of the innermost secondaries ; upper wing-coverts pale brown more 38 CHESTNUT-BREASTED WHITEFACE. or less tinged with, rust-brown ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and flight-quills hair-brown with pale margins to the feathers ; the feathers on the rump tipped with white ; upper tail-coverts similar to the back ; tail blackish-brown with greyish-brown, or whitish tips to the feathers, the white extending along the margin of the outermost feather ; lores and base of fore-head cream-white, similar to the chin and throat ; a very slightly indicated line on the sides of the crown ; breast dull fawn-colour with dark tips to some of the feathers ; abdomen and under tail- coverts white ; sides of body also white with chestnut tips to the feathers ; thighs rust-brown ; axillaries cream-white ; under wing-coverts and inner margins of flight-quills cinnamon ; remainder of quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes brown, feet leaden-blue, bill leaden-brown, gape cream. Collected at Wantna Pilla Swamp, Central Australia, on the 21st of August, 1914. Immature female. Fore part of the head blackish-brown, becoming earth-brown on the crown with dark centres to the feathers, which become obsolete on the hind- neck ; entire back and scapulars rust-colour with dusky grey bases to the feathers ; upper wing-coverts earth-brown like the outer edges of the primaries ; bastard¬ wing, primary-coverts, and flight-quills dark brown, rather paler at the tips and along the inner margins ; upper tail-coverts earth-brown ; central tail-feathers dark brown with obsolete cross-bars, the outer ones blackish tipped with white ; lores and base of fore-head buffy-white ; sides of face greyish-brown with pale minute shaft-streaks ; throat whitish tinged with buff becoming pale grey on the fore-neck ; breast pale rust-colour ; abdomen and under tail-coverts cream-white ; flanks and sides of abdomen white with dark lead-colour bases and chestnut tips to the feathers ; thighs dusky ; axillaries white ; under wing-coverts buffy-white minutely spotted with pale grey ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with buffy-white margins ; lower aspect of tail blackish-brown with white tips to the lateral feathers. Eyes white, feet black, bill leaden-blue. Collected at Wantna Pilla Swamp, Central Australia, on the 21st of August, 1914. Immature male. Crown of head pale dusky-brown with minute dark centres to the feathers, becoming darker and inclining to blackish towards the base of the fore-head and region of the eye ; lores cinnamon-buff ; liind-neck and sides of neck similar to the crown but more uniform ; back, scapulars and rump dull chestnut ; outer aspect of wings pale earth-brown ; bastard-wing and inner webs of flight - quills dark hair-brown ; upper tail-coverts and base of tail earth-brown, terminal portion of tail-feathers blackish, with more or less white at the tips ; base of fore-head and lores cinnamon-buff ; chin and throat cream-white with dark bases to the feathers ; upper breast and sides of breast cinnamon, some of the feathers of the upper breast showing black tips; lower breast, abdomen, and under tail-coverts cream-white, sides of body silky-white with chestnut markings to the feathers ; under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown, with pale buff margins ; lower aspect of tail blackish with white tips to the feathers. Eyes white, feet leaden-blue, bill leaden-black. Collected at Indulkana Creek, Central Australia, on the 22nd of August, 1914. Some of these birds have indications of a black band bordering the lower edge of the buff or cinnamon band. Compare the top figure of plate 494. Nest and eggs not described. Gould described this new species as from Port Augusta, South Australia, received from Waterhouse, and it was never re-found or recognised until Captain S. A. White re-discovered it. 39 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Captain S. A. White has written me : “ My late father hunted over thousands of miles for this bird and I have done the same and Dr. Morgan has been on the look out for it for many years. I think we had all come to the opinion that Gould had made some mistake, so you can judge of my surprise when I re-discovered the species in 1914.” Captain White’s published notes read : “ On June 29tli, 1914, my assistant and taxidermist (Air- J. P. Rogers) brought in a couple of small birds and I at once recognised them as the lost bird. Within a few hours I met with a small party myself and secured several specimens. I found this bird to extend over the country for 100 miles west of Oodnadatta, and seemed to be entirely confined to the tableland country covered with gibber stones and small clumps of low bushes and a few mulga ( Acacia aneura ) growing in the water-courses. A. pectoralis was found nearly always in the company of A. nigricincta and another species which was very numerous and resembled both A. leucopm and A. p. castaneiventris. Their habits seem to be identical with other members of the genus, but their call is distinctive, in being a low plaintive note, and they are not nearly so bold as the common species, and on being alarmed they flew straight away out of gun shot. A few points of rain fell in February over this country, and these birds must have bred, because fully fledged young were collected with the parent birds, but unfortunately I did not meet with any nests containing eggs.” He also wrote at the same time in another journal : “It -was met with in small parties on the tablelands or gibber country, about 50 miles west of Oodnadatta, and continued to do so off and on till we entered the granite country west of the Indulkana Range, and this range may form the westerly limit. They were hopping about on stony ground in search of seeds. When alarmed they7 flew into a bush (if one was near), then off to some little distance, and alight upon the ground, where they moved about very quickly7. When on the wing they uttered a twittering note. A good series of [the] species was collected — adult males and females, as well as immature birds. Rain having fallen lightly over a restricted area a few weeks prior to our visit, these birds had nested and brought up their young, having quite a number with them. In some cases the young birds had a few dark spots appearing on the faint buff band which crosses the breast.” The series I examined suggested that the re-discovered pectoralis was the immature state of nigricincta , as in some specimens there was black spottmg suggestive of the black band of the latter, and I sank nigricincta as a synonym of pectoralis, being also influenced when Captain White found the twro “ species ” always associated. Captain White has, however, written : “ It has been put forward that A. pectoralis is the immature form of A. nigricincta. I am sure this is not 40 CHESTNUT-BREASTED WHITEEACE. the case, because I am positive I skinned adult males and females and the young birds, and, strange to say, the younger the birds the more numerous the dark spots on the band. In 1913 during our Central Australian expedition we found A. nigricincta nesting in numbers, but never a sign of a bird with a chestnut band.” McGilp has now recorded : “I found five nests of the Black-banded Whiteface, but in every instance only two young were in the nests. Two young birds I have presented to the South Australian Museum ; both show the adult plumage, and also have down-like feathers on the head.’ From the material sent over by Capt. S. A. White I wrould have said that this and the next species were identical, but on his authority I am leaving them as distinct. Comparing the bird that I figure as A. p. todmordeni (pi. 494, right-hand figure) with Gould’s plate of his type, it will be seen that my bird has not so much white on the fore-head, the upper parts duller, and the flanks not so heavily marked, so we can admit Aphelocephala pectoralis pectoralis (Gould). Aphelocephala pectoralis todmordeni Mathews. VOL. XI. 41 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 607. Family SPHENOSTOMIDE, APHELOCEPHALA NIGRICINCTA. BLACK-BANDED WHITEFACE. (Plate 494.) Xerophtla NiGRicmcTA North, Ibis, 1895, p. 340, July 1st : Missionary Plain, Central Australia. Xerophila nigricincta North, Ibis, 1895, p. 340 ; id., Rep. Horn Sci. Exped. Zool., VoL II., p. 82, pi. 7, 1896 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 30, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 289, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. I., p. 294, 1904. Aphelocephala nigricincta Oberholser, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad., 1899, p. 214; Mathews, Hand!. Birds Austral., p. 87, 1908; id., Emu, Vol. X., p. 303, 1911 (N.T.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 99, 1914; id., Trans. Roy. Soc. South Austr., Vol. XXXVIII., p. 434, 1914; id., ib., Vol. XXXIX., p. 756, 1915; id., ib., Vol XLI., p. 462, 1917 ; McGilp, South Austr. Orn., Vol. V., pt. 4, p. 98, 1920; id., Emu, Vol. XXI., p. 49, 1921 ; id., ib., Vol. XXII., p. 285, 1923. Aphelocephala nigricincta nigricincta Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 378, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 247, 1913 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 190, 1915. Aphelocephala nigricincta tanami Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 378, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Tanami, Northern Territory ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 247, 1913. Aphelocephala pectoralis nigricincta Mathews, Emu, Vol. XVI., p. 35, 1916. Aphelocephala pectoralis tanami Mathews, ib. Distribution. Central Australia from Strzeleck Creek in south to Tanami in north. Adult male. Crown of the head, fore-head, lores, sides of neck and hind-neck cinnamon- rufous ; back and scapulars similar but darker and inclining to pale chestnut ; upper wing-coverts earth-brown with pale margins ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and flight-quills hair-brown with pale edges to the feathers, becoming darker on the inner secondaries with cinnamon-rufous margins ; tail-feathers pale brown at the base becoming wliitish towards the tips, which are partially white ; a line across the fore-head, which is continued through the eye to the ear-coverts dark brown ; throat and upper breast cream-white with a tinge of cinnamon on the chin ; sides of breast similar to the sides of the neck ; a black band across the lower breast ; abdomen, sides of body, and flanks cream-white with pale chestnut markings to the feathers ; thighs and under tail-coverts pale buff ; under wing- coverts cinnamon-buff ; remainder of quill-lining pale hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes white, feet slatey-black, bill black. Collected 25 miles west of Todmorden, Central Australia, on the 25th of August, 1914. 42 BLACK-BANDED WHITEFACE. Adult female. Crown of head dark cinnamon with blackish shaft-lines ; hind-neck, sides of neck and upper back cinnamon-rufous becoming chestnut on the lower back, scapulars and rump ; upper tail-coverts cinnamon-rufous ; upper wing-coverts dark brown with pale fringes to the feathers ; bastard- wing blackish, minutely tipped with wliite ; flight-quills hair-brown with pale margins to the inner webs ; innermost secondaries blackish, broadly margined with cinnamon ; tail-feathers brown on the basal portion where they are fringed with cinnamon, becoming blackish towards the apical portion and tipped with white ; a narrow black band across the fore-head ; base of fore-head and lores buffy-white ; oar-coverts palo brown ; nasal bristles black ; chin buffy-white with hair-like tips to some of the feathers ; throat and fore-neck greyish-white with blackish bases to the feathers ; a black band across the lower breast ; abdomen cream-white like the thighs ; sides of body chestnut intermixed with whito ; under tail-coverts cream-white’; axillaries and under wing-coverts pale cinnamon; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown margined with pale buff ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes white, bill leaden-brown ; feet and tarsi leaden-blue. Total length 115 mm. ; c-ulmen 9, wing 57, tail 38, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected at Tanami, Northern Territory, on the 27th of March, 1910, and is the type of A. n. tanami. The sexes are alike. “ Young have adult plumage from nest.” (McGilp.) Eggs. Three eggs usually form the clutch. A typical clutch of three eggs taken at Illamurta, on the Finke River, Central Australia, on the 6th of April, 1898, is of a very pale pinkish-white ground-colour, speckled and spotted with pale reddish-brown and purplish-grey, forming an irregular zone at the larger end of each egg. Ovals in shape; surface of shell smooth, and slightly glossy. 17-18 mm. by 13. Nest. “ Rather a bulky, domed-shaped structure, and is invariably placed in a prickly bush or shrub. The outside of the nest is usually composed of dark-coloured twigs, making it rather conspicuous. Inside these dark-coloured twigs is placed a lining of flower stems and flower pods with a final lining of soft feathers. The entrance to the nest is a long, narrow funnel about one inch in diameter and six to nine inches in length. This funnel is lined with feathers for a third of the distance from the egg cavity.” (McGilp.) Breeding-season. April, May. (McGilp.) Nokth described tills species thus : “ Xerophila nigricincta sp. n. Adult female. Like X. pectoralis, from Port Augusta, but distinguished by having the breast crossed by a narrow black band, instead of a broad and well defined band of cinnamon-brown across the chest, as in that species. Total length 3 ’9 inches, wing 2 ‘2, tail 1*7, bill from gape 0‘45, tarsus 0-68. The sexes are alike in plumage. Hab., Missionary Plains, Central Australia.” Mr. J. P. Rogers then came across it at Tanami in the Northern Territory, which seems to be the northern edge of the vast mulga area of the interior. He wrote : “ First seen at Tanami and from there south was fairly numerous and several nests seen but eggs were heavily incubated.” Then Captain S. A. White found it at the type locality and also extended the range westwards and southwards. He wrote : “ This species was dis¬ covered by the Horn Expedition and described by North. It was not until we were approaching the Northern Territory boundary that we met with these 43 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. birds. Up to that time A. leucopsis subsp. (?) was met with, and after passing Charlotte Waters the both species occurred. A. nigricincta was found nesting in the low bushes. Their habits do not differ from [those of] other members of the genus. Their note is a much weaker one, and can be identified from the other species at once. They spend much of their time on the ground, making a twittering call when hopping about in a sprightly manner in companies of eight or ten, sometimes more.” Later, about the Musgrave and Everard Range trip, Captain White wrote : “ Numbers of these birds were met with on the stony tablelands, often in company with A. pectoralis, and like that bird were not seen after entering the granite country, although A. c. whitei was present everywhere.” Neil McGilp has -written since : “ This species was noted in flocks of from two to six in number. The call is much sweeter and very different from the ordinary Whiteface, and this bird spends more of its time on the ground. Though we were camped on a bore stream I did not note this species coming into water, although often seen within a quarter of a mile of it. All other birds observed in the district were noted at the water. This Wliiteface started to nest, in common with Orange-fronted Chat, White-winged Wren, and Chestnut-crowned Warbler, three -weeks before the drought broke. The nest is a bulky, retort-shaped structure, the outside being of twigs or branchlets of the ‘ Roily poley ’ (Buck Bush), and inside this a layer of dried flower stems and flower pods, with a final snug lining of soft feathers. The noticeable thing about the nest is the long, narrow entrance, one I measured being 9 in. long, and only about 11 inches in diameter ; this is only scantily lined with feathers for about half the distance from the egg chamber. The nesting places noted were in a Buck Bush (usually a half green one), which showed up the nest conspicuously, it usually being of a very dark colour; the nest was also found in a prickly acacia, called ‘ Dead finish ’ ; the reason for the name can be readily understood if one accidentally comes in contact with it. I noted that both birds took part in building the nest. They left the nest together, and only one, the female, I presume, in returning carried material, the other bird accompanied her to the bush, whereon he sat and whistled until the former had placed the material in the nest. Then the mate flew off alone, and returned with material which the female, who had remained, took and placed in the nest. After tills, both birds flew off to again repeat this system ; this was done without variation for over an hour, though, of course, I was not able to identify the female. The clutch appeared to be of two eggs only, for only one clutch of three was noted, and several nests containing two very young birds were observed, but as I left the district a few days after the rain, I was not able to note if the young from the nest had 44 BLACK-BANDED WHITEFACE. the black band. Very few eggs were hatched out before the rain. Did these birds know that the drought was to break or was it a good guess ? “ These birds do not resent one touching the nest, or eggs or young, which is rather strange, as it is necessary to almost destroy the long narrow entrance in order to inspect the contents of the nest.” McGilp later added that young birds from the nest show tho adult plumage and also have down-like feathers on the head, thus confirming Captain White’s observations that tins is a distinct species from Gould’s pectoralis with which from study of a series I had associated it. The two forms admitted in my 1912 “ Reference List ” are still valid : Aphelocephala nigricincla nigricincta (North). Central South Australia. Aphelocephala nigricincta tanami Mathews. “ Differs from A. n. nigricincta in its deeper coloration above, especially on the head and the flank markings, while paler below. Tanami.” Interior of Western Northern Territory. \ 45 / Genus— S PHENOSTOMA. Sphenostoma Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. rv., pi. (63), April 1st, 1838. Type (by monotypy) . . S. cristatum Gould. Small crested birds with short laterally compressed deep bills, short wings, long tail, longish legs and delicate feet. The bill is shorter than the head, the culmen arched, the tip sharp but not hooked, laterally compressed even at base, so that the stout lower man¬ dible is nearly as deep as upper and the depth of the bill at base is more than half its length ; the interramal space very short, almost obsolete, the gonys keeled and up-curved ; the culmen ridge keeled ; the linear nostrils strongly operculate in a deep short grove, hidden by frontal feathers and outstanding nasal bristles, but rictal bristles few and slight. The wing is rounded, the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh subequal and longest, the third a little shorter and about equal to the eighth, the second shorter than the ninth, which is equalled by the secondaries ; the first primary short, about half the length of the third. The tail is very long and regularly wedge-shaped, longer than the wing. The stout legs are strongly scutellatc in front, bilaminate behind; the feet are small, the claws rather flattened and long, the hind-toe a little stouter than the middle toe, but the hind-toe and claws little shorter than the middle toe and claw ; the outer and inner toes subequal, the inner a little shorter than the outer, and with claw less than middle toe alone. 46 49 5 ff O'* H . Gronvold . del . WitherLy & C° SPHENOS TOMA C RIS TAT UM (WEDGE BIEL). Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 608. Family SPHENOSTOMID/E. SPHENOSTOMA CRISTATUM. WEDGE-BILL. (Plate 495.) Sphenostoma cristatum Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (63), April 1st, 1838 : New South Wales. Sphenostoma cristatum Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (63), April 1st, 1838 ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 150, Dec. 1838; id., Birds Austr., pt. in. (Vol. III., pi .17), June 1st, 1841 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 316, 1865 ; Diggles, Ornith. Austr., pt. xx., 1868; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 184,' 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 74, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 5, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 31, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 269, 1901 ; Carter, Emu, Vol. III., p. 90, 1903 (N.W.A.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. I., p. 341, 1904 ; Milligan, Emu, Vol. IV., p. 154, 1905 (W.A.) ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 87, 1908 ; Gibson, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 74, 1909 (W.A.) ; Whitlock, ib., p. 208, 1910 (W.A) ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. X., p. 29, 1910 (N.S.W.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 69, pi. xm., f. 13 (egg), 1913 ; Whitlock, ib., Vol. XX., p. 186, 1921 (W.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. XXI., p. 179, 1922 (W.A.) ; McGilp, ib., Vol. XXII., p. 285, 1923. Sphenosloma cristatum cristatum Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 378, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 247, 1913. Sphenostoma cristatum pallidum Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 378, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Leigh’s Creek, South Australia ; id., Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 247, 191 3 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 190, 1915 (Central) ; id., Trans. Roy. Soc. S.A., Vol. XXXIX., p. 756, 1915; id., ib., Vol. XLI., p. 462, 1917. Sphenostoma cristatum occidentals Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 378, Jan. 31st, 1912: Day Dawn, (Mid-) West Australia; id., List Birds Austr., p. 247, 1913; Carter, Ibis, 1917, p. 608 ; id., ib., 1921, p. 66. Sphenostoma cristatum tanami Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 379, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Tanami, Northern Territory ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 247, 1913. Distribution. Interior of Australia, exact distributional limits undetermined. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface dark ochreous-brown including the nape, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing-coverts ; head crested ; fore-part of head somewhat paler than the back 47 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. with dark brown centres to the feathers which widen out and occupy the whole of the crest-feathers on their terminal portion ; edge of wing whitish ; bastard- wing, primary-coverts, and some of the greater series somewhat darker than the back, especially on the middle of the feather’s ; flight-quills hair-brown with whitish margins on the inner- webs and on the outer-webs of the fourth and fifth primaries ; middle tail-feathers much darker than the back with obsolete cross-bars and pale tips to some of the feathers, the lateral ones black, broadly tipped with white; base of fore-head, lores, and fore-part of cheeks cinnamon-buff ; riot al-bristles black but only sparsely developed ; the feathers in front of the eye are dark and have hair-like tips ; chin and throat greyish-white with a slight tinge of buff, the feathers on the former have hair-like tips ; middle of breast and abdomen similar to the throat and chin ; sides of the body, thighs, and under tail-coverts darker and more like the back ; under wing-coverts similar but paler ; under-surface of flight- quills pale hair-brown with buffy-white margins ; lower aspect of tail black tipped with -white. Eyes dark brown ; bill hazel-brown ; legs and feet lead-colour. Total length 205 mm. ; culmen 12, wing 84, tail 105, tarsus 24. Figured. Collected at Day Dawn, Mid-w-est Australia (interior), on the 15th of May, 1903, arid is the type of Sphenostoma cristatum occidentale. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface mouse-brown with a tinge of fawn-colour, paler on the top of the head, nape, sides of face, hind-neck, and sides of neck; edge of wing and outer-margins of the fourth and fifth primaries whitish ; flight-quills hair-brown with pale mar-gins ; upper tail-coverts like the back ; tail-feathers dark bronze-brown with obsolete cross-bars, the outer feathers tipped with white which increases in extent towards the outermost, which inclines to blackish at the base ; nasal bristles black ; the feathers in front of the eye black and hair-like ; chin greyish-white with hair-like tips to the feathers ; throat, breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts greyish-fawn colour ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and margins of quills below like the breast ; quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill yellow-, tip black, feet, leaden- colour. Total length 195 mm. ; culmen 11, wing 82, tail 90, tarsus 25. Figured. Collected at Leigh’s Creek, interior of South Australia, on the 19th of October, 1910, and is the type of Sphenostoma cristatum pallida. Adult male. General colour above dark ochreous-brown, including the head, back, and wings ; fore-part of the head paler than the back w-ith dark brown centres to the feathers, the terminal portion of the crest-feathers uniform blackish-brown ; sides of face, sides of neck, and nape uniform pale drab-grey ; outer edge of wing whitish like the outer web of the bastard-wing and outer primal-coverts ; flight-quills hair-brown fringed with white on the inner webs and on the outer webs of the first, fourth and fifth of the primaries ; long upper tail-coverts and middle tail-feathers dark bronze-brown, the outer ones black, broadly tipped with y-hite ; lores blackish in colour and bristly in structure ; nasal bristles black ; chin and throat dull white, with liair-like tips to the feathers on the former, becoming somewhat darker on the breast and abdomen and inclining to dull fawn-colour on the flanks and short under tail-coverts, the long ones pale brown broadly fringed with white ; axillaries like the breast ; under wing-coverts and margins of flight-quills below- greyish-w-liite, the remainder of the latter pale hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper- surface. Eyes brown ; bill black, feet and tarsi leaden-olive. Total length 209 mm. ; culmen 11, w-ing 80, tail 97, tarsus 24. Collected at Tanami, Northern Territory, on the 10th of March, 1910, and is the type of Sphenostoma cristatum tanami. Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface mouse-brown, including the top of the head, back, and wings ; the feathers on the fore-part of the head have dark shaft¬ lines and the apical portion of the crest dark hair-brown ; edge of wing and outer- margins of the fourth and fifth primary-quills white, remainder of flight-quills 48 WEDGE-BILL. hair-brown both oil the outer and inner-webs ; upper tail-coverts like the back ; middle tail-feathers uniform dark bronze-brown with obsolete cross-bars, becoming darker towards the outermost feathers on each side, which are almost black and broadly tipped with white — the wliite decreasing in extent towards the centre ones ; nasal bristles black ; lores similar to the crown ; hinder-face and sides of neck dove-grey ; chin and throat white ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body dove-grev, somewhat darker and inclining to fawn-colour on the last ; short under tail-coverts similar to the abdomen, the long ones pale brown tipped with white ; axillaries like the breast ; under wing-coverts greyish- wliite with dark mottlings ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill and eyes black, legs and feet dark lead-colour. Total length 218 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 80, tail 99, tarsus 25. Collected at Point Cloates on the 2nd of June, 1899. Adult female similar to the male. Eggs. Two to three eggs form the clutch. A typical clutch of two eggs taken at Oplier Creek, near Cunnamulla, South-west Queensland, on the 12th of September, 1898, is of a beautiful bluish-green, moderately but boldly spotted with blackish markings, scattered here and there. Ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. 24 mm. by 17. Another clutch of three eggs taken in the same locality measure 23-24 mm. by 16. They are smaller specimens, and more pointed ovais in shape than is the case with those of the previous clutch. Surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. ^est. An open, shallow cup-shaped structure of twigs and grass, and lined with fur and grass, etc., and usually placed in a low bush, often within four or five feet of the ground. Breeding-months. Usually August, September to January. This distinct genus (and species) was described by Gould before he went to Australia and he does not appear to have met with it himself wdiile out there. He apparently heard some tales about it for he wrote : “ The Crested Wedge-bill is an inhabitant of the low scrubby trees and Polygonum bushes which stud the hot plains of the interior of Australia, particularly those on the borders of the Lachlan and Darling ; it has also been killed on the Lower Namoi. Whether it has any kind of loud sharp whistle analagous to that of the Coach-whip-bird ( PsopJiodes crepitans ), or if it has the same shy dis¬ position, it would be interesting to ascertain.” Captain S. A. Wliite has written me : “ S. c. cristatum . I take this to be the dark coloured form (both are to be found in South Australia). Met with this bird in many places along the Flinders Range. It is a very lively bird and a beautiful songster. I have found them rather timid, but if they think they are not observed they show off their crest and sing to great advantage. They are interior birds and I have never seen them in coastal areas where there is a big rainfall. Nesting season September and October. S. c. pallidum. This is the central Australian form.” Of the latter his notes read : “ On the Finke River a pair were calling amongst some dead acacias and were very shy ; their movements are very VOL. XL 49 # THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. quick, and they keep low down in the undergrowth.” “ Scattered throughout the country visited (the Musgrave and Everard Ranges), were met with in very dry localities. They move very rapidly over the ground in long hops, talcing flight every little while to a low bush and while on the wing invariably spread out their tail, and when they alight hop from branch very quickly with crest erected.” (Between the Cooper and Strzelecki Creeks.) “These strange birds were not plentiful and -were very shy. Generally met with in the dense bushes of lignum ( Muchlenlechia cunninghamii ) growing in dry- watercourses, and on flooded ground. They kept very close to cover, and when beaten out showed great cleverness in reaching cover again without giving a chance of a shot. They possess a very sweet song, and, if they think they are not observed, will go through all kinds of antics, hopping from one twig to another, hanging with head downwards, bobbing the head up and down, raising and lowering the crest, and all the time giving forth strange notes.” Macgiflivray has written of the typical form from Broken Hill: “Two Wedge-bills ( S . cristatum ) were dislodged from a bushy acacia. These birds usually frequent small bushy trees in the gullies or watercourses, or clumps which grow off the main creeks, along which they are never found. In their habits, situations they frequent, and mode of flying they are readily distin¬ guished from the Oreoica, the only other crested bird of about the same size in this district. In flying, the Wedge-bill, like the Babbler, makes a few wing strokes and then sails along on extended pinions, the flight not being sustained for any distance. They do not feed on the ground like the Oreoica, nor are they ever found in the mulga scrub. The song is loud, pleasing and continued ; it is often given forth while the bird is perched on the top of a low bush.” Mr. J. P. Rogers sent it from Tanami noting: “Sparingly distributed in low lying scrubby country.” Recently Whitlock has written about the birds of the Nullarbor Plain: “ The Wedge-bill ( Sphenostoma cristatum) was far less common than the Bell- bird, and seldom found away from the dongas. I observed a nest at Naretha in a small acacia, the sitting bird being visible some distance awray. A family party in a donga at Haig were inquisitively vratching me eat an orange, as I sat during a heavy squall under the lee of a large blue-bush. A strong gale was blowing at the time. When on the ground under a bush, the Wedge-bill is not unlike a Grass Wren ( Diaphorillas ), a species I did not meet with during the trip.” Mr. Tom Carter has written : “ The Westralian Wedge-bill is given in your Reference List 1912 as ranging through West Australia. Its southern 50 WEDGE-BILL. range (coastal) is probably about Lat. 29° S. or 250 miles north of the Swan River, and it is fairly common in the scrub in hollows of the coastal hills at Point Cloates. About Carnarvon (port of Gascoyne River) it is one of the commonest birds, occurring close to the beach in suitable scrub, and in the dense thicket and tall wattle bushes growing on the islands and banks of the river. The variety of bush that it seems to prefer to any other is known as Ming-ar by the aborigines. It grows to a considerable size, and has rather broad, dark green leaves, somewhat like those of the Sandalwood tree. These bushes, owing to their luxuriant foliage, are very dark inside, and the Wedge- bills constantly seek their shelter. The song of this bird is one of the most remarkable of any heard in West Australia, and at once attracts attention. It consists of five loud, ringing, metallic notes, somewhat resembling the ringing of an anvil when struck, and when heard, with the bird within a few yards, hidden ha the dark shade of a big bush, it seems to cause vibration in one’s ears. The local Carnarvon name, * Sweet-Kitty-Lintot,’ with strong emphasis on the second and last syllables, very fairly indicates the rhythm of this song, which is sometimes followed immediately after its conclusion, by a sharp, double metallic note. The song is uttered very rapidly, and kept up, without any pause, for a surprising length of time. According to my observations, both sexes sing. The nests are usually within three or four feet of the ground, and resemble those of Oreoica cristala, made of small twigs and lined with grass. Clutch of eggs two or three. The species is very shy and wary as compared with the Bell Bird, which is of a tame disposition. The Wedge-bill’s song has been described as ventriloquial, but it seems to me more that it is uttered crescendo and diminuendo, which effect may be caused perhaps, to some extent, by the bird moving about in the shelter of the dense ‘ Ming-ar ’ bushes ; but the song certainly rises and falls to a great extent, and I have listened, scores of times, to a bird singing within a few feet of me. It is surprising how a bird will keep itself concealed in a bush by continuing to have a branch, or bunch of leaves between itself and you, then suddenly it will fly, close to the ground, from the far side of the bush to another one, with its tail outspread, and the white tips of the tail-feathers showing conspicuously.” Milligan has written from the Yandanooka District, West Australia : “ These singular birds were also very numerous in the * prickly reminder ’ scrubs, probably owing to the security afforded by them. Many writers have spoken of the species as being extremely shy and difficult of approach, but that was not my experience. Their marvellously developed ventriloquial powers certainly make the birds difficult to locate, but, when once located, they are easy to approach. I could have shot a score without any trouble. They are able to throw their voices at least three hundred yards in any ✓ 51 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. direction. Their notes are four, given with a clear, ringing, bell-like sound When two or three sing in concert all other bird notes are overpowered. Locally they are called (onomatopoetically) ‘ Jimmy Linthorne ’ (the name of a local celebrity) and by others the ‘ Bell Bird.’ I much prefer, as a vernacular name, the one suggested by Dr. Morrison, of our party— namely, the ‘ Chimes Bird ’ — as it is particularly appropriate. I examined the contents of the stomach of one bird, they included the remains of a grasshopper and the seeds of various plants, which I have not yet had identified. The native name is ‘ Geetardo.’ ” Gibson recorded it as “ Fairly common on the mulga and on the plains (between Kalgoorlie and Eucla) -wherever there is a little brush or timber.” Whitlock wTote from the East Murchison : “It always seems to me an error to place this species among the Paridee. It runs, never hops, seeks its food on the ground, builds an open nest, and lays blue eggs— all un-Titlike habits. Around Lake Way it was far from plentiful, and I only got one nest.” Carter did not find it on Dirk Hartog Island, and Whitlock confirmed this, though both found it fairly common on the mainland close to. Mr. Edwin Ashby says : “In South Australia this is essentially an interior bird, but when in Geraldton, some 300 to 400 miles north of Perth in Western Australia, wre learned that this bird comes quite close to the coast, although I did not actually shoot a specimen.” No subspecific forms had been distinguished when I worked up my “ Reference List ” in 1912, but I then recognised four, which I named: Sphenostoma cristatum cristatum Gould. New South Wales. Sphenostoma cristatum pallidum Mathews. “ Differs from S. c. cristatum in its paler upper-surface. Leigh’s Creek, South Australia.” South Australia. Sphenostoma cristatum occidental Mathews. “ Differs from S. c. cristatum in its darker coloration. Day Dawn, West Australia.” West Australia. Sphenostoma cristatum tanami Mathews. Differs from S. c. cristatum in its smaller size. Tanami, Northern Territory.” Northern Territory. In my 1913 ‘ List ” the same arrangement was accepted, with the addition of Victoria to the range of the first-named, and a note that in the case of the third it did not occur in the south-west. 52 Family — S ITTID^E. Genus— NEOSITTA. Neositta Hellmayr, Journ. fiir Orn., 1901, p. 187, April number. New name for Sittella Swainson. Type (by monotypy) . . . . Sitta chrysoptera Latham. Sittella Swainson, Classif. Birds, Vol. II., p. 317, July 1st, 1837 (ex Ency. Geogr. Murray, p. 1484, July, 1834, nom. mid.). Type (by monotypy) Sitta chrysoptera Latham. Not— Sittella Rafinesque, Analyse Nature, p. 68, 1815. Small “ Nuthatches ” with long thin bills, long wings, short square tail and short legs and large feet. The bill is long and thin, about as long as the head, laterally compressed, slight basal expansion, culmen nearly straight with a slight upward tendency anteriorly, the tip sharp and semi-hooked with a posterior notch more noticeable in juvenile birds ; the nostrils are linear, strongly operculate, placed basally in a nasal groove which is only about one-fourth the length of the bill ; the under mandible is similarly narrow, the interramal space small, triangular, feathered, only extending about one-fourth the length of the bill, the gonys with an upward tendency ; though very narrow neither upper mandible nor gonys show any keeling ; rictal and nasal bristles present, but weak and insignificant. The wing is long with the first primary very small, the second longest, the third, fourth and fifth little less, and the succeeding ones rapidly decreasing in length to the medium secondaries. The tail is short and square, less than half the length of the wing. The legs are short, the tarsus strongly scutellate in front, about half a dozen scutes being counted, and bilaminate posteriorly. The anterior toes are weak, the hind-toe and claw long and stout and almost equal to the tarsus in length ; the hind-toe is longer than the middle toe, the hind-claw stout, the anterior claws small and delicate, the outer toe longer than the inner, the latter with its claw about equalling the middle toe alone. 53 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. The family Sittidse to which this and the succeeding genus are attached is one of the remarkable groups which, very well-known superficially, has not received the study as regards anatomy that it deserves. Often classed with the Certhidae, because it frequents trees in a similar manner, it probably has no close relationship with that family. The peculiar development of the forms of the family in Australia is worthy of a few remarks. None have penetrated into Tasmania, yet apparently extraordinary development has taken place in Australia, as we have both black-headed and white-headed species, while the Northern species have a prominent white wing-bar and the Southern have red wing-bars. The white wing-bars occur in the north in both the white- headed and black-headed species, whilst two distinct species in the south show the red wing-bars. Again the Northern form of the white-headed species has a white wing-bar, the Southern a red wing-bar. In New Guinea a white- headed bird occurs, quite a distinct species, with a white wing-bar ; but also in New Guinea is found a bird referred to this family quite unlike any of the Australian birds or any of the Northern species of the family. This group would afford much of value were an intensive study undertaken, both as regards external and internal features. A. G. Campbell, some years ago, gave a sketch of the forms and distribution as at the time known, and this is a very interesting essay, which could serve as a basis. Key to Species. Head brown Head white Wing-bar white Whig-bar reddish-buff Top of head black Under-surface white Wing-bar white. . Wing-bar reddish buff Under-surface striated N. chrysoptera N. albata N. leucocephala N. leucoptera N. pileata N. striata i 54 496 49 6 H (jronvolcl. del. N E O SI T T A L E CJ C O C E PH AI . A. ( WHITE ■ HE AID EE THE EH UN HE FL). NEOSHTA ALBATA ( F IE E> T Ft E EE UNNEFlj. NEOSITTA CHRYSOPTERA f OFi. A. NGE - wing-e d tree runner). WitWLjA Order PASSERIFORMES. Family SITT1DM. No. 609. NEOSITTA CHRYSOPTERA. ORANGE- WINGED TREE- RUNNER. (Plate 496, 2 bottom figures.) Sitta chrysoptera Latham, Index Ornith. Suppl., p. xxxii., after May 1801, based on Watling Drawings Nos. 81 [and 82] : New South Wales. Sitta chrysoptera Latham, Index Ornith. Suppl., p. xxxii., 1801. Reops chrysoptera Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., Vol. XXXI., p. 337, 1819. Sittella chrysoptera Swainson, Classif. Birds, Vol. II., p. 317, 1837 ; Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xiv. (Vol. IV., pi. 101), March 1st, 1844; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 609, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 360, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888 ; Hill, Key Birds Austr., p. 36, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 337, 1901 ; Le Souef, Emu, Vol. I., p. 63, pi. v., 1902 ; Hill, ib., Vol. II., p. 165 (1903), Vic. ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 52, 1906 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907 ; Batey, ib., Vol. VII., p. 8, 1907 (Vic.) ; Austin, ib., p. 30 (N.S.W.). Neositta chrysoptera Hellmayr, Das Tierr., 18, p. 196, 1903; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 87, 1908; Jackson, Emu, Vol. XII., p. 93, 1912 (Q.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 142, 1915 (Mallee) ; Le Souef and Macpherson, ib., Vol. XX., p. 88, 1920 (N.S.W.) ; Gilbert, ib., Vol. XXII., p. 124, 1922. Neositta chrysoptera chrysoptera Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 379, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Neositta chrysoptera lathami Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 379, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Parwan, Victoria ; id., Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913 ; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 311, 1914. Distribution. New South Wales, Victoria, South Queensland (South Australia ?). Adult male. Crown of head from the fore-head to the nape dusky-black ; sides of face similar but intermixed with grey ; hind-neck, back, and scapulars grey with blackish longitudinal centres to the feathers ; upper tail-coverts white with a subapical spot of black on some of the feathers ; upper wing-coverts blackish ; flight-quills also blackish with pale margins at the tips and a band of cinnamon-chestnut across each feather, chiefly on the inner-web ; tail blackish with white tips to the feathers, except the two middle ones ; throat, middle of breast, and abdomen white ; sides of breast and sides of body pale drab-grey with dark shaft-lines ; under tail-coverts 55 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. white with a black subapical mark to each feather ; axillaries drab-grey ; lesser under wing-coverts blackish, the greater series white ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with a patch of cinnamon-chestnut ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyres leather-yellow, feet light yellow, bill fleshy-liom. Total length 112 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 81, tail 36, tarsus 16. Figured. Collected at Parwan in Victoria on the 20th of May, 1910, and is the type of N. c. latliami. Adult female. Entire top of head, nape, hind-neck, and sides of face dusky-black ; back, rump, and scapulars drab-grey with blackish longitudinal centres to the feathers ; upper tail-coverts white with a black subapical mark on each feather ; upper wing- coverts blackish-brown, becoming paler on the inner greater series and innermost secondary7 quills ; flight-quills black with pale edgings at the tips and a cinnamon- rufous band across the inner webs ; tail black with white tips to the lateral feathers ; throat white with dark bases to some of the feathers ; breast and abdomen white ; sides of breast and flanks greyish-white with dark shaft-lines ; under tail-coverts white with a broad subapical mark of black ; axillaries drab-grey7 ; under wing- coverts black, the greater series white ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with a patch of cinnamon-rufous ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes light ochre-brown, ring round ey7e light ochre, feet ochre, bill brown. Total length 106 mm. ; culmen 10, wing 80, tail 35, tarsus 16. Figured. Collected at Melton, Victoria, on the 6th of June, 1910. The female differs in having the head black not brown. Eggs. Three to four form the clutch, usually7 three. They are subject to much variation in shape, size, general colouring and markings. A rather typical clutch of three eggs taken at Blacktown, near Sydney, New South Wales, on the 14th of October, 1906, is of a very pale greyish -white ground-colour, well spotted and blotched all over, and particularly at t he larger end of each egg, with dark olive and slate markings. Rather roundish in shape and slightly7 pointed towards one end ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy7. 15-16 mm. by 12-13. Another clutch of three eggs, taken at Five Dock, near Sydney, New South Wales, on the 18th of September, 1904, is of a pale greyish-white ground-colour, minutely speckled all over with dark olive and slate markings. Ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and rather glossy7. 17-18 mm. by 12. Nest. A beautiful, neat, cup-shaped structure, placed in the upright, dead, forked limb of a tree at heights varying from 10 to 50 feet or more. The greater portion is composed of spiders’ webs and cocoons, neatly interwoven, and give the nest quite a spongy feeling to the touch. If the top portion is bent out of position it corrects itself immediately7, owing to the strong elastic tendency of the material used. The edges of the nest are thin. The outside is decorated with small pieces of bark (and sometimes lichen) which are very neatly glued or fastened on perpendicularly, and frequently7 overlap and resemble the maimer in which slates or shingles are secured on a house roof. The nest is wonderfully protected owing to the very remarkable maimer in which it harmonises with the surroundings. Measurements are 2\ to 3| inches in height over all by7 2| to 3 inches across over all. Egg cavity nearly7 2 inches across by7 about 1J inches deep. Breeding-months. September to January. Through Latham’s choice of the genus Sitta his description was at once recognised, also in consequence of his reproduction of the figure upon which his name was based, and reference to “ Mr. Lambert ” was given. 56 ■rt**1 ORAN GE- WIN GED TREERUNNER. Gould’s notes are brief : “ New South Wales is the true habitat of this species, over nearly every part of which it is rather plentifully distributed. I generally observed it in small companies of from four to eight in number, running over the branches of the trees with the greatest facility, and assuming every possible variety of position, often, like the Nuthatch, traversing the boles of the trees with its head downwards. During its flight, which is quick and darting, the red mark on the wing shows very conspicuously ; its powers of flight are, however, seldom employed, further than to enable it to pass from one tree to another.” Mr. Thos. P. Austin has written me from Cobbora, New South Wales : “ Sparingly dispersed throughout the district, found both in the open forests and scrubs. Excepting when breeding, they are to be seen in small flocks of four to a dozen birds, flying from tree to tree which they thoroughly search for their insect food. I notice that some writers state that they only work with their heads downwards, this is a greatly mistaken idea ; my experiences are that they more often work upwards than downwards. Seldom are they at rest, hopping about boughs and trunks of trees the whole day, often uttering their plaintive little notes. Only while collecting nesting material have I seen them upon the ground. Seldom if ever are they found in smooth barked trees, as they obtain their food supply from crevices in rough bark or decaying wood or dead trees. The nest is a marvel of neatness, usually placed in a perpendicular fork of a dead branch or a rough barked living tree, and it would invariably escape notice if the birds did not betray its situation. Cup-shaped, composed of wool, fin, spiders’ webs, cocoons, etc., outwardly ornamented with small strips of greenish-grey bark, all placed close together somewhat like shingles on the roof of a building. The clutch is usually three and they breed from early in October till the end of the year, in the latter case probably a second brood. It is not unusual to meet with more than one pan of birds assisting in the construction of a nest. They have a habit of building a nest, then without laying, pull it to pieces bit by bit, and rebuild it elsewhere, only to do the same again. When a bird is sitting the other bird feeds it upon the nest.” Mr. F. E. Howe has sent me : “ In the tall timber this useful bird is at home, and here they are observed to work in small flocks of from four to eight. They operate together beautifully, and on alighting in a tree disperse to all parts of it and working downwards and under the limb, uttering soft twittering notes the while. A call slightly different seems to be the signal for departure and off they go in an undulating flight one after another. On November 1st a pair had just started to build in the dead fork of a living tree. Both were busily engaged in this task and made visits to the site about every minute. To gather the necessary cobwebs they would fly to the bottom of the tree and work round VOL. XI. 57 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. and up. Three days later the spot was visited and it was noticed that the work was suspended, but on the 21st the nest contained three fresh eggs. Both help to feed the young and they also divide the task of incubation, feeding one another on the nest.” Mr. L. G. Chandler wrote me : “I was watching a pair of these birds at Frankston beginning their nest-building when I noticed another pair of the same species fly into the tree. Upon the former pair flying off for more material, the latter pair coolly appropriated some that had been collected and placed in position and flew away with it to construct their own nest. It was late in the evening and camp being miles away I had not time to follow the second pair of birds. A visit the fortnight later found the first nest had not been completed.” Mr-. Edwin Ashby and Captain S. A. White both write me that they have never collected tins species in South Australia, though not rare in Victoria, Batey wrote from near Melbourne, Victoria : “ A good fifty years have gone since this bird was seen, the trees having been removed ; previously, a permanent resident.” From Mr. Gilbert’s observations I gather that : “ The eggs take twelve to thirteen days to incubate. The young remain in the nest for thirteen or fourteen days. As the young grow from day to day, the parent birds are enabled to leave them for considerable lengths of time. Nature, in her many experiments, has taught the young the necessity of relaxing and exercising their wings before undertaking the risky move of leaving the nest. Many imitations of the flying movement of the wings are fulfilled by the young, which toughen and tighten their sinews and develop their wing and body muscles. From all appearances, it is a time of great anxiety for the parent birds in keeping their young together once they quit the nest. Long after they have left the nest they are 'waited on by the parents, who are tireless in their efforts to meet the appeals for food expressed by gapes and vibrating wings of their ravenous young. “ Lastly, the peculiar methods this bird adopts when searching for insects may be referred to. As it hops down the branch it throws itself from one side to the other, so that its downward inspection of the chinks in the bark, on both sides of the branch, is achieved in one descent. As soon as one branch has been examined it either commences its search in the larger crevices of the trunk, or flies to the top of another branch.” Le Souef and Macpherson have written regarding the birds of Sydney, the type locality of the species : “ The Treerunners ( Neositta chrysoptera ) are specialists on the eucalypts, feeding on the small black ants that they find on the bark. One can generally find them in the vicinity of the parks and large gardens, and they always seem very busy and in a hurry. Each 58 ORANGE-WINGED TREERUNNER. flock works over a fairly large area, and the birds are sometimes not seen for weeks.” There has been little wrritten about the life history as above recorded, and owing to the restricted range of the species there is not much technical history. In my “ Reference List ” in 1912 I allowed two subspecies : Neositta chrysoptera chrysoptera (Latham). Queensland, New South Wales. Neositta chrysoptera lathami Mathews. “Dilfers from N. c. chrysoptera in its paler coloration above and below, the under-surface being almost white (Parwan) Victoria.” Victoria, South Australia. As both Captain S. A. White and E. Ashby have written me that they have not met with this species in South Australia, I have questioned that locality in this place, and its range in Queensland is at present unknown, probably only occurring in the south of that State. Otherwise, only the above two subspecies are yet recognised and the above arrangement is still tenable. 59 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 610. Family SITTID/E. NEOSITTA LEUCOCEPHALA. WHITE-HEADED TREERUNNER. (Plate 496, top left-hand figure.) Sittella LEUCOCEPHALA Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (68), April 1st, 1838 : Moreton Bay, Queensland. Sittella leueocephala Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. rv\, pi. (68), April 1st, 1838; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 152, Dec. 1838; id., Birds Austr., pt. xxx. (Vol. IV., pi. 102), March 1st, 1848; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 610, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 192, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. Vin., p. 361, 1883; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888; Hall, Birds Austr., p. 36, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 339, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 57, 1906 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VT., p. 181, 1907. Neositta leueocephala Hellmayr, Das Tierr., 18, p. 198, 1903; Mathews, Hand! Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908 ; Ramsay, Emu, Vol. XIX., p. 5, 1919 (N.S.W.). Neositta leueocephala leueocephala Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 379, 1912; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Neositta leucoptera (sic) lumholtzi Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. III., pt. 3, p. 61, April 7th, 1916 : Queensland (North ?). Distribution : Queensland (Moreton Bay District) and Northern New South Wales (Clarence River). Adult. Top of head and sides of face greyish-white with a slight indication of dark shaft¬ lines on the crown and nape ; sides of neck, mantle, back, and rump dark brown with drab-grey margins to the feathers ; upper tail-coverts white with a blackish subapical mark on many of the feathers ; upper wing-coverts and flight-quills blackish-brown with pale edgings to some of the feathers and a chestnut band across the inner webs of the latter ; tail also blackish-brown with smoke-white tips to the feathers ; throat whitish ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body greyish-white with dark shaft-streaks becoming darker and inclining to drab-grey on the lower flanks ; under tail-coverts black fringed with white, more broadly at the tips ; axillaries dusky -grey ; under wing-coverts dark brown, greater series white ; under¬ surface of flight-quills dark brown with a patch of chestnut ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes and feet yellow. Bill black. Total length 101 mm. ; culrnen 10, wing 79, tail 35, tarsus 16. Figured. Collected in Queensland and is the type of N. 1. lumholtzi. The sexes are alike. Adult. Fore-part of head whitish-grey with minute dark shaft-lines, becoming darker on the nape, sides of face, and sides of neck ; back, rump, and scapulars dark brown with somewhat paler margins to the feathers ; upper tail-coverts white with a black subapical mark on some of the feathers ; upper wing-coverts and flight-quills 60 WHITE-HEADED TREERUNNER. blackish-brown with pale edgings to some of the feathers and a cinnamon-chestnut band across the inner webs of the latter ; tail black tipped with white, which increases in extent towards the outermost feathers ; throat dusky-grev ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body greyish-white with dark shaft-streaks becoming somewhat darker and inclining to drab-grey on the lower flanks ; under tail-coverts white with black subterminal marks ; axillaries drab-grey ; lesser and median under wing-coverts blackish, the greater series white ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with a patch of cinnamon-chestnut ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Total lengt h 113 mm. ; culmen 11, wing 75, tail 34, tarsus 17. Collected in Queensland. Eggs. Three eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of three eggs taken at Duaringa, near Rockhampton, Queensland, on the 15th oE October, 1898, is of a pale greyish-white ground-colour, well spotted and blotched, particularly at the larger end of each egg, with sepia and slate markings. Roundish in form, and slightly pointed towards one end ; surface of shell fine, and slightly glossy. 16 mm. by 12. Nest. Very similar to that of N. chrysoptera and placed in the same kind of situations. Breeding-months. September to December. Five or six species of Treerunners are admitted in the Australian Avifauna and four of these were described and named by Gould, but he knew nothing of its habits. The present species is still one of the rarest of these birds with a very restricted range, and little more is known than when Gould wrote, although so many years have intervened. J. Ramsay, writing on the Birds in Upper Clarence River District in the Emu, stated : “ At camp 2 a flock of Neosittas was observed, several individuals of which clearly displayed the white head so characteristic of this species. Unfortunately, the only one secured was a female, but there is little doubt it is a true leucocephala, and that the habitat of the species may be extended into northern New South Wales.” Editorial comment reads : “ In his ‘ Nests and Eggs ’ Mr. A. J. North does not show New South Wales as a habitat of this species ; but Dr. E. P. Ramsay does, in his ‘ Tabular List ’ (1888). It is indeed a happy coincidence that Mr. John Ramsay confirms his father’s useful ‘List.’ The specimen that Mr. Ramsay collected, now added to H. L. White’s Collection, National Museum, Melbourne, is well represented by the central figure of Gould’s excellent plate of this species in Birds of Australia, Yol. IV.” There seems little else on record. I described Neositta leucoptera lumholtzi, writing : “ Differs from N. 1. leucoptera (Gould) in having the brown bar on the inner webs of the primaries much darker. Queensland.” This was an unfortunate lapse for “ leucocephala ,” as leucoptera was so called on account of the bar above mentioned being white. The specimen was collected by Lumholtz with no more precise locality than Queensland. 61 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 611. Family SITTlLh. NEOSITTA ALBATA. I PIED TREERUNNER. (Plate 496.) Sittella ALBATA Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1877, p. 351, August 1st: Bowen, Port Denison, North Queensland. Sittella albata Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1877, p. 351 ; id., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 192, 1878 ; Gould, Birds New Guinea, pt. xi. (Vol. III., pi. 28), Feb. 1st, 1880 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 362, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 36, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 340, 1901 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907. Neositta albata Hellmayr, Das Tierr., 18, p. 199, 1903; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908. Neositta leucocephala albata Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 379, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Neositta albata ramsayi Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 36, Feb. 21st, 1923 : North of Brisbane, South Queensland. Neositta albata albata Mathews, ib. Distribution. Queensland (Port Denison to near the Brisbane District). Adult. Very similar to the adult of N. leucocephala, differing principally in having the wing-bar white, not buff. The sexes are alike. Nest and eggs. Very similar to those of N. leucocephala. To the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London the late Dr. E. P. Ramsay contributed a “ List of Birds met with in North-eastern Queensland, chiefly at Rockingham Bay.” This appeared in three parts in 1875, 1876 and 1877. In the first portion dealing with the Passerine birds he included, p. 600 : Sittella leucocephala. This very conspicuous species is far from being rare, and is usually met with hi open forest country over the whole of Northern Queensland as far as Cooktown. Its habits and actions and nidification do 62 PIED TREERUNNER. not differ materially from those of other members of the genus. The notes of all closely resemble each other.” In the third part (p. 351), after concluding the list, he added : “ I also observed that the Sittella leucocephala, from the neighbourhood of Port Denison, has a white band through the wing instead of a reddish or ‘ rusty-red ’ one, as described by Mr. Gould. In other respects it is almost exactly the same. I have only observed three specimens with this peculiarity, but am daily expecting a large series from Bowen, when I will make some further remarks, and give a fuller description of the bird ; for the present I propose the name of albata for the Port Denison specimens, distinguished by having a ivhite hand, through the wing, commencing on the first primary and extending to the 9th quill." A full description was appended, but no further remarks have since appeared and recent collectors seem to have missed this species. In my “Reference List,” 1912, I considered this was the northern subspecies of N. leucocephala, differing from it in the same way that N. leucoptera differs from N. pileata. Inasmuch as intergradation, either in coloration or range, has not been proven I allow it specific rank, so that this item may be kept well in view. 63 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family SITTIdM No. 612. NEOSITTA PILEATA. BLACK- CAPPED TREE RUNNER. (Plate 497.) Sittella pileata Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (68), April 1st, 1838: Swan River, West Australia. Sittella pileata Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (68), April 1838 ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 151, Dec. 1838 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. xiv. (Yol. IV., pi. 104), March 1st, 1844; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 612, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 192, 1878; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 362, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 36, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 340, 1901; Milligan, Emu, Vol. II., p. 73, 1902 (W.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. III., p. 18, 1903 (W.A.); Carter, ib., p. 91 (M.W.A.) ; H. E. Hill, ib., p. 106 (W.A.) ; Milligan, ib., Vol. IV., p. 10, 1904 (W.A.) ; Lawson, ib., p. 135, 1905 (W.A.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 55, 1906 ; G. F. Hill, Emu, Vol. VII., p. 18, 1907 (Vic.); J. A. Hill, ib., p. 37 (Vic.) ; Gibson, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 74, 1909 (W.A.) ; Crossman, ib., p. 89 (W.A.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XII., p. 3, 1912 (S.A.) ; Stone, ib., p. 116, 1912 (Vic.). Sittella melanocephalus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (68), April 1838: Swan River, West Australia ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 152, Dec. 1838. Sittella tenuirostris Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 610, note (Dec.), 1865: South Australia ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 36, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 342, 1901 ; Milligan, Emu, Vol. III., p. 114, 1903; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 55, 1906 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907. Sittella pileata subsp. tenuirostris Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 363, 1883. Sittella chrysoptera var. tenuirostris Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888. Neositta pileata Hellmayr, Das Tierr., 18, p. 197, 1903; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 129, 1910 (S.A.) ; Whitlock, ib., p. 208, 1910 (W.A.) ; Howe, ib., p. 233, 1910 (Vic.) ; Carter, ib., Vol. X., p. 294, 1911 (S.W.A.); Cleland, ib., Vol. XII., p. 14, 1912 (Food) ; Wilson, ib., p. 37 (Vic.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 30, 1913 (S.A.) ; id., ib., p. 128, 1914 (S.A.) ; Howe and Tregellas, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 82, 1914 (Vic.) ; Sodorberg, Kungl. Svenska Vet. 64 I ♦*0 «s* r*v NEOSITTELLA STRIATA, (STRIJLTED TREE RUNNER) NEOSITTA PIE EAT A. f 13 LA-CKrCNPRED TREERUNNER). NEOSITTA. LEUCOPTERA (white ’WINGED TREERUNNER). H.Gronvold, del Witherlry- & C° 497 BLACK-CAPPED TREERUNNER. Hand!, Band 52, p. 99, 1918 ; Asliby, Emu, Vol. XX., p. 135, 1921 (W.A.) ; Alexander, ib., p. 167 (W.A.). Neositta tenuirostris Hellmayr, Das Tierr., 18, p. 197, 1903 ; Mathews, HandL Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908. Neositta pileata pileata Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 379, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Neositta pileata teunuirostris Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 380, 1912 ; id ., List Birds Austr., p. 249, 1913 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 190, 1915. Neositta pileata milligani Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 380, Jan. 31st, 1912 : East Murchison, Mid- west Australia ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Neositta pileata broomi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 380, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Broome Hill, South-west Australia ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Neositta pileata whiilocki Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 47, April 2nd, 1912 : Stirling Ranges, South-west Australia ; id. , List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Distribution. South and Mid-west Australia and Central and South Australia. Adult male. Crown of head and nape black ; fore-head buffy-white ; lores and sides of face white, slightly tinged with drab-grey on the ear-coverts and sides of neck, somewhat deeper in colour on the latter ; back, scapulars, and rump grevish-browrn with dark shaft-streaks ; upper wing-coverts black ; flight-quills also black, with whitish tips to some of the primaries and broadly banded with bright cinnamon on both primaries and secondaries ; upper tail-coverts white, the middle ones inclining to buff marked with black ; tail black tipped with white, which increases in extent towards the outermost ; throat, breast, and abdomen white ; sides of body drab-grey ; thighs coffee-brown ; under tail-coverts white, or greyish-white subapically marked with black ; under wing-coverts black, the greater series and edge of wing white ; under-surface of flight-quills black with a patch of cinnamon ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes brown, feet yellow, bill with yellow base, shading to a dark brown tip. Total length 118 mm. ; culmen 15, wing 87, tail 38, tarsus 16. Figured. Collected at Wilson’s Inlet, South-west Australia, on the 10th of May, 1910. Adult female. Top of head, nape, and sides of face deep black ; liind-neck, back, and scapulars greyish-brown with dark shaft-streaks ; upper wing-coverts black ; flight-quills biackish-brown with a cinnamon band across the inner-webs ; upper tail-coverts white, the long ones more or less marked with grey ; tail black, tipped with white — more extensively on the outermost feathers ; chin black with hair¬ like tips to the feathers ; throat, breast, and abdomen white ; sides of body drab- grey ; thighs coffee-brown ; under tail-coverts wiiite wTith a subapical mark of black ; under wing-coverts black, the greater series and edge of wing white ; under¬ surface of flight-quills blackish with a patch of cinnamon ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes red-orange, orbits yellow ; feet and legs chrome- yellow7 ; bill with yellow base and purple tip. Figured. Collected at Broome Hill, South-wrest Australia, on the 24th of September, 1905, and is the type of N . p. broomi. The female differs from the male in having the black of the head extending below the eyes. Eggs. Three eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of three taken at Keivell, near Murtoa, Victoria, on the 27th of September, 1894, is of a pale greyish-white ground-colour, heavily spotted and blotched, particularly at the larger end of each egg, with dark VOL. XI. 65 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. olive and slate markings. Roundish in form, and slightly pointed towards one end ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. 17 mm. by 13-14. Nest. Similar to that of N. chrysoptera. Breeding-months. August to December. When Gould received the male and female of this fine species he named them both as distinct species so that there should he no doubt of their nomination, though he was not certain that they did not represent the sexes of the same species. Gould’s notes are, of course, the earliest and are here quoted: “This species of Sittella enjoys a range extending over several degrees of longitude. I killed several examples during my excursion into the interior of South Australia, and I transcribe from my journal the following notes on the subject : ‘ I met with a flock of these birds on the hills near the source of the River Torrens, about forty miles northward of Adelaide ; they were about thirty in number and were extremely shy, keeping on the topmost branches of the trees, and the whole company flying from tree to tree so quickly that I and my companion were kept at a full run to get shots at them.’ The following is from Gilbert’s notes made in Western Australia : * An extremely active bird, running up and down the trunks and branches of the trees with the utmost rapidity, always in families of from ten to twenty in number. It utters a weak piping note while on the wing, and occasionally while running up and down the trees. Its flight, which is generally performed in rather rapid undulating starts, is of short duration.’ Prior to my visit to Australia, I regarded, described, and named the two sexes of this bird as distinct species, an error which the opportunity I subsequently had of observing the bird in a state of nature and of dissecting recent specimens has enabled me to correct : the black-headed specimens proving to be females, and those with a black cap only, males.” Mr. Tom Carter’s notes read : “ Is a fairly common species through the south-west, and about Broome Hill. At the latter locality recently fledged young were seen on October 8th, 1912, evidently having just left the nest. On April 9th, 1910, there appeared to be a considerable local migration (!) of these birds, because in the course of a six mile drive from my house ‘ Wensleydale ’ to the township many small parties of them were observed in timber along¬ side the road, and in the ordinary way I could drive that way perhaps twenty times and not see a single one of these birds.” Milligan wrote from the Margaret River district, South-west Australia: “ I saw several companies of these birds on the first trip, and as they were in companies I assumed they had not begun to nest.” Later he added: 66 BLACK-CAPPED TREERUNNER. “ Sittella tenuirostris (Gould). I have to report the occurrence of this species in Western Australia. Mr. Fred Lawson forwarded to the Perth Museum several skins which he procured in the Murchison district. I think it is quite distinct from S. pileata and entitled to rank as a subspecies.” I also quote here a further note by Milligan : “ Recently, whilst examining the skins of our Museum relating to the Certhiidae, I was surprised to find three skins of Sittella leucoptera, obtained, as the labels disclosed, at the Blackwood River, in the southern portion of Western Australia. As the species is regarded as a purely tropical form, I, from motives of abundant caution, determined to await the return of Mr. J. T. Tunney (who collected them) from Northern Australia, and receive confirmation of the notes on the label before publishing the record. Mr. Tunney, having now returned, confirms the notes.” Ashby has recently written : “ Black-capped Treerunner. Found on the sand plains at Watheroo. They are slightly lighter in colour than South Australian specimens, and have considerably less white on the head and under¬ side than is the case with a skin from Lake Austin, West Australia, that is labelled N. tenuirostris (Slender-billed Treerunner) ; but age might account for the difference. There is no material difference in the bills.” The bird Milligan determined as S. tenuirostris above I named N. p. milligani as hereafter shown, but the Blackwood birds need confirmation by further collecting at that region as all the recent records have been of the pileata (not leucoptera ) forms, and a mistake in locality seem certain. Captain S. A. White wrote me “ N. p. tenuirostris. This is a widely distributed bird, being found in the heavy timbered country near the coast, open-timbered and grassland country, she-oak country, and over the vast interior where mulga scrubs prevail. It is a very lively and active bud, moving about in parties from two or three to a dozen or more, descending the trees head downwards searching every crevice and hole for insect life, then off to another tree, all following the first to fly and uttering a very sharp, quickly repeated note while on the wing. Nests in August, September and October, building a wonderful nest of cobwebs and soft bark, attaching pieces of bark to the outside so cunningly that the nest, which is placed in an upright fork, is most difficult to detect.” Mr. J. W. Mellor writes : “ This bird is to be found in various parts of South Australia and in the interior of the State, and I have seen it on Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. It always goes about in small companies of four or five ; when one flies off, the others invariably fly off after it and follow the leader until the next settling place is reached, when all collect again and search about the bushes and trees for their insect food upon which they solely subsist. 67 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. They have a peculiar way of searching about the trunks of the rough-barked trees, in coming downwards around and around the stem, diligently spying beneath the loose pieces of bark and into the cracks and crevices for any spider or insect that may be secreted. They love the rough stony ridges of mountain ranges, especially where the she-oak ( Casuarina ) grows, and it has been in these trees that I have always found their nests, which are extremely hard to locate. The nest is always placed in the upright fork of the tree, built of small strips of bark and fibre, firmly woven together with spider-web and cocoon, forming a neat little cup and wrell shapen into the fork of the tree, so as to merely appear a thickened joint ; then for the outside the buds select little pieces of elongated bark of the she-oak tree and sticks these firmly on to the nest, all in a longitudinal way, the same as the bark of the tree itself, so that when it is finished it is almost impossible to detect the nest, save when the bird is sitting; and it was in this -way I found those I have. Several of the covey assist in building the nest, but I think that only one hen lays in it, while both male and female sit on the eggs during incubation. I found a nest in course of construc¬ tion on the Coorong and marked the place very particularly, but upon revisiting the place the nest had been removed and I could not find the new place. They seem very wary birds in this respect and do not like their nesting-site to be discovered, hence their desire completely to hide its whereabouts by deceptive methods.” Mr. Sandland wrote me : “ Odd families seen. Have only found one nest at which four birds were busily engaged. On my return four days later there was no sign of the nest and, as it had not been stormy, I concluded they must have moved it after I looked into it.” Mr. Edwin Ashby’s notes read ; “ Not uncommon in the Mount Lofty Hills, South Australia. I also found it numerous near Perth, West Australia. The birds of this genus run about the boughs of a tree, especially she-oak ( Casuarina ), like a mouse, being as much at home upside down on the underside of a bough as on the upper. The nest is a masterpiece, being made often to match exactly the broken end of a bough, being simply an extension of the broken end. It would be impossible to find but for the movements of the parent bird. Except during the period of incubation these birds go in flocks and usually only stay a short time in a clump of trees, soon passing on to the next clump.” Mr. F. E. Howe wrote : “ Met with this bird at Stawell, Garina and Ivow Plains. During our trip to the latter locality we were interested by the actions of a small family as they fed in the trees above the spot we had selected for lunch.” Mr. A. G. Campbell has noted that he “ took a nest at Nliill, Victoria, containing five eggs, which could be divided into twro sets of three and two, obviously laid by different females.” 68 BLACK-CAPPED TREERUNNER. G. F. Hill, writing of the birds of the Ararat district, Victoria, stated : “A rather uncommon bird. The nests are built in upright forks of dead branches and covered with small pieces of bark of the colour of the branch. Gum (This is a secretion from the mouth of the bird — Eds.) is used freely in the construction of the nests, both to stick the foundation to the branches and to attach the small pieces of bark to the outside. At least four birds assist in the building of a nest.” J. A. Hill from Kewell, Victoria, wrote : “ I have observed both the male and female of the Black-capped Treerunner taking part in incubation. We only have the one species in our district, and they are very peculiar in their habits. They generally go in small flocks of eight or ten, and I have never seen more than one nest in connection with one flock. More than one pair (possibly the whole flock) help to build the nest. They often remove their nest when built ; I have watched them on different occasions pull the nest to pieces and remove it about 100 yards or more, for reasons best known to themselves. The nest is often finished for two or three weeks before they commence to lay eggs, but this is not always the case. Only the one pair feed the young ones, as far as I have been able to observe.” Stone, concerning the birds of Lake Boga, Victoria, confirmed this : “ Not uncommon. Builds a beautiful nest, which is a perfect mimicry of its surroundings. Very suspicious, and I have known them make six several attempts to build a nest, to be forsaken until the sixth time. Maximum, three eggs.” Howe, Wilson and Tregellas have all noted tins species in the Victorian Mallee, and S. A. White from many parts of South Australia, but very little is recorded of its habits and I have no notes of its occurrence in New South Wales, although it probably does occur in the south-west part ; indeed, it is quite possible that Captain Sturt’s specimens which Gould named tenuirostris might have been procured within the borders of that State. In his “Handbook” under the article Sittella chrysoptera, Gould added: “ I possess a somewhat mutilated specimen of a Sittella, which was given to me by Captain Sturt, but I am unaware of the locality in which he obtained it. This bird, which I feel assured is a new species, is very nearly allied to S. chrysoptera, but differs from it in having a longer and more upturned bill, the base of which is yellow, and a uniformly coloured back and breast -without apparently any trace of the brown striae seen on the feathers of those parts in S. chrysoptera ; in other respects, particularly in the chestnut coloured band across the wings, it is very similar to that species. If it should hereafter prove to be new, I would propose for it the specific name of tenuirostris .” 69 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. This specimen was given by Gould to the British Museum, and when Gadow wrote the volume of the Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum dealing with these birds he determined the specimen as a variety of 8. pileata. Later Ramsay demurred, writing : “ This is a somewhat doubtful species, and Dr. Hans Gadow, who has presumably examined the type from Gould’s collection, has made it still more doubtful by placing it as identical with S. pileata (Gould). As I have specimens agreeing very well with Mr. Gould’s description, from the interior provinces, obtained by Mr. James Ramsay, I prefer to consider it more nearly allied to S. chrysoptera than to any other.” Milligan then recorded a form from West Australia under Gould’s name, but on the preparation of my “ Reference List ” I concluded : “ Note.— The type of S. tenuirostris, which I have examined, was procured by Captain Sturt, and is a young long-billed aberration. The name must be used for the South Australian race, which is characterised by its duller head, smaller size, and more spotting on the upper-surface, but the slender bill is not constant. Indeed, this feature is more constant in the East Murchison race, as pointed out by Milligan.” In that “ Reference List ” I included the forms of leucoptera as subspecies of pileata, but omitting those, four true pileata subspecies were recognised : Neositta pileata pileata (Gould). (Swan River) West Australia. Neositta pileata tenuirostris (Gould). South Australia, adjoining parts of Victoria. Neositta pileata milligani Mathews. “ Differs from N. p. pileata in its smaller size and much paler coloration. East Murchison, West Australia.” Mid Australia. Neositta pileata broomi Mathews. “ Differs from N. p. pileata in its paler coloration, and from N. p. tenuirostris in its more distinctly spotted upper-surface. Broome Hill, West Australia.” South-west Australia. The reconsideration of these forms a little later necessitated the addition of Neositta pileata whitlocki Mathews. “ Differs from N. p. broomi in its lighter coloured back, but not so pale as milligani. Stirling Ranges, South-west Australia.” These five forms were recognised in my 1913 “ List.” 70 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 613. Family S1TT1DM. NEOSITTA LEUCOPTERA. WHITE-WINGED TREERUNNER. (Plate 497.) Sittella leucoptera Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1839, p. 144, March 1840 : North¬ west Coast of Australia=Port Essington, Northern Territory. Sittella leucoptera Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1839, p. 144, 1840 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. xiv. (Vol. IV., pi. 103), March 1st, 1844 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. L, p. 611, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 192, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 363, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 36, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 343, 1901 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. II., p. 53, 1902 (N.W.A.); (?) Milligan, ib., Vol. HI., p. 233, 1904 (S.W.A.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib„ Vol. VI., p. 182, 1907; (?) Broadbent, ib., Vol. X., p. 239, 1910 (N.Q.). Neositta leucoptera Hellmayr, Has Tierr., 18, p. 198, 1903 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908; id.., Emu, Vol. IX., pp. 12-62, 1909 (N.W.A., N.T.) ; G. F. Hill, l^., p. 282, 1911 (N.W.A.) ; H. L. White, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 186, 1914 (eggs) ; Barnard, ib., p. 209 (N.T.) ; id., ib., Vol. XIV., p. 48, 1914 (N.T.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. IV., p. 432, 1914 ; H. L. White, Emu, Vol. XVI., p. 226, 1917 (N.T.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 184, 1919 (N.T.). Neositta mortoni North, Ibis, 1912, p. 118, Feb. 7th : Port Essington, Northern Territory ; id., Emu, Vol. XII., p. 53, 1912 ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 174, 1914 (N.Q.). Neositta pileata leucoptera Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 380, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 249, 1913. Neositta pileata rogersi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 380, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Mungi, (interior) Northwest Australia ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 248, 1913. Neositta pileata subleucoptera Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 380, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Alexandra, Northern Territoxy ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 249, 1913. Neositta pileata melvillensis Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 47, April 2nd, 1912 : Melville Island, Northern Territory ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 249, 1913. Neositta pileata broomei Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., pt. 4, p. 95, Sept. 18th, 1912 : Napier Broome Bay, North-west Australia. Neositta pileata napieri Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. II., pts. 2-3, p. 68, Oct. 23rd, 1913 : newname for preceding, which is not N. p. broomi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 380 (Jan. 31st), 1912 ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 249, 1913 ; id., South Austr. Orn., Vol. 3, p. 179, 1918. 71 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Distribution. Northern Australia from Derby and Napier Broome Bay in the North¬ west to Alexandra, Eastern Northern Territory, and into Queensland (Cloncurry), Adult male. Crown of head and nape black ; hind-neck, mantle, back and scapulars drab-grey with dark shaft-streaks ; upper tail-coverts white ; upper wing-coverts black ; outer aspect of flight-quills black with a band of white, chiefly across the inner-webs ; tail black tipped with white more narrowly on the middle feathers ; fore-head, lores, a line over the eye, sides of face, sides of neck, throat, breast, and upper abdomen white ; axillaries, sides of body, and lower abdomen drab-grey ; thighs blackish ; under tail-coverts white subapically marked with black ; under wing-coverts black ; edge of wing and greater series white ; under-surface of flight- quills blackisli-brown with, a patch of white ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes and feet yellow, bill with yellow base and black tip. Total length 114 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 82, tail 35, tarsus 17. Figured. Collected at Napier Broome Bay, North-west Australia, on the 24th of February, 1910. The sexes of this bird are very similar to those of N. pileata, differing principally in having the wing-bar white, not buff. Female differs from the male in having the black of the head extending below the ejTes. Eggs. Three eggs form the clutch, and appear to be the smallest laid by the genus. A clutch of three eggs taken at Borroloola, Macarthur River, Northern Territory, on the 11th of November, 1913, is of a pale greyish-white ground-colour, spotted and speckled with dark olive and slate markings, which become confluent towards the larger end of each egg. Ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and rather glossy. 15-16 mm. by 12. Nest. Similar to that constructed by other species of the genus. The nest from which this clutch of eggs was taken, was a beautiful little cup-shaped structure, composed of bits of bark and cobwebs woven together in an upright fork of a Coolibah tree. Breeding-months. August to December. (June, July.) Gould described this beautiful bird as a distinct species on account of the white inner lining of the wings, and recently it was reduced to subspecific rank ; but I am now inclined to agree with the majority of Australian orni¬ thologists that it would be better to treat it as a representative species rather than a subspecies. Gould wrote : “ The present bird, which is a native of the northern parts of Australia, is a perfect representative of the Sittella chrysoptera of the south coast, to which species it is most nearly allied. The contrasted style of its plumage, together with the white spot on the wings, sufficiently distinguish it from every other species of the genus yet discovered. It is found in the Cobourg Peninsula, but is nowhere very abundant ; it moves about in small families of from four to twelve in number, Its note, actions, and general habits are precisely similar to those of the other members of the genus. The sexes differ from each other in the markings of the head ; the male has the summit only black, while the female has the whole of the head and ear-coverts of that colour.” 72 WHITE-WINGED TREERUNNER, Mr. J. P. Rogers has mitten : “At Marngle Creek only four small flocks were seen, while at Mungi they were rare. In most timbered localities in West Kimberley these birds are fairly numerous.” From Melville Island Rogers wrote : “Coopers’ Camp, Nov. 20th, 1911. This species is rare here. I have only seen three or four small parties and these were usually in the tops of tall trees. On the north side of the island none were seen, and recrossing the island to the south again I crossed a lot of likely country but saw none. At Coopers’ Creek again on Jan. 20th, 1912, two small parties were seen. The parties seen at the island were small, never more than five or six birds. At Derby flocks of twenty were common and the usual number was about ten or twelve.” G. F. Hill wrote : “ A somewhat rare bird (in Kimberley), generally seen in small flocks of six or eight. The nesting season appears to be in June, in which month several partly built nests were found near the Drysdale River.” While my “ Reference List ” was being printed, North sent to England a description of a new species, Neositta mortoni, collected at Port Essington, Northern Territory, which he concluded differed from birds collected at Derby, North-west Australia, and which agreed with birds from Cloncurry, Queensland. In my “ Reference List,” which was published the week before North’s new species, I had ranged the White-winged Treerunners as forms of the Black-headed Treerunner and admitted Neositta pileata leucoptera (Gould). North-wrest Australia (Coast) giving Derby as type locality even as North had independently done. Neositta pileata rogersi Mathews. “ Differs from N. p. leucoptera in its paler coloration above. Mungi, North-west Australia.” North-west Australia (Interior). Neositta pileata subleucoptera Mathewrs. “ Differs from N. p. rogersi in being paler still and larger. Alexandra, Northern Territory.” Northern Territory. Shortly afterwards I received birds from Melville Island and named these Neositta pileata melvillensis. “ Differs from N. p. leucoptera in its shorter, thicker bill ” and added Neositta pileata mortoni North as the name for the Port Essington bird. However, when Witmer Stone examined the Gould collection in Philadelphia all the birds were labelled Port Essington, and it will be noted above that Gould only gave “ Cobourg Peninsula ” as its habitat, so that North’s name became VOL. XI. 73 — ii THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. an absolute synonym of Gould’s leucoptera. This is one of the many cases where Gould’s North-west Australia proves to be Port Essington, a point that should be borne in mind. I therefore distinguished Neositta pileata broomei. “ Differs from N. p. leucoptera (from Port Essington) in having the centre of the feathers of the back very much darker and the rump whiter. Napier Broome Bay, North-west Australia.” I unfortunately overlooked the fact that I had used this name just a little previously for a southern form, so had to rename it Neositta pileata napieri. Consequently in my 1913 “ List,” where I still regarded these birds as forms of pileata, I ranged Neositta pileata rogersi Mathews. Interior of North-west Australia. Neositta pileata napieri Mathews. North-west Australia (Coastal Districts). Neositta pileata leucoptera Gould. Western Northern Territory. Neositta pileata melvillensis Mathews. Melville Island, Northern Territory. Neositta pileata subleucoptera Mathews. Eastern Northern Territory. Macgillivray, under the name Neositta mortoni, wrote : “ This is the common Sittella throughout the Gulf country, and will probably be found to be identical with N . magnirostris of Ingram, described from a cattle station a little westward of the Gulf country.” This is a little difficult to understand, as when North described his Neositta mortoni from Port Essington he claimed it differed from Cloncurry birds of the leucoptera style, while Ingram’s N. magnirostris is a form of N. striata, a different species altogether. Again, Campbell has recently recorded “ Neositta leucoptera Gould. One grey at the tips, a wide band of buff across the quills which becomes brighter on the secondaries ; upper tail-coverts and tail similar to the back with a broad subter¬ minal band of black on the latter ; lores, superciliary streak, sides of crown, sides of face, chin, and throat pale bufi ; fore-neck grey tinged with buff ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body streaked with white and more narrowly with dark brown, the streaks fading away on the lower abdomen and vent ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts white, or buffy-white marked with black ; axillaries and under wing-coverts buff ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a patch of pale buff ; lower aspect of tail blackish tipped with grey. Total length 170 mm. ; culrnen 15, wing 98, tail 69, tarsus 25. Figured. Collected at Parramatta, New South Wales, in July 1904. (Bottom figure.) Adult female . General colour of the upper-surface including the mantle, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars and upper wing-coverts rust-brown ; bastard- wing dark brown with pale outer margin ; short outer primary similar but paler; primary- coverts and flight-quills blackish-brown with a wide band of buff across the latter, tips of secondaries drab-grey ; base of tail, tips and middle feathers similar to the back wdtli a broad black subterminal band ; top of head and nape greyish-brown ; base of fore-head, lores and superciliary streak buff, becoming paler on the sides of the hinder-crown ; sides of face, chin, and throat pale sandy-buff with pale shaft lines on the ear-coverts ; the feathers on the middle of the lower throat fringed with chestnut ; fore-neck and sides of neck drab-grey ; breast also drab-grey tinged with fawn-colour and longitudinally streaked with blackish, the fawn-colour becoming much more pronounced on the abdomen, sides of body, and vent ; thighs dusky-grey ; under tail-coverts fawn-colour or whitish with dark brown bars or twin spots ; axillaries and under wing-coverts buff ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish at the base and hair-brown with a buffy-white patch for the remainder; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Total length 160 mm. ; culrnen 13, wing 97, tail 65, tarsus 23. Figured. Collected at Blacktown, New South Wales, on the 16th of July, 1905. Adult 'tnale . Top of head, including fore-head and nape, dusky greyish-brown ; mantle, back, scapulars, rump, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing-coverts coffee-brown; primary-coverts blackish like the basal portion of some of the outer flight-quills, which are paler at the tips and banded with orange-buff ; secondaries similar but darker on the subterminal portion of the feathers ; tail blackish, the middle feathers bronze-brown, as are also the tips of the lateral ones ; a wide grey streak on the sides of the hinder-crown ; sides of face dark brown with pale shaft-streaks ; lores dusky tinged with buff ; throat pale buff with hair-like tips to the feathers on the chin ; upper breast, sides of neck, and sides of breast drab-groy, very slightly tinged with buff ; lower breast, abdomen, and sides of body whitish, longitudinally 86 BROWN TREECREEPER. streaked with black and washed with buff ; under tail-coverts white, banded with black, and broadly margined with fulvous ; edge of wing, under wing-coverts, and axillaries pale buff ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a patch of pale buff ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Eyes brown, feet black, bill dark slate. Total length 160 mm. ; culrnen 15, wing 95, tail 70, tarsus 26. Collected at Parwan, Victoria, on the 19th of May, 1910, and is the type of C. p. victories. Immature (?) male . Crown of head, fore-head, nape and hind-neck dark lead-grey ; sides of face and sides of neck pale ash-grey ; ear-coverts havo dark integrated feathers with pale shaft-stroaks ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts dark smoke-brown : greater-coverts and primary-coverts black ; bastard-wing dark brown narrowly fringed with white ; flight-quills blackish with a broad pale buff band across the feathers, the innermost secondaries and tips of the series greyish-brown ; tail brown with a broad blackish subterminal and greyish- brown tips to the feathers ; lores blackish ; rictal-bristles black ; chin white with black hair-like tips to the feathers ; throat whitish ; breast ash-grey ; abdomen white narrowly lined with dark brown and tinged with pale smoke-brown ; sides of body also pale smoke-brown more or less streaked with white ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts pale smoke-brown with white shaft-lines which are fringed with dark brown ; axillaries and under wing-coverts pale buff ; under-surface of flight- quills grejdsh-brown with a patch of pale buff ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes brown, feet slate, bill blackish, lower mandible dark brown. Total length 155 mm. ; wing 87, tail 58, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected at Inna- mincka, Central Australia, on the 30tli of September, 1916, and is Climacteris waitei S. A. White. (Top figure.) Immature female . Top of head dusky-grey, becoming paler on the sides of the crown and sides of face ; back, scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts dark rust-brown ; upper wing-coverts similar to the back, but darker and inclining to blackish-brown on the greater series, bastard-wing, and primary-coverts ; flight-quills dark brown, slightly paler on the outer edges and tips of the secondaries, and a pale cinnamon band across the inner webs extending to the outer webs of the outer secondaries ; tail black, becoming pale brown on the middle feathers and still paler at the tips of the lateral feathers ; lores and feathers in front of the eye black and bristly in texture ; throat, fore-neck, and sides of neck dark ash-grey ; breast and abdomen white with dark margins to the feathers which impart a streaked appearance ; sides of body similar but somewhat strongly tinged with fulvous ; under tail-coverts white with black twin markings and tinged with buff ; axillaries and under wing- coverts cream-w'hite ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with a patch of whitish-buff ; lowTer aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but much paler. Eyes brown, feet slate, bill horn, under mandible white, gape white. Collected at Fern Tree Gully, Victoria, on the 7tli of November, 1911. Eggs* Two to three eggs form the clutch. A clutch of three taken at Belltrees, upper Hunter River, New South Wales, on the 19th of July, 1913, is of a pinkish-white ground-colour, covered nearly all over with small spots and specks of pinkish-red and purplish markings, and all closely set together. Veiy roundish in form ; surface of shell fine and smooth, and slightly glossy. 22 mm. by 18-19. Nest. Placed in the hollow limb or trunk of a tree, and composed of fur, hair, fine grasses, etc., and situated at heights varying from three to thirty feet or more up from the ground. Breeding-months . July to October. 87 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Illiger is apparently responsible for the first distinction of this species which was, however, first described by Temminck, who credited the species to Illiger, but proposed a new genus for the two birds associated by Uliger in the Berlin Museum with the names “ Certhia scandens Ill.*’ and “ Certhia picumnus Ill.” Through a simple blunder Gould transposed these names and referred to the present species, the Brown Treecreeper, under the scientific name of Climacteris scandens Temminck, whereas the Brown Treecreeper had been named C. picumnus. Gould wrote : “ The Brown Treecreeper inhabits the whole of the south¬ eastern portion of the Australian continent, from South Australia to New South Wales. It gives a decided preference to the open thinly-timbered forests of Eucalypti, as well as the flats studded with the apple trees (Angophom), the bark of which, being rough and uneven, affords numerous retreats for various tribes of insects ; its food, however, is not only sought for upon the boles and branches of the trees, but is obtained by penetrating the decayed and hollow parts, and it even dives into the small hollow spouts of the branches in search of spiders, ants, and other insects ; although its form would lead to a contrary supposition, it spends much of its time on the ground, under the canopy and near the boles of the larger trees, in a similar pursuit, and also traverses the fallen trunks with a keen and scrutinizing eye. While on the ground it has a pert lively action, passing over the surface in a succession of quick shuffling hops, carrying its head erect -with the feathers puffed out, almost in the form of a crest. Among the trees it assumes all the actions of the true Creeper, ascending the upright boles, and traversing with the greatest facility both the upper and under sides of the branches. It never descends with the head downwards, like the members of the genera Sitta and Sittella ; still I have seen it descend an upright bole for a short distance by hopping or shuffling backwards, as it were, generally making a spiral course. It flies with a skim- ming motion of the wings, during which the brown markings of the primaries are very conspicuous. Like many other insectivorous birds in Australia it seldom, if ever, resorts to the water for the purpose of drinking. It has a sharp piercing cry, which is frequently uttered, especially if the tree upon wliich it is climbing be approached.” Mr. Frank S. Smith has written me : “ The Brown Treecreeper is one of the best known of the forest birds. Like the Grey Thrush and the Black and White Fantail it is extremely friendly, and a pair wall soon make up with a bushman s camp. They are very local and I have seen a pair keep almost wholly to one large tree for many days. They forage round and under the tree, and every now and then climb it from the base, in curious jerky little 88 BROWN TREECREEPER. runs. Unlike our Nuthatch they do not climb down the tree, at any rate I have never seen them do so. They are not at all shy, and soon frequent a bush hut for scraps. One afternoon as I was sitting in a hut, near a large tree, three Creepers, one a young bird not quite fully feathered, came round the door. They gathered up all the scraps, and as I stayed perfectly still, they finished by hopping in at the open door, Avithin a yard of my feet. They are very busy birds, especially in the spring-time, when they are on the move all day. Only rarely do they make long flights and I have never seen them far up the trees. One big and very tall tree near my camp had a family of Honey-eaters in its topmost branches and one hundred feet beloAV, at its base, a pair of Treecreepers ; and I am certain that neither kneAV of the others’ existence. The birds are very common. No one molests them and they may be found in any Victorian forest. They have no song, just a feeble twitter.” Mr. L. G. Chandler also writes : “In a certain clump of open timber at Bayswater a few of these birds are always to be found. At Melton and Parwan they are numerous. They differ from our other Treecreepers by spending a good deal of their time on the ground. I have repeatedly seen them hopping about on ants’ nests. The birds seem to prefer low stunted timber, and are generally found in open forest.” Mr. Thos. P. Austin has sent me the following account : “ The Brown Treecreeper is very numerous in the open forests and ring-barked country in the Cobbora district, New South Wales, but I have never met Avith it in the thick scrubs. Usually met Avith feeding upon the ground, or hopping up the trunks of trees or stumps ; in the former case they often assemble in small flocks, but when disturbed they fly off in different directions to the nearest trees, generally settling near the base, sloAvly working their way higher and higher, round and round the trunk or in a zig-zag maimer, searching in crevices for insects ; when one tree has been partly searched it Avill fly off to another to repeat the operation. The flight is direct but undulating, just a few very rapid Aving beats, then a float through the air with almost closed Avings and so on. If they are being closely Avatched they keep on the opposite side of the trunk. For a nesting situation they prefer a perpendicular branch, about six inches in thickness, which has decayed aAvay to a mere hofloAv shell, doAvn Avliich they firstly drop pieces of horse or coav dung, also small tufts of grass pulled up by the roots by stock ; this forms a thick foundation about six inches in depth, on top of which the nest proper is built, cup-shaped, composed of dry gras3, hair, fur and avooI, all matted together in such a manner as to form a very cosy nest, and I have knoAvn them to build from five to sixty feet from the ground, hollow stock-yard posts often being a favoured nesting site, and often building a new nest on top of an old one. Three eggs usually VOL. XI. 89 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. % form a clutch, and I have examined nests containing eggs from the second week in August till the first week in October.” Mr. F. E. Howe has written me : “In the open and Ifilly country a few pairs have been noted. It is very local and stays here the whole year. One call uttered three or five times and fairly high pitched is often heard, and another that sounds like ‘ gurr-r,’ is uttered as the bird flys from tree to tree. This call is not like that of the northern typical bird and the bird seems lighter in colour.” Captain S. A. White has written me : “ The Brown Treecreeper is invariably found in the heavily timbered country. I have found it in open timbered country. It is found all along the Mount Lofty Ranges and where its sharp call is a very familiar one, as it circles the tree trunks in search of insect life. This Treecreeper is a very local bird and I have known a pair to keep to the one locality of not half a mile square for many years. The bird was very plentiful here at the Reedbeds in years gone by, but now there is but one or, perhaps, two pairs left. This is due mostly to the domestic cat gone wild and to the imported English House Sparrow, which drives the Tree- creeper out of the nesting hollows.” Later, reporting the Lower Murray Excursion, he recorded : “ These buds were numerous amongst the big timber ; they were also seen in the mallee. There were very large broods of fully-fledged young moving about with parent birds.” Chandler wrote from the Kow Plains, Victoria : “ Abundant. The Tree- creepers spend much time hopping on the ground.” Howe also noted: “ Very numerous in the tall mallee ; eggs and young noticed in the tree hollows,” while Wilson, 'writing about the Mallee, commented: “This Treecreeper, which is slightly larger in the bill than the southern birds, was frequently met with in the open country, and then’ nests were occasionally found. The €ggs (two) of one clutch secured are remarkable on account of their size, being half as large again as those usually met with.” In his “ Census of the Birds of the Pilliga Scrub, New South Wales,” Clelaud wrote : “ Fourteen birds counted, uniformly distributed through the scrub. Minimal (sic) population, 924. Iris dark brown; bill and legs black; throat blackish. No entozoa.” Eliminating the confusion of the two specific names there is little to record concerning the technical history of the species. Until I prepared my “ Reference List ” no subspecies had been distinguished, probably on account of the dull coloration of the species as a whole. I, however, named: — Climacteris picumnus picumnus Temminck and Laugier. Queensland, New South Wales. Climacteris picumnus australis Mathew’s. 90 BROWN TREECREEPER, “ Differs from C. p. picumnus in being much darker above. Murray Hats, South Australia.” , South Australia. Climacteris picumnus waitei S. A. White. Central South Australia. Climacteris picumnus victories Mathews. “ Differs from C. p. picumnus in lacking the reddish-brown tinge of the back. (Parwan) Victoria.” Victoria. In my 1913 “ List ” I referred these to the genus Neoclima, erroneously as I have shown above, and allowed the same three forms. Recently E. E. Howe, reviewing the group, has concluded : “ In a series of skins from Queensland to South Australia, the only difference detected is that the dark lines bordering the chest and abdomen feathers are narrower on inland birds. The birds inhabiting coastal regions are perhaps a little more robust in form.” Broadbent recorded it from Cardwell, but probably in error, as Campbell and Barnard state they found C. melanota there. As Broadbent’s collection was stated to be placed in the Queensland Museum for reference, this point should be investigated, especially as Ramsay had also recorded the present species from the same district. When Captain S. A. White recently described Climacteris waitei he wrote : “ As far as yet known, the bird is confined to Cooper’s Creek district, from above Innamincka in the east to Cuttapirie Corner hi the west. The markings on the lower side of Climacteris waitei partake somewhat of those of C. scandens (i.e., picumnus), while the coloration of the back approaches that of C. super- ciliosa, but differs noticeably from both. Although of about the same size as C. superciliosa, this new bird has a shorter and stouter bill, its feet and legs much more powerful, and the claws longer and stronger. Habits much like those of other members of the genus. The call resembles that of C. scandens (i.e., picumnus) but is not so loud. I seemed the first specimen in the vicinity of ‘ Burke’s Tree,’ a few miles above Innamincka, on the south side of Cooper’s Creek. Fully fledged young ones were accompanying the parent birds as they flew from tree to tree, their advanced plumage suggesting that these birds had nested in June or July.” A further note was given in connection with a coloured plate : “A small family party was observed flying from one tree trunk to another, winch they circled in true Climacteris fashion — hi short hops, and tail pressed firmly against the bark when ascending the perpendicular tree trunk . . showed a great preference for the box timber, for it was not once seen amongst the THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. large red gum trees on the bank of the creek. These birds were observed once or twice hopping over the ground in close proximity to tree trunks, and seemed to be in search of insects, most likely ants, for the last-named form the chief food of G. super ciliosa in some parts of the interior.” Howe has written recently : “ I was able to examine the skin. . . A subsequent examination . . leads me to believe that it is an immature male of G. picumna. I hope to deal more fully with this later on.” The skin sent me by Capt. S. A. White is figured, and it is an immature bird, as it agrees with other immature birds in my collection. The name will, however, stand for the subspecies from that locality, as pointed out by me in the Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., p. 36, in February 1923. 92 49 9 504 499 5 04 CLIMACTERIS MELANOTA (BL A CK-BA. CKED TRE E CREEPER.) CLIMAC TE RI S R UFA (rufous tree creeper..) Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 616. Family CLIMACTERIDM. CLIMACTERIS RUFA. RUFOUS TREECREEPER. (Plates 499 and 504.) Climacteris rufa Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1840, p. 149, July 1841 : West Australia. Climacteris rufa Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1840, p. 149, 1841 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. rv. (Vol. IV., pi. 94), Sept. 1st, 1841 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 600, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 335, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 35, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 331, 1901 ; Milligan, Emu, Vol. II., p. 73, 1902 (W.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. III., p. 18, 1903 (W.A.) ; H. E. Hill, ib., p. 106, 1903 (W.A.) ; id., ib., p. 227, 1904 (W.A.) ; Milligan, ib., Vol. IV., pp. 6-10, 1904 (W.A.) ; Lawson, ib., p. 135, 1905 (W.A.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 48, 1906 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907 ; Mathews, Hand! Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908; Gibson, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 74, 1909 (W.A.) ; Crossman, ib., p. 89 (W.A.) ; Whitlock, ib., Vol. X., p. 310, 1911 (W.A.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 30, 1913 (S.A.) ; Orton and Sandland, ib., p. 79 (W.A.) ; Le Souef, ib., Vol. XX., p. 144, 1921 (W.A.) ; Alexan¬ der, ib., p. 167 (W.A.) ; Howe, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 40, 1921 (Review) ; Whitlock, ib., p. 181, 1922. Climacteris rufa obscura Carter, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, Vol. XXVII., p. 16, Nov. 4th, 1910 : Warren River, South-west Australia ; Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 382, Jan. 31st, 1912. Climacteris rufa rufa Mathews, ib. Climacteris rufa orientalis Mathews, ib. : Gawler Ranges, South Australia ; id., Austr. Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 196, 1913. Whitlocka rufa rufa Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 252, 1913. Whitloclca rufa obscura Mathews, ib. Whitlocka rufa orientalis Mathews, ib. Distribution. South-west Australia and western parts of South Australia. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface dark chocolate-brown including the fore-head, crown, nape, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, lesser, median and upper wing-coverts ; bastard-wing, outer greater coverts and primary-coverts blackish with pale fringes to the feathers along the outer edge of the wing ; flight-quills blackish-brown, inclining to bronze-brown on the apical portion, wTith a band of rufous-buff across the feathers, chiefly on 93 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. the inner-webs ; middle tail-feathers bronze-brown, the lateral ones broadly banded with black ; lores and a line over the eye chestnut ; sides of face similar but rather paler, becoming still paler on the cliin and throat ; a black spot in front of the eye the feathers of which are bristly in texture ; middle of fore-neck white streaked with black, and fringed with rufous-brown ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body rich chestnut with dark bases to the feathers ; under tail-coverts cinnamon-rufous with blackish twin spots ; axillaries and under wing-coverts cinnamon-rufous ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a patch of pale buff ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill black, eyes reddish-hazel, feet and legs brown-purplo. Total length 155 mm. ; culmen 16, wing 86, tail 61, tarsus 26. Figured. Collected on the Warren River, South-west Australia, on the 18th of February, 1910, and is the type of C. r. obscura Carter. Adult male. Entire crown of head including the foi’e-head, nape, and hind-neck lead- grey, becoming paler and inclining to ash-grey on the mantle ; back, scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts rust-brown ; upper wing-coverts hair-brown with slightly paler margins ; outer edge of wing cinnamon-buff ; primary-coverts dark brown ; flight-quills blackish-brown becoming somewhat paler on the apical portion with a broad band of bright buff, chiefly on the inner webs ; long upper tail-coverts and middle tail-feathers drab-brown, remainder of tail cinnamon-bulf with a broad subterminal band of black ; lores and superciliary-streak pale chestnut ; sides of face, sides of neck, chin, and throat cinnamon-buff with dark hair-like tips to the feathers on the cliin ; fore-neck white, lined with black, and tinged with cinnamon- buff, which is more pronounced on the upper breast; lower breast, abdomen, vent, and thighs cinnamon-buff ; sides of body and flanks bright chestnut ; under tail-coverts white tinged with buff and marked with blackish on the shafts; axillaries and under wing-coverts cinnamon-buff ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a patch of buff ; lower aspect of tail blackish with pale cinnamon- buff tips to the feathers. Total length 170 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 92, tail 66, tarsus 24. Figured. Collected at Beaufort, Williams District.. South-west Australia, on the 1st of August, 1900. Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface fulvous-brown including the back, wings, and tail ; entire top of head from the fore-head to the hind-neck and sides of crown dusky-grey ; rump more or less tinged with rufous-chestnut ; upper tail-coverts similar to the back but somewhat paler ; upper wing-coverts slightly greyer than the back ; flight-quills dark brown with a rufous band across the feathers, which becomes deeper in colour on the secondaries ; tail bronze-brown on the central feathers, the lateral ones rufous-buff with a dark subtenninal band ; lores, superciliary streak, chin, and throat cinnamon-buff with hair-like tips to the feathers on the cliin ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body rufous with whitish shaft-lines to some of the feather's ; under tail-coverts cinnamon-rufous with white tips and twin black dots on the shafts of the feathers ; axillaries and under wing-coverts cinnamon-rufous ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish-brown with a patch of cinnamon-buff ; lower aspect of tail greyish-brown. Total length 165 mm. ; culmen 14, wing 90, tail 64, tarsus 25. Figiu'ed. Collected at Beaufort, South-west Australia, on the 30th of July, 1900. (Plate 504.) Immature male. General colour of the upper-surface dark smoke-browrn including the top of the head, back, and wings, with a slight tinge of grey on the top of the head and hind-neck ; middle portion of the greater upper wing-coverts, bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and flight-quills, edge of wing and a band across the primary and secondary quills cinnam on-rufous ; rump and upper tail-coverts paler than the back and inclining to rufous-brown ; tail pale smoke-brown with a broad black subterminal band ; throat and sides of face cinnamon-rufous, becoming darker on the ear-covei’ts ; fore-neck buffy-white with dark spots or dark streaks 94 RUFOUS TREECREEPER. to the feathers ; breast, sides of breast, flanks, and abdomen chestnut-rufous, somewhat paler on the middle of the abdomen ; under tail-coverts paler than the abdomen with twin black spots on the white shafts ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and base of flight-quills cinnamon-rufous, remainder of quill-lining dark hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Eyes hazel, feet and legs greyish-flesh, bill purple-flesh, gape orange. Collected at Broome Hill, South-west Australia, on tho 4tli of November, 1910. E(Jl 7s- Two to three for a sitting, and vary in shape from rather round to rounded ovals. A clutch of three eggs taken at Wilson's Inlet, Western Australia, on the 22nd of December, 1909, is of a pinkisli-buff ground-colour, well spotted, blotched, and speckled all over with markings of reddish-brown and dull purple. Very rounded in form ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. 22 mm. by 18. * Nest. Placed in hollow spout or trunk of a tree, and consists of fur, soft and broken up bark, and fine grasses. Breeding-months. September to December. Apparently this species was discovered by Gilbert, as Gould’s notes read : “ It is a common bird at Swan River, where Gilbert states it is most abundant in the gum forests abounding with the white ant ; it ascends the smooth bark of the Eucalypti, and traverses round the larger branches with the greatest facility, feeding, like the other members of the genus, upon insects of various kinds ; but it is frequently to be seen on the ground, searching for ants and their larvae, and in this situation presents a most grotesque appearance, from its waddling gait. Its note is a single piercing cry, uttered more rapidly and loudly when the bird is disturbed, and having a very singular and striking effect amidst the silence and solitude of the forest.” Mr. Tom Carter has written me : “ In your ‘ Reference List,’ 1912, the Rufous Treecreeper is given as ranging through West Australia (inland). Mr. Shortridge found this species at Laverton, six hundred miles inland from Geraldston, where he says it was rare, and that Cl. superciliosa also occurred there. Mr. Milligan found this species common about the Wongan Hills, hut does not note it as having been seen about Yandanooka, so perhaps its northern range may be put down as a little north of the Moore River, or about Lat. 30° S. These birds are very common in the Broome Hill district, and have been seen at Kellerberin. They are rather late breeders, the nesting season being September and October about Broome Hill. Sometimes the nests are difficult to reach from being far down a hollow spout, but are often ■within five or eight feet of the ground. On the edge of a frequented track between my house and the sheep drafting yards, there was a hollow spout only four feet from the ground, in a small York gum tree, in which I saw eggs in three different years. The eggs in the nest were only one foot from the entrance to hole. The nesting material is almost entirely of dry grass, some¬ times leaves off jam or gum trees are used as a foundation. Clutch of eggs 95 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. usually Wo. There is sometimes a lining to the nest of sheep’s wool and a few feathers, and I have noticed that this bird as well as other species often use brilliantly coloured feathers from Parrots in the lining. In the nest previously mentioned, one egg was found in the nest Oct. 8th, 1908, and there were some red feathers of Platy. icterotis and green ones of P. semitorquatus in the lining. On Oct. 7th, 1906, two eggs were seen in the same nest, and on Oct. 10th, 1912, there were also two eggs, so these dates are very regular. Other nests were found 15 and 20 ft. from the ground, and sites of others seen at much higher elevations and difficult to reach. Fledged young appear mostly in October, but have been obtained as early as Sept. 25th. The birds are tame in their habits, and odd ones used to come on the house verandah and eat bread crumbs. They start at the foot of a tree and search the trunk upwards for insects, proceeding by short quick hops, usually accompanied by a slight opening of the wings. They are also often seen feeding on the ground, turning over the debris of pieces of dark bark, dry leaves and twigs beneath the trees in search of insects and grubs. Their only song (!) appears to be a rather shrill squeaking note. If one of these birds discovers it is being watched it will cleverly ascend the tree, keeping the trunk, or a limb, between it and you, even if you keep moving round too. This species was not observed east of the Pallinup River, S.E. of Broome Hill. “ The Allied Rufous Treecreeper (C. r. obscura) appears to be confined in its distribution to the Jarrah forests that occupy such a large area of the south-western coastal districts. This Jarrah country extends, roughly, for a distance of 350 miles ; from a little east of Albany on the south coast to the Moore River about sixty miles north of Perth (Swan River), Lat. 31° S. Jarrah is the prevailing timber for about fifty miles inland from the coast. West of Ivoyonup, Jarrah grows at a distance of fully seventy miles from the coast. Whether the subspecies under consideration is found throughout the Jarrah country has yet to be proved, but it probably does so. I obtained the type specimens on the Warren River in 1910, as it seemed to me that the Treecreepers there were much darker in colour than those about Broome Hill. This dark shade, especially on the mantle, is distinctly protective to the birds, as they feed mostly on insects contained under and on the bark of the Jarrah and Red Gum tree trunks, and the colour of the bird assimilates very closely the dark reddish colour of the bark. It will be interesting to find if this subspecies also feeds much in the Karri forests, as Karri bark is pale yellow, but being very smooth in texture, probably does not contain nearly so much insect life as the very rough bark of the Jarrah and Red Gums. About Broome Hill the prevailing large timber is White Gum, with yellowish white bark, and C. r. obscura would be distinctly conspicuous upon it, much 96 RUFOUS TREECREEPER. more so than C. r. rufa which is the subspecies occurring about there. Specimens of C. r. obscura have been obtained by me on the Blackwood River, the Hay River, Lake Muir, and around Albany, all in Jarrah and Red Gum timber. Karri timber occurs largely on parts of the Warren River, but the birds obtained by me in that district were on Jarrah. trees. The habits of this subspecies resemble those of C. rufa, and doubtless the nesting and eggs will also be similar, but the breeding season is probably considerably later. On January 10th, 1912, I came upon a family of quite recently fledged young birds near Albany. They were attended by the parent birds and were in a patch of Blue Gums at the time, plenty of Jarrah growing with it.” Still more recently Carter has added : “ Rufous Treecreepers were common about Broome Hill, and also seen at Woolundra,” while “ Allied Rufous Treecreepers ( C . r. obscura ) were observed and specimens obtained at Lake Muir, the Warren, Blackwood, Margaret and Collie Rivers. They were all of this darker subspecies and confirm its validity. The darkest coloured birds were obtained on Big Brook, a tributary of the Warren River from the east.” Captain S. A. White, in the recent West Australian visit of the R.A.O.U., writes : “ Only seen once in the timber country (Margaret River),” while Ashby noted from Geraldton, “ Hot seen,” and Mellor does not include it. A. S. Le Souef wrote : “ The Rufous Treecreeper was numerous on the Porongorup Mountains (near Albany), where their habits were somewhat different from those of the eastern birds in that they fed high up on the trunks of the large trees. I did not see one fly to the base of a tree and run up, as the Brown Tree-creeper does. One specimen alighted on a large dead eucalypt about 100 feet up, and started his upward run from there.” Alexander, for the Perth district, recorded : “ Resident. Uncommon in the district, though frequent in the Darling Ranges to the eastward.” Whitlock has very recently given some notes in connection with the birds of the Nullarbor Plain : “ Two species of Treecreepers ( Climacteris ) were noticed, but had I not read Mr. Gibson’s list I should not have been prepared to find the Rufous Treecreeper (C. rufa) so far east as Zanthus (130 miles east of Kalgoorlie). In the Murchison goldfield, in the neighbour¬ hood of Lake Austin, I obtained specimens of C. superciliosa. My next experience was to find the latter species with C. rufa in a tract of York gums, 100 miles east of Geraldton. Some time afterwards I met with C. superciliosa about 30 miles to the south of Mulliwa. In the Wongan Hills, much further south, but in the same line of country, I obtained C. rufa, but at Southern Cross, further to the east, I met with C. superciliosa again. On travelling down to Norseman (Lake Dundas), the same species occurred north of Lake VOL. XI. 97 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Lefroy. At Norseman, C. rufa alone was breeding near my camp. It was, therefore, puzzling to find C. rufa without C. superciliosa at Zanthus. At Naretha (205 miles east of Kalgoorlie), however, the gums having cut out, some forty miles to the west, C. rufa had disappeared, and its place was taken by C. superciliosa. The latter species was breeding in the hollow stems of dead trees. The first broods were on the wing early in September.” Milligan, from the Margaret River district, stated : “ The colour of the plumage harmonizes not only with the rufous coloured bark of the jarrah trees, but also with the ironstone gravel country upon which the same trees grow. These birds are only found in the jarrah forests.” From the Stirling Ranges he noted : “ This was the only species of Tree- creeper we saw. It was numerous on the good lands. I was much interested in watching them secure their food in the soil on the edge of the swamp by digging or probing with their bills.” H. E. Hill wrote from Brookton, West Australia, 100 miles south-east of Perth : “ Very common in the granite. Very often to be seen hunting among the dead logs with which the ground is everywhere covered, as well as in the trees. When disturbed from the ground it almost invariably flew to a dead tree. Has a peculiar cry, which reminded me of that of the Rufous Bristle Bird ( Sphenura broadbenti), and, in fact, the boys promptly christened it the wheelbarrow.” Gibson noted it between Kalgoorlie and Eucla, writing : “ A fevT noted in the salmon barked gum country7,” and Crossman stated it was “Common” at Cumminin Station, about two hundred miles due east from Perth. Captain S. A. White wrote : “ We had not penetrated that interesting belt of mallee (which extends from the West Australian border and ends abruptly at the western end of the Gawler Ranges) twenty yards before this lovely bird was seen creeping up the bole of a grand mallee, and the next few days proved that they were very numerous. We felt sure that they must be nesting but could not flush a bird from a hollow7, so sat down in the scrub and took a bird each under observation ; in half an liom one went to the nest (after trying every ruse to decoy us, flying awray in a most unconcerned manner, but having to return, hopping about on the ground as if nothing troubled them, and at first passing in and out of all the hollow's around but the one wdiere their nest was located) ; the female went into a hole and did not come out, and on investigating we found the nest, and after tliis wre must have discovered quite twenty nests, but all contained either very young birds or heavily incubated eggs. This was the first week in September, and they must have all started to nest very much at the same time ; there were not very many days between any of them. The big, old Mallee trees at Donald’s 98 RUFOUS TREECREEPER. Plain are ideal trees for this species to nest in, affording so many hollows. Their favourite nesting place is in a leaning tree (which of course bends away from the prevailing winds which are south-west), so that little or no rain can enter the hole, which is generally about 8 or 9 inches at the opening and its height about 7 feet from the ground (although I have seen it 15 feet), and the nest is most often 4 or 5 feet down and consisted of soft bark placed on the decayed wood with a few feathers as a lining, sometimes a little opossum or rabbit fur. The clutch varies from one to three, but most clutches were two. The call of these birds, although distinctly a Climacteris call, is much more feeble than that of other members of the genus. They spend more time on the ground hunting for food than I have ever seen with other species of this family. The examination of stomach contents reveals a variety of ants, many species which keep solely on the ground.” The technical history of this species is comparatively brief. Gould described the species from Gilbert’s collecting, so that the type locality would be inland from Perth. A few years ago Carter described Climacteris rufa obscura. “ Differs from typical examples of C. rufa Gould in being very much darker in colour both above and below. The bill is longer and more curved, and the measurement of the wing is less, being 86 mm. In an example of C. rufa from Broome Hill, the wing measures 93 mm. “ Hah. : Warren River, South-wrest Australia.” In my “ Reference List ” I added a third form, including Climacteris rufa rufa Gould. West Australia (Inland). Climacteris rufa obscura Carter. West Australia (Coastal). Climacteris rufa orientalis Mathews. “ Differs from C. r. rufa in being paler both above and below. (Gawler Ranges) South Australia.” South Australia. In my 1913 “List” I still admitted the above, but referred the species to the genus Whitlocka, which was quite wrong. F. E. Howe, in his recent review* of the group, has concluded : “In this eastern race the markings on the fore-neck and chest are much darker and of greater extent than in the western forms, but I cannot find any variation in IF. r. obscura from the dominant species.” All the specimens available from the dark south-western forests show Carter’s race to be very well marked, so that apparently Howe’s series was poor. Shortridge collected specimens at Albany and Kalgoorlie, etc., and the former stands out as regards coloration. 99 Order PASSERIFORMES . No. 617. Family CLIMACTERIDJS. CLIMACTERIS MELANOTA. BLACK -BACK ED TREE CREEPER. (Plate 499.) Climacteris melanotus Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1846, p. 106, January 26th, 1847 : Lynd River=River Nassau,* Queensland. Climacteris melanotus Gould, f Proc. Zool. Soc. (Loud.), 1S46, p. 106, 1847; id ., Birds Austr., pt. xxvn. (Vol. IV., pi. 96), June 1st, 1847 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., VoL I., p. 603, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878; Gadow, Cat, Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. WIT., p. 334, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 35, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 330, 1901; Bemey, Emu, Vol. V., p. 75, 1905; A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908; id ., Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 382, 1912 ; Campbell and Barnard, Emu, Vol. XVII., p. 29, 1917; Macgillivray, ib., p. 203, 1918; F. E. Howe, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 39, 1921 (Review) ; H. L. White, ib., p. 166, 1922 (Eggs) ; id., ib., Vol. XXII., p. 112. 1922. Whitlocka melanota Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 252, 1913. Whitlocka melanota barroni Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. II., pt. 7, p. 131, Jan. 28th, 1915 : Cairns, Queensland. Whitlocka melanota melanota Mathews, ib. Distribution. North Queensland. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface dull black, including the entire top of the head, nape, hind-neck, back, scapulars, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail, and upper wing-coverts ; outer edge of wing and bastard-wing cream-white ; flight-quills blackish-brown crossed by a broad band of pale bull, chiefly on the inner-webs ; lores and a line above the eye, which widens out on the sides of the crown, white ; sides of face, chin, and throat pale cinnamon-buff with whitish shaft-lines to the ear-coverts ; a small patch of white feathers with black subtenninal bands ; fore- neck and upper breast drab -grey, becoming darker on the sides of the neck ; lower breast, abdomen, and sides of body pale umber-brown with white elongated centres and black lines to the feathers ; thighs also pale umber-brown ; under tail-coverts white tinged with buff and barred and marked with black ; axillaries and under wing-coverts pale buff marked with dark brown on the latter towards the margin of the wing ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a large patch of pinldsh- * The Rivrer Nassau is about 25 miles inland from the Gulf of Carpentaria, f Also spelt melanota , melanonotus and mclanonota. 100 V. BLACK-BACKED TREECREEPER. buff ; lower aspect of tail blackish, somewhat paler at the tips of the feathers. Eyes dark chocolate-brown, bill and feet black. Total length 164 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 91, tail 66, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected on the Walsh River, Eastern North Queensland, on the 27th of April, 1913, and is barroni. Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface dull black, including the entire top of the head, nape, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail, scapulars, and the greater part of the -wings ; outer edge of wing and bastard-wing buffy-white ; flight-quills (which are in moult) dark brown with a broad band of buff, chiefly on the inner-webs ; lores, superciliary-streak, and sides of face buffy-white with more or less black on the ear-coverts ; « a black spot in front of the eye, the feathers of which are bristly in texture ; a small patch of chestnut on the lore-neck with white centres to the feathers ; breast and sides of neck drab-grey ; abdomen and sides of body sepia- brown streaked with white and more narrowly with black ; flanks and thighs umber- brown ; under tail-coverts marked with black and white ; axillaries and under wing-coverts whitish-buff more or less dotted with pale brown on the latter ; under¬ surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a patch of pale buff ; lower aspect of tail blackish, slightly paler at the tips. Eyes dark brown, bill and feet black. Total length 166 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 91, tail 65, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected on the Walsh River, Eastern North Queensland, on the 29th of May, 1913. Nest. Placed 24 feet from the ground in a hollow limb of iron-bark tree. Entrance 3 inches in diameter, depth 12 inches, bottom 4 inches diameter. Eggs. Clutch two. Swollen ovals in shape ; ground-colour pinkish-white, well marked all over, and particularly at the larger end, with specks and blotches of pale to rich reddisli-browm and purplish markings, the latter being chiefly confined to the larger end. Surface of shell very fine and slightly glossy. 22 mm. by 17. Breeding-season. October, November (to January ?). At the present time I have commonly associated with new forms of bird life the names of people interested in the study of ornithology, and some of my critics have complained, stating that place names were preferable, as the old custom of descriptive names is now much more difficult of application than in the past. Yet howr pleasing would it have been had this species borne the name of the ill-fated and gallant Gilbert, as indicated in the note given by Gould : “ For this additional species of the limited genus Climacteris , a form confined to Australia, we are indebted to Dr. Leichardt’s Expedition from Moreton Bay to Port Essington. It w^as killed in latitude 15° 57' south, on the eastern side of the Gulf of Carpentaria, and is rendered particularly interesting to me as being one of the birds procured by poor Gilbert on the day of his lamented death, the 28th of June, 1845, which untoward event prevented him from recording any particulars respecting it ; all, therefore, that I can do, is to point out the differences by which it may be distinguished from the other members of the genus, and recommend to future observers the investigation of its habits. In the dark colouring and thick velvety plumage of the upper- surface it is most nearly allied to the ClimucteTis melanurci, but differs from 101 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. that species in being destitute of the lanceolate marks on the throat, and from all others in the dark colouring of the back.” Berney has written from the Richmond District, North Queensland: “ The loud 4 Spink, spink ’ of this Climacteris is to be heard fairly frequently among the river timber. To make sure of the species I shot a specimen for identification. Later in the same day (13th January, 1904) I watched a pair feeding a nestful of young in a hollow spout, five and thirty feet from the ground in a river gum. This species has a most peculiar cheesy or mouse¬ trap smell ; it is most curious, and strikes one as soon as the bird is handled.” When Campbell and Barnard recorded this species from the Cardwell district, they wrote : “ Broadbent states that a few specimens of the Brown Treecreeper ( C . scandens) were seen by him between Gowrie Creek and Cold- water Station, on the Herbert River, in the open forest. This would be on the tableland. The species we obtained on the Kirrama tableland was C. melanota, which has similar cries and habits to those of C. scandens. Ramsay also refers to the bird as C. scandens .” As the Broadbent collection reported upon as above quoted was stated to be in the Queensland Museum, for purposes of reference it is advisable to examine the birds and record the facts. Macgillivray has written : 44 Were in scattered pairs in the forest on the Archer River.” No subspecies were known until I named Whitlocki melanota barroni. 44 Differs from W. m. melanota in its larger size, wing 96 mm. ; birds from Normanton have a wing measurement of 85‘90 mm. The female differs from females from Normanton in being greyer on the under-surface. The type of Climacteris melanota Gould, 1846, was collected on the Nassau River about 25 miles from its mouth in the Gulf of Carpentaria, in open forest country. This new subspecies is from the thick jungle near Cairns, Queensland.” Very recently H. L. White has described the eggs collected by W. McLennan at Coen, Cape York Peninsula, about 200 miles N.W. of Cooktown. 102 Genus — C ORMOBATES. Cormobates Mathews, Austral Av. Rcc., Vol. V., pt. i., p. 6, July 17th, 1922. Type (by original designa¬ tion) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C. leucophcca Latham. When I separated Neoclima from Climacteris I wrote : “ Differs from Cliimderis in its shorter, more slender, less curved bill and stronger feet, the longer wing with comparatively longer first primary.” The bill was less slender, not more slender, but the above shows the differences in the superficies of these groups, so that of Cormobates I could write : “ Differs from Climacteris (the type being C. picumnus, the Brown Treecreeper) in having a longer, more slender, and more curved bill, weaker feet and shorter wing.” However, this would not indicate the differences in the two forms, as these birds are of more delicate build, and live among the trees, the true Climacteris living more on the ground and being of much stouter build. Campbell wrote : “ The richly coloured, reddish, and round eggs of the Treecreepers ( Climacteris ) make a handsome show, except those of C. leucophcca (White-throated Treecreeper), which are almost white. According to the science of oology, this species should be in a new genus. It certainly is not a true Climacteris .” Another item of unknown phylogenetic import in connection with the White-throated Creeper is the red spot just below the ear-coverts seen in the female alone, and the red rump of the juvenile plumage. This peculiar red colour shows again in the eyebrow of the Red-browed Creeper. i Key to the Species. Upper-surface light brown : Middle of chest not striated, no distinct eyebrow', larger Middle of chest striated, eyebrow distinct, smaller Eyebrow white Eyebrow red C. leucophcca. C. minor. C. affinis. C. erythrops. 103 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 618. Family CLIMACTERIDJE. CORMOBATES LEUCOP1LEA. WHITE-THROATED TREECREEPER. (Plate 500.) Certhia lettcophjea Latham, Index Omith. Suppl., p. xxxvi., after May 30th, 1801; based on Lambert drawing, not on Watling drawing No. 139 : New South Wales. Certliia leucophcea Latham, Index Ornith. Suppl., p. xxxvi., 1801. Lirigang Creeper Latham, Gen. Synops. Birds Suppl., II., p. 166, 1801. Petrodroma bailloni Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. XXVI., p. 107, Dec. 26th, 1818 : New South Wales ; id., Galerie des Oiseaux, pi. 172, 1824. Certhia leucoptera Latham, Gen. Hist. Birds, Vol. IV., p. 182, 1822 : error for leucoyhm only. Climacteris scandens Temminck and Laugier, Planch. Color. d’Ois., 47e livr. (Vol. III., pi. 281, f. 2), June 26th, 1824 : New South Wales ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 337, 1883 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 44, 1906. Climacteris auricomis Swainson, Classif. Birds, Vol. II., p. 319, July 1st, 1837 : new name for C. scandens and C. picumnus Temminck. Climacteris picumnus (error) Gould, Birds Austr., pt. iv. (Vol. IV., pi. 98), Sept. 1st, 1841; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908 ; Cleland, Emu, Vol. XI., p. 88, 1911 (Food.) ; id., ib., Vol. XII., p. 14, 1912 (Food). Climacteris leucophcea Strickland, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. I., Vol. XI., p. 336, 1843; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 605, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; id.. Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 35, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 332, 1901; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. II., p. 15, 1902 (Vic.); Hill, ib., p. 165, 1903 (Vic.); Littler, ib., Vol. IV., p. 142, 1905 (Tas.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907 ; Batey, ib., Vol. VII., p. 8, 1907 (Vic.) ; G. F. Hill, ib., p. 18 (Vic.) ; Fletcher, ib., Vol. VHI., p. 33, 1908 (Tas.) ; Littler, Handb. Birds Tas., p. 51, 1910 ; Campbell, Emu, Vol. XIII., p. 67, 1913; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 142, 1915: Malla- coota ; Mellor, ib., p. 158 ; Howe, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 32, 1921 (Review). Climacteris pyrrhonota Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1867, p. 976, April 1st, 1868: Springfeld, New South Wales ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, note, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 35, 1899 ; Legge, Emu, Vol. III., p. 181, 1904 (Tas.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907. 104 V*’ ( 50 6 ' •; 1 CORMOBATES LEUCOPHAEA ( WHl TE - THRO A TED TREE CREEPER ) . H.GronvolcL, del Witliorty- &c C° I WHITE-THROATED TREECREEPER, Climaderis leucophcea leucophcea Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 383, 1912; id ., List Birds Austr., p. 250, 1913; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 313, 1914. Climacteris leucophcea grisescens Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 383, Jan. 31st, 1912: (Mount Lofty) South Australia ; id ., List Birds Austr., p. 250, 1913. Distribution. Southern Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia. Adult male . Top of head including the fore-head and nape blackish with pale margins to the feathers which impart a scalloped appearance ; hind-neck, sides of neck, mantle, back, scapulars, lesser and inner upper wing-coverts sepia-brown ; bastard¬ wing dark brown becoming black on the outer greater coverts and primary-coverts ; flight-quills dark brown becoming black on the outer webs at the base of the primaries and on the subapical portion of the secondaries, which have the tips grey; a portion of the outer webs of the flight-quills are dark bronze-yellow and the inner webs buff or buffy-white, the innermost secondaries lead-grey ; rump, upper tail- coverts, and middle tail-feathers slate-grey, the subterminal portion of the lateral ones blackish-brown ; lores, feathers below the eye and ear-coverts whitish inter¬ mixed with black ; chin, throat, and fore-neck white ; hinder-cheeks, breast, and middle of abdomen ochreous-yellow with dark brown spots on the last ; sides of body ochreous-brown broadly streaked with white and more narrowly with dark brown ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts white marked with twin black spots ; axillaries and under wing-coverts bufEy-white ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish- brown with a patch of buffy-white ; lower aspect of tail blackish-brown tipped with white, or grey. Total length 170 mm. ; culmen 15, wring 91, tail 65, tarsus 22. Figured. Collected at Black Spur, Victoria, on the 8th of May, 1901. Adult female. (Type.) Top of head, nape, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, scapulars and upper wring-coverts dark olive-brown, the feathers of the crown have pale tips ; bastard-wring and primary-coverts blackish-brown ; outer edge of wring white ; flight-quills hair-brown crossed by a band of pale buff, tips of secondaries dull grey ; rump similar to the back but slightly darker and more or less tinged with grey ; upper tail-coverts and tail lead-grey with a broad black subterminal band to the lateral feathers which are more or less wriute at the tips ; lores and eye-ring whitish ; sides of face blackish with whitish shaft-lines to the feathers ; chin, cheeks and throat wriiite with a spot of orange-chestnut on the liinder-cheeks ; breast and abdomen white tinged writh pale yellow ; sides of breast and sides of body drab- brown with white centres to the feathers wriiich are margined with black ; thighs dusky-brown ; under tail-coverts wrliitish writh dark twrin spots, or bars to the feathers ; axillaries white writh dark tips ; under wing-coverts white writh a patch of brown near the margin ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish-brown writh a patch of buffy-white ; lownr aspect of the tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes dark brown, bill blackish, lower base pallid, legs brownish, soles yellowish. Total length 160 mm. ; culmen 17, wing 92, tail 62, tarsus 22. Figured. Collected on Mt. Lofty, Adelaide, South Australia, on the 17th of May, 1910, and is the type of C. I . grisescens . Immature female. Top of head ochreous-brown writh pale tips to the feathers ; hind- neck, sides of neck, back, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts also ockreous-biown with white shaft-lines to the feathers ; bastard-wring, outer greater coverts, and primary-coverts uniform blackish ; flight-quills hair-brown becoming darker on the subterminal portion of the secondaries which are drab-grey at the tips ; a bronze-yellow band across the quills chiefly on the inner webs ; rump and upper tail-coverts bright rufous-chestnut ; tail lead-grey with a wride black subterminal band ; lores whitish, ear-coverts dusky-brown writh pale shaft-lines ; a patch of VOL. XI. 105 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. orange-chestnut on the hinder-face ; chin and throat white ; breast and abdomen white tinged with yellow ; sides of body drab-brown broadly streaked with white ; under tail-coverts buffy-white with twin spots of dark brown ; axillaries and under wing-coverts whitish ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a whitish patch ; lower aspect of tail dark brown tipped with grey. Figured. Collected in South Australia. Eggs. Two to three eggs form the clutch, but three usually. A clutch of three eggs taken at Middle Harbour, Sydney, New South Wales, on the 9th of November, 1903, is white ground-colour, sparingly marked with rounded spots of reddish-brown and purplish-brown, which become more numerous about the larger end of each egg. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. 23-27 mm. by 16-17. Another clutch of three eggs, taken at Cobbora, New South Wales, on the 5th of October, 1916, are very rounded specimens, and measure 20-21 nun. by 16-17. Nest. Is placed within a hollowr limb or trunk of a tree, the hollow being lined with bark, grass, fur, etc., and placed at heights varying from 5 to 40 feet up from the ground. Breeding-months. August to December (January). The early history of this species is somewhat complicated by the fact that two very distinct species were confused; at one time the names being even transposed, at others the two species being regarded as sexes of one species only. Otherwise, as with the Treerunners, Gould named nearly all the species we have. Thus, admitted that the species was first named by Latham, as detailed later in the technical portion of this essay, Temminck named two species and Swainson proposed a new name on the grounds that these were sexes only of one species. Gould transposed the scientific names and these have been continually confused ever since. Gould wrote : “ The range of this species is as widely extended as that of the (Brown Treecreeper), being a common bird in New South Wales and the intervening country, as far as South Australia ; the precise limits of its habitat northward have not been ascertained, but it does not form part of the Fauna of Western Australia. The whole structure of this species is much more slender and Creeper-like than any other member of its genus, and I have observed that this difference of form has a corresponding influence over its habits, for they are more strictly arboreal than those of its congeners; indeed so much so, that it is questionable whether the bird ever descends to the ground. It also differs from the (Brown Treecreeper) in the character of country and land of trees it inhabits, being rarely seen on the large Eucalypti of the open forest lands, but resorting to trees bordering creeks as well as those on the mountains and the brushes. I have frequently seen it in the brushes of Illawarra and Maitland, in which localities the (Brown Treecreeper) is seldom if ever found. While traversing the trunks of trees in search of insects, which it does with great facility, it utters a shrill piping cry ; in this cry, and indeed in the whole of its actions, it strikingly reminded me of the Common 106 WHITE-THROATED TREECREEPER, Creeper of Europe ( Certhia familiaris ), particularly in its manner of ascending the upright trunks of the trees, commencing at the bottom and gradually creeping up the bole to the top, generally in a spiral direction. It is so partial to the Casuarinae, that I have seldom seen a group of those trees without at the same time observing the White-throated Treecreeper, their rough bark affording numerous receptacles for various kinds of insects which constitute its sole diet. I have never observed this species near the water-holes, and I feel assured it has the power of subsisting without drinking.” Mr. F. E. Howe wrote me : “ This white-throated bird is fairly well distributed through the district and is to be found in the thick dense forests of Ferntree Gully and also along the wooded creeks of Ringwood. During the season of 1907 I noticed a pair carrying the bark to a hollow about twelve feet high, and on Sept. 28th it contained two eggs and incubation had just commenced. On Oct. 13th the same year we found another nest containing three young and another with three eggs slightly incubated ; another with two eggs was found on the 26th October. Both birds were feeding the young, and about sunset they made visits on an average of a minute each or one bird in two minutes and this was noticed for about twenty minutes. Sometimes after feeding the young, one would emerge from the nest holding in its bill the excrement of the young, and drop it over the edge. The call note is high pitched and is quickly uttered six or seven times. They appear to be very local and a pair may always be seen working in a certain bit of country having a radius of perhaps three or four hundred yards.” Sir. L. G. Chandler has sent me an extract from his note book : “ Oct. 10, 1908. Watched this bird building nest. The nest is situated in a hollow spout, running at an angle of 90° off the tree, which is a slightly leaning one. Height from ground about eighteen feet. One bird only seen during the work and the material is being stripped from neighbouring saplings. The bird visited the same sapling (stringy-bark gum) several times in succession. All heavy and burnt pieces of bark are being brought to top of spout and ejected. The bird seems a little uneasy at my presence and eyes me suspiciously. Time 2.15 p.m.” Mr. Thos. P. Austin has written me from Cobbora, New South Wales : “ The White-throated Treecreeper is fairly numerous in the thick scrubs and ironbark tree ranges, but seldom met with in the open forests. It appears to prefer the very class of country which the Brown Treecreeper avoids. Its loud calls are to be heard the whole day long, and they penetrate through the forests for some considerable distance. Excepting when gathering nesting material I have never seen this species upon the ground. Their manner of searching trees for food is very similar to that of the Brown, but they are not quite so constantly on the move. I have watched them hanging on to 107 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. the trunk of a tree, remaining perfectly still for some minutes. When thev V are climbing the dark ironbark trees they are very difficult to see, their brown backs harmonise well with the bark, and they usually try and keep on the opposite side of a trunk or branch to an intruder. Their nests are most difficult to find ; if they know they are being watched they will not go near them. While sitting down in a thick forest one day I saw a bird flying towards me ; it alighted on top of a dead ironbark tree, uttering a few low notes, then immediately flew to where a rather small branch had been broken off the very top of the tree ; out of a hollow in this another bird popped its head, and the other bird fed it. The nest contained two fresh eggs. All the other nests I have examined containing eggs, with one exception, were found by seeing the birds carrying nesting material. The nests are not nearly so substantial as those of the Brown, being composed ahnost entirely of fur, with the addition of a little dry grass. I have examined nests containing fresh eggs from the last week in August till the middle of October. The clutch is usually two, sometimes three.” Mr. E. J. Christian also wrote : “ Most of the time it keeps up a shrill chattering, especially if disturbed. If one approaches the nest the birds will swiftly fly past uttering a peculiar p-i-n-g such as a rifle bullet makes. It seems to prefer dead trees as I very seldom see it on a green one, but can see it almost any day on any dead tree here.” Captain S. A. White has written me : “ The White-throated Tree- creeper has a very wide range and I have found it in nearly every well- timbered locality on the coastal belt, its unmistakeable cry is part of the forest calls. The fact that the young have the upper tail-coverts ruddy- brown for the first year has led many field workers to imagine that they had met with a new bird. The variety inhabiting South Australia is found all along the Mount Lofty Ranges, being much more plentiful towards the western end, this being no doubt due to the presence of the big stringy-bark forests there. I have found them nesting in October and November, and at times they will lay their eggs upon the decayed wood a long way down a hollow trunk or limb. They are almost entirely insectivorous.” Concerning the Birds of Mallaeoota, Victoria, Captain White wrote: “ Very plentiful, especially amongst the Angophora trees near the coast. They were nesting at the time of our visit, and nests containing young were observed. Many of the immature birds, in their first year’s plumage, accompanied the mature birds. The females of the former were adorned with deep rufous upper tail-coverts, which coloration appears on the young in the nest, and which they retain for the first year. Strange to say, two singular features are connected with the females of this species. One is having a small orange- coloured spot just below the ear-coverts — this distinguishes the female at 108 WHITE-THROATED TREECREEPER. once from the male ; the other is that it seems almost certain that the immature of this sex alone develop the bright rufous coloration on the rump and upper tail-coverts. Jolm Gould, like others, described the immature female of this species as a distinct species (C. pyrrhonota), but afterwards found liis mistake. On comparing adult specimens with those from South Australia, it is found that the latter birds are larger and lighter on the back, while those from Queensland are much darker above and below. The nest is in a holloiv branch, deep down, neatly constructed of grass, it usually contained three eggs. One nest observed contained two young and an egg ; both young birds showed the red coloration appearing with the first feathers on the rump.” Mellor added a note describing in detail the young and stated : “ A notable feature, and one that strikes the observer instantly, is the large patch of bright rufous-brown w'hich extends from a quarter way up the back right down the tail-coverts, and forms a conspicuous rufous rump ; this is noticeable even in the nestlings, but, I believe, is only found in the young females, for such is my experience with a number of specimens handled. This rufous rump lessens in size and intensity as the bird matures, until it finally disappears, giving place to the slaty-grey colour of the old bird. From specimens now before me I find that the process of changing does not come about by moulting, but by a fading away of the rusty colour and a gradual predominance of the slaty-grey coloration.” In his recent ‘‘ Review ” F. E. Howre WTote: “Both parents feed the young. The visits to the nest are frequent, fifteen being noted in as many minutes. Often a bird returned before the other had left, and the bird inside w'ould take the food from the waiting bird and return with it to the young. The birds brought out any excreta as did the Red-browed species. When building they approached the nest in the same manner — alighting a short distance below the hollow, remaining stationary a few seconds with the head back, and then creeping quickly up and disappearing rapidly within. The lowest nest found was fifteen inches from the ground, and the highest seventy feet up. From this nest a young bird, nearly fully fledged, flew. . . On October 31st, 1920, a nest contained twro young birds about ten days old. One had the orange cheek-patch and bright red rump. The other was minus the cheek-patch and the grey rump was slightly washed with rufous. Traces of the rufous rump and upper tail- coverts may be found more or less in birds otherwise in adult plumage. Is a young male with the rump grey . . probably two or three months old. . . At Bayswater on December 11th, 1920, a nest contained four young birds about a fortnight old, and all had a bright rufous rump. . . The breeding season in Victoria extends from August to January, and two broods are reared. When there is confusion between experts on matters of determination of related but distinct species the field ornithologist has to suffer, and 109 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. then comes the usage of vernacular names, but in this case there appears to be also confusion. Apparently each worker has confused the facts as well as the names, so that it is difficult to re-arrange matters and it may be well to work backwards. Sharpe, in his exposition of the Watling drawings {Hist. Coil Nat. Hist. Brit. Mus., Vol. II., 1906), stated on p. 134 : — “ 139. Dirigang Creeper. Lath., Gen. Syn. Suppl. ii, p. 166. Certhia leucophcea. Lath., Ind. Orn. Suppl., p. xxxvi. Climacteris scandens. (Temm.) Gadow, Cat. B., VIII., p. 337. This figure is the type of Latham’s “ Dirigang Creeper,” and Dr. Gadow has wrongly identified the species. The bird which he calls Climacteris scandens of Temminck is the true C. leucophcea (Latham), and C. leucophcea Gadow (Cat., p. 336) nec Latham, should stand as C. picumnus, Temm. [Cf. Hellmayr, Tierr. 18 Lief. Paridae, etc., p. 224 (1903) ]. Mr. Hellmayr rightly points out that Strickland and others were wrong in assigning Latham’s name of leucophcea to C. picumnus, but he did not succeed in identifying Latham’s description, and places his Certhia leucophcea among the doubtful species of Meliphaga. Watling’s note : “ Half the natural size. Native name Deri-gong. A small Woodpecker of New South Wales.” The statements made by Sharpe are not exactly accurate as re-examination of the Watling painting. No. 139, shows. This is signed “ T.W.g.” and the native name is “ Den-gong,” but on the painting is written in Latham’s hand¬ writing: “Ash-tailed Creeper, Latham MS. A variety of Dirigang, Supp. 2, p. 166.” This disposes of the statement that this painting 139 is the type of the Dirigang Creeper. Latham’s description of that must now be reproduced: “ Certhia leucophcea. C. olivaceo-fusca subtus albida, vertice nigro trans- versim lineato, pone oculos macula flava. Dirigang Creeper, Gen. Syn. Supp. II., p. 166, 23. Habitat in Nova Hollandia ; magnitudo C. familiaris ; macula flava infra & pone oculum, altera aurantia. Dirigang Cr(eeper). In size this species somewhat exceeds our Common Creeper : plumage above pale olive or greenish-brown ; beneath white, inclining to dusky on the belly; on the fore-head and crown are a few short transverse black lines ; under the eye a patch of yellow, and behind it another of a reddish colour ; at the bend of the wing a few pale spots ; bill and legs dusky. Inhabits New South Wales, where it is called a Woodpecker, from hence we may suppose it to frequent and run up and down trees in the manner of that bird. The native name is Dirigang.” 110 WHITE-THROATED TREECREEPER. This description appears to be based on a Lambert drawing which differs very little from tins Watling painting 139 perhaps in lacking the ashy tail coloration and hi having the head more noticeably barred. When Gray saw the Lambert painting he identified it as Glycipliila subocularis Gould and suggested that species should be called Glycipliila (?) leucophcea. Strickland and Gould, however, identified the drawing as that of the White- throated Treecreeper, although they used picumnus for that species, and the latter in his “Handbook” called that species Climacteris leucophcea. The noticeable feature of these identifications is the lack of remark regarding the under coloration, which does not indicate anything about the remarkable flank markings of the present species. Otherwise, the painting No. 139 is very good, shoving the ashy tail and the reddish spot behind the eye of the female. Temniinck and Laugier named the two species, and Gould figured them under the reversed names, and Gadow catalogued them erroneously, so we have a confused chronology thus : — T. and L. Gould Gould Gadow figd. Hand. Cat. Brown Creeper Cl. picumnus scandens scandens leucophcea White-throated Creeper scandens picumnus leucophcea scandens and at present the correct usage is picumnus for the first and leucophcea for the second. Prior to Temminck’s description Vieillot had named the present species Pelrodroma bailloni and given a figure of it in the Nouv. Diet, d' Hist. Nat. The description there is good, though not complete, but an easily recognisable figure was a little later published in the Galerie des Oiseaux. For some unknown reason Gould did not refer to this name, and Gray only included it as a synonym with a ? and Gadow did the same tiling. The recognition of this name might have obviated some of the later confusion. Then, some years later, Gould described as a new species Climacteris pyrrhonota on account of the red-brown rump. Ramsay, twenty years afterward, wrote : “ C. pyrrhonota I find to be only a stage of plumage of C. leucophcea ; specimens from Cairns, Queensland, are much smaller, and in the immature birds show the same rufous upper tail-coverts.” A year or two later Ramsey named this northern form C. 1. minor , and then Reichenow named the same form C. weiskei. I am separating this specifically so that wre have now only two subspecies : — Cormobates leucophcea leucophcea (Latham). South Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania. Cormobates leucophcea grisescens Mathews. South Australia. Ill THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. The latter I separated with the diagnosis : “ Differs from G. 1. leucophcea in its larger size and greyer coloration on the upper-surface. Wing 9L92 mm. ; typical 84 mm.” Howe in his “Review” has written : “After examining many skins I see no reason for retaining Mr. Mathew’s South Australian form C. 1. grisescens. It is identical with skins from the Dandenong Ranges, Victoria.” The type locality of C. leucophcea is Sydney, New South Wales, and probably some Victorian birds are referable accurately to the South Australian form, which differs as above given. The Treecreepers of Tasmania deserve a note to themselves. Colonel Legge reported seeing a “ Creeper ” which he surmised might be C. scan dens, and adding : “ Having occasion to refer to the genus with B.M. Catalogue, I find that specimens of C. scandens and G. pyrrhonata are both in the B.M. collection, collected by that indefatigable field naturalist, Ronald Gunn, Esq., and in all probability procured in the northern forests of an island.” An editorial note explained : “ C. pyrrhonata is now generally accepted to be the young of C. leucophcea (i.e., scandens), Gould having inadvertently transposed the names leucophcea under his figures. It is quite probable that the White- throated Treecreeper is found ha Tasmania, seeing it is a common species near the coast line on the mainland immediately opposite.” Simultaneously Littler wrote : “In no list can I find mention of any member of the family Certhiidce being found in Tasmania. I have met with both the White-throated Treecreeper ( Climacteris leucophcea) and the Broun Treecreeper (C. scandens) ha some of the heavily timbered forests in the north-eastern portion of the island — forests consisting mainly of big timber.” The editorial comment here reads : “ Air. Littler would promote the interests of the ornithology of his island were he to, say on his next holidays, procure these birds for complete identification. The pleasiare of such a trip would be enhanced by the anticipation that the reputed Treecreepers may be new to science, if not sub-specific to the mainland forms quoted by him.’ Miss Fletcher then added : “A matter of interest I was xrnable to settle was whether one of the Treecreepers ( Certhiidce ) was a resident of this district (Wilmot, North-west Tas.). I am almost certain that the Climacteris leucophcea (White-throated Treecreeper) was a frequenter of the great gums on the Govermnent reserve, but was not able to get one shot for identification. Littler in his Handbook of the Birds of Tasmania, published after the preceding, only included one species, the White-throated, so that the Broun species still needs confirmation as to its occurrence. 112 502 .. tJ*"' & ,*vM- Order PASSERIFORMES. Family GLIM ACT ERI DM. No. 619. CORMOBATES MINOR. LITTLE WHITE-THROATED TREECREEPER. (Plate 501.) Climacteris leucopilea minor Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, 2nd ed., Add., p. 2, June 1st, 1891 : Bartle Frere, North Queensland. Climacteris leucophaca minor Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, 2nd ed., Add., p. 2, 1891 ; Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 383, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 250, 1913 ; Howe, Emu, Vol. XXI., p. 41, 1921 ; Climacteris leucophoea Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1875, p. 599 ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 35, 1888 ; Sclater, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, Vol. XV., p. 9, 1904 ; Broadbent, Emu, Vol. X., p. 239, 1910. Climacteris iveiskei Reichenow, Ornith. Monatsb., Vol. VIII., p. 187, Dec. 1900 : North Queensland= Bartle Frere ; Hartert, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, Vol. XV., p. 10, 1904. Climacteris minor Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 89, 1908 ; H. L. White, Emu, Vol. XVI., p. 164, 1917 ; Campbell and Barnard, ib ., Vol. XVII., p. 29, 1917 ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XXII., pi. lxxi. , 1923. Cormobates minor northi Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., pts 2-3, p. 36, Feb. 21st, 1923 : Barron River, North Queensland. Cormobates minor minor Mathews, ib. Distribution. Queensland, Cairns district alone. Adult male. Top of head, including the fore-head and nape, black with pale margins to the feathers which impart a scalloped appearance ; Hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, scapulars, and lesser upper wing-coverts olive-green ; bastard-wing, outer greater coverts, primary-coverts, and outer webs of primaries black ; flight-quills dark brown becoming darker on the secondary-quills, with a bronze-yellow band across the quills chiefly on the inner-webs, tips of secondaries drab-grey ; lores blackish minutely speckled with white and black hair-like tips to the feathers ; ear- coverts blackish with pale shaft -streaks ; chin and throat wliite ; fore-neck, sides of neck, and upper breast pale grey ; lower breast, abdomen, sides of body, and under tail-coverts ochreous-yellow with black lines, spots, or bars to the feathers ; axillaries and under wing-coverts yellowr ; under-surface of flight-quills liair-brown with a patch of yellow ; lower aspect of tail blackish-brown tipped with grey. Bill horn, lower mandible lighter, eyes brown, feet brownish-black. Total length 140 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 80, tail 57, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected on the Barron River, near Cairns, North Queensland, on the 4th of July, 1910. Adult female. Crown of head, including fore-head and nape, black with pale margins to the feathers which impart a scalloped appearance ; hind-neck, back, rump, and scapulars olive-green ; upper wing-coverts blackish edged with olive-green including VOL. xi. 113 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. the primary-coverts ; flight-quills hair-brown becoming blackish on the secondaries which are drab-grey at the tips, a band of bronze-yellow across the quills, chiefly on the inner webs ; upper tail-coverts and tail grey with a wide band of black on the subterminal portion of the latter ; lores whitish with black hair-like tips to the feathers ; ear-coverts dusky-brown with pale shaft-lines ; an orange-chestnut spot on the hinder-cheeks ; chin and throat wiiite fading into greyish-buff on the fore-neck, sides of neck, and upper breast ; lower breast, abdomen, sides of body, and under tail-coverts ockreous-yellow with black fringes, spots, or bars to the feathers ; axillaries and under wing-coverts similar but the dark pattern smaller ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a patch of yellow ; lower aspect of tail blackish tipped with grey. Total length 135 mm. ; wing 81, tail 60, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected on the Barron River, near Caims, North Queensland, on the 29th of June, 1910. (Top left-hand figure.) Adult viale. Top of head and nape blackish with pale margins to the feathers, which impart a scalloped appearance ; back and wings bronze-brown ; outer median and greater upper wing-coverts, bastard- wing, and primary-coverts blackish ; flight-quills bronze-brown on the outer aspect, a band of buff across the quills being narrow and pale on the primaries and wider and brighter on the secondaries, which are inclining to black on the subapical portion ; upper tail-coverts and middle tail-feathers dark slate-grey, the outer feathers blackish tipped with greyish-white ; sides of face dusky with an indication of pale shaft-streaks ; lores, chin, throat, and cheeks whitish ; fore-neck, sides of neck, and breast smoke-brown ; sides of body similar, with white or buffy-white streaks and spots to the feathers ; abdomen fawn-colour spotted with dark brown ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts buffy- white with dark cross-bars ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and edge of wing buffy- white ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with a patch of buff ; lower aspect of the tail dark brown with pale tips to the feathers. Total length 140 mm. ; culmen 14, wing 80, tail 58, tarsus 21. Collected on the Barron River, North Queensland, on the 9th of July, 1910. Nearly adult female. Top of head blackish with pale margins to the feathers which gives a scalloped appearance ; mantle, back, rump, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts olive-green ; bastard-wing, outer greater coverts, primary-coverts, and outer webs of pi'imary-quills near the base black ; flight-quills liair-brown becoming darker and inclining to black on the subterminal portion of the secondary-quills, a band of buff or buffy-white across the quills, chiefly7 on the inner webs; tips of secondaries clrab-grey ; upper tail-coverts slate-grey7 with a few chestnut feathers intermixed ; tail also grey with a wide subterminal band of black ; lores and feathers in front of the eye minutely speckled with black and white and have hair-like tips ; ear-coverts blackish with whitish shaft-lines ; hinder part of cheeks orange-chestnut ; chin and throat white ; fore-neck ochreous-grey ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body ochreous-yellow with black fringes to the feathers ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts ochreous-yrellow with black bars or spots ; axillaries and under wing- coverts pale buff ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a buff patch ; lower aspect of tail blackish-brown tipped with grey. Ey7es dark brown, bill and feet black. This bird has a reddish feather or two on the rump. Total length 145 mm ; culmen 13, wing 78, tail 57, tarsus 20. Figured. Collected at Kuranda, near Cairns, North Queensland, on the 28th of March, 1913. (Bottom figure.) Nearly adult female. Top of the head and nape blackish; back, scapulars, and upper wing- coverts bronze-brown ; inner primary-coverts black ; flight-quills blackish-brown becoming paler at the tips and a band of buff across the feathers — paler and more narrowly on the primaries, brighter and more broadly on the secondaries ; upper tail-coverts dark slate-grey ; middle tail-feathers greyish-brown, the lateral ones black with greyish-brown tips ; lores blackish ; ear-coverts orange-chestnut ; chin, 114 LITTLE WHITE-THROATED TREECREEPER, cheeks, and throat whitish ; fore-neck, sides of neck, and upper breast dusky- grey ; sides of body dark grey with white elongated centres to the feathers, which are fringed with black ; lower breast and abdomen buff with dark brown markings to the feathers ; under tail-coverts buff or buffy-white with blackish cross-bars like the axillaries ; under wing-coverts similar but more coarsely marked ; under¬ surface of flight-quills dark brown, irregularly marked with pale buff ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Eyes dark brown, feet blackish-brown, upper mandible black, lower brownish-black. Total length 135 mm. ; culinen 13, wing 76, tail 57, tarsus 23. Collected at Kuranda, North Queensland, on the 26th of November, 1912. Immature female. Crown of head dark brown, including the fore-head and nape, with pale margins to the feathers ; hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts olive-brown with obscure dark browm bars and mottlings to the feathers ; bastard-wing, outer greater-coverts, and primary-coverts blackish like the base of the primaries and the subterminal portion of the secondaries, the tips of the last inclining to bronze-green, tips of primaries somewhat paler than at the base ; a bronze-yellow band across the quills which becomes brighter on the inner-webs ; upper tail-coverts rather paler than the back with two or three small chestnut feathers intermixed ; tail dark grey with a wide subterminal band of black ; lores dull whitish ; sides of the face dusky-brown with pale streaks to the ear-coverts ; a pale buff line below the ear-coverts ; chin and throat greyish- buff becoming darker on the fore-neck ; breast dark drab-grey with dark browm spots; abdomen similar but more coarsely marked and strongly tinged with ochreous-bulf ; sides of body dark browm streaked with bufiEy-white ; under tail- coverts buff marked with twin spots of dark brown ; axillaries and under wing- coverts bufl intermixed with dark brown ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with a patch of buff towards the base ; lower aspect of tail blackish, becoming dark grey at the tip. Eyes dark brown, bill and feet brownish. Collected at Kuranda, near Cairns, North Queensland, on the 11th of December, 1912. (Lower left figure.) Nest. Consisted of green moss and soft bark to a depth of six inches, placed in a hollow of a small tree in scrub ; eggs in small depression on top of the moss. Eggs. Clutch two, swollen oval in shape, surface of shell very fine and almost devoid of gloss. Ground-colour very pale creamy-white, sparingly marked all over with minute spots and specks of reddish-brown and pale lilac. 21 mm. by 16. Breeding season. October. Gadow separated, some birds in the British Museum as a northern race, but did not name this as the birds were of doubtful locality, supposedly Queensland. In his Tabular List Austr. Birds, Ramsay in 1888 made a note, p. 35 ; “ Climacteris leucophoea. Specimens recently received from the Cairns District, Queensland, are of a smaller race than the southern forms, and in a second edition of that List issued in 1891 he named this form Climacteris leucophcea minor. Of course this naming was overlooked, and consequently Reichenow proposed a new species Climacteris weiskei from specimens collected by W eiske in North Queensland. Later the species was differentiated by the late Mr. A. J. North who wrote me : “I had fully described this smaller form and sent the description together with the type to Dr. Sclater, the former to be published in the Ibis 115 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. under a new name. I withdrew the description in time owing to the discovery of Dr. Ramsay’s name of C. minor. Dr. Sclater marked the label of my skin when he returned it, C. weiskei, but Dr. Sharpe, who also examined the specimen, marked on the back of the same label ‘ not G. weiskei .’ He also stated that C. minor did not occur in his copy of Ramsay’s Tabular List." CampbeU, in his Nests and Eggs, wrote : “ Whether Mr. K. Broadbent refers to this bird or not, he says : 6 There is a very distinct variety if not a new species of Treecreeper which frequents the scrubs, never or seldom appearing in the open and is characterised by a much darker plumage. This has tiU now shared in the specific name leucophcea,'’ ” and added “ Perhaps this is the slightly smaller and northern race — from Moreton Bay upwards- mentioned in the Brit. Mus. Cat., having a well pronounced pale grey collar across the fore-neck, aU the other parts being coloured as in leucophcea." Years afterward, having coUected specimens in the Cardwell district themselves, CampbeU and Barnard wrote : “ There is so much difference between the northern White-throated Treecreeper and its southern repre¬ sentative that the difference appears more specific than merely subspecific. C. minor differs from C. leucophcea not only in its smaller size and much darker coloration, but by having the throat grey instead of -white, and by the light stripes on the under-surface being buffy instead of -white. The light patch on wing is also darker (yeHowrsh-buff). Comparative dimensions in inches:- C. leucophcea 3 Length 6 wing 3f tarsus | culmen 5 S minor d 5 3 3 4 5 8 minor 6 5 Q1 3 4' 5 S leucophcea $ 6 H 7 8 5 8 minor ? 5 2} £ 4 1 2 Northern eggs average *83 x '62 ; southern average '85 x '64 inches.” Recently, reviewing the group, F. E. Howe has written : “ One is struck by the smaHer size and slender appearance, the greyish throat, and the beautiful freckled chest and abdomen of the northern form (C. minor). A skin in the collection of Air. Edwin Ashby7 is undoubtedly referable to C. minor, but it was collected at Bulk, New7 South Wales, Unless the specimen was wrongly7 labelled, tins is very far south for the bird, as its habitat is towards Cape York, North Queensland, the type being collected near Cardwell.” As already remarked, the most perplexing form is Climacteris leucoplKm minor, a miniature of the southern White-throatecl Treecreeper (C. leucophcea). Air. A. J. Campbell remarks : “ that the difference appears more specific than subspecific,” and states the differences and measurements of both. He does not then give it specific rank, but I agree with Campbell that the differences appear cumulative and therefore rank it here as a species. 116 C ORMOBATE S AFFINIS. ( WHITE -BROWS D TREE CREEPER ) CORMOBATES ERYTHROPS. (USD -browed tree creeper.). * . njmoNAi ' ■■ ;BW« Order PASSERIFORMES . Fa/m7y CLI MACTERIDJE. No. 620. CORMOBATES ERYTHROPS. RED-BROWED TREECREEPER. (Plate 502.) Climacteris erythrops Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1840, p. 148, July 1841 : New South Wales (Liverpool Range). Climacteris erythrops Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1840, p. 148, 1841 ; id.. Birds Austr., pt. iv. (Vol. IV., pi. 95), Sept. 1st, 1841 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 602, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mub., Vol. VIII., p. 338, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 35, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 335, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 49, 1906; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 89, 1908 ; Chandler, Emu, Vol. IN., pp. 28-94, 1909 (Vic.) ; Howe, lb., Vol. XXI., p. 34, 1921 (Review). Climacteris erythrops erythrops Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 383, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 250, 1913. Climacteris erythrops olinda Mathews, Bull. Brit. Om. Club, Vol. XXXVT., p. 91, July 7th, 1916 : Olinda, Victoria. Distribution. New South Wales, Victoria. Adult male. Crown of head blackish with grejr fringes to the feathers on the fore-head and sides of the crown ; lores, fore part of cheeks, and eye-ring, a dark spot in front of the eye, which have hair-like tips to the feathers ; hinder face drab-grey ; mantle, back, and scapulars sepia-brown ; upper wing-coverts blackish fringed with dark olive ; bastard-wing and outermost primary dark brown edged with white ; outer greater coverts, primary-coverts, and outer webs of primary- quills at the base black ; flight-quills hair-brown becoming darker and inclining to black on the secondaries which have drab-grey tips, a broad band of buff, or buffy-wliite across the inner-webs of the quills ; rump, upper tail-coverts, and tail slate-grey with a wide band of blackisli- brown on the last ; chin, throat, and lower cheeks wliiteish ; a band of drab-grey across the fore-neck ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body drab-grey streaked with black and white, becoming oclireous on the lower abdomen which is spotted with dark brown ; thighs lead-grey ; under tail-coverts buffy-white marked with black , axillaries cream- white marked with pale brown or grey ; under wing-coveits white , under-surface of flight-quills hair-browm with a patch of bufly-white towaids the base ; lower aspect of tail blackish tipped wTith grey. Eyes hazel, feet dull black, bill black. Total length 145 mm. ; culrnen 15, wing 87, tail 67, tarsus 22. Figured. Collected at Olinda, Victoria, on the 6th of June, 1909. 117 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Adult female. Crown of head and fore-head black with grey fringes to the feathers ; nape and hind-neck black ; lores, a broad line over the eye and eye-ring dark chestnut ; sides of neck and sides of hinder face lead-grey ; back, scapulars, and lesser upper wing-coverts dark smoke-brown like the inner median and inner major-coverts; bastard-wing and first primary-quill pale brown margined with white ; outer median and outer greater coverts black ; primary-coverts and base of primary- quills black becoming paler towards the tips of the latter ; secondary-quills blackish tipped with dusky-grey, with a band of pale buff across both series of flight-quills ; rump, upper tail-coverts, and middle tail-feathers slate-grey, the lateral feathers grey at the base, followed by a wide subterminal black band, and pale grey tips to the feathers ; chin and throat whitish slightly tinged with chestnut ; fore-neck and upper breast chestnut with broad white shaft-fines ; lower breast, abdomen, and sides of body drab-brown broadly streaked with white and more narrowly with black becoming paler towards the vent ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts buff y- white barred with black ; axillaries and under wing-coverts spotted with pale brown ; under-surface of flight-quills pale brown with a patch of bufiy-white ; lower aspect of tail blackish, broadly tipped with lead-grey. Bill and feet black. Total length 143 mm. ; culmen 14, wing 84, tail 64, tarsus 23. Figured. Collected at Olinda, Victoria, on the 7th of June, 1909. Immature birds of both sexes “ resemble the adults, but are destitute of the rusty-red lores, superciliary stripe and orbital region, these parts being dusky greyish-brown ; the chin and centre of the upper-throat are dull buffy-white, remainder of the under-surface uniform light earth-brown, except the centre of the abdomen, which is buffy-white ; under tail-coverts buff with imperfect V-shaped blackish-brown cross-bars.” (North.) Eggs. Two to three eggs form the clutch, and seldom four. A clutch of two eggs taken at Selby, Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, on the 13th of September, 1914, is of a pinkish-white ground-colour, well marked nearly all over with small spots and specks of reddish-browm, and dull purplish. Ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and rather glossy. 24 mm. by 17. Nest. A compact mass of bark, well fined with fur, and placed in a hollow limb or spout of a tree. Height of nest varies from 20 to 40 feet or more from the ground. Breeding months are August to January. Gould named this distinct Treecreeper, and recently confusion has crept in through the bad policy of lumping, suggested in my early writings, as to species, though splitting as to subspecies. While such a procedure may be useful, though I now doubt it, with regard to Palaearctic forms, it is not so beneficial to the Austral student. The complex climatic conditions known throughout Australia are quite alien to the Palaearctic student of avian forms, and more or less incomprehensible. Gould stated : “ I obtained this interesting species while encamped on the low grassy hills under the Liverpool range ; but whether it is generally distributed over the colony, or merely confined to districts of a similar character to those in which I found it, I had no opportunity of ascertaining. So far as I could observe, its habits and manners bore a striking resemblance to those of the Climacteris leucophcea. One singular feature connected with 118 RED-BROWED TREECREEPER. this species is the circumstance of the female alone being adorned with the beautiful radiated rufous markings on the throat, the male having this part quite plain ; a fact which I ascertained beyond a doubt by the dissection of numerous specimens of both sexes ; it is true that a faint trace of this character is observable both in Climacteris scandens and C. rufa, but the present is the only species of the genus in which this reversion of a general law of nature is so strikingly apparent.” Very little is known about this species, as North found after he had described his C. superciliosa that all the interior records of C. erythrops referred to the white-browed form. However, Mr. L. G. Chandler met with this species at Olinda, Victoria, and wrote me : “ Like C. leucophcea it commences at the foot of a tree and works spirally upwards when in search of insects. This is probably the furthest south that it has been secured.” The same year Chandler wrote : “ Since the above it has been found by other workers, Messrs. T. H. Tregellas and F. E. Wilson, and from June 5th to 7th several birds were noticed by me in the same locality. Finding the birds still in the locality as late as June, I should think it will prove them residents and not casuals as I at first surmised. The country they were found in is a stretch of white gum, peppermint and stringy- bark timber, bordering a creek, and forms a valley or flat between two hills. The birds appeared to search the upper branches in order as they came to them and gave no preference to any one species of tree. The first specimen I secured resembled the White-throated Creeper in the habit of commencing at the foot of the tree and -working spirally upwards, but the birds observed this trip were not noticed to leave the upper trunks and branches. One call resembles slightly a call of the White-throated Creeper, and is a silveiy bell¬ like trill and exceedingly sweet. Howrever, it can be distinguished from the note of that bird.” F. E. Howe in his recent “Review” has recorded: “I also met tins agile and beautiful form in the Dandenongs, from Ferntree Gully towards Gembrook, and have little doubt that it extends through the eastern and north-eastern portion of Victoria. It is far from rare, and half a dozen birds may be seen together, generally in the non-breeding months. In Victoria, the habitat is the hilly country where messmate, blackwood, mountain ash and white gums abound. When half creeping and fluttering up the long hanging strips of bark of the two latter trees the bird is seen to advantage, while it examines a tree very thoroughly, often working each limb to the extremity. It rests in an upright position on the side of a tree, and I believe these Tieecieepeis roost in a like position in the burnt out hollows at the base of large trees. The call-notes are a harsh, high pitched medley, not unlike those of the Striated 119 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Grass Wren ( Diaphorillas striata) when disturbed from a bunch of porcupine grass ; other notes are silvery and tremulous, and it also utters the familiar high-pitched staccato notes of the White-throated Treecreeper, but sweeter and not so sustained. The bird is arboreal, and may feed on ants on fallen dead trees in company with its White-throated cousin. The flight, rapid and undulating, also resembles that of the White-throated bird. The birds are silent at times, and hours may be spent in their feeding grounds without catching a note. The first intimation that they are about is, perhaps, a few high-pitched, harsh notes, often difficult to locate, or else, after a lightning- like streak, a bird alights on a tree trunk, and, as its back is turned towards one, it has then to be ascertained whether it is C. erythrops or not. In this country of dense undergrowth, it is difficult to follow the birds. However, they are strictly local. Two pairs I know can always be located in about twenty acres of dense scrub and big timber. . . The breeding season extends from August to January, and two broods are reared. The superciliary stripe is never white in either sex, as in the male of the White-browed Tree- creeper (C. super ciliosa). The Red-browed bird is also more robust in form.” In my writings I have previously considered the White-browed Tree- creepers to differ subspecifically only from the Red-browed ones, but I now think it best to treat them as distinct species. Consequently of the present species two forms only are admissible: Cormobates erythrops erythrops (Gould). New South Wales. Cormobates erythrops olinda (Mathews). “ Differs from C. e. erythrops Gould in having a darker head and back. Olinda, Victoria.” Victoria. 120 r Order PASSERIFORMES. Family CLIMACTERIDJE. No. 621. CORMOBATES AFFINIS. WHITE-BROWED TREECREEPER. (Plate 502.) Climacteris affinis Blyth, Journ. Asiatic Soc. Bengal, Vol. XXXII., p. 453, 1863, 1864 : ex Melbourne = Broken Hill, New South Wales. Climacteris affinis Blyth, Journ. Asiatic Soc. Bengal, Vol. XXXII., p. 453, 1864. Climacteris superciliosa North, Ibis, 1895, p. 341, July 1st : Illara Creek, Central Australia ; id., Report Horn Sc. Exp., part n., Zool., p. 96, pi. 7, 1896 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 35, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 336, 1901 ; Milligan, Emu, Vol. TV., p. 6, 1904 (W.A.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. H., p. 51, 1906 : A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. S9, 1908 ; Grant, Ibis, 1909, p. 665 ; Howe, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 134, 1909 (Vic.) ; Whitlock, ib., Vol. IX., p. 208, 1910 (W.A.) ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. X., pp. 90-2-5, 1910 (N.S.W.) ; Hill, ib., Vol. XII., p. 241, 1913 (Central Australia) ; Campbell, and Kershaw, ib., p. 276 ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 31, 1913 (S.A.) ; Ashby, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 219, 1918 (S.A.) ; Howe, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 36, 1921 ; Whitlock, ib., p. 182, 1922 ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XXII., p. 257, 1923. Climacteris erythrops superciliosa Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 383, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 251, 1913 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 190, 1915. Climacteris erythrops neositta Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 383, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Calliou, West Australia ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 250, 1913. Climacteris erythrops parson-si Mellor, South Austr. Omitli., Vol. IV., pt. I., p. 5, Jan. 1st, 1919 : Pungonda, Mallee, South Australia. Distribution. Central Australia, limits of range unknown, as far south in east as Pungonda, Northern New South Wales (interior) and Mid-west Australia. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface rust-brown, including the hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, scapulars and upper wing-coverts; bastard-wing and nist primary dark brown edged with white on the outer web ; primary-coverts blackish- brown ; flight-quills blackish, somewhat paler towards the tips of the primaries and drab-grey at the tips of the secondaries, with a band of buff, which commences on the third or fourth primary ; upper tail-coverts and tail drab-grey with a wide black subterminal band on the lateral feathers, which is only slightly indicated on the middle ones ; top of head greyish-brown ; lores and superciliary streak whitish ; feathers in front of the eye black and bristly in texture ; ear-coverts VOL. XI. 121 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. blackish with whitish shaft-streaks ; chin whitish ; throat, lower-cheeks, and fore¬ neck drab-grey ; breast and upper abdomen white with black margins to the feathers ; lower abdomen, sides of body and vent similar but strongly tinged with ochreous-brown ; thighs dusky-brown ; under tail-coverts buffv-wliite with twin spots of black ; axillaries and under wing-coverts buff y- white with dark spots becoming buff on the greater series of the latter ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with a patch of buff ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Total length 152 mm. ; eulmen 13, wing 90, tail 59, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected at Callion, West Australia, and is the type of C. e. neositla. Adult female. Top of head, nape and hind-neck dark ash-grey ; lores and superciliary streak chestnut with whitish shaft streaks to the feathers, becoming white on the sides of the crown ; feathers in front of the eye black and bristly in texture ; ear- coverts blackish with white shaft-streaks ; sides of neck, mantle, back, rump, scapulars and upper wing-coverts pale bronze-brown ; bastard-wing and primary- coverts blackish ; flight-quills also blackish, becoming paler on the apical portion of the primaries and drab-grey on the tips of the secondaries, with a band of buff which commences on the second primary ; upper tail-coverts and tail drab-grey with a blackish subterminal band on the outer feathers of the latter, wThicli is only slightly indicated on the middle feathers ; chin, throat, lower cheeks, and throat huffy-white tinged with chestnut ; fore-neck chestnut with white centres to the feathers ; upper breast and sides of upper breast drab-grey' with white centres to the feathers ; lower breast and sides of lower breast white with black margins to the feathers ; abdomen and flanks white streaked with black and broadly margined with ochreous-brown ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts buffy-white with twin spots of black ; axillaries and lesser under wing-coverts spotted with dark brown, the larger series of the latter buff, like the inner webs of the flight-quills, remainder of quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler, and showing obsolete cross-bars. Bill black, cy’es brown, feet and legs lead- grey. Total length 138 mm. ; eulmen 11, wing 86, tail 55, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected near Lake Way, East Murchison, West Australia, on the 25th of August, 1909. Eggs. Two to three eggs form the clutch. A clutch of three taken at Borewell, East Murchison, Western Australia, on the 3rd of September, 1909, is of a pinkish-white ground-colour, spotted and speckled nearly all over with markings of pinkish-red and purplish-red. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell fine and slightly glossy. 21-22 mm. by 15-16. Nest. Placed in hollow limb or trunk of a tree, and composed of fur, hair, and vegetable down, strips of soft bark, and dried grasses. The nest containing the clutch of eggs under notice was situated in the hollow trunk of a tree, and within three feet of the ground. Breeding-months. September, October and November. Many years ago the Melbourne Institution presented a series of birds to the Asiatic Society through the intervention of Edward Blyth, the Curator of the Museum of that Society at Calcutta. Blyth was one of the great British ornithologists of his age and never missed an opportunity of describing new species from any material he received from different parts of the world. Ho had a keen appreciation for detail, a prodigious memory and a lot of experience ; his main lack was specimens. He named a few Australian birds, but these 122 WHITE-BROWED TREECREEPER, had generally been anticipated, but in the present case he appears to have selected a good example overlooked for nearly sixty years. When this parcel was received he reported upon it and noted two species new to him and described them as new to science. The first was Pomatorhinus pileatus, which is the same bird as Hartlaub a few years previously had des¬ cribed as P. ruficeps ; the second he called Climacteris affinis, describing it as : “ Like Cl. erythrops, but with slight pale non-rufous supercilia, which are not conspicuously noticeable ; throat dull whitish, passing to greyish on breast, and a small central ferruginous spot at base of throat ; ear-coverts pale, streaked. Specimen doubtless of the female sex.” The type locality of these two newr species is probably the same, that is, the north-west of Victoria or south-west of New South Wales. I have selected Broken Hill, New South Wales, as the type locality of P. ruficeps Hartlaub, and this seems to be a very likely place for these to have been collected. I therefore designate as type locality of P. pileatus Blyth, Broken Hill, New South Wales, and I also select Broken Hill, New South Wales, as the type locality of Climacteris affinis Blyth. Thirty years after Blyth had distinguished this species, North named Cl. superciliosa from llara Creek, Central Australia, and quite recently the form inhabiting the South Australian and Victorian Mallee (i.e., C. affinis Blyth) has been distinguished as a distinct subsp., Cl. erythrops parsonsi, by Mellor. Captain S. A. White wrote : “ We met with this bird for the first time on this trip and at first glance took it for C. erythrops. The only place we saw these birds was at the south end of Lake Gairdner amongst a dry, scattered, myall scrub, one of the dryest and most miserable pieces of country we saw on our trip. We felt sure these birds were nesting, but although we searched thoroughly we found no nest. We only saw' four birds in many miles of country round the shores of the Lake. Their call is much louder than that of C. rufa, and they do not take to the ground like that species. They were under observation for a long time while we tried to discover their nesting locality, and they showed no desire to take to the ground, but hopped along fallen trees in the Climacteris jerky fashion. Of course the country they inhabit would not produce much insect life on the bare ground, while in the Mallee country there is much debris.” Capt. White also wrote : “ Seems to be spread all over the interior, and it is strange that it was not described before the Horn Expedition, for we found them numerous west of Port Augusta (as above). The bird seems to prefer Mulga (Acacia anura) to any other timber. Strange to say it was not met with in the north-east, where C. waitei took its place.’ 123 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Macgillivray has, however, written in his account of the Region of the Barrier Range, north of Broken Hill, about this species as follows : “ On a ridge I paused to watch the movements of a White-browed Treecreeper ( Climacteris superciliosa) as he flitted from tree to tree in search of food. . . The nest of a Treecreeper ( C . superciliosa ) was found in a casuarina, five feet from the ground ; it contained three young birds ... In one of the black oaks was another nest (two young) of C. superciliosa . . On a black oak ridge we rested awhile and watched the movements of a Treecreeper (C. superciliosa), then went on to another ridge, where we found a nest of this species in a dead sandal-wood, the hollow being about four feet from the ground. The base of this nest was composed of dry grasses, a layer of horse-dung, then the usual thick bed of rabbit fur, on which two eggs reposed. The eggs are a good deal smaller than those of the Brown Treecreeper, and more richly coloured. . . While watching a Red-browed Pardalote feeding among the sandal- wood, we found a Treecreeper’s (C. superciliosa) nest, with young birds, in a hollow tree, about four feet from the ground. . . . The calling of a White-browed Treecreeper led McLennan to find its nest in a sandal¬ wood, the pah’ of eggs resting on the usual bed of rabbit fur.” Howe recorded in the Emu for 1909 : “I also found a nest of the White- browed Treecreeper ( Climacteris superciliosa) (?) which contained three fresh eggs, and secured the female for identification (in North-west Victoria).” In his recent “ Review ” he, however, has written : “I shall not readily forget my first glimpse of this fine bird at Walpeup, in the Mallee of North-western Victoria, during September, 1910. The timber was mostly belar, sandal¬ wood, myall, needlewood, with here and there large mallee. Whilst watching a Red -capped Robin feeding his mate, a bird with a lightning-like flight alighted on the trunk of a fallen pine. It was a Treecreeper new to me. The conspicuously white eyebrow hinted its identity. We sought the nest after losing sight of the bird, but, being unfamiliar with the calls, we could not again find it. My next meeting ■with the bird was at Linga, 25 miles further west. During September, 1916, a male White-browed Treecreeper alighted on a Murray Pine. In September, 1917, the birds were located at Boinka, a few miles west of Linga. They wrere feeding with the Little Tit- Warbler- (Acanthiza nano) and the Brown Treecreeper, the latter appearing to differ slightly from the form found near Melbourne. The White-browed Treecreeper reminded me of its Red-browed cousin, but was less rapid in its movements. The call notes resembled those of the White-throated species, both in the loud staccato call and in the sweet, low', tremulous notes.” Ashby recorded the species from Pungonda, South Australia, and a pair in the bull oak on the Victorian side : “ They appear to be most silent birds ; 124 WHITE-BROWED TREECREEPER. although the birds were about, only once or twice in an hour was a whistle heard. The one shot in the pine scrub at Pungonda uttered a low chatter¬ ing noise very similar to that of C. scandens Mellor then described this Pungonda bird, writing : “As might reasonably be expected a Climacteris inhabiting the pine and mallee country differs considerably from its ally in the arid districts of Central Australia. . . The birds were rare and very noiseless, being in marked contrast to the Southern Brown Treecreeper with which they were in company.” Whitlock met with, this species on the East Murchison, Mid-west Australia, and has recorded : “ Not at all common, and always met with in isolated pairs, chiefly in big mulga or casuarina country. In its habits it hardly differs from its congeners, and its notes are characteristic of the genus. Probably it has a song like C. rufa, but I never heard it — to recognise it, that is. . . The call note of this species is rather shrill and somewhat stridulant.” In connection with G. rufa I have already printed Whitlock’s later notes, where he contrasts the distribution of the two species in Western Australia. As regards the scientific history I have already printed Blyth’s description, and my selection of Broken Hill as the type locality of Blyth’s species. Tins will leave the name superciliosa to be borne by the Central Australian form and, if the Pungonda bird differs from the Broken Hill bird, Mellor’s name will also be available. Mellor stated : “ Compared with North’s description . . the Southern form is altogether more robust, and the coloration differs considerably from the Central Australian bird, being more greyish above ; crown of head and fore-head being uniform dark grey ; no wash of brown on the grey upper tail- coverts ; subterminal band on tail black : no buffy-brown on sides of body and centre of abdomen ; and dull white in place of buffy-white on under tail-coverts, which are ‘ barred ’ with black spots.” North’s description of Climacteris superciliosa reads : “ Adult male. Like the male of C. erythrops, but differing from that species in having a smaller bill ; the crown of the head greyish-brown instead of blackish-brown ; the band through the wing rich buff instead of pale greyish-buff ; the ear-covei’ts greyish-black streaked with white instead of uniform greyish-brown ; and the orbital region and superciliary stripes pure white instead of rusty-red. Total length 5‘7 inches ; wing 3'55 ; tail 2-55 ; bill from fore-head 0'6, from gape 073 ; tarsus 073. Adult female. Like the male in colour, but having the white superciliary stripes margined above by narrower fines of rusty-red and the feathers on the centre and lower part of the fore-neck dull white edged with pale rusty-red. Illara Creek, Central Australia.” This bird inhabits the mulgar country of Western New South Wales. 125 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. When I prepared ray “ Reference List ” I regarded this as a subspecies of C. erythrops, and also added : Climacteris erythrops neositta. “ Differs from C. e. superciliosa in being more reddish-brown on the back. Callion, West Australia.” Although F. E. Howe in his recent “Review” has stated: “ I consider skins from Central Australia and Western Australia cannot be separated from the dominant form,” meaning thereby that he concludes that the Central and Mid- west Australian birds are inseparable, I find that my character holds good when a series collected by Shortridge in Western Australia is examined, and moreover these appear to have even smaller bills and generally smaller measurements. As I now regard the White-browed forms to constitute a species distinct from the Red -browed birds, the naming of these must be reconsidered; and at present Mellor’s form may be tentatively admitted. The names will be : Cormobates affinis affinis (Blyth). Broken Hill District, New South Wales. Cormobates affinis parsonsi (Mellor). Adjoining parts of the Mallee of South Australia and Victoria. Cormobates affinis superciliosa (North). Central Australia. Cormobates affinis neositta (Mathews). Mid-west Australia. Mr. A. J. Campbell suggests that Broken Hill was not discovered in 1863, yet the country about there had been discovered. There is no reason for rejecting affinis as the species name, when the description absolutely applies. If Broken Hill cannot be accepted, then I designate the type locality of affinis as Pungonda, South Australia. 126 Genus — WHIT LOCK A. Whitlocka Mathews, Austral Avian Record, VoL I., pt. 5, p. 115, Dec. 24tli, 1912. Type (by original designation) . . . . Climacteris melanura Gould. I diagnosed this genus : “ Differs from Climacteris in its shorter, stouter bill and stronger feet and comparatively much longer first primary ; from Neoclima in its broader, heavier bill and longer first primary, though shorter wing.” This little Northern group is well distinguished by its dark coloration and delicate build, while in addition to the items above quoted the wing formula also differs. This group seems to have a peculiar smell, which is not recorded in connection with other Climacterine birds, yet is most noticeable in the two species of this genus. Note. _ In Part II., p. 103, the third line from the bottom, "eyebrow distinct, smaller, C. minor,” should be on a line by itself, and be a line higher. 127 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family CL1MACTERIDM. No. 622. WHITLOCKA MELANURA. BLACK-TAILED TREE CREEPER. (Plates 503, 504.) Climacteris melantjra Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1842, p. 138, Feb. 1843 : Derby, North-west Australia. Climacteris melanura Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Loud.), 1842, p. 138, 1843 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. xiv. (Vol. IV., pi. 97), March 1st, 1844 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 604, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. VIII., p. 334, 1883 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 15, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 35, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 329, 1901 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. II., p. 53, 1902 (N.W.A.) ; Le Souef, ib., p. 91 (N.T.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 46, 1906; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 181, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 88, 1908 ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 182, 1909 (W.A.) ; Mathews, ib., Vol. 1X„ p. 69, 1909 (N.W.A.) ; Crossman, ib., Vol. X., p. 112, 1910 (N.W.A.) ; Hill, ib., p. 282, 1911 (N.W.A.) ; G. F. Hill, ib., Vol. XII., p. 259, 1913 (N.T.) ; Macgillivrav, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 175, 1914 (N.T.) ; Barnard, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 48, 1914 (XT.) ; H. L. White, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 226, 1917 (N.T.) ; F. E. Howe, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 38, 1921 (Review). Climacterus melanura melanura Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 381, Jan. 31st, 1912. Climacteris melanura alexandrce Mathews, ib. : Alexandra, Northern Territory. Whitlocka melanura melanura Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 251 ; id ., South Austr. Orn., Vol. 3, p. 205, 1915. Whitlocka melanura alexandrce Mathews, ib. WHITLOCKA WELLSI. Climacteris wellsi Grant, Ibis (Oct. No.), 1909, p. G64, reed. B.M. Sept. 27th, 1909: Clifton Downs, West Australia ; Campbell, Emu, Vol. X., p. 299, 1911 (eggs), Climacteris melanura wellsi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 381, Jan. 31st, 1912. Whitlocka melanura wellsi Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 251, 1913. Whitlocka wellsi striata Mathews, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, Vol. XLIV., p. 15, Nov. 5th, 1923 . Shaw River, Mid-west Australia. Whitlocka wellsi wellsi , Mathews, ib. 128 503 WH I TL O C KA ME LANURA . / a LACK -TAIL ED T FLEE CREEPER). 503 BLACK-TAILED TREECREEPER. Distribution. Northern Australia, ranging down on the west as far south as the Upper Gascoyne River, and eastwards to the Gulf Country of Queensland. Adult male. Fore-part of head, including the lores and crown, blackish, becoming coffee- brown on the hind-neck, sides of face, sides of neck, and sides of broast ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts black; bastard-wing, outer-webs and tips of primary-quills dark hair-brown, inner-webs of flight-quills buffy-whito, secondary quills similar to the back; rictal-bristles black but only feebly developed ; throat and fore-neck black with white shaft-lines to the feathers ; breast, abdomen, thighs, and vent umber-brown ; under tail-coverts black marked with white at the tips ; axillaries similar to the abdomen ; under wing-coverts grey tinged with buffy-wliite ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown on the apical portion and cream-wiiite at the base ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Total length 173 mm. ; culmen 15, wing 99, tail 74, tarsus 25. r Collected at Derby, North-west Australia, on the 26th of June, 1886. Adult female. Top of head and lores soot-black ; sides of face, sides of hinder-crown, hind-neck, and sides of neck very dark chocolate-brown with pale shaft-lines to the feathers on the ear-coverts ; back, scapulars, rump, upper tail-coverts, tail, and upper wing-coverts black, becoming paler and inclining to hair-browTn on the bastard-wing and outer webs and tips of the primary-quills; inner webs of flight- quills buffy-wThite on the basal portion ; secondary-quills darker and more like the back ; rictal-bristles black and numerous but only feebly developed ; chin and throat white ; fore-neck also white with broad chestnut margins to the feathers ; sides of breast and upper sides of body umber-brown, becoming paler and inclining to] smoke-brown on the breast ; abdomen, thighs, flanks, and under tail-coverts black, slightly marked with whitish on the terminal portion of some of the feathers ; axillaries similar in colour to the abdomen ; under wing-coverts white marked with pale brown ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown, cream- white on the basal portion ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Eyes dark brown, bill, legs and feet black. Total length 164 mm. ; culmen 15, wing 92, tail 70, tarsus 23. Figured. Collected at Derby, North-west Australia, on the 21st of June, 1886. (Plate 504.) Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface black, including the top of the head, back, wings, and tail ; crown of head and hind-neck more soot -black than the back ; primary-quills dark brown on the apical portion, a broad band of buff across the flight-quills ; sides of face and sides of neck dark coffee-brown with pale shaft- lines on the ear-coverts ; fore-part of head minutely dotted with whitish ; chin, throat, and fore-neck streaked with black and white ; breast and abdomen smoke- brown with blackish shaft-streaks, becoming darker on the sides of the body, where it is almost uniform and inclining to blackish on the lower flanks and thighs ; under tail-coverts black tipped with -white ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white, or buffy-whito barred with dark brown ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown on the apical portion and buffy-white at the base ; lower aspect of tail black like its upper-surface with obsolete cross-bars. Eyes brown, bill and feet black. Total length 197 mm. ; culmen 14, wing 97, tail 70, tarsus 25. Figured. Collected at Alexandria. Northern Territory, in May 1905, and is the type of C. m. alexandrce. (Plate 503, bottom figure.) Immature. General colour, both on the upper and under-surface deep black, including the top of the head, entire back, wings, tail, and upper wing-coverts ; some of the flight-quills inclining to dark brown towards the tips ; a buffy-white band across the primary and secondary- quills, chiefly on the inner- webs ; throat black with white bases to the feathers ; sides of face, sides of neck, breast, abdomen, thighs, under tail-coverts and axillaries also black ; under wing-coverts wiiitish intermixed THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. with black on the margin of the wing ; under-surface of flight-quills blackish- brown with whitish bases ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface ; bill fleshy-white, culmen and operculum brown, eyes pale greyish-brown, feet and tarsi leaden-blue. Figured. Collected at Derby, North-west Australia, on the 12th of November, 1910. (Plate 503, top figure.) Immature males “ are brownish-black above and below, with narrow white streaks to the feathers on the throat ; fore-neck and centre of the upper breast ferruginous- brown ; under tail-coverts blackish-brown with subterminal spots of white.” (North.) The following descriptions refer to Whitlocka wellsi (Plate 503, middle figure $, plate 504 (?) : — Adult male . General colour of the upper-surface dark chocolate-brown, including the top of the head, nape, hind-neck, back, scapulars, and wings, most of the feathers have dusky bases ; inner-wrebs of flight-quills orange-buff on the basal portion ; upper tail-coverts and tail darker than the back and inclining to black, but slightly paler at the tips of the tail-feathers ; sides of face and sides of neck similar to the top of the head but rather paler ; rictal-bristles black but only feebly developed ; chin, throat, and fore-neck black with white shaft-lines to the feathers ; breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and vent dark chestnut with pale shaft-lines to many of the feathers, some of which have dark fringes ; lowrer flanks blackish-brown ; under tail-coverts blackish-brown tipped with white ; axillaries similar to the breast ; under -wing-coverts buffy-white marked with dark brown ; under-surface of flight- quills hair-brown at the tips and buff on the basal portion ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but somewhat paler and having white shafts to the feathers towards the base. Eyes brown, feet black, bill blackish-brown. Total length 173 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 95, tail 67, tarsus 24. Figured. Collected on the Strelly River, Mid-wrest Australia, in September 1907, and is Whitlocka wellsi (Grant). (Plate 504.) Adult female . Entire crown of head, including the fore-head soot-black; hind-neck, sides of neck, and mantle dark smoke-brown ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and scapulars black ; tail black -with obsolete cross-bars and pale tips to the feathers ; upper wing-coverts brownish-black ; bastard-wing and short outer primary dark brown edged with wdiite ; primary-coverts black like the greater coverts ; flight- quills dark brown with a broad band of buff across both series ; innermost secondaries blackish with obsolete cross-bars ; sides of face smoke-brown dotted with chestnut, and pale shaft-lines to the ear-coverts ; chin and throat white ; fore¬ neck also white with chestnut fringes to the feathers ; breast and sides of body chestnut-browm with pale shaft-streaks ; abdomen cinnamon with narrow streaks of white and black, becoming almost uniform chestnut-brown on the vent and thighs ; under tail-coverts black marked with white on the apical portion ; axillaries and under wing-coverts buff like the base of the flight-quills, the apical portion of the last blackish-brown ; lower aspect of tail black with pale tips to the feathers. Eyes brown, bill and feet black. Total length 160 mm. ; culmen 14, wing 93, tail 65, tarsus 23. Figured. Collected on the Shaw River, Mid-west Australia, in May 1908, and is the type of W . w. striata. (Plate 503, middle figure.) Eggs. Two eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of twro eggs taken at Borroloola, Mc¬ Arthur River, Northern Territory, on the 19th of November, 1913, is of a pinldsh- wiiite ground-colour, spotted, blotched, and speckled with numerous and well- distributed markings ot‘ pinkish-red and purple, forming a cap at the larger end of each egg. Roundish ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. 23-24 mm. by 17. The eggs of C. wellsi are similar to the above. 130 5 04 WHITLOCKA WELLSI f ALLIED BLACK-TAILED TREECREEPER) WHITLOCKA ME LAN UR A ( 'BLACK-TAILED TREECREEPER) CL I MAC TERIS RUFA (R PRO PS TREE CREEPER ) BLACK-TAILED TREECREEPER, Nest. Placed in the hollow spout or trunk of a tree, and composed of fur, soft bark and grasses. Breeding-months. September to January. This peculiar little group of Treecreepers for which I have proposed the genus Whitlocka comprises two distinct species, both of which were described by Gould, and of this species he wrote : “ I formerly believed that all the members of this genus were confined to the southern portions of Australia, but that such is not the case is proved by the circumstance of Mr. Bynoe having killed this bird on the northern coast. It exceeds all the other species in size, and also differs from them in its colouring, particularly in the lanceolate feathers on the throat and in the black colour of the tail. Nothing whatever is known of its habits or general economy, but, judging from its structure, it doubtless closely assimilates to its congeners in all these particulars.” Mr. J. P. Rogers has written me : “ Several of these birds were seen near Jegurra Creek, 12 miles from Mungi, but none were seen at Mungi itself. On my way down Jegurra and the Fitzroy River occasionally small parties were seen. Is not very numerous in West Kimberley, where it is usually found in coolibar flats on the Fitzroy and on other large timber in other localities, but undoubtedly the favourite spots are the first-mentioned.” Stalker’s note from Alexandra reads : “ These birds feed on a species of small black ant, catching them on the trees.” G. F. Hill has recorded : “I saw these birds only amongst the large timber in the dry localities near Napier Broome Bay, where they were rare and difficult to approach. Young birds were seen in the middle of October. The female is distinguished by a white throat and rufous colour of lower throat, where it is black in the male. The crops of all specimens examined contained only numerous remains of one species of ant ( Iridomyrmex deteclus Smith). The nature of their food, I think, accounts for the peculiar odour possessed by these birds.” MacgiUivray reported: “Numerous throughout the Gulf country, especially on river flats of the Leichhardt, which are clothed in bloodwood, wattle, bauhinia, and silver box. A spring breeder. Stomach contents : small beetles, ants, and other insects.” Barnard, regarding the McArthur River, Northern Territory, added : “ These birds were common on the coastal rivers, and were generally in pairs ; at odd times three birds wrere seen together. A number of nests was found.” McLennan found it “ Fairly plentiful in forest at King River.” In the preparation of my “ Reference List ” I selected as the type locality of Climacteris melanura, which was described from the North-west Coast of Australia, Derby, and this is still accepted. 131 THE BIRDS OE AUSTRALIA. I ranked as a subspecies the form Grant described as C. wdlsi and added : Climacteris mdanura alexandrce. “ Differs from G. m. mdanura in being much paler below. Alexandra, Northern Territory.” These have been upheld by F. E. Howe in his recent Review, where he added more differential features as regards the normal forms, and as I do not conclude the values of these forms of Treecreepers as yet fixed I am quoting Howe’s remarks as well as giving Grant’s description of his C. wellsi, as that may yet prove to deserve specific rank. Ogilvie-Grant described a new species, Climacteris wellsi, thus: “ Adult male. Most nearly allied to the male of C. mdanura Gould, but at once distinguished by having the general colour of the under-parts chestnut instead of brown, and the middle of the breast rufous-buff (not smoky-buff) with white, black-edged shaft-streaks. The under tail-coverts are black, strongly barred with white, instead of black narrowly tipped with white. In other respects the plumage is very similar to that of C. mdanura. Adult female. Differs from the female of C. melanura in a similar manner to the male described above. Wing 3-7-3-85 inches, tail 2-7. Clifton Downs.” C. wellsi was only met with on the Upper Gascoyne River, where it was plentiful among the Eucalyptus and other trees winch fringe the river-beds and water-courses.” Whitlock, writing of the Pilbarra Goldfield, stated : “ Native name ‘ Chinin- chinin.’ The only Treecreeper in the district. I first noticed it at the crossing of the Shaw River, where T obtained a female. On the upper Coongan it was extremely rare, but in a secluded gully I found a pair and after some trouble watched the female to her nest in the cavity of a very small gum growing on a stony hillside. ... On the lower Coongan this species was a little more common, and I saw a young brood of three on the wing the first week in October. On the de Grey too, this Creeper was not uncommon, and I watched a female to her nest in a lofty and half -dead gum tree. . . . This species haunts the cajaputs as well as the eucalypts,” Howe has written : “ The skins (perhaps those collected by Whitlock) are much smaller than the dominant form, and are more rufous on the breast and abdomen in both sexes. A juvenile skin is without the radiated breast- markings, merely showing a trace of the gular striations at the base of the bill. . . . W. m. alexandrce,. The male differs from the dominant form in having the radiated breast-markings extending practically right down the abdomen, but the greatest difference is in the females. The gular patch of W. m. melanura is snowy -white, as are also the centres of the breast-feathers with their bright red edges, but in W. m. alexandrce the throat and upper breast are a dingy or 132 BLACK-TAILED TREECREEPER. greyish-white, as are also the centres of the breast-feathers. The ear-coverts of W. m. alexandrce are brownish-black with white shaft-stripes, but in W. m. melanura the ear-covert striations are of buff.” This leaves the three forms and names as in my 1913 “ List ” : Whitlocka melanura melanura (Gould). North-west Australia. Whitlocka melanura wellsi Grant. Mid-west Australia. Whitlocka melanura alexandrce Mathews. Northern Territory and North Queensland (Gulf Country). 133 Family — Z OSTEROPID/E. Genus — Z OSTEROPS. Zosterops Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XV., p. 234, Feb. 17th, 1827. Type (by monotypy) Zosterops dorsalis Vigors and Horsfield. Luteozosterops Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 36, Feb. 21st, 1923. Type (by original designa¬ tion) . . . . . . . . Zosterops albiventris cairncrossi Mathews. This group, which has an extensive range through Africa, South Asia, Australia and the Pacific Islands, has been given Family Rank since Sharpe wrote: “ An examination of the tongue of Zosterops shows that it resembles that of a Tit and has no similarity to the * brush ’ tongue of the Honeysucker.” For the present, although it has a brush tongue, I am inclined to keep the White- eyes as a separate family. Sharpe did not give the name of the species he examined, and this statement has been accepted since without criticism, though many years before, Blyth, a very accurate and reliable ornithologist, had published the fact that the Zosterops from Mauritius had a brush tongue, and after that the Indian Zosterops ( nicobaricus and curvirostris ) had brush tongues, as also other Indian genera (i.e., Yuhina) had brush tongues. Australian orni¬ thologists have long been familiar with the fact that their Zosterops had brush tongues, several correspondents having sent me specimens, so that now the problem appears to be to find a Zosterops without a brush tongue. It has been noted in African, Asian and Australian species, so it is difficult to suggest where to look. Nevertheless, the family should be retained as it is a compact, well- defined group with a wido distribution, while the Melithreptidae, the Australian Honey-eaters, with which it only could be merged, comprises many varied elements and is obviously heterogeneous ; the brush tongue being a character of little value in comparison with many other factors that are present in the group. 134 ZOSTEROPS. The bill is short, shorter than the head, conical, pointed, tip sharp, fairly slender, culmen gently arched, basally keeled, depth of both mandibles at the base about equal to its width ; nostrils a linear slit in a short nasal groove, a prominent operculum present ; no nasal bristles, but the feathers of the fore-head encroaclung a little on the nasal groove ; lower mandible not quite as stout as the upper, the interramal space triangular, short, feathered, less than half the length of the mandible ; rictal bristles weak and obsolete ; tongue brushed ; the wing long, with the feathers narrow, the secondaries fairly long ; in the typical species the first (really the second) primary is about equal to the fourth, longer than the fifth and a little exceeded by the second and third, which are subequal and longest ; the real first primary is very minute, entirely hidden by the coverts ; not the outer primary, but the succeeding three, are incised on their outer webs for the apical half. The tail is long, straight, almost emarginate ; the upper tail-coverts long, extending more than half the length of the rec trices. The legs are comparatively short and slender, the front of the tarsus more or less boldly scutellate, five scutes being counted, the hinder part bilaminate, the outer lamina with a tendency to fusion with the acrotarsium ; the toes delicate, the claws small, the hind-toe a little stronger with a stouter claw ; the hind-toe and claw a little less than the middle toe and claw, the inner toe a little less than the outer, but with claw just reaching to the length of the middle-toe alone ; the toes are almost free from each other basally. As pointed out by Castelnau and Ramsay, their Z. gulliveri has a much more rounded wing than the typical Zosterops, and I find that my Z. albi- ventris cairncrossi is even more rounded, the primaries being only a little longer than the secondaries and equal to the seventh ; the second, third, and fourth subequal and longest, but the fifth and sixth very little shorter. In this form the tarsus is comparatively weaker and anterior toes more delicate, but the hind-toe stouter. I have proposed the subgeneric name Imteozosterops to indicate this difference. Apparently the immature birds resemble the adult. Key to the Species. Back grey ; throat grey or only tinged with yellow Throat and under tail-coverts yellow" Back green, throat only yellow All under-surface yellow lateralis albiventris australasice=gouldi olim lutea 135 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 623. Family ZO&TEROPIDM. ZOSTEROPS LATERALIS. WHITE-EYE. (Plate 505.) Sylvia lateralis Latham, Index Omith. Suppl., p. lv. (after May), 1801 : (Sydney) New South Wales. Sylvia lateralis Latham, Index Omith. Suppl., p. lv., 1801. Rusty-sided Warbler Latham, Gen. Synops. Birds, Suppl. II., p. 250, 1801. Zosterops dorsalis Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XV., p. 235, Feb. 17th, 1827 : New South Wales (Sydney) ; Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xi. (Vol. IV., pi. 81), June 1st, 1843; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 142, 1915 (Mallacoota) ; Cheney, ib., p. 211 (Vic.); Purnell, ib., Vol. XV., p. 43, 1915 (Vic.); Dove, ib., p. 234, 1916 (Tas.) ; Le Souef and Macpherson, ib., Vol. XX., p. 89, 1920 (N.S.W.); Macgillivray, ib., p. 93 (N.S.W.). Dacnis westernensis Quoy and Gaimard, Voy. de l’Astrol. Zool., Vol. I., p. 215 (pref. June 29th), 1830 : Western Port, Victoria. Zosterops lateralis Gray, Annals Mag. Nat. Hist., Vol. XI., p. 193, 1843 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 209, 1906; Mellor and White, Emu, Vol. XII., p. 163, 1913 (Flinders Island) ; Agnew, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 96, 1913 (Q.) ; Littlejohn, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 143, pi. xxvm., 1921 (Vic.). Zosterops ccerulescens Strickland, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Vol. XI., p. 336, 1843 [Not Certhia ccerulescens Latham, Index Omith. Suppl., p. xxxvra., 1801.] Bonaparte, Consp. Gen. Av., Vol. I., p. 398, 1850 ; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 587, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1875, p. 598 ((N.Q.); id., Proc. Linn. Soc., N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 152, 1884; Legge, Paper Proc. Roy. Soc. Tasm., 1886, p. 241, 1887; Ramsay, Tab. List. Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1S88 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 38, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 347, 1901 ; Littler, Emu, Vol. I., p. 12, 1901 (Tas.); H. E. Hill, ib., Vol. II., p. 165, 1903 (Vic.); A. G. Campbell, ib., p. 207 (King Island); Morgan, ib., Vol. V., p. 225, 1906 (Kangaroo Island); Dove, ib., Vol. VI., p. 53, 1906 (Tas.) ; id., ib., p. 138, 1907 (Tas.); MacLaine, ib., Vol. VII., p. 192, 1908 (Tas.); Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 89, 1908; Chisholm, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 35-38, 1908 (Vic.) ; S. A. White, ib., p. 162, 1909 (S.A.) ; Broadbent, ib., Vol. X., p. 239, 1910 (N.Q.) ; Littler, Handb. Birds Tasm., 136 505 ZOS T EROPS L ATE R AL I S f PI 'HITE —E YE ) H. Gronvold del Vviilierby & C ? 505 WHITE-EYE. * P« 52, 1910 ; Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVII., p. 504, 1910 ; Cleland, Emu, Vol. XI. , p. 89, 1911 (Food); id ., ib., Vol. XII., p. 14, 1912 (Food); Dove, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 134, 1918 (Tas.). Zoskrops australis Ramsay, Ibis, 1863, p. 180. Nom . nudum . Zoskrops ramsayi Masters, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. I., p. 56, Feb. 1876 : Palm Island, Torres Straits ; Ramsay, ib ., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878; id ., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 38, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 349, 1901 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908. Zosterops westeniensis vegeta Hartert, Nov. Zool., Vol. VI., p. 425, Dec. 9th, 1899: Cape York, North Queensland; Hall, Key Birds Austr., 2nd ed., p. 113, 1906. Zoskrops westernensis ivesternensis Hartert, ib. Zosterops halmaturina A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. V., p. 143, Jan. 1st, 1906 : Kangaroo Island; Hall, Key Birds Austr., 2nd ed., p. 113, 1906; Morgan, Emu, Vol. V., p. 225, 1906 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908; Mellor, Emu, Vol. XII. , p. 40, 1912 ; S. A. White, ib., p. 270, 1913 ; id ., ib ., Vol. XIII., p. 103, 1913. Zoskrops vegeta North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 212, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds AustraL, p. 90, 1908. (?) Zoskrops bowice Horne, Emu, Vol. VII., p. 36, July 1st, 1907 : Morang, Vic. ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908 ; Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 384, 1912. Zosterops lateralis bowice Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. II., No. 7, p. 136, 1915. Zosterops chlorocephalus Campbell and White, Emu, Vol. X., p. 196, Dec. 1st, 1910 : Capricorn Group, Barrier Reef, Queensland. Zosterops lateralis lateralis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 385, 1912 ; id ., List Birds Austr., p. 252, 1913. Zoskrops lateralis westernensis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 385, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 252, 1913; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 316, 1914; (Anon.), South Austr. Ornitb., Vol. II., pt. 3, p. 62, 1915 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XVI., pp. 14-76, 1916 (S.A.). Zosterops lateralis tasmanica Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 385, Jan. 31st, 1912 : (Devonport) Tasmania ; id., Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 103, 1912 ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 253, 1913. Zosterops lateralis halmaturina Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 385, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 253, 1913. Zosterops lateralis ramsayi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 385, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 253, 1913. Zosterops lateralis cornwalli Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 385, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Mackay, Queensland ; id., Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 253, 1913. Zosterops lateralis tephropleura Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 386, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 253, 1913. Zosterops lateralis chlorocepliala Mathews, ib., p. xxvi., 1913. VOL. XI. 137 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Zosterops tephropleura Campbell and Barnard, Emu, Vol. XVII., p. 30, 1917 (N.Q.) ; Mac- gillivray, ib., p. 203, 1918 (N.Q.). Distribution. Eastern Australia from Cape York to Kangaroo Island ; South Australia and Tasmania. Adult male . General colour of the upper-surface yellowish-green with grey bases to the feathers, including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills blackish-brown fringed with yellowdsli-green on the outer webs ; tail hair-brown with yellowish-green margins to some of the feathers ; lores and rictal-bristles black ; eye-ring white ; chin and throat cream- wrhite with black hair-like tips to the feathers on the chin ; fore-neck and sides of neck grey ; middle of breast and middle of abdomen white ; sides of breast, sides of body, and flanks fawn-colour ; under tail-coverts pale yellow ; under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills dark hair-brown with pale margins ; low^er aspect of tail greyish-brown, shafts of feathers white. Eyes hazel, feet flesh, bill purple-flesh. Total length 113 mm. ; culmen 8, wing 60, ’tail 45, tarsus 18. Collected at Devonport, Tasmania, on the 12th of February, 1909, and is the type of Z. 1. tasmanica . Adult females from the same localities as the males are similar. Adult female . General colour of the upper-surface yellowish -green with grey bases to the feathers, including the top of the head, hind-neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills blackish-brown edged with green on the outer wTebs ; tail-feathers dark hair-brown fringed with green on the outer webs ; sides of face paler than the crown ; lores and feathers in front of the eye black ; chin and throat pale lemon-yellow ; fore-neck and sides of neck grey ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body fawn-colour; under tail-coverts very pale lemon- yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverte white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-browm with whitish margins ; lower aspect of tail pale brown with white shafts. Eyes stone, feet slate, bill horn. Total length, 118 mm. ; culmen 8, wing 62, tail 46, tarsus 17. Collected at Selby, Victoria, on the 1st of January, 1913. Adult female . Entire top of head, nape, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, rump, and upper tail-coverts dull citron-green like the upper wing-coverts and outer aspect of the flight-quills ; back lead-grey ; bastard-wing and inner webs of flight- quills dark brown with pale margins to the latter ; tail-feathers hair-brown with pale edges to the inner-webs and citron-green on the outer ones ; lores and a portion of the eye-ring black, the remaining portion of the latter w'hite ; chin and throat tinged with yellow ; breast pale grey ; middle of abdomen whitish like the under tail-coverts, axillaries, and under w ing-coverts ; sides of abdomen and sides of body pale chestnut ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with slightly paler margins ; lower aspect of tail also hair-brown. Eyes hazel, feet and bill brown. Total length 120 mm. ; culmen 10, wing 61, tail 46, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected at Auburn, Victoria, on the 16th of January, 1901. (Bottom figure.) Adult female. Mantle and back pale slate-grey ; head, w'ings, rump, and upper tail-coverts dull greenish-yellowr ; quills and tail-feathers browm edged with greenish-yellow on the outer- webs ; sides of face and ear-coverts dull yellow, becoming brighter on the throat ; a spot in front and under the eye blackish ; breast and sides of breast ash-grey, becoming paler and inclining to ochreous on the flanks ; middle of abdomen wThitish ; under tail-coverts tinged with yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white. Total length 109 mm. ; culmen 11, wing 57, tail 44, tarsus 17. Collected on Kangaroo Island. 138 WHITE-EYE. Adult male . Entire top of head, sides of face, nape, hind-neck, rump, upper tail-coverts, upper wing-coverts, including the primary-coverts and outer margins of the flight- quills greenish-yellow ; mantle, upper back, and sides of breast lead-grey, becoming paler on the middle of the breast and sides of the body and flanks ; inner-webs of flight-quills blackish-brown edged with white ; bastard-wing blackish ; tail dark brown with whitish margins on the inner- webs, and greenish- yellow on the outer ones ; eye-ring white with a line of black below and in front of the eye, which extends along the base of the lores ; chin and throat yellow ; middle of abdomen inclining to whitish tinged with yellow ; thighs whitish ; under tail-coverts lemon-yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white like the inner margins of the flight-quills below, remainder of the quill-lining dark brown ; lower aspect of tail greyish-brown. Total length 115 mm. ; culmen 11, wing 69, tail 50, tarsus 20. Figured. Collected on North-west Island, Capricorn Group, Queens¬ land, on the 9th of October, 1910, and is the type of Zosterops chlorocephalus. (Middle figure.) Adult female . Crown of head, sides of face, sides of neck, and hind-neck yellowish-green like the rump, upper tail-coverts, upper wing-coverts, and outer aspect of flight- quills; inner- webs of the last blackish with whitish margins ; bastard-wing and outer-web of first primary inclining to black ; upper back and scapulars pale lead- grey ; tail dark brown with pale margins to the inner- webs and yellowish-green to the outer ones ; lores and fore-part of eye-ring black, the hinder-portion of the latter white ; breast grey, becoming paler and inclining to fawn-colour on the abdomen and sides of the body ; thighs and under tail-coverts pale lemon- yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills blackish-brown with whitish margins ; lower aspect of tail hair-brown. Total length 107 mm. ; culmen 10, wing 60, tail 40, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected at Mackay, North Queensland, and is the type of Zosterops lateralis cormoalli. (Top figure.) Immature seem to take on adult plumage from the nest. Eggs. Three to four eggs form the clutch. A clutch of four eggs taken at South Grafton, Clarence River, New South Wales, on the 27th of March, 1901, is of a pale bluish- green ground-colour. Ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. 15-17 mm. by 12. Nest. A small, neat, cup-shaped structure, composed of fine grasses, horse-hair, etc., well matted and fastened together with cobweb and spiders’ cocoons, and lined with fine grasses, and sometimes long pieces of hair from horses’ tails. It is usually placed in the horizontal fork of a bush or small tree, from which it is suspended by the rim, and placed from 4 to 15 feet or so from the ground. Dimensions over all, 24 to 3 inches by If to 24 inches in depth ; egg cavity If to 2£ inches across by 1 to 1^ inches deep. Eggs. Two eggs appear to be the usual number laid by this species for a clutch. A pair taken at Stokes Bay, Kangaroo Island, South Australia, on the 18th of November, 1919, is of a pale bluish-green ground-colour. Rounded ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth, but without gloss. 15-16 mm. by 12. Nest. A small cup-shaped structure similar to that of Zosterops lateralis , composed chiefly of grasses matted together with cobw'eb, and suspended from a small forked twig of a bushy shrub or small tree, and placed at heights varying from four to twelve feet or more. Breeding-months . September to January or February. 139 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Although undoubtedly well-known to most of the earliest collectors, Gould’s notes appear to constitute the first recorded field observations, as follows: “ This bird is stationary in all parts of Tasmania, New South Wales, and South Australia, where it is not only to be met with in the forests and thickets, but also in nearly every garden. It even builds its nest and rears its young in the shrubs and rose-trees bordering the walks. Among the trees of the forest the beautiful Leptospermmn is the one to which at all times this species evinces a great partiality. Its flight is quick and darting, and when among the branches of the trees it is as active as most birds, prying and searching with scrutinizing care into the leaves and flowers for the insects upon which it feeds. It is some¬ times seen singly or in pairs, while at others it is to be observed in great numbers, on the same or neighbouring trees. It is of a familiar disposition, and utters a pretty and very lively song. . . . The sexes present no difference of plumage . . . throat greyish -white . . . flanks light chestnut-brown. . . . In some specimens the throat and sides of the head are wax-yellow, and the flanks are only stained with chestnut-brown.” Mr. F. E. Howe has -written me : “ Appears to be more common through the district from October to March ; probably it migrates then further north and I don’t remember seeing it after that month, although it is common about the Gardens of Melbourne in autumn and winter. It is very plentiful in Fern- tree Gully, and here in the titree or mimosa they love to suspend their pretty moss-bedecked nest. In it three pretty light blue eggs are usually laid, but on one occasion four were seen, and often only two. It is a most useful little creature and destroys great numbers of the larvae of the Cup Moth. Breeding season extends from October to January. Mr. Sandland wrote me : “ This species is common at Burra but rare at Balah, South Australia.” Mr. H. Stuart Dove has sent me a fine long and valuable series of observa¬ tions, some of which are quoted here : “A beautiful nest was found on October 23rd, just completed, but empty ; on the 25th contained two pale blue eggs, that is, one laid on 24th, and second on 25th, and on 26th the third egg was laid and the female was sitting, thus clearly showing that the eggs were laid on successive days ; I have seen it stated in a well-known bird-book that the eggs were laid on alternate days. On 6th November there were three blind, naked, flesh-coloured young just hatched. The female flew off the nest uttering alarm -notes, the male replying with a pretty bell-like note which I never heard used before, uttered several times from a bush near by; the female dashed through the Tea -tree close to me as if to intimidate me when I examined young. On 11th November the young had eyes closed, a few tufts of whitish down on head, bluish looking quills sprouting on wings and spinal tract ; the 140 WHITE-EYE. bare body is reddisli-tinted, bills light-brown, yellow at gape, opened widely for food but no noise made (others found made a slight noise like * wee-ee ’). On 12th November the eyes were open, quills on wings progressing, female parent appears to do all the incubation ; will not leave nest until nearly touched, and then sits near by uttering tho sharp alarm note, while male further away makes a note like a tiny bell rapidly tinkled. On 13th the yellovT-green tint of plumage could be seen on bodies of the young, wing-quills of blackish-grey, tails just sprouting, female parent very bold, sat in Tea-tree close to me while I examined young. On 14th Nov., heads beginning to feather, yellow-green of plumage on body beginning to look much like that of parents. On 16th the young left the nest, therefore incubation lasted eleven days, young occupied nest ten days. One, killed in some way, was found lying in Tea-tree twigs, and I here give the plumage of the young as they leave the nest : — Head yellowish -green, back the same, mantle ashy -grey, inter- webs of wing-quills yellowish-green, bill brown, legs grey ; throat, breast and abdomen white, latter slightly tinged with buff, which is more distinct on flanks ; tail f inch long, blackish and tinged on edge of webs -with yellow'-green like wings ; upper tail-coverts yellowy-green, lower white with slight buff tint ; total length, tip of bill to tip of tail 3 J inch. White eye-circle fairly well defined.” These observations were confirmed several times with exactly the same results and little variation as “ the young was like the parent, except that there was a buff patch behind the eyes, and the white eye-circle was very ill defined, more like a bare ring where feathers were yet to grow. There seems a good deal of variation in this eye-ring in the fledglings, some on leaving nest having it well defined, others showing more like a bare surface ; the tail was very short.” Dove also noted : “ The males are very pugnacious at breeding-time ; on 14th Oct. a number of the species flew into Tea-tree scrub, and two males in fine plumage, the buff on flanks showing conspicuously, began fighting in the branches and fell, locked together by their bills, into the tussocks beneath, where they separated. On 10th Nov. also I noticed two males fall out of a small tree locked in the same manner. On 16th June (midwinter) a large party of White-eyes occupied an extensive bush of Coast Wattle (A. sophorce) and sang in chorus in a very charming way, making a surprisingly loud sound, which could be heard at a considerable distance. On 8th Nov. a male was singing vigorously, while perched by himself, a short strain oft repeated, not unlike that of some of the male Flame-breasted Robins, and quite different from the soft inward song heard from individuals at nesting time. The song heard to-day was more of the loud, joyous type, as when all sing in chorus, noted above. 141 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Captain S. A. White has written me : “ This is a very numerous bird at times along the coastal belt. I have not observed it myself far inland, but have heard of it reaching as far north as Broken Hill. From January to March these birds are very plentiful in the orchards on the Adelaide plains and do some damage amongst soft fruits, mostly grapes, but I feel sure they do much more good. In years gone by they nested in numbers in the salt-water tea-tree and it was not uncommon to see two or three of their well shapen nests containing three or four bright blue eggs. Then cry is a short, mournful one, and often uttered upon the wing. This bird shifts to some distance according to food supplies. They visit the coastal sand-hills in the autumn in search of the ripe currants when that native bush is hi full fruit, and often remain well into the winter when the last of the fruit has dropped off ; they are also fond of other berries. Their food consists of insects, fruit and many native berries and fruits : it is wonderful what large berries this little bird can swallow. I am quite sure that Z. 1. halmaturina is not a good subspecies, for I have a very large series of birds and have many taken on the mainland with much deeper- coloured flanks than any I have seen on Kangaroo Island. Z. 1. chlorocephalus. I found this bird plentiful on North-west Island and Tryon Island of the Capricorn Group. It is a sweet songster and I often sat and listened to its song amidst the dense tropical vegetation. They were nesting on the Islands during our visits ; insects and small berries seemed to constitute their food, the myaporum berry being much sought after.” Mr. L. G. Chandler’s notes read : “ These little birds are common throughout the State of Victoria. They are great pests in the orchard when the fruit is ripening and are so tame it is difficult to scare them away. They certainly must do an enormous amount of good by destroying noxious insects during the remainder of the year and in this way return good for evil. The young are fed on a varied diet of insects and fruit, and I have often watched the parent birds feeding their young on the green, unripe berries of the mid current bush, which seems a strange diet.” Air. Thos. P. Austin has sent me from Cobbora, New South Wales : “ Small flocks arrive here towards the end of the summer, when the grapes are ripe, but it is a very rare thing to see them in this district at any other time. I saw a pair in September, 1915, perched together like love-birds in a small tree growing on a scrubby rocky hill, this being the only time I have seen them in such country. In the Geelong district, Victoria, and about Sydney, they are very common, and a great pest in the orchards and vineyards, attacking all kinds of soft fruit. They are particularly fond of pears ; starting with a small hole they work their way inside, until there is nothing but the skin and core left. When a boy I have often watched them enter, then quietly walked up 142 WHITE-EYE. and caught them ; but almost at any time while feeding on fruit they become so fearless of man’s approach they will almost allow themselves to be caught by hand. I have often tried to do this, but have never actually been successful, excepting as above mentioned. They have a little song, but more often their call is a monotonous single note.” Mr. E. J. Christian’s notes read : “ This little bird is found more commonly in the moister districts, though we get a few here, but they are not found in great numbers. He is called ‘ Silver Eye,' ‘ Ring-Eye ’ and ‘ Blight-bird,’ no doubt deserving the last on account of the work it does in orchards. It eats many larvje of different moths and does good work amongst Aphis. It does not confine itself to fruit trees, but very often is found among the Acacias. These little buds generally go in small flocks of from three or four to eight or nine. Sometimes the flocks are larger, and in Tasmania I have seen flocks as big as fifteen to twenty. However, in most cases, the small flock seems to be the general rule. As they fly they call with rather a plaintive fit tie note which to me has always a ring of sadness in it. However, sometimes when in the cool shade of a leafy tree on a warm day one can hear them singing a song very low and sweet. It does not carry far and one has to be right underneath the tree to hear and appreciate it.” A very nice account of this species has been published in the South Australian Ornithologist, and as it covers the economy so neatly I make no apology for quoting the major portion : “ Habits. — It spends most of its time in low trees and bushy undergrowth, congregating into small flocks in the autumn and winter, and separating into pairs for the breeding-season. It apparently appreciates civilization, being much commoner in gardens and orchards than in unsettled country. They are most fearless little birds : shooting, scarecrows, and every other means the gardener can devise, do not frighten them in the least. “ Food. — All soft fruits, especially figs, grapes, apricots, and olives. The full extent of the damage done by these birds is not so much the quantity eaten as the habit they have of pecking small holes in the most forward portion of the ripening fruit. They are also very destructive amongst strawberry and raspberry crops. Mistletoe berries and pepper-tree berries ( Shinus molle) are also eaten. This accounts for seedlings of the latter tree coming up in places frequented by this bird, especially near water taps and other damp places where they drink. Insects are captured on the wing, the bird returning to its perch with the prize. In winter the principal food is aphides, the blight of fruit-trees and flowers ; in this respect they do much good. At this time they also work for insects on the ground. “ Flight. Quick and jerky. They do not fly more than a few yards except THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. when migrating, when they travel long distances without settling. Some years ago they migrated to New Zealand and settled there. In that country they are thought much of as insect destroyers. “ Song. — The White-eye has several distinctive notes. Wien in search of food it utters a long-drawn plaintive call of three notes. The same call is uttered in flight, but is then shorter. The alarm call is a shrill short note, but is not loud. The true, or love, song is a beautiful sustained trilling warble with a considerable range of notes, but so low-pitched as to be inaudible at a short distance. They usually sing while resting in a thick bush in the heat of the day. It is quite pretty to see a pair of White-eyes sitting side by side on a twig, the male singing his best, and frequently looking at his mate to see if it is being appreciated. . . The breeding-season lasts from July to December, two or three broods being reared. Sometimes two or three pairs wiU build in the same tree. . . . The White-eye is included (in South Australia ?) in the Third Schedule of The Birds Protection Act of 1900, ix., totally unprotected. This is on account of its fruit eating proclivities. Mr. Frank Littler has sent me the following account : “ This species frequents all sorts of country from heavily-timbered districts to cultivated orchards. It is principally during the autumn and winter months that the birds congregate in any numbers; often flocks of from a dozen to fifty, if not more, may be seen hunting for food in the fields. During the summer it moves in pairs or in a very small flock at most. It eats insects, seeds, small berries and fruit. It is very fond of the berry-like seeds of the grass palm. It is also a great destroyer of noxious insects. The movements of this bird when insect hunting are very rapid. It seems animated with the desire to devour as many as possible in the shortest possible time. It destroys the pear slugs just before they turn to pupse in the ground. During the summer the song of the W liite- eye is somewhat feeble and uninteresting, but the opposite is the case during the colder months. I have often been astonished at the power and sweetness of its song. The flight of this species is fairly strong, and it may sometimes be seen flying in flocks at a great altitude.” A delightful plea for this species was published in the first number of the Emu from the pen of Mr. Littler, where he urged that the good they did much counterbalanced their evil deeds. Dove also contributed an article some five years later, also favourable to this species, though admitting that it does damage fruit, and later wrote : “ As to the propensities of the White-eye for good or evil, observers are as widely separated as the poles. At the New South Wales Fruit Grovers Conference in 1890, James Norton, M.L.C., condemned our sprightly little friend as 4 the greatest pest which gardeners in this colony have to contend 144 WHITE-EYE. with ; he seems to take a mischievous delight in sampling every fruit, without regard to his own wants.’ ” A. G. Hamilton, Mt. Kembla, said at the same Conference : “ Although these little Honey-eaters are very destructive to grapes and stone fruit, they do an immense amount of good by clearing the trees of aphides in winter and early spring. A flock of them will peep and pry about a leafless tree and in a short time clear it of many obnoxious insects.” In Victoria, French marks it as one of the most destructive visitants to orchards and vineyards, while Robert Hall says : “It is the scourge of the aphis and other noxious insects when there is no fruit upon the tree,” and quotes Hill : “ the White-eye is the chief enemy of the case moth, destroying the young larvae in great numbers ; indeed, but for these useful little birds the case moths might easily become a serious insect pest.” Chisholm also reported favourably : “ First of all, it is the great enemy of that most destructive pest, the fruit-tree aphis. I have frequently watched groups of White-eyes busily clearing aphis of various colours oil all kinds of fruit trees. Each bird takes a certain branch area and works systematically, industriously, and well. I am always sorry to see them leave, for I consider them better and certainly cheaper than all spray pumps and other mechanical devices. . . I have also frequently watched this energetic little bird feasting on some small insect (name unknown to me) which causes a lot of damage among the rhubarb plants. And if this were not sufficient evidence to support its claim to the friendship and protection of the orchardist, it is a great enemy of the codlin moth and pear-tree slug — two of the greatest pests the grower has to contend with. . . Taking it on the whole, I can unhesitatingly affirm that (in this district, at all events) the good done by this much-maligned little bird far outbalances what little damage it may cause.” Cleland has recorded the contents of the stomachs of a number of these birds killed in February, April, May, June, August and October, and all, even the one in October, showed remains of insects, sometimes associated with fruit juices and flowers. Miss Cheney has also written from the Wangaratta District, Victoria : “ Not very common. It seemed to be confined to certain orchards. There is a difference in opinion as to their value, bub I think that the balance is in their favour.” Recently Le Souef and Macpherson writing up the Birds of Sydney, air invaluable little article as all the earliest named Australian birds were received from Sydney, stated : “ The White-eyes ( Zoster ops dorsalis ) are perhaps the most numerous of our local native birds.” (Contrast this with Watlings statement: “This is the only one of the kind ever seen.”) “They will be VOL. XI. 145 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. seen in any patch of greenery eagerly searching for insects, but they certainly come in for a good deal of condemnation from the fruit growers during summer. In the autumn they flock, and presumably a good many leave, but. their place is probably taken by others from further south, for there are numbers with us all the winter. Flocks are not infrequently heard going over at night. A few yearn ago a flock of about 100 were making a great to-do one evening about sundown. Twice they started off, only to be recalled by waverers for further argument ; for the third time the flock moved off, and got away about 100 yards, when with many shrill cries about one-third of them returned, but the main body kept on towards the north.” The technical history of this common species is somewhat complicated. Hr theu account of Australian Birds in the Collection of the Linnaean Society Vigors and Horsfield introduced a new genus Zosterops for a species of “ Warbler ” which they called Zosterops dorsalis, and recognised as the same species Swainson’s Sylvia annulosa var B. Swainson wrote : “ On first receiving this bird from New' Holland, I was inclined to think it a distinct species from the African White-eyed Warbler, but further consideration has led me to adopt a different opinion ; if true I am unacquainted with any one land bird which is common to both countries, and much weight should he attached to the geographic distribution both of families and species. These two birds, however, differ in their colour, and somewhat hi their size. . . On the whole, therefore, I am inclined to consider them as varieties of one species, forming a solitary exception to the general dissimilarity between the birds of Africa and those of New Holland.” The coloured figure given is of the summer plumage. Vigors and Horsfield had no hesitation in accepting the observed differences as of specific value and named it as above. Gould figured the species under Vigors’ and Horsfield’s specific name, their genus being universally accepted almost as soon as published. When Gray examined the Lambert drawings he recognised the one upon which Latham had based his Gerthia ccerulescens as a Zosterops, indicating Zosterops tenuirostris Gould as the species ; then from the Lambert figure of Sylvia lateralis Latham, Gray proposed to use Zosterops lateralis for the Zosterops dorsalis of Vigors and Horsfield. Gould, apparently influenced by Strickland, determined ccerulescens as also applicable to the present species, and as it had anteriority of position utilised it in preference to lateralis. Sharpe, when he monographed the Zosteropidse for Gadowr, in the ninth volume of the Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum, without reading the descriptions and without the paintings upon which they w’ere based, used ccerulescens. 146 WHITE-EYE. When Sharpe examined the Watling drawings he wrote : “No. 110 Caerulean Creeper, Lath., Gen. Syn., Suppl. II., p. 169. Certhia ccerulescens Lath., Ind. Orn., Suppl., p. xxxviii. Zosterops ccerulescens Sharpe, Cat. B., IX., p. 152.” Tins is evidently intended for a Zosterops, but the colours are not very exact. The wliite eyelid is shown in Watling’s drawing, which is of the “ natural size. ’ Latham does not mention the white eyelid in his description, which, however, is manifestly founded on Watling’s picture, which thus becomes the type of Z. ccerulescens (Lath.). As we now know Latham’s names were founded on the Lambert drawings, and it is notable that the Rusty-sided Warbler was not recognised by Latham among the Watling series, but instead is (still quoting Sharpe’s account) : “ No. 209 Ciliary Warbler, Lath. MS. ; id., Gen. Hist. B., VII., p. Ill (1823). Zosterops ccerulescens (Lath.) Sharpe, Cat. B., IX., p. 152.” Watling gives the following note : “ One-half the natural size. This little bird is the only one of the kind ever seen ; the wliite round the ciliary process of the eye is composed of the most beautiful small white feathers. The pride and vanity of the draughtsman has induced him to put his name to all the drawings, but should you publish them I think the name may be left out.” No. 210 Ciliary Warbler, Lath. MS. (See No. 209.) Watling’s note : “ Three-fourths the natural size. The iris is doubtful.” It will be noted that here Watling states he has put his name to all the drawings. When Latham published his Ciliary Warbler he wrote : “ Described from a fine drawing in the possession of Mr. Francillon,” and notes two forms. This suggests still another series of drawings, as \ieillot desci’ibed from Francillon’s drawings, but it has been hitherto conjectured that Erancillon had been loaned the Lambert drawings, but this now seems doubtful. I here reproduce both descriptions as this is of some importance : “ C(erthia) caerulescens. C. fusca subtus incamata, gula juguloque griseo- caeruleis, remigibus reetricibusque caeruleo-nigris Caerulean Creeper, Gen. Syn. Slip. II., p. 169, 32. Habitat in Nova Hollandia : magnitudo Sylvice : rostrum tenue obscurum. “ Caerulean Cr(eeper). Size cf the White Throat-, bill a trifle curved, but slender as in the Warbler genus, colour dusky ; the plumage on the upper part is pale brown, beneath pale flesh-colour ; fore parts of the neck pale blue-grey ; quills and tail dusky ; legs dusky. Inhabits New South Wales.” This description is not good. 147 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Latham’s : “ S(ylvia) lateralis. S. griseo-ceeruleseens subtus albida, alis uropygio recticibusque lateralibus viridibus, loris nigris Rusty-sided Warbler, Gen. Syn. Sup. II., p. 250, 38. Habitat in Nova Hollandia, parva species magnitudine Troglodytis latera corporis ferruginea. “ Rusty-sided W(arbler). Size of a Wren ; bill dusky ; legs pale ; the greater part of the head and wings, lower part of the back, and all except the two middle tail-feathers green ; hind part of the neck, the beginning of the back, and the two middle tail-feathers blue-grey ; under-parts of the body whitish, but the sides of it are ferruginous ; between the bill and eye a narrow streak of black. Found with the last (New South Wales).’1 This is an excellent account. Quoy and Gaimard named and figured a bird from Western Port, Victoria, just a little later than Vigors and Horsfield had introduced their genus Zoster ops. Vigors and Horsfield’s description reads: “ Dorsalis. Zost. flavescenti-viridis, dorso cinereo, striga ante subtusque oculos nigra ; subtus flavescenti-albidus, gutture pallide flavo, abdominis lateribus ferrugineo tinctis. Remiges rectricesque fuse®, flavescenti-olivaceo marginatse, subtus pallidiores. Tectrices alarum inferiores albidae. Orbitae plumulis albis vestitae. Rostrum pedesque flavescenti-fusci. Longitudo corporis, 4f ; alee a carpo ad remigen tertian, 2T^ ; caudae l^j ; rostri ad frontem, f ; ad rictum, ; tarsi J. Mr. Caley has not noticed the habits of this bird, beyond its having built its nest in a mulberry tree close to his house.” Quoy et Gaimard’s description reads : “ Daenis, rostro conico, acutissimo; palpebris albis ; gula genisque flavis ; capite uropygio et alis virescentibus ; dorso cinereo; abdomine flavo.” I have reprinted this description as it may prove important as the first description of the yellow-throated bird which Sharpe separated as a distinct species under the name Z. westernensis Q. and G., which was published three years later. This is the more strange as the type of Vigors and Horsfield’s Z. dorsalis is in the British Museum. Quoy and Gaimard’s figure appears to have been drawn from a young bird and much over coloured. Sharpe used ccerulescens for the white-throated form and westernensis for the yellow-throated one, regarding them as distinct species, and Hartert so accepted them. North, however, collected a series in the neighbourhood of Sydney which he contended proved that the yellow-tlnoated form was only the spring and summer plumage of the white-throated one. North’s conclusions were accepted by Australians and I have followed tliis usage, but 148 WHITE-EYE. in recent years many facts have tended to discount North’s results, and I now suggest that the matter he reopened and as the bird is common, hurtful and not protected, sufficient material can be collected : not fifty sldns, but five hundred from many localities and the facts determined. Item No. 1. In Tasmania no yellow-throated birds occur and the young are the same as the adult. Item No. 2. In January in Victoria both yellow- and white-throated birds occur. Item No. 3. In Queensland only yellow-throated birds occur. Item No. 4. On Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands the two forms occur as very different species. Item No. 5. In New Zealand where this bird is supposed to have migrated from Australia all the birds examined agree in being white-throated, no yellow-throated birds being seen, though birds in juvenile and adult plumage, in summer and winter, have been examined. It is somewhat difficult to disentangle the synonymy, and as the matter is sub judice I have left the references under the one name, but here indicate the ranges and distinctions of the two forms. Masters nearly fifty years ago described Zosterops ramsayi : “ Male. Crown of the head, neck, throat, wings, rump and under tail-coverts, greenish- yellow ; lores, and a fine beneath the eye, black ; back and chest, bluish- grey ; abdomen light grey, passing into very fight buff on the flanks ; eyes surrounded by a very large zone of white feathers ; primaries and secondaries brownish-black, margined on their outer webs with yellow ; beneath, on their inner webs, with white ; tail, brown, margined with yelloAv ; legs and feet bluish-grey ; upper mandible brownish-black ; under mandible horn- colour ; irides brown. Total length 4*4 ; wing, 2*4 ; tail, 1*75 ; tarsi, 0*65 ; bill from fore-head, 0*5 ; from gape, 0*6.” Two specimens from Palm Island, Torres Straits : “ Easily distinguished by the very large zone of white feathers surrounding the eye.” “ Although they appeared to be tolerably numerous, we found it very difficult to obtain specimens as they frequented the highest trees in the dense scrubs.” Overlooking this description Hartert, twenty odd years later, named : “ Zosterops westemensis vegeta. The Zosterops from Cape York differ from specimens from New South Wales and Victoria (the type is from Western Port in Victoria) in being smaller and the colours somewhat clearer. The flanks are less brown, the under tail-coverts bright sulphur-yellow instead of white, with a faint tinge of yellow, as in Z. westemensis westemensis. Lis light brown, feet dark slate-colour, bill black, bluish slate-colour towards the 149 I THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. base of the lower jaw. Types shot in July, Cape York. The female is like the male ; one of the females has a sulphur-yellow wash on the middle of the abdomen, wing 56-57, $ wing 56-57 mm. Zosterops westemensis tephor- pleura, from Lord Howe’s Island, is more like the Cape York bird than like typical Z. westemensis, but larger, the wing more than 60 mm. Zosterops westemensis jlaviceps, from the Fiji Islands, seems to differ constantly from the Australian forms of Z. westemensis by having light coloured feet and bilk, though the colour of the plumage is very much like that of Z. westemensis westemensis .” It will be noted that Hartert here treated the yellow-throated form as a distinct species. Later, A. G. Campbell in his memorable essay on the Birds of Kangaroo Island named Zosterops halmaturina (new subspecies) : “ Here, too, is an interesting link. Z. ccerulescens, of South-eastern Australia, is characterized by its grey back, chestnut flanks, and greyish throat (sometimes tinged with greenish-yellow) ; Z. gouldii, of Western Australia, by its green back, greyish flanks, and yellow throat. The Kangaroo Island bird has grey back, greyish flanks, and yellow upper throat, thus linking one with another. The legs are of a very light horn-colour, and not grey-black; the bill is heavier— •4 in. against ‘33 in. ; wing is 2*25 in. ; tarsus -7 in. Withal it is quite a distinct variety.” North recorded : “ The White-eye appeared to be the same as the ordinary species of South Australia ( Zosterops ccerulescens), the slight difference of coloration being attributed to seasonable changes,” and wrote me to the same effect. Broadbent recorded Z. ccerulescens as “ Common at Cardwell.” Campbell and White, reporting on the Birds of the Capricorn Group, wrote: " Zosterops were numerous and appeared to breed upon the islands, judging by a few old nests. As at some of our more southern camps, it was delightful to listen to the subdued chorus of the birds’ sweet warbling songs at daybreak. Regularly on Mast Head they commenced to warble from 10 to 5 minutes before 5 o’clock. White-eyes were observed in great numbers on North- West and Tryon Islands, where, also, the nesting season had not yet commenced. Several skins were procured, the first by Mr. J. W. Mellor. From a critical examination of these skins it was at once noticeable that they are not referable to Z. ccerulescens, but are more in agreement with the description of Quoy and Gaimard’s Z. ivesternensis. Should further research prove them different, we venture to suggest the name Z. chlorocephalus, or Green-headed White-eye (on account of the ‘ clean-cut ’ markings of that colour), the following being the general description : Male. Distinct ring of silvery-white round 150 WHITE-EYE. the eye, succeeded by a black line under the eye ; head, mantle, upper wing- coverts and upper tail-coverts bright olive-green ; back grey, blending into the greenish mantle ; wings and tail dark brown, the primaries and tail- feathers edged with bright olive-green ; chin, throat and under tail-coverts greenish-yellow ; rest of tho under-surface greyish-blue, darkest on the chest, and approaching greyish-white on the abdomen. Bill dark brown, the basal half of the lower mandible lighter coloured ; tarsus dark grey. Dimensions in inches : Length 4f ; wing ; bill 2T^ ; tail 2 ; tarsus Campbell and Barnard, recently reporting upon Birds from North Queens¬ land, stated : “ Whether the Rockingham Bay bird be a subspecies of lateralis (i.e., dorsalis) as Mathews contends, or not, it is the same kind of Zosterops that was obtained on the Capricorn Group by the Union’s Expedition 1909, and provisionally named Z. chlorocephalus. These little birds were fairly plentiful in the coastal country, and their chirping songs were always heard at dawn, provided noises caused by wind, etc., did not drown the birds’ voices.” Macgillivray also wrote : “ This is the mainland Silver-eye. It was quite common along the edge of the scrub, whether bordering the open forest or overhanging the river. The broad ring around the eye is a conspicuous feature in this species. Curiously enough, although this bird is so common on the mainland, the type (of Z. ramsayi) is labelled as having been obtained on Palm Island, Torres Strait.” When I prepared my “ Reference List ” in 1912 I accepted North’s conclusion that the yellow-throated and white-throated birds wrere referable to the same species and, therefore, arranged the subspecies thus : Zosterops lateralis lateralis (Latham). New South Wales. I rejected ccerulescens as inapplicable and synonymised Z. dorsalis Vigors and Horsfield. Zosterops lateralis westernensis (Quoy and Gaimard). Victoria, South Australia. Zosterops lateralis tasmanica Mathews. “ Differs from Z. 1. lateralis in having a much narrower grey mantle. (Devonport) Tasmania.” Tasmania. Zosterops lateralis halmaturina A. G. Campbell. Kangaroo Island. Zosterops lateralis ramsayi Masters. North Queensland (Cape York). Of this I ranked Z. westernensis vegeta Hartert as synonymous. j it 151 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Zosterops lateralis cornwalli Mathews. “ Differs from Z. 1. ramsayi in its larger size (wing 61 mm.) and less brilliant yellow on the vent. Mackay, Queensland.” Mid- Queensland. Zosterops lateralis gouldi Bonaparte. West Australia. Zosterops lateralis tephropleura Gould. Capricorn Group, Barrier Reef, Queensland. “Note. — Zosterops tephropleura Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond), 1855, p. 166, was described as from Lord Howe Island. The type specimen which I have now before me is the bird recently described by Campbell and White as Zosterops chlorocephalus, the types of which I have carefully compared with it. The only conclusion I can arrive at is that Z. tephropleura did not come from Lord Howe Island, but was collected somewhere on the Barrier Reef. In confirmation I may state that the specimen was received by Gould with birds from Lord Howe Island and also from the Barrier Reef sent from Cape York. Further evidence is that the specimen lacks Macgillivray’s original label, and I therefore presume it arrived without such label and was erroneously credited bo Lord Howe Island. Macgillivray’s specimens are beautifully labelled and accurate, and that this specimen lacks data in itself causes suspicion as to its connect locality. I have seen no specimen at all like it from Lord Howe Island, and cannot trace any recent record.” In my 1913 “ List ” the same arrangement appears on pp. 252-3, but on p. xxvi the correction is made, as in the meanwhile I had received a series of the time tephropleura from Lord Howe Island, and though very similar there were slight differences seen which were constant in the series. About the same time, dealing with birds from Flinders Island, Captain S. A. White recorded his conclusions : “ I have minutely examined a large series of Zosterops from South Australia, Kangaroo Island, Tasmania, and Flinders Island, and I am of the firm opinion that Z. lateralis , Z. westernensis, Z. tasmanica and Z. halmaturina are not separable.” In the South Austr. Ornithologist, Yol. II., pt. 3, p. 62, 1915, a full acount of the Silver-eye is given, and the writers (the article is anonymous) state : “ The Kangaroo Island does not differ in any respect.” Their des¬ cription of the throat reads “ greyish-white, washed with yellowish-green," which suggests the wliite-throated, not the yellow-throated form. No mention is made of any plumage changes, so that no conclusion can be arrived at as to whether they regarded the bird described by A. G. Campbell as a seasonal phase or not. I have also no record as to whether both wliite-throated and yellow-throated birds occur on Kangaroo Island. 152 WHITE-EYE. This leaves us at the following position : Zoslerops lateralis lateralis (Latham). New South Wales, (?) Victoria, (?) South Australia. Zoslerops lateralis tasmanica Mathews. Tasmania, (?) Flinders Island. Zosterops lateralis investigator subsp. nov. New Zealand. The New Zealand form is credited with arriving from Australia and spreading all over New Zealand. When Iredale and I drew up the Reference List of the Birds of New Zealand we noted that all the New Zealand birds were like Tasmanian ones and used the name of the Tasmanian subspecies. The green of the head is becoming more restricted, the grey on the back less, the flanks darker, the breast paler, the black lores more pronounced, the throat scarcely tinged with yellow, the bill longer. Whether these changes have taken place in the last sixty years or not I cannot say, but it is necessary to provide a name to attract attention to the fact that, according to the birds examined, a distinct form appears to be evolving. As above noted, only one stage of plumage has been seen, as yet, from New Zealand, viz., the so- called winter plumage. All the rest of the Eastern White-eyes, as I now separate Z. gouldi the Western form as specifically distinct, are referable to the yellow green-throated series, of which I conclude the oldest name is Z. dorsalis, and hence I allow : Zosterops dorsalis dorsalis Vigors and Horsfield. New South Wales, (?) South Queensland (Mainland). Zosterops dorsalis westernensis (Quoy and Gaimard). Victoria, South Australia. Zosterops dorsalis halmaturina A. G. Campbell. Kangaroo Island. I am leaving this here until the matter of plumage changes is settled, as well as nature of South Australian mainland birds. Captain S. A. White, reporting upon the Birds of Mallacoota, Victoria, has written : “ Very plentiful. They were breeding in many localities. Several nests containing eggs were seen, and the eggs appeared to be a little larger than the average of those of the South Australian bird. On comparing the birds I find that the specimens from Mallacoota approach much more closely the Kangaroo Island bud (Z. halmaturina) than the mainland birds, the grey of the back and the yellow of the throat and head being much more pronounced than it is in either the South Australian or Bass Strait island birds.” VOL. XI. 153 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. A little later, under the name of Z. lateralis westernensis he wrote: “ Plentiful on the Althorpe Islands and at Pondalowie Bay, on mainland, also on Wedge Island. I have not put this bird under Z. 1. halmaturina, because I am quite sure the Kangaroo Island and mainland birds are the same.” Zosterops dorsalis chlorocephalus Campbell and White. Capricorn Group, Barrier Reef, Queensland. Tliis is much the largest of the series. Zosterops dorsalis cornwalli Mathews. Mid- Queensland. This is notably less than the preceding though somewhat similarly coloured. Zosterops dorsalis ramsayi Masters. North Queensland. This is still less than the preceding and the white-eye ring is very pronounced. Ramsay, fifty years ago, wrote : “ The Queensland specimens of the species are frequently smaller than our New South Wales birds, and often of a brighter tint on the head and throat, the silver ring round the eye is comparatively larger and more conspicuous.” It is interesting in tliis connection to emphasize Ashby’s note in connection with Z. gouldi written last year : “ Almost the counterpart of the handsome yellow-throated species common in the tropical brush on the Northern Rivers, New South Wales, and which I have always identified as Z. ramsayi, except that the eastern bird has a grey back and the western one a green back.” The Cape York bird Z. ramsayi is a smaller form, but this recalls Campbell’s record ( Nests and Eggs, p. 351) : “ In examining the collection of Mr. S. A. White, Fulham (South Australia), I came across a Zosterops with a rather stout bill and conspicuous yellow throat, which I believe is referable to this species (Z. albiventris). It was shot by the late Mr. Samuel White in the Barrier Ranges, New South Wales.” These would be very near to typical Z. dorsalis of this account. An extraordinary aberration was thus described by Dr. Horne : “ About eighteen months ago Miss Bowie had in her aviaries a grey Zosterops, or White- eye. Unfortunately it died, and was destroyed by a pah of Amherst Pheasants. Last month (1907) we were fortunate enough to obtain another specimen from Morang (Victoria) where the bird-catcher tells me he has often seen them. It forms a marked contrast to Z. ccerulescens — the olive-yellow being replaced by grey. The markings on the primaries are different and the abdomen darker. The wings are longer and the tarsus shorter than in Z. casrulescens, and the bird appears rather slighter in contour.” Then Dr. Horne gave a complete description and named the variety Zosterops bounce. When in Australia I was allowed the opportunity of examining this bird 154 WHITE-EYE. and drew up the following description : “ Zosterops lateralis boivice Horne. The type has the upper-surface greyish ; primaries dark brown, edged with grey ; under wing-coverts white ; throat and upper breast grey ; abdomen and vent Avhitish ; sides of the body brown as in normal birds ; the grey of the back in normal birds extends all over the upper-surface in this one, but is darker than normal birds.” I have not noted any more records of this eccentric bird. It must be noted here that there is a great literature surrounding the colonisation of New Zealand by a species of Zosterops, and from all accounts this minute bird has the ability to cross large tracts of water, and also spreads quickly in favourable circumstances. 155 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 624. Family ZOSTEROPIBM . ZOSTEROPS AUSTRAL ASI/E. GREEN-BACKED WHITE-EYE. (Plate 506.) Sylvia Australasia Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. XI., p. 235, June 21st, 1817 : King George’s Sound, South-west Australia. Sylvia australasice Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., Vol. XI., p. 235, June 21st, 1817. Zosterops chloronotus Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1840, p. 165, July 1841 : West Australia=Pertb(?); Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xi. (Vol. IV., pi. 82), June 1st, 1843. Not Dicaeum chloronotus Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. IX., p. 408, 1817, which is a species of Zosterops. Zosterops gouldi Bonaparte, Consp. Gen. Av., Vol. I., p. 398, 1850 (before Feb. 1851): new name for Z. cbloronotus Gould ; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 588, 1865 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 162, 1884; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 38, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 350, 1901 ; Milligan, Emu, Vol. II., p. 73, p. 172, 1902-3 ; id., ib., Vol. III., p. 18, 1903; Carter, ib., p. 91, 1903; H. E. Hill, id., p. 227, 1904; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 212, 1904 ; Lawson, Emu, Vol. IV., p. 131, 1905; Gibson, ib., Vol. VIII., p. 66, 1908; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 89, 1908; Cleland, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 223, 1910 (Food) ; Mathews, List Birds Austral., p. 253, 1913 ; Orton and Sandland, Emu, Vol. XIII., p. 79, 1913 ; Alexander, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 33, 1916 ; Carter, Ibis, 1917, p. 608 ; Campbell, Emu, Vol. XVIII., p. 263, 1919; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XX., p. 128, 1921; Ashby, ib., p. 135; Mellor, ib., p. 139 ; Alexander, ib., p. 167 ; Whitlock, ib., p. 186. Zosterops shortridgii Ogilvie-Grant, Ibis, 1909, p. 663 (Oct. No., reed. B.M.Nov. 27th, 1909): Rabbit Island, Albany, South-west Australia ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. X., p. 317, 1911. Zosterops lateralis gouldi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 386, 1912. Zosterops goiddi warreni Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. III., pt. 3, p. 62, April 7th, 1916 : Warren River, South-west Australia. Zosterops australasice Mathews, ib., Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 36, 1923. Zosterops australasice edwini Mathews, ib., Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 36, Feb. 21st, 1923: Carnarvon, Mid-west Australia. Zosterops australasice australasice Mathews, ib., 1923. Distribution. South-west Australia. 156 Wittier try &C° H.Gronvold del. ZOSTEROPS AUSTRAL A SI AE ( GREEN-3 A CKED WHITE —EYE ) ZOSTEROPS ALBIVENTRIS ( PAL E-B EL LIED WHITE —E TEE.) ZOSTEROPS LUTE A. ( YELLOW WHITE-EYE) £06 o- o o 3: <4. tn o $ GREEN-BACKED WHITE-EYE. Adult male. General colour of tlie upper-surface dull yellowish-green, including the top of the head, nape, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, rump, upper tail- coverts, scapulars, inner upper wing-coverts, and outer margins of secondary-quills ; marginal upper wing-coverts, bastard- wing, and primary-coverts more or less inter¬ mixed with cinnamon-rufous ; outer wTebs of primary-quills minutely edged with pale yellowish-green, the inner- webs cinnamon-rufous margined with white on the basal portion, becoming uniform hair-brown towards the tips ; tail hair-brown with yellowish-green margins to the feathers on the outer webs and obsolete cross¬ bars ; loros and a portion of the eye-ring black ; chin, throat and under tail-coverts lemon-yellow ; breast and sides of breast pale grey becoming whitish on the middle of the abdomen and tinged with cinnamon on the sides of the body ; thighs dusky ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and margins of quills below whitish tinged with cinnamon ; under-surface of flight-quills dark greyish-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar but paler. Bill pale horn, culmen darker, eyes brown, feet pale greyish- horn. Total length 120 mm. ; culmen 8, wing 57, tail 46, tarsus 17. Figured. Collected in the Stirling Ranges, South-west Australia, on the 26th of September, 1910. Adult female similar to the adult male. Adult female . General colour of the upper-surface olive-green, including the top of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and outer aspect of flight-quills; remainder of flight- quills hair-brown fringed with white on the inner margins ; tail also hair-brown narrowly fringed with whitish on the inner-webs ; eye-ring white edged with black on the frontal portion ; chin and throat lemon-yellow ; breast and sides of body vinous-grey ; abdomen cream-white ; under tail-coverts lemon-yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white like the inner edges of the quills below, remainder of quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar but rather paler. Eyes dark brown, feet horn, bill horn, with culmen darker. Total length 111 mm. ; culmen 8, wing 57, tail 45, tarsus 16. Collected in the Stirling Ranges, South-west Australia, on the 20th of October, 1910. Breeding birds “ have grey flanks and yellow thighs.” (Whitlock.) Eggs. Two to four for a clutch. A clutch of three taken on Dirk Hartog Island, Western Australia, on the 23rd of July, 1920, is of a light bluish-green, and lighter than those of the common Zosterops lateralis. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth, but almost devoid of gloss. 13-14 mm. by 10. Nest. A small cup-shaped structure, very closely resembling that built by Zosterops lateralis , and placed in a small bush, sometimes within three feet of the ground. Breeding-months. August to December. In the Nouv . Diet. d'Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. XL, p. 235, June 21st, 1817, Vieillot described : “ Le Pouillot de l’Australasie, Sylvia australasice VieilL, est d’un vert-olive tirant au jaune sur la tete ; de cette derniere couleur sur le bord du front, la gorge et le devant du cou ; blanc sur les parties posterieures ; noiratre sur les pennes des ailes et de la queue, dont les bords sont d’un vert-jaune ; le bee brun ; les pieds couleur de chair rembrunie. Taille du pouillot fitis This description, which appears hitherto to have been overlooked, is a good one of the West Australian Zosterops , which has long been known as 157 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 7j. gouldi Bonaparte. The specimen described was probably collected at King George Sound by some of the French voyageurs, where this bird is common. Gould also described it, but as he selected a name previously used in this genus, Bonaparte renamed it after Gould. Gould’s notes read : “ Is an inhabitant of the western coast of Australia, where it constitutes a beautiful representative of the Z. ccerulescens of the southern and eastern coasts. As might be supposed, the habits, manners, actions and economy of two species so nearly allied are very similar ; hence the settlers of Swan River were not long in discovering that in this species they had found no friend to their gardens during the season when the fruits are ripening, wdiatever good it may effect by the destruction of insects at other periods. Gilbert informed me that : 6 This bird is particularly fond of figs and grapes, it consequently abounds in all the gardens where these plants are cultivated, and it is often to be seen as numerous as sparrows in England ; besides feeding upon fruits, I have also observed it taking flies while on the wing after the manner of the true Fly-catchers. Its note is a single plaintive one, several times repeated, and its flight is irregular and of short duration. The breeding-season commences in August, and ends in November ; those nests that came under my observation during the earlier part of the season invariably contained two eggs ; but in October and November I usually found the number to be increased to three, and upon one occasion to four.’ ” Mr. Tom Carter has written me : “ The Green-backed White-eye is one of the commonest birds through all the south-west of West Australia and was occasionally seen at Point Cloates. They are fairly numerous about Carnarvon, and those, who hr recent years, have started fruit gardens on the banks of the Gascoyne River complain about the damage done to the fruit from these birds piercing such a quantity with their sharp little beaks. This is a common complaint all through the south-west, grapes especially suffering from the probing. Countless thousands of birds are shot annually at the orchards. August 16th, 1911. Found a nest containing small young in a low bush near Carnarvon. Li the south-west this species is rather a late breeder, eggs being found from the end of September to the end of the year. The nest is very pretty, neatly made, of a deep cup-shape, mostly of fine dry grass, and a little hah’ or wool as a lining. It is usually built in a bush, about three or four feet above the ground. The clutch is two or tlmee eggs. At Broome Hill, Oct. 7th, 1906, two fresh eggs ; Oct. 18th, 1910, tlmee eggs. At Albany, Jan. 10th, 1910, two small young in nest. At Margaret River, three fresh eggs.” Captain S. A. White wrote me : “ This bird is like other members of this 158 GREEN-BACKED WHITE-EYE. family in note, food and habits. They are fairly plentiful in the south-western districts and I have found them breeding in the tea-trees near the coast in October and November. The usual clutch of eggs seems to be three, while at times they lay only two eggs. The nest is cup-shaped, composed of dry grass and rootlets ; at times cobwebs are used, but this is not general. The position of the nest varies in height from the ground from 4 to 20 feet and is generally placed in the drooping bough of a tea-tree.” The recent excursion of Eastern Ornithologists into West Australia was most productive of good field results, and a note by Ashby I also quote in connection with the Z. lateralis puzzle. Captain S. A. White wrote : “ A very plentiful bird, especially along the sea-coast, where it was nesting amongst the tea-tree and low shrubs. Its call is a short, mournful one, like that of the other members of this family of birds. Its bright coloration is very noticeable. Several nests were seen containing eggs.” Alexander noted from Perth : “ Resident. Very plentiful, especially near the coast, and found also on Rottnest and Garden Islands and some of the smaller islands further south.” No subspecies of this bird were named until by error Grant described Zoster ops shortridgii, and I here reproduce Whitlock’s remarks : “ My researches near the south coast did not result hi anything of special interest, but I paid some attention to a newly described species of White-eye ( Zosterops shortridgii) Grant. The types were procured on Rabbit Island, King George’s Sound. The latter island is only a huge mass of granite, whose area is limited to a couple of hundred acres or thereabouts, and only sepai’ated from the mainland by a very narrow channel. It was out of the question, therefore, that such conditions, with the absence of isolation, could produce a local species. Z. shortridgii is said to differ from Z. gouldi in having the middle of the breast, as well as the belly, thighs, and under tail-coverts, pale yellow, the sides and flanks greyer and only slightly washed with cinnamon. In Z. gouldi the thighs are always white. I found birds answering to this des¬ cription both to the north and to the west of Albany, and it may be noted that the cinnamon wash on the flanks in one or two I procured was absent. Again, I shot others with the latter characteristic very pronounced. I can only say at present, with certainty, that the birds with grey flanks and yellow thighs wrere breeding birds. Possibly the other type may have been breeding too ; but I am rather inclined to think the differences are due to age, and are not of specific value.” In 1912 I considered Z. gouldi as the geographical representative of the eastern Z. lateralis and only alknved it subspecific rank. In 1913 I elevated 159 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. it to specific rank, differentiating between geographical subspecies and geographical species, and selected King George Sound as the type locality, and then synonymised Grant’s Z. shortridgii. This may be incorrect, and from the data I would conclude that the types came from Perth ; in which case Z. shortridgii would be available for the Albany birds, if these prove separable from the Swan River form. I have named Zosterops gouldi warreni. “ Differs from Z. g. gouldi Bonaparte in being darker, especially below. Warren River, South-west Australia.” Warren River district. Then, as Ashby has recently confirmed my conclusion that the Carnarvon form was separable, 'writing : “ The birds at Geraldton are smaller and brighter in tint than birds observed at Perth.” I would admit tentatively four forms : Zosterops gouldi gouldi Bonaparte. Perth district, West Australia. Zosterops gouldi warreni Mathews. Warren River district, South-west Australia. This darker form probably continues through the very damp south-west corner district. Zosterops gouldi shortridgii Grant. King George’s Sound, probably to Stirling Ranges and inland to Broome Hill, etc. Nearer the typical form than the Warren River form. Zosterops gouldi edwini Mathews. Carnarvon. While it is possible that the Dirk Hartog Island form may prove separable, although Carter wrote : “ The Green -backed White-eye was numerous both on Dirk Hartog and the Peron, and some were seen on Edel Land. A com¬ parison with skins from the south-west showed no differences.” 160 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family ZOSTEROPIDM. No. 625. ZOSTEROPS ALBIVENTRIS. PALE -BELLI ED WHITE-EYE. (Plate 506.) Zosterops albiventris Reichenbach, “ Handb. Merop.,” i.e., Handb. Spec. Omith., Abth. II., p. 92 (leones Synops. Avium Cont., IX., March 1st, 1852), 1852 : “ Oceanien,” based on Hombr. & Jacq., Voy. Pdle Sud, pi. 19, f. 3, i.e., Zosterops a ventre blanc Hombron and Jacquinot, Voy. Pole Sud, plate 19, f. 3, Oct. 1844. Zosterops albiventris Reichenbach, Handb. Spec. Ornitli., Abth II., p. 92, 1852 ; Pucheran, Voy. Pole Sud, Zool., Vol. III., p. 95, 1853 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds, Vol. IX., p. 164, 1884 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 38, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 351, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 213, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 89, 190S ; id ., List Birds Austr., p. 253, 1913 ; Macgillivray, Emu, Vol. XIII., p. 175, 1914 (N.Q.) ; id., /&., Vol. XVH., p. 203, 1918 (N.Q.). Zosterops flavogularis Masters, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. I., p. 56, Feb. 1876 : Islands off Cape Grenville, North Queensland ; Ramsay, ib., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; North, ib,y Ser. 2, Vol, II,, p. 408, 1887 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888. Zosterops albiventris albiventris Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 384, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 253, 1913. Zosterops albiventris cairncrossi Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. III., pt. 3, p. 62, April 7th, 1916 ; Caimcross Island, Queensland. Distribution. North Queensland. (Never on the mainland.) Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface greenish-yellow, including the top of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and outer margins of flight-quills ; outer edge of bastard-wing dark brown ; inner webs of flight-quills liair-brown with pale margins ; tail dark brown with pale edgings on the inner webs and fringed with greenish- yellow on the outer ones ; eye-ring whitish ; lores and feathers in front of the eye black ; chin and throat bright lemon-yellow ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body cream- white ; under tail-coverts pale lemon-yellow ; axillaries and under wing- coverts white tinged with yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish-brown with white margins ; lower aspect of tail similar but paler. Eyes silvery-brown, VOL. XI. 161 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. upper mandible and tip of lower black, lower base greyish-black; legs bluish- grey. Figured. Collected on Cairncross Island, North Queensland, on the 20th of July, 1911. Adult female similar to the adult male. Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface yellowish-green, including the top of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing-coverts and outer aspect of the flight-quills ; inner webs of the last hair- brown with white margins ; tail pale hair-brown fringed with yellowish-green on the outer webs ; base of fore-head orange-yellow ; lores blackish ; eye-ring white ; chin, throat, and fore-neck pale yellow ; breast, sides of breast, and sides of body pale grey ; abdomen and thighs white ; under tail-coverts pale yellow ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and inner margins of quills below white, remainder of quill¬ lining dark hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar but somewhat paler. Eyes silvery-brown, upper mandible and tip of lower black, lower base greyish-black; legs bluish-grey. Total length 120 mm. ; culmen 10. wing 58, tail 41, tarsus 18. Collected at Cairncross Island, North Queensland, and is the type of Z. a. cairncrossi Eggs. Two to four for a clutch. A clutch of four eggs taken at Cape York, North Queensland, on the 22nd of December, 1909, is of a pale bluish-green. Rounded ovals in shape, surface of shell smooth, and almost quite free of gloss. 16-17 mm. by 13. Nest. Very similar in structure to that of Zoster ops lateralis. Breeding-months. September to January. This very distinct species was first figured in the Atlas of the Voyage Pole Sud and upon the figure Reichenbacli based his Zosterops albiventris , Pucheran publishing the official account of the Voyage the following year. Twenty years afterward Masters described as a new species Zosterops flavoguhris, and though he recorded half a dozen islands he gave no field-notes. The only other ornithologist to meet with this bird appears to be Macgillivray, who has written : “A pair of these birds was secured on Cairncross Island. They were numerous there, and also on Wednesday Island, York Island, Damley, and other of the Torres Strait Islands. When at anchor off York Island the singing of these birds seemed to come from some hundred of throats. Stomach contents, fruit juices and insects.” He later added : “ The type of the Pale-bellied White-eye came from Warrior Island in Torres Strait. We first noted it, and obtained two specimens on the Forbes Group. Both were females, and the stomach contents were insects and berries. There were many of these birds on Haggerstone Island, where they were busily engaged feeding amongst the branches of several flowering trees. Two nests were found, one just started, the other ready for occupation. This species is never found on the mainland, preferring the scrubs on islands off the coast.” 162 PALE-BELLIED WHITE-EYE. I recently named Zosterops albiventris cairncrossi. “ Differs from Z. a. albiventris Reichenbach in being whiter below, the under tail-coverts much yellower and the back a uniform green. Caimcross Island, Queensland.” I overlooked the fact that this would be typical flavogularis Masters, as I had selected Cape Grenville of the type locality of Masters’ form myself. At present I am inclined to refer all the specimens to one form, typical Z. albiventris Reichenbach. 163 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 626, Family ZOSTEROP1DM. ZOSTEROPS LUTEA. YELLO W W HIT E-EYE. (Plate 506.) Zosterops LTJTEUS Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xi., Yol. IV., pi. 83, June 1st, 1843: Greeuhill Island, Van Diemen’s Gulf, Northern Territory. Zosterops luteus* Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xi. (Vol. IV., pi. 83), June 1st, 1843 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 590, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc., N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 183, 1884; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 38, 1899 ; Campbell, Nest and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 351, 1901 ; Hall, Viet. Nat., Vol. XVI II., p. 31, 1901 ; id., Emu, Vol. II., p. 49, 1902 (N.W.A.) ; Carter, id., Vol. HI., p. 91, 1903(N.W.A.) ; Mathews, Hand! Birds Austral., p. 89, 1908; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 183, 1909 (W.A.) ; Crossman, ib., Vol. IX., p. 150, 1910 (W.A.) ; G. F. Hill, ib., Vol. X., p. 282, 1911 (N.W.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. XII., p. 262, 1913 (N.T.) ; H. L. White, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 226, 1917 (N.T.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 185, 1919 (N.T.) ; id., ib., Vol. XXL, p. 193, 1922 (N.T.). Zosterops ( Tephras ?) gulliveri Castelnau and Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc., N.S.W., Vol. I., p. 383, March, 1877 : Norman River, Gulf Country, Queensland ; Ramsay, ib., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 188, 1884; Ramsayr, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 38, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 352, 1901; Le Souef, Emu, Vol. II., p. 146, 1903 (N.T. !) ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908 ; Macgillivray, Emu, Vol. XIII., p. 175, 1914 (N.Q.). Zosterops balstoni Grant, Ibis, 1909, p. 663, Oct. No. (Reed. B.M. Nov. 27th) : Carnarvon, Mid-west Australia; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. XVII., p. 178, 1918 (W.A.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 7, 1918 (W.A.) ; id., ib., p. 263, 1919 (W.A.). Zosterops lutea lutea Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 384, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 254, 1913. Zosterops lutea gulliveri Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 384, 1912; id., List Birds Austr., p. 254, 1913. Zosterops lutea tribulationis Mathows, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 384, Jan. 31st, 1912;. Point Torment, North-west Australia ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 254, 1913. * Also spelt lutea. 164 YELLOW WHITE-EYE. Zosterops lutea balstoni Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 384, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 254, 1913 ; Montague, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1914, p. 635. Zosterops lutea hecla Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 48, April 2nd, 1912 : Hecla Island, Parry Harbour, North-west Australia ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 254, 1913. Zosterops lutea headlandi Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 36, Peb. 21st, 1923 : Point Headland, Mid- west Australia. Distribution. Tropical Australia from Carnarvon, Mid-west Australia, through North¬ west Australia and Northern Territory to Normanton, Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface olive-yellow, including the top of the head, sides of face, nape, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, rump, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and outer aspect of flight-quills ; bastard- wing and outer web of first primary dark hair-brown like the inner webs of the flight-quills, which are margined with white ; upper tail-coverts somewhat paler than the back ; tail also hair-brown slightly edged with yellowish-green on the outer webs and whitish on the inner ones ; lores and base of fore-head tinged with orange-yellow ; eye¬ ring white, except on the front portion where the feathers are black with hair-like tips ; chin, throat, breast, abdomen, thighs, and under tail-coverts bright yellow — inclining to orange-yellow on the flanks ; imder wing-coverts white, more or less tinged with yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail also hair-brown but paler. Eyes light brown, upper mandible and tip of lower black, lower base blue-slate. Total length 120 mm. ; culmen 9, wing 58, tail 41, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected on Hecla Island, North-west Australia, on the 14th of November, 1909, and is the type of Zosterops lutea hecla. Adult jemale. Differs in having the back greenish and the under-surface not so yellowish. Adult. General colour of the upper-surface olive-green, including the top of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and outer aspect of the flight-quills, the inner webs of the last blackish with white margins ; outer margins of bastard-wing inclining to black ; tail dark brown with pale edgings on the inner webs and olive-green on the outer ones ; lores and feathers in front of the eye black ; eye-ring white ; base of fore-head inclining to yellow ; chin, throat, breast, abdomen, sides of body, and imder tail-coverts sulphur-yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white, slightly tinged with sulphur-yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills blackish-brown margined with white ; lower aspect of tail dark brown. Total length 108 mm. ; culmen 9, wing 56, tail 40, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected at Point Headland, Northern Mid- west Australia, in October 1907, and is the type of Zosterops lutea headlandi. (Bottom figure.) Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface dull greenish-yellow, including the top of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, scapulars, upper wing- coverts, and outer margins of flight-quills ; inner webs of flight-quills dark hair- brown margined with dull white ; upper tail-coverts somewhat paler than the back ; tail-feathers pale hair-brown, more or less tinged with yellow, and have dark obsolete cross-bars ; lores and a portion of the eye-ring blackish ; base of fore-head paler than the top of the head ; chin, throat, breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts yellow ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, inner margins of flight-quill below white, remainder of the quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar. Eyes brown, feet and legs leaden-blue, bill blackish-brown, lower base pale leaden- 165 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. blue. Total length 100 mm. ; culmen 8, wing 57, tail 38, tarsus 18. Collected at Point Torment, North-west Australia, on the 14th of January, 1911, and is the type of Z. 1. tribulationis . Adult male . General colour of the upper-surface greenish-yellow, including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and wings ; inner webs of flight-quills blackish-brown with whitish margins ; tail pale hair-brown with a slight tinge of greenish-yellowr and dark obsolete cross¬ bars ; eye-ring whitish ; lores rather paler than the crown ; rictal-bristles blackish but only sparsely developed ; entire under-surface bright yellow including the throat, breast, abdomen, and under tail-coverts, being slightly darker; under wing-coverts and margins of flight-quills below cream-white ; remainder of flight- quills and lowrer aspect of tail pale hair-browTn. Eyes chestnut ; feet and bill lead- grey. Total length 117 mm. ; culmen 10, wing 58, tail 41, tarsus 18. Collected at Normanton, Gulf of Carpentaria, North Queensland, on the 22nd of April, 1914. Immature feinale. General colour of the upper-surface dull yellowish-olive, including the crowrn of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, liind-neck, back, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and outer margins of flight-quills ; inner webs of the last dark hair- brown with white margins ; tail pale hair-brown, the feathers narrowly margined with yellow; lores and fore-part of eye-ring blackish ; base of fore-head, chin, throat, breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs and under tail-coverts pale yellow ; under wing-coverts and inner margins of quills belowr cream-white ; under-surface of fliglit-quills hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar but paler. Eyes brown, bill and feet grey. Collected at Normanton, Gulf of Carpentaria, North Queensland, on the 11th of January, 1914. Eggs. A clutch of three eggs taken at Derby, North-west Australia, on the 17th of November, 1902, is of a very pale bluish-green. 16-17 mm. by 12-13. Nest. Usual cup-shaped construction. Breeding-months. Probably September to January. Gould introduced this new species into his folio Birds of Australia without prehminary description, waiting : “ ‘ I first met with it/ says Gilbert, ‘ in August, on Greenhill Island, Van Diemen’s Gulf, dwelling among the man¬ groves or the densest thickets. It is much more wild and solitary than Zosterops ccerulescens , and does not resort like that bird to the gardens and the neighbourhood of the houses of the settlers, its note is also very different, being a pretty canary-like song. When disturbed it usually left the thicket for the higher branches of the gum trees, where it was effectually hidden from view by the thick foliage. It was generally met with in small families of from three to seven or eight in number.’ ” Mr. J. P. Rogers wrote me : “ This is another mangrove bird, but at times it leaves the mangroves and goes out into the dry country, but I have never seen it more than half a mile from the salt bush. It is fairly common at Derby, and has been breeding lately (Feb. 1911) as I have seen several nests. “ Cooper’s Camp, Nov. 20tli, 1911. A few of these birds are seen 166 YELLOW WHITE-EYE. occasionally in the mangroves but are not nearly so numerous as at Point Torment, King Sound, West Kimberley. On the 6th Mr. Lee, one of the owners of the saw mill here, brought me a nest of this bird containing one egg ; he said there were two, but he broke one and it was strongly incubated ; the nest was built in a mangrove overhanging a tidal creek. None of these birds were seen on the north side of the island, but there I was not among the mangroves. Here these birds stick very closely to the mangroves as at King Sound.” Mr. Tom Carter has written me : “ The Carnarvon White-eye is given in your 1912 “ Reference List ” as occurring through West Australia generally. As far as I know, its range, as at present determined, is from Carnarvon to the North-west Cape. Small flocks of these birds were often seen about Point Cloates and along the coast to the North-west Cape, in the winter months. In the mangroves about Carnarvon and near the North-west Cape they are common throughout the year. (There are no mangroves within 35 miles of Point Cloates, the nearest being a small patch at mouth of Yardie Creek.) I was never successful in finding a nest, but in February 1900 a male bird was shot in mangroves, near North-west Cape, that was evidently breeding, and on Sept. 17th, 1911, some were shot in mangroves at Carnarvon that were also breeeding. They breed in the mangroves in small parties of sis or ten, and move along rather rapidly, as they feed on insects in the dense foliage, uttering a chorus of low ‘ tinkling ’ notes all the time. Occasionally they may be seen in coastal scrub, but were never observed by me more than about a quarter of a mile from the beach. I have a note in my Point Cloates’ journal that unusually numerous and large flocks were observed there about June 7th, 1897.” Montague has written : “ Specimens (from Monte Bello Islands) agree with the type of Zosterops balsloni from Carnarvon, North- (i.e., Mid-) west Australia. The species is a small, dull-coloured form of Zosterops lutea Gould, though it would be more correct to look upon the type lutea as an island form of the far more widely distributed balstoni. It is much the most numerous bird inhabiting the Monte Bello Group, living upon all the islands, however small, where there is sufficient scrub to afford food and protection. It appears to be omnivorous in diet, feeding upon berries and seeds, and searching for insects amongst the foliage of the mangroves, in the vicinity of which it is always to be seen. The nesting season is probably in October. In August the males were in full song, and at the end of that month a half-constructed nest was discovered, suspended amongst the foliage of a dense Bruguiera, but it was not completed when I left.” Whitlock’s notes read : “ On arrival at Port Hedland last May (1908) I soon detected the notes of a Zosterops in the mangroves which I knew were 167 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. not those of Z. gouldi, our familar ‘ Greenie ’ of the south-west. But it was not until after arriving at Condon in the following October that I was able finally to identify the songster. When searching for nests of PachycepMa laniojdes in the sweltering mangrove thickets I often had the little Zosterops within a few feet of my head. It is by no means a timid species, and will pour forth a marvellous volume of song, heedless of the presence of an intruder. Its plumage harmonizes wonderfully with the green leaves and the patches of sunlight on the foliage of the mangroves. At a short distance, unless in motion, it is practically invisible, or only to be detected by the sharpest eye catching a glimpse of the white ring round the eyelid. I think I was between broods, for the only nest I could find, in spite of persistent efforts, was a much- battered one, from which the young had flown. I could see no difference in its structure from that of Z. gouldi . I had the greatest difficulty in obtaining two specimens of the parents themselves. I was lucky enough at last in observing a pair where the mangroves were low and open, and after some trouble got them both.” G. F. Hill recorded : “ Were seen in the mangroves from Derby north¬ wards, but they wore uncommon in all localities excepting on Hecla Island and the shores of Parry Harbour. The nesting season appears to be from the beginning of February to April.” McLennan’s notes, recorded by H. L. White, read : “ Mornington Island, Bickerton Island and Glyde River. Noted in the mangroves. King River. Often seen in mangroves along river. Liverpool River Island. Roted in the scrub. Roper River. Noted in the mangroves.” Under the name Zosterops gulliveri Macgillivray has written : Numerous in the mangroves along the Norman River. One pair was obtained on the Leichhardt River, and another pair near Normanton. Differs but little from Z. lutea.” I used Melville Island specimens as typical and note that the male and female seem to differ very appreciably hr coloration, only the adult male being ‘ lutea ,’ the female (and immature) being of the ‘ gulliveri ’ and ‘ balstoni style, and island forms being more brilliant. The scientific history of this interesting form is comparatively brief and uneventful. Gould described the species from an island, and thirty years later Castelnau and Ramsay named: “ Zosterops ( Tephras ?) gulliveri. The general colour above is of a light ashy-brown, darker on the quills of the wings and tail, all the feathers washed with pale olive-yellow, which shows more conspicuously on the outer webs of the wing and tail-feathers ; the fore-head and throat of a little brighter yellow; lores blackish, the whole of the under-surface and the under wing and tail-coverts very pale citron, with 168 YELLOW WHITE-EYE. a slight wash of buff on the flanks ; legs light lead-grey ; bill dark lead-grey above, lower mandible paler. Total length, 4*2 ; wings, 2-25 ; tail, P8 ; tarsus, 0’7 ; bill from fore-head, 055 ; from nostril, 03 ; from gape, 06. Norman River, Queensland. This species seems to belong more to the sub¬ genus Tephrcis than to Zosterops proper, in its more rounded wings and tail and want of the eye-ring ; the bill, however, is liko that of a true Zosterops." The description is of an immature or female bird, the adult male being a beautiful “ lutea ” with a distinct eye-ring. Another thirty years passed and then Grant described : “ Zosterops balstoni. Adult male and female. Similar to Z. lutea Gould, but with the upper parts decidedly more greyish-olive, and the under parts, especially the middle of the breast and belly, less brilliant yellow. Carnarvon, Mid-west Australia.-’ I accepted these two as subspecies of lutea and added a fourth in my “ Reference List ” as Zosterops lutea tribulationis. “ Differs from Z. 1. lutea in its much paler coloration both above and below, being paler than Z. 1. balstoni. Point Torment, North-west Australia.” I later added Zosterops lutea hecla. “ Differs from Z. 1. lutea in its larger size, more golden-yellow underneath, and more yellowish-green above. Hecla Island, Parry Harbour, North-west Australia.” These five were admitted in my 1913 “ List,” but I have added Zosterops lutea headlandi, and no emendations have since been made so that we now have : Zosterops lutea lutea Gould. Northern Territory. Note. — Type from an island in Van Diemen’s Gulf. Zosterops lutea hecla Mathews. Hecla Island, Parry Harbour, North-west Australia. Zosterops lutea tribulationis Mathews. North-west Australia (Mainland). Zosterops lutea headlandi Mathews. Mid-west Australia (North). Zosterops lutea balstoni Grant. Mid- west Australia (South). Zosterops lutea gulliveri Castelnau and Ramsay. Gulf Country, Queensland. The ranges of this form are not yet defined. Campbell, recording a male and female from King Island, Northern VOL. XI. 169 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Territory, wrote : “ A perfect pair, and similar to hecla, and probably also to tribulationis, both Mathews subspecies for North-west Australia. Wings alike (55 m.).” Examining one female from Groote Eylandt he has added: “ Same as N.T. birds. My former note may be considered somewhat ambigu¬ ous. The thought I intended to convey was that hecla, from Kimberley District, and probably tribulationis, because from the same district as hecla, were both synonymous with Gould’s lutea.” He does not mention any dis¬ tinction in the sexes. 170 Family — D I C /E I D AC . Genus— MICROCHELID ON. Microchelidon Rcichcnbach, Handb. Spec. Orihth., Abth. II. (Handb. Scansores), p. 243 ; (leones Synops. Avium Cont. XI. , Nov. 1st, 1853, p. 220), 1854. Type (by subsequent designation) Gray, Cat. Gen. Subgen. Birds, p. 138, 1855 (Sylvia), i.e. . . Motacilla hirundinacea Shaw and Nodder. Myzanthe Blyth, Joum. As. Soc. Bengal, Vol. XII. , p. 983 (after Nov.), 1843 (ex Hodgson MS.). (1844 ?). Type (by original desig¬ nation) . . . . . . . . . . Motacilla hirundinacea Sbaw and Nodder. Not— Myzantha Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc., Vol. XV., p. 318, 1827. Austrodicceum Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. II., Nos. 2-3, p. 60, Oct. 23rd, 1913. Type (by original designation) . . . . Motacilla hirundinacea Shaw and Nodder. When I separated Austrodicceum I wrote : “ Differs from Dicceum Cuvier in its much shorter, stouter bill, much longer wing, much stronger legs and feet and proportionately shorter tail.” The proposal was apparently due to a confusion of Hemichelidon and Myzanthe, these being proposed by Hodgson, the latter for the Indian Flower- peckers like the present, and Microchelidon was ruled out as being preoccupied by Hodgson which I do not find it to be. The Flowerpeckers constitute a small isolated group of birds inhabiting India to China and thence through all the islands to Australia, but not Tasmania. They have been commonly allowed family rank, but the Parda- lotes have been associated with them by some workers, though the latter have no real connection at all. The family Dicceidce, here used, includes only the Flowerpeckers. There are a few genera, Sharpe giving figures of 171 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. the bills in the Catalogue of Birds hi the British Museum nearly forty years ago to show the differences. They are very small birds with broad, sharp pointed bills, long wings, short square tail and medium stout legs and feet. The bill is short and broadly conical, anteriorly compressed and basally expanded, the culmen semi-keeled and regularly arched, tip sharply pointed but no posterior notch ; basally the sides of the upper mandible expand and overlap the edges of the lower mandible ; the nostrils appear as linear slits in the basal groove at the base, a thick semi-horny operculum being present on to which the frontal feathering projects half way; there are no nasal bristles and rictal bristles very weak; the lower mandible fairly stout, the interramal space short and feathered. The wing is long with the first primary minute, hidden by the coverts so that it is commonly asserted to be absent, and the real second is always spoken of as the first; this is longest, bub the next two are very little shorter; the secondaries are comparatively short. The tail is short and square. The tarsus is scutellated in front, sometimes clearly, other times obscurely so as to appear booted, while the hind portion of the tarsus is bilaminate, but here the distinction of the lamina is sometimes obscurely seen. The toes are short, the hind-toe longest, the middle toe a little shorter, the outer and inner toes subequal and longer with their claws than the middle toe alone ; claws sharp, the liind-claw longer and stouter. 507 «^^3E0" H. GroiwolcL. del. Witieriy & C° AU S TRODI C AE TJM HIRUNDINAC E UM. ( 'MI a ThB TOM -BIRD OR FL 0 WER PE CKER) . PARDALOTUS PUNCTATUS. (SPOTTED PARDA.LOTE OR DIAMOND -BIRD ). Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 627. Family D1CIE1D/E. MICROCHELIDON HIRUNDINACEA. FLOWERPECKER, OR MISTLETOE-BIRD. (Plate 507.)* Motacilla hirundinacea Shaw and Nodder, Naturalists’ Miscellany, Vol. IV., pi. 1 14, Aug. 1st, 1792 : New South Wales. Motacilla hirundinacea Shaw and Nodder, Naturalists’ Miscellany, Vol. IV., pi. Ill, 1792. Swallow Warbler Latham, Gen. Synops. Birds, Suppl. II., p. 250, 1801. Crimson-breasted Warbler Latham, id., ib. Sylvia rubricollis Latham, Index Omith. Suppl., p. lv., 1801 (after May). Sylvia hirundinacea Latham, id., ib. Pipra gxdaris Lewin, Birds New Holland, pi. vn., p. 11, 1808 : New South Wales. [Not Pipra gularis Latham, Index Ornith. Suppl., p. lvii., 1801.] Pipra desmaretitf Leach, Zool. Miscellany, Vol. I., p. 94, pi. 41, 1814 : New South Wales. Malurus hirundinaceus Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. XX., p. 214, 1818. Crimson-tliroat Flycatcher Lewin, Birds New South Wales, p. 7, pi. vn., 1822. Dicceum atrogaster Lesson, Traite d’Ornith., livr. 4, p. 303, Sept. 25th, 1830 : New South Wales. Dicceum perdalodus Lafresnaye, Mag. de Zool., 1833, pi. 14 : New South Wales. Dicceum hirundinaceum Gould, Birds Austr., pt. v. (Vol. II., pi. 34), Dec. 1st, 1841 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 581, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 19, 1885 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Ser. 2, Vol. I., p. 1,093, 1886: 1887 ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 437, 1901 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. II., p. 52, 1902 (N.W.A.) ; Carter, ib., Vol. III., p. 93, 1903 (M.W.A.) ; Milligan, ib., Vol. IV., pp. 8-10, 1904 (S.W.A.) ; Berney, ib., Voh V., p. 76, 1905 (N.Q.) ; Batey, ib., Vol. VII., p. 10, 1907 (Vic.) ; Hill, ib., p. 20 (Vic.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 214, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 185, 1909 (W.A.) ; Mathews, ib., Vol. IX., pp. 62-69 (N.W.A.,N.T.) ; Broadbent, ib., Vol. X., p. 239, 1910 (N.Q.) ; G. F. Hill, ib., p. 283, 1911 (N.W.A.) ; Barnard, ib., Vol. XI., p. 28, 1911 (N.Q.) ; Chandler, ib., Vol. XII., p. 130, 1912 ; Hill, ib., p. 259, 1913 (Central Australia) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIII., * The Plate is lettered A ustrodiccEum hirundinaceum. t Also spelt desmarestii. 173 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. p. 31, 1913 (S.A.) ; Agnew, ib., p. 96 (Q.) ; Macgillivray, ib., p. 175, 1914 (N.Q.) ; Barnard, ib, Vol. XIV., p. 48, 1914 (N.T.) ; Barrett, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 175, pi. xvi., 1915 (Vic.) ; Lawrence and Littlejohns, ib ., Vol. XV., p. 166, pi. xxv., 1916 ; H. L. White, ib ., Vol. XVI., p. 226, 1917 (N.T.) ; Campbell and Barnard, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 30, 1917 (N.Q.) ; Macgillivray, ib., p. 203, 1908 (N.Q.) ; Kersey, ib., Vol. XIX., p. 52, 1919 (Q.) ; Le Souef and Macpherson, ib., Vol. XX., p. 90, 1920 (N.S.W.) ; Alexander, ib., p. 167, 1921 (W.A.) ; Whitlock, ib., p. 186 (W.A.). Dicceum hirundinaceum hirundinaceum Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 386, Jan. 31st, 1912 ; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 318, 1914. Dicceum hirundina.ceum yorki Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 387 : Cape York, Queensland ; id., Austral Av. Bee., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912. Dicceum hirundinaceum tormenti Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 387 : Point Torment, North-west Australia. Austrodicceum hirundinaceum hirundinaceum Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 254, 1913 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 190, 1915 (Central Australia) ; Carter, Ibis, 1917, p. 608. Austrodicceum hirundinaceum tormenti Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 255, 1913. Distribution. Throughout Australia even to Cape York, but not Tasmania. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface glossy steel-blue including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, wings and tail ; inner-webs of flight-quills blackish-brown ; chin, tlnoat and upper breast scarlet-red like the short under tail-coverts, the long ones pink ; middle of abdomen blackish, skirted on each side with whitish ; sides of body, flanks, and axillaries dusky-grey ; thighs dusky ; under-edge of wing blackish ; under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes brown, bill leaden-black, feet and tarsi blackish-brown. Total length 103 mm. ; culrnen 8, wing 64, tail 31, tarsus 12. Figured. Collected at Point Torment, King's Sound, West Kimberley, North-west Australia, on the 3rd of April, 1911, and is the type of D. h. Tormenti. Adidt female. General colour of the upper-surface dusky-brown with gloss}* steel-blue on many of the feathers on the back and wings ; inner-webs of flight-quills blackish- brown with pale margins ; upper tail-coverts and tail glossy steel-blue ; sides of face dusky-brown becoming greyish-white on the cheeks ; a dark moustachial streak on each side of the throat ; chin, throat, and upper breast white with an indication of grey spots on the last ; sides of neck, sides of breast, and middle of abdomen dusky-brown ; flanks and thighs cream-white ; axillaries and under wing- coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown margined with white ; under tail-coverts reddish-pink becoming much paler on the long ones ; lower aspect of tail blackish-browm. Eyes brown, feet and tarsi leaden-black. Bill leaden-blue, lower mandible greyish. Total length 88 mm. ; culrnen 8, wing 60, tail 25, tarsus 13. Figured. Collected at Point Torment, King’s Sound, West Kimberley, North-west Australia, on the 14th of February, 1911. Eggs. Three eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of three taken at Manly, Now South Wales, on the 24th of November, 1893, is of a pure white. Long ovals in shape ; surface of shell very smooth, and almost devoid of gloss. 17-18 mm. by 11. A set of three eggs taken at Borroloola, Macarthur River, Northern Territory, oil the 11th of January, 1914, measures as follows : 15-16 mm. by 10-11. 174 FLOWERPECKER, OR MISTLETOE-BIRD. Nest is rather a neat pear-shaped structure, with a slit-like entrance on the side ; is composed almost entirely of cobwebs, spiders’ cocoons intermingled and matted together with brownish downy seeds, and, on the outside, the stained sawdust-like excreta of various wood-boring insects. The nest is firmly constructed, and has quite a remarkable “ felt ” or “ elastic-like ” feeling to the touch, and is a wonderful production for a bird. It is usually suspended from a twig of a bushy tree, and the height varying from 4 to about 25 feet up from the ground. Measurements are : Length over all 3 to 3} inches, breadth over all If to inches, and the entrance is about 1£ inches long by \ to sometimes nearly f of an inch across. Breeding-months. September to end December or January. This was one of the earliest Australian birds to be described, as it was figured by Shaw and Nodder in their Naturalists' Miscellany, and also by Lewin. Nevertheless Gould’s notes are the first of any importance, as follows : “ By far the greater number of the Australians are, I believe, unacquainted with this beautiful little bird, yet there is scarcely an estate in either of the colonies in which it may not be found either as a permanent resident or an occasional visitor. Its natural disposition, leading it to confine itself almost exclusively to the topmost branches of the loftiest trees, is doubtless the cause of its not being more generally known than it is, its rich-scarlet breast not even attracting notice at the distance from the ground at which it generally keeps, and, in obtaining specimens, I was more frequently made aware of its presence by its pretty warbling song than by its movements among the branches ; so small an object, in fact, is most difficult of detection among the thick foliage of the lofty Casuarinae, to which trees it is extremely partial, particularly to those growing on the bank?: of creeks and rivers. It is also frequently to be seen among the clusters of the beautiful parasitic Loranthus, which is very common on the Casuarinae in the neighbourhood of the Upper Hunter. Whether the bird is attracted to this mistletoe-like plant for the purpose of feeding upon its sv'eet and juicy berries I could not ascertain ; its chief food is insects, but in all probability it may occasionally vary its food. The Swallow Dicseum has neither the actions of the Pardalotes nor of the Honey-eaters ; it differs from the former in its quick darting flight, and from the latter in its less prying, clinging, and creeping actions among the leaves, etc. When perched on a branch it sits more upright, and is more Swallow-like in its contour than either of the forms alluded to ; the structure of its nest and the mode of its nidification are also very dissimilar. Its song is a very animated and long continued strain, but is uttered so inwardly that it is almost necessary to stand beneath the tree upon which the bird is perched before its notes can be heard. It would appear that the range of this species extends to all parts of the Australian continent, since I have received specimens from 175 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. every locality yet explored. I found it breeding on the lower Namoi, which proves that the interior of the country is inhabited by it as well as those portions between the ranges and the coast. Mr. White, of the Reedbeds near Adelaide, says : ‘ This little bird is sometimes rather numerous here. It appears to be wholly frugivorous, for all of those I have dissected had fruit in them ; it has no regular stomach, nor even an enlargement of the intestine, which averages above five inches and a half in length, and through which the food passes whole. It arrives in Adelaide about February, and stays but a short time. I have met with it very far north.’ ” Mr. L. G. Chandler has written me : “I watched a female building its beautiful purse-like nest. While collecting cobwebs the bird presented a curious appearance. It obtained the web off a dead tree and threw itself half backward while detaching it from a limb, at the same time stretching its neck in a peculiar manner. All the time it flew to and from its nest it uttered short single notes and I wras able to trace it by this agency to the Eucalyptus sapling in which it was building. The nest was about twenty- five feet from the ground and fastened to a single twig at the extremity of the limb. The female alone was engaged in the work of construction and had apparently just commenced operations. The male was not noticed at any time in the vicinity. The bird worked rapidly, only staying at the nest from five to nine seconds, and returning within a minute to two minutes. Within three weeks I again visited the locality to secure the nest and eggs. Although I knew the limb the nest was built on, it was some time before I could see the nest itself, it looked like the work of a spider. This bird is fairly plentiful in the Olinda and Frankston districts, especially during the autumn months.” Mr. F. E. Howe has written also : “I was attracted by the actions of a female and after watching her a while found the nest just started. The female alone was doing the work, but we observed that each visit she made the male accompanied her but kept high up in the dead timber where Ins beautiful plumage was most conspicuous and he gave voice to most beautiful notes.” Mr. Tom Tregallas complains : “ Of all the bush birds the Mistletoe- Bird is perhaps the most harmful. The damage caused to our forests through the agency of this little harmless-looking bird is enormous, hi many parts whole areas of forest have succumbed to the malign influence of the parastic mistletoe, and the Government have been considering means for its destruction. How hard it will be to suppress the nuisance, let alone its extinction, may be gathered from the fact that many of the mistletoe infested trees are of the largest in the forests, and many indeed are almost unclimbable. Moreover, if the mistletoe were all cleared off the trees in one 176 FLOWERPECKER, OR MISTLETOE-BIRD. particular section, it would rapidly accumulate again as long as tlie birds which carry and spread the seed were allowed to exist. How easy it is for the seed of the mistletoe to germinate may be found out by actual experiment, as I proved. Procuring a few of the ripe seeds from shot specimens of the Mistletoe-Bird, I placed them in different positions on the limbs of plum trees in my garden, and waited results. The glutinous nature of the seed-covering makes it adhere to anything it touches, hence there was no difficulty in fastening the seed to the tree. In a few days the pulpy covering spread itself out and along the limb, fine hairs that eventually formed into rootlets protruded from the seed and searched for a hold on the bark and in less than a month nearly every seed had firmly established itself on the tree. I then destroyed the plants, as the experiment had gone far enough to prove how easy it is to spread this pest. There are about four varieties of mistletoe in Victoria and during the time they are in bloom the Flowerpecker (another name for the Mistletoe-Bird) feeds on the nectar contained in the trumpet¬ shaped flowers, and at this time does no harm. As soon as the seeds ripen he eats them, and if shot at this time the stomach will be found to contain very little else but the seeds. He is a very lively bird, and most erratic in his choice of feeding trees. He will feed for a few moments in a bunch of mistletoe, as if in a desperate hurry, then without a moment’s warning he will suddenly leave the tree, and fly off frequently half a mile before he settles again, and repeats his tactics. During the day, feeding in this manner, he must cover a large extent of country, dropping the seeds as he goes, and causing the destruction of many a noble tree. In the Frankston and Olinda districts whole trees are covered with the mistletoe, some examples of which hang down for a distance of 9 or 10 feet. As soon as the mistletoe plant is firmly established, the whole strength of the limb flies into it, and all the rest of the branch above the parasite withers away and dies. Some of the flowering bunches of mistletoe are extremely beautiful, and it is a pity they do so much harm.” To contrast with this account I cite G. F. Hill’s notes in connection with the Birds of the Ararat District, Victoria : “It would be interesting to know how the mistletoe ( Loranthus ), which is now very plentiful, was spread over this area, for these birds are extremely scarce now, and unless they were formerly far more numerous they could never have accounted for the distribution of so much seed.” Captain White wrote regarding Central Australia : “ Wherever mistletoe was found throughout the ranges so sure was this little bird found, their sharp piercing call would often be heard amongst the myall scrub ; in some places there has hardly a myall tree that had not a large bunch of mistletoe hanging VOL. XI. 177 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. to its branches,” and later. Captain S. A. White has sent me the following note : “I have met with the Flowerpecker in every state I have visited ; they seem to be found wherever the mistletoe ( Loranthus ) is found and the berries of this parasitical plant seem to be their cliief food, although I have found insects just swallowed by tliis bird. The Mistletoe-Bird shifts about according to food supply and when the species of Loranthus has finished fruiting they move off to another district where another variety is in fruit. The note is a loud and sharp one for so small a bird. I have found them nesting in South Australia in September and October, and their beautiful purse-like nest is generally placed in a sapling not far from the ground. They will feed upon the pepper-tree berries.” Mr. Thos. P. Austin has sent me from Cobbora, New South Wales : “ Is fairly numerous throughout the whole district, but more plentiful in the heavier timbered forests and thick scrubs. Usually met with in pairs, but sometimes small flocks of about half a dozen may be seen flitting about the same tree. The males are rather pugnacious and will chase each other, or even the females, from tree to tree, darting and twisting about through the branches, sometimes near the ground, or even high in the air. Seldom are they still for long, and even when perched they often have a tremulous motion of their wings. The nest is a pear-shaped, somewiiat purse-like structure, usually suspended from a single twig in a sapling, composed of cobwebs and vegetation down, covered with the decaying sawrdust-like substance ejected from timber by wood-boring beetles and often the fallen half-dead wrattle blooms, all wonderfully woven together in such a manner as to form a sort of an elastic felt. The entrance is a long-shaped oval slit, which widens out as the bird enters to almost close again when she is inside. It is funny to see a bird entering a nest and, once inside, the nest stretches out with every movement of the bird. The clutch is usually three, and I have * examined nests containing eggs from September 15th till end of November.” Mr. Tom Carter has written me : “ The Flowrerpecker was seen occasionally, in the scattered bushes growdng on the North-west Cape ranges, and sometimes in Mangroves in that vicinity, but wrere never numerous. The only other locality in which I sawr them was in thick scrubby country around Mullewra on the Murchison railway.” Mr. J. P. Rogers’ notes read : “ Both at Marngle Creek and Mungi tliis species was found to be thinly distributed. In fact it is found all over West Kimberley, but I have never found it very numerous anywhere. In some of the gorges of the Grand Ranges where there are many mistletoes growing on a species of broad-leaved wrattle I have seen more of these birds than in any other locality. At Cooper’s Creek, Melville Island, Nov. 20th, 1911, very 178 FLOWERPECKER, OR MISTLETOE-BIRD. few of these birds seen to date and on Jan. 14th, 1912, very few were seen on the north side of the island.” Barnard found it : “A common bird in most localities about the McArthur. It was very often seen feeding in the mistletoe which is very plentiful in that locality. Several nests suspended from twigs at the top of tall stringy-bark saplings were found.” McLennan noted : “ King River. An occasional bird seen in patches of scrub and amongst bushes at springs. Port Bradshaw. An occasional bird seen in the forest country.” MacgiUivray simply observed : “ Common in the Gulf country and at Cape York.” Campbell and Barnard observed from the Rockingham District : “ The cheery chirps of the Dicaeum often betrayed its presence.” Lawrence and Littlejohns have published a detailed account of the Nesting Habits of the Mistletoe-Bird, accompanied by delightful photographs of the birds at their nest feeding young. This should be referred to by everyone at all interested in this subject. Le Souef and Macpherson record from Sydney, the first locality whence this bird was described : “Is a fi'iendly little bird and not much disturbed by human presence.” There is little to record in connection with the technical history of this species. It was first described by Shaw and Nodder in the Naturalists' Miscellany, and Latham in his Suppl. Index Ornith. accepted this specific name but transferred the species to the genus Sylvia, at the same time describing Sylvia rubricollis thus : “ S. caerulea subtus alba, jugulo pectore que coccineo-rubros : Crimson-breasted Warbler, Gen. Syn., Sup. II., p. 250, 37. Habitat in Nova Hollandia. Crimson-breasted Warbler. Size uncertain ; bill and legs brown ; plumage above blue ; beneath white ; fore-part of the neck and breast fire- crimson. Inhabits New South Wales.” When G. R. Gray examined the Lambert drawings he identified the one upon which this name was based as of Dicaeum, hirundinaceum without any doubt. W hen Sharpe examined the Watling drawing he wrote : No. 204. Swallow Warbler, Lath., Gen. Syn., Suppl. II., p. 250. Sylvia hirundinacea Lath., Ind. Om. Suppl., p. lv. Dicaeum hirundinaceum (Shaw and Nodder) Sharpe, Cat. B. x., p. 19. No. 205. Swallow Warbler, Lath.” 179 4 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Watling gives the following note : “ The natural size. Tliis is a scarce bird and well resembled, and the only one we have yet seen ; the blue feathers on this bird are of a beautiful changeable blue.” No. 206. Crimson-breasted Warbler, Lath., Gen. Syn., Suppl. II., p. 250. Sylvia rubricollis Lath., Ind. Orn. Suppl., p. lv. Watling gives the following note : “ Native name Bood-dang. Natural size.” No. 207. Crimson-breasted Warbler, Lath. Watling says : “ Natural size.” In my 1913 “ List ” I placed Sylvia rubricollis Lath, in Appendix B., p. 329, writing : “ Founded on Plate 207, not 206, as Sharpe gave, and this does not appear to be Dicceum hirundinaceum, as was determined by Gray.” It is obvious that Latham gave his name not to No. 207, as that states “ Natural size,” and he wrote “ Size uncertain” ; it may have been founded on a Lambert drawing as Gray decided, but the description is sufficient to identify the name with tliis species. It is important to decide this as the name may yet come into use, though it is to be hoped that such a change will not be made. Shaw and Nodder called this bird Motacilla hirundinacea in 1792. In the Portland Catalogue published in 1786 (Solander) or rather the editor (possibly Humphrey) recorded on p. 174: “ Motacilla hirundinacea. See Mr. Lightfoot, Philos. Trans., 1785.” At the place quoted Lightfoot described the Reed-Warbler under the name Motacilla arundinacea, and apparently the Portland Catalogue name is an error. It has been argued that some errors are valid names, e.g., Opopsitta, in which case this bird’s name would become Microchelidon rubricollis, and the name of the British Reed- Warbler Acrocephalus hirundinaceus. In this case I do not anticipate such an alteration but record the facts as someone else may later “ discover ” the names, this being the first published intimation of the complication. The species ranges all over Australia without showing much variation, but does not occur in Tasmania, nor have I seen a very close ally from New Guinea, although this bird is common at Cape York. It is such facts as these that constitute the most interesting features in Australian ornithology, suggesting its stability since its arrival in Australia after the separation of Tasmania from the mainland and its spreading backwards into the Cape York district. When I drew up my “ Reference list ” in 1912 I separated three forms as Dicceum hirundinaceum hirundinaceum (Shaw and Nodder). South Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South-west Australia. Dicceum hirundinaceum yorki Mathews. 180 ELOWERPECKER, OR MISTLETOE-BIRD. “ Differs from D. h. hirundinaceum in having a short tail — 28 mm. ; typical birds 32 mm. Cape York, Queensland.” North Queensland. Dicceum hirundinaceum tormenti Mathews. “ Differs from D. h. hirundinaceum in having a more slender bill. Point Torment, North-west Australia.” North-west Australia and Northern Territory. In my 1913 “ List ” I used the genus name Austrodicceum and suppressed the North Queensland race and omitted the South-west Australian locality, but Alexander has reported from the Perth District : “ Resident. Not common, but probably overlooked owing to its habit of keeping high in the trees.” Captain S. A. White also wrote regarding Central Australia : “ Wherever ( Loranthus ) mistletoe grew upon the trees (there were many species of this parasite, some very beautiful) these bright little birds were seen ; their sharp note cannot be mistaken. The range of this bird over Australia is indeed great.” Long and complete series may eventually allows of the discrimination of several geographical races, but probably these will be more easily differentiated by means of study of the females. 181 Family — P AR D AL 0 T I D JE . Genus — P ARDALOTUS. Pardalotus Vieillot, Analyse nouv. Ornith., p. 31, April 14th, 1816. Type (by monotypy) . . . . . . . . Pipra punctata Shaw and Nodder. Spizites Illiger, Abhandl. der Acad. Berlin, 1812-1813, p. 230, 1816. Type (by monotypy) . . . . . . . . Pipra punctata Shaw and Nodder. Pardalotes only occur in Australia and Tasmania and I consider they constitute a family apart. These are very small birds with short stumpy lulls, long wings, short tail and medium legs and small feet. The bill is very short, somewhat laterally compressed, deeper at the base than wide, the lower mandible almost as stout as the upper mandible. The culmen is strongly arched, keeled, the tip a little decurved, with a notable posterior notch succeeded by a straight edge ; the nostrils appear as slits placed at the base of the bill and are operculate but half hidden by frontal feathering ; the under mandible stout, the interramal space very small and fully feathered, the gonys distinctly upcurved ; no rictal bristles. The wing has the first primary very minute so that it is entirely hidden by the coverts and is generally written of as absent, the real second being spoken of as the first ; this is exceeded by the second and third which are subequal and longest, and the so-called fourth is a little less than the first, the rest regularly decreasing to the secondaries which are fairly long. The tail is very short and square, the tail-coverts, both upper and under, reaching almost to the end of the tail. The legs are comparatively long and slender, the tarsus booted in front and bilaminate posteriorly ; the toes are slender and the claws sharp ; the middle toe longest, but the hind-toe and claw nearly as long as the middle toe and claw, the liind-claw stronger ; the inner and outer toes subequal and the inner toe and claw a little longer than the middle toe alone. As showing how generally true conclusions based upon facts are, I will quote Gould’s review of this group : “ This form is peculiar to Australia, in every portion of which great country, including Tasmania, one or other of the PARDALOTUS. species are to be found ; some of them associated in the same district {sic), and even inhabiting the same trees, while in other parts only a single species exists ; for instance, the P. pundatus, P. quadragintus and P. affinis inhabit Tasmania ; on the whole of the southern coast of the continent from east to west P. pundatus and P. striatus are associated ; the north coast is the cradle of the species I have called uropygialis, and the east coast that of melano- cephalus, from both of wliich countries the others appear to be excluded ; the true habitat of the beautiful species I have described as P. rubricatus is the basin of the interior.” The ranges of some of these forms have been extended and the values of some of the species depreciated, yet the results to-day aro very similar. The species uropygialis is only subspecifically separable from melanocephalus , so that the latter extends over all northern points while rubricatus, although it is typically an interior form, has extended its range out on to the north-west coast and also into the Cape York peninsula, apparently up the western side. The occurrence of three distinct species of the family in Tasmania is most extraordinary, especially the occurrence of a form apparently showing the most primitive style of coloration. The series can be divided into four; whether they are considered genera or subgenera is of little real importance, but the occurrence of three distinct forms in Tasmania indicate their recogni¬ tion as of generic value, especially as the group is isolated in Australia and Tasmania and has evolved away from every near ally, so that these are now unknown. The queer trait of building a domed nest in a burrow is a character of much importance, suggesting they built domed nests in the open before they burrowed, and their stout bills have developed through that burrowing habit. That the Tasmanian form retaining an ancestral style of coloration should have the thickest, most parrot-like bill is very curious and not easily determined. This form which I have called N esopardalotus seems obviously the more modestly coloured bird from which Pardalotus s. str. has developed, but as the latter now also lives in Tasmania and on the mainland all through the south from east to west, it appears suggestive that the northern birds should have evolved on the mainland and then re-entered Tasmania. It is peculiar that N esopardalotus should occur on King Island but not on the Minders group where pundatus lives, and suggests the same conclusion as the study of the Streperoid birds instigated, viz., that the Flinders Island connection with the mainland lasted after the King Island passage was broken through, and that the Bassian Straits were formed by pressure from the west, not east. Apparently Pardalotinus, wliich was coexistent with Pardalotus on the continent, passed into Tasmania at the same time as Pardalotus. On the mainland there had been three distinct forms developing, the interior producing the 183 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. most peculiar rubricatus which I now call Dipardalotus. This interior form has also modified the family call-notes in a distinct manner and has vigorously extended its range into the north, and may in the future oust some of the weaker forms. Apparently N esopardalotus is being eliminated in the struggle for existence, and the better equipped Pardalotus and Pardalotinus will alone survive in Tasmania. The superficial features that attract remark may be shown as follows: Coloration obscurely greenish with dull specklings ; dull yellowish throat ; no eyebrow ; no coloured tipping to primary coverts ; size small N esopardalotus. Black head and eyebrow developed by all the rest. Black head spotted with viiite ; speckling on back developed into spots ; coloured rump ; no coloured tipping to primary coverts Pardalotus. Black head spotted with wirite ; back speckling lessening and in some cases vanished ; rump nearly uniform with back ; no coloured tipping to primary coverts Dipardalotus. Black head spotting diminishing, in some cases vanished ; back uniform, speckling completely eliminated ; coloured rump ; coloured tipping to primary coverts notable Pardalotinus. Or they can be arranged this way Head uniform with back N esopardalotus. Head black ; tipping to primary coverts Pardalotinus. Head black spotted with wdrite No tipping to primary coverts ; rump coloured ; bill short. Sexes differing Pardalotus. Rump nearly uniform with back; bill long. Sexes alike Dipardalotinus. That these forms are still developing is certain, as the geographic variability » is accompanied by undetermined specific variation in the case of Pardalotinus ; thus in the North the rump coloration varies from dull chestnut to bright yellow and the spotting of the head is quite lost, a pure black head being seen ; in the South the spotting on the head has diminished into streaks towards the occiput and the rump coloration has remained dull. However, the tipping to the wing-coverts varies from yellow to scarlet and the white edging on the primaries varies from a single line to a large white patch. These characters do not yet seem specifically fixed, though various observei-s have attempted to suggest differentiation in the habits of the forms, showing these differences, which are in some places found associated, in others geographically separated into different series. 184 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 628. Family PARDALOTIDJE. PARDALOTUS PUNCTATUS. SPOTTED PARDALOTE (DIAMOND - BIRD). (Plate 507.) Pipra punctata Shaw and Nodder, Naturalists’ Miscellany, Vol. IV., pi. Ill, Aug. 1st, 1792 : New South Wales. Pipra punctata Shaw and Nodder, Naturalists’ Miscellany, Vol. IV., p. Ill, 1792 ; Latham, Index Ornith., Suppl., p. lvi., 1801. Speckled Manakin Latham, Gen. Synops. Birds, Suppl. II., p. 253, 1801. Pardalotus punctatus Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., nouv. ed„ Vol. XXIV., p. 529, 1818 ; Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XV., p. 237, 1827 ; Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. n., pi. (22), 1837 ; id,, Birds Austr., pt. xv. (Vol. II., pi. 35), June 1st, 1844 ; id,, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 157, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1875, p. 584 (N.Q.) ; id., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 179, 1878; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 58, 1885; Legge, Papers Proc. Roy. Soc. Tasm., 1886, p. 241, 1887 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 3, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899 ; Campbell, Tiests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 444, 1901 ; Belcher, Emu, Vol. I., p. 125, 1902 (Vic.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. II., p. 15, 1902 (Vic.) ; Milligan, ib., p. 74, 1902 (W.A.) ; id,, ib., Vol. III., p. 19, 1903 (W.A.) ; Barrett and Nicholls, Victorian Naturalist, Vol. XXI., p. 164, 1905 ; Mellor, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 166, 1907 (Tas.) ; Hill, ib., Vol. VII., p. 20, 1907 (Vic.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 225, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 91, 1908 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 22, 1909 (Review) ; Fletcher ib., p. 81 (Tas.) ; Cleland, ib., p. 224, 1909 (Food) ; Chandler, ib., Vol. X., p. 113, 1910 (Review) ; Ingle, ib., p. 125 (Vic.) ; Broadbent, ib., p. 235 (N.Q.) ; Littler, Handb. Birds Tasm., p. 66, 1910 ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. X., p. 340, 1911 (W.A.) ; Cleland, ib., Vol. XI., p. 90, 1911 (Food) ; id., ib., Vol. XII., p. 14, 1912 (Food) ; Mellor and White, ib., p. 163, 1912 (Flinders Island) ; Agnew, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 96, 1913 (Q.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 143, 1915 (Malla- coota) ; Dove, ib., Vol. XV., p. 240, 1916 (Tas.); Lawrence and Littlejohns, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 52, 1916 (Vic.) ; Dove, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 202, 1919 (Tas.) ; Lord, ib., Vol. XIX., p. 106, 1919 (Tas.) ; Le Souef and Macpherson, ib., Vol. XX., p. 90, 1920 (N.S.W.) ; Alexander, ib., p. 167, 1921 (W.A.). Pardalotus australis Stephens in Shaw’s Gen. Zool., Vol. XIII., pt. n„ p. 252, 1826 : New South Wales. VOL. XI. 185 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Pardalotus xanthopygus McCoy, Annals Mag. Nat. Hist.., Ser. 3, Vol. XIX., p. 184, March 1st, 1867 : North-west Victoria ; id., ib., Vol. XX., p. 177, 1867 ; Gould, Birds Austr., Suppl., pi. 8, pt. iv., Dec. 1st, 1867 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 180, 1878 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds, Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 59, 1885 ; Ramsay Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 3, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899 ; Campbell! Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 445, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus’. Spec. Cat! No. 1, Vol. II., p. 227, 1907 ; Mathews, Hand! Birds Austral., p. 91, 1908; Howe, Emu, Vol. VIII., pp. 133-137, 1909 (Vic.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. IX., p. 22, 1909 (Review) ; Howe, ib., p. 233, 1910 (Vic.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XII., pp. 5-7, 1912 (S.A.) ; Wilson, ib., p. 38 (Vic.) ; Chandler, ib., Vol. XIII.. p. 43, 1913 (Vic.).’ Pardalotus leadbeateri Ramsay, Ibis, 1867, p. 255, April 1st; for same as preceding- N.W. Victoria. Pardalotus punctatus punctatus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 389, 1912- id List Birds Austr., p. 255, 1913. Pardalotus 'punctatus inter jectus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 389, Jan. 31st, 1912: (Ringwood) Victoria ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 255, 1913 ; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 320, 1914. Pardalotus punctatus xanthopygus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 389, 1912; id., List Birds Austr., p. 255, 1913. Pardalotus punctatus leachi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 389, Jan. 31st, 1912: Tasmania ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 255, 1913. Pardalotus punctatus whitlocki Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 389, Jan. 31st, 1912: Wilson’s Inlet, South-west Australia ; id ., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. Pardalotus punctatus millitaris Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 4, p. 96, Sept, 18th, 1912: Cairns, Queensland; id., List Birds Austr., p. 255, 1913; Campbell and Barnard, Emu, Vol. XVII., p. 30, 1917. Distribution. Eastern Australia from Cairns, North Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, through South Australia to South-west Australia and Tasmania. Adult male. Crown of head black with a white spot at the tip of each feather ; nasal bristles black ; lores and a superciliary line whitish ; sides of face and cheeks grey minutely barred with white like the sides of the neck ; hind-neck blackish with pale subapical spots and dusky-grey bases to the feathers ; back similar but the subapical spots larger ; scapulars olive-grey very narrowly fringed with black at the tips ; wings black marked with white at the tips of the feathers ; inner webs of flight-quills blackish-brown margined with white ; rump and short upper tail- coverts dark chestnut, some of the feathers very slightly fringed with black ; the long ones tipped with red ; tail black w ith a subapical spot of white on each feather ; chin, throat, and fore-neck yellow like the under tail-coverts ; breast, abdomen, sides of body, flanks and thighs dull fawm-colour ; axillaries similar but paler; under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish-browm margined YY'itli white ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill black, feet fleshy. Total length 87 mm. ; culmon 6, wing 59, tail 29, tarsus 17. Figured. Collected at Ringwood, Victoria, on the 24th of July, 1909, and is the type of P. p. interj eclus. Adult female. Crown of head dusky with buffy-Yvhite spots at the tips of the feathers, all of which are margined with black ; hind-neck and back drab-grey with buff 186 SPOTTED PARDALOTE (DIAMOND-BIRD). spots at the tips ot the feathers, which are fringed with black, the buff spots become larger and richer in colour on the lower back and rump ; short upper tail-coverts cinnamon-rufous, becoming dark red on the long ones ; scapulars similar to the back but without the buff spots ; outer aspect of wing blackish with a white spot at the tip of each feather except on the bastard-wing and primary-coverts, which are uniform ; inner webs of flight-quills somewhat paler than the outer ones and margined with dull white ; lores and a line over the eye buffy-white ; sides of face, sides of neck, and cheeks dusky-grey ; chin, throat and fore-neck whitish-yellow similar to the centre of the breast and abdomen ; sides of body and thighs ochreous ; under tail-coverts canary-yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown fringed with white ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes groy, bill black, feet fleshy. Total length 94 mm. ; culrnen 6, wing 59, tail 30, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected at Ringwood, Victoria, on the 24th of July, 1909 (a pair with the male). Young female. Top of head dark brown with ochreous tips to the feathers which impart a spotted appearance ; the hind-neck and upper back dusky-brown, the spots are more inclining to rufous and the feathers narrowly fringed with blackish ; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts cinnamon-rufous ; wings black, the feathers everywhere tipped with white ; tail also black tipped with white, more broadly on the outermost feathers ; under-surface yellowish-white ; sides of body golden- buff ; under tail-coverts orange-yellow. Collected in Bass Straits. Nestling. Resembles the female. Pardalotus punctatus punctatus. Eggs. Three to six eggs form the clutch ; four usually, and five and six very rarely. A clutch of four taken at South Grafton, Clarence River, New South Wales, on the 24th of November, 1892, is pure white. Rather round in shape ; surface of shell fine, smooth and glossy. 17-18 mm. by 14-15. Nest. A domed and covered over, and rather rounded structure, with entrance on the side, and placed in a hollowed-out chamber at the end of a narrow tunnel about one to three feet long, made by the birds into a bank, and frequently along the upright bank of a creek, dam, or road cutting. The tunnel leading to the nest generally slopes slightly upwards. The nest is made almost entirely of strips of very dry, soft bark, and a great quantity is used in its construction. It measures from 3f to 51 inches in diameter over all by 2 1 inches to 2f inches across inside. Breeding-months. July to end December. Pardalotus punctatus millitaris. Eggs. Four eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of four eggs taken at Kirrama Range, Cardwell, North Queensland, on the 28th of October, 1916, is pure white. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell fine, and very glossy. 15-16 mm. by 12. Nest. A small domed-shaped structure built of wirey grass and bark, and placed in a rounded and hollowed-out chamber at the end of a small tunnel in the back of a creek, and sometimes in the earth fastened to the roots of a fallen and uprooted tree. Nest closely resembles that of P. p. punctatus. Breeding-months. July to December. Pardalotus punctatus interjedus. Nest and eggs very similar to those of P. p. punctatus. A clutch of four eggs taken at the Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, on the 1st of January, 1909, measures : — A, 16 by 13 mm. ; B, 16 by 13 mm. ; C, 16 by 13 mm ; D, 15 by 13 mm. 187 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Pardalotus punctatus xanthopygus. Eggs. Three to four eggs form the clutch. A clutch of four taken at Murtoa, Victoria, on the 4tli of October, 1896, is pure white. Swollen ovals in shape ; shell fine, smooth and glossy. 16-17 mm. by 13. Nest. A perfectly round structure of bark, and placed in the liollowed-out chamber at the end of a tunnel in the ground ; the tunnel often being made into a flat surface, and travelling in a sloping direction for two or three feet. Breeding-months. August to end November. When Shaw and Nodder described this species they gave no field-notes, and when Latham included it in his Supplement II. to the General Synopsis of Birds he knew nothing, acknowledging : “ I am indebted to the pencil of General Davies for these descriptions, taken from specimens in the possession of Captain King. These seem to have some affinity to the Striped-headed Manaldn.” Vigors and Horsfield recorded : “ We are informed by Mr. Caley that ‘ this species is called Diamond-Bird by the settlers, from the spots on its body. By them it is reckoned a valuable bird on account of its skin. It is not very plentifully to be met with. Ifc inhabits both forest-land and brushes; at least I have seen it in both.’ ” Gould’s account is mainly concerned with the peculiarity and beauty of the nesting site and nest, but I quote : “ No species of the genus Pardalotus is more widely and generally distributed than the Spotted Diamond-Bird, for it inhabits the whole of the southern parts of the Australian continent from the western to the eastern extremities of the country, and is very common in Tasmania. It is incessantly engaged in searching for insects among the foliage, both of trees of the highest growth and of the lowest shrubs ; it frequents gardens and enclosures as well as the open forest, and is exceedingly active in its actions, clinging and moving about in ever}’’ variety of position both above and beneath the leaves with equal facility. . . The song is a rather harsh piping note of two syllables often repeated.” Mr. Thos. P. Austin of Cobbora, New South Wales, has written: “Not nearly such a common species in these parts as Pardalotus ornatus, but still it may be in greater numbers than it appears, because at times it is rather silent, and as it often keeps high up in the larger trees it can easily escape notice. I have never met with it in the open country ; it seems to keep in the thicker forests. Most of the nests I have noticed here have been mouse¬ like holes drilled into the ground anywhere amongst fallen leaves in forest country, and have only been discovered by a bird flushing from the nest almost at my horse’s feet as I rode past ; if the bird did not flush the nest would 188 SPOTTED PARDALOTE (DIAMOND-BIRD). seldom be found. The nesting tunnel is drilled into the ground for about a foot, being only a few inches in depth, with a nesting chamber at the end, which often comes up to almost the surface of the ground. The nest itself is wonderfully neatly constructed, being composed mostly of fine inner bark- threads and when removed from the grormd holds together intact.” Mr. L. G. Chandler’s notes read : “ The Spotted Pardalote ( P . punctatus) is common in the vicinity of the Dandenong Ranges, Victoria. When wandering through the bush you may hear their peculiar call at ahnost any time of the day. This call consists of two notes, the second note a trifle lower than the first. There are other calls. I have found the nesting tunnel in many places : in the base of an upturned tree ; on flat ground following the course of a decayed root ; in the side of a furrow in ploughed land ; again, in the bank of a creek and lately in a tree-hollow. In the last named case it, at the time, was the first record of tins Pardalote’s nest being found in a tree, but this may commonly occur. The banks of the Cardinia Creek (Beacons- field) offer ideal nesting sites for this species. The soil being of a loose, sandy nature is especially suitable for them to tunnel in. Any noise hi the vicinity of the nesting tunnel is sufficient to bring the bird out should it be sitting. In many cases it would be impossible to detect the tiny burrow — that on an average is little more than one and a half inches hi diameter — were it not for the bird betraying it in this manner. One nest we found at Erankston contained one healthy young bird about a week old and the dried skeletons of two others. Messrs. Barrett and Nicholls have recorded a similar instance — ‘ on opening one of the tunnels we found five nestlings. Tliree of these were dead, being half eaten by the larva; of some species of dipterous fly of the genus Callipkora .’ A burrow may be used for two or more consecutive seasons for I found a nest that had been built on the decayed remains of an old nest. It was a foot in the damp, sandy soil and contained the unusual number of five eggs. In a bank where the earth is firm a slight ridge is often noticed in the centre of tunnel near the entrance. Tin's is raised by the birds when expelling the soil with their feet. This sign is sufficient to show you the burrow is, or has been, tenanted by a Pardalote. Both sexes assist in the construction of the nest and the work of incubation. In the task of feeding the offspring each take an equal share. In December a number of young birds may be seen following their parents, uttering a faint piping whistle at intervals. At the same time nests building or containing fresh eggs are observed. The young of this species are hatched naked and blind. At a week old the gape is cream, bill horn, frontal quills not yet broken, crown yellowish-buff with black tips, upper tail-coverts and rump buff, tail black with two white spots on central quills, two outer quills white with black bases, 189 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. primaries black tipped white, throat pale buff, sides of chest and abdomen very pale buff, feet bluish-grey, irides brown.” Mr. F. E. Howe also wrote : “ Nests are found from early September to January, so probably two broods are reared. The burrows are drilled horizontally and vary from one to tliree feet long. The call sounds like ‘ Twitt-lem,’ the first note high and the second considerably lower and with a perceptible pause between. I have often been amused whilst watching this bird utter its call to see it stand erect to utter the first note and crouch on the limb to emit the next. Unless you are looking at the bird it is difficult to tell whence the sound comes. Frequently the first note seems to come from one direction, the second from another. Both sexes help to dig the burrow and feed the young, the female alone incubating the eggs.” Mr. Tom Carter’s note reads : “ Red-rumped Pardalotes (P. punctatus) are very numerous in Karri country ( Eucalyptus diversicolor) in the extreme south-west corner of West Australia, -where they are known by the settlers as ‘ head-ache ’ birds, as they say the continual iteration by thousands of these birds of their monotonous note ‘ Slee-p ba-bee ’ causes headache to the listeners. Pseudogerygone culicivora utters a very similar song. Pardalotus punctatus is not uncommon in Blue Gums (Eucalyptus megacarpa) around Albany. Does not seem to like Jarrah country. Never seen about Broome Hill, but once shot two in Marlock scrub 40 miles east of Broome Hill.” Milligan has recorded it as “ Fairly numerous in the * marlock ’ clumps, but not seen elsewhere,” from the Stirling Ranges. Alexander, from the Perth district, wrote : “ Resident. Not common, but sometimes the numbers are greatly increased by arrivals of birds, presumably from further inland.” Dove has recorded nesting habits of this species in Tasmania from which I quote : “ The male bird had left the burrow7 as we approached, showing that he takes some part, at any rate, in the incubation. . . The Yellow- tipped Pardalote is the lively little bird which appears in numbers hi tho springtime among the big eucalypts, calling incessantly ‘ Pick-it-up ! pick- it-up ! ’ or, as some interpret the notes, ‘ Wit-e-cliu.’ While living in the forest near Table Cape, North-west Tasmania, I used to notice about the same time each spring this familiar call resounding among the trees where it had not been heard all through the winter months, and from this fact, and not seeing any of the birds themselves, I believe the Yellowr-tipped species to be a migrant, although the Spotted Pardalote ( P . punctatus) stays with us all the year.” A little later Dove wrote : “ The delicate ‘ Pick-it-up ’ call of the Tree Diamond-Bird or Pardalote (P. punctatus) vras another sound which greated the ear on this spring day. One of the smallest of our migrants, 190 SPOTTED PARDALOTE (DIAMOND -BIRD). its voice is usually first heard during the last week of August or the first few days of September.” Captain S. A. White has written me : “ P. xanthopygus is not a common bird in South Australia, although my father’s notes state that they were fairly plentiful at the Reedbeds in the sixties. Their note is very like that of punctatus and their habits seem similar.” Mr. Edwin Ashby has written me : “ This (P. xanthopygus ) is usually the common species wherever the soil is sandy in the neighbourhood of Blackwood, but for some reason they deserted our neighbourhood during last spring (1909), probably because cf the exceedingly wet winter (a record) ; most likely the sandy soil with clay subsoil held the water like a sponge beyond the usual time for breeding and the birds had to search elsewhere. Most years a pah nest hi the ploughed ground of my orchard quite near the house. While I try to preserve the nest from molestation, on occasions it has been ploughed up and other times the cat has got the young. The burrow is in soft sand about 15 to 18 inches deep, never far from the surface altho’ often started on flat ground. The end chamber is well lined with grass, making either a very deep cup or a slightly domed nest. I have collected this species hi the Mallee scrub on York Peninsula and also in the scrub near Mannum on the River Murray. Pardalotus punctatus is less common than P. xanthopygus at Blackwood, South Australia. I have found it numerous in Tasmania, Victoria, and exceptionally numerous in the New England district in New South Wales. The shrill whistle of the cock bird hi two shaip notes, the first shrill and the second considerably lower, is the same as that of the above, whose monotonous cry is heard everywhere in springtime amongst the sapling gums in the neighbourhood of Blackwood.” Mr. F. E. Howe’s notes read : “At the Kow Plains during October, 1909, vrc noticed a fair number of this pretty little creature (P. xanthopygus). The call-note is a soft high tinkling note, a monotone, and as the bird is ventri- loquial it is very hard to locate it. We saw some burrows that had just been started, wrhile others contained young birds nearly fully fledged. On Oct. 10th I found a burrow hi the sand from which I flushed the female, and on digging it out found it contahied four young so well fledged that they all took wing but one. The plumage hi this specimen was identical with that of the female, but the gape was cream in colour and the inside of the mouth orange.” Mr. A. Mattingley sent me : “I have found the mouse-like burrow of this most beautiful of the Pardalotes (P. xanthopygus) situate in the sand in the Mallee. The burrowr was tunnelled directly into the sand from a flat surface, and twenty-two inches in was a nest, perfectly spherical in shape, composed entirely of soft bark in which were cradled four roundish white THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. eggs. For the most part they frequent the arid regions of the Mallee and are usually to he met with in pairs as they hunt for insects ensconced in the leaves of the Mallee scrub ( Eucalyptus dumosa). It is interesting to observe how carefully these birds search any place that is likely to conceal any insect life, and while they are doing so they utter at times a sweet ‘Tink-Tink’ note. Most of the Honey-eaters, especially the graceful Honey-eater (Ptilotis ornata), show a combative attitude towards this lovely little bird. No doubt they resent the Pardalote’s presence because they compete for the insect life of the Mallee eucalypts on which both varieties of birds feed.” From Eyre’s Peninsula Capt. S. A. White recorded : “ Pardalolus xanthopygus takes the place of P. ornata, which seems to keep to the larger timber, in which they nest ; while P. xanthopygus frequents the low scrub and nests in the soft soil.” Wilson, from the Victorian Mallee, wrote : “ This pretty little form was alwrays present on the sand hills, where many of them had started nesting. At Ouzen nests were found containing incomplete clutches, but at Kow Plains they were not so forward, having just started tunnelling. Several of then excavations were noticed along the tracks that do service as roadways. Their bell-like note is exactly similar to that of P. punctatus, but not quite so loud.” The technical history of this species shows only one important item accom¬ panied with notable geographical variation. One of the earliest New South Wales birds to be described, Goidd noted its wide distribution without separating any subspecies ; but in 1866-7 the Mallee bird wras seen to differ and at present I believe this species has the honour of showing the first recognised Mallee form. This Mallee form was simultaneously named by McCoy and Ramsay, apparently from birds supplied by the same collector (Leadbeater) ; each sent their descriptions to England to be published, but while Ramsay sent his to the Zoological Society of London, McCoy forwarded his to the Annals and Magazine of Natural History and this was published on March 1st, 1867 ; in the Ibis a note was furnished drawing attention to the fact that, although Ramsay’s paper was read on Feb. (28 ?), McCoy’s name was published on March 1st, and asking for advice. The result was that Ramsay’s account was never published. McCoy’s species wms at once recognised, but until I prepared my “Reference List” in 1912 no consideration of the species as a whole had been midertaken. Upon arranging my series geographically it wras seen that variation wras pronounced tiu-oughout the species and that really it was only a matter of writing down the differences and naming the subspecies. It was also seen that the species xanthopygus wms merely the Mallee subspecies, but, 192 SPOTTED PAKDALOTE (DIAMOND-BIRD). as in the case oi some other species, differing more from its nearest neighbour than the two most widely separated, geographically, forms do. I arranged the species in five subspecies thus : Pardalotus punctatus punctatus (Shaw and Nodder). New South Wales. Pardalotus punctatus interjectus Mathews. “ Differs from P. p. punctatus in its much paler coloration above and below, especially on the mantle, the head being distinctly marked off as a cap. (Ringwood) Victoria.” East Victoria. Pardalotus punctatus xanthopygus McCoy. North-west Victoria (Mallee) and South Australia. Pardalotus punctatus leachi Mathews. “ Differs from P. p. punctatus in being darker above and below.” Tasmania. Pardalotus punctatus whitlocki Mathews. “ Differs from P. p. punctatus in being more buffy below and in having the rump not so red. Wilson’s Inlet, S.W.A.” South-west Australia. A little later I added Pardalotus punctatus millitaris Mathews. “ Differs from P. p. punctatus in being darker above, lighter below, and in having a much heavier bill, shorter wing, and a more yellowish vent. Cairns, North Queensland.” North Queensland. These six were included without alteration in my 1913 “ List.” Campbell and Barnard, writing from the Cairns distiict, state : “ We were greatly surprised to hear the dulcet notes of this pretty Pardalote in the tall timber ( eucalypts ) about our camp on the Kirrama tableland. Ramsay regarded it as rare here. Not far from ora tent a pair of birds had enlarged a hole in a hollow part of a green gum-tree bole, and therein had made a nest. The nest was completely composed of fine dry grass, and measured in circum¬ ference 12 inches, the side entrance was 1J inches across. There was a full set of four eggs. Date 28/10/16. The birds answer to Mathew’s subspecies millitaris, from the Cairns district.” VOL. XI. 193 Genus— PARD ALOTINUS. Pardalotinus Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 5, p. 115, Dec. 24th, 1912. Type (by original designation) . . . . . . . . . . . . Pipra striata Gmelin. I distinguished this form as : “ Differs from Pardalotus in its stronger bill and much stouter legs and feet, and with the first primary of the wing longest ; in Pardalotus the second and third primaries are longest and subequal, the first longer than the fourth.” The general characters are those of Pardalotus already given, but the nostrils are quite bidden by strong projecting nasal bristles, the tip of the bill is not so decurved, etc. Key to the Species. Head black, divided from back with white striations P. striatus. Head black with no white striations on nape . . P. melanocephalus. 508 & \ & CC0 508 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family PARDALOTIDAE. No. 629. PARDALOTINUS STRIATUS. STRIATED PARDALOTE. (Plate 508.) Pipra striata Gmelin, Syst. Nat., Vol. I., pt. n., p. 1,003, April 20th, 1789: “ America australi ” errore= Tasmania. Pipra striata Gmelin, Syst. Nat., Vol. I., pt. n., p. 1,003, 1789 ; Latham, Index Omith., Vol. II., p. 558, 1790 (Tasmania). Striped-headed Manakin Latham, Gen. Synops. Birds, Vol. IV., p. 526 ; id ., ib., Suppl. I., p. 188, 1787. Pardalotus striatus Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. XXIV., p. 530, 1818 ; Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XV., p. 237 (footnote), 1827 ; Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. n., pi. (22), 1837 ; id., Birds Austr.. pt. xv. (Vol. II., pi 38), June 1st, 1844 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 161, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 180, 1878; Milligan, Emu, VoL II., p. 172, 1903 (W.A.) ; S. A. White, ib ., Vol. XIII., p. 31, 1913 ; Chandler, ib ., p. 43, 1913 (Vic.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 128, 1914 (S.A.); Alexander, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 33, 1916 (W.A.); Lawrence and Littlejohns, ib., p. 50 (Vic.); D’Ombrain, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 236, 1918 (N.S.W.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XX., p. 128, 1921 (W.A.) ; Ashby, ib., p. 135 (W.A.) ; Alexander, ib., p. 167 (W.A.) ; D’Ombrain, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 65, 1921 (N.S.W.) ; McGilp, ib., Vol. XXII., p. 285, 1923. Pardalotus ornatus Temminck & Laugier, Planch. Color. d’Ois., 66e livr. (Vol. IV., pi. 394), f. 1, June 10th, 1826 : New South Wales ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 55, 1885 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 3, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 440, 1901 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. II., p. 15, 1902 (Vic.) ; Milligan, ib., p. 74 (W.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. III., pp. 11, 19, 22, 1903 (W.A.) ; H. E. Hill, ib., pp. 107, 228, 1903-4 (W.A.) ; Lawson, ib., Vol. IV., p. 135, 1905 (W.A.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. V., p. 144, 1906 (Kangaroo Island) ; Cleland, ib., p. 207, 1906 (Kangaroo Island) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 217, 1907 ; Hill, Emu, Vol. VII., p. 20, 1907 (Vic.) ;. Austin, ib., p. 31 (N.S.W.) ; Mathews, Hand! Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908 ; Howe, Emu, Vol. VIII., pp. 134-7, 1909 (Vic.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. IX., p. 22 (Review) ; Gibson, ib., p. 75 (W.A.) ; Crossman, ib., p. 89 (W.A.) ; Hall, ib., p. 130, 1910 (S.A.) ; Whitlock, ib., p. 210 (W.A.) ; Howe, ib., p. 233 (Vic.) ; 195 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Macgillivray, ib., Vol. X., pp. 17, 24, 94, 1910 (N.S.W.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XII., pp. 2-7, 1912 (S.A.) ; Wilson, ib.. p. 38 (Vic.) ; Hill, ib ., p. 248, 1913 (Central Australia). Pardalotus afjinis Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. n., pi. (22), April 1st, 1837 : Tasmania; id., Birds Austr., pt. i. (Vol. II., pi. 39), Dec. 1st, 1840 ; id ., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 163, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 180, 1878; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 57, 1885 ; Legge, Papers Proc. Roy. Soc. Tasm., 1886, p. 241, 1887 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 3, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899 ; Campbell. Nests and Eggs Austr. Buds, Vol. I., p. 443, 1901 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. II., p. 208, 1903 (King Island) ; Littler, ib., Vol. HI., p. 215, 1904 (Tas.); A. G. Campbell, ib., Vol. IV., p. 123, 1905 (Vic. andTas.); North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 221, 1907 ; Mellor, Emu, Vol. VI., p. 160, 1907 (Tas.) ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 22, 1909 (Review) ; Fletcher, ib., p. 81 (Tas.) ; Littler, Handb. Birds Tasm., p. 65, 1910 ; Thompson. Emu, V ol. XI., p. 40, 1911 (Tas.) ; Mellor and White, ib., Vol. XII., p. 163, 1913 (Flinders Island) ; Dove, ib., Vol. XV., p. 241, 1916 (Tas.) ; Kersey, ib., Vol. XIX., p. 52, 1919. Pardalotus assimilis Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., V ol. II., p. 180, Jan. 1878: New South Wales ; id., ib., p. 377 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 56, 1885; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 4, 1888 ; Hall. Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 442, 1901 ; Belcher, Emu, Vol. I., p. 125, 1902 (Vic.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 220, 1907; Mathews, Handb. Birds Austral., p. 90, 1908; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 22, 1909 (Review); Chandler, ib., Vol. X., p. 114, 1910 (Review); Ingle, ib ., p. 125 (Vic.). Pardalotus striatus striatus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. NVTII., p. 3S7, Jan. 31st, 1912. Pardalotus striatus kingi Mathews, ib. : King Island. Pardalot'us striatus assimilis Mathews, ib., p. 388. Pardalotus striatus ornahis Mathews, ib. ; S. A. White, Emu, V ol. XVIII., p. 23, 1918 (S.A.). Pardalotus striatus substriatus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 388, Jan. 31st, 1912. (Ultima) Victoria ; id., Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912. Pardalotus striatus subajfinis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 388, Jan. 31st, 1912. (Blackwood) South Australia ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XV., p. 161, 1916 (S.A.). Pardalotus striatus murchisoni Mathews, Nov. Zool., V ol. XVIII., p. 388, Jan. 31st, 1912. (Nully Pool) Murchison, West Australia. Pardalotus striatus ivestraliensis Mathews, ib. : (Claremont, South-) West Australia. Pardalotus striatus rogersi Mathews, ib. : Mungi, North-west Australia. Pardalotinus striatus striatus Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 257, 1913. Pardalotinus striatus kingi Mathews, ib. Pardalotinus striatus substriatus Mathews, ib. ; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 323, 1914. Pardalotinus striatus subafjinis Mathews, ib. Pardalotinus striatus ornatus Mathews, ib. 196 STRIATED PARDALOTE. Pardalotinus striatus assimilis Mathews, ib. Pardalotinus striatus rogersi Mathews, ib., p. 258. Pardalotinus striatus murchisoni Mathews, ib. Pardalotinus striatus westraliensis Mathews, ib. Pardalotinus striatus finki Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. II., pt. 5, p. 101, Sept. 24th, 1914 : Running Creek, Fink River, Central Australia. Pardalotus subaffinis S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XII., p. 263, 1913 (Kangaroo Island). Pardalotus striatus finkei S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 190, 1915 (Central Australia). Distribution. Apparently all Extra-tropical Australia and Tasmania, reaching into the tropics at Mungi in the west and Port Denison in the east. Adult male. Fore-part of head uniform black ; hinder-crown and nape also black with white elongated centres to the feathers ; sides of hinder-face similar but paler and the small white streaks more minute, a broad streak above the eye white ; lores and feathers in front of the eye bright yellow* ; sides of neck, hind-neck, back, and scapulars ash-grey with a yellowish tinge on the last ; rump and upper tail- coverts dull fawrn colour : tail-feathers black irregularly margined with grey or white ; lesser and median upper wing-coverts blackish, slightly tipped with buffy- white, the greater series and primary-coverts uniform black, the latter tipped with red ; bastard-wing also black narrowiy edged with white ; flight-quills blackish- browrn margined with white, more broadly towards the base of the primaries and inner secondaries and very slightly at the tips of the primaries, some of the outer secondaries margined with smoke-colour towards the base ; cheoks, breast, and abdomen silky-wiiite ; throat and sides of abdomen lemon-yellowr ; sides of body, thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts huffy-white ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish-brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail blackish tipped with white. Eyes pale brown, bill very dark horn, feet and legs pale horn (flesh). Total length 98 mm. ; culmen 7, wing 62, tail 31, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected at Nully Pool, East Murchison, Mid-west Australia, on the 18th of September, 1909, and is the type of P. s. murchisoni. (Left-hand bottom figure.) Adult female. Similar to the male. Adult female. Fore-part of head black, hinder-crown and nape also black with white shaft-streaks ; ear-coverts similar but much paler ; base of fore-head and loral streak yellow ; feathers in front of the eye dusky ; cheeks and sides of hinder- crown whitish ; sides of neck pale fawrn-colour ; mantle, back, and scapulars olive inclining to ockreous on the fringes of the last like the lower-back, rump, and upper tail-coverts ; lesser and median upper wing-coverts bronze-brown with pale tips to some of the feathers ; greater upper wing-coverts and bastard-wing black ; ‘ primary-coverts also black tipped with red ; flight-quills black on the outer aspect, fringed with white on some of the feathers and chestnut-brown on some of the others, inner-webs paler and margined with whitish ; tail pale brown at the base becoming black on the apical portion which is tipped with white ; throat and fore¬ neck yellow which gradually fades away on the breast and abdomen ; sides of body, thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts pale fawn-colour ; axillaries and under wing- coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quills pale brown with whitish margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Total length 95 mm. ; culmen 6, wing 65, tail 32, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected at Gracemere, Queensland, on the 17th of May, 1881, and is P. queenslandicus (subsp. n.). (Right-hand * bottom figure.) 197 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Adult female . Top of head black streaked with white on the hinder-crown and nape ; sides of face blackish minutely lined with white ; lores and nasal bristles black ; supraloral streak yellow, becoming white above the eye and on the sides of the crown ; sides of neck, hind-neck, back, and scapulars greyish-olive, fringed with ochreous on the last ; rump and upper tail-coverts ochreous ; upper wing-coverts black, tipped with ochreous on the lesser and median series and with bright red on the primary-coverts ; flight-quills blackish with wiiite tips and white fringes to some of the feathers and chestnut-brown margins to some of the secondaries, inner- webs of flight-quills paler than the outer ones and margined with white; tail-feathers black tipped with white ; chin and throat yellow, middle of breast and middle of abdomen silky-white ; sides of breast, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts pale buff like the axillaries ; under wing-coverts and margins of flight- quill below wiiite, remainder of quill-lining pale brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface hut rather paler. Total length 106 mm. ; culmen 6, wing 65, tail 32, tarsus 20. Figured. Collected on the Nepean River, New South Wales, in May, 18S5. (Right-hand top figure.) Adult. Fore-part of head and feathers in front of eye uniform black ; nape and hinder- face black narrowly streaked with white ; loral-streak yellow ; a short streak of white on the sides of the crown ; sides of neck, hind-neck, back, and scapulars dark lead-grey tinged with ochreous on the last ; rump and upper tail-coverts ochreous-brown ; lesser and median upper wing-coverts black tipped with oehreous- brown, the greater series uniform black ; bastard-wing black, narrowly margined with w iiite ; primary-coverts also black tipped with pale yellow ; flight-quills blackish margined and tipped with wiiite, some of the secondaries partially edged with chestnut-brown ; tail blackish tipped with white, more broadly on the outer feathers ; chin, throat, and fore-neck yellow ; sides of throat, middle of breast, and abdomen dull wiiite ; sides of breast and flanks drab-grey tinged with yellow ; thighs dusky ; vent and under tail-coverts buffj^-white ; axillaries greyish-white ; under wing-coverts and base of quill-lining white, remainder of quills below glossy brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to the upper-surface but paler, Total length 100 mm. ; culmen 7, wing 67, tail 35, tarsus 20. Figured. Collected at Blackwood, South Australia. And is the type of P. s. subaffinis. Immature male. Crowrn of head olive-brown, some of the feathers black with white shaft¬ lines ; hind-neck, sides of neck, back and scapulars olive-brown, becoming pale sepia-brown on the tips of the long scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts ; wings blackish with white margins and pale tips to many of the feathers, some of the secondary-quills fringed with dark chestnut on the outer webs ; primary-coverts tipped with red, lesser coverts similar to the back, inner- webs of flight-quills margined with whitish ; tail-feathers blackish, more or less marked with wrhite at the tips ; lores and a line above the eye yellow — extending along the sides of the crown, where it becomes almost white ; ear-coverts similar to the back ; throat, lower cheeks, and breast lemon-yellow, middle of abdomen cream-white ; sides of body and thighs ochreous ; under tail-coverts pale fawn-colour ; under wing-coverts cream-white dotted with pale brown ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with whitish edges ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper surface but paler. Bill greenish-black, eyes dirty green, feet and legs neutral tint. Collected at Bayswater, Victoria, on the 27th of March, 1909. Immature male. Top of head, sides of neck, hind-neck, back, scapulars, and lesser upper wing-coverts olive-brown, slightly darker on the nape where there is one white feather with wide black margins ; bastard-wing, greater-coverts, primary-coverts, and flight-quills blackish with pale margins and tips to many of the feathers and the primary-coverts tipped with red ; tail-feathers blackish more or less marked with white at the tips ; lores and a line above the eye whitish ; sides of face, throat, STRIATED PARDALOTE. and breast dull lemon-yellow ; abdomen whitish ; sides of body pale ochreous ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts pale buff ; axillaries and under wing-coverts cream-white dotted with pale brown ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with cream-white margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill greenish-black, eyes dirty green, feet pale neutral tint. Collected at Bayswater, Victoria, on the 27tli of March, 1909. Immature female. Crown of head, sides of neck, hind-neck, and upper-back olive-brown, the feathers on the head minutely fringed with blackish which imparts a scalloped appearance ; scapulars, lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts sepia-brown ; wings blackish, lesser upper wing-coverts and median series tipped with olive- brown, bastard-wing fringed with white, primary-coverts tipped with red, some of the primary-quills fringed with umber-brown on the outer-webs and wrhitish towards the tips ; tail-feathers blackish marked with white on the inner-webs at the tips ; sides of face, sides of breast, and sides of body pale ochreous-brown ; under tail-coverts pale buff ; axillaries and under wing-coverts cream-white with pale brown dots on the margin of the wing ; under-surface of flight-quills pale greyish-brown inclining to whitish on the margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Bill dark brown, gape cream, eyes grey, feet fleshy. Collected at Ringwood, Victoria, on the 9th of December, 1911. Pardalotinus striatus striatus. Eggs. Three to four eggs form the clutch, and sometimes five. A clutch of four taken at Berriedale, Glenorchy, Tasmania, on the 24th of October, 1896, is pure white. Round ovals in shape, shell fine and rather glossy. 19 mm. by 14. Nest. Is usually placed in a small hollow or hole in a tree ; it is a domed or covered over structure, and composed of grass, bark, and sometimes feathers. The nest is situated at heights varying from a few feet up to fully 50 feet above the ground. This species has been known to burrow into the bank of a creek, and construct a nest similar to Pardalotus p. pundatus , but it does not often happen. Breeding-months. August to November. Pardalotinus striatus ornatus. Eggs. Three to four eggs form the clutch. A clutch of four taken at Port Hacking, New South Wales, on the 6th of September, 1903, is pure white. Swollen ovals in shape ; shell fine, and very glossy. 16-17 mm. by 12. Nest. Placed in a small hollow or hole in a tree, and similar to that of P. s . striatus. Breeding-months. August to December. Pardalotinus striatus substriatus. Eggs. Clutch three to four, sometimes five. A clutch of five taken at Seaford, Victoria, on the 17th of November, 1918, is pure white. Swollen ovals in shape ; shell fine and rather glossy. 17-18 mm. by 14. N est. A domed-shaped structure, composed of bark, grasses, and rootlets, and often lined with fine red bark. Placed in a hollowed-out and rounded chamber at the end of a tunnel, 12 to about 24 inches long, drilled into the perpendicular wall of a dam, creek, or road cutting, etc. Breeding-months. August to November. 199 j-nQtvw. museum 8 ac a a 23 _» 2 / THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Pardalotinus striatus assimilis. Eggs. Three to four eggs form the clutch. Nest and eggs similar to those of P. s. striatus. Breeding-months. August to December. Apparently this little “ Manakin ” was procured by Anderson on a Third Voyage of Captain Cook in Tasmania and was described from a specimen brought home. Latham gave no locality at first but corrected it almost at once upon referring to Anderson’s papers. Gmelin overlooked the correction and as “ Manakins ” came from South America added that locality. This error misled Gould who differentiated between the Tasmanian and New South Wales birds, and his field-notes are the earliest I have noted. Gould wrote : “ This beautiful species, like the P. punctatus, enjoys an extensive range of habitat, being found in all parts of the southern portion of the Australian continent ; it has not as yet been discovered in Tasmania, its place in that island being apparently occupied by the P. affinis. I have carefully examined specimens killed at Swan River with others from hew South Wales, and I cannot find any difference either in their size or markings. It will be interesting to know how far this species and the P. punctatus extend their range northwards, a point which can only be ascertained when the country has been fully explored. This active little bird is generally seen seeking insects among the leaves, for which purpose it frequents trees of every description, but gives a decided preference to the Eucalypti. Its flight is rapid and darting, hence it passes from tree to tree, or from one part of the forest to another, with the greatest ease. Its voice is a double note several times repeated.” As I am regarding the three so-called species, affinis, assimilis and ornatus, as one species under the name striatus, and as my correspondents differ, I am quoting their notes in connection with the name they used. Mr. Thos. P. Austin has written me from Cobbora, New South Wales: “ P. ornatus is a very common bird throughout the Avhole district, and found in all sorts of timbered country, from almost open paddocks, with only a few dead trees remaining, to thick heavy ironbarlc scrubby ridges, and I have noted it feeding from the ground to the leafy tops of the tallest tiees. It is a very tame and fearless species. I have often seen them come imdei mv verandah to within a few feet of me, and examine every hole they could see from the floor to the ceiling searching for a nesting hollow. I fastened several cocoanut shells to the wall with a small round hole drilled into them, and although I often suav the birds enter them, they never used any for a nesting place. They nest in a great variety of situations, but mostly within hollow branches of dead trees, and in a small hole drilled into a perpendicular bank 200 STRIATED PARDALOTE. MtC«° of a creek making a nesting chamber at the end which they line well with fine dry grass. When breeding they have a curious habit of holding their wings at right angles to the body. Several pairs of birds will at times gather in the nesting tree, often near the entrance to the nesting hollow, and go through this strange performance, sometimes quivering their wings with a fanning motion. I have only taken their eggs during the months of October and November, but I have little doubt they often breed earlier.” Mr. L. G. Chandler has sent a long and complete account under the name of P. assimilis from which I quote : “ Is a numerous species in the Frankston district, Victoria ; in open forest country you are certain to find it and often in the thickly timbered localities, but the birds show a preference for open gum country. One observer has recorded : ‘ The bird does not stay to winter in its breeding haunt, and is away long before sure signs of the coming fall are generally noticeable.’ My observations have been the reverse. During the winter months I have seen flocks of a dozen or more birds at various times, and these in different localities. Like many other so-called migratory birds, this species leads a nomadic existence, their movements after the termination of the breeding season depending entirely upon food supply. At Bayswater in March, 1909, I saw a flock numbering many dozens. Two specimens I secured were immature birds just assuming the mature plumage. They would probably be about five months old. They were noisy and were giving a tri-syllabic note that resembled ‘ wit-e-lu.’ I think it is the immature birds that give this call. In the month of April I have seen small companies at Frankston ; in June at Olinda a noisy flock was seen traversing the tree- tops, but like many birds that are habitually noisy throughout the breeding season this species is remarkably quiet during the colder months of the year. This habit would make it easily overlooked by those who infer that the birds are migratory. In July and August I have not heard them give other than a sweet trill which, however, can be heard a fair distance away. This trill seems to be a call-note between the sexes. This species apparently congregate about February or March and in the months of July and August commence to pair off for the breeding season. Working actively from bough to bough in search of food they do not stop long in the one tree, but when two or three birds fly further afield the rest of the flock quickly follows. They appear to live on scale insects that frequent the gum leaves, and on a still calm day, if feeding in sapling growth, the tap, tap of their bills on the leaves can be plainly heard. The wing beats of this bird are rapid. At irregular intervals it describes a short quadrant in its flight. Sometimes this quadrant is a little more extended on a downward grade. This characteristic flight, together with certain notes that are uttered, render this species easily recognisable VOL. XI. 201 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. on the wing. Both sexes attend to the wants of the young ones, but before the site of the nest has been chosen and while building operations are in progress both birds are very noisy and thus help to betray the whereabouts of the nesting tunnel. Both sexes assist in the task of excavation, but I have only seen one bird carrying rootlets to the nest. The young when a few weeks from the nest have a pretty trill-like call unlike any note given by the adult bird. The young are hatched naked and blind, the body delicate pink, wings and feet pale cream and gape sulphur-yellow.” Mr. E. J. Christian has sent me : “ P. assimilis leaves South Victoria for the winter, but stays here (North Victoria) all the year. Every water¬ course which has its clump of red gum has its pair of birds. The well-known cry ‘ Wilton, Wilton ’ can be incessantly heard, in fact, it gets monotonous. It is an extremely active little bird and hops along from twig to twig and bough to bough searching for food. They are very hard to notice and I have often stood beneath a tree trying to find where the noise came from and after some time have found the bird quite near my head. They are very trustful and I have had them within a couple of feet of my hand. They seem to eat many insects and larvae which they find on the bark of the trees. I have often been amused at the way they pick at everything and dodge in and out of every hole.” Mr. Tom Tregellas has written : “As a destroyer of insect pests Pardalotes are invaluable, fluttering in and out, amongst, under and over the bushes, scanning every nook and comer in search of food. Much is taken whilst fluttering at the end of a bough with rapidly moving wings and body poised, their little beady eyes prying everywhere. This peculiar habit is entertaining to watch. They seem able to poise the body in any position, and while thus poised the head and neck are twisted to all points and the undersides of the leaves scanned as well as the tops. The food they partake of is almost shunned by other birds, consisting of aphis and all lands of blight and fungus growths which work incalculable harm. P. assimilis has never a dread of man and while nesting is absolutely fearless, going and coming even when one is sitting alongside the nesting burrow. I have frequently caught the bird under such conditions, which showed so little concern at its capture that it never even tried to escape, and when released hopped on to the nearest twig and began to preen its feathers. The other variety, ornatus, common in our district, varies so little in its nesting and other habits that the one description does for both species. During the nesting season they are wont to sit on the top¬ most twigs of the tallest trees, expanding and contracting their small rounded wings in a very methodical manner, uttering the while those peculiar notes that give the bird the name of ‘ Wittoo ’ or ‘ Witlow.’ I found that assimilis 202 STRIATED PARDALOTE. uttered a nesting call resembling ‘ You did, tyou did,' with the accent hard on the last syllable. This call is repeated many times as if to clinch an argument, and is used principally when the hen bird is sitting.” Mr. E. E. Howe wrote : “ P. ornatus is one of the commonest birds in the Mallee and as many as three nests were noticed in one tree at Pine Plains during Sept., 1907. At Kow Plains we found many nests containing eggs and young. Both male and female help to build the nest. At Ringwood P. assimilis occurs, P. ornatus being only seen occasionally.” Mr. A. G. Campbell’s notes read : “ Pardalotus ornatus arrives in North¬ east Victoria each year before the end of August, staying during the breeding season and leaving again in April. It usually nests in hollows of trees, but on the sandy banks of the Murray near Wahgumgah some tunnel their nesting holes. Pardalotus assimilis in Victoria only occurs south of the Dividing Range and then only east of the longitude of Melbourne. P. ornatus occurs throughout the remaining three-quarters of the State. Both species are semi-migratory, leaving for the winter.” Of Kangaroo Island, A. G. Campbell wrote : “ On the scrub-covered moorlands a few very stunted gum trees were found, some of them not more than six feet in height. They were covered with grotesque galls and insect ridden. In nearly every patch one of these little birds could be disturbed. It differs somewhat from Victorian specimens in markings. Those from the north-east of the State are much richer than those from the north-west. They have the lower back and rump rufous instead of olive, and further have the tops of all the primaries white. The Kangaroo Island specimens have one character of each. They are olive coloured in the mantle like the birds from North-west Victoria, but have all the tips of the primaries white, like the north-eastern forms.” Captain S. A. White writes : “ P. striatus is a bird with a great range and there is little apparent variation from Queensland to Western Australia, and I have met with it all over Central Australia. The note is distinctive and is a double note repeated quickly. A very lively bird, hopping about amongst the gum foliage in a very sprightly manner and its flights straight and rapid. The nest is placed in dead limbs and lined with dry grass ; some of the nests are very neatly and compactly made.” Air. Edwin Ashby has written me : “I have four specimens, three collected by myself and the other exchanged, of the iorm we have always referred to as assimilis, with the white outer web of the third primary only. They were collected, one at Adaminaby, near the Snowy Mountains, Southern New South Wales ; one from the Macanally Range further north, one from Emmaville in the high New England country near the Queensland border 203 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. in New South Wales, and the other exchanged from Somerville. I have never taken this form in any of the other states. I also have two specimens from New South Wales in which the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh primaries have the outer web white as in the South Australian specimens. This suggests that there are two very distinct subspecies in New South Wales. I noticed that the note of the bird I shot at Adaminaby was quite distinct from that of the South Australian and Victorian buds.” D’Ombram has recently recorded from The Watercourse, North-west New South Wales : “Pardalotes, both red-tipped (P. striatus) and orange-tipped ( P. assimilis) are fairly plentiful. Their notes were exacf ly alike, but entirely different from the similar species of more southern latitudes. The note is ‘ Chip-chip,’ not * wit-ee-chu,’ as uttered by the red-tipped elsewhere. In examining specimens of each wre noticed that the white outer edge and tip was missing in the second primary feather of the orange-tipped, while there was only a faint trace of white towards the final third of the similar feather in the red-tipped. We do not think this has been recorded before, although Dr. W. Macgillivray (Broken Hill) mentions the unequal amount and dis¬ tribution of the white margins in the specimens around Coleraine (Vic.). These birds, with the same notes, showed (a) red tips, ( b ) reddish-orange tips. Probably they are cissiinilis showmg the range of colour in the tips as described by Hall in his * Handbook.’ Their nests here are always in trees, and they are never known to breed hi tunnels in banks. The writer of this article found the red-tipped breeding both in the trees and banks on the Snowy River, near Jindabyne (N.S.W.).” Captain S. A. White, writing of the Birds of Eyre Peninsula, South Australia, observed : “ Pardalotus ornatus was also plentiful, they seemed to keep to the big gum country, and were found constructing their beautifully formed nests of soft bark and grass in the hollow of a gum limb or bole, a hole with a very small entrance being always chosen.” Previously Hall had noted from the same locality : “ Specimens showed an orange speculum. Years ago, in Western Australia, I secured a skin with a yellow speculum. Tibs, in my mind, makes P. ornatus variable in speculum, being scarlet, orange or yellow.” Capt. S. A. White, writing of a Trip to the Northern End of Flinders Range, South Australia, recorded the South Australian Pardalote as “ Common. Found only along the gum-tree creeks. Resembles the Central form, P. s. finkei (Mathews) very much, but differs in having a darker upper-surface and less buff on the rump.” Later, reporting from Lake Victoria and Murray River : “ Found all through the district visited. At Lake Victoria they had assembled in numbers, and had made their nesting-tunnels into the bank 204 STRIATED PARDALOTE. of a washout. Upon comparison it is found that the Murray bird is much darker than the northern bird (true Pardaloiinus striatus ornatus), and the tips of the spurious wing-feathers are orange, while those of the northern bird are crimson.” Air. Tom Carter has written me : “ The Westralian Pardalote (P. striatus westraliensis) is a common bird throughout the south-west of West Australia. Nests containing eggs were never found, but on Dec. 29th, 1911, I watched the parent birds feeding young birds in the nest, which was built inside a knot-hole, on the trunk of a dead Blue Gum-tree near Albany, which stood on the edge of a running brook. The hole was about fifteen feet above the ground. Dec. 11th, 1902. Young birds were noted in a nest in a tree hanging over Vasse River about twenty feet above the water.” Milligan wrote about the Margaret River district, South-west Australia : “ Not many of these birds were observed, and those that were appeared to confine themselves to the ‘ red-gum ’ country. I observed a pair passing in and out of a small hole of a red gum-tree, in which they evidently were nesting.” Erom the Stirling Ranges he added : “ Common in the ‘ white-gum 5 country. One of my perplexities was in regard to Pardalotus ornatus. At several places in the ‘ marlock ’ clumps we obtained specimens, each of which possessed orange-yellow head spots. Usually spots of that colour are taken as an external distinguishing sex mark, but it could be scarcely possible that every bird we shot should prove to be of the same sex.” Alexander, reporting upon the Birds of Bremer Bay, recorded : “ Seen several times, but the individuals were very pale in colour, and seemed to me to belong to a different race from those found near Perth. They may, however, have been young birds.” Of Perth, Alexander wrote : “ Resident. A plentiful species throughout the district.” Ashby recorded it as “ common at Claremont and Watheroo,” wliile Captain S. A. White, who visited the Margaret River district, concluded : “ This bird is identical with the South Australian bird. The writer fails to see the slightest variation,” but did not say with what locality South Australian birds he compared them. Gould wrote : “ P. affinis is distributed over every part of Tasmania, and may be regarded as the commonest bird of the island ; wherever the gum and wattle exist, there also may the bird as certainly be found ; giving no decided preference to trees of a high or low growth, but inhabiting alike the sapling and those which have attained their greatest altitude. It displays great activity among the branches, clinging and creeping about in the most easy and elegant manner, examining both the upper and under sides of the leaves with the utmost care in search of insects. It is equally common in all the gardens and shrubs, even those in the midst of the towns, forming a 205 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. familiar and pleasing object, and enlivening the scenery with its sprightly actions and piping, though somewhat monotonous, note. Its food consists of seeds, bud3, and insects, in procuring which its most elegant actions are brought into play. I was formerly led to believe that the Allied Diamond- Bird was strictly confined to Tasmania and the islands in Bass’s Straits, but I have lately seen specimens from Victoria and New South Wales.” Mr. Frank Littler has written me : “ Very plentiful in places, may be seen flitting about the scrub in small flocks. May be found in both scrubby and open country throughout Tasmania.” Mellor and White record it from Flinders Island as : “ Numerous. Met with in the big timber and scrub country alike.” A. G. Campbell included it in his list of the Birds of King Island and also that he had shot a specimen in Victoria, thus confirming Gould’s record above quoted. Mr. J. P. Rogers wrote : “At Mungi the two northern species (P. uropygialis and P. rubricatus) were replaced by two others, one a form of P. rubricatus and one of the group with white streaks on the hinder crown. This new bird has similar habits to P. rubricatus, only the note is much shorter and sharper than that of the other two species. It is not very numerous and I had difficulty in distinguishing it from P. rubricatus in the field unless I got very close up ; tliis is the first time I have seen this species.” The most northern record of P. striatum is Mungi. Gmelin described Pipra striata as follows : “ P. subtus flavescens, capite superiore nuchaque nigris, singulis pennis per longitudinem stria alba notatis, remigibus atris ; tertia brevissima. “ Striped-headed Manaldn. Lath. syn. II. 2, p. 526, n. 11, t. 54. Habitat in America australi. “ Longitudo 41 pollicum ; rostrum fuscum ; inter hoc et oculos macula flava ; cervix et dorsum ex fuscescente cinerea ; tectrices alarum fuscescentes, nonnullae apice flavae ; alae spuriae apice albae ; cauda nigra perbrevis ; rectricibus lateralibus apice albis ; pedes atri.” This is merely a Latin rendering of Latham’s description which reads: “ Length four inches and a half. Bill brown ; crown of the head and nape black, with a stripe of white down the shaft of each feather ; hind part of the neck and back of a brownish ash colour, inclining to olive near the rump; between the bill and eye a deep yellow spot ; the wing-coverts are brownish ; the bastard wings tipped with white, and some of the outer coverts tipped with yellow, making an oblique mark near the outer edge of the wing ; the quills dusky ; the third shorter in proportion than any of the others, being a quarter of an inch shorter than the second, though all the others are of the usual length (this is a characteristic, as I observed it in both wings) ; the 206 4 STRIATED PARDALOTE. under-parts of the bird are yellowish, growing very pale near the vent; under tail-coverts are buff-colour ; the tail black, very short ; the outer feather tipped with white ; legs dusky. “This is in the possession of Sir Joseph Banks." I have reproduced these descriptions because Gould used striatus as of Temminck for the New South Wales form and rejected Gmelin’s name as to the Tasmanian form, which he had named Pardalotus affinis, citing in his synonymy : - “ Pipra striata (?) Gmel. et Auct. “ Striped-headed Manakin, Shaw, Gen. Zool., Vol. X., p. 29, pi. 4,” and observing : “ The Pardalotus affinis is distinguished by the yellow tips of its spurious wings, and by the margin of the third primary only being white. The bird figured by Shaw and Latham, as quoted above, has, in all probability, reference to the present species, but not, in my opinion, to the Pipra striata of Grnelin, whose description does not agree with the Tasmanian bird, or with any of those from New South Wales ; he distinctly states that the tips of some of the wing-coverts are yellow, and that the spurious wing is tipped with white, and, moreover, adds that it is a native of South America.” Gmelin’s description as pointed out is simply a translation of Latham’s which Gould admits might be referable, and the locality given by Gmelin is purely suppostitious as my quotations show. This was rectified by Latham himself in the First Supplement to the General Synopsis of Birds, 1787, p. 188, where he vTote : “I have been hitherto at a loss for the native place of this bird. Mr. Anderson’s papers inform me that it is a native of Van Diemen’s Land. I think it not an improbable supposition, that the Brown Shrike {Gen. Synops. Birds, Vol. J., p. 191) may be the other sex of this species.” As the Brown Shrike was described from a specimen in the British Museum, and Latham’s account was latinised by Gmelin as Lanius fuscus, which is earlier than any other Pardalote name, I reprint Latham’s account : “ Size of a Manakin. Bill horn-colour, with a black tip ; the upper parts of the plumage brown, beneath white ; between the bill and the eye yellowish ; secondaries tipped with yellovdsh, and the edges of the greater quills of the same colour, forming two narrow bars on the wings ; legs black. Place unknown.” As Latham drew up this account from a specimen itself his opinion must be considered, but it does not seem applicable to a Pardalote, the two yellow vring-bars being foreign to the group. The next complication after Gould’s affinis appeared when Ramsay drew up his “ List ” in 1878, when he included Pardalotus striatus, affinis 207 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. and assimilis Ramsay, characterising the last named in a footnote reading: “ Tips of spurious wings always orange-red, never yellow as in P. affinis ,” and starring the range columns under “ Port Denison, Wide Bay District, Richmond and Clarence River Districts, New South Wales and Interior.” At a later meeting of the Linnean Society of New South Wales he exhibited examples recording that it was found “ breeding in New South Wales in large numbers.” According to this the type locality would be New South Wales, as he was simply naming the bird with red tips but with the margin of third primary only white. Hall then pursued the matter of these three “ species ” and suggested that as birds like “ assimilis ” were found in Victoria and were intermediate in their characters between the New South Wales “ ornatus ” and the Tasmanian “ affinis ,” the three were all forms of one species. This view was discussed without much definite conclusions, so that in 1912 I carefully criticised the whole of the available material, and in my “ Reference List ” stated my conclusions thus : “ After the examination of long series of Pardalotes I have been compelled to ignore the white edgings to the primaries and the coloration of the tips of the coverts, as I consider them of no primary importance, as specimens from localities adjacent gave different results. I could only conclude that we had three species living in the same locality and differing only7' in the most minute manner, and many subspecies of each one ; or by elimination conclude that one species only existed, with eight (or nine) subspecies. I chose the latter alternative, and have based my diagnosis upon general coloration alone, leaving out of consideration altogether the coloration of the tips of the coverts. I may here remark, however, that P. s. striatus seems to have constantly yellow tips to the coverts, P. s. assimilis mainly orange, though throughout New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria this colour may bo rarely found ; while in West Australia I have not yet seen any other colour than red.” The subspecies admitted were Pardalotus striatus striatus (Gmelin). Tasmania. Pardalotus striatus kingi Mathews. “ Differs from P. s. striatum in being uniform grey above. King Island.” King Island, Bass Straits. Pardalotus striatum assimilis Ramsay. Queensland. Pardalotus striatus ornatus Temminck and Laugier. New South Wales. Pardalotus striatus substriatus Mathews. STRIATED PARDALOTE. “Differs from P. s. ornatus in its paler coloration above, especially on the rump. (Ultima) Victoria.” Victoria. Pardalotus striatu-s subaffinis Mathews. “ Differs from P. s. ornatus in its darker grey on the back and paler rump, forming a contrast, thus differing from P. s. substriatus. (Blackwood) South Australia.” South Australia. Pardalotus striatus murchisoni Mathews. “ The most pallid form, paler than P. s. rogersi, the flank coloration being very pale and the yellow also very pale. (Nully Pool) Murchison, West Australia.” Mid-west Australia. Pardalotus striatus westraliensis Mathews. “ Differs from P. s. ornatus in its darker coloration above, the back being browner and the rump more buffy. (Claremont) West Australia.” South-west Australia. Pardalotus striatus rogersi Mathews. “ A pale form, differing from P. s. westraliensis in the head and back coloration as also on the rump, and from P. s. substriatus in being still paler. Mungi, North-west Australia.” Interior North-west Australia. These were admitted in my 1913 “ List ” with their transference to the genus Pardaloiinus and I have since added Pardaloiinus striatus finki. “ Differs from P. s. subaffinis in having the head more streaked, rump brownish, and the centre of the throat yellowish. Running Water, Fink River.” Central Australia. Of this form Captain S. A. White wrote ; “ The only variation from the southern bird is that the red tip is much brighter and deeper, the rump and upper tail-coverts being a rich and deeper buff. An immature bird was secured at Hamilton Bore. ... is remarkable in having the bright-red tips, primaries marked strongly with white, lores bright yellow ; yet no signs of striation appear upon its head, which is of a light-grey colour, same as back.” All these forms can still be admitted with the substitution of queenslandrcus for assimilis, and the Kangaroo Island bird can be called Pardaloiinus striatus campbelli subsp. n. differentiated in the body of the work (p. 203). VOL. XI. 209 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 630. Family PARDALOTIDjE. PARDALOTINUS MELANOCEPHALUS. BLACK-HEADED PARDALOTE. (Plate 509.)* Pardalotus melanocephalus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (62), April 1st 1838 : Moreton Bay, Queensland. Pardalotus melanocephalus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., 1838 ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 149, Dec. 1838 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. xxm. (Vol. II., pi. 40), June 1st, 1846 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 165, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1875, p. 584 ; id., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 180, 1878 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 60, 1885 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 4, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 447, 1901 ; Webb, Emu, Vol. II., p. 29, 1902 (N.Q.) ; Le Souef, ib., p. 92 (N.T.) ; House, ib., p. 115 (N.W.A.) ; Barnard, ib., Vol. III., p. 186, 1904 (N.Q.) ; Bemey, ib., Vol. V., p. 76, 1905 (N.Q.) ; id., ib., Vol. VII., pp. 80-1, 1907 (Food) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. IL, p. 231, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 91, 1908 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 22, 1909 (Review) ; Broadbent, ib., Vol. X., p. 235, 1910 (N.Q.) ; Cleland, ib., Vol. XII., p. 15, 1912 (Food) ; Campbell and Barnard, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 30, 1917 (N.Q.) ; S. A. White, ib., Vol. XIX., p. 225, 1920 (Q.). Pardalotus uropygialis Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1839, p. 143, March 1840 : “N.W. Coast Australia,” i.e., Port Essington, Northern Territory ; id., Birds Austr., pt. i. (Vol. II., pi. 41), Dec. 1st, 1840 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 166, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1877, p. 350 (Q.) ; id., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 180, 1878 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 62, 1885 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Ser. 2, Vol. I., 1886, p. 1,087, 1887 (N.W.A.) ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 4, 1888; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 448, 1901 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. II., p. 54, 1902 (N.W.A.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 232, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 91, 1908 ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 185, 1909 (W.A); Mathews, ib., Vol. IX., pp. 13-62, 1909 (N.W.A.) ; A. G. Campbell, ib., p. 22 (Review) ; G. F. Hill, ib., Vol. X., p. 283, 1911 (N.W.A.) ; MacgilUvray, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 176, 1914 (N.Q.) ; Barnard, ib., p. 209 (N.Q.) ; id., ib., Vol. XIV., p. 48 (N.T.) ; H. L. White, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 226, 1917 (N.T.) ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 203, 1918 (N.Q.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 185, 1919 (N.T.). % * This Plate is lettered Pardalotus melanocephalus. 210 509 * o • O oS £ a) tf. D h3 i % w to D h O ►J « CS k> u Q o q 5 ^ < a, p S q S q cd q L° > ^ ^3 n J £q Hi § U s H 0 c a; J tq < > S q PS q < K IV- r_d ZS '~o £ !0 r-4 o « b 0 9 *1 BLACK-HEADED PARDALOTE. Pardalotus melanocephalus mdanocephdlus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 390, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. Pardalotus melanocephalus uropygialis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 390, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. Pardalotus mdanocephdlus inexpectatus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 390, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia ; id., Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 257, 1913. Pardalotus mdanocephdlus mdvillensis Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 48, April 2nd, 1912 : Melville Island, Northern Territory ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. Pardalotus melanocephalus barroni Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 4, p. 96, Sept. 18th, 1912 : Cairns, Queensland ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. Pardalotus melanocephalus tormenti Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 4, p. 96, Sept. 18th, 1912 : Point Torment, North-west Australia ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 257, 1913. Pardalotus mdanocephalus sedani Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol.' II., pt. 4, p. 77, Dec. 29th, 1913 : Cloncury River, Mid-Queensland. Pardalotus rubricatus uropygialis (error only) Campbell, Emu, Vol. XXI., p. 194, 1922 (N.T.). Pardalotinus melanocephalus pilbarra Mathews, Austral Av. Record, Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 36, Feb. 21st, 1923 : Pilbarra Goldfields, Mid-west Australia. Distribution. Across Northern Australia from Coongan River in the lower North-west through Northern Territory to Cairns and Moreton Bay ; Queensland. Adult male. Top of head, nape, a narrow line from the lores to the eye, and ear-coverts black ; supraloral streak rich orange ; a superciliary streak which extends along the sides of the crown white ; mantle and back olive-grey ; scapulars ochreous ; rump and upper tail-coverts orange-yellow ; upper wing-coverts glossy-black ; outer edge of wing white including the bastard-wing ; tips of primary-coverts deep red ; flight-quills black, becoming paler towards the tips, fringed with white both on the outer and inner webs of most of the feathers ; tail black, broadly tipped with white ; chin, throat, and middle of breast yellow ; cheeks and sides of throat cream-white becoming buff on the sides of the breast ; abdomen white ; sides of body ochreous-yellow becoming buff on the flanks and under tail-coverts ; axillaries and under -wing-coverts pale buff ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with white margins ; lowTer aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Eyes olive, bill black, legs pale brown. Total length 97 mm. ; culmen 7, wing 58, tail 28, tarsus 20. Figured. Collected at Cape York, North Queensland, on the 16th of April, 1911. Adult female from the same locality similar to the male. Adult female. Fore-head, crown of head, nape, loral-streak, and ear-coverts black ; supra¬ loral streak orange ; cheeks and superciliary streak, which extends along the sides of the crown, white ; hind-neck, sides of neck, and back olive-grey ; scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts dark ochreous, becoming somewhat paler on the long feathers of the latter ; upper wing-coverts black ; outer edge of wing and margin of bastard- wing white ; tips of primary-coverts deep red ; flight-quills black margined 211 I THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. with white at the tips and on the outer and inner webs of the primaries and some of the inner secondaries ; tail black tipped with white — much more broadly on the outer feathers ; throat, breast, and sides of abdomen yellow ; middle of breast and middle of abdomen inclining to white ; sides of body oclireous ; under tail- coverts buffy-white like the axillaries ; under wing-coverts white ; under-surface of flight-quiils greyish-brown margined with white ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Total length 100 mm. ; culmen 8, wing 63, tail 30, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected at Gracemere, Mid-Queensland, on the 23rd of May 1881. Adult male from the same locality similar to the female. Immature. Crown of head and nape greyish-brown with pale tips to the feathers, which gives a scalloped appearance ; back and scapulars y ellowish-olive ; rump and upper tail-coverts ochreous-yellow ; wings blackish, more or less glossy on the outer-webs of the greater coverts, primary-coverts tipped with dark red ; bastard- wing and flight-quills margined with white on both webs, except on the outer-webs of the two outer-quills ; tail blackish, paler at the base and whitish at the tips ; lores and a line over the eye yellow ; throat, breast, and abdomen pale yellow, darker and inclining to buff on the flanks, t highs, and under tail-coverts ; axillaries, under wring-coverts, and inner edges of quills below cream-white, remainder of quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Bill dark horn, lower whitish, eyes and legs french-grey. Collected at Napier Broome Bay, North-west Australia, on the 20th of October, 1910. Immature. Crown of head, hind-neck and back ochreous-grey, becoming paler and inclining to buff on the scapulars and yellowish on the rump and upper tail-coverts; wings black with white margins to the bastard-wing and flight-quills — both on the outer and inner-webs of the latter, primary-coverts tipped with dark red; tail- feathers blackish with white, or greyish-white tips ; lores, eye-brow, sides of face, throat, breast, and middle of abdomen cream-white tinged with yellow ; sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts inclining to buff ; axillaries, under wing-coverts and inner-margins of quills below white, remainder of the quill-lining hair-brown; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill brown, base white, eyes greyish-browm, legs and feet leaden-grey. Collected on Parry’s Creek, North¬ west Australia, on the 12tli of September, 1908. Nestling. Crown of head, hind-neck, and mantle dark oclireous, becoming cinnamon- buff on the lower-back, rump, and upper tail-coverts ; upper wing-coverts and flight-quills blackish with silvery-grey sheaths and whitish tips to the latter, some of the primary-coverts tipped with dark red ; tail blackish with grey, or whitish margins to the feathers ; throat, breast, and abdomen yellow ; sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts fawn-colour ; under-surface of flight-quills similar to their upper-surface ; low*er aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill brown, comer of mouth white, eyes very pale brown ; feet and legs leaden-grey. Collected on Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia, on the 6th of September, 1908. Pardalotus mdanocephalus mdanocephalus. Eggs. Three to four eggs form a clutch, usually four. A clutch of four taken at South Grafton, Clarence River, New South Wales, on the 17th of August, 1897, is pure white. Swollen ovals in shape ; shell fine and slightly glossy. 18-19 mm. by 13. Nest. Similar to that of P. p. punctatus , and placed in like situations (at end of tunnel). Breeding-months. August to December. 212 BLACK-HEADED PARDALOTE. Pardalotus melanocephalus barroni. Northern Black-headed Pardalote. Eggs. Four eggs form the clutch. A clutch of four taken at the Murray River, Cardwell, North Queensland, on the 23rd of September, 1916, is pure white. Very rounded ovals in shape ; shell fine and slightly glossy. 17 mm. by 13. Nest. Similar to that of P. p. punctatus, and placed in like situations (at end of tunnel). Breeding-months. June to December. (April.) Pardalotus melanocephalus uropygialis. Eggs. Three to four for a sitting, usually three. A clutch of three eggs taken at Borroloola, Macartkur River, Northern Territory, on the 12th of June, 1913, is pure white. Very round in shape ; shell fine, and almost devoid of gloss. 15-16 mm. by 13. Nest. Similar to that of P. p. punctatus, and P. m. melanocephalus, and placed in like situations (at end of tunnel). Breeding-months. June to November. Though Gould described this species he never saw it alive himself and recorded nothing regarding its habits. Writing of the birds of North-east Queensland, chiefly Rockingham Bay, Ramsay stated : “ Perhaps the most common species. It resorts to the topmost leafy twigs, where it secures its food of insects and their larvae.” Bemey, writing from the Richmond District, North Queensland, noted : “ A very common Pardalote here. Its monotonous ‘ Chuc, chuc,’ is heard all day long on the river. A nest containing two eggs was found in a sandbank on 27th June, 1903.” Webb, from the Herbert River, observed “ On 30th of April last, while walking close to the edge of a shallow, open wall in sandy soil, I disturbed a Pardalote (P. melanocephalus ) from its nest. On digging the nest out I found two eggs, both considerably incubated. Surely April is a curious time to breed.” Campbell and Barnard added very little when they wrote about the Buds of Rockingham Bay, merely stating “ These familiar birds were everywhere. In the sides of watercourses (dry or otherwise) in some localities their burrows were almost every few yards, but did not always contain eggs. Some of the burrows had the appearance of having been rifled by reptiles. Fiuther south, at Mackay, these Pardalotes were nesting during July.” In tins case they did not even discuss the subspecific variation, as the Cairns’ bird has an orange-yellow rump, while Gould described his P. melano¬ cephalus, the name they used, as having “ the upper tail-coverts brownish- buff,” and distinguished his P. uropygialis on account of the “ bright yellow colouring of the lower part of the back.” 213 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Captain S. A. White recorded from Stradbroke Island, South Queensland, “ Pardalotus melanocephalus. These little birds were fairly plentiful, and their call would be heard all day long. Dr. D’Ombrain writes : “ Lores rather different from type — i.e., smaller and not so marked in hue. One of my skins was an adult female.” Gould described as a distinct species the western form of this somewhat variable species, and consequently ever since there has been misunderstanding as to the forms met with. Thus, Mr. J. P. Rogers’ notes read : “ At Mamgle Creek this species (P. uropygialis) was not numerous, but the call being louder they were more noticeable than P. rubricatus, which, I should say, is more numerous.” From Melville Island Air. Rogers wrote : “ Cooper’s Camp, Nov. 20th, 1911. This species is rather rare here and is usually found in forest country, but is sometimes seen in low bushes on the foreshore. Dec. 15th, 1911. Is not numerous, but now some are seen every day. Jan. 13th, 1912. 10 miles S.E. of Snake Bay. Very few were seen and those only in the paper- bark trees on the edge of the great swamp. Jan. 29th, 1912. Cooper’s Camp. Seems to be much more numerous here now.” Hall has recorded Rogers’ previous notes from the Fitzroy River, solely about the nests and eggs, but Hall observed about the birds : “ The rump colouring agrees with the text of Gould, but not the figure (of P. uropygialis), which is much more highly and brightly coloured. The bill of this specimen is also much larger than those referred to by Gould.” Whitlock, writing of the Birds on the Pilbarra Goldfield, noted : “ p. uropygialis. Rare. I only identified this Pardalote after some trouble, and in one particular creek. There were two pairs present. I had the oppor¬ tunity on one occasion of shooting a pair, but refrained, as I vranted the nest. I did not have the chance again, but I found the nest. It was similar in construction to that of P. rubricatus and, like that, placed at the end of a tunnel some 20 inches deep. The eggs were smaller and more glossy, however, than those of the latter species.” It is a pity Whitlock did not get the birds as this appears to be the most south-west record, and in view of the geographical variation observed in this species, they would have proved an interesting study. Hill reporting upon the birds of Kimberley, North-west Australia, wrote : “ P. uropygialis. Although some birds remained in the district throughout the ten months I was there, it was not until the middle of March that they became numerous. The nesting season commenced at the end of April, and was at its height at the end of July. Most of the nesting burrows, wliicli vary in length from 18 inches to 2 feet, were made in the sides of holes dug in the sandy soil by pigs in search of roots ; others were made in the banks of 214 BLACK-HEADED PARDALOTE. creeks and watercourses. Under favourable conditions, nine days are occupied from the commencement of the burrow to the completion of the nest. The egg-chamber is invariably lined with coarse pieces of eucalypt bark. Two eggs are laid. Small insects gathered from the flowers of a Orevillea and eucalypts form the principal article of food, in collecting which the feathers of the throat and fore-head frequently become matted with honey and pollen. Lizards are responsible for the destruction of many nests.” Macgillivray recorded it as “ Numerous in the Gulf country and at the Jardine River,” using the name P. uropygialis. Campbell wrote of birds from the King River, Northern Territory : “ One <$, one $, one immature. There appears to be some uncertainty whether the Gouldian type-locality of this interesting species is Arnhem Land or North¬ west Australia. Gould, in his letterpress, states the latter locality, while his fine plate undoubtedly depicts birds from Port Essington. In the Territory specimens the lower back and upper tail-coverts are not ‘ chestnut,* but are more golden (cadmium-yellow), while the north-west birds have those parts fight cadmium, and the flanks and under tail-coverts are paler buff.” A little later, writing of the birds of Groote Eylandt, Campbell, through a slip of the pen, wrote “ Pardalotus rubricatus uropygialis ,” adding d ? ?. “ These specimens possess the golden (cadmium-yellow) upper tail-coverts typical of N.T. birds.” I don’t quite understand the reference to “ chestnut ” above in connection with the subspecies uropygialis. This distinct species shows definite variability geographically as can be recognised from the fact that the Western form was regarded as specifically distinct by Gould. He described the typical form from Moreton Bay, Queens¬ land, and reserving specimens from North-west Australia named them as distinct. Gould’s comparisons are worthy of requotation : “ P. melano- cephalus probably takes the place (at Moreton Bay) of the P. striatus, from which it is distinguished by the black colouring of its head and by its thicker bill, but to which it is very nearly allied, as well as to the P. uropygialis ; it is, in fact, directly intermediate between the two, having the black head of the latter without the yellow colouring of the rump. . . P. uropygialis is easily distinguished by the bright yellow colouring of the lower part of the back, by the rich spots of orange before the eye and by being more diminutive in size.” Ramsay, recording the bird from Derby, wrote : “ Several specimens of this well marked species ; the sexes are alike in plumage. The young have the head mottled with brown, and the tips of the spurious wing-feathers of the same red tint as in the adult, the upper tail-coverts not so bright, but still 215 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. brighter in tint than in the adult of P. melanocephalus, which this species resembles.” From Rockingham Bay, Queensland, Ramsay had stated that P. melano¬ cephalus was common, but from the Ethridge River, Queensland, he added P. uropygialis. When I drew up my “ Reference List ” I concluded that P. uropygialis was only subspecifically distinct, the chief difference being the brighter colouring of the rump. I also separated the Western form into two : thus Pardalotus melanocephalus melanocephalus Gould. South Queensland, New South Wales. Pardalotus melanocephalus uropygialis Gould. North-west Australia (Derby). Pardalotus melanocephalus inexpectatus Mathews. “ Differs from P. m. uropygialis in being darker above. Parry’s Creek, North¬ west Australia.” North-west Australia, Northern Territory. Melville Island birds were then received and were seen to differ, so that I named Pardalotus melanocephalus melvillensis. “ Differs from P. m. inexpectatus in having the rump orange, not bright yellow.” Melville Island, Northern Territory. Witmer Stone’s examination of the Philadelphia “types ” of the Gouldian collection showed that these were labelled “ Port Essington,” and I therefore re-examined my series with additional material and named Pardalotus melanocephalus barroni. “ Differs from P. m. melanocephalus in having the rump orange-yellow, not buff ; it is also lighter on the back. Cairns, Queensland.” North Queensland. and Pardalotus melanocephalus tormenti. “ Differs from P. m. uropygialis (from Port Essington) in being lighter on the back and in having a bright yellow rump. Point Torment, North-west Australia.” North-west Australia (coast). I later added Pardalotus melanocephalus sedani, “ Differs from P. m. barroni in being much paler above and the flan les much darker. Cloncurry River, Queensland.” (Eastern) Northern Territory and Queensland (adjacent). 216 BLACK-HEADED PABDALOTE. These were wrongly placed, in the genus Pardalotus in my 1913 “ List, ’ being the northern species related to Pardalotinus. The nomination and subspecies now read : Pardalotinus melanocephalus melanocephalus (Gould). New So utli Wales (North) and South Queensland. Pardalotinus melanocephalus barroni (Mathews). North Queensland. Pardalotinus melanocephalus sedani (Mathews). Western Queensland. Pardalotinus melanocephalus uropygialis (Gould). Northern Territory. Pardalotinus melanocephalus melvillensis (Mathews). Melville Island, Northen Territory. Pardalotinus melanocephalus inexpectatus (Mathews). North-west Australia (Parry’s Creek District). Pardalotinus melanocephalus tormenti (Mathews). North-west Australia (Point Torment District). Pardalotinus melanocephalus pilbarra (Mathews). Pilbarra Goldfields (Mid-west Australia). VOL. XI. 217 Genus— DIP ARDALOTUS. Dip ardalotus Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., pt. L, p. 7, July 17th, 1922. Type (by original designation) Pardalotus rubricatus yorki Mathews. General characters of Pardalotus (type P. punctatus Shaw and Nodder) but with the bill stouter and longer with tip decurved and posteriorly notched, the under mandible shallower and not so stout. The wing more rounded, the so-called second and third primaries longest, the first only equal to the fourth, which is scarcely longer than the fifth. The legs and feet smaller. Order PASSERIFORMES. Family PARDALOTIDM. No. 631. DIPARDALOTUS RUBRICATED. RED-BROWED PARDALOTE. (Plate 509.)* Pardalotus rdbricatus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (62), April 1st, 1838 : New South Wales. Pardalotus rubricatus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. rv., pi. (62), April 1st, 1838 ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 149, Dec. 1838 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. xxm. (Vol. II., pi. 36), June 1st, 1846 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 158, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1877, p. 350 ; id., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 180, 1878 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 60, 1885 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Ser. 2, Vol. I., 1886, p. 1,087, 1887 (N.W.A.) ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 4, 1888 ; id., Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 46, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 446, 1901; Hall, Emu, Vol. II., p. 53, 1902 (N.W.A.) ; Carter, ib., Vol. III., p. 93, 1903 (N.W.A.) ; Bemey, ib., Vol. V., p. 76, 1905 (N.Q.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 229, 1907 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 91, 1908; id., Emu, Vol. IX., p. 13, 1909 (N.W.A.) ; A. G. Campbell, *"&•> P- 22 (Review) ; Mathews, ib., p. 62 (N.W.A.) ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. X., p. 96, 1910 (N.S.W.) ; id., ib., Vol. XIII., p. 175, 1914 (N.Q.) ; H. L. White, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 226, 1917 (N.T.) ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 203, 1918 (N.Q.) ; Jackson, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 169, 1919 (N.S.W.) ; McGilp, ib., Vol. XXII., p. 286, 1923. Pardalotus pallidus Campbell, Emu, Vol. VII. , p. 142, Jan. 1st, 1909 : Marble Bar, Mid¬ west Australia ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 185, 1909 (W.A.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XXL, p. 1, pi. i., 1921. Pardalotus rubricatus rubricatus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 389, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. Pardalotus rubricatus parryi Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 390, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. Pardalotus rubricatus pallidus Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 390, 1912 ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 190, 1915 (Cent.). Pardalotus rubricatus yorki Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. II., p. 10, Aug. 2nd, 1913 : Cape York, North Queensland ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913. * This Plate is lettered Pardalotus rubricatus . 219 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Pardalotus rubricatus leichhardti Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. II., p. 10, Aug 2nd, 1913 : Leichardt River, Mid-Queensland ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 256, 1913 Pardalotus rubricatus musgravi Mathews, Bull. Brit. Om. Club, Vol. XXXVI., p. 91, July 7th, 1916 : Musgrave Ranges, Central Australia. Distribution. Queensland ; Northern Territory ; North-west Australia as far south as Gascoyne River ; Interior of New South Wales and South Australia. An interior form reaching out on to the North-west Coast, as many interior forms do • but also Cape York ! ’ Adult male.. Crown of head and nape deep black with white tips to the feathers • fore¬ head, lores, chin, throat, and fore-part of cheeks buffy-white ; supraloral streak red ; superciliary streak, which extends along the sides of the crown buff ; back pale brown with dark shaft-streaks and a slight tinge of yellow ; rump and upper tail-coverts citron-yellow ; upper wing-coverts dark brown, some of the feathers slightly edged with white like the bastard-wing ; primary-coverts blackish fringed with orange ; flight-quills dark brown becoming blackish on the secondaries, some of the feathers are margined with orange and others with white ; tail black becoming paler towards the base and fringed with white at the tip ; sides of face buffy-white speckled with black ; middle of breast orange-yellow ; sides of breast and sides of body buff ; middle of abdomen inclining to white and tinged with lemon-yellow ■ under tail-coverts bright lemon-yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white • under-surface of flight-quills greyish-brown with whitish margins ; lower aspect of tail also greyish-brown fringed with yellowish at the tip. Eyes yellow, upper mandible brown, lower whitish. Total length 92 mm. ; culmen 7, wine 61 tail 29 tarsus 19. Figured. Collected at Cape York, North Queensland, on the’ 11th of May, 1911, and is the type of P. r. yorlci. Adult female similar to the adult male. Adult male. Crown of head and nape black with white tips to the feathers ; fore-head lores, sides of face, and sides of neck buff, slightly speckled with black on the two last ; back, rump, and scapulars, ochreous-brown with dark elongated centres to some ot the leathers ; upper wing-coverts pale brown on the lesser and median series, becoming blackish on the greater series and bastard-wing, both of which ar^nm^irglin®f with wllite> primary-coverts black fringed with orange; flight- quiils blackish, some of whicli are edged ■with white and others with orange-yellow • upper tail-coverts citron-yellow ; tail blackish on the apical portion with pale tips to the feathers, becoming paler towards the base; chin, throat, sides of throat, sides ot breast, and sides of body buff ; middle of upper breast yellow ; middle of lower breast and middle of abdomen inclining to silky-white tinged with yellow ; under tail-coverts pale yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts white ; under- surtace ot flight-quills pale brown with whitish margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Eyes yellow, feet and legs pale leaden-blue, bill white, culmen brown. Total length 103 mm. ; culmen 7, wing 64, tail 31, tarsus 20. x'lo 'j Collected on Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia, on the 24th of November, 1908, and is the type of P. r. parryi. Adult female similar to the adult male. Immature 7mle. General colour of the upper-surface dull yellow, the feathers on the crown o lie head paler than the back and narrowly edged with black, which imparts a scalloped appearance ; rump and upper tail-coverts somewhat paler than the back; bastard-wing blackish-brown with whitish margins ; flight-quills blackish-brown, wintisli at the tips and inner-margins and old gold-yellow on some of the outer- we s , ail-teatliers blackish with pale edges ; lores and a line over the eye yellow 220 RED-BROWED PARDALOTE. with a tinge of red on the former ; sides of face, throat, and entire under-surface of the body pale yellow, including the thighs and under tail-coverts ; axillaries and under wing-coverts silky-white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown, slightly paler on the margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but somewhat paler. Culmen brown, remainder of bill white ; eyes pale yellow, feet and legs leaden-grey. Collected on Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia, on the 16th of November, 1908. Immature male. Crown of head earth-brown with yellowish margins to the feathers and a few white feathers with deep black margins ; hind-neck, sides of neck, back, scapulars, and lesser upper wing-coverts earth-brown with indications of dark shaft-lines on the back ; rump and upper tail-coverts dull yellow ; bastard-wing, greater-coverts, primary-coverts, and flight-quills blackish with pale margins to the feathers, outer-webs of inner primary-quills and primary-coverts fringed with old gold-yellow ; tail-feathers pale brown at the base, blackish towards the tips, which are fringed with buffy-white ; base of fore-head, lores and a line over the eye pale yellow with a slight tinge of red ; sides of face, throat, breast, abdomen, thighs, and under tail-coverts very pale yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts silky- white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown, slightly paler on the margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface, but the shafts of the feathers on the basal portion are white. Culmen brown, remainder of bill white, eyes pale yellow ; feet and legs leaden-blue. Collected on Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia, on the 14th of December, 1908. Immature female , Crown of the head olive with yellow tips to the feathers which are minutely margined with black ; back, scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts dull yellow ; lesser upper wing-coverts similar to the back but darker ; bastard¬ wing and greater upper wing-coverts blackish with wTliite, or buffy-white margins ; primary-coverts blackish with orange-yellow edges ; flight-quills blackish with whitish edges to some of the outer primaries, orange-yellow margins to the inner ones and secondaries, the inner webs broadly margined with white ; tail- feathers pale at the base and blackish on the apical portion where they are fringed with white. Feet pinkish (eyes crimson ?), bill horn. Collected at Normanton, North Queensland, on the 11th of October, 1913. Immature female. General colour of the upper-surface pale olive-grey, including the back, scapulars, hind-neck, sides of neck, and crown of the head — the last being rather darker than the back with buffy shaft-lines to the feathers ; rump and upper tail-coverts ochreous-buff , becoming darker on the long coverts ; wings blackish- brown with white margins to the feathers of the bastard-wing and some of the primary-quills, and pale tips to the secondary-quills ; primary-coverts tipped with red ; tail brown at the base, becoming blackish on the apical portion, where some of the feathers are marked with white at the tips ; eye-brow and sides of crown cream-white ; lores orange-yellow^ ; middle of breast and middle of abdomen silky- white tinged with yellow ; sides of body yellowish-buff ; thighs and under tail- coverts buffy-white ; under wring-coverts cream-white ; under-surface of flight- quills hair-brown margined with buffy-white ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes and feet grey. Bill horn. Collected at Normanton, North Queensland, on the 5th of November, 1913. Pardalotus rubricatus yorki. (Cape York Red-browed Pardalote.) Eggs. Three to four eggs form the clutch. A clutch of four eggs taken at Cooktown, North Queensland, on the 11th of July, 1899, is pure white. Very rounded ovals in shape ; surface of shell fine and slightly glossy. 17-18 mm. by 13-14. 221 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Nest. Similar to that of P. p. punctatus. Cup-shaped and composed entirely of fine strips of bark and placed at the end of a tunnel in a bank. External diameter 3| inches, height 2\, internal 2\ by 2. Breeding-months. July to September. (March.) Pardalotus rubricatus pallidus. Nest and eggs very similar to those of P. rubricatus yorki. A clutch of three eggs taken at the Coongan River, Mid-west Australia, on the 17th of August, 1908, is pure white. Swollen to rounded ovals in shape ; shell fine but almost without gloss. 18 by 13 mm. Nest. A domed-shaped or covered over structure, composed of strips of bark, and the cup neatly lined with grasses, and placed in a hollowed out and rounded chamber in the side of a bank, situated at the end of a small tunnel varying from 20 inches to 2 feet or more in length. Breeding-months. July to October. Although Gould described this species he knew nothing of its habits, and as late as 1865 could only write : “ When I published my plate and description in the folio edition, only a single specimen of this bird had been obtained, and I was unaware in what part, of Australia it had been obtained. I have, however, lately seen other specimens collected by Mr. Waterhouse during the overland expedition to the Victoria River under Mr. Stuart. Mr. White of Adelaide also informs me in a letter that he ‘ saw this bird in considerable numbers about the lat. 27° or 28°.’ ” Macgillivray, writing of the birds of the Barrier Range, said : “ McLennan dug out the burrow, in the side of a little watercourse, of a Pardalote (P. rubricatus) ; the nest contained three fresh eggs. The nest was cup-shaped, very compact, and constructed entirely of fine strips of bark. Its external diameter was 3£ inches and height 21 inches ; diameter of egg cavity 2\ inches, depth 2 inches. The note of' the male bird is quite unlike that of any other Pardalote with which I am acquainted, consisting as it does of a loud, mellow whistle, repeated five times in quick succession. It may be heard at a distance, and was more than once mistaken by us for the call-note of the Barnard Parrakeet.” Later Macgillivray noted : “ Numerous throughout the Gulf country, and on the Jardine River, on the Cape York Peninsula. When camped at Sedan several banks where they nested in company with P. uropygialis were examined. One contained five burrows of P. rubricatus and seven of P. uropygialis, another five of P. uropygialis, and three of P. rubricatus. Still another contained twenty-six burrows, eighteen being those of P. uropygialis and eight of P. rubricatus. The birds were at these burrows on the 10th February, but no completed clutches were found until the 25th March. On 222 RED-BROWED PARDALOTE. the Leichhardt a Red-browed Pardalote was flushed from its burrow, containing a nearly completed nest on the 16th June. Both tins species and P. uropygialis from the Gulf country are paler in colour than those from the Jardine River.” Captain S. A. White wrote me : “I have met with P. rubricatu-s all through the interior but have never seen it near the coast. Its note is very distinct from that of other members of the group.” He has published a longer note : “ We did not meet with this bird till we were close on the borders of the Northern Territory. While ascending Christmas Creek I heard its call, which differs much from all the other members of the genus. I knew it was a Pardalote, but had to ? the species. In spite of all my efforts, during the greater part of a very hot day, I was unsuccessful in securing a specimen. It was not until a few' days later, at Blood Creek, the same call v'as heard again, which consists of two notes exactly alike made in quick succession ; we then secured a pair. Prom that time onwards we found them plentiful, nearly always in the gums growling along the watercourses, but on rare occasions we found them out in the mulga scrub.” Jackson has also written from the Diamantina River, Central Queens¬ land : “ Common, and usually met with in pairs. Their note is the most remarkable of all the Pardalotes that I have met with. The call consists of six notes (sometimes four) uttered quickly and closely resembles the ordinary six- or eight-note call of Platycercus eximius (Rosella).” Whitlock found the form named pallidus on the Pilbarra Goldfield and wrote : “ This was the common Pardalote of the district. On the Coongan, wherever there were gums, there its monotonous notes were sure to be heard. On the de Grey it was less common, and I heard little of it between the latter river and the coast. On the upper Coongan the main river was more favoured than the tributaries, but the nests were always in the banks of side creeks, or even in little runlets of no more than 1 foot or 18 inches deep. Where the soil was loamy these runlets had been scoured out by the heavy rain, and I could easily locate the tunnel without much difficulty. As incubation is nearing the end the female sits closely, and I have several times started to dig out the nest before she flew out of the tunnel.” Mr. Tom Carter has written me : “ The Pale Red -browed Pardalote is given in your ‘ Reference List,’ 1910, as ranging through West Australia, and the type was obtained at Marble Bar, West Australia, wrhich township is about 170 miles east of Roebume (Lat. S. 21°), as well in the north-west. It occurs in White Gum timber in creek beds on the tableland rough country, behind the ranges of the North-west Cape, and has also been noted in the same timber inland from Point Cloates, as far as the Gascoyne, always in 223 THE BIRDS OE AUSTRALIA. White Gums. South of the Gascoyne, it has not been observed by me, but it is quite possible it may extend further south to the Wooramel River (70 miles south) as it is an unobtrusive little bird, and easily overlooked unless its subdued but pretty little song is heard. Both sexes utter it. These birds are not uncommon in White Gums about the bed of the Gascoyne River, one mile from the sea. Some observers consider it an inland bird only. A nest containing small young birds was found in a steep bank of an island in the Gascoyne River, a mile from sea on Sept. 21st, 1913. The nest was made of dry grass and was about 21 feet from entrance.” Mr. J. P. Rogers wrote : “ At Marngle Creek a few of these birds were seen or oftener heard ; their call is softer than that of P. uropygialis. At present they are feeding in Eucalyptus and paper-bark (May 28th, 1911). At Mungi this was the common Pardalote and was usually seen in Eucalyptus trees, but was often seen in low wattle scrub.” Mr. Rogers notes from the Fitzroy River, North-west Australia, recorded by Hall, read : “ Its note is very soft and repeated twice when calling. The answering notes are pitched in a lower key. I noted one bird having a struggle in the breaking of a large white grub. It went from bough to bough, and stayed very little time on any one branch. On 23rd July, 1901, I found a nest in a bank overhanging a water-hole. The bank was set like cement for the first two inches, after that sand. It is wonderful that such little birds can do this lathe-like drilling. It went in for 18 inches. Dimensions of chamber, 4 x 4 X 5*5 inches ; nest lined with paper-bark.” The technical history of this beautiful species is brief and without any complications. When Gould described his new bird he stated that it came from Australia and later admitted he did not know the exact locality. However, Ramsay recorded it from the Ethridge River, Queensland, thus confirming the East Coast habitat, as most of Gould’s earlier named species did come from the eastern parts. Later, Ramsay reported upon Cairn’s collection from Derby, North-west Australia, and included Pardalotus rubricatus, writing : “ Similar in every respect to individuals from Central Queensland. This bird appears to be very plentiful a few miles inland from Derby ; it is very rarely found in N.S. Wales.” Whitlock then found it on the Pilbarra Goldfield, and struck by the pale coloration Campbell described it as a new species, Pardalotus pallidus. Whitlock himself recognised the affinity, naming it Pardalotus ( rubricatus ) pallidus in liis field-notes. It is not a common bird save in not easily accessible districts, so that when I prepared my “ Reference List ” in 1912 I had not a lot of material from many localities. It was obvious, however, that P. pallidus was merely a pale race of rubricatus and I added a third thus : 224 RED-BROWED PARDALOTE. Pardalotus rubricatus rubricatus Gould. New South Wales, Queensland. Pardalotus rubricatus parry i Mathews. “ Differs from P. r. pallidus in being darker and having a yellowish wash above. Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia.” North-west Australia, Northern Territory. Pardalotus rubricatus pallidus Campbell. West Australia (Mid). Soon after, a series of Queensland buds sent by Dr. Macgillivray included the species from Cape York, a most unexpected result, and I distinguished Pardalotus rubricatus yorlci. “ Differs from P. r. rubricatus in having a more greenish-yellow rump, and the outer edges of the secondaries orange. Cape York.” North Queensland. and Pardalotus rubricatus leichhardti. “ Differs from P. r. yorki in being much lighter above. Leichhardt River, Queensland. Mid- Queensland (Inland). Then Captain White found the species in the interior, and I named Pardalotus rubricatus musgravi. “ Differs from P. r. leichhardti Mathews in having white (not yellow) under tail-coverts, smaller bill, and the yellow rump not so pronounced. Musgrave Ranges, Central Australia.” Central Australia. The recognition of the genus Dipardalotus makes the forms read : Dipardalotus rubricatus rubricatus (Gould). Dipardalotus rubricatus leichhardti (Mathews). Dipardalotus rubricatus yorki (Mathews). Dipardalotus rubricatus musgravi (Mathews). Dipardalotus rubricatus parryi (Mathews). Dipardalotus rubricatus pallidus (Campbell). The last named is certainly only subspecifically separable and is even less marked than some of the other subspecies above noted. VOL. XI. 225 Genus— NESOPARD ALOTUS. N esopard alotus Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 5, p. 115, Dec. 24th, 1912. Type (by original designation) . . Pardalotus quadragintus Gould. This peculiar form was thus distinguished by me : “ Differs from Pardalotus in its shorter, heavier bill, and in the wing formula, the first four primaries being longest and subequal.” The bill is very small and almost parrot-like, the arch of the culmen at its zenith higher than its junction with the fore-head and much deeper at its base than wide ; the nostrils practically open and the nasal bristles few. Coloration apparently more primitive than any other species in the family. 510 f MO* f \\* N E SOPARDALOTUS QUAD RAG I N T U S 1 1 'OR T T- R FQT TED PARDAL OTE). CYRTOSTOMUS F RE NAT U S . (suit-bird) ■ Order PASSERIFORMES . Family PA RDAL0T1DM . No. 632. NESOPARDALOTUS QUADRAGINTUS. FORTY-SPOTTED PARDALOTE. (Plate 510.) Pardalotus quadragintus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iy., pi. (62), April 1st, 1838 : Tasmania. Pardalotus quadragintus Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iv., pi. (62), 1838 ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 148, Dec. 1838 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. xn. (Vol. II., p. 37), Sept. 1st, 1843; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 160, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 180, 1878 ; Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. X., p. 62, 1885 ; Legge, Papers Proc. Roy. Soc. Tasm., 1886, p. 241, 1887 ; Ramsay, Tab. List. Austr. Birds, p. 4, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 47, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 449, 1901 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. II., p. 208, 1903 (King Island) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 233, 1907 ; Mathews, Hand! Birds Austral., p. 91, 1908 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 22, 1909 (Review) ; Littler, Handb. Birds Tasm., p. 67, 1910 ; Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 390, 1912. Nesopardalotus quadragintus Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 258, 1913. Nesopardalotus quadragintus rex Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., pts. 2-3, p. 37, Feb. 21st, 1923 : King Island, Bass Strait. Nesopardalotus quadragintus quadragintus Mathews, ib. Distribution. Tasmania : King Island, Bass Straits. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface dark yellowish-olive with dark fringes to the feathers, which imparts a scalloped appearance including the top of the head, sides of the face, sides of the neck, hind-neck, entire back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and scapulars ; upper wing-coverts and flight-quills blackish-brown with white tips to the feathers ; tail dark brown narrowly fringed with white at the tips of most of the feathers and for some distance down the outer-web of the outermost feather ; rictal-bristles short but numerous ; ear-coverts golden-yellow ; under-surface greyish-white with grey spots at the tips of the feathers on the throat, breast, and abdomen, becoming darker and inclining to ochreous-yellow on the sides of the body and thighs ; vent whitish ; under tail-coverts yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts whitish ; under-surface of flight-quills dark hair-brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Bill black, feet black-brown, eyes dark. Total length 94 mm. ; culmen 6, wing 59, tail 32, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected in Tasmania. Adult female. Similar to the adult male. 227 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Eggs. Three to four eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of three eggs taken at Mount Faulkner, Tasmania, on the 25th of November, 1893, is pure white. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell fine, and slightly glossy. 16-17 mm. by 12. The Nest, which is composed of grass and bark, etc., is placed in a hole or small hollow of a tree at heights of from 20 to 40 feet. Nest. Placed at the end of hole ; cup-shaped and composed of pieces of soft bark and grass Outside dimensions, 2£ inches deep by 5 wide. Inside 1£ deep by 2| wide. Breeding-months. September to January. Gould, who described this interesting species, wrote: “This species is, I believe, peculiar to Tasmania, where it inhabits the almost impenetrable forests which cover that island, particularly those of its southern portion. It is, I think, less numerous than either of its congeners, the Pardalotus affinis and P. punctatus, and appears to confine itself more exclusively to the highest gum-trees than those species. I found it very abundant in the gulleys under Mount Wellington, and observed it breeding in a hole in one of the loftiest trees, at about forty feet from the ground ; I afterwards took a perfectly developed white egg from the body of a female killed on the 5th of October. The weight of this little bird was rather more than a quarter of an ounce; the stomach was muscular, and contained the remains of the larvse of lepidop- tera, which with coleoptera and other insects constitute its food. It has a simple, piping kind of note of two syllables. In its actions it much resembles the Tits, creeping and clinging among the branches in every direction.” Mr. Frank Littler has written me : “ Fairly common in Tasmania and King Island only, and mainly met with in the south of Tasmania, rarely in the north-east. Owing to its small size and retiring habits it is the least observed of the Diamond-Birds. The general tone of the plumage assimilates so with the foliage of the trees that it is very difficult to detect. Furthermore it nearly always keeps amongst the topmost twigs of the trees and, unlike the other two species met with in Tasmania, rarely descends to the ground in search of food. The food comprises all descriptions of insects, procured among the foliage and from under the bark, and in obtaining them the bird displays great activity. In disposition it is very shy, quickly moving from the immediate vicinity should any real or seeming danger threaten. Breeding- months September to January.” This seems to be the rarest and most interesting of Pardalotes and to have the least known about it and the scantiest of literature in every way. Two subspecies can be admitted : N esopardalotus quadrigintus quadrigintus (Gould). Tasmania. N esopardalotus quadrigintus quadrigintus Mathews. King Island. 228 Family— NECT ARINIID Genus— CYRTOSTOMUS. Cyrtostomus Cabanis, Mus. Heine, Vol. I., p. 105 (after Oct.), 1851. Type (by monotypy) . . Certhia jugularis Linne. This is only representative of the family of Sun-Birds at present allowed in the Australian avifauna. The family is very numerous in Africa and through India and further Asia, this sole true Sun-Bird occurring only in North Queensland, being thus a comparatively recent immigrant. Recently Shufeldt has observed {Emu, Vol. XIII., p. 9, 1913) that : “ Acanthorhynchus belongs among the Nectariniidae,” but as in that paper he also indicates some other anomalies existent in the “ Meliphagidse,” I am not disturbing the order at present, but decidedly agree that many of the Meliphagine genera require drastic rearrangement and that others will probably accompany Acanthorhynchus into this family. The present genus comprises very small birds with long, thin, curved bills, short rounded wings, short square tail and small delicate legs and feet. The bill is long and thin, much longer than the head, and almost straight for half its length, rapidly curves to a very fine tip ; it is very slender anteriorly, but basally shows a little expansion, the basal edges spreading a little ; the culmen is also keeled basally, the nostrils appearing as linear slits in a short nasal groove with a noticeable horny operculum ; there are no nasal bristles and no appreciable rictal bristles ; the depth of the bill at the base is about equal to the width ; the lower mandible is similarly slender with a very short feathered interramal space. The edges of both mandibles are very finely serrated for the anterior half, which must be for insect catching, not honey eating. The wings are short and rounded, the first primary small, only about one-third the length of the second which is about equal to the seventh, the third, fourth and fifth subequal and longest, the sixth a little shorter, the eighth and ninth little less and exceeding by a little the long secondaries. The tail is short and square, the upper tail-coverts about half the length of the tail-feathers, the lower a little more than half. ESBggsgaMani 229 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. The legs are small and delicate, but the tarsus which is less than the bill in length shows five strong scutes anteriorly and is bilaminate posteriorly; the toes are short, the claws comparatively long and sharp ; the hind-toe and claw is longest and strongest, the hind-toe and claw exceeding the middle toe and claw, while the outer and inner toes are short, the latter the shorter. There is nothing much in this to indicate any difference from the Honey- eaters, such as Myzomela, etc. Order PASSERIFORMES . No. 633. Family NECTARINIDjE. CYRTOSTOMUS FRENATUS. SUN-BIRD. (Plate 510.) [Nectarinia frenata Sal. Muller, Verb. Nat. Gescb. Land-en Volkenk., No. 6, p. 173, 1843 : Baie de Lobo, S.W. New Guinea. Extra-Limital.] Nectarinia australis Gould, Contr. Omith. (Jardine), 1850, p. (160) 106 : Port Molle, Queensland. Nectarinia australis Gould, Contr. Omith. (Jardine), 1850, p. (160) 106; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1850, p. 201, Feb. 28th, 1851 ; Birds Austr., Suppl., pt. i., pi. 45, March 15th, 1851 ; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 584, 1865 ; Ramsay, Ibis, 1S65, p. 85 ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1875, p. 598. Cyrtostomus australis Reichenbach, Handb. Scansores, p. 309, 1854. Cinnyris frenata* Shelley, Monogr. Nectar., p. 153, pi. 49, 1878 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 191, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 85, 1884 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 14, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 36, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 344, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat. No. 1, Vol. II., p. 205, 1907 ; Cornwall, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 139, 1909 ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. X., pp. 216-227, 1910 ; Broadbent, ib ., p, 239. Cyrtostomus frenatus Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 91, 1908 ; Barnard, Emu, Vol. XI., p. 28, 1911; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 176, 1914; Campbell and Barnard, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 30, 1917 ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. XVTI., p. 203, 1918 ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XX., p. 63, 1920 ; Cornwall, ib., Vol. XXI., p. 69, 1921. Cinnyris frenata australis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 390, 1912. Cinnyris frenata olivei Mathews, ib., p. 391, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Cairns, North Queensland. Cinnyris frenata macgillivrayi Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 4, p. 97, Sept. 18th. 1912 ; Cape York, North Queensland. Cinnyris frenata australis Mathews, ib. Cyrtostomus frenatus macgillivrayi Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 258, 1913. Cyrtostomus frenatus australis Mathews, ib. Distribution. North Queensland only, from Cape York southward to MacKay. Adult male. General colour of the upper-surface dull old-gold-yellow, including the top of the head, sides of face, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing- * Also spelt frenatus. 231 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. coverts, and outer margins of flight-quills ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts and inner-webs of flight-quills blackish-brown ; tail black with yellowish-white tins to the feathers increasing in extent on the outermost ; a pale yellow moustacial streak along the sides of the face ; chin, throat, and fore-neck glossy steel-blue • breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts orange-yellow • a patch of bright orange on each side of the breast ; axillaries pale yellow ■ under wing-coverts whitish tinged with yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills blackish- brown, somewhat paler on the margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper- surface. Bill and feet black, eyes dark brown. Total length 110 mm.; eulmen 21, wing 57, tail 35, tarsus 16. Figured. Collected at Cairns, North Queensland in August, 1908, and is the type of Ginnyris frenata olivei. Adult female. Differs from the adult male in the absence of the glossy steel-blue on the chin, throat and breast. General colour of the upper-parts dull old-gold-yellow including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, entire back upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and outer margins of flight- quills ; bastard-wing and flight-quills blackish-brown ; tail black with yellowish- white tips to the feathers, which are most extensive on the outermost feathers • chin, throat, breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, under tail-coverts, and axillaries orange-yellow ; under wing-coverts white, more or less tinged with yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills blackish-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper- surface. Bill and feet black, eyes brown. Total length 105 mm. ; eulmen 20 wing 54, tail 33, tarsus 16. Figured. Collected at Cairns, North Queensland’ in October, 1908. The female differs in being uniform yellow on the under-surface, lacking the coloured throat and yellow side feathers. Immature male. General colour of the upper-parts yellowish-green, including the top of the head, sides of face, entire back, scapulars, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing- coverts ; bastard-wing and inner-webs of flight-quills blackish-brown margined with white on the latter ; tail blackish with yellowish-white tips to the lateral feathers ; an indication of a yellowish-white superciliary line ; the approach of adult plumage is seen on the lores, cheeks, chin, throat, and fore-neck, where the feathers are black, glossed with steel-blue reflections, intermixed with yellow ; remainder of cheeks’ breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts yellow ; under wing- coverts cream-white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair- brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface, but the yellowish-white portion more conspicuous. Eggs. Two to three eggs form the clutch. A clutch of three taken at Lockerbie, Cape York, North Queensland, on the 28th of November, 1910, is of a pale greenish-grey ground-colour, speckled and mottled nearly all over, and particularly at the Larger end of each egg, with umber. Lengthened ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth and slightly glossy. 16-17 mm. by 11. N est. A long oval structure, and usually with a very long tail to it, and with entrance on the side. Most frequently suspended on the twig of a small bush, and often close to the ground. Sometimes the nest is fastened to suspended pieces of rope and other suitable material hanging about homesteads in the bush, especially in verandahs. The body of the nest is about 7 inches long, and the tail, which is additional, varies from 2 to 8 inches or more. Width of nest at widest part, 2J to nearly 3 inches. Entrance of nest is almost 3 inches from the top, and well on the centre of body, and measures nearly one inch across. It is constructed of pieces of bark, fine roots, dead leaves, cobwebs, etc., and lined with a very soft material. Breeding-months. September to end January. (February). 232 SUN-BIRD. When Macgillivray collected birds during the survey of H.M.S.S. The Rattlesnake he sent the novelties home to Gould for use in his “ Supplement.” These proved to be of such importance that Gould gave an account of them before the British Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in 1850, at the same time publishing the species in the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. A report of the Association accoimt was published by Jardine hi his Contributions to Ornithology in 1850, while the Zoological Society's Proceedings did not appear until 1851. In the report Gould read Macgillivray’s letters and this sentence appears : “ At Port Molle I shot hi the brushes both Megapodius and Talegalla, also Chalcophaps chrysochlora, and a Macropygia, respecting which I am anxious to have your opinion ; it appears to me to be smaller than M. phasianella. Here the Captain’s servant shot a small Nectarinia pectoralis, respecting which I gave you a note of its having been found by Captain Ince and myself to the northward.” Gould added : “ I have carefully examined the specimens of Macropygia, and find the differences too slight to admit of its being regarded as distinct.” The Macropygia was, however, smaller as Macgillivray stated, and is a distant subspecies which I named sixty years later. The Sun -Bird Gould described as a new species under the name Nectarinia australis, writing: “ Differs from N. freenata hi its larger size, in its straighter bill, and in the stripe of yellow over the eye being almost obsolete. It is the bird spoken of hi Mr. Macgillivray’s paper as N. pectoralis, which name cannot be retained, as it had been previously applied to another member of the genus.” Gould then recorded Macgillivray’s notes, writing : “ The Nectarinia australis offers a very close alliance to the N. freenata of the Celebes ; it will be found, however, to differ from that species in its larger size, in the mark above the eye being less conspicuous, and in the straighter form of the bill. (Note.— Here Gould mentions that his comparison was with Celebesian birds, but New Guinea was the true locality for N. frenata .) For my first knowledge of this bird I am indebted to the researches of the late Commander Ince, R.N., who, while attached to H.M.S. Fly, paid considerable attention to the natural history of the northern parts of Australia. Since then many other specimens have been forwarded to me by Mr. Macgillivray and others. Mr. Macgillivray informed me that “this pretty Sun-Bird appears to be distributed along the whole of the north-east coast of Australia, the adjacent islands, and the whole of the islands in Torres Straits. Although thus generally distributed, it is nowhere numerous, seldom more than a pair being seen together. Its habits resemble those of the Ptilotes with which it often associates, but still more closely to those of Myzomela obscura ; like those birds, it resorts to the flowering trees to feed upon the insects which frequent VOL. XI. 233 THE BIRDS OE AUSTRALIA. the blossoms, especially those of a species of Sciadophyllurn ; this singular tree is furnished with enormous spike-like racemes of small flowers, which attract numbers of insects, and thus furnish an abundant supply of food to the present bird and many species of Meliphagidse. Its note, which is a sharp shrill cry, prolonged for about ten seconds, may be represented by ‘ Tsee-isee-tsee-tss-ss-ss-ss.’ The male appears to bo of a pugnacious dis¬ position, as I have more than once seen it drive away and pursue a visitor to the same tree ; perhaps, however, this disposition is only exhibited during the breeding season. I found its nest on several occasions . . . contained a young bird, and an egg with a chick ahnost ready for hatching. The female was seen approaching with a mouthful of flies to feed the young. A nest was found . . . contained two young birds, and I saw- the mother visit them twice with an interval of ten minutes between ; she glanced past like an arrow, perched on the nest at once, clinging to the lower side of the entrance, and looked round very carefully for a few seconds before feeding the young, after which she disappeared as suddenly as she had arrived." Ramsay recorded Rainbird’s notes from Port Denison : “ Numbers of this beautiful little Sun-Bird may be seen on bright mornings among the leafy tops of the mangrove belts near Port Denison. They are ever darting out to capture some insect on the wing, returning and disappearing again in the thick foliage, or perching upon some topmost twig, to devour their captures, and show their sinning purple breasts glittering in the sun. During the hottest part of the day the Sun-Birds betake themselves to the thick scrub, which in many places runs down to the Avater’s edge. They breed in the months of November and December.” Mr. Thos. P. Austin has written me : “I often saAv this species while in North-eastern Queensland during the spring of 1907. They appear to take a great delight in building their nests to hanging pieces of rope suspended under verandah, such as where blinds or hammocks have been hung. I saw tAvo of their nests in such a situation, at an hotel at Harvey’s creek about 25 miles south from Cairns, and I was informed that the birds came there to breed every year. I only saw one nest aAvay from a dAvelling ; this was placed about five feet from the ground in a large leaved shrub, growing on the bank of a tidal creek a feAv miles north from Mackav. It was a very hot day and I got off the bicycle I A\ras riding and went under the shade of this bush for a rest, when a pair of Sun-Buds almost immediately put in an appearance, the female soon going on the nest, which was Avithin a few feet of my face and contained tAvo fresh eggs.” Cornwall has recorded from Maekay, North Queensland : “ Our lovely little representative of the large family of Humming Birds, the Sun-Bird V 234 SUN-BIRD. ( Ginnyris frenata) may be noted almost everywhere. Its dainty pensile nest is quite a common object in outbuildings or verandahs, both in town and country, whilst many are found suspended over water in the swamps or snugly hidden away amongst the dense thickets of Lantana. When robbed of their eggs they sometimes lay again in the same nest. A friend of mine took four pairs of eggs from the same nest at intervals of exactly seven days. They laid a fifth pair, and reared their young, my friend considering that their pertinacity had been fairly tested and was worthy of reward. The nesting season extends from September to February, but odd pairs may be found breeding both before and after those dates. Two eggs form the usual complement, but on 26th December a nest was found which contained the usual number of three eggs.” In 1921 Cornwall again wrote : “ I am glad to be able to report that the pretty little Sun-Bird (Cyrtostomus frenatus) is again in our district. It was completely wiped out by the cyclone of 1918. There are very few here yet, but I was pleased to find a pair in my paddock a few weeks ago, and I am in hopes that they will breed up again.” Ramsay in 1875 wrote : “ I only met with this interesting species on one occasion near Cardwell ; it is by no means common in that district.” Broadbent in 1888 stated : “ Common all the year, feeding on the flowers in the gardens near the beach, Cardwell.” Campbell and Barnard in 1917 •write from the same district : “ The gaily dressed (male, rich lemon-chrome under-parts and metallic navy-blue throat) Sun-Birds, of Humming-Bird appearance, are indeed tangible evidence of the tropics. They were noticed only in the coastal region, sipping nectar from various flowers. They were often observed about dwellings, fossicking the flowers of pa-paw, citrus, and other trees of gardens ; and they love sometimes to build their nests in verandahs or near houses. One nest observed in the bush was prettily situated underneath a bunch of ferns, and suspended to a dead frond. When the little bird flits from flower to flower it utters a Tit-like ‘ Chip ’ or ‘ Chip, chip.’ The song is Malurus like, a pretty rattling warble.” Macgillivray wrote : “ Very plentiful at Cape York,” and later “ We first noted Sun-Birds at Cooktown wharf, Avhere one was collecting building material from amongst some bushes, and then at Lloyd’s Island, where we saw a female plucking capok from its pod for the same purpose. Later again, when going up or down the Claud ie, their nests were often seen hanging from some shrub or bough overhanging the river. On our return journey, Mr. Olive of Cooktown, showed us where one of these birds was sitting in a nest attached to the string that pulled the shower in his bathroom. So that the 235 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. birds could rear their brood undisturbed, Mi1. Olive cut the string with the nest on it and hung it to a hook in the ceiling. The birds did not seem to mind the people who came into the room, the sitting bird rarely moving even when the bath and shower were used. Tins species is also common on the Archer River.” Recently McLennan collected birds on the islands in Torres Straits, and Campbell recorded : “ C. frenatus. Two S 3cn« 1 V MQ LLtfN PAINTED HONEY-EATER. on the under-part of tail-feathers are much smaller, while the breast is purer white and less spotted.” Of this Barnard stated : “ It was feeding on the flowers of the bauhinia trees which grew on the black soil flats. The birds were found at McArthur Station, and were not seen elsewhere.” Mr. A. J. North had written me in 1908 : “ I examined a collection made at Cloncurry which contained this bird.” I then described such a bird as Graniiella picta cloncurri. “ Differs from G. p. picta in its larger size and darker coloration. Cloncurry, Queensland.” Consequently there will be three subspecies now on record : Grantiella picta picta (Gould). New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia. Grantiella picta cloncurri Mathews. Queensland. Grantiella picta borealis H. L. White. Northern Territory. 381 Genus LACUSTROICA. Lacustroica North, Victorian Naturalist, Vol. XXVI., p. 138, Jan. 13th, 1910. Type (by monotypy) . . . . . . . . Lacustroica whitei North. North’s diagnosis reads : “ Exposed portion of bill slightly less than half the length of head, moderately straight, equal in height to breadth at nostril, the culmen distinctly arched, and decurved towards the tip ; tongue grooved above, bifid at the tip. First primary short, the second equal in length to the seventh, the almost square end of the wing formed by the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth primaries, which are almost equal in length. Tail about two- thirds of the length of the wing. Tarsi long, slender, about twice the length of the bill.” North added : “ Remarks. The genus Lacustroica is allied to Entomophila, and to that section of it winch includes E. picta, but differs from it principally in having a shorter bill, longer tarsi, and a different wing formula.” Order PASSERIFORMES. 'Mo. 654. (?) Family M ELI TIIREPTI DjE. LACUSTROICA WHITEI. INCONSPICUOUS HONEY-EATER. (Plate 522.) Lacustroica whitei North, Victorian Naturalist, Vol. XXVI., p. 138, Jan. 13th, 1910 ; Lake Way, East Murchison, West Australia. Lacustroica whitei North, Victorian Naturalist, Vol. XXVI., p. 138, 1910 ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 209, pi. xv., 1910 ; id., ib ., Vol. X., p. 72, 1910 ; Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 269, 1913 ; Mellor, Emu, Vol. XX., p. 242, 1921 ; Whitlock, ib., Vol. XXIII., p. 276, 1924. Lacustroica inconspicua North, Victorian Naturalist, Vol. XXVI., p. 139, Jan. 13th, 1910 ; alternative name only. Lacustroica alfredi Mathews, List Birds Austr,, p. 269, Dec. 31st, 1913, as synonym of L . whitei , ex., Campbell, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 166, Jan. 1st, 1910 : nomen nudum . Certhionyx whitei Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 401, 1912. Lacustroica whitei neglecta Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. III., pt. 3, p. 62, April 7th, 1916 : Day Dawn, West Australia Lacustroica whitei whitei Mathews, ib. Distribution. Mid-west Australia. Adidt male . General colour of the upper-surface pale earth-brown, including the top of the head, sides of face, back, and wings ; flight-quills and tail-feathers dark brown ; rump and tips of tail-feathers white ; chin, throat, abdomen, flanks, under wing-coverts, and inner margins of flight-quills white ; fore-neck, upper breast and outer margins of under wing-coverts tinged with very pale fawn-colour ; thighs dusky; the basal portion of the feathers on the abdomen blackish. Culrnen black ; base of lower mandible flesh -pink ; legs and feet very dark grey ; eyes clear brown. Total length 110 mm. ; culrnen 8, wing 64, tail 43, tarsus 17. Figured. Collected at Day Dawn, Mid-west Australia, on the 18th of May, 1903, and is the type of L. w. neglecta . Adult female. Similar to the adult male. Immature have a tinge of yellowish-green on the throat. Eggs. Clutch two. Shape swrollen oval, texture of shell fine and slightly glossy ; colour white moderately marked with small rich reddish-brown spots, while some of dull purplish-grey, and appearing as if beneath the surface of the shell, are mixed 383 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. with the other markings, but only at the larger ends of the eggs. Markings confined chiefly to the larger ends. 17 mm. by 12. Nest. A frail structure of horsehair, loosely woven and held together by spiders' webs and cocoons, and placed near the extremity of a slender branch about seven feet from the ground. 2 to 2f inches by 1 deep. Collected at Lake Way, East Murchison, Western Australia, on the 15th of August, 1909. Breeding-season. Probably August to November. This small genus and species was named by A. J. North from specimens collected by Whitlock, whose complete account I transcribe : “ This little bird has only recently been described as new by Mr. A. J. North, from a series of skins I secured near Wiluna and Milly Pool. It is sufficiently distinct to require a new genus for its reception. It is described as belonging to the Honey-eaters. If this is the case, then as a field naturalist I should place it next to Zosterops, to which it has a superficial resemblance, and also some similarity in general behaviour and in its notes. In possessing a dark bar near the tip of the tail, and in certain other features, it shows a divergence. At Lake Austin, in 1903, I shot a pair of small birds I could not identify. Speaking from memory I think they were identical with the present species. They were sent down to the Perth Museum with other skins, but I never learned to what species they had been referred. This little Honey-eater is confined to tracts of country where large mulga and other tree-like bushes are growing. It does not seem to favour eucalypts, but I have seen it amongst flowering acacias. It is a very difficult bird to pick out from a party of Acanthizce, busy, like itself, in searching the foliage for insect prey. It looks slightly larger than the three local species of Tits, but in its attitudes and its perpetual motion there is absolutely nothing to distinguish it from these commoner birds. The notes are altogether the best guide. They are rather difficult to describe on paper. They may, perhaps, be described as a succession of five or six monotones, high pitched but musical, and uttered in a rapid, sibilant manner. Each bar is repeated several times, to be followed by an interval before the next cadence is commenced. Certain other notes resemble those of Anthus australis when engaged in a love flight, but the volume of sound produced is much less and the tone shriller. Others again, resemble those of the Carter Desert Bird, which in their turn somewhat resemble the before-mentioned notes of Anthus. In the generally liigh- pitched voice, and to a lesser degree the manner of utterance, I -was reminded of the notes of Zosterops lutea and Z. gmddi. After shooting a male soon after my arrival in Wiluna, I came across a pair on 23rd July, which I resolved to watch. They were witlun easy distance of the main street of Wiluna, and my chances of securing nest and eggs were not enhanced thereby. 384 INCONSPICUOUS HONEY-EATER. Further observations showed them to be busy at the extremity of a horizontal branch of a narrow-leaved mulga or kindred tree. Both birds were at work, and I watched till both were away before making a closer examination. A nest was evidently just being commenced, as I could plainly seen spiders’ webs had been attached to the branch of the tree where the birds had been working. Progress was very slow, and I shortly left Wiluna for Bore Well, not returning until the 15th August. On returing from the latter locality I called en route at several nests I was watching, only to find them pulled out by the blacks. It was with some trepidation I visited my ‘ Gerygone ’ nest, as I then called it. Tracks of blacks’ feet were only too plentiful, and I hardly expected to find the nest safe. Judge of my delight when I could see the frail little structure quite intact, and with the tail of the sitting bird projecting over the side. I could just reach the branch. Cautiously bending down I peeped in. There were two remarkably large eggs for so small a bird, with the glow of the yolks shining through the shells. I carefully removed and packed them, and then broke off the branch holding the nest. The latter was a frail affair, and lacked neatness and finish in its architecture. The walls were very thin, the eggs being plainly visible from below. An attempt had been made to bend long horsehairs into a circular form, with more or less success. These wTere held in position by spiders’ webs and cocoons, but long ends had been left dangling about in a very unfinished manner. The whole structure was sufficiently elastic, and was attached to the branch of the tree with spiders’ webs. The dimensions of the nest are as follows : Long diameter, 2f inches ; short diameter, 2 inches ; depth of cup, nearly 1 inch. The eggs were quite fresh and the descriptions are as follows : At first glance resemble those of some types of Ephtliianurince. Shape swollen oval, texture of shell being fine and slightly glossy ; colour white, moderately marked with small rich reddish-brown spots, virile some of dull purplish- grey, and appearing as if beneath the surface of the shell, are mixed with the other markings, but only at the larger ends of the eggs. Specimen (a) is much more heavily marked than specimen (6), and the spots are larger. The markings on both eggs are confined chiefly to the larger ends. Measurements in inches : (a) 0*71 by 0*49 ; (b) 0*68 by 0*48. In the field this little bird looks almost uniform grey. A fully fledged nestling, shot 24th October, has a tinge of greenish-yellow on the throat, showing an affinity to Zosterops in tins direction.” Nothing has since been written about it until last year (1921) Mellor again met with it and recorded : “ The plate (given in the Emu) is somewhat misleading, as there is a certain amount of yellowish tinge about the upper- surface of the birds. This is not in the five bird, there being no ‘ adornment VOL. XI. 385 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. whatever in its feathers. . . The bird was shot in low bushes in very dry country, and its habits and actions resemble those of an Acanthiza. The taking of the bird near Ajana extends the range of the bird a considerable distance westward on the Murchison, and nearer to the coast line. I recently named the form from Day Dawn as Lacustroica whitei neglecta. “ Differs from L. w. whitei North in being more buff below and darker above.” 386 Genus— CONOPOPHILA. Conopophila Reichenbach, Handb. Spec. Ornith., Abth. 2 (Handb. Meropinse), p. 1 19 (leones ad Synopsin, Cont. No. IX., March 1st, 1852), 1852. Type (by sub¬ sequent designation Gray, Cat. Gen. Subgen. Birds, p. 24, 1855) . . . . Entomophila albogularis Gould. Smallest “ Honey-eaters,” with short bills, long wings, long square tail and short legs with delicate feet. The bill is shorter than the head, straight, culmen slightly arched, tip a little decurved ; nasal groove long, more than one-third the length of the bill, the nasal aperture as a long linear slit strongly operculate ; the culmen some¬ what attenuate anteriorly, a little expanded basally ; nasal and rictal bristles obsolete, scarcely perceptible ; interramal space narrow, feathered, nearly half the length of the mandible. The living has the first primary short, a little less than half the length of the second which is about equal to the seventh ; the third, fourth and fifth subequal and longest. The tail is long and square. The legs are short, the tarsus in front appearing as booted through the fusion of the half dozen scutes which can be clearly seen in the immature ; the toes are long and slender, the middle toe and claw a little longer than the hind-toe and claw which is, however, stouter ; the outer toe longer than the inner, all the claws delicate. Key to the Species. Throat white Throat reddish-brown . . C. albogularis. . . C. rufogularis. 387 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family MELITHREPTIDM. No. 655. CONOPOPHILA ALBOGULARIS. RUFOUS-BREASTED HONEY-EATER. (Plate 523.) Entomophila (?) ALBOGULARIS Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Loud.) 1842, p. 137, Feb. 1843 : Port Essington, Northern Territory. Entomophila albogularis* Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.) 1842 p. 137, 1843; id., Birds Austr., pt. xn. (Vol. IV., pi. 51), Sept. 1st, 1843 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 190, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mas., Vol. IX., p. 219, 1884; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Ser. 2, Vol. I., p. 1,098, 1887; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 13, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 40, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 379, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 86, 1906. Conopophila albigularis Reichenbacli, Handb. Spec. Ornith., Abth. II., p. 119, 1852; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 532, 1865 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral, p. 94, 1908 ; H. L. White, Emu, Vol. XVI., p. 227, 1917 (N.T.) ; Campbell, ib ., Vol. XVIII., p. 186, 1919. Certhionyx albogularis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 401, 1912. Certhionyx albogularis yorki Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 49, April 2nd, 1912 : Cape York, Queensland. Conopophila albogularis albogularis Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 269, 1913; id., Ibis 1914, p. 128. Conopophila albogularis yorki Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 269, 1913 ; Macgillivray, Emu, Vol. XVII., p. 205, 1914. Distribution. Northern Territory, North Queensland (New Guinea). Adult male . Top of head, nape, and sides of face pale slate-grey with dark centres to the feathers on, the crown and nape ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts earth-brown ; flight-quills and tail-feathers dark brown margined yellow on the outer webs and white on the inner ones ; cliin and throat white ; fore-neck and sides of neck rust-brown ; sides of body pale ochreous- brown ; middle of abdomen, vent, and under tail-coverts white ; axillaries and under wing-coverts bully-white ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with white edgings ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Bill leaden-brown ; basal two-thirds of lower mandible blue-grey ; feet and tarsi * Also spelt albigularis. 388 523 5 H . Gronvol. d. del. Witherby &C° CONOPOPHILA RUFOGULARrS {RED -THROATED HOHEH-EATER .) CONOPOPHILA ALBOGULARIS /RUFOUS -BRERS TED HORSY -EATER ) RUFOUS-BREASTED HONEY-EATER. leaden-blue; eyes greyish-brown. Total length 123 mm.; culmen 11, wing 67, tail 45, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected at Cooper’s Camp, Apsley Straits, Melville Island, Northern Territory, on the 2nd of October, 1911, and is the type of G. a. melvillensis, subsp. nov. It is darker above than those from the mainland and the bull on the chest is not so wide. Adult female. Similar to the adult male. Immature. Resemble the adults in general. Eggs. Two to three eggs form the clutch. A clutch of three eggs taken at the King River, Northern Territory, on the 6th of January, 1916, is of a white ground-colour, finely spotted and speckled nearly all over (particularly at the larger end of each egg) with bright chestnut-red. Ovals in shape ; surface of shell smooth, but possessing very little gloss. 18-19 by 13 mm. Nest. A small cup-shaped structure, composed of fine strips of bark, matted together •with spiders’ web, lined with fine grass. Dimensions over all : 3| inches by 2£ inches ; egg chamber 2 inches across by If inches deep. Nest suspended by rim from small fork of a tree. Breeding-months. October to January. Another of Gould’s new species that Gilbert discovered. Gilbert’s notes read : “I first met with it on Mayday Island in Tan Diemen’s Gulf where it appeared to be tolerably abundant-; I afterwards found it to be equally numerous in a large inland mangrove swamp near Point Smith. It is an extremely active little bird, constantly flitting from branch to branch and taking irregular flights during which it utters its pretty song ; it also pours forth its agreeable melody for a length of tune -without intermission while sitting on the topmost branches of the trees. I never observed it in any other than swampy situations, or among the mangroves bordering the deep bays and creeks of the harbours. Its small pensile nest is suspended from the extremity of a weak projecting branch in such a manner that it hangs over the water, the bird always selecting a branch bearing a sufficient number of leaves to protect the entrance from the rays of the sun. . . . During the breeding season it exhibits considerable pugnacity of disposition, and instead of its usual pretty note, utters a chattering and vociferous squeaking. The stomach was very small but tolerably muscular, and its food consisted of insects generally.” Mr. J. P. Rogers wrote me from Melville Island : “ Nov. 20, 1911, Cooper’s Camp. This species is very rare ; all seen were near the foreshore or among the mangroves. Up to Dec. 12 only a few were seen and these all in or close to the mangroves. Jan. 14, 1912. On the north side of the island this species was very numerous, being found along all the watercourses and in the big paper-bark swamp. In fact this and Gliciphila fasciata w ere tv o of the commonest birds on the north side. This species was apparently just 389 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. mating, but no nests were seen although I watched closely. This is a water- loving species and was never seen far from water on the north side of the island.” McLennan’ s notes from his King River trip read : “ King River, 2/11/15. Single bird seen at spring near camp. 9/11/15. Shot three birds and saw more at spring near camp. Often seen after this date about the salt pans and along edge of mangroves. Roper River. Fairly numerous in places along river and in the mangroves over the river, near Egret rookery. Stomach, insect and termites’ remains.” Of the specimens procured Campbell observed : “ Have darker flanks than their near ally, rufogularis, and have a white throat and brown (buffy) breast mark.” In my “ Reference List ” no subspecies were included, the only locality being Northern Territory, the species being lumped in Certhionyx. Receipt of specimens from North Queensland enabled me to describe Certhionyx albogularis yorki. “ Differs from C. a. albogularis in being much paler above ; the band on the breast lighter ; it is also smaller ; wing 64 mm. Cape York, North Queens¬ land.” This appeared in my 1913 “ List,” where they were referred to the correct genus Conopophila, and I allowed : Conopophila albogularis albogularis (Gould). Northern Territory. Conopophila albogularis yorki Mathews. North Queensland. Although Ogilvie-Grant indicated the sensible differences in the form inhabiting South-west New Guinea as paler brown above with the rufous band across the chest not so rich, he did not name it, so I propose : Conopophila albogularis mimikce subsp. nov. Type from the mouth of the Mimika River, South-west New Guinea. It has also a much paler grey head. 390 Order PASSERIFORMES . No. 656. Family M ELI THREPTIDJE. CONOPOPHILA RUFOGULARIS. RED-THROATED HONEY-EATER. (Plate 523.) Entomophila (?) RUFOGULARIS Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.) 1842, p. 137, Feb. 1843 : North Coast of Australia = Derby, North-west Australia. Entomophila rufogularis* Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.) 1842, p. 137, 1843 ; id ., Birds Austr., pt. xn. (Vol. IV., pi. 52), Sept. 1st, 1843 ; Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.) 1877, p. 350; id ., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 190, 1878; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 219, 1884 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Ser. 2, Vol. I., p. 1,092, 1887 ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 13, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 40, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 378, 1901 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. I., p. 102, 1902 ; Le Souef, ib., Vol. II., p. 91, 1902 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 85, 1906 ; Berney, Emu, Vol. VII., p. 81, 1907 (Food). 4 Conopophila rufigularis\ Reichenbach, Handb. Spec. Ornith., Abth. II., p. 119, 1852 ; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 533, 1865 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 94, 1908 ; id., Emu, Vol. IX., pp. 14-62, 1909 ; Crossman, ib., Vol. X., p. 112, 1910; Hill, ib., p. 286, 1911; id., ib., Vol. XII., p. 259, 1913 ; Macgillivray, ib, Vol. XIII., p. 178, 1914 ; Barnard, ib., p. 209 ; id., ib., Vol. XIV., p. 48, 1914; H. L. White, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 227, 1917; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 205, 1918. Certhionyx rufogularis rufogularis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 401, Jan. 31st, 1912. Certhionyx rufogidaris queenslandicus Mathews, ib. : Inkerman, Queensland. Certhionyx rufogularis Iceatsi Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 49, April 2nd, 1912 : Point Keats, Northern Territory. Conopophila rufogularis rufogularis Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 269, 1913 ; id., South Austr. Orn., Vol. 3, p. 207, 1918. Conopophila rufogularis queenslandica Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 269, 1913. Distribution. Northern Tropical Australia from Derby, North-west Australia, to Cape York and Inkerman, Queensland. * Also spelt rufigularis. t Also spelt rufogularis. THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Adult male . General colour of the upper-surface earth-brown, including the head, hind- neck, sides of neck, back, wings, and tail ; the margins of the feathers on the top of the head tinged with grey, as are also the sides of the face and fore-neck ; flight-quills and tail-feathers dark brown in contrast to the back, rump, and upper tail-coverts ; outer margins of flight-quills yellow as are also the tail-feathers but much more narrowly ; chin and throat chestnut ; middle of breast, middle of abdomen, under tail-coverts, under wing-coverts, and margins of flight-quills below whitish ; sides of body and thighs pale fawn-colour ; remainder of quill¬ lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail greyish-brown. Bill black, feet bright blue-grey, eyes brown. Total length 150 mm. ; culmen 11, wing 74, tail 49, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected at Inkerman, Burdekin River, Mid Queensland, on the 19tli of October, 1907, and is the type of G. r. queenslandica. Adult female . Similar to the adult male. Immature female. General colour of the upper-surface earth-brown, somewhat darker on the top of the head, inner webs of flight-quills and tail-feathers ; outer margins of flight-quills yellow ; under-surface pale grey, including the throat, sides of face, breast, abdomen, under tail-coverts, axillaries, under wing-coverts, and inner margins of flight-quills below, remainder of quill-lining similar to the upper- surface ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Bill brown, base of lower mandible grey, feet and tarsi leaden-blue, eyes grey. Total length 113 mm. ; culmen 9, wing 67, tail 40, tarsus 17. Figured. Collected at Derby, North-west Australia, on the 8th of January, 1886. Immature male . General colour of the upper-surface pale earth-brown, including the top of the head, sides of the face, nape, hind-neck, sides of the neck, back, upper tail-coverts, scapulars and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills hair-brown margined with yellow on the outer webs and with whitish on the inner ones ; tail-feathers similar but the yellow on the outer webs less conspicuous ; chin and throat pale * grey intermixed with pale chestnut ; sides of breast, middle of abdomen and under tail-coverts bufiy-white like the axillaries and under wing-coverts ; sides of body inclining to fawn colour ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail similar. Collected at Derby, North-west Australia, on the 24th of November, 1901. Juvenile . General colour of the upper-surface fawn-brown, including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, entire back, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills blackish-brown fringed on the outer webs with yellow ; tail dark brown ; entire under-surface white or bufly- white including the throat, breast, abdomen, under tail-coverts, thighs, and under wing-coverts ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown ; lower aspect of tail similar. Collected at Derby, North-west Australia, in 1900. The following nests are from Parry's Creek : — 11th of December, 1910. Three eggs in clutch. Tree white gum. Height from ground six feet. Nest was hung from a pendant branch and was built of very fine strips of paper-bark, pieces of cocoons, sheep’s wool and cobwebs, which are woven into a soft outer nest. The bottom half is lined with veiy fine stiff steins of grasses and some rootlets which stiffens the nest. This nest is same diameter throughout its length. Dimensions : outside 2J by 2A by BA inches deep ; inside 1J by 1| by 4 inches deep. 10th of December, 1910. Three eggs in full clutch. Tree paper-bark. Height from ground six feet. Nest was suspended from a pendant branch and is built of fine strips of paper-bark, pieces of cocoons and cobwebs, the whole being woven together and around the branches from which the nest was hung. Is lined for 392 RED-THROATED HONEY-EATER. two-thirds of its height with fine stiff stems of grass which stiffen the nest and keep it in shape. Dimensions : outside 2J by If by 4tI inches deep ; inside ltt by ltt by 4f inches deep. 5th of December, 1910. Three eggs in full clutch were partly incubated. Tree paper-bark. Height from ground eight feet. Nest was suspended from some fine twigs, the outer nest being built with strips of fine soft paper-bark, pieces of silk¬ like cocoons and cobwebs closely woven together. Was lined for three-quarters of its height with fine stiff stems of grasses. When the outer nest is finished it is soft, limp and shapeless, but after the lining is finished the nest is strong and well shaped ; is larger at the bottom than top. Dimensions : outside at top 2tV by 2tV by 4 inches deep ; at bottom by 2tV inches ; inside at top Htb by 1* by 3| inches deep ; at bottom 2 by 2 inches. Eggs . Two to three eggs form the clutch. A clutch of three eggs taken at the junction of the Fitzroy and Margaret Rivers, North-west Australia, on the 12th of February, 1897, is of a white ground-colour, marked with small spots and specks of dark reddish-brown or chestnut, and slate-grey, confined mostly to the larger end of each egg. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell fine and slightly glossy. The clutch measures 16-18 by 12 mm. A clutch of three eggs taken at Brunnette Downs, Northern Territory, on the 28th of February, 1913, measures A. 16 by 12 mm.* C. 15 by 12 mm. Nest . A small cup-shaped structure, rather deep ; composed of soft bark and grass* and woven together with cobwebs ; no soft lining inside. Dimensions over all, 2\ inches across by 3 inches deep ; inside 1J inches across by 2i inches deep. Nest generalty suspended from the end of a small leafy branch, and situated from 6 to 20 feet from the ground. Breeding-months. October to February or March. “ This is another of the novelties that has rewarded the researches of the Officers of H.M.S. 6 Beagle ’ on the northern coast of Australia. It is the least of the genus yet discovered, and is nearly allied to E. albigularis , from which it may at once be distinguished by the red colouring of its throat. The sexes, judging from the specimens sent me by Bynoe, are very similar in their markings. Nothing whatever is known of its habits and economy.” Thus Gould wTote, and since his time not a great deal has been added. Mr. J. P. Rogers has written me : “ This was one of the commonest- Honey-eaters at Marngle Creek but no adults were seen. The birds were also very numerous on the Eitzroy and also on Jegurra Creek but only one was seen at Mungi. This bird is one of the commonest Honey-eaters throughout West Kimberley.” Hall recorded Rogers’ notes from Derby, North-west Australia : “ The present species is often seen feeding within the long grasses. It chases flies and small beetles, occasionally darting straight into the air and promptly across to its perch,” and added “ Sir. Rogers writes about seeing one bird with rufous on sides of chest instead of on the throat,” and reported that the immature had not the red throat. VOL. XI. 393 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. I later added more of Rogers’ notes from Parry’s Creek, N.W.A. : “ Very common ; often seen in great numbers at a water-hole and on flowering trees. Feeds largely on insects, which are often taken on the wing, in the same manner as the Microeca. Bathes while on the wing ; it usually chooses a spot where a bush hangs over the water. The birds fly out a few yards from the bush, flutter their wings in the water, and then fly back and preen their feathers, repeating this many times.” Hill wrote from the Kimberley district, N.W.A. : “ The first arrivals appeared on 26th March, and were followed by many other's up to 27th April, after which they gradually decreased in numbers, until none remained after 24th May. This species is largely insectivorous, even when honey is abundant.” From Borroloola, Northern Territory, Hill later added : “ Very plentiful in the early part of October. Twro eggs were taken on 2nd February from a nest built about 35 feet from the ground in a white gum. The bulk of the nest wras built of fine pieces of bark, closely woven together. Tire outside was covered with spider web and the inside lined with rootlets obtained from a nest of Rhipidura tricolor .” Macgillivray has written : “ Very common in the Gulf country, frequenting the tea-tree, and building in the prickly acacia bushes at a few feet from the ground. Also very common on the box flats at the Sedan camp. . . . Many nests were found here, in various stages of construction or containing eggs or young birds during February and March. One pair was noted feeding a young pallid Cuckoo. The female alone engages in the task of nest building, the male accompanying her to and from the nest. Stomach contents, honey and small insects. A few' w'ere noted on the Archer River.” Barnard wTote from the McArthur River, Northern Territory : “ Very common birds. They bred freely when the rains fell at the end of 1913 and the beginning of 1914. They wrere very pugnacious during the breeding season and often attacked each other very savagely.” McLennan’s notes on his lung River trip read : “ Mornington Island, 25/7/15. A few noted. King River, 4/10/15. Two noted coming to water at small w'ater-hole. 31/10/15. A bird shot at the same place. 16/11/15. Three birds seen at spring up river from camp. Stomach, small insects.” As long ago as 1S75 Ramsay recorded this species from North Queensland, and in 1886 he added : “I have received this species and also E. albogidaris, from the Norman River, Port Essington, Port Darwin, and West Australia in general.” No subspecies wrere however distinguished until 1912, when I named Certhionyx rufogularis queenslandicus. 394 RED-THROATED HONEY-EATER. “Differs from C. r. rufogularis in its smaller size, darker coloration on the throat and browner coloration above. Inkerman, Queensland.” and then added Certhionyx rufogularis Jceatsi. “Differs from C. r. rufogularis (type from Derby) in its much paler upper- surface. Point Keats, Northern Territory.” In 1913 I transferred the species to the genus Gonopophila which seems to be correct and, still maintaining Derby as the type locality, synonymised C. r. Iceatsi with the typical form, allowing only Conopophila rufogularis rufogularis (Gould). Conopophila rufogularis queenslandica Mathews. However, there appears to be three (at least) subspecies as above. 395 Genus — CERTHIONYX. Certiiionyx Lesson, Traite d’Ornith., livr. 4, p. 306, Sept. 25th, 1830. Type (by monotypy) . . . . . . . . . . Gerthionyx variegatus Lesson. Also spelt — Certhyonyx Bonaparte, Comptes Rendus Acad. Sci. Paris, Vol. XXXVIII., p. 263, 1854. Melicophila Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xv. (Yol. IV., pi. 49), June 1st, 1844. Type (by monotypy) . . . . . . . . . . Melicophila picata Gould = Gerthionyx variegatus Lesson. Also spelt — Melitophila Cabanis, Mus. Heine., Vol. I., p. 116, 1851. Lichnotentha Cabanis, Mus. Heine.,; Vol. I., p. 116 (after Oct. 23rd), 1851. New name for “ Melitophila Gobld ” ! Also spelt — Lithotentha Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Yol. IX., p. 218, 1884. Small “ Honey-eaters ” with long curved bill, long wings, long square tail, short stout legs and stout small feet. The bill is somewhat triangular, the tip compressed, regularly expanded basally, culmen well arched, not keeled at the base and rounded anteriorly, tip decurved with posterior notched and roughly serrate edges ; nasal slit very long, about one-third the length of the cuhnen, which exceeds the head in length, the nasal groove indistinct, the long horny operculum ill defined towards flattened culmen ridge ; nasal and rictal bristles obsolete ; long narrow interramal space, feathered, more than one-third the length of the decurved lower mandible. The wing has the first primary short, about one-third the length of the second winch is long and scarcely shorter than the third and fourth, which are subequal, and longer than the fifth ; secondaries long. The legs ax-e fairly long and stout, the front with six well marked scutes in the immature, apparently booted in the adult ; middle toe and claw longer than hind-toe axxd claw which is stouter, outer toe longer than inner, all claws well curved. 396 524 * 5 > t: n f- CERTHIONYX VARIEGATUS (PIED HOMEY- EATER). I Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 657. Family ME LI TH REPTI DIE. CERTHI ONYX VARIEGATUS. PIED HONEY- EATER. (Plate 524.) Certhionyx VARIEGATUS Lesson, Traite d’Orn., livr. 4, p. 306, Sept. 25th, 1830 : “ Timore ” error = Shark’s Bay, West Australia. Certhionyx variegatus Lesson, Traite d’Orn., livr. 4, p. 306, 1830 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 94, 1908 ; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 210, pi. xxn., 1910 (W.A.) ; Macgillivray, ib., Yol. X., pp. 32-34, 1910 (N.S.W.) ; Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 401, 1912 ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 270, 1913 ; S. A. White, Emu, Vol. XIV., p. 191, 1915 (Central Australia) ; id., ib., Vol. XV., p. 161, 1916 (S.A.). Certhia leucomdas “ Cuv.” Lesson, Traite d’Orn., livr. 4, p. 306, Sept. 25th, 1830, as synonym of C. variegatus. Mdicophila picata Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xv. (Vol. IV., pi. 49), June 1st, 1844 : Perth district, West Australia. Entomophila picata Gray, Genera Birds, Vol. I., p. 118, 1846. Lichnotentha picata Cabanis, Mus. Heine., Vol. I., p. 116, 1851 ; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 529, 1865. Certhyonyx leucomdas Bonaparte, Comptes Rendus Acad. Sci. (Paris), Vol. XXXVIII., p. 263, 1854; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 190, 1878; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 13, 1888. Entomophila leucomdas Gray, Handl. Gen. Sp. Birds, Vol. I., p. 154, 1869 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 220, 1884 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 40, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 380, 1901 ; Hall, Emu, Vol. I., p. 102, 1902 ; Le Souef, ib., Vol. II., p. 147, 1903 ; Carter, ib., Vol. III., p. 92, 1903. Certhionyx occidentals Grant, Ibis, 1909, p. 658, Oct. No. (received B.M., Nov. 27th) : Carnarvon, West Australia ; Campbell, Emu, Vol. X., p. 299, 1911 (Eggs). Certhionyx variegatus negleda Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. III., pt. 3, p. 62, April 7th, 1916 : New South Wales. Distribution. Across Southern Central Australia from New South Wales to West Australia, commoner in the West. Adult male. General colour of the upper- and under-surface black and white. Entire top of head, throat and neck all round black, like the sides of the breast, back, 397 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. scapulars, innermost secondaries, and middle tail-feathers ; inner upper wing-coverts, margins of inner secondary flight-quills, upper tail-coverts, and greater portion of the lateral tail-feathers white like the breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts ; outer upper wing-coverts, outer flight-quills, and tips of lateral tail-feathers blackish-brown ; axillaries and under wing-coverts black ; under¬ surface of flight-quills dark hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper- surface but the dark portion somewhat paler. Bill black, with blue-grey base, legs and feet black ; eyes brown ; a blue-grey wattle on lower eye-lid. Total length 190 mm. ; culmen 18, wing 91, tail 70, tarsus 22. Figured. Collected at Day Dawn, Mid-west Australia, on the 10th of July, 1903. Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface bistre-brown, including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, scapulars, rump, and upper tail- coverts, with dark shaft-streaks on the crown of the head and back ; upper wing- coverts margined white or buffy-white ; flight-quills dark brown margined with pale buff on the outer webs of the innermost secondaries ; tail also dark brown slightly paler on the edges of the feathers ; a slight indication of a pale superciliary- streak ; throat, abdomen, flanks, and under tail-coverts white, with dark shaft- streaks to many of the feathers ; breast pale fawn-colour with dark shaft-streaks ; axillaries and under wing-coverts dusky-brown ; under-surface of flight-quills greyish- brown ; lower aspect of tail similar. Bill horn-colour, legs and feet lead-colour, eyes hazel. Total length 180 mm. ; culmen 16, wing 86, tail 65, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected at Point Cloats, Mid-west Australia. Immature birds are in general rather like the female. Immature male. General colour of the upper-surface rust-brown with dark centres to the feathers and black feathers interspersed — including the top of the head, entire back, wings, and tail ; lesser, median, and some of the greater upper wing-coverts cream-white ; outer primary flight-quills and some of the secondaries pale brown, remainder of primary and secondary-quills blackish-brown ; middle tail-feathers also blackish-brown, the outer ones pale brown ; upper tail-coverts whitish-buff with dark shaft-lines to some of the feathers ; under-surface of body whitish-buff including the breast, abdomen, sides of body, vent, and under tail-coverts ; chin and throat similar but paler and intermixed with black ; under wing-coverts blackish ; axillaries and under-surface of flight-quills pale brown ; lower aspect of tail similar. Eyes hazel. Bill fleshy with purple tip. Legs and feet blue-grev. Collected at Point Cloates on the 2nd of May, 1900. Immature female. General colour of the upper-surface dark brown with pale edges to the feathers, including the top of the head, back, wings, and tail ; flight-quills uniform dark brown becoming darker on the inner secondaries ; tail dark brown ; chin and throat greyish-browm ; fore-neck and breast dark ochreous with blackish- browm spots to the feathers ; abdomen and sides of body white tinged with dark ochreous and dark shaft-lines to some of the feathers ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts buff with dark narrow' shaft-lines ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and quill-lining dusky-browui ; lowrer aspect of tail similar but darker. Eyes red- brown, lower eyelid slate-grey ; feet very dark grey, bill dark horn, lower mandible pale bluish-horn. Collected at Borowell, East Murchison, on the 29th of August, 1909. Immature female. General colour of the upper-surface earth-brown, including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, entire back ; upper tail-coverts paler and inclining to rust-brown ; upper wing-coverts similar to the back with pale margins to the feathers ; flight-quills uniform pale brown, except some of the inner secondaries which have pale margins on the outer webs ; tail similar but darker ; chin and throat dusky-grey ; fore-neck ochreous and spotted with 393 PIED HONEY-EATER. dark brown ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body silky-white ; thighs and under tail-coverts buffy-wbite with dark shaft-lines on the latter ; axillaries and under wing-coverts dusky -brown ; under-surface of flight-quills pale brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Collected at Kalgoorlie, West Australia, on the 27th of November, 1898. Eggs. Two to three eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of three eggs taken at Borewell, East Murchison, Western Australia, on the 6th of September, 1909, is of a pale yellowish-white, well marked all over with spots and specks of dark umber and dull slaty-grey, and more closely resemble the eggs of the common Wood-Swallow ( Artamus sordidus ) than those of a Honey-eater. Swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell fine, and slightly glossy. 21-23 by 15 mm. Nest. A shallow cup-shaped structure, composed of fine grasses, and lined with finer grasses. Dimensions over all, 4 inches ; egg cavity inside nearly 2 inches across. Placed in a small bush or tree, at heights varying from 5 to 15 feet or more. Breeding-months. October to February, June and July. Gould introduced a new genus and species for this form writing : “It possesses many singular habits, and differs from most other species of the MelipJiagidce in the totally different colouring of the sexes.” He did not state that he met with it himself, but wrote : “ The actions of tins bird when on the wing are extremely varied, and some of them very graceful ; it frequently ascends in a perpendicular direction to a considerable height above the trees, when the contrast presented by its black and white plumage renders it a conspicuous and pleasing object. It is at all times exceedingly shy, and invariably perches on the top of an isolated bush or dead branch. It usually utters a peculiar plaintive note, slowly repeated several times in succession ; it also emits a single note, 'which so closely resembles that of the Myzomela nigra, as to be easily mistaken for it. It is at all times extremely difficult of approach, and the female is even more shy and wary than the male. Gilbert states that this species assembles in vast flocks, wdiich continue soaring about during the greater portion of the day. It is a periodical visitant to Western Australia, wdiere it arrives in the latter part of October. It also inhabits the plains around Adelaide in the neighbouring colony. This last sentence is interesting hi view of later events. Mr. Tom Carter has written me : “ In your ‘ Reference List,’ 1912, the range is given as being West Australia generally. I have never seen any of these birds in the south-west, nor about Broome Hill, and I do not think they occur in big timber country. The above remark also refers to the Gascoyne district. About Point Cloates and the Northwvest Cape, this species was one of the commonest and most conspicuous birds in the winter months, after rain. Few were seen in dry seasons. The male birds have a habit of perching on the top twigs of a high bush, and are restless and wary. They continually keep soaring up in the air, and while descending to their 399 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. perch, utter a mournful sort of whistling song. The nests are somewhat broad and shallow, mostly made of dry grass. The clutch of eggs is usually three. The nests are built from three to five feet above ground in bushes. July 4, 1898, 3 eggs. July 14, 1899, 2 eggs. July 21, 1901, 2 nests each with 3 eggs. July 28, 1901, 2 nests each three eggs and one with young birds. July 27, 1901, 1 egg. Sept. 1, 1913. Recently fledged young. The female bird, when a nest containing young is approached, flutters close round one feigning lameness. June 23-25, 1902. Hundreds of these birds were flying in flocks against a strong N.E. -wind about 30 miles south of North-west Cape, 45 miles across to mainland. Query, which way did they go on reaching the Cape ? ” Mr. J. P. Rogers has sent me a short note : “On Jegurra Creek, 45 miles south of the Fitzroy River, I saw two small flocks of these birds, travelling east, flying from tree to tree. I think this species only occasionally visits the Fitzroy River as I only saw them at long intervals and never common.” Captain S. A. White has written : “ This bird is only found in the interior of tins State, South Australia. The writer met with it at Moorily- anna Native Well in the north-west of tins State. It was seen hopping on the ground round a mulga bush, then climbed up the stem after the manner of a parrot till it was two feet or more from the ground, when it hung head downwards for a minute or so, then it let go and dropped to the ground, hopped round the bush again and then repeated the performance. I also met with it on the Strzelecki Creek in 1916.” Whitlock wrote from the East Murchison, West Australia : “A few pairs around Lake Violet, but more common on the big spinifex plain west of Bore Well. They arrived during the last week in July and early part of August. Parties were still travelling throughout the latter month. At Bore Well they fed, in company with the Wood-Swallows, on the curious ground-flowering plant, Brachysema daviesioides, and the fore-heads and crowns of several I shot were so thickly coated with pollen that I had to scrape it off with a knife. In the early part of September they were breeding amongst the scrub on the spinifex plains. The favourite nesting site was in the branches of the handsome red-flowered HaJcea multilineata, with its oleander-like growth. On the East Murchison this shritb attains a height of 15 or 20 feet, and to reach one or two of these Honey -eaters’ nests I had to climb the lower branches. The nests were very substantial. Outwardly they were made of dried spinifex and other grass stems, the cup being wonderfully neat and lined with similar but finer material. In the ten clutches of eggs I found, not much variation in type is apparent. One pair was pyriform, and these reminded me irresistibly of miniature eggs of the European 400 | . ATI A V M U ** T M LH HfJ PNi PIED HONEY-EATER. Marsh-Sandpiper ( Totanus stagnatilis). The latter bird is an accidential visitor to Australia. During the breeding-season the female is not much in evidence, but the male careers around hi his erratic flight, tossing himself vertically in the air and hi his descent uttering his piercing, but monotonous and long drawn cry of ‘ Te-tltee-tee-tee.’ ” Macgillivray, writing about the region of the Barrier Range, New South Wales, observed : “ The Pied Honey-eater ( Certhionyx variegatus) was noted here, feeding in the blossoming box and lignum, but occasionally flying out to the surrounding sand-ridges to visit the flowering turpentine and honey¬ suckle trees ( Eremophila longifolia). This Honey-eater is very shy, and we had great difficulty in getting near enough to procure specimens. It is also very quick on the wing. It flies, singing, into the air from the top of a tree, and suddenly drops, always turning over backward in its descent.” Captain S. A. White, recording the results of an Expedition to the Musgrave and Everard Ranges, wuote : “ Rare; a fevT birds seen amongst the granite outcrops,” and later from the northern end of the Flinders Ranges : “ A small party of these birds wras seen in the ranges feeding in the Eremophila bushes. An adult male and twro immature birds were secured ; the latter had the whole of the under-surface creamy-wdiite, thickly spotted with blackish-brown spots. They were a pair and the male could be easily picked out owing to the stronger markings. The erratic movements of this bird ■were very pronounced ; tins I had already noticed in the north-west of Australia.” Connected with the teclmical history of this species are several blunders. First it was described as a new genus and species by Lesson from a specimen procured by Peron and Lesueur and labelled as coming from Timor. It had been labelled but not described as a newr species by Cuvier. The specimen was apparently obtained at Shark’s Bay, West Australia, where this species is sometimes common, and it does not occur at Timor. Then Gilbert met with it in the Perth district and Gould, ignorant of the specimens in the Paris Museum, again described it as a new genus and species. Cabanis then proclaimed Gould’s genus name to be preoccupied and proposed a new one. However, Bonaparte recognised that the bird hr the Paris Museum was the same and suggested the retention of Cuvier’s MS. specific name and Lesson’s generic name. For some inexplicable reason Gray, accepting this, subordinated Lesson’s name as a subgenus of Gould’s Entomophila which had priority, and, of course, Gadow continued the blunder hr the Cat. Birds Brit. Museum, and this rvas followed by Australian ornithologists who had not access to original literature, although Ramsay had correctly used the genus name Certhionyx. VOL. XI. 401 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. In my “ Handlist ” I revived the correct combination Certhionyx variegatus Lesson. The blundering was not yet complete as Grant, receiving birds from West Australia, compared them with birds incorrectly localised as from South Australia, detected differences winch do not exist and named the western bird as a new species of Certhionyx, although the type of Certhionyx must have come from the same locality as Ins new species. Even if it were suggested that it did not, Gould’s bird certainly did. Nevertheless, upon this new species being published I added it in a list, and immediately its eggs were described ! I corrected the error and at that time had seen no eastern birds though Gould indicated their existence. Macgillivray, however, found it in the interior of New South Wales, and since then Captain S. A. White has found it throughout the interior. I recently named the New South Wales bird as Certhionyx variegatus neglecta. “ Differs from C. v. variegatus (Lesson) in being smaller and paler.” 402 Genus — Z ANTHOMIZA. * I Zanthomiza Swainson, Classif. of Birds, Vol. II., p. 326, July 1st, 1837. Type (by monotypy). . Merops pyhrygius Shaw. Also spelt — Xanthomyza Strickland, Annals Mag. Nat. Hist., Vol. VI., p. 419, 1841. Zanthomyza Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xn. (Vol. IV., pi. 48), Sept. 1st, 1843. Mdiphaga Gray, List Genera Birds, 2nd ed., p. 20, Sept. 1841, and of recent authorities. Larger “ Honey-Eaters ” with short stout curved bills and bare pustulose skin around eyes, long wing, long fan-shaped tail and short legs and small feet. The bill is shorter than the head, stout, compressed laterally, the culmen keeled basally, anteriorly round, tip a little decurved and posteriorly slightly notched ; the nasal groove is long, nearly half the length of the bill from frontal feathering, which encroaches a little on the nasal groove ; large horny operculum nearly obscuring the linear nostril slit ; nasal bristles prominent, rictal bristles present but obscure ; lower mandible straight with no marked gonys, the long interramal space, feathered, nearly half the length of the mandible. The whig has the first primary short, less than half the length of the second and less than one-third the length of the third, which is about equal to the sixth, the fourth and fifth subequal and a little longer, the second equal to the seventh and longer than the secondaries. The tail is fan-shaped, of twelve feathers with rather pointed tips. The legs are short ; in front obscurely scutellate, almost booted, although eight scutes are clearly seen in immature ; posteriorly bilaminate ; the toes are slender, hind-toe stouter, the hind-toe and claw about equal to middle-toe and claw, outer toe longer than inner, inner toe and claw about equal to middle toe alone, claws slender. 403 Order PASSERIFORMES. No. 658. Family MELITHREPTID2E. ZANTHOMIZA PHRYGIA. REGENT HONEY-EATER. (Plate 525.) Merofs phrygius Shaw, Zool. New Holland, p. 13, pi. rv., pt. rv., 1/94: New South Wales. Merops phrygius Shaw, Zool. Mus. Holland, p. 13, pt. iv., 1794 ; Latham, Index Omith. Suppl., p. xxxiv., 1801. Black and Yellow Bee-eater Latham, Gen. Synops. Birds, Suppl. II., p. 154, 1801. Meliphaga phrygia Lewin, Birds New Holland, pi. 14, 1808 ; Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 527, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Yol. II., p. 189, 1878; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 221, 1884; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 13, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 41, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 381, 1901 ; A. G. Campbell, Emu, Vol. II., p. 14, 1902 (Vic.) ; Batey, ib., Vol. VII., p. 9, 1907 (Vic.) ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 154, 1907 ; Hill, Emu, Vol. VII., p. 18, 1907 (Vic.) ; Austin, ib., pp. 30-91 (N.S.W.) ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 95, 1908 ; H. L. White, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 93, 1909 (N.S.W.) ; Cleland, ib., p. 224, 1910 (Food) ; Austin, ib., Vol. XII., p. 42, 1912 (N.S.W.) ; Stone, ib., p. 116 (Vic.). Turdus squameus Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. XX., p. 259, May 30th, 1818 : New South Wales. Philemon phrygius Vieillot, Nouv. Diet. d’Hist. Nat., nouv. ed., Vol. XXVII., p. 428, 1818. Anthochcera phrygia Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XV., p. 322, 1827. Zanthomiza phrygia Swainson, Classif. Birds, Vol. II., p. 326, 1837 ; Gould, Birds Austr., pt. xii. (Vol. IV., pi. 48), Sept. 1st, 1843. Turdus squamatus “ Vieill.” Bonaparte, Consp. Gen. Av., Vol. I., p. 391, “ 1850 ” (before Feb. 1851), orror for “ T. squameus.” Meliphaga phrygia phrygia Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 401, 1912. Meliphaga phrygia tregdlasi Mathews, ib. , p. 402, Jan. 31st, 1912 : (Mulgrave) Victoria ; id., Austral Av. Roc., Vol. I., p. 61, 1912. Zaivthomiza phrygia phrygia Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 270, 1913 ; Belcher, Birds Geelong, p. 335, 1914. 404 525 ZAN THOM IZA PHRYGIA C regent eoney-eater ) 525 II it zx c u J mJi V. t* r* * REGENT HONEY -EATER. Zanthomiza phrygia tregellasi Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 270, 1913 ; Ashby, Emu, Vol. XVI., p. 194, 1917 (S.A.). Distribution. New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia. Adult male. General colour, both on the upper- and under-surface, black with white or yellow margins to the feathers ; top of head, chin, throat, and neck all round black ; eye-region bare ; mantle and upper back black margined with yellowish-white ; lower back and rump for the most part whitish with black centres to the feathers ; upper tail-coverts black, margined with yellowish-white ; lesser and median upper •wing-coverts slightly fringed with yellowish -wliito like the bastard-wing ; the greater series and primary-coverts extensively tipped with yellow', the first primary slightly marked with yellow on the outer wreb, the second, third, fourth, and fifth marked with yellow on both webs of the subterminal portion, the sixth, seventh, and eighth only very slightly marked with white on the outer wrebs at the tip, the remainder of the flight-quills broadly margined with yellow on the outer webs and tips of the terminal portion ; tail — the middle feathers black tipped with yellow and the lateral ones yellow with black bases ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body marked with black and white ; under tail-coverts pale yellow with dark lanceolate markings at the base ; axillaries and under wing-coverts yellowr, intermixed with dark brown on the latter ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown marked with yellow and white ; low'er aspect of tail dark brown and yellow ; eyes brown, bill — upper mandible black, lowrer brown. Skin round eye yellowish. Total length 223 mm. ; culmen 19, wing 118, tail 90, tarsus 22. Figured. Collected at Mulgrave, Victoria, on the 3rd of December, 1908, and is the type of M. p. tregellasi . Imimture female. Top of head, lores, and nape dark dusky-brown becoming somewhat paler on the hind-neck and upper back, some of the feathers on the latter blackish margined with yellowish- white ; lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts pale smoke-brown with whitish margins to the last ; scapulars similar to the lowrer back ; lesser upper wing-coverts dusky-browm ; the greater series, bastard- wing, primary-coverts, and flight-quills blackish-brown margined with yellow, some of the outer primaries have a space of yellow on the inner webs of the subapical portion ; base of tail and middle feathers "blackish-brown, the outer feathers for the greater portion yellow with a dark shaft-streak which becomes obsolete towards the tip ; chin, upper throat, and sides of neck blackish ; a small spot of lemon-yellow' behind the ear-coverts ; lower throat and fore-neck bronze-brown; breast, abdomen, sides of body, and under tail-coverts whitish, tinged with yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts similar ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown and yellow ; lowTer aspect of tail for the most part yellow with dark brown at the base and on the middle feathers. Collected in Victoria on the 17th of February, 1989. Female (juvenile). Top of head, nape, lores, and ear-coverts black ; back and scapulars blackish-brown with pale margins and whitish shaft-lines to some of the feathers ; upper tail-coverts smoke-brown ; wings blackish with sulphur-yellow margins to the feathers — -more broadly on the secondary quills ; middle tail-feathers blackish- brown, the lateral ones pale sulphur-yellow ; chin and throat dusky-brown , fore¬ neck, breast, and sides of body smoke-brown with white shaft-streaks ; abdomen and under tail-coverts yellowish- white like the marginal under wing-coverts , quill¬ lining dark brown ; thighs dusky ; low'er aspect of tail for the most part sulphur- yellow. Bill brown, gape yellow, eyes brown, bare skin light brown, feet gre\isi- brown. Figured. Collected at Baysw'ater, Victoria, on the 26th of December, 1908. Eggs. Two to three eggs generally form the clutch. A clutch of two eggs ^ken ^ Belltrees, Upper Hunter River, New South Wales, on the 12th of October, , is 405 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. of a beautiful rich reddish-buff, becoming darker at the larger end, spotted and speckled (particularly at the larger eud) with reddish and purplish-brown. Swollen ovals in shape, surface of shell fine and slightly glossy. 23-24 by 17-18 mm. Nest. A cup-shaped and rather round structure ; composed of strips of stringy bark, lined with thistle-down and other soft material, and usually placed in the upright or horizontal fork of a tree, and frequently where young growth is sprouting out, and thus affording a good support. Dimensions over all, 4 to nearly 5 inches across, by 2 inches deep, and inside egg cavity 2| inches across by over an inch deep. Breeding-months. August to January. This beautiful bird was described by Latham in his General Synops. of Birds as the Black and Yellow Bee-eater, “from the drawings of Mr. Lambert.” When he drew up his Latin rendering in the Supplement II. to the General Synopsis of Birds he called it Merops phrygius and referred also to “ New Holland Birds, pi. .” In that place Merops phrygius was given by Shaw to this bird, which he called the Embroidered Merops, and the part of the publication in which the plate appeared was called Zoology of New Holland and had appeared in 1794. It was one of the few birds in Lewin's rare work where he had called it the Warty-faced Honey-eater and the same Latin name was used, apparently being written in in England, but the genus name Meliphaga was here introduced. Gould’s notes lead “ This is not only one of the handsomest of the Honey- eaters, but is also one of the most beautiful birds inhabiting Australia, the strongly contrasted tints of its black and yellow plumage rendering it a most conspicuous and pleasing object, particularly during flight. It is a stationary species, and enjoys a range extending from South Australia to New South Wales ; I also met with it in the interior nearly as far north as the latitude of Moreton Bay. Although it is very generally distributed, its presence appears to be dependent upon the state of the Eucalypti, upon whose blossoms it mainly depends for subsistence ; it is consequently only to be found in any particular locality during the season that those trees are in blossom. It generally resorts to the loftiest and most fully-flowered tree, where it frequently reigns supreme, buffeting and driving every other bird away from its immediate neighbourhood ; it is, in fact, the most pugnacious bird I ever saw, evincing particular hostility to the smaller Meliphagidce, and even to others of its own species that may venture to approach the trees upon which two or three have taken their station. While at Adelaide, in South Australia, I observed two pairs that had possessed themselves of one of the high trees that had been left standing in the middle of the city, which tree, during the whole period of my stay, they kept sole possession of, sallying forth and beating off every bird 406 REGENT HONEY-EATER. that came near. I met with it in great abundance among the brushes of New South Wales, and also found it breeding in the low apple-tree flats of the Upper Hunter. I have occasionally seen flocks of from fifty to a hundred in number, passing from tree to tree as if engaged in a partial migration from one part of the country to another, or in search of a more abundant supply of food. The stomachs of the specimens I killed and dissected on the Hunter were entirely filled with liquid honey ; insects, however, doubtless form a considerable portion of their diet.” Mr. Thos. P. Austin has written me from Cobbora, New South Wales : “ Being a nomadic species, it is sometimes absent for years, then suddenly, towards the end of the whiter, it appears in great numbers, but they are very local in their habits, dozens of birds may be seen in the trees within a few acres, then one might travel some miles before seeing any more, when another gathering of them will be found. Then again in other years just a few pairs may be seen. One year here, after they had been very numerous all through the spring and summer, a fair number of the birds stayed during the winter. Once they put in an appearance here they stay to breed. It is most pugnacious, fiercely attacking one another, in fact other species also, especially during the breeding season ; if any other bird comes near the nesting site, it is after it at once. Locally, one of their favourite haunts is a clump of white box trees just outside my garden and orchard, but I have never known them to come within. Them song is a loud double almost ringing metallic sound, when uttered it is often accompanied by a bobbing motion of the head, but sometimes the head is only stretched forward. Their nest is more like that of a Fantail, or Flycatcher, than the usual type of most Honey-eaters, and is usually placed on a rather thick limb with rough bark, either horizontal or perpendicular, but I have seen them in a great variety of situations. I have taken their eggs from the first week hi October till the middle of December. The clutch is usually two in number, but often three.” Captain S. A. White has written me : “ This beautiful Honey-eater is fairly plentiful in the Mount Lofty Ranges at times and often visits the southern end of the Range in the autumn when they congregate in numbers in the flowering gum-trees. They become very noisy and pugnacious, chasing all the birds both large and small away from their feeding trees. These birds nest in the Mount Lofty Ranges in September and October.” Mr. J. W. Meflor also writes “This gay Honey-eater is by no means plentiful in South Australia, but at times is seen in the Mount Lofty Ranges amongst the bills clad in eucalypts and thickly bushed beneath with tall undergrowth. In Victoria and New South Wales it is also thinly distributed in the thickly brushed country.” 407 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Mr. F. E. Howe has written me : “ During the spring and summer months this form was plentiful at Bayswater, and on Dec. 5th Mr. T. H. Tregellas found a nest with one egg and one of the Pallid Cuckoo. This nest was found building on Nov. 24th. Messrs. Tregellas and Chandler inform me that they were often noticed in flocks of about twenty, spending most of their time in the tree tops or chasing one another with much bill-snapping. A young female about three weeks old was secured. It was slightly more than half the size of the adult and the warts were not yet visible on the face. The gizzard contained small insects and beetles. I first knew this species at Stawell when a boy and our name then for it was ‘ Clung,’ as that word sounded something like one of its notes. I have since met with it at Stawell, Parwon and Whittlesea, all in Victoria.” Mr. A. G. Campbell also wrote : “ About the month of September appears in all the gold-bearing hills of Central and Western Victoria to nest. In dry years it sometimes approaches nearer Melbourne, and birds have nested at Somerville on the Mornington Peninsula.” Messrs. Tregellas and Chandler later sent me fuller accounts of the incidents forwarded first by Mr. Howe, but with no additional matter of interest, so they need not be cited, though I have to thank them for their notes. G. F. Hill wrote regarding the Ararat district of Victoria : “ In 1906 these birds arrived in flocks on 18th October, flying from the south, and eggs were taken on 25th and 30th November. Their arrival was later than usual, eggs being taken as early as 2nd October in previous years. The nests were built of rough pieces of stringy bark (eucalypt) and grass, fined with fine bark, grass, and sheep’s wool. They are invariably placed in the forks of stringy barks about 25 feet from the ground. Three eggs are generally laid.” H. L. White wrote from Belltrees, New South Wales, 28tli August, 1909 : “ During the late winter Warty-faced Honey-eaters have been unusually plentiful in the locality ; ever since March last they have been with us in thousands. While riding through the bush one hears their peculiar notes all day long. I have never previously known the white box (Eucalyptus Jiemiphloia ) to flower so freely ; this probably accounts for the presence of Honey-eaters in such numbers. Leatherheads or Friar Birds have also remained with us during the whole winter. The Warty-faced Honey-eaters are now breeding, the first nest (with eggs) being observed on the 16th August ; it was built in a heap of rubbish left by a flood in the bed of the Hunter River. Several other nests have since been seen in Casuarina trees growing on the river banks.” When I prepared my “Reference List” in 1912 I separated as a subspecies Meliphaga plirygia trejellasi. 408 REGENT HONEY-EATER. “ Differs from M. p. phrygia in being much blacker above. (Mulgrave) Victoria.” Victoria and South Australia. One comment at the time was how a migratory bird could show subspecific differences. It is obviously not a migratory bird in one sense, as it only occurs in the restricted south-eastern part of Australia, so apparently only moves short distances, and it does show marked differences as far as present material goes; hence I still admitted in 1913 and at present recognise two races. It would be of value if the movements of this very peculiar bird were defined. VOL. XI. 409 Genus — GLYCICHJ1RA. Glycichjera Salvadori, Annal. Mus. Civ. Genova, Vol. XII., p. 335, June 4th, 1878. Type (by original designation) . . . . . . . . . . . . G. fallax Salvadori. Macgillivrayornis Mathews, South Austr. Ornithologist, Vol. I., pt. H., p. 12, April 1st, 1914. Type (by original designation) . . . . . . . . M. claudi Mathews. When I proposed the genus Macgillivrayornis I compared it with all the Australian Honey-eaters from which it obviously generically differed. I wrote the diagnosis thus : “ Bill equal to the head in length. First primary half the length of second, which is two-tliirds the length of the third ; fourth, fifth, and sixth equal and longest.” The bill is short, about equal to the head in length, straight, the culmen a little arched, the tip slightly decurved with a faint posterior notch ; the nasal groove long but less than half the length of the bill, the nostrils linear slits ; nasal bristles few and small, rictal bristles scant and scarcely noticeable. The wing is rounded, formula as above, the secondaries long, exceeding in length the second primary. The tail is square in shape and comparatively short. The legs are weak and the feet small ; the tarsal covering appears booted in adult, but sometimes scutes are obsoletely noted, and these are marked in the young ; the toes are delicate, the claws short ; the outer and inner toes are subequal, and about equal to the middle toe alone, and the middle toe and claw are longer than the hind-toe and claw. The noticeable features of this genus are the long fluffy feathers of the back and the long feathers on the thighs. 410 526 52 P H.Gronvold del Witherby 8c C° G LVC HICHAERA CL AUD L f GREEK FT ONE V —J5A.TE R.) Order PASSERIFORMES . No. 659. Family MERIT HREPT ID JE . GLYCICMRA CLAUDI. PUFF-BACKED HONEY-EATER. (Plate 526.) Macgillivrayornis claudi Mathews, South Austr. Ornithologist, Vol. I., pt. il, p. 12, April 1st, 1914 : Claudie River, North Queensland. Macgillivrayornis claudi Mathews, South Austr. Ornithologist, Yol. I., pt. n., p. 12, April 1st, 1914; Macgillivray, Emu, Vol. XV., p. 77, pi. xn., 1915; id ., ib., Vol. XVII., p. 204, 1918. Glychichcera* claudi Mathews and Iredale, Austral Avian Record, Vol. IV., pts. 4 and 5, p. 103, Dec. 16th, 1920. Distribution. North Queensland (Claudie River district only). Adult female . General colour of the upper-surface olive-green, including the top of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, hind-neck, entire back, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts ; bastard-wing, greater wing-coverts, and flight-quills dark brown fringed with olive-green, the last margined with white on the inner webs ; tail pale brown : chin and throat greyish-white ; fore-neck and breast pale yellow ; abdomen, flanks, thighs, and under tail-coverts bright yellow ; axillaries and under wing-coverts whitish tinged with yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with whitish on the margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper- suface but the shafts of the feathers are white. Eyes brown ; bill, upper dark brown, lower light horn, feet slate. Total length 115 mm. ; culmen 13, wing 57, tail 40, tarsus 18. Figured. Collected on the Claudie River, North Queensland, on the 20th of December, 1913, and is the type of the above. The sexes are alike. Nest and eggs not described. The only note of this very recent addition to the Australian Avifauna is that by the collector, Dr. Macgillivray, who wrote : “ On the day following our arrival at camp on the Claudie, Air. McLennan and I came across this species in the scrub. It was Mr. McLennan’ s keen ear for bird-notes that first detected one that was strange to him and led to his finding the birds feeding high up in the scrub, where their small size and subdued colouring made it no easy matter to make out what they were. We, however, soon had two of them in our hands, and immediately saw that they were new and * Also spelt Glyciclicera. 411 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. quite unlike any other genus of Honey-eaters. We afterwards found them to be fairly common in the scrub, but always high up in the leaves, where only the trained eye of one accustomed to look for such things can be expected to find them.” “ So far it is known to inhabit only the tropical scrubs bordering the Claudie River, which empties itself into Lloyd’s Bay, on the eastern side of the Cape York Peninsula.” It is of great importance to note that this bird does not occur at Cape York proper, but only in the Claudie River district. And it has representatives in New Guinea and the Aru Islands, which also puzzled ornithologists as to its relations. 412 ADDITIONS. The following additions should be considered on the pages mentioned : — Entomyzon cyanotis. Blue-faced Honey-eater, to be added to p. 289. Nearly adult male . Top of head, sides of face, and sides of neck dusky brown tinged with grey ; mantle uniform dark smoke-brown ; back, wings, and tail-feathers yellowish- green with pale tips to the last ; bastard-wing and inner webs of flight-quills dark brown with buff margins on the basal portion ; a short line of white on the sides of the occiput ; a moustacial streak of white which extends to the sides of the neck ; chin, throat, fore-neck, and middle of breast dusky with a greyish tinge ; sides of breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts buffy-whito ; axillaries and under wing-coverts dusky brown ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with buff margins towards the base ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler. Eyes smoky-white, feet neutral, bill greenish-yellow base, tip black. Skin round eye greenish-yellow, mouth black, edged with yellow. Tongue grey, tipped with whitish-horn. Immature male. Top of head and sides of face glossy blackish-brown with a broad line of white on each side of the occiput ; hind-neck and sides of neck dark smoke-brown followed by an irregular band of black on the mantle ; back, wungs, and tail bright yellowish-green ; lesser marginal upper wing-coverts blackish-browrn ; bastard- wing similar but paler ; inner wrebs of flight-quills dark browm margined with buff towards the base ; upper tail-coverts and tail-feathers paler than the back with pale margins at the tips of the latter ; chin, throat, fore-neck and upper breast greyish-black ; a white moustacial streak wThich extends to the sides of the neck ; breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts cream-white ; axillaries and under wing-coverts blackish-browrn ; flight-quills below dark browm with buff margins on the basal portion ; lower aspect of tail greyish-brown. Bill pale yellow with black tip, feet slate, eyes pale 3rellow, bare space greenish. Collected on the Dawson River, Queensland, on the 1st of January, 1909. Male (juvenile). Top of head and nape glossy blackish-brown ; a line of white on the sides of the occiput which extends in a narrow band across the hind-neck ; mantle dull dark browrn ; back, wings, and tail dull citron-green, somewhat paler on the outer wTebs of the flight -quills and tips of the tail-feathers ; bastard-wing and inner webs of flight-quills dark brown with pale margins to the inner webs of the latter ; chin, throat and fore-neck dark browui tinged with grey on the chin ; breast, sides of body, abdomen, thighs, vent and under tail-coverts white ; under wing-coverts dark brown ; under-surface of flight-quills dark browrn with whitish margins on the basal portions ; lowrer aspect of tail pale browrn, somewhat paler on the outei feathers. E}res brown, feet leaden-blue. Collected at Cockatoo Springs, East Kimberley, North-west Australia. Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris. Spinebell, to be added to p. 33/. Adult male . Entire top of head and nape glossy-black, slightly paler on the margins of the feathers which imparts a scalloped appearance ; lores, and feathers above and be me the eye black, like the ear-coverts and a line running down the sides ot the neck, which widens out on the sides of the breast ; hind-neck and upper back co ee- brown ; lower back, rump, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and innermost secondaries dark slate-grey ; bend of wing, bastard-wring, and primary-coverts blac us i , ]g quills blackish-brown margined with white on the inner wTebs ; base o ai an middle feathers blackish, the outer-feathers white on the inner webs at the tips ; chin, cheeks, a wide band across the fore-neck, and centre of bieas wn e, noa 413 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. dark chestnut ; lower breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts pale chestnut ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and margins of flight-quills below white ; remainder of quill-lining dark brown ; lower aspect of tail like the upper- surface but the dark pattern paler. Wing 67 mm. Collected on Kangaroo Island in July 1911. Adult male. Top of head and nape glossy black with metallic margins to the feathers, which imparts a scalloped appearance ; lores, sides of face, and an irregular line down the sides of the neck, which expands out on the sides of the breast, black ; hind-neck chestnut-brown ; back coffee-brown ; rump and upper tail-coverts, scapular's, upper wing-coverts, and innermost secondaries dark slate-grey ; bend of wing, bastard-wing, and primary-caverts black ; flight-quill3 blackish-brown margined with white on the inner webs ; tail also blackish-brown at the base and middle feathers, the lateral feathers white on the inner webs of the apical portion ; chin, cheeks, a wide band across the fore-neck, and centre of breast white ; a band of dark chestnut across the throat ; breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts pale chestnut, axillaries, under wing-coverts, and inner-margins of flight-quills below white, remainder of quill-lining hair-brown : lowrer aspect of tail blackish with white tips to the lateral feathers. Wing 65 mm. Eyes dark reddish, bill black with lighter tip ; legs dark grey. Collected on Mt. Lofty, near Adelaide, South Australia, on the 17th of May, 1910, and is the type of A. t. loftyi. Immature male. Top of head, lores, and sides of face blackish-brown ; hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts dark smoke-brown ; flight-quills blackish margined with white on the inner webs ; tail blackish at the base and on the middle feathers and white on the apical portion of the two outermost ones on each side ; chin and throat pale tawny, becoming darker on the breast ; abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts cinnamon-chestnut ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and inner margins of quills below white, remainder of quill-lining dark brown ; lowTer aspect of tail similar in colour and pattern to its upper-surface. Bill black, lower base orange, gape yellow, mouth orange, eyes brown, feet dark slate. Collected at The Basin, Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, on the 1st of January, 1909. Young. Crown, lores, and sides of face dark brown ; sides of neck and hind-neck pale chestnut, becoming fulvous-brown on the mantle and upper back ; rump, upper tail-coverts, and outer aspect of wings dark grejish-browm ; flight-quills dark brown, slightly paler on the outer edges of some of the feathers and more broadly margined with wrhite on the inner webs ; tail blackish, the two outermost on each side wiiite on the terminal third of the feathers ; chin, cheeks, and middle of breast cream-wiiite with a patch of burnt umber on the throat ; an irregular black band on the sides of the breast wliich joins on the centre ; abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts bright fulvous ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and margins of flight-quills belowr white ; remainder of quill-lining dark brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Collected at Mt. Lofty, South Australia, on the 26th of May, 1897. Just after leaving nest. General colour of the upper-surface dark dusky browrn, including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail- coverts, and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills blackish with pale edgings to the outer webs and margined with white on the inner ones ; tail also blackish, white for the greater portion of the terminal half of the two most lateral feathers on each side ; under-surfaco of body tawny, duller on the chin, throat, and cheeks, and brighter on the breast, abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts ; 414 ADDITIONS. axillaries and under wing-coverts white like the inner margins of the flight-quills below, remainder of quill-lining dark brown ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes red, bill and feet black. Collected on Woronora River, New South Wales, on the 20th of January, 1914. Acanthorhynchus superciliosis — White-browed Spinebihl, to be added to p. 346. Immature male . General colour of the upper-surface dusky brown, including the top of the head, sides of face, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing-coverts, tinged with chestnut on the hind-neck and sides of neck and more slightly on the tips of the greater upper wing-coverts ; ear-coverts more or less blackish ; flight-quills dark hair-brown, paler on the outer and inner margins ; tail dark brown, white on the greater part of the terminal portion of the outer feathers ; a pale line on the sides of the crown ; under-surface ochreous with an approach to chestnut feathers on the throat and fore-neck ; axillaries, under wTing-coverts and inner edges of quills below white ; lower aspect of tail dark browm at the base and on the middle feathers, and wdiite for the greater part of the apical portion of the outer feathers. Bill black, lower base yellow ; eyes pale orange ; feet and legs purplish. Collected at Albany, South-west Australia, on the 27th of Januar}^ 1910. Immature female . General colour of the upper-surface dusky brown, including the top of the head, sides of the face, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and upper wung- coverts ; sides of neck chestnut extending in a band across the hind-neck ; flight- quills dark browm, paler on the edges of the outer w^ebs and margined with white on the inner ones ; tail blackish at the base and on the middle feathers and white for the greater part of the apical portion of the outer ones ; a slight indication of a buff line on the sides of the crown ; under-surface of body rust-browm, more or less grey on the chin and throat and minutely marked with white and dark bases to the feathers on the breast, abdomen, and sides of the body ; thighs dusky ; under tail-coverts pale bufi ; axillaries, under wTing-coverts, and inner margins of quills below white ; remainder of quill-lining dark browm ; lower aspect of tail similar in colour and pattern to its upper surface. Eyes orange-red ; bill blackish ; feet and legs dark purple. Collected at Lake Muir, South-west Australia, on the 21st of March, 1919. Nestling . General colour of the upper-surface, including the top of the head, back, wdngs* and tail dark coffee-brown with a narrow band of chestnut on the hind-neck ; flight-quills dark browm ; tail-feathers blackish-brown, the three outermost feathers on each side are for the greater part white ; chin pale tawny ; throat and fore¬ neck russet; breast, abdomen, thighs, sides of body, and under tail-coverts yellowish fawn-colour ; axillaries whitish ; quill-lining dark brown ; low^er aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Feet bluish-slate ; upper mandible dark, lower yellowish. Collected at Tor Bay, South-w^est Australia, on the 28th of September* 1899. Purnella albifrons — White-eronted Honey-eater, to be added to p. 359. Young male. General colour of the upper-surface dusky brown with pale margins to the feathers, including the top of the head, back, rump, and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills browTi fringed wTith citron-yellow on the outer wTebs and buff on the inner ones ; upper tail-coverts rust-brown with dark shaft-lines ; tail dark biown slightly fringed with yellowish-green on the outer webs and pale buff at the tips , fore-head and lores dusky grey ; chin, throat, and sides of face greyish -brown * 415 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. moustacial streak and superciliary line white ; fore-neck dusky brown ; breast cream-white with brown shaft-lines ; sides of the body similar, becoming uniform white on the abdomen ; under tail-coverts pale fawn-colour ; under wing-coverts and inner margins of fliglit-quills below buff, remainder of quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail dark brown. Collected at Carnarmah, West Australia, in October, 1906. Nearly adult . General colour of the upper-surface dark brown with pale margins to the feathers, including the top of the head, back, and upper wing-coverts ; flight- quills dark brown margined with citron-yellow on the outer webs and buff on the inner ones ; tail-feathers also dark brown slightly fringed with yellowish-green on the outer webs and whitish on the inner ones ; base of fore-head and lores dusky grey ; moustacial streak and ear-coverts white ; chin, throat, and feathers behind the eye dusky grey ; fore-neck dusky brown ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body white with dark bases to the feathers ; under tail-coverts white ; thighs and upper tail-coverts rust-brown ; under wing-coverts and margins of flight-quills below buff, remainder of quill-lining hair-brown ; lower aspect of tail similar but rather paler. Eyes dark ; feet and bill black. Collected at Schultz Landing, South Australia, on the 1st of January, 1912. Nearly adult male. Top of head dusky brown, paler on the fore-head, intermixed with black on the crown and pale edgings to the feathers on the nape and sides of the crown ; ear-coverts silvery-grey ; sides of neck white ; mantle, back, and scapulars blackish with drab-grey margins to the feathers, becoming paler and inclining to rust-brown on the lower back and rump ; upper tail-coverts rust-colour ; upper wing-coverts dark brown with pale edges to the feathers, becoming uniform on the bastard-wing and the two outer primaries ; flight-quills dark brown, margined with citron-yellow on the outer w'ebs and buff on the inner ones, some of the innermost secondaries have whitish margins on the outer webs ; tail-feathers dark brown with pale edgings ; lores, moustacial streak, chin, and throat whitish- grey, more or less intermixed with black ; fore-neck dark brown ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body white, more or less streaked with dark brown — inclining to buff on the thighs and under tail-coverts ; under wing-coverts and inner margins of quills below buff ; axillaries grey ; remainder of quill-lining and lower aspect of tail dark brown. Eyes dark brown, lids and caruncle deep pink flesh ; feet and bill black ; throat orange. Collected at Overland Corner, South Australia, on the 2nd of December, 1913. Nestling . Top of head blackish with pale margins to the feathers ; back dark brown becoming paler on the rump and inclining to rust-colour on the upper tail-coverts ; tail blackish with pale edges to the feathers ; upper wing-coverts dark brown, slightly paler on the margins ; flight-quills also dark brown margined with citron- yellow on the outer webs and buff y- white on the inner ones ; throat and fore-neck dusky black ; breast, abdomen, and sides of body wiiite ; thighs, vent, and under tail-coverts fawn colour ; under wing-coverts and margins of flight-quills below pale buff, remainder of quill-lining dark brown like the lower aspect of the tail. Bill horn colour ; gape yellow ; eyes deep brown ; feet and legs greyish-purple. Collected at Borewell, East Murchison, Mid-west Australia, in September, 1909. 416 WATlOtIM M Genus — L I C II M E R A . Lichmera Cabanis, Mus. Heine., Yol. I., p. 118, (after Oct.) 1851. Type (by subse¬ quent designation), Bona¬ parte, Comptes Rendus Acad. Sc. Paris, Vol. XXXVIII., p. 2, Jan. 2nd, 1854.. .. .. .. Glyciphila ocxdaris Gould = Meliphaga indistincla Vigors and Horsfield. Stigmatops Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. L, pp. 493-500, (Dec.) 1865. Type (by monotypy) . . . . . . Glyciphila ocularis and G. subocularis Gould = Meliphaga indistincla Vigors and Horsfield. Small “ Honey-eaters ” with long bills, long wings, long square tail and short legs and small feet. The bill is longer than the head, nearly straight, the culmen arched, but the lower mandible nearly straight ; tip decurved slightly and edges of mandibles anteriorly rather coarsely serrate, basal expansion slight and culmen slightly keeled posteriorly, anteriorly rounded, though laterally compressed ; bill at base deeper than broad, nasal groove long, nostril as linear slits, strongly operculate, interramal space long, nearly one-third the length of the mandible ; few small nasal bristles, and rictal bristles obsolete. The wing has the first primary short, less than half the length of the second, which is less than the sixth but longer than the secondaries ; the third and fourth primaries longest and subequal. The tail is long and square. The legs are short and rather stout, the tarsus appearing booted in front, but in the immature six scutes are clearly seen, posteriorly bilaminate ; the anterior toes slender, the hind-toe stouter ; the middle toe and claw longer than the hind-toe and claw, the outer toe longer than the inner ; claws slender but curved. The silvery patch of feathers behind the eye seems the attraction of genus- lumpers for the retention of this group. VOL. XI. 417 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. When Cabanis dealt with birds in the Museum Heineanum he had not many Honey-eaters to deal with, but he proposed a few new genera, among them the genus Lichmera, including two species, L. australasiana— Certhia australasiana Shaw and L. ocularis = Glyciphila ocularis x subocular is Gould, writing “ Die Gruppe steht in der Bildung zwischen Meliomis und Ptilotis.” No type was indicated nor any generic description given, so that either species was equally available for selection. Bonaparte, in Notes Ornith. Coll. Delattre, p. 55, 1854, reviewing Reichenbach’s and Cabanis’ genera of Honey -eaters, wrote : “ Ptilotis unicolor Gould, forme, avec Glyciphila ocularis, le genre Stomiopara, Reich. Cabanis fait de cette derniere espece le type de son genre Lichmera .” This was published in 1854 and determines the type of the genus Lichmera in agreement with all the requirements of the International Code. In 1855, when Gray prepared his Catalogue of Genera and Sub-genera of Birds, he overlooked this designation and simply referred Lichmera Cabanis to the synonymy of Phylidonyris Lesson of 1831, of which he selected Certhia australasiana Shaw as the type. In 1865 Gould ignored this altogether and used the genus Lichmera Cabanis for C. australasiana, writing : “Of this form I consider there is only one species known, the L. australasiana, for I cannot agree with M. Cabanis in associating with it the Glycephala ( Stigmatops ) ocularis ," and then included the genus Stigmatops Gould without any other explanation, stating “ Of this form, I believe two, if not three, species inhabit Australia, and as many more the islands to the northward.” Custom has recently followed this incorrect usage by Gould, but we must now revert to Lichmera, which has undoubtedly the prior claim. 418 52 7 » 527 LICHMERA INDISTINCTA (least honey -bate r) H Gronvold del. Wither by & C 0 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family MELITRREPTIDM. No. 660. LICHMERA INDISTINCT A. LEAST HONEY-EATER. (Plate 527.) Meliphaga indistincta Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XV., p. 315, Feb. 17th, 1827 : King George Sound, South-west Australia. Meliphaga indistincta Vigors and Horsfield, Trans. Linn. Soc. (Lond.), Vol. XV., p. 315, Feb. 17th, 1827. Qlyciphila (?) ocularis Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. iy., App., p. 6, April 1st, 1838: “Van Diemen’s Land,” error=New South Wales ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 154, Dec. 1838 ; id., Birds Austr., pt. xxiv. (Vol. IV., pi. 31), Sept. 1st, 1846 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 213, 1884; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 40, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 374, 1901 ; Ashby, Trans. Roy. Soc. South Austr., 1901, p. 134 (W.A.) ; Hall, Emu, Vol. I., p. 102, 1902 (N.W.A.) ; Le Souef, ib., Vol. H., p. 147, 1903 (N.T.) ; Milligan, ib., Vol. III., p. 18 (W.A.) ; Carter, ib., p. 39 (S.W.A) ; id., ib., p. 92 (N.W.A.) ; H. E. Hill, ib., p. 228, 1904 (W.A.) ; Milligan, ib., Vol. IV., p. 10 (W.A.) ; Lawson, ib., p. 135, 1905 (W.A.) ; Bemey, ib., Vol. V., p. 75, 1905 (N.Q.) ; Berney, ib., Vol. VII., p. 80, 1907 (Food) ; Cornwall, ib., Vol. VIII., p. 139, 1909 (N.Q.) ; Gibson, ib., Vol. IX. , p. 75, 1909 (W.A.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 264, 1919 (W.A.). Glyciphila (?) subocidaris Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. rv., App., p. 6, April 1st, 1838 : New South Wales ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1837, p. 154, Dec. 1838 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 214, 1884; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. VIII., p. 183, 1909 (W.A.) ; Broadbent, ib., Vol. X., p. 238, 1910. Stigmatops ocularis Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 500, 1865 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 189, 1878 ; id., Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1877, p. 351 ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 12, 1888 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 79, 1906 ; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 95, 1908 ; id.. Emu, Vol. IX., pp. 14-241, 1909-10 (N.W.A.) ; Cleland, ib., p. 224, 1910 (Food) ; Hill, ib., Vol. X. , p. 286, 1911 (N.W.A.) ; id., ib., Vol. XII., pp. 260-2, 1913 (N.T.) ; Orton and Sandland, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 79 (S.W.A.) ; Barnard, ib., Vol. XIV., p. 49, 1914 (N.T.) ; H. L. White, ib., Vol. XVI., p. 227, 1917 (N.T.) ; Campbell and Barnard, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 32, 1917 (N.Q.) ; Macgillivray, ib., p. 205, 1918 (N.Q.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XVIII., p. 5, 1918 ; Ashby, ib., Vol. XX., p. 135, 1921 (W.A.) ; Le Souef, ib., p. 144 (W.A.) ; Alexander, ib., p. 167 (W.A.) ; Whitlock, ib., p. 186 (W.A.). 419 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Stigmatops subocularis Gould, Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I.9 p* 501, 1865 , Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1875, p. 594, 1876; id., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 189, 1878 (N.Q.) ; id., ib ., 2nd Ser., Vol. L, 1886, p. 1,092, 1887 (N.W.A.) ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 12, 1888; Whitlock, Emu, Vol. IX., p. 211, 1910 (W.A.). Stigmatops indistincta indistincta Mathews, Nov Zool., "Vol. XVIII., p. 402, 1912, id., List Birds Austr., p. 270, 1913. Stigmatops indistincta ocularis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 402 , id.. List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913. Stigmatops indistincta rujescens Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 402, Jan. 31st, 1912 . Crawford Springs, Northern Territory ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913. Stiginatops indistincta media Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 403, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia ; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913 ; id.. South Austr. Om., Vol. 3, p. 208, 1918. Stigmatops indistincta perplexa Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 403, Jan. 31st, 1912 : Marble Bar, North, i.e ., Mid-west Australia ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913. Stigmatops indistincta melvillensis Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., pt. 2, p. 50, April 2nd, 1912 : Melville Island, Northern Territory ; id., List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913. Stigmatops indistincta ouida Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. I., pt. 4, p. 98, Sept. 18th, 1912: Cairns, North Queensland; id.. List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913. Stigmatops indistincta Mathews, Handl. Birds Austr., p. 270, 1913; Whitlock, Emu, VoL XXIII., p. 277, 1924. Lichmera indistincta yorki Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., Vol. V., pts. 2-3, Feb. 21st, 1923, p. 37 : York, West Australia. Lichmera indistincta perthi Mathews, ib. : Perth, West Australia ; Feb. 21st, 1923 : Perth, West Australia. Lichmera indistincta miUigani Mathews, ib. : Stirling Ranges, South-west Australia. Lichmera indistincta Mathews, ib. Lichmera indistincta indistincta Mathews, ib. Distribution. Northern Australia, reaching down Eastern Australia into Victoria, (rarely) and on the west into the south-west, but not in Central or South Australia. Adult male. Top of head, sides of crown, and nape mouse-brown ; hind-neck, sides of neck and back umber-brown, becoming paler and inclining to rust-brown on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; upper wing-coverts olive-brown tinged with yellow ; flight-quills hair-brown fringed with yellowish-green on the outer webs and margined with white on the inner ones ; tail bronze-brown ; lores and eye-ring somewhat darker than the crown of the head, with numerous silvery-white dots below* and behind the eye ; ear-coverts dark brown somewhat paler at the tips ; chin and throat pale grey ; fore-neck and breast lead-grey with pale shaft-streaks ; abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts cream-white ; axillaries and under wing-coverts pale buff ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown with buffy-white margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler and having white shafts to the feathers. Bill black, eyes silver-grey, feet grey. Total length 152 mm. ; culmen 15, wing 72, tail 60, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected at Napier Broome Bay, North-west Australia, on the 18th of February, 1910. (Left hand figure.) 420 LEAST HONEY-EATER. Adult female from the same locality similar, but always smaller. Adult male . Top of head and nape dusky-brown ; hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts dark umber-brown ; flight- quills dark brown fringed with yellowish-green on the outer webs and whitish on the inner ones ; tail bronze-brown fringed with yellowish-green on the outer webs of the feathers ; lores and eye-region black, minutely dotted with white on the hinder- portion ; cheeks, chin, throat, and breast greyish-brown ; abdomen, flanks, and under tail-coverts pale fawn-colour like the under wing-coverts ; axillaries and marginal under wing-coverts pale yellow, thighs rust-brown ; under-surface of flight- quills dark brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail pale greyish-brown. Eyes brown, feet and tarsus leaden-blue, bill black. Figured. Total length 140 mm. ; culrnen 14, wing 70, tail 54, tarsus 16. Collected on Melville Island, Northern Territory, on the 4th of June, 1912. (Bottom figure.) Adult female from the same locality similar, but always smaller. Adult female . General colour of the upper-surface pale fawn-brown tinged with olive, including the top of the head, hind-neck, sides of neck, scapulars, upper back, upper wing-coverts and innermost secondaries ; some of the median and greater coverts paler and inclining to white at the tips ; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts fawn-colour ; flight-quills dark brown fringed with yellowish-green on the outer webs and margined with white on the inner ones ; tail-feathers pale brown with whitish edgings at the tips and more or less tinged with bronze-green on the outer webs ; space in front of the eye and ear-coverts rather darker than the top of the head ; cheeks, chin, and throat pale buff ; breast very pale slate-grey tinged with yellow ; abdomen yellowish-white, more or less tinged with grey on the flanks ; vent and under tail-coverts cream-white, thighs somewhat darker ; axillaries and under wing-coverts buffy- white tinged with yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills hair-brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail yellowish-brown with white shafts to the feathers. Eyes grey, feet slate-blue, bill black. Total length 109 mm. ; culrnen 13, wing 59, tail 48, tarsus 17. Figured. Collected at Cape York, North Queensland, on the 9th of December, 1912. (Top figure.) Adult male from the same locality similar, but always larger. Adult female. Top of head, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts fawn-colour ; flight-quills fawn-brown, tinged on the outer webs with yellow and margined on the inner ones with bufiy-white ; tail pale bronze-brown tinged with yellow ; chin, throat, and sides of face pale fawm-colour ; ear-coverts rather darker than the sides of the neck ; breast pale fawn-colour slightly tinged with yellow, the yellow increasing on the abdomen, sides of the body, and under tail-coverts ; axillaries and under wing-coverts pale lemon-yellow ; under-surface of flight-quills pale brown with wThitish margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface but paler and having white shafts to the feathers. Eyes brown, feet and bill dark brown. Total length 120 mm. ; culrnen 13, wing 62, tail 46, tarsus 16. Figured. Collected on Crawford Springs Station, Northern Territory (?), on the 4th of July, 1902, and is the type of rufescens. (Right hand figure.) Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface pale earth-brown, including the top of the head, back, wings, and tail ; outer edges of flight-quills yellow, inner w^ebs dark brown with pale margins ; rump and upper tail-coverts inclining to pale rust-brown ; tail-feathers somewhat paler at the tips ; feathers in front of the eye black ; the feathers round the eye blackish minutely dotted, with white ; under¬ surface delicate pale grey slightly tinged with pale fawn-colour, somewhat darker on the throat and fore-neck and paler on the abdomen, under tail-coverts, and 421 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. under wing-coverts ; under-surface of flight-quills dark hair-brown with pale margins ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Feet grey, bill black. Wing 60 mm. Collected at Normanton, Gulf of Carpentaria, North Queensland, on the 31st of March, 1914. Eggs. Two eggs usually form the clutch. A pair taken at Pilbarra Goldfield, Coongan River, Mid-west* Australia, on the 4th of July, 1908, is white in colour, with a few minute specks of pale chestnut scattered about the larger end of each egg. Short ovals in shape, very compressed and pointed about the smaller end ; surface of shell fine, and slightly glossy, 17 by 12 mm. Nest. Small cup-shaped structure, constructed chiefly of soft bark, lined with a soft downy vegetable substance, and suspended in the small fork of a shrub, and often leaning over water. Dimensions over all, 2J to 3 inches across by 2\ to 3 inches deep ; egg cavity 1 J inches across by nearly 1| inches deep. Breeding-months. (June) July to January. Gould wrote the first field-notes regarding this species as follows : “I met with the Brown Honey-eater in abundance on Baker’s Island at the mouth of the Hunter, and on the banks of the Namoi in the interior of New South Wales ; and Gilbert records that he found it equally numerous at Swan River. In its actions and manners it displays the usual activity of the Honey-eaters generally, creeping and clinging among the branches with the greatest ease, and particularly affecting those most laden with blossoms, into which it inserts its brush-like tongue to procure the sweet pollen ; like other species of the group, it also feeds with avidity upon all kinds of small insects. Its powers of song are considerable, the most frequently repeated note being remarkably shrill, rich, clear, and distinct in tone. While the female is sitting upon her eggs the male sings all day long with scarcely any intermission. September, October and November constitute the breeding-season.” Ramsay wrote from the Cardwell district : “ This species seems plentiful, inhabiting the mangroves and margins of the scrubs on the water’s edge. They betake themselves to almost any of the forest trees when they are in bloom, attracted by the honey and insects. In the neighbourhood of Sydney they frequent the orange-groves, and occasionally breed among the branches during the months of October and November. Their cry is peculiar, but not unpleasant, and at times varied.” He later added a note stating that the latter part of the above remarks referred to 8. ocularis , the Sydney species, differentiating the Cardwell bird as S. subocularis. Berney has recorded from the Richmond district, North Queensland: “ Found a nest containing two eggs, white and spotless, on 2nd June, 1905, winch is, I think, an unusual date. They are sweet singers. From experience I can quite bear out Gould’s statement that ‘ while the female is sitting on her eggs the male sings all day, with scarcely any intermission.’ The little 422 LEAST HONEY-EATER. Brown Honey-eaters are plentiful on Spring Valley and can be heard along any watercourse where the tea-trees and eucalypts are in flower. I think, with Mr. Tom Carter, that they confine themselves to the vicinity of ranges.” Cornwall’s notes from Mackay, North Queensland, read : “ On the fringes of the mangroves, more especially where they merge into open forest country, the little Brown Honey-eater is particularly abundant. All they lack in brilliance of plumage finds ample compensation in volume of sound, for surely never before was so small a body endowed with such powerful vocal abilities. They nest amongst the mangroves, and generally choose the time that the latter are in bloom — September, October and November. The nest is a pretty little cup-shaped structure, and those I have found have been placed about four or five feet from the ground. Two eggs constitute the clutch.” H. L. White has recorded McLennan’s notes from the Northern Territory : “Pera Head, 4/7/15 and Macarthur River, 7/8/15. Numerous in flowering paper barks. Bickerton Island, 23/8/15. A few birds, Goyder River, 8/9/15 ; Glyde River, 11/9/15 ; and Liverpool River, 19/9/15 and 21/9/15. Numerous in mangroves. King River : Numerous in mangroves, in flowering trees along river flats, about springs and, occasionally, seen in sandstone ranges. Roper River : Numerous in the mangroves along river. Stomach small insects.” Macgillivray has noted : “ Brown Honey-eaters were common on the Archer River, where they were feeding on the flowering paper-barks (Melaleuca). On the 25th July Mr. McLennan flushed one from its nest four feet from the ground in a small leaved paper-bark, it contained two eggs just chipping.” Ashby wrote : “ This little songster was common at Claremont (West Australia), also at the ‘ soaks ’ at Watheroo and at Dongara and Geraldton. The song of this diminutive songster made a great appeal to us. More than once we thought that its song strikingly resembled that of the Reed- Warbler. I think it easily the best songster among the Honey-eaters, and should greatly like to have the charm of its notes resounding in our South Australian bush. The fact of this bird having spread from the tropics down the west coast to the Leeuwin, and having failed to extend down the east coast of Australia gives scope for research.” Mr. Tom Carter has 'written : “In your 1912 ‘ Reference List ’ no subspecies of this Honey-eater is given as occurring about the North-west Cape or mid-west of West Australia. These birds were common in the scrub and dwarf timber in the gorges of the rugged ranges that extend from Point Cloates to Ylaming Head (near N.W. Cape), a distance of nearly eighty miles. Their loud cheerful songs could be heard all the year round. On two occasions only were any of these birds observed away from these ranges, viz., one was 423 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. seen at a flooded flat about 28 miles inland from Point Cloates, and another in some scrub among the coast hills. No eggs were ever procured, although an empty new nest was found that apparently belonged to this species. “ In the south-west this species is fairly well distributed. The birds are very common in the thick Peppermint scrub that grows down to the beach near Albany. They were also observed at the Margaret and Vasse Rivers and Lake Muir, also at Kellerberin. They are not common about Broome Hill, but a few could always be heard or seen in the thick scrub and ‘ suckers ’ growing on a high stony ridge on my land. I shot one there on September 8th, 1910, that contained eggs in an advanced state. They seem to sing all the year roimd and like thick scrubby places.” Mr. J. P. Rogers wrote : “At Marngle Creek this species wras not numerous, but on the Fitzroy and Jegurra Creek they were very numerous. At Mungi they were very rare. Is a common species in most parts of West Kimberley, North-west Australia. From Melville Island Rogers wrote : “ Cooper’s Camp, Nov. 20th, 1911. Tins species was very numerous at the outer edges of the mangrove thicket that is on the landward side. Males are much larger than the females. On the north side of the island this species wras not so numerous as at Cooper’s Camp.” Hall published Rogers’ earlier notes sent from the Derby district, in which he stated : “ The notes are musical. One bird came to a bush near my camp on February 4th, 1900, and sang at intervals for a few minutes.” Whitlock WTote from the Pilbarra Goldfield : “ Not uncommon on the upper Coongan, but becoming scarcer down the river and on the de Grey. One- specimen I shot was remarkably small, hardly larger than a Myzomela. Its favourite haunt was in thickets growing in the shingly bed of the river where flood debris wras abundant, and where permanent pools wrere to be found. Here its song was to be heard from early sunrise to sunset. The tiny little nests are difficult to find. Several I discovered were attached to wisps of herbage brought down by the floods, another w’as in a tall, cylindrical dead bush, where no one would have dreamed of looking for it. I was rather unlucky as regards eggs. Several clutches were quite unblowable, owing to their advanced state of incubation. Under such conditions one is practically helpless with such fragile eggs. It was a pretty sight to see these little Honey-eaters extracting their food from the gorgeous flowers of the Stmt pea — the latter a feature in themselves, and worth much travelling to view in their natural surroundings of rugged and dark basaltic rocks.” G. F. Hill WTote from Kimberley, North-west Australia : “A very common bird in all localities on the mainland and islands. Eggs wrere taken from the beginning of March to the end of June from nests built in many species 424 LEAST HONEY-EATER. of trees and grass. The nests vary much in appearance, some being built entirely of grass and spider-web, whilst others contain only bark and spider- egg cases. The male birds are noticeably larger than the females and those figured by Gould are typical of the North Kimberley birds. Small parties were seen flying between Eclipse and Graham Moore Islands and the mainland.” A. S. Le Souef has written : “I was glad to hear this cheerful songster at Mr. McKenzie Grants’ station near Geraldton. It was singing with its Reed- Warbler’s note in exactly the same way as we heard it at Stradbroke Island, Queensland, last year.” The teclmical history is somewhat complicated from the beginning, as among the descriptions of birds given by Vigors and Horsfield in their basic Essay is included : “ Melipha.ga indistincta Mel. supra olivaceo-fusca, subtus sordide albida, remigibus flavescentibus. This bird, which was found by Mr. Brown at King George’s Sound, on the South Coast of New Holland, appears closely allied to the last (M. lunulata). It is, however, in very bad condition and scarcely admits of a description. The dimensions appear nearly the same as those of Mel. lunulata. It has much the appearance of a young bird. This was apparently ignored by Gould, although the type-specimen was available in London, and in 1837 he described GlycipTiila (?) ocularis from Van Diemen’s Land and G. (?) subocularis, writing regarding the latter : A species from New South Wales, which differs from Gly. ocularis in being rather smaller, and in its more olive colouring.” hi his folio work he correctly referred G. ocularis to New South Wales, as it does not occur in Tasmania, and made G. subocularis a synonym which it certainly was, being based on a female bird. In his “ Handbook he revoked again, waiting, “ In the folio edition of the Birds of Australia I united this bird with S. ocularis, but upon further examination and comparison, I have come to the conclusion that it is different. I believe that another species of this form exists on the north-west coast. The S. subocularis is a smaller bird than S. ocularis, and consequently one of the most diminutive of the Meliphagidce ; besides differing in size, a yellower tint pervades the entire plumage, and the little spangle-hke feathers behind the eye are scarcely observable ; in all other respects the two birds are very similar. The S. subocularis was shot on the north-west coast, and the skin kindly sent to me by Lieut. Emery of HALS. ‘ Beagle.’ ” When Gadow catalogued the birds in the British Museum he ignored the real typical specimen, if not the actual type of G. ocularis, which is still preserved, but marked as type of G. subocularis the specimen referred to above as sent by Lieut. Emery of H.M.S. “ Beagle,” which of course is not the real type by any means. VOL. XI. 425 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. This transference of names by Gould misled later workers, and we find Ramsay recognising Stigmatops subocularis as the Cairns bird, and then from Derby, North-west Australia, he recorded it, observing : “ Those who will take the trouble to compare veritable specimens of S. ocularis Gould with the present species, will at once see the differences pointed out by Mr. Gould, and the distinction between these two species,” entirely overlooking the original confusion. In 1901 Ashby wrote : “ Guilford, near Perth. One male. This skin is considerably more grey in plumage than is a skin I have from York, W.A., collected by myself in 1889. The York skin is decidedly more rufous in coloration, the under-side of the head markedly so. The York skin is not sexed. The district is dry, while Perth is a wet district.” Milligan also noted that they were “ Fairly numerous in the flowering scrubs (in the Stirling Ranges). They differ slightly in colour from the Swan River Bird,” and later that they were common in the Wongan Hills district. Campbell and Barnard, reporting upon birds of N. Queensland, wrote : “ The various races of this plain coloured but sweet songster have perplexed ornithologists much. There was even a difference in two males which we collected in the same locality, but they were smaller than southern males. Again the males are the larger of the two sexes, and possess more greyish heads than the females.” Later, Campbell concluded : “A review of a large series of this widely distributed species makes it appear that, at most, there are only three races — eastern {ocularis), western ( indistincta ) and northern {rufescens), with winch Mathews’s two other subs. — perplexa and media — are apparently synonymous.” As a matter of fact, long series show very many subspecies as was first noted by me in 1912. When I prepared my “ Reference List ” in 1912 I ranged this species under five subspecies, giving a note of explanation which may be here quoted : “ Note. — Gould described two species of Glyciphila (?) in the Synops. Birds Ausir., pt. iv., App. 6, 1838, as follows : — G. (?) ocularis Van Diemen’s Land G. (?) subocularis New South Wales “ Later he stated that G. ocularis came from New South Wales and G. sub¬ ocularis he attempted to apply to a bird he had received from the north-west coast. Most writers have indicated their belief that subocularis was based on a young specimen of ocularis, wdfile as many recognised that the north¬ west bird was separable. The accumulation of large series of tins bird proves that many races can be differentiated, and also that G. subocularis was founded on a young bird, and that in view of the indeterminate locality it is 426 LEAST HONEY-EATER. better suppressed as a synonym of G. ocularis. Moreover, the oldest name for the species is Meliphaga indistincta Vigors and Horsfield, as pointed out in the Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., pi 213, 1884, but not utilised.” The subspecies I allowed were named : Stigmatops i?idistincta indistincta (Vigors and Horsfield). South-west Australia. Stigmatops indistincta ocularis (Gould). Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria. Stipmatops indistincta rufescens Mathews. “ A rufous-brown phase, quite distinct from any other ; the colouring throughout being sandy or rufous where in the type it is brownish or olive or some shade of those colours. Crawford Springs, Northern Territory.” Northern Territory. S Stigmatops indistincta media Mathews. “ Darker than S. i. perplexa but paler than S. i. indistincta, and having the throat uniformly coloured with the breast, but the belly very light. Parry’s > Creek, North-west Australia.” f North-west Australia (Wyndham). 1 Stigmatops indistincta perplexa Mathews. “ Differs from S. i. indistincta in its paler coloration above and below, especially on the throat and abdomen. Marble Bar, North-west Australia.” North-west Australia (Coongan River to Derby). Upon receipt of Melville Island specimens I added : Stigmatops indistincta melvillensis. “Differs from S. i. media in being greenish-brown above and in its smaller size. Melville Island.” I then noted I had omitted to name the Cairns bird, which had been recognised as distinct by Ramsay and others, so I introduced : Stigmatops indistincta ouida. “Differs from S. i. ocidaris in its smaller size and darker throat. Cairns.” North Queensland. These seven subspecies were recognised in my 1913 “ List ” without any alteration, but it will be noted that more are indicated by Ashby’s note that the York bird differed from the Perth one, and the type locality is King George’s Sound in West Australia. As Perth birds are commonly different from Albany ones, three forms are suggested in this southywest corner. Those I have named. Also the Stirling Ranges bird I regarded as differing slightly from the Swan River one. The Geraldton, etc., form may also differ from the Derby form, while the King River bird may not agree. 427 NOTE. Lichmera albo-auricularis. Stigmatops albo-auricularis Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. III., p. 75, September, 1878 : South-east Coast of New Guinea. Stigmatops alboauricxdaris Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 12, 1888 : Islands of Torres Straits and S.E. Coast of New Guinea. Glycyphila albiauricularis Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 40, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p 377, 1901. Stigmatops albiauricularis Mathews, Hand!. Birds Austral., p. 95, 1908 : Cape York ; id., Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 403, 1912 (note). This species, though included in the Australian List by the above authors, has not yet been collected on the Australian mainland, nor is there any definite record of its occurrence on the Torres Straits Islands. 428 Genus — P TILOTINA. Ptilotina Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. II., pts. 2-3, p. 60, Oct. 23rd, 1913. Type (by original designation) . . . . Ptilotis analoga mixta Mathews. I diagnosed this group thus : “ Differs from Meliphaga Lewin (type, M. lewini Swainson) in its stouter bill and feet, though shorter wing and much shorter tail ; from Microptilotis Mathews in its stouter comparatively shorter bill though longer wing and stouter feet.” The so-called genus Ptilotis was accepted by the coloration of the ear- coverts ; all Australasian Honey-eaters with coloured (generally yellow) ear- coverts being classed in the one genus irrespective of all other differences. In this series several subsidiary groups as well as distinct genera can be characterised. The present genus consists of medium-sized Honey-eaters with bills long and stout, long wings, long tail and short and stout legs and feet. The bill is slightly shorter than the head, laterally compressed anteriorly, a little expanded basally, gape fleshy, the culmen arched and semi-keeled, the tip decurved and posteriorly notched ; the nasal groove fairly long and linear, nostrils open but operculate ; the under mandible strong, the gonys less than half the length of the bill but marked : the interramal space long, fairly narrow and feathered ; rictal bristles few. The whig has the first primary short, but a little more than half the length of the second, which is shorter than the secondaries ; the third primary about equal to the seventh, the fourth, fifth and sixth a little longer and equal. The tail is long, and square in shape. The tarsus is booted in front and bilaminate behind ; the outer toe is longer than the inner toe, while with the claw it is about equal to the middle toe alone ; the middle toe and claw longer than the hind-toe and claw, all the claws short and rounded. Order PASSERIFORMES. Family MELITHREPTIDM No. 661. PTILOTINA ANALOGA. YELLOW-FRONTED HONEY-EATER. (Plate 528.) [Ptilotis ANALOGA Reichenbach, Handb. Spec. Omitk., Abtb. II., Handb. Meropinas, Vol. I., p. 103 (leones Cont., No. IX., March 1st, 1852), based solely on Hombron et Jacquinot, reproduced on pi. cccclxvh, 3,332 : Oceanien=S.W. New Guinea. Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 227, 1884.] Ptilotis notata Gould, Annals Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. III., Vol. XX., p. 269, Oct. 1st, 1867: Cape York, Queensland. Ptilotis notata Gould, Annals & Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. II., Vol. XX., p. 269, 1867 ; id., Birds Austr. Suppl., pi. 41 (pt. v.), Aug. 1st, 1869 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 189, 1878; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 12 (note), 1888; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 383, 1901 ; (?) Le Souef, Emu, Vol. II., p. 147, 1903 (N.T.) ; Macgillivray, ib., Vol. XIII., p. 178, 1914 (N.Q.) ; id., ib., Vol. XVII., p. 205, 1918 (N.Q.) ; Campbell, ib., Vol. XX., p. 63, pi. v., 1920. Ptilotis analoga notata Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 403, Jan. 31st, 1912. Ptilotis analoga mixta Mathews, ib : Johnston River, North Queensland. Ptilotina analoga notata Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913 ; id.. South Austr. Om., Vol. 3, p. 208, 1915. Ptilotina analoga mixta Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 271, 1913. • Distribution. Northern Queensland from Cape York to Cairns. Adult ,male . General colour of the upper-surface olive-green including the top of the head, sides of the crown, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills dark brown fringed with bronze-green on the outer web and pale buff on the inner margins ; tail brown fringed on the outer webs with bronze-green ; lores black like the patch below the eye ; ear-coverts sulphur- yellow' ; under-surface greyish-olive including the cliin, tliroat, breast, abdomen, sides of body, and under tail-coverts ; thighs, rust-brown ; axillaries like the sides of the body ; marginal under wing-coverts pale buff, the remainder pale yellow like the inner margins of the quills below, remainder of the quill-lining dark brown ; lower aspect of tail pale brown, with a glossy appearance and white shafts. Bill black, feet slate, eyes brown. Total length 180 mm. ; culmen 17, wing 82, tail 73, tarsus 25. Figured. Collected on the Johnston River, North Queensland, on the 22nd of June, 1900, and is the type of Ptilotis analoga mixta . Adult female similar to the adult male. 430 528 MICROPTILOTIS GRACILIS fLITTZE yellow-spotted honey-eater. ) PTILOTINA ANALOG A ( YELLOW-SPOTTED HONEY-EATER) 52 8 f cx n u > 3 t* r C- •* Mf : w n :j a Fir YELLOW-FRONTED HONEY-EATER. Juvenile. General colour of the upper-surface dull olive-green, including the top of the bead, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, wings and tail ; inner webs of flight-quills dark brown margined with yellowish- white ; sides of face only partially feathered, similar to the back but paler ; lores blackish ; ear- coverts sulphur-yellow ; chin and throat yellowish-white ; breast and abdomen similar to the uppor-surface but much paler ; sides of body, vent, and under tail- coverts inclining to grey ; thighs pale rust-colour ; marginal under wing-coverts yellowish-buff ; under-surface of flight-quills dark brown margined with yellow ; lower aspect of tail similar to its upper-surface. Eyes black, feet lavender, bill black, palate chrome-yellow, gape lemon-yellow. Collected at the Cable Station, Capo York, North Queensland, on the 10th of July, 1913. Eggs. Two eggs usually form the clutch, and very seldom three are met with. A clutch of two eggs taken at Tinaroo scrubs, Barron River, North Queensland, on the 9th of November, 1908, is of a beautiful pearly-white, boldly spotted with deep chestnut, and a few markings of purplish-brown, confined cluefly to the larger end of each egg. Rather oval in shape, surface of shell fine and slightly glossy. Nest. A rather deep cup-shaped structure, composed of pieces of bark and dead leaves, woven together with wild cotton, and lined with wild cotton or silky down from plants, suspended by the rim in a small fork of a tree or shrub, usually in dense scrub, and placed at heights varying from 4 to 12 feet from the ground. Dimensions over all about 4 inches across by 3 inches deep ; inside 3 inches across by 2 inches deep. Breeding-months. October to March. When Gould described Ptilotis notata from Cape York he wrote : “ This species is allied, on the one hand, to the large Ptilotis chrysotis, and, on the other, to the small P. gracilis ; its most remarkable feature, when compared with these birds, is its long and stout bill, which is both longer and stouter than that of the fonner species ; in all its other admeasurements it is considerably smaller, while they much exceed those of the P. gracilis. It is closely allied to, but quite distinct from, the P. similis of the Aru Islands. Gilbert collected this bird at Brown’s Lagoon, on the 20th December, 1844, when travelling with Leichardt from Moreton Bay to Port Essington, and I have lately received specimens through Mr. Jar dine from the Cape York district of Queensland.” Macgillivray mentioned it on the Great Barrier Reef Islands and Barnard wrote from Cape York : Very common. Breeds in the shrubs on the edges of scrub and along watercourses.” Macgillivray’ s further notes read : “ At Cape York this Honey-eater was numerous in the scrubs, but only occasional in the open forest or mangroves. It nests in the summer months, the nest being placed low down, and usually containing two eggs. One nest found in the scrub on the 7th February, 1911, contained two eggs of this Honey-eater and one Cuckoo egg similar to those found in the nests of Glyciphila modesta. Stomach contents, stems and seeds of berries.” He later added “ Was common both in open forest and scrub. A few were in scrub along the Archer River.” 431 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. Campbell, dealing with a collection of birds from the Torres Straits Islands, has written : “ Two dcT, one $. P. clirysotis ( lewinii ) and this distinct species, both being found in Northern Queensland, and similay in size and coloration, are sometimes confusing to field observers, but the examination of cabinet skins shows that P. notata, besides being smaller, is fighter coloured and more yellowish on the under-surface than P. clirysotis. As expected, notata from the luxuriant scrubs of the mainland is a trifle darker than these Torres Straits skins. This and the Lesser Spotted Honey-eater were two of the commonest species on the island, and both were observed breeding in the paper barks.” Though so little has been written regarding the habits of this species, there is a lot of literature in connection with this and the next species as regards their extra-fimital distribution and forms. men I made up my “ Reference List ” in 1912 I subordinated the Australian P. notata to the New Guinea P. analoga as a subspecies and added another form, thus : Ptilotis analoga notata Gould. North Queensland (Cape York). Ptilotis analoga mixta Mathews. Differs from P. a. notata in being darker above and below, especially noticeable on the vent. Johnston River, N.Q.” North Queensland (Cairns District). In my 1913 “ List ” I maintained this, with the transference into the genus Ptilotina, as : Ptilotina analoga notata (Gould). Ptilotina analoga mixta (Mathews). 432 Genus — M ICROPTILOTIS. Microptilotis Mathews, Austral Avian Record, Vol. I., pt. 5, p. 116, Dec. 24th, 1912. Type (by original designation) . . . . . . . . Ptilotis gracilis Gould. I wrote “ Differs from Ptilotis in its absolutely longer though more slender bill, while the wing is shorter and the legs and feet weaker.” Although this genus has been confused with the preceding, it can be easily distinguished if careful comparison be made. The birds are smaller with comparatively longer weaker bills, shorter wings and weaker feet. The bill is more curved, more compressed, tip more depressed, the anterior edges of the mandibles finely serrate, more noticeable in some specimens than in others, but always more marked than in the preceding genus, where any serrations are scarcely noticeable ; the bill is longer than the head, the under mandible more slender, the gonys not so marked and comparatively longer. The first primary of the wing is half the length of the second, which is longer than the secondaries, and the third primary is longer than the seventh. The tail is comparatively shorter, and the legs shorter, and the feet weaker, the front of the tarsus obscurely scutellate. VOL. XI. 433 / Order PASSERIFORMES. Family MELITHREPTIDJF No, 662. MICROPTILOTIS GRACILIS. LITTLE YELLOW -SPOTTED HONEY- EATER. (Plate 528.) Ptilotis gracilis Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1866, p. 217, Oct. 1st : Cape York, Queensland. Ptilotis gracilis Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc. 'Lond.), 1866, p. 217 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 189, 1878 ; id., Tab. List Austr. Birds, pp. 12, 30, 1888 ; Le Souef, Ibis, 1898, p. 56, pi. 1 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 41, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 384, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 110, 1907; Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 95, 1908; Macgillivray, Emu, Vol. X., p. 232, 1910; Barnard, ib., Vol. XI., p. 28, 1911; Macgillivray, ib., ’Vol. XIII., p. 178, 1914; Campbell and Barnard, ib., Vol. XVII., p. 33, 1917 - Macgillivray. ib., p. 205, 1918; Campbell, ib., Vol. XX., p. 64, pi. v., 1920. Ptilotis gracilis gracilis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 403, Jan. 31st, 1912. Ptilotis gracilis imitatrix Mathews, ib. : Cairns, North Queensland. Microptilotis gracilis gracilis Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 272, 1913. Microptilotis gracilis imitatrix Mathews, ib. Distribution. North Queensland only, from Cape York to Cairns. Adiilt male. General colour of the upper-surface dark olive-green, including the top 0; the head, nape, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts scapukrs and upper wing-coverts ; flight-quills dark brown fringed on the outer webs wit! wTtS6611 and mar£|ne?T tho inner ones with whitish ; tail pale bronze-brown lores and ej e-region blackish ; ear-coverts lemon-yellow ; an indication of a pale iri° .be o^ the ey°J under-surface pale olive-green more or less tinged with on the abdomen, flanks, and under tail-coverts ; thighs dusky-brown • axillS diirk hro r'-fe1W,i; Un,der wing~COVOrt3 Pale bu£f ! under-surf aco of dight-quilL dark brown with yellowish margins ; lower aspect of tail paler than its uppor-sSce tontthTi? Wbte Shf tS t0 th° feathora- E-Ves brown, bUl and feet black Tota length 145 mm ; culmen 18, wing 77, tail 62, tarsus 21. Figured. Collected at Cairns, North Queensland, in October 1909, and is the type of P. g. imitatrix. Adult female similar to tho adult male. Eggs. Two eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of two eggs taken at Lockerbie Car* Yoik, North Queensland, on the 17th of October, 1910, is of a beautiful salmon^ PpliZlate ST" 1,6 'arger °nd °J ea°h Cgg) "i,h " 434 LITTLE YELLOW-SPOTTED HONEY-EATER. A clutch of two eggs of the more southern form taken near Cairns, North Queensland, on the 3rd of November, 1896, measure 18-20 by 14-15 mm. Nest. A cup-shaped structure, composed of shreds of bark, frequently covered with green moss, and lined with wild cotton and a silky substance collected from plants. Dimensions over all : about 3 inches across by 2 to 3 inches deep ; inside 2| inches across by nearly 1| inches deep. Nest generally placed from 8 to 14 feet up from the ground. Breeding-months, October to January. Macgillivray mentioned this bird from Cape York, whence it was described by Gould, but without giving any details as to its habits. Barnard then wrote : “ Inhabits forest country adjacent to scrubs. Found breeding in forest ; two nests and clutches of eggs were taken.” Macgillivray’ s next account reads “ This small Honey-eater was plentiful at Cape York in the open forest, but only occasional in the scrub. Stomach contents small berries,” and later added only : “ Lesser Yellow-spotted Honey- eaters were very common in the trees about our camp, and especially so after rain, winch drives them out of the scrub. They are fairly plentiful on the Archer Biver. Mr. McLennan found a pair building in a Melaleuca overhanging the river. The eggs of this Honey-eater are beautifully and richly coloured.” Campbell and Barnard wrote about the birds of the Cardwell District, North Queensland : “ The smaller Yellow-spotted Honey-eater was frequently noticed. It sometimes came into gardens after the flowering orange-trees, and was generally amongst the honey-eating birds that gathered about the flowering trees of the scrub. A nest was secured at the edge of a scrub in a low tree. It contained a pair of fresh eggs and was lined -with a snow-white downy material, the same as that used by the larger Yellow-eared Honey- eater (P. chrysotis). We witnessed one of these Honey-eaters attacking a large spider upon its web. The bird made several attempts to take the spider, which always fenced with its legs and kept the bird at bay. After several more attempts at capture by the bird while on the wing, without success, the doubtful morsel was abandoned.” When he received birds from the Torres Straits Islands for study Campbell wrote : “ One 3, one $. A typical pair, forming useful material and agreeing with skins from the Cape York mainland. Birds Mr. H. G. Barnard and I obtained in Cardwell Scrubs are apparently slightly darker above and lighter on the under-surface, especially the throat — the result of different environment, doubtless — but there is not the slightest ornithological or other need to emphasize trinomially such natural variation in plumage.” Since this was written Campbell has described a number of subspecies on the same grounds as he here depreciated, so that we are in agreement upon this subject at last. 435 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. In 1912 in my “ Reference List ” I separated Ptilotis gracilis gracilis Gould. North Queensland (Cape York). Ptilotis gracilis imitatrix Mathews. “ Differs from P. g. gracilis in its much darker green coloration above and much greener under-surface, especially on the flanks, and also in its larger size : wing 75-77 mm. ; type (P. g. gracilis) 70 mm. Cairns, N.Q.” North Queensland (Cairns District.). In 1913 I placed them in my “ List ” in the genus Microptilotis and still admitted the two subspecies, and it will be noted that Campbell states they are easily separable. 4 t 4 - 436 Genus— PAR APT IL OTIS. Paraptilotis Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 414, Jan. 31st, 1912. Type (by monotypy) Ptilotis fusca Gould, i.e., Meliphaga fusca Gould. • When I prepared my “Reference List” in 1912 I was employing huge unnatural genera, but when I examined the extraordinary accumulation of species classed as Ptilotis, though I allowed the usage, I marked my disapproval of such a grouping by introducing a few new generic terms, of which the present is one. The birds are medium Honey-eaters with short stout bills, long wings, long tails, and slender legs and very small feet. The bill is short and stout, shorter than the head, more triangular than in the preceding genera and less compressed ; the linear nostrils almost half the length of the bill ; the under mandible stout, the gonys marked but short, the interramal space triangular, narrow and feathered. The first primary is short and narrow, less than half the length of the second, which is much longer than the secondaries ; the third, fourth and fifth primaries subequal and longest. The legs are slender, scutes being obscurely seen on the front of the tarsus, the feet are small, the hind-toe and claw longer than the middle toe and claw. Key to the Species. Lores black . Lores not black . P. chrysops P. fusca 437 Order PASSERIFORMES. Family MELITHREPTIDAZ. No. 663. PARAPTILOTIS FUSCA. FUSCOUS HONEY-EATER. (Plate 529.) Meliphaga fusca Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. n., pi. (26), April 1st, 183* : New South Wales. [Certhia chrysalis Latham, Index. Omith. Suppl p xxxviii 1801 (after May 30th) Founded on Watling Drawing No. ll7=Sydney, New South Wales; Mathews, Austral Av. Rec., \ol. pts. 2-3, p. 73, 1923. Certhia cana Bechstein, Kurze Uebers VOgel, p. 197, 1811 (prof. April 12th, 1810) : Sydney. Certhia xanthotis Shaw, Gen. Zool., Vol. VIII., p. 244 (pt. I.), 1812 : Sydney.) Meliphaga fusca Gould, Synops. Birds Austr., pt. il, pi. (26), April 1st, 183* : Sydney; Wolstenholme, Emu, Vol. XXII., p. 154, 1912. Ptilotis fusca Gould, Birds Austr., pt. iv. (Vol. IV., pi 44), Sept. 1st, 1841 ; id., Handb. Birds Austr., Vol. I., p. 520, 1865; Ramsay, Proc. Zool. Soc. (Lond.), 1875, p. 596, 1876 ; id., Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. II., p. 189, 1878 ; Gadow, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 229, 1884 ; Ramsay, Tab. List Austr. Birds, p. 13, 1888 ; Hall, Key Birds Austr., p. 41, 1899 ; Campbell, Nests and Eggs Austr. Birds, Vol. I., p. 385, 1901 ; North, Austr. Mus. Spec. Cat., No. 1, Vol. II., p. 114, 1907; Hill, Emu, Vol. VII., p. 19, 1907 (Vic.); Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 95, 1908 ; E. Barnard, Emu, Vol. XI., p. 125, 1911 (Q.) ; Cleland, ib., \ol. XII., p. 16, 1912 (Food); Campbell and Barnard, ib., Vol. XVTI., p. 33, 1917 (N.Q.); Hays! ib., Vol. XX., p. 34, 1920 (N.S.W.). Ptilotis minuta Pelzeln, GSstern Freg. Novara, Birds, p. 56, 1865 : Sydney, New South Wales. Ptilotis fusca fusca Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 404, Jan. 31st, 1912. Ptilotis fusca dingi Mathews, ib. : (Murray Flats) South Australia; id., Austr. Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 62, 1912. Ptilotis fusca daivsoni Mathews, ib. ; Dawson River, Queensland ; id., Austr. Av. Rec., Vol. I., p. 62, 1912. Paraptilotis fusca fusca Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 2/2, 1913. Paraptilotis fusca dawsoni Mathews, ib. Paraptilotis fusca dingi Mathews, ib. Distribution. Eastern Australia from Queensland to South Australia. Adult female. General colour of the uppor-surface olive-brown, including the top of the head, sides of face, hind-neck, sides of neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts ; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and flight-quills dark 438 529 c i PARAPT1LOT1S FUSCA (. Fcrscozrs bobey -eater) PARAPTI LOTI S CHRYSOPS (YELL 0~VT-FA.CEI) HONEYS AT ER) 52 9 FUSCOUS HONEY-EATER. brown fringed on the outer webs with yellowish-green — brighter on the outer webs of the last — which have the inner ones margined with buffy-white ; tail-feathers bronze-brown fringed with green on the outer webs ; lores somewhat darker than the crown ; eye-ring black ; ear-coverts blackish at the base tipped with lemon- yellow ; chin and throat olive-brown tinged with yellow ; fore-neck and breast dull fawn-colour like the sides of the body ; abdomen, vent, and under tail-coverts cream-white ; thighs clay-brown ; axillaries and under wing-coverts buff ; under¬ surface of flight-quills dark brown with buff margins ; lower aspect of tail greyish- brown. Eyes dark brown, feet brownish, bill blackish with yellow base, gape and throat yellow, eyelids bright yellow. Total length 153 mm. ; culmen 12, wing 78, tail 65, tarsus 19. Figured. Collected on the Murray Flats, South Australia, on the 30th of May, 1911, and is the type of P. f. dingi. Adult male similar to the adult female. Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface pale earth-brown, including the top of the head, sides of face, sides of neck, bind-neck, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and innermost secondaries ; outer wrebs of flight- quills greenish-yellow, the inner ones dark brown margined with white : tail pale brown margined on the outer webs with greenish-yellow, some of the feathers narrowly fringed with white ; lores and eye-ring blackish ; ear-coverts pale sulphur- yellow ; chin, throat, and breast similar to the top of the head but paler and slightly tinged with yellow ; abdomen, sides of body, thighs, and under tail-coverts buffy- white ; axillaries, under wing-coverts, and inner margins of quills below pale buff, remainder of quill-lining dark brown ; lower aspect of tail pale greyish-brown. Eyes brown, feet and bill black. Total length 150 mm. ; culmen 10, wing 72, tail 59, tarsus 19. Collected at Coomooboolaroo, Dawson River, Mid- Queensland, on the 29th of August, 1909, and is the type of P. /. dawsoni. Eggs. Two to throe eggs usually form the clutch. A clutch of three eggs taken near South Grafton, Clarence River, New South Wales, on the 9th of September, 1894, is of a rich salmon ground-colour, well spotted, particularly at the larger ends, with reddish-brown and purplish-brown. Rather swollen ovals in shape ; surface of shell fine, and rather glossy. 19-20 by 14 mm. Nest. A neat cup-shaped structure, composed chiefly of strips of bark, bound and matted together with cobwebs and a cotton-like substance ; usually it is very compactly put together. Lined with hair, fine roots, and grass, and often with a silk-like vegetable substance. Situated in a small tree or bush, at heights varying from 12 to 20 feet from the ground. Dimensions over all : 2\ to nearly 3 inches across by 2| deep ; inside egg-cavity : 1£ t° nearly 2 inches across by 1| inches deep. Eggs. A clutch of two eggs of the northern form taken at Duaringa, near Rockhampton, Queensland, on the 26th of August, 1895, measures 18 by 13 mm. Breeding-months. July to December. Gould described this species before he went to Australia, but his were the first field observations, though, scanty, thus : “ This species of Honey-eater, which is not distinguished by any brilliancy in its plumage, is abundantly dispersed over the thick brushes of New South Wales ; and in the months of August and September, when the beautiful Tecoma is in blossom, it may be seen flitting about among the thick clusters of the pendent flowers in search of insects, which are sometimes captured while on the whig, but moie generally 439 THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. extracted from the tubular florets. I observed nothing remarkable in its economy or in which it differed from the other members of the group. Like them, it is generally found among the flowers and the most leafy branches of the trees. I have never seen it on the plains, nor have I received specimens from any other part of Australia than New South Wales, where it is to be met with both in whiter and summer.” Mr. L. G. Chandler has written me from Victoria : “ Milton is the only district hi which I have met with this bird. They do not appear to be plentiful there, but stiff are well distributed. They are fond of insects and often spend much of their time in pursuit of them. Several times I have noticed them when catching insects, fly close to the ground to capture them. Flying from a low stick they secure an insect and return again to perch close to the ground, and sometimes on the ground. On June 8th, 1908, I noticed a bird bathing in a pool of water at Milton. It stood in the water and splashed the surface with its wings.” G. F. Hill wrote from the Ararat District, Victoria :