HARVARD UNIVERSITY.

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MUSKUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY

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DEC 16 1921

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THE

BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA,

COMPRISING

THREE HUNDRED FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS

WITH

A DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE AND CHARACTERISTIC HABITS

OF

OYER SEVEN HUNDRED SPECIES,

BY

GRACIUS J. BROINOWSKI

VOL. I.

PUBLISHED BY CHARLES STUART & CO.,

MELBOURNE, SYDNEY, ADELAIDE, BRISBANE, NEW ZEALAND, AND TASMANIA.

\AH Rli/hts /iViv-ytvr/.]

1890.

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SA

ORDER NATATORES.

rjlHE want of many great rivers and lakes in Australia may account for the absence of a considerable
number of the more valuable or famous varieties of aquatic birds which are found in other continents
blessed with larger inland seas. Still, a general survey of the oarv-footed kinds which inhabit our fresh
waters, shows that we possess many strange and interesting species of these birds, while our coast, with the
great extent of latitude which it spans, gives habitation to a great and varied multitude of them. Taking
first our weakest points in this Order, compared with other countries, the Mergansers, Guillemots and Puffins,
which are so plentiful in other latitudes, are absent. The true genus Anser, the Goose, is also unrepre-
sented. Under the common name of Geese are several varieties belonging to the family AnatidcB, notably
the Cereopsis Goose, so frequently mentioned by the early explorers, with its feeble powers of flying and
inability to escape pursuit, leading to its lamentably rapid destruction. Under this family comes also
our only swan : a meagre representative of that lordly tribe, but famous by reason of its dusky plumage.
The stately Pelican with his pouch and wonderful manner of fishing must not be forgotten. There are
two Sheldrakes and but few varieties of Ducks. Of Grebes, with their curious plumage and floating
nests, Australia boasts the possession of about as many as are found in Europe. The same remark
applies to Cormorants; the Diver, with its marvellous swiftness and cunning in the water, has also a
representative, and the Darter, with its snake-like head and neck. This country is rich in Terns, or
Sea-Swallows, which, though web-footed, appear to use only their powerful wings for locomotion, and the
three varieties of Penguins, standing in myriads like lines of soldiers afford a spectacle unknown to many
countries. The Gannets are numerous, and may be seen all round the coast, making their daring plunges
after unwary fish: among these the "Booby," with its complacence and lack of fear, is the most comical of
birds. The snow-white and silvery Gull is found in all latitudes, but only torrid lands are visited by the
Tropic-Bird, with its rosy, coveted tail-feathers, and Australia's northern coasts are frequented by one of
these. The predatory Frigate-Bird makes his raids along our shores, and, lastly, the Albatrosses and Petrels
are found in great abundance and variety. The Albatross, with his giant wing and tireless flight, the
" Stormy Petrels" or "Mother Carey's Chickens," both of them indefatigable in flight and in their attendance
on vessels long before they sight our shores, and still with that uncanny flavour to their reputation among
sailors, that to kill them brings disaster ; with these and the other examples it will readily be allowed
that on the whole Australia is rich in the number of birds which she possesses of the most instructive
Order of Natatores.

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I.

FAMILY SPHENISCIDiE.

~\T7"ITH many, the figure of the Penguin stands out prominently among the earliest recollections, for
picture books make its form familiar to children, even before they are able to read about it.
The wise-looking, helpless, dandyfied birds, standing upright in their great phalanxes on the lonely, far-away
islands, are mixed up with the earliest impressions of most of us. The family is divided into six genera
in all, yet only fifteen distinct species are known ; out of this number, four are met with on the
Australian coast. Though not possessing the most brilliant hues, the Penguin is one of the most
handsomely coloured of birds, with its bold contrasts of jet black, snowy white, and blue and silvery greys.
It is particularly cleanly in its habits, and no speck or stain, for which it constantly surveys its feathers,
is allowed to remain for an instant after being observed. The Penguins are gregarious during the breeding-
season, when thev assemble in vast multitudes on ruffged isolated islands in the South Pacific and
Atlantic Oceans. As the season draws to a close and moulting sets in, the fading beauties of their
plumage seem to exercise a repulsive influence, and they live more apart as their splendours grow dim,
till, the new crop of feathers once more complete, the}' again begin to re-assemble. Any individual bird
not equipped in his full panoply of well-trimmed plumage is forbidden to mix in the annual gathering-
till every feather is in place. The habits of the birds when massed together during breeding-time offer
a most fertile subject of observation, and travellers have left many interesting notes of their methodical
ways. The little ones must be taught to swim, and when a more timid youngster has refused to take
to the water, the mother has often been seen to entice it artfully to a projecting ledge and push it in,
repeating the process till the pupil goes in of its own accord. The young are kept for ten or eleven
months under the care of the mother. The male bird is zealous in rendering assistance in the hatching
of the eggs. The appearance of a cluster of jagged, barren, rocky islands, where the Penguins are
congregated in myriads, is described as an amazing sight. The birds resent the landing of voyagers,
crowding round and pecking viciously at them. Their attacks are not dangerous, however — only annoying,
and what with their onslaughts, their harsh and eerie cries, and the insufferable smell of the vast beds of
guano, travellers are glad to leave the haunts of the Penguin after but a short visit. All the varieties
of this family are easily killed, hence their almost total extermination in some parts. They are as agile
and graceful in the water as the}' are awkward and helpless on land ; but the islands frequented by them
are generally in such exposed positions, that in a severe gale, thousands of the young and helpless birds,
especially of the smaller varieties, are frequently destroyed.

GENUS EUDYPTULA (Bonaparte).

rjIHE two members of this genus shown on the plate are the smallest known varieties of the entire
family. Both species inhabit the coast of Tasmania and the southern coast of Australia at nearly
all points suitable to their habits and mode of living.

EUDY PTU LA MINOE (B parte).

LITTLE PENGUIN. Genus: Budypttjla.

SPECIMENS of tlii-. bird or of its eggs may l)n obtained without difficulty in many parts of the
Tasinanian and southern Australian ooasl line. Its favourite haunts are those localities where many
small, Bcattered islets OCCUr, whose sides slope gently towards the water, so as to admit of the birds easily
ratting inland to some distance, to deposit their eggs. Travellers state that on some of these islands,
largeh frequented b) the Little Penguins, beaten tracks have been formed by them which, owing to the
care with which they are made Level, and every obstacle thrown aside, resemble in miniature well-
OOnstrUCted highways formed by human care.

The food consists of marine vegetables, small crustaceans, and fish ; in the pursuit of the latter
it exhibits wonderful swimming powers. Like all the other varieties of the Penguin, this one is easily
caught on land : it offers DO resistance but a harmless peck at the hands. Its note is loud and harsh, and
when uttered by multitudes and heard at a short distance the noise is described as being painful.

As the young are kept so long under the care of the mother, in order to enable them to gain
sufficient strength to battle with the rough seas they are exposed to, the process of breeding and rearing
the progeny takes up a large pari of the year. The young retain their first coat of down till they grow
to a considerable size, when it is quickly replaced by the feathers of the adult, and not until after this
takes place do they venture into the water.

The eggs aie always found two in number, and are laid in a shallow depression in the ground.
They are white, and each egg measures two and a-half inches long by two inches broad; a small egg,
when the size of the bird is considered.

Bach Bex takes an equal share in the incubation : no diversity of colour exists between the sexes.

I pper surfaces light blue, each feather having a fine black line down the middle. The whole
under surface silvery, sheeny white, with a margin of light buff; wings blue, with a line of yellow along
the under edge. hides, pale yellow; eyes, flat, with a grey-brown margin and a yellowish ring next the
pupil, giving the appearance of a double iris: bill, dull grey, almost black at the tip ; feet, dull yellow,
with black nails.

Habitats: Coasts of Tasmania and Southern Australia.

EUD YP T U L A U N D I N A ( Gould).

FAIRY PENGUIN. Genus: Eudyftula.

1 DESCRIPTION of the habits of the Little Penguin applies also to this variety, which follows
precisely similar methods j n its mode of incubation, feeding, and tending of its young.

Tli- distinguishing peculiarities of the Fairy Penguin, which stamp it as a distinct species, consist
in it- lesser size, it being considerably the smallest of the SpheniscidcB yet discovered; the further differences
"t a much smaller wing and a variation in colouring from its allied species, will be easily perceived by
glancing at the accompanying plate

I pper surfaces, light blue, with broader markings of black on each feather than in the accompanying
species, especially on the back, the side feathers being marked with white in the centre. Under surfaces,
inner surfaces of wings, and tail feathers, glossy white; bill, dark slaty-blue above and light brown
beneath : feet a reddish- white.

Total length, L3£ inches: bill. \\ inch; tarsi, : , ! inch.

Habitats: Southern coast of Australia and the Tasinanian coast.

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PLATE II.

GENUS CHRYSOCOMA

( Stephens ).

fl^HIS variety is much larger than either the Little Penguin or the Fairy Penguin, although not the
largest of the Spheniscidce. The Crested Penguin is remarkable for its bold and beautiful
colouring.

CHRYSOCOMA CATARRACTES (Bonaparte).

CRESTED PEN (WIN. Genus : Cheysocoma.

A LTHOUGH much more rarely met with on our shores than the two foregoing varieties, the Crested
Penguin inhabits similar parts of the coasts to those frequented by the former species ; in the islands
of St. Paul and Amsterdam it is found in great abundance.

In all the main particulars the habits of the Crested Penguin are identical with those uf the
species already described.

Sides and upper surfaces and throat, deep blue-black ; over each eye a bright yellow stripe runs,
extending at the back into a handsome crest or plume : behind each eye is a broad streak of dark rich
brown. Under surfaces, white, with a silvery gloss on the breast ; inner surface of wing, white, with a
yellow band on the lower edge. Irides, black ; outer edge of the eye, grey ; bill, sandy-red ; feet, dull
yellow ; nails, black.

In the female the yellow feathers over the eye are not extended to such a length as in the male.
Habitats : Parts of the Tasmanian and southern Australian coasts.

VOL I.

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CHRYSOCOMA CAT ARRACTES (Bonap:)
Crested Penguin

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PLATE III.

FAMILY PODICIPID.E.

IN common with all extensive countries, Australia possesses several varieties of the Grebe, and in the
still, sedgy lagoons of the interior the}' are to be met with in most parts of the continent. With
their pretty colouring and curious manner of nesting, the Podieipidce are always an interesting feature in
a typical Australian scene.

GENUS PODICEPS (Latham).

THREE varieties of this genus are found in Australia, and kindred species inhabit Europe and
America.

PODICEPS GULABIS (Gould.)

BLACK-THROATED (IREBE. Genus: Podiceps.

FURTHER observation may possibly establish the fact that this species inhabits the m'ore northern

portions of Australia ; Gould records having received specimens of this, or some closely allied species,
from Port Essington.

The Black-throated Grebe frequents the lagoons and rivers all over the southern parts of
Australia.

Four or five eggs are laid in one nest : they are of a dull white colour, and the nest consists

of floating weeds piled up in a circular form, with the top just reaching to the surface of the water.

Insects obtained in the water, and small fish, constitute the food.

The sexes show little or no variation in colour or size.

Crown of the head, nape, and the rest of the upper surfaces, deep purplish brown ; throat and
sides of the face a deeper tinge of the same shade. From underneath each eye, a band of deep chestnut
runs, the two strips meeting in a point in the middle of the throat. Two elongated yellow spots are
situated at the root of the bill. Under surface, grey, merging into brown at the sides of the abdomen ;
hides, yellow ; bill grey, the tip of the upper mandible a lighter grey ; tarsi, pale yellow, with a greenish
shade on the outer side ; feet, greenish grey.

The variegated colours of the head and neck disappear in winter, fading into the same brown
shade as the rest of the upper surfaces.

Length, 10 inches; bill, 1{ inch; wing, 4^; tarsi, 1^ inch.

Habitats : All over Southern Australia, and many of the more northern parts.

PODICErS NESTOE (Gxmld).

HOARY-HEADED GREBE, Gbnus : Podiobps.

OJPECIMENS of this variety bave been received, and it has been seen in so many localities that its
' habitation <•! tin greater portion of Southern Australia has been proved ; it is most abundant in
I nania. In tin winter and spring the members of this species move in small Hocks, pairing off as
BUmtnei Approaches, In spite of its head-feathers, the Hoary-headed Grebe exhibits the same powers of
diving as others of the tribe) and its methods of feeding and nesting are similar to theirs. The white
plumes "ii the head oome into existence during the breeding season; when that period is passed the plume
disappears, the head l ming brown and the throat buff.

The eggs arc dusky white, and four or five are found in one nest.

During the breeding season the head is covered with long, fine, white feathers, giving the
appearance from which the bird gets its name.

I pper surfaces and throat, purplish brown, the wing- feathers marked with a darker streak down
the centre I nder surfaces silvery grey, tinged with brown on the chest and flanks Bill, dark grey,
with i lighter tip. hides, olive-yellow, delicately marked with tine lines of a deeper hue; lores, flesh-
oolour; feet, dusky yellow, of a lighter shade <>n the inside.

Habitats: Tasmania; Southern and Central Australia.

I

PLATE IV*.

PODICEPS A rSTJvALIS (Gould).

DIVE I!. Genus: Podiceps.

rilHIS variety frequents the same localities, and is very similar in its habits to the other two Australian
representatives of the family already described. It is often called the "Australian Tippet Grebe,"
and is closely allied to the European Great Crested Grebe, of the same genus. As the name indicates,
the Podiceps Australis is an accomplished diver, and its powers of swimming not only entirely suffice for
the calm waters of the lagoons where it is usually found, but in the more open reaches of the rivers,
near the sea, it breasts strong currents and high winds with great ease. Its nest is constructed in the
same peculiar manner as those of the Black-throated Grebe and Hoary-headed Grebe, being made so as to
float, with the top on a level with the surface of the water.

Like the crest of the Podiceps Nestor, the pretty frill of the Diver is only acquired during the
breeding season ; for the remainder of the year the face is the same dull white colour as the neck.

The colour and plumage of the sexes are alike, the female being somewhat smaller in size.

The plumes rising from the forehead are black ; frill surrounding head and throat, black at the
outer edge, white round the eyes, and rich chestnut in the centre. Wings and upper surface slaty -brown,
scapularies and secondaries white. Throat, chest, and abdomen white, bordered with wavy alternate marks
of grey and chestnut. Irides red : bill long, sharp and brown : outer surfaces of tarsi ana 1 toes green ; inner
surfaces yellow.

Length, 24 inches; bill. 2| inches; Ming. 7\ inches; tarsi, 2| inches.
Habitats ; Tasmania and southern portions oi Australia.

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FAMILY

PELECANIDxE.

J 1 1HIS is an extensive group, and its representatives are found widely distributed along- the coasts and
on the inland waters of most large countries of both hemispheres. The various genera and species
grouped together under this family afford a wide field for research and speculation, not only to the
Ornithologist, but to every student, both scientific and philosophical, of animated nature, from the marvellous
developments shown by its members, nearly all of which possess some notable peculiarity adapted to their
mode of subsistence and perpetuation. Some other families of the Natatores are represented in Australia
by a greater number of species than are found among the Pelecanidce, but members of the latter have all
some peculiarly interesting feature to arrest attention. Foremost among them in general interest comes the
Great Pelican, the bird which figured as a type of constancy among the early writers, a typical virtue which
in these degenerate days is no longer conceded to this respectable bird. No one could fail to be impressed,
who has seen the Pelicans in this country, with their wonderfully methodical way of fishing. In the lonely
up-country parts, where they come only in small numbers, the Pelicans are looked upon with affection by
the settlers ; in such localities the nature-loving bushman rarely shoots them. Their visits are encouraged,
and to kill the " three-deckers," as the great birds are called there, is considered shameful ; by some their
destruction is even regarded as ill-omened. To this family also belongs the Roseate Tropic-bird, with its
strange antics on the wing ; the lover of warmth, the bird which never leaves the zone of vertical sun-
rays. Of Gannets we have several varieties ; everyone who has lived on the coast has seen their plunges
after prey. The " Boobies," with their unaccountable stupidity, belong also to this genus, and are found
on our coasts. The Snake-headed Darter is also a curiosity among birds, with its cunning and agility in
the water. The piratical Frigate-Birds, with their matchless speed on the wing and tiny feet, form another
interesting group among the PefecanidcB ; and the Cormorants, with their dense plumage to resist their
constant immersion, and their curious bills formed for seizing their finny prey, close a notable list of birds
of which Australia can boast the possession among her feathered, web-footed inhabitants.

PLATE AT.

GENUS SULA {Brisson).

I^TO student of nature, even if he has watched them only with an artistic eye, as giving life to the
scene, can have failed to notice the Gannets as they poise themselves, fluttering above the sea, then
seeing their prey, turn and drop like an arrow, with closed wings, sending up a white column of spray
as they strike the water. Any one who is familiar with the coast scenery of Great Britain must have
noticed them pursue their picturesque method of obtaining food. The incautious and confiding Booby,
which often lights on the rigging of ships at sea, and remains till caught, is a variety of the genus. They
are found on nearly every extensive coast-line, and four species inhabit the Australian shores.

SULA PISCATOK (Linn.)

BED-LEGGED GANNET. Genus: Sula.

variety inhabits chiefly the northern coasts of Australia. It is found in the greatest numbers
on Raine's Islet, situated in the Great Barrier Reef, where its habits were studied and many
specimens were obtained by Commander Ince. From notes made by him and by Mr. Macgillivra}', it
appears that the nest is rudely built from the roots of creepers which grow on the island. The birds
were very timid, and on their being molested, the islet was completely deserted by them during the clay :
they returned only at night, roosting on the earth or on stunted bushes on the higher ground. In its
habits generally and in its mode of procuring its food, the Red-legged Gannet resembles the other
members of the tribe. It plunges into the sea from a great height, thus capturing fish which are
swimming near the surface.

The notes made by Mr. Macgillivray state that at the end of May he found only one bird
on the nest, which contained a single egg. He was of opinion that the breeding season was then
over.

W ith the exception of the wings, which are dark-grey brown, and the tail, which is a yellowish
brown, the whole of the plumage is white, with a yellow tinge. In the adult bird the bill is a
delicate bluish pink at the base, running into a pale green ; the upper mandible is tipped with yellow :
h ides, dark grey : legs and feet, bright red. The colours of the bill and feet are much paler before
the bird is full-grown, deepening as it matures to the shades as depicted in the illustration.

Habitats : Great Barrier Reef and northern coasts of Australia.

PLY.

VOL I

&. J . Broinowski Fecit

SULA PISCATOR (Linn:)
Red-le^ed Gannet

PLATE "VI.

SULA FIBER (Linn.)

BROWN G AN NET. Genus: Sula.

in ROM its insensibility to danger when approached, this variety comes under the significant, common
title of Booby, being foolishly eas}' of capture by hand ; when caught, its bite is severe. Travellers
have often seen the Brown Gannet kept as a pet, and allowed perfect freedom, in the native villages
on the islands and coasts which it inhabits. It frequents the northern shores of Australia in large
numbers, and may be easily approached and its habits studied. When actually startled into flying, the
curious trait has been noted that, on rising, it frequently voids the contents of the stomach. In its
habits, saving its want of fear, and in its mode of obtaining food, it entirely resembles those species

already described.

*j

In size and plumage, the sexes resemble each other closely, and they cannot be distinguished by
outward observation.

The nest is of very rude construction, built of dry scraps of herbage ; it is about a foot in diameter
and almost flat. Two eggs are deposited, with the peculiarity that one is invariably pure white and the
other soiled and muddy-looking. The shell is white, and the eggs differ considerably in size. The
largest of which the dimensions have been taken was 2| inches by 1 7 / 12 , the average size being about
2^ inches by If. Both sexes share the duties of incubation.

Head, neck, throat, breast and all the upper surfaces rich, dark brown ; under surfaces white ;
bill bright yellow, with a greyish tinge round the eye; legs and feet faint yellow.

The different colour sometimes observed on the face, legs and feet is believed to be that of
birds before maturity ; the brownish tinge sometimes found on the former being a sign that it is not
yet adult.

Habitats : Torres Straits and northern coasts of Australia.

PLATE VII.

SULA CYAN OPS (Sundevall).
MASKED G AN NET. Gems: Si la.

f I ^HIS variety, though not the largest of the tribe, is of much greater size than either of the species
already described. It is met with most frequently on the far northern coasts and islands of Australia
and its definite classification as a distinct species is principally due to the information collected by the
captain and officers of H.M.S. "Fly," who combined much useful scientific research with their work of
surveying the waters of Torres Straits. They found the Masked Gannet in greatest abundance on Raine's
Island, where large numbers were found breeding. The bird has also been met with occasionally oft' the
shores of Tasmania and Eastern Australia ; its methods of procuring food, nidification, etc., resemble in the
main those of other members of the genus.

The eggs are white or bluish-white, with reddish-brown or black stains, tine lines and spots ;
when first laid they are apparently of a milky-white colour. The shell is very rough and linn' on the
outside. The average size of an egg is two inches and five-eighths by one inch and three-quarters.

There is no difference in the outward appearance of the sexes.

Primaries, secondaries, greater wing-coverts, tertiaries, the lateral feathers of the tail, and the
tips of the two large central tail feathers are a rich brown. With these exceptions, the remainder of
the plumage is pure, dazzling white; bill, yellow; base of the bill, lead-coloured; irides, bright yellow:
legs and feet, greyish green.

Length, 29 inches; bill, 5 inches: wing, 16^ inches; tail, 8h inches: tarsi, 2^ inches.

Habitats : Raine's Island, Lord Howe's Island, the Admiralty Islets, and on the coasts of
Northern Australia.

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VIII

SULA AUSTKALIS (Gould).

AUSTRALIAN G AN NET. Genus: Sula.

REFERENCE has already been made to the pithy title of i£ Booby" which has been conferred on some of
the members of this genus which seem to be almost totally wanting in the instinct of self-preservation.
In general terms a bird presents itself to the mind as an image of alertness in spying out danger and of quickness
in escaping from it : the "Boobies," from their want of discrimination in these respects, stand out the clearer by
contrast Though powerful on the wing and agile in the water, their insensibility to the power of man
is most curious. This strange propensity is remarkably developed in the Australian Gamut, which will
sit unsuspicious on the rocks, gazing stupidly at its enemies till caught by hand or knocked over with a
stick. It may be thus captured, not only during the breeding season, when many birds, otherwise shy,
will remain to protect their eggs or young ones, but even when resting on the rocks, these " Boobies "
allow the invaders to approach, and only when some of the flock have been caught will the remainder
seek refuge in flight. The fact of its inhabiting the wildest and most inhospitable parts of the coast
line, parts where men seldom have occasion to visit, may in great measure account for its unsuspicious
nature; whatever the reason, there is no other known bird with such powers of flight which shows such
recklessness as to its safety. The Sula Australis is found in much the same latitudes in the southern
hemisphere which the Sula Bassana inhabits north of the equator, and the two species are very similar
in their habits. The former is found in considerable numbers on the southern coasts of Tasmania : it also
inhabits, though in lesser numbers, the south coast of Australia.

Its food consists entirely of fish, which it captures in a similar way to the other members of
the tribe, by plunging down upon them from a height.

The young differ widely in the colour of their plumage from that of the full-grown bird. On
leaving the shell, they are of a uniform dark-grey, which is replace;! by white blotched with grey, on
the under surfaces; the leathers of the wings and back having a triangular mark of white at the tip.
These colours meree gradually into the following, which are characteristic of the adult : —

Crown of the head and back of the neck, brilliant orange : primaries, secondaries and four central
tail feathers, rich dark-brown ; remainder of the plumage, pure white. Space round the eye, dark-grey :
bill, dirty -yellow with a grey tip ; brides, yellow ; legs and feet greenish.

Length, 32 inches ; bill, 5i inches; wing, l'J inches: tail, 10 inches; tarsi, 2 inches.

Habitats : Coasts of Tasmania and Southern Australia and on the neighbouring islands and rocks.

x u

GENUS PHAETON (Linn.)

MEMBERS of this genus, known as the Tropic-Birds, inhabit only the torrid zone. They are but
rarely seen beyond the twenty-first parallel of south latitude ; from the fact of their frequenting
only the regions of greatest heat, they received the distinctive title of PhaethonidcB, after the mythical
controller of the sun's course. They have been divided into three species, which are placed in as many
genera, namely. Phaeton, Lepturxs, and PJtnpmcurus. The latter is the only one of the three which has
been found in Australia.

Besides a mere description of the member of this tribe which is found in Australia, there is much
to be said about these birds which is of interest to the general reader. They come but rarely to land,
except for the purpose of nesting, and, when engaged in that function, inhabit frequently high and
sometimes inaccessible places ; in some of the South Sea Islands they breed in the gloomy and solitary
coast jungles : they also sometimes nest in trees. Their long, bright red tail feathers, which would
doubtless always be considered beautiful, even if easily obtainable, are enhanced in value by their greater
rarity, like the Edelweiss of the Alps, and the natives whose shores the birds frequent prize these
feathers almost beyond any other adornment. The "Red-Caps" of the Friendly Islands, mentioned by
Captain Cook, made their brilliant war head-dress of these feathers, and Dr. Bennett lias recorded the
same fashion as being observed by the natives of Rotumah, in the South Pacific. In the Caroline Islands
two of these crimson plumes fixed in the ears and hanging downwards constitute a badge of chieftainship.
On these and other islands the natives work the feathers into baskets and other articles for ornament and
use. The plumes are generally obtained while the bird is on the nest. Having discovered their haunts, the
aborigines approach cautiously, and are able to pluck out the tail feathers, often without even causing the
bird to fly. Sailors have christened them the "Boatswain-Birds," or "Straw-Tails;" they are seen many
hundreds of miles out at sea. following or wheeling round ships in great circles, often Hying to enormous
heights.

PHAETON PHCENICURUS (Gmdin).

RED-TAILED TROPIC-BIRD. Genus: Phaeton.

rilH IS variety is found in Mauritius and in many of the South Sea Islands. It is found in vasi
J- abundance in the Paumotu Group, or Gambier Archipelago : in Australia it inhabits the shores of
Torres Straits and other points along the northern coast. The months of August and September are its
breeding-time ; during the rest of the year it is not often seen on land, but is often met with at sea in
the Indian Ocean and the South Seas. Like the rest of the tribe, its flight is peculiar; it is a slow but
very graceful Hie]-, and when dropping down in search of fish it falls with a peculiar fluttering motion, as
if faint with fatigue ; this appears to be its method of descending upon its prey. The flying fish is its
principal food ; sometimes it seizes other fish near the surface, but never dives for them, and but seldom
floats on the surface.

When on land for the purpose of breeding, it selects wild, uninhabited parts of the coast ; if there
are trees in the neighbourhood, it is loud of perching on the topmost branches, as if on the look out for

iii traders Two eggs an deposited, without building any nest whatever; they are merely placed on a
sheltered ledge of rook, and both sexes share in the incubation. The eggs are two inches and three-
eighths long by "ii" inch and ;> half broad, and are <>f a reddish-grey colour, with blotches and specks of
dull red

The sexes an alike in siae; the plumage of the male is somewhat richer in colour than that of
the female

Till they are about a year old the young arc white, without the rosy tinge, and the upper surface
is haired with black.

('.litre <>f tin flank feathers and tertiaries black, the other prominent winy-feathers having
black shafts for the greater part of their length. Round the eye is an oblong marking of black, which
extends at the back of the eye in a line of black feathers enclosing a space of white. Remainder of the
plumage, except the tail-plumes, white, with a beautiful rosy flush, particularly on the upper surfaces.
I'll- two central tail feathers, black and white at the base and brilliant red for the remainder of their
length, which is fully eighteen inches. Hill, bright red, with a black streak at the nostrils; tarsi, and
base n| toes and webs, blue-grev : rest of the toes and webs, black.

Habitats: Torres Straits, parts of Northern Coast <>f Australia and adjacent islands.

8

2 >

GENUS TACHYPTES (Vieillot).

SOME authorities have classed the representatives of this genus which inhabit Australia under two
species. Their definite classification is, however, very difficult, as members of the same species even
show many conflicting differences in size and markings, especially in the colour of the head. Whether
they become eventually grouped under various heads must be matter for further research.

The Frigate-birds, often called " Man-o'-War birds," have justly earned a wide notoriety among
all who have seen their most original way of procuring food. They are widely dispersed over all tropical
coasts : their powers of flight arc probably excelled by no other bird, combining as they do marvellous
speed, endurance and activity. Resting on sonic point of observation, they watch their weaker brethren,
the Gannets, Cormorants, and such like laboriously gathering a store of fish. When they are laden and
on their return shoreward, the Frigate-bird sweeps on them, swift as a meteor, circles round the victim,
bars its flight, darts on it with open bill, forcing the weaker one to disgorge its hard-earned food,
which the bird robber will catch and swallow before it reaches the ground or sea. Their food is principally
procured in this tyrannical fashion ; sometimes they chase and catch flying-fish when above the surface.
They also mercilessly devour the young of other birds and, though they are gregarious, are domineering
and quarrelsome among themselves, even to pillaging each others' nests. In a word, they are the terror of
all sea fowl, and with their predatory ways, daring, unrivalled flight, and pitiless instincts to destroy, they
have earned the character of true " Sea Vultures."

TACHYPTES MINOE.

SMALL FRLGATE-BLRD. Genus: Tachyftes.

TI^HIS species is common on the coasts of tropical Australia and in Torres Straits it is abundant. There
J- it has often been seen by travellers procuring food after the hawk-like manner of the tribe, by
forcing the weaker birds to disgorge fish which they had caught. Their powerful wings enable them to
fly to vast distances, but they rarely leave the tropics. They never rest on the surface of the water,
only skim near it on the watch for flying-fish or for unfortunate weaker birds which they frighten into
giving up their food. They see well by night, though they rarely go out to sea except by day : they
are silent birds, seldom uttering their cry, which, when sounded, is a rough croaking noise.

They gather into colonies at the breeding time ; the nest is composed of a few coarse sticks,
which the birds are often seen to break off when on the wing, with a twist of their strong beaks. One
or two eggs arc found in a nest ; they are pure white, moderately smooth and almost the same shape
at each end.

The plumage of the male is greenish-black, with purple lights on the upper surfaces, the lanceolate
plumes of the back showing lighter shades of green and purple. Under surfaces more brownish : irides,
brown ; lull, bluish, a deeper shade at the point, which is of wonderful strength and power : gular pouch,
bright red ; legs and feet red.

The female is smaller and less brilliant in colour than the male, without the lengthened plumes
on the back : a row of feathers forms a collar round the neck ; breast and upper part of the flanks,
ruddy white.

Habitats : Torres Straits and other tropical portions of the Australian coast.

Small Frigate -Bird

MCZ LIBRARY

PLATE XI.

GENUS PLOTUS (Linn.)

AN example of this genus is found in South America. Africa, India, Malay, and Australia. The
distinctions between the various species are not clearly defined, and, wherever it is found, the Darter
is always of the same shv nature, which makes a close observation of its habits exceedingly difficult.

PLOTUS NOVJE IIOLLAXDUE (Gould).

DARTER. Genus: Plotus.

THIS bird offers many singular points which well repay study. Its shape alone is sufficient to
single it out for observation, with its peculiarly long lean neck and narrow head, which gives an
appearance that defies better description than Buffon's, who said, when he first examined it, that " it had
the head of ;i snake grafted on the body of a bird." It possesses more than a mere physical resemblance
to the snake, for it is stealthy and cunning beyond most birds. In common with other varieties of
the Palmipides, it perches on trees above the water : it often sits perfectly still for hours on high limbs,
and it is then that it is most easily approached by the sportsman. When on the lower limbs near the
water it is always on the alert, and usually sees its enemy before it is seen by him. Then it drops into
the water like a stone, and, once there, in its favourite element, defies pursuit, Here its greatest
peculiarity is seen : never swimming with much of the body exposed : when its safety is threatened the
bodv sinks below the surface altogether, and nothing is to be seen but the slender neck wrifffflinaf swiftly
and silently towards shelter. When first seen swimming thus, the Darter is almost invariably taken by
the inexperienced for a snake. If it feels itself watched it sinks silently from sight, and dives to a
wonderful distance before rising again. Here its cunning appears ; it either reappears under sheltering
weeds, or, if none are within reach, entirely reverses the direction in which it was swimming, reappearing
back towards where it was first seen ; then, w ith only a slight pause, it pursues some fresh, unaccountable
course. It haunts the upper leaches of arms of the sea, and in fresh water is to be found on the large
lagoons and waterholes of the creeks and rivers in many parts of the interior.

The food consists of fish and water insects. Its powers of diving in pursuit of these are not
excelled by any bird : its swiftness and endurance under water are marvellous.

February and March constitute the breeding season in the southern parts of Australia, when a
large party of these birds gather and build their nests close together, forming a colony. The nests are
almost Hat. and are built rudely of coarse twigs in the mangroves or other bushes surrounding the water.
From the worn and soiled appearance of many of these nests which have been examined, the birds appear
to use them year after year, renewing them each season with fresh material. Vast numbers of eggs have
been found in these collections of nests : they are sweet and wholesome to eat. Each nest contains four
eggs : they are of an earthy colour, and the lining membrane is blue-grey. The egg is rather smaller
than the average size of that of an ordinary domestic hen. Both sexes assist in the incubation.

A difference in colour exists between the sexes. The neck and sides of the breast in the female
are light brow n, being black in the male. The young arc also of this colour till well over the first year.

The adult nude is black on the upper surfaces, tinged with green; upper sides of the head, buff,
Hocked with darker spots; a line of white runs from the base of the bill, terminating in ;i point on the
neck; throal rustj brown; breasi buff, flecked with darker spots 1 i 1< * • the head : under surfaces black, tinged
with deep blue; wings anil tail, blue-black; wing-coverts with broad marks of dull white; scapularies
lanceolate in form, <•! the -am.' shade as wing-coverts, The larger scapularies and the central and lateral
tail feathers shov< wavj outline on the outer web. The eye is prominent, irides marked with brown
gpecks ; up|>er mandible olive-grey, lower mandible yellow, with a patch of loose yellow skin at its base;

lego and feel yellow, with a darker shade on the upper part of the toes.

Length, 3G inches; hill, i inches; wing, l ■■».', inches; tail. '.) inches; tarsi, •_' inches.

Habitats Widel) scattered over inland Australia on solitary lagoons and waterholes, and on the

Uppel leaches of inletfl Of the sea.

XII.

G E N US P H A LAC RO C O R AX (Brissan ) .

CORMORANTS are found in every part of the world, and five species of the genus inhabit Australia.
Like the Darters, they also show the peculiarity, among aquatic birds, in their habit of perching.
In captivity they are easily tamed, and in them the old custom of hawking is still paralleled, for in parts
of China these birds have had their powers of catching- fish turned to the advantage of man. It has
been described by travellers as a most entertaining sight to see the proprietor of some of these trained
birds row out in the morning, his workers obediently perching on the edge of the boat. When the
fishing-ground is reached, the birds dive in at a signal from their master and bring up the results
of the quest. They are so well trained that no precaution is necessary for preventing them from
swallowing the fish. Early records speak of this method of utilising the Cormorant as having been
followed in England, but there it was necessary to fix a ring on the bird's throat to prevent it
appropriating the fruits of its labours.

By some authorities, these birds have been divided into several genera. Various terms are
applied to the different species from their leading characteristics, the term Phalacrocorax being used to
distinguish the largest of the tribe only.

P II A LACKOCOBA X P U NCTATUS (Steph.) .

SPOTTED CORMORANT. Genus: Phalacrocorax.

h()l T this variety less information has been collected than about any other member of the genus.
Not many specimens are to be found in existing collections and little is known of its habits. It
is a native of New Zealand: Latham states that it is frequently to be seen in Queen Charlotte's Sound,
where it nests on the rocks and sometimes on the limbs of trees dose to the water. It is one of the
most beautiful of its tiibe, and wherever seen its remarkable head-plumes and handsome colouring mark
it for observation.

Plumes on crown and back of the head and feathers of the throat, black ; sides of the head,
breast and under surfaces, light ashen-grey : mantle, scupularies and wings, rich purple-grey, all the more
prominent feathers being marked with a black spot at the tip : at the base of the neck and on each side
of the central feathers of the back, green : under tail-coverts and tail, black. Numerous soft plume-like
white feathers grow on the black patch of the throat and at the back of the neck, and smaller plumes
of the same description rise from the thighs and flanks: hides, green; bill, ash-grey; legs and feet,
yellow : nails, black : webs, greenish.

1 1 abitat : New Zealand.

5ITY.
ISA

PLATE

XIII.

PHALACROCORAX ST I CTOCEPH ALUS (Bonaparte).

LITTLE BLACK CORMORANT. Genus : Phalacrocorax.

f I iHLS species was classified by Bonaparte as Microcdrbo Stictocephalus ; it is found most commonly in
the southern parts of Australia. It is the smallest member of the genus found in Australia, and
frequents more the fresh water creeks and lagoons of the interior than the sea coast. It is often to be
seen perched on the gum trees fringing the creeks, and in all main essentials it resembles the other
varieties of the genus. Five to ten or twenty are usually to be seen in company, often perching on the
snags, or dead timber, protruding from the waterholes.

Its food consists, as with the rest of the Cormorants, entirely of fish, frogs, etc., in the pursuit
of which it shows great skill and speed under water.

The sexes are alike in colour and size.

Throat, neck and under surfaces, greenish-black ; crown of the head, upper surfaces, wings and
tail, blue-black : the head is marked with numerous small white elongated spots ; irides, green ; orbits, deep
blue-grey : bill, dusky grey ; legs and feet, black.

Habitats : Southern parts of Australia.

PL All!

VOL I

r

G.J. Broinowski Fecit

PHALACROCOR AX 5TI CTOCE P H A LU S (Bonap)
Little Black Cormorant

PLATE XIV.

PHALACBOCORAX MELANOLEUCTJS.

LITTLE CORMORANT. Genus : Phalacrocorax.

/^vX the coast this variety may be occasionally met, but it prefers for its habitation the upper reaches
of inlets and the fresh waters of the interior. It is among the most timid of birds, and it is very
rarely that more than two are seen together ; most commonly a single individual is met with, and it is
always ready to fly at the slightest disturbance ; specimens are therefore difficult to obtain. Its favourite
resting-place is on the point of sume snag projecting from the water, or on the branches of trees
immediately above the surface.

It has been stated that members of this species make their nests in the ti-tree scrubs along the
creeks and rivers of the far northern coasts of Australia, where many pairs build in the same tree. When
nesting, they are said to be very bold in the defence of their eggs and young.

The sexes are alike in colouring.

A black streak runs along the crown of the head and back of the neck ; back, rump, flanks
and tail, shining blue-black : wings and scapularies brownish-black, each feather having a deep black margin.
Sides of the head and all the under surface, pure white ; irides, grey ; bill, yellow : culmen, greyish ; legs and
feet, black.

Habitats : All parts of Australia suitable to its habits.

PLATE

PHALACROCORAX LEUCOGASTER {Gould).

WHITE-BREASTED CORMORANT. Genus: Phalacrocorax.

f 1 1HIS is almost the most gaily coloured of all the Cormorants ; when a large number are seen
assembled together, according to their custom, they form a conspicuous and beautiful feature in any
scene. They frequent principally the coast of Tasmania, and may be found in the rivers of that island,
which they follow up almost to their source. In Bass's Straits they are found in the greatest numbers;
in the southern parts of Australia they are by no means rare, but are more seldom met with towards
the northwards.

Its food consists of fish and aquatic animals, in the capture of which it shows the same skill as
the rest of its tribe.

The sexes are entirely similar in appearance. Until they have passed their first year, the young
are tinged with a brown shade on the upper surfaces and the same colour occurs in spots on the neck ;
the rest of their plumage is white.

The nest is circular, usually made of sea-weed, and mostly placed on low-lying sheltered ledges
in the rocks. Two eggs are laid, which are of a faint blue colour.

The full-grown bird has the front and crown of the head, back of the neck and rump, black,
with a tinge of green. All the upper surfaces, greenish-black ; wings, a lighter shade, each feather with
a black margin : on the forehead and back of the neck are some long-shaped white specks ; throat, front
of the neck and all the under surfaces, white ; naked skin round the eye, brown ; irides, green ; bill,
horn-colour ; legs and feet, grey.

Length, 26 inches; bill, 3 inches; wing, 11^ inches; tail, 5f inches; tarsi, 2^ inches.

Habitats : Coasts and larger rivers of Tasmania, and of Australia in the temperate portions.

PL XV

VOL I

G.J. Broinowski Fecih

PHALACROCORAX LEUCOGASTER (Could)

W h 1 1- e Breashed Cormoranl-

XYI.

PHALACEOCO R A X V A R I U S .

PIED CORMORANT. Genus: Phalacrocorax.

J 1 1HE Pied Cormorant, while being remarkable, like the foregoing variety, for its striking plumage,
enjoys a much wider range for its habitat. It is gregarious in its habits, and may be very
frequently seen gathered in large flocks on almost any part of our coasts suitable to its habits. It
frequents principally low-lying, sandy reaches of deep bays and inlets where it obtains its food, which
consists almost solely of fish. In such places, hundreds of this variety may be seen in the pursuit of
sustenance, or, having satisfied their hunger, large numbers of them resting close together engaged in
trimming their plumage. The same species is also found in New Zealand.

The sexes are alike in outward appearance, both as regards plumage and the colouring of the
exposed skin ; the young have the upper surface brown and the sides of the neck and upper part of
the breast mottled with the same colour.

In his " General History," Latham states that the Pied Cormorant builds in trees ; a dozen
or more nesting close together. The egg is two and a half inches long, of a pale blue.

Crown of the head, neck, wings and upper surfaces black, with deep blue lights ; wings similar,
with more of a greenish tinge ; flanks, green ; tail, blue-green ; sides of the face, throat and under surfaces
pure white, with the exception of an ashen tinge near the eye ; i rides, bright green ; bare space round
the eye pale green, with a patch of bright orange next the beak ; bill grey, lighter at the tip ; legs
and feet grey, toes black.

Habitats : Widely dispersed over Australia and Tasmania

MC

us/v

PLATE

X VIZ.

PHALACROCORAX NOV/E-HOLLANDI/E (Stephens).

AUSTRALIAN CORMORANT. Genus: Phalacroourax.

rilHIS is the Australian representative of the Common Cormorant so well known round the coasts of
Great Britain. Our variety is larger than the European Cormorant, and is considerably the
largest of the Australian species. It is common in the bays, inlets and river mouths of the
southern part of this continent, and in Tasmania it is abundant. There it ascends the rivers to
considerable distances, and on some of the inland lakes it is found breeding.

In its habits, the Australian Cormorant entirely resembles its European ally. Its food
consists of fish, and in wariness and shyness it is not outdone by the Phalacrocorax Carbo of the
northern hemisphere. The latter lias such keen powers of sight and such quickness in diving that,
when it sees the flash of a gun, even at quite a short range, it will dive and be in safety under
water before the shot reaches the place where it was swimming. The Australian variety is equally
cunning and quick in keeping out of danger. When perched on the trees it is very difficult of approach
by the sportsman, and in flying it ascends to enormous heights, frequently soaring in great circles till
almost out of sight. Its average weight is about six and a half pounds.

The nest is built of sea-weed and marine vegetables : it is placed on a sheltered ledge of
rock, and two eggs are laid at a time, of a faint blue colour.

On leaving the shell, the young are covered with a scanty coat of black down : when the
feathers come they are lighter in colour on the upper surface than those of the adult.

Sides of the face and a strip down the throat, buff; crown of the head, including the
lengthened feathers, neck, upper part of the back and under surfaces, rich metallic-green ; wings,
brown with a margin of greenish black ; tail, brownish, with more green ; a band of white on the
flank ; irides, green : bare skin on the lace, and throat, ochre ; bill, greyish, cuhnen and tip darker.

Length, 84 inches; bill. 4 inches; wing. 13| inches; tail, 8 inches; tarsi. 2^ inches.

Habitats ; Tasmania and southern parts of Australia.

PL XVII

VOL I

-PHALACROCORAX N V/£~ HOLLANDI/E (Steph)

Australian Cormorant-.

G.J Broinowski FeciK

CA

1TY

PLATE

XVIII.

GENUS PELECANUS.

ACCORDING to Buffon, the body of the Pelican is only exceeded in size by that of the Albatros.
From its remarkable construction and sage habits it has been embodied in the earliest writings
by historians and philosophers. Scripture mentions the "Pelican of the Wilderness;" the Egyptians
call it the "river camel;" in the most ancient carvings it figured as a type of motherly devotion,
for the Pelican is there seen feeding her hungry nestlings with drops of blood from her own breast. This
touching picture of constancy was probably suggested by the movements which are made by the
parent in compressing the pouch against the breast to force out the fish with which to feed the
young ones.

Australia possesses one of the nine varieties of this remarkable genus ; three inhabit America,
and six are found in the Old World. They do not frequent the colder latitudes, favouring always
more temperate or tropical zones.

The body is bulky, }'et the skeleton weighs only pounds. In the case of the Pelican as
well as in the Albatros, air is largely communicated to cells in the tubes of the feathers, the cellular
tissue, and even to the bones. By many this communication of air is considered to aid the bird largely
in its flight ; the temperature at which it is kept by the blood making it lighter than the surrounding
atmosphere. On this subject some remarks will be offered when dealing with the Albatros.

In all countries where the Pelican is found, it pursues the same extraordinary method of
fishing, namely, that of beating the water, in numbers together, so as to frighten the prey into the
shallows, where it may be seized.

The bones being so light, ossification is very slow, and the Pelican enjoys long life. Authentic
cases are recorded where one of these birds has lived over fifty years.

Pere Labat has stated that the Pelican was used by the savages of some of the Western
Islands to catch fish and deliver them up to its masters, after the same method in which the Cormorant
is used by the Chinese.

TELECAXUS CONSPICILL ATUS (Temm.)

AUSTRALIAN PELICAN. Genus: Pelecanus.

TI^HE single representative of this tribe which Australia boasts is among the largest of its kind, and,
J- although wanting the ornamental head-plumes possessed by some varieties, its varied markings fully
compensate for their absence. It is found on inlets and arms of the sea, on the rivers and creeks,
sometimes hundreds of miles inland, in Australia, and is common all over Tasmania, wherever it has
not been unfortunately driven away or destroyed by the spreading of settlement.

The food consists of fish, and the method pursued by a large flock of these birds working-
together to obtain their food is an amazing and a most instructive sight. Spreading out so as to
enclose the space of water into the shallow end of which it is desired to drive the fish, they start,
apparently on the giving of a signal, beating the water into foam with their wings. Making thus a

resounding roar, the) gradually close in towards the shoal water, driving their prey before them. When
the] have thus closed their victims into a narrow space, and apparently after another signal has been
cnven to change 1 1 > « - bactioe, the beating is discontinued and a most exciting scramble ensues for the
Bab which have been hemmed in. Bach bird drops the results of its fishing into its pouch, which
j» capable of distention BO as to hold a great quantity of food, contracting into a small space

urban empty.

The nest, which is large and made with considerable care, is usually built just above the
i line in sheltered spots mi the banks of rivers and inlets; sticks and dry herbage are used in
H construction. The eggs, two iii number, are dull yellow in colour, and are three inches and
three-quarters long by two inches and three-eighths broad.

Head, neck, back, under surfaces, and elongated feathers of greater wing-coverts, white, with
r tinge of pair villnu mi the breast : remainder of the wing, dark brown; tail, brown; pouch, greyish-
yellow; brides, dark; orbits, light: round the eye, yellow, with margin of pale blue; bill, bluish, with
a pink shade on upper mandible; tip, yellow: tarsi, yellow: legs and feet, grey; nails, darker.

Habitats Tasmania and Southern parts of Australia: more rarely met with in Queensland
and upper parts of South and West Australia.

M 1
CAMS

PLATE

IX I IX.

FAMILY PROCELLARIDxE.

AMONG the Natatores which inhabit Australia, this extensive family embraces a larger number of
varieties than any other. From their vast diversity in form and their roving habits, which render
definite classification so difficult, more confusion exists as to the number of genera represented in this
group than in any other family in our Ornithology. In preparing the illustrations of its members, the
strictest attention has been observed that only those varieties shall be shown which have beyond all doubt
been proved to make their home on our shores, or to frequent regularly the seas which surround us.

As the traveller nears Australia, long before he sights the coast, flocks of birds, many of them
belonging to this group, always constitute his first acquaintance with the animal life of this continent.
The most unscientific and unobservant cannot fail to be struck with wonder and admiration at these legions
that follow and circle round the ship for hundreds of miles, by night and day, in storm and sunshine, the
embodiment in so many forms of grace, speed, and tireless endurance.

The stately Albatros, with its huge spread of snowy or dusky wing, is the most marked among
this tribe. The majority of the remaining varieties are commonly grouped under the popular name of
Petrels, from the giant Ossifraga, or " Break-bones," a bird as large as the smaller Albatroses, to the
tiny ThalassidromcB, or " Sea Runners,'' so called because while skimming the sea in their search for food
they let down their feet and run along the surface, lightly tapping the water for a considerable distance.
In fact, the term Petrel was bestowed with reference to the Apostle Peter's walking on the sea. Among
this tribe, too, are some which, according to time-honoured authority, still control the fate of a ship and
foretell disaster. The sailor who respects tradition looks upon the slaying of an Albatros as placing the
seal of fate upon his ship, while the Stormy Petrels, "Mother Carey's Chickens," appear seized with the
spirit of a coming storm, wheeling round the ship with shrill cries in which the sailor versed in augury
reads danger gathering round the vessel.

The food of the ProcellaridcB consists of sea creatures of low organization, floating crustaceans and
the like, and the refuse thrown overboard from ships, particularly when it is of a fatty nature.

GENUS PELAGODROMA (Reichenbach).

THE bold markings of the one example of this species lender it easily distinguishable from its companions
among the winged attendants of ships sailing in the seas which it frequents ; this is the only example
of the species.

PELAGODROMA FEEGATA.

WHITE-FACED STORM PETREL. Genus: Pelagodhoma.

QJPECIMENS of this variety have been obtained in various localities so distant from each other as to
^ prove that it ranges over a great extent of ocean. Like all the Petrels, it flies to vast distances
from land, and subsists in the same manner by picking up floating marine organisms, the refuse thrown
from ships, and such food as it can obtain on the surface of the ocean in its long flights.

[ti nest ii oonttruoted in the sain.- manner as some of the other Petrels, namely, in a hole which
,1,, preparet r,„ the purpose in some bank or ledge. They Weed in considerable numbers on parts
of the mainland and on the islands off the south-western coast of Australia. The egg is white, one inch
and i half long by one inch and an eighth broad ; usually one egg only is laid at a time.

The young are furnished with a liberal coating of down on the under parts, which supplies warmth
till the true feathers appear.

Space ovei the eye, round the bill, and all the remaining under surfaces pure white; crown of the
l,, .„l, back of the neck, and a broad streak beneath and behind the eye slaty-grey, merging into a darker
ti n ™ on the back; wings and tail, brown: upper tail-coverts, faint grey; irides, reddish-brown; legs and

feet, almost black: Webs, yellow.

Habitats: ('ape Leeuwin and islands off the south-west coast of Australia.

GKXUS 1 1 ALA D ROMA (Illiger).

0\ i; other species of this form i^ known, besides the following representative, which is found in
Australia.

II A LA I) ROM A (' R I X ATUIX.

DIVING PETREL. Genus: Haladroma.

rflHE power of diving, exceptional among this tribe, is indicated in the name given to this variety. It
* i- wanting in the Btrong and lasting powers of flight possessed by the allied genera, but is as agile
in diving a- they are on the wing. Its flight is peculiar; it keeps a straight line with a halting or
Buttering motion, widely different from other Petrels, whose flight is as uncertain in its changing curves
as th. waves over which they skim. The Diving Petrel is even frequently seen to go through the crest
of i wave rather than rise from its line of flight to overtop the obstruction; it is said by some that they
even By under water.

Great flocks ol these birds are Been together; in Queen Charlotte's Sound and parts of New Zealand
tin y are very plentiful. They utter a peculiar note like that of a frog.

Besides the powers of diving, this species has the further peculiarity of possessing a dilatable
pouch resembling that of the Pelican. In outward appearance it closely resembles the Little Auk of
northern latitude-, but Gould states that the likeness is merely analogous, they being representatives of
each other in different families.

Head, upper surfaces, wings and tail, dark grey; under surfaces, white; irides, brown; upper
mandible brown, lower mandible blue-grey: pouch, light grey; legs and feet, light blue; webs, transparent
blue.

Habitat : Southern Tasmanian coast.

HARV.
CAME

PLATE XX.

GENUS FREGATTA (Bonaparte).

THE colouring of members of this genus is bold and striking and this, with their longer legs, renders
them easily distinguishable. Two species of this genus are found in our seas.

FREGATTA ME LANOG ASTER (Gould).

BLACK -BELLIED STORM PETREL. Genus: Fregatta.

THIS variety shows strongly the characteristics which earned for this group of birds the title of
Petrel. The peculiar action of flying close to the surface of the sea and pattering upon it with
their feet is more noticeable in this than in any of the other Petrels. It seems to delight especially
in this running motion, and its peculiarly long legs and remarkable colouring render the habit more
noticeable. Its flight, too, is more than ordinarily strong and swift, even among a tribe which is not
excelled in wing power by any other group.

These birds follow the ships sailing to Australia in great and increasing numbers long before
the coast is sighted. Their manner of feeding" and general habits resemble those of the other Petrels
in all essentials.

Upper tail-coverts, flanks, sides of chest and inside the wing, white ; remainder of the plumage,
deep ash-colour ; bill, legs and feet are of the same dark shade ; irides, yellow.

Length, 7\ inches; bill, f inch; wing, 6 inches; tail, 3 inches; tarsi, If inch.

Habitats : Tasmanian coast and south-western coasts and islands of Australia.

FREGATTA GRALLARIA.

WHITE -BELLIED STORM PETREL. Genus: Fregatta.

THIS is another example of the Petrels which is met with all over the temperate latitudes of the
South Pacific. It is as free and powerful in its wonderful flight and beautiful evolutions on the
wing as the foregoing species, and has the same habit of running along the surface of the water, although
with it the practice is not so frequently followed. The snowy white of its under parts renders it easily
distinguishable from the former variety.

In the South Atlantic this bird is probaby also to be found ; Gould mentions having secured
specimens closely resembling it in their habits and flight, but being of larger size and having on the
throat more of a greyish-white colour. He was of opinion that the latter would prove to be a distinct
species.

'I'll, spawn "i fish, mollusoa and floating matter of various kinds constitute the food, and, like ho
mam othei Petrels, the Fregatta Grallaria is a constant attendant in the wake of ships; the refuse
thrown overboard tarnishes a welcome food supply to this and many other members of the tribe.

The sexes are alike in colour; the precise localities of nesting and the manner of breeding have
not been definitely ascertained.

Head, neck, wings and upper surfaces, deep ashy-grey; under surfaces and upper tail-coverts,
white; bill, legs and feet, almost black.

Length, 7[ inches; bill, \ inch: wing, <> inches; tail, .*> inches; tarsi, 1^ inch.

Habitats

Australian seas: localities of nesting not definitely known.

/ER3ITY.
AA USA

PLATE

GENUS OC EAN I TES (Keyserling et Blasius),

rilHE single example of this genus which frequents Australian seas is considered by Gould to be
the same as the Procellaria Oceanica, classified by Banks, and that this view is correct may now
be taken as established. Two other species of the genus exist, but neither is found in Australian
waters or making its home on our shores.

OCEAN ITES OCEANICA.

YELLOW-WEBBED STORM PETREL. Genus: Oceanica.

FAR to the westward of Australia this Petrel is seen among the many others by the voyager ;
round Tasmania it is especially plentiful, and is still found in attendance on ships till they are

well past New Zealand towards the Horn.

The yellow colouring of the webs from which it takes its name is very marked on a close

inspection ; from the ship's deck it may be distinguished by its colouring, and in its flight, its running

along the surface, its habits of feeding and general characteristics, it entirely resembles those varieties
already described.

There is no outward difference observable between the sexes.

The whole plumage, dusky -brown, with the exception of the lower wing-coverts, which are a
lighter yellowish-brown, and the upper tail-coverts, which are grey ; irides, brown ; legs and feet,
brown ; webs, yellow except at the case, where they are brown.

Habitats : Tasmanian and South-western Australian coasts and islands.

GENUS PROCELLARIA (Linn.)

tmiiis wbs tin generic title originally proposed to embrace all those smallest varieties of Petrels
1 «rhiofa have already been described, as well as the Australian representative which now alone hears

tii. I,., i f Prooellaria. Subsequently the euphonious and nappy title of* Thalaxxidromw was adopted,

Hignifving "sen wanderers," the earliest observers being struck with wonder at these little marvels,
incapable of weariness ill their flight or dismay at the fiercest storm as they swept whole oceans in
learoh of (bod. Upon more scientific observation, the various species were classified as already described,
ainl the ..in representative of the presenl genus now bears the once comprehensive title of Procellaria.

PROCELLARIA NEREIS (Gould).

I , R E V II. f C 'KED S TORM PETREL. Genus : Procellakia.

'MHIS finishes the li>t of the Australian Birds which are described under the traditional and ominous
I name of Storm Petrels. It also posesses all the interesting characteristics by which, with its
fellows, it earned the title. Before leaving the subject, it may be of interest to remark that a patient
observer does not hastily class the prophetic instincts ascribed to these birds by sailors as mere blind
BUperstitlon. In England, when the swifts and swallows skim close to the earth, rain is threatened ;
when they Boar high, tine weather is promised. This is long ago established as a rough but sure
meteorological guide, because in the denser atmosphere which precedes rain, the flies on which the swallows
feed come nearer earth, and the birds follow their victims. So with the Petrels; the murky air that
bodes a tempest seems to thrill them with a weird exhilaration before it is perceived by the common
Bailor win- dors not watch the movements of the barometer, and when he sees them wheeling in ever
widening circles and screaming through the rigging, he dreads, all the more by anticipation, the disaster
which may be hidden in the coming storm. As to his belief that to kill these augurs makes foundering
more likely, the marshalling of facts will not convince him there ; the root of such fears is beyond the
power <>f demonstration to dislodge.

The food of this species is the same as that of the varieties already dealt with.

The Bexea are alike in plumage, and the female is only very slightly smaller than the male.

Head, neck, chest and upper part of the back, dusky-brown; wing-coverts, grey; wings, brown;
rump and upper tail-coverts, grey; tail, greyish-brown; under surfaces, dirty white; irides, brown; bill,
brown : legs and feet, black.

Length, 6£ inches; bill, 9 / 16 inch ; wing, 5 £ inches; tail, 2^ inches ; tarsi, 1^ inch.
Habitat-: Ha>.-> .Strait- and southern coasts of Australia.

NIC

HAF
CA

!TY
SA

PLATE XXII.

GENUS PRION.

mHE members of this family are easily distinguished from the Petrels by their soft grey colouring,
X in contrast to the bold markings of the latter. Their bills also are differently formed, being
broad and laminated, evidently suited for the picking up of some peculiar forms of sea-creatures. Four
species of Prions are found in the southern seas, and the two of which illustrations are given
undoubtedly visit Australian shores. One species only is found in northern latitudes. They are truly
oceanic birds, and rarely come to land except for breeding purposes. This function they carry out on
most isolated and barren spots ; to that forlorn island, Kerguelen's Land, they come in large numbers at
nesting time, and to other such desolate spots, such as St. Paul and Amsterdam Islands, etc.

PRION VITTATUS.

BROAD-BILLED PRION. Genus: Prion.

THE wide bill characteristic of all the Prions is exaggerated in this variety, hence its name It is
found in large numbers at the breeding time along the Tasmanian and New Zealand coasts, and
on Anchor Island vast numbers congregate at that season. At other times it is seen over vast
expanses of the South Pacific, and is believed to exist in the South Atlantic also.

Like the rest of this tribe, the plumage of the Broad-billed Prion is of great length and
softness, forming a thorough protection to the bird and giving it the appearance of having a much
larger body than it really possesses. It is stated by. some authorities that two feathers instead of
one spring from every root. The bird flies much at night, when from its bulk it has much the
appearance of a bat.

The food consists of sea-creatures and floating matter.

The sexes are alike in size and plumage, but the bill of the female is only about half as
broad as that of the male.

The egg is long-shaped in form, being two inches long by one and a half broad, and is
pure white.

Upper surfaces delicate blue-grey ; larger wing and tail-feathers edged with black ; a dark
brown mark in front of the eye, finishing in a crescent-shaped streak behind it of the same colour :
over and round this mark, throat and under surfaces white, with a bluish tinge on the flanks and
under the tail-coverts ; bill, grey-blue ; nostrils and a line along the lower mandible black ; irides, brown ;
legs and feet, blue-grey.

Habitats : Tasmanian, southern and south-western coasts of Australia.

NMON TURTUR.

DOVE-LIKE 1'ltloN. Genus: Prion.

TMIIIS \.ui. w gets it- name from it^ soft and delicate colouring and its slender, graceful form. It
1 looks M though H were too fragile to range over the ocean in time of storm, yet it is seen far from
mm ihore among it- Bturdier brethren in all weathers. Its flight in calm weather has a most graceful
motion like thai of a butterfly; it rarely settles on the water, usually taking up its food without resting
on the lurfaoi h ifl tnel with sometimes in great Hocks, but is more often seen in fewer numbers.

This variety lias also an abundant coat of lung and warm feathers. This gives it the appearance
of i bird of considerable Bize, ye\ its body weighs only on an average about five ounces.

Upper surfaces, delicate grey; wing and tail-feathers, much darker; a spot before and a semi-
circular streak behind the eye, very dark brown; over and round these and all the under surfaces, white,
tinged with grey "ii the flanks: bill, light-blue; nostrils and streak on the upper mandible, black; irides,
brown; feet light blue-grey.

Habitats: Tasmanian Coast and the islands and coasts of southern and south-western Australia.

HARVARD UNIVERSITY

GENUS THALASSOICA (Reichenbach).

rilHIS is one of the most prettily coloured among the Petrels, and is the only representative of the
grenus.

THALASSOICA GLACI ALU IDES.

SILVER-GREY PETREL. Genus: Thalassoica.

rilKAVELLERS to Australia who pass the days in angling for the birds which follow the ship generally
become well acquainted with this variety, for it is either among the most greedy or stupid of the
flocks which follow astern on the look out for food. It is often caught on a hook which is dragged along
the surface with a piece of meat attached.

It is met with ranging over vast portions of the South Atlantic as well a> the South Pacific,
and is also plentiful in the Indian Ocean. It Hies higher than most of the other Petrels, but its food
consists of much the same materials as that of the other members of the tribe : it also rests more
frequently on the surface of the water.

There is no outward difference observable between the sexes.

All the upper surface, from head to tail, a rich silvery -grey ; outer webs, shafts, and tips of
primaries and outer webs of secondaries, a slaty-black : all the under surface and face, pure white ; nostrils,
culmen, and portion of the base of the upper mandible, bluish lead-colour : tips of mandibles, horn-colour,
darkening into black at the extreme points ; legs and feet, blue-grey, touched with a faint pink on the
tarsi, and streaked with black marks on the joints.

Habitats : This species has a wide distribution, and is common to both Atlantic and Pacific Oceans,
frequenting both warm and cold seas. At the Falkland and Chatham Islands, and about the desolate
shores of Antipodes Island, a lonely spot to the southward of New Zealand, they are to be seen in vast
Hocks, as well as in the warmer Polynesian seas.

o

b>

o
QO
— 5
O

I

HARVARD uu * ft
CAMBRiDbt.

DPL^TIE XXIY.

GENUS NECTRIS (Bonaparte).

THE members of this genus are distinguished from the other Petrels by their short tails, duskiness
of plumage and width of wings. Two representatives visit Australia and its neighbouring islands
for breeding purposes.

NECTRIS CARNEIPES (Gould).

FLESHY-FOOTED PETREL. Genus : Nectris.

ri^HIS variety does not roam so far seaward as most of the other Petrels. It is frequently met with
J- along - the south-western and southern coasts of Australia, and breeds on the mainland and on the
small islands along those parts.

Except that it does not venture to such great distances to sea, the Fleshy-footed Petrel
resembles those already described in its general habits, modes of obtaining food, etc.

The sexes have the same outward appearance.

A single egg only is laid, two inches and seven-eighths long by about two inches wide.

The whole of the plumage is a rich warm black ; bill, fleshy horn-colour ; the tips of both
mandibles a dark brown ; a narrow blue line encircling the eye ; legs, feet and interdigital membranes,
yellowish flesh-colour ; toes, brown.

Length, 15 inches; bill, L| inch; wing, 12 inches; tarsi, 2 inches.

GENUS THIELLUS (Gloger).

S

OME confusion exists as to the classification of the members of this genus, but the following
representative of it is certainly found in Australian seas.

THIELLUS SPHENURUS {Gould).

WEDGE-TAILED PETREL. Genus : Thiellus.

PECIMENS of this variety have been obtained from such various localities that it is proved to
inhabit various points of the southern and parts of the western coasts of Australia. On the latter
it was procured by Gilbert on the Houtniann's Abrolhos, and on many of the small islands adjacent thereto.

A single egg is laid, which is two inches and three-quarters long by one and three-quarters
wide. The nest is placed in a burrow which is hollowed out by the bird for a considerable distance
on the side of a sandy bank.

Lik€ the preceding species, all the upper surface is a rich dark brown; the broad feathers

of thi acapulariee washed with a lighter brown al the tips; the face, and from the throat downward,

,,„.,,, I u j,|, th c remainder of the under surface, brownish-grey; bill, reddish-brown; oulmen and

tips "t mandibles, dark brown; legs and feet, flesh-colour.

Length, 15\ inches; bill, If inch: wing. I I I inches; tail, 6 inches; middle toe and nail, 2$

ini'heH.

Habitats: The western, southern, and |»art of the eastern coasts of Australia: it has also been

oboetved on Lord Howe's and Norfolk [slands. By Gilbert it was found in great numbers on West
Wallaby [aland the neighbouring inlets and sandy hanks.

MCZ U

;

PLATE IXX V\

NECTEIS BKEVICAUDUS.

SHORT-TAILED PETREL. Genus: Nectris.

THIS variety is often called also the " Sooty Petrel," but the name by which it is most popularly
known is that of "Mutton-bird."

The earliest voyagers in Australian seas left records of the marvellous sight to be witnessed mi
some of the islands round the coast, particularly in Bass's Straits, when the nesting time of these birds
comes on. Early in September they gather in great flocks for the purpose of preparing the burrows
where they make their nests on the various islands. November is the breeding season, and they begin to
"•ather about the 20th. But with wonderful regularitv on the 24th, towards sunset, a mightv stream of
these birds is seen sweeping towards the islands. This influx continues for several hours till the sky seems
full of the vast multitude wheeling and hovering over these lonely isles. At night they alight on those
spots which they had selected for breeding places. Even when the burrows contain three or four birds
each, there still remain vast numbers which are reduced to making their nests in the open, and as each
pair strives for a place in the sheltered spots, and each individual sets up a shrill screaming in assertion
of its rights, the deafening turmoil from all these throats is described as something overpowering. "When
comparative peace has been restored towards the morning, each pair having found a nesting place, the
male birds leave and return at night : this habit they observe during the breeding season.

This annual assembly of the Mutton-birds is the signal for an onslaught on them by man. The
natives collect great quantities of eggs, and in March and April the young and adult birds are trapped
and put to various uses. In catching the birds, advantage is taken of their powerlessness to rise
lor flight off the earth. On account of the length and shape of their wings, which are like those
of the Albatros, they must first float upon the water before they can rise. Their captors, then,
block up a large number of the paths leading to the sea which the birds have formed, leaving one only
open among the number. This particular one, unfortunately for the Mutton-birds, leads over a precipice,
at the bottom of which a hole has been dug. The birds come in such crowds, anxious to reach the
water, that they tumble into the pit in tens of thousands; those which tall being soon smothered by their
unfortunate followers. The captors, sealers and others who make these birds a source of profit, then
proceed to pluck them. It takes the feathers of twenty-five birds to make a pound in weight, the value
of which is twopence or a little more in Tasmania: yet some of the parties do well at the business,
so vast are the numbers of birds captured.

The young are tender and juicy and form wholesome food, and the old birds, when properly cured,
are also excellent eating. The old birds are of an oily nature, but the young are so impregnated with oil,
being fed on a fatty secretion by the parents, that on being held up by the legs the oil pours out from
their beaks. It is clear and pure, and also fetches a good price in Tasmania.

It will thus be seen _that the annual visit of the Mutton-bird is an event of great and varied
importance to those natives and white men who frequent the islands. What with its eggs, its flesh, leathers
and oil, these birds form an industrial resource of great importance to a considerable number. In spite of
its great annual destruction in these different islands, its numbers do not sensibly diminish, but on the
24th of November of every year the sky is thick with gathering multitudes.

The flight of the Mutton-lard is swift and strong. It Hies close to tin; surface of the water, and
it has been estimated that its speed often exceeds sixty miles an hour.

Crustaceans molluscs, and such like form tin- rood, being gathered along the coasts.
Tin- sox us ure entirely alike in size, shape and colour.

The nesting is performed in burrows, as described, or else the egg is deposited on the ground in

ti„- aholtoi -I Its or bushes. Usually one egg Is deposited. It is of great size, being two inches and

three quarters long by one inch and Beven-eighths broad, and snow-white in colour. The albuminous
l ,. 1 1 1 \a very large, and il is a strange facl that, no matter how long it is boiled, the yolk and a portion
a th< white -till remain soft and watery.

The young leave the breeding-ground about the end of April, and tor some time after this the

. i m i| ighbourl I of their birth-places is covered with them for miles. They finally separate into

Hooka and depart in various directions.

Th< whole of the plumage a very dark brown, the upper surface darker than the lower; bill,
blackish-brown; the under mandible with a longitudinal mark of grey; outer side of the tarsi and outer
brownish-black; webs, yellowish flesh-colour, darkening towards the extremities.

Habitats The numerous islands in Bass's Straits are the particular resorts in summer for the
purijos* of breeding and roaring the young; numbers are also met with along the south-eastern seaboard
of Nov Zealand, and froqueut thai part of the Pacific lying between that country and the southern
portion of tiie Australian continent.

GENUS PUFFIN US (Brisson).

f Ml I IS is .in example of the Shearwater. Members of this tribe have of late years been classified into

J i <• sub-families than formerly. The Mutton-bird, the Fleshy-footed Petrel and others are now

classed under different species than formerly. The members of these various groups are all gregarious,
differing otherwise somewhat in their habits.

PUFFINUS NUGAX.

ALLIED PETREL. Genus: Puffinus.

VTORFOLK [SLAND and parts ol the east coast of Australia are the chief haunts of this variety,
1 * where it may be seen in considerable numbers at the breeding season. It is not, however, to be
found in such vast flocks as the Mutton-bird. Gould reports that he saw numbers of this Petrel off the
north-eastern shores of New Zealand ; he considered this to be the Antipodean representative of the
Puffintu Obscunm of Europe.

The egg is pure white: two inches long by one inch and three lines in breadth.

Crown of the head, the whole of the upper surface, wings and tail, black: sides of the face,
throat, and all the under surface, white: legs, greenish-yellow ; webs, yellowish-orange.

Total length. 11 inches: bill, 2| inches: wing, 6^ inches; tail, 3 inches; tarsi, lj inch.

Habitat-: Norfolk Island appears to be the principal breeding place, although met with in
considerable numbers on the eastern seaboard of Australia. The vicinity of the Three Kings Islands,
oil the northern coast of New Zealand, also seems to be a favourite haunt of this species.

M

HARV
CAME

PLATE XXVI.

GENUS HALOB^ENA (Is. Geoff, de St. Hilaire).

mHE following is the only representative of this genus in our Ornithology. It was classed by Gould
among the Petrels, though in appearance it closely resembles the Prions, especially the Prion
Turtur.

II A LOB M X A C (E R I LEA.

BLUE PETREL. Gems: Halob.kna.

TT has been stated that this Petrel closely resembles the Prion Turtur, with which, also, it is frequently
seen in close company. It can. however, be easily distinguished from the latter, and also from the
other smaller varieties of Petrels, on a close inspection, by its possessing white tips to the tail' feathers,
and showing tin; wings, when outstretched, barred with white. It is a bold and powerful flier, and may
he seen in attendance on ships among the innumerable other birds, great and small, from many degrees
west of Australia almost till Cape Horn is reached.

Its food is obtained in the same uiannei as that of the other Petrels described, and consists of
the same lowly-organised sea creatures, floating refuse from ships, etc.

The sexes are alike in size and colouring.

Crown of the head, back of the neck, sides of the chest, back. rump, wings and tail, grey: tips
of tail feathers, white : cheeks, throat, centre of the chest, and all under surfaces, white : before and behind
the eye, dark brownish mark : bill, dull blackish-brown, with a blue-grey stripe along the low er part of' the
under mandible: tarsi and toes, delicate blue: interdigital membrane. Mesh-colour.

Habitats: From the 40th to GOth degrees of south latitude in the Pacific Ocean: particularly
plentiful about the coast of Tasmania, where it loves to congregate, with other species of the Petrel family,
about the islands in Base's Straits: on the north-cast coast of New Zealand, and from thence to Cape
Horn, it is constantly met with during the greater part of the year, although not in anything like the
numbers that are observed about the Tasmanian coast. Tt is also common in the Atlantic Ocean, between
the 10th and 60th degrees of south latittide.

GEMS DAI'TION (Stephens).

t

ERE i- do variety of the Procellarida more widely distributed over the temperate latitudes of the
southern seas than the Bingle representative "I" this genus.

DAPTION CAPENSIS.

CAPE PETREL. Gkm s : Daption.

"Vjn one x\ 1 1 • • has come to Australia by sea, or who lias sailed t<» any extent in our seas, can fail to he
1^ well acquainted with the appearance of the ••('ape Pigeon," which is the most popular title of this
bird It appeal's certain thai this best known <>f all Petrels embraces the whole circumference of the globe
in its wanderings, Soon alter tin- Cape of Good Hope is passed, the enterprising passenger for Australia is
angling over the stern for specimens of Ids winged followers, and as the Cape Pigeon is the most confiding, it
is generally the first and alwavs the most frequently pulled on board. A line with a hook and bait attached
will always secure -\ specimen, and if even only a piece of cork or wood is put on, the Cape Pigeon in
his innocence is prettv sure to be the first to get his feet and wings entangled in it. When brought on
board, the peculiarity is always noticed that they disgorge their food and an oily substance is seen to
exude from the nostrils. Sailors of course say it is seasick, but its indisposition is more likely to be caused
by nervousness at its novel surroundings.

It is "in (>t* the handsomest fliers among the many birds of such powerful wing which bear it
company. It- dappled plumage -<>"ii singles it out from the rest, and the ("ape Pigeon often remains with
umigranl in Australia a> a memory of his first acquaintance with the winged inhabitants of the land
nf his adoption. The colouring varies somewhat among this variety, but its noble Might and bold markings
are always prominent.

It sometimes rests lightly on the water for a few minutes while picking up food, and even occasionally
dives t" fl shallow depth, but while at sea its favourite position is on the wing.

The sexes are alike iii size and colouring.

Nearly the whole of the head, back and sides of neck, upper part of the back, and edge of the
under surface of w in-, dark brown : w ing-coverts and upper tail-coverts white, each feather having dark
brown tip; basal half of the tail crossed by a broad white streak, the apical half a dark brown; bill,
blackish-brown ; lee-. f ee t and interdigital membranes, very dark brow n.

Habitats : flu whole of the vast areas of the southern portions of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans
lamiliar t«> this wanderer of the sea: not confining itself to the warm and temperate latitudes, it at
tun. - voyages to the chilly regions of the Antarctic Circle, where it was seen by Sir James Ross; and,
indeed. Gould i- of tlie opinion that it constantly circumnavigates the globe.

ca:

SA

PLATE

GENUS OSSIFRAGA (Homb. et Jacq.)

rj^HE single species of this genus is the largest and most powerful of all the Petrels.

< ) SSI FRAG A ( IT G ANTE A.

GIANT PETREL. Genus: Ossifraga.

J IKE the Cape Petrel, this variety is found all over the temperate southern latitudes at .sea ; it also
frequents somewhat higher zones than the former, and have even been seen sometimes, though
rarely, in northern latitudes.

Although their food consists chiefly of fish, the Giant Petrels are carnivorous They feed upon
the carcases of whales or birds at sea, and when they spy sealers engaged in cutting up a seal, they
hover round and devour ferociously what is left of the flesh. In their voracious manner of feeding, they
often snap the smaller bones of the carcase, hence their title of Ossifraga, or " Break-bones."

They are often taken by sailors for Albatroses, but their flight is by no means so graceful or
sustained as that of the prince of flyers. They are shy by nature and rarely come close to a vessel
at sea.

They breed on the precipitous sides of rocks and cliffs on such lonely islands as Kerguelen's
Land. When the nest is approached the young birds have the power of sending out a jet of most
foul-smelling oil upon the intruder, to a distance of six <>r eight feet. The nestlings are covered with
a long coating of grey down : their first feathers are dark brown blotched with white.

Entire plumage very rich dark brown; irides, almost black; bill, pale horn - colour ; legs,
blackish-brown.

Habitats: Australian seas generally: very abundant in D'Entrecasteaux's Channel, Tasmania;
Prince Edward's Islands and Kerguelen's Land appear to be the favourite breeding places.

MCZ LIBRARY

PLATE

GENUS iESTRELATA (Bonaparte).

MEMBERS of this genus are chiefly distinguished among Petrels by the great length of their wings
and the dclicacv of their feet.

.ESTKLLATA MOLLIS (Gould).

SOFT -PLUM AGED PETREL. Genus: ^Estrelata.

rillllS Petrel is noticeable from the rapid motion of its greal wings. It is more plentiful in the
Atlantic than in the Pacific, but seems to range completely round the globe, over the seas in the
temperate latitudes.

The food consists of the same materials as that sought after by the majority of the Petrel tribe.

The sexes are alike in colour; the young have the throat speckled with grey and the under
surface dark grey before the full-grown feathers appear.

Upper part of the head, slate-grey, with margin of white on forehead; hack, slate-grey: throat,
lace, and all the under surface, almost a pure white, except where interrupted by a taint grey tinge upon
the chest, forming a hand across the breast : before and behind the eye a dark brown mark : tail, feathers
in centre dark grey, outer feathers white-grey : hill and feet, black.

Length, l:!.' inches: bill, I | inch: wing. LO inches; tail. 5 inches: tarsi. Lj inch: middle toe and
nail, I ; inch.

Habitats : Although not so numerous in the 1'aciHc as in the Atlantic, they are very plentiful
in the colder southern latitudes, and vessels making their easting and passing near the precipitous islands
of St. Paul and Amsterdam meet with them in great numbers; doubtless, like other wandering members of
the family, it visits all parts of the globe.

j;stim;lata cooki.

t'ook'S PETREL. Genus: JEstrelata.

rjll II S is another swift-flying Petrel, and in its great range of habitation resembles the foregoing species.

Some confusion exists as to its definite distinction from the /Estrelata Leuooptera, or White-winged
Petrel: Gould was of opinion that the two belonged to distinct species, from differences he observed in
the si/.e. colouring and formation of the feet. Only the well-defined variety is illustrated here, however,
though subsequent investigation may .-auction the subdivision of the members of this genus into other

species.

The deecripti f the foregoing », ies « >>■ the Soft-plunmged Petrel as to habits and food,

.£ , ' : the „, f the latter will 1 -»y born, ,n mmd ae ,t recall, that „l our

great navigator, Captain Cook,

. . 11 ii| p „,.,.,,,. surface erev, apex and base of each feather
Crown and sides o the bead and whole ol uppei sunacc grey i _
„.„., ,„. , wing rts and lie, b, nish-black ; the front cheeks In,,,, „,,„,„!,» , v

blaok, with intermediate webs 'lull yellow.

Length, I2i inches; biU, I inch! wings, 2i inches; tarsi, 1 inch.

I,,,,,,,,. The colder latitudes of the southern seas generally, particularly about the southern
f New Zealand and Tm ia : al the Auckland and Chatham Islands they arc met wrth m great

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^ESTRELATA LEUCOCEPHALA

WHITE-HEADED PETREL. Genus: ^Estrelata.

J 1 1HIS is the most powerful and the most picturesque flier of all the Petrels. It never soberly follows
in the wake of ships like its more business-like brethren, but may be seen at intervals at a
great distance, by reason of its pure white head and under parts, advancing at hurricane speed from the
horizon. When it overtakes the ship, it wheels through and round and high above the attendant flock
with beautiful evolutions, its long, narrow, darkly-coloured wings, in their powerful strokes, looking like
a great letter W, closing and unclosing in its swift circles. It seldom nears the ship, being wild and
timid, but, having perhaps obtained some floating particles of food, soon wings away over the sea in
some fresh direction.

From its only occasional and hurried visits to the neighbourhood of ships, and its wary nature,
specimens are hard to obtain ; Gould gives an interesting account of how he drew one within shot by
exercising its curiosity as to the nature of a bottle which was thrown out astern and was kept bobbing,
with only the neck exposed, by means of a string attached.

Forehead, face, the whole of the under surface and tail, white; back part of the head and neck,
grey: wings, dark brown, approaching to black; back, dark greyish-brown; eye encircled by a' black mark
bill, black; legs, toes and webs, flesh-colour; the tips of the toes, black.

Habitats : Like the other wandering members of this great family it ranges over a vast extent
of the southern seas, appearing to favour the colder latitudes, although occasionally met with in Bass's
and Cook's Straits.

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IX IX IX.

GENUS ADAMASTOR (Bonaparte).

rN EVERAL species of large Petrels are classed under this genus, and the following variety visits
Australian waters, specimens having been obtained by Gould on the east coast of this continent.

ADAMASTOR CINEREA.

GREAT GREY PETREL. Gems: Adamastor.

1\/TEMBERS of this genus are often mistaken for Albatroses from their great size and soaring flight.
-L"-*- The Great Grey Petrel covers vast areas of the ocean from east to west and is found over nearly
twenty degrees of south latitude. It flies higher generally than the smaller Petrels but descends with
lightning-like swiftness when it sees food on the surface.

Though its name does not point to the possession of diving powers, it is as skilful under water
as the Diving Petrel, using its wings for propulsion beneath the surface. One observer, Mr. Harris,
records that he saw it close its wings and plunge into the sea from a great height, after the manner of
the Gannets, in search of food. From its habits of frequently flying abroad by night, it has often been
called the Night Hawk.

It builds in burrows, which are hollowed out of the faces of soft banks in such lonely islands
as Kerguelen's Land. These burrows are sometimes driven in to a length of twenty feet and frequently
split off into numerous separate branches. The branches have no terminal chamber, but the main tunnel
ends in an enlarged space. The strange feature is noticed that the branches do not appear to be put to any
special use ; the eggs being deposited in the terminal or enlarged chamber. The eggs are merely laid on
the floor of this cavity, where they are hatched. Before the female begins to sit, birds of both sexes
visit these chambers, when they may be heard making a dismal, moaning sound. Once the hatching
begins, the male bird no longer visits the nest and the birds become silent, except at night, when the
male may be heard calling to his mate on the nest.

The colouring of the sexes is alike, but the female is somewhat smaller than the male.

Crown and sides of the head, ear-coverts and upper surface, tips of the tail feathers and under
tail-coverts, dark brownish-grey ; throat, chest and under surface, white ; cuhnen and nostrils, black ; tip
of the mandibles, horn-colour; tomia, yellowish horn-colour; feet, yellowish: toes, brownish -black.

Habitats: From the 30th to 60th degrees of south latitude this species is universally diffused;
and, indeed, has so great a range of habitat that it is met with from the desolate cliffs of KerguelenV
Land to the solitude of the icy seas about Cape Horn.

USA

PLATE IXXXI

GENUS MAJAOUEUS (Rekhenbach).

SOME difference exists between ornithologists in regard to the single member of this genus, Gould
being of the opinion that it is distinct from the ProceUaria JEquinoctialis of Linnaeus, the which,
although greatly resembling and closely allied to this species, has not the broad white mark around the
eve — one of this bird's distinguishing features.

MAJAQUEUS CONSPIGILLATUS (Gould).

SPECTACLED PETREL. Genus: Majaqueus.

THE peculiar markings on the head of this member of the Petrel family render the bird very
conspicuous, and its individuality is especially noticeable when in the company of other winged
roamers of the sea, hovering about the ship and alighting upon the water to examine or secure any
object that has been cast overboard.

Although somewhat of a timid nature, and not generally venturing in such close proximity to
ships as many other members of the family, the impulse of curiosity to examine strange objects floating
astern will frequently lead it to become a prey to the bird fisher, who is the more tempted to effect a
capture by the bold markings of the head and face — from which the name of Spectacled Petrel
arises — arousing his particular interest.

Dead whales, seals and mollusca generally are its food.

The whole plumage is a heavy black, with the distinct and marked exception of the sides of
the face, chin, and a broad band which crosses the front of the crown, passes down before and beneath,
and then takes an upward curve at the back of the eye, being black ; sides of the mandibles and nostrils,
yellowish horn-colour ; culmen and tips of both mandibles, black ; legs, feet and toes, black.

Habitats : From the cold latitudes about St. Paul's and Amsterdam Islands, and thence to
the southern coasts of Tasmania and New Zealand, it is very common, and an occasional wanderer may
be met with between the latter country and Cape Horn.

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GENUS PHCEBETRI A (Reichenbach).

TI^HE greatest in size and importance of the truly oceanic family Procellaridcs is that bird of unrivalled
flight, the Albatros. Resembling in many particulars in their habits the smaller Petrels, in whose
company the great Albatros is a frequenter of the deep, the enormous expanse of wing, great size of
body, graceful and sustained power of flight and noble appearance, at once proclaim the Albatros the
monarch of the ocean.

PH(EBETRIA FULIGTXOSA (Gmd.)

SOOTY ALBATROS. Genus: Phcebetria.

riMHIS species is one of the commonest of the Albatroses ; its distinguishing characteristics are gracefulness
of flight and uniform soinbreness of plumage. Swiftest among the swift, this bird, with > every part
of his body absolutely motionless, save the head and eye which slowly turn and vigilantly scan everything
around him, sweeps past and through his less speedy companions, sustaining a flight the graceful beauty
and ease of which it is impossible to adequately describe. This wonderful and prolonged flight, without
the slightest perceptible motion of the wings, which is sometimes continued for fully an hour, at once
attracts the attention and admiration of the voyager. Dr. Bennett expresses his belief that the whole
surface of the body of the Albatros is covered by a system of air cells which, by a wonderful and
beautiful muscular apparatus, are inflated or diminished in response to the bird's desire to ascend or
descend. That such a peculiar apparatus does exist in all birds, and in some is developed to a considerable
extent, is well known ; but the actual factors in raising the bird in the air while the wings are apj)arently
motionless are those simple mechanical laws governing the magnitude and direction of pressures.

The Sooty Albatros is a general inhabitant of the cold waters of the Southern Ocean within
the Antarctic Circle, where great numbers are met with ; Captain Cook speaks of them as having been
abundant about the ship at the time of his falling in with the first ice ; his sailors, on account of the
bird's sombre plumage, called it " The Quaker."

One peculiarity of this species is the cuneated tail which, with its more delicate structure generally,
undoubtedly indicates the possession of greater aerial powers than others of the family. In its manner
of flight a marked difference from all the other Albatroses is noticeable ; rising to a greater height, its
wonderful aerial evolutions are so easily performed and of such an exceedingly beautiful nature that the
beholder will not quickly tire of the sight. Gould states it to be the only species that will pass directly
over a ship, and that it frequently poises itself directly over the deck in such an inviting manner that
the gunner cannot resist the tempting mark.

The nasi 18 of mud, or mud and grosses intermixed, raised a few inches above the ground with
a slight depression on the t«>|» to prevent the egg from rolling out. When the young birds are half-
growo they are covered with a light greyish down; and when approached by man each bird erects itself
OD it- respective mud billook and with upraised beak makes a strange clattering noise, and squirts from
tin nostrils B Btream of foully smelling oily fluid, if the intruder has the temerity to toueh it.

The whole <'f the plumage a very dark brown, approaching to black on the head, wings and
tail ; above, beneath and behind the eye a clear white mark ; bill, jet black, exeept for a yellowish
longitudinal line along the Under mandible; feet, brownish, tinged with purple.

Habitats: Although preferring the colder southern seas, this species is also met with all through
the temperate latitudes to the south of the Equator.

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GENUS DIOMEDEA (Linnaus).

ri^HE few known species of this form of the above-named genus are the largest of the ocean
J- haunting birds, and are met with in both southern and northern latitudes. It is probable,
indeed, that they circumnavigate the globe in their wanderings, as, although always more numerous
in the higher latitudes, they are frequently met in intermediate places.

DIOMEDEA MELANOPHEYS (Temminch).

BLA CK-E YEBRO WED A LB A TROS. Genus : Diomedea.

FAMILIAR to every voyager to Australia by its numbers and utter absence of fear displayed in
approaching to close quarters, the Black-eyebrowed Albatros is considered the most common of
the species that range over the vast extent of the southern ocean, and it is but rarely that a ship after
reaching the 35th degree of south latitude is not accompanied in her course by many of these birds,
and in lowering and stormy weather the snowy whiteness of their under plumage is pourtrayed with
startling distinctness against the murky and sombre clouds that encompass the vessel. So fearless of
the presence of man is this species that often, when captured and landed on the deck, whence it is
unable to rise again, it readily submits to be handled without displaying either irritation or timidity^
and could an adequate supply of its natural food be procured' it is probable that the bird would
resign itself to a state of captivity and become as domesticated as some of the Gulls.

Captain Hutton states that this species is possessed of diving powers, which are occasionally
exercised when the presence of any particularly appetising morsel is revealed under the surface of the
water; but being of a piratical nature, the bird generally prefers to allow a Night Hawk (Great Grey
Petrel) to seize the substance first, and then with fierce eye, outstretched wings, and making a hoarse
croaking noise, it runs along the sea in chase and forces him to relinquish the prize and seizes it in
his powerful beak ere it sinks. By seamen this bird is called the " Molly Hawk."

There is little or no outward difference in the plumage of the sexes ; nor does it appear to
vary in this respect from youth to maturity. Gould, however, states that a reliable mark by which a
fully matured bird may be distinguished exists : In the young bird the bill is always a dark brown,
while in the adult it is a bright yellow ; and in the same flight may be seen individuals in which that
organ varies from a very dark brown to a most beautiful yellow.

In general habits, nidification, etc., this species resembles the Wandering Albatros.

The head, neck and all the under surface, white ; before, above and behind the eye, a
beautiful streak of blackish-grey in the exact shape of an eyebrow ; wings, dark brown ; centre of the

, , i ii li i . ( i. ir i «rev bill bright yellow, the colour deepening on the tips of the

;;:;,':,„;. S t2*3» . *. , *

BDowiog ;» tfi" 1 blue,

n ,l,„„. Tin. species is met with almost anywhere from the Cape of Good Hope to Cape

„ ,„ temperate U wen as cold latitudes, and is a, abundant in the Atlantac a. m the M.

.. „ ff ',. r sets of Tasmania and New Zealand vast numbers are .net w.th, particularly

„ ,',„: Chatham Islands and Campbell Island, where they resort for breedmg purposes.

♦

MCZ LIBRARY
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
CAMBRIDGE. MA USA

PLATE

DIOMEDEA CHLOEORHYNCHOS (Latham).

YELLOW-BILLED ALBATRUS. Genus: Diomedea.

THIS species is frequently seen in the company of the preceding one, which, in its flight, habits, etc.,
it resembles ; and like the Black-eyebrowed Albatros, the species is well-known and displays no
timidity in approaching very close to ships, and is often called the Yellow-nosed Albatros.

The plumage of this species seems to vary according either to their habitat or age. In the
icy regions of the Antarctic Seas they have been observed with the whole head, neck, and underparts
a spotless white ; while in more temperate latitudes the same parts have a greyish tinge.

Like the Wandering Albatros, they rarely fly more than five or six feet above the surface
of the water, except when compelled to a greater altitude by inclement weather, always descending
close to the water when it moderates, and sweeping in graceful undulations just over the ocean swell,
seeking with keen eye any refuse that may be floating in the wake of the ship.

The breeding places are those inhospitable islands within the Antarctic Circle, and here, during
the process of incubation, the bird may be approached on the nest, and without offering the slightest
resistance, can be pulled off, only to again waddle back with the utmost gravity to its post. The nest
is usually ten or twelve inches high, of a cylindrical form with a small ditch around the base ; one
egg only is deposited, very white and large and peculiar in shape, being long in proportion and equally
thick at both ends. Sometimes, when the area of the breeding ground is too limited for the great
numbers of birds that flock thereto, many of them will be satisfied with an adjacent dry spot, and
despising the labour of erecting a nest, merely make a slight concavity in the soil to prevent the egg
from rolling, and there deposit it.

Like the other Albatroses, this bird nourishes its young 1 by disgorging: the contents of the
stomach ; doubtless this is from the fact that as the bulk of the food is the decaying blubber of dead
whales, seals, &c, such soft and oily substances could not be carried in the bill to any distance.

It was observed by Captain Carinichael that this bird, when irritated, would separate the feathers
of the cheek and display a beautiful stripe of naked orange skin, running from the corners of the mouth
toward the back of the head.

Head, neck, all the under surface, rump and under surfaces of the wing, white ; before, above,
and behind the eye, a faint grey line ; back, wings, and tail, brownish-black ; culmen, from the base
to the point, a bright orange-yellow ; remainder of the bill, black ; feet, white, with a faint bluish tinge.

Length, 3G inches ; breadth from wing to wing, 84 inches ; bill, 4 inches.

Habitats : The whole of the Southern Ocean, without the Tropics, is familiar to this bird,
although it does not confine its peregrinations to the colder latitudes alone, being met with in all
the intermediate seas between the Cape of Good Hope and Tasmania, and from thence to the coast
of South America.

MCZ LIBRARY
HARVARD UN1VER
CAMBRIDGE. MA I

PLATE

X XXY.

DIOMEDEA CULMINATA (Gould).

CULMINATED ALBATROS. Genus: Diomedea.

4 LMOST as plentiful in the Australian seas as the black-eyebrowed variety, this species, although
not the largest, is one of the most active and powerful of the Albatroses, and in its habits and
mode of life generally so closely resembles its congeners that details of these particulars would be needless
repetition. The specific differences of this species from Diomedea Chlororhynchos, for which, when at a
distance, it is sometimes mistaken owing to the* similarity of plumage, are in the shape of the bill and
the size of the feet. The bill of D. Chlororhynchos is more laterally compressed and the culmen is
rounded, while in the subject of this plate the culmen is broad and flat, and from this feature is derived
the name of Culminated Albatros ; the feet also of this species are very much larger, this peculiarity
being at once noticeable when the bird is about to settle upon the water at a short distance.

In size this species is intermediate between the one previously described and that to follow.

The Auckland, Campbell, Bounty and Antipodes Islands are visited by these birds in common
with other Albatroses for breeding purposes ; at the Falkland Islands, in the South Atlantic Ocean,
there are also extensive breeding grounds.

Back, wings and tail, a very dark grey, the latter with white shafts ; head and neck, dull
white, washed with greyish -black ; before and behind the eye a mark of greyish -black, which is
interrupted beneath by a thin streak of white immediately below the lower part of the lid ; rump and
all the under surface, white ; bill, black, except the culmen and tip and the lower edge of the under
mandible, which are horn-colour.

Habitats : From the Great Australian Bight to Cape Maria Van Diemen — the northern
extremity of New Zealand — this species is very abundant ; about the southern coast of New South
Wales, and thence to Bass's Straits, it is frequently met with.

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DIO MEDEA CAUTA (Gould).

SHY ALBATROS. Genus : Diomedea.

THE distinctive characteristics of this bird are excessive timidity and caution, as it can rarely be
tempted to approach within shooting distance from the ship. Whilst numbers of other species of
Albatroses and other oceanic birds will daringly sweep around the ship, in utter disregard of the gun,
and swoop down upon any refuse thrown overboard from the vessel, this bird may be noticed on the far
outskirts of the flocks of his winged congeners, circling and wheeling in immense sweeps, but only alighting
on the water to secure any chance morsel that may have escaped the observation of his hardier brethren
when he is far astern of the ship and out of all possible danger from man.

Only inferior in size to the great Wandering Albatros, and in speed and beauty of evolution,
when on the wing, to the Sooty Albatros, this bird, by his marked capacity for sustained and graceful
sailing flight, at once excites the attention and profound admiration of the voyager.

The breeding places of this species in the southern seas are doubtless somewhere in the high
latitudes, as they have been seen in great abundance by the captains of whaling ships about Bounty and
Antipodes Islands, two bleak and inhospitable spots six hundred miles from the coast of the Middle
Island of New Zealand.

There is but little difference between the sexes in colour when fully grown; the female, however,
can always be singled out by her comparative diminutiveness, and the young by the bill being of an
uniform grey.

Crown of the head, back of the neck, throat, all the under surface and rump, grey-white ;
before and behind the eye a mark of greyish-black, gradually passing into a delicate pearl-grey, which
extends over the face ; back, a rich pearl-grey, deepening on the wings and tail into brown ; bill, a light
grey or bluish horn-colour, except on the culmen, where it is yellow, darkening at the tips of the
mandibles ; the upper mandible at the base surrounded by a narrow line of black ; the base of the
lower mandible surrounded by a belt of rich orange ; feet, bluish-white.

Length, 31 inches ; bill, 4^ inches ; wing, 21^ inches ; tail, 9 inches ; tarsi, 3 inches.

Habitats : Abundant about the southern coast of Tasmania, especially so in the vicinity of
D'Entrecasteaux's Channel ; the Auckland, Campbell, Bounty and Antipodes Islands appear, however,
to be more favoured localities, doubtless from their lonely situation in the southern ocean affording
better facilities for nidification ; the species is also occasionally met with in the warm latitudes of the
South Seas.

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D I O M E D E A EX U L A N S (Linnaus ).

WANDERING ALBATROS. Genus: Diomedea.

GREATER in size than the Swan, of magnificent extent of wing, and of noble and gallant bearing
when either sailing through the air or resting upon the water, the Wandering Albatros ranks high
above all his ocean competitors. Endued with great strength, and of a most savage disposition, he holds
undisputed sway over the rest of the ocean haunting birds and inspires them with the most palpable
terror. It is commonly asserted and believed that this bird will attack and tear out the eyes of a man
when swimming in the water ; and such is its ferocity and size, that Gould remarks from his observation
of it that he could well believe that such a feat would be readily attempted. The sea is the home of this
species, and save for the purpose of breeding, in such desolate places as the Auckland and Campbell
Islands, it never resorts to the land. Perpetually sailing on tireless wing, scanning with eager e\'e the
surface of the water for medusae and other marine organisations that form a portion of its food, it never
rests by day or night and seems to scorn repose. The sight of a dead whale drifting on the ocean, or
of a whaleship with the carcase of one attached alongside, at once ensures the attendance of some
hundreds of these birds eager to enjoy a repast of the blubber, and in defiance of the sailors, who will
attack them with whaling spades and lances, these fierce roamers of the air and sea will sometimes even
swoop upon the decks, and attempt to seize the pieces of blubber as they are cut up and thrown into
the try-pots ; and, indeed, a single Wandering Albatros, from the velocity of its onslaught, great size and
weight, is no despicable antagonist. During the prevalence of calms, when the refuse thrown overboard
floats in the immediate vicinity of the ship, numbers of these birds, floating or swimming about the glassy
surface, with ease and beauty of movement beyond all conception, make a noble and elegant picture,
and the impression of the poetry of motion thus depicted will long remain in the memory of the
traveller. On such occasions as these, the birds, more after the manner of the domesticated Swan than
that of the untamed ranger of the seas, will swim up to the very sides of the vessel and seize in their
powerful beaks any food that may be thrown to them ; or may be easily caught with a hook and line.
But it is during a storm, when the surface of the water has been lashed into heaving mountains and valleys
by the violence of the gale, that the movements of this superb bird when on the wing excites the greatest
wonder and admiration. Apparently borne aloft on its mighty wings by some unknown and invisible
power, skimming with meteor-like swiftness the crests of the towering waves, descending and ascending
the watery depressions and elevations with no perceptible muscular exertion, and then darting through
the air and almost touching the spars of the rolling and tossing ship with the tip of its pinion, it gazes
down with calm defiance upon the deck as it passes, to again resume its erratic and wonderful flight.

The average weight of these birds Gould gives as seventeen pounds, and the extent of wing
from tip to tip ten feet one inch ; but Dr. McCormick, R.N., states having met with examples
weighing quite twenty pounds, and whose outstretched wings measured twelve feet. Latham speaks of
one in the Leverian Museum measuring thirteen feet, and alludes to one mentioned by Ives as having
been shot off the Cape of Good Hope, which measured seventeen feet six inches from wing to wing.

The breeding places in Australian seas are the Auckland and Campbell Islands, these barren
solitudes being generally favoured by all the Albatroses that range the southern latitudes. The nest is
larger than that of any other species, being eighteen inches in height, six feet in circumference at the

base, and 27 inches in diameter a< the top. This huge affair is constructed of dried grass, loaves and
M-awrcd, matted together with mud, is usually built along the side of some grassy declivity, and with
the great white bird sitting on the top, is a curious sight to witness. During the process of incubation
th, male bird is for ever <>n the wing, and shews the utmost solicitude in supplying his mate with food.
The presence of the male bird seems to inspire his companion with courage, and she will defend herself
stoutly with her bill, and can only he dragged off the nest by using great force, when she will waddle
awkwardly away t.. a shori distance and anxiously watch the movements of the despoiler. Dr. McCormick
noticed that a fierce Bpecies of LestrtS was always on the watch for the female bird to quit the nest,
when this predatory visitor would instantly pounce down and devour the egg; and when one of these
pirates passed overhead the poor female Albatroses would snap their beaks violently together and
give utterance to harsh, braying croaks.

The egg a purr white, four inches and three-quarters long by three and a quarter broad;
gome have been noticed to be marked with dull spots at the larger end. It is considered good food by
the sealers and whalers, although, like the egg of some other oceanic birds, no amount of boiling will
harden the whit..

This Bpecies varies much in colour at different ages ; very old birds are almost entirely white,
with the exception of tin- pinions, which are a very dark brown, or nearly black; and birds are met
with in every Btage, from white, mottled white and brown, and barred with dark brown, to a rich
dark brown approaching to black ; bill, delicate pink, except for the tips of the mandibles, which are
a light horn-colour ; eyelash, bare, fleshy and of a pale green ; legs, feet and webs, pinky-white.

Habitats: From the :{Uth to the 00th degree of south latitude this species is most abundant;

from the Cape of C 1 Hope to Cape Horn great numbers are always to be met with; in the cold seas

surrounding the Auckland and Campbell Islands, and also about the southern coasts of Tasmania, it is
very plentiful, and is common over the whole of the southern and temperate latitudes of both Atlantic
and Pacific Oceans.

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PLATE

IXXZX VIII.

FAMILY STERNIDiE.

TI^HIS group of oceanic birds was considered by Gould to be deserving of a family designation.

Universally diffused over the sea-washed lands of the globe, nearly twenty species are represented
in Australia, and others also may probably be discovered. Some species of the many genera which
constitute this family are coloured in the most charming and beautiful manner, and although not rapid
fliers, their light and delicate construction of body and indescribable ease and grace of movement when
hovering just above the surface of the water, will long be remembered by the traveller.

GENUS ANOUS (Leach).

TRUE oceanic birds, and ranging both temperate and warm latitudes, the representatives of this genus
are abundant on various portions of the Australian coast. In their general mode of life thev
resemble Petrels, but have distinguishing characteristics from those birds and the Terns; from the latter
they especially differ in their flight, which is slow and steady ; and, unlike many of the Petrels, they
are very silent birds, rarely giving forth a note when met with upon the open sea.

ANOUS LEUCOCAPILLUS (Gould).

WHITE-CAPPED NODDY. Genus: Anous.

rpHIS, one of the most handsome of the Noddies, is a confirmed ocean wanderer and seldom visits the
■L land except for breeding purposes, when they collect in vast flocks on the small islets in Torres
Straits and some of the coral islands of Polynesia. In its habits and mode of life generally there is
such a marked resemblance to the Noddy Tern, described in the Plate following, that that description
will be fully applicable to this species.

Jardine considers this Noddy to be identical with the A. Tenuirostris of South Africa; but
Gould and Bonaparte have treated it as distinct.

Cr own of the head and nape of the neck, white; near the posterior angle of the upper and lower
eyelids, a small triangular patch of white; the rest of the plumage a rich deep black; bill, black, except
for a faint horn-coloured line along the upper mandible ; legs and feet, brown.

Total length, 14 inches; bill, 2± inches; wing, 'J inches; tail, 5 inches; tarsi, | inch; middle
toe and nail, ] | inch.

Habitats : Torres Straits and other northern parts of Australia.

GEN US PK< )CELSTERNA (Lafresnaye).

rii\\t» Bmftll Terns * prise thia genus, which is allied to the members of the genus Anous, from which.

' in some few minor particulars, they differ. Gould applied the specific term Cinrreus to the
following species of the genus, hut the Bame term having been previously used by Neboux, Bonaparte
repla I it by Albwitta, which has been adopted by Gould.

P ROC EL STERNA ALBIVITTA.

GREY NODDY. Genus: Procelsterna.

MllllS is our of tlic smallest of the Noddies and is in every particular a true Anous, and in habits,
1 manners, and general mode of life resembles the other members of the family.

Ahoiit some of the guano islands in the South Pacific Ocean this species is fairly numerous, but
doe- not breed in those places, the eastern and north-eastern coasts of Australia, and Norfolk Island,
.ue do tbtlesa the oiosi favoured localities in this respect, although no nurseries have been discovered.

I Iccasionally following in the wake of ships, this Noddy may be captured in the same manner as
other ocean birds, hut in general is rather timid and is somewhat chary of taking a hait affixed to a

1 k. In picking Up any floating substance it settles on the water in a very deliberate manner, and by

the silence it maintains contrasts markedly with the other birds by which it may be surrounded, as
these usually keep up a continuous clattering and croaking as they alight on the surface to seize any
foi >d.

The egg is of a pale cream colour, dashed with Notches of dark brown and dull red at irregular
intervals, and is considered excellent eating.

Head. neck, and all the under surface, silvery greyish-white: back, wings and tail a rich

grey ; secondaries, tipped with white ; bill, dark brown ; tarsi and toes, dark brown ; interdigital membrane,
height yellow.

rota] length, II inches; bill, ll inch: wing, 8 inches: tail, o inches; tarsi, l£ inch; middle
toe and nail, L| inch.

Habitats: Torres Straits and the eastern coast of Australia; also Norfolk Island and the

islands of the Phoenix Group, lying between the Equator and 10° south latitude.

HA

:iTY.

ISA

PLATE

GENUS ANOUS (Leach).
A NO US MELANOPS (Gould).

LESSER NODDY. Genus: Anous.

PRODIGIOUS numbers of this bird and an allied species (A. Stolidus) frequent the Houtman's
Abrolhos, off the coast of Western Australia.

This Noddy is of gregarious habits, and towards the close of the day, when the old birds
are returning from the ocean, their breeding places present an extraordinary spectacle to the visitor,
there being, according to Gilbert, amazing clouds, literally speaking, of these birds around the clumps
of mangrove on which their nests are made ; and usually silent when upon the water, the croaking
noise made by the old birds and the quack and peculiar piping whistle of the young ones at this
time are simply deafening.

The nests are constructed in a very expeditious and rough manner by simply laying masses
of seaweed on the thickly -growing topmost branches of the mangroves, at from live to ten feet
from the ground. The layer of seaweed is from about two to four inches in thickness, and no attempt
is made by the birds to give any shape to it, a small depression on the top to keep the egg in
its place being regarded as sufficient preparation for the process of incubation. The nests of this
species are, however, placed at a greater height on the branches than those of the A. Stolidus
(Noddy Torn), with which species this one dwells and incubates in the greatest harmony; and
doubtless it is this fact that ensures the prevalence of the vast numbers of the Lesser Noddy over
its congeners, for the nests of the latter, being placed lower down and sometimes actually upon the
ground, are preyed upon by a small lizard which devours thousands of the eggs as well as the
young birds. The strong and unpleasant odour of these breeding places is perceptible to a great
distance, and the nests, leaves and branches of the trees are completely covered with the white
excrement of the birds, giving the appearance of a heavy foil of snow. At this particular place
(the South Island of Houtman's Abrolhos) the distance from the breeding place to the feeding ground
on the outer reef is four miles, and Gilbert states that over this space the numbers of birds con-
tinuously passing were in such close array that they formed one steady and unbroken line, and even
those who have seen the vast flights of the Passenger Pigeon, so vividly described by Audubon, would
be amazed at the extraordinary spectacle presented on this island.

The egg is of a dull cream colour, marked all over with blotches of dull red and brown,
the latter appearing to show from the inside surface of the shell. These blotches are most numerous
at the larger end. The egg is one inch and three-quarters long by one inch and a quarter broad.

The sexes show no outward difference.

Crown of the head and back of the neck, pale ash colour, changing into dark grey towards the
back ; before and behind the eye, a margin of jet black ; posterior half of the lower lash, pure white ;
throat, fore part of the neck and all the under surface dark grey ; wings and tail, very dark brown,
approaching to black ; bill, black.

Total length, L8 inches; tail. 5 inches; wing, 8* inolies; tarsi, g inch; middle toe and nail,

i ! inch.

Habitats; Like the Lesser Noddy, this species is found in great abundance on the small
sandy islets of Torres Straits and at Houtman's Abrolhos, off the coast of Western Australia, these
two places being the greatest breeding grounds; other nurseries, however, exist in some of the low-
Iving ••oral islands of Polynesia, and also in the Indian Ocean.

A NOUS STOLIDUS.

NODDY TERN. Genus: Anous.

r 1^11 IS species in habits and general mode of life resembles in almost every particular the preceding
| one, excepl that in the mode of nidification more care is manifested than is displayed by the
Lesser Noddy and the Sooty Tern in constructing a shallow nest of small twigs or dried grass,
intermixed with which are fragments of coral, mussel shells, and occasionally pieces of turtle and fish
hones. The whole nest is, however, built in a very slovenly manner, and in many instances this bird
appears to favour the ground in preference to the labour, trifling as it is, of making a nest in the
mangrove : a tuft of grass or lump of seaweed in this case answers all requirements.

Should any of the birds be following a ship as night approaches, they will invariably alight
on the yards to sleep, even though land may be within a few miles, and may then be easily captured,
hut not without biting savagely with the bill and scratching violently with the sharp claws to such
a degree as to make it unsafe to be held by an unguarded hand. From this habit of sleeping on
the spars of a ship is derived the name of " Noddies," given to this and other species of the family
bv sailors : if left undisturbed on their perch they will sleep on until the return of day.

An abundant supply of food is procured on the reefs, particularly at low water, such as
cuttle-fish, small mollusca and medusae. This species seldom ranges far out to sea unless a shoal of
small fish be discovered, when vast numbers will flock thither, and, sustaining themselves just above
the surface of the water, by quick movements of the head seize their prey.

During the period of incubation the birds do not show the slightest fear of man, and those
building on the branches of the mangroves will suffer themselves to be lifted off their nests and placed
on the ground without attempting to fly away, and, indeed, will remain sitting there with the most
appan nt indifference whilst their nests are being examined or the eggs taken away. But for the presence
of the small lizard before alluded to in describing A. Melanops, these birds would increase overwhelmingly
every breeding season, and Gilbert states, as the result of close observation when he visited the
rookeries on Houtman's Abrolhos, that he was satisfied that not more than one of every twenty birds
reached maturity, or lived long enough to wing its way to the ocean ; these lizards do not eat the
whole of the young bird, only extracting the brain and vertebral marrow.

One egg onlv is laid, and herein lies the great distinction between the Noddies of the northern
and southern hemispheres; by the former, according to most ornithologists, three eggs are laid, and
by the latter only one. After a minute comparison. Mr. Coues was still undecided as to whether the
Pacific and North American birds were distinct, but rather than unnecessarily multiply the number of
specific designations he has also described this species under the old name of Stolidus.

By dissection alone can the sexes be distinguished
acquired by the young at a very early age.

and the plumage of the adult bird is

All the upper and under surface, a rich dark brown : crown of the [head a bluish grey, gradually
deepening into brown as the back is approached ; tail rather darker than the back and wings ; immediately before
and behind the eye a triangular mark of black, the anterior part of which is the largest and very sharply defined ;
bill, black ; feet, reddish-brown ; claws, black.

Habitats: Besides the Houtman's Abrolhos, these birds breed in prodigious numbers in Torres
Straits, particularly at Bramble Key and Raine's Islet, but are not found to the southward of the
latter place on the eastern coast : among the guano islands of the South Pacific, and from thence to
Christmas Island, situated about one hundred and twenty miles to the north of the Equator, the
species is also met with, though in somewhat limited numbers.

PLATE XL.

GENUS ONYCHOPRION {Wagler).

TI^WO species of this form are met with in the Australian seas ; and the first described is also found
J- both in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

ONYCHOPRION FULIGINOSA.

SOOTY TERN. Genus: Onychoprion.

ON the western, northern and eastern coasts of Australia this species is met with in great numbers'
but on the southern coast it is more sparsely distributed.

The most marked and distinguishing feature of this bird from its congeners is its sombreness of
plumage about the upper surface, rendered the more conspicuous by the white markings of the under
surface.

In the manner of procuring food and general habits a great similarity exists between this Tern
and A. Melanops and A. Stolidus ; during the breeding season it associates with the utmost harmony
with those species, the whole three combining their forces in forming vast nurseries, the most noted of
which are those on the Houtman's Abrolhos, Raine's Islet and Bramble Key. By the seamen of the
earlier voyages in Australian seas these nurseries were called " Wide-awake Fairs."

The egg is two inches and an eighth long by one inch and a half in breadth, and is of a rich
creamy-white, with blotchy markings of dark purplish-brown, which, however, sometimes vary considerably
in shades of colour. One egg only is deposited on the sand, a slight depression in which is the only
preparation made for a nest. Being very palatable, the eggs are much sought after by seamen, and
during the sojourn of Mr. Macgillivray's party among the islands of Torres Straits over fifteen hundred
dozen were procured by the blue-jackets during the month of July, forming a very acceptable change
from the usual ship's fare.

The disturbance created in the water by a shoal of porpoises in pursuit of small fishes at once
attracts great numbers of this Tern, and as the sudden dashes and plunges of the porpoises cause the
small fry to leap out of the water in all directions, they are swooped upon and secured by the birds ere
they fall back again into their native element.

The breeding season commences about the end of May, and by the end of June most of the
young birds are able to fly and provide for their wants, many of them being very strong on the wing.
At this period of their life they are excellent eating, and occasionally during the passage of a ship of
M ar through Torres Straits the breeding grounds are visited by the sailors and great numbers of the
young birds and eggs taken away.

Crown of the head and back of the neck, a rich glossy black ; all the upper surface, wings and
tail, deep black ; the apical half, the shaft, and the outer web of the lateral tail feathers, white ; on the
forehead a white V shaped mark ; all the under surface of the wings and body, white, changing into grey
towards the lower part of the abdomen ; bill, black ; feet, brownish-black.

Habitats : The ranges of habitats of A. Melanops and A. Stolidus also apply to this species.

ONYCIIONMON 1WNAYHNS1S.

PAN A YAN TERN. Genus: Onychoprion.

\MONG tli. vast DUmbers of Noddies and Sooty Terns frequenting the lonely Houtman's Abrolhos
and the low. sandv islets of Tones Straits, fi few birds of this speeies may be seen, generally in
pairs, and although often in tin- company of the other species when wandering over the ocean in search
of food, it is of solitary hal.it when resorting to the shore for repose or breeding purposes.

AJthough mel with in such limited numbers at the great nurseries of the other species on the
Australian coast, there is doubtless some undiscovered breeding place about the Gulf of Carpentaria or the
seas of the East Indian Archipelago, for they are fairly abundant in those waters, and numbers occasionally
attend the wanderiDg cruises of whaleships, picking up the refuse oily matter thrown overboard.

When visiting the islands in Torres Straits in H.M.S. "Rattlesnake," Mr. Macgillivray and the
Bailors who accompanied him observed a number of turtle shells arranged — doubtless by the natives who
sometimes visit the place on the Bhore of Bramble Key. On turning these over he was surprised to
discover under each >ln ll a I'aiiayan Tern, sitting on her egg in the most contented manner. On Sophia
[sland, an uninhabited spot about eleven degrees south of the Equator and near the Ellice Group of
islands, a small colony of this species exists, and here the birds breed undisturbed, save for the occasional
\i-it oi some island trading vessel, touching at this lonely isle for the purpose of procuring the eggs of
the green turtle. At this place the birds deposit their eggs amongst the loose broken coral that lines
the shore above high water mark. The eggs are much smaller than those of the Sooty Tern, but have
the same colouring, and are looked upon by the natives as an especial delicacy.

I nlike the other allied species, it is not gregarious during the period of incubation. Seeking
some sheltering rock standing among the debris of broken coral and shells lining the shore, the female
bird deposits her single egg, without making any attempt at the formation of a nest ; and until the
young bird i> hatched and has gained strength of wing, the male is most unwearying in supplying
his mate with food, which consists principally of very small fish and the various mollusca and medusa)
found «>n the reef.

Clown of the head and nape of the neck, a dee}) black ; on the forehead a large V shaped mark
of greyish-white; back, wings and tail a bright brown, the outer tail-feather white at the base; all the
under BUrface white, washed with grey; bill, black; legs and feet^ blackish-green-

Habitats : The western and northern parts of the coasts of Australia ; the islands of the East
Indian Archipelago, and some of the low-lying islands of the Ellice and Kingsmill Groups in the South
Pacific.

SITYj

XL!

GENUS HYDROCHELIDON (Boic).

DIFFERING from the other Terns in choosing as their habitats the swamps, marshes and lagoons of the
interior, about the sedgy herbage of which they build their nests, the members of this genus range
over a great portion of the Australian continent.

HYDROCHELIDON LEUCOPAREIA.

MARSH TERN. Genus : Hydrochblidon.

THIS is one of the smallest of the Terns, and is distinguished by the delicacy and beauty of its
plumage and by its powerful flight, which is rendered the more conspicuous by the bird's
extreme lightness.

The reaches of some of the rivers and the solitude of the reedy lagoons of the interior of the
Australian continent are frequented and enlivened by numbers of these birds, particularly during the
breeding season, when they may be seen flying in small flocks over the surface of the water and skimming
the edges of the marshes or lagoons.

Although the food of this species consists chiefly of very small fish, it has been observed to
seize flying insects while on the wing, by swooping close to the ground and again ascending to a
considerable height, the plunges being performed with great velocity : this insect hunting is usually
undertaken by the birds in pairs.

This Tern, although not a swift swimmer, is an exceedingly buoyant one, and when shot at and
wounded will not dive as others of the Terns do, but will inflict severe bites with its sharp bill when
taken in the hand, though without uttering cries. In this respect, and in the affectionate concern
manifested by the male towards the female bird when the latter is wounded, the species greatly resembles
the American Marsh Tern described by Audubon. That great ornithologist relates that on the various
occasions when he shot male birds the female would merely take a circle as she rose above the reach of
shot, and then move off to some considerable distance : but when the female dropped, if on the water,
the male would plunge headlong towards her, and, alighting by her side, would do all in his power to
aid her in swimming or flying off.

During nidification the birds appear to attach themselves to a particular locality among the
lagoons and marshes which they frequent, usually selecting a spot where the sedgy herbage is very long
and conceals their eggs from the prying eyes of Hawks. As soon as the young bird has gained sufficient
strength on the wing the birds again disperse to the various feeding grounds.

As regards plumage, the male and female bird are much alike, but the latter can always be known
by her comparative smallriess to the male.

Forehead, crown and nape, deep black ; all the upper surface, wings and tail, a rich grey ; sides of the
face and throat, white, deepening into grey towards the chest ; bill, a brilliant red ; feet, red.

Total length; 9f inches ; bill, 1| inch ; wing, 8f inches ; tail, 8^ inches ; tarsi, £ inch.

Habitats: The interior rivers, lagoons and marshes of the Australian continent generally; about
the Swan River and Cambridge Gulf, in Western Australia, it has hern observed in small Hocks, but made
do lengthened stay.

GENUS GYGIS (Waglcr).

OY the single species of tliis genus of Tern found in Australia, or of its allies, but little is known.
Tin- various groups of the South Sea Islands, the Indian Ocean, and northern Australian
leas generally are its habitats.

GYGIS CANDIDA.

WHITE TERN. Genus: Gygis.

r 1 1 1 1 I S undoubtedly the mosi beautiful of all the Terns, and although met with all along the northern
1 half of the eastern seaboard of Australia, the favourite haunts of the species are those low-lying
palm clad islands of Polynesia known as the Paumotu Archipelago, situated to the eastward of the
Society [stands. ( >n Elizabeth and Oeno Islands, lonely little spots in the archipelago alluded to, and not
fir from the famous Pitcairn Island of the "Bounty" mutineers, there are two nurseries of these birds.

Like its very antithesis in colour, the Sooty Tern, this bird seems satisfied with the merest
apology for a nest, but, unlike 0. Fuliginosa, it never incubates on the ground, always choosing a depression
in the peculiar horizontal branches of a species of Pandanus which is very plentiful on the two islands
before mentioned ; and although the strong trade winds cause a constant oscillation of the branches, the
• gg almosl invariably retains its position, as very few were observed lying on the ground by Mr. Cuming, who
visited these places some years ago, hut he noticed that many of the young birds fell down and died of
hunger.

By the natives of the Paumotu Archipelago tin: plumage of these snow-white birds is greatly
estimated for purpo — of adornment, and the breeding grounds in some of the islands of the group are annually
visited l>\ parties of' natives, who devote several days to feasting on the earffS, which, as the Terns
congregate at such localities in thousands, are very plentiful.

In -peaking of a visit to Keeling Island, in the South Pacific, Darwin observed this beautiful
"era, and stated that it would approach within an arm's length of his head, its large black eye scanning
him with an expression of quiet curiosity, and that little imagination was required to fancy that so light
and delicate a body was tenanted by some wandering fairy spirit

There is no outward difference observable in the sexes.

Che entile under-plnmage is snow-white; wings and back a very light grey; hill, dark blue at
the hase. deepening into black at the tip; feet, orange.

The length of the adult bird is 13 inches, with a breadth of 20 inches from wing to wing.

Habitats : The northern part of the eastern coast of Australia and the numerous atoll islands of
Polynesia.

HARV

PLATE

XLII.

GENUS STERN U LA (Bote).

"YTARIOUS parts of the Australian coast are inhabited by these fairy-like little birds, whose delicate
colouring and elegant forms, as they hover about the low sandy islets, convey an impression of
beauty not easily forgotten by the traveller.

STERXULA NEREIS (Gould.

LITTLE TERN. Genus : Sternula.

A LTHOUGH not so beautiful and fairy-like a creature as G. Candida, this is a very delicately-
coloured and graceful little Tern, and congregates in prodigious numbers at the breeding grounds,
the principal of which are on Garden and Rottnest Islands, off the coast of Western Australia.

In its habits and general economy this species resembles exactly the Little Tern of Europe,
but far surpasses it in delicacy of plumage.

Like the Sooty Tern, this species makes no attempt at forming a nest, a slight depression
only being formed in the sand or loose coral, in which two eggs are deposited. These are of a dull
creamy white, occasionally blotched at the larger end with markings of dark brown ; they are one inch
and three-eighths long by seven-eighths broad.

Like the other ocean - haunting Tern, the food consists of the various mollusca, medusa? and
small fishes ; the latter are captured with great ease, the bird plunging down into the water from a great
height and striking its prey with an unerring aim.

The sexes have no apparent outward difference.

Crown of the head, black, with a pale bluish mark in the centre ; back of the neck and mark
around the eye, black ; forehead, greyish white ; back and wings, a delicate silver grey ; sides of the
neck and body beneath the wings, white, deepening into gre}~ on the abdomen ; bill and feet, a light
yellow.

Total length, 10^ inches; bill, If inch; wing, 7^ inches; tail, 4^ inches; tarsi, 9 /io m °h-

Habitats : From the low sandy islands in Bass's Straits and along the Great Australian
Bight to the coast of Western Australia ; the species is also met with at the mouths of the tidal
rivers of the Northern Territorv of South Australia.

GENUS STERNA (Linnceus).

rflHREE species of this genus inhabit Australia, and, as now restricted, are universally diffused over
' the seas of the <dohe. The colouring of these Terns is particularly delicate and beautiful.

STERNA MELANAUCHEN (Temminch).

II LA( 'A' X. I FED TERN. Genus : Sterna.

■ OVINQ the warmth of the tropic seas and islands of the East Indian Archipelago, this beautifu
^ Tern, which is distinguished from all the other members of the genus by the pearly-grey crown
of the head, is also a freipient visitor to the northern coasts of Australia.

The breeding places of this species arc said to be the islands of the Malayan Peninsula and
the Nicobar Islands in the Indian Ocean; but a small nursery of the birds was discovered by Mr.
Macgillivray on one of the sandbanks near Sir Charles Hardy's Islands in Torres Straits. About the
islands of the Louisiade Archipelago also these Terns are met with, and although not yet discovered,
there is doubtless a breeding place somewhere in that group or on the southern coast of New Guinea.

In tin- mode of procuring food and habits in general this species presents no marked difference
to the other Terns, except that it is excessively shy, cannot be captured by a hook and line, can but
rarely be approached near enough to be shot unless during the breeding season, and is a very noisy bird.

W hen patrolling the reefs and sandbanks in search of food, the number of a '-flock seldom
exceeds eight or ten.

Two eggs, of a dull cream colour, mottled with brownish marks, are deposited in a slight

depression formed in the sand or shingle. The plumage of the young birds seen by Mr. Maegillivray
"ii Sir Charles Hardy's Islands differed from the adult bird in having the back markings on the head

a brown mottled with white; and this is considered by Mr. Blyth to show the affinity of this

species to the genus Onychoprion.

In J ava and other parts of the East Indian Archipelago this Tern is called "Toyang Kacha."

No outward difference was discernible by Gould in the sexes; but he was of the opinion
that, in common with other members of the family, this species undergoes changes of plumage, and that
consequently at some seasons of the year the black mark at the occiput is more subdued in colour
than at others.

Crown of the head, pearl grey ; neck and under surface, white, with a greyish tinge on the
breast ; a gorget-shaped mark commencing immediately before the eye and extending over the nape,
black; upper surface, wings and tail, a rich silvery grey; bill, black; feet, dark brown.

Habitats : The islands about Torres Straits ; and thence along the northern shores of Australia
to the Celebes and Moluccas.

-STERNULA NEREIS. (Could)
Lil-He Tern.

C J. Bromowski Fecit'

— STERNA M ELAN AUCHEN. (Temmj
Black-naped Tern.

HAF.V
CAMI

PLATE

XLTII

STEBNA MELANOKHYNCHA (Gould).

SOUTHERN TERN. Genus: Sterna.

ri^HE present bird is one of the smallest of the Terns, and, as far as is known, in habits and
general mode of life does not differ from the other members of the family.

This species frequents the colder latitudes of the southern hemisphere, but occasionally visits
the coasts of New Zealand and Tasmania, and some fine specimens were procured by Gould near
Maria Island, off the coast of the latter island. All these, he observed, had white foreheads, which
is doubtless the winter plumage, as he subsequently received from Mr. Macgillivray what he considered
some fully adult examples of the species in their summer dress, in which the crown of the head was
entirely black. In some specimens, however, the bill was red, while in others the red of the upper
mandible was stained with black, but in all the upper and under surfaces were a dark blue grey, and
the rump, tail-coverts and tail white.

Except for its much smaller size and darker hue of plumage, there is a strong resemblance
between this species and one inhabiting the Falkland Islands, in the South Atlantic.

No breeding places of this bird have yet been discovered on the Australian coast or the
islands adjacent thereto ; but as small flocks are occasionally seen about the Chatham Islands, and
the New T Zealand and Tasmanian coasts, there are probably nurseries situated in some of the islands
of the southern ocean, which will doubtless be revealed at some future time.

St. Paul's and Amsterdam Islands are included in the range of habitat of this species, and
from the former place some eggs were procured by Macgillivray, the ground colour of which was an
olive brown, blotched and marked all over with rich umber ; at the larger end these markings were
particularly conspicuous and intermingled with faint streaks of grey. The length of the egg is
If inch by a breadth of l£ inch.

When met with at sea this Tern is rather timid, does not usually approach very close to the
ship, and is chary of taking any food secured to a hook, unless driven to it by hunger.

Forehead, grey ; from behind the eye, occiput and back of the neck, black ; all the under
surface, grey-white : the upper surface, wings and tail, a rich grey ; bill, black ; legs and feet a brilliant
red.

Total length, J 3 inches ; bill, 2|- inches ; wing, 9f inches ; tail, 6^ inches ; tarsi, f inch.

Habitat : That portion of the southern ocean lying between the south coast of Australia and
the Chatham Islands seems to be the most favoured range.

STE I! N A G R ATILIS (Gould).

GRACEFUL TERN. Genus: Sterna.

IT fa 1 1 1 \>< regi'etted thai bo little is known regarding this fairy-like and beautiful Torn, and
although Gilbert states thai saw vast Bocks on the Houtman's Abrolhos, he arrived there too
l it, 1 1 > -.rui'' any eggs, the breeding season being over, and could learn but little of its habits from
the people who visited the Abrolhos.

Tin' species is gregarious at all seasons of the year, and about the low sandy islands of the
Abrolhos shoals and the the islands of the Dampier and Buccaneer Archipelagos — all of which are
situated in the warm seas of tin West Australian (.-oast — large flocks of these graceful sea rangers are
seen continually passing to and fro, especially in the early morning and towards the close of the day;
during the heal of the day. and after the birds have finished the morning's fishing about the coral
r< efs .oid sandbanks, they retire to the shore and seek the shelter of the stunted herbage.

Two eggs are laid by this species, and those found on the Abrolhos were deposited in a
, ireless manner on the ground among the loose debris of coral and seaweed lying above high water
mark.

Crown of the head and back of the neck a deep rich black; all the upper surface, wings and
tail, silvery grey ; sides of the neck and all the under surface, white, with a faint tinge of rose-colour on
the breasi and abdomen: bill, red: feet, orange-red ; claws, black.

Habitat : The coast of Western Australia, from Cape Leeuwin to the Buccaneer Archipelago,
and the islands of the northern coast.

Southern Tern. CraceFul Tern.

HA!
CA

GENUS GELOCHELIDON (Brehm).

ATYPICAL example of this genus is found in the Gull-billed Tern of the British Islands. It is
also common in North America.

GELOCHELIDON M A C R ( ) T A R S A (Gould).

LONG - LEGGED TERN. Genus : Gelouhelidox.

EITHER the true habitat of this species has not yet been visited by an ornithologist, or the bird is
very rare.

Although nearly allied to the Gelochelidon Anglica (Gull-billed Tern) of Europe, the Australian
bird has distinctive features from the representative of the genus in the northern hemisphere, the
principal of which are its greater size of body, longer and larger legs, and the delicacy of the colouring
of the back and wings.

Until the year L837, this species, according to Gould, was entirely new to science. In that
year he published a full description of the bird, but during the following twenty-eight years he saw but
two other examples, one of which was obtained from Southern Queensland ; the other was procured on the
Victoria River, in North-west Australia.

The vast extent of coast line from the western shores of the Gulf of Carpentaria to the Fitzroy
River in Western Australia is still comparatively unexplored by the ornithologist, and it is probable that
with the rapid progress of settlement in those regions, additional light will be thrown upon the obscurity
which at present surrounds this great Tern by one or more of the breeding places being discovered
and the habits of the species observed by the collector.

Crown of the head and back of the neck, a deep black ; all the upper surfaces, a bright
silvery grey ; the tail feathers, washed with light brown ; sides of the head, neck and chest, white ;
all the rest of the under surface, grey-white ; bill and feet, a dull black.

The total length of the two specimens obtained by Gould averaged 17 inches ; bill. 2^ inches ;
wing, L3| inches; tail, (5 inches; tarsi, lj inch.

Habitat : The north-western coast of Australia.

GENUS SYLOC H ELI DON (Brehm).

TBTHIS is the largest and most powerful member of the family SternideB; only a single specimen is
found in Australia. It is common to various parts of India, and also occurs in the south of
Europe.

syi,<m'im:uim>\ CASPIA.

CASPIAN TERN. Genus: Syloohblidon.
a \ REAT breadth of wing, velocity of flight, and diving powers distinguish this fine member of tluj

* " laiiiih Sti rii n/ii .

Although found along the Bhores of Australia generally, tin- species is more numerous about the
. t f Tasmania and the islands of Bass's Straits than on any portion of our island continent.

Frequenters of the mouths of rivers, and the muddy or sandy Hats which are usually attendant
features of Buch places, these Terns are usually seen flying in pairs and fishing much in the same
Oittnner ;l> dn the larger species of (Julls. It is then that the splendid wing- development of this
, I, , |g aeen to the besl advantage; suspended high in air, its keen, restless eye detects a fish far
below, and with amazing velocity and unerring aim the bird cleaves the air and plunges into the
Water, emerging triumphantly from beneath the surface within a few seconds holding the prize in its
powerful beak, and flying to land to enjoy the feast. At other times the male and female bird will
be Been in company, skimming the crests of the billows with graceful swallow-like movements, uttering
the while in quick succession their peculiar cackling note, which more resembles a coarse laugh than
the cry of a bird.

These Terns resort to the islands in Bass's Straits during the months of August, September
and October for the purpose of breeding: at this time they are very fierce, and savagely resent the
intrusion within the boundaries of their breeding place of any of the Gulls or Petrels.

A> the breeding season approaches, the spotted appearance of the crown of the head changes
to a hlle of the deepest black.

Even during the period of incubation this species is not gregarious, seldom more than one
pair being found on an island, unle.-s it be of some considerable size or of a rough and precipitous
character, when others will seek out secluded spots in the various little bays and indentations, and
form nests Dear the water's edge by simply making a slight depression in the sand or shingle.

Two eggs are laid, of a dull stone-colour, with markings of brown: they are nearly three
inches in length by one inch and three-<|uarters broad, but are not very palatable, owing to their strong
fish-like flavour.

Only by the .-mailer size of the female can the sexes be distinguished, as they arc both
subject to the change of pluuiage before mentioned.

Forehead, crown and nape, a rich glossy black; back, wings and tail, ashy-grey, deepening into
dark-grey on the primaries; remainder of the plumage, white: bill, scarlet, with a white line along the
upper mandible, and a yellowish line along the edges of both mandibles.

Total length, -J"! inches; bill. 4 inches: wing, inches: tail, (>h inches; tarsi, 2 inches.

< Occasionally examples are met w ith nearly 22 inches in length, and with fully a breadth of 36 inches
from wins to winsr.

Habitat- : The coasts of Australia generally, and the islands and coast of Tasmania especially.

M

HARV
CAM*

XLY.

GENUS THALASSEUS (Bate).

ri^HREE distinct species of this genus are found in Australia, the type of which in Europe is
J- T. Cantiacus, and which is there widely diffused.

THALASSEUS CEISTATUS.

TORRES STRAITS TERN. Gents: Thalasseus.

CiOMETIMES called the Yellow-billed Tern, this is the most shy and timid of the family, and
cannot, like so many of its congeners, be captured with a hook and line, the presence of which,
floating on the water, is a signal for immediate flight to a considerable distance.

This is the largest of all the Terns inhabiting the islands of Torres Straits, where great
numbers may be seen at all seasons of the year ; it was considered by Gould to be identical with
Sterna Pelecanoides, described by Captain King.

In mode of life generally this Tern does not differ from Thalasseus Poliocercus (inhabiting the
coasts of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania), to which it is very nearly allied ; the plumage
of the two species is very much alike, but T. Cristaius may always be recognised by the much
larger bill and stouter body.

About the islands of Torres Straits and the low sandbanks of the Great Barrier Reef this
species is very numerous. Breeding places were discovered by Mr. Macgillivray on Lizard Island
and Raine's Islet. At the latter place the nursery was visited in June, when both eggs and young
birds were procured ; here, it was noticed, the birds were divided into three flocks, each having a
separate nursery, but all situated on a low ridge on the lee side of the island. As soon as Mr.
Macgillivray 's party approached within fifty yards the utmost alarm prevailed among the birds, all
those sitting on nests rising and flying away, but returning in a few minutes, they hovered about,
anxiously watching the movements of the visitors. The nests were merely slight hollows scooped out
of the soft sandy soil, but each was situated in a clear sheltered spot among the scrubby herbage.
One egg or one young bird only was found in each nest, and the former varied considerably in their
markings: the ground colour of most was a dull grey, in some instances very thickly blotched or speckled
with black : others were marked with wavy streaks and small spots of brown ; others again were
marked all over with irregular blotches of black, and a great many were noticed in which the larger
end was either blotched or streaked with dark red on a light pinkish-grey ground.

There is no outward difference between the sexes when fully grown ; the young birds, however,
may he distinguished by the black part of the head being mottled with white.

Crown of the head and occipital crest, black ; forehead, sides and back of the neck and all the
under surface, silky-grey ; back, wings and tail, ashy-grey, deepening into brown on the edges and tips of
the primaries : bill, pale greenish yellow : legs and feet, black.

Habitats : The islands of Torres Straits and the northern and western coasts of Australia.

Til A LASSEUS POLIOCERCUS (Gould),

BASS'S STRAITS TERN. Genus: Thalasseus.

rflHE English tvpe of this species is tin- Kentish Tern, and in general habits it resembles that
I variety i it i-. however, a rather larger bird.

During the winter months this Tern is very abundant on the shores of New South Wales
and Victoria, and vasl flocks frequent the islands of Bass's Straits; in that season small flocks make
their waj in'" the various bays and inlets, and very often ascend far up the rivers and remain about
ill, gaild »»nd mud flats till the warm weather returns. Whilst in these localities their principal food
consists of the shoals of small tish — principally mullet — which are then very plentiful.

These flocks vary in numbers from ten to a hundred, and each would seem to possess its
exclusive range of Ashing ground, although when an especially large shoal of fish appears on the surface,
tli, whole will combine forces for an onslaught, when nothing can exceed the address and suddennes
with which these birds dart upon and secure their prey, this species being one of the swiftest of
the Tern family.

During the prevalence of heavy easterly gales on the coast of New South Wales, numbers of
these bird- will seek refuge inland, and alighting on the margins of swamps and marshes, even though
those place-, should be in close proximity to man. will there remain till tine weather sets in, when they
return to their usual haunts about the sea shore.

High, inaccessible rocks, standing some distance from the shore, are usually chosen as breeding
places, and here the birds deposit their eggs in the crevices of the rock, generally on the side facing
the land and out of the reach of the spray should stormy weather happen. About the coast of New
South Wales many such rocks may be observed, covered with the white excrement of these Terds
and (lulls, the latter bird fishing and dwelling with perfect amity with the present species.

The eggs aie usuallv of a dull cn-ev colour, although manv are seen of a liyht buff tinge: but
all present the same irregular blotches and streaks of brown : in many instances these markings bear a great
resemblance to Chinese characters, and in some the blotches are so thick at tin' larger end as to blend
and form a distinct zone.

There is no outward difference in the sexes; in summer the mottled black and white heads
o| the adtdt birds change to the deepest jet black.

Crown of the head and occipital crest, deep black; forehead, sides and back of the neck and all
the under surface, silky-grey ; back, wings and tail, ashy-grey ; bill, bright yellow ; legs and feet, brownish
black.

Total length, 17^ inches; bill, 2| inches: wing, I2§ inches; tail, 7 inches: tarsi, 1 inch.
Habitat-. : The coasts of' New South Wales and Victoria and the islands of Bass's Straits.

HARVAf

ilTY,

PLATE XLVI.

THALASSEUS BEXGALENSIS.

INDIAN TERN. Genus: Thalasseus.

CLOSELY allied to and resembling in its general mode of life the two preceding species, this
Tern is a frequenter of the warm latitudes of the northern parts of Australia and the islands
of the East Indian Archipelago.

About the mangrove-banked sluggish waters of the tidal rivers and creeks debouching into the
Gulf of Carpentaria, and along the north-western coast of Australia, these Terns are seen in small
Hocks, generally haunting the sandbanks at the entrances to the sea.

Like the preceding species, the present does not display any fear of man, and around the shores
of Port Darwin and Port Essington numbers of these birds may be observed at almost all seasons of the
year, standing on the sand flats or flying about fishing.

The food consists principally of fish and the various mollusca and medusa? to be found on
the reefs.

A change of the plumage about the head, similar to that which takes place in T. Cristatus
and T. Poliocercus, is also undergone by this species in summer, when the winter coating of white
gives place to a rich black ; there is no difference of plumage in the sexes.

Crown of the head and occipital crest, black ; back and wings, a rich grey ; tail, dark grey ; all
the under surface, a light grey ; bill, bright yellow : feet, dark grey.

Total length. 13^ inches: bill, 2| inches: wing, 111 inches; tail, 4| inches; tarsi, 1 inch.

Habitats : The coasts of Northern and North-western Australia,

FAMILY LARID^E.

ALTHOUGH there seems to be much affinity between the present or Gull family and the Terns,
they are perfectly distinguishable, and easily separated into two families. The Gulls are in
general much stouter than the Terns : the bills much stronger, and in some crooked at the end, in
a degree equal to many birds of prey, and, indeed, the first of the family to be now described — the
Great Skua Gull — is of particularly rapacious habits, seldom obtaining its livelihood by its own honest
exertions, but, attacking the ordinary species and the Petrels, it forces them to yield up their booty;
the legs of the Gulls are also much stronger than with the Terns. Comprising numerous species, the
family has been divided into many genera in accordance with the variety of their structure, general
habits and nidification. In the latter respect, although the various species show differences, they are
thoroughly gregarious at this time, and prodigious numbers assemble at the breeding places, which in
some instances are on isolated rocks, and in others on the banks of tidal rivers or salt marshes near
the shore.

The Bofl and dense plumage of the (Julls renders them incapable of any great diving powers,
although it (rives them a graceful carriage when swimming, and therefore these l>ir<ls seldom dive, always
being able to secure their prey on the surface of the water. Like the Terns, the (lulls are true
cosmopolites, inhabiting the shores and islands of every /one, and most oi the genera have a wide range.

GENUS STERCORARIUS ( Brissan ).

rilllls i- the only representative of the parasitic Gulls inhabiting Australian seas: in the higher latitudes
I of the northern hemisphere they are very numerous.

ST ERCO R A III US CAT A RE H A CT ES.

GREAT SKUA. Genus: Stercorarius.

I71IERCE, powerful, and of a tyrannous and rapacious disposition, the Great Skua contests with the
Albatros the supremacy of the ocean, robbing and slaying without mercy its weaker brethren, and
devouring their bodies when unable to obtain fish or eergfs.

o on

As the voyager to Australia nears the higher latitudes the ship is sure to be visited by wandering
individuals or pairs of this species generally the former. The slow, heavy flight and bulky body of the
bird as it approaches the vessel at once arouses attention : apparently attracted more from inquisitiveness
than from a desire to obtain food, the Skua will follow and hover about the ship for perhaps half an
hour, and although quickly pouncing upon and securing any morsel of edible; refuse cast overboard when
such has drifted a considerable distance astern, the bird will but rarely seize a bait attached to a line
towing in the ship's wake. After sufficiently satisfying its curiosity by examining the ship and its human
tenants as closely as excessive caution will permit, the solitary wanderer again wings its way over the
ocean until lost to view.

The most frequented haunts of the species in Australian seas are the southern coasts of Tasmania,
and Xew Zealand, where great numbers may be seen ; but it particularly favours the higher and colder
latitudes about the Auckland and Campbell Islands, on which the breeding grounds of so many of the
other ocean haunting birds are situated, and where the predatory instincts of the Skua have the fullest
-cope in devouring the eggs and young birds of the other species.

A favoured breeding place- is in the cheerless solitudes of Kerguelen's Land, and Mr. Eaton gives
an interesting account of a visit to the nursery in that inhospitable island. As the visitors approached the
females sitting on their nests, the male birds swooped towards them with such menacing aspect and fierce
impetuosity that the seamen who accompanied Mr. Eaton had to defend themselves by striking the birds
down with sticks ; sometimes a Skua would fly straight at a seaman's face, rising only just in time to
clear his head, and uttering short despairing cries, as if hopeless of preventing the intruder from reaching
the nest. On some occasions, when the birds seemed to fancy that they had succeeded in intimidating
the enemy from despoiling their nests, they would stand face to face upon the ground, with wings extended
vertically so as almost to meet above their backs, whilst two or three would chant a paean consisting of
a dozen notes or so. delivered in hoarse croaking tones ; and there was every indication that during the
period of incubation the Skua is courageous to an alarming degree, particularly if young birds were in
the nest.

Petrels of one sort or another seemed to be the staple food of the Skuas on Kerguelen's Land.
They hunt for them in the evening when it is becoming dusk, flying rapidly along the hill sides, close to
the ground, like Hawks, ready t<> pounce upon any that they may see emerging from the mouths of their
burrows. Again in the early morning the Skuas arc upon the wing to waylay Petrels returning from
the sea; nor are they idle during the rest of the day. which is devoted to plundering the nests of other
birds of the eggs and young ones. A number of Blue Petrels captured in the night by the sailors who
attended Mr. Eaton were turned loose in the day time, and were all chased by Skuas and killed on the
wing before they had flown half a mile.

No nests were made by the Skuas on Kerguelen's Land, the eggs being merely deposited on the
ground among the low scrubby herbage : there were three in each nest, some being dark brown mottled
with white, and others a lighter brown, with darker-hued spots all over the larger end.

After the close of the breeding season the birds disperse over the oCean, for the most part
separating into pairs, and are often seen fully a thousand miles from land, their only resting places upon
the water being the floating masses of seaweed which are met with at wide intervals in all latitudes, and
here they have been observed resting with as much ease as upon solid ground.

When two Skuas are engaged in fishing together the pair will not hesitate to attack the largest
Albatros, if that bird should be carrying any food while on the wing : at this time the giant bird has no
other resource but to drop his load and settle on the water, and once the plunder is secured the Skuas
fly away.

By many sailors and sealers the flesh of the Skua is considered delicate and much valued, and the
feathers are esteemed for their softness and cleanliness.

The plumage of the Skuas of the southern hemisphere is stated by Gould to be darker than that
of those inhabiting the northern hemisphere, and they are also larger and heavier birds ; but there is no
difference in the colouring of the sexes.

The whole plumage a rich brown ; bill, legs and feet, bluish-black.

Habitats : The whole of the southern seas generally.

H
C

PLATE XLYII.

GENUS LARUS (Linnceus).

TIlRUE cosmopolites, the members of this genus inhabit the shores and islands of every zone,
J- although there is but one representative found in Australia, the which represents the L. Marinus
of European and American seas. From its northern prototype, however, it differs in the manner of
its flight, which is powerful and buoyant, but in all other respects they are similar. Like those
of Europe and America, the Gulls of the southern hemisphere are voracious and clamorous birds, and
they may be styled the vultures of the sea, devouring as they do carrion of every kind which floats
on the surface or is cast ashore. With the exception of the Great Skua, the Gulls familiar to us
in Australia are timid, unless when assailed by hunger, or when driven by inclement weather they
seek refuge on shore, and establish themselves in the immediate vicinity of the dwellings of man.

L A 11 IT S PACIFIC US (Latham).
PACIFIC GULL. Genus: Larus.

IX stormy weather, especially if it be an easterly gale upon the coast of New South Wales, a
by no means infrequent visitation are the flocks of this species of the family Laridce, which,
driven from their ordinary haunts by the violence of the wind and sea, travel inland till the desired
shelter is found in some depression of the country, such as a grassy flat or the margin of a swamp
or lake ; and here they will remain till the violence of the storm has abated, either wandering about
the flats in a contented manner, or picking up the worms and larvae generally to be found in newly -
ploughed fields. On such occasions as this it has been observed, immediately after the birds have
alighted from their journey from the sea. that many appear to have suffered severely from the weather,
and are barely able to sustain life by looking for worms or such other food as may be in the
neighbourhood ; it is then that they may be captured and domesticated, and there is no other of the
ocean-haunting birds that so soon resigns itself to imprisonment as this Gull. It is no unusual sight
in many of our coastal towns to see one of these white sea wanderers walking about in an apparently
contented manner among the common poultry of the farm, although the garden is the haunt preferred,
as there may be found a plentiful supply of worms and snails, for which diet the captive shows a
strong taste, although meat, bread, and, in fact, almost any food will be eagerly eaten by the bird
as time passes on and the desire to escape to the ocean dies away. Looking at a captive Gull
under circumstances such as these, it appears difficult even to imagine that this pretty creature is the
prototype of the Gulls of the northern hemisphere as described by M. Baillon, who says that their
ignoble port, their importunate cries, their edged and hooked bills, present the hateful picture of birds
sanguinary and basely cruel ; they fight rancourously together on the scene of carnage, and even
when they are shut up, and their ferocious humour is soured by captivity, they wound each other
without apparent motive, and the first from which blood is drawn falls a victim to the rest, for
their fury then rises to a pitch, and they tear in pieces the unfortunate wretch which they had
wounded without cause.

The present species, however, lias not the dreadful characteristics presented by M. Baillon,
although, in common with most ocean birds, it loves to feed on carrion, and will gather in multitudes
about the carcase of B whale or seal, oil which fchey easily satiate their rapacity, and procure ample

provision for the innate gluttony of their young.

Tin- distinct features by which the Larus Pacificvs differs from all other species are the
pearK whiteness of the irides and the deepened form of the bill; their flight is powerful and buoyant,

performed by graceful, measured heats of their long, extended and arched wings. When a flock has

alighted on ;i sand bank, or any place affording a level surface, a peculiar action is often noticed to

he perfon I by some of the birds either walking or running backwards with remarkable celerity,

patting their feet upon the ground with lightning-like rapidity.

A> winter approaches, large flocks congregate about the sand hanks and mud flats at the
mouths of rivers ami creeks, where, at early morn, they may he observed energetically fishing or
picking up the usual crustacea, mollusca. etc., abounding in such localities: and as the heat of the
sun becomes powerful, a pretty scene is formed by the birds resting <>n the shore, close to the
water, either standing on one foot, with retracted neck, or lying down.

In the breeding season this species is strictly gregarious, a number of flocks joining together
and choosing either some lonely rock, standing well out from the shore, or an inaccessible headland,
and here the nursery is established. Many such breeding places are to be found on the islands about
Tasmania, particularly those not often visited by man. Three eggs are usually deposited on the bare
rock, in such a place as to be safe from breakage ; the ground colour is a pure olive, beautifully
marked with blackish and umber-brown streaks and blotches: two inches and five-eighths long by one
inch and >e\ en-eighths in breadth is the average size.

The general plumage of the young birds is light brown, with lighter-hued margins to the

longer feathers, which gives them a somewhat mottled appearance ; and the bill is a yellowish -brown

deepening into black at the tip. The complete colour of plumage is not acquired till after several
moultings, when the bird is rather more than two years old.

Head and neck and all the under surfaces, black: lower part of the back and wings, deep
slate-colour, with the exception of the inner primaries and the secondaries, which are broadly tipped
with white : tail, white, barred near the tip with the same shade as the wings ; irides, white ; legs,
yellow : nails, black : bill, a strong yellow, tipped with bright orange-red.

Habitats: The southern part of the eastern shores of the Australian continent and the
islands of Bass's Straits.

GEXUS BRUCHIGAVIA (Bonaparte.)

\ \ hi-!* structure, elegant appearance and gracefulness of flight distinguish the Gulls of this
genus from the rest of the family. In their general habits and economy they bear much
resemblance to the other genera of Gulls; but both this species and B. (;<>»/<h' undergo no change of
the head plumage, which is white at all seasons of the year. Two species only are known to inhabit
Australia -one the islands of the Society Group in the South Pacific, and another Brazil.

BRUCHIGAVIA JAMESOXTI.

SIL VER <rUIJj. Gen us : Bruch i gavia.

IN beauty of form and lightness and gracefulness of movement, either when on the wing or running
over the surface of the ground, the Silver Gull fairly competes with the fairy-like White Tern
(Gygis Candida), and like that bird it will sometimes approach to within an arm's length, hovering
smooth I v just out of reach, and scanning with quiet interest the expression of the stranger.

When in pursuit of a shoal of small fish these Gulls assemble in flocks, and. hovering over
the surface of the water, each bird darts every few seconds among the fry with extraordinary rapidity,
and continues to prey upon the fish until so replete d as to be unable to fly. A pretty picture is
often afforded the traveller by a group of this species when floating on the water, and it is pleasant
to see them buoyantly rising and falling alternately upon the rolling swell of the Pacific-, the pearly
whiteness of their under parts contrasting with the deep blue of the ocean, and their elongated wings
extending beyond the tail, giving them a peculiar appearance of gracefulness and agility.

At sea, and when the nearest land is perhaps some hundreds of miles distant, the voyager
will sometimes be gratified by the sudden appearance of a pair of these Gulls. Wheeling in ever
narrowing circles around the ship, the winged pilgrims seem to express pleasure by their short, rapid
cries, especially when bits of bread or such refuse is thrown overboard to them. Once their hunger
is satisfied the pair will often remain, flying about in the vicinity of the ship the whole day, and
then suddenly, as if cognisant of the existence of land in a particular direction', thev wing then-
flight over the sea and return no more.

Like the preceding species, the Silver Gulls are strictly gregarious during the breeding season,
and nurseries inhabited by many hundreds of these aerial and ocean wanderers are to be found' among
the sedgy herbage of the salt marshes <>n unfrequented parts of the coast : others are situated upon
the small islands of Bass's Straits.

Some slight preparation for the period of incubation is made, a few small sticks, rushes and
tufts of grass being leathered together in the form of a nest. Four, and sometimes five, eggs are
deposited in the rude structure : great differences of colour are presented, no two of any of the four
or five in each nest being alike: the colour of some is a dark olive-brown, in others a pale green:
in some instances one egg will be thickly streaked and blotched with a very dark brown, while in
another the markings will be but barely perceptible : a difference in shape i> also show n, some being
rather long and thin, and others short and thin.

There is no outward difference in the sexes ; the young birds, however, can always be
recognised by their mottled brown and white plumage.

Head, neck, under surfaces, and rump and tail, white ; wings and remaining upper surfaces
grey, except the primaries, which are almost white, with a black mark near the mar-gin : bill, irides,
legs and feet, bright red; nails, black: irides, white.

Habitats : The southern coasts of Australia and the islands and shores of Tasmania.

ID
>

CO

HP

!TY

PLATE XLYIII.

FAMILY ANATIDCE.

IX surveying* the birds of the order Natatores some remarkable contrasts are afforded by the
preponderance in number of species of some of the groups of the order and the extreme paucity
of others of those inhabiting the northern and southern hemispheres, and the present family is a case in
instance ; for while at least forty species inhabit Europe, half that number are all that are known in
Australia. Of the family Procellaridce, however, while less than ten species are met with in Europe,
nearly forty range Australian seas.

The most important Australian representatives of the Anatidce are the Cereopsis Goose and the
Black Swan, while for singularity of appearance the Musk Duck takes precedence of all other members
of the family.

GENUS BIZIURA (Leach).

OF all the anomalous forms of animal life met with in the Antipodes, none is more so than this
genus, of which only one species is known, and so especially different is it from all other members
of the family Anatidce, that although Gould, following Bonaparte, placed it next to the genus Erismatura,
he believed it to be but seemingly allied to that form. Especially adapted for diving and for procuring
its food from the bottom rather than from the surface of the water, this species more resembles one of
the Cormorants than any other bird of the order Na tat ores.

BIZIURA LOBATA.

MUSK DUCK. Genus: Biziura.

THIS extraordinary bird is widely distributed over the whole of the southern portion of the Australian
continent, and is also met with in Tasmania and the islands of Bass's Straits.

The most singular feature of the Musk Duck is a wattle-like formation hanedngf from the under
surface of the under mandible of the male bird. This appendage is of a stiff and leather-like consistency,
irregularly rounded and hanging in folds, and is one inch and a half deep ; and, as yet, the function or
use — if it is possessed of any — of this curious lobe has not been discovered.

Both the male and the female birds, during the pairing and breeding season, possess a powerful
musky odour, and the secluded retreat of a pair is by this often revealed ; and when a bird is killed
during this particular season it is unfit for food, and the smell of musk is retained for years afterwards in
the skin if it be preserved.

There is much disparity of size in the sexes, the male bird being fully as large again as the
female, and although both are alike as regards plumage, the latter has not the lobe attached to the
bill of the male.

Although specimens of this Duck were procured by Gould from the extreme eastern point of
Australia to tli- lakes running parallel to the coast of Western Australia, and from numerous
intermediate places, none of them presented any sufficiently marked differences for him to establish a
second species, and doubtless those inhabiting Western Australia arc similar in habits and diet to those
found in tli. eastern portion of the continenl and Tasmania. All display the same love of solitude
.,i M | fear of man. and lonelj individuals will often be found in some solitary pool, living in undisturbed
seclusion, and feeding on small frogs, shrimps, mussels, cockles, leeches and aquatic worms. For some
months the bird will lead this hermit-like existence till the food supply is exhausted, and it flies away
Iq U a mate of the opposite Bex dwelling under similar circumstances to its own.

The diving capabilities of the Musk Duck are very great, and seem to be depended upon
both for procuring food and for preservation from danger ; for when surprised by the sportsman,
instead of rising and flying, it will dive the instant the trigger is drawn, and remain beneath the
surface for fl length of time, onlv re-appearing again to breathe at long intervals, till the patience of
the enemy is exhausted.

Generally preferring to haunt the fresh-water pools and narrow tortuous creeks, solitary
individuals or pairs are vet frequently met with in salt water, in most eases far up some deep inlet
of the >ea. engaged in fishing or swimming rapidly along near the shore, looking for some secluded
spot which promise- to be free from intrusion even by other birds.

Parallel to the coast of Western Australia are a series of lakes and marshes, and here, in
this portion of the continent, these unsociable birds, abandoning the pools and waterholes of the rivers
and creeks, resorl for oidification. In some cases the nest is built on the top of a log, where a
branch forms a suitable angle for the purpose, or on the bank, two or three feet above the level of
the water, and both care and labour are manifested in its construction, dried reeds and long grass
being placed together in a rough lattice-work and lined with soft feathers and down, plucked by the
male and female birds from their own breasts. Two eggs only are usually found in each nest, of a
pale olive colour, and three inches long by two broad. During the period of incubation the female
bird rarely leaves the nc>t. except when pressed by the pangs of hunger, and by the time the young
birds are hatched her body has become thin to emaciation. The young take to the water with the
parent bird- within a day or SO after leaving their shells, and if the mother is surprised by man when
accompanied by them they immediately mount upon and cling to her back and dive to a place of
safety, in the same manner as the Grebes.

The Dote of this bird is peculiar, resembling the sound caused by a large drop of water
falling int<> ;| deep well, and not unlike that made by opening the lips suddenly.

The colour i> a dusky brown, which is of a deeper shade on the crown of the head and back
of the neck. On the remaining surfaces the feathers are margined with a lighter- shade; the wings
are of a deeper brown ; bill and lobe underneath, dark grey -green ; legs and feet, dark grey; irides, brown

In the female the colour is not quite so pronounced in the markings of. the feathers, and
she does not possess the appendage under the bill.

Habitats: The whole of the southern and part of the eastern and western portions of
Australia; also Tasmania and the islands of Bass's Straits.

MCZ L

HA

CA

GENUS DENDROCYGNA (Swainson).

VARIOUS portions of America, Africa, India, the Malayan Peninsula and Australia are inhabited
by this form. The two species of the genus to be found in this country both make the same
peculiar whistling noise when on the winy - , and are larger than the Indian and Malayan birds.

DENDROCYGNA GOULDI.

WHISTLING TREE-DUCK. Genus: Dendrocygna.

rilHE extensive lagoons, lakes and marshes of the north-western part of this continent are enlivened
-L during the last four months of the year by prodigious nocks of this species, which resort thither
from the rivers and creeks of the interior to feed upon the supply of succulent aquatic weeds and
mussels, frogs, etc., abounding in such places, which are also favoured haunts of many other species
of aquatic birds. With these latter the Whistling Duck associates in harmony, although .on the
approach of human beings, or if a gun be discharged anywhere in the vicinity, each species will rise
and separate into distinct flocks, the Whistling Ducks generally making for the nearest timber, where
they alight on the trees in an awkward, clumsy manner, swaying to and fro, and only preserving an
upright position by clinging to the branches with their toes.

When engaged in fishing they ar*e silent and industrious birds, seldom giving utterance to a
note, and only retiring to rest at sunset, at which time the whole of the flocks will rise simultaneously,
the combined effect of the whistling noise made bv some thousands of the birds startling the solitude
of the wilderness.

March and April are the breeding months of the species in North-west Australia. During
those months numbers were observed by Gilbert to visit the small islands in the neighbourhood of
1*01! Essington and build their nests in the long grass. About Cambridge Gulf and the mouths of
the Roper and Mae Arthur Rivers breeding places of small flocks have also been discovered. In all
cases the nests were but roughly constructed, and the number of eggs varied from five to ten, and
were of a creamy-white colour : two inches long by one and a half in breadth was the average size.

Crown of the head, upper parts of the back and wings, brown, the feathers bordered by a
lighter margin : rump, tail and outer wing feathers, slaty : wing-coverts, chestnut ; sides of the head,
buff, with finely-pencilled markings on the tips of the feathers ; breast and abdomen, deep chestnut,
barred with circular markings of black : lanceolate flank feathers, yellowish, margined with brown :
i rides, brown ; bill, very dark grey ; tarsi and feet, greenish-grey.

Habitats : Australia generally : more abundant in the north-west than elsewhere on the

continent.

DENDROCYGKA EYTON1 (Gould).

EYTOys TREE-DUCK. Genus: Dbndrooygna.

VLTHOUGH closely resembling the preceding species, except in plumage, this bird was given a
specific name by Gould as a tribute t<> the labours of an ardent ornithologist and author of a
work "ii the .[initiilii Mr. Byton.

Like Dcnth'ucygnft Gouldi, this species loves the warm waters of the lagoons of the north-west

coast of Australia, and it i- also met with in Hocks from Port Essington to tin; Albert River in the

<iull of Carpentaria. A.8 it presents much the same habits and mode of life generally as its fellow

member of the genus, the description of h. <i<mltH in those particulars is applicable to this bird.

On the lagoons and creeks of the remote interior of Australia small flocks of from ten to
twenty birds are occasionally seen, when they may he approached very closely before taking wing; on
the larger rivers, however, and mi the lagoons and open timberless waterholes near the coast, they
display greal timidity if approached by man. and are difficult to shoot. When the flock is disturbed
w hilst feeding the birds rise very quickly and form a V-shaped flight, the outline of which is preserved
with unbroken regularity until they are lost to view.

In tiidification this species does not differ from the preceding one.

Head and neck, light reddish-brown; upper surfaces, brownish-grey; tail, more yellow and
tipped with black; tertiaries, red-brown, barred with black; flank feathers, yellow, with dark margin;
a hand ol reddish-brown with black markings runs across the upper part of the abdomen; lower part
• it the abdomen, buff; irides, rich brown ; feet, light red.

Habitat : Australia ; the northern and western parts being the more favoured ranges.

M

HARV/

cam:

PLATE L.

GENUS MALACHORHYNCHUS (Swcdnson).

POWERFULNESS and velocity of flight, delicacy of plumage, and absence of timidity of man
distinguish this beautiful little Duck from the rest of the Anatidw. One species only is known,
and is peculiar to Australia,

MALACHORHYNCHUS MEMBEANACEUS.

PINK-EYED DUCK. Gems: Malachorhynchus.

Tl^HE advent of the rainy season in New South Wales, Victoria, and other parts of the southern
J- portion of the Australian continent, when the long-dried gullies and depressions are rapidly filled
with water, is the signal for the presence of this small but elegant and graceful species of Duck, small
flocks sometimes making their appearance wherever a sheet of water has temporarily settled, and devouring
the swarms of the lower forms of animal life which breed in such places.

Although so constant a visitor to the thickly settled parts of this country, almost nothing is
known of the economy and mode of life generally of this species ; this, doubtless, arises from the
fact of the breeding places having not yet been discovered and the birds subjected to observation
during the period of incubation. That they breed in the far interior of the country seems fairly
evident, as the flocks visiting New South Wales come from the westward, and return in that
direction as the dry season advances ; yet it is somewhat strange that, so far. no one of the many
explorers and travellers to the interior have mentioned having come across any of the nests.

The southern half of the continent, with its temperate climate, appears to be the extent of
the range of this species, although it occasionally visits Tasmania at irregular intervals. Although
not a common bird, small flocks of from ten to twenty are not infrequent in New South Wales,
especially in those localities possessing shallow fresh-water lagoons, while in the northern and warmer
latitudes of Australia the species is seldom or never met with.

As powerful on the wing as they are expert in the water, a flock of these birds will be
seen flying with amazing impetuosity towards a sheet of water, and with a graceful circling evolution
performed high over the water, the flight alights and is immediately engaged in diving eagerly beneath
the surface ; if the pond or lagoon is but of limited dimensions, the supply of food is soon exhausted
by the birds, which dive incessantly to the bottom should the water be shallow, and then rising
again, with meteor-like swiftness they descend upon a fresh feeding ground no great distance away.

The larger size of the male bird is the only means of distinguishing the sexes, which are
exactly alike in plumage.

Crown of the head, grey, with a shade of yellow ; chin and sides of the head, white, with
crescent-shaped markings of black ; round the eye runs a ring of black ; behind the eye runs a
pointed streak of pink, bordered with black ; back and wings, brown, with black specks ; upper tail-
coverts, light brown ; tail, dark brown, tipped with white ; back of the neck, sides, and under surface,
light brown, crossed with numerous bold crescent-shaped markings of dark brown, which become broader

down tit*- Bides, and are fainter i>n the abdomen : irides, dark brown ;
mandible, white ; tarsi, crreen or yollowish-brown ; webs, dark brown.

bill, <>li\ e : t i|» of the lower

abital : The southern parts of Australia.

GENUS ERISMAT U R A (Bonaparte).

\LMOST equalling the Musk Duck in sustained diving powers, the members of this genus, which
are limited in number, although Pound in Europe, America, Africa. Asia, and Australia, rely
u|)..ii their capabilities for immersion alike for procuring their food and protection from danger.

A striking feature of the species inhabiting Australia is the very considerable difference of
plumage in the -exes.

EEISMATUEA AISTRALIS.

BLUE- BILLED DUCK. Genus: Ekismatura.

rill I AT series of reedy-margined lakes running parallel to the coast of Western Australia, and
' alluded to in Plate XLVI1L. is the especial range of the present species, and. indeed, only in
very rare instances has the bird been seen elsewhere in Australia.

Although little is known of its habits, in many respects this Duck appears to much resemble
the />/./"/•</ fjubata, being like that bird an expert diver, often remaining under water for a considerable
time, particularly if disturbed by the approach of man or the discharge of a gun in its neighbourhood ;
the m>t is also similarly constructed to that of the H. Lobata.

Fresh-water mussels, cockles, shrimps, small tish. and aquatic growths constitute the food of
this species, and when procuring it a Hock -which usually numbers from eight or ten to twenty
birds — is seldom seen out upon the open water, preferring to remain near the margin of the lake,
when concealment from observation is secured by the long sedgy herbage or the pendulous branches
of the tea-tree.

The breeding months are September and October, when each Hock inhabiting the lakes retire!
to the security afforded by the reedy margins and build their nests ; these are similar to and almost
a- carefully constructed as those of the Musk Duck. The eggs vary in number from two to ten. are
of large size, of a bluish-white colour, two inches and five-eighths long by two inches broad, and
have a very roughly grained surface, more resembling the eggs of the (loose than those of any Duck.

In the male, the head, throat, and neck are deep blue-black : breast, wings, and back, rich
red-brown ; rump and tail, dark brown ; abdomen and under tail-coverts, light brown, with blurred
transverse markings of a darker shade ; irides, dark brow n : bill, light blue : outside of tarsi and
webs, dark grey ; front and inner sides, light grey.

The female is equal in size, but is of a uniform shade of dark brown, with transverse
irregular markings of reddish-brown: under surfaces, more greyish-brown: tail, black: bill, olive-green;
irides and feet, lighter in colour than those of the male.

Habitat

Western Australia.

CAMBRIC

GENUS SPATULA (Bate).

THE European type of this form is the Shoveller of the British Islands. The plumage of no
other Duck is so changeable as that of the male bird of this genus ; when the female is sitting
on her eggs, he undergoes a moult, after which he appears mottled, and seems as if inclined to
assume the soberer garb of his partner ; but by the time the young birds are hatched his plumage
has attained the perfection of varied and beautiful colouring.

SPATULA VARIEGATA (Gould).

VARIEGATED SHOVELLER. Genus: Spatula.

DISTINGUISHED by beauty of plumage and gallant carriage either when swimming or walking,
this species is conspicuous from the other Ducks ; the handsome crescent-like markings which
adorn the feathers of the breast, neck and scapularies serving to intensity the variety and splendour
of colour.

The rarity of the present species is such that little is known of its habits. Up to L865—
when it was entirely new to science — only one specimen had reached Europe, which was fully described
by Gould.

The formation of the bill is similar to that of the well-defined European form (Spatula
Clypeata), which it also doubtless resembles in many other particulars, such as feeding on aquatic
insects, worms and larvae, procured by sifting the watery mud through the long and finely-set teeth.

During the rainy season in Australia, when large areas of country are subjected to partial
inundation, a wandering individual or pair may be seen associating with the hundreds of Ducks of
other species always to be found at such times feeding upon the aquatic grasses and insects of the
submerged flats or other depressions of the country temporarily under water in Australia and New
Zealand ; but as the water (hies up, the various species betake themselves elsewhere, and the Shoveller
also disappears at the same time, returning to some unknown or unfrequented habitat in the interior

Nothing is known in regard to the nidification of this species : for although a few birds
are occasionally seen in the settled parts of the country, their breeding places are doubtless far from
the haunts of man. and remain to bo discovered by some enthusiastic collector or wandering sportsman.

Total length. 1(5,1, inches; bill. :> inches: wing, 9^ inches: tail. 4| inches: tarsi. I § inch.

Crown of the head and round the base of the bill, black, with brown and green lights ; a
crescent-shaped streak of white runs from the front of the eye downwards to the throat ; cheeks and
neck, metallic grey-green ; front of the neck, brown, with perpendicular markings of black : back, dark grey,
the feathers margined with brown : breast, shoulders and mantle, white, each feather broadly tipped with dark
brown ; under surface, rich brown, with black markings ; flanks, much lighter ; greater winy-coverts,
brown ; lesser wing-coverts, grey : primaries, dark brown ; scapularies, blue-grey, with white markings ;

tail, dark brown, with green reflections; irides, bright yellow: fill, purplish-black; legs and feet,
yellow : toes, black.

Habitats: Australia and New Zealand.

SPATULA RHYNCHOTIS.

I / ST1L 1 I.I A -V SHOVELLER. Genus : Spatula.

rT*NLIK.E the rare Spatula Vdriegctta, the present species is fairly abundant, both in the southern
portion- of the Australian continent and the small islands of Bass's Straits; but, like that
beautiful bird, the .v. Rhynoctis, assumes during the pairing season a much richer plumage than at
.in\ other time, hi- splendour and variety of colour at this period affording a marked contrast to the

mole sober hues of his mate.

Iii many particulars, such as size ami structure, manner of immersing the head and neck
wln n feeding in shallow water, and especially in the conformation of the bill, this species bears a close
resemblance to the common European Shoveller, as well as to the Variegated Shoveller of this country.

After a heavy fall of rain has occurred during the wet season, anil tilled many slight

depressions of the land with water to a shallow depth, and when numbers of flocks of Ducks of
various species resorf thither to feed, some of these beautiful Shovellers may generally be seen swimming

about with and feeding in harmony with the other members of the family; and when these flocks

an' alarmed by the report of a gun, or disturbed otherwise in such a manner as to cause their flight,

it is not unusual to see several Shovellers rise up in the midst of a flock of another species, and,
with them, fly in company to some other locality.

Although generally more numerous in the interior of the country, about flooded country or
wln re a heavy fall of rain has been experienced, this bird is not uncommon near the coast during
the rainy season. Swamps, marshes, and shallow pools of small extent seem to be preferred to the
deeper waters <>t rivers, creeks and lakes, doubtless from food being the more easily procured in the

former places.

A- with the Variegated Shoveller, but little is known of the nidification of this species; the
breeding places must be in the interior of the continent, when the birds visit the country in the
vicinity of the coast during the rainy season.

In the male, round the crown of the head and base of the bill, dark brown; a wavy line
of white runs downward in front of the eye ; crown of the head, blue-grey, each feather marked in
the centre with black: round the eye green, running into dark grey; all the under surfaces rich
brown, each feather broadly marked with black near the tip ; back, duller brown, each feather marked
with black; wing-coverts, grey; primaries, dark brown; secondaries, glossy green on the outer webs:
tad. dark brown, with green reflections; irides, bright yellow; bill, purplish-black ; legs and feet,
yellow.

The win-- oi the female are the same as those of the male, but otherwise her plumage is
of a soberer tint, and the brilliant colours of the head so noticeable in the male are absent.

Habitats : The southern portions of Australia, and the islands of Bass's Straits.

HARVARt
CAMBR1I

PLATE LI I .

GENUS NYROCA (Fleming).

ONE species only of this form inhabits Australia: they are expert divers and frequent both fresh
and salt water. In habits and economy generally the present genus resembles the preceding one.

NYKOCA AUSTEALIS (Gould).

WHITE-EYED DUCK. Genus: Nyroca.

UNDISTURBED inlets and arms of the sea, or slowly running tidal rivers and ereeks, are the
favourite haunts of this bird, which, like the tw r o preceding species, relies upon its diving-
powers to obtain food, and, similar to Rhynchotis, the rainy season ensures its presence in the settled
districts of the country.

The species has a wide range of habitat in Australia, being met with from the eastern to
the western seaboard of the southern portion of the continent : in the latter part, however, it is not
at all plentiful, and in the northern parts of Australia is very rare. About the rivers of the eastern
watershed of New South Wales numbers of these birds are shot during the rainy season, at which
time they are usually observed feeding in the company of Shovellers and M. Membranaceus.

So frequently were numbers of these birds seen on the rivers of Tasmania by Gould that he
was certain that their breeding places were on that island ; nothing is, however, accurately known
respecting the nidification of the species.

The male bird is slightly larger than the female ; but the sexes may always be known by
the brighter plumage of the former.

The colour of the male is a uniform reddish-brown, a band of lighter colour runs across the
breast ; the secondaries are white at the base, showing a conspicuous mark on the wing ; bill, dark grey,
white near the tip : irides, white ; legs and feet, dusky brown.

Habitats : The southern portion of Australia, from east to west, and Tasmania and its
adjacent islands.

GENUS ANAS (Linn)

nnHE great variation in size and plumage of members of this genus renders it very difficult to strictly
J- classify them into species. They are the Australian representatives of the European Wild Duck ;
no country in the world is without one or more members of the tribe.

A N AS PUNCTATA (o<>).

AUSTRALIAN TEAL. Genus : Anas.
r Ml I Is i- one of the commonest forms of the Australian Wild Duck, and may be found in almost

I

1 oven part "i the continent. It is more frequently met in the southern parts and in "asmama,
but even in tar northern parts it is met with in great Hocks on the higher table-lauds. It is not really
migratory, but, being a true vegetable feeder, it appears to shift its locality more in search of suitable
food. The up-country sportsman is often mystified by its almost total absence, perhaps for a whole
season, and overjoyed by its plentifulness during the next. It is quite equal as a table bird to its
European cousin ; the flesh is tender and full-flavoured without being too strong. It grows very wary
in parts much frequented by man. but in a good season a fair shot can make sure of good sport.

The it* — t is usually placed among the herbage m ar the margins of the creeks and rivers which
the bird frequents ; eight or nine eggs are deposited, which are similar to those of other members of
the tribe.

These bird- vary considerably in size, though the markings are similar, so as to leave room for
a question whether two distinct species do not exist. In Tasmania the birds are usually smaller than
in Australia.

During the breeding season the colours of the male are more brillant than those of the
\< male, but for tin greater part of the year the sexes are alike in outward appearance.

When he dons his nuptial dress the male has the whole of the head and neck a brilliant
glossj green ; breast and under surface, rich chestnut, each feather broadly marked with black : upper
BUrfaces brown, w ith darker markings ; wings, brown, except the outer webs of the secondaries, which
aie metallic-green; greater wing-coverts, white; bill, blue-grey: nail and edges of the upper mandible,
black : brides, red : legs ami feet, lead-colour.

The female is of soberer colour than the male, though the markings are similar.

fiabit.it- Tasmania, and largely distributed over Australia.