( 161 ) 



The top of the head varies much in colonr, being sometimes much lighter, 

 sometimes deeper, and also the shade of the back differs more or less. The bkie 

 of the middle rectrices is often more or less speckled with white, thus pointing 

 towards T. >lea metjeri. The bill differs much in size, length as well as width. In 

 view of the great differences in the shade of the crown and back, we cannot at 

 present recognise T. d. rubiensis A. B. ]\Ie.yer. On account of the variations of the 

 bill we cannot recognise T. d. microrhijncha Sharpe, not even as a subspecies. It 

 is true that there is a tendency in specimens from Sonth-Eastern New Guinea to 

 have small bills, and to be smaller generally ; but some are as large as average 

 specimens from North-Western New Guinea, while some of the latter are fully as 

 small as what Dr. Sharpe calls microrhyncha, and our specimens from Triton Bay 

 and one from Dorey have about the smallest bills of all. We must therefore agree 

 with Count Salvadori, that it is impossible to separate microrlojmha satisfactorily. 



We have the following specimens of galatea before us : — 



2 (? ? ad. Anday, Arfak (Gnillemard coll.). 



1 jnv. Anday, Arfak (from Bruijn's hunters). 



2 cJ, 1 ? ad. Dorey (W. Doherty coll.). " Iris deep brown. Feet annulated, 

 olive and yellow-brown. Bill scarlet." 



1 " c? " said to be from Kaimani in Kaawai, south coast, New Guinea, between 

 Argnni and Triton Bay. Bought by Doherty. 



2 c?, 1 ? Waigiu (Powell coll.). 

 1 Salwatty (native coll.). 



5 ad., 3 juv. without localities, but evidently from Dutch New Guinea hunters. 



3 ad. Triton Bay (Capt. Cayley Webster coll.). 



1 ad. Mt. Maori near Humboldt Bay (J. Dumas coll.).* 

 8 ad. Brown River, British New Guinea (E. Weiske coll.). 

 3 ad. Port Moresby, British New Guinea (Anthony coll.). 



1 jnv. Upper Moriari River, British New Guinea (purchased from Messrs. 

 Mcllwraith and McEacharn). 



1 ad. Mt. Cameron (A. S. Anthony coll.). 



2 ad. Mt. Victoria, Owen Stanley Range (A. S. Anthony coll.). 



2 S ad., 1 ? ad., 1 S jnv. Milne Bay (A. S. Meek coll.). 



3 6 ad. Colliugwood Bay (A. S. Meek coll.). 



4 ad. British New Guinea, mostly or all from Goldie. 



W^e have thus a distribution of T. d. galatea, all over New Guinea, with the 

 exception of the northern coast from Takar and Kafu to Astrolabe Bay, and in 

 AVaigiu and Salwatty. No Tatvjsiptera as yet found on Mysol , 



47. Tanysiptera dea meyeri Salvad. 



This subspecies was described from Kafu and extends evidently along the north 

 coast to at least Astrolabe Bay. It is most closely allied to T. dea galatea, but 

 differs from the latter in the following points :— 



The pileum is lighter and more of a silvery blue ; the two central rectrices 

 have nearly always a greater amount of white on their basal portion, while in 

 T. de galatea there is seldom much white, generally none at all, or only some 



* This skin is a most typical galatea. at which we are veiy much astonished, as from Takar and Kafu 

 the form meyeri is known, which is merely a representative race of galatea. 



