188 MELIPHAGID-B. 



cliest black, where, uu. the latter it terminates in a patch; n'timindir nf thr under surface white, 

 the sides of the breast and the abdomen washed with grey; mulir tml-iuirrrls u-liite u-i/h jiale (/rci/ 

 centres; hill hluck; legs and feet dark fleshy-brown ; bare skin above the eye very pale greenish-white ; 

 iris blackish-hnin-n. Total length in the flesh SS inches, wing S'ld, tail S'O, bill 0'4., tarsus 0-68. 



Adult female — Simihir in iihnntiiji tnthe male. 



Distribution — Tasmania: Kinf,' Island, Bass Strait. 



S previously pointed out by me in "The Ibis,"* jardine and Selby, in their "Illustrations 

 of Ornithology, "1 figure MeUthreptus atricapillus under Shaw's specific name of hmulata, 

 and on the same plate figure, and on the following page describe, the Black-headed Honey-eater 

 of Tasmania under the name of Meliphaga atricapilla. The latter name, however, is preoccupied 

 by Latham for the continental species. Jardine and Selby state: — "The two birds which we 

 have now figured appear to be involved in some obscurity with regard to each other. . . They 

 both inhabit New Holland, Van Diemen's Land, and the islands of the Southern Ocean." Lesson's 

 description oi Eidopsarus affinis, published in the "Revue Zoologique,"{ in 1839 "capite, genis, 

 gulaque nigerrimis," — apparently also applies to the Tasmanian species, but the habitat is given 

 as " Nova Wallia meridionalis." In the " Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum, "§ Dr. 

 Gadow refers to this description as "Meliphaga" affinis, and places this name as a synonym of 

 Gould's later description, published in the "Proceedings of the Zoological Society," 1845 p. 62 

 under the name of McUthvcpUis mdanocephalus. If it is really synonymous with the latter species. 

 Lesson's specific name "(7//7;;/s" should take precedence. It is to be regretted, however, that 

 Jardine and Selby did not give a distinctive appellation of their own, instead of using a pre 

 occupied name of Latham's, for theirs is the first accurate description and figure of the Black 

 headed Honey-eater of Tasmania, having been published in tlieir "Illustrations of Ornithology' 

 in 1835. The habitats of the two species figured and described by them are partly incorrect 

 for the Lunulated Honey-eater is confined to Australia, and the Black-headed Honey-eater to 

 Tasmania and some of the larger islands of Bass Strait. But the assignment of wrong habitats 

 was of common occurrence at that time when so little was known of the Antipodes. 



The present species is widely distributed over Tasmania, it has also been met with on King 

 Island by members of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, in November, 1887. During 

 December, 1906, I noted adults accompanied by their young feeding in the Eucalypts, also on the 

 ground bordering the creek sides at the Cascades near Hobart, where I procured specimens. 



Dr. Lonsdale Holden sends me the following notes: — "MeUthreptus melanoccphalus builds 

 among the leaves of the terminal branchlets on the top of a gum tree, and makes its nest of moss 

 so that from the ground it is most difficult to distinguish it from an unusually dense cluster 

 of green leaves. The best way to find this bird's nest is to go into the bush soon after dawn 

 and seek for a builder at work. It is generally equally difficult to reach the nest at the end of a 

 slender branch without breaking the eggs. This Honey-eater usually breeds in October and 

 the two following months. I have taken three fresh eggs on the 26th December. The difficulty 

 of finding this bird's nest is increased by the fact that the leaves, among which it builds, are 

 often sewn or cemented together by some insect for the purpose of producing little greenish- 

 white caterpillars; not only do these collections of attached leaves fifty feet up in the air e.xactly 

 resemble little green nests, but the Black-cap Honey-eater itself is very fond of exploring these 

 leaf bunches in search of food. I have more than once made the mistake of supposing a bird was 

 building its nest while it was busy with such a bunch. Even from a distance of six feet it is 

 very difficult to distinguish the Black-cap's nest. The green leaves of the tree are attached to 



• The Ibis, 1906, p. 56. 

 t Illus. Ornith., Vol. III., pi. 134 (1835). 

 J Rev. Zool., 1839, p. 167. 

 \ Gadow, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. IX., p. 207 (iS 



