346 



CORACIID*. 



Family CORACIID^. 



Sub-family CORACIIN^. 



Oen.-a.s E-CriS"2"ST02yITJS, Vieilloi. 



Eurystomus pacificus. 



DOLLAR-BIRD. 

 Coracias pacitica, Lath., Ind. Orn., Suppl., p, xxvii. (1801). 

 Eurystomus australis, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol. Vol. II., pi. 17 (1848) ; Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., 



Vol. XVII., p. 36 (1892); id., Hand-1. Bds., Vol. II., p. 47 (1900). 

 Eurystomus pacijicus, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 119 (1865). 



Adult male — Head, hind neck and mantle brown, passing into dull bluish-grey on the scapidars, 

 back, rump and upper tail-coverts ; tail greenish-blue at the base, black at the tip, the middle of the outer 

 webs of the lateral feathers washed with rich deep blue; upper wing-coverts greenish-blue; quills black, 

 their outer webs rich blue, narrowly edged tvith greenish-blue, the primaries crossed in the centre with 

 a pale greenish-white band; lores and feathers below the eye blackish; cheeks and ear-coverts hroivn 

 washed with blue, except on the apical portion of the latter; throat deep blue, each feather with a 

 central streak of light blue; sides of the neck and chest brown washed with greenish-blue; remainder 

 of the under surface and under tail-coverts greenish-blue ; bill rich red, blackish at the tip of the 

 upper mandible ; inside of mouth yelloiv; legs and feet coral-red; iris very dark broivn. Total 

 length in thejiesh lO^S inches, wing 7-7 tail 4, bill 0'92, tarsus O-flo. 

 Adult fe.male — Similar in plumage to the male. 



Distribution — North-western Australia, Northern Territory of South Australia, Queensland, 

 New South Wales, \'ictoria. 



HE acquisition of Watling's draw- 

 s of Australian Birds, by the 

 Trustees of the British Museum, has enabled 

 Dr. R. Bowdler Sharpe, in his interesting 

 volume "History of the Collections, Birds,"* 

 to finally settle the question of priority of 

 names bestowed on the Pacific Roller, or 

 better known " Dollar-bird." In referring 

 to Watling's drawing of the present species. 

 Dr. Sharpe remarks : — " This drawing is 

 the type of Eurystomus pacificus, which name 

 definitely takes precedence over the name 

 of australis of Swainson. In the ' Catalogue 

 of Birds' I was not certain as to the identity 

 of Coracias pacifica of Latham, owing doubt- 

 less to the description having been taken 

 from a drawing." 



The late Mr. T. H. Bowyer-Bower and 

 Mr. E. J. Cairn obtained specimens in i886 

 near Derby, in North-western Australia. 

 Mr. G. A. Keartland procured a single 

 specimen only near the Fitzroy River, in 



ApsHE 



DOLLAR-riUi 



Hist. Coll. Brit. Mus. Bds., p. 120 (1906). 



