206 MEIIPHAGrOiE. 



Adult. Crown and sides of head black, with a narrow hand of 

 white from eye to eye across the occiput ; hind neck, back, and 

 upper tail-coverts olive-yellow ; wings, wing-coverts, and tail pale 

 ash}- brown, externally narrowly edged with whitish grey ; the chin 

 blackish, shading off through grey into the pale creamy-brownish 

 colour of the fore neck and chest ; cheeks and sides of throat 

 pure white ; rest of undcrparts, including the under wing-coverts 

 and the inner margin of the remiges, creamy ; " bill black ; feet 

 brownish orange ; iris hazel ; bare skin above the eye beautiful 

 bluish green-' (Gould). Culmen 0*55-0"6 inch, wing 3-3-3-45, 

 tail2'6, tarsus 0'73. 



The sexes are alike in plumage. The young birds have the gape, 

 lower mandible, and feet yellowish orange. 



Hab. South-eastern Australia. 



Obs. In the collection of the British Museum is a specimen from 

 the Gould collection, the type of his M. Icvtior, which has the hind 

 neck and upper tail-coverts bright yellow, the mantle and rest of the 

 back rich olive-yellow ; the undei'parts, except a slight shade on the 

 throat and chest and the black chin, are pure white. This is appa- 

 rently a very old male in full breeding-plumage. 



a. Ad. sk. South Australia. Sir George Grey [P.]. 



b, c, d, e. [(S 2] ad. New South Wales. Gould Collection, 

 sk. 



f, a. Ad. sk. New South Wales. F. D. Godman and O. 



Salviu, Esqrs. [P.]. 

 h. [cj] ad. sk. Interior of Australia. Gould Collection. 



(Type of M. latior.) 



3. Melithreptus validirostris. 



? Sturuus vu'escens, Wagl. Si/st. Av. Stunius, sp. 5. 



Hsematops validirostris, Gotdd, P. Z. S. 1836, p. 144. 



Eidopsarus bicinctus, Sivains. Anim. in Menag. p. 344 ; id. Class, B. 

 ii. p. 327. 



Melithreptus virescens, Gray, Gen, B. i. p. 128. 



Melithreptus validirostris, Goidd, B. Austr. pi. 70 ; id. Handh. B. 

 Austr. i. p. 565 ; Bp. C. A. i. p. 395 ; Gray, Hand-l. B. i. p, 161, 

 no. 2101 ; Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. TV. ii. p. 190. 



' This bird resembles M. gularis in general distribution of coloiirs. 

 Crown and sides of head and a large patch on the chin black ; 

 cheeks and a rather broad band extending from eye to eye round 

 the occiput pure white; the wing-coverts, hind neck, and outer 

 margins of the remiges pale ashy brown with a slight olive tinge ; 

 back, upper tail-coverts, and outer webs of tail-feathers olive-yellow ; 

 rest of tail and wings brown ; under wing-coverts and inner margin 

 of remiges pale fidvous ; fore neck and chest greyish white, changing 

 into pale reddish brown on the flanks, thighs, and under tail-coverts, 

 and inclining to creamy white on the centre of the abdomen ; " bare 

 skin behind the eye white, tinged with bright green ; biU black ; 

 feet brownish horn-colour; iris reddish brown" {Gould). Culmen 

 0-78 inch, wing 3-3, tail 2-7, tarsus 0-83. 



