8. NOTOPHOTX. 1 ]',') 



Aganiia picta (pt.), Rpichpuh. Ao. Si/d. Naf. p. xvi, tab. xxxii. 

 figs. 1^401-2402 (18oL^). 



Adult. General colour tibove slaty black, with the long ornamental 

 plumes on tlie back and scapulars clearer slate colour ; wings and 

 tail slaty black ; quills clearer slaty black externally ; crown of 

 head, including the long ornamental nuchal plumes, the feathers of 

 the hind-neck, and sides of neck slaty black; cheeks and a collar 

 round the hind-neck, as well as the entire throat and fore-neck, 

 white ; the feathers on the fore-neck elongated and pointed, and 

 where they join the black ornamental feathers on the sides of the 

 neck they are parti-coloured, being white in the middle, with the 

 margins blackish slate-colour ; remainder of under surface, from the 

 fore-neck downwards, includingthe under wing-coverts and axillaries, 

 blackish .slate-colour : " bill, legs, and feet greenish yellow ; iris 

 yellow " {J. Gould). Total length 19 inches, culmcn 2-55, wing 8'7, 

 tail ;J, tarsus 2-8. 



Younfj. Differs from the adult in being browner, and with scarcely 

 any ornamental ])liimes anj'where, the head dusky, the under surface 

 also dusky, longitudinally streaked with white. 



Hah. \orthern Australia. 



a. Ad. sk. Northern Australia. Gould Coll. 



bo. Ad. et iniin. sk. Northern Australia. Salvin-Godman Coll. 



p. Ad. St. Port Essington. Capt. Chambers [P.]. 



9. d" ^d. sk. N.W.Australia. J. U. Elsey, Esq.];?.]. 



4. Notophoyx aruensis. (Plate I. u.) 



Ardea aruensis, Gray, P. Z. S. 1858, pp. 188, 197 (Aru Isl.) ; id. Cat. 



Mamvi. Sf B. New Guin. pp. 51, 02 (1859); id. P. Z. S. 1861, 



p. 438 (Louislade Isl.) ; Schl. Ned. Tijdschr. Dierk. iii. p. 348 



(1866); Gray, Hcmd-l. B. iii. p. 'IQ, no. 10119 (1871): ISahad. 



Ucc. Born. p. 347 (1874) ; lieichen. J.f. 0. 1877, p. 274; Halvad. 



Ann. Mu.^. Genov. xviii. p. 332 (1882) ; id. Orn. Papiiasia etc. iii. 



p. 344 (1«82). 

 Herodias aruensis, Rosenb. Nat. Tijdschr. Nederl. Ind. xxv. p. 253 



(1863) ; id. J. f. 0. 1864, p. 136 (New Guinea) ; id. Reis naar 



Zuidoostereil. p. 53 (1867). 

 ? Ardea landsbergi, Schl. Notes Leyd. Mus. i. p. 113 (1879 : Celebes). 



Adult male (type of species). General colour above dingy slate- 

 colour, browner on the lower back and rump ; quills and tail black, 

 with a small white spot at the end of all the inner secondaries ; head 

 and neck all round, as well as the entire under surface of body 

 white : sides of body, flanks, thighs, under wing-coverts, and axil- 

 laries dull slate-colour ; edge of wing conspicuously white. Total 

 length 18-5 inches, culmen 2-4, wing 8-8, tail 3-2, tarsus 2-85. 



This is the species evidently referred to by Gould in his ' Hand- 

 book " as the young of N. plcata, when be says : — " The 3'oung 

 birds differ in having the whole of the under surface white." Neither 

 of the specimens in the iluseum appear to be immature, as they 

 have full crests of white plumes, and further, we know that the young 



VOL. XXVI. r 



