1917] Dirk Hartog Island and Peron Peninsula. 587 



tit preseut, as was iuteuded, owing to the fact that the few 

 speeimeus obtained were left iu Western Australia, with the 

 bulk of the collections made on the trip, to wait safer con- 

 ditions for forwarding across the seas. It may be mentioned 

 that only a few of the smaller-sized novelties obtained were 

 sent to England by registered letter-post, and had they been 

 forwarded by parcel post, they would have been lost in the 

 mail-boat on which I travelled, and which was torpedoed in 

 the English Channel. It is hoped that a paper dealing with 

 the birds observed and collected further north than Shark 

 Buy may be published in 'The Ibis' at some future date, 

 when the rest of the collection has reached England. 



The specimens obtained of Calamunthus c. peroni are quite 

 unlike any of the long series obtained of C c. hartoyi, and 

 more closely resemble C. c. rubiginosus from Point Cloates 

 and the North-west Cape districts (200 to 300 miles north of 

 Shark Bay) and dalamanthus c. ivayensis from the Day Dawn 

 district (300 miles soutli-east and inland from Shark Bay). 



A careful comparison of skins iu the Perth Museum 

 from these two districts with the Peron birds, shows that 

 the Peron birds are much more rufous in general colouring 

 than either of them, and are especially of a richer rufous 

 on the crown. The white superciliary stripe is much more 

 pronounced in C. c. peroni, as also are the striatious on the 

 mantle. 



The Peron birds have larger and stronger bills, and are 

 bigger-made birds than those from Point Cloates or Day 

 Dawn. 



Calamanthus campestris hartogi is much duller iu general 

 colour than C. c. peroni, and is a smaller bird, resembling 

 more the form from Dorre Island (C c. dorrie). 



A single female specimen of Calamanthus, obtained on the 

 mainland (Edel Land), at the south end of Useless Inlet, 

 differs from Ijoth C. c. hartogi and C. c. peroni, but most 

 resembles the former. A series of skins is required from 

 there before a definite opinion can be formed. 



The subspecies on the Peron was not nearly so common 

 as the form on Dirk Hartog. Their habits and song are 



