594 Mr. T. Carter on the Birds of [Ibis, 



collection of birds obtained by this French expedition was 

 lost by shipwreck, and ever since it lias been impossible for 

 ornithologists to be certain whether M. leucopterus was black 

 and white, or blue and white, in general colouring, although 

 the coloured plate of the bird (Quoy et Gaim. 'Zool. de 

 I'Uranie/ pi. 23) was fairly accurate so far as colour is 

 concerned. Gould was doubtful as to whether the blue and 

 white Wrens he obtained in New South Wales were the same 

 as those the French naturalists got on Dirk Hartog, and 

 described the bird under the name of Malurus leucopto'us, with 

 the proviso that should it eventually prove to be different, 

 the name Malurus cyanotus should be assigned to it. This 

 point is now definitely settled. 



I landed on Dirk Hartog Island on 25 April, 1916, 

 hoping to obtain specimens of both Nesomalurus leucopterus 

 and Diaphorillas textilis, but as the former bird had been 

 declared to be extinct, and neither of them had been col- 

 lected for nearly a century, I was rather doubtful about 

 the possibility of doing this. Taking a turn with a •410 gun 

 round the vicinity of the station homestead next morning, a 

 Wren that appeared to be ])lue and white, with some female 

 and immature birds, was seen, atid folk)wed some distance. 

 A long shot at the male had no result, except an impression 

 was formed that it was the wrong colour, which was doubt- 

 less caused by a glimpse of its blue tail, and also that blue 

 and white Wrens had been seen on the Peron two days 

 previously. As the manager, Mr. Lloyd, was going to the 

 north end of the island next day, with camels, taking rations 

 for men camped at out-camps and windmills, he kindly 

 offered to take me and a small outfit, and leave me to camp 

 alone some days at a well surrounded by scrub, at the north- 

 east corner of the island, and after that to move me to camp 

 at other places. On April 27, we travelled about twenty-six 

 miles north without seeing anything especial in the bird line, 

 except one bird that darted out of the scrub close to the track 

 along which we were riding. 1 followed it, but failed to get 

 within range. It was certainly a Diaphorillas textilis. The 

 following day, April 28, Mr. Lloyd (who was leading the 



