Avifauna of New Caledonia. 357 



promised to give us one hour ; soon the long gun is pointed 

 well up in a tree-top, the trigger pulled, and down comes a 

 bird new to us ! 



It belonged to a species that frequents the bush, poking 

 about branches, searching the leaves (chiefly the undersides) 

 and blossoms in search of their insect food. Their habits 

 reminded me of our Fijian Monarcha ; L. L. says they utter 

 a sharp shrill cry or note. 



While in New South Wales I procured specimens of Gery- 

 gone albogularis, Grould, and Acanthiza pusilla (Lath.) . To 

 the former our bird bears a close resemblance in form and 

 colour ; but with the latter it shows no relationship. In the 

 P. Z. S. 1859, p. 161, Mr. G. K. Gray described a New-Ca- 

 ledonian bird under the name of Acanthiza flavolateralis ; 

 and the description accords pretty well with our specimen ; 

 but if Mr. Gray^s bird is a true Acanthiza, our bird must be 

 of a difterent species. Only a comparison with the type 

 specimens in England will satisfactorily determine this ; I (E, 

 L. L.) therefore name our new bird Gerygone flavolateralis ; so 

 that I shall not make a synonym if I have described a species 

 already known, but only transferred it to its right genus ■^. 



The next shot fell to L. L.^s turn, and produced the lovely 

 yellow-billed Pachycephala xanthetrcRa. These pretty Bush- 

 Shrikes appear not to be uncommon round Noumea ; they 

 frequent the dense bush, not affecting the open Gum-tree 

 forest. Their food consists of insects of all kinds, which they 

 capture at rest or on the wing, darting at them as they pass 

 their perch. 



It is singular that the sole wA^^e-throated Pachycephala in 

 Fiji (P. vitiensis) should be found in Kandavu, the southern- 

 most island of the group, and almost, if not quite, in the same 

 latitude as the northern part of New Caledonia. Here all 

 the species are white-thro&ted. In Fiji, moreover, they are 

 all yellow on the underparts; here some are yellow, some 

 more or less rufous, approaching in this respect the Australian 



[* Mr. Sliarpe lias kindly compared Mr. Layard's skin for us with Mr. 

 Gray's type, and pronounces them to be specifically identical ; but Mr. 

 Layard's view as to its generic affinities is undoubtedly correct. — Edd.] 



SER. IV. — VOL. I. 2b 



