358 Messrs. Layard on the 



forms, some of which are thus coloured. This island would 

 seem, therefore, to be a point where the Polynesian and Aus- 

 tralian forms unite. 



While we were cleaning the blood from our prize, stuffing 

 its mouth, &c. previous to suspending it on the stick, a Fan- 

 tail Flycatcher came and chattered the usual note of defiance 

 at us ; so, as we sat on a fallen tree-trunk, E. L. L. lifted the 

 long gun ; '' crack," and the bird came fluttering down ; away 

 scudded L. L. through the tangled bush, now dodging round 

 a clump, now creeping under, till he was lost to view ! Pre- 

 sently he returned, panting and blowing, the quarry, only 

 broken-winged, having led him a chase of about a hundred 

 yards, right down to the sea-beach ! and this a weak-legged 

 little Rhipidura ! but, mirabile dictu, this too turns out to be 

 new to us also ! 



The only Rhipidura we can find described from here is R. 

 albiscapa, Gould. Now specimens of this bird lie before us, 

 procured by E. L. L. in New South Wales, and they are quite 

 difl'erent from the New Caledonian bird ; neither will it at all 

 accord with the description in Gould's ' Hand-book ' *. 



In general appearance this bird is far more robust than R. 

 albiscapa, and more generally rufous ; and I should think it 

 impossible to confound the two, having either the description 

 or specimens before one. In habits it is similar ; indeed the 

 whole of the species of the genus that I have met with re- 

 semble each other in this respect. 



L. L. now wandered off into the scrub ; and from the fre- 

 quent sharp cracks emitted by '^ Long Tom " it was evident 

 he was not idle. After a Avhile he reappeared, bringing a 

 couple of Aplonis, apparently of different species, and a Red- 

 breasted Flycatcher, Myiagra caledonica. He reported that 

 he had undoubtedly seen a Blackbird, a veritable Mer-ulaf, 

 scratching among the dead leaves ; but the inopportune snap- 



[* Mr. Layard has sent us a specimen of this bird, and we have no doubt 

 that it is the species described by Mons. E. Marie as Wiipidura verreauxi 

 in the paper referred to at the end of Mr. Layard's " Notes." — Edd.] 



[t Probably Tardus ximthopus, Forst. — Edd.] 



