128 Mathews, The Admission of Colour-Genera. [.^^"oct 



I have stated I wovild cite Pachycephala as a good subject, close 

 at hand to Austrahans, whereby most of Dr. Lowe's points could 

 be brought directly into review. This typically Australian 

 " genus " extends over New Guinea, the Moluccan Islands, east- 

 ward to Fiji, New Caledonia, but not New Zealand. We have 

 here a " genus " with a defined geographical range agreeing with 

 I)oundaries Hmited through the result of studies in other branches 

 of science, including botany and geology. It is a Passerine genus, 

 therefore one which, from the evolutionist view-point, would be 

 a most difficult one to limit by means of colour-pattern. Yet we 

 see a pecuhar type of coloration evident in a most decided 

 manner, and here we also see a colour-pattern which is not 

 governed by any one colour, but is present when the colours are 

 re-arranged and altered, and this is where the distinction between 

 colour-pattern and mere coloration is emphasized. 



Collect together male, female, and immature of Pachycephala 

 temporalis, ruflventris, gilbertii, lanioides, and olivacea. We will, 

 for the time, ignore all structural differences, and glance at these 

 from the point of coloration alone. All the young and the 

 females have a similar appearance, varying in j^articular colora- 

 tion. The males, however, are somewhat strikingly different, 

 hut each shows a more or less distinct throat patch. In olivacea the 

 throat is indistinctly marked as a whitish patch, freckled with 

 brown, rather agreeing with the general throat coloration of 

 the females of all the species. In general hue, the male in this 

 species agrees with the female, and from an evolutionary view-point 

 this would be suggested as the oldest form, the one in which the 

 male retained the dull plumage of the female and immature. 

 Peculiarly enough, the Norfolk Island form has done the same 

 thing in an even more marked manner, as it has scarcely varied 

 at all from the universal female type, whereas olivacea does show 

 a variation. Now, while the female of temporalis is content to 

 retain the original plumage, the male has evolved a gorgeous 

 green, yellow, and black coloration. The head is black, as is 

 a broad pectoral band enclosing a pure white throat, while the 

 rest of the underneath parts is bright yellow, this colour also 

 forming a nuchal collar ; the back is olive, the wings and tail 

 blackish. I will revert to the forms of this shortly. When we pick 

 up the male of ritfiventris we see exactly the same colour-pattern.* 

 but with no colour the same save the head, throat, and pectoral 

 collar ; the under parts are pale reddish-brown, while the upper 

 are grey. The species known 2iS gilbertii does not show the black 

 pectoral collar, but has the throat red, followed by a greyish band, 

 and the grey abdomen tinged with rufous. It is grey above. 

 The rare bird lanioides has the white throat surrounded by a 

 black band, the under surface white, and the head black. 



* As the " colour-pattern " is " exactly the same," how does Mr. Mathews 

 justify his pl.Tcing these two species in two genera of one species each ? 

 Mathews' 191 3 list places seven Australian species of Pachycephala (used in 

 its restricted sense) in seven " monotypic genera." — Eds. 



