^°',J,^'] FERGUSON, Notes on Australian Tuhhiarcs. 107 



1921 



<\vulans, the Wandering Albatross, should be familiar to any one 

 who has voyaged between Sydney and Perth. On the eastern 

 coast my records for this species go as far north as Port Mac- 

 quarie. I have spent considerable time in studying the varia- 

 tions in plumage, especially of wings and tail. ICvery gradation 

 lias been noted between the brown immature bird with white 

 face, and the white-winged form, in which the markings on the 

 mantle are indistinguishable with a glass at short range, and in 

 which the tail spots are reduced to one or two, or are even quite 

 absent. I cannot say that I have ever been able to distinguish 

 the Snowy {D. chionofitera) or the Royal {D. regia) from the 

 Wandering {D. exiilans), thougli I have been through the range 

 of both the two former species. Xor have I ever noted brown- 

 winged birds, with pure white tails, such as Macgillivray recorded 

 as having been seen south of King George's Sound. I have seen 

 fully as white-winged birds off the New South Wales coast, and 

 in the Bight, as in the Southern Indian Oecan. Much more has 

 yet to be learnt about the ])lumage changes of these three species, 

 if they are not, as Loomis contends, to be regarded as one. 

 Finality will not be reached bv observations at sea, nor even by 

 the examination of casual specimens. Much of the information 

 required can only be obtained at the breeding grounds. Atten- 

 tion nught be drawn to the well-known example of the Albatross 

 breeding at the Antipodes. The photos taken in the Sub-Ant- 

 arctic Islands of New Zealand portray breeding birds still re- 

 taining their black cap, and others mating while still brown or 

 mottled. Does this occur in other breeding colonies of D. 

 extiians? I must confess to a large amount of ignorance con- 

 cerning the early plumage change in D. exulans. Nestling birds 

 are white, but become brown within the first year. Mr. Barrett's 

 photograph, given on page 245 of The Emu, Vol. XV., is in- 

 terestmg as the distribution of the colours of this young Alba- 

 tross is practically that of an adult D. exulans. The name of 

 the species is, however, not given. 



Next to the Wanderer, the Black-browed Mollymawk. or Molly- 

 hawk, {D. mclanophrys) , has perhaps the widest range in our 

 seas. The distribution is mainlv southern, but on the east coast 

 extends further north in winter; at any rate, I met it fairly com- 

 monly in September, as far north as Port Macquarie. In the 

 immature stage, the head, or, at anv rate, a mark on the side of 

 the neck, is brown, and the underwings are darker, while the bill 

 is of an indeterminate colour, dirty yellow, with darker tip. I 

 mention these details as it seems possible that specimens in this 

 stage have been mistaken for the Grey-headed Mollymawk [D. 

 <:hrxsostonia) . 



The Shy, or White-capj)ed. Albatross (D. cauta) well deserves 

 its name — shy. It seldom approaches a vessel closely, prefer- 

 ring to range wide. The species hardly extends beyond \'ic- 

 torian waters, but I have seen it as far west as the western end 

 of Kangaroo Island, and in the winter as far north as Port Mac- 

 quarie on the eastern coast. Some seen on this last occasion 



