268 ALEXANDER, AnstraUau Sea Birds. ffi^l^rli 



South Wales coast individuals were observed with practically 

 the whole of the wings and tail w hite ; all had, however, some 

 black on the tips of the primaries and tail feathers. Possibly 

 these very white individuals were /). chioiopiera, but every 

 gradation was seen between them and birds with the greater 

 l)art of the wings dark. In the Indian Ocean most of the whiter 

 birds had consi)icuous orange patches on the side of the neck. 

 (Jne or two were seen on the coast of New vSouth Wales with 

 well-marked dark caps on the head, and all those seen in the 

 South Atlantic had a dark tinge on this region. The plumage 

 variations in these great birds are undoubtedly very puzzling, 

 and observation of the large numbers which can be closely ob- 

 served at sea makes one realise how unlikely it is that the mat- 

 ter can be solved by study of the comparatively small series ex- 

 isting even in the largest museums. 



Diomedea melanophrys. I>lack-browed Mollymawk. — This 

 species was very abundant about the Cape of Good Hope, and 

 was seen in small numbers every day as far as 68 deg. E,. in 

 June, 1921. A single bird in 106 deg. E. was the only one seen 

 in the eastern half of the Indian Ocean. They were numerous 

 on the coast of New South AVales in October, 1921. 1 here is 

 a specimen in the Queensland Museum labelled S.E. Queens- 

 land. The immature bird with its dark grey neck and dark bill 

 was seen on several occasions, and I agree with Ferguson that 

 some observers may have mistaken this bird for the Grey-headed 

 Mollymawk {D. chrysostoma). I made this mistake myself when 

 I saw this form in the South Atlantic, but subsefpiently when I 

 had better views of them in the Indian Ocean realised my error. 

 A specimen in this plumage was obtained by Mr. Glauert on the 

 beach at Cottesloe on August 21, 1920, and is now on exhibition 

 in the W.A. Museum alongside the other species so that the dif- 

 ferences can be readily noted. 



Diomedea chrysostoma. Grey-headed Mollymawk. — A second 

 specimen of this species was obtained on the beach at Cottesloe 

 by Mr. Glauert on June 21st, 1920. It agrees with the bird pre- 

 viously caught there in having a much darker grey head than 

 typical birds, though this may be a sign of immaturity. In the 

 Queensland Mu.seum there is a specimen labelled S.E. Queens- 

 land which has a white forehead and pale greyish-white colour- 

 ing on the crown and cheeks. The rest of the head is pale grey, 

 slightly darker in front of the eye. It is unfortunate that no 

 definite |)articulars of its origin are available. 



Diomedea chlororhynchus. Vellow-nosed .Mollymawk. — In 

 coming westward across the Indian Ocean this bird was first 

 seen in 68 deg. E., where a single individual ai)peared on the 

 same day that the last Black-browed bird was seen, with the 

 single exception already referred to. Thereafter the Yellow- 

 nosed species was seen every day, gradually becoming more plen- 



