1^2 Australasian Ornithologists' Union. \ ,F" T 1U 



<J ° L 7'h Jan. 



membership of ladies, whom I cordially welcome to this Congress. 

 We have again this year contributions from them. From the 

 Wilmot district we get information on the habits and distribution 

 of birds in that hilly upland part of our State in the chatty articles 

 of our lady ornithologist, Miss J. Fletcher, whose powers of 

 observation are keen. 



It is to be hoped that Miss Fletcher will give us a detailed list 

 of all species observed there, as a help to our knowledge of 

 " geographical distribution ' in Tasmania. 



The first part of our present volume opens with an important 

 communication from our valued correspondent, Capt. Hutton, 

 F.R.S. In my last review of the work done in The Emu, it 

 was my pleasing duty to notice his article on Penguins, in which 

 he dealt with the evolution and primary distribution of this 

 family. This time he has taken the Cormorants for his study, 

 and discusses the variations in the plumage of the species in- 

 habiting New Zealand seas from the point of view of natural 

 selection or reversion. Some interesting facts on distribution 

 are brought to light, for Professor Hutton reminds us that New 

 Zealand seas contain, proportionately for their area, far more 

 Cormorants than any other sub-region in the world. Fifteen 

 species, as against three in Europe, is very remarkable ; and as 

 we move westward from Europe to the Antipodes their numbers 

 increase from three to twelve in the nearctic and neotropical 

 regions, and from that to fifteen in New Zealand. Why there 

 should be no Cormorants in Polynesia, including New Caledonia, 

 is, as Captain Hutton says, very surprising, seeing what quanti- 

 ties of fish exist in the seas in that sub-region. The presence of 

 so many species in New Zealand seas is accounted for on sound 

 grounds by this sub-region being the nesting-place of two 

 migratory streams — the one from Malaya through New 

 Caledonia and thence south — as is forcibly demonstrated in the 

 case of land birds ; the other, in former times, from Patagonia 

 westward. In support of the theory of evolution and the now 

 generally admitted fact of the former existence of land-connection 

 with South America, Captain Hutton gives an interesting 

 genealogical tree of the sub-genus Leucocarbo, descended from the 

 red-legged Cormorants of New Zealand and South America. 



Other papers containing matters of interest are by Dr. Chenery, 

 on birds observed between Port Augusta and the Gawler Ranges ; 

 by our co-editor, Mr. Kendall, on the proposed " Check-List " 

 and a notice of Dr. Strong's paper on " The Development of 

 Colour in the Definitive Feather ; " Mr. Cornwall, on a trip 

 to the bird-colonies on islands in the Barrier Reef, which is 

 accompanied by one of the best photographs of the wonderful 

 scene of bird-life existent at these great breeding-places which 

 has perhaps ever been published. Mention must not be omitted 

 as to the high class of photo-illustrations which embellish our 

 journal, and continue to make it popular, and for the initiation 

 of which Messrs. Campbell and Le Souef are mainly responsible ; 



