58 Hall, Notes on Bird-Skins fj-ojn N.W. Australia. f^J 



Emu 

 Oct. 



of the face are bounded by a dim black line. Here also the 

 cream will need to become white. The secondaries are well 

 spotted, but the primaries are almost uniform brown ; one is 

 quite so. [Irides brown ; bill brown, corner of mouth blue ; 

 legs and feet leaden grey.] 



[An unfinished nest was found by Mr. Douglas on 11/2/00.] 



']6. Artamus CINEREUS (Vieillot), Grey-breasted Wood- 

 Swallow. 



Artainus cincrens., Gould, Birds Aust., fol., vol. ii., pi. 29 (1848) ; 

 Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., vol. xiii., p. 16 (1890). 



Fourteen skins have been received from Livuringa, as 

 follows : — 



a. Young male, 21/1 i/oi. 



b. Young male, 8/2/00. 



c. Young, unsexed, 24/io/or. 



d. Immature, unsexed, 5/4/00. 



e. Female, 21/1 i/oi. 



f,g. Males, 19/1 i/oi, 21/1 i/oi. 

 Ji,j. Adult males, 5/1/00, 15/12/00. 

 /', /. Adult males, 19/1 i/oi, 25/1 i/ci. 

 in. Adult female, 4/1 i/oi. 

 n, 0. Adult females, 15/12/00, 5/4/00. 



In two males and two females {e,f,g, n) there is a trace of a 

 frontal line above the base of the culmen ; in other specimens 

 there is no trace of it except before the lores. In two adult 

 males {h,j) the under tail coverts are broadly edged with white, 

 while in the adult specimen k they are narrowly edged with 

 white. I am disposed to sink A. inelanops and A. ventistJis in 

 favour of this species, and give it a wider distribution. 



a, b, and c are but a week or two (perhaps more with b and c) 

 from the nest ; d, a few months. 



^,/^ and ^ are similar to adults. They probably have been 

 bathing in muddy water, because of the deposited earth upon the 

 head and neck and irregularly along the whole under surface. 

 In the broad white tips to the tails I notice they may be flushed 

 with a pale flush of chocolate or they may be pure white, 

 independent of age or sex, as in a and b (young), in and n 

 (adults). 



The length of wing in the adults varies between 4.55 and 4.9 

 inches. Specimens j?' and n, 4.55 inches;^ and 0, 4.6 inches; 

 e, k, 111, 4.7 inches ; /, 4.75 inches ; f, 4.8 inches ; Ji, 4.9 inches. 



Specimens a and b offer two types of plumage in the young. 

 Specimen a has its whole under surface, including chin but 

 excluding under tail coverts, light creamy-yellow or pale rufous. 

 This pale colour passes continuously to the sides of the head 

 and neck. The only indication of black face is just behind 

 the commissure, within the angle of lower mandible and in 

 the proximal portion of the lore. The most of the bill, 

 lores, head, neck, and back appear to be of this tawny 



