THK VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 19 



DESCRIPTIONS OF THE YOUNG OF SOME 

 AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. 



By Robert Hall. 

 (Read be/ore the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, loth April, 1901.) 

 As I have not been able to find any description recorded of the 

 early phases of certain of our native birds, I propose to briefly 

 describe such as have come under my notice, and have placed 

 examples of most of them upon the table for inspection. 



For the opportunity to describe the young of the Mallee Fowl, 

 Lipoa ocellata, I am indebted to Mr. D. Le Souef, C.M.Z.S., 

 Assistant Director of the Zoological Gardens, Melbourne, where a 

 number of these birds have recently been successfully hatched ; 

 and, in the absence of Professor Spencer, F.R.S., Director of the 

 National Museum, Melbourne, skins of certain of the species have 

 been kindly placed at my disposal for description by Mr. J. 

 A. Kershaw, F.E.S., Curator of the Zoological Department of 

 the Museum. The species are numbered and arranged in 

 accordance with the " Key to the Birds of Australia and Tas- 

 mania," recently published. 



29. NiNOx BOOBOOK, Lath., Boobook Owl. 



Fledgling, female, 15/11/97. Locahty, Heytesbury, Victoria 

 (per Mr. Geo. Graham). Recently in nest. 



Whole of upper surface rich brown, except hind neck, which is 

 grey washed with rufous, and composed of very short feathers • 

 forehead feathers tipped with white ; lores and fore part of eye- 

 brow snow-white, the rachis of each lore feather being black 

 and bristling ; tail indistinctly barred ; wing quills and coverts 

 marked very much as in adult; under surface white, the throat 

 faintly washed with rufous, the chest clearly washed with rufous • 

 breast heavily blotched with clear rufous ; lower part of abdomen 

 and under tail coverts white, the feathers being long and soft; 

 tibia] rufous-feathered ; tarso-metatarsus white-feathered; toes 

 bear small white hirsute feathers. Length of wing, 9 inches ; 

 tail, 5.3 inches; culmen, 0.95 inches. 



32. NiNOX CONNIVENS, Lath., Winking Owl. 



Immature skin. Culcairn, N.S.W., 1 5/1 1/98 (per Mr. W. J. 

 Stephen). 



This specim.en was secured with the adult female. The under 

 surface exhibits the key to the species, but a white collar 

 extending from the throat, forming a complete circle and 

 traversing immediately above the interscapulum, would lead one 

 to anticipate another species. General plumage above dull 

 slaty-brown ; rump and upper tail coverts greyer ; white spots on 

 sooty-brown quills appear brighter than in adult owing to the 

 greater contrast ; throat white, the rachis of each feather brown ; 



