BY ROBERT HALL. ooj 



Emblema is one of the few genera peculiar to 

 the western and central thirds (areas 9, 8, 7, i). 



The eastern third is rich in bird-life, in genera, 

 and species; the central third less so; while the 

 western third is least of all, and not rich. 



It would appear that the present avifauna of the con- 

 tinent of Australia has been derived for the most part 

 from north-east Australia. 



]\Iirafra. Pomatostomus, and Xerophila appeal to me 

 as being among the few Passerine genera that entered 

 Australia by way of the Timor-Australian land associa- 

 tion. They are not Papuan, and the family is unrepre- 

 sented in that area. Yet Xerophila has in Xew Zealand 

 the allied genus Certhiparus. 



Cape York Peninsula rather than the old connection 

 with Timor is the door into Australia by which the 

 Passeriforms have entered. The Indo-Malayan birds 

 WTre probably not attracted to this continent, the char- 

 acter of the north-west being indicated in Timor. They 

 passed on to Papua. 



A third type of distribution, viz., that from the home 

 nucleus, is shown in the Parrots, the Falcones, the Bower- 

 birds, and the Weaver-finches. A.ltogether the parrot 

 tribe contains 500 species, well distributed in tropical and 

 temperate countries, the Austro-AIalayan being a sub- 

 region of much interest in this respect. It is in Papuasia 

 that we find the nucleus of the parrots of the Australian 

 region, expanding north, east, south, and west. But this 

 distribution from Papuasia specially refers to the fruit 

 and honey-loving Parrakeets and Lorikeets, which may 

 be claimed as being in particular Austro-AIalayan. The 

 Broad-tailed, and the Grass-loving Parrakeets, vdiich 

 make up two large genera, are purely Australian. Here 

 wx have a fine example of a large sub-region with a 

 physiography of its own evolving the parrot tribe to its 

 own end. This is so as well with the Ploceidse. 



Judging partly from the tables of genera found in 

 area 2, and missing from area 3, and found in area 3 and 



