﻿16 
  COLLECTIONS 
  FROM 
  MELANESIA. 
  

  

  a. 
  Upper 
  tail-coverts 
  olive-yellow 
  like 
  the 
  back 
  ; 
  

   outer 
  aspect 
  of 
  secoadaries 
  distinctly 
  grey; 
  

  

  pectoral 
  collar 
  joined 
  to 
  ear-coverts 
  melarwra. 
  

  

  h. 
  Upper 
  tail-coverts 
  black 
  ; 
  outer 
  aspect 
  of 
  secon- 
  

   daries 
  olive-yellow, 
  with 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  mar- 
  

   gined 
  or 
  washed 
  externally. 
  

  

  a'. 
  Pectoral 
  collar 
  joined 
  to 
  ear-coverts 
  clio. 
  

  

  b'. 
  Pectoral 
  collar 
  separated 
  from 
  ear-coverts. 
  

   a". 
  Upper 
  surface 
  olive-greenish 
  ; 
  wings 
  ex- 
  

   ternally 
  washed 
  with 
  greenish 
  grey 
  .... 
  macrorhyncha. 
  

   b". 
  Upper 
  surface 
  golden 
  olive 
  ; 
  wings 
  ex- 
  

   ternally 
  washed 
  with 
  the 
  same 
  colour 
  . 
  . 
  ohiensis. 
  

  

  After 
  having 
  gone 
  over 
  the 
  series 
  in 
  the 
  British 
  Museum, 
  which 
  

   likewise 
  served 
  as 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  Dr. 
  Gadow's 
  studies, 
  I 
  regret 
  that 
  I 
  

   must 
  entirely 
  disagree 
  with 
  him. 
  He 
  appears 
  to 
  me 
  to 
  have 
  argued 
  

   from 
  immature 
  specimens 
  when 
  he 
  tries 
  to 
  show 
  the 
  variation 
  of 
  

   the 
  species 
  and 
  attempts 
  to 
  prove 
  that 
  they 
  run 
  one 
  into 
  another. 
  

   If 
  it 
  were 
  possible 
  to 
  find 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  island 
  examples 
  of 
  these 
  Pa- 
  

   chycephalce 
  with 
  the 
  black 
  breast-band 
  united 
  to 
  the 
  ear-coverts 
  

   and 
  others 
  with 
  this 
  disunited, 
  all 
  being 
  fidly 
  adult 
  birds, 
  then 
  Dr. 
  

   Gadow 
  would 
  have 
  proved 
  his 
  point 
  ; 
  but 
  this 
  is 
  exactly 
  what 
  does 
  

   not 
  take 
  place, 
  the 
  difference 
  in 
  coloration 
  being 
  accompanied 
  by 
  a 
  

   different 
  habitat. 
  It 
  is 
  not 
  right 
  to 
  compare 
  immature 
  birds 
  of 
  one 
  

   form 
  with 
  adults 
  of 
  another, 
  because 
  in 
  their 
  young 
  stages 
  all 
  these 
  

   species 
  are 
  unquestionably 
  very 
  difficult 
  to 
  distinguish 
  apart 
  ; 
  but 
  if 
  

   fully 
  adult 
  birds 
  are 
  compared, 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  think 
  there 
  ought 
  to 
  be 
  

   any 
  difficulty 
  in 
  determining 
  four 
  distinct 
  species. 
  

  

  Again, 
  with 
  regard 
  to 
  his 
  observations 
  that 
  the 
  colouring 
  of 
  the 
  

   upper 
  tail-coverts 
  " 
  is 
  of 
  no 
  specific 
  importance," 
  some 
  attention 
  

   must 
  be 
  given 
  to 
  the 
  age 
  and 
  condition 
  of 
  the 
  specimens. 
  In 
  

   the 
  group 
  with 
  the 
  upper 
  tail-coverts 
  black, 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  found 
  that 
  

   the 
  basal 
  ones 
  are 
  always 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  tipped 
  with 
  olive, 
  and 
  that 
  

   it 
  is 
  the 
  long 
  ones 
  which 
  are 
  black. 
  If, 
  therefore, 
  the 
  latter 
  are 
  

   shot 
  away, 
  a 
  superficial 
  observer 
  would 
  jump 
  at 
  once 
  to 
  the 
  conclu- 
  

   sion 
  that 
  the 
  upper 
  tail-coverts 
  are 
  olive-yellow. 
  Even 
  in 
  this 
  case 
  

   the 
  yellow-washed 
  quills 
  (instead 
  of 
  grey) 
  would 
  enable 
  one 
  to 
  dis- 
  

   tinguish 
  the 
  P.-macrorhgncha 
  group 
  from 
  P. 
  mekmura. 
  Then, 
  

   again, 
  it 
  would 
  appear 
  from 
  moulting 
  specimens 
  that 
  the 
  upper 
  tail- 
  

   coverts 
  when 
  first 
  grown 
  have 
  more 
  olive-yellow 
  on 
  the 
  margins 
  

   than 
  in 
  the 
  fully 
  adult 
  bird. 
  Therefore 
  in 
  these 
  Pach/ycephalce, 
  as 
  

   in 
  other 
  birds, 
  only 
  fully 
  plumaged 
  specimens 
  should 
  be 
  compared, 
  

   if 
  one 
  is 
  to 
  understand 
  the 
  relations 
  of 
  the 
  various 
  species. 
  

  

  There 
  can 
  be 
  no 
  doubt 
  that 
  the 
  locality 
  " 
  Celebes 
  " 
  attached 
  to 
  

   the 
  specimen 
  from 
  the 
  Gould 
  Collection 
  is 
  erroneous 
  ; 
  and 
  Mr. 
  

   Wallace 
  has 
  remarked 
  on 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  the 
  genus 
  in 
  the 
  above 
  

   island, 
  in 
  the 
  essay 
  quoted 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Gadow. 
  

  

  