470 BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 



Family ? 



Genus CORCORAX, Lesson. 



A genus containing only one species, which possesses many 

 singular habits. So far as is yet known, it is confined to 

 Australia. 



Sp. 288. CORCORAX MELANORHAMPHUS. 

 White-winged Corcorax. 



Coracia melanoramphos, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. d^Hist. Nat., torn. viii. p. 2. 

 Pyrrhocorax leucopterus, Temm. Man. d^Orn., torn. i. p. 121. 

 Fregilus leucopterus, Vig. and Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv. p. 265. 

 Corvus leucopterus, Wagl. Syst. Nat., Corvus, sp. 14. 

 Corcorax australis, Less. Traite d'Orn., p. 325. 



leucoptei-us, G. R. Gray, List of Gen. of Birds, 2nd edit. p. 52. 



melanorhynchus , Gray, Gen. of Birds, vol. ii. p. 321. 



Cercoronus melanorhynchus, Cab. Orn. Nat. inWiegm. Arcliiv, 1847, 

 p. 325. 



melanorhamphus. Cab. Mus. Hein., Theil i. p. 228. 



Wayhung, Aborigines of New South Wales. 



Corcorax leucopterus, Gould, Birds of Australia, fol., vol, iv. pi. 16. 



This bird is distributed over all parts of New South Wales 

 and South Australia ; it is very abundant in the whole of the 

 Upper Hunter district, I killed it in the interior of South 

 Australia ; and Mr. Elsey met with it at the edge of a dense 

 scrub on the Burdekin in lat. 19° 30' S. It usually occurs in 

 small troops of from six to ten in number, feeding upon the 

 ground, over which it runs with considerable rapidity. In 

 disposition it is extremely tame, readily admitting of a very 

 close approach, and then merely flying off" to the low branch of 

 some neighbouring tree. During flight the w^hite marking 

 of the wing shows very conspicuously, and on alighting the 

 bird displays many curious actions, leaping from branch to 

 branch with surprising quickness, at the same time spreading 



