INSESSORES. 



515 



Sp. 314. PTILOTIS ORNATA, Gouhl. 



Graceful Ptilotis. 



Ptilotis ornatus, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc, part vi. p. 24. 

 Meliphaga ornata, Gray, Gen. of Birds, vol. i. p. 12.2, Meliphaya, 

 sp. 10. 



Ptilotis ornatus, Gould, Birds of Australia, foL, vol. iv. pi. 39. 



It was a source of much gratification to myself to have 

 unexpectedly found this elegant little bird in that rich ar- 

 boretum, the Belts of the Murray, which had. already sup]jlied 

 me with so many novelties. It was there confined to trees of 

 a dwarf growth, while in the country in the neighbourhood of 

 Swan River I am informed it is seen on the topmost branches 

 of the gum- and mahogany-trees, chnging and flitting about 

 the blossoms, not unfrequently descending to the ground and 

 hopping about beneath the branches and near the boles of the 

 larger trees, doubtless in search of insects. 



It has rather a loud ringing and not unpleasing song, which 

 is constantly poured forth. 



The nest is generally suspended from a horizontal forked 

 branch, frequently in an exposed situation, and is of a neat, 

 small, open, cup-shaped form, composed of fine vegetable 

 fibres and grasses matted together with spiders' webs, and 

 sometimes wool. The eggs are either two or three in num- 

 ber, of a deep salmon-colour, becoming paler at the smaller 

 end, and minutely freckled with reddish brown, particularly 

 at the larger end ; they are nine lines long by seven broad. 



The female differs from the male in being somew4iat less in 

 size, and those I collected had the nostrils, eyelash, and basal 

 portion of the bill orange instead of black, as in the male ; still 

 I am not fully satisfied that this orange colouring may not in- 

 dicate iramatm-ity, and that the fully adult female may not 

 have these, as in her mate. 



Crown of the head, external edge of the wings, rump, and 



2 L 2 



