362 BIRDS OF NOEFOLK. 



species, -whose true and only home appears to have 

 been the islands of Dominica and Guadeloupe, in the 

 West Indies, was recorded in the '' Zoologist " for 1852 

 (p. 3691), by Professor Newton. In March or April, 1850, 

 a bird was observed by a boy on a heath, at Southacre, 

 in this county, flapping from one furze bush to another, 

 until it got into one and was there caught by him. Ex- 

 hausted as it was, it violently bit his hand, and he 

 thereupon killed it. The late Mr. Newcome fortunately 

 happened to be hawking in the neighbourhood, and his 

 falconer, John Madden, seeing the boy mth the dead bird, 

 procured it, and brought it to his master, by whom 

 it was skinned and stuffed. It still forms the chief 

 attraction in the Newcome collection ; and the following 

 note in regard to the accompanying representation of 

 it by Mr. Wolf (plate iv.) is among those left by Mr. 

 Stevenson for publication in this work. 



" Being enabled through the kindness of my friend 

 Mr. Newcome to present my readers with a coloured 

 illustration of this singular bird, which, though pre- 

 viously figured in the ' Zoologist ' and by Yarrell, 

 required the pencil of a Wolf"^ to do full justice to its 

 peculiarities, it will be unnecessary for me to describe 

 its plumage. It proved to be a female, and when fresh 

 the irides were deep brown or hazel colour. The 

 following are the principal measurements as given in the 

 'Zoologist,' (ut supra) — ' Total length about 16 inches; 

 length of the ulna about 4| inches ; from the carpal 

 joint to the end of the longest wing feather, rather more 

 than 12 inches. The length of the naked portion of the 

 tibia, rather more than half an inch ; of the tarsus, 

 rather less than 1| inches; and of the middle toe, 

 exclusive of the claw, about If inches,' " 



Besides Mr. Wolf's plate I am able now to include 

 a reproduction of the original figure of the bird's head 

 from the " Zoologist," which being of the natural size, 

 may aid in the recognition of any future example that 

 may occur. 



The occurrence of two other examples has been re- 



* Since the drawing -was made the specimen has been re- 

 mounted, and its attitude changed. 



