OF VICTORIA. 223 



SATIN BOWER.BIRD 



(Satin-bird), 



Ptiloiiorhynchus violaceus, Vieill, 



Til-d-nd-ring'k us vi-o-ld' shius. 

 Ptilon, a downy feather ; rhynchus, bill ; violaceus, of a violet colour. 



Ptilonorhynchus holosericeus, Gould, "Birds of Australia," 

 fol., vol. iv., pi. 10. 



Geographical Distribution. — Areas 2, 3, 4, 



Key to the Species.— il/a/e — Purplish-black ; bill higher than 

 broad at nostrils ; nostrils entirely covered with silky feathers, 

 dense and recurved. Total length, 12 "5 inches. 



Female — Greyish-green on upper surface ; under surface 

 lunated. 



The Bower-birds form a beautiful and interesting sub-family 

 in our native fauna. It lias helped to make the Australian 

 region stand apart from all others in its animals, so foreign 

 to anything else that they are truly the strangest novelties. 

 A moment's glance at the members of this sub-family shows 

 one a bird conspicuous with a lilac-pink neck, another with 

 the richest of yellow and black feathers, a third handsomely 

 spotted, and a fourt^h perfect in its shining satin-blue coat. 

 Of such there are ten species within our continent, two of 

 which are in Victoria, the rest broadly scattered in the hot, 

 dry areas of the back country or in the damp heat of the 

 scrubs of Queensland. They all have playgrounds, the 

 trait which shows that a prominent individuality belongs to 

 them. The Satin Bower-bird confines its habitat, as far as 

 Victoria is concerned, to the humid land, and to the similar 

 country of the northern colonies. In the cold months it 

 associates in flocks by riversides, or near them if there is 

 brush. It is a tationary and shy species, but, like most 



