T \ L 



T A L 



of our loologicml system* may be traced to the 

 our. 



Lcipew. (Gould.) 



'.irlrr. Hili marly a* long as llir hcnel, 

 slenelcr. tume.scent at the base, the cdircs undulated ami 

 incurved at the hose, the Mxtrila tntpTa, etblonir. < 

 with an operpulum, and placed in a central hollow. Head 



Head and Foot of Lelpo*. 



subercsted. ll'myi am pie, rounded, concave : fifth pri- 

 mary quill the longest : 11 nearly a long as the 



priOMMa. Tall rounded. tail-fcuthcrs fourteen. 

 iiHHlemte. robust, covered with scuta nnteriurly. and pos- 

 teriorly with scales whii-h are rounded and unequal. 

 rat her short : lateral toes nearly equal, i Gould. 



Kxampli' <iiOa. (Gould.) 



II v -n/tion. Hend and crest blackish-brown: neck 

 nnd shoulders dark nsh-grey : the lore port of the neek 

 from the chin to the breast marked by a series of lanceo- 

 late feathers, which lire black with li white stripe down 

 the centre ; back and winsrs conspicuously marked with 

 three distinct bands of greyish white, brown nnd black 

 near the tip of each feather, the marks assuming an ocel- 

 lated form, particularly on the tips of the secondaries : 

 primaries brown, their outer webs marked with two or 

 three 7.isr/asr lines near their tip ; nil the under surface 

 light butt', the tips of the flank feathers barred with black ; 

 (nil blackish-brown, broadly tipped with buff; bill black; 

 feet blackish-brown. 'Gould.) 



In size this beautiful bird is inferior 1o Tn/i'zn// 



Ifnnii. and it is more slender nnd more eleirantlv formed. 



uling to Mr. Gould, it is the AV""' of the aborigines 



of the lowland : \gmr-on of (he mountain districts ot 



!ia : and A'utirr l'/trasant of the colonists 



i.l Western Australia. 



ll'iliilx. !',' at. \iiiificitlinn. A-'". Mr. Gould, in his/fr/v/.s 

 in. irives nn account, collected by Mr. John 

 Gilbert, from G. Moore, Esq., advocate-general, Mr. Arm- 

 strong, the aboriginal interpreter, and some of the more 

 intelligent natives of Western Australia. The Ocef/ntrrf 

 Ijfijmn is there described as a ground-bird, never taking to 

 a tree except when closely hunted: when hard pursued, il 

 will frequently run its head into a bush, and is then easily 

 taken. Food generally consisting of seeds and berries 

 The note mournful, very like that of a pigeon, but with r 

 more inward tune. KL'L'- deposited in a mound oi' 

 tin- formation of which is the work ol 'both s c \, -. \ 

 ig to the -lie' bird-, scratch up the sand for main 



yards around, forming a mound about three feet in height 

 of which is constructed of alternate la; 



UMfc, So-.. among which 1\veKe eirtrs and 

 npw:e .'Land an- co\ered up by the birds as 



they are laid; or, as the nativi . e-xpu-s. it'. (]),. i-oun- 

 tenam-es ul'the eggs are never visible.' Upon Ihcs. 

 the I it \\hen she hns laid out her lay, as 



the henwttr* say, the uli .1 up. when llie 



mound of sand resembles nn ant s nest. The eggs, which 

 slightly tinged with red. and about the 

 ' -0111111011 fowl's eiru'. arc- hutched by the- h 



the vegetable lininc retaining suflic-ic ul 



warmth during the' nisrht : the-, .ted in layers, no 



' to lie \\ilhout a division. The 



! of the eggs, rob these hillock* 



'inc.- iii a season ; and tin -\ jud^c- of the 1 



number of C-L'L'S in a mound by the' cjnant'ity of l\-:ithei> 



Iving about. If the fealliers be abundant, 'he hillock is 



and then they imtne ,, and take' tile whcde. 



Tin- binl will then begin to ln\ :,bc-d. 



illy lay a third tinie. I'pon (jiiestioning 



.edition, he 

 nt of its halm 



iicurmting; adding, that in all the mounds tlu v 

 opencd, they found ants almont as ntimcroui 08 In an ant'- 



iill ; and that in many n: ol the monn( t 



surrounding the li >un ul'the enir had bccoi 



iard. that they were obliged to chip round them with a 

 chisel to iret tile egg* o.it ; the msules ul'the me' 

 alwayi hot. 



ho had just returned 



om lu~ expedition to the north-ucst ec>ast. inlbi-med Mr. 

 Gould that he had never fallen in with the nests but i 



i.tion of country. \i/. 



nnd so tliickly woodc-cl \Mth a species of d 

 miim.lhat if the traveller strays from the' native jiatb- 

 aliiuist ini])ossible for him to force his way through. In 

 these close scrubby woods mnall open glades occasionally 

 occur, and there the N DDCtrucU il large 



heaji i f sand, dead tcrass and bungle, nt 1. 

 diameter and three feet in heiirht : Captain Grey luul 

 them even larger than this. I i 

 saw c-irt's in thcsc> nests : they were- [ 

 from each other, and buried in the earth. Captain ' 

 states that he is not sure of the number, but the account 

 Driven by the native's led him to believe that at 1 

 numbers were' found. 



hlii. \\ , tralia. Mr. Moore saw a great 



many of them about sixty miles north of I'erth : I 

 mist favourite covm! . to be the- ba 



plains of the interior. l(X) miles north an 

 The furthest point north at which Captir, ' 

 breeding-places \v,-|s (.aiitheaumc- Hay. ('aj)tain 

 states that the natives of Km: that 



the same or n nearly allied species exists in that n 

 bourhood. (Hir<lx (\f Aiixtriil.n. 



. (OouM.) 



Megapodius. 



In the article CR.MIDK (vol. viii., p. V.\'l the irc-nerie- 

 character o IIHH and an account 



iJujifrrri/i is s;ive'n. It is there staled that it would 

 that the Meirapodius ol' the' Philippines h'aves its . 

 the fostering hc-at of the sun. Mr. Gould, in the 

 work from which vvr have already drawn sue-h iiilere 

 accounts of this extraordinary group of birds, has, from the' 

 notes of Mr. Gilbert, laid before the public n most satis. 

 factory statement relative to the habits of M 

 '' 



mid foot of MrsTodl"". (Oonld.) 



rip/inn. Ib-ad and cieM very deep einnnmoii- 

 brown : back of tlic' iii-ck and all the under surface \c-iy 

 bae-k and wings e-innanion-brown : ujipei- and 

 under UuI-OOVertl dark chestnut-brown: tail blae-kish- 

 brown : iiide-s geiieially dark brown, but in some speci- 

 mens light reddish-brown ; bill reddish-brown, with yellow 



