26 COLLECTIONS FROM MEI.AX1- \. 



b. 2 imm. Port Molle, May 1881. Legs and feet greenish grey. 



c. 2 JUV. Port Molle, May L881. Legs and feet red; bill black. 



d. Pull. Thursday Island. July 1881. Bill, legs, and feet black; 



iris blown. 



e. d" juv. Prince of "Wales Island. Aug. 1881 . Iris reddish orange; 



bill greenish black : legs and feet olive-brown. 

 /. £ ad. Booby [aland, Aug. L881. Soft parts as in preceding. 

 g. 6 juv. Booby Island, Aug. 1881. Legs and feet greenish grey. 



The veiy interesting series collected by Dr. Coppinger ranges from 

 the tiny nestling to the fully adult bird. The age of a specimen is 

 easily determined by its under tail-coverts, which are yeUow in the 

 immature birds and deepen into rich orange in the adult ones. It 

 will be noticed that young birds were found, both in May and 

 Lugust, just beginning to put on the bright plumage of the breast ; 

 those killed in August are getting the rose-coloured crown. This 

 either shows that the breeding-times are not identical in Torres 

 Straits and at Port Molle, or that more than one brood is reared in 

 the year. 



60. Megapodius dnperreyi, / 



Oustalet, Bib!. Hautes Etudes, xxii. p. 17 (1881). 



_.ipodiu> assiuiilis. Masters ; Ramsay, t. c. p. 100. 



a. 2- Prince of Wales Island, Torres Straits, Aug. 1881. Bill 

 reddish brown, with yellow edges : legs bright orange ; iris 

 light reddish brown ; scales of toes dark reddish brown. 



6. cf . Booby Island, Aug. 1881. Iris dark brown. 



M. Oustalet. who has recently written a monograph of the Meg i- 

 podes. unites M. tumulus of Australia and M. assimilis of Masters 

 with the well-known M. duperreyi : and on looking over the series 

 in the British Museum, I confess that his opinion seems to be well 

 founded. 



61. E alius philippensis, L. 

 Hypotsnidia philippeusis, Ramsmj, t. c. p. L99. 

 a. J. Channel Bock, June 1>H. Iris red. 



62. Porphyrio melanonotns, Temm. 

 Ramsay, t. c. p. 199. 

 «. $. Booby Island. Aug. 1 SSI. Iris bright orange-red. 



63. iEsacus magnirostris (Gcoffr.). 

 Ramsay, t. r. p. L96. 

 a. $ . Port Molle, Queesland. 



