0)1 ueirhj described Birds-of-Paradise. lOD 



lA^. — On some neicly described Birds-nf-Parad'tse, and some 

 Undescribed Egcjs of the same Group. By the Hon. Walter 

 Rothschild, rii.D. 



(Plate ir.) 



Since my pa})er " On recently clescril)e(l Paradiseidse '' (see 

 ' Ibis,' 1911, pp. 350-367) was written, I have received a fine 

 collection made by Mr. A. S. Meek on the Eilanden River 

 and Mount Goliath in Central New Guinea. In it was a 

 series of Birds-of-Paradise of more than ordinary intei'est. 

 For in addition to two new forms, it contained examples of 

 no less than four species described from trade-skins, and 

 of which the exact habitat was unknown before. Unfor- 

 tunately Mr. Meek's collecting trip was carried out during 

 the Avrong season of the year, i. e. between December and 

 March, so that the larger number of Birds-of-Paradise were 

 i)i full moult. In spite of this, however, his collection is in 

 fine order, and it enables us to give definitely the true 

 habitats in Central New Guinea of Pteridophora aJberti 

 Meyer, Loboparadisea sericea Rotiisch., Astrapia splendidissima 

 Rothsch., and Parotia carolce carol(B Meyer. 



The description of the two new species is as follows : — 



Paradigalla brevicauda. (Plate II.) 



F, brevicauda Rothschild & Hartert, Nov. Zool. xviii. 

 pp. 159, 160 (1911). 



$ ad. The colour is practically identical with that of 

 P. carunculata Less., being velvety black, with the head, nape 

 and foreneck dark metallic green, almost olive-green. The 

 whole back and scapulars are glossed with oily green : this 

 is not visible in most skins of P. carunculata., but in onesl\in 

 in the Tring Museum it is as much developed as in the 

 mnjority of uiy series of P. brevicauda. 



The median and greater up])er wing-coverts are glossed 

 with green, and the secondaries have sharply defined outer 

 edges of dark golden green, which colour is also ])resent on 

 the distal portions of the inner webs, wliile the primaries are 



