85 



considered that they were not so : he expressed his desire to see the 

 female hybrid that had produced the three-quarter Pheasants then 

 in the room, and hoped that the opportunities which the Menagerie 

 of the Society afforded of obtaining additional evidence on this in- 

 teresting subject would not be lost sight of. 



The Chairman stated, that it was the opinion of John Hunter 

 that hybrids were not productive except in cases where the gene- 

 rative organs were in a state of perfection, which might be regarded 

 as unnatural in hybrids, as in the rare cases recorded of fertile 

 Mules, between the Horse and Ass. Constant fertility in the hy- 

 brid ])roved, in the opinion of Hunter, that the parents were varie- 

 ties of the same species, not distinct species. But the Chairman 

 stated, that the experiments recorded by Hunter in the ' Animal 

 CEconomy ' relative to the fecundity of the hybrids from the Do^ 

 and Wolf and Dog and Jackal were incomplete, from the cir- 

 cumstances of the hybrids having always bred from a perfect 

 species and not having propagated the intermediate variety inter 

 se. He trusted that in a short time this test would be applied in 

 experiments now in progress at the Society's Menagerie, and thus 

 an additional element be gained towards the solution of this inter- 

 esting question. 



A small collection of Bi7-ds from Swan River, presented to the 

 Society by Lieut. Breton and Capt. Brete, were on the table. Mr. 

 Gould, at the request of the Chairman, observed upon the collection 

 generally, and selected two species which he considered as unde- 

 scribed, a Gallinule and a species of Duck, the latter strictly refer- 

 rible to the genus Oxyura of L. Bonaparte, Prince of Musignano, 

 (genus Undina of Gould). Mr. Gould named the Gallinule, Gallinula 

 ventralts, and the Duck, Oxyura Australis, this being the only in- 

 stance he had seen of this limited group from Australia. Of this spe- 

 cies the collection contained both male and female, the latter of 

 which, in the general distribution of its markings and colouring, 

 bore so close a resemblance to the Hydrohates of Temminck that 

 the bill alone presented the obvious distinction. 



Mr. Gould characterized the Gallinula as follows : 



Gallinula ventralis. Gall, guld pectore et infei'ioribus corporis 

 partibus fusco-cinereis , lateribus albo guttatis, remigihis caudce 

 crissoque nigris ; toto corpore superni olivaceo-brunneo ; alis cas- 

 taneo tinctis ; mundibuld superiore olivaced ; inferiore ad basin 

 rubra, ad apicem olivaced ; pedibus olivaceis. 



Long. tot. 15 a 17 unc; rostri, \\; alee, 9 ; caudce, Z^\ tarsi, 1\. 



Hab. in Australia apud flumen Cygnorum. 



Oxyura Australis. Mas. Oxy. capite toto et colloque nigris ; 

 pectore, dorsolateribusque nitide castaneis; remigibus tectricibusque 

 caudee nigrescentibus, vropygio nigricante brunneo inornato ; ub- 

 domine crissoque brunneo cinereis brunneo transversaliter obscuri 

 striatis, rostro pedibusqne plumbeis. 



