X Introduction. 



Our knowledge of the Birds of New Griiinea is based 

 mainly on Count T. Salvadori's monumental work " Orni- 

 to'ogia della Papuasia e delle Molucche,' which appeared 

 in three large volumes in 1880-82, and on his 'Aggiunte' 

 to the work published in three parts in 1889-91. Since 

 that date our knowledge of the avifauna has vastly increased, 

 and a very large number of splendid Birds-of-Paradise and 

 other remarkable species have been discovered. 



A list of the principal works subsequently published, placed 

 in chronological order, will be found at the end of the intro- 

 duction, the most important papers being no doubt those by 

 Lord (then the Hon. Walter) Rothschild and Dr. E. Hartert, 

 which have appeared from time to time in the periodical of 

 the Tring Museum, 'Novitates Zoologicse.' Lord Rothschild 

 is to be congratulated on the success which has attended the 

 efforts of his various collectors in New Guinea, and on the 

 energy which he has displayed in obtaining birds from un- 

 known districts of the most interesting island in the world. 



In most instances very little is known about the habits of 

 the different species of birds. The jungles of South-western 

 New Gruinea are so dense that white men can scarcely 

 traverse them, and most of the collecting had to be done by 

 the trained Dyak collectors from the Malay Peninsula, 

 kindly supplied by Mr. H. C. Robinson, and by the Gurkhas 

 who accompanied the B. 0. U. Expedition. 



It is certain that the resources of that wonderful island 

 are not nearly exhausted : on the contrary, every fresh 

 collecting expedition sent to the interior produces remark- 

 able novelties, and large chains of high mountaii>s are still 

 unexplored. The members of our Expeditions were for- 

 tunate in procuring no fewer than 3395 skins of birds in 

 New Guinea^ representing 312 species and subspecies, of 

 which 25 proved to be new to Science and 37 new to 

 the British Museum Collection. A number of new birds 

 were also obtained by the late Mr. Wilfred Stalker in tlie 

 mountains of Ceram, which he visited before joining the 

 main B. 0. U. Expedition at Amboina. 



It will be noticed that the great bulk of the birds 



