150 Mr. W. R. Ogilvie-Giant on Birds 



n. S- Wutaikwa Hiver, 21st Oct. 1910. [No. 1419, 

 G. C. S.-] 



o-r. ^ ? . Canoe Cainp, Setakwa River, 31st Oct. 1912- 

 3rd Jan. 1913. [C.B.K.'] 



Iris hazel ; upper mandible black, lower light brown ; 

 feet sooty-black or dark ash-colour. 



Out of a series of seventeen specimens only three are 

 females ; these have the chest black, spotted with white and 

 the breast and belly dark grey, some of the feathers of the 

 upper breast having white streaks. 



Six of the males resemble the females, but the black- and 

 white- spotted feathers of the breast occupy a larger area 

 and the light markings are larger. Six other males, which 

 appear to be the most adult in the series, have the under- 

 parts blacker, the darkest having the entire breast, belly, 

 and under tail-coverts black, while, both in this bird and 

 in another very dark male, the white chesLspots are much 

 reduced in size, being as small or smaller than those of the 

 female. This proves the reverse of the conclusion arrived 

 at by Sharpe (Catalogue, p. 325). Two quite young males 

 (jSTos. 121 & 868) have the underparts, including the chest, 

 brownish -grey, the latter being scantily j<potted with 

 white. 



It would thus appear that the adult male differs very 

 considerably from the adult female, being an altogether 

 blacker bird. 



The type of this species was procured at Lobo near Triton 

 Bay, about 200 miles west of the Mimika River, 



Rhipidura fumosa Schleg. is considered to be the young 

 of this species by Sharpe, but I thin|v this must be a mistake, 

 for he describes the tj^pe as having the underparts " dusky 

 chocolate." 



^'The Black-tailed Pearl-breasted Flycatcher was a 

 • common species everywhere except near Wakatimi and on 

 the coast. Its habits are exactly like those of R. l^ucoy 

 thorad'.''' — C. H. B. G. 



