314 Transactions. — Zoology. 



Creadion cinereus, Buller. 



In the " Essay," to which I have already referred, I characterized and 

 named what appeared to me then a new species of Creadion in the following 

 terms : — " This species is of the size and general form of C. cariuiculatus 

 to which it hears a close affinity, but the colouring of the plumage is alto- 

 gether different. The common species (the 'Saddleback') is of a deep 

 uniform black, relieved by a baud of rufous brown which occupies the 

 whole of the back, and, forming a sharp outline across the shoulders, 

 sweeps over the wing coverts in a broad curve. In the present bird, how- 

 ever, the plumage is of a dark cinereous brown, paler on the under parts 

 and tinted with umber on the wings and scapularies ; the upper and lower 

 tail coverts, and a few spots on the smaller wing coverts, bright rufous. 

 The wattles are of the same colour and shape as in Creadion carunculatus but 

 somewhat smaller." 



i My new species was at once fiercely attacked by Dr. Otto Finsch and 

 Captain Hutton, both of whom declared it to be the young of Creadion 

 carunculatus. In his paper which appeared in volume v. of our Transac- 

 tions (p. 208), Dr. Finsch expressed his satisfaction that Captain Hutton' s 

 " examination of the types " had " shown C. cinereus to be undoubtedly the 

 young of the above-named species." 



In my reply, which appeared in vol. vi., p. 116, I explained that an 

 examination of a fine series of specimens in the Canterbury Museum, show- 

 ing what appeared to be transitional changes of plumage, had forced me to 

 this conclusion, and that I had communicated the result to Captain Hutton 

 long before the appearance of his catalogue. The descriptive notes which I 

 made at the time of this examination will be found at page 149 of my 

 " Birds of New Zealand." I was careful, nevertheless, to add the following 

 qualifying passages : — 



"I confess, however, that the subject is still beset with some difficulty 

 in my own mind. Supposing the plumage of C. cinereus to be the first 

 year's dress of C. carunculatus, it seems to me quite inexplicable that the 

 bird has never been met with in that state in the North Island. Captain 

 Hutton suggests that this is due to the comparative scarcity of the species 

 at the North. But during several years' residence in the Province of 

 "Wellington I obtained probably upwards of fifty specimens, at various times, 

 without ever detecting any sign of this immature condition of plumage. 



" Admitting the comparative scarcity of the species, one would naturally 

 suppose that the younger birds would be more likely to fall into the collec- 

 tor's hands than the fully adult ones. It may be suggested whether the 

 condition of the Canterbury Museum specimens has not possibly resulted 

 from intercrossing ; for we have not heard of any further examples (of the 



