CEEEOPSIS NOV^ IIOLLANDI^. 



(Cereopsis Goose.) 



GrENEEAL plumage, light dingy grey — darker on the upper than the lower surface ; a patch of dull white on the crown ; primaries, for about 

 one-third of their length from the tips, and secondaries, for about a quarter their length from the tips, black ; upper tail coverts and tail, 

 dull black ; wing coverts and scapularies, spotted, the former with small and the latter with large, blackish grey spots near the tips ; bill, 

 light green, with a narrow black line adjoining the head, the tip is also black; cere, yellow; irides, vermilion or claret color; legs, crimson or 

 reddish orange ; toes and webs of the feet, black. The sexes are alike in plumage. The young assume the adult plumage at an early age. 



Length, 29 inches ; wing, 15 ; tail, Q\ ; bill. If ; tarsus, 4 ; mid-toe, 3i. 



This singular bird is about the size and weight of a common goose, and is found widely dispersed over the islands in Bass' 

 Straits and the southern coast of Victoria. When first discovered by our early explorers it was very tame, and frequently killed with sticks 

 and such like weapons ; it is now much more wary, and anything but numerous. It has rarely been found in the northern portion of New 

 South Wales. It breeds freely in confinement, and would be a valuable addition to our poultry yards were it not for its pugnacious habits, 

 which make it undesirable. It is strictly, or nearly so, a vegetable feeder, and its flesh is excellent. The gardens of the London Zoological 

 Society have possessed them since their, formation, and have been the means of distributing them to many private collectors. Its note is 

 hoarse and disagreeable. The eggs are creamy white, about 3i inches in length by 2i broad. 



