342 ON THE GENUS PTILOPUS. 



of P. insoUtus, nor state another one ; this question must be left open for the 

 moment ; but it is to be hoped that we shall not remain long uncertain thereon, 

 as it concerns an interesting and rare bird, whose generic position even, 

 perhaps, has still to be fixed. Gray, in his ' Hand-list,' groups it together 

 with Drepanoptila holosericeus (Temm.), from New Caledonia ; but I believe it 

 must be grouped together with P. humeralis, P. jobiensis^ and P. iozonus^ and 

 perhaps will be placed in a genus for itself by those who like to separate 

 forms deviating, as P. insolitus does, generically from others. 



" The above - named similarly coloured species are distributed as 

 follows : — 



^' Ptilopus humeralis, Wall. 



'' North-west of New Guinea, island of Salawati, and island of 

 Mansinam, near Dore (Meyer). (P. Z. S. 1862, pi. 21.) 



" Ptilopus jobiensis, Schl. 

 " Island of Jobi. 



'* Ptilopus iozonus, G. R. Gray. 



^^ South-east of New Guinea, Aru Islands. 



"I think it probable that the habitat of P. insolitus, Schl., will finally 

 prove to be some island-group in the east of New Guinea." 



Two of these birds were sent me by Dr. Meyer, one larger, the other 

 smaller, the plumage being exactly ahke ; and each had the protuberance. 

 I take them to be male and female, in which case there would be no 

 difference in the sexes, except size. I retained the larger for my own 

 collection ; and it is the one figured in the Plate, a supposed male. If both 

 male and female have the protuberance, this remarkable feature is thus 

 deprived of any sexual character. 



