MIMETA VIRIDIS. 



the consequent difference in their habits of life. Of the tongue or mode of 

 feeding of the bird at present before us, I can myself say nothing deci- 

 sively, not having had leisure or opportunity, as I have already observed, 

 of attending to the more interesting details of natural history during the 

 expedition. But general opinion places this bird among the groups that 

 feed by suction ; and as I have a second species, hitherto undescribed, 

 which is closely allied to it, I prefer forming both provisionally into a new 

 genus, to referring them to one, from which, although they agree with it 

 in external appearance, they may be totally remote, in consequence of 

 their internal anatomy and habits of life, the error at least will not be so 

 great, and may be easily retrieved. If the tongue of my birds be found 

 to accord with that of the Orioles, and not of the Honey-stickers, my group 

 of course must fall." 



We lately procured seven skins of this species from the neighbourhood 

 of Sydney, and one of these fortunately still possessed the tongue, which 

 perfectly proves, as far as we can judge from structure, Captain King's 

 anticipations of their feeding in the same manner as the large Melipha- 

 gous birds of New Holland, and will therefore confirm the importance of 

 his genus. The tongue is however different, and to a certain degree mo- 

 dified from the form and structure of the true slender-billed Meliphagidce, 

 and those of the genera Anthochcera, Tropidorhynchus, and Sericulns, and 

 instead of being long and slender, and divided into a fine pencil of fila- 

 ments at the tip, it in this genus retains the form of that of the Orioles or 

 Thrushes, but is furnished at the tip and edges, and upon the upper sur- 

 face, with numerous long filaments, raised or starting from the substance 

 itself. In the description of Sericuhis chrysocephalus, we stated as our 

 opinion, that all the larger Meliphagidce feed chiefly on fruits ; but we 

 have no doubt of their occasionally resorting, in the scarcity of these, to 

 other food ; and such certainly seems to be the case with this species. Its 

 natural food may be fruits and other bodies possessing a saccharine quality, 

 and it will thus be entitled to its station in the group ; but this does not 

 prove that it is incapacitated, in a case of necessity, from living and agree- 

 ing with another sort of nourishment. It will add another link to the 

 chain of connecting affinities. 



All the adult specimens we have procured agree with the descriptions 

 of Captain King, and those by Mr Vigors and Dr Horsfield. Some 

 others appeared to be in their immature plumage, and had the edges of the 

 quills, secondaries and tail, of a light sienna-red, the under wing-coverts 

 were also tinged with red. The breast was more dusky, and did not pos- 

 sess the fine greenish tinge on the sides of the adult males. There was al- 

 so a very slight difference in the size. 



