CHAP. XIII.] 
THE AUSTRALIAN REGION 
441 
to Tasmania ; which island appears to possess no peculiar 
genus of birds except Eudyptes, one of the penguins. West 
Australia has no wholly peculiar genus except Geopsittacns, a 
curious form of ground parroquet; the singular Atrichia , first 
found here, having been discovered in the east. In North 
Australia, Emblema (Ploceidse) is the only peculiar Australian 
genus, but several Austro-Malayan and Papuan genera enter, — 
as, Syma and Tanysiptera (Alcedinidte) ; Machcerihynchus 
(Muscicapidae) ; Calornis (Sturnidee) ; Manucodia, Ptilorhis , and 
sElurcedus (Paradiseidse) ; Megapodius; and Casuarius, The pre- 
sence of a species of bustard ( Eupodotis ) in Australia, is very 
curious, its nearest allies being in the plains of India and Africa. 
Among waders the genus Tribonyx , a thick-legged bird some- 
what resembling the Notornis of New Zealand, though not closely 
allied to it, is the most remarkable. The district where the 
typical Australian forms most abound is undoubtedly the eastern 
side of the island. The north and south are both somewhat 
poorer, the west much poorer, although it possesses a few very 
peculiar forms, especially among Mammalia. Tasmania is the 
poorest of all, a considerable number of genera being here want- 
ing ; but, except the two peculiar carnivorous marsupials, it 
possesses nothing to mark it off zoologically from the adjacent 
parts of the main land. It is probable that its insular climate, 
more moist and less variable than that of Australia, may not be 
suitable to some of the absent forms ; while others may require 
more space and more varied conditions, than are offered by a 
comparatively small island. 
The remaining classes of animals have been already discussed 
in our sketch of the region as a whole (p. 396). 
Plate XII. Illustrating the Fauna of Australia. — In this 
plate we take New South Wales as our locality, and represent 
chiefly, the more remarkable Australian types of birds. The 
most conspicuous figure is the wonderful lyre-bird (Menura su~ 
perba), the elegant plumage of whose tail is altogether unique in 
the whole class of birds. The unadorned bird is the female. In 
the centre is the emu ( Drommts novce-hollandim), the represen- 
tative in Australia, of the ostrich in Africa and America, but be- 
