THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
pure white, it would be undistinguishable from D. regia. I consider that the 
shape of the bill would enable recognition of this form at any time. 
The features which require notice are the comparative slenderness and 
the gentle slope of the culminicorn with its much weaker nail ; the examination 
of specimens makes this much more clear than either descrij)tions or drawings 
can do, and so far I have had no difficulty in picking out the specimens by 
the bill-characters alone. 
The bird recorded by Berg {Commun. Mus. Nac. Buenos Ayres, Vol. I., 
No. 8, p. 284, 1901) as D. regia, cannot very well be referable to this form, but 
would appear to be the fully adult of D. e. exulans, more especially as Wilson 
{National Antarct. Exp., Vol. II., pp. 110-111, 1907) has also noted that white 
Albatroses were seen close to and north of the Falkland Islands in the South 
Atlantic Ocean. 
It is interesting to note that BuUer, when he described his D. regia, was not 
exactly aware of the diagnostic characters of the Campbell Island breeding bird, 
and there seems to be reason to suppose that his adult was a very old specimen 
of D. e. rothschildi, as will be noted from the description here attached. On 
p. 231 he recorded that his attention was attracted by a bird which he thus 
described : “It was of small size, and evidently a young bird. The whole 
of the plumage was pure white without any markings, excepting only the 
wings which were black on their upper surface, largely dappled with white, 
especially towards the humeral flexure ; legs and feet flesh-grey.” This 
agrees very closely with Lesson’s D. epomophora, and there can be no 
doubt of the identity of the two birds described. Buller’s detailed diagnoses 
read : — 
Adult. General plumage pure white ; upper surface of wings blackish-brown, varied 
with pale brown and white along the edges, and with an extensive patch of white on the 
humeral flexure ; primaries brownish-black, with paler tips and yellowish-white shafts ; 
secondaries brownish-black, largely marked with white on their inner webs ; scapulars 
white on their basal portion, black towards the tips ; tail-feathers largely marked with 
black in their apical portion, and the outer ones more or less marbled with brown ; lining 
of wings and under tail-coverts like the rest of the plumage of the under parts, pure white. 
Irides very dark brown, almost black ; bare eyelids jet black ; biU white, with a roseate or 
pinky tinge in life, yellowish horn -coloured on the terminal hook ; legs and feet flesh- 
white. Extreme length (approximately) 51 inches ; extent of wings 122 inches ; wing from 
carpal flexure 28 inches ; tail 10 inches ; biU, following the curvature of upper mandible 
8.5 inches ; length of lower mandible 7.6 inches ; tarsus 5 inches ; middle toe and claw 7.5 
inches. 
Young. Similar to the adult, except that there is less white on the upper surface 
of the wings, although all the coverts have white margins ; the interscapular region is 
traversed longitudinally with club-shaped marks of greyish-black, increasing downwards, 
the larger feathers having their apical portion completely covered ; upwards, towards 
the shoulders, these marks diminish tiU thev become mere arrow-heads : on the mantle and 
on the upper tail-coverts there are sometimes marginal bars, but there is no vermiculation. 
Bill yellowish hom-colour, with a bluish tinge on the upper mandible. 
Nestling. Covered with pure white down, thick and woolly in appearance. 
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