THE BIRDS OE AUSTRALIA. 
In the following pages I give the history of this bird as regards its nomen- 
clature, but here would point out that Gould wrote : “ The yellow-billed 
Albatros is plentiful . . . between . . . the Cape of Good Hope . . . and 
Van Diemens’ Land ; I also observed it off Capes Howe and Northumberland 
on the southern coast of Australia, and Mr. Gilbert states that he saw it flying 
about Rottnest Island on the western coast.” 
The latter observation would seem to apply to the bird at present called 
TJi. c. carteri Rothschild, and known by the unique specimen only. Whether 
the adult of Th. c. carteri will differ from the adult of TTi. c. hassi is at present 
unknown, but the probability is in the affirmative. It should be remembered 
that though a few instances are on record of Albatroses flying immense distances, 
this does not seem to be their custom. 
I might cite the facts that all the specimens of D. chionoptera Salvin, 
D. epomophora Lesson, Th. hulleri Rothschild, Th. cautus cautus Gould, Th. cautus 
layardi Salvin, Th. cautus salvini Rothschild, are only known from their 
breeding-grounds or its vicinity, while the determination of subspecific forms 
of species credited with widespread distribution points to localisation. I con- 
fidently anticipate the discrimination of many subspecies when series from 
breeding-localities are available, and the plumage-changes of the species 
understood. 
Gmelin’s D. chlororhynchos {Syst. Nat.y p. 568, 1789) was described thus : — ■ 
D. alba, rostro nigro, carina mandibulse superioris basique inferioris flava, capite 
griseo, cenia, macula supra oculos caudaque obscuris, dorso, alls maculaque inter rostrum 
et oculis nigris. 
YeUow-nosed Albatross. Lath. syn. III., 1., p. 309, n. 3, t. 94. 
Habitat ad caput bonae spei, et m mari australi extra tropicos, 3 pedes longa, 5-6 
pedes supra aquae superficiem volans. 
Irides fuscae ; nucha et uropygium alba ; pedes pallide ochroleuci, anterius cum 
membrana digitos connectente obscuri. 
This is simply a Latin translation of Latham’s account, which reads as 
follows : — 
Length three feet ; breadth seven. The bill four inches long, hooked at the end, but 
not very stout ; the colour of it is black, except the upper ridge, which is yellow the whole 
length, quite to the tip, where it is hooked ; the base of the under mandible is also yellow ; 
irides brown ; the head is grey ; between the bill and eyes is an obscure black spot ; Just 
over the ej^e a dusky one ; the hind part of the neck dusky, the lower part white ; 
back, scapulars and wings dusky blue-black ; rump, and under part of the body white ; 
the tail dusky ; the legs are pale yellowish-white ; the fore part of them, and the 
webs, dusky. 
This species is met AVith in the southern hemisphere, from 30 to 60 degrees, aU round 
the pole. (One was caught in lat. 57° 30' S. in the month of February.) The specimen 
from whence the above description was drawn up, was taken off the Cape of Gk)od Hope. 
Inhabits the South Seas without the tropics. Fly about five or six feet above the surface 
of the water. 
282 
