THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
This comparison was however made with the juvenile-plumage of 
acuminatus, a further note thus describing a specimen from New South Wales 
which they could not definitely deal with : “ The posterior and lateral parts 
of the breast have coarse, irregular markings of dark brown, many of these 
markings being V-shaped, others irregularly sagittate or even transverse ; 
these markings are continued, but increased in size along the sides of the 
crissum, and even the abdomen has a few small markings ; the crown is not 
conspicuously rusty, neither is this colour there bounded sharply by the light 
superciliary stripe.” We now know this last to be the breeding-plumage of 
Limnociyiclus acujninatus, and if series of the two species be now sorted into 
plumages, great differences will be observed between the two. The essential 
character by which they can unfailingly be separated is the shape of the tail. 
The immature-plumage of Limnooinclus acuminatus has been compared 
with that of pectoralis, but when once these are known they can never be 
mistaken. The former may shortly be described thus : Above, head- 
feathers black with broad bright rufous tips, giving a striped appearance ; 
neck-feathers brownish centres and greyish edges ; back and rump black with 
rufous tips as also the upper tail-coverts where the tips are more prominent ; 
central tail-feathers with bold bright rufous edges ; upper-back feathers, 
perapterals, and tertials black to brownish-black with broad bright rufous 
edgings ; upper wing-coverts with paler edgings, secondary-coverts with 
broad white edges ; secondaries white tipped ; throat white ; upper-breast pale 
fawn to rufous with narrow streaks down the centres of the feathers, the lower- 
breast having the streaks missing in the centre but well developed at the 
sides ; the flank-feathers irregularly rufous tipped ; centre of abdomen dirty- 
white ; under tail-coverts white with dark brownish central streaks. A whitish 
superciliary streak is present. 
The adult summer-plumage is very different below, though the upper 
coloration is similar to that of the immature, chiefly differing in lacking some 
of the rufous tipping ; the throat is white unspotted ; the upper-breast is 
bright rufous, the feathers having a central black spot ; the lower-breast is 
paler rufous tinged, while the spots develop into sagittate markings occurring 
somewhat more sparsely, which continue on to the abdomen stiU more 
sparsely and larger, and the under tail-covert have dark streaks in their 
centres. 
That is, the juvenile and summer adult-plumages are very different when 
the under-surfaces are compared. 
The immature of pectoralis when contrasted with that of acuminatus 
has the upper coloration somewhat similar : the former has less rufous to 
the feathers throughout, and the shade of rufous is paler ; the under 
262 
