BANKSIAN COCKATOO. 
have questioned its usage, but somehow it has gained favour, as Ramsay 
in Australia and Salvadori in the Catalogue of the Birds in the British 
Museum , in 1891, both made use of it. 
Wagler gave a long description of his new form, which I need not 
insert here, but I give his conclusions : “ Species haec differt a simillimo 
Calyptorhyncho Temminckii tectricibus superioribus minoribus alarum et plumis 
capitis flavo-punctatis nec non rectricum limbo interno flavo, a Calyptorhyncho 
Cookii et C. hanksii statura multo minore, rostri forma, caet.” 
I here add the measurements as far as Wagler gives them : 
C. stellatus. 
C. hanksii. 
Longitudo 
V 6" 
26-27" 
„ caudse . . 
9J" 
13" 2'" 
,, alse . . . . . . 
12" 
16f" 
„ maxillae ad frontem . . 
2" 2"' 
2" 
Ejusdem altitudo prope basin . . 
1" 1"' 
1" 2 
Latitudo ad basin culminis 
2'" 
4'" 
„ ante apicem . . 
i'" 
— 
„ lateris anterioris mandibulae 10'" 
6'" 
Ambitus rostri ad basin 
5" 
5" 4"' 
From these measurements it will be seen that Wagler’ s name has no 
claim for usage for the Western form of hanksii. The shortage in the wing 
is so much as to suggest that the bird was in full moult or else the wing had 
been clipped. It does not agree with the wing measurements of the Western 
form in any way. Further, the tail is also extraordinarily short, which 
would confirm the suggestion of moult. In this case the name carries no 
meaning as regards geographical races of a species, as the only habitat given 
is Nova Hollandia. The existence of the type is in doubt, as Wagler wrote : 
“ Specimen descriptum Londini mecum communicavit dom Ryals.” To defi- 
nitely determine the rejection of Wagler’s name, I cite the bill measurements. 
These show the bill in stellatus to be larger, whereas, if anything, the bill of the 
Western bird is slightly smaller. However, stellatus has the lower mandible 
much broaaer than hanksii , and this is the chief character of macrorhynchus, 
but not of the Western form known under the former name. Therefore, 
stellatus might have been a specimen of macrorhynchus in full moult. Under 
such circumstances I absolutely reject stellatus in connection with the Western 
bird, and cite it as a doubtful synonym of the typical subspecies. 
Finsch appears to have been the one to fix the name stellatus on to 
naso , noting of the figure: “ fig. sat. accur. av. jun.,” but under the name he 
VOL. VI. 
121 
