THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
Adult female. General colour of the upper-surface slate-grey including the top of the 
head, ear-coverts, entire hack and upper tail-coverts, scapulars and upper wing- 
coverts, some of the greater series of the last fringed with paler grey ; bastard-wing 
blackish narrowly edged with white ; primary-coverts and some of the inner primary- 
quills, on the basal portion, grey on the outer webs with whitish margins like those 
of the secondary-quills, the apical portion of the flight-quills blackish, on both 
webs, margined with greyish-white ; middle tail-feathers greyish-brown, the outer 
ones blackish tipped and edged on the inner webs with greyish- white and along 
the outer web of the outermost feather on each side ; lores and feathers surrounding 
the eye blackish ; chin and throat white ; fore-neck and breast pale grey indistinctly 
barred with white ; abdomen, lower flanks, vent and under tail-coverts white 
like the axillaries, under wing-coverts, and inner margins of quills below, remainder 
of quill-lining greyish-brown ; lower aspect of tail also greyish- brown paler and 
inclining to whitish at the tip. Eyes, bill and feet black. Total length 280 mm. ; 
culmen 21, wing 151, tail 119, tarsus 25. Figured. Collected at Utingu, Cape 
York, North Queensland, on the 12th of May, 1911. 
Adult male. Similar to the adult female. 
Adult male. General colour of the upper-parts pale slate-grey including the top of the 
head, sides of the face, sides of neck, hind-neck, entire back, upper tail-coverts, 
scapulars, upper wing-coverts and outer aspect of flight-quills ; bastard-wing, 
primary-coverts and inner webs of flight-quills smoke-brown or blackish with broad 
white margins to the last ; tail-feathers blackish with more or less white at the 
tips and with a slight tinge of grey on the middle ones towards the base ; lores and 
feathers in front and below the eye blackish ; the feathers that cover the nostrils 
dark slate-grey ; throat and entire under-surface white including the axillaries, 
under wing-coverts, and inner margins of the quills below; remainder of quill- 
lining pale greyish-brown ; lower aspect of tail dark greyish-brown. Bill and 
feet black, eyes brown. Wing 148 mm. ; culmen 21, tail 97, tarsus 28. Collected 
on Parry’s Creek, North-west Australia, on the 31st of August, 1908, and is the 
type of C. h. parryi. 
Adult female. Similar to the adult male. 
Immature. Upper-surface pale smoke-brown with whitish fringes to the feathers and 
more or less slate-grey intermixed ; lesser upper wing-coverts slate-grey ; bastard- 
wing, primary-coverts and flight-quills blackish margined with white ; much more 
broadly on the inner webs of the last towards the base ; middle tail-feathers dark 
grey, the outer ones blackish, becoming whitish at the tips and along the inner 
edges ; lores and feathers in front of the eye blackish ; hinder cheeks slate-grey ; 
throat and entire under-surface white, including the axillaries, under wing-coverts 
and inner margins of quills below ; remainder of quill-lining pale greyish-brown ; 
lower aspect of tail similar but darker. Eyes brown ; feet and tarsi leaden-blue ; 
bill black, lower mandible brown. Figured. Collected on Melville Island, Northern 
Territory, on the 16th of November, 1911. 
Nest. Nearly flat. Composed of grass and small twigs held together with cobweb. Outside 
dimensions 4 to 4| inches by 2 deep. Inside 3 by 1 deep. 
Eggs. Clutch, two. Ground-colour bluish-green, blotched with different shades of umber 
and purplish. 27-28 mm. by 20. 
Breeding-season. October to January. 
One of the Northern species described by Gould, who wrote : “ This species 
inhabits the neighbourhood of Port Essington, where it is a very familiar 
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