THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
crepitans ). Watling wrote: “One half the natural size. Native name 
Wan-nang. This bird, from a single note resembling the crack of a coachman’s 
whip, is called the Coachwhip Flycatcher.” Latham however wrote : “ Inhabits 
New South Wales ; native name Djon. It has a long single note, not unlike 
the crack of a coachman s whip, hence called the Coachwhip Bird ; it appears 
a lively species, and menacing in its manners, for erecting the crest, it gains a 
formidable appearance, which it takes the advantage of in contending with 
other birds, especially Parakeets, about the right of extracting honey from 
the flowers ; it is not a common species.” The information here given suggests 
that Latham was indebted to some one other than Watling for his account of 
the bird and though the description was imperfect the name was immediately 
accepted on account of the vernacular name cited. On p. 118 in the same 
place Latham had described a White-cheeked Crow, writing: “Inhabits New 
Holland, and at first sight seems to resemble somewhat the White-eared Jay, 
but differs in not having the fore-head whitish, nor does the white patch come 
so near the eye as in that bird; besides, the shape of the tail is cuneiform in 
the present described, but in the White-eared Jay it is simply rounded at the 
end.” This he named Corvus olivaceus. When Vigors and Horsfield dealt 
with the collection of Australian birds in the Linnean Society’s Museum they 
recorded Caley’s note : “This bird is more often heard than seen. It inhabits 
brushes. The loud cracking whip-like noise it makes (from whence the colonists 
give it the name of Coachwhip ) may be heard from a great distance ” and thereby 
recognized it as Latham’s Muscicapa crepitans, but at once provided a new 
genus for it, Psophodes, and the name Psophodes crepitans became well-known. 
Gould in using it wrote Latham’s Corvus olivaceus as a synonym, overlooking 
the fact that this name had anteriority and showed a better description. 
He gave a good note, writing : “ This bird, so renowned for the singularity of 
its note, is very abundant in many parts of New South Wales, to which portion 
of the Australian continent it appears to be confined. It is to be found only 
in dense brushes, such as those at Maitland, Manning, Illawarra, and the cedar 
brushes of the Liverpool Range ; in fact, the localities that are suitable to the 
Menura and the Wattled Talegalla are congenial to the habits of the Coach- 
whip Bird. Its loud full note ending sharply like the cracking of a whip, with 
which the woods are constantly reverberating, appeared to me to be analogous 
to the peculiar call of the Menura ; besides this peculiar whistle, it also gives 
utterance to a low inward song of considerable melody. It is a shy and recluse 
species, rarely exposes itself to view, but generally keeps in the midst of the 
densest foliage and among the thickest climbing plants, frequenting alike those 
that have intertwined themselves with the branches of the tallest trees and 
those that form almost impenetrable masses near the ground. It is extremely 
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