Order PASSERIFORMES . 
No. 577. 
Family SYLVHDM. 
MAGNAMYTIS HOUSEI. 
BLACK GRASS- WREN . 
(Plate 474.)* 
Amytis housei Milligan, Rep. Expl. N.W. Kimberley, pp. 52-58, 1902 (after May 12th and 
before October) : North-west Kimberley, North-west Australia. 
Amytis housei Milligan, Rep. Expl. N.W. Kimberley, p. 58, 1902 ; Emu, Vol. II., p. 114 , 
1902; ib., Yol. IV., pi. 184, p. xiii, 1905; Keartland, Viet. Nat., Vol. XX., 
p. 138, 1904; Hall, Key Birds Austr., 2nd ed., p. Ill, 1906. 
Amytornis housei Mathews, Handl. Birds Austral., p. 80, 1908. 
Diaphorillas housei Mathews, Nov. Zool., Vol. XVIII., p. 366, 1912. 
Magnamytis housei Mathews, List Birds Austr., p. 233, 1913. 
Magnamytis Jcimberleyi Mathews, Austral Ay. Rec., Vol. V., pts. 2& 3, p. 35, Feb. 21, 1923 : 
Kimberley, N.W. Australia, 
Distribution. North-west Kimberley, North-west Australia. 
Adult Male. Head dark brown, or black, with pale shaft- streaks, the shaft-lines becoming 
white on the hind- neck and mantle, lined on each side with black and margined 
with chestnut ; back and lesser upper wing-coverts dark chestnut with shaft-lines 
of the same colour well pronounced, but more faintly on the short upper tail- 
coverts, the long tail-coverts black fringed with chestnut like the greater upper 
wing-coverts ; primary-coverts and quills blackish-brown, including the secondaries, 
all of which have obsolete cross-bars ; tail also dark brown with obsolete \ Wavy 
cross-bars ; sides of face, ear-coverts, throat and under-surface black, thickly 
striated with white on the sides of the face, ear-coverts, throat, and fore-neck, 
but more faintly pronounced on the breast ; under wing-coverts dusky black, 
the marginal ones streaked with white. Iris-brown bill and legs black. Total 
length 203 mm. ; culmen 18, wing 76, tail 90, tarsus 29 ; middle toe and claw 
21; hind-toe and claw 17. Collected on the rough bare sandstone at Camp 25, 
Kimberley, North-west Australia, and is the type of Amytis housei Milligan. 
Another Male. Head black with white shaft-streak ; hind-neck and mantle rufous-brown 
with white shaft-lines to the feathers bordered with black ; back and lesser upper 
wing-coverts dark chestnut with pale shaft-streaks which become obsolete on the 
lower back ; greater upper wing-coverts and innermost secondaries dark brown 
edged with dark chestnut like the long upper tail-coverts ; primary-coverts and 
quills blackish-brown including the secondaries ; tail dark brown with obsolete 
wavy cross-bars ; chin dull white ; ear-coverts, sides of face, and throat dark 
* The plate is lettered Amytornis housei. 
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