THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
Thus Chandler has recorded from the Kow Plains, Victoria : “A large 
flock of IV ood-Swallows passed over the camp on 9th September, flying in 
an easterly direction. They stopped for a few minutes in a flowering mallee, 
and were busy extracting the nectar from the flowers. The flock was 
composed of A. superciliosus and A. personatus. A week or two later a flock 
of these birds settled near camp to nest. Within a few days nests were to 
be seen on top of every available stump.” 
The technical history of this species is very slight, and the only item of 
special note is the fact, apparently hitherto unnoticed, that Peale described 
it as a new species, selecting the same name as Gould had used ten years before. 
No forms were separated until Ingram, examining a collection of birds 
made by Stalker at Alexandra, Northern Territory, proposed as a new species 
“ Artamus phoeus. Similar to A. super ciliosus, but the maroon of the under- 
parts is much duller in colour, and of a vinaceous tint, lacking the rich 
chestnut of the above-mentioned bird. The under tail-coverts are also less 
bright, and of a lighter shade. In the female the pale coloration of the 
under-parts is especially noticeable. Total length 7*2 inches, culmen -8, 
wing 4*8, tail 3*3, tarsus *8.” 
In my “ Reference List ” I reduced this to subspecific rank, which is its 
utmost value, and gave as ranges : 
Artamus superciliosus superciliosus (Gould). 
Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, 
South Australia, South-west Australia. 
Artamus superciliosus phaeus Ingram. 
Northern Territory, North-west Australia. 
I made no alteration in my 1913 “ List,” but later named 
Campbellornis superciliosus pallida. 
“ Differs from G. s. superciliosus (Gould) in being paler. South-west 
Australia.” 
Owing to their erratic movements, the exact value of these forms is 
unknown, but the three may be tentatively allowed, especially as Campbell 
has admitted in the case of personatus that “ Eastern birds are larger and 
darker (than western ones), but there is less difference between the respective 
females.” 
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