ARSES ARUENSIS, Sharpe. 
Little Frilled-necked Flycatcher. 
Arses telescophthalmus, Salvad. & D’Albert. (nee Garn.), Ann. Mus. Civ. Gen. vii. p. 819 (1875). — balvad. op. eit. 
ix. p. 24 (1876).— D’Albert. op. cit. x. p. 19 (1877).— Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. W. i. p. 391 
(1877). — Sharpe, Journ. Linn. Soc. xiii. pp. 316, 497 (1878). 
Arses aruensis, Sharpe, Notes Leyden Mus. i. No. 5, p. 21 (1879). — Id. Cat. B. Brit. Mus. iv. p. 410 (1879). — 
Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civ. Genov, xiv. p. 59 (1879). 
At the time that I made my drawings of the different species ot Arses, which was towards the end of the 
year 1878, I had occasion to examine closely the series of these birds in my collection; and I came to the 
conclusion that five species of the genus could be recognized. On communicating my impressions to 
Count Salvadori, I received a note from him to the effect that his opinion entirely coincided with mine, and 
that, in the MS. of his forthcoming work on the Birds of New Guinea, he had conferred new titles upon two 
of the species, which were not previously named. Mr. Bowdler Sharpe, who was at that time absent from 
England on a visit to Leyden, whither he had gone for the purpose of examining the collection of Flycatchers 
in the Museum, brought me back word that he had become convinced from a study of the splendid series 
of Arses in that institution that there were two species still undescribed, and that he had bestowed the names 
of A. batantce and A. aruensis upon them, and had left the descriptions in Professor Schlegel’s hands for 
publication. A full account of the two birds appeared in the £ Notes from the Leyden Museum ’ in January 
of the present year ; and on receiving notice, Count Salvadori very properly suppressed the MS. names which 
he had given to the species. Mr. Sharpe’s title of aruensis can scarcely be called well chosen, as the bird 
is by no means confined to the Aru Islands, but extends apparently along the entire coast of Southern 
New Guinea. Signor D’ Albertis has met with it on the Fly River ; and it has been procured near Port 
Moresby by Mr. O. C. Stone and Mr. Kendal Broadbent. The present bird is distinguished by the smaller 
size of the male and the less-extended black spot on the throat. The female is to be recognized by its brown 
back and tail, contrasting strongly with the orange collar round the hind neck ; the head also is jet-black, and 
the loral spot orange. The following descriptions are extracted from Mr. Sharpe’s ‘ Catalogue,’ the synonymy 
of which has been here corrected so as to include the references to the bird’s occurrence in South-eastern 
New Guinea, which that author forgot by some accident to place under the heading of the present species. 
'■'■Adult male. Crown of head, ear-coverts, and sides of face, fore part of cheeks, chin, and extreme upper 
edge of throat blue-black ; round the hind neck a broad white collar, joining the sides of the neck, which, 
with the hinder cheeks and the rest of the under surface of the body, are pure white, excepting the tibial 
plumes, which are black ; mantle, scapulars, and upper back blue-black ; wing-coverts also blue-black, the 
terminal half of the inner greater coverts and the ends of the scapulars white ; primary-coverts and 
quills black, edged with blue-black ; lower back and rump white; upper tail-coverts blue-black; tail-feathers 
black, washed with blue-black on their margins; under wing-coverts and axillaries white ; quills blackish 
below, ashy along the inner edge of the primaries, white on the secondaries. Total length 6’5 inches, 
culmen 0'6, wing 3T, tail 2 - 9, tarsus 07. 
“ Adult female. General colour above dusky orange-brown, the tail also dull brown, with dusky-rufous 
edges to the feathers ; least wing-coverts like the back, the median and greater series dusky brown with 
orange-brown edges, and tips of lighter orange ; primary-coverts and quills brown with dull orange-rufous 
margins, broader on the secondaries ; crown of head, feathers below the eye, and ear-coverts glossy black ; 
a loral spot of orange ; round the hind neck a collar of bright orange rufous, contrasting strongly with the 
back ; cheeks, throat, and breast bright orange-rufous, deepening almost to chestnut on the latter ; remainder 
of under surface white, the flanks washed with ashy, the sides of the upper breast orange-rufous ; thighs 
dusky brown ; under wing-coverts and axillaries white, the edge of the wing orange ; quills dull brown, ru- 
fescent along the edge of the inner web. Total length 6 inches, culmen 055, wing 2’95, tail 2 - 75, tarsus 07.” 
Signor D’ Albertis says that the bill and feet are dull ashy, the eyes black, and that the bird feeds on 
insects. The figures in the Plate represent a pair of birds of the size of life, and are taken from specimens 
in my own collection. They were collected by the late Dr. James in South-eastern New Guinea ; and 
according to the latter gentleman the soft parts are as follows : — “ eyes very dark brown surrounded by a 
disk of blue ; bill pale blue at base, lighter at tip ; feet and tarsi dark leaden colour.” 
