THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
and colour disposition. . . At the time I was surprised to see it running 
agilely up the trunk of a tree extracting, as it ran, insects from the bark 
crevices. Its pace was quite as quick as that of a Tree-creeper, but instead of 
ascending spirally, after the manner of that bird, it ran vertically up the face of 
the trunk. Afterwards we secured many more specimens, including fledglings. 
Objection may be taken to my elevating the new bird to the rank of a species.” 
Hall, in the Emu, Vol. III., p. 43, 1903, has detailed the Plumage Phases 
of this species, to which the reader is referred : “ The most important phases, 
and those which supply new information are a and 6, the skin a being the 
nestling, with yellow ear-coverts, and b an immature bird with ear-coverts 
partly yellow and partly white, in about equal proportions. In another 
skin the yellow is simply a wash upon a portion of the white, while in a third 
a flush of yellow is nearly visible.” 
As already noted this is most important as it proves the island form to 
be closely related and to have retained the juvenile style of ear-covert 
coloration wliich is lost on the mainland. Though Milligan stated he procured 
fledglings of his West Australian form he did not describe them, but apparently 
they did not, at the age he secured them, show the yellow ear-coverts, or he 
would have mentioned them. 
This species was apparently described from General Davies’ drawings, 
the details, as far as is yet known, of which are recorded in the Austral Avian 
Record, Vol. IV., pts. 4 and 5, Dec. 1920, pp. 114 et seq. On account of the 
white ear-coverts, a peculiar feature in the group, it was a readily recognizable 
form and consequently Gould did not rename it. It was, however, named 
by Quoy and Gaimard from specimens collected at Western Port, Victoria, 
but no division of the species was attempted until Milligan named the West 
Australian form on account of its smaller size and duller coloration. Milligan 
correctly anticipated its recognition as a subspecific form only, and when I 
prepared my “ Reference List ” in 1912 I gave it this rank and added a third, 
recording: 
Ptilotis leucotis leucotis (Latham). 
New South Wales. 
Ptilotis leucotis depauperata Mathews. 
Differs from P . 1. leucotis in its smaller size (wdng 82 mm.) and lighter colour 
below. Coonalypun, S.A.” 
Victoria, South Australia. 
Ptilotis leucotis novcenorcice Milligan. 
West Australia. 
Almost immediately afterwards I named 
Ptilotis leucotis munna. 
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