WHITE-CHEEKED HONEY-EATER. 
margined on the outer wob witJi yellowish-olive; wing-covorts and outermost 
secondaries uniform brownish-black ; primaries blackisli-brown, widely margined on 
the outer wob with golden yellow ; feathers at the base of the cuhnen and the 
entire throat deep black; an elongated tuft of pure white feathers on the sides 
of the face; chest, breast, sides and flaiiks white with heavy black shaft-streaks ; 
axillaries and under wing-coverts and imier margins of flight-feathora isabolline- 
bu£E. Total length 170 mm.; culmen 19, wing 79, tail 71, tarsus 22. Figured. 
Collected at Botany, New South Wales, in Juno, 1890. 
Nearly adult male. Top of head, sides of face, chiTi, throat, and fore-neck black ; a supra- 
loral streak of white which extends to above the eye and along the sides of the 
crown; hinder cheeks white; liind-nock, aides of nec^k, back, rump, upper tail- 
coverts, scapulars, and upper wing-covorts dark smoke-brown with black feathers 
and pale streaks on the interscapulary region; bastard-wing, greater coverts, 
and flight-quills blackish fringed with yellow on the outer webs of the last and 
buffy-wliile on the inner ones ; tail also blackish fringed with yellow' on the outer 
webs and pale tips to the feathers ; breast w'liite streaked with black; abdomen, 
sides of body, imder tail-coverts, axillaries, and under wing-coverts whitish with 
dusky bases to the feathers on the sides of the body; thighs rust-brown ; under¬ 
surface of flight-quills dark browm fringed with buffy-white; low'er aspect of tail 
blackish tipped with white. E 3 'es dark brown, feet dark grey, bill black. Collected 
at Stradbrook Island, Moreton Bay, Queensland, on the 27th of September, 1919. 
Eggs. Two eggs generally foini the clutch. A clutch of two eggs taken at Copmanhurst, 
Upper Clarence River, New South Wales, on the 9th of September, 1897, is of a 
very pale buff groimd-colcur, well marked at the larger end (forming a zone) with 
spots of reddish-brown and a few of purplish-grey, Sw'oUen ovals in shape. 
Surface of shell fine and smooth and slightly glo3s^^ 18 by 14- mm. 
Nest. A cup-shaped structure composed cliiefly of strips of bark and dried gi’asses, lined 
with a soft bed of vegetable substance, often the brown velvety portions removed 
from the cones of the Banksia. Measurements over all: 3 to 3^ inches across, 
by 3 to 3J inches in depth. 
Breeding-months. July to end of November. 
This species was figured by White as the female of the preceding and 
was again figured by Vieillot. 
Vigors and Horsfield, WTote : M. Vicillot’s Heorotaire noir (pi. 71), which 
seems accurately to agree with the female of this species figured in Whitens 
Journal^ is considered by that gentleman as a distinct species. This is a 
point which can only be decided on the spot; and IMr. White’s obseiwations 
must have great weiglit until they are j)roved to be incorrect. We mention 
the circumstances in order that those voyagers, who maj' Jiave opportunities 
of making observations on the subject, may pay attention to it. We suspect 
that the investigation may lead to tire discovery of many distinct species in 
the group, in A^duch a great similarity of colom'ing seems to prevail.” 
Before he went to Australia Gould named the male and female as two 
distinct species, and after his return wi'ote : The White-cheeked Honey- 
eater is an inliabitant of New South Wales, and cextainlj’' proceeds as far to 
the eastward as Moreton Bay; but the birds inhabiting the country to the 
27 
