THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 
Adult male. Fore-head, feathers over the eye and top of the head deep velvety-black 
spangled with metallic pm-plislr-blue; hack of the neck, mantle, rump and upper 
tail-coverts velvety-black, slightly glossed with metallic blue-green; wing-corerts 
secondaries and outer webs of the primaries black glossed with bluish-green- 
inner webs of the primaries urufonn deep black ; taU-feathers black, glossed on the 
inner w'eb with blue and on the outer -webs -with bluish-green, the outermost feathers 
curved outwards ; sides of the face, cliin and throat deep velvety black; leathers 
of the throat and fore-neck spangled with metallic purplish-blue; breast, belly 
sides of the body and under tail-coverts black, sh’ghtly glossed with bluish- 
under-surface of -wings shining black. Ej’-es red, logs and bill black. Total 
length 300 mm. ; culmen 31, wing 165, tail 136, tarsus 25. Figm’ed. Collected 
on the South Alligator River, Northern Territory, on the 11th of November 1902 
and is the type of baileyi. 
Advlt female similar to the male. 
Immature. Lores, top of the head and back of the neck dull black, spangled with a few 
blue metallic feathers ; mantle, back, scapulars, rump and upper tad-coverts dull 
black, slightly glossed -with purplisli-blue ; -wing-coverts, and innermost secondaries 
glossy purplish-blue; outermost flight-feathers black, slightly margined on the 
outer web with dull glossy blue, innermost flight-feathers and secondaries with 
the outer web glossy steel-blue; tail black, margined outwardly -with steel-blue - 
cheeks, throat and entire under-surface dull black. Eyes bro-wn, feet and tarsi 
black, bill black, with white tip. Collected on Melville Island on the 29th of 
November, 1911. 
Nestling. Whole of the upper plumage black, glossed -with steel-blue on the wing-coverts, 
secondaries and tail; feathers of the under-surface of the body dull smokyi 
black. Eyes brown, feet, tarsi and bdl leaden-black. Collected on Melville Island 
on the 24th of November, 1911. 
Eggs. Three to four eggs fonn the clutch, usually four. A clutch of four eggs taken at 
Cooktown, North Queensland, on the 11th of December, 1895, is of a pale pinkish 
ground-colour (though in some clutches the groimd-colour is almost white), spotted 
and blotched with pinldsh-red, chestnut and purple; the marldngs are well 
scattered over each egg, and some take the form of hair-Uke wa-vy streaks and 
smudges. In some instances the markings are very much crowded together at 
the larger end of the eggs. Ovals in shape. Surface of shell moderately fine and 
smooth, but -with very little gloss. 29 by 21 mm. 
A est. An open shallow structure, and at times inclined to be rather saucer-shaped. 
Constructed of t-wisted, rather stiff tendrils, and fine pliable -vines; often well 
bound with cobweb and other silky material. Frequently lined with small roots. 
Looking up at the nest from beneath, the eggs can sometimes be detected in it, 
as it is such an openly built structure. Placed in the forked limbs of a bushy tree 
and at heights of from 18 to nearly 60 feet up from the ground. Dimensions overall: 
6 to 7 inches across by 4 to 4^ inches deep. The egg ca-vity is nearly 4 inches 
across by 1^ to nearly 2 inches deep. 
Breeding-months. End September to end January. 
Tms peculiar Indian group was first distinguished as an Australian form when 
Vigors and Horsfield considered a specimen in the collection of the Linneaii 
Society to be inseparable, recording it mider the name Dicrurns balicassius, 
writing: “We consider our bird to be the same as the species above referred 
to, -with w’hich it agrees in its most essential particulars, although it does not 
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