HORN EXPEDITION—AVES. 
75 
birds and one young one). Whether this is the general brood, or a provision of 
nature owing to the scarcity of food in the district named, I cannot say ; but in 
no case was more than one young one seen. Adults of both sexes are alike in 
plumage. When asked to describe its note one of our party suggested, “Whistle 
the words ‘Take it. Bob,’ with a drop on the last note;” and I think it was a 
very good description of it.] 
No. 33. Rhipidura albicauda. North. White-tailed Fly Catcher. 
Rhipidura albicauda, North, Ibis, 1895, p. 340. 
Adult male. —General colour above ashy-brown, becoming slightly darker on 
the crown of the head and browner on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; primaries 
and secondaries dusky-brown, the innermost secondaries margined with white on 
their outer webs ; primary-coverts brown ; greater and median wing-coverts dark 
brown, the former largely and the latter slightly tipped with white on their outer 
webs ; lesser wing-coverts ashy-brown, some of the feathers having whitish tips ; 
two centre tail-feathers blackish-brown, the outermost feather on either side 
white ; the remainder white, narrowly edged with blackish-brown on the basal 
half of the outer web, and increasing in extent towai’ds the two centre feathers ; 
shafts of the two centre tail-feathers blackish-brown, the remainder white; lores 
and ear-coverts blackish-brown ; a line over the eye and a shorter one above the 
ear-coverts white ; cheeks and throat white ; lower throat dull black ; remainder of 
the under surface ochraceous-butf; sides of the breast pale ashy-brown ; thighs 
ashy-brown; under tail-coverts white; under wing-coverts whitish, with ashy- 
brown bases; bill, legs and feet brownish-black; “iris black.” Total length 5'8 
inches, wing 2‘8, tail 3'5, bill from gape 0’45, tai’sus 0'62. 
The sexes are alike in plumage. 
Habitat. —Stokes’ Pass, Central Australia. 
Type. —In the Australian Museum, Sydney. 
Observations. —The above specituen has probably barely attained its adult 
livery, for in a female procured on the Levi Range the two outermost tail-feathers 
on either side are pure white, and the remainder on either side of the two centre 
feathers white very narrowly edged with blackish-brown on the basal half of their 
outer webs. 
