_J. Gould and H. C. Richter del et lith._ _Hullmandel & Walton Imp._
]
PACHYCEPHALA GUTTURALIS.
Guttural Pachycephala.
_Turdus gutturalis_, Lath. Ind. Orn. Supp., p. xlii.
_Black-crowned Thrush_, Lewin, Birds of New Holl., pl. 10.
_Guttural Thrush_, Lath. Gen. Syn. Supp., vol. ii. p. 182.—Shaw, Gen.
Zool., vol. x. p. 256.—Lath. Gen. Hist., vol. v. p. 136.
_Pachycephala gutturalis_, Vig. and Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv.
p. 239.—G. R. Gray, List of Gen. of Birds, 2nd edit., p. 45.
_Turdus lunularis_, Shaw.
_Laniarius albicollis_, Vieill.
_Pachycephala fusca_, Vig. and Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv. p.
240.—Gould in Syn. Birds of Australia, Part III.
—— _fuliginosa_, Vig. and Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv. p. 241,
female or young.
_Pe-dil̈-me-dung_, Aborigines of Western Australia.
_Thunder Bird_, Colonists of New South Wales.
It would seem that the whole extent of the southern coast of Australia
is inhabited by the present species, for on comparing adult males from
New South Wales, South Australia and Swan River, I find that they do not
differ in any respect; the apical half of the tail is blackish brown in
all, and the colouring of the under surface of the richest yellow. It is
rather abundantly dispersed over the forests of _Eucalypti_ and the
belts of _Acaciæ_, among the flowering branches of which latter tribe of
trees the male displays himself to the greatest advantage, and shows off
his rich yellow breast as if desirous of outvieing the beautiful
blossoms with which he is surrounded.
The stomach is very muscular, and its principal food consists of insects
of various genera, which are sought for and captured both among the
flowers and leaves as well as on the ground.
It is generally met with in pairs, but the males are more shy than the
females. It flies in short and sudden starts, and seldom mounts far
above the tops of the trees.
The voice of the male is a single note seven or eight times repeated,
and terminating with a sharp higher note much resembling the smack of a
whip; that of the female is very different, being a series of running
half-notes, forming a rather plaintive tune.
Mr. Gilbert mentions that it is sparingly dispersed throughout the Swan
River colony, but is more abundant in the best-watered districts, such
as Perth and Fremantle.
I did not succeed in finding the nest of this species, but was informed
that it breeds in September and October, and lays three or four eggs,
ten and a half lines long by eight lines broad, with a ground-colour of
brownish buff, sparingly streaked and spotted with reddish brown and
bluish grey, the latter colour appearing as if beneath the surface of
the shell.
The male has the crown of the head, lores, line beneath the eye,
ear-coverts, and a crescent-shaped mark from the latter across the
breast deep black; throat, within the black, white; back of the neck, a
narrow line down each side of the chest behind the black crescent, and
all the under surface gamboge-yellow; back and upper tail-coverts
yellowish olive; wing-coverts blackish brown, margined with yellowish
olive; primaries and secondaries blackish brown, margined with greyish
olive; basal half of the tail grey, apical half blackish brown tipped
with grey; irides dark brown; bill black; legs and feet blackish grey.
The female has the whole of the upper surface and tail greyish brown;
primaries and secondaries brown, margined with grey; throat pale brown
freckled with white; remainder of the under surface pale brown, passing
into deep buff on the abdomen.
The Plate represents the two sexes of the natural size.
[Illustration:
PACHYCEPHALA GLAUCURA: _Gould_.
_J. Gould and H. C. Richter del et lith._ _Hullmandel & Walton Imp._
]
PACHYCEPHALA GLAUCURA, _Gould_.
Grey-tailed Pachycephala.
_Pachycephala glaucura_, Gould, in Proc. of Zool. Soc., March 25,
1845.
_Pe-dil̈-me-dung_, Aborigines of the lowland districts of Western
Australia.
Although the present bird is very nearly allied to the _P. gutturalis_,
it may be readily distinguished from that species by its larger size, by
its shorter and more robust bill, by the uniform grey colouring of its
tail, and by the lighter and more washy tint of the yellow of the under
surface. Van Diemen’s Land and the islands in Bass’s Straits are the
only countries in which it has yet been discovered, and where it takes
the place of the _P. gutturalis_, which latter species appears to be
exclusively confined to the Australian continent.
The _P. glaucura_ frequents the vast forests of _Eucalypti_ that cover
the greater part of Van Diemen’s Land, and although it is rather thinly
dispersed, is to be met with in every variety of situation, the crowns
of the hills and the deep and most secluded gulleys being alike visited
by it. It frequently descends to the ground in search of insects, but
the leafy branches of the trees, particularly those of a low growth, are
the situations to which it gives the preference.
The adult male, like most other birds of attractive plumage, is of a shy
disposition; hence there is much more difficulty in obtaining a glimpse
of it in the woods, than of the sombre-coloured and comparatively tame
female, or even of the young males of the year, which during this period
wear a similar kind of livery to that of the latter.
The actions of this species are somewhat peculiar, and unlike those of
most other insectivorous birds: it pries about the leafy branches of the
trees, and leaps from twig to twig in the most agile manner possible,
making all the while a most scrutinizing search for insects,
particularly coleoptera. When the male exposes himself, as he
occasionally does, on some bare twig, the rich yellow of his plumage,
offering a strong contrast to the green of the surrounding foliage,
renders him a conspicuous and doubtless highly attractive object to his
sombre-coloured mate, who generally accompanies him. Males in colour
like those represented on the accompanying Plate seldom associate
together, their recluse disposition leading them not only to avoid each
other’s society, but also that of all other birds. It sometimes resorts
to the gardens and shrubberies of the settlers, but much less frequently
than might be supposed, when we consider that the neighbouring forests
are its natural place of abode.
The voice of the Grey-tailed Pachycephala is a loud whistling call of a
single note several times repeated, and by which the presence of the
male is often detected when it would otherwise be passed by unnoticed. I
was unsuccessful in my search for its nest, and the eggs are still a
desideratum to my cabinet. I shot the young in various stages of
plumage, and found them to differ so much that a more, than ordinarily
minute description is necessary, in order that those who may not have an
opportunity of seeing the bird in its native country may not be misled
respecting it. Soon after leaving the nest the ground-colour of the
entire plumage is grey, washed or stained as it were, both on the upper
and under surface, with rusty or chestnut-red; this gradually gives
place to a uniform olive-brown above and pale brown beneath, which being
precisely the colouring of the adult females, the young birds in this
stage and the old females are not to be distinguished from each other.
The adult male has the crown of the head, lores, space beneath the eye
and a broad crescent-shaped mark from the latter across the breast deep
black; throat, within the black, white; back of the neck, a narrow line
down each side of the chest behind the black crescent and the under
surface yellow; back and wing-coverts yellowish olive; wings dark
slate-colour margined with grey; tail entirely grey; under tail-coverts
white, or very slightly washed with yellow; irides reddish brown; bill
black; feet dark brown.
The Plate represents two males and a female of the natural size, on one
of the common Acacias of Van Diemen’s Land.
[Illustration:
PACHYCEPHALA MELANURA: _Gould_.
_J. Gould and H. C. Richter del et lith._ _Hullmandel & Walton Imp._
]
PACHYCEPHALA MELANURA, _Gould_.
Black-tailed Pachycephala.
_Pachycephala melanura_, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc., Part X. p. 134.
The _Pachycephala melanura_ is a native of the northern coasts of
Australia, where it was procured by B. Bynoe, Esq., during the surveying
voyage of H.M.S. the Beagle. It may be readily distinguished from the
_P. gutturalis_ and _P. glaucura_ by the jet-black colouring of the
tail, which organ is also shorter and more square than that of any other
species, by its much longer bill, and by the colouring of the back of
the neck and the under surface being richer than that of either of those
above-named. I have not yet seen a female of this fine species, wanting
which I have figured two males in different positions.