The Birds of Australia, Vol. 5 of 7

Part 1

THE BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA.

JOHN GOULD, F.R.S.,

F.L.S., F.Z.S., M.E.S., F.ETHN.S., F.R.GEOG.S., M. RAY S., HON. MEMB. OF THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF TURIN, OF THE ROY. ZOOL. SOC. OF IRELAND, OF THE PENZANCE NAT. HIST. SOC., OF THE WORCESTER NAT. HIST. SOC., OF THE NORTHUMBERLAND, DURHAM AND NEWCASTLE NAT. HIST. SOC., OF THE NAT. HIST. SOC. OF DARMSTADT AND OF THE TASMANIAN SOCIETY OF VAN DIEMEN’S LAND, ETC.

IN SEVEN VOLUMES.

VOL. V.

LONDON: PRINTED BY RICHARD AND JOHN E. TAYLOR, RED LION COURT, FLEET STREET. PUBLISHED BY THE AUTHOR, 20, BROAD STREET, GOLDEN SQUARE. 1848.

LIST OF PLATES. VOLUME V.

Cacatua galerita Crested Cockatoo 1

—— Leadbeateri Leadbeater’s Cockatoo 2

—— sanguinea, Gould Blood-stained Cockatoo 3

—— Eos Rose-breasted Cockatoo 4

Licmetis nasicus Long-billed Cockatoo 5

Nestor productus, Gould Philip Island Parrot 6

Calyptorhynchus Banksii Banksian Cockatoo 7

—— macrorhynchus, Gould Great-billed Black Cockatoo 8

—— naso, Gould Western Black Cockatoo 9

—— Leachii Leach’s Cockatoo 10

—— funereus Funereal Cockatoo 11

—— xanthonotus, Gould Yellow-eared Black Cockatoo 12

—— Baudinii, Vig. Baudin’s Cockatoo 13

Callocephalon galeatum Gang-gang Cockatoo 14

Polytelis Barrabandi Barraband’s Parrakeet 15

—— melanura Black-tailed Parrakeet 16

Aprosmictus scapulatus King Lory 17

—— erythropterus Red-winged Lory 18

Platycercus semitorquatus Yellow-collared Parrakeet 19

—— Baueri Bauer’s Parrakeet 20

—— Barnardi, Vig. & Horsf. Barnard’s Parrakeet 21

Part 2

—— Adelaidiæ, Gould Adelaide Parrakeet 22

—— Pennantii Pennant’s Parrakeet 23

—— flaviventris Yellow-bellied Parrakeet 24

—— flaveolus, Gould Yellow-rumped Parrakeet 25

—— palliceps, Vig. Pale-headed Parrakeet 26

—— eximius Rose-hill Parrakeet 27

—— splendidus, Gould Splendid Parrakeet 28

—— icterotis The Earl of Derby’s Parrakeet 29

—— ignitus, Lead. Fiery Parrakeet 30

—— Brownii Brown’s Parrakeet 31

—— pileatus, Vig. Red-capped Parrakeet 32

Psephotus hæmatogaster, Gould Crimson-bellied Parrakeet 33

—— pulcherrimus, Gould Beautiful Parrakeet 34

—— multicolor Many-coloured Parrakeet 35

—— hæmatonotus, Gould Red-backed Parrakeet 36

Euphema chrysostoma Blue-banded Grass-Parrakeet 37

—— elegans, Gould Elegant Grass-Parrakeet 38

—— aurantia, Gould Orange-bellied Grass-Parrakeet 39

—— petrophila, Gould Rock Grass-Parrakeet 40

—— pulchella Chestnut-shouldered Grass-Parrakeet 41

—— splendida, Gould Splendid Grass-Parrakeet 42

—— Bourkii Bourke’s Grass-Parrakeet 43

Melopsittacus undulatus Warbling Grass-Parrakeet 44

Nymphicus Novæ-Hollandiæ Cockatoo Parrakeet 45

Pezoporus formosus Ground Parrakeet 46

Lathamus discolor Swift Lorikeet 47

Trichoglossus Swainsonii, Jard. & Swainson’s Lorikeet Selby. 48

—— rubritorquis, Vig. & Horsf. Red-collared Lorikeet 49

Part 3

Trichoglossus chlorolepidotus Scaly-breasted Lorikeet 50

—— versicolor, Vig. Varied Lorikeet 51

—— concinnus Musky Lorikeet 52

—— porphyrocephalus, Diet. Porphyry-crowned Lorikeet 53

—— pusillus Little Lorikeet 54

Ptilinopus Swainsonii, Gould Swainson’s Fruit Pigeon 55

—— Ewingii, Gould Ewing’s Fruit Pigeon 56

—— superbus Superb Fruit Pigeon 57

Carpophaga magnifica Magnificent Fruit Pigeon 58

—— leucomela White-headed Fruit Pigeon 59

—— luctuosa Torres Strait Fruit Pigeon 60

Lopholaimus Antarcticus Top-Knot Pigeon 61

Chalcophaps chrysochlora Little Green Pigeon 62

Leucosarcia picata Wonga-wonga Pigeon 63

Peristera chalcoptera Bronze-winged Pigeon 64

—— elegans Brush Bronze-winged Pigeon 65

—— histrionica, Gould Harlequin Bronzewing 66

Geophaps scripta Partridge Bronze-wing 67

—— Smithii Smith’s Partridge Bronze-wing 68

—— plumifera, Gould Plumed Partridge Bronze-wing 69

Ocyphaps Lophotes Crested Pigeon 70

Petrophassa albipennis, Gould White-quilled Rock Dove 71

Geopelia humeralis Barred-shouldered Ground Dove 72

—— tranquilla, Gould Peaceful Ground Dove 73

—— cuneata Graceful Ground Dove 74

Macropygia Phasianella Pheasant-tailed Pigeon 75

Gnathodon strigirostris, Jard. Gnathodon 76

Talegalla Lathami Wattled Talegalla 77

Part 4

Leipoa ocellata, Gould Ocellated Leipoa 78

Megapodius Tumulus, Gould Mound-raising Megapode 79

Pedionomus torquatus, Gould Collared Plain Wanderer 80

Hemipodius melanogaster, Gould Black-breasted Hemipode 81

—— varius Varied Hemipode 82

—— scintillans, Gould Sparkling Hemipode 83

—— melanotus, Gould Black-backed Hemipode 84

—— castanotus, Gould Chestnut-backed Hemipode 85

—— pyrrhothorax, Gould Red-chested Hemipode 86

—— velox, Gould Swift-flying Hemipode 87

Coturnix pectoralis, Gould Pectoral Quail 88

Synoïcus Australis Australian Partridge 89

—— Diemenensis, Gould Van Diemen’s Land Partridge 90

—— sordidus, Gould Sombre Partridge 91

——? Chinensis Chinese Quail 92

Footnote 1:

Phaps being the generic appellation generally adopted, Peristera, under which term the birds of this form have been published, must sink into a synonym.

Footnote 2:

Turnix for the like reason must be substituted for Hemipodius, the term employed.

CACATUA GALERITA: Vieill.

J. Gould and H.C. Richter del et lith. C. Hullmandel Imp. ]

CACATUA GALERITA, Vieill. Crested Cockatoo.

The Crested Cockatoo, White’s Journ., pl. in p. 237.

Psittacus galeritus, Lath. Ind. Orn., vol. i. p. 109; and Gen. Syn. Supp., vol. ii. p. 92.—Kuhl, Consp. Psitt. in Nov. Act., vol. x. p. 87.

Great Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Shaw, Gen. Zool., vol. viii. p. 479.

Crested Cockatoo, Lath. Gen. Hist., vol. ii. p. 205.

Cacatua galerita, Vieill. 2nde Edit, du Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. xvii. p. 11; and Ency. Méth. Orn., Part III. p. 1414.—Wagl. Mon. Psitt. in Abhand., p. 695.

Plyctolophus galeritus, Vig. and Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv. p. 268.—Vig. in Lear’s Ill. Psitt. pl. 3.—Steph. Cont. of Shaw’s Gen. Zool., vol. xiv. p. 108.

Part 5

Cacatua chrysolophus, Less. Traité d’Orn., p. 182.

Car’away and Cur’riang, Aborigines of New South Wales.

Mangarape, Papuans of New Guinea.

If we regard the White Cockatoo of Van Diemen’s Land, that of the continent of Australia, and that of New Guinea as mere varieties of each other, this species has a more extensive range than most other birds. It is an inhabitant of all the Australian colonies, both on the southern and northern coasts, but has not yet been observed on the western.

On a close examination of specimens from the three countries above mentioned, a decided difference is observable in the structure of the bill, but of too trivial a character, in my opinion, to warrant their being considered as distinct; in fact, it would seem to be merely a modification of the organ for the peculiar kind of food afforded by the respective countries. The Van Diemen’s Land bird is the largest in every respect, and has the bill, particularly the upper mandible, less abruptly curved, exhibiting a tendency to the form of that organ in the genus Licmetis: the bill of the New Guinea bird is much rounder, and is, in fact, fitted to perform a totally different office from that of the White Cockatoo of Van Diemen’s Land, which I have ascertained, by dissection, subsists principally on the small bulbs of the terrestrial Orchidaceæ, for procuring which its lengthened upper mandible is admirably adapted; while it is more than probable that no food of this kind is to be obtained by the New Guinea bird, the structure of whose bill indicates that hard seeds, nuts, &c. constitute the principal part of its diet. The crops and stomachs of those killed in Van Diemen’s Land were very muscular, and contained seeds, grain, native bread (a species of fungus), small tuberous and bulbous roots, and, in most instances, large stones.

As may be readily imagined, this bird is not upon favourable terms with the agriculturist, upon whose fields of newly-sown grain and ripening maize it commits the greatest devastation; it is consequently hunted and shot down wherever it is found, a circumstance which tends much to lessen its numbers; it is still, however, very numerous, moving about in flocks varying from a hundred to a thousand in number, and evinces a decided preference to the open plains and cleared lands, rather than to the dense brushes near the coast. Except when feeding, or reposing on the trees after a repast, the presence of a flock, if not seen, is certain to be indicated by their horrid screaming notes, the discordance of which may be slightly conceived by those who have heard the peculiarly loud, piercing, grating scream of the bird in captivity, always remembering the immense increase of the din occasioned by the large number of birds emitting their disagreeable notes at the same moment; still I ever considered this annoyance amply compensated for by their sprightly actions and the life their snowy forms imparted to the dense and never-varying green of the Australian forest; a feeling participated in by Sir Thomas Mitchell, who says that “amidst the umbrageous foliage, forming dense masses of shade, the white Cockatoos sported like spirits of light.”

The situations chosen by this bird for the purpose of nidification vary with the nature of the locality it inhabits; the eggs are usually deposited in the holes of trees, but they are also placed in fissures in the rocks wherever they may present a convenient site: the crevices of the white cliffs bordering the Murray, in South Australia, are annually resorted to for this purpose by thousands of this bird, and are said to be completely honeycombed by them. The eggs are two in number, of a pure white, rather pointed at the smaller end, one inch and seven lines long by one inch two and a half lines broad.

All the plumage white, with the exception of the elongated occipital crest, which is deep sulphur-yellow, and the ear-coverts, centre of the under surface of the wing, and the basal portion of the inner webs of the tail-feathers, which are pale sulphur-yellow; irides and bill black; orbits white; feet greyish brown.

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