Æ k
1 1 p e a& A M a iA . F i C 4 g ÜK
LE UCOSARC IA PIC AT A.
Wonga-wonga.
Columba pteata, Lath ( ü j i j 1’ — W ifrl 'Syst Av. Gc^iunba?jsp. 42. -
Colmiila amiïllàris, Colombe grivdée, Temm. Pig. et GalL, fol. 2nd fam pL 6. p. 13.—Ib; Pig. et GalL, ton. i.
p . 1S..
Pigeon, Ib^pipi Hlst., vol, xi$r1| jfe '
Columba Jamiespnii, Quoy; £%Gs|nuWpy. Partie^Zoolog., p. 123.
. Côhmbq melanoleuca, | | | | Ay. Cohunbæ non yisæ, sp. 8.
*Colombe Goadgang, Tgmm. Pig.,ffdf . tom. i. pp. ’369 and 447.
18$ te-faceà Pigeon, Lath. ,Gejÿ Hist., vol. viiffp?4§.
Wonga-wonga, Abpyigines of New South Wales.
Wlntejlesheà and Wonga-wonga Prÿeojî/Co’l'^ ^ S . ©Oijew South Wales.
The Pig-con forming the subject of the present memoir must always be an object of more than ordinary
-interest, since, independently of its attractive plumage, it is;^%^ea^dichcyfor the table; its large size and
"the whiteness-, o f i^ ^ e ih rendering it ^^Mhis, Respect second to no other member of its family, the only
that at all -approximates^ h ie in g the Geophaps scripta. he regretted that a bird possessing
so many o u ^ lif ic t^ ^ ^ ^ the present-sp,eciesi|h^^fhot be generally dispersed over the country, hut such is
not the case. .'To^look for it on tb CAMUS' jom n ^ ny of th |o ^ n ib d ly parts would be useless; no other
districts than .th e brushes which stretch along .ffigmaS- of coast di:#ew South Wales, or those clothing the
s i d e $ i t e M$6j o f the interior being J ^ t o i ^ ^ ^ t ^ i t s presence* The same kind of situations that are
suifo^J^the Brush Turkey ( Talegalla Lat/iamfy^the Menura:anc |m g Satin Bower-bird are equally adapted
to.those of the Wonga-wonga; itSjdistributionj therefore, ojffir?A^tgalia mainly depends upon whether the
suiface of the country b e or be. not clothed witPlb^|M|hJcJ|Jracter of vegetation common to the south
eastern portion of\the continent. As thgfflgngth; of rpMarsi would lead one to expect, thet<Wonga-wonga
spends most o f it^ ^ tire oif the ground, where it feeds upon the seeds and stones of the fallen fruits of
the towering trees under whose shade it dwells, seldom' exposing itself to the rays of the sun, or‘seeking the
>open parts of the forest. Whilgfeyayersing these arborean solitudes, one js '^equeutly startled by the
sudden rising of the Wonga-wonga, the noise ^ of whose wihgs is quite equal to, and uot very different from,
'that made by a Pheasant. Its flight is not of " t h i s power being merely employed to remove
it to a sufficient distance to %3oid‘ detection- by again descending to the ground, or mounting to the branch
of a neighbouring tree. I hajl?%eqhent opportunities of personally observing it at Illawarra, on the low
islands at the mouth of the riper Hunter, and in the cedar brushes o f the Liverpool range. During my
encampment in each of these parts, it was always secured whenever an opportunity occurred, for the purpose
o f eating, the addition of bread-sauce rendering' it no- ordinary fare.
. 0 f the nidification of this valuable h%dT could gain np’ precise information. It is a species that bears
confinement well, and with an ordinary degree of attention, may doubtless he rendered domesticated and
The sexes present no external difference in the markings of the^plnmage, but the female is somewhat
inferior to her mate in size,
Lores black; forehead and chin white; all the upper surface, wngs and tail deep slate-grey; primaries
brown; the three lateral tail-feathers on each side tipped with wn|tp; sides. of the head light grey, gradually
passing into the greyish black of the breast, which latter colony is interrupted on each side by a broad
line of white which passes obliquely down, and meets on the centre of the breast near the lower margin of
the greyish black ; feathers of the abdomen and flanks white, the latter with a triangular black spot near
the extremity of each feather; under- tad-coverts dark brown, largely tipped with buff, particularly on the
inner webs ; irides very dark brown, surrounded by a narrow pink-red lash j tip of the bill purplish black;
base of the biU and the fleshy operculum covering the nostrils pink-red; legs and feet bright pink-red.
The Plate represents the male and female of the natural size.