TALEGALLA LATHAMI.
Wattled. Talegalla.
Holland V%^tme, Lath.*,Ge5.>Hist.,«yol. itijg.x32. j
Genus Alectura, Ibid, 4.SS. r
^Igctyra Xa^Aq^f 3.' " fe d , and, Selby, IU5‘Orn., To£^L pi. cxl.
%New Holland Vulture, Swains. (Class of Birds, vnl. k p. 383. ’ .
Cathetun&^ii<stralisi^id~i-vqI.
Meleagris ^wdway^’Jamegon, Mem. Wern.’ Nat.;_Hkt.^^c?fvoL vii.vp.‘473:.
Brush Turkey of tn^Golopists j Wdjrtafij Aborigines of the Namoi ' V,
V t^ t e ^ p lia, abounds in anomalies. ajjjL’m no instance is the truth o f thisproi
:■ prevailed' It was conse-
<i|ify>tl£ ,S S f S f - Jpmamled .» j f n S o s t ^)gDhoa"dutjn| my late expedition, and I trust
j^Mbat.thfefollowimf details. this lon^iisputed pesK/ .
fluestMn was.qriginalK j k S ilirjI aiiiiliniireSiy^to late Dr. Latham fiilt'volume of
’Jw.“ Hmfr*- ’ n.um J r V jj 11 l i n t Vuljyre ’ b it Mil^tijuently he conceived
m th th e 'V u lfa ri4 w ^ j& , thgend ot Un* SESwlISiipe.of the aacae work'placed
with thc.m-pcrii. j p g ® « M iu ^ |" ^ 't e ^ - ‘ the. species yeas, afterwards dedicated
Mr ^ ^ L ds.*rtl " '/m k r ii d'VlKi el I m
' ; >!li (atl>l hij%01wtralis, we r&uh^uehtiv applied to it by Mr. Swahson, who
among t ^ T f c f e / i J p ^ e r " apparently, to
est^blislj. I ^ s ^ ^ v i e w ^ j e s p ^ g ^ th ^ jamdy, o ^ ^ c h ^ h e considers it,® ra so n a l type, and details at some
length.whyKhc entertainsrlii^JjinjjmSjB
wys Mr- SlSmBon£»MT^Ba rasonakbu^ifet: aomfautKarsSive headed (SWaKseen
; a specimen) as to what order it really belonged. So completely, indeed, has nature disguised this rare and extraordinary vulture
at the semblance of that type Which it i *ti it S^LdaiiJVll it i> haa^S l ftn daase^br one writer widitKeAfennmi
- jtt&l it-miist betco^^atid, that if cfesr concepl^^pf tfie diiferen^^Ji^9Wn'andof^^id7d^^™are'nottenteEtaiiifi’d '- sbchia dassi-
y JlfettlB has sot^^ ^ r n wreaftto-to igsoij^& 'a 8i^ fe^Rffi.facr.''iia^iAMhn-il« the-same gnseiptei
bat then so are those of Orthonyx, a little scansorial bird not much bigger than a Robin. All three genera, in short, are remarkable
3 p^i|ftlS#1J6e dispri^iatjina.t^^Jwg andshghtly onrved^^a^W the e^Sitv.'iSnpTKi^S0 £ ^ 0f the nWto a il the
middle toe. Nor is this the only peculiarity of the h ^H lff iii^m ^ ^ ^ ^ iih tgMfflther« of its family, it possesses eighteen
f e a t h e r s e x a m i n a t i o n of t h e ^ ^ ^ ^ h is decidedfyrap|^^'ioiii^^M5 a »ot^et coHS^onsj dlirtre that
ana^°Stcal relations to 0 » real affinities of the bird m ty 'th fIS S ffifS fr Fulturiile, of which
it* forms ■ « t^ a pM jjM yWEfect. specimen of f i^ ^ p f t& a tn iS , hbwti6 ^ ^ *A tm u e < -thia' author, “ laahles 'mm';
speak gf its structure from personal examination.”
j^ -T h e - term Alectura having been previouslyj^pfoyjpl for'A. group of'fflycatchers,iand{ the present bird
*" possessing all the characters of M. Lesson’s genius Talegallar, which was published prior to Mr; Swainson’s
Catheturus, I feel that I ought to adopt that appellation . '
^ How far its «range may extend oyep'Au^trah^t^irfyet satisfactorily-ascertained'; itr^known'to inhabit
. various parts ofNew^outh Wales,'from C a p 0 |ow e<ou thef south"toi^^Kton*BayopK| north;,.but the
assaults of the cedar-cutters and others who so frequently hunt through the brushes of lllawarra and Mait-
land/havuig nearly extirpated itfrom those"locAliffe^B is now most ptentifuL in the; dense and little-
trodden brushes of- the Manning and Clarence. I was'-at'1 first -led to believe that the country, between the
mountain-ranges and the coast constittfr^d its sole habitat; 'hdtjl-was agreeably surprised to find it also an
inhabitant of t^scrubby* g u l^ s }ahd"jtde|^f the lowerihillSf&^^^meh'*6S‘ from the-"great range into the
interior. : I prpehred Specimens on the Brezi range to^ the north of Liverpo'^Jldins, and1 ascertained that it
was abundant^pMr the hills on either' side of the Namoi.
If is a gregarious bird,:igenerally: moving about* in - small companies^ ^muclf^after,'the manner oMlhe' Galli-
nacecB, an,d, like some species of thaWibeT^is veiy^shyf-and'' distrustful. When disturbed it readily eludes
pursuit by tlie.facility with which'if runsM;fe|gli?the^tangled brush. * If hard pressed? or when rushed upon
by its great> enemy" the native dog, the whole company spHngfupotf-jJie. lowermost hough* of some neighbouring
topee» and by a succession of leaps from branch to branch ascend’ to the tojj^and^ either perch there
or fly off to another part of the brush. They ai-e also iri the habit of reso'riing to ^ ^b ran ch es of trees as a
shelter from the mid-day'sun, a peeuirarity that'^ea tly tends^to, -their destruction/ as the sportsman is not
only enabled to take a certain aim, but, like the Ruffed Grouse o f America, they "will even allow a| succession
of shots to be-fired.^|il%ey are all brought down. Unless" somei measures be adopted for ^their -
preservation, this circumstance mustFJead to an eariy extinction "of the race ; ’anfeveht'much to he regretted,
"since, independently of ijs . being an interesting bird for the aviary, its flesh||s ^extremely delicate^ tender,
and jmey.
The most remarkable circumstances connected with the economy" of^his?mfd? are^tlip'facts- of its not
hatching its eggs\by incubation: the means resorted to for effecting'this object, although in some degree
^siindating to thevpractice of the: Ostrich/ is'yetmpon ’a totall^different'principie^TbetWattled Talegalla
collects^ together an immense heap of decaying vegetable matter as a depositary for the eggs, and
trusts to the heat engendered By the process of decomposition for the development of the-young:" The
heap employed for this purpose is collected by the birds during several weeks previous to the period of laying;