AM'rnr®? g o t h e m , goom.
J.GtaUd A Tf.Hdrtdd/. et Itih/.
AMYTIS GOYDERI, Gould.
Goyder’s Striated Wren.
Amytis Goyderi, Gould, Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. 4 th series, Oct. 1875, p. 286.
As far as we yet know to the contrary, all the members of this peculiar genus are confined to the
continent o f Australia, and chiefly, if not wholly, to the interior, their favourite resort being sandy districts
covered with rank grass and the usual herbage common to such soils-. They are quite terrestrial in their
habits, and run over the ground with great celerity. The nearest ally to this, species is Amytis striatus; the
entire throat and chest o f the present bird, however, is white, or lightly coloured, which is not the case in
A . striatus or the two other known species A . textilis and A . ma&mrus.
Like the new species o f Melithreptes, this bird was collected by Mr. Andrews, he being one o f the party
o f the late Lake-Eyre expedition towards the interior of South Australia. The following is a literal copy of
my paper in the ‘Annals,’ which I cannot do better than repeat here, regretting that no information has
reached us as to the probable range of the species, nor any account of its habits andiponomyi--MB
“ General colour fawn-colour, distinctly streaked with white on the upper surface, each white stripe
having a dark-brown lateral border on each side, the streaks becoming sandy-coloured on the lower back
and disappearing entirely on the rump and upper tail-coverts, which are consequently uniform fawn; tail-
feathers brown, with sandy-coloured shafts, the outer feathers rather broadly edged with fulvous; wings
brown, the least coverts minutely and the greater series broadly streaked with sandy buff; quills brown,
with light sandy-coloured shafts, and externally ^margined with rufous, the secondaries much more broadly,
the innermost with broad fawn-coloured margins all round and streaked down the centre with sandy rufous;
lores and sides o f face white, the latter narrowly streaked with blackish brown, more distinctly on the
cheeks ; throat and breast pure white, as well as the centre o f the abdomen ; the flanks bright fawn-colour,
inclining to paler and more sandy rufous on the thighs and upper and under wing-coverts.
A second specimen sent, probably a female, is tinged with vinous instead o f fawn-colour as in the male.
“ As Mr. Waterhouse points out in his letter, the new Amytis is very closely allied to A . te x lilh ; but it
differs in beiug fawn-coloured instead o f dull brown, with much broader white streaks to the upper surface}
it is also distinguishable at a glance by its white under surface and fcwn-coloured flanks.”
I cannot close this short account without thanking Mr. Waterhouse, and the directors of the South-
Australian Museum, for sending this bird to England that I might include it in the present work.
The figures are the size o f life.