! I
The follovviijg-account ol'tlic li:il)lts of the species is given hy Mr. Meston in the ' Repor t of the Government
Scientilie Hxpedition to Ikllenden-Ker Uaiige.' It will he noticed that he spealis of the species as Meston's
Hovver-hird ; l]iit the hird is named as a eoinpliinent to I'rofcssor Alfred Newton ; and without detracting froai
the merit of Mr. Mesloii's havinjj shot the first adult male, it is obvious that the English name of this species
must follow llie Latin designation and he ¡issociated with the cclehrateil naturalist in whose honour the name
ncwimiiiimt was given.
" Most remarkahleof all the hirds named hy De Vis is I'nonodara newloniana, or ' Meston' s 15ovvcr-bird.'
'I'lic name requires some e.\|)lanallou. On my first aseeut of the mountain I shot a ful l -phimag«l male specimen
at IHOO feet. This was regarded hy De Vis as one of an entirely new species and named Cortjmbicola mestoni.
Suhseipieutly it appeared tlmt a young uncolonred male had been previously shot by Broadbent on the head
ol the Tully, and I'eceived from De Vis the name of Pnonnilura newtonuinu. To me, therefore, belonged
simply the honour of having shot the first full-jilumaged male and observed the habits of this extraordinary
bird, ami the final name, to he liiiowu hereafter to science, is Pnonorlura ncwtommm, or Meston's liower-bird.
Since the first male ^vas ftimul by me, several males and females have been shot by Hroadbeiit on the Hcrherton
liauges at .•i.")()0 feet. The blacks on the Mnlgrave and Kussell c;ill this bird ' Wargaudi l la. ' So far it is
nukuown south of the Tnlly or north of the Barron. During the c.-ipedition we obtained seven males in
perfect plumage and several females. This is one of the three haudsoniest birds in Australia, the other two
being the liillc-bii-d and liegeut-hird—Pt'dorhis wctorue and Sericulm mel'nms. In liabits and peculiarities
it is one of the most eccentric birds iii the world. The lowest dcscent was 1500 feet, between the summit
of Barnard's Spur and the Whelauian Pools. Usually it is foiind from 4000 feet to 5000 feet. The note of
the female—a hird of common grey plumage—is that of the ordinary green Cat-bird, in a sharper and shriller
key. The male appears to possess the niarvcllous imitative powers of the Australian Lyre-bird. First you
hear him croaking like a Tree-Fi-og, and this note is followed by a low, soft, musical, pathetic whistle, succeeded
in a rapid succession by an astonisliliig imitation of ajijiarently all the birds in the scrub. The bower varies
in size and shape, hnt in all cases dilfers from (hat of the other Anstraliiui Bowcr-hirds. Both Broadbent
and myself have seen bowers up to a heigliE of 8 feet. As a rule, they are made between two small trees
about J feet or 5 feet a|iart. Short dead sticks and twigs are piled np against each tree in a gently contracting
jiyi-amid, anil across from base to base extends au arch-shaped causeway, occasionally spanned by a connecting
\ ine, decorated with green mosses and tufts of tiny ferns. In and out and over and under and aronntl this
erratic structure both male and female birds disport themselves iii frequent jilayful festi\'ities, like the Lyrebird,
Regent-bird, and Satiu-and other Bower-birds remarkable for similar customs and proclivities. So
f¿ll' only one nest has been disco\'ered—the one found by nie on the summit of the Little Mnlgrave Range.
It was a rouml cnp-shaped uest, {lecoriited outwardly with the mosses anil ferns used in ornamentiiig the bowers.
It contained only one egg, quite fresh ; so we have yet to learn if the hird lays one or more."
The following descri|)tions are taken from a pair of hirds in the British Mnsenin, collected by Mr. Kendal
Broadbent oii the Bellendcn-Kcr mountains ;—
^idnU male. General colour above golden-olive, slightly brighter on the rump aiul npjier taiUeoverts ; wingcoverts
and ipiills golden-olive, the inner webs dingy brown, with a broad margin of pale yellow on the inner
web; the iunerniost secondaries dusky olive on the inner web ; the centrc tail-feathers olive-brown, with a
goldeu w^ish, the extreme base of the feathers bright yellow; the next two feathers bright yellow, with a
broad tij) of olive-broivn ; the succeeding feather with a narrower tip of olive-hrovvu, ami the three outer tailfeathers
entirely bright yellow; crowu of head olive-brown with a golden ivash, the entire sides of the face
of this same colour; the crown with a broad median crest of golden-yellow; the nape and hind neck also
golden-yellow, this colour overspreading the ujiper mantle ; cheeks and chin olive-brown like the car-coverts ;
the u hole of the remainder of the under surface bi-ight golden-yellow, with a slight wash of golden-olive on
the flanks ; lliigh-feathers ashy, tipped with yellow ; under tail-coverts deep golden-yellow like the uiider surface
of the tail ; axillaries and under wing-coverts golden-yellow ; quill-liiiing also yellow, as well as the shafts of
the feathers unilerneath. Total length i)"5 inches, culmen 0"9, wing 4'85, tall 4'2, tarsus I"2.
Adult female. Dilfereiit from the male. Entirely olive-brown above, with ashy sliaft-streaks to the feathers
of the head and neck ; wing-coverts like the back ; the bastard-wing, greater coverts, and onter aspect
of quills a little browner than the back ; tail-feathers brown, washed slightly with olive near the base of the
outer webs; lores asliy grey ; ear-coverts and chceks ashy grey, washed with olive-brown; under surface of
body pale ashy grey, beeoniiug lighter on the abdomen and under tail-eoverts, the feathers on the lower throat
and breast with whitish shaft-lines ; axillaries and nniler wing-coverts ashy grey, the lower ones edged with
yellowish ; the qnills dusky brown below, yellow along the basal two-thirds of the inner web. Total length
9 inches, culmen 0"85, wiiig 4'5, tail tarsus 1*2.
The I'late represents the male and female of the size of life ; the figures being drawn from the pair of birds
described above.
I !
i l i u