EOS FUSCATA, Buy.
Banded Lory.

Eos fuscatus, Blyth, Journ. As. Soc. Beng. xxvii. p. 279 (1858).—Sclater, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1873, p. 697.

Eos (Chalcopsitta) torrida, Gray, List Psittacide Brit. Mus. p. 102 (1859).

Eos fuscata, Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1859, p. 158.—Sclater, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1860, p. 227.—Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc.
1861, p. 436.—Wallace, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1864, p. 291.—Schl. Dirent. pp. 68, 69, cum fig. (1864).
—Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genov. vii. p. 760 (1875), x. pp. 34, 122 (1877).—D’Albert. OO. Ol, HK |
p- 19 (1877).—Ramsay, Proce. Linn. Soc. N. 8. Wales, iii. p. 258 (1878), iv. p. 96 (1879).—D’ Albert. and
Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genoy. xiv. p. 37 (1879).—Sharpe, Journ. Linn. Soc., Zool. xiv. pp. 628, 686
(1879).—Salvad. Orn, Papuasia e delle Molucche, i. p. 263 (1880).—Guillemard, Proc. Zool. Soc.
1885, p. 622.

Eos leucopygialis, Rosenb. J. f. O. 1862, p. 64. |

Chalcopsitta leucopygialis, Rosenb. Nat. Tijdschr. Nederl. Indie, xxv. pp. 144, 224 (1863).—Id. Journ. fir Orn.

1864, p. 113.

Lorius fuscatus, Schl. Mus. Pays-Bas, Psittaci, p. 122 (1864)—Finsch, Neu-Guinea, p. 157 (
Hand-list B. ii. p. 153, sp. 8194 (1870).—Schl. Mus. Pays-Bas, Psittaci, Revue, p. 55 (18
Reis. naar Geelvinkb. p. 113 (1875).

Domicella fuscata, Finsch, Die Papag. ii. p. 807, pl. 6 (1868) —Meyer, Sitz. k. Akad. Wiss. Wien, lxx. p. 236 |
(1874).—ld. Sitz. Isis Dresden, 1875, p. 78.

 

 

1865).—Gray,
74).—Rosenb.

Chalcopsittacus fuscatus, Salyad. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genov. vill. p. 397 (1876).

 

Tus Lory is easily recognized by its dusky coloration and greyish-white rump, and by the red or yellow
bands on the body. It is an inhabitant of New Guinea, where it has been met with in several places in the
north-western portion of the island—at Dorei by Mr. Wallace, Baron von Rosenberg, and Dr. Meyer, at
Andai by Von Rosenberg and Dr. Guillemard, at Mansinam by Dr. Beccari, Passim by Dr. Meyer, Mon by

 

Dr. Beccari, and in the Arfak Mountains by Dr. Meyer and Signor D’Albertis, as well as near Sorong by the
lastenamed traveller. It has also been obtained in Salawati by Dr. Beccari, and in the Island of Jobi by
Dr. Meyer, Mr. Bruijn, and Dr. Beceari. In Southern New Guinea Signor D’Albertis procured the present
species on the Fly River, Mr. Ramsay has received it from Port Moresby, and the Rev. W. G. Lawes has
found it at Walter Bay, a few miles eastward of the latter place.

The very curious variation in the colour of the red bands, which are sometimes replaced by yellow, has

 

been well treated of by Dr. Meyer, whose remarks we reproduce :—

“ The Jobi specimens appear to be somewhat larger in all their dimensions and to have more intense
colours than those from New Guinea; but my series is not large enough to judge with certainty. Among
the ten specimens which I procured are two red-banded ones, of which I could not determine the sex with
certainty; of the rest three were females and five were males. The latter are all red-banded; and of the
females, two bad yellow bands and one red. This proves that the yellow coloration is not exclusively the
dress of the full-grown female; but whether it be the plumage of the young bird, or whether this species
does not preserve constancy in this respect, as the two finely coloured yellow birds do not show any
special traces of youth, remains to be seen. It is possible, however, that the yellow plumage may be that of the
immature bird; and this can only be proved when the changes of colour are observed in captivity, or when
it is demonstrated that in a large series no young birds ever occur with red in their plumage. Mr. Wallace
appears not to have regarded the yellow dress as being that of the young, for he states that both sexes of
red and yellow varieties were obtained from the same flock.

“The bill is not ‘ horn-yellow ’ or ‘light red,’ but red like the red feathers of the neck ; and it must be
particularly noted that the skin at the base of the under mandible and on the chin is naked for a certain
extent, and is of the same colour as the bill, so that the latter appears at first sight much larger than it
really is. This peculiarity is not shown in Finsch’s plate or mentioned in his description.

“The colour of the skin at the base of the lower mandible and on the chin is different in different
as, for instance, in Domicella atra with a black

 

 

 

 

 

species, but it appears to agree with the colour of the bill
bill and naked parts as distinct as in D. fuscata ; the same in D. scintillata, but the naked parts not so

extended. D. lori, D. cyanogenys, aud D. garrula have the naked parts red like the bill, but with more

 

feathering than in the foregoing species.
“«D. fuscata has black feet and claws, but the soles of the feet are greyish yellow ;

red, and the skin at the base of the upper mandible is black.”

the iris is yellowish

The Plate represents three specimens of the natural size, showing both red and yellow variations.
The figures are drawn from examples kindly lent by Dr. Meyer.

[R. B. S.J