XANTHOMELUS AUREUS. Golden Bird of Paradise. Golden Bird of Paradise, Edwards, Nat. Hist. Oriolus aureus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. (1869). Paradisea aurea, Lath. Ind. Orn. ii. p- 195 (1790). Le Paradis orangé, Audeb. et Vieill. Ojs. Dor. Birds, iii. P. 112 (1750), Yo UGS C758) —Cheaw. Ge ; p- 163 (1766) —C ray, Gen. of B. i. P. 232 (1845).—Id, Hand-list B. i. p. 293 : Au il. p. 26, pls. 11, 12 (1802) Le Loriot de Paradis, Levaill. Hist. Nat. Ois, Parad. i. pls. 18, 19 (1806). : oh pl. 68 (1809), Lophorhina aurantia, Stephens, Gen. Zool. xiv. p- 76 (1826) Paradisea aurantia, Shaw, Gen. Zool. vii. p. 499, Sericulus aurantiacus, Less. Traité, P- 339 (1831).—Id. Ois. Par p. 201, pls. 25, 25 bis, 25 ter (1835). Sericulus aureus, Bonap. Consp. Gen. Ay, j. p. 349 (1850).—Gray, eine p:28/7.—Id. P.Z.S. 1862, p. 160.—Id. Malay Arch. p. 98 (1867).—Sclater, Ibis, 1876, p. 248. ad. Syn. p. 20 (1835).—Id. H. N. Ois. Parad. 7 1861, p. 435.—Wall. Ibis, 1861, il. p. 267 (1869).—Schl. Mus, P-B. Coraces, Xx melus aureus, Bonap. C 'S Rendus, xxxviii 038 (185 1 Xantho wee . ee Bees oe Ibis, ee p. 112.—Id. Monogr. pl. ( - Mus. Civic. Genoy. vii. P- 783 (1875).—Id. op. cit. ix. p, 199 (1876).—Sharpe, Cat. Birds, iii. p. 186 (1877).—Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genoy. x. p 159 ae : Sericulus xanthogaster, Schlegel, Nederl. Tiydsch. Dierk, y. p- 50 (1871).—Salvad. Ibis, 1876. : 54847 ee Atti R. Acead. Torino, xi. p. 688 (1876). | : Chlamydodera xanthogastra, Elliot, Ibis, 1872, p. l13.—] d. Monogr. Parad. pl. xxxiil. (1873).—Sclater, P.Z.S. 1873, p. 697. Ir will be seen that this remarkable Bird of Paradise was described and figured by Edwards more than one hundred and twenty years ago; and yet it is only within the last five years that we have been able to get perfect examples for our European collections. — It may readily be imagined that the dried skins prepared by the natives afforded us but a very faint idea of its beauty; and therefore it gives me great pleasure to acknowledge my obligation to my friend Count Salvadori, who, during his visit to this country, was so kind as to bring with him some lovely specimens for my use in the present work ; and I must record en passant my appreciation of the zeal shown by his countrymen in the scientific explorations recently made by Italian naturalists in New Guinea. It must be remembered that the present species was one of the few Birds of Paradise which Mr. Wallace was unable to obtain in a perfect state ; and it had also baffled the endeavours of the Dutch naturalists to obtain the bird in the adult plumage. The Golden Bird of Paradise is an interesting species in every way. Ornithologists who have studied Mr. Elliot’s ‘Monograph of the Paradisiide’ will remember that he has included in that family the Bower-birds, and on one of his plates he figured a species as belonging to the latter group under the name of Chlamydodera wanthogastra. This bird had been previously described as a Sericulus by Prof. Schlegel, from specimens sent to the Leiden Museum from North-western New Guinea by Baron yo Rosenberg ;_ so that Mr. Elliot was but following Dr. Schlegel in assigning it a place among the Bower-birds ; and there was nothing in the habitat of the species to render it unlikely that it would prove to be a Oar as the latter genus is found all over many parts of Australia, and one species at least, C: cercininentns, is Bey com- mon in South-eastern New Guinea. It was therefore with considerable surprise that ornithologists must have regarded a communication from Count Salvadori to ‘The Ibis,’ stating that be had come to the con- “lie Darts »y r of Nanthomelus aureus. clusion that Serienlus vanthogaster of Schlegel was nothing more than the young of Xa 1 Salvadori is perfectl ; a os least doubt that Count Salvadori is perfectly Having looked carefully into the matter myself, I bave not nee right in his conclusions. In his third volume of the ‘Catalogue of Birds into the family Paradisiide, in that respect differing from Mr. ae i eee eee true Paradise-birds, leading from them to the Orioles. A further knowle 5 rn r it should be placed among the Bower-bi > Mr. Bowdler Sharpe has not admitted the Bower-birds but he places Xanthomelus among the Is very desirable and can alone determine whethe yi re - As NaS NS a ie [7 if OOF ee ps) ya