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=> EYORNIS SUBALARIS, a

Orange-crested Bower-bird.

Amblyornis subalaris, Sharpe, Journ. Linn. Soc., Zool. xvii 3 (ig i
e OCR - Xvi. p. 408 (1884).—Finsch u. Mever itschr
Orn. ii. p. 390, pl. xxii. (1885), : me =

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. Gopi first discovered this species j > Astrolabe ains, in S J i i |
Nin. Go pecies in the Astrolabe Mountains, in South-eastern New Guinea, and his |
British Museum before we ventured to describe it as new. |
It was, however, so evidently distinct from the Amblyornis inornata of North-western New Guinea that we |

described it at last, and events have proved that we were correct in Judging from the female bird alone.

specimen remained with us for a long time in the

The male, which is recognized at a glance by its splendid orange crest, was first found by Mr. C. Hunstein AT
in the Horseshoe range of the Owen Stanley Mountains, anda capital figure of it is given by Dr. von | ]
Madarasz in the ‘Zeitschrift’ (2 c.). We were somewhat surprised to find that the male of this dull AT
looking species turned out to be such a fine bird, and it seems reasonable to doubt whether we really yet
know the full-plumaged male of 4. inornata. Itis true that the nest and breeding-habits of the latter species
have been described by Dr. Beccari, and the sexes are supposed to be alike in colour; but it is just possible
that a crest is donned during the nesting-season by the male.

Adult male. General colour above uniform dark olive-brown, rather more olive on the back, rump, and
upper tail-coverts ; wing-coverts like the back, bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and quills olive-brown exter-
nally, internally dark brown ; tail-feathers dark brown, washed with olive-brown externally; crown of head
with an immense crest of orange, the lateral and frontal feathers edged and tipped with blackish brown; base
of forehead dusky olive-brown; hind neck lighter olive-brown ; lores ashy, sides of face, eyebrow, and ear-
coverts dark olive-brown ; cheeks and entire under surface of body light olive-brown, streaked down the
centre of the feathers with ochreous buff, the sides of body and flanks rather browner; thighs dusky brown ;
under tail-coverts fulvous, with ochreous-buff centres to the feathers, the long ones edged with dark brown ;
under wing-coverts and axillaries orange-buff or tawny; quills below dusky, ochreous along the inner edge.
Total length 8-3 inches, culmen 1-0, wing 5:0, tail 3:4, tarsus 1:3. i.

Adult female. Differs from the male in having no orange crest, the head being like the back. Total
length 8°3 inches, culmen 0-9, wing 4:8, tail 3°3, tarsus 1:4. |

Mr. Forbes has sent specimens of both sexes, killed in the rainy season. The whole ol the colours are
paler and more olive, and the ochreous tints of the under surface are much paler, especially on the under
wing-coverts. The male is only distinguished from the female at this season of the year by the greater |
amount of clear ochreous on the underparts. ir einen |

The figures in the Plate represent an adult male and female, drawn from a pair procured by Mr. ‘ ;

in the Horseshoe range. [R. B. 8.] |

   

 

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