MELANOPITTA NOVA-GUINEA.
Papuan Pitta.

Pitta atricapilla, Quoy et Gai i a Nectar ae
a Be, i a cae vee lAstrol. i. p. 258, pl. 8, fig. 3 (1830).
| 2 ( -@, Mull. & Schleg. Verhandl. ne htt
ee Guay e E indl oe Gesch., fol., Zool. Pitta, pp. 19, 20 (1839-44).—Gray, Gen.
een 640).—sclater, Proc. Linn. Soe. ii. p. 158 (1858).—Gray, Proc. Zool. S 7
1OW="Tal Chk BE NEw eh : : : ay, c. Zool. Soc. 1858, pp. 175,
. Db. uinea, pp. 26, 56 (1859).—Id. Proc, Zool. Soc. 1861, p. 434.—Schlesel, Voge
Neder alii ay 27ttcanm Ole oI aa ae
Ibis, 1864 102 ne - » pl. it. fig. 4 (1863).—Id. Mus. Pays-Bas, Pitta, p. 4 (1863).— Wallace,
, 1864, p. 102.— Gy: see es : as
(1866), iv I = oe ty ee Guinea, p. 167 ((1865).—Schlegel, Nederl. Tijdschr. Dierk. iii. p. 189
ae a p- Cy ).—Gray, Hand-l. B. i. p. 295, no. 4358 (1869).—Schleg. Mus. Pays-Bas,
ne ue £2 a p- 6 (1874).—Rosenb. Reist. n. Geelvinksbai, p. 114 (1875).—Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civic.
ae ee Ta (1875), viii. p. 398 (1876), ix. p. 210 (1876).—Gould, Birds of New Guinea,
ae lV. (sz ()—~alvad. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genova, ix. p. 128 (1877), x. p. 11 (1877).—Sharpe, Journ.
inn. Soc. ae p. 315 (1877), xiv. p. 687 (1879).—Salvad. & D’Albert. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genova, xiv.
d 27 ( > Pos E . ‘i 900
p- 84 (1879).—Ramsay, Proc. Linn. Soc. New S. Wales, ili. p. 277 (1879), iv. p. 98 (1879).—Legge
NE Pale, ys , ~ y o -
Birds et Ceylon, p. 689 (1879).—Salvad. Ann. Mus. Civic. Genova, xv. p. 184 (1880).—Id. Orn. della
Papuasia &c. p. 380 (1881).
Brachyurus nove-quinee, Bp. Consp. i. p. 256 (1850).—Wall. Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. (2) xx. p. 477 (1857).—
Rosenb. Journ. f. Orn. 1864, p. 119.—Elliot, Ibis, 1870, p. 420.
Melanopitta nove-guinee, Bp. Consp. Volucr. Anis. p. 7 (1854).
Brachyurus (Melanopitta) nove-guinee, Elliot, Monogr. pl. 27 (1861-63).
Pitta papuensis, Gray, Hand-l. B. 1. p. 295, no. 4361 (1869; ? ex Schleg. MS.).
Pitta waigrouensis, Schleg. MS., teste Salvad. Orn. della Papuasia &c. p. 385 (1881).

 

Tue Papuan Pitta, although by its name of xove-guinee one might suppose that it is confined to the great
island of New Guinea, is not really restricted to that locality, but is spread over a habitat almost as
extensive as that of Evythropitta mackloti. \t inhabits the whole of New Guinea; and a long list of
specimens is given by Count Salvadori in his great work on the Ornithology of Papuasia, showing that
the Italian travellers Beccari and D’Albertis, and the well-known collector Bruijn, have discovered it in every
portion visited by themselves or their hunters. In all the parts explored on the Arfal: Mountains it was
met with, as well as in Salwatti, while numerous specimens enriched Signor D?Albertis’s collections from
Southern New Guinea, where he procured the species on the Fly river, and further eastward on Yule
Island and the mainland of South-east Papua. We have ourselves seen specimens from the interior of
Port Moresby and also from East Cape, the latter procured by Mr. Charles Hunstein, the discoverer of
the remarkable Clytoceyx rex. It has also been said to occur in the peninsula of Cape York, on Mr.
Cockerell’s authority ; but we are certain that many of the latter’s Aru-Island birds were mixed up in his
Cape-York collections, and we do not believe that the bird has ever been really procured in Northern
Australia.

Returning to its insular distribution, we find that it has been met with on the following islands—Batanta,
Waigiou, Gagie, Koffiao, and Mysol ; and it is not at all rare in the Aru Islands, where, according to Von
Rosenberg, it is called by the natives “ Kaberber.” Professor Schlegel has pointed out that the birds from
the last-named locality are constantly smaller than those from other places; but Count Salvadori, who has
compared large Hotes from all parts inhabited by the species, does not consider that there is any real
difference to be seen in the Aru birds.

Great variation takes place also in the size
on some occasions ; and Schlegel mentions a specimen from Waigiou in which the white
r; and Count Salvadori has found these white marks largest

and extent of the white spots on the quills, which appear to

vanish entirely
spot existed on one wing and not on the othe
s that their disappearance takes place with age.

in vounge birds, whence he surmise so
er present species and Erythropitta mackloti quite baffled

In the Aru Islands, Mr. Wallace states that both the pitta |
his Malay hunters ; but the little Papuan boys, creeping stealthily through the thick jungle, shot them with
blunt prong-headed arrows, and thus procured him
. always elevating and depre
lly catches the eye even at some distance. At

many fine specimens. Baron von Rosenberg states

: : Oe eo ene irene atoutall Se
that they are most active birds, and are ssing the tail like the European Wag tails;

during this movement the fine red c
Wonambai he found both the present bird and i ee ae
s made of grass s$eS, ¢ aves, ¢ -ontained three or fo

and eges. The nests were rough structures made of grass, mosses, and leaves, and conti 1

S S5~-° :

white eggs spotted with reddish or ashy grey.
ve > © ao ro © ole rpeAa . »sser

Head and neck black; back and wings dark green ; le

olour of the be
Exythropitta mackloti in great abundance, and found the nests

The food of the species consists of insects.
wing-coverts light blue ; primaries dark