The holes selected for the nest are sometimes high up in the loftiest
trees, at others within a few feet of the ground. The young birds have
the tips of the spurious wing orange instead of yellow; and although the
whole plumage possesses the same character as that of the adults, the
markings are less brilliant and well-defined. The sexes offer no
observable difference in their colouring by which they can be
distinguished.
Forehead and crown of the head black, the latter with a stripe of white
down the centre of each feather; a stripe of yellow commences at the
base of the upper mandible, and runs above the eye, where it is joined
by a stripe of white, which proceeds nearly to the occiput; back of the
neck and back greyish olive-brown; rump and upper tail-coverts
olive-brown; wings black, each of the primaries slightly tipped with
white, and the third externally edged with white; the secondaries edged
with white and rufous, and the tips of the spurious wing yellow; tail
blackish brown, each feather having a transverse mark of white at the
tip; ear-coverts and cheeks grey; throat yellow, passing into lighter
yellow on the flanks; centre of the abdomen white; irides olive-brown;
bill black; feet brown.
The figures are of the natural size.
[Illustration:
PARDALOTUS MELANOCEPHALUS: _Gould_.
_J. Gould and H. C. Richter del et lith._ _Hullmandel & Walton Imp._
]
PARDALOTUS MELANOCEPHALUS, _Gould_.
Black-headed Pardalote.
_Pardalotus melanocephalus_, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc., part v. p.
149; and in Syn. Birds of Australia, Part IV.
I have received numerous examples of this species from Moreton Bay,
where it probably takes the place of the _P. striatus_, from which it is
distinguished by the black colouring of its head and by its thicker
bill, but to which it is very nearly allied, as well as to the _P.
uropygialis_; it is in fact directly intermediate between the two,
having the black head of the latter without the yellow colouring of the
rump. There is no external difference in the sexes.
Nothing whatever is known of its history.
Crown of the head, lores and ear-coverts black; over each eye a stripe
commencing at the nostrils, the anterior half of which is orange, and
the posterior white; sides of the face and neck white; back of the neck
and back olive-grey; upper tail-coverts brownish buff; tail black, each
feather tipped with white; wings blackish brown, the third, fourth,
fifth, sixth and seventh primaries white; secondaries edged and tipped
with white; one of the wing-coverts broadly margined on the inner web
with white, forming an oblique line across the shoulder; spurious wing
tipped with crimson; line down the centre of the throat, the breast and
middle of the abdomen bright yellow; vent and under tail-coverts buff;
hill black; feet brown.
The figures are of the natural size.
[Illustration:
PARDALOTUS UROPYGIALIS: _Gould_.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account