The male has the forehead, ear-coverts, sides of the face and occiput rich verditer-blue; centre of the back light verditer-blue; scapularies chestnut; throat, chest, back of the neck and rump deep velvety black, the throat in certain lights tinged with blue; wings brown; abdomen and under tail-coverts huffy white; tail dull bluish green, crossed by numerous indistinct bars, seen only in some positions, and very slightly tipped with white; bill black; eyes and feet blackish brown. The female has all the upper surface and wings brown; throat and under surface buff-white; tail as in the male, but more dull, and devoid of the white at the extremity of the feathers; bill dull reddish brown, lighter beneath; space between the bill and eyes reddish brown; legs brown. The figures are of the natural size, on the _Isopogon alternatus_. [Illustration: MALURUS PULCHERRIMUS: _Gould_. _J. Gould and H. C. Richter del et lith._ _Hullmandel & Walton Imp._ ] MALURUS PULCHERRIMUS, _Gould_. Beautiful Wren. _Malurus pulcherrimus_, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc., Part XII. p. 106. A more beautiful bird than the present species, which must be regarded as the representative in Western Australia of the _Malurus Lamberti_, can scarcely be imagined. It is moreover an evidence that this hitherto unexplored portion of the country is not less rich in interesting productions than are those parts which have been much longer known to us. The _Malurus pulcherrimus_ is very nearly allied to the _M. Lamberti_, but is of a larger size, and also differs from that species in having the throat and breast of a rich deep blue instead of black. For a knowledge of this species I am indebted to the researches of Mr. Gilbert, who informs me that “it appears to be exclusively confined to the thickets of the interior of Western Australia; in habits and manners it greatly resembles the other members of the genus, but its nest is somewhat smaller than that of either of them. A nest found on the 28th of October, in the vicinity of the Wongan Hills, was placed on the upper branches of a species of _Hakea_ about four feet from the ground; it contained two newly-laid eggs, which resembled those of the other species of the genus, but had the blotches very much larger.” Crown of the head and a broad band across the centre of the back rich glossy violet-blue; space surrounding the eye and the ear-coverts verditer-blue; throat intense indigo-blue, bounded below by an indistinct band of black; lores, collar surrounding the back of the neck, and the lower part of the back, deep velvety black; scapularies chestnut; wings brown; tail dull greenish blue, indistinctly barred with a darker tint and slightly tipped with white; abdomen and under tail-coverts white; bill and feet black; irides dark brown. The figures represent two males and a female of the natural size. [Illustration: MALURUS LAMBERTI: _Vig. & Horsf._