OCR Text |
Show 46 ZOOLOGY OF THE VOYAGE OF THE BEAGLE. tail, sooty-brown; the external margin o~ the outer tail feathers, and the tips of all, light greyish brown ; bill and tarst, black. Female. All the upper surface, wings, and tail, brown; throat, greyish white; the remainder of under surface, pale buff, the feathers of the chest and flanks, with an obscure fine stripe of light brown down the centre. , Habitat, Galapagos Archipelago. (Septembe1·.) There is nothing remarkable in the habits of this bird. ~t freq~ents both the arid and rocky districts near the coast, and the damp woods m the h1gher parts of several of the islands in the Galapagos Archipelago. 4. PYROCEPHALUS DUBIUS. Gould. P. minor, tividus; fi·onte, superciliis cotpm·eqtte subtus stmmineis ; tect1'icibus strarnineo rnarginatis. Long. tot. 4fi unc ; al111, 2-fi caud111, l-h ; tat·si, -h ; t•oat. Forehead, stripe over the eye, and all the under surface pale buff; back of the neck and upper surface chocolate brown ; greater and lesser wing coverts margined with buff. Habitat, Galapagos Archipelago, (September). From the appearance of this bird when alive, although closely resembling P. nanus, I entertained no doubt that it was a distinct species. Mr. G. R. Gray informs me that there is a specimen of a male in the British Museum, which differs from the male of the precedent species, in having the upper colour of a decided brown, and the external margins of the outer tail feathers and tips of the secondaries rather reddish white; also in size as stated by Mr. Gould. Mnomus. G. R. Gmy. TYRANNULA. Swains. Mr. Gould had adopted for the following species Mr. Swainson's generic appellation of Tyrannula, but Mr. G. R. Gray has pointed out, that as Tyrannulus was proposed and published eleven years before, namely in 1816, by Vieillot, it becomes necessary to change the former name, and therefore he proposes Myiobius. BIRDS. 47 1. MYIOBIUS ALBICEPS. G. R. Gray. Muecipeta nlbicops. D'Orb. et Lafr. Mag. do Zool. 1837, p. 47. This bird is not uncommon in Tierra del Fuego, and along the western coast of the southern part of the continent, where the land is covered with trees; it is occasionally found near Valparaiso in central Chile ; and likewise in Banda Oriental on the banks of the Plata, where the country is open, from all of which places I procured specimens. At Port Famine and in the islands of the Chonos Archipelago, it inhabits the gloomiest recesses of the great forests. It generally remains quietly seated high up amongst the tallest trees, whence it constantly repeats a very plaintive, gentle whistle, in an uniform tone. The sound can be heard at some distance, yet it is difficult to perceive from which quarter it proceeds, and from how far off; and I remained in consequence, for some time in doubt, from what bird it proceeded. 2. MYIOBIUS AURICEPS. Tyrannula. auriceps. Gould, MS. M. t·ufus; capite crista to nitide jlavo; pl'lmza1·um apicibus brumneis ,· alis hnmneis, secundm·im·um rnarginibus tectricumque apicibus 1·ujis ; cauda pallide brttnnea, plurnarurn externm·1tm rnm-ginibus externis pallidioribus; gutture corporeque subt-us pallidejlavescenti-albis; plumis singulis fascia centmli br~tnnea. Long. tot. 5-fi unc; alm, 2-h caudcv, 2-h tarsi, -h roat. -h· All the upper surface rufous; the basal portion of the coronal feathers yellow; tail uniform light brown, the external margin of the outer feathers Jighter ; wings brown, the external margin of the secondaries and the tips of the greater and lesser wing-coverts rufous ; throat and all the under surface pale huffy white, each feather having a brown mark down the centre; biJl brown; feet black. Habitat, Buenos Ayres, La Plata, (August). This bird is about the size of a sparrow. It is nearJy allied to 1'!Jrwumht ferruginea of Swainson and M. cinnanwnea of D'Orbig. and Lafr. |