The Birds of Australia, Vol. 1 of 7

Family FALCONIDÆ, Leach.

Genus Aquila, Briss.

Numerous species of this genus exist in Asia and Europe; the form also occurs in Africa, and in North America; so far as I am aware it is not found in South America, and two species are all that are known in Australia.

• Vultur audax, Lath. Ind. Orn. Supp., p. ii.
• Aquila cuneicaudata, Brehm, Isis, 1845, p. 356.
• —— (Uroaëtus) audax, Kaup, Classif. der Säug. und Vög., p. 12.

This fine Eagle ranges over the whole of the southern portion of Australia and Van Diemen’s Land, but I have no positive evidence of its having been seen in the intertropical regions of the country.

A beautiful representative of the Aquila pennata of Europe and India. Since the discovery of this bird at Yarrundi in New South Wales, when I obtained only a single specimen, T. C. Eyton, Esq. has received a second example in a collection obtained at Port Phillip, and a third was procured by Captain Sturt at the Depôt in South Australia.

Genus Ichthyiaëtus, Lafr.

The members of this genus inhabit India and the whole of the Indian Islands, and enjoy an equally extensive range over the continent of Africa. Their natural abode is the margins of large rivers and inlets of the sea; and their chief food consists of fish, dead cetacea and carrion.

• Haliaëtus (Pontoaëtus) leucogaster, Kaup, Classif. der Säug. und Vög., p. 122.
• Cuncuma leucogaster, List of Birds in Brit. Mus. Coll., Part I. 2nd edit. p. 24.

Found all round the coast of Australia, and said to extend its range to India and even to Africa; but this wants confirmation.

An opinion has been lately expressed that the enormous nests observed by Captains Cook and Flinders had been constructed by some species of Dinornis; but it is quite evident from the account given by Flinders that they must have been formed by a bird of the Raptorial order, and I have no doubt that they were the nests of the present bird.

“Near Point Possession,” says Flinders, “were found two nests of extraordinary magnitude. They were built upon the ground, from which they rose above two feet; and were of vast circumference and great interior capacity, the branches of trees and other matter, of which each nest was composed, being enough to fill a small cart. Captain Cook found one of these enormous nests upon Eagle Island, on the east coast.” Subsequently Flinders found another of these nests in which were “several masses resembling those which contain the hair and bones of mice, and are disgorged by the Owls in England after the flesh is digested. These masses were larger, and consisted of the hair of seals and of land animals, of the scaly feathers of penguins, and the bones of birds and small quadrupeds. Possibly the constructor of the nest might be an enormous Owl; and if so, the cause of the bird being never seen, whilst the nests were not scarce, would be from its not going out until dark; but from the very open and exposed situations in which the nests were found, I should rather judge it to be of the Eagle kind; and that its powers are such as to render it heedless of any attempts of the natives upon its young.”—Flinders’ Voyage, vol. i. pp. 64 and 81.

The accumulation of so large a mass of materials is readily accounted for when we remember that the bird is in the habit of resorting to the same eyry for a long succession of years, and of annually carrying additional materials to reconstruct the nest.

I myself found and took young birds of this species from similar nests placed on the points of rocks and promontories of the islands in Bass’s Straits.

Genus Haliastur, Selby.

The range of the members of this genus extends over Australia and all the islands to India.

• Falco Ponticerianus, Shaw, Nat. Misc., pl. 389.
• Haliaëtus (Ictinoaëtus) leucosternon, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 277.

Confined, so far as I am aware, to Australia, and forming a beautiful representative of the Haliastur Ponticerianus of India.

• Milvus sphenurus, Swains. Class. of Birds, vol. ii. p. 211.
• Haliaëtus (Ictinoaëtus) canorus, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 277.

Inhabits all parts of Australia yet visited by travellers, even the Depôt in the interior.

Genus Pandion, Sav.

Of the genus Pandion four species are now known; one inhabiting America, another Europe and Asia, a third the Indian Islands, and the fourth Australia.

• Pandion Gouldii, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 270.—List of Birds in Brit. Mus. Coll., Part I. 2nd edit. p. 22.

This species of Pandion performs precisely the same office in Australia that the P. haliaëtus does in Europe and the P. Carolinensis in America; to both of which species it is very nearly allied.

Genus Falco, Linn.

As they are the most typical of all the Hawks, so are the members of the genus Falco the most universally dispersed over the face of the globe; and I question whether the law of representation is in any case more beautifully and clearly shown than by the members of the present group.

Up to the present time only four examples of this fine Falcon have been procured; it is a species admirably adapted for the sport of Falconry, and is a beautiful representative of the Falco Gyrfalco of Europe. Its native habitat is the interior of the southern and western portions of Australia.

• Falco macropus, Swains. Anim. in Menag., p. 341.
• —— melanogenys, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 75.

India, Europe, and North America on the one hand, and Cape Horn, the Cape of Good Hope and Australia on the other, are all inhabited by Falcons so nearly allied to each other as to favour the opinion that they are merely varieties of each other; but I agree with the Prince of Canino and Professor Kaup in considering them to be distinct and representatives of each other in the respective countries they inhabit. It will doubtless be found that the habits and economy of the whole are as similar as they are in outward appearance; and that the Falco melanogenys is as destructive to the ducks of the interior of Australia as the Falco Anatum is in North America.

A powerful Falcon differing somewhat in structure from the F. hypoleucus and F. melanogenys. Nothing is known of its habits, and as yet I have only seen four examples, all of which were procured in the interior of South Australia.

• Falco lunulatus, Lath. Ind. Orn. Suppl., p. xiii.?
• Sparvius lunulatus, Vieill. Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. x. p. 324.
• Falco longipennis, Swains. Anim. in Menag., p. 341.?
• —— subbuteo, Brehm, Isis, 1845, p. 347.?
• —— (Hypotriorchis) frontatus, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 65.

A little Falcon with the habits of the Hobby and Merlin combined; found in all parts of Australia to the southward of the 25th degree of S. lat.; among other birds it preys upon the Quails and the little Partridges belonging to the genus Synoïcus.

Genus Ieracidea, Gould.

Generic characters.

Bill and general form of Falco, but the wings less powerful, and the third quill-feather the longest; tarsi more elongated, slender, and covered anteriorly with hexagonal scales; toes more feeble, the hind-toe shorter, and the claws less robust.

So far as our present knowledge extends, the members of this genus are only three in number, all of which are confined to Australia and New Zealand.

• Ieracidea Berigora, Kaup, Class, der Säug. und Vög., p. 112.

Professor Kaup considers this species and the succeeding one, I. occidentalis, to be identical, but having had numerous opportunities of observing them, I am satisfied that they are distinct; and in confirmation of this opinion I may state that the I. Berigora, which is from the eastern coast, is always the largest, has the cere blue-grey, and the plumage of the adult light brown, sparingly blotched with white on the breast; while the I. occidentalis, from the western coast, is a more delicately formed bird, has the cere yellow and the breast white, with faint lines of brown down the centre of each feather.

Genus Tinnunculus, Vieill.

• Cerchneis immaculatus, Brehm, Isis.

A beautiful representative of the Kestrils of Europe and India, where, as well as in Africa and in most parts of America, members of this group are to be found.

The range of the Tinnunculus Cenchroïdes extends over the whole of the southern parts of Australia, and that it extends far towards the northern portion of the country is proved by Mr. Gilbert having found it, as well as its nest, during the expedition of Dr. Leichardt from Moreton Bay to Port Essington.

The following is an extract from his Journal:—“October 2. Found, for the first time, the eggs of Tinnunculus Cenchroïdes, four in number, deposited in a hollow spout of a gum-tree overhanging a creek; there was no nest, the eggs being merely deposited on a bed of decayed wood.” They are freckled all over with blotches and minute dots of rich reddish chestnut on a paler ground, and are one inch and five-eighths in length by one inch and a quarter in breadth.

• Astur Novæ-Hollandiæ, Cuv. Règ. An., 1817, p. 320.
• Sparvius niveus, Vieill. Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. x. p. 338.
• Dædalion candidum, Less. Traité d’Orn., p. 66.
• Falco leucaëtos, Forst. Descr. Anim. and Drawings, No. 35.
• Astur (Leucospiza) Novæ-Hollandiæ, Kaup, Class, der Säug. und Vög., p. 119.

I think Professor Kaup is right in proposing a new generic title for this species, differing as it does both in structure and habits from the true Asturs; he also, like myself, considers the white birds to be merely albino varieties of the other; but my friends, the Rev. T. J. Ewing and Ronald C. Gunn, Esq. of Van Diemen’s Land, are both most decidedly opposed to this view of the subject, and found their dissent upon the circumstance of there being none other than white individuals in Van Diemen’s Land.

So far as it is at present known, the southern and eastern portions of Australia and the island of Van Diemen’s Land constitute the habitat of the species.

• Astur testaceus (Ernest.), Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 367.

A curious form not quite agreeing with Astur; it is very rare, and nothing whatever is known of its habits.

• Astur radiatus, Cuv. Règ. An., 1829, p. 332.
• Nisus (Urospiza) radiatus, Kaup, Mus. Senckenb., 1845, p. 259.
• —— (——) approximans, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 182.
• Accipiter approximans, List of Birds in Brit. Mus. Coll., Part I. 2nd edit. p. 74.

The Astur approximans has been with propriety removed to the genus Accipiter by Mr. G. R. Gray, and to this genus my A. cruentus is also referable; for although of a larger size than the other members of that form, their structure, except in the shorter middle toe, is very similar.

• Astur cruentus, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc., Part X. p. 113.

This species and the preceding are representatives of each other in the eastern and western portions of the continent.

I have lately seen specimens from Port Essington.

Genus Accipiter, Briss.

• Sparvius cirrhocephalus, Vieill. Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. x. p. 328.
• —— tricolor, Vieill. ibid. p. 329.
• Falco melanops, Lath. Ind. Orn. Supp., p. 12?
• Sparvius melanops, Vieill. Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. x. p. 239?
• Astur (Micronisus) torquatus, Kaup, Mus. Senckenb. 1845, p. 259.
• Nisus (Urospiza) torquatus, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 181.
• Accipiter cirrhocephalus, List of Birds in Brit. Mus. Coll., Part I. 2nd edit. p. 73.

Precisely similar in all its actions and in its economy to the Sparrow Hawk, Accipiter nisus of Europe.

Species of the genus Buteo are dispersed over the great continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and America, but only one has yet been discovered in Australia.

This bird departs somewhat in form from the typical species of the genus Buteo; but so little is known respecting it that we are ignorant how far this departure may influence its habits and economy. One most singular story has been transmitted to me and is here given as I received it; without vouching for its truth, I may remark that the testimony of the natives may generally be relied upon.

“The natives, Mr. Drummond, and his son Mr. Johnson Drummond, tell me,” says Mr. Gilbert, “that this bird is so bold, that upon discovering an Emu sitting on her eggs it will attack her with great ferocity until it succeeds in driving her from them; when it takes up a stone with its feet, and while hovering over the eggs lets the stone fall upon and crush them, and then descends and devours their contents. I have had numerous opportunities of observing the bird myself, and can bear testimony to its great powers of scent or vision; for upon several occasions, when the natives had placed a small kangaroo or kangaroo-rat in the fork of a tree or on the top of a Xanthorrhæa with the intention of taking it again on our return, we have found that the bird during our short absence had discovered and devoured every part of it except the skin, which was left so perfect, that at first I could not believe that it had not been done by the hand of man.”

Genus Milvus, Cuv.

Asia is the great stronghold of the Kites or restricted genus Milvus; a few species occur in Europe, Africa, and the Indian Islands, and two are natives of Australia.

• Milvus (Hydroictinia) affinis, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 118.

This representative of the Milvus ater of Europe is found all over Australia, even at Port Essington: Captain Sturt observed it flying over the far interior of South Australia in great numbers.

This species, which is sparingly dispersed over the whole of the southern part of Australia, is an equally beautiful representative of the common Kite, Milvus regalis of Europe.

Genus Elanus, Sav.

Species of this well-defined genus inhabit nearly every part of the world: two are natives of Australia.

• Elanus melanopterus, Vig. & Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv. p. 185.

The Elanus axillaris is a representative of the Elanus melanopterus of Europe.

A fine new species rendered conspicuously different from all the other members of the genus by the black-lettered form of the markings under the wings.

Captain Sturt found this bird abundant at the Depôt towards the interior of Australia.

Of this genus three species are known; they inhabit India, the Indian Islands and Australia.

• Baza subcristata, G. R. Gray, List of Birds in Brit. Mus. Coll., Part I. p. 19. 2nd edit. p. 41.
• Pernis (Hyptiopus) subcristatus, Kaup, Isis, 1847, p. 343.

I have no additional information respecting this noble species; all the examples of which, that have come under my notice, have been obtained in the brushes of the east coast of Australia.

Genus Circus, Lacep.

Two if not three kinds of Harriers inhabit Australia, consequently the number of species is nearly equal in Europe, Asia, Africa, America, and Australia; those inhabiting the latter country are precisely of the same form, and perform the same offices as their near allies do in the other parts of the world.

• Circus (Spilocircus) Jardinii, Kaup, Isis, 847, p. 102.

Family STRIGIDÆ, Leach.

Genus Strix, Linn.

While as a general rule other countries are only inhabited by a single species of the restricted genus Strix, the Fauna of Australia comprises no less than four, all of which appear to be necessary in order to prevent an inordinate increase of the smaller quadrupeds which there abound.

• Strix flammea? Vig. & Horsf. in Linn. Trans., vol. xv. p. 190.

Genus Athene, Boie.

A genus of diurnal Owls, of which five species are natives of Australia; the smaller kinds are represented in Europe and Asia by the Athene noctua, A. Cuculoides and A. Brama; the larger kinds have no representatives in the northern hemisphere.

• Athene marmorata, Gould in Proc. of Zool. Soc., Part XIV. p. 18.

All the upper surface, wings and tail dark brown, obscurely spotted with white round the back of the neck, on the wing-coverts and scapularies; inner webs of the primaries at their base, and the inner webs of the lateral tail-feathers crossed by bands, which are buff next the shaft and white towards the extremity of the webs; face and chin whitish; under surface dark brown, blotched with white and sandy brown; legs and thighs fawn-colour; bill horn-colour; feet yellow.

Inhabits South Australia, is much larger than A. maculata, but so nearly allied to, and so much like that species, that I have not thought it necessary to give a separate figure of it.

• Buteo connivens, Vieill. Nouv. Dict. d’Hist. Nat., tom. iv. p. 481.