The little tenants of the ocean belonging to this genus are so universally dispersed, that they are found in all the seas except those of the very high latitudes of both hemispheres. The Australian fauna is particularly rich in birds of this form, inasmuch as no less than five distinct species frequent the seas which wash the shores of that country.
| 611. Thalassidroma marina, Less. | Vol. VII. Pl. 61. |
| 612. Thalassidroma melanogaster, Gould | Vol. VII. Pl. 62. |
| 613. Thalassidroma leucogaster, Gould | Vol. VII. Pl. 63. |
| Thalassidroma Tropica, Gould. |
- Thalassidroma Tropica, Gould in Ann. and Mag. of Nat. Hist., vol. xiii. p. 366.
Head, back, wings, tail and breast dark sooty black; chin, under coverts of the wings, abdomen, flanks, under tail-coverts, and a broad crescent-shaped band across the upper tail-coverts snow-white; bill, feet and legs black.
Total length, 7¾ inches; bill, ⅞; wing, 6½; tail, 3½; tarsi, 1¾; middle toe and nail, 1¼.
I observed this species in the Atlantic, where it is confined to the equatorial regions, being most abundant in the vicinity of the line. It is the largest member of the genus with which I am acquainted, and is rendered very conspicuous by the white mark on its throat.
| 614. Thalassidroma Nereis, Gould | Vol. VII. Pl. 64. |
| 615. Thalassidroma Wilsonii, Bonap. | Vol. VII. Pl. 65. |
Family PELECANIDÆ, Leach.
Genus Phalacrocorax, Briss.
The great family of the Cormorants, whose range is universal, are well represented in Australia, since five species inhabit and are peculiar to that country, where they perform precisely the same offices as the other species of the genus do in Europe and America.