Gilbert collected specimens of 432 birds, including 36 new species from Western Australia, and 318 mammals, including 22 species not previously known in the west. By the end of January 1844, he was back in Sydney, and during the next six months worked his way to the Darling Downs in Queensland. The Coxen family who settled the Darling Downs region were related by marriage; Gould's wife Elizabeth (née Coxen) was sister to Charles and Stephen, and aunt to Henry William Coxen. The families allowed Gould and Gilbert to stay on their properties to collect fauna and flora of the district.