?^^^^^nnn '^j^r\ :r\r\^ Hrv' '/^p^^4 ■m \ ^^r%\n 'm^miUp -^'"^f^f^ Wu '^.r V^^^ l^y^^ .^ 'JT ^i.: >*V^^©^^' jm^m: ^r^^n\ f ^#* rSr\', \M V FOR THE PEOPLE FOR EDVCATION FOR SCIENCE LIBRARY OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM, SYDNEY. SPECIAL CATALOGUE, No. I. NESTS AND EGGS OF BIRDS B'OUND BREEDING IN AUSTRALIA AND TASMANIA, BY ALFRED J. NORTH, C.M.Z.S.. Colonial Mcmbei' of the British Ornithologists Union, Corresponding Felloii/ of the American Ornithologists' Union. ORNITHOLOGIST, AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM. (SECOND EDITION OF CATALOGUE No. XII., ENTIRELY RE-WRITTEN, WITH ADDITIONS). Volume I. Printed by order of the Trustees of the Australian Musenni. R. Elheridge, Jnnr., f.P., Curator. SYDNEY. F. \V. WHITE, PRINTER, 344 KENT STREET. June, igoi - |c[,v, 1904 y INTRODUCTION. /■ |(^HE present and first volume contains descriptions of the Nests and Eggs of one hundred and sixty-five species of AustraHan and Tasnianian Birds, and is chiefly based on the collections in the Australian Museum. The birds enumerated form portion of the Order Passeres, and belong to the Families Cokvid*;, Paradiseid.e, Ptii.on'Orhynchid.e, Origlid.e, DiCRUKlD.E, PrIOXOPID.E, C AM rOl'IIAlHI i.E, M T SCICAPID.E, Tl'RDIM.E, SvLVlID.E, and TiMELIID.E. By the loan of specimens, and the contribution of information, considerable assistance has been received from many valued correspondents whose names appear in the work. Amongst these, thanks are specially due to Messrs. G. A. Keartland, J. Gabriel, C. French, Junr., C. E. Cowle, Edwin Ashby, T. Carter, G. Savidge, E. H. Lane, F. Hislop, E. D. and R. N. Atkinson, and Drs. L. Holden, W. Macgilli\'ray, A. M. Morgan, and Charles Ryan. I am also indebted to the Trustees and the Director (Dr. E. C. Stirling, F.R.S.), of the South Australian Museum, Adelaide, who have lent numerous specimens for comparison and examination, and to the Assistant Director (Mr. A. Zietz), wlio has at all times courteously supplied me with the available information relative to them. Acknowledgment must also be made of the loan of specimens from the Queensland Museum, through the Curator (Mr. C. W'. De \'is, M..A.), and of access to the collection of the Macleay Museum, at the University of Sydney, and of informa- tion regarding the specimens given by the Curator (Mr. Cj. Masters). Altogether one hundred and seventy-two species of Australian and Tasmanian birds are described in this Catalogue, of which the types of the following fourteen species are in the Australian Musemn Collection: — Comis beitiietti, Sccno/>a'cfcs dodirostvis, .^lunvdiis maculosus, Rhipidura alhicauda, Rhipidura intermedia, Hcteroinyias cinercifi'ons, Pacilodiyas nana, Miliums assiwilis, Amytis modcsta, Ercmiornis cartcri, Acanthisn mastcrsi, Apheloccphnla nigi'iciitcfn, Oi'thonyx spaldiiiffi, Calamantltns alhiloris, and the co-type of Ephtliianiira crocca. The figures of eggs, which are of the natural size, have been reproduced by the heliotype process at the Government Printing Office, from photographs of the originals, taken under the direction of the Government Printer, Mr. W. .\. Gullick. The original drawings of birds, from which the figures have been re-produced, were made by the late Mr. Neville Cayley, who also coloured the plates of eggs in the coloured copies. With four e.xceptions, the photographs of nests, etc., are the work of the Museum Photographer (Mr. H. Barnes, lunr.) and myself. A. J. N. Sydney, October, igo^. AT^HE dates of publication of the parts comprising this N'olume are as under :- PART I., pages 1- 30, plates Al, 1!1. 11th |une, 11)01. II., pages 37-120. plates B2 - 4. 2oih April, 1902. „ III., pages 121 -201, plates A2- 4, 27th April, 1003. „ IV., pages 202 - 3G6, plates AS - 8, B.5-7. llthjuly, 1904. Systematic Contents to Vol. I. Order PASSERES. PAGE Family Corvidae I 12. Prionodura Sub-family CokviN/E... I nc'wtoniana I. CORVUS I 13. ScENOPOiETES coi'oiwides I dcntirostris henndti 3 14- .Elurcedus 2. CORONE 5 viridis ... anstraUs 5 iiiaiulosns 3. Strephra... 8 Family Oriolidae gracuUna 8 15. Oriolus arguta ... 10 sagitfatiis melanopteva 12 flavicindus cuiicicaiidata 14 16. Sphecotheres ... plinnbca ... 16 maxiUans fiiliginosa 17 Jiavivcntris 4. Struthidea 18 P'amily Dicruridae ... cincrea ... 18 17. DlCRURUS Sub-family FrhgeliN/E 21 hraitcatns 5. CORCORAX... 21 Family Prionopidae niclanorhaiitphtis 21 Su 5-family Prionopin.e Family Paradiseidae 23 18. Grallina... Sub-family Epimachin.« 23 picata ... 6. Ptilorhis 23 19. COLLYRIOCINXLA ... paradisea 23 harmonica victoria; ... 26 rectirostris 7. Craspedophora ... 29 brunnca ... albcvti ... 29 parvida ... Sub-family Paradisein/e 32 ntfiventris 8. Phonygama 32 rufigastcr gouldi ... 32 Family Campophagidae Family Ptilonorhynchidae ... 36 20. Graucalus 9. Ptilonorhvnchus ... 36 melanops violaccus ... 36 parvirostris 10. Chlamydodera ... 41 mental is ... mactdata 41 hypolcucus guttata ... 48 21 Pteropodocys ... nuchalis ... 51 i 1 phasianella oricntalis 55 22 Edoi.iisoma cerviniventris ... 58 tcnuirostrc II. Sericulus 60 23 LALAGli nidinus ... 60 Iciicomcla tricolor ... 65 65 68 68 70 70 73 75 75 75 79 81 81 83 85 85 85 88 88 88 88 92 92 94 95 97 98 100 103 103 103 105 107 109 1 10 1 10 "3 113 116 116 117 SYSTEMATIC CONTESTS TO VOL. !. Family Muscicapidse 24. RhII'IDI-KA alhiscapa pveissi ... diemcncnsis alhicauda rufifrons... intermedia dryas isiira 25. Sai'loprocta iiiclalencn 26. SiSURA inquicta ... nana 27. Arses haupi lorealis ... 28. PlEZORHVNCHUS ... nitidus ... 2g. M VIAGRA ... rnhccula... nitida 30. Mach.krorhyn'chus fla'i'ivcnter 31. Micrceca ... fascinans pallida ... flavivcntris 32. Moxarcha melanopsis gouldi ... albivcntris 33. Erythrodryas ... rosea rhodinogaster 34. Petrceca ... ^cggii phcenicea goodenovii 35. MeLAN'ODRVAS hicolor ... 36. Amaurodryas vittata ... 37. Heteromyias cincrcifrons 38. Pcecilodryas ccrviniventris superciliosa PAGE 121 38. Pcecilodryas 121 capita 121 nana 124 39- EOPSAI.TRIA 125 anstralis... 126 liirysorrlwiis 127 gularis ... 130 georgiana 131 40. Smicrornis 131 hvcvirostris 132 Jiavescens 132 41. Geryc.one 135 alhigidaris 135 fun a 137 culicivora 138 magmrostris 138 personata 139 42. Mam-rus ... 141 cyancns ... 141 snperbiis... 143 mclanotus 143 callainus 146 splendcns 147 Icucoptcriis 147 Uuionotus 149 hvnhcrti .. 149 asiimilis . . . 152 amabilis... 153 clcgans . . . 154 pulchcrrimus 154 melanocephalus 157 crncntatus 158 Family Turdidae 159 Su D-family Ttrdin/K 159 43- Geocichi.a 161 lunulata... 163 llClllll 163 Family Sylviidse 165 44 Acrocephalus 1 68 anstralis... 170 gouldi . ■ ■ 170 45 Stipitlirus 173 malacJiurns ■73 46 Sphenura... 175 hrachyptera 175 longirosiris 176 hroadbenti 176 47 Amvtis 178 te.xtilis ... 179 180 182 182 185 i85 188 189 189 190 192 192 195 198 199 202 204 204 206 210 211 213 214 217 218 222 225 227 228 229 232 234 234 234 234 237 238 238 238 241 242 242 244 244 245 246 248 248 SYSTEMATIC CONTKNTS TO VOL. 47. Amvtis modesia ... striata ... 48. Erkmiornis cavteri ... 49. Megalurus galadotes gmniiiieus 50. CiSTICOLA... cxills Family Timehidae ... 51. CUTHOXICOLA sagiitata 52. HVLACOI.A .. pyri'hopygia cauta 53. ACANTHIZA nana pusiUa ... apicalis ... dicniaicnus ax'ingi ... pyvrhopygia liucata ... mastersi ... uropygialis tcnuirostris 54. Ghobasileus chrysorrhous reguloides ACANTHORN'IS magna ... Aphelockphala ... Icucopsis ... nigricincta Sericornis citreogtdaris froitalis... niagnii'ostns inaculata hiimilis ... 55- 56. 57- 58. Pyrrhoi./EMUs .. 249 250 bninncui... 59. Fycnoptii.lis 252 floe com s ... 252 60. Oku. MA 254 rnbruata 254 61. Okthonyx 256 tcmmincki 258 ipaldingi 258 62. DuYMAaiDUS 261 briinncipygins 261 supcrciliavis 261 63. CiNCLOSOMA 263 263 punctatum castanonotnm 265 cinnanwmcum 266 castanothoya.x 266 64. CiNCLORAMPHUS 268 cruralis . . . 271 rufcscens 272 65. PSOPHODES 273 crepitans 275 nigrigiilans 276 56. Sphenostoma 278 cristatum 279 67. Ephthianura 281 282 albifrons tricolor ... 282 aurifrons 285 crocca 290 68. Calamanthus 290 291 291 fuliginosus albiloris . . . campestris 294 295 295 69. POMATOSTOMUS temporalis rubeculus 299 302 supcrciliosiis ruficeps ... 3^4 305 307 307 309 309 311 311 317 317 318 320 320 322 323 323 325 327 330 331 331 334 336 336 340 341 341 343 343 347 349 352 353 353 355 358 358 361 362 . 364 Order PASSERES. Family CORVID^ . Sub-family CORVINE. O-exi'U.S OOIES'^TJ^, Linnceus. Corvus coronoides. HAZEL-EYED CKOW. Corvus coronoides, Yig. A- Horsf. Trans. Linn. Soc, Vol. XV., p. 2G1 (1826); Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 20 (1877). Adult male — General colour above and below black glossed with purple ; outer webs of the primaries and of the external tail feathers sl/i/htly sliaded with bronzy- green ; bases of the feathers on th", upper part'i snow white : bill and leijs black; "iris broivn" (Elsey, Morton). Total lenc/th .!<> inches, iviny 1-i 7, tail 8 7, bill ii J, tarsus ,i'35. Adult fe.malk — Similar hi the male in plumaye, but sliyhtly smaller. Distribution. — Oueensland, New South Wales, \'ictoria, Soutli Australia, Western and North-western Australia, Northern Territory of South .Vustralia, Central Australia, Tasmania. ^Ti^l^HE Hazel-eyed Crow is widely distributed over the greater portion of the Australian J- continent and Tasmania, although it is by no means so plentiful as the Raven (Corone australisj which is often mistaken for the present species. In New South Wales, it frequents alike the mountain ranges near the coast, and the belts of timber bordering the rivers and creeks inland, In some seasons it is only met with in the coastal districts, in isolated pairs, but at all times it is more numerous in the autumn and winter. Generally it may be observed in the neighbourhood of slaughter-houses or killing-yards, and not infrequently on the low-lying lands near the mouths of tidal rivers, and on the sea-shore. As a rule, it is exceedingly wary and difficult to shoot. The food of this species consists of insects of various kinds, principally locusts, crickets, and beetles, the flesh of any slaughtered animal, young birds and eggs, small mammals and reptiles, dead fish and crustaceans. About orchards it eats nearly every kind of cultivated fruit, and during the autumn and winter feasts upon grain. Pastoralists, as a rule, regard all members of the genera Corvus and Corone with disfavour; but the loss attributed to the depreda- tions of the Crow during the lambing season is in reality caused almost wholly by its congener the Raven, a far warier and much commoner species, with which it frequently consorts. The collection brought back from Central .Vustralia by the Horn Scientific E.xpedi- tion, in 1894, and which I had the pleasure of examining, contained several specimens of these birds. In his field notes," Mr. G. .\. Heartland writes as follows: — ".\ camp-fire seems to possess an irresistible attraction for Corvus coronoides. No matter where the wanderer in Central Australia may decide to boil his "billy," he is sure to have a visit from one or more • Report Horn Sci, Exp., Vol. ii., Zoo-1., p. 91 (1896). 2 CORVID.E. of these Crows before the water boils. Once, at Hea\itree Gap, a Crow seized a piece of meat from tlie table while the cook was at work. At Hermannburg-, over thirty of them were within gunshot at one time, waiting for the refuse from the birds I was skinning." The following observations" w-ere also made by Mr. Keartland while he was a member of the Calvert Exploring Expedition in Western Australia in 1896-7: — "During the early part of our journey, the Hazel-eyed Crows ( Corvus coronoides) were fre(]uently observed, but as the hot weather set in, in October, they became scarce, and were afterwards found only in the vicinity of water, so that to us at least they ceased to be birds of evil omen. In December, and the first week of January thev were very numerous around our camp near the junction of the Fitzroy and Margaret Rivers in Xorth-w-est Australia, and united with the Kiti s (Milxus affinis) in performing the duty of scavengers. During the heat of the day they might be seen either perched or flying with their bills wide open, show-ing that they too suffered from the scorching sun." ^Ir. Keartland also writes me: — "They drink frequently and are regarded as good water guides. I often saw them at the troughs and caught one in a Finch-trap baited with water. Just before the tropical rains fall they are at constant feud with the Channt-l-bil'ed Cuckoo (Scythrops ncnw-hoilandicB). As soon as the rain came, the Crows all left, and were not seen again up to the time of our departure on the i6th March." The nest of the Hazel-eyed Crow is a large open bowl-shaped structure, outwardly formed of sticks and twigs, and lined inside with bark, fibre, hair, fur, or wool, an average one measuring externally fifteen inches in diameter by seven inches and a half in depth, and the inner cavity six inches in diameter by four inches in depth, It is usually built in the upright forked leafy branches of a tree at a height varying from twenty to seventy feet from the ground. The bushy tops of the different species oi Eucalyptus, Frene/a, and Melaleuca, are generally resorted to as nesting-sites, and frequently several nests may be found in the same tree. The deserted nests of the Hazel-eyed Crow, like those of the Ra\en, and of many birds of prey, are frequently taken possession of by other species. The eggs are usually from three to five in number for a sitting. In shape they vary from oval to elongate oval, some specimens being compressed towards the narrower ends; the shell, as a rule, is close-grained, and its surface smooth and slightly lustrous. The ground colour varies from very pale to bright green, and from pale ashy-blue to greenish-grey, which is freckled, spotted, or blotched with wood-brown, blackish-brown, or oli\e-brown, the markings as a rule predominating on the larger end, where a well defined zone or cap is sometimes formed. Some specimens have very fine indistinct scratches or smears of pale umber uniformly distributed over the shell ; as a rule, however, the markings, whether large or- small, bold or indistinct, are irregularly formed, but, in rare instances, examples may be found in which they consist entirely of rounded dots or spots. The eggs of the Hazel-eyed Crow, like those of the Ka\en, are subject to considerable variation in colour and the disposition of their markings, and the eggs of both birds are indistinguish- able from each other. A set of four measures as follows: — Length (A) 1-71 x 1-23 inches; (B) 173 X 1-23 inches; (C) 1-74 x 1-25 inches; (D) i-8 x 1-25 inches. Another set of four measures (A) 1-9 x 1-27 inches; (B)i-88xi-3 inches; (C) i-86xi-28 inches; (D) 1-85 x 1-25 inches. Young birds may be distinguished by their duller and browner plumage, the wing and tail feathers being the last to acquire the rich gloss of the adult li\ery. In Eastern Australia, the breeding season usually commences at the end of July or early in August, and continues until the middle of December. •Trans. Roy. Soo.- South Austr., Vol. xxii., p. 180 (1898). CORVUS. 6 Corvus bennetti. SMALL-]iILLED CROW. Corvns bennetti, North, Vict. Nat., Vol. XVI [., p. 170 (I'.tOl). Adult male — General colour above and b-'.lo/v black qlossed ivith purph : primaries and lail- J'eathers black, sli/jhtly /cashed iiHth bronzy-'jreeii : bases of the feathers on the upper parts sJiuw-tvhile ; bill and legs black- : "iris ivhite" (Bennett). 'J'otal lentjth 16 indies, tcinq 1 '■■',, tail 7'-J, bill 1'85, tarsus 2 2. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — Western New South Wales, \^ictoria, South Australia. HEAD OF SMALL-BILLED CROW. HEAD OF HAZEL-EYED CROW. /■ |;^HERE are two very distinct species of the genus Corvus, inhabiting Australia. In the JL original description of C. coronoides, in the " Transactions of the Linnean Society of London," •' the measurements there gi\en by \'igors and Horsfield are as follows : — Total length 22 inches, wing 14, tail 9, bill 2'3, tarsus 2-3. The locality where it was obtained is not given, but as it formed part of a collection made by Mr. Caley in the early days of the settlement of the State, it was probably procured near Parramatta. Examples in the Museum collection from New South Wales, from Port Darwin, and from Wide Bay, and Eraser's Island, in Queens- land, are about the same average measurement, and are easily distinguished from C. bennetti by their larger and more powerful bill, and stronger tarsi. The iris too in those birds from Port Darwin and Queensland was noted by their respective collectors, Mr. A. ?iIorton, Mr. G. Masters, and Mr. J. A. Thorpe as being brown. The specimens from which the description of the present species was taken, were all collected by my esteemed friend the late Mr. K. H. Bennett, to whom I am deeply indebted for information on this, and many other species, in August 1883, at IMoolah, in the Western District of New South Wales, and I have much pleasure in associating specifically the name of one who, by his field work and observations, contributed so largely towards completing a know- ledge of the .Vustralian avifauna. C. bennetti, which is also found in \'ictoria and South Australia, may be distinguished principally by its much smaller and straighter bill, and more slender tarsi ; also, by its smaller average measurements, and by having the iris pure white in the adults of both sexes. As a rule in closely allied species, or races, the smaller representative is usually found in the northern portion of the continent, but in the present instance this order is reversed. The drawings abo\e are taken from a photograph, to show the relative size of the bills of the two species. Of the Small-billed Crow the late Mr. K. H. Bennett wrote as follows in his MS. notes: — " This species differs from Corone australis in its much smaller size, and in having the con- cealed portions of the body feathers white, instead of dusky or blackish ; the note also is very different. Although sometimes found in company with the Raven, it is seldom seen on the * Trans. Linn. Soc. Vol. xv., p. 261 (1826). 4 CORVID.E. plains, its principal habitat in this portion of the colony being a strip of lightly timbered land, some few miles in width, situated between the plains and the densely timbered scrubby back country. In this belt the Leopard-tree" is found, in which almost exclusively the nests of this species are placed. It is a tree of moderate height, averaging from thirty to forty feet, but has extremely long, slender, and naked branches, terminating in a thick bunch of twigs and leaves, and in the topmost portion of it the nest is constructed. " This species is by far less numerous than Corone australis, and unlike that bird it is not grega- rious, being generally seen in pairs, and seldom in companies of more than four or fixe individuals. It is not mischievous or destructive, its food consisting chiefly of insects and small reptiles, to which are added seeds and berries. The note of this bird is represented by the word ' car ' repeated six or eight tiines in succession, and in a very shrill high key. " The nest is similar to that of Corone australis, but smaller and more neatly made ; it is an open bowl-shaped structure, outwardly formed of sticks, and lined inside with bark fibre, wool, fur, &.C. It averages externally twelve inches in diameter by a depth of nine inches, and inter- nally seven inches across by three inches and a half in depth. The eggs vary from three to five in number for a sitting, and they are usually deposited during the months of September and October. I have never handled the nestlings, so am unable to give the colour of the iris, but in the adults of both sexes they are white." Regarding this species Mr. G. .\. Heartland writes me as follows: — "The small white-eyed Crows pay occasional summer visits to \'ictoria, but when they arri\^ it is in flocks of many hundreds. They either follow the myriads of grasshoppers from north to south, or time their visit to feed upon a species of ground-burrowing beetle. During one season they were unusually numerous on the plains at Little River, feasting on these beetles as they emerged from their burrows in the ground. I fired, killing four, and on picking them up was struck with their small size. On turning back the feathers of the head and neck, I observed that the basal portion of them was pure white ; so, too, was the iris. On mentioning the matter to my brother-in-law, who had a small station at Hedi, he said that the Crows were regarded with great favour by the graziers and farmers in the neighbourhood, for although the birds were so numerous, they never interfered with the sheep, but seemed to live entirely on insect diet." Of a set of four eggs taken by Mr. Bennett on ist September, 1884, at Ivanhoe, three are elongate and compressed ovals, and the other oval and much smaller ; the shell of all being close-grained and its surface lustrous. The ground colour is of a pale greenish-grey which is almost uniformly marked in the larger specimens with numerous very fine and almost obsolete scratches of bright umber ; the markings on the smaller specimen are intermingled on the larger end with dots, spots, and small blotches of olive-brown. Length (A) 175 x i inches; (B) 1-65 x 1-02 inches; (C) 1-72 x i-02 inches; (D) 1-45 x 1-02 inch. A set of three, taken by Mr. Bennett at Mossgiel in November, 1886, is somewhat similarly marked, but they are oval in form and not so lustrous. Immature birds have the iris brown. * FUnderxia iiniciilusa, F. v. M. CORONE. 5 C3-en-a.s 00I201>TE, Kaup. Corone australis. AUSTRALIAN RAVEN. CorvHS coronoides, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. IV., pi. IS (1848). CorviLs australis, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 475 (18G5) Cor on", australis, Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. HI., p. 37 (1877). Adult male — General colour above an I beloiv black, glossed wit/i. purple; feathers of the throat lanceolate in form and tinged with, i/reen : bases of the feathers on the upper parts dusky -qrey : bill and lei/s, black; iris, ivhite. Total letiglh, in the flesh, .JO inches: inlnj IJ/.'?, tail 5'/, bill 2:5, tarsus 2' 55. Adult fem.\lk — Simitar to the male in plamnye, bat slightly smaller, the lanceolate feathers on the throat not so toeU developed. Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western and North-western Australia, Northern Territory of South .Vustralia, Central Australia, Tasmania. /T^\HE Raven may be distin,L,'uished by the lontj lanceolate feathers on the throat, and the -L dusky bases of the body feathers. Althou,c,'h generally distributed in suitable situations over the greater portion of .Vustralia and Tasmania, they e\'ince a decided preference for the large inland open plains of the States, and are seldom met with in thickly timbered country. They are by far the most common birds inhabiting the plains between the Lachlan and Darling Rivers, in the Central District of New South Wales, and they are equally abundant in tlie open expanses in the western and north-western portions of the State. Frequently they are seen in company with Conms coronoides. During winter they are gregarious, and in the daytime are associated in large flocks, scattered o\er the plains. Just about dusk they may be observed flying swiftly a few feet above the ground to their roosting-places in some thick clump of trees on the plain. While winging their way they keep up a subdued cawing, which becomes very much louder after reaching their destination, and is continued for some time after dark, when it suddenly ceases. These birds are extremely wary, and it is difficult to get within shooting range of them unless they can be approached under cover, which is rarely the case, or advantage is taken of visiting their roosting-place at night. Poisoned baits, too, must be carefully laid for the Raven to take them. Although generally shy and cunning, these birds are inclined to be inquisitive if an unusual noise is heard, especially notes of alarm uttered by other species, or if there is a chance ot a meal. At Enfield, one day, I found a nest of the Yellow-tufted Honey-eater, in a sapling scrub, containing two nearly fledged young. • The parents were very excited and their cries brought about a dozen angry and noisy birds within a few feet of me. .V Ra\en within half-a-minute suddenly dashed in on the scene, but on discovering me in the undergrowth, beat a hasty retreat. The note of this species, which is usually uttered during flight is a loud and deep " gwar — gwar — gwar-r," \aried occasionally "with a shrill and high-sounding " korr — korr." It is an omni\orous species, but has a partialitv for the flesh of any animal more than other foods, and it is frequently found in the neighbourhood of slaughter-houses, and killing-yards performirig with efficiency the duties of a general offal scavenger. It also feasts upon small mammals, birds, and birds' eggs, lizards, frogs, different kinds of insects and small crustaceans and other food picked up among the debris of tidal rivers. It destroys large numbers of locusts and other injurious insects and assists in keeping the balance of nature, but, making full allowance for this good quality, it is undoutedly the worst bird pest we have in .Vustralia. Pastoralists suffer to a considerable extent from the ravages of this bird, for it is exceedingly destructixe in the lambing season, picking out the eyes or killing lambs, even while the mothers 6 COUVIDiE. make vain attempts to protect them. A favorite method of attack is to seize the tail of the lamb with its powerful bill, and, spreading its wings, be dragged about by the doomed animal until with sheer exhaustion, it falls an easy prey to its relentless captor. They also attack weak slieep, especially during periods of severe drought, when they are in poor condition, and consequently less able to withstand the attacks of their sable plumaged foes. Blindness and a lingering death is the inevitable fate of many that are not strong enough to rise. In wet seasons sheep frequently accumulate a large mass of earth and grass on one or more of their legs, until they are unable to walk about, and this is another harvest for the Ravens. Bogged animals are also easy prey for these birds. Near the bank of the Clarence Ri\er I saw about a dozen Ravens buffeting with their wings a newly born calf that had managed to get down the steep bank, and was standing in the shallow water. This would have shared the ordinary fate only that my youthful companions succeeded in getting it out, and restoring it to the mother on the level ground above the banks. I'requently only tlie eyes of the animals attacked are picked out, and the tongue eaten. Reports of the depredations committed by these birds are common in the nexvspapers during the lambing season. On a large siieep station in western Xew South Wales, even with careful watching, it is estimated that the annual loss incurred by the destruc- tive habits of these birds, varies from /^2oo to £'400 per annum, according to the season. Rewards for " Crows '' heads are offered by many Stock Boards throughout the States, but there is no apparent diminution in their numbers. .\.ll species of the genera Corvus and Corone inhabiting Australia are termed " Crows " by the Stock Boards, but the Raven is the real culprit. Si.xpence per head was paid in the Moree and Narrabri District in 1898 for " Crows," but altogether bonuses were only paid on 844 birds. I found, however, that a large number of ground-frequenting birds had been destroyed by eating the poisoned baits laid for the Ravens. In the Official report for the year 1899 of the Stock and Brands liranch of the Department of Klines and .Agriculture of New South Wales-', it is stated that during that year the Pastures and Stock Protection Boards throughout the colony paid a bonus from a id. to 6d. each on 142,147 " Crows," Wagga Wagga District heading the list with a total of 24,979 birds destroyed. Next to the pastoralist, the vigneron and orchardist suffer most from the depredations of these birds, which eat grapes and nearly every kind of cultivated fruit. In some seasons more than others, about February or March, large flocks of Ravens, descend into the vineyards in the southern part of New South Wales, and commit great havoc, for they have voracious appetities, and both eat and destroy large quantities of grapes. Probably they are more numerous and do more damage in this part of the State, owing to the proximity of the large adjacent plains, the common resort of this species. In orchards tiiey frequently feast upon peaches, plums, and mulberries, and other soft fruits, and even oranges and mandarins. Large flocks of them also do considerable damage in newly planted grain fields. Many eggs and young birds are destroyed by Ravens, especially those which are placed in exposed or unprotected situations. They do not destroy the eggs or young of the smaller birds only, but plunder the nests of many of the larger species, particularly of waterfowl, and even combine in cunning to drive the Bustard {Eupodotis australis), and Native Companion {Grus australasianus), off their eggs. Where birds are subject at all times to the predatory attacks of Ravens, some have developed an instinct in safeguarding their eggs from this crafty oppressor. On Yandembah Station, the late Mr. K. H. Bennett, found a nest of the Black- backed Magpie {Gymnorhina tibicen), on the i6th August, 1889, containing a single egg. On climbing to the nest four days after he was surprised to find the egg missing, but noticing that the bottom of the nest presented a more uneven appearance, on making a further examination he found three eggs completely covered with a thick layer of wool and rabbit fur. During the same year he also found two sets of the eggs of the Australian Dotterel {Eudromias australis), ' Rept. Stock and Brands Branch, Dept. Mines and Agric. N.S.W., Appendix K., p. 31 (1900). CORVLS. / that were in each instance completely covered with a layer of thin sticks, from two to three inches in length. The Pink-eared Duck (Malacorhynchus inembranaceus), also, when breeding in hollow limbs of trees, plucks only a little down from its breast to intermingle with its eggs. Frequently, however, it takes possession of the disused nest of another waterfowl which is built in an exposed situation, when it completely envelops its eggs in another nest placed on top, and formed entirely of down. Poultry-keepers in the country, whose stock has the run of the bush, dislike the Raven, for it carries off young chickens, and will \enture close to out-buildings to steal eggs. For the purposes of breeding the Raven readily adapts itself to its environment, resorting equally to the tall Eucalypti, especially when in the neighbourhood of cities, as to low trees in unfrequented situations. Inland these birds build their nests in companies in the low timber dotted about the plains, or in Pine ridges. A favourite site is in the crown of a Pine [Frenela j^.), but they are sometimes constructed in low Ho^ hushes {Dodonea lobulaia,V.\M.), or in the top of a Salt-bush (Atrip/ex sp.) within a few feet of the ground. Near the coast, in Victoria, they are frequently built in low gum or tea-trees. About the outlying suburbs of Sydney, the nests of this species are not common and are usually built in the topmost branches of a Eucalyptus or Angophota at a height varying from fifty to one hundred feet from the ground. The nest, which is generally built in an upright fork, is a large bowl-shaped structure, the foundation being formed of thick sticks interlaced together, the walls of it being built of slightly finer material, and thickly lined inside with bark fibre, wool, fur, or hair. An average nest measures externally seventeen inches in diameter by tL-n and a half inches in depth, and the bowl-like cavity eight inches and a half in diameter by tour inches in depth. The eggs are four or five, and occasionally six in number for a sitting. In shape they vary from elongate oval to rounded oval, some specimens being considerably lengthened and pointed at the smaller end, the shell being close- grained and its surface smooth and as a rule slightly lustrous. The ground colour varies from dark pea-green and dull greenish-grey to a light bluish-green and pale bluish white. Typically the ground colour is of a light shade of green, which is blotched, spotted, and freckled with blackish-brown, wood-brown, or light umber, the markings being larger on the thicker end. Others have very fine streaks and scratches of wood-brown or olive-brown, uniformly distributed o\-er the shell, and in some instances a dark cap of the same colour, on the larger end. Some specimens are entirely blotched, or spotted uniformlv all over the surface of the shell ; others have very fine indistinct fleecy streaks or scratches, or have the smaller end devoid of markings, and the larger end finely dusted or peppered with different shades of brown. An unusual variety has a very pale bluish-white ground colour, and a cluster of well defined rich umber- brown markings on the larger end. Occasionally eggs are found of a uniform colour, and entirely free from markings. .V set of four taken at Yandembah, on the i6th September, 1S90, measures as follows: — (A), 2-03 x 1-27 inches; (B),i-85 x i-27inches; (C),r9i x 1-28 inches; (D), i-8i X 1-28 inches. A set of five taken by Mr. George Savidge on the i8th September, 1897, at Copmanhurst, on the Clarence River, measure — length (.\), i'64x i-iS inches; (B), 1-65 x ri8 inches; (C), 1-62 x i-i6 inches; (D), 1-69 x i-i8 inches; (E), i-6x 1-2 inches. Occasionally this species constructs its nest upon the ground, but one of the most curious sites I have known a bird to select for a nesting place was found by the late Mr. K. H. Bennett. On Yandembah Station, in the Lachlan District, where Corone australis is exceedingly numerous, he found one of their nests containing young ones on the i8th October, 1S90, placed inside the skeleton of a sheep, lying on the open plain. The situation was rendered the more peculiar from the fact that there were numbers of trees, in which these birds used to build, less than a quarter of a mile away. During the previous season another pair constructed their nest in the drum of a whim close to the homestead, and from which Mr. Bennett took four eggs. On two occasions in 1889-90, on Yandembah Station, he also found the mud nests of the White-winged Chough, with eggs, constructed inside the deserted nests of the Raven, and has also taken from similar abandoned tenements, the eggs of the Xankeen Kestrel and Black Duck. 8 CORVIU.E. Nestlings are duller in colour than the adults, and have the base of the lower mandible, skin around the gape, and the inside of the throat deep rose-pink ; iris \ery pale blue. Young birds have the bases of the feathers on tlie upper parts dusky brown, the purplish gloss to the feathers first appearing on the wings, back, upper tail-coverts and tail ; iris very light brown. Albinoes of this species are not unconmion. The Museum collection contains also a specimen in very pale l'>rown plumage, and having all the feathers on the upper parts broadly tipped with white. August, and the four following months, constitute the usual breeding season in Eastern Australia, but nests containing fresh eggs have been found in New South Wales early in July, and as late as tlie middle of January. Young birds lea\e the nest when about a month old. The nest figured on plate Ai was taken at Belmore, about eight miles from Sydney, on the 2nd September, i8g8, and was placed in the topmost forked branch of a Eucalyptus, at a height of fully eighty feet from the ground. E.vternally it measures si.xteen inches in diameter, by a depth of eleven inches, and internally eight inches in diameter by a depth of four inches. C3-en-u.s Sm^Er^EIS-ii^, Lessoti. Strepera graculina. TIED CKOW-SlIKllvE. Corvus fjraculinus. White, Vcy. N. S.W., pi. opp. p. 2.51 (1790). Sirepera graculina, Gould, Bds. Austr., foL, Vol. II., pi. 42 (1848); id., Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 168 (1865); Sharpe, Cat. Bd.s. lirit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 57 (1877). Strepera crissalin, Gould, ^IS., Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 57, pi. XII. (1877). Adult male — General colour black, diglitly t/losfi/ oil the upper parts ; bases of the prwiaries tvliite ; basal portion and tips of tlie tail feathers and the under tail-coverts, white; bill and feet black : iris yellow. Total length in the fesh 19 incites, ivimj 10- 3, tail 8, bill ..''4, tarsus 31. Adult fem.\le — Similar in plnniaije to tlie male, but slvjhl.ly smaller. Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, \'ictoria. Lord Howe Island. ^^HE Pied Crow Shrike or "Black Magpie " as it is more commonly called, is dispersed throughout the coastal districts and contiguous mountain ranges of the greater portion of Eastern Australia, and is also found on Lord Howe Island. In New South Wales it is abundantly dis- tributed over the Dividing Range, and although it occurs in the open forest-lands beyond its western slopes, I have never met with it far inland, or in the clumps of belts of timber growing on the plains. In the PIED CROw-SHBiKE autunm I have observed it near Sydney in STRKPEIiA. small flocks about Canterbury and lielniore, also about the highlands on the Milson's Point railway-line. On the Blue Mountains, and in tlie South Coast districts, it is exceedingly numerous in June, July, and August, moving about in large flocks, numbering from fifty to several hundred indixiduals. The adult birds of this species vary in size, even, sometimes, when shot out of the same flock, the males, which are larger, varying in wing-measurement from 97 to 10-4 inches, and the females from 9 to 9-4 inches; the same variations exist in the length and breadth of the bill; some I have seen with the upper mandible longer and slightly hooked at the tip. Specimens from Lord Howe Island, obtained by Messrs. Etheridge and party in 1SS7, and by Mr. E. H. Saunders in the same year, are similar to Australian examples. Among those procured by Mr. Saunders on Lord Howe Island is one with the basal portion of the tail feathers and the under tail-coverts, of a pale fawn-rufous; another has only one side of the basal half, and the tips of the tail feathers, of this colour. The accidental staining of these parts, Mr. Etheridge informs me, is due to the red volcanic soil of the island. Gould's MS. name of ci-issalis, which Dr. Sharpe has adopted for a similar specimen from Lord Howe Island, described and figured by him in the " Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum," therefore ranks only as a synonym of S. gvacnUna. The peculiar note of the Pied Crow-Shrike is generally uttered while flying, and the united cries of a large flock of these birds when on the wing, can be heard a considerable distance away. Its natural food consists of wild fruits, berries, and seeds; also, insects and their larva. For the latter I have seen them diligently searching ploughed lands and cultivation paddocks, and tearing off with their powerful bills the bark of trees to obtain the insects lurking underneath. The presence of a flock of these birds, while so engaged in dead timber, has often been indicated by the noise made as they jumped on the dead twigs and snapped them off', or by an occasional low, mournful, whistling note. As settlement proceeds, however, and the scrubs and brushes from which they obtain their food are gradually being cleared, these birds freely enter orchards, gardens, and cultivated lands, and commit great depredations among the fruit and cereals. Mr. J. A. Boyd informs me that at Eden, New South Wales, this species frequently steals the eggs from his poultry-yard. One he caught in the act was inside a meshed wire fowl-run, when he espied the bird with an egg in its claws. This it flew away with out of the enclosure, but dropped it just prior to Mr. Boyd shooting the feathered pilferer. With a specimen of this bird sent for identification, Mr. J. D. Lankester, of Albury, writes under date of loth July. 1895: "This species, known here as the ' Mutton bird,' has been more numerous and destructive than usual. They have attacked the grapes on the vines, and are very persistent when the raisins are on the trays drying. Since then they have destroyed the quinces, and are now eating the olives. Shooting does not frighten them away." During the winter months these birds, when hard pushed for food, are omnivorous, for in July, 1896, Mr. A. E. Hays and a friend saw at Stony Batter near L'ralla, several of them in a killing- yard, feeding on off'al. The stomachs of specimens examined by me during the same month contained skins of wild fruits, berries, and maize, and the heads, legs, and elytra of beetles. The Hon. James Norton, LL.D., M.L.C., who has had considerable experience with these birds at his country residence at Springwood, on the Blue Mountains, writes :- •' The food of Stvepcra gyaailinn, consists naturally of berries and fruits. It makes its appearance in summer, often in great flocks, and deals destruction to every kind of cultivated fruit, except the orange tribe and passion fruit. Apples, pears, peaches, and quinces are easily chopped to pieces by its powerful bill. The softer fruits, such as figs, are devoured in a few bites, and grapes are * Dept. of Agriculture, N.S.W., Bull. No. i, App., p. 247 (iHgo). 10 CORVID.F.. swallowed wholesale. Before the maize grains begin to harden, this incorrigible thief, with its strong claws and powerful mandibles, strips back the tough sheathing of the cob. and often leaves not one solitary grain. If driven off it soon sneaks quietly back in the most impudent manner, though, after a little shooting, it becomes so warv that it is difficult to get a shot. It would be a good thing if this pest could be eradicated, for it would be possible to keep it down in any particular district if the gardeners therein would cordially combine for the purpose. I have been told that this bird will eat flesh, and that numbers are sometimes destroyed by poisoning a bullock's head and placing it in a tree out of tlie reach of dogs. It strikes me that it might be easily taken in a wire fish-trap baited with fruit, for if trees are netted, and a small opening accidentally left, it will force itself through, which it is unable to find quickly when disturbed, and by this means I had the satisfaction during the last fruit season of beating several of the marauders to death. Twine nets, unless too hea\y for convenient use, are not of sufficient pro- tection, for on several occasions the birds have torn their wav through them in order to get at the protected fruit." The nest is a large open structure, rather roughly formed externallv of sticks and twigs: the inside, which is neatly rounded and cup-shaped, being lined usually with fibrous roots, at other times with coarse dried grasses, or fibrous strips of bark. An average nest measures externally fourteen inches in diameter bv five inches and a half in depth; the inner cup seven inches in diameter by three inches in depth. It is usually built in an upright or leaning fork of a Eucalyptus, at a height varying from twenty to sixty feet from the ground. Eggs three in number for a sitting, varying from o\al to elongate oval, the shell being close-grained, and its surface smooth, dull, and almost lustreless. In ground colour they vary from pale brown to pale \inous-brown, which is faintly freckled, blotched, or streaked with darker and different shades of the ground colour, the markings predominating as a rule on the thicker end, where in some specimens they are partially confluent and form an ill-defined cap or zone. .\ set of three, taken by ]\Ir. George Savidge in the Cangai scrub, at the head-waters of the Clarence River, an the i6th October, 1898, measures as follows; — Length (A) i-^^ x 1 inch; (B) 1-53 x i-i2 inch; (C) 1-52 X i-ii inch. Another set of three measures: — (.\) r6 x -12 inch; (B) f62 x rii inch; (C) 1-62 X i-i4_ inch. T'igure 12 on Plate Bi is from the former set. Young birds resemble the adults, but are duller in colour on the upper parts, the secondaries and greater wing-coverts have narrow whitish tips, and the bases of the primary-coxerts are dull white; all the feathers on the throat, breast, and abdomen are edged or tipped with brown. September and the four following months constitute the usual breeding season of this species. Mr. Savidge informs me that about Copmanhurst, on the Upper Clarence River, the Pied Crow-shrike has been observed feeding the young of the Channel-billed Cuckoo ( Scythrops novce-hollandicr). Mr. Savidge has also several times seen it chasing the latter species away. Strepera arguta. HILL iROW-SHRIKE. Strepera aryufa, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1846, p. 19 ; id., Bds. Austr., fol. Vol. II., pi. 44 (1848); id., Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 171 (186.")) : Sliarpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 59 (1877). Adijlt male — General colour blackish-broivn, with ilarker margins to the feathers of the back, scapulars, rump, and upper tail-coverts; primaries black, the basal half of their inner webs white, and having iiarroiv indistinct brownish-white tips ; tail blackish-brown, all but the two central feathers broadly tipped with white ; under tail-coverts white ; bill and legs black ; iris yellow. Total length 21 inches, wing IPS, tail 10, bill ..'S, tarsus ..'S. Adult TEMALK — Similar in plumage to the male, but slightly smaller. Distribution. — Tasmania. STKEPKRA. 11 /"(s\ Ol'LD writes of this species" — "The Stnpera aygiita is abundantly dispersed o\er Tas- V_Jr mania, but is more numerous in the central parts of the island than in the districts adjacent to the coast ; it also inhabits South Australia, in which country it is more scarce, and all the specimens I have seen are rather smaller in size. I have never seen it in any part of Xew South Wales that I have visited, neither liave specimens occurred in the numerous collections from the west coast that have come under my notice. It is the largest, the boldest, and the most animated species of the genus yet discovered. If not strictly gregarious, it is often seen in small companies of from four to ten, and during the months of winter even a greater number are to be seen congregated together. The districts most suited to its habits are open glades in the forest and thinly timbered hills ; although it readily perches on the trees, its natural resort is the ground, for which its form is admirably adapted, and o\er which it passes with amazing rapidity, either in a succession of leaps or by running. Fruits being but sparingly diffused over .\ustralia, insects necessarily constitute almost its sole food, and of these nearly every order inhabiting the surface of the ground forms part of its diet ; grasshoppers are devoured with great a\idity. "Its note is a loud, ringing, and very peculiar sound, somewhat resembling the words, c/w^, clink, several times repeated, and strongly reminded me of the distant sound of the strokes on a blacksmith's an\il ; and hence the name argiita appeared to me to be an appropriately specific appellation for this new species. " All the nests I found of this species either contained young birds or were without eggs. The nest, which is of a large size, is generally placed on a horizontal branch of a low tree ; it is round, deep, and cup-shaped, outwardly formed of sticks, and lined with fibrous roots and other fine materials." The eggs of Stvepera arguta are three in number for a sitting, oval in form, some specimens being somewhat pointed at the smaller end, the shell being close-grained, and its surface smooth and slightly lustrous. Typical eggs vary in ground colour, from a dull vinous-white to vinous- grey, which is streaked, spotted, or irregularly blotched with pale-brown, and almost obsolete underlying markings of dull bluish-grey. Some specimens ha\-e the markings small, well-defined, and rounded ; in others, as shown in the figure, the subsurface markings are scarcely visible, or are entirely absent. A set of three taken at Both well, Tasmania, on the loth August, 1S87, measures as follows :— Length (A) i-8xi-2i inch; (B) i-8i x -23 inch ; (C) 179 x 1-2 inch. Another set of three measures— (A) 1-85 x 1-25 incn ; (B), 1-87 x i'25 inch ; (C) 1-87 x 1-26 inch. The eggs of this species may be generally distinguished by their \ery much paler ground colour, and markings. In his :MS. notes. Dr. Lonsdale Holden writes ;— " 1 saw two or three examples of Strepem arguta- between Bellerive and Rokeby, in the bush by the road side, close to the top nf the ridge, over which the road passes. This species differs from 5. fiiliginosa, as regards colour, most notably in having the under tail-coverts white. It has a loud, shrill, metallic cry. On the 17th December, 1899, near the Styx River, four miles above Bushy Park, I observed a pair looking after two young ones, just able to fly ; the latter were more slaty-coloured than the adults. In the following March I saw several on the extreme top of a wooded hill, on the ridge above the railway to Cambridge. I never met with the Hill Crow-shrike durini; my residence in the north-western portion of Tasmania." August and the four following months constitute the usual breeding season of this species. * Handbk. Bds. Austr , Vol. i., p. 171 (1865). 12 CORVID.E. Strepera melanoptera. BLAPK-WINGED CROW-SHRIKE. Strepera melanoplera, Gould, Proc. Zoo!. See, 1846, p. 20 ; Sharpe, Cat. JJds. Biit. Mu.s., Vol. III., p. 61 (1877). Strepera intermedia, Shai-pe, Cat. iJds. IJiit. ^lus., Vol. III., p. .I'J (1S77). Adi'LT m.\le — General colour above and hnloiv bruiviiish black, slightly lighter on the under parts: face blackish; primaries and secondaries broivnish-black, narrorcly and indistinctly edged with brown at the lips ; tail {fathers broionish-blach, largely tipped ivith white which increases in extent towards the outermost feathers ; under tail-coverts, pure white ; bill and legs, black ; iris yelloiv. Total length I'-i inches, iving ll\', tail !J'3, bill 2-H.'>, tarsus 2'6. Adult fkm.\le — Similar to the male in plumage, but slightly smaller. Distribution — South Australia, Kangaroo Island. ^(s^ ONSIUERABLE difference of opinion has for a long time existed as to the validity of V ik. the present species. Gould, who originally described it in the I'roceedings of the Zoological Society in 1846, places it in his '.' Handbook to the Birds of Australia"'-- as a synonym of the preceding species, S atguta, and on which he makes the following remarks : — " Upon a careful e.xamination of the numerous specimens of this bird contained in my collection, I find among them two \-ery singular varieties; one with tlie base of the primaries of a nearly uniform black, and the tips white, and another in which the base of the primaries is white and the tips black. It is evident, therefore, that the markings of this species are not constant, and this induces me to believe that the bird I characterized as .,9. inelaiioffeya is nothing more than one of the varieties above mentioned. I do not, however, venture to affirm that the birds received from South .Vustralia, with wholly black wings, may not prove to be distinct from those from Tasmania ; this is a matter for investigation by future Australian naturalists. For the present I sink the appellation mcLinoptera into a synonym." In the " Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum," Dr. Sharpe makes the following observations after his description of J. melanoptera I : — "This species has been united by Mr. G. R. Gray, and even by Mr. Gould himself, to S arguta. I have examined most carefully the series mentioned by the latter gentleman in his ' Handbook,' and I cannot see any variation in the amount of white in the wing of .S. arguta, and I believe that the last named species is the Tasmanian Hill-Crow, and that its place on the continent is occupied by 5. melanoptera." Also after his description of 5'. fl^'^H^d Dr. Sharpe makes the following remarks |: — "If we consider the big Strepera arguta of Van Diemen's Land to be the typical species of the group of the genus Strepera, we find three very closely allied species, whose e.xact relations time and a larger series of specimens are necessary' to determine. I have separated the smaller form from Port Lincoln as Strepera intermedia, as well as the South Australian 6'. melanoptera ; but whether these grade into one another, or into ^. arguta, must be proved by the comparison of a larger series ; they seem to me at least to have distinct habitats." I agree with Dr. Sharpe that the specific characters of adult examples of 5. arguta, of Tasmania, are constant, and it may be readily distinguished by its average larger measurements, the very distinct darker edges to the feathers of the upper parts, and the pure white bases to the inner webs of the primaries. To clear up the uncertainty that has existed so long as regards the validity of the continental form originally separated by Gould under the name of 5. melanoptera, and yet another more * Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. i., p. 172 (1865). t Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus , Vol. iii., p. 61 (1877). ♦ id., p. 59. STREPERA. 1^ recently described by Dr. Sharpe, I have now before ine a large series of these birds gathered together from widely separated localities in South Australia ; our own collection bein^ supple- mented by examples kindly lent by the Trustees of the South Australian Museum, and by Mr. Edwin Ashby, of Adelaide. Among them are specimens from Port Lincoln, the Flinders Range, Mt. Compass, Yorke's Peninsula, Mt. Lofty Ranges, and an example from Laura, about one hundred and forty miles north of Adelaide. Strepera inehvwptera of South Australia, of which a not (luite adult specimen has also been described by Dr. Sharpe under the name of 8. inievmedia, is a smaller and closely allied form of S. arguta of Tasmania. Gould's ori-inal description, also the one given above of 5. vielanoptera, have been taken from very old specimens, hasinj,' the general colour of the plumage darker, and having lost the white bases to the inner webs of the primaries, although when the wing is spread and cl^osely examined a faint ashy-brown wash may be seen on that portion of the primaries that was originally white. In not quite adult specimens the general colour of the plumage is more strongly shaded with brown, the bases of the inner webs of the primaries are white, and their tips, also of the primary coverts and secondaries, are more or less edged or tipped with white or brownish-white. Even in breeding plumage, and fully adult birds, these tips are sometimes retained, but the white bases to the inner webs of the primaries of fully adult birds are gradually overspread with a brownish-black wash, until they are nearly of a uniform brownish- black. Between the two described stages of the plumage of S. melaiwptera, specimens may be found with the bases of the inner webs of the primaries varying from white to brownish-black, this being effected by a gradual change of colour in the feather, and not by moult. Age, however, is an important factor in the entire absence of the basal marking to the inner web of the primaries, and as a rule specimens are found with it more or less indicated. The wing measurement of fully adult birds varies from lo-j inches in the female to ii-2 inches m the male. From 5. a'^guta of Tasmania, adult specimens of 5. mdanopteya may be distinguished by their smaller size, the almost entire absence of the darker margins to the feathers of the upper parts, and bv the more or less brownish-black wash to the white bases of the inner webs of the primaries, and in which, in very old birds, the inner webs of the primaries are almost unitorm in colour. While in South Australia I was informed that this species was numerous in the mallee scrub on Yorke Peninsula, and on Kan-aroo Island; also in the higher scrubby stringy -bark ridges of the Mount Loftv Ranges near Adelaide. Mr. \V. White found it breeding on Kangaroo Island in August; and in September, 1893, found eight nests in the mallee scrub on Yorke Peninsula, which, with one exception contained either two eggs or two young birds. Dr. A. M. Morgan found it breeding near Laura in September, 1896, and I saw numerous examples of its eggs from different parts of South Australia in the collection of Mr. A. Zietz. Or \. M. Morgan, of Adelaide, to whom I am much indebted for information relative to many species of South Australian birds, writes me as follows;-" Regarding Strepera mdanopura, I have met with this bird at Boolerno Centre, one hundred and sixty-four miles north of Adelaide and at the Finniss, about sixty miles south of the metropolis. During the nesting season and the summer it inhabits thicklv timbered country, large mallee for preference, but m the autumn and winter it is found in the more open country, and in the large gums bordering creeks, it is generally met with singlv, or in pairs, and I have never seen more than two together. The Hig it is rapid, undulating, graceful, and noiseless, and the note, which is only uttered while on the wing, is a very loud ringing whistle, which can be heard at a great distance. 1 hey are insectivorous, but whether wholly so I am unable to say. " The nest is built outwardlv of fine sticks, and is lined with dry grass and rootlets It is about the same size as that of Gymnorlnna Unconota, but somewhat more evenly formed in its 14 CORVID.E. outer structure. It is always placed in perpendicular forks, never on a horizontal branch, a long thin branch being preferred, often making the nest difficult to get at. Generally it is built in a large mallee, or gum growing in the scrub, but I have seen nests in low niallee, and one in a wattle which could be reached from horseback, but this is unusual. The eggs are usually three, though sometimes only two, and are undistinguishable from those ol other members of the genus. "This species breeds in September and October, and I know of no instance ol a pair (jf birds bringing out more than one brood in the same season." Eggs two or three in number for a sitting, varying in form from o\al to rounded and elongate oval, the shell being close-grained and its surface smooth and slightly lustrous. The ground colour varies from a pale buffy -white to a rich vinous-brown, which is freckled, streaked, or blotched, with different shades of brown, the markings sometimes beiii^ uniforndy distributed over the shell, in others predominating on the thicker end, where they become con- fluent, and form a more or less well defined cap or zone. Some specimens have a few \ery faint underlying markings of pale lilac -grey. Occasionally specimens are found that are e\enly dotted and spotted with pale brown on a light buffy-grey ground colour. .\ set of two, taken on Yorke Peninsula by Mr. W. White measures (A) i'6gxi-i2 inches; (1-5) i-7Xfi2 inches, .\nother set of two measures — (.\) f58xi-2; (B) i'59xi-2i inches. I'igure lo of Plate Bi, is taken from an egg of a set of two, obtained by Mr. W. White (in ^'(>lk(■ Peninsula in September, 1893. Strepera cuneicaudata. GREY CEOW-SHEIKE. Cracticus cnneicaudaUis, Vieill. Nouv. Diet. d'Hist., torn. V., p. .3.56 (1816). Strepera anaphonensis, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol. Vol. II., pi. 4.5 (1848); id., Handlik. Rils. Aust., Vol. I., p. 173 (18G.5). Strepera cuneicaudata, Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 60 (1877). Adult male — General cotoitr bron-iiis/i-r/rei/, passiii/j into a clearer grey uii the rump and upper tail coverts, and ashy-grey oil the loiver breast and ahdom-.n; face blackish-brown: quills blackish- brown externally, washed with grey ; tips of the secondaries and the basal Italf of the inner webs of the outer pritnaries white; tail blackish-brown, washed with grey, all but the two central feathers being largely tipped ivith white; bill and feet black; iris yellow. Total length in the JJesli, 20'5 inches, wing 11, tail 8'8, bill 3'6, tarsus J'G. Adult femalk — Similar to -the male in plumage, but slightly smaller. Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, \'ictoria. ^~|^Hh3 (irey Crow-Shrike, also known as the " Grey Magpie," is abundantl_\- distributed -L throughout the humid mountain ranges and hills of eastern and south-eastern Australia. It has been recorded from as far north as Wide Bay in yueensland, and I ha\e met with it in suitable localities throughout the greater portion of eastern New South Wales and southern \'ictoria. In South Gippsland, before the undergrowth was cleared, and many of the forest giants were felled for their timber, this species used to congregate in large flocks during the winter months. Especially they made themselves conspicuous by their united ringing notes, in drizzling weather, which was of common occurrence during that season of the year, before devastating bush-fires and the splitter's axe had denuded the humid hills of their luxuriant vegetation. In the early morning, roving flocks from ten to fifteen in nund)er, would descend on the cleared portion around the house in search of newly-planted grain, and so tame were they that they would come up to within a few yards of the door of the log or bark hut. 'i'hey were STliRPElIA. 15 extreiiiflv noisy, and wnuld (luarrel among themselves over a scrap of food thrown out to them. Several years after m\- first \isit to the Strzelecki Ran,i;es, the aspect of these thickly-timbered hills had. in many places, entirely changed. Large clearings had been made and cultivated, and a great proportion of the timber had been ring-barked, the original surrounding under- growth cut and burnt, and the place sown with grass. Well-formed bush roads were made, and the bark huts were replaced with sawn-timber houses. The large flocks of Grey Crow- Shrikes had left the neighbourhood, and only now and again a solitary bird, or pair, would be heard, their ringing cries now being replaced by the flute-like notes ot that close attendant on cultivation, the Black-backed Magpie or Piping Crow-Shrike (Gymnflrhina tihicen). Since the cultivation of fruit trees in the district, I have been informed that the Grey Crow-Shrikes are again plentiful when the softer fruits are ripe, and which they sometimes attack. The peculiar note \\hich is usually uttered during flight is difficult to syllabicate. On the Strzelecki Ranges, a coiupanion thought it more resembled the words ''Gipps-land-for-ever" each repeated clearly and distinctly, and the last word accompanied by a ringing sound. When searching for insects in trees, or hopping from limb to linfli, it also utters a low mournful whistle. In New South Wales these birds are common on tlie Blue Mountains about Springwood and Lawson, and the surrounding districts, also about Moss \'ale and Bundanoon on the southern line. They are extremely sociable birds, breeding in trees near one another, and are often seen in company with their congener, S.gractihna. Unlike the latter species, however, they are seldom met with in open forest lands, and I have never observed them about the suburbs of Sydney. Wikl fruits, berries, and insects and their lar\a', constitute the natural food of this species. They spend a great deal of their time on the ground, eating locusts, grubs, caterpillars, and various seeds. They are not such notorious orchard marauders as S. graculiiia, but sometimes eat cultivated fruits, and later on de\our the maize while in the cobs. Stomachs of these birds 1 have examined in the summer contained insects of various kinds, and the skins of fruits and berries; and in the autumn, principally maize. Personally I have never observed them attacking cultivated fruits. The nest of this species is a large open structure, rough!)- formed externally of sticks, the inner cup being made of long fine twigs, which is again lined entirely with wiry rootlets or coarse dried grass-stalks. It averages externally fifteen inches in diameter by six inches in depth, and internally eight inches in diameter by three inches in depth. The nests are placed either in upright, leaning, or horizontal forks of a Eucalyptus or Casuarina, at heights varying from ten to forty feet from the ground. Two or three eggs are usually laid for a sitting, generally the former number, which vary in form from oval to rounded oval, the shell being close grained and its surface smooth and slightly lustrous. The ground colour varies from a pale hu(Ty and pale chocolate-brown to a rich vinous-brown and vinous grey, the freckles, streaks, and small blotches on the diff"erent varieties being of a slightly darker and richer tint than the ground colour. In some specimens the markings are distinct, and uniformly distributed over the shell; in others predominating at one end, and forming caps or confluent patches. Specimens, especially those with the paler ground colours, have often underlying markings of various shades of dull bluish and slaty-grey. A set of three measures as follows: — Length (A) 1-67 xT-2 inches; (B) 17 x 1-22 inches; (C) 172x1-23 inches. .\ very distinctly marked set of two in Mr. R. J. Etheridge's collection, taken by him at Colo \'ale on the 14th November, 1898, shows great difference in size: — Length (.\) i-8 x 1-25 inches; (B) i-jS x 1-15 inches. Medgelings ha\e the feathers on the head, neck, mantle, and back centred and tipped with pale rufous-brown, the quills tipped with white; lores, feathers around the eye, and the chin blackish: the downv feathers on the under parts are dull grey, washed with fawn-brown, those 16 COEVID.?:. on the lower neck bein^^' much richer in colour. Youn;,' birds retain this pale fawn-brown wash on the neck when otherwise they are in full plumage. Like the Hlack and the White-backed Magpies ( Gymnorhina tibicen and G. leuconota), the young of both the Pied and the Grey Crow- Shrike frequently leave their nests before they can fly very far, and are easily run down and captured. I observed several young ones about the bush at Bundanoon in November. Mr. Keartland informs me that near the Werribee Gorge, in \'ictoria, he saw five nests of this species wathin an acre of ground. They were placed on the horizontal branches of Stringy- bark and Box trees, and all contained young, the brood ranging from one to three. September, and the three following months constitute the usual breeding season. Strepera plumbea. LEAD-COLOURED CROW-SURIKE. Slrepf.ra pliunbea. Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 184G, p. 20. Strepera plumbea (sub-sp.), Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. GO (l."<77). Adult m.\le — General colour dark leaden-grey, slightly lighter un llie uiidi:r parts . fai'.i' blackish; wiuga black, outer webs of secondaries loashed with grey : tips of the qnilU and the basal half of the inner webs of the outer primaries ivhite ; tail black, all bnt the livo ceyitral feathers largely lipped ?('ith K'hite: under tail coverts white; bill anil legs black ; iris yellow. Total length ,'0 inches, wing 11, tail .''■..', hill ,i'. Adult female — Similar to the male in plumage. Distribution. — Tasmania, and most of the larger islands in Bass Strait, South Australia, \'ictoria, NewSouth Wales, Queensland. Tp«) IKE Strepera graculina, on the continent, the present species is kn(.nvn in Tasmania, o\er J X which it is widely distributed, as the "Black Magpie." It is also found on most of the larger islands of Bass Strait, and is common in some parts of Victoria; Gould also records that a few individuals have been found in South Australia. Hitherto it has not been regarded as an inhabitant of New South Wales, but during a twenty-five years' residence in the south-western portion of this State, the late Mr. K. H. Bennett met with it on three occasions. The last one he observed was in an unusual situation, in a mallee scrub in the most arid part of the Mossgiel district, and far from any permanent water. I have never heard of any species of the genus being found in similar country, but that S. fuliginosa has a still more widely extended range is pro\'ed by my receipt of a specimen for identification that was obtained, with its nest and eggs, in a mountain range in central Eastern Queensland. Respecting this species, Mr. G. .\. Keartland writes me as follows: — ".Vlong the shores of King Island, in Bass Strait, these birds are particularly numerous, especially on the west and south coasts. They are seldom found more than a mile from the beach, \vhich furnishes them with an abundance of food in the form of larva;, obtained amongst the decaying kelp and other matter \vashed ashore. At times the ground is almost black with the large flocks which assemble morning and evening to feed. W^hen flying to or from their feeding ground, they keep up an incessant chattering scream, somewhat like the note of the Black-breasted Plover (Sarciophonis tricolor). The Sooty Crow-Shrike is also abundant in parts of Victoria. It is plentiful at Bayswater on the side of the Dandenong Ranges, but as it is accused of making sad havoc amongst the softer fruits — such as strawberries and plums — a constant warfare is waged against it by the fruit-growers." The fruit-eating proclivities of this species is confirmed by a note received from !\[r. E. D. .Vtkinson, while resident at Table Cape, on the north-west coast of Tasmania, who writes : — "These birds occur on my farm and are very fond of fruit. .Vt one time there was about a dozen of them. I used to feed them regularly with small bits of apples, and they became so tame that they would eat out of my hand and follow me into the house, though they were very quarrelsome amongst themselves. They are widely distributed in the north-western portion of Tasmania, and I have met with them on most of the larger islands I ha\e visited in Bass Strait." c 18 CORVID.E. While resident at Circular Head, Dr. L. Holden observed several of these birds in the autumn, and which remained about Highfield all the winter; he also saw some on Robbin Island. He writes that they were very numerous at Rocky Cape in July, and at Woolnorth in November. In the former locality they were extremely tame, feeding from the pig-sty, and allowing one to approach within a few feet. Many nests of this species were found by Mr. W. Grave, on King Island, during 1894-5. They were large, open, bowl-shaped structures, formed externally of sticks, and lined inside with rootlets, dried grasses, or strips of bark, and averaged fourteen inches in external diameter by a depth of six inches, and seven inches across inside by a depth of three inches. They were built chiefly in Tea trees, at \arying heights from twelve to forty feet, and contained mostly two, sometimes three, and in one instance four eggs for a sitting. The eggs vary from oval to elongate oval in form, the shell being close-grained and its surface slightly glossv. In ground colour they vary from a pale to a rich vinous-brown, which is irregularly blotched, spotted, or streaked with darker shades of the ground colour, intermingled in some specimens with similar underlying markings of faint bluish or inky-grey. .\s a rule the markings are distributed all over the shell, and are larger on the thicker end; in some specimens the markings form large coalesced patches, or faint clouded underlying smears on one side or end of the shell. A set of three, taken by Mr. Grave on the i8th November, 1894, measures as follows: — Length (A) 17 X 1-2 inches; (B) 174 x 1-19 inches; (C) 173 x i-2 inches. A set of two measures {.\) i-68 x i-i6 inches; (B) 1-67 x i-i8 inches. PVom the data of eggs taken in different parts of Tasmania, on King Island, and in Queensland, October and the three following months appear to constitute the normal breeding season of this species. OeXL-ULS STK,TJTi3:inD:E;-^^, Gould. Struthidea cinerea. APOSTLE-BIRD. Struthidea cinerea, Gould, Proc. Zoo). Soc. K^.'JG, p. 143; i-l, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. IV., pi. 17 (1848); id., Handbk. Bils. Austr, Vol. I., p. 472 (1865); Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 140 (1877). Adult m.\lk — General colour above and beloir ijrey, the feallmrs of the Iwad, neck, and chest, hai:inr/ lighter ijrey tips, and th.o.-rd, taken XT. IZ-^^^^^T^ -ar L,snrore, on the Kichn.ond Kiver, in October .883, but rt 1 1 no en; ntomv possession until after I had described an authent.cated nest and egg of i^ " r n Sgr.' The discoverer of the former nest and egg also found at the same m«. a nest of e R fle-bird, built in a mass of Lawyer-vines at the top of a tree about wenty fee nest ot the Km , .-^^^^ ,, ,,^ being somewhat similar in construction and torm to the S:^^'!::::; bu^in:::;""l.;tenal ^d sma^r .aves, n.termmgled on the outside with a quantity of moss and the exuviae of snakes. Since the receipt of tins information, many nests and eggs of the closely allied species P,i^sl^i^ have been found in Queensland, and the nests discovered to be similar in ^''^7'";" The first published description of the nest of the Rifle-bird ( Pf^or/ns />arad:sea, birds. From so,,,, mie.e.U.g no.es „„.,. " ' ' ^ cedar-oUter, ,n October, w. native clinrbed, be .ree.bu..o„nd .be nest j,». ""'pY"; ' T'' nlf We t „ Iw The nests of P M^^^^'sea are more bulky in form than those of its ally P ^■'^"^'^^^ shell being close-grained, and its surface smooth -d « ossy^ J ^o^^ ^^^^^^^_ on the other egg, with the exception of one or two broad bluned ^'^^^'^'^ '' ^Zethicl^e. end. marked, the dtiU violet-grey underlying streaks being more pronounced on the thicker Length (A) r3xo'93 inches; (B) 1-38 x 0-92 mches. Compared with a number of eggs of Queen Victoria's Kifle-bird, ^^-;^^^T^ bird, the above-described eggs of ^^^f ::::r ^I^.:^ re'i^r:" distributed richer and darker ground colour, and by then smaller, ana mu longitudinal streaks. longituQinai streass. . ■, i u ,„^ \he young male is similar to the adult fem^, except in ^^^^^ -:-;;:'::rr:::; to the remainder of the under-parts. It is probable that the lull adult 1 er assumed until the end of the third season, like ^^ ^^^^^^J^^^^,^ ^ Port latter species I have m confinement. A young -^ ^J^ J'^ J'^ ^ ^ ^ve described, with a few Macquarie, New South Wales, on the :3th ^^^^^^^^^ :,tu,s; on the centre of the feathers on the crown of the head changing into metallic-^reen at '^_^__________ T^^^^^^^Zvb^T^Voll.. p. Ill, figs, xii.-xiv. (1891). 26 PARADISEID-E. throat are three small purple glossy feathers, those on the sides of the throat having blackish tips; a few of the abdomen and flank feathers have a blackish wash towards the tips, and there is a single dull blackish-purple feather with a bronz)'-green tip. I regard this as a young bird of the previous season, about eleven months old. Further progress towards maturity is shown by a young male in the collection, obtained in tiie Richmond Ri\er District in October, 1870. This specimen has many of the feathers on the crown of the head and hind neck of a bronzy metallic-blue and green; the feathers on the sides of the face and upper portion of the throat are blackish; on the centre of the throat are a few metallic steel-green featliers, those on the lower portion being purple and having narrow metallic steel-green edges; the feathers on the centre of the breast, and tiie lower breast, are dull blackish -purple. Like the Regent Bower-bird, the full adult lixery of the male of this species is partially assumed by a gradual change in the colours of the feathers, as well as by moult. The time of the year when both of these birds were obtained will show that they must at least be the young of the previous season, and probably another twelve months would elapse before they assumed their full adult livery. \'ery old females have the sides of the face and the upper portion of the throat white. From nests found in the Richmond and Tweed River scrubs, in New South Wales, and young birds obtained near the Brisbane River, Queensland, October and the three following months would appear to constitute the breeding season of this species. Ptilorhis victoriae. QUEEN VICTORIA'S RIFLK-BIRD. Ptiloris victoria>, Gould, Proc. Zool. 80c., 1840, p. Ill, pi. .xii. Ptilorhis rictoriVe, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 49.3 (1SG.5) ; id., Bds. Austr., fol., Suppl., pi. .50 (1869); Sharpe, Cat. Uds. Brit. Mas., Vol. III., p. 1.55, (1877). Adult .m.ale — General colour above and below rich velvety-black, strongly glossed with purple; tail-feathers velvety-black glossed with purple, the two central ones shorter and of a rich lustrous metallic-green; forehead, crown of the head, and nape, shining metallic-green with a coppery gloss ; on the lower throat and fore-neck a triangular patch of shining metallic steel- green feathers with a slight purplish lustre; lower neck and chest rich velvety black glossed tvith purple; remainder of the under-surface oil-green, with velvety-black bases to the feathers; lengthened Jlank p/lumes velvety- black tipped with oil-green, some of the lower ones having a rich coppery-green lustre; under tail- coverts black; bill and legs black; iris dark brown. Total length 9:5 inches, wing 5-5, tail 3Jf, bill 1'45, tarsus 1-35. Adult tehm^v, — General colour above ashy-brown, the feathers of the head slightly darker and having narrow buff shaft streaks; lesser and median wing-coverts like the back : primaries, secondaries, and greater wing-coverts, brown washed tvith orange-rufous, and which is more conspicuous on the apical half of the outer secondaries; tail-feathers brown, tinged tvith olive; over the eije and extending along the side of ihe head a line of buffy-white feathers; chin and throat buffy-white, passing into fawn colour on the remainder of the under surface, which is spotted on tin breast and indistinctly barred on the fanks tvith dark brown; under tail-coverts faivn colour; bill and leys black; iris dark brown. Total length 9 inches, wing 5, tail 3- 2, bill 1-^, tarsus 1-3.5. Z)wTii_iOisroisii-2-3sroia:"U"s, Kum. Ptilonorhynchus violaceus. SATIN BOVVEK-BIKD. Pyrrhocorax violaceus, VieilL, Nouv. Diet. d'Hist. Nat., torn. VI., p. 569 (1816). Ptilonorhynchus holosericem, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol , Vol. IV., pi. 10 (18iS); id., Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 442 (1865). Ptilonorhynchus violaceus, Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus,, Vol. VI., p. 381 (1881). Adult m.\le — General colour above and below lustrous purplish-black, the centre of the apical portion of the feathers black, their bases grey, the black centres showing on some of the feathers of the rump and upper tail coverts, and on most of the feathers on the centre of the breast and abdomen ; lesser and median wing coverts like the back; greater and primary coverts and inner secondaries black, margined on their apical portion with purplish-black: jirimaries and outer secondaries black, the latter Jamtly margined on the outer ivebs with purplish black ; bill bluish-horn colour at the base, passing into pale greenish-yellow at the tip; legs and feet white, tinged with yellow; iris blue, with a circle of red around the pujnl. Total length in the fash 12o inches, iving OS, tail ^-5 ; exposed ■portion of bill 0-9, tarsus 2. EXPLANATION OF PLATK A. 1. Nfbt iUld CiJgS of CollONK AUSTUALIS. Australian liaven. NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. PLATE A. 1. w< EXPLANATION OF PLATE B. 1. Figs. 1, 2, 3. i. CoRONE AUSTIiALIS. Australian Itaven. Fiys. -5, U. GvMXor.iiiNA tiuickx. Black-backed Magpie. Figs. 7, 8. CoBvos cobonoidbs. Hazel-eyed Crow. Fig. 9. SrUtPKHA AKGCTA. Hill Crow-Shrike. Fig. 10. StUKPEKA MELANOrTEllA. Black- winged Cruw-Shrike Fig. 11. STUEI'ERA tULIOINOSA. Hooty Crow-Shrikc. Fig. 12. SxRErEBA GRACULDJA. Pied Crow-Shrike. Fig. 13. StREPERA CUNEICAVD.ITA. Grey Crow-Shrike. Figs. 1-4, 1.5, Iti. GVMXORUI.VA leuconota. White-backed Magpie. NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. PLATE B. I. .<■.••• * » •v»i 7-:j^^:> "S^ ^w^w .^^ :a:v .. ^, 10 12 =^^-^ N. 13 14 15 16 'r'!' PTILONORHYNCllUS. 37 Adult female — General colour above, greyish-green,, the feathers of the hack hehig slvjhlly tinged iciih blue on their margins, and those of the rump and upper tail-coverl-i more distinctly 7vashed with green : lesser and median u:ing-coverts slightly duller in colour than the hack, the greater coverts and inner secondaries dull reddish-brown, washed ivith greyish-green, the latter and the inner series ot' tlie greater coverts with an indistinct whitish tip: primaries and the remainder of the secondaries dark brown on their inner irebs, golden-hroivn on the outer : tail golden-brown, with a reddish shade on the outer webs of the lateral feathers : ear-coverts and cheeks brown, with a faint greenisll-grey shade, and having narrow pale buff shaft streaks: throat light brown crashed ivith greenish-grey and having darker edges to the feathers : remainder of the under surface pale yellow washed with bluish-yreen,, all the feathers having a spot in the centre and a broad submarginal edging of blackish-brown, the bluish-green wash being darker on the sides of the body : bill dark brown tinged with olive; legs and feet olive-white; iris deep bine. Total length in the frih J. .'-5 inches, iving f!-f>, tail 4't>, exposed portion of bill 0-9, tarsus IS-'i. Distribution. — Eastern Queensland, Eastern New South Wales, \'ictoria. WITIIOL'T exception, the bo\ver-buildin,t; birds of Australia are the most extraordinary and interesting group of birds found in the world. It is true that many species form beautiful nests for the reception of their eggs, and rearing their young, but in no instance is bird-architecture perfected so much as is seen in the wonderfully constructed play-houses or courting-bowers of the family Ptilonorhynchidae. The love of the beautiful is always displayed by these birds in the formation and manner of adornment of their playing-places, ^from the primitive bower made bv the Regent Bower-bird in the northern coastal brushes of New South Wales, to the commodious and aesthetically decorated structure formed by Newton's Bower-bird in the tropical scrubs of the table-lands and mountain peaks of North-eastern Queensland. The Satin Bower-bird is the commonest species of this interesting family, being distributed throughout the coastal scrubs and contiguous mountain ranges of Eastern and South-eastern Australia, from Rockingham Bay in Queensland to the Qtway Forest in \'ictoria. The whole of the rich coastal brushes of New South Wales, however, may be regarded as the stronghold of this species, localities in which many wild fruit and berry -bearing trees abound, its range extending inland as far as the western slopes of the Blue Mountains. In that coastal belt of palm brush between Ourimbah and Wyong, on the northern side of the Hawkesbury River, these birds are usually plentiful during the late autumn and winter months, congregating in large flocks in company with Cat-birds and Regent Bower-birds to feast upon the abundance of wild fruit and berries. Allowing for their being accompanied by their young, and that it is the third or fourth season before the male acquires its full adult plumage, one cannot help being struck with the large proportion in the sombre livery of the female and young male. I also noted the same fact when in South Gippsland, \'ictoria, where these birds used to be fairly numerous before the undergrowth had been cleared by selectors or devastating bush-fires. Wild fruits and berries constitute the greater portion of the food of this species, and it is very partial to the berries of the ink-weed and the stinging-tree, to which diet is added insects of various kinds. During the summer and autumn months the Satin Bower-birds congregate in large flocks in orchards, and commit great havoc in the crops, attacking principally the softer kinds of fruit, such as mulberries, peaches, apricots, bananas, oranges, and mandarins. They also even pick a hole in the rind of lemons to extract the somewhat acid and juicy pulp. Mr. J. A. Boyd informs me that near Eden, these birds do considerable damage when the maize is just formed in the cob. The usual notes of the male resemble the noise made by small rapidly running cog-wheels, accompanied by a deep hissing sound, this is followed by some very sweet clear notes, or those of other birds are imitated, for they are excellent mimics. This is generally uttered when paying attention to the opposite sex at the bower. With the exception of a harsh note of alarm. 38 PTILOSORIIYSCIIID.K. common to both sexes, the female does not call like the male. I have liad for some time a fine old male in confinement that was formerly in the possession of Mr. Hugh Thomson for two years prior to his giving it to me, and it still imitates tiie notes of manv species frecjuenting its previous haunts. This bird was captured while feasting upon mulberries in a garden at Burrier, in the Shoalhaven District, on the 26th December, 1896. .\t that time it was in the parti-coloured greenish-grey and purjilish-black plumage of the immature male. Further progress towards maturity was made during the next moult in tlie following March and .\prii, but its fully adult purplish-black male plumage was not assumed until it had again moulted, twelve months later. In the same locality Mr. Thomson, at the latter end of December, 1899, succeeded in capturing two young ones that were just able to flutter out of a nest, built in an Acacia. The female used to visit and feed them constantly while they were kept in a cage in the garden, dropping an insect or a berry sometimes a few feet away, and calling and trying to allure them from their captivity. On placing the cage in a room with the window left open, the female entered and was secured; but although supplied with the same kind of food, she was deaf to the entreaties of her hungry brood, and eventually managed to escape. One of the yt>ung ones died, and Mr. Thomson gave me the other, which proved to be a female, and is now about two years old. When the cage of the old male is placed opposite to and almost touching that of the female, the former goes through all the antics of this species usually performed at the bower. As I write, he is with lowered head, pufl'ed out body feathers, and slightly spread wings, paying court to the female, and uttering his peculiar machinery-working-like notes. This is followed by a perfect imitation either of the notes of Lewin's Honey-eater, Pennant's Parrakeet, Yellow- tailed Black Cockatoo, Pied Crow-shrike, or Lyre-bird, or the low sweet notes of a flock of Acanthiza. He is also a good ventriloquist, and I have often been misled by him, thinking that the notes proceeded from birds in the bush opposite to the house. Fre(]UL'ntlv thev are uttered while he has a stone, feather, flower, or twig in his bill, and he is quietly hopping apparently unconcerned about the cage. The mimicry begins, as a rule, immediately after his own peculiar notes are uttered, and seldom does he imitate the notes of more than one species without ceasing. The notes he mimics to absolute perfection are those of ihe White-throated Tree-creeper, the shrill "pink, pink, pink," being as natural as if the latter bird were caged. He usually calls early in the morning in the spring and summer months, and seldom unless placed opposite the cage of the female, or before a mirror: in autunm and winter he is almost silent. Bananas form the principal portion of the food of this pair of birds, alternated with berries of the ink-weed, milk-thistles, cake, and soft biscuits of any kind. They are extremely fond of green peas (which they are adepts in shelling), fruit and thistles, and a turf of freshly- cut sweet green grass. Occasionally their diet is varied with finely chopped meat, or insects; the latter they carefully crush to pieces before attempting to swallow them. The old male is very tame, and will feed out of my hand, but the female is rather shy. Both bathe frequently, especially in the summer months. These birds have very powerful bills, and all objects within reach on the ground, and small enough to enter, are drawn by them into their cages. The female is somewhat mischievous, and delights in taking in her bill a tea-cup full of water, or bread and milk, and turning it over almost as soon as it is placed in the cage. When wishing to be fed, she makes a noise by taking the cup in her bill and dropping it about from one end of the cage to the other. The peculiar habit of the family Ptilonorhynchidje in forming bowers or play-grounds was made known by the late Mr. Gould, from an example first brought under his notice in the .\ustralian Museum, Sydney, during his visit to .\ustralia in 1838-9. It was the work of the present species, and was presented to the Trustees by Mr. Charles Coxen, of Brisbane. So interested was Mr. Gould in this structure, that he determined on visiting the haunts of the Satin Bower-bird, and was successful in finding several of their bowers in the brushes of the PTII.OXORIIYNCHUS. 39 Liverpool Range. These were afterwards figured and accurately described by fiim in his splendid work on the Birds of Australia. The bovver, or play-house, is built on the ground, generally in scrub, and placed near a fallen log or moss-covered rock. .\ space is cleared in the undergrowtii from two to three feet in diameter, which is covered with a layer of thin sticks and twigs to a depth of three inches. In the centre of tiiis platform, which is slightly higher and slopes gradually to the sides, two parallel walls formed of thin curved sticks and twigs are built, the base of the walls being thicker and the inner portion of the bower resembling in form an inverted horse-shoe. Great variation e.\ists in the shape and size of these walls. In some the twigs of which they are formed meet or cross one another at the top, forming an arch; others are nearly upright, while not infrequently the top of the walls is wider apart than the base; and in several 1 have examined the inner portion was concave, narrowing towards either end. The walls at the base measure from ten inches to two feet in length, and are as a rule narrower at the top, twelve to fourteen inches in height, and externally ten to twelve inches in breadtli at tlie entrance. Internally they measure at either end from four to six inches, which gradually widen out in the centre of some, from six to eight inches. Scattered over the platform are loose twigs, and about the entrance of the bower bits of bleached bone, land shells, pieces of moss, berries, and bright feathers, one or more of the latter, and chiefly the rigid wing or tail feathers of Pennant's and the Rose-hill Parrakeets being worked into the sides of the bower. Since the advent of settlers in Australia, any bright or glistening article is used by these birds to ornament their play -grounds. A bower which was tenanted by several birds the greater part of the year, and close to the house where I stayed during my visits to South Gipps'and, was, with the exception of a few land shells, entirely decorated by bits of broken crockery and glass. .Another, obtained by Mr. .\. P. Kemp and Mr. E. R. Waite, in the Dondingalong scrubs sixteen miles from Kempsey, on the Macleay River, had the cast skin of a small snake worked into the front of one of the walls, and was ornamented with a few bits of green moss, dead leaves, and dried sprays of flowers. This is one of the smallest bowers I have seen of this species, measuring only ten inches at the base of the walls, eight inches at the top, and internally three and a half indies at either entrance, widening out to five inches and a half near the centre. It differs, too, in having the platform of twigs on which it is built strewn over with a species of yellow sedge, resembling straw; a female was procured at this structure. A bower found in the damp scrubs near Jenolan Caves, by Mr. J. C. W'iburd. and forwarded by him to the Trustees of the .\ustralian Museum, had among the usual decorations six specimens of a then unnamed and well marked variety of land shell, which Mr. C. Hedley has since distinguished as Thersites giilosa, Gould, var. depyessa/'- This bower will be found figured in Dr. Sharpe's " Monograph of the Paradiseida; and Ptilonorhynchida;." At these bowers or avenue-like structures, the sexes meet and disport themselves, chasing one another through their play -ground and stopping now and again to alter, or add, some new decoration. The males assume at times some grotesque attitudes. With head lowered, feathers of the neck erect, drooping wings, and tail-feathers expanded, they move about the bower or pay attention to the females, more especially during the pairing season. The nest is usually built in the fork of a tree, at a height varying from six to forty feet from the ground. Not infrequently it is placed in the upright branches of a Loranthus, growing from the top of an horizontal branch : — a favourite -site with members of the allied genus Chlamydodci-a. In the coastal districts of New South Wales, the dififerent species of Casiiarina are chiefly selected as nesting-sites, and occasionally Acacias. I knew of one built in an orange-tree, and another in an apple-tree; both being within hand-reach. Inland, on the Blue Mountains, the Prickly Box I Buysavia spinosa), is a favourite nesting-site, the spiny dried twigs of this tree being often used in the outer construction of the nest. • Rec. Aust. Mus.,.Vol. iv., p. 2Z, (1901). 40 PTILON'ORdY.NCIlID.i;. The latter is an open saucer-shaped structure, formed externally of long thin twigs and lined inside with dried Eucalyptus leaves. Externally it averages elexen inches in diameter by a depth of four inches and a half; internally six inches in diameter by one inch and a half in depth. Two is the usual number of eggs laid for a sitting, three occasionally, and sometimes only one. None of the eggs of the family Ptilonorhynchidae vary so much in shape, colour, character, and disposition of their markings as those of the Satin Bower-bird. On Plate B. II., Figures 1 and 2, are those I consider fairly typical specimens. One is oval in form and of a rich cream ground colour, uniformly blotched, spotted, and dotted with different shades of umber-brown and similar underlying markings of dull bluish-grey, the texture of the shell being fine and its surface slightly glossy : — Length i-7xi-2 inches. The other, of not so common a type, is elongate oval, and of a similar ground colour, with large irregular shaped blotches and a few dots of dark umber-brown sparingly and unevenly distributed over the shell, some of the markings having almost an inky hue : — Length i-8xi"2 inches. These specimens, ex- ^ cept for their larger size, closely resemble the eggs of Oriolus sagittatiis, and are of the usual type found in (iii)psland, N'ictoria. Similar in colour, but \arying considerably in the character of the markings, are speci- mens taken in the Illa- warra District of New South Wales. Short wavy irregular lines, and blurred figures like those on some specimens of Sericulus melinus take the place of blotches and spots on the common type: — Length i-8xi-i3 inches. Another egg from the same district has large clouded patches of dull violet and purplish-grey appearing as if beneath the surface of the shell: — Length 1-75 xri inches. Tw-o eggs, taken by Mr. A. P. Kemp near West Kempsey, in December, 1896, are of a pale creamy-white ground colour, with a few bold irregular-shaped linear streaks, and spider-shaped markings of dark umber-brown, intermingled with similar underlying markings of bluish-grey, which are confined entirely to the larger end of the shell: — Length (A) 1-72 x 1-2 inches; (B) i-^ x 1-23 inches. Another set is elongate oval in form and very pointed at the smaller end, of a faint cream ground colour, with long, streaky linear, right and acute angled markings, and small blurred patches of umber-brown and similar underlying markings of dull violet-grey: — Length (A) 178 x i-i6 inches; (B) 175 x i-i6 inches. The character of the markings on the latter set resembles that frequently seen on the eggs of Sterna bergii. The nest figured was taken near McEwan Creek, one mile from Jenolan Caves. Two nests were found, one on the 9th, the other on the i8th December, 1898. They were both built in thick lichen-covered forks of Bursayia spiiwsa, about ten feet from the ground, and each contained a single incubated egg. NEST AMI i;(;<;s OK .S.\T1N' HOWKK-HI HI). CHLAMYDODKRA. 41 This species is ;i late breeder, eg^s seldom hein^' obtained before tlie middle of No\ember, and in some seasons as late as the end of January. Young males are similar in plumage to the adult female. Immature or parti-coloured males show the adult plumage of the two sexes, but the old greyish-green body feathers are duller in colour than in the adult female. In three semi-adult males now before me all the new purplish-black body feathers, as well as those of the wings and tail, were acquired bv a direct moult. Some of the primaries and black tail feathers are only two-thirds of the length of the dull golden-brown remaining feathers. In another specimen exhibiting a further progress towards maturity, the whole of the plumage is purplish-black, except on the rump, thighs, and abdomen; on these parts the full adult plumage is being gradually acquired bv a change of colour in the feathers. O-en-as CIEaiXj-.f^I^^'mDOIDEIK-A., Gould. Chlamydodera maculata. SPOTTED BUWER-BIKU. Calodera maculata, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, I83G, p. lOG. Chlamydern macidata, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol.. Vol. IV., pi. 8 (1848). Chlamydodera macidata, Gould, Haadbk. Bds. Austr.. Vol. I., p. -tlO (1865); Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. .Mus., Vol. VI., p. 389 (1881). Adult male — General colour above dark brou-a: each feather of the mantle, scapulars, back, rump, and upper tail coverts ivith a rounded spot of laivny-buff at the tip, some of the Jealhers of the mantle with lighter edges; wing coverts like the back; primaries brown, externally edged and narrowly tipped ivilh bujfy-rvhite ; secondaries brown, viirgined and largely tipped with rich huff, the outer series being also narroivly edged with ivhite near the ends of their shafts; tail Jeathers brown, edged with light brown and tipped with rich buff which passes into white at the extreme ends of the feathers ; feathers of the head and sides of the neck lawny -buff with narrow blackish edges, (hose on the crown with silvery tips; on the nape a band of beautiful rosy-lilac plumes which have a rich opalescent lustre; hind neck umber-brown : cheeks- pale buffy-white with broiva edges to all the feathers; throat buff, with blackish-brown edges to the feathers; centre of the chest, breast, and abdomen, pale creamy-buff, becoming paler on the sides, which are crossed with dusky broirn transverse bars: tinder tail coverts pale taivny-buff, each feather margined with pale creamy-buff and crossed with two narrow blackish-brown bars; bill blackish brown slightly tinged with olive; legs olive-green, the feet darker; iris broirn. Total length in the ffesh, 12 inches, wing -JS, tail J^2o, bill 0-9, tarsus l-'i. Adult female — Similar in plumaye to the male, but destitute of the rose-lilac plumes on tlie nape, ivhich is like the head. Distribnlion. — Oueenshmd. Xew South Wales, \'ictoria. South .\ustralia. ^^HE Spotted Bower-bird is essentially an inhabitant of the inland portions of Queens- land, New South Wales, and \'ictoria, its range in the former State extending nearer to the coast, specimens having been obtained by Mr. George Masters at Gayndah in 1863. It is more abundantly distributed in the western and north-western districts of New South Wales, and is equally numerous in the adjoining portions of South-western Queensland. At Sandy Creek, near Cobar, these birds are fairly plentiful; and further west, for the last quarter of a century, Mr. James Ramsay, at Louth, Wilgaroon, and Tyndarie, has 42 FTILOSORIiySCIlID.T:. frequently obtained them, also their nests and e<,'gs. South-east of Cobar. the late Mr. K. H. Bennett obser\ed this species throughout the whole of the scrubby arid country lying between the Lachlan and Darling Rivers, its range extending tln'oughout Ri\erina into Xorth-westem Victoria. In the northern portions of Xew South Wales, I found it frequenting the scrubs in the neighbourhood of the Xamoi and Gwydir Rivers; and doubtless, as in Gould's time, it is still fairly numerous in the undisturbed scrubby ranges I passed by at Breeza to the northward of the Liverpool Plains. At Xarrabri, it visits the fruit gardens along the Xamoi in small flocks during the autumn months, and its nest and eggs have been taken at Little Mountain, about a mile east of the town. At "Wilga," near Moree, I also observed it in Mr. C. J. IMclNIaster's garden. Mr. McMaster, whose official duties necessitated his periodically visiting Collarenebri and Walgett, informed me that while driving over the intervening wide expanse of country, he observed these birds and their bowers, in nearly every favourable situation. The egg, or rather portion of an egg-shell, found on Ash Island, at the mouth of the Hunter River, in 1861, and formerly attributed by me ■■ to this species, is undoubtedly that of the Regent I iower-bird. Mr. John MacGillivray for- warded, among others, authentic eggs of the Spotted Bower-bird, said to have been taken near Grafton, in September, 1864. During my \isit to the Clarence River District, in 1898, I was struck with the character of the country and the vegetation from the river's mouth to the head of navigation as being one of the very last places I should have expected to have met with this species. Mr. George Savidge, of the Upper Clarence, has also favoured me with the following note: — "I have never seen or heard of the Spotted Bower-bird being found on the northern coastal rivers. Some years ago I made a very fair representative collection of the birds frequenting tlie Clarence and Bellinger River Districts, but I never saw it, or met with any person that had, although I have often made inquiries from those who take an interest in our birds. Xone of the Clarence River or Orara River natives I have questioned have seen it, and I ha\e been a keen observer of bird-life here for nearly twenty years." Nevertheless it is possible that MacGillivray, who ■was a careful observer, did obtain the eggs in the neighbourhood, probably during a period of excessive drought inland, when many species are driven to the coastal districts, for of recent years Mr. Savidge has observed and obtained at Copmanhurst, two well-known plain-frequenting species, the Bustard ( Eupodotis australis), and the Chestnut-eared P'inch ( Taiiiopygia casfaiwtis ), as well as procured the nests and eggs of the latter. I met with the Spotted Bower-bird about one hundred and fifty miles due west of Copmanhurst, but, if it is found at all in the northern coastal districts east of the Xew England Range, it can only be regarded as a rare or accidental visitor. SPOTTED BOWER-BIRD. •Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., (Second Series). Vol. i., p. 1158 (1886). CIIL AMVDUIlKHA. 43 Consequent upon Dr. Ramsay's examination of the type oi Clilantydodcvn occipitalis, m the ISritish Museum, in 1883. in which lie shared the hehef previously held by Dr. R. B. Sharpe/'= that it was only a fine old adult male of C. nuuulntn, the ranf;;e of the latter species was extended to Cape York. • The tvpe of C. occipitalis was stated by Mr. H. W. Janson. the dealer who sold it to Gould in Januarx', 1S72, to ha\'e formed part of a collection made by Mr. Jardiue at Port Albany, North Australia. I am of the opinion that the bird was obtained in Western Xew South Wales. If Gould's figure of this species in his "Birds of New Guinea"; is not an exagg;erated one, it differs from C. mnculata in not only having a larger frill on the nape, but in ha\ing it surrounded by a blackish-brown band distinctly spotted with white. The latter, however, was probably done by the artist to enhance the distinctive character of the frill, for in Dr. Sharpe's "Monograph of the Paradiseidas and Ptilonorhynchida- " the same figure is used, but this band and its markings are much more subdued in form and colour. I have a specimen now before me, otherwise agreeing with Gould's figure of this species. It is a fine old adult freshly moulted male of C. maculata, and was obtained by Mr. James Ramsay, near Louth, in Western New South Wales. Wing, 6 inches. Mr, J. .\. Thorpe informs me that when at Somerset, in 1867, he saw Mr. F. Jardine shocjt at a species of Chlamvdodcra that was sitting on a fence near his house, and which eventually fell into some tall grass about a hundred yards away. By a diligent search, the former succeeded in finding the bird whicli, he states, was a male of the large pink-naped species then known as C. nuchalis. but since separated by Gould under the name of C. oricntaUs. Mr. Thorpe obtamed another similar specimen in open grassy country about fifteen miles from Cape York. 1 he Spotted Bower-bird iC. maculataj, or the species described by Gould under the name of C. occipitalis, he did not meet with during his se\enteen months' residence in the Cape York District. Mr. Bertie L. Jardine also informs me that C. oncntalis is the only pink-naped Bower-bird that he has met with on the Cape York Peninsula. Personally I have never handled a properly localised specimen of C. inaciilata from further north than Leilavale Station, on the Fullerton River, about thirty miles east of Cloncurry, where. Dr. W. Macgillivray informs me, these birds are not uncommon, and nest during the wet season, January and February, generally in Gidyea scrub. Doubtless its range may extend to the southern portion of the adjoining district of Cook, and of which the Cape York Peninsula forms the northern extremity. In South Australia, the Spotted Bower-bird is apparently a rare species, and appears to be confined to the Murray River scrubs, a situation similar to that in which it is found in the adjoining portion of North-western Victoria. Neither Dr. A. M. Morgan, nor Mr. A. Zietz, the Assistant-Director of the South Australian Museum, have met with it in South Australia. Reply- ing to an inquiry of mine, Mr. Zietz writes as follows:— "In regard to Chlamydodcra maculata. we have no specimens from this State in our Museum Collection. All I know about its occurrence in South .\ustralia is the information received from a settler, resident at Morgan, on the Murray River, who with his son was visiting the Museum. On showing them our collection of bird- skins, both recognised at once C. maculata as a species known to them as 'Cabbage-birds,' from their destructive habit of eating the leaves of those plants in their kitchen garden, and which these birds were constantly visiting. In looking over some lists for further evidence, I found that six specimens were obtained in the scrub at Overland Corner, on the Murray River, in 1883, by the late Mr. F. W. Andrews, a collector of the South .Australian Museum. I myself have ne\er seen any specimens of C. maculata, with a statement where they had been collected, except some two dozen skins obtained by the late Mr. James Cockerell, in the Murray River scrubs, near Mildura, \'ictoria." Mr. Zietz has kindly forwarded me the list of specimens ' Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., 'Vol, vi„ p. 390 (1881), t Proc, Linn. Soc X.S.W., (Second Series), Vol. i., p. 1157 (i»86?. Tab. List .\ust. Bds., p. 11 (18SS). ; Bds, New Guinea, Vol, i., pi, 45 (1879). 44 PTILONOUIIYNCHID.K. collected by the late Mr. F. W. Andrews at Overland Corner. It consists chielly of the usual species found in the same situations as the Spotted ISower-hird freijuents in the southern limits of its ranj^e. Overland Corner is about thirty-five miles in a direct line from the \ictorian border, and about one hundred miles from Mildura. in the latter State. There are two unlocalized specimens of C. iiuniiidta in the .\ustralian Museum collection, obtained by the late Mr. S. White in South .\ustralia. This species evinces decided preference for open grassy plains, interspersed with low bushes, or belts of timber and scrub. Usually it is met with in pairs or small companies in the neigh- bourhood of its plav-house, when it is extremely shy and difficult to get near, unless, when disturbed, one secrets oneself in the \ icinitv of the bower and awaits its return. \\ hen resorting with its progeny in flocks after the breeding season is over, to the neiglibouring orchards or gardens, it is more easily obtained: so also is it during periods of drought, when it will visit stations and farni-liouses in search ot water. Mr. R. Orant succeeded in getting manv specimens on ( ilenariff Station, between Coolabah and Byrock, in i.S8g, principally through a device resorted to by a kangaroo-hunter, Mr. lulmund Parker, a native of the district. The latter, knowing that red has a powerful attraction for these birds, although none were at that time seen in the neighbourhood, threw a red ll.mnel blanket he had in his tent over the branch of a W'ilga tree. In less than an hour, a male and a female alighted close to the blanket, and began to examine it in their inquisiti\e manner, when they rapidly fell at the discharge of Mr, Grant's gun; many others, on dilfeient parts of the rim, were secured in a similar way. Later on, at lUickiinguy Station, Mr. (irant, while collecting on behalf of the Trustees of the .\ustralian Museum, in J ime. i^\)J, succeeded in obtaining several females, young males, and one of their bowers. While there he observed seven fine old adult males in (apli\'itv, that had been snared with horse hair nooses, at the bowers, of which there were thirteen known at that time to be on the run. The note it utters when disturbed is a liarsh and grating one, like that of the Satin Bower-bird, and the introduced Indian 'Slynn I A cfidol heirs ti'istis): when near its bower, or sitting (]uietlv in a tree, a low plaintive noise is made, like the mewing of a kitten. ,\s is now well known, and was pointed out by me years ago, this bird is an excellent mimic of the notes of other species, and of any sound it may hear. Nevertheless I believe this kitten-like scjueal is one of its natural notes, for 1 ha\e also heard it uttered by a young Satin Bower-bird I have in my possession, that had only left the nest a few weeks before, and had no o]iportunity, even if it were able, to acquire this feline call. About Moree the male Spotted Bower-bird imitates to perfection the liquid-like notes of the 1 Slack-throated Crow-shrike, the shrill call of the Kose- breasted Cockatoo, the plaintive but clear note of the Peaceful Dove, and the whirring-like noise made by the Crested Bronze-wing Pigeon during flight. It is needless to enumerate the different species it successfullv mocks, for not only does it imitate the notes of many birds in the vicinity, but the barking of a dog, wood-chopping, the crack of a wlii)): -in fact any sound it may hear that is often repeated. Wild fruits, berries, and insects, constitute the usual food of this species, but it is \ery destructixe in gardens, eating nearly every kind of cultixated fruit anti berries, being especially fond ot chilies, and the seeds of the introduced Pepper jilant (Silninn mollc i. In the stomachs of the specimens I have examined, I also found portions of unripe tomatoes, grape-skins and seeds, and whole raisins. Others were filled entirely with the heads, legs, and elytra of coleopterous insects. Like the Satin Bower-bird, in confinement this bird will eat almost an)thing: -bread, cake, fruit, meat, insects, etc. 45 CHLAMYDOUERA. The bowers of this species are built generally near or under the shelter of a bush m the scrub or in clumps dotted over the plains. In Northern and North-western New South \\ ales thev are frequently constructed under the shade of a Lemon-bush (Canthium olafohnm), or a Currant-bush (Apophyllum anom.lum ), 3.nA are occasionally further sheltered above by a WKle-spreadmg wilga, belar, or myall. They are larger, more arched in form and more highly decorated tluan the bower of PHlonovhynchus violaceus. The two walls, formed of slightly curved twicrs stuck upright into a platform of twigs firmly trodden into the ground, frequently meet or c ols each other at the top, but more often they are nearly parallel. The walls at the base are thick, and the inner portion, which is usually lined with dried grass-stalks is nicely rounded at the bottom. At either entrance the bower is profusely decorated with the bleached banes of mammals and birds, land and fresh-water shells, pebbles, pieces of glass, berries seeds, etc.; in the centre are generally a few stones, berries, shells, or bits of glass. Metallic substances, too, possess a great attraction for these birds, and they will readily enter tents and houses in the more thinW settled districts to procure them. Scissors, knives, plated spoons and forks, thimbles, coins, etc'are frequently pilfered, and carried off to their bowers. At one of their play-houses, on a station near Collarenebri, a brooch was found that had been lost for two years Galvanised- iron nails and washers, bits of wire, blades of knives, pieces of bright tin and bottle capsules are common metallic decorations, but of course they vary according to their environment. The size of the playground averages from four and a half feet to six feet m length, and rom three to four feet in breadth, the disposition of the decorations materially affecting its length, bones and .lass, which form their chief part, may be scattered around close to either entrance, or depotited in large heaps, sometimes in a straight line at either end of the structure, or in a para line with the walls at one end. The walls measure fron. eighteen to thirty-six mches Z length at their base, being as a rule narrower at the top, their average height measuring from ten to fourteen inches. Unusual shaped bowers are sometimes found. One on Ikickiinguy StationMr. Grarit informs me, is curved like a boomerang, owing to a branch of the bush under which it is built interfering with the bird's making it straight. .Vnother, found near Cobar, was formed of curved twigs, as usual, which met near the top, and recurving again formed a second bower above, much smaller than the one underneath. The lower bower measured about two feet in length, and the one on top-which was in the centre^one foot. It was decorated with bones, fresh- water shells, and a few of F:iey's brass cartridge-cases. Twic^s with or without a lining of dried grass-stalks, constitute the tisual material with which the walls are constructed. ' During my visits to Northern and ^-^'^^f ?- !;2 South Wales I found, however, that the walls of the bowers m those parts of the State were more frequently formed entirely of dried grass-stalks. This was first brought under my notice by Mr. C. J. McMaster, then of " Wilga," near Moree, who pointed out to me a bower on ;lbolLolla stition. It was built near the edge of a belt of timber on the P -ns un er a large Currant-bush (Apophyllum anomalum), overgrown with a creeper known m the district by the aboriginal name of "Nepine," and bearing long spikes of beautiful white ^^^^^^^^ resembling orange-blossom. The walls were constructed entirely of Spear-grass (SUpa etaca), on a slight foundation of very thin twigs. It measured eighteen inches m length fourteen inches i . breadth at the base, and twelve inches across the heads o the grass-stalks 1^ height of the walls being twelve inches. The run was well trampled down and cleanly s.ept at :ither end and around the sides of the bower ; and, owing to the disposition o ^^^^^^^^^^ which consisted of three neatly made and piled up heaps, was nearly six ^-^ ^ -f " ^^ '^^ awav from the entrance at one end was about a bucket-tuU of glass; -'i' ^^ ^^^^^ ' ;^ buckets-full of bleached bones. In a direct line, six inches away from the ^eap of glas was another same-si.ed heap of bones, with which were intermingled a few nuts of the Grome-tree 46 PTILONOKHYNCHID,!:. (Oivenia acidiila). Just inside the entrance were some siliceous stones, and bits of coloured glass, and in the centre a few freshly picked berries. During my absence from the bower, Mr. McMaster saw one of the birds enter it, but on my shooting in the neighbourhood it flew away. A bower with similar walls was constructed under a large orange-tree in Mr. McMaster's orchard during August and September of i8g8. Four birds frequented the place, but it was impossible to tell how many assisted in the construction of the bower. The decorations consisted principally of small pebbles, with which were intermingled a few bits of white and dark red flannel picked up near the house. Mrs. McMaster informed me that on Millie Station, midway between Narrabri and Moree, she introduced some buttons and marbles among the decorations of one of these play-houses, but they were speedily removed by the birds, several of them being found afterwards on different parts of the run. I have heard of bright coins and other articles, placed in the bowers, being rejected in a similar manner. Many interesting evolutions are performed in and around these bowers, more particularly by the males. Standing on tip-toes, with lowered head and the pink frill on the nape erect, the male will run, sometimes sideways, through and around the bower, st()])])ing jierhaps to alter a decoration, or to tiirow up his wing, or lie down on his side. K'unning with drooping wings and tail is probablv the cause why many of the birds of this lamily are found with the feathers of those parts so much abraded. The bower figured, which is a fairly typical one, was obtained by Mr. K. Grant at 1 Suckiinguy Station. The decorations consist of bones, bits of glass, glass stoppers, seed cones and pods, berries, nuts, shells of the large fresli-water mussel { Unio ncpcamnsis ) and of a fresh- water snail (Vivipara siiprafasciata). The walls at the base measure twenty-four inches in length ; at the top twenty inches, with an average height of eleven inches. \\'idth at entrance, eighteen inches; thickness of walls at base, four inches and a half; distance between the walls inside, nine inches. Mr. A. S. Read, of New Angledool, writes me as follows, under date February 19th, 1899: — "The Spotted Bower-birds, or ' Weetah,' as they are called by the aborigines in this district, are very wary if they know that j'ou are watching them, or wish to approach near them by stealth ; otherwise, when feeding on fruit or playing about their bower, they will come within a few feet and carefully examine the buttons on one's clothes. They are very fond of figs and grapes, also pepper seeds. Some Chinese who have a garden near here, shot about twenty of these birds last month as they were eating all their fruit. l"re(]uently one of these birds will sit in a tiiick shady tree, and imitate any bird or sound it hears, crows, hawks, dogs, cats, etc., to perfection. In \ery dry seasons, as in 1S9S, the Spotted Bower-birds rarely breed at all." Later on, Mr. Read forwarded to the Museum three males in the flesh which he had shot on the i6th June, and writes: — "The bower of these birds is about four hundred yards from my house. The walls of it are formed of long thin twigs, and there is a large heap of bones all of the same shape (probably vertebrae of sheep) at one end, and a similar heap of glass at the other, with a few nuts and berries in the centre of the bower. There were four birds playmg in the bower this morning, and it grieved me to shoot those I have sent you. It is a pretty sight to see them tossing pieces of glass about and performing all sorts of antics." Two of the males are in beautiful plumage, with very fine and well developed rose-pink nuchal plumes, and are now mounted in the Group collection. The other specimen has only a small square patch of rose-pink feathers in the centre of the nape, measuring 0-7 inch. The nest of this species is an open and nearly flat structure, having only a slight depression in the centre. It is formed of dried twigs, loosely interlaced, and has a slight lining of finer twigs, to which are sometimes added a few dried grass-stalks. Usually it is very scantily built, and when occupied the eggs or young are visible through the bottom of the nest. An average CIILAMVDODERA. 47 nest measures externally seven inches in diameter by two inches and a half in depth. The nesting- sites usually selected are on horizontal branches, sometimes in a Lovanthus growing from the upper side, or where a few thin upright leafy branchlets spring out; the crown of a low densely foliaged tree; and in thick bushes. In Northern and North-western New South Wales, they are usually found in the different species of eucalypti, leopard-trees, myalls, wilgas, pines, and in the prickly " Wait-a-while," or Orange-bush (Capparis mitchclli). The eggs are usually two, sometimes three in number, and, like those of all the species of this genus, are remarkable for the beauty of their markings. In shape they vary from oval to elongate-oval, and in ground colour from a \ery delicate greenish-grey to dull ochraceous-green, which is more or less covered with \\a\y irregular thread-like and zig-zag lines of umber and blackish -brown wound round and round the shell, intermingled witii loops, scrolls, figures, and a few bold, thick wavy streaks of a darker hue, and similar hne underlying markings, varying from dull violet to purplish -grey. Some specimens have the linear markings very distinct, appearing as if they had been placed on the shell with a pen dipped in colours of various hues ; others have underlying clouded blotches of faint violet-grey, and the markings on the outer surface consisting of thick, short, zig-zag, or wavy blurred streaks. Some eggs have the markings uniformly and evenly distributed over the surface, others have them confined principally to the larger end. Nearly all have a few bolder ink-like streaks or spots on some part of the shell. In a specimen now before me, the linear markings are ail blackish-brown, and overlie on the larger end a distinct cap formed of coalesced pale umber-bro\vn blotches. Another has the surface markings very faint and uniformly distributed over the shell in a network of delicate tracery. Three eggs from different sets measure as follows: — Length (A) 1-55 x 1-03 inches; (B) i-65xi-o8 inches; (C)i-58xi-i inches. Two sets of two measure respectively: — (A) 1-55 x ri inches; (B) 1-55 x i-og inches : — (A) 1-5 x 1-07 inches; (B) 1-52 x 1-07 inches. 48 PTILONORHYNCHID.E. A remarkably handsome egg of a set of two in Mr. Joseph Gabriel's collection, is of a very delicate greenish-grey ground colour, boldly marked on the larger half of the shell with irregular linear markings, loops, and scrolls of umber-brown and black, interwoven near the centre with fine black hair lines and similar underlying markings of purplish-grey ; the smaller end, with the exception of a few straggling but conspicuous linear streaks of umber-brown and a single purplish-black spot, being devoid of markings. Length: — 1-56 x i-o8 inches. Figure 4, Plate B. II., is from Mr. G. Savidge's collection, and Figure 5 from Mr. J. Gabriel's collection. October, and the three following months, constitute the usual breeding season of this species in South-eastern Australia. It is probable that the young males, which are at first similar in plumage to the adult female, do not wholly attain the rose-pink frill on the nape until the second season. In June, the adult males are in beautiful plumage, and have the frill well developed. Several young males in the collection obtained during that month at Buckiinguy, have no indication of the frill ; another has only four rose-pink feathers on the nape. A young male shot at New .\ngledool in the same month, together with several very fine adult and fully plumaged males, has only a small square patch of rose-pink feathers on the centre of the nape. Evidently these are young males of the previous season. The description and figure given of the adult male is that of a newly moulted bird. Just prior to the moult the spots on the upper parts and the tips of the primaries, secondaries, and tail feathers, are much- paler and have a washed-out appearance. A specimen in the moult, now before me, exhibits the old feathers on the upper parts W'ith buflfy -white spots, and the new ones with rich tawny-bu(T spots near the ends of the feathers. The basal half of the occipital plumes of some adult males is distinctly tinged with reddish-orange. Chlamydodera guttata. UUITATEU HOWKK-HIKI). Chlami/dera guttata, tJould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1862, p. 1G2 ; id,, Btls. .\ustr., fol., Siippl., pi. 3.5 (18C9). Chlamydodera guttata, Gould. Handlik, Bis. Austr., Vol. T., p. 4.5.3 (186.5); Sharpe, Cat. Eds. Brit. Mus., Vol. VI., p. 390 (1881); North, Vict. Nat., Vol. XVI, p. 9 (1899). Adult male — Ghneral colour above blackish-broiru, each Jhatlier of the mantle, scapulars, back, rump, and upper tail-coverts with a rounded spot of rich creamy-btiff at the tip; the lesser uing coverts like the back; the median and greater coverts blackish-brown, with rich yell owish-biiff' tips, the latter also margined on their outer wtbs with the same colour ; primaries and secondaries brown, externally edged and all but the outer series of the primaries tipped with pale yellotvish-biiff ; tail feathers dark brown, edged with bufjfy-brown, and tipped with rich buff, which gradually passes into buffy-white on the lateral feathers ; head blackish brown, all the feathers ivith a small rounded spot of tawny-buff near the end and tipped with silvery-white ; on the nape a band of beautiful rosy-lilac plumes with a silvery lustre ; sides of the neck and hind-neck blackish-brown, icith a small rounded spot of rich yellowish-buff at t/ie end of each feather ; throat blackish -brown centred with yellowish-buff on the apical portion of the featliers ; remainder of the under surface creamy-buff, washed with rich buffy- brown on the sides of the body; under tail-coverts creamybvff, the basal portion of some of the feathers having blackish-brou:n cross-bars ; bill black, tinged with olive ; legs olive-green ; feet darker, •nearly black. Total length 10 inches, wing o-7, tail 3'8, bill OSS, tarsus I'o. Adult fem.\le — Similar in plumage to the niah' : but the nape, icliicli is like the head, is destitute of the silvery rose-lilac nuchal plumes. Distribution. — \\'estern -Australia, Central .Vustralia. CHLAMYDOUERA. 49 ^ 3^11 IS very distinct species was described by Gould in 1.S62, from a specimen received from Mr. F. T. Gregory, the well-known Northern and Western Australian explorer. Gould does not give the locality or district where it was obtained, but states that it was collected in Xorth-western Australia. I have searched through the journals of the various expeditions undertaken by the Gregory Brothers in Xorthern and Western Australia, but can find no reference to the specimen or the locality in which it was procured. During the journey of the Elder Exploring Expedition, in 1891-92, Mr. R. Helms obtained three males in the Barrow Range." Since the discovery of the type, this is the only occasion I ha\e known the species to have been obtained in any part of Western Australia. Gould stated it was doubtless this species which constructed the bowers met with by the late Sir George Grey in the sandstone ranges forming the watershed of the streams flowing into the Glenelg and Prince Regent's Rivers. I am certain, howe\er, that Gould's first conjecture that the bowers frequently observed by Grey in this district were fornied by Chlamydodera muinilis, is the correct one. I The latter species is common in the coastal districts of North-western Australia, and from collections formed inland, from King Sound and Cambridge Gulf, is, I know, abundantly distributed in that neighbourhood. The original specimen of C. f^iitUihi was doubtless collected during Mr. F. T. Gregory's expedition to the North-west coast in 1861. He did not proceed further north than the Oakover River, a district rich in its avifauna, and in which several Central Australian forms are found. The liarrow Range, where Mr. Helms obtained his specimens, is not a great distance from the South Australian border; and in similar arid country, a little further north and east in South Australia, this species was again met with, and specimens procured at Glen Edith, bv the members of the Horn Scientific Expedition in Central Australia in 1894. Since the return of the Expedition, 1 have seen several specimens from different parts of Central Australia : and from the subjoined notes of Mr. G. A. Keartland and Mr. C. E. Cowle, it will be seen that the central portion of the continent is the great stronghold of this species. Mr. G. A. Keartland writes to me:— '-During the journey of the Horn Scientific Expedition in Central Australia, we met with the Guttated Bower-bird wherever the native fig-trees xisted. from Alice Springs in the north to Stevenson's Creek in the south. They are very shy, and although their notes were frequently heard amongst the foliage of the fig-trees, they kept well out of sight, only two specimens being obtained at Glen Edith. These birds make the peculiar single note familiar in other members of the genus, especially in C. nmhalis. It is exactly like a noise I have heard opossums make,— half cry, half hiss. Their food consists principally of the fruits of the different species of Ficus, and other trees, alternated occasionally with the viscid berries of the Loranthus. They are also very troublesome in the gardens of the settlers, owing to their love of tomatoes and young vegetables, which they devour as soon as they appear above the ground. .Vlthough usually these birds are very shy, at Owen Springs we were informed that during periods of drought they would come to the water-buckets under the verandah to drink, and become quite fearless of the presence of persons sitting close by. The bowers of this species are usually built near, or under the shelter of a low spreading bush so as to escape the rays of a tropical sun. Several I saw were about three feet from end to end of the run, eight or nine inches wide between the walls, and the latter ten inches high and formed of bits of twigs and grass placed so that the tops of the sides met overhead. All over the floor of the bower, and for a space about two feet at either end were strewn bleached bones, bits of glass, and feathers." Mr. C. E. Cowle, who, in the prosecution of his official duties in different parts of Central Australia, has had unusual facilities for studying the habits of these birds, has also kindly e * Trans. Roy. Soc. South Austr., Vol. xvi., p. 157 (1893). f Grey— Travels in North-west and Western Australia, Vol. i., p. 245 (1841). 60 PTILOSORIIVNCHID.E. favoured me with the following notes : — " There are numbers of Guttated Bower-birds in most parts of Central Australia I have visited. Those close to Illamurta are very destructive in the garden, eating principally the tomatoes, and ha\e become \ery cunning. One can hear them s(iuealing and chattering at the spring, but on approaching it tiiev are silent, and remain so until one leaves the spot. Two were shot by one of the boys stopping in a 'wurley' we made there for that purpose. They are great mimics, and imitate the notes of Poinafostvmiis siipcriiltosiis and other birds very closely. The bowers are formed of small twigs and cane grass, built upon a platform of the same materials, five or six inches in depth, and trodden perfectly flat. Those I have seen when travelling were decorated chiefly with land-shells, pieces of bone, different berries according; to the season, and a few bright coloured feathers." Mr. Cowle has sent me a sketch of an unusually large and most remarkably formed bower. It is nearly seven feet in length, and in the centre on one side of it, at right angles, has another similar structure, three feet in length, opening into the main a\fnuc or run. Rewrites: — "When we first came here, this bower — about one hundred \ards Irom the spring — was a meeting-place for the Bower-birds; now it is deserted, and only the remains of it are left. It is situated in mallee scrub at the foot of a myrtle-bush, whose low spreading sticks with many leafy branchlels practically cover the entire structure. The shajje is like enclosed sketch, with the runs gradually sloped from the three entrances to the centre, which is slightly more elevated than the remainder. The walls are made of small twigs and cane grass, the run between being irregular and varying from ten inches to a foot in width. When occupied by the birds the decorations varied a lot, but consisted chiefly of bleached snail-shells (generally plentiful under big tussocks of Triodia mttchclli), and small bones of mammals and birds. The entrances to the runs were spread over with berries of the Fig (Finis polypoda). Native Quan- dong ( Sciiitiihiin Icinifoliiliitii), and of a species of whitewood. Later on, after our advent, pieces of glass, odd nails, and bits of bright tin, were intermingled with the other ornaments. Some- times the shells and berries would be arranged along the runs or on the sides of them. The traffic of the stock, howev'er, going in and out of the scrub, hunted the birds away, and I ha\e not .seen any other bower near here." Mr. Keartland informs me that he saw this remarkable structure when in Central Australia with the Horn Scientific lixpedition in 1894. Ever since the return of this Expedition, Mr. Keartland urged his many friends in Central .Vustraiia to try and discover the nest and eggs of tliis species. Bearing on this subject are the following interesting notes received by him from Mr. Cowle: — " Relative to Chlamydodcra ffiittatit, I do not for one moment think that the blacks have any objection to finding and robbing these birds' nests, for they must have slaugiitered over twenty Bower-birds here for me about the garden ; one of the older blacks, who would be more likely to be careful, got five in one day. I believe I found one of their nests during our last trip. We were having dinner on the 28th October, 1898, in one of the valleys south of Mareena Blufl, and got a young Bower-bird just able to fly. It was in one of those scrubby mulgas that throw out so many branches right from the ground. Near the top of this tree, in a clump of silvery-whitish mistletoe, which you must often have noticed up here — not the drooping viscid-leafed one — was an open nest which contained minute frafjments of egg-shell and dried up yolk, which convinced me at least that one egg had been broken. The nest was constructed of a few dry black cotton-bush tops and was loosely lined with coarse dried grass-stalks. Externally it measured eight inches in diameter, and internally about four inches and a half. \'iewed from fielow, the nest would be taken for an unfinished one not worthy of inspection, and I was particularly struck by the amount of ventilation in it when I had it in my hand. Tiie black-boys who were with me were certain it was a Bower-bird's, but I was doubtful if they had seen one before." CllLAMYDODUKA. 51 Mr. James F. l"iekt eventually succeeded in hndiii',' a nest with egt,'s durinj,' the first week in February, 1899, near Alice Springs Telegraph Station. It was similar to the one described above by Mr. Cowle, but was built in a low bush, and contained two eggs. One egg was sent to Mr. Keartland, and by him kindly lent to me for description. This egg, the only one I have seen belonging to this species, is elongate-oval in form, of a faint greenish-grey ground colour, with the usual lahrvinthine net-work of zig-zag wavy hair and thread-like loop-lines, scrolls, and figures, crossing and re-crossing each other, so characteristic of typical eggs of the Chlamydodcva:. In tliis specimen there are but very few underlying markings, nearly all of them bein^ well defined, and appearing as if they liad been placed on the shell with a pen dipped into different shades of umber-brown and violet-grey, the former colour predominating and being more thickly disposed towards the thinner end, where in some places the lines are confluent and form broad irregular-shaped patches, and short wa\y streaks. The shell is close-grained and its surface smooth and lustreless: — Length 1-56 x 1-02 inches. In shape, size, colour, and disposition of its markings, it cannot be distinguished from fairly typical eggs of its near ally C. macidata. This egg is represented on Plate B. II., Figure 7. Chlamydodera nuchalis. GREAT BOWER-BIRD. Ptilonorhynchus nuchalis, Jard. k Selby, III. Orn., Vol. 11., pi. 103 (1830). Chlamydera nuchalis, Gould, Bds. Austr., fob. Vol. IV., pi. 9 (1848). Chlamydodera nuchalis, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. 1., p. -118 (1865); Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. VI., p. 391 (I88I). Adult male— &'«n«ra/ colour above dark brown: the feathers uf the back, scapulars, rump, and upper tail coverts broadly margined u-ith ashy-broirii, and those of the mantle gradually passing into dull ashy-brown at the tips; upper wing coverts like the back; primaries and secondaries dark brown, externally edged, and- all but the outer series of the primaries' tipjied irith ashy-white: head and hind neck uniform ashy-brown : on the nape a band of rose-lilac plumgi, the feathers surrounding it being tipped irith silvery-ivhite : sides of the head, neck, and throat, ashy-brown: remainder of the under surface ashy-brown, with a slightly creamy tinge, which is more diitinct on the centre oj the abdomen; tinder tail coverts dull creamy-iahite, with narrow dusky-bro'vn cross-bars : bill blackish- brown; legs and feet dark brown tinged x'ith olive : iris brown. Total length 14 inches, wing 7, tail o '6, bill 1- 15, tarsus I'S. Adult female— ^imikr in plumage to the adult male, but ivithout any rose-lilac band on the nape, whic/i is nsliy-broirn like the head. J)istrihntio7i.—XoYtUem Territory of Soutli .\ustralia. North-western .Australia. /T^Hl-: (ireat Bower-bird was originally described and figured by Jardine and Selby in J- their " Illustrations of Ornithology," as Ptilonorhynchus nmhnlis, but as in other Australian species described and figured by those gentlemen on the two preceding plates, no reference is made to the part of the continent in which the types were obtained. Dr. Ramsay, in his " Tabular List of Australian Birds," states:—" The type of Chlamydodera nmhnlis was first found m North- western Australia, probably during Leichhardt's E.xpedition, by Oilbert; or by Elsey near Port Essington." Leichhardt's overland expedition, however, which Gilbert accompanied, and where he met his death, did not start from Brisbane until 1844, and this species was well known to Mr. Elsey, who was surgeon and naturalist to Mr. A. C. Gregory's North Australian Expedition in 1856. Writing to the late Mr. Gould from the dep6t at the Victoria River, in June, 1856, he states:— "I met with two or three nests ;bowersl of the Bower-bird, C. nuchalis. 52 PTILOSORHYSCHID.E. but no one of ray party has seen the birds."" The expeditions these two gentlemen accompanied, it will be observed, were made many years after the types of C. nuchalis were described. In their description oi Halcyon madeayi, which is the next but one preceding that of Clilnmy- dodera miihalis, ^Messrs. Jardine andSelby afford a clue from whom the types of the latter species were obtained. They write: — "This beautiful species IH. madeayi), with some of the subjects on our following plates, have lately been added to the collection of the Linnean Society by the zeal and industry of Alexander Macleay, Esq., who though ad\anced in years, and far distant, remains still indefatigable in promoting the welfare of the Society where he so long and faithfully performed the duties of Secretary.'" It may not be out of place to mention that the late Hon. Alexander Macleay, F.R.S., F.L.S., was selected by the Earl of Bathurst to proceed to Xew South Wales as Colonial Secretary in 1825. He was devotedly attached to Science, and was a member of the Committee of the Australian !\Iuseum from its first commencement in 1836 until the time of his decease in 1848. Consequent upon the discoveries made during,' the late Sir (jeorge Grey's journey in North-western Australia in 1838, and the survey and exploration of the coast of Northern and North-western Australia by Captain Lort Stokes, in H.M.S. "Beagle" in the same year, the fact was ultimately established that this species is an inhabitant of the Northern and North-western portions of the Australian Continent. Modern research has proved that it is apparently distributed throughout all the coastal districts of North-western and part of Northern Australia. Collecting on behalf of the Trustees of the Australian Museum, Mr. Alexander Morton procured specimens at Yam Creek, near Port Essington; the late Mr. Edward Spalding also obtained it near Port Darwin; and recently Mr. E. Olive secured its nests and eggs on the Katherine River. .\t Cambridge Gulf, M. Octave Le Bon succeeded in netting live birds. Lower down the coast, at Derby, the late Mr. T. H. Bowyer-Bower, in 1886, obtained several specimens. Inland from this place, at the junction of the Fitzroy and Margaret Rivers, Mr. G. .\. Keartland, while a member of the Calvert Exploring Expedition in 1896-7, also secured this species; and from the \\'estern Australian Museum, Perth, specimens have lately been received that were obtained at Broome, Roebuck Bay. the farthest south it has, yet been recorded. Mr. Keartland, who met with this species in North western Australia, writes to me: — ■ "The peculiar notes of the Great Bower-bird were heard along the Fitzroy River, from Derby to the Margaret River. Soon after reaching the former river, in November, I secured a young one, and on mentioning the matter to several gentlemen at the camp, they informed me that a pair had been taken from a nest by a black boy a few weeks previously. This species is very fond of bathing, and will roll in the water until its feathers are thoroughly soaked ; most of the specimens were obtained at the horse-trough near the well, where they came frequently to drink and bathe. They are very tame, and easily shot. Their chief food is the small black native fig, so common in North-western Australia. These birds are seldom seen in company except at their bowers or play-houses, which are formed by spreading a layer of fine twigs for a space of about three feet across which two parallel walls of twigs are constructed with their tops meeting so as to form an avenue. The walls of one I measured were three feet in length by fifteen inches in height. Througli this bower, and all around the structure, large quantities of bleached bones, pieces of glass, quartz, tin, and bright coloured feathers are scattered. The bowers are usually formed under the shelter of spreading bushes, but near the Margaret River one I saw was constructed inside an old native wurlej'. Dr. A. M. House, who has taken photographs of the bowers, writes: — ' My black-boy, who is more intelligent than most nati\es, says these birds lay about October, and that the nests are built in a Bauhinia, and sometimes in a MtlaUica.' This bears out what Mr. Blyth told me, who said that some time ago he saw the Bower-bird on its nest in a Bauhini:! tree near the racecourse." CUr.AMYDODKRA. 53 Subsequently Mr. Keartland informed me that four nests were found by Mr. J. P. Rogers in the gorges of the'orant Ranges, near Upper Lyvermga Station, but only one contained an egg. This n^st was built in a Bauhima tree, about a foot from the ground. Another nest, found by Mr. E. J. Harris on the 6th November. lyoo, near Xobby's Well, Fitzroy River, was also built in a Bauhinia tree, at a height of six'feet from the ground, and eontained-a single egg, which is now in Mr Keartland's collection. The breeding-time, it has since been ascertained, depends upon the season-being mfluenced by the ramfall ; nests having been found from September to December. Regarding this species, ^Ir. E. OliNe has kindly supplied me with the following notes:— '^Chlamydodn-a mtchalis is plentiful in the neighbourhood of the Katherine River, in the Northern Territory of South Australia. I have seen between twenty and thirty feeding m a tree at the same time. Thev are shv vet incjuisitix e. and often would they hop on the ground or branches to within a yard or two of me if 1 kept quiet, (".enerally their bowers are built BOWER OF GKEAT liOWER-BlRD. under the shade of trees, or under small shrubs, out in the open, and near dead timber. At one place where these birds were common there were sexen bowers within a space of fifty yards square, and one getting built which I watched from start to finish. Of the eight, there were only three of them in use; the others were old, although they looked as good as the new ones. 1 he foundation of the new bower was made of sticks laid on the ground almost parallel to one another, to the thickness of about an inch, and then the sticks to form the walls of the bower were inserted in the crevices. The outer measurements of this bower were, roughly, eighteen inches in length and fourteen inches in breadth ; across the inside it measured six inches at its widest part. The decorations were quartz crystals, land shells, and fruit. At another bower I found a revolver-cartridge, with a bullet in it, and some pieces of broken insulator caps I care- fully looked among the articles collected for nuggets of gold, as the birds would pick them up if there were any about. One bower was arched right over, being different to any I have ever seen. 64 PTILIISORIIYNCHID.E. The nests are very roughly formed open structures, built throughout of twigs, averaging from about three to six inches in length, without anv other linint;. < )ne 1 took the measurement of, was eight inches in external diameter bv five inches in depth : internally tour inches in diameter by two inches in depth. This nest was built in the fork of a tree, fifteen feet from the ground. The tree had a bushy top, which was about two feet above the nest ; and underneath the structure was a lot of dead branches, making the nest hardlv discernible. 1 might not have noticed it. only that I saw a bird tiy from that direction when I w^as about one hundred yards off the tree. Other nests were built in mistletoes, thick bushv branches, and in similar places where they could be concealed. The nests were all built in small trees in ridgy country at an height varying from eight to twenty feet from the ground. The birds always left the nests long before I could approach them, and would not return imtil 1 was out of sight. I never found more than one egg in a nest, and never found a nest near ;i bower." .\n egg of this species, taken by Mr. E. Olive, on the iper tail coverts black; upper ?citiff coverts black : first two primaries black, the next three black, orange-yellow on their inner webs, except on tJie apical portion ; tlie r(.inaiiider of the primaries • Abhandl. k. zool. Mus., Dresd., No. 10, p. 2 (1895). SERICULUS. 61 and the outer secondaries orange-yelloro, black at the tips, the black tips decreas^ng vn s^ze towards the inn...ost secondaries, u-hick are oranye-yeUo. ; lores, a broad line .ffoa^.rs ^^^^^^^^ '^ f^^ ^ sides of the face, all the under surface, and under tail coverts black; bM yello.v; leys andjeet black, iris siraw-^oldte. Total length in the flesh 10 inches, wing 5-1, tail SS, Inll 1, tarsus I'^o. Adult y^^.L^-General colour above brorcn; the feathers of the mantle and back with narrow blackish edges and Me centres, those of the rump and upper tail courts .ith a ^J>^^^ J^f^^ rohite near the tip : unngs and tail brown, the inner secondar^es unth a spot of wlnte at the tp o I^Zr webs torehld, sides of the head, and hind neck, brownish-white with dusky edges to al tZ^L; crown of the head and the lo.er hind neck black : chin and sides ,f .e threat dnM broinisJ^white, the.feathers on the sides oj the lower throat dark brown wUh s.nal ^;~'' '^ centres; centre of the throat black; remainder of the under surface dull wUte, thefeather. oJ the :llssed in the centre and edged ^ith dusky-brown, those o,f the ^^^^^ ■'^-^^^ ^f^ '^^^ under tail coverts having brown cross-bars, less distinct on the cent.. oJ abdomen and the u^d^^ .« ^ coverts; bill blackish-bror.n ; legs and feet blackish-brown; iris brown. Total length ^n the flesh 10-5 inches, wing 3-2, tail 4, hill 1, tarsus O-JtO- Distribution.-Sonth-^^stem (lueensland, North-eastern New South Wales. -r^OR brilhant and richly contrasted plumage, ir^ the adult male of the Re-ent Bower-bird surpasses all other birds ni Australia. It is, however, closely approached by the more uniformly but gorgeously plunraged adult male of Newton's Bower-bird, to which it bears some resemblance in size and colour. The former, characterised by Latham in i8oi as Tui'dus melinus, was the first described of those birds now included in the family Ptilonorhynchids, although its bower-building habit was not discovered until many years after. Newton's Bower-bird is the latest addition to the family in Australia, being described by Mr. De Vis as Prionoduva ncwtoniaiia ,n 18S3. Although somewhat resembling each other in colour, between these two species there is a wide line of demarcation in the construction of their bowers. The Regent Bower-bird builds the smallest and most primitive structure of any species belonging to the family, while that of Newton's Bower-bird is the largest and most jEsthetically decorated. The coastal brushes of New South Wales lying between the Bellinger and Tweed Rivers are of the Mackenzie River, in Queensland, where Mi. J. A. Ihorpe secure }^ , ^ t „A fortVipr thnn the rich brushes about Uunmoan, iNauua, South, its present range does not extend farther than the r ^^ .^ and Gosford, on the northern side of the Hawkesbury Ruer. 1 ha^e never see bmgound south of that river, although at the time of Gould's visit - "^^ ^ '^^^^^^^^^^^ he sLes it was occasionally seen in the -igh^— ^e^o: er ^peSs, rh^ L„ settlement, and the clearing and burning of the brush, like se^e F character of driven away from its old haunts. South of the "awkesbury^^^^^^^^^ ^ Ih o^ ^^^ ^^^ the country and vegetation entirely changes, and with ^^e JxcepUon o p ^^.^^^ ^^^^ land near Narrabeen and Cowan, a similar luxuriant subtropical growth REGENT BOWER-BIBD. M ^2 PTILONORHYJICHID.E. near Otford and Bulli, on the southern boundary of the county of Cumberland. In the latter localities the Cat-bird, Satin Bower-bird, and other brush frequenting species are found, but not the Regent Bower-bird. To the southern limit of its range, in the neighbourhood of Ourimbah and Gosford, this species is a partial migrant ; large flocks of females and young males appearing when there is a plentiful supply of wild fruits and berries, about the middle of July, and which are followed by straggling flocks of fully adult males three or four weeks later. At the same season the Cat-birds and Satin Bower-birds are plentiful in these brushes, and may be frequently seen in the same tree in company with the Regent Bower-birds. During the winter months both sexes of the latter species may be easily obtained just about daylight if one is stationed beneath one of their feeding-trees. In the spring the greater number either leave the district, or paired, are dispersed through the dense brush for the purposes of breeding. Owing to the undergrowth and tangled masses of Bramble (Riibus moorei), known in the Gosford and lllawarra Districts as the " Bush Lawyer," it is almost impossible for one to explore these secure haunts, except by way of the few tracks made by the timber getters, although of recent years the undergrowth has been gradually cleared away in the vicinity of Ourimbah. At the end of November I saw- only a few isolated adult males, and they were extremely shy, keeping as a rule to the tops of the tallest timber, and flying away on my approaching near the tree they were in. Evidently the females were sitting, for I saw the males day after day in the same place on the edge of the brush, and being about a quarter of a mile away from one another. That many pairs remain to breed is proved by my finding at Ourimbah a nest on the 9th November, igoi, and under- neath it the half shell of an unusually well marked egg, and two days later similar evidence under another tree fifty yards away. Fledgelings were also obtamed in tlie same district in January. In the autunni they prol)ably retire north again, for only a few straggling individuals are seen at the end of .Vpril, although I once saw at the end of May a young male with an admixture of black and yellow feathers with the brown, which had been shot on the previous day at Gosford. During a collecting trip to the liellinger River, undertaken by Mr. R. Grant on behalf of the Trustees of the Australian Museum in June, 1892, these birds were not met with until the beginning of July, when large flocks of females and young males made their appearance, the males not arriving until the end of .\ugust. Mr. J. A. Thorpe informs me that near Brisbane these birds were common in the scrubs on the river three miles above the town in 1S65. While living there, two brothers he knew went out especially to secure the adult males. One obtained from a single giant fig-tree seventeen beautiful old males; the other shot twenty-three from another fig-tree in a different part of the scrub. It was in these scrubs that the bower-building habit of this species was first discovered by Mr. Waller, of Brisbane, and the fact was recorded by the late Mr. Charles Coxen at a meeting of the Queensland Philosophical Society in 1864. From his account the following extracts are made" : — "The bower of the Regent-bird differs from the Satin-bird's in being less dome-shaped, straighter in the sides, platform much less, being only ten inches by ten, but thicker in proportion to its area, twigs smaller and not so arched, and the inside of the bower smaller ; indeed I believe too small to admit an adult Satin-bird without injury to its architecture. The decorations are uniform, consisting only of a small species of Helix, herein forming a marked distinction from the Satin-bird. The ground around the bower was clear of leaves for some twelve or eighteen inches, and had the appearance of having been swept. The structure w-as alike at both ends, but the part designated as the front was more easy of approach and had the principal decorations, the approach at the back being I more closed by scrub." • Handbk. Bds. Austr.. Vol. i., pp. 459 - 460 (1865). SKEICULVS. 6$ The bower-building habit of the Regent ]:)Ower-bird was confirmed by Dr. Ramsay two years afterwards, by ensnaring a fine old adult male at a similar structure he found built near a log in the scrub about twenty miles from Lismore, on the Richmond River, New South Wales. In addition to the land-shells found inside the bower, were several berries and newly-picked leaves and young shoots. The latter floral decorations are frequently used by these birds to ornament their bowers in the brushes of the Tweed, Richmond, and Bellinger Rivers. The food of this species consists of various wild fruits, berries, and insects. At Ourimbah I saw them feeding on the berries of the ink-weed (Phytolacca octandra), growing on the road- side. The stomachs of specimens I examined from this locality contained a few small fruits and berries, and the heads, legs, and elytra of beetles, conspicuous among the latter being the brightly coloured wing-cases of Lampriiiia latrcillei, Macleay. It is also very fond of cultivated fruits. Mr. 15. Lucas informs me that on the Upper Orara River lie has seen large flocks of these birds, in company with the Satin Bower-birds and Cat-birds, congregate in the introduced tobacco plants which flourish on the river flats, and that he used frequently to catch the Regent Bower-bird bv placing some loquats under a trap when these trees were denuded of their fruit. Those kept in confinement he fed principally upon bananas. I have also observed those in the Syd- / y ^-■'fT^j' ney bird-dealers' shops, at various times, being fed on the same kind of fruit. A nest now be- fore me, found by Mr.H.R.Elvery near Alstonville in the Richmond River District, on the igth Dec- ember, 1896, is a scanty and very carelessly built structure. Near the tops of several thin, rigid, and upright leafy branchlets, some long and nearly straight twigs are placed horizontally across as a foundation, and on the top of this is a loosely formed cup-shaped structure, made of thinner twigs. It was built about twelve feet from the ground, the bush being over-grown with Lawyer vines, and contained two slightly incubated eggs. The long straight twigs laid horizontally across average thirteen inches in length, the inner cup-like cavity four inches in diameter by one inch and three-quarters in depth. Another nest found by him on the 13th January, 1897, and figured above, was built at the junction of three thin branches of what is locally known as the Water Fig (Ficus aspera), and partially held in position by several leafy twigs. Exteriorly it is roughly and irregularly formed of long twigs; the inside, which is deep saucer-shape, being neatly lined with fine short twigs. In outward measure- ments it averages eight inches in diameter, although a few of the long twigs first laid as a foundation measure nearly twelve inches. Across the top of the deep saucer-like cavity it averages four inches and three-quarters by a depth of one inch and a half. The female, after being twice flushed from the nest, which contained two fresh eggs, was shot and forwarded with the nest and eggs to the Trustees of the Australian Museum. I found a similar structure NEST .\ND EGGS OF REGENT BOWER-BIRD. 64 PTILOSORHYNCHID^. on the gth November, igoi, at Ourimbah. It was built in a drooping branch of a large "Maiden's Blush," (Sloanea aiistralisj, growing on the bank of a creek, and was about twenty feet from the ground. The eggs are usually two, sometimes three, in number for a sitting, and are oval, elongate- oval, or rounded-oval in form, the shell being close-grained, and its surface smooth and lustrous. In ground colour they vary from a yellowish-stone colour to a faint greyish or dull white. Of a set of three, lent by Mr. Elvery, two are typical ovals, the other is nearly an ellipse in form. All are of a pale yellowish-stone ground colour, with long irregular lines, ill-shaped figures, loops, and scrolls of light-umber-brown, encircling the shell, and fairly evenly distributed, with similar but less numerous underlying and clouded markings of dull violet-grey; some of the lines are broad and blurred, others fine and very distinct. In one specimen there is a patch of well defined purplish linear markings near the smaller end, and a few finer purplish-black lines on the larger end. All have a few short wavy black hair-lines, hardly visible to the naked eye: — Length (A) 1-5 x i-i inches; (B) i'49 x ri2 inches; (C) 1-53 x fo6 inches. A set of two in the Australian Museum collection are o\al in form and darker in ground colour, being of a pale cream-bufi", and more sparingly and unevenly marked. One specimen has fine blurred zig-zag linear markings of different shades of sienna and umber- brown, intermingled with a few faint underlying markings of dull bluish-grey; the other has the zig-zag linear surface markings broader and darker, and interspersed with several large smudges and patches of rich umber-brown, some of the latter looking as if they had been placed on the shell with a finger dipped in colour, and a single black linear streak half encircling the shell on the larger end: — Length (A) i-56 x rog inches; (B) i'49 x i-i inches. Another set of two, lent by Mr. George Savidge, varies considerably from the two sets above described. They are of a pale stone-grey ground colour, with short streaks, irregular-shaped blotches, spots, and dots of different shades of umber-brown, evenly distributed over the surface of the shell, intermingled with similar but almost obsolete underlying markings of dull bluish-grey. One specimen has an almost straight linear streak near the centre of the shell, and another very fine ink-hued hair-line on the larger end which resembles a crack in the shell. Length (A) i-^8 x i -08 inches; (B) 1-52 X 1-07 inches. In the general character of the markings, this set is not unlike a variety of the eggs of the Satin Bower-bird. Other specimens I have examined, taken in Queensland, have the ground colour greyish-white, and the linear markings confined chiefly to the thicker half of the shell; a rare variety has the ground colour pale greenish-grey like the egg of the Spotted Bower-bird. In shape, size, colour, and character of markmgs, typical eggs of Sericulus incUnus are almost indistinguishable from those of Chlamydodera macidaia, except in the ground colour. The ground colour of typical eggs of the former is yellowish-stone colour, that of the latter pale greenish-grey. Young males resemble the females, and assume the adult plumage chiefly by a change of feather colour and not by moult. One now before me has the head, sides of the neck, mantle, scapulars, and back black, rump and upper tail-coverts dark brown, and changing into black; on the hind neck a large patch of bright yellow feathers with small blackish tips; wings as in the adult bird, but slightly duller in colour, and the tips of the secondaries and outer webs of the greater wing-coverts with pale yellowish-brown edges; tail feathers black, brownish at the tips; sides of the head and neck, throat, and breast black; remainder of the under surface and under tail coverts dull straw-white with blackish cross-bars to all the feathers. Wing measurement as in the adult bird, 5-1 inches. Another specimen has the head, nape, hind-neck, and mantle as in the adult male, but duller in colour and with blackish tips to some of the feathers, and those on the sinciput being black instead of deep reddish-orange; mantle and upper back black; lower back and rump as in the adult female ; upper tail-coverts brown, the lower ones with black centres ; two central PRIONODURA. 65 tail feathers black, ed.Ljed with brown ; the remainder brown, with narrow black shaft stripes; lesser and median upper wing-coverts brown, the inner series passing into black; the greater coverts black ; primaries and secondaries as in the adult male, but with brownish edges to the outer webs of the primaries, and blackish edges to tlie secondaries; lores, feathers above the eye, sides of the head and neck, throat, and chest black, and gradually passing into the adult plumage of the female on the remainder of the under surface. In a large series of the Regent Bower-birds in tiie Australian MuseuTu collection, several of the adult males have the lateral tail feathers narrowly edged with yellow near the tip of their inner W3bs. The black feathers on tlie liinj neck and the centre of the throat of the adult females, too, vary from a broad line to a conspicuous black patch. The bird figured represents an adult male. In the brushes of the northern coastal ri\'ers of New South Wales, November and the three following months constitute the usual breeding season of this species ; but near the southern limit of its range, it commences a month earlier. Cren-as I^ISIOlNroiDTJIR^^, A- Vis. Prionodura newtoniana. NEWTON'S BOWER-BIRD. Priotiodnra newfoidaiia, De Vis, Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., Vol. VII., p. 502 (1883), (fem.); id, Pi-oc. Roy. Soc. Queensld., Vol. VI., p. 247 (181)0), (male); Sharpe, Mou. Paradis. and Ptilono., Vol. II,, pi. 24 (1898). Adult m.\le — Ge-iwral colour aboi-e gohlpii-olive : abroad crest on tlie crown of the /lead, the liiiid-iu'ck, and upper mantle, rich yokleii-i/elloii' : tipper wing coverts like tlie back: primaries and secondaries broicii, washed with golden-olive, tvhich is more distinct on their outer webs: two central tail j'e.itJters brown, slightly tras/ied with golden-olive : the next on either side golden-yellow, with the apical lialf of tlie inner web and a broad tip brown, the next golden-yello/r, bron-n at the tip, the remainder golden-yellow : lores, sides of the face, chin, cheeks, ear-coverts, and sides of the hind-neck, golden-olive: throat, all the under surface, and under tail-coverts bright golden-yelloiv ; bill dark brown, paler at the tip ; legs and feet dark slate colour: iris pale yellow. Total length 9'5 inches, wing 5, central tail feathers SO, outer tail feathers .IS, the second feather from central pair 4 3, hill O'oo, tarsus 1'2. Adult fem.\le — General colour above olive-brown: n-iugs brown, washed tvith olive, some of the secondaries with a f tint golden-olive tvxsh on their outer webs ; tail brown; n spot in front of the eye dusky-brown: cheek.-i and ear-coverts olive-brown; all the under surface ashy-grey, washed with broivn on the lower throat, sides of the breast, and the abdomen; under tail-coverts brown; bill dark brown, paler at the tip; legs slaty-black ; iris brown. Total length S inches, wing J). 6, (ail 3 6, bill f>l!, tarsus 1'2. Distribution. — North-eastern Queensland. ^1^0 record all the members of this e.xtraordinary family inhabiting Australia, I have here J-. included Newton's Bower-bird and the Tooth-billed Bower-bird, although up to the present time no properly authenticated nest and egg of either species have been described. Newton's Bower-bird was for many years known only from a single example. This specimen, a sombre-plumaged female or young male, was obtained by Mr. Kendal Broadbent in the scrubs of the Tully River, in September, 18S2, and was described by Mr. C. W. De Vis, M.A., in the Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales in the following year.'- After the * Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W.. Vol. vii., p. 562 (1883). 66 PriLOXOKHVNCHlD.E. lapse of seven years, a gorgeously liveried male was shot by Mr. A. Meston, in February, i88g, on Bellenden Ker Range, at an elevation of 4,800 feet. This was sent to the (Queensland Museum, where shortly afterwards a series of the skins of this species was received from Mr. Broadbent, who was at that time engaged in collecting near Herberton, enabling Mr. De Vis to also describe the male.* A scientific expedition, equipped by the Queensland Government in June, i88g, to collect the flora and fauna of the Bellenden Ker Range, succeeded in obtaining several specimens. So likewise did Messrs. E. J. Cairn and R. Grant, who were simultaneously engaged in collecting natural history specimens, in the same part of North-eastern Queensland on behalf of the Trustees of the Australian Museum. The results of the former expedition were published,! and the habits and bower of this species described. A brief description of the latter was also furnished by Messrs. Cairn and Grant in their Report to the Curator, t Mr. E. A. C. Olive forwarded me one of these birds for identification. It was a fine old male, and was obtained near the summit of Mount Cook, on the 2Sth May, 1899. Mount Cook, near Cook- town, on the Endeavour River, is 1,470 feet high, and is the farthest north this species has yet been recorded. The wing measurement of adult males varies from 4'6 to 5 inches. Apart from the brilliant and attractix'e plumage of the male, the singular form of the bower of this species, and liie agsthetic taste e.xhibited by these birds in its decoration, renders Newton's Bower-bird the most remark- able of the family 1'tilonorhvnchid.-e. It is the smallest species of Bower-bird inhabiting Aus- tralia, yet it forms the largest bower, when the structure is resorted to for sexeral years. The sticks with which the bower is formed are piled up horizontally, or nearly so ; the walls inside at the top are wider apart than at the bottom, and the whole of the decorations are floral. The late Mr. W. S. Day, who collected several hundred of these birds, during a nine years' residence in the vicinity of their haunts, and who had unparalleled opportunities for closely studying their habits, kindly favoured me with the following notes: — "Newton's Bower-bird frequents Mount Bartle Frere and the Bellenden Ker Range. Near Cairns I met with it, principally at Boar Pocket, Scrubby Creek, and the Upper Russell River. It is always found in or near thick scrub and never in the open forest country below the range. Although a permanent resident in these scrubs, it moves about from place to place according to the abundance of its food supply, for it lives entirely on wild fruits and berries. The note of the male is very difficult to imitate, but when playing in the bower he frequently utters a sound like the croaking of a bull-frog. He also possesses the power of mimicry, and I have often heard him imitate the notes of the Tooth-billed Bower-bird, the Spotted Cat-bird, and Queen Victoria's Rifle-bird. The note of the female is like that of the Grey Shrike-Thrush NEWTON S BOWKll HIIUJ. • Proc. Roy. Soc. Queensld., Vol. vi., p. 247 (1890). t Rept. Queensld. Govt. Sci. Exped. to Bellenden Ker Range, (1889). ; Rec. Aust. Mus., Vol. i., p. 27, (1890). PKIONODUUA. °' (Colhvwanda harmomca), but not so loud, and as tliey are somewhat ahke in colour and form, I have frequently mistaken one for the other in the thick scrub. 1 have found a great number of their bowers. Those of the f^rst season are simply a lot of sticks and twigs placed around two small trees growing about a yard or slightly more apart. The following season it is added to and gradually assumes a V shape at the bottom of the inner portion, being now about two feet in height. As a rule, there is a stick placed transversely across the bower, within f^ve or six inches^of the bottom. The walls are added to each season, but one is always built higher than the other after the first year. The largest I ever found was nine feet high on one side and six feet six inches on the other, and resembled two pyramids of diflerent heights with their bases touching each other. Some bowers are rounded at the bottom, and nearly all I have seen are more or less ornamented with floral decorations according to the season of the year These consist of pieces of green moss, bits of fern, white rock-lilies, orchids, and flowers of other plants, and are placed inside on the higher wall and at the bottom of the bower. Seldom have I found a bower with the lower wall decorated. The flowers are ; fruits berries and the remains of Coleopterous stomachs of those I examined contained various tiuits, oerries, au insects." TOOTll-BILLKD BOWER HI IID. 70 PTILOSORHYNCHID.E. The late Mr. W. S. Day, of Kuranda, near Cairns, Queensland, kindly supplied me with the following notes: — "Relative to this species, the Tooth-billed Bower-birds are very common in the thick scrub lands about the Russell, Mulgrave, and Johnstone Rivers, in North-eastern Queensland, and are far more frequently met with in the ranges than the low-lands. They are usually associated in small flocks, and may be often seen in company with the Spotted Cat-bird (AHurcedns maculosus) feeding on the different fruits and berries which con- stitute their food. At the end of June they begin to mate, and go about in pairs only. The play -ground of this species is a very simple one. Clearing a space about three feet in diameter of all sticks and leaves, and usually between two small trees, they place fresh green leaves flat on the ground in the centre of the circle. This is resorted to by from two, to ten or twelve birds, who toss or move the leaves about, and make a great noise, but, unlike Newton's Bower-bird, never fight at the play-ground, although they do so frequently with each other when feeding in the trees. The green leaves vary from ten to over a hundred, according to the number of birds frequenting the play-ground, which is resorted to all the year round. I forward you all the green leaves taken from one measuring three feet four inches in diameter, that I found in the scrub on the Upper Russell River, on the i8th September, 1891. They are twenty-eight in number, and in the centre of the circle were two deep, being more scattered around the edge." The leaves are long, varying from six to ten inches in length, and from one and a half to two inches in breadth. Mr. I-". M. Bailey, F.L.S., Colonial Botanist, Queensland, has kindly identified them as the leaflets of a tree described by him as Nephdinm callaric. In an e.xtract forwarded,* Mr. Bailey states that " Callarie " is the aboriginal name of the tree at the Upper Barron River, where he collected the specimens in June, 1SS9. He describes it as "a graceful erect tree, about fifty feet high ; in all parts, except the upper side of leaflets, thinly covered with a light pulverulence. Upper side of leaflets green, glabrous, under side almost white." Of the habits of these birds farther north, Mr. F"rank Hislop writes me as follows: — " In the Bloomfield River District, the Tooth-billed Bower-birds are only found in the scrub on the lofty mountain ranges. They generally have their play-ground in the dense undergrowth. First, a small space about two or three feet in diameter is cleared of all dead leaves and rubbish, and then from about thirty to fifty fresh green leaves are placed thereon, with their white under sides uppermost. I think they must change the leaves very often, as one never sees any withered leaves on the play-grounds frequented by these birds. They are excellent mimics of the notes of other species. 'Bartchal' is the aboriginal name for them in this district." Immature birds have the upper parts, wings, and tail brown, sligiitly washed with olive, which is more distinct on the upper back; all the under surface white, tinged with fulvous, the feathers being narrowly margined with dark brown except on the centre of the abdomen. Wing 5-5 inches. O-en-O-S -iEI-iTJISCEIDXJS, Cabanis. iEluroedus viridis. CAT-BIRD. Gracula viridis, Lath., Ind. Orn., Suppl., p. xxviii., (1801). Ptilonnrhynchus smilhii, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. IV., pi. II (1848). Ailunedus smithii, Gon\d, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol.1., p. 446 (1865). jE'.uroedus viridis, Siiarpe, Oat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. VI., p, 38.5 (1881); North, Rec. Aust. Mus., Vol. I., p. ill, pis. xii. and xiii. (I89I). Adult male — General colour above grass-yreen, the crown of the head and hind neck ivashed with olive, and having a narrow white streak in the centre of each feather ; quills and upper wing * Queensld. Agric. Journ., p. 388, October, 1889. ^LURCEDLS. 71 coverts yrass-yreen ; the median and greater tviny-coverls, also the secondaries ivith a spot of wltite at the lip of their outer webs; inner irehs oj the outer secondaries and 0/ the primaries blackish-bro/rn, the apical portion 0/ the outer webs 0/ the primaries except the two innermost feathers bhiish-green ; tail grass-green, all but the two central feathers tipped with white, the lateral feathers blackish-brown on their inner webs, and increasing in extent towards the outermost feather, which is only slightly washed with green on the outer web; sides of the face and ear-coverts dull olive-yreen minutely spotted with black; the tips of the earcoverts blackish; on the sides of the neck a small patch of ivhite feathers; throat dull grey ivashed with olive, and spotted with white; remainder of the under surface olive-green with a lanceolate yellowish-white marking in the centre vf each feather on the cliesf and breast, and which lengthens out into a narrow lanceolate shaft stripe on the feathers on the lower sides of the body ; centre of the abdomen and under tiil coverts yellow slightly tinged with olive; bill light bluish-horn colour, whitish at the tip: legs and Jeet fleshy-brown; iris reddish-brotvn. Total length in the fesh 12--'> inches, rcing G 6, tail 'rl, hill I'l, tarsus IS. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — South-eastern Queensland, Eastern New South Wales. (»\ LTHOUGH found in the south-eastern portions of Queensland, the luxuriant brushes of -l\. New South Wales are the stronghold of this species. It is abundantly distributed throughout tlie northern coastal districts of the Tweed, Brunswick, Richmond, Clarence, and Bellinger Rivers. Farther south it is sparingly dispersed in favourable situations as far as that rich belt of sub-tropical vegetation which commences near Lake Tuggerali and suddenly ceases a few miles north of the Hawkesbury River. It is not met with in the adjoining counry of Cumberland, except near its southern boundary where a similar vegetation is found, in the neighbourhood of Waterfall, Otford, and Bulli. Gradually its numbers increase, and it is again very plentiful in the damp scrubs at Cambewarra and Kangaroo \'alley in the Illawarra District, its range extending throughout the coastal districts to very near the southern boundary of the State. During the winter months, at Ourimbah and \\'yong, it congregates in large flocks to feast upon the wild fruits and berries, and is often seen feeding in company with the Satin Bower-bird. Unlike the Satin l^ower-bird, however, whose range extends inland as far as the western slopes of the Blue Mountains, the Cat-bird, which frequents similar situations, is entirely restricted to the coastal brushes. The food of this species consists of wild fruits and berries. It is very fond of the seeds of the Bangalow Palm (Scaforthia clegans), and of the Cabbage Palm (Livistona aitstralis); also of the berries of the introduced ink- weed (Phytolacca octandra). At Ourimbah these birds are occasionally caught in the traps or 'cribs' set for the Little Green Pigeon (Chalcophaps chrysochloya), They are also shot for food, and their flesh is said to be white and tender like that of the Wonga Pigeon. The peculiar and extraordinary notes of this species resemble more than anything else, the long drawn out plaintive cries of the domestic cat. Although the Cat-birds are usually included in the family of bower-building birds, I liave never heard of any species, either in Australia or New Guinea, constructing a bower, or even decorating a cleared space in the scrub with leaves like Scenopcvetcs dentirostris. There is a marked difference, too, between the nests and eggs of the Bower-birds and Cat-birds inhabiting Australia. The nests of the former are scanty and somewhat primitive structures formed of sticks or twigs, and only in one instance— that of the Satin Bower-bird— are they lined at the bottom with leaves. Their eggs, howaver, are noted for the beauty of their markings, especially those of the different species of the genus Chlamydodcra, and Sericnlus melinns. The nests of the two species of Cat-birds are compact bowl-shaped structures, beautifully formed of twigs, stems of climbing plants, and long broad leaves. On the other hand their eggs are almost colourless. PTILONORHYNCHID,*. and entirely devoid of markings, and are among the very few uniformly coloured eggs laid in open nests by the larger Australian passerine birds. The nest of this species is a bowl-shaped structure, composed exteriorly of long twigs and stems of climbing plants entwined around a thick layer of long broad leaves, intermingled in some instances with a few pieces of moss, the inside being lined with fine dried twigs. An average nest measures externally eight inches and a quarter in diameter by five inches and a half in depth; the inner cup five inches in diameter by three in depth. It is usually built in a three or more pronged upright fork near the top of a low tree, and frequently one that is hidden with a leafy mass of vines, at varying heights from twelve to forty feet from the ground. During my visit to the Upper Clarence in November, 1898, a pair of these birds succeeded in rearing their young in a scrub not far from the house. Mr. G. Savidge found several nests containing eggs later on in the same month in the Dundara Scrubs. From one nest the birds made every effort to allure him from the spot, uttering harsh grating cries as they fluttered apparently helpless along the ground, and feigned a broken leg or wing. The previous year, in the Cangai Scrubs, he found these birds re- markably shy, not ven- turing into sight even when he was robbing their nests. In these localities, nests with eggs are usually found in Nov- ember and December. Mr. W. J. Grime ob- tained the first nest and egg of this species I had seen, in the Tweed River District, on the 4th October, 1 8go. The nest was built in a three-pronged fork of a tree about fourteen feet fiDm tlie ground, and contained two slightly incubated eggs. On the 8th November follow- ing, Mr. Grime found another nest which the bird would not leave until fairly shaken out, when he discovered it contained two young ones, apparently hatched about a couple of days. Mr. H. R. Elvery informs me that near Alstonville, in the Richmond River District, this species sometimes builds in a tree a\'ergrown with lawyer-vines, and that he has found its nests in a tree-fern, and on the top of a bird's-nest fern growing on the side of a tree. On two occasions he found nests containing only one incubated egg in each. The nest figured, which contained two fresh eggs, was taken by Mr. Elvery on the 13th December, 1898. NKST AND KfiGS OF CAT-1!IKD. ^LURCEDUS. 7» At Ourimbah, I saw these birds building on the 25th November, 1898. In this district the leaves of the Native Tamarind (Diploglottis cnnnlnghwiii ) are used by this species in the construction of its nest. The e<,'gs of the Cat-bird lire usually two, sometimes three in number for a sitting. They vary in form from oval to elon-ate-oval, some specimens tapering sharply towards the smaller end, the shell being close grained and its surface smooth and glossy. Typically they are of a uniform cream colour, but varv from a rich cream to a pale creamy-white. A set of two, taken by Mr. George Savidge at Cangai, in the Upper Clarence District, on the nth December, 1897, measures as follows :-Length (A) rSgxray inches; (B) rSxray inches. Another set:— (A) 1-69 X 1-26 inches; (B) 17 x 1-25 inches. Nestlings have the head and hind-neck covered with smoky-brown down, remainder of the upper surface as in the adults but duller in colour, and only the innermost scapulars with a spot of white near the extremity of the outer web; sides of the face, throat and the neck, bare; lower neck, chest, and sides of the bodv smoky-grey; centre of the breast and abdomen dull white with indistinct dull ol.ve-green tips to all the feathers. Wing 4-6 inches. In young birds the throat is grevish-white, with brown bases to the feathers ; there are no white streaks on the centres of the feathers of the hind-neck, and the inner secondaries only have a small spot of yellowish-white at the extremity of the outer web ; on the sides of the neck there is only an indication of the white patch of feathers, and the centres of the feathers on the lower sides of the body are broadly streaked with yellowish-white. Wing 5-9 inches. October and the three following months constitute the usual breeding season of this species. yEluroedus maculosus. SPOTTED CAT-BIKU. .Elura^dus maculosus, Ramsay, Proe. Zaol. Soc, 1874, p. 601; Sharp., Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. VI., p. 38.5 (1881); North, Proe. Linn. Soc, N. S. Wales, 2nd ser., Vol. III., p. U. (Ibbh). Ailurcedns tnacnlo.^us, Gould, Bds. New Uuin., Vol. I., pi. 38. Advlt MU.K- Head and nape blackish-brown, with a rounded subterminal spot of hrownish- v,hite at the tip of each feather: the hind neck sunilar, bat slightly rcashed ^vith green andpassxng into dull green on the mantle, which is less distinctl;, spotted with brownish-wMte ; remauider oj the upper surface green; the upper back slightly tinged ^oith olive.- quills and upper wmg-coverts green; the inner' series of the median and greater coverts, also the secondaries, with a small spot of wlnte at the tip of their outer webs: inner webs of the outer secondaries and of the primaries blackish-brown ; the apical portion of the outer webs of the primaries, except the two innermost feathers, bhnsh-green; tail green, all but 'the t^oo central Jeathers tipped roith white, the lateral feathers blackish-brown on t),eir inner webs, and increasing in extent towards the outermost feather, which rs only sUghtly washed with green on the outer web; lores yellowish-whUe ; ear-coverts black, the short upper Jeathers wldtisli; lower cheeks yellowish-white : chin black : throat dull rMte with greemsh-brown tips to al feathers, the latter colour more distinct on the fore-neck ; remainder of the under surface greemsh- brown, with a lanceolate yellowish-white marking in the centre of each feather on the chest and breast, and which lengthens out into a narrow lanceolate shaft-stripe on the feathers of the lower sides of the body: centre of the abdomen and the under taU-coverts yellow, slightly loashed rvith nreen' bill light bluish-horn colour at the base, whitish at Uie tip ; legs and feet fleshy-brown ; ^r^s reddish-brown. Total length 11 inches, wing 6, tail i-2, bill 105, tarsus 1 7o. Adult fkm.\le— .S'i/»i/rtc in plumage to the male. i>ts^ro.. ------;t^2;tz::is^ ^i,. ..kite, so,ne oftke inner greater co.erts .M >rUk «— r^' • -/ ^T. n,eb and Having a ,rey,aU but tUe t.o ee.tr a^^ fe^^ers -^-^J:--^;^^^^^^^ large oval sp.t of >vhUe on tke .^ner n.eh tins pot '- « "^ J ,^ ^,^„^, „,,_^„,,. Z^IZW. Mack ou tUe ekest, tkese streams gradually assu,ning tkej.r.u o, ana.ro. te^^^ grey. Total length in the flesh 1V5 inches, udag 6, tail J,''>, bill I'l, tarsus J. Adult female— Similar in plumage to the male. ^i,^„i„,<,on.-Queensland, New South Wales, \^ictoria. 1 1- h.^ in "The Ibis "* on the "Birds of North Queens- -p^KOM an interestmg paper, pubhshed '" ^he Ib.s, ^^^ following:- i^ land.- by Messrs. H. C. Robn.son and W . S. L-er°c .^fortunately .The name of -'-/"-'f ' ^'^-^ Vr^^^f (^ r aL^^^^^^^^^ untenable, being founded on the Grcn, Gr.uU o^^^^am. J^^^^ ^^,^^ ^^^^^^ however, it is obvious that it really applies to the Cat b. ^^^,^,^^ of Latham,: name, then, for the present spec.es is M.,...s...iM«,found^^^^^^^^ .^^^ Latinized as Coracias sa.Htata., The specnnen ^ ^^ the Uverpool Musemn." Lord Derby's Collection, and is fortunately still m existence in ine^^^^^F ^ » '■ The Ibis," 1900, p 625. t Gen. Syn., Suppl., II., p. 129 (i8oi)- : Gen^ Syn., Suppl , II., p- 122 (18°')- S; Ind. Orn., Suppl., p. xxvi , (iSoi). 76 ORIOLID-E. On referring to Latham's Supplement to the "General Synopsis of Birds," and his "Index Ornithologicus," I have verified the previous statement; it is remarkable that the error remained so long undiscovered. The range of the Olive-backed Oriole extends over most parts of Eastern, and South-eastern Australia. .Although frequenting open forest lands and mountain ranges in the inland portion of the States, it evinces a decided preference for the rich coastal brushes which afford it an abundant supply of its usual food, consisting of wild fruits, berries, and insects. The fruit of the native fig-trees, and of the introduced ink-weed (Phytolacca octandra), found in these localities, are eagerly devoured by this species. It does not, however, limit its attention to wild fruits and berries, for ever since the advent of fruit-growers in .\ustralia, this bird has proved itself to be a notorious orchard marauder, attacking the softer fruits, such as grapes, mulberries, cherries, peaches, figs, bananas, and paw-paws. Specimens are frequently obtained with the plumage stained or dyed with the juice of the mulberry, or ink-weed. From \'ictoria Mr. Keartlaiid sends me the following note: — "The extreme fondness of the Olive-backed Oriole for cultivated fruit was the cause of my paying a special \isit to Clayton in search of what was '^airl to lie a strange bird, and described as 'being all crimson and very wary.' On my arrival at th(; paddock it used to frequent, I saw the rara avis approaching from the direction of a neighbouring orchard, and struck by its peculiar colour, I determined to secure it. .\fter over an hour's hard chasing, I shot what proved to be one of tiiis species witli the whole of its plumage stained with mulberry juice." Usually this bird is met with in pairs, frequenting the topmost branches of the tallest trees, except in the autumn and winter months, when it congregates in flocks. In July, 1896, large numbers of them appeared in the Corowa District, and at that time were subsisting chiefly on olives. It is possessed of varied notes, some of which are very melodious, and can be heard a long distance away. The nest is a deep, cup-shaped structure, outwardly formed of long thin strips of stringy- bark, and bark fibre, or the paper-like bark of the Melaleuca when procurable, the inside being thickly lined with fine wiry green grass-stems. Some nests are slightly coated with the pale green Bearded Lichen (Usnea barbata), or ornamented with the webs and egg-bags of spiders, while others, when built in tea-trees, are outwardly constructed entirely with the white paper- like bark of some species of the latter. .\n average nest measures externally five inches and a half in diameter by four inches in depth; the inner cup three inches and a c]uarter in diameter by two inches and three-quarters in depth. It is securely fastened by the rim to a thin horizontal fork near the extremity of a branch, usually of a Eucalyptus or Aiigophora, and less frequently of a Syncarpia or Melaleuca. Generally they are built at a height varying from twenty to sixty feet from the ground, and are difficult to obtain, but in mountain ranges I have known them to be built in saplings almost within hand's reach. Eggs usually three in number for a sitting, sometimes only two, and rarely four. They vary in form from oval to elongate-oval, the shell being close-grained, smooth, and lustrous. The ground colour is variable, ranging from dull white to creamy-white and ri( h brownish-white, HI OLIVK-HAl KKl) OHIO I. K ORIOLUS. 77 others have the ground colour tinged with buff, or are of a uniform cream colour. The most common type are of a pale creamy or brownish-white ground colour, which is uniformly and minutely dotted, spotted, and irregularly blotched with different shades of umber intermingled with similar underlying markings of deep bluish-grey, in some specimens the latter colour approaching almost a pale inky-purple hue, while in others the subsurface markings are entirely absent. As a rule the markings are irregularly shaped, bold, and evenly distributed over the shell, but not infrequently they predominate on the larger end, where an irregular zone or cap is formed. Specimens are sometimes found with the markings only slightly darker than the ground colour, or having them very small but well defined. A set of three measures as follows:— (-\) 1-38 x o-g8 inches; (B) i-4xo-i inches; (C) 1-37 x o'g6 inches. .\ set of two measures: — (A) 1-33 x o-g4 inches; (B) 1-32 x 0-95 inches. An elongate set of three measures: — (A) 1-5 xo-g inches; (I!) 1-51 x o-g inches ; (C) i-4()XO-g2 inches. Young birds are greyish-brown above, slightly washed with oli\e ; crown of the head and hind-neck streaked with black; feathers of the upper back with a central or subterminal streak of black, and have pale buffv-brown margins; the upper tail cox'erts with a subterminal spot of black, and narrowly edged with oli\e at the tip; quills and upper wing-coverts brown, the primaries and secondaries externally edged and tipped with pale rufous, the greater and median wing-coverts broadly margined and tipped with the same co'our; tail greyish-brown, with ashy-white edges to all the feathers, the wliite spots at the tips of all but the two central feathers extending in a line along either web; sides of the head and neck greyish-brown washed with olive; throat and fore-neck greyish-white with blackish streaks to all the feathers; remainder of the under surface with a blackish -brown streak on the feathers of the chest, and a tear-shaped marking on those of the breast and sides of the abdomen. In a slightly older bird there is a distinct olive- white eyebrow; the upper parts are more strongly washed with olive, and the crown of the head and the hack is distinctly streaked with black ; the tail-feathers have lost their whitish edges, and the white spots at the tips of all but the two central feathers are smaller; the median and greater wing-coverts are broadly margined with pale rufous, and the primaries and secondaries are externally edged with pale buffy-whitc, and narrowly tipped with white. Wmg measurement the same as that of the adult bird, (> inches. In the neighbourhood of Sydney, nidification begins about the latter end of September, and lasts ten or twelve days, the eggs being usually deposited by the end of the second week in October. .Vt Lithgow, on the Blue Mountains, 3,000 feet above the sea-level, ^Nlr. K. C.rant also found new nests ready for the reception of eggs early in October. Nests, however, with fresh eggs are more often obtained during the latter end of that month or early in November, and the breeding season continues until the end of January. These birds are persistent breeders, and will build again in the same locality after being repeatedly robbed. A nest containing two eggs was taken at Chatswood, near Sydney, from a Turpentine-tree (Syncarpia laurifolia), on the 22nd October, i8gS. Three eggs were taken from a nest belonging to the same pair of birds on the 8th November, and a few days after the birds were busy constructing a third nest in a tree in the same locality. Gould separated a smaller race of these birds from Northern Australia under the name of Oviolus affinis. That some of the specific characters of Oriohis sa/ritfatus are influenced by its geographical distribution is apparent wlien one compares a large series of these birds procured in diiferent latitudes. 1-or, the further north the specimens are obtained, it will be found that they are slightly smaller in size, the bill is larger, the white terminal marking on the inner web of the outer tail-feathers is smaller, and the narrow white tip to the outer web is entirely lost, .\dult males from Cairns and Cooktown, in North-eastern Queensland, are almost intermediate in size between the two forms, O. sagittahis and 0. affinis, measuring in total length 10 inches, wing 5-g, bill 1-15, extent of the white terminal marking on the inner web of Q 78 ORIOLID.E. tlie outer tail-feather 0-7 inches, and ha\ing only a slight indication of the narrow white tip to the outer web. Adult males from Cape York and Port Darwin have a white spot only at the tip of the inner web of the tail-feathers, and their wing measurement is yj inches, and the wing and tail is not so strongly washed with grey as examples from Eastern Australia. A fully adult male, collected at Derby, North-western Australia, by Mr. E. J. Cairn in 1886, has the wings and tail brown, without any greyish wash on the feathers, and there is only a slight indication of the whitish edges to the tips of the quills. It measures in total len.th g inches, wing 5-7, tail 4, bill i-j; extent of white spot on inner web of outer tail-feather, and which does not reach to the shaft, 0-42 inches. A typical specimen of an adult male of O. sngifiniiis, shot near Sydney, measures in total length 11 inches, wing 6, tail 4-5, bill i ; extent of white terminal marking to inner web of outer tail-feathers, which reaches to the sliatt and around the tip of the outer web, o'g inches. Now, comparing examples obtained in New South Wales with those from North-western Australia and Port Essington, or even Cape York, one would naturally conclude that Gould was correct in regarding them as two distinct although closely allied species, O. sagittatus inhabiting the south-eastern portions of the continent, and O. affinis being its smaller northern and north-western representative. In the intergradation, howe\er, that takes place between these two races, it is apparent that examples from the neighbourhood of Cairns and Cooktown must be regarded as belonging to an intermediate form, but to characterise the birds from this part of the continent even as a subspecies would be absurd. Similar instances of the gradual Tail of Oi'ioliis sagittatus. Tail of Orioliis aMnis. decrease in size of a species, and increase in the length of its hill, is afford(-d by CoUyriocincla rufigasicY, found in New South Wales and Queensland, and its diminutixe and cl.)se northern ally C. parvissiiiia\ also by Philemon citreogularis, and its northern and north-western representa- ti\'e P. sordidiis. In the "Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum," Dr. Sharpe does not regard either Orioliis affinis or CoUyriocincla parvissima as distinct species, although the learned author ranks several of our .Australian birds as good species on less slender grounds. Authorities are divided in opinion as to what is a sufficient character to constitute a species, or subspecies, and have been classed as either "lumpers" or "splitters." Personally, I favour the former, for in a large island-continent like .\ustralia, where geographical distribution and climatic influence are such important factors in the character of a species, it would render the study of birds impossible if each tinge or shade in colour of plumage from different latitudes were accorded subspecific distinction. During a period of twelve years, I have characterised three very distinct subspecies, but were I to separate from different localities each race that varies from the average type in size and depth of colour, the described Australian forms would be considerably more than twice the number they are at present. To do so, however, Ornithologists without the aid of a specimen being properly localised, and of a large reference collection only to be found in a Museum, and possibly a few private collections, would be hopelessly involved in trying to distinguish the various climatic forms of a species. Taking Orioliis sagittatus as an OKIOLUS. example, one could pick out three distinct races fron, the typical form. An examumtion ol a larc^e series fronr different latitudes would prove, however, that they gradually merge mto one another Leaving the increase n, the length of bill out of the question, the decrease m the white terminal marking of the tail feathers is shown on the preceding page from a photograph of the tails of two fully adult males obtained in widely separated localities. One is the figure of the tail of an adult male of Orwlus sn„ttalus shot near Sydney ; the other ,s that of Gould s smaller race, or subspecies, O. <#«^S procured at Derby, North-western Australia. \ set of two e--s, taken near Port Darwin, cannot be distinguished from typical eggs of O. sagitMus, but are slightly smaller. They measure:-(A) 1-3 x 0-87 inches; (B) r3xo-y inches. Oriolus flavicinctus. YELLOW-BELLIED ORIOLE. Mimetes Javocinctus, King, Sarv. Intortrop, Coasts Austr., Vol. II., p. 419 (1827). Oriolus flavocinctus, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol. Vol. IV., pi. U (1848). Mi,neta .flavocincta, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr.. Vol. I., p. 466 (186.5); Salvad., Orn. Pap. et Molucc, Pt. II., p. 471 (1881). Oriohcs /avicmctus, Sharps, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 206 (1877). ADULT M.LE-ff«n.m? colour above olive-yellow, the, feathers on the crown of the head streaked unth black, and those of the back havin, a narrow arrou-.haped rnarking of black in the centre ; lesser ..ing-coverts like the hack: the .ned^n, greater, and pri,nary coverts black, washed wUh oUve and largely Upped a-ith yellow: pri.aaries black, externally edged with oUveand Hpped wUh yellowish-wUte: the secondar^es .imUar, but .nore conspicuously .nargined wUh oUoe-yelow on the^r outer webs; tail feathers black, washed with greenish-yellow on the.r outer wehs and trpped wUh yellow, which increases in extent towards the outermost feather ; sides of the head and neck, and all the under surface olive-yellow, passing into a clearer yellow on the centre of the abdomen and under tail coverts; bill dull red; legs and feet bluish-lead colour; iris red. Total length 11 ruches, wing f!, tail 4--5, bill IS, tarsus 1. Abult .....^-Difers from the male in its smaller si.e, and in having all the feathers of the crown of the head and back more broadly streaked roUh black; a distinct eye-brow ohve-yellow; under surf^c; olive-yellow, conspicuously streaked with black down the centre of.nost '^^I^^^^^^^^^^JI^^^U secondarres, and upper wing-coverts brown, with straw-whUe instead of yellow t.ps to 'W- '-«: '^^ feathers brown, washed with olive-green, the yellow tips being much paler and smaller than ^n the male. Total length 10:1 inches, wing O'O, tail i 3, bill 1-25, tarsus 1. D..tribntron.^^onUe.n Territory of South .Vustralia, Northern and North-eastern Queens- land, -Vru Islands. AT^HIS species is freely distributed in suitable localities over the northern and north-eastern T portions of the Australian continent, numerous specimens having been obtained by various collectors at Port Darwin, Port Essington, Cape York, -d^'--'^^'^; ;^;^,7;t districts of North-eastern Queensland as far south as Cairns. It has been -- ^^ fro P Denison, but I have never seen a specimen that was obtained south ol Card.ell. It also occurs in the .\ru Islands. It IS essentiallv an inhabitant of the rich coastal brushes and contiguous --"^-"J-f ^; '•., r • 1 1 AT,- K' Crant informs me that while collecting on behalf ot and is never met with far inland. Mi. K. Uiant iniormb , T?;,-^r=tnnP about the Trustees of the Australian Museum in December, 1888, he met with it at Ruerstone, about 80 OUIOI.ID.S. sixteen miles from Cairns, in small flocks from five to seven in number, feeding; in company with Calorm's mdallica, on the berries of a tree. At that time the plumage was much abraded, and he found it useless shooting them for specimens. Writing from the P>loomfield River District, in Xorth-eastern Queensland, in October, 1896, Mr. Robert Hislop, Junr., sends me the following note: — '-Oriolus flavicinctiis is a partial migrant, arriving here generally at the end of June, and departing again about the end of February. Some seasons the}' are more numerous than others, and when there is an abundance of native fruits and berries many of them remain throuu'hout the year. Owing, however, to the comparatively light rainfall during tlie last three years, and the consequent dearth of their food supply, these birds have been unusually scarce, and wliat few visited us soon took their departure for some more rain-favoured district. When they remain to breed, they are usually found about lagoons and in tiie mangroves along the banks of rivers and creeks. The nest is an open cup-shaped structure, and is built at the junction of a thin forked twig at the extremity of a horizontal branch, usually of a Melaleuca, and frequently in one overlianging a water-hole or salt-water creek, at an altitude from twenty to forty feet. It is formed of long strips of tea-tree bark and bark-fibre, and lined inside with very fine twigs. Two eggs are laid for a sitting. The months of November, December, and January, constitute the usual breeding season." .\ nest of this species, taken about eight miles from Cooktown, is an open cup-shaped structure, and is securely fastened by the rim to a thin forked horizontal branch. It is outwardly formed of long strips of tea-tree bark, bark lihro. thin dried leaves, plant tendrils, and a small quantity of spider's-web, the inside being lined entirely witli fine plant twigs; externally its average measurements are six inches in diameter by three inches in depth, the inner cup measuring three inches and a half in diameter by two inches in depth. 1 he eggs vary in shape, colour, and disposition of their markings, as do those of On'oliis sagittaiiif, which they closely resemble, especially those taken in the northern portions of the continent, from which they cannot be distinguished. .\ set of two, taken in the Bloomfield Ri\er District, on the loth December, 1894, are oval in form and slightly pointed at the smaller end, the shell being close grained, and its surface smooth and glossy. They are of a uniform pale creamy- brown ground colour, which is irregularly blotched and finely dotted with rich umber-brown, and a few similar underlying markings of dull inky-grey. Length: — (.-V) 1-26 x 0-92 inches; (B) 1-25 X 0-92 inches, .\nother set of two, taken near Cooktown on the 2nd December, 1899, have the ground colour of a pale brownish-white, one specimen being heavily blotched and finely dotted with different shades of umber-brown, and a few subsurface markings of blackish-grey ; on the other the markings are much smaller, darker, and round;'d in shape, some of them being in clusters, others are in straight lines, the underlying blackish-grey markings being more numerous, and forming an ill-defined zone on the larger end. Length: — (A) 1-23 x 0-92 inches; (B) I-25 X o*93 inches. Dr. A. l>. Meyer, Director of the Dresden ^Museum, who has contributed so largely to a knowledge of the Papuan avifauna, also of the nests and eggs of many birds common alike to Northern Australia and New Guinea, described and figured the eggs of the present species many years ago.^'^ In the same publication there is also a description and figure I of the egg of another well-known North .\ustralian species, Cracticus quoyi, Quoy's l!utcher-bird. * Zeitschr. f. ges. Orn., i., p. 292. p!. xvii , fig. i (1884). t Op c'lt , p. 283, pi. x\\\\.. figs. 2-4 (1884). SPHECOTHERES. 81 Sphecotheres maxillaris. FIG-BlRLi. Turdus maxillaris, Larli., Tiul. Orn., Suppl., p. xliii., (ISOl). Sphecolh-.res anilr:iH!<, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. IV., pi. 15(1848). Sphecotheres ma.r.iUarii, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr,, Vol. I., p. 4<'i7 (i860); Sliarpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. .Mus., Vol. III., p. -J-:! (1877). Adult malk — General colour above ijellowish-yreen : upper tving-coverts like the back; primaries black, externally edged with ashy-white ; secondaries black, broadly margined ivith yellowish-green on their outer webs, the innermost feathers yelloicish-green on the outer irel), black i>u the inner ; tail black, the lateral feathers tipped ivith tvliite ivhich increases in extent towards the outermost feather, the outer tveb of the latter ichite except at the base ; crown of the head, nape, and ear-coverts black; hind neck, throat, and for^'-neck leaden greif, remainder of the under surface dull yelloivis/i-f/reen ; centre of the lower abdoineii and under tail-coverts white; bill black; lefs and Jeet pale feshy-b^-own; bare space around the eye, and iris, red. Total length in the flesh 11 inches, wing 6',2, tail Ji.-'>, bill 0''J ', tarsus 1. Adult female — General colour above brown: tlw loiver rump and upper tail-coverts washed with greenish-olive; wings broivn, the primaries narrowly edged externally with dull ashy-white; the median and greater wing-coverts and secondaries ivashed with greenish-olive on their outer luebs ; tail brown, washed with greenish-olive except on the lateral feathers, ivhich are margined with white at the tips of the inner ivebs ; throat, sides of the neck, and fore-neck brownish -ivhite, broadly streaked with brown; remainder of the under surface ivhite, conspicuously streaked tvith broivn; centre of the abdomen white,; sides 0/ the body tinged with greenish -olive; under tail-coverts white, with brown shaft-streaks. Total length 11 inches, wing >J5, tail fo, bill U.j, tarsus 1. Distribution. — Eastern Queensland, North-eastern New South Wales. ^"I^HE Fig-bird is a resident species, and is plentifully dispersed throughout the rich coastal J_ scrubs and brushes of South-eastern Queensland and North-eastern New South Wales. In the latter State, on rare occasions, specimens have been obtained as far south as the neighbourhood of Sydney. During my visit to the Clarence River District, I found it usually in pairs, and fairly numerous, frequenting chiefly the taller trees in open forest lands, or near the margin of scrubs. Just about dusk, these birds would resort to the low Bean-trees ( Castanospermum australe), and brushes on the river banks, uttering their peculiar parrakeet-like notes, as they playfully chased each other from branch to branch. Locally, about Copmanhurst, it is known as the " Red-eye," and in some parts of New South Wales and Queensland, as "Mulberry-bird," "Fig-bird," or "Banana-bird," according to the different kinds of fruit it feasts upon. Gould describes and figures'' the bare space around the eye of the adult male of this species as being pale buffy-yellow. It is this colour in the winter months, or has only a few minute reddish warty excrescences on it, but during the breeding season and the summer months this part is of a uniform rich red. The usual food of this species is derived from the many wild fruit and berry-bearing trees which flourish in its haunts. Chief among these are the fruits of the different species of Ficus, the native cherry, and in the northern coastal districts of New South Wales the berries of the introduced ink- weed (Phytolacca octandra). Among culti\ated fruits, it chiefly attacks mulberries, figs, bananas, paw-paws, loquats, and guavas. » Bds. Aust., fol., Vol. iv., p. 15 (184S). 82 ORIOLID.E. The nest is an open shallow structure, formed of vinelets or long pliant stems of climbing plants, with which are intermingled a few fine twigs. It is usually built in the forked horizontal leafy twigs near the extremity of an outspreading branch, and well away from the trunk of the tree. Although apparently of a flimsy character, for the eggs are generally visible through the bottom of the nest, the rim is securely worked over the twigs or branchlets, and the whole structure has a wire-like consistency and is remarkably strong. An average nest measures externally six inches in diameter by two inches and a quarter in depth ; internally four inches and three-quarters in diameter by two inches and a quarter in depth. In the Upper Clarence District the trees mostly favoured as nesting-sites are apple-trees, bloodwoods, ironbarks, and grey gums. Generally their nests are built at a height varying from thirty to seventy feet from the ground. The eggs are usually three in number for a sitting, and vary much in form and colour. Oval and elongate ovals are the most common types, while rounded o\als are sometimes found, the shell being close-grained and its surface smooth and slightly lustrous. The ground colour varies from very pale apple-green "'^^^'^'^ tj to dull olive-green, some speci- \ ^ — \ ^— ^ mens being of a much lighter shade at the smaller end, but as a rule the ground colour is uniform. Irregular-shaped blotches, spots, and freckles of different shades of reddish-brown, or purplish- red, and similar underlying markings of purplish-grey are distributed over the shell, but particularly on the larger end, although they rarely assume the form of a zone. In some specimens there is a reddish wash on the larger end, or the markings thereon are penumbral, but generally they are clear and well-defined. Typical eggs re- semble those oiCradicus destmctov more than -any other species. A set of two, taken in the Richmond River District in November, 1 886, measures as follows: — Length (A) 1-28 x 0-95 inches; (B) 1-29 x 0-95 inches. A set of three, taken at Copmanhurst, on the i6th November, 1898, measures: — Length (A) 1-28 x 0-95 inches; (B) 1-29 X 0-95 inches; (C) x-3 x 0-97 inches. A remarkably handsome set of three eggs, taken by Mr. Clarence Savidge on the same day, and the largest I have seen, measures: — (A) 1-45 x 0-92 inches; (B) 1-45 x 0-9 inches; (C) 1-45 x 0-92 inches. The ground colour of this set is a very pale apple-green, which is distinctly dotted and spotted with different shades of purplish-red, and similar underlying markings of purplish-grey, intermingled with a very few irregular shaped blotches on the larger end of the shell. This species is a comparatively late breeder. While driving from South Grafton, on the 3rd November, 1898, Mr. George Savidge drew my attention to a pair of these birds busily engaged in constructing their nest in a Bloodwood (Eucalyptus corymhosa) near the roadside. This was the first nest he had found that season. Subsequently, at Copmanhurst, I found two NEST AXD KliOS OK FIOHIHIJ. SPHECOTUERES. °^ pairs similarly en-aged, one on the 7th, the other on the yth November. Both nests were about half-built, and were placed near the extreme leafy ends of horizontal branches of the Rough-barked Apple I Angoplwrci subvclutinn), at a height of seventy feet from the ground. On the i6th November, from each of these nests, after cHmbing to the limb on which they were built, Mr. Clarence Savidge successfully scooped a beautiful set of three fresh eggs; a difficult feat to perform owing to the folia-e surrounding the nests, and a strong wind blowing at the time. The eggs were deposited daily, and could be clearly seen from the ground. One of the females left the nest directly we approached the tree, the other remained sitting until preparations were made to scoop the eggs. It is the nest and eggs of the latter bird figured. Another pair made repeated swoops at the rope as it was thrown over the branch on which the nest was built. Nidification, Mr. George Savidge informs me, sometimes begins as early as the middle of October, and the nest is completed in about ten days. Nests with eggs, however, are more frequently found during November and the following month. In some seasons he has observed these birds building in Januarv, and has taken a set of fresh eggs as late as the 28th January, 1901. Sphecotheres flaviventris. YELLOW-BKEASTED FlCi-BIKU. Sphecother.s jiavivenlris, CJould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 18+9, p. 1 11 ; id., Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 468 (186.5), id.. Bis. Austr., fol, SuppU pi 37 (1SG9) ; Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus.. Vol. HI , p 22.5 (1877); SaUad., Orn. Pap. et Molucc, Pt. IF., p. 480 (1881). \DUIT M K^A,-Genero.l colour above greeni.h-ydlorv ; upper rving-coverls like the back; primaries black, eMernally edged roith ashy-grey; secondaries black, broadly n^argin.d with yellowish-green on the outer >reb the innermost feathers yellowish-green on the outer web, black on the inner; tail black, the lateral feathers tipped with white, rchich increases in extent on the outermost Jeather, the outer web of the lateral feathers while except at the base ; crown of the head, nape, and earcoverts black; throat, sides of the neck, and all the under surface bright yellow; sides of the chest yellowish-green; centre ofthehtoer abdomen and under tail-coverts wlnte : bill black: legs and feet fesh colour; bare space around the eye reddish-yellow; iris redd.sh-brown. Total length 10 inches, wmg 6, tail J,:5, bill 0-9, tarsus 9. ADULT FEMALE-(?«««mZ colour above broken; feathers of the head light brown with darker brown centres; rump and upper tail-coverts brown, washed with olive-yellow; quills and their coverts brown allthejeathers narrowly edged with ashy-grey, the edges of the outer rvebs of the greater coverts and outer secondaries distinctly tinged will, olive-yellow ; tail brown, the two central Jeathers and the outer webs of the remainder zcashed with olive-green; sides of the neck, the throat and Jore-neck browni^h-white, broadly streaked with brown; remainder of the under surface rchite tinged ivith olire yellow, and conspicuously streaked with dark brown; centre of the lower abdomen white; under taiUoverts white, narrowly streaked dorvn the centre with dark brown. Total length 1<> inches, wing 6, tail4''>, bill 9, tarsus 0-9. Distribution.— ^oxihexn .Uistralia, Eastern Queensland, Ke Islands. ATAHIS species was discovered at Cape York by the late Mr. John MacGilUvray, during 1 the stay there of H.M.S. 'Beagle,' while engaged in making a survey of the north- eastern coast of Australia. It is abundantly distributed throughout the coastal districts of North-eastern Queensland, from Cape York to the neighbourhood of the Herbert River. Mr. I A.Thorpe and Mr. George Masters found it plentiftil at Cape York; and specimens were also obtained there by members of the 'Challenger' Expedition in September, ib74- ^ the "Report of the Voyage of the Alert," Dr. Sharpe records it from Thursday Island It is common at Cooktown and the Bloomfield River District, where it has been found freely 84 OKIOLID.E. breeding by Mr. E. Olive, and Messrs. Robert and I'rank Hislop. In the Australian Museum collection it is represented by a number of skins obtained at Cape York by Mr. J. .\. Thorpe, and specimens procured at Cairns by Mr. K. Broadbent and Messrs. E. J. Cairn and Robert Grant. Mr. G. Masters also obtained a female on Palm Island, some distance south of the Herbert River, the soutliern limit of its range. In a north-westerly direction it has been recorded from the mouth of the Norman River, which flow-s into the Gulf of Carpentaria, in a collection of birds formed there by Mr. Gulliver. I can find no record of it being observed west of this locality, and neither of the large collections formed by Mr. .\le.\ander Morton at Port Essington and Port Darwin, contained an example of this species. Mr. A. Zietz, however, has forwarded me a list of birds that were collected in the Northern Territory by the late Mr. F. Schultze, and received at the South Australian Museum, Adelaide, in March, 1870. They were identified by the late Curator, Mr. F. Waterhouse, and among them are included ten specimens of Sphecothens flavivcntris. In a paper on the collection of birds made by Dr. Loria, near Port Darwin," Count Sahadori refers a single specimen obtained as a female of .S". maxiUaris. I believe, however, that it will pro\e to belong to the present species. It is remarkable that this bird, so common on the Cape York Peninsula, is not found in New Guinea, although easy access is given between the latter island and tlie .Vustralian continent through the numerous islets dotted about the interven- ing hundred miles expanse of Torres Strait. Singular, too, that it should be fountl in tin; Ke Islands, in the Handa Sea, about eight hundred miles in ,1 north- westerly direction from Cape York, and yet be absent in the intermediate .\ru Islands. At Cairns, in North-eastern (Hieensland, Mr. R. Grant informs me, the \'ellow-breasted Fig-birds were seen in the tall fig-trees feeding in company with other species; and the stomachs of those he examinee! con- tained various kinds of wild fruits and berries. Relative to this species, Mr. Frank Hislop writes to me as follows: — "In the Hloomfield River District, the Yellow-breasted Fig-bird breeds only in the open forest lands. The nest is an open shallow structure, formed of long pieces of the stems of climbing plants and twigs, and is generally attached to the end of a drooping branch of a blackbutt-tree, from thirty to fifty feet from the ground. Frequently several pairs build in the same tree, and often in company with the Helmeted Friar-bird and Drongo-shrike. Three is the usual number of eggs laid for a sitting, but on one occasion I found a nest containing four. The months of October, November, December, and January constitute the usual breeding season." The nest is an open, shallow, and neatly made structure of a deep saucer-shape, and is formed of long pliant stems and tendrils of climbing plants, similar to that of S. maxiUaris; and, like the nest of that species, it is of so scanty a nature that when it contains eggs they are visible through the bottom of the nest. .\n average nest measures externally five inches in diameter by two inches and a half in depth; the inner cup three inches and a half in diameter by two inches in depth. They are built at the junction of a forked horizontal branch, and generally where several thinner leafy stems sprout out. YELLOW-BRRA.STKD FlO-lilUI). Ann. Mus. Civ. Gen., Vol. xxix., p. 505 (1890). DICKURUS. 85 The eggs are usuallv three in number for a sitting, and as might be expected, vary as much in shape, c(3lour, and character of markings as those of tile preceding species, from which they cannot be distinguislied. In a number of sets now before me, ovals predominate in form, others are slightly compressed towards the smaller end, and some are elongate-oval. The ground colour presents even more variation tlian in the eggs of S. maxilhwis, for in addition to the pale apple-green to dull olis'e-green and brown shades, dull bluish-whites are not uncommon, and some specimens are almost white on the smaller end. .\s in the preceding species, the ground colour of typical specimens is irregularly blotched, spotted, and freckled with different shades of reddish-brown or purplish-red, many of the markings in some specimens appearing as if beneath the surface of the shell. In one set the dull apple-green ground colour assumes a reddish-brown hue on the larger end, where are several irregular-shaped penumbral blotches of chestnut-brown, intermingled \\ith small dots antl spots of the same colour ; the remainder of the shell, except for a few minute dots hardly visible to the naked eye, being entirely devoid of markings. Another set, of a pale bluish -white ground colour, is most minutely freckled all o\'er with \'ery pale purplish-red, and having on the larger end of the eggs an irregular zone of small and slightly darker spots ; most of the markings on this set have a faded and washed-out appearance, and resemble those on some varieties of the eggs of the acclimatised Greenfinch (Fn'iigilla diloi'is). A set of three, taken on the 15th December, 1894, measures as follows:— Length (.\) 1-23 x o-g inches; (I!) 1-3 x o-g inches; (C) 1-27 x 0-89 inches. A set of three, taken on the 20th October, i8g4, measures:— (.\) 1-25 x 0-87 inches; (B) 1-23 x 0-86 inches; (C) 1-26 x 0-87 inches. An elongate-oval set, taken on the 20th November, 1894. measures:— Length (A) 1-4 x 0-85 inches; (B) 1-41 x 0-85 inches; (C) 1-41 x 0-84 inches. All the above described eggs were taken by Mr. Robert Hislop, Junr., or Mr. Frank Ilislop, while resident in the Bloomfield River District, North-eastern Queensland. Young males are duller in colour than the adults on the upper parts; the head is brown, witli darker centres to the feathers, witli which are intermingled a number of black feathers; all the under surface yellowish-white, slightly richer and brighter yellow on the throat and fore-neck, most of the feathers on these parts and some on the sides of the body being conspicuously streaked with dark brown down the centre ; under tail-coverts white. Wing 5-5 inches. Slightly older birds have most of the feathers of the head and the ear-coverts black; all the under surface bright yellow, the feathers of the throat having very narrow brown shaft-streaks. Immature females have the feathers of the head dull brownish-white with distinct blackish- brown streaks on the crown and nape; quills and upper wing-coverts dark brown, broadly margined with greyish-white. Some adult females have the feathers of the head much lighter than others, and the dark brown markings on the feathers of the under surface of an elongate tear-shaped form on the lower breast and abdomen; under tail-co\-erts white, with brown shaft- lines on some of the feathers. The figure represents an adult male. Family DICRURID^. O-enns IDIOISXJIS"CTS, Vieilht. Dicrurus bracteatus. DRONGO-SHRIKE. Dicrurui: bracteatus, Gould, Proc. Zool. Hoc, 1842, p. 1:V2; id., Bds. Austr., fol, Vol. IV., pi. 82 (1848). Chibia bracteata, Gould, Haadbk. Bds. Austr., A^ol. I., p. 23.5 (1865); Sharpe, Gat. Bds. Brit. Mas., Vol. III., p. 23fi (1877). Dicruropsis bractp.ata, Salvad., Orn. Pap. et Moluoc, Pt. II., p. 174 (1881). 36 nicituRiD.E. Adult male — General colour above black; feathers of the head and sides of the hind neck tipped tvilh metallic steel-yreen; rump, upper tail-coverts, ivings and tail black, washed with metallic steel-green; all the under surface black, slightly glossed ivith green, the tips of the feathers of the throat and fore-neck spangled ivith small spots of metallic steel green ; under wing-coverts black, with a rounded spot of trhite at the tips; bill and legs black; iris red. Total length in the fesh 13-25 inches, wing 6-25, outer tail feathers 5-2, central tail feathers 4'S, bill 1'3, tarsus 9. Adult female — Similar in plum.age to the male. Distribution. — Northern Territory of South Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, New Guinea. gr^ HANK included this species in the older genus Dicnmis, as the principal characters of the -L. genus Chihia, founded on an Asiatic species, are absent in the only representative of this family inhabiting Australia. The range of the Drongo-shrike extends over the south coast of New (iuinea and the greater part of Northern and liastern .\ustralia. Numerous examples were obtained at Port Darwin by the late Mr. E. Spalding, and it is freely distributed in favourable situations through- out the whole of the coastal districts of Eastern Queensland and the north-eastern portions of New South Wales. Fartlier soutli it is seldom met with, except in the autumn, after the breeding season is over, when specimens are sometimes obtained during March, April, and May. Near Sydney it was not uncommon between Newport and Manly in the autumn of 1900, spetimens also being procured farther inland at Windsor, Pemith. and Campbelltown. At Lithgow, on the Blue Mountains, at an elevation of over three thousand feet, Mr. Robt. Grant saw about fifty in small flocks in 1875, and obtained several examples. Previously he had not observed them in that locality, nor has he seen any since. It is, however, of a roving n.iture, and occasional visitants have been obtained in \'ictoria, and even Tasmania. The wing measurement of adult males from different localities varies from 6 to 6-5 inches. The Drongo-shrike in New South Wales evinces a decided preference for trees on the edges of scrubs, and is mostly seen in pairs, but not infrequently in small companies, varying from four to six in number, the latter probably a pair of adults accompanied by their progeny, for they are generally seen crowding one against another near the end of a dead branch. When once heard, its harsh and peculiar note cannot easily be mistaken for that of any other species. In the manner of securing its food it resembles tlie Dollar-bird, and some species of Wood Swallows, sallying forth from its perch on some dead branch to secure a passing insect, and returning again to the sjime spot after capturing it. It is not, however, strictly insectivorous, and many of the specimens I have seen were obtained while feasting on cultivated fruits. The stomachs I examined of specimens procured at Bay View, Manly, and at Penrith, were all filled with the heads, legs, and elytra of black beetles, and in one I found a perfect dragon-fly. The nest, which is attached at the sides to a thin forked stem of an outspreading branch, is a cup-shaped structure formed almost entirely of vine tendrils intermingled with pliant plant stems, and frequently has a quantity of spiders' web worked over the fork in which it is built. An average nest measures externally six inches in diameter by three inches in depth, the inner cup measuring three inches and a half in diameter by two inches in depth. The nest and eggs figured were taken by Mr. G. Savidge on the 17th November, npi, at the head of Wombat Creek in the Upper Clarence District. Externally the nest is triangular in form, and is built between and around a thin horizontal forked stem of a box-tree, the rim on one side of the nest standing above the branch. It is formed throughout of long curling vine tendrils and plant stems, and has at each angle a quantity of spiders' web worked over the branch, the inner portion being cup-shaped and neatly rounded. Externally the structure averages six inches in diameter by three inches in depth, the inner cup measuring four inches DICliUKUS. 87 r" in diameter bv two inches in depth. It was built at a heij^ht of forty feet from the ground, and the eggs — four in number — were visible through the bottom of the nest. The figure is reproduced from a photograph taken, and kindly lent by Mr. Sa\idge. The eggs are from three to fi\'e in number for a sitting, and vary considerably in shape, colour, and disposition of tlieir markings. In shape they are mostly oval or elongate-oval, some specimens tapering sharply to one or both ends, the shell being close-grained and its surface dull and lustreless. The ground colour varies from faint reddish-white to pale purplish-grey. .\ common type has a pale purplish -grey ground colour, v.ith numerous irregular shaped blotches, smears, scratches, and freckles of different shades of purplish-red scattered over tlie shell, and intermingled with faint similar underlying markings of dull \iolet-grey. In some specimens these markings are clear and well defined; in others they are very faint and hardly distinguishable from the ground colour. Another type has a very pale creamy-buff ground colour, o\er which is evenly distributed numerous small indistinct freckles and fleecy markings of light red intermingled with underlying spots and freckles of dull violet-grey; in some specimens the markings become confluent on tlie larger end, where an indistinct zone is formed. I IV- ~,j«5^ >v>-.^ -i.-i.Ai~"^-^^*tr',«' Others ha\e large under- taken in the Bloomfield River District, North- eastern Queensland, on the20thDecember,i8g4, measures: — Length (A) i'3 X o'Sinches; (B) i'3i X o-8i inches; (C) i'3 x 0-8 1 inches. Another set of three, taken on the nth December, 1895, in the same district, measures: — (A) i-aaxo-Sy inches; (B) i-23xo-87 inches; (C) i-igxo-Sj inches. .\ set of three, taken at Broad Sound, on the loth October, 1882, measures: — (A) i-2 x 0-83 inches; (B) i-i8xo-83 inches; (C) 1-23 x 0-85 inches. A set of eggs taken by Mr. G. Savidge on the i7tli November, 1901, are of a faint purplish-white ground colour, which is sprinkled over with numerous small irregular shaped spots, streaks, dashes, and a few large blotches of light red and purplish-red, intermingled with similar underlying markings and clouded patches of pale purplish-red, predominating as usual on the thicker end of the shell. Length:— (A) i-i6 x o-86 inches; (B) 1-19 x 0-84 inches ; (C) ri6 x o-86 inches; (D) i-i8xo-86 inches. Mr. C. C. L. Talbot found this species breeding on Collaroy Station, near Broad Sound, Queensland, on the loth October, 1882. The nests were attached to the fine leafy twigs at the e.xtremities of the branches of dwarf white gums at an altitude of twenty feet from the ground. They were placed in trees about fifty yards apart, and in twelve nests e.xamined each contained three eggs for a sitting. In some the eggs were fresh, in others partially incubated. On the 17th January, 1896, Mr. J. A. Boyd found a nest on the Herbert River, containing three nearly fledged young. Still further north, Mr. Frank Hislop writes to me: — "The Drongo-shrike is t L .^^' rf NEST AND EGGS OF DRON(;0 SHRIKE. 88 PKIOXOPID.E. very common about the Bloomfield River, and is usually met with in pairs, in the low under- growth, searching for insects and berries, which constitute its food. They breed from October to January, and often select as anesting site a blackbutt, or a Moreton Bay Ash, in which the Helmeted Friar-bird and Vellow-breasted Fig-bird have their nests. Tiie nest is composed almost entirely of the curly tendrils of vines, and is suspended by the rim to a thin fork at the end of an overhanging branch. They lay four and often five eggs for a sitting. After the breeding season is over, at the end of February, with nearly e\'ery flock of Wliite-bellied Cuckoo-shrikes, will be seen several Drongo-shrikes." In Xew South Wales it breeds, so far as I am aware, only in the northern coastal rivers district. I did not meet with it in the Upper Clarence District, but Mr. George Savidge found it breeding in the Cangai Scrubs, about forty miles from Copmanhurst, the week after I left. He informs me that the nests were nearly all built in thin horizontal forks at the e.\treme ends of branches of box-trees, at a height varying from thirty to forty feet from the ground. In every instance the scoop had to be used to abstract the eggs. It breeds in that locality mostly in November and December, tliree or four eggs being the usual number laid for a sitting, but on one occasion he found a nest containing five eggs. Fledgelings are blackish-brown above and below; wings and tail black, slightly glossed with metallic steel-green. Wing 4-8 inches. October and the four following months constitute the usual breeding season in Eastern Queensland and Xorth-eastern Xew South Wales. Family PRIONOPID^. Sub-Family PRIONOPIN^. Grallina picata. MAGPIE-L\RK. Gracula picata, Lath., Ind. Orn , Suppl., p. xxix., (1801). Grallina ansiratis, Gould, Bds. Au.str., fol.. Vol. IT., pi. •"»4 (1848). Grallina picata, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. [, p 188 (186-5); Shappe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus , Vol. III., p. -272 (1877). Adult male — General colour above blue-black ; npper ittlng -coverts white, the outer series of the greater coverts black tipped with white; quills black, bases and tips of the secondaries white; rump and upper tail-coverts white; tail feathers white, with a broad terminal black band, decreasing in extent towards the outermost feathers which are tipped with white; a broad line above, and a narroiv crescent belojv the eye rvhite; ear-coverts and sides of the neck ivhite; chin, t/iroat, and chest blue black; remainder of the uiider surface pure white; bill feslty-irhite, blackish along the apical portion 0/ the upper mandible; legs black; iris yelluwish-rohit<\ Total length in t/ie fesh lO'o inc/oes, niing 6'lj, tail 5, bill OSo, tarsus 1~. Adult female — Similar to the male in platnnge, but having the lores, forehead, and thronl white, and no white crescent below the eye. Distribution. — Xorthern Territory of South .\ustralia, Queensland, Xew South Wales, Victoria, South and Central .\usiralia. Western and Xorth-western .\ustralia, Tasmania. CJRALLINA. 89 /-I^HIS familiar and well-known species is freely distributed in suitable localities over nearly _L the whole of the Australian continent. It likewise occurs as an occasional visitant in Tasmania, and Mr. E. Hartert has recorded a specimen from the little island of Koer in the Ke Group.- It evinces a decided preference for the vicinity of water, and chiefly frequents open forest and grass lands, and the margins of rivers and swamps. In Eastern Australia it is a resident species, and is usually seen in pairs except from the beginning of March until the end of July, when it congregates in flocks numbering from ten or twenty, to perhaps one hundred or ' more individuals. Mr. Keartland informs me that while the Horn Scientific Expedition was near Francis' Well, in Central Australia, a flock of seseral hundred of these birds settled at nightfall in the trees around their camp. GmlUna picata v^-as hrst recorded as a Tasmaniaa species I from a specimen forwarded by Dr. Lonsdale Holden to the Hobart Museum. From Dr. Holden's MS. notes, under date i5tn July, iS88, I take the following extract:— "To-day I shot a female Gralliua picata on Deavin's Farm at Circular Head. A pair had been observed there near the homestead for some weeks, one of which has since disappeared. They fed on the ground, flying into trees when disturbed, and always roosting in the same clump. This one was tame enough; the crop contained the remains of insects; the ovary not being large, but plainly recognisable. The farm it frequented is on the shores of a large marine inlet, and very bare of trees. The man who lives there said the birds generally resorted to marshy places in the paddocks. Residents here have never seen this bird before." This species utters a shrill squeaking note, usually while perched; to which is added, chiefly during flight, the clear notes resembling the sound of the word "pee-wee, pee-wee, pee-wee." To residents of Australia it is known under several names. Those in most common use in Eastern Australia are the "Magpie- Lark," the name first bestowed upon it by the early colonists of New South Wales, from its MAopir.-LAKK strikinglv contrasted black and white plumage; the "Pee-wee" from its note; and the "Mud-Lark" from its habit of frequenting the margins of swamps, and constructing its nest of mud. From Port Augusta, South Australia, Dr. A. Chenery sends me the following note:-" Gral Una puata is here in the winter months, but is not seen as a rule after August. It does not breed here." The Magpie-Lark passes most of its time on the ground, in search of insects and their larv., which constitute the greater portion of its food. It also frequents P'^^^'-^ -'^J -'^ orchards for grubs and worms, and from margins of swamps and on grass lands obtains small molluscs. One species of land mollusc, of which it destroys large numbers, is an in erniediate hot of fluke, that dire disease in sheep. Mr. J. A. Boyd, while resident at R.pple Creek, nea Townsville. Queensland, informed me that large flocks of these birds followed the teams wh. e ploughing on the sugar plantations, to feast upon the cane-eating larv. of a eetle, which a Ln:d fron. the earth in son.e seasons in large numbers. Writmg on the 14th Jun. ■->. he * Bull. Brit. Orn. Club. 1900, p. loi. t Proc. Roy. Soc. Tas., 18S8. p. xxxiii. 90 PRIONOPID.E. remarks: — "Magpie- Larks, which have been absent for three years, are now here in hundreds." And again, on the 24th January, i8g6, Mr. Boyd writes: — "The 'cane-beetles' have been here in milHons this season; about ^"700 has been already spent in buying them from collectors at sixpence a quart. A quart holds about two hundred and twenty." Stomachs of these birds I have examined, contained chiefly portions of \arious insects, those being shot near the coast also containing a little sand mixed with a few blades of grass. I have never known it to eat fruit or grain. Pastoralists, sugar-planters, farmers, and orchardists, to whom this bird renders such valuable services, should therefore assist in affording it absolute protection by preventing thoughtless boys and pot-hunters from trespassing on their lands in search of "something to kill," not only in the close season but all the year round. The ever trustful and fearless disposition of this bird should in itself be a sufficient claim to the protection it undoubtedly deserves; but unfortunately the easy manner in which it may be approached is too often the cause of many of them falling victims to misplaced confidence in man. It is an extremely sociable species, freijuenting the vicinity of houses, and breeding in trees close to the streets in many of the outlying Sydney suburbs. As I now write there is one calling in a fig-tree in the Museum grounds. On the outskirts of Ashlield, during the autunm months, I have observed just about dusk large flocks of these birds lea\e the well timbered paddocks, where they had been feeding all day, and take up their (|uarters for the night in some lofty gum trees in the most thickly populated part of this suburb. Although the flight of this species is apparently slow and laboured, it is remarkably active, and an expert dodger when on the wing. While accompanied by Mr. i£. H. Lane and Mr. George Savidge, at Rosexille, near Middle Harbour, w'e heard shrill cries of distress uttered by some bird, .-uid on looking round observed a Magpie- Lark and a White-fronted Falcon (Falco lumilatui), tumbling over and over one another in the air. This was kept up for ten seconds or mare, the Magpie-Lark at last successfully eluding the grasp and further pursuit of its flset-winged and active enemy. 1 have also frequently seen it exhibit remarkable powers while on the wing, pursuing generally a zig-zag course, more espsciallv when molibed by a flock of smaller birds. The nest is a round bowl-sha|ied structure, and is formed ot pellets of mud mixed with bits of grass or rootlets, the inside being lined with dried grasses and occasionally with feathers. An average nest measures externally five inches and a half in diameter by four inches in depth ; the inner cup measuring four inches and a quarter in diameter by two inches and a quarter in depth. It is usually placed on a bare horizontal branch, but not infrequently a site is selected where a few upright leafy twigs are growing out which slightly shelters the structure, although no attempt at concealment is made. It is a conspicuous object and at all times easy to discover, for it is generally placed towards the extremity of a limb, or some distance away from the trunk of the tree. .\ favourite situation is a smooth-harked gum tree on a river bank, but it may be also found in trees in open forest country, some distance from water. It is built at \-arious heights, generally it is from twenty to sixty feet, but in stunted timber it is much lower, and I liave found it in a Melaleuca' Vi\thm ten feet from the ground. The nest of this species resembles that of Struthidea cincrea, but when closely examined may be generally distinguished by its greater average depth, straighter w^alls, and thicker rim. Nests are frequently built close to the one occupied the previous season, and often inside of the old one. I once saw four nests built one on the top of the other, resembling so many basins placed one in the other, only about two inches of the top portion of the three upper nests being visible. At Ashfield I saw a nest of this species, resorted to by presumably the same pair of birds for three successive seasons. It is remarkable that the Black and White Fantail (Saulopyocta melaleuca) frequently constructs its nest in the same tree as one containing a nest of Grallina picata. (iUALLINA. 91 The eggs are usually four in number for a sitting, sometimes five, and \ary considerably in shape, size, colour, and disposition of markings. The most common type found is oval in form, tapering somewhat sharply at the smaller end, and of a reddish-white ground colour, spotted and blotched with purplish-red and underlying markings of slaty-grey, in some instances forming a zone or cap on the larger end, in others being equally distributed over the shell. Some eggs are of a rich reddish-buff ground colour, which is almost hidden on the larger end with numerous confluent blotches of reddish-brown and clouded underlying patches of violet- grey. Others are o^■al in form and pure white, with a few small rounded purplish-black dots evenly distributed over the shell, and I have seen two sets pure white and entirely devoid of markings. Among a great number of eggs of this species now before me, it is noticeable that those obtained in the ^•ery hot inland districts of New South Wales are smaller, less rich in colour, and more sparingly marked than others tal!5 inches; (C) it x 0-82 inches; (D) it2xo-83 inches; (E) 1-07 x 0-82 inches. Fledgelings are similar to the adults but duller in colour, having dusky-brown instead of bluish-black feathers on the upper parts and throat. Young birds have the tail feathers largely tipped with white, and the outermost feather on either side entirely white except a small portion of the outer web, and a subterminal streak on the margin of the inner web, which is brownish-black. Mr. G. .\. Keartland writes to me as follows: — "That GraUina picata is a most persistent breeder was proved b}' Mr. J. Gabriel and myself during October and November, 1895. Whilst collecting at Werribee, Mctoria, on 14th October, we found a nest containing four fresh eggs, which I took. A fortnight later we revisited the tree to see if the birds had laid again in the old nest, but to our surprise found a fresh nest built within four feet of the old one and containing four eggs; these were taken by Mr. Gabriel. Again, a fortnight later, Mr. Chas. French, Junr., accompanied me to the tree to look for an article lost on the previous visit. We found another nest, containing four eggs, on the same branch as the former ones; Mr. French took the eggs. Again, a fortnight later, I revisited the spot and found another nest containing four eggs, which were left to hatch. As on the first visit I noticed a broken primary in the wing of the female, I was careful to see that it w-as the same bird each time we paid our fortnightly visit." Nidification, in which both se.xes take part, generally commences in August, and the usual breeding season in Eastern Australia continues the five following months. I have, however, taken eggs as early as the jrd .Vugust, and have seen these birds building on the banks ot the Namoi River at the latter end of Noxember. In the Upper Clarence District, Mr. G. Savidge informs me that he once observed young birds being fed in the nest in July. A new nest is almost invariably constructed for each brood, of which two, if not three, are reared during the season. The deserted tenements of the Magpie-Lark are often taken possession of by other birds, and more frequently by the White-rumped Wood S\\a.\\o\w {Avtamus Icucogaster), the Ground Cwckoo-slmke ( Ptcropodocys phasianclla),a.nd the Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike (Graucalus mdaiwps). On Yandembah Station, the late Mr. K. H. Bennett found a Black and White Fantail (Sauloprocta mdaleuca) sitting on three eggs in a deserted nest of this species, the bottom of the nest having been relined with wool and fur. There is a beautiful albino, and a ssmi-albino of this species in the Australian Museum collection. The figure represents an adult male. 92 PKIONOPID.E. Ca-en-U-S COXjnL,"Z'ISIOC:l3SrOILj..^, vigors .£• Horsfield. Collyriocincla harmonica. GREY SHRIKE-THRUSH. Turdus hnrinonicns, Latb., Iiid. Orn., Suppl., p. xli., (lt<01). Collurieincla harmonica, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. TI., pi. 74 (1848), id., Handbk. Bds. Austr, Vol. I., p. 220 (1865). Collyriocincla harmonica, Sharpp, Cat. Bds. Brit. .Mus., Vol. III., p. '-".•0 (1877). Adult M.\LE — General colour above grey ; hitid neck, ncapn./artt, nud Ixick Hmhirdirown : tipper wing-coverts grey, the lesser and median series washed ivitli umber-broirn ; primaries and secnndaries blackish-brown, externally edged with grey, which increases in extent towards the outermost secondaries; tail grey; lores and chin dull white; under surface of the body light ashy-grey : centre of the abdomen and under tail-coverts dull white; bill blackisli-brown : legs and feet greenish-grey : iris dark broivn. Totod length in the fi«sh 9 5 inches, wing o'^, tail 4' f bill 0'82, tarsus I'-i. Adult female — Distinguished from the male by having a very much paler bill, mid the h'nihers of the throat, fore-neck, and breast having narrow black shaft-lines. Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, X'ictoria, South Australia. /"ITVHE Grey Shrike-Thrush is a common and generally distributed species throughout most J- parts of Kastern and South-eastern .\ustralia. There are specimens in the .Vuslralian Museum collection obtained by the late Mr. W. S. Day at Cairns, Queensland, but it is more freely dispersed in the southern portion of that State. It is common in New South Wales, -^, X'ictoria, and some parts of South .\ustralia. I saw an example in the Botanic Gardens at .\delaide, and Dr. \. M. Morgan has recorded it from Laura, about one hundred and forty miles north of that city; Dr. .\. Chenery has also found it breeding to the north-west of Fort .\ugusta. It frequents the coastal scrubs, open forest bnds, mountain ranges, and the wooded margins of rivers and creeks. Partially cleared lands, and the neighbourhood of orchards, are also favourite resorts of this familiar and well known bird. L'sually it is met with singly or in pairs, e.vcept during the breeding season when accompanied with its GRKY SHRIKE-THRUSH. young. It is of a tame and fearless disposition, and when disturbed seldom flies far, alighting generally in the nearest tree, or on some fallen log, over which it proceeds in a series of hops. Although a resident species in New South Wales, it is more abundantly distributed during the spring and summer months. Near Sydney, during April, May, and the greater part of June, it utters a shrill note, quite different from the melodious notes poured forth in the breeding season. In June, 1S93, ^^ Toongabbie, near Parramatta, so much was I deceived by the notes and actions of a pair of these birds in the top of a lofty eucalyptus, that I had to shoot them in order to be sure of their identification. In the warm and sunny days that herald the approach of a coming spring, its notes are the richest and most melodious of any heard in the neighbour- hood of large towns and cities, fully justifying the original vernacular name of Harmonic Thrush, bestowed on it by Dr. Latham. It is, however, more generally known as the Grey Shrike-Thrush, a name first applied to it by Messrs. Jardire and Selby in their " Illustrations of Ornithology." COLLYRIOCINCLA. ^^ The food of this species consists chietiy of \arious kinds of insects and their larvae, also worms, snails, centipedes, and small lizards. Writm- from Eden, Twofold Bay, in August, 1901, Mr. J. A. Boyd informs me that one of these birds sits and whistles on his back verandah until'he goes out and gives it some scrap of food from the safe; a bit of cheese being a great dainty. It is so tame that it will ahnost eat out of his hand. The nest is a round bowl-shaped structure, outwardly formed of strips of bark and lined inside with fibrous roots, and varies considerably in size according to the position in which it is built Some I have seen consisted principally of a root-lined cavity, just sufficient to accommodate the bird while sitting; others, built in the thin forked branches of trees, had the outer walls very thick, and the rim neatly rounded. One I found at Newington, built in a Mdakuca had a strip of blue serge two inches wide and twentv inches l.jng. utilised in its outer construction, the material being thoroughly interwoven in the nest and securely bound around two of the branches. When built in hollow limbs, the same site is frequently resorted to year after year, but usuallv a new nest is formed on the top of the old ...ne. .Vn average nest measures five inches and a half in external diameter by four inches and a half in depth; internally three inches and three quarters in diameter by two inches and a half in depth. The site for the nest is a varied one. Preference, however, is given for the hollows m the tops of stumps burnt out cavities m limbs, or the thick fork of a tree. It is also built in thin pron-ed upright branches; between the top a piece of loose bark and the trunk of a tree, and in th"e cleft of a bank or rock. The different species ol Eucalyptus and Melaleuca are the trees usually selected as nesting sites, also the Turpentine (Syncarp.a lannfalia ), and the nests are built at hei-hts varving from two to forty feet from the ground. Generally they are found ^vithin hand^s reach, or not at an higher altitude than twelve feet. Curious nesting-sites are sometimes selected by this species. For five years consecutively a pair built in an old iron pot standing on a shelf m a carpenter's shop at CuUenbones and Dr. A. AI. Morgan found a nest wi^h three fresh eggs at Port Augusta, South Australia, on the 14th August, 1900, built on the top of an old nest of Pcnatoylnuus supeniliosus. At Strathfield, near Sydney, a nest was constructed against a creeper-covered wall of a house. The eggs, usuallv three, sometimes only two, and rarely four in number for a sitting, are subject to considerable variation in shape, size, and disposition of markings. They vary from oval to thick and elongate oval in form, the shell being close-grained, and its surface lustrous, and in "round colour from pearly to buffy-white, which is usually evenly marked with freckles spots, and blotches of olive-brown, brownish-black, and underlying markings of slaty or deep bluish-^rey. Others have a zone or cap only on the larger end formed of large confluent spots and blotches, while a not uncommon variety is finely freckled over the entire surface of the shell. Some have the ground colour on the larger end almost obscured with coalesced black and slaty-black markings. A set of three, taken at Canterbury, near Sydney, on the 17th September, 1897, measures as follows :-Length (A) f2i x 0-87 inches; (B) i-2 x o-86 inches- (C) 1-2 X 0-85 inches. Another set, taken in the same locality, on the 20th September, 1897, measures:-(D) 1-3 x 0-9 inches; (E) 1-31 xo-88 inches; (F) 1-29 x 0-9 inches. Fled-elin-s have the upper parts greyish-brown; the back, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and secondaries distmctlv tinged with olive; upper wing-coverts externally edged with rufous; feathers around the eye and a superciliary stripe pale rufous; throat, fore-neck, and chest dull greyish-white, passing into pure white on the breast and abdomen, all the feathers having a broad dusky-brown streak down the centre. Wing 4 inches. Dr W Macgillivray writes to me as follows :-"Co//jma«r/« haymomca frequently resorts to the same cleft year after year to nest. I have known a brood to be reared for five consecutive » Cox and Ham.-Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., 2nd ser., Vol. iv., p. 406 (1S89). 94 PBIONOPID.E. years in the same place in the bank of a small creek in the Western District of Victoria." From Port Augusta, South Australia, Dr. A. Chenery writes me: — "C. havmonka, is common both in the gum creeks of Flinder's Range, and on the myall plains and mulga flats of the north-west. I have taken a nest in the broken stump of a black oak on the steep side of a table-land, and also in small shrubs in the gum creeks of the Flinder's Range."" Nidification usually begins about the first week in August, and the nest is completed in about ten days. The eggs are deposited on successive days, and full sets of fresh eggs are not uncommon in the last week in August. The earliest record I ha\e of nidification is the 25th July, i8g6, and of a full set of fresh eggs on 7th August, 1897, During the past fifteen years, near Sydney, I have found more nests with eggs in September, than any other month. Fresh eggs for a second brood may be looked for in November, and 1 have known them to be taken as late as the middle of December. This species is one of the foster-parents of the Pallid Cuckoo (C.uailiis paUidiis). On the 25th October, 1893, I exhibited at a meeting of the Linnean Society of New South Wales, a set consisting of three eggs of Collyriocinda harmonica and an egg of Cuciihis pallidiis, taken from a nest near W'oolli Creek. The Cuckoo's egg was deposited on the 17th October, when the nest contained but two eggs of the Shrike-Thrush. Collyriocinda rectirostris. STKAKiUT-Un.LFD SHKIKE TIIKISH. CoUuricincIa rectirostris, Jard. and SoUiy, III. Orii., Vol. IV., pi. XXXI., (1839). Colluricincla selbii, Gould, Bds. .Vustr., fol., Vol. II, pi. 77 (1848); id., Handlik. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 224 (186.5). Collyriocinda rectirostris, Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 291 (1877) Adult male — Head, rump, and upper tail-coverts grey ; back, scapulars, lesser and tuedian upper iving-coverts umber-brown; primaries, secondaries, and greater wing-coverts dark hroicn, externally washed with grey, the inner series of the secondaries and the greater wing-coverts umber- brown; tail grey; lores and an indistinct line over the eye dull white; chin, throat, and fore-neck dull white, passing into greyish-while oti the remainder of the under surface; sides of the breast, flanks, and under tail-coverts grey ; bill black; legs and feet greenish-grey ; iris dark hroirn. Total length 9'5 inches, wing 5-1, tail Jf2, bill I'l, tarsus lo. Adult female — Distinguished from the male by its rufous eye broiv and hlackisli sliq/'t linns to the feathers oj the under surface. Distribution. — Tasmania iind some of the islands of 1 !ass Strait. ^TR^HIS species is represented in the Australian Museum collection by several specimens -L procured by Mr. George Mtisters near the Ouse River, and other parts of the State. In a northerly direction, its range over the islands of Bass Strait was e.\tended nearer to the Australian continent by members of the Field Naturalists' Club of \'ictoria, who procured specimens on King Island in November, 1887. Mr. E. D. Atkinson sends me the following note from Table Cape, Tasmania: — "I have met with Collyriodnda rectirostris in most parts of Tasmania, also in the larger islands of Bass Strait. It chiefly frequents cleared lands, and is seldom seen any distance in the forest. It is an active and sprightly bird, and possesses a very musical note."' From notes made by Dr. L. Holden, principally at Circular Head, Tasmania, I have extracted the following information: — "Collyriocinda rectirostris is an exceedingly courageous bird, the male being larger and more noisy. He snaps his bill before uttering liis resounding COLLVRIOCINCLA. 95 cries. 1 took it for the hammering of a tree, hke the noise made by a Woodpecker, but after repeated careful and close inspection with a field-glass, I discovered he made the noise with his bill. He is known by the local names of -Whistling Dick," and 'Duke Willie," on account of his peculiar note. Sitting one day by the Russell Falls River, near Hobart, in a gum-tree forest, my companion and I were engaged m boiling the mid-day billy, when one of these birds flew on to a branch near by and began to call. My bush friend threw a piece of bread towards him, when down came the bird, searched for and found the bread, and carried it off high up into the trees. My friend seemed to think it cjuite an ordinary performance, and told me that this species was often very faTuiliar in these solitudes. On the 14th November, 1886, at Circular Head, 1 found a nest of C. redimstris, built in the fork of a tea-tree about eight feet from the ground. It was a deep cup-shaped structure, composed chiefly of strips of bark, and thinly lined with dried grass and a little horse-hair. The female was sitting on three fresh eggs. She would not leave the spot, even when the nest was destroyed. I found another in the top of a tea-tree, built in an old opossum's nest, containing a young bird, which fluttered to the ground and escaped. During October, 1887, I found three more nests, built in tea-trees, at heights varying from seven to fifteen feet from the ground, each nest containing two eggs. On the 25th September, 1890, I found a nest built in a hush barely four feet from the ground, with three fresh eggs. Also another, on the 23rd November following, constructed in the top of a dead tree in scrub, containing three hard set eggs. No bird sits closer to its eggs than the female of this species. The eggs, which vary very much in shape, size, and markings, are more frequentlv three than two in number for a sitting." In several sets of these eggs now before me, rounded oval is the predominate form, others are somewhat sharplv pointed at each end; elongate-oval, the commonest type of C. haniwuica, is poorly represented, while one set is almost globular. In ground colour they vary from pearly-white to dull brownish-white, which is freckled, spotted, or blotched with olive-brown, blackish-brown, or chestnut-brown, and underlying markings varying from faint to dark slaty- grey. One type, in shape, colour, and disposition of markings, closely resembles the eggs of the Olivaceous Thickhead. The markings are uniformly distributed in some specimens, in others they predominate on the larger end, where they form a cap or zone. In one set the markings are confined entirely to the thicker end, and consist of large olive-brown blotches intermingled with small slaty-grey underlying spots, which far exceed in number and extent the surface blotches. A set of two, taken by Dr. L. Holden, at Circular Head, Tasmania, on the 5th October, 1891, measures: — Length (A) i-obxo-Sj inches; (B) i-o8 x x 0^87 inches. .\ set of three, taken at Table Cape, on the north-west coast of Tasmania, by Mr. E. D. Atkinson, in November, 1889, measures: — Length (A) 1-23 x o-86 inches; (B) 1-25 x 0-9 inches; (C) 1-2 x 0-85 inches. Young males have the feathers of the under surface more broadly streaked than the adult female, and have the sides of the head and the upper wing-coverts washed with rufous. From the nests found by Dr. Holden, September and the three following months appear to constitute the usual breeding season of this species. Collyriocincla brunnea. BJ;OWX SHKIKE-THEUSH. CoUuricinc/a brunnea, Gould, Proc. Zool. .Soc, 1840, p. 164; id., Bds. Austr., fob. Vol. II., pi. 76 (1848); id., llandbk, Bds. Austr., Vol. L, p. 223 (1865). Adult male— G'«?(e?-«^ colour above pale brown; primaries, secondaries, and upper wing-coverts brown, externally edged with ashy-greij : tail feather !i brown, narrotvly edged rvith ashy-grey ; lores and the anterior portion of tlie cheeks dull toldle ; ear-coverts pale brown : chin and throat dull white. 96 PRIONOPID.E. passing into pale ashy-brorvn on the hreasl, ayid i/ull irhite tinged >ritli fami colour on tJte abdomen; thighs as/iy-brown ; under tail-coverts dull ivhile : nnder iring-coverts greyisli-broirn : "bill black; legs and feet hlackishbroivn; iris broion" {^Vorlon). Total length 9' 3 inches, iving Jf9o, tail ^S, bill OS, tarsus 1-2. Adult female — Distinguished from the male by its dull rnfous eye-broiv: the under surface and under tail-coverts being mo)e distinctly tinged ivith faicn colour, and the feathers of the fore-neck and hrea.it having dark hroivn shaft streaks; under iving-coverts pale oratige-huff; bill light yellowish- horn colour, fleshy-brown at the base. Distribution. — Xorth-western Australia, Northern Territorv (if South Australia. /'(sV OULD described the type of this species from North-western Australia, and states in V A his "Handbook to the Birds of Australia" " that "it is abundantly dispersed over the Cobourg Peninsula, and is to be met with in all the forests in the immediate neighbourhood of Port Essington and the north coast generally." The late Mr. E. Spalding found it very common in the vicinity of Port Darwin in 1877; and Mr. .Mexander Morton, while collecting on behalf of the Trustees of the .\ustralian Museum, obtained e.vamples of both sexes at Port Essington, in February and March, 1879, from which the above descriptions are taken. Mr. E. J. Cairn procured an adult male and female near Derby, North-western Australia, in 1S86; and in the same neighbourhood Mr. G. A. Keartland found them breeding in i8y6, and procured an adult male. It is worthy of note that specimens from Derby are much paler than examples from J-'ort Essington. In 1S9.S, Mr. E. Olive also found ihcin breeding near the Katherine River, in the Northern Territory of South Australia. .\11 the adult males I have seen from Northern and North-western .Australia, agree with Gould's description and figure of this species, and have no white eyebrow. Dr. Sharpe ' and Count Salvadori \ agree in describing the adult of C. bnuuica, respectively from Cape York and New Guinea, as having a distinct white eyebrow, like C. snpcrciliosa. Masters, and which both authors include as a synonvm of C. hriiiuiea. No reference is made to the different plumage of the adult female, of which we have abundant proof in the specimens obtained at Port Essington. Gould figures the two se.xes of C. brnuuca in his "ISirds of Australia," but omits to give a description of the female. I have never seen a typical specimen of C. hrunnea from Northern and Eastern Queensland. C. superciliosa. Masters, was obtained at Cape Grenville, one hundred miles south from Cape York, and has a distinct white eyebrow similar to examples described from Cape York and New Guinea. Instead of C. superciliosa. Masters, being relegated as a synonym of C. hrunnea, it is evident that the species inhabiting the Cape York Peninsula and New Guinea must bear the name of Collyriocincla superciliosa. I have compared Mr. Masters' type of the latter species with examples from New Guinea, and find them alike, except that the white eyebrow is broader and more distinct in the Australian bird, which I take to be a very old male. Mr. G. A. Keartland writes me: — "During the journey of the Calvert Exploring Expedition in North-western Australia, Brown Shrike-Thrushes were seen on the southern margin of the Great Desert, and again near the junction of the Fitzroy and Margaret Rixers. They were very tame, and allowed me to walk under a Bankinia tree, about twenty feet high, while they hopped about the upper branches, my attention being frequently attracted to them by their loud and musical notes. When the young brood leave the nest, the parents will perform all manner of antics to divert the attention of an intruder. A pair which reared their family near our camp on ♦ Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. i., p. 223 (1865). t Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. iii., p. 291 (1877). { Orn. Pap. et Molucc, Pt. ii , p. 209 (1881). COLLyRIOCINCLA. 'JT the Fitzroy River, kept flutterinf^ over the back of my dog for some minutes whilst I was endeavouring to find the nest. Three young ones, just able to fly, were soon disturbed, and as they went from bush to bush, with the dog chasing them, the parents closely- followed, snapping their bills and feigning a broken leg or wing." The nest of this species is similarly constructed to that of other members of the genus, being outwardly composed of strips of bark, fine pliant twigs, and dried grasses, and lined inside with rootlets. It is usually built in the top of a hollow stump or fork of a tree. Eggs three in number for a sitting, varyini,' in siiape from an elongate to thick oval, and of a pearly- white ground colour, dotted, spotted, and blotched with olive, ricli umber, or blackish-brown, and superimposed spots of dull bluish or blackish-grey, the markings predominating on the larger end, and assuming the form of a zone, in others being uniformly distributed over the surface of the shell. An a\erage specimen of the former type, from a set of two, taken by the late Mr. T. H. Bowyer-Bower, at Derby, North-western Australia, in October, 1886, measures; — Length i-i8 x 0-77 inches. Specimens of the latter type in the Macleaj' Museum collection, obtained by the late Mr. Edward Spalding, near Port Darwin, in the Northern Territory of South Australia, measure: — (A) 1-2 x o-8 inches; (B) ri8 x 0-78 inches. An egg of this species, taken on the i8th October, 1898, by Air. E. Olive near the Katherine River, and kindly lent by Dr. Charles Ryan, of Melbourne, is in form a thick oval, slightly compressed at the smaller end, and of a glossy-white ground colour; uniformlv marked, except on the top of the larger end, with dots, spots, and small blotches of olive-brown, intermingled with similar underlying markings of dull blackish-grey. Length: — i-og x o-8i inches. This specimen is represented on Plate B. IV., Figure 1 -5. Young birds have the sides of the head and all the under surface deeply tinged with fawn colour; the primaries, secondaries, and upper wing-coverts externally edged with rufous; the under wing-coverts a deep orange-buff; and the breast more broadly streaked with dark brown than in the adult female. Like many other species inhabiting hot and arid districts, the breeding season of the Brown Shrike-Thrush is probably influenced by an abundant rainfall. .\t Derby, North-western Australia, the late i\Ir. T. H. Bowyer-Bower obtained fresh eggs in October; while near the same locality, Mr. G. -\. Keartland observed fledgelings at the end of March. In North Australia, Gilbert found a nest with eggs in February; and, as previously pointed out, Mr. E. Olive took the eggs of this species near the Katherine River in October, 1898. Collvriocinda palltdirostris, described by Dr. Sharpe ■ from specimens obtained at Port Essington and the Nicholson River, is, I belie\-e, the female or young male of this species. Collyriocincla parvula. LITTLE SURIKE-TURUSH. CoUuricincla parvula, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, ISI-i, p. 62; id., Bds. Austr., fob, Vol. II., pi. 78 (1848); id.. Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 22.-) (1865). Pinaro/estfs parvuhis, Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 296 (1877). Adult m.\lr — General colour abovn olive-brown; upper iving-coverls like the back, the greater series IV ith/alvous tips ; primaries and secondaries olive-brown on their outer webs, brotvn on their inner webs, except the innermost secondaries, which are of a uniform olive-brown: apical half of tJie primaries externally edged with ashy-brown ; tail dull olive-brown; lores and a superciliary stripe dull white; chin and throat dull while, passing into pale fulvous on the remainder of the under surface and the under tail-coverts, the feathers of the fore-neck having narrow brown shaft-streaks ; * Cat. Bds. Brit. Mas., Vol. iii., p. 293 (1877). 98 PRIONOPID.B. bill blackish-brown; leys and feet bluiah-grey. Total hnyth 7-7 inches, wing Jf, tail SS, bill OS, tarsus I'l. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — North-western Australia, Northern Territory of South Australia. ^?^HE Little Shrike-Thrush inhabits the north-western and northern portions of the continent. There are specimens in the Macleay Museum, collected at King Sound and Cambridge Gulf, North-western Australia, and at Port Darwin in the Northern Territory of South Australia. Mr. Alex. Morton also obtained specimens at Port Essington, in 1879, the farthest point east I have known it to be found, and where Gilbert procured the type. In the "Ornithology of the Chevert,"" Mr. George Masters has, by a lapsus calami, recorded this species from Cape York, Cape Grenville, and Palm Island, instead of C. nifigastcr, or its smaller northern ally C. parvissima. Dr. Ramsay I has also recorded C. nijif;astci' from Derby, North-western .\ustralia, instead of the present species. In his "Handbook," Gould remarks:— " This species is a native of Port Essington and the neighbouring parts of the northern coast of Australia." Gilbert, to whose notes I must refer for all tiiat is known about it, states that it is "an inhabitant of the thickets, is an extremely shy bird, and is generally seen on or near the ground. Its note is a fine Thrush-like tone, very clear, loud, and melodious. The stomach is muscular, and the food consists of insects of various kinds, but principally coleoptera. The nest and eggs were brought me by a native; they were taken from the hollow part of a tree, about four feet from the ground. The nest, which was too much injured to be preserved, was formed of small twigs and narrow strips of bark of a Melaleuca. The eggs were two in number, of a beautiful pearly flesh-white, regularly spotted all over with dull reddish and umber-brown ; like the eggs of the other species of tlie genus, they are also sprinkled over with bluish markings, which appear as if beneath the surface of the shell; their medium length is one incii, and breadth nine lines." Two eggs of a set, taken near Port Darwin, are oval in form, pearly white, sparingly freckled and spotted with rich umber-brown, except on the larger end, where intermingled with a few underlying spots of pale bluish-grey, the markings are larger and confluent, forming a well defined zone. Length : — (A) i x 072 inches; (B) 0-98 x 073 inches. Anotiier set of two, taken in the same locality, measures: — (A) 0-95 x 075 inches; (B) 0-94 x 075 inches. In shape, size, colour, and disposition of markings, the eggs of this species cannot be distinguished from those of Collyriocincla nifigaster. There are specimens in the Macleay Museum, taken at Derby, North-western Australia, in 1886. Collyriocincla rufiventris. BUFF-BELLIED SHRIKE-THRUSH. Colluricincla rufiventris, Gould, Proc. Zool. Hoc, 1840, p. 164; id., Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. II., pi. 7.5 (1848); id., Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 222 (1865). Collyriocincla rufiventris. Sharps, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. III., p. 292 (1877). Adult m.\le — General colour above dark grey, slightly tinged with olive; primaries, secondaries, and upper wing-coverts brown, externally edged ruith grey ; tail feathers brown, washed ivith grey on their outer webs; lores dull tvhite: chin and throat greyish-ivhite, passing into ashy-grey on the chest; remainder of the under surface pale fawn colour, becoming of a deeper tint on the under tail-coverts ; bill blackish-brown ; legs and feet greenish-grey ; iris brown. Total length 8'75 inches, wing Ji.'8, tail 4, bill 9, tarsus 1'2. ' Proc. Linn. See. N.S.W., Vol. i., p. 50 (1877). t Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W., 2nd ser., Vol. ii., p. 1C7 (1888). COLLYKIOCINCLA. ^'^ Adult female ^Distinyuishedfrom the mak by the blackuh shaft lines and darker grey feathers of the under surface. Z)u«ri6.«io«.-North-western and Western Australia, South Australia, Central Australia. AT-VHl- r.ufl-hellied Shrike-Thrush is the representative of Collyviocimla havmonica in the If western portion of the continent. There are specimens in the Australian Museum collection, obtained by Mr. George Masters at Port Lincoln, South Australia, in September, 1865 and at King George's Sound, \\-estern Australia, in February and April of the following yea,.' In August, 1901, Mr. Edwin Ashby met with this species at Callion, about eighty-five miles north of Coolgardie. and three hundred and sixty miles from the coast. Durin.^ the journey of the Horn Scientific Expedition in Central Australia, these birds were frequently met with, and regarding them Mr. G. A. Keartland writes to me as follows:- "The Buff-belhed Shrike-Thrush is found near most of the permanent water-holes and wells in Central Australia, and, as you will see by the collection sent you, we obtained specimens first at Reedv Hole, and later on at the Levi Range. In many respects it bears a close resemblance to Its near allv C. hannouua. and especially in its clear and musical notes. It chiefly frequents shady gullies and the dense undergrowth of the forest, hopping nimbly over the ground or along the stout limbs of eucalypts in search of insects, on^which it feeds. All the nests tound were built in hollow stumps or between forked branches." From Point Cloates, North-western Australia. Mr. Tom Carter writes me, as follows :- ^^Collynocincla mfivmins is common here in the deep gorges of the ranges. On the 27th July, 1899, I shot recently fledged young, and saw an adult bird hopping about with a tat lizard in its bill, and singing lustily while so engaged." Mr C Ernest Cowle, of Illamurta, Central Australia, found a nest of this species on the 17th November, 1899, containing three heavily incubated eggs. The nest, which I have now before me, is an open cup-shaped structure, formed chiefly of strips of dried bark, intermixed with a few wiry rootlets and grasses, and was built in the fork of a tree, a few eet from he .round. It measures externally five inches in diameter by three and a half inches in depth; ^he inner cup measuring three inches and a half in diameter by two inches and three^iuar ers in depth Eggs two or three in number for a sitting, varying from elongate to rounded oval m form; white; some being finely spotted, others boldly blotched, particularly at the larger end, with different shades of olive or reddish-brown, and underlying markings ot dull bluish-grey Lenc^th :-(A) r2 . 0-85 inches; (B) r2i x 0-85 inches. A set of two, taken at Illamurta, Central Australia, measures:-(C) 1-14 x 0-82 inches; (D) i-i2 x 0-83 inches. Two eggs, taken by Mr^ C E. Cowle, in .Vpril, 1900. at Illamurta, are very much smaller than typical examples, and vary much in size. They are oval m form, the shell being close-grained, smooth, and sight y glossy The ground colour is pearly-white, which is heavily blotched and spotted umtormly over the shell with olive-brown and pale inky-grey, some of the latter markings appearing as if beneath the surface of the shell. Length:-(A) 1-05 x o-8 inches; (B) i x 073 mches. Young birds have a distinct rufous eyebrow; sides of the head, neck and all the under surface fa^n colour; the feathers on the throat and fore-neck broadly streaked with blackish^ grey; the primaries and their coverts, secondaries, and greater wing-coverts brown, washed with rufous; bill blackish-brown; base of the lower mandible fleshy-brown. Mr. Cowle informs me this species usually breeds in March or April; or in September and the two following months, if there is a heavy rainfall. The above described nest, however, was ten during a prolonged drought. In Western Australia, Gould records ^h- U b.eeds m th latter part o^ September and the beginning of October, and that on two occasions Gilbert had found the eggs of this bird in old nests of Pomatorhinus snpcvcihosus. 100 PRIONOPID.i;. Collyriocincla rufigaster. RUFOUS-BREASTEU SUKIKE THRUSH. Colluriciucla rufogaster, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1845, p. 80. Colluricinda rufigaster, Gould, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. lid (1865). Colluricincla parvissima, Gould, Ann. ct Mag. Xat. Hist., Ser. 4, Vol. X, p. 114 (1872). Collyriocincla cerviniventris, North, Rec. .Austr. Mus., Vol. II, p. 19 (1892). Adult male — General colour above dull olive brown, sliyhtly shaded with grey, the upper tail- coverts more distinctly tinged with olive ; lesser and median upper wing-coverts like the back; the greater coverts and inner secondaries brown, washed loith olive; primaries and outer secondaries brown on their inner webs, olive-brown on their outer webs; tail-feathers brown, slightly tinged irith olive; feathers in front of the eye dull white; chin and throat pale bnffy- white; remainder of the under surface fawn colour, richer on the abdomen and under tail-coverts, the fore-neck indistinctly streaked with dull olive-brown; bill and legs ^fleshy-brown; iris dark brown. Total length 7-3 inches, wing 3'85, tail 3'3, bill OS, tarsiis 10'). Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — Eastern Queensland, North-eastern New South Wales. - pj^ KGARDING Collyriocincla parvissima and C. cerviniventris only as climatic lornis or X. JL. races of C. rufigaster, which vary in size and colour according to their distribution and environment, it will be seen from the above synonymy that I have united them with the present species. Knowing that many will differ from this view at the present time, when every slight variation from the common type, as a rule, receives specific or subspecific recognition, I have pointed out the difference in these races, and kept the remarks on each separate from those on the typical species, C. rufigaster. The range of Collyriocincla rufigaster, Gould, e.xtends throughout the greater portion of the coastal brushes of Eastern Queensland and North-eastern New South Wales. Mr. George Masters met with it at Wide Bay; and Mr. J. .\. Thorpe informs me that he found it common in the Richmond River District. Mr. R. Grant has also procured specimens in the ]5ellinger River District, the southern limit of its known range. It is fairly plentiful in the scrubs at the head of the Clarence River, where I observed it in November, i8g8. .\t that time it was usually met with in pairs, each keeping to a separate part of the creek or scrub in which their nest was built. The note of this species is very different from the rich and jiielodious notes of the Harmonious or Grey Shrike-Thrush, also heard in the same locality, consisting of a clear whistle, repeated three times, and again immediately uttered in a different key. Like C. harmonica, and other members of this genus, its food consists principally of various kinds of insects and their larvjE. Mr. George Savidge writes: — "Collyriocincla rufigaster is a resident species in the Upper Clarence District, and may be observed in about the same numbers all the year round. Its call in winter is different from the note uttered in spring, but I have never known it to possess any ventriloquial powers, or imitate the notes of any other species. It is, as you know, not uncommon in the scrub close to my house, but I have never seen it in open forest lands. These birds commence to build in September, and both se-xes assist in the task of nidifiration, but I cannot say if the duty of incubation is also shared." The nest is a deep cup-shaped structure, outwardly formed of a thick layer of dead and green leaves, bound round and held together with long pliant stems of climbing plants, inter- mingled with a small quantity of cobweb and the silky-green outer covering of spiders' cocoons; internally it is neatly lined with thin pliant stems and wiry rootlets. Unlike the nest of COLLYUIOCIXCLA. 101 CoUyriocMa kannonica, bark or bark-ftbre :s seldom used in its construct.on, and it resemb es Ire a miniature nest of tbe Cat-bird (.^..dus vM.). An average nest measures externally fivei cbes in diameter by four inches in depth; internal diameter three mches depth wo •ncl s and a half. They are usually built ur a thin three or more pronged upr.ght branch of ant icMy leaved shrub, or m a mass of vines in the scrubs, at a height varying from hve to ::il e feet from the ground. At Copmanhurst, 1 saw one in a Bean-tree f Castano.per.uon Zrale), and another in one of the introduced Lantana bushes which over-run so many of the scrubs on the northern rivers of New South Wales, and elsewhere. The e-s are three in number for a sitting, varying from elongate to rounded oval in form, the shell b:rng close-grained, smooth and lustrous. They are of a pearly-white ground colour wth dots, spots, and blotches of reddish -brown, distributed over the suriace of the she 1, and intermingled with underlying spots and blotches of warm slaty-grey. Some specimens lia^ea " dull white ground colour, which is almost obscured with indistinct fleecy mark- ings, intermingled with small irregular-shaped blotches of pale brown, and underlying markings of dull lilac-grey. Others have rich red dots and spots, and could easily be mistaken in character and colour of markings for lightly spotted varieties of GvalUna picata. The markings are generally larger, and pre- dominate on the thicker end of the shell. Length:— (A) I-07XO-75 inches; (B) 1-05 X 078 inches. A set of three measures: — (A) i'03x o-S inches; (B) 1-03 x 079 inches; (C) roi x 075 inches. In the coastal brushes of New South Wales, the breed- ing season of this species commences about the middle of September, and continues until the end of January. The nest figured was taken by Mr. George Savidge in the Cangai Scrubs, Upper Clarence River District, in November, 1898, and contained two fresh eggs. Although undoubtedly very closely allied to the present species Gould's ^d^^-^^ par^issiua ^s a decidedly smaller northern form, and can furthermore ^^'^^^^^^^^l^ tpper parts being more strongly washed with olive. ^^^^^ ^^Z^tlZZ as follows :-Total length 6-3 inches, wing 3-5, tail 27, bill o /> It ranges as nei'^hbourhood of the Herbert River, Queensland. ° Mr I. A. Boyd, who sent me several nests and sets of eggs, while resident at the Herbert River wrote as Lo^s.-^^ Collyrioancla parrissin,a is not at all particular m its choic o a ^u IdL place. I have taken its nest in a stunted Drac.na, and fron. ^^e upright fork of a 'C^tLve feet from the ground. In November, 189. I ^^^^:::7:t^. reeds, not a foot from the ground: and I have pulled one out of the lea\es NEST OF RUFOUS-BREASTED SIIRIKE-TII KUSH. ]02 PIUOXOIMD.E. I also took one from a cluster of vines, eight feet from the ground; and another, about ten feet up, in a tree overhanging water." Mr. Frank Hislop informs me that in the Bloomfield River District, the nests are some- times built in lawyer-vines, or on a scrub Paiulaiius, and generally within three or four feet from the ground. The nests sent by Mr. Boyd are round, open, cup-shaped structures, formed externally of thin strips of bark, green and dried leaves, Ion.; wiry tendrils intermixed with spider-webs and cocoons; the inside being thinly lined with wiry rootlets. Both externally and interna'ly the leaves form the chief part of the structure. A very pretty nest is one formed principally of green leaves, moss, and the green silky covering of spider-cocoons, relieved only on the outside with snow-white egg-bags of spiders. It measures externally four inches and a half in diameter by three inches and three-quarters in depth; the inner cup three inches in diameter by two inches and three-quarters in depth, liggs two or three in number for a sitting, varying from elongate to rounded oval in form, and from a pure pearly-white to a dull brownish-white ground colour, which is freckled, spotted, or heavily blotched with reddish-brown, umber-brown, or olive-brown, intermingled with similar underlying markings of dark slaty or dull bluish-grey. In some specimens the markings are evenly distributed over the surface of the shell, but as a rule they predominate on the larger end, where they become confluent and form a cap or irregular zone. Occasionally an egg in a set will be devoid of markings, witli the exception of one or two large irregular-shaped umber or reddish-brown patches. A set taken on the 17th October, 1894, measures -.--Length (A) 0-97x075 inches; (B) 0-95x0-75 inches, .\nother set of three, from the Bloomfield River District, measures: — Length (A) 0-92x0-7 inches; (B) 0-9 X 0-7 inches; (C) 0-94 x 0-72 inches. During many years' observation, Mr. J. A. lioyd found the lirst nest with eggs as early as the 14th September, and the latest in the season 01 the 25th January. In the latter instance, the eggs were heavily incubated. Collyriocincla ccrviniventris, separated by me, is an inland form of C. rufiaa^tcr, from whicli it may be distinguished by its longer and thinner bill, and by its very much paler upper and under surface. An adult male measures: — Total length 7-2 inches, wing 3-7, tail j-2, bill 0-87, depth at nostril 0-25, tarsus 1-02. The eggs of this form are, as a rule, indistinguishable from those of typical eggs of C. rufigastcy. Two, however, taken by the late Mr. George Barnard, of the Dawson River, Queensland, and from whom the types of this race were obtained, approach nearer in the dark olive-brown tint of their markings to a common variety of the eggs of C. harmonica. They are, of course, much smaller than the eggs of the latter species, measuring only: — Length (A) 1-03 x 0-74 inches; (B) i-oi x 0-74 inches. That the birds from the Dawson River are different from typical examples of C. rufigastey is borne out by the fact that when the late Mr. George Barnard sent specimens to Dr. Ramsay for identification, he determined them to be C. parvula, and recorded them as such from that district in his "Tabular List of .\ustralian Birds." Typical sized eggs of Collyriocincla riifigasicr from the Clarence River, and of each race, C. parvissima from Cape York and the Herbert River, and C. ccrviniventris from the Dawson River, will be found figured on I'late 1!. 1\'. GRAUCALUS. 103 Family GAMPOPHAGID^. Graucalus melanops. BLACK-FACED CUCKOO-SURIKE. Con-US melanops, Lath., liul. Orii., Suppl., p. xxiv., (1801). Grmicalus m«/rtMo/w, Gould, BJs. Austr., fol., Vol. II, j.l. T).") (184S); irl, Handhk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 192 (186."i); yliarpp, Cat. Bds. liiit. Mus., V"ol. T\^, p. 30(1S79); .Salvad., ( )rn. Pap. et Molucc, Ft. 11., p. 130 (1881). Adult malk — General colour nkove gret/ : upper iring coverU grey : primaries black, externally edged and tipped irith grey; secondaries black, the outermost Jeathers broadly margined with greii, the latter colour increasing in extent towards the innermost feather; n-hich has the outer web and tip entirely grey : two central tail-feathers grey, blackish on on their apical portion, and tiarrutrly tipped with white; the remainder black, largely tipped with white; forehead, feathers above the eye, ear-coverts, sides of neck, and throat black : chest dark grey, gradually becomiiig lighter on tlie breast, and piire ivhite on the abdomen and nn.der tuil-corerts : bill black.- legs and feet black; iris dark brou-n. 7'olal length in t/ie jiesh 1-j inches, iring S, tail 58, bill 1, tarsus 1 05. AnuLT FEiMALK — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — All parts of the Australian con- tinent, islands of Torres Strait, New Guinea, .\ru Islands, Ke Islands, Louisiade Archipelago, the iMoluccas, Timor, New Zealand, Lord Howe Island. Jr\. Shrike BLACK-FACKD CUCKOO-SHRIKE. LTHOUGH lhe\ernacularnameofCuckoo- ^ophora, at a height varying usually from twenty to sixty feet from the ground, but a bird I saw at Copmanhurst, in November, 1898, was just starting its nest in the thin fork of a grey gum at an altitude of fully eighty feet. The eggs are two or three in number for a sitting, and vary in size, shape, colour, and disposition of markings, large eggs of this species being indistinguishable from small specimens of G. indaiwps, and eggs taken in the northern limit of its range being similar to those of G. hypoleucus. They are oval to rounded oval in form, the shell being close grained and its surface smooth and usually lustrous. In ground colour they \ary from a dark asparagus-green to a \ery pale olive-green, some specimens being evenly dotted and spotted over the surface of the shell with different shades of purplish and umber-brown; others are heavily blotched with pale reddish -brown, intermingled with a few indistinct underlying markings of violet-grey. As a rule the markings are evenly distributed, but in some specimens they are larger and pre- dominate on the thicker end. .A. set of three, taken at Copmanhurst, measures: — (A) 1-22 x 0-9 inches; (B) 1-28 x o-g inches; (C) i'24 x 0-87 inches. A set of twt), taken at Warren, measures: — (A) i'i8xo-85 inches; (B) i-i8xo'82 inches. A set of two, from Broad Sound, Queensland, measures: — (.A) i-i x 0-82 inches; (B) i-i5xo'83 inches. Immature birds have the head, hind-neck, throat, sides of the neck, and chest black; the feathers of the breast and upper portion of the abdomen with blackish centres or sagittate markings. Gradually these black feathers change into grey, first on the crown of the head and hind neck, then on the feathers of the throat and chest, which have whitish edges. In slightly older birds, signs of immaturity remain in the black mottlings to the feathers on the sides of the neck and chest, and indistinct dusky barrings to the feathers of the breast. The last traces of youth are exhibited in the ear-coverts, which have dusky bases or centres, and are somewhat darker than in the fully adult bird. Immature birds were obtained by Mr. George Masters in the first of the above described stages of plumage at Rope's Creek, about thirty miles from Sydney, in January, and a similar specimen was obtained by mc. at Wellington, New South ^Vales, in July. GRAUCALUS. 109 In similarly describing the young of this species, Gould truly remarks: — "There is no one member of the family to which it belongs wliich undergoes so many changes of plumage as Granailus mciitalis, and it is consequently very puzzling to the ornithologist." From a series of eleven birds now before me, obtained in various parts of New South Wales at different seasons of the year, I have described above what I believe to be immature plumaged examples, although the average wing measurement equals that of the adult. All have more or less black or partially black feathers, either on the crown of the head, ear-coverts, sides of the neck, throat, and fore-neck, or on all of these parts: and to a certain extent this stage of plumage is also exhibited in some paired birds during the breeding season. Probably only very old bu'ds are entirely destitute of black feathers on these parts, for in fifteen specimens now before me, only four show no traces of them. It is remarkable that the young and adult stages of plumage of Grancaliis mclanops and G. meutalis. should be exactly reversed; the crown of the head, throat, and fore-neck of the former gradually passing from grey in the young to black in the adult, while that of G. mentaln changes from black in the young to grey in the adult. In the neighbourhood of Penrith, on the Nepean River, these birds commence to build about the middle of August. At Copmanhurst I saw them liuilding on the gth November, although eggs have been taken there on the 7th of that month; and at I'.road Sound. Queens- land, fresh eggs have been found as late as the i 2th December. Graucalus hypoleucus. WHITE-BELLIED CUCKOO-SHRIKE. Graucaln, hypoleucus, (iould, Proc. Zool. Soc, 184S, p. 38: id., Bds. .Austr, fol.. Vol. TI., pi. 57 (1848), irf,Handbk, Bds. Austr., Vol, I., p. 19G(186.^); Sharpe, Oat. Bds, Br.t, Mus., Vol. IV., p. 36 (1879); Salv.-ul., Orn, Pap, et Molucc, Pt, II,, p, 136 (1881). Adult male- (iVnem/ colour above ijreij, li,jhter on the forehead, rump, and upper tail-coverls ; primaries black, externally edyed with greyish- white: secondaries black, washed with grey on their outer webs, and eo:ternally edged with greyish-white, the innermost feather entirely grey on the outer web: two central tail feathers grey, with a blackish wash on their apical half the remainder blackish tipped with ashy-tvhite: lores, and a narrow frontal band e.rtending about half way over the eye, and from the gape below but not beij.rud the eye, black: throat white, passing into pale greyish-white on the chest:' remainder of the nnder surface, the under tail and under wing-coverts pure xohite ; bill and legs black; iris dark brown. Total length dS inches, wing 5 73, tail i'Z, bill 088, tarsus 0'9. Adult femalk — 77/e sexes are alike in plumage. Distribution.-^orih-v^estexn Australia, Northern Territory of South Australia, North Queensland, Islands of Torres Strait, New Ciuinea, Aru Islands. /T^IIF type of this species was described by Gould from a specimen procured at Port L l.ssin^^ton. It has a wide distribution, being found near Wyndham, North-western Australia; at Port Darwin, Port Essington, and Cape York, in Northern Australia; also on the islands of Torres Strait, New Guinea, and the Aru Islands. From Graucalus mentahs it can onlv be distinguished by its smaller size, more delicate grey upper parts, and by the black 'feathers below the eye not extending on to the upper portion of the ear-coverts, as in that species. All the Australian typical examples I have examined are from the northern portions of the continent. Specimens from Cooktown, on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, are somewhat larger and darker on the under parts; and from localities farther souUi appear to completely intergrade with G. mcntaUs. I have never observed, however, any 110 CA.MPOPHAGID.E. immature specimens of G. hypolencus showing traces of the black head and chest of that species. Specimens from Port Moresby, New Guinea, are shghtly whiter on the under surface, and smaller than examples from Northern Australia. I\lr. J. A. Thorpe obtained numerous examples at Cape York in 1867-8: and Mr. George Masters also obtained specimens in the same locality, and at Cape Grenville. during the voyage of the "Chevert" in 1875. From W'yalla, about thirty miles south of Cooktown, Mr. Frank Hislop writes: — "The White-bellied Cuckoo-Shrike is common in the open forest lands, and I have often met with it in timbered pockets on the mountains. Its food consists of insects and fruits, principally the smaller species of figs; it is also very fond of chillies. The nest, which is nearly flat, is chiefly composed of short pieces of twig and strips of bark, fastened together with cobwebs, and is always placed in the junction of a forked horizontal branch, more often near the extremity of a limb. They build generally in the bloodwood and beefwood trees, at a height varying from fifteen to thirty feet from the ground. The breeding season commences in October, and lasts until the end of [anuary." The eggs, usually two, sometimes three in number for a sitting, are not to be distinguished from small eggs of G. meiitalis. In addition to the previously described varieties of the eggs of the latter species, a common type among the eggs of G. hypoleiiciis has a rich bluish-green ground colour, with heavy blotches of purplish-brown or reddish-umber, distributed over the larger end of the shell, and intermingled with similar faint underlying markings of a paler shade. A set of two, from Cape York, measures: — (A) 1-07 xo-8 inches; (H) fo8xo-8 inches. A set of two, taken near Cooktown, measures: — (A) fi x o'8 inches; (B) i'i2 x o'8i inches. Pteropodocys phasianella. i.iUul NU CUCKUU-SUHIKE. Graucalus phasiandlus, Gould, Proc. Zool. Soa, 18.39, p. 142. Pteropodocys phasianella, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. 11., pi. .t9 (1848); id., Haiidlik. Bds. Austr., Vol. [., p. 199 (1865); Sharpe, Cat. Bds, Brit. .Mas., Vol. IV., p. 22 (1879). Adult m.\lk — Head, hind-neck, inantle, and upper portion of the hack, yrey : luicer back, rump, and tipper tail-coverts white, crossed by narrow transverse black lines; wings black, the lesser coverts dark grey ; tail feathers black, white at the base, the outer feather on either side broadly tipped with white; small feathers around and below the eye grey, tipped with white; ear-coverts blackish-grey, with indistinct wititish cross-lines ; throat, sides of the neck, and chest grey, passing into white on the remainder of the under surface, which is crossed iviih narrow transverse black bars; centre 0/ the lower abdomen, under tail-coverts, arid a:rillaries white ; bill black; legs and feet black : iris straiv- white. Total length in the Jlesh H inches, wing 8;i, tail 7, bill OS, tarsus 1:5. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Central .Australia, Western Australia. / I^HE Ground Cuckoo-Shrike is essentially an inhabitant of the inland portions of the J- States. Dr. W. Macgilli\ray informs me that it is common at Cloncurry, in the Burke District, North Queensland. Mr. K. Broadbent has recorded it from Barcaldine, about three hundred and fifty miles west of Rockhampton; and its range extends south throughout the inland districts of New South Wales, into the north-western parts of \'ictoria, and doubtless the adjoining portion of South .Australia, although Dr. .\. M. Morgan and Mr. .V. Zietz PTKROPODOCYS. Ill inform me that they have never seen or heard of its being obtained in the southern parts of the hitter State.' It was met with by tlie Horn Scientific Expedition at Crown Point and main' places alon- the iMnke Kiver, in Central Australia; Mr. Edwin Ashby observed a fiock at Callion, about eiRhty-hve miles north of Coolgardie; and Mr. George Masters obtained specimens near the Salt River, about fifty miles from Perth, Western Australia. An adult male from the latter locality has the cheeks, throat, fore-neck, and chest of a darker^grey than typical eastern examples, but a similar specimen was procured by the late Mr. K. H. Bennett, at Mossgiel, New South Wales. The wing measurement varies from 77 inches to 8-4 inches, the foregoing description being taken from a fine old adult male shot by me near Moree. In North-western and Western New South Wales it is a resident species, and although widely distributed is by no means numerous. It frequents chiefly large open grassy plains dotted here and there with low bushes and lofty trees, or sparsely timbered forest country contiguous to them. Near the Namoi and Gwydir F'Jivers, I met with it sometimes singly, or in pairs, but more often in small flocks of four or fi\e in number, passing most of its time on the ground, over which it runs with remarkable celerity in search of insects and their larva?, which constitute its food. It is usually very shy and uary, and exceedingly difficult to approach, more especially while on the ground. At Tyreel Station, on the Gwydir River, I shot an adult male, female, and a young female, on the gth November, 1897. These birds were part of a flock of five, and a friend had kindly driven me a long distance over the plains while m pursuit of them. I had a similar experience a few days later, on Weebollabolla Station, while accompanied by Mr. C. J. McMaster, the birds when disturbed flying fully a quarter of a mile before settling again on the open plain. I secured a young male, and found that these flocks usually consisted of an adult pair of birds accompanied by their young. The shrill notes of this species are usually uttered during flight, and somewhat resemble those of the Black-breasted Plover (Saniophorus tricolor). The late Mr. K. H. Bennett found many nests and egcs of this species; and there is a fine series of eggs, also young m all stages of plumage, in the Australian Museum, collected by him during his long residence in the western portion of New South Wales. The nest, winch ,s built on a horizontal forked branch, resembles that o^ Graucalus rnela,u>ps^^ but is sonrewhat larger and deeper, being composed externally of dried ^^^ ^ ^ ^ ^-^J grasses, thm fibrous roots, and bark fibre, bound together with spiders web, the shaUow saucer-like cavitv being lined with wool, fur, or other soft material. An average nest ineasures externally five inches in diameter bv two inches in ^epth^he m.er cav.ty three i^^^^^^^^^^ three-quarters in diameter by one inch m depth. Some nests are larger, and but t t'-oughout of softer material. One now before me. taken by the late Mr. K. H. Bennett, at ^.-dembah bt t on, is a thick, rounded, mattrass-like structure, formed principally of wool, with -h.<^h i-nte min-ded plant-stems, fine rootlets, dried grasses, and a few feathers; it ineasures externally CiHuUND CUCKOO SHRIKK. 112 CAMPOPHAGID.E. inches and a half in diameter by three inches in depth, the saucer-shaped depression measuring three inches and three-quarters by a depth of one inch and a half. The nests in New South Wales are usually built in a Eucalyptus or Casuariua. Generally the site selected is a horizontal branch of a lofty tree, but the height varies from twenty to seventy feet from the ground. Near Moree, in November, 1897, I saw an old mud tenement of the Magpie- Lark taken possession of by this species as a nesting-place. The eggs are usually three, and occasionally onlv two in number for a sitting. They vary in form from oval to elongate oval, some specimens tapering sharply towards the smaller end, the shell being close-grained and its surface smooth and glossy. In ground colour they vary from olive-green to dull asparagus and bright bluish-green, which is finely and closely freckled, as a rule, over the entire shell, with indistinct markings of olive-brown; in s(Mne specimens the freckles are confluent, and form clouded patches or a cap on the larger end. Typical eggs are of a dull asparagus-green ground colour, which is more or less obscured with numerous indistmct fleecy markings of olive-brown. .V set of three measures: — Length (A) r-_33xo-93 inches; (B) i-33xo'95 inches; (C) i'35xo-95 inches. An unusually small set of two, taken by the late Mr. K. H. Bennett, at Ivanhoe, in October, 1S86, and of a bright bluish-green ground colour, measures: —(.\) i-2xovS5 inches; (B) ri8xo"83 inches. The nestling has the general colour above fawn-brown, crossed by dull blackish transverse lines; the concealed portions of the feathers of the hetid, hind-neck, mantle, and back s^rey, and those of the rump and upper tail-coverts white; wings dull black, the inner primaries and the secondaries largely tipped with fawn-brown: tail black, the outer feather on either side and the two central ones tipped with fawn; throat dull white with narrow lilackish bars; fore- neck and chest grey, alternately barred with pale fawn and black; feathers of the remainder of the under surface white, largely tipped with fawn-brown and crossed with black transverse lines; centre of the abdomen and under tail-coverts white, washed with fawn. .\ slifjhtly older bird taken from the nest, near Mossgiel, on the 26th October, 1886, by the late Mr. K. H. Bennett, has lost most of the fawn tips to the feathers on the upper parts and chest, being replaced b)' the grey basal colour which has now nearly encroached to the tip; lower portion of the abdomen and under tail-coverts white, the latter crossed with a few narrow blackish transverse bars; "bill dark horn colour; legs and feet horn colour; iris dark brown" (Bennett). Wing 5-2 inches. A young male, shot by me at Moree on the 9th November, 1897, is like the adult, but has some of the feathers on the head, hind-neck, and mantle tipped with dull white and crossed with blackish transverse lines; primaries and secondaries black, edged with white at the tips; tail-feathers black with whitish tips, the outer one on either side broadly tipped with white; throat and fore-neck grey, the latter crossed with dull blackish transverse bars; bill black, legs and feet dark grey, iris dark brown. Total length in the flesh 13 inches, wing 77. In Central and Western New South Wales, it is an early breeder, several nests with full sets of eggs being taken by the late Mr. K. H. Bennett, at Yandembab and Mossgiel, during the first week in August, but the greater number of eggs may be usually found in October. In the tablelands of the Mudgee District, Messrs. Cox and Hamilton state* that "sometimes this species is rarely seen for years, at other times it is common all the year round, but usually leaves early in winter and returns in spring. For this reason it is known as 'Spring-bird.' We have taken eggs in November and December, and noted young birds leaving the nest on January 29th." * Proc. Linn. Soc. N.SW., 2nd ser,, Vol. iv., p. 405 (18 EDOLIISOMA. 113 C2rema.S EID0I-iHS03^-A., Pucheran. Edoliisoma tenuirostre. JARDINE'S CATERPILLA.R-EA.TER. Graucahis tenuirostris, Jard., Edin. Journ. Nat. it Geog. Sci., No. -t, n.s., p. 211. Campephaga jardinii, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. 11., pi. GO (1848); id., Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 200 (186.5). Edoliisoma tenuirostre, Sharpe, Gat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. IV., p. 5.5 (1879); North, Rec. Austr. Mus., Vol. I., p. 177 (1891). Adult male — General colour above and belotit dark slattj-greij; lesser wing-coverts like the back; median wing-coverts black at the base, dark slaty-grey at the tip ; primaries black, externally edged tvith grey; secondaries and greater iving-coverts black, broadly margined on their outer webs with grey : two central tail-feathers dark slaty grey with a spot of black near the tip, the remainder black, the outer one on either side tipped with slaty-grey ; lores, feathers below the eye, and the ear-coverts black; bill black; legs and feet black: iris dark brown. Total length in the flesh 10-6 inches, wing 5-5, tail Jf-1, bill 0-82, tarsus 1. Adult vv.yikhv.— General colour above ashy-brown, the feathers of the rump and upper tail- coverts more conspicuously shaded with grey, and having pale yellonnsh-buff edges and an indistinct blackish suhterminal cross-bar: primaries, secondaries, and upper iving-coverts broicn, externally margined with buff; two central tail-feathers brown, tvashed with buff, the remainder olive-brown tipped with rich creamy-buff, increasing in e:ctent tou-ards the outermost feather on either side, which has the outer web creamy-buff] except at the base; a line of feathers above and around the eye creamy -bnf: a spot in front of the eye and the ear-coverts blackish, the latter streaked with pale creamy-buff: chin, throat, and all the under surface creamij-buff; the feathers of the chest, breast, and sides of the body crossed n-ith two arro/nhend blackish lines; under tail-coverts and under wing-coverts rich creamy-huff. Total length in the flesh OS inches, wing 51, tail J^'l, bill OS, tarsus O-H-j. Distribiition.—NoTthem Territory of South Australia, Queensland, New Soutli Wales, \'ictoria. /-f^HIS species is distributed in favourable situations throughout the greater portion of J_ Northern and Eastern Australia. Gilbert met with it at Port Essington, Mr. K. Broadbent at Cape York, Mr. E. A. C. Olive procured e.xamples at Cooktown, Messrs. Cairn and Grant obtained it at Cairns, and Mr. George Masters at Port Denison. To New South Wales it is a spring visitant, departing again at the end of summer, when the breeding season is over. During these seasons it is by no means uncommon in the northern coastal districts. South of the Hawkesbury River it is less frequently met with until the Illawarra District is reached, e.\cept in the contiguous mountain gullies of the National Park and Waterfall. In the south-eastern portions of the State, and in Southern Mctoria it is a comparatively rare species. It evinces a decided preference for the taller trees in rich brush lands or humid mountain ranges and gullies, and is seldom met with far inland. During November, 1898, in company with Mr. George Savidge, I found it tolerably plentiful in the Upper Clarence District, resorting generally in pairs to the topmost branches of the highest trees, its presence being detected chiefly by the peculiar note of the male, resembling "kree-kree, kree-kree" rapidly utter^'ed, and which could be heard a considerable distance away. In November of the following year I observed the males only of this species in the loftiest trees growing in the palm brushes at Ourimbah, a few miles north of the Hawkesbury River. Evidently the females were sitting, for I saw and heard the males day after day in the same places, and from which they chased all other birds. The dense undergrowth, covered with bush-lawyer vines, howfever, precluded 114 CAMPOPHAGID.E. the possibility of making a thorough search for their nests at any distance from the roads or tracks made by the timber-getters. The food of this species consists of insects and their larvae. During the latter end of September, 1882, Mr. C. C. L. Talbot observed a pair of these birds building their nest in the angle of a forked horizontal branch of an ironbark, about forty feet from the ground, on Collaroy Station, Broad Sound, five hundred and fifty-six miles north of Brisbane. From this nest, a week after, Mr. Talbot secured a single egg, the first I had seen, and the only occasion I had known of its being taken. Subsequently Mr. G. E. Shepherd found several nests at Mornington, \ictoria, each of which contained a single egg, the normal sitting. These nests were built in either a Eucalyptus, Casuarina, or Banksia. In every instance the females sat very close, and one almost allowed him to touch her before she left the nest. Mr. Shepherd forwarded me a nest and egg of E. tenuirosire, together with the following note: — " I have taken the nest and egg of one pair of birds on four occasions. The first I took on the i8th December, 1896; the second on the 27th December; the third on the 8th January, 1897; and the fourth on the 19th of the same month; so you will see what persistent breeders they are. The only sound 1 have heard the female utter is a cluck-like note when I have frightened her off the nest." From the Upper Clarence River, Mr. George Savidge writes as follows: — "Jardine's Caterpillar-eater usually arrives in this locality about the middle of October. There are now four pairs of these birds calling within hearing of my house. Each pair have a certain domain of their own, and during the breeding season resent the intrusion of any other species, attacking even Magpies and Laughing Jackasses, until they drive them from the neighbourhood. It is entirely owing to this pugnacious character that I have been able to locate the proximity of their nests, but even then they are extremely difficult to discover on account of their diminutive size. When not engaged in fighting or chasing other birds, the male generally flies off to a great distance before one gets near the tree in which the nest is built, the female in the mean- time slipping quietly off and stealing away unobserved. At other times the female sits perfectly upright on the nest and will not leave it until one is half-way up the tree. I robbed the nests of a pair of these birds three times during January and February, 1899, first of a young one and subsequently on two occasions of a single egg. The female does not lay again in the same nest after being robbed, but the birds generally build in a tree near at hand, the nest being completed and the egg deposited within ten or twelve days. They build in any rough-barked tree; I have found their nests in Bloodwoods, Ironbarks, Stringybarks, Oaks, Apple-trees (Angophora subvelutiva), and the Xati\'e Quince ( Petalostigma quadriloculare ), at heights varying from twelve to forty feet from the ground. I have taken twelve nests, with an egg in each, and found seven with young. Nidification, in which both sexes take part, commences early in November, and the breeding season continues until the end of February." I observed these birds for the first time in the vicinity of Sydney, at Roseville on the 28th October, 1900; arriving again on the same date in the following year. The male of a pair which have each season tenanted the trees opposite my house, used to commence calling as early as 5 a.m., and at prolonged intervals kept it up for two hours. Seldom did I hear it call throughout the day. The male, in addition to its frog-like note, utters a low chirrup and a sweet clear note like that of Artamus superciliosus. Although the male is usually pugnacious, he sometimes meets his match. On the 23rd December, 1900, I saw one chasing a Yellow-tufted Honey-eater backwards and forwards through the trees. Suddenly the pursuer became the pursued, and finally left the Honey-eater in possession of the field. A nest of this species, found at Roseville, on the 30th November, 1901, was built in a forked horizontal branch of a Forest-oak (Casuarina sttberosaj, at a height of thirty feet from the ground, and contained a EDOLIISO.MA. 115 heavily incubated esrg, but which I managed successfully to empty of its contents. These birds leave the district again about the middle of January. The nest, a small open shallow structure, is fitted into the angle of a forked horizontal branch, and is constructed throughout of lichens intermingled with short pieces of very thin plant stems or the thread-like leaves of the Casiiarina, and held together with spiders' web; the rim of the nest, which stands slightly above the branch, being thickly coated with lichens, and the saucer-like cavity lined entirely with fine dried plant stems or portions of Casitarina leaves. In three nests now before me, one built in a Bloodwood has the rim nearly level with the thick forked branch in which it is fitted: another, in a Native Quince, has a few pieces of green moss worked into it, and the rim slightly raised above the branch; and the third, in a bent fork, has one side of the nest built up level to a height of one inch and a quarter. An average nest measures externally three inches and a quarter in diameter; internally two inches; depth half an inch. Only one egg is laid for a sitting; they vary in form from oval to ellipse and elongate- oval, and in ground colour from very pale bluish and greenish-grey to green. The variety most frequently found has irregular-shaped spots and dots of different shades of umber and slaty-brown, uniformly dis- ;' , tributed over the surface of the shell, and intermingled with underlying spots and blotches of slaty-grey. In the colour and disposition of its markings this variety resembles the egg of Sittella thrysoptcra, but is nearly twice the size. Some speci- mens have the markings ^>>"' much darker, and an irregu- lar zone on the thicker end. Atypical egg measures i'2i X 0-87 inches; an elongate i specimen 1-3 X 0-85 inches. A rare variety, obtained by NEST AND EGG OF JARDINE's CATERPILLAR EATER. j^jj._ Qqqxctq Savidce, and now in the collection of ^Ir. Joseph Gabriel, is like a miniature Crow's egg. It is oval in form, and of a dull green ground colour, w^iich is uniformly spotted and dotted with different shades of yellowish and blackish-brown, except on the larger end, where the ground colour is almost obscured by a broad clouded band of dull yellowish-brown. Length: — i-24xo-85 inches. This egg is represented on Plate B. III., Figure U. Figure 13 is from Mr. George Savidge's collection. An egg, taken at Roseville, on the 30th November, 1901, measures: — Length 1-23 x 0-84 inches. A nestling, taken by Mr. Savidge, has the feathers of the upper parts brown, slightly darker on the head, and all largely tipped with white; wings dark brown, the secondaries broadly edged with light rufous; tail-feathers buff, with blackish cross-bars; all the under surface dull white, the feathers of the chest and breast with a blackish shaft-line terminating in a tear-shaped spot near the tip; bill fleshy-brown; legs and feet pale fleshy -brown. Total length 4-7 inches, wing 2-2^. The nest and egg figured above were taken by Mr. Savidge at Copmanhurst, on the Upper C'arence River, on the 8th January, 1899. 116 CAMPOPHAGID.E. O-eHTAS Ij.A.Xj-A.C5-E, Boie. Lalage leucomela. WHITE-EYEBROWED CATERPILLAR-EATER. Campephaga Icucomp.la, Vig. and Horsf., Trans. Linn. Hoc, Vol. XV., p. 215 (18"20). Cavipephaga leucomela, Gould, Bds. Au.str., fol.. Vol. IT., pt. 02 (1848): id.. Handlik. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 203 (186.")). Lalage leucomelcena (partim), Sharpe, Cat. Bds. Krit. iMus., Vol. IV., p. 106 (187'J). Adui.T m.vlk — General colour above glossy black; feathers of the rump grey, ivith a subterminal spot or bar of black; upper tail-coverts grey ; tail black, the lateral teathers tipped with tvhite, ivhich increases in extent towards the outermost feather; lesser 7ving-coKerts black, the median series tv/tite except at tfie base; tfie greater coverts black, tvith an oblique u-liite tip; quills black, the secondaries externally edged ivith tvltite ; a line extending from llie nostril over tlie eye p-are tchite ; a triaiignl ar- shaped patch in front oj the eye black; chin, throat, cheeks, a^id. earcoverts white, passing into faint greyis/i-uhite on the remainder of the under surface, which is slightly tinged with orange-bitjf ; under tail-coverts orange-buff; under wing-coverts pure white; bill and iris dark brown; legs and feet dark grey. Total length /■/) inches, wing S'9, tail 3'2, bill 0:J2, tarsus 82. Adui/p fkm.\le — General colour above blackish-grey ; rump and upper tail-C07;erts brownish-grey, with greyisli-w/iite lips to t/ie feathers ; quills and upper wing-coverts dark brown, and similarly marked with white as in the male; eyebro/r not .■'>, tarsus OS. Distribution. — Northern Territory of Soutli .\ustralia, (,)ueen.slancl, Xorth-eastern New South Wales. /■ |(_^HE range of this species extends from I'ort Essinf(ton, in Xorlhern Australia, to Cape J- \'ork, and ihroufrhout all the coastal districts of Eastern Queensland into North-eastern New South Wales. I have specimens now before me from Port Essington, Cape York, Cook- town, Cairns, Port Denison, Wide Bay, Brisbane, Richmond River, and Bellinger River, and find little or no variation in their plumage. The wing of adult males from Cape York and Cooktown measures 3-8 inches; from Gayndah, Queensland, 4-3 inches; from the Bellinger River, New South Wales, 3-8 inches. As Count Salvador!" points out, the present species is distinct from Lalage l;aru, and Dr. Sharpe was in error in the " Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum, "I- in regarding them as one species. Sub.sequently, in his Report on the Birds collected during the "\'oyage of H.M.S. Alert," I Dr. Sharpe apparently holds the same views as Count Salvador!. The type of Lalage Imru was obtained in New Ireland; that of L. leucomela from Broad Sound, Queensland. I have never seen L. karu from any part of the .Vustralian continent. Specimens from the Laloki River, New Guinea, may be distinguished by their more broadly- barred under parts, less extent of white on the upper wing-coverts, and the very distinct white margins to the feathers of the rump. I met with a few examples of L. leucomela in the Upper Clarence District, in November, 1898. It had just arrived in that district, and was not apparently breeding during my stay there. * Orn. Pap. et Molucc, Pt. ii , p. 163 (1881). t Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol iv., p. io5 (1879). * Voy. Alert, p. 13 (18S4). LALAOE. 117 From North-eastern Queensland, Mr. E. A. C. Olive kindly forwarded me an adult male and female of this species, together with the following notes: — "These birds are numerous in the Cooktown District, and fre,^ a^j^Mf//Mg and. later on, Mr. G. A. Keartland found them breeding ,j\. ■^ ^^^aB^m^^^m close to the Fitzroy River in North-western Australia, in February. Examples were also obtained in 1886 in the same neighbourhood by Mr. E. J. Cairn and the late Mr. T. H. Bowyer-Bower, I have specimens in immature or adult plumage now before me from all parts of the continent except Central Australia. It w-as probably due to there being a drought in Central Australia in 1894 that this species was not met with by the Horn Scientific Expedition. During a trip made in South Australia by Dr. A. M. Morgan, in July and August, 1900, he observed two immature males at Elizabeth Creek, about one hundred and twenty miles north-west of Port Augusta. The wing-measurement of adult males varies from 3-85 inches to 4-1 inches. By a typographical error in the " Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum,"- the wing and tail measurement of the adult male of Lalage tricolor is there represented as exceeding the measure- ments of the same parts in L. leucomela. On the highlands of the Miison's Point railway-line, near Sydney, it is worthy of note that this species does not make its appearance until nearly a month later than it does in the western suburbs of Ashfield and Canterbury. These birds generally return to the same haunts year after WHITE-SHOULDERED CATERPILLAR-EATER. • Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. iv., p. 92 (1869). LALAGE. 119 year. They frequent chiefly open forest and partially cleared lands, and are usually met \vith in pairs. The male, with its strikingly contrasted black and white plumage and rich and melodious sono-, being the first to attract one's attention; the sombrely attired female, harmonising with its surroundings, being more difficult of detection. The voluble notes of the male are usually uttered while flying from tree to tree, and somewhat resemble those of the Brown Fly-catcher I Micnrca fascinans) but are louder and deeper. The remarkably small nest of this bird, too, would often escape observation, were not the attractive song of the male frefjuently poured forth while perched on a branch close to it. The food consists entirely of insects and their larvje, obtained chiefly among the leaves of trees, and sometimes on the ground. Although frequenting orchards, I have never known it to attack the fruit like the larger members of the family Campophagid.?:. During a \isit paid to Moree in November, 1897, by Mr. J. A. Thorpe and myself, we found this species the commonest bird in the neighbourhood, being even more plentiful than the White-eyebrowed Wood Swallow (Artamus supnriliosus). It was breeding freely, and there was a nest in a Bastard ^lyall (Acacia ciinninghami ) w'lth'm a few yards of my window. The female used to sit in the early morning, being relieved by the male throughout the greater part of the day, and resuming the duties of incubation again in the evening and through the night. In the same tree was a nest of the Black and White Fantail (Sauloprocta melaleiica). Another instance of the female relieving the male at night, during the task of incubation, I observed at Roseville. A nest which I found in course of construction in a low forked branch of a Rough-barked .Apple-tree (Angophom intermedia), on the 28th October, 1901, by seeing the female fly to it, although I only saw the male actually building it, was finished on the 4th November. After the eggs were deposited, whenever I passed it in the daytime I found the male sitting, but at dusk his place was taken by the female. Evidently the male was not near at hand, or disregarded her cries of alarm, when I drew the branch down and frightened her off the nest. The nest, a small open shallow structure, is built at the junction of a two or more pronged horizontal branch, occasionally in a perfectly upright fork, but more often in a slightly leaning pronged branch, and generally towards the extremity of a limb. It is formed of very fine fibrous roots or dried grasses, the rim and the fork in which it is built being thickly coated with spider's web. The nests are variable in size, according to the position in which they are built ; those on horizontal forks being as a rule larger than those placed in upright branches. At Chatswood, near Sydney, on the 28th November, 1898, I saw the male of a pair of these birds, who had been robbed of their eggs, commencing to build again in a thin forked horizontal branch of a sapling about fifteen feet from the ground. This nest I had under daily and almost constant observation, and the male alone constructed it so far as I could ascertain, in fact I never saw the female of this pair of birds at any time. On the 3rd December I saw the male sitting on the nest, and also three days later when it contained two perfectly fresh eggs, .\lthough this nest was quickly built, it is more compactly constructed and far neater in appearance than the first nest, built in an upright fork near the top of a Syncarpia. It is formed at the junction of a very thin three-pronged leafy branch, and is outwardly composed of fine pliant plant stems, lined inside with fine dried grasses; the outer portion of it, the fork on which it is placed, and the rim being coated with spider's web and ornamented with a few small leaves of a climbing plant. Externally it measures two inches and a half in diameter by one inch and a quarter in depth; the inner saucer-shaped cavity measuring two inches in diameter by three-quarters of an inch in depth. The site of the nest varies very much; inland it is frequently built in a hop bush or emu-bush, as low as four feet from the ground. Near the coast it is more often built in a gum, apple, oak, or turpentine-tree at a height from fifteen to thirty feet, but not infrequently at an altitude of sixty or seventy feet. The eggs are 120 CAMPOPHAGIDJE. two or three in number for a sitting, and are typically oval in form, the shell being close-grained and its surface slightly lustrous. The ground colour varies from light green to rich bluish- green, which is uniformly blotched or marked with short irregular shaped streaks of reddish or chestnut-brown, in some specimens almost obscuring the ground colour, and in rare instances confined almost entirely to the larger end, where a perfect zone or cap is formed. A set of two measures:— Length (A) 0-87 x 0-65 inches; (B) o-86 x o-66 inches. A set of three:— (A) 0-82 x inches; (B) 0-83 x 0-65 inches; (C) 0-82 x o-66 inches. A nestling taken at Roseville on the 8th December, 1900, I fed upon finely cut pieces of raw meat, and it lived four days. It was extremely tame, and used to perch on my finger while preening its feathers. The general colour above is brown, with fulvous white tips to all the feathers; rump greyish-brown, all the feathers indistinctly barred with brown and lipped with dull white; primaries, secondaries, and upper wing-coverts brown, broadly edged with fawn, whitish at the tips; ear-coverts dull white; all the under surface dull white, the feathers on the throat and chest having dusky brown centres. The young male has the head, hind-neck, and upper part of the back rich brown; feathers of the lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts grey with brownish tips; quills and upper wing- coverts black, the latter broadly edged with ochraceous-buff; the secondaries externally margined, and the primaries narrowly tipped with white; tail black, the two central feathers margined with white on their apical portion, and the remainder tipped with white; under surface buffy- white, darker on the sides of the body, which is crossed with indistinct dusky brown bars. In the semi- adult male, the feathers on the crown of the head have central streaks of black, and those of the mantle and upper portion of the back a large subterminal spot of black ; the ochraceous-buff edges to the upper wing-coverts are much broader, there is a buffy-white stripe over the eye, more distinct than in the adult female, and all the under surface is white, slightly tinged with yellowish-buff, and crossed with almost invisible dusky-brown bars on the sides of the chest. In the not quite adult male, the last trace of immaturity is exhibited in a few brown feathers being intermingled with the glossy black ones on the hind-neck and upper portion of the back. The immature female is duller in colour than the adult, and has the primaries, secondaries, and outer series of the greater wing-coverts broadly margined with pale buffy-white; tail- feathers brown with buffy-white margins, and passing into buff on the outermost feather, which has the outer web entirely buff except at the base. In the south-eastern portions of the continent, immature birds only are obtained or observed after the main body of the migrants take their departure at the end of summer. Adult birds only were met with at Moree in November, some of the males having very narrow edges and tips of white to the secondaries; in others the primaries were externally edged and tipped with white, and the outer webs and tips of the secondaries broadly margined with white. The breeding season in New South Wales usually commences at the end of September, and continues until the end of January or early paXt of February. Near Sydney the eggs are generally deposited during the first week in October, but I have found nests at Chatswood and Roseville, containing eggs, in the beginning of December. Owing probably to the drought in 1901, these birds were not so numerous as usual, and with their young had all left the district by the 31st December; the previous season they were noted as late as the 2ist February. Dr. W. Macgillivray informs me that in the neighbourhood of Cloncurry, in Northern Queens- land, they are very common, and nest everywhere immediately the wet season is over in January and February. From Point Cloates, North-western Australia, Mr. Tom Carter sends me the following note: — "Lalage irkohr is a winter visitor to this district. I found nests containing young on the 3rd August, 1899, and the 14th and 15th July, 1901." The figure represents an adult male. EXPLANATION OF PLATE B. IL Figs. 1, 2. Ptilonorhynchus violaceus. Satin Bower-bird. Fig. 3. Chlamydodera ncchams. Great Bower-bird. Figs. 4, 5, 6. Culamyuodeba macclata. Spotted Bower-bird. Fig. 7. Chlamydodeka outtata. Guttated Bower-bird. Fig. 8. Chlamydodera cerviniventkis. Fawn-breasted Bower-bird. Figs. 9, 10, 11, 12. Chlamydodera orientalis. Eastern Bower-bird. Figs. 13, 14, 1.5, IC. Sebiculds melinus. Regent Bower-bird. V?- NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIBOS. PLATE B. U ' 9- ^^, ',) ^ ■ ' / '^V-'/Wi:i ^v;:/,; 10 It 12 ^S^jj^ S,JJ^- 13 15 16 EXPLANATION OF PLATE B. in. Figs. 1, 2, 7. Cb.vspedophoba alberti. Prince Albert's KiUc-bird. Figs. 3, 4, 5. Ptilorhis victoki;e. Queen Victoria's Uitle-bird. Fig. 6. PUONYGAMA GOULUI Australian Trumpet-bird. Figs. 8, 9, Pu ->i' 0BN1CULATU8. Friar-bird. Fig. 10. PHLLEMON UDCEROIDES. Hclmeted Friar-bird. Figs. 11. 12. Geocichla lunulata. Mountain Thrush. Figs. 13, 14, 15. Edoliisoma tenuirostbe. Jardine's Caterpillar-cater. Figs. 16, 17, 18. Oriolds saoittatcs. Olive-backed Oriole. Fig. 20 Okioi.us akfinis (smaller race). Northern Oriole. Fig. 19. Obiolds flavicixctls. yellow-bellied Oriole. Fig. 21. Anthoch.«ba cakunculata. Wattled Honey-eater. Figs. 22, 23. pHrLEMOs citreooli-aris. Yellow-throated Friar-bird. Figs. 24, 25. Anellobu meixivoha. Brush Wattle-bird. NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. PLATE B. IIL I. ■ V 16 i 12 17 it^ ?..,:;»•■ «a »*, "' .i 13 18 14 19 .^m 'R*'' 10 15 f^ ■•»■■...;■/ 20 21 22 23 24 25 EXPLANATION OF PLATE B. IV. Figs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 COLLYKIOCINCLA HABMONICA. Grey Slirike-Tluush. Figs. 0, 7, «. Oreoica ckistata Crested Bell-bird Figs, i), 10. COLI/YBIOCINCLA BECTIltOSTUIS straight-billed Shrikc-Tluush. Figs. 11, 12. Stbuthidea ciserea. Apostle-bird. Figs. 13, 14 Pacbycephala olivacea. Olivaceous Thickhead. Fig 15 COLLYRIOCINCLA liKUNNEA. Brown Shrike-Thrush. Fig. 16. CoLLYRIOCINCLA RCFIVENTBIS. Buff-bellied Shrike-Thrush. Figs 18, 19, 20. COLLYBIOCINCLA RUFIOASTKB Rufous-breasted Shrike Thrush. Figs 23, 24, 2.5 Coli.ybiocikcla paevissima (northern lacc}. Northern Eufous-breastcd Shrike-Thrush Fig. 17 Collyriocincla CERVTNivENTBis. (inland race) Fawn-breasted Shrike-Thrush. Figs. 21, 22. COLLYRIOCINCLA PABVDLA. Little Shrike-Thrush NESTS AND EGGS OF AUSTRALIAN BIRDS. PLATE B. IV. '^J« ^ 4 I c^..>;.i >■» I i^ ^ • io >.-.." ■(^.^i 16 12 .v^;-.-.^ 17 .• • ^ .'i*^' 13 V ■ ' V .■■*■ 13 21 22 23 -"X 14 19 ..♦i K. 24 15 :V % 20 Jl^- 25 MUSCICAPID.E. '^' Family MUSCICAPID^. Rhipidura albiscapa. WHITE-SHAFTED FANTAIL. Rhipidura flaU'UMa (nee Grael.), Vig. A Horsf., Trans. Linn. Soc, Vol. XV., p. 247 (1S26). RhipicUra albiscapa, Gould, Proc. Zool. See, 1840, p. 113; Sharpe, Cat. Bds. B.-it. AIus., Vol. IV., p. :510 (1879). Adult MXLE-Geueral colour above ashy-brown, slightly darker on the head; lesser wing-coverts ashy-brown; median and greater winy-coverts dark brown, with a spot of white on the tips of their outer webs; quills dark brown, the secondaries edged with white on their outer tvehs ; tioo central tail-feathers blacki.h-brown, the remainder a,hy brown with a blackish-brown wash on their outer toebs and lipped loith white; shafts of the two central feathers blackish-brown, of the remainder and the outermost web of the outermost feather white ; lores and sides of the face dull blackish-brown; a line over the eye, and one above the ear-coverts white ; cheeks and throat white; lower throat dull black; remainder of the under surface pale ochraceons-buf; sides of the breast ashy-brown; under tail coverts white; bill black, base of the lower mandible yelloioish horn colour; legs and feet brownish-black; iris black. Total length in the fesh >r25 inches, wing 3, tail -I:',, 'nil 0-28, tarstis ()'7. Adult fem.\LE — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution.— Queens\a.nd, New South Wales. X'ictoria, South Australia. /^,:%HE White-shafted Fantail is a common resident throughout the greater portion of X Eastern and South-eastern Australia. Although found m the mland portions of the States, it is more frequently met with in open forest-lands and lightly timbered scrub near the coast ' Favourite haunts also are humid mountain ranges and gullies. It is a lively and attractive species, and is usually met with in pairs, resorting sometimes to the topmost branches of the lofty Encalvpti, but just as often to saplings or low Melale:u-a scrub within a few feet of the ground. It is also a close attendant on cultivation and is common about orchards and gardens, ridding the fruit trees and shrubs of many insect pests. Seldom does this active little bird remain still ; it is almost constantly on the move, darting forth ever and anon to capture some passing insect, or fluttering slowly from tree to tree. During flight, and often when perched, it spreads the long feathers of its beautiful fan-shaped tail. When haunting orchards and gardens it becomes very tame, frequently warblmg its low but sweet son- while perched onlv a few feet away, or passing within arm's length of one, as they playfully chase each other from tree to tree. The song of this bird consists of a quick.y uttered "chip chip," followed by a succession of clear and varied musical notes. The food of the White-shafted Fantail consists of flies, moths, and small msects of all kinds, captured mostly while on the wing, also the larva^ of various insects found on leaves and branches. Some specimens obtained near Sydney, apparently very old birds, are dark smoky-grey above, and have the longer upper tail-coverts blackish-brown. The wing measurement of fully adult males varies from 2-8 inches to 3 inches. ' The nest is an exceedingly neat and beautiful structure, resembling in form a wine-gUiss with the base or stand broken ofif close to the lower end of the stem. Usually it is formed ot strips and shreds of the soft inner bark of trees, bound round and held together with spiders 122 RHIPIDURA. webs on the outside, and lined with bark fibre. Nests, however, from different locaUties, vary considerably in the materials from which they are constructed ; in humid mountain gullies the foundations of some are formed of the soft downy reddish-brown covering of the newly budded fronds of tree-ferns, others are built chiefly of thistle-down, but, in all, the exterior is more or less thickly coated with spiders' webs. Occasionally the lining consists of very fine dried grasses or wiry rootlets. The tail, or appendage, below the nest is also of varying length and finish; in some I have seen long thin chips of wood or portions of leaves used instead of bark ; it is not, too, always perfectly straight, for the nest is sometimes built over a nearly vertical branch, and the tail is constructed around it. A typical one, now before me, is formed of shreds and strips of the soft yellowish-white inner bark of trees, coated externally with spiders' webs, and is lined inside with very thin strips of bark and bark fibre. It measures two inches in external diameter, by a depth of four inches and a half, the nest proper measuring two inches, and the appendage below the thin three-pronged leafy branch on which it was placed two inches and a half; internal diameter of cup-like cavity one inch and three-quarters; depth one inch and a quarter, .\bout Sydney thin dead twigs of gum saplings, tea-trees, and turpentines, are often selected as nesting-sites. Sometimes the nest is formed in a tall Eucalyptus, and, if the birds are unmolested, in any suitable tree about orchards and gardens. Generally it is built at the junction of a two or more pronged horizontal forked twig, but not infreijuently in a nearly upright fork or on a drooping branch. It is placed at a height varying from three to forty feet from the ground, but on an average not over fifteen feet, and frequently within hand's reach. The eggs are two or three in number for a sitting, and vary from cnal to swollen oval in form, the shell being close-grained, dull, and lustreless. They vary in ground colour from dull white to creamy-white, some specimens being slightly darker on the larger end, and are minutely freckled, dotted, spotted, or irregularly blotched with yellowish-brown, or wood- brown, intermingled occasionally with a few underlying markings of a faint bluish-grey. As a rule the markings predominate on the thicker end, where they form a more or less well defined zone. In some specimens the markings are small and indistinct, and form a band of a slightly darker shade than the ground colour around the larger end of the shell; others have small clouded blotches unevenly distributed over the entire surface. .\ set of three, taken on the 13th October, igoi, at Roseville, measures as follows: — Length (.\) 0-63 x 0-47 inches; (B) 0-62 X 0-47 inches; (C) 0-62 x 0-41 inches. A set of two, taken in the same locality, on the 22nd October, igoi, measures: — (A) 0-64 x 0-48 inches; (B) 0-65 x 0-49 inches. A set of two, taken at Chatswood, on the loth November, 1901, measures: — (A)o-6xo-5i; (B) o-6i x 0-5 inches. The nest from which these eggs were taken also contained an egg of the Square-tailed Cuckoo. F'ledgelings are ashy-brown above, with dull rufous edges to all the feathers, those on the crown of the head being of a clearer ashy-brown ; wing-coverts ashy-brown, with white tips washed with rufous, as are also the margins and tips of the outer webs of the innermost secondaries; tail ashy-brown, the lateral feathers, except at the base, white; eye-brows rufous; on each side of the throat a narrow line of white feathers ; cheeks, throat, and chest rufous- brown; remainder of the under surface dull white; bill blackish-brown; gape yellow; legs and feet fleshy-red; iris blackish-brown. Young birds are duller in colour than the adults; the feathers on the sides of the nape, back, and rump are on the extremity tipped with rufous; median and greater wing-coverts dark-brown, tipped with rufous; the tips, of the tail feathers are smaller and of a dull white; the white mark over the eye is more oval in shape, and the white mark above the ear-coverts in the adult is absent; chin dull white; upper throat ashy-brown; a band on the lower throat dull black ; remainder of the under surface ochraceous-buff. Wing 2-8 inches. MUSCICAPID.E. 123 On the morn.n- of the 29th October, 190., at RosevUle, I disturbed from a nest bu.lt in a aum sapHn- three vounR birds, two of which I captured, brought them into the Museum, photocaaphed them as shown below, and returned them again to their anxious parents m the afternoon Nine davs after, I saw one of them being fed ; it had grown almost as large as the parent, the dark band on the throat was clearly indicated, and the tail feathers were nearly as long as in the adult. In the neighbourhood of Svdney, nidil^cat.on usually commences early in September; the tail below the branch being first constructed, and the entire nest is generally finished in ten days- but when the buds ha^■e been just previously robbed of their eggs, it is built much Quicker The eggs are deposited on successive days;£incubation, in which duty the male takes part, occupying twelve days^ and the young birds leave the nest from ten to twelve days after bein- hatched. Two broods are reared during the breeding season, which generally terminates^about the middle of January, but at Eastwood I saw several new nests just bemg started on tst January, 1S9+. On the same day I saw a pair of these birds attending to the wants of a young Square-tailed Cuckoo. No species more readily forsakes its nest if disturbed while building, or clings more pertinaciously to it after the eggs are laid. On the 24th September, 1898, at Koseville, I found a nest built on a thin horizontal branch of a gum sapling, about eight feet from the ground, and saw one of the birds sitting on it. A companion who was with me climbed the tree, and before I could warn hull, put the tip of his finger inside the nest which was just finished. On visiting it ten days later we saw the birds removing it to the topmost twigs of a sapling, about forty yards away, and to a height of twenty-five feet from the 'aound. This nest was examined on the :6th October, with a sm.lar result, portion of it bein^g removed three days later,_the tail alone being left at the end of a week. The nests, however, are riot removed by the birds as a rule, althou-h they are often deserted if one only too closely examines them. The following instance will illustrate the tenacity with which this species clings to its nest after the eggs are deposited. On the 2c,th October, 1898, Mr. C G. J°^-7;-; ^^f visited a nest we had found nearly finished the previous week, m a tall gum sapling on the side of a gully at Chatswood. On nearing the tree .-e saw one of the birds fly up to the nest and relieve its mate who was sitting. After awaiting for a few minutes, my --P-j-^j-^^f^^ ^^ lower limbs of the tree, but the occupant of the nest did not move. Reaching the ne t he tried to frighten it off by waving his hands, but it would not budge, and all attempts to dislodge 1 with : thin stick wle of no avail. He then tried to lift it off, but the bird clung wi hi s to the lining of the structure. Finally slipping his fingers down to the bird s claws, he gently detached them from the sides of the nest, and placed the bird in his coat-pocket w:hile he took the eggs. This was by no means an easy feat, for he could just manage to reach the nest as 1^ was built on a very thfn terminal twig, and a gale was blowing at the time After descend ng Lm the tree and examining the eggs, which proved to be ^^^ .'^[^^ ""f^-ff;^^ and one of the Square-tailed Cuckoo (Caccnantis vanolosus). he lifted the bird out of h. pocke ■ It did not exhibit the slightest fear or struggle to get free -while we examined it. Directly U was restored to liberty, it flew to a neighbouring branch and started to preen its feathers, and WIHTF.-SIIAFTED FANTAlLS (FLKDGELINGS) 124 KHIPIDUKA. then again took possession of the nest. Another Fantail whose nest was found the same after- noon, did not exhibit the same fearless disposition, but forsook its charge immediately my companion commenced to climb the tree. Both of these nests were about fifteen feet from the ground, and each contained an egg of the Square-tailed Cuckoo. On the 8th December, 1898, we found a White-shafted Fantail sitting on its nest in a low gum sapling at Roseville. Attempts to frighten or dislodge it with a Grass-tree stem were unsuccessful, but it abandoned the nest directly we essayed to lift it off". The nest, which the Fantails afterwards deserted, only contained an egg of the Square-tailed Cuckoo. A nest I found at Roseville, on the 13th October, 1901, was built on a thin dead twig of a Smooth-barked Apple-tree (Angophora lanceolata), about four feet from the ground, and contained three partially incubated eggs. These I removed, and concealed under some fallen leaves of a Casiiarina siibevosa. On returning next day to photograph the nest, I observed the same pair of birds busily engaged in carrying nestinj; material into an adjoinini; paddock. Following them up, 1 found about sixty yards away they had already formed — under the junction of several thin leafy twigs of a Turpentine (Syncarpia laurifolia), at a height of four feel from the ground, — the tail or stem-like appendage of a new nest. Passing the structure two days later, I found half of the cup formed ; and on the 22nd October, or ten days later since removing the eggs from the first nest, I found the second one completed, and the female sitting on two fresh eggs. Of six nests I found that season, five contained either three eggs or three young ones. When the young ones are about half-fledged, and their bills are visible over the edge of the nest, the rim of the hitherto neat structure loses that rounded appearance, and becomes much frayed, and is greatly bulged and flattened out as the youn^ continue to grow. .-\ nest I had under daily observation at Roseville, about seven feet from the ground, built in a Forest Oak (Casiiarina suberosa), on my visiting it on the Sth November, 1901, contained three young ones standing on a shapeless mass of nesting material. On my venturing beneath it, two of them fluttered away from the remains of what was once a perfect and beautiful home. Rhipidura preissi. PKEl.Ss'S FANTAIL. Rhijndura preissi, Cabanis, Mus llein., Theil. I., p. .57 (1850); Gould, llandljk. Bds. Au.str., Vol. I., p. 240 (1865); Sharpe, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1881, p. 387. Adult m.\le — Similar to the adult male of R. albiscapa, hut Iiaving the upper parts with a slightly more ashy-grey shade, the under surface of a lighti-.r ochraceous-buff] and no black band on the lower throat, which is ashy-brown tinged ivith grey, like the sides of the breast. Total length 5 8 inches, iving 3, tail 3'4, bill OS, tarsus 0'7. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the adult male. Distribution. — Western and North western Australia. " y-'^ REISS'S FANTAIL is the representative of R. albiscapa in Western and North-western -L Australia. While collecting on behalf of the Trustees of the .Xustralian Museum, Mr. George Masters, the present Curator of the Macleay Museum, obtained adults and young at King George's Sound, in March, 1866; and again, in the same locality, in November, 1868. Its haunts and habits, Mr. Masters informs me, are precisely similar to those of R. albiscapa. From Point Cloates, North-western Australia, Mr. Tom Carter writes me, as follows: — "/?/i!^jiHra/im552, is mostly a winter visitor here, and some years is quite numerous, arriving about the end of May or June. It is common in the mangroves, where there is an abundance of insects, and I have often noticed it on the beach feeding upon small flies that abound on strips of seaweed left by the receeding tide. This species is very tame and confiding." RJUPIDURA. 125 A nest in the Australian Museum collection, taken at Kinj,' George's Sound b)' Mr. Masters on the 7th October, 1868, is indistinguishable from that of its eastern representative; so also are two of its eggs, taken in South-western Australia in October, 1899. The latter measure: — ■ Length (A) 0-62 x 0-47 inches; (B) o-6 x 0-5 inches. Young birds resemble the adults, but have the upper wing-coverts more broadly tipped "with white; under surface more strongly washed with ochraceous-buff, and only a slight indication of the ashy-brown band on the lower throat. Wing 2-7 inches. Rhipidura diemenensis. TASMANIAN FANTAIL. Mhipidiira saliirala, Sharpe, Oat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. IV., p. 311 (1879). Rhipidura diemenensis, Sharpe, Ibis, 1879, p. 368. Adult male — Differs from the adult male of R. albiscapa in havuuj Oie 'tipper parts of a slightly deeper brown shade, the tail feathers darker and having smaller and duller white tips, the black band on the lower throat narrower, and the remaitider of the under surface of a slighlhj deeper shade of ochraceous-buff. Total lenyth 5:5 inches, iring 29, tail 3'Jf., bill 0-J8, tarsus 0-6S. Adult female — Similar in plnmage to the male. Distribution. — Tasmania, and some of the islands of Bass Strait. ^ I(^HE Tasmanian Fantail is another close ally of the continental species R. albiscapa. JL Specimens in the Australian Museum collection were obtained by Mr. George Masters at the Ouse River and Mount Wellington, in April and March, 1867. E.xamples in the flesh have also recently been received from Mr. E. D. Atkinson, of Waratah, Mount Bischoff, in the North-western portion of the island. From notes received from Mr. Atkinson 1 have extracted the following information : — "These little birds are widely distributed over Tasmania, except on the plain country, and are also found on Flinder's, Barren, and West Hunter's Islands. Generally they are seen in pairs, more especially in the vicinity of water-courses, and in this district frequently in the depths of the gloomy forest. They are constantly on the move, and in a most irregular flight dart about in all directions in pursuit of small insects, which constitute their food. The nest, which resembles a wine-glass in shape, is formed of shreds of bark bound round with spiders' webs, and lined inside with glossy brown down gathered from the fronds of the tree-fern. It is placed on a thin horizontal twig, or in a partially upright fork, and those I found were by observing the head and tail of the sitting bird projecting over the sides of the nest." The following information is extracted from Dr. Lonsdale Holden's MS. notes, made on the North-western coast of Tasmania: — "I found an unfinished nest of Rhipidura diemenensis, attached to the horizontal twigs of a tea-tree branch, in a swamp on Circular Head Peninsula, on the 8th November, 1886. It was cup-shaped, and built of strips of fine whitish soft inner bark, covered externally with cobwebs, and had a kind of tail or projection underneath the nest like the broken stem of a wine-glass. Three days later I saw one of these birds building a nest in a tea-tree swamp close to Stanley. On the 14th November I found another nest nearly ready for eggs, in a tea-tree in the township paddock, Circular Head; it was about five and a half feet from the ground. I took two eggs from this nest on the 20th November. Two days later I visited the nest found on the nth November, and found the bird sitting on three eggs. On the 30th November, at Brickmakers' Bay, I found a nest with three eggs, and another with two, both sets being very much incubated. Perhaps the latter had lost an egg, for it was built on a bit of loose dead branch, lying in a tea-tree, and was very much on one side when I found it. Next day I found another nest in tea-tree scrub near Stanley, in which the bird was sitting on two fresh eggs. In diameter the most perfect of these nests measures externally two inches Cc 126 MUSCICAPID.E. and a quarter: length, including dependent tail, four inches; internally one inch and two-thirds in diameter by one inch and a quarter in depth. These birds are as plentiful and as tame in winter as in summer." Eggs two or three in number for a sitting: oval or rounded oval in form, the shell being close grained, dull and lustreless. The ground colour, which varies from dull to creamy-white, is freckled or blotched with pale or creamy-brown, particularly on the larger end, where in some specimens they are intermingled with underlying markings of dull bluish-grey. The same variation in colour and distribution of their markings is to be found in the eggs of this species as in those of R. albisiapa, from which they cannot be distinguished. A set of three measures: — Length (A) 0-64 x 0-45 inches; (B) 0-65 x 0-45 inches; (C) 0-65 x 0-46 inches. A set of two measures: — Length (A) o-6i x 0-47 inches; (B) o-6 x 0-47 inches. Rhipidura albicauda. WHITE-TAILED FAXTAIL. Khipidura alhicanda, North, Ibis, 1895, p. 340; id., Rep. Horn Sci. Exped. Central Austr., Pt. II , Zool., p. ".">, pi. 6, lower tig., (1896). Adult \l.\LE^Genei-al colour above ashy-broivn, becoming slightly darker on the head and browner on the rump and upper tail-coverts ; lesser wing-coverts ashy-brown, the median and greater series dark brown, the former narrowly, and the latter largely, tipped with ivhite; quills dusky brown, the innermost secondaries margined with tvhite on their outer webs; two central tail Jeathers blackish- brown, the two outermost feathers on either side pure tvhite, the remainder tvhite, narroivhj edged with blackishbrowit on the basal half of their outer webs, which increases in extent towards the tivo central feathers ; lores and ear-coverts blackisJi-brown ; a line above the eye, and a shorter one above the ear-coverts, ivhite; cheeks and throat white; loiver throat dull black; remainder of the inider surface light ochraceous-buff ; sides of the breast pale ashybronn ; under tail-coverts tvhite: bill black; legs and feel brownish-black; iris black. Total length 5'8 inches, tving 2'S, tail S'5, bill 0-25, tarsus 65. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — Central Australia. ^^HIS species, which differs from R. albiscapa in having all but the two central tail feathers pure white, was one of the novelties secured by the members of the Horn Scientific E.xpedition in Central Australia in 1894. Mr. G. A. Keartland writes me that "it haunts the mulga scrubs of the Levi Range, where specimens were obtained, and others were shot at Petermann and Adminga Creeks; it is also fairly plentiful near lUaniiirta. In note, and liabit of fluttering from branch to branch, it closely resembled R. albiscapa, but when its glossy-white outer tail feathers on either side of the dark centre were displayed, the difference was at once very conspicuous, more especially when the sun was shining through them, making each feather appear as if it was made of white satin." The small cobweb coated and delicately formed open nest of this species doubtless closely resembles that of its well-known near ally the White-shafted Fantail, for Mr. C. E. Cowle who found one at lllamurta in December, 1894, '" describing it to Mr. Keartland, states it is of a "pipe-like shape," evidently referring to the tail-like appendage below the nest, and the thin mulga branch on which it was placed. The single egg, however, which it contained, varies somewhat from typical eggs of the White-shafted Fantail. It is oval in form and of a faint buffy-white ground colour, which is thickly covered with minute and indistinct freckles of pale purplish-buff, the markings being most thickly disposed on the larger end and thus forming an obscure cap. Length : — 0-65 x 0-5 inches. Another egg subsequently received by Mr. Keartland, is indistinguishable from the ordinary zoned type of egg of R. albiscapa. RHIPIDURA 127 /^ps Rhipidura rufifrons. RUFOUS-FRONTED FANTAIL. Muscicapa rufifrons, Lath., Ind. Orn., Suppl., p. 1., (1801). Rhipidura rufifrons, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol.. Vol. II., pi. 84 (1848), (part); vl, Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 240 (1865). Adult male— CVojuh of the head, neck, mantle, and upper portion of the back brown slightly tinged irith pale orange-rufous: hnoer portion of the back, rump, and upper tail-coverts orange- rufous: upper wiug-coverts and quills brown, tinged with pale orange-rufous, which is more distinct^ on the outer webs of the inner secondaries: base of the tail-feathers orange-rufous, the terminal halj blackish-brown, with pale brown tips ; forehead, and a line of feathers above the eye orange-rufous: ear-coverts dark broivu : chin, cheeks, upper portion of the throat, and a broad line of Jeathers extending on to the sides of the neck white: lower throat black : feathers of the fore-neck a^id chest black margined tvith white; centre of the breast dull white; sides of the breast and abdomen fawn ^ colour: under tail-coverts fawn-buff ; bill broivn, base oj loiver mandible yellowish-horn colour; legs and feet brown; iris brown. Total length in the flesh 6-2 inches, w-ing 2-9, tail SS, bill OSo, tarsus 0-75. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution.— Queensland. New South Wales, and Victoria. ,HE Rufous-fronted Fantail is found in favour- able situations throu,£,'hout the greater portions of Eastern Queensland, Eastern New South ^^'ales, and Victoria. This species chiefly frequents humid mountain ranges and the rich coastal brushes during spring and summer,- leaving after the breeding season is over early in autumn, for more open parts of the country. It is of the same restless disposition as its smaller congener K. albiscapa, and is constantly on the move, displaying the rich colour of the lengthened feathers of its fan-shaped tail. It is more often met with singly, except in the breeding season, when it is generally seen in pairs, frequenting the trees near the water in mountain gullies, or the margins of creeks and rivers in the brushes. Sometimes it is seen in the centres ot large cities. Mr. George Masters, Curator of the Macleay Museum at the Sydney University, informs me that while engaged m entomological duties at his table near a window one day, one of these birds found its way into the building. After flying several times backwards and forwards the length of the Museum, it finally selected as a resting place the top of his head, and there it remained for some time until he attempted to put his hand near it. Although found close to or in Sydnev in autumn and winter, I have only known it to breed in the gullies on the highlands of the Milson's Point railway-line, beyond Chatswood and Roseville, or in the humid scrubs and gullies at National Park and Waterfall. The food of this species consists entirely of small insects, flies, small moths, etc., captured principally while on the wing. Unlike the White-shafted Fantail, which frequently builds its nest in fruit trees, it is seldom seen in orchards during the breeding season, unless contiguous to its usual haunts. RUFOUS-FRONTED FANTAIL. 128 MUSCICAPID.E. The nest, like that of R. albiscapa, resembles in shape a wine-glass with the base broken off at the lower end of the stem, but it is somewhat larger and made of coarser material. Usually it is composed of shreds of bark, bound round and held together with cobwebs, the inside being lined with black hair-like rootlets, dried grasses, or the fruiting stalks of mosses, the tail-like appendage below the nest proper being of varying length and sometimes entirely absent. An average nest measures externally two inches and a half in diameter by two inches in depth, internally two inches in diameter by one inch in depth, the tail-like appendage below the nest measuring three inches and a half. A nest received from Mr. J. Gabriel, and taken at Bayswater, ^'ictoria, is built on the midrib of a fern frond, and is securely held in position by the nesting material being worked over the pinnae at each side. It is cup-shaped in form, and lacks the usual tail-like appendage, the width of the frond probably precluding the birds from constructing it. The nest is formed of the soft yellowish-white inner bark of trees, bound round with cobwebs, the outside being lined with very fine dried grasses, a small quantity of bright orange-red fruit and fruit-stalks of mosses. Four other nests, taken in the same locality, are built at the junction of several thin leafy branchlets near the end of partially upright or drooping branches, the tail-like appendage of one nest being woven around a thin perpendicular twig beneath the nest. With the above nests, Mr. Gabriel has kindly sent the following notes: — "The Rufous-fronted Fantail, as a rule, builds over or near water in the fern gullies, but I have found them well up the creek banks. The nests are cunningly placed, and easily overlooked, but at Bayswater the birds shew a decided preference for the Hazel (Pomaderris apetala), and the Blanket-tree (Scnecio hedfordi). As far as my experience goes, December and January are the usual breeding months, but I have found several nests with young- in December, and have a set of eggs in my possession that were quite fresh when taken on the ist February, 1896. A friend of mine found a nest only a foot above the surface of the water, and I ha\e taken them in hazel trees at a height of twenty feet from the ground." A nest of this species in the Australian Museum collection, found on the i6th January, 1897, by Mr. S. W. Moore and his son at the Valley of Waters, in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, was built in a Coach-wo(Kl (Crystapetalum apetalnm) growing on the steep bank of a creek, about ten yards from tiie water. It contained two fresh eggs that were visible when standing on the shelving ground above the tree in which the nest was built. Mr. Moore found the nest of the same pair of birds ten days after, not far from the site of the previous one, containing two fresh eggs. It was built in a tree about four feet from the ground, and was partially hidden by a large boulder. At Waterfall, on the and January, 1899, Mr. Moore found an unfinished nest in a Coach-wood, on the bank of a creek close to where we were having our lunch. It was built near the leafy extremity of a thin branch about a foot from the ground, and was rendered more difficult of detection by the lower branches of the tree being covered in places with debris, while the creek had been previously in flood. Ten days later Mr. L. Moore visited it and ftjund it completed, with one egg in the nest, and another lying broken beneath it. The nests are usually built at the junction of a one or more pronged horizontal leafy branch, sometimes against or in a thin upright fork, and in the rich coastal brushes not infrequently on a vine. Generally they are low down and within hand's reach, sometimes within a foot of the ground, the height varying up to twenty feet. The nests I have found in New South Wales were, as a rule, built in large-leaved trees. Although the present species is usually more cautious than the White-shafted Fantail, like that species it is a close sitter when one approaches near the nest. The nest figured I found on the iith November, 1901, at Ourimbah. when about two- thirds built. It was placed on the thin stem of a tree under a creek hank. On the 23rd inilPIIlURA. 129 November, I disturbed the female while sitting on her egg and an egg of the Square-tailed Cuckoo, the latter being the larger of the two eggs figured. Both eggs were partially incubated, and she was very reluctant to leave them. The cup-like cavity of this nest is slightly shallower, and the tail-like appendage below the structure longer than usual. Externally it measures five inches and a (]uarter in length, by two inches and a quarter in diameter; and the inner cup one inch and three-quarters in diameter by seven-eighths of an inch in depth. The ragged end of the lower part of the structure consists principally of long chips of soft decaying wood, some of them measuring one inch and a half in length by nearly a quarter of an inch in width. The eggs are two in number for a sitting, and vary in form from oval to rounded oval, some specimens being rather pointed at the smaller end; the shell is close-grained, and its surface smooth and slightly lustrous. They vary in ground colour from a very pale cream (3r yellowish-white, to a rich cream, and are usually minutely dotted and spotted on the larger end with yellowish-brown, rich umber- brown, or dull reddish-brown, intermingled, as a rule, with a few small underlying spots of dull bluish-grey, and there forming a well-defined zone. In some specimens there are no under- lying markings, and the spots are evenly dis- tributed around the larger end of the shell; others have there a yellowish-brown band, which is minutely dotted and spotted with richer shades of brown. In most specimens the smaller end is entirely devoid of markings, ov has only a few widely distributed spots. A set of two, taken on the igth September, 1897, in the Richmond River District, measures as follows: — Length (A) 0-65 x 0-51 inches; (B) 0-62 X o'5i inches. A set of two, taken at Bayswater, Mctoria, measures: — (A) 0-65 x 0-49 inches; (B) o-68 x 0-49 inches. Two eggs, taken at Ourimbah from different nests, measure: — (A) 07 x 0-53 inches; (B) 072 x o"49 inches. Young birds resemble the adults, but have the upper portion of the back, scapulars, and upper wing-coverts strongly washed with orange-rufous; forehead, a line above the eye extending on to the sides of the nape, pale orange-rufous; fore-neck dull ashy-brown; chin and remainder of the under surface dull brownish-white, washed with pale rufous, the feathers on the lower throat having blackish-brown centres; sides of the body and under tail-coverts fawn colour, ^^'ing 27 inches. In Southern Queensland and the northern coastal brushes of New South Wales, nests with eggs have been found early in September, and generally throughout October and November. About the mou,ntainous gullies a little distance to the north and south of Sydney, November and the three following months constitute the usual breeding season. On the Blue Mountains, nests have been found with eggs early in November, and as late as the end of January. It is evident that two or more broods are reared during the season, for at Ourimbah, on NEST OF RUFOUS FRONTED FANT.\IL. 130 MUSCICAPID.E. the 27th December, 1902, I observed a female building in the next tree to the one from which the nest and eggs figured were taken the previous year, the tail-like appendage and base of the structure alone being formed. A little lower down the creek, and a few yards away from the opposite bank, was a completed nest containing a single fresh egg. On another creek I found a nest built in a tree overhanging the water, and in it two nearly fledged young. This nest was about two feet from the surface of the water, and was devoid of the usual tail -like termina- tion beneath the structure. As I have previously pointed out, the Rufous-fronted Fantail is one of the foster-parents of the Square-tailed Cuckoo. I found a nest at Ourimbah, on the 24th November, 1899, in a low tree about twenty yards from a creek, on which the female was sitting, containing a young Square-tailed Cuckoo; beneath the nest, which was four feet from the ground, I found a perfect egg of Rhipidiira ru/ifyons, with the yolk dried hard up in it. Rhipidura intermedia. .ALLIED FANTAIL. Rhipidura inte.rtwilia, North, Vict. Nat, Vol. XIX., p. 101 (I'.iOl'). Adult male — Like the adull male o/' Rhipidura rufiprons, hut dislinyuished from that species by the less extent of orange-rufous on the basal Italf of the tail-feathers, t/ie terminal half being blaekish-hrotvn, arid distinctly tipped rvith n'hite: by the narroiver black band on the lower throat, the less scale-like appearance of tlie featliers on the fore-neck, and the centre of the breast arid abdomen being white, the latter ivashed on the sides with pale fawn-buff; sides of tlie breast ashy-brotvn; under tail coverts pale fairti colour : bill dark brown, yellowish horn colour at the base of the lower mandible: legs and feet brown. Total lengtli 5 'J inches, wing 29, tail 33, hill()'32; tarsus 7. Adult female — Similar in plumage to the male. Distribution. — North-eastern Queensland. /"■"(^HE present species is an inhabitant of the scrubs of the Bellenden Ker and Sea- view JL Ranges in North-eastern Queensland. I have never seen it from any other part of that State, but doubtless its range e.xtends throughout the entire belt of rich tropical vegetation found in the central portion of the coastal districts of North-eastern Queensland, lying between Cardwell and the Endeavour River. It cannot be strictly regarded as the northern represen- tative of R. rufifrons, for during the "Chevert" Expedition, in 1875, Mr. George Masters obtained typical examples of that species at Cape York. Dr. Sharpe's description of Rhipidura rufifrons, in the " Catalogue of Birds in the British Museum,"" evidently applies to this species, for he describes the tail feathers as being "distinctly tipped with white." The type of R. rufifrons, characterised by Dr. Latham, was obtained in New South Wales, and has the tips of the tail feathers pale brown, not white. In the latter respect R. intermedia agrees with R. torrida, described and figuredt by Dr. Alfred Russel Wallace, from the island of Ternate, but R. torrida differs from R. intermedia in having the ear-coverts and upper breast black. Many specimens of Rhipidura intermedia were obtained by Messrs. Cairn and Grant while collecting on behalf of the Trustees of the Australian Museum, in North-eastern Queensland, from the vicinity of Cairns, and upon the highest peaks of the Bellenden Ker Range. The eggs are indistinguishable from those of its ally A', rufifrons, being oval in form, of a pale cream ground colour, and slightly darker at the larger end, where they are dotted and spotted with dull umber-brown, intermingled with a few underlying spots of faint bluish-grey. A set of two measures: — Length (A) 0-69 x 0-52 inches; (B) o-68 x 0-49 inches. ♦ Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. iv., p. 319 (1879). t Proc. Zool. Soc, 1865, p. 477. RHIPIDURA. 131 Rhipidura dryas. WOOD FANTAIL. Rhipidura dryas, Gould, Bds. Austr., fol., Vol. I., Introd., p. xxxix. (1848); id., Handbk. Bds. Austr., Vol. I., p. 242 (180.5); Sharps, Cat. Bds. Brit. Mus., Vol. IV., p. 322 (1879). Adult M.KhE—RaseiiMes the adult nmlfi of R. kufifrons, but is principally distimjuislied from that spi'cies by hanny the tail feathers largely tipped ivith white and being rufous at the base only ; forehead, rump, and upper tail-coverts rufous: chin, upper throat, and sides of the neck white; lower throat black; remainder <;/ the under surface dull white tinged with Julvous; sides of the body and under tail-coverts pale fulvous; bill dark brown: legs and feet brown. Total length 6 inches, wing '27, tail o-J/., tarsus 75. Adult fe.male — SUmilar in plumage to the male. Z)w